Doctor appointment updates

Oh, where to begin?!

Let's see I had a NST, growth scan and follow up appointment for 9/5 which was canceled due to Hurricane Dorian. So my 35 week appointment was pushed back a week I'd be doing it all at 36 weeks. Can't control mother nature!

So then, I had an appointment scheduled with Dr. Reeves on Wednesday 9/11 that involved a NST, ultrasound and follow up with him. This was already going to be at least a 2 hour appointment most likely. Well he tragically lost his son in car accident the night before so obviously he was not there. I knew that going into the appointment and so I knew I would be seeing someone else, which was totally fine. At this point I was preparing myself to see a different doctor for the remainder of this pregnancy and I was ok with that. My heart was just broken for Dr. Reeves and his family.

I got there and checked in at 1:45 for my 2:00 NST. They got me back super quick and let me go ahead and do my urine sample and blood pressure and stuff which i'm so glad I did. All of that was fine. I went straight to the NST and got hooked up and did that which took about 30 minutes. The nurse had the doctor look at it and he said it was fine. I was a little worried just because I felt like I could hear baby's heartbeat slow and speed up and I would have flash backs of Tallen's heartbeat doing that during labor. They said everything was fine though, so I assume it was.

I went back out to the waiting room that is beginning to fill up and then I get called back to ultrasound (wasn't too far behind my appointment time, so I was still good). She was very nice and took her time and we looked at baby and did the measurements and all of that. It was a great last baby ultrasound ever. At the end when the computer did its thing and calculated the weight it was 6lbs 14 oz which puts baby in the 74th percentile! I was soo shocked! I did not expect to hear that number at 36 weeks! Lakelyn at 36 weeks was 5.12 and 30th percentile and Tallen at 35 weeks was 5.12 and 60th percentile (so if i had to guess what he would have been a week later I would say around 6ish pounds!) I know these are usually off some, but even "some" would still be a bigger baby than my other two and made me nervous. I was watching all of the measurements of the legs, head, belly and such and they were all 38-40 weeks. The smallest being the baby's head I believe. Baby was head down in my pelvis though so it made it hard to get a good image. But that was that and I went back to the waiting room.

I waited foreverrrrr and a day to get called back. Not just me, but EVERYONE there had to wait. I was starting to think they forgot about me because there were patients that came in way after me getting called back before me. I try not to be one of those people because I work in the medical field and know how things go, but I was ready to ask questions after an hour of waiting. Finally, I got called back. Saw the doctor and he did the swap test for bacteria or whatever. Which I assume was fine because I still haven't heard anything and this was like 2 weeks ago. He was very nice and took his time making sure I didn't have any questions and he did a cervical check. I was about a finger tip and maybe around 30% effaced and soft. So, basically nothing because I've had 2 kids before so I dont think my cervix will every be completely closed. However, his check HURTTTT! I have only had like 2 or 3 cervical checks in all my pregnancies that have hurt and his was one of them. Anyway, that was that and he explained Dr. Reeves wouldn't be back next week which I figured and I could see him again or if I wanted to choose someone else I could do that too and he would be ok with that. I ended up getting out of there around almost 5:00!

No offense to him because he was super nice, but I already knew I would switch to Dr. Givens because I have seen him once before. Other than that, it's only been Reeves. Plus Givens and Reeves are cousins.

Next appointment at 37 weeks 1 day which was Tuesday 9/17. I waiting a little while, but at this point I can't remember the last time I didn't have to wait to be seen. This appointment was just a check, so nothing crazy. I did my urine sample which was fine, weight was no gain and blood pressure was 120/68. So everything there looked great! He came in and my biggest concern this appointment was if I in fact was going to be seeing someone else to have this baby. If so, I wanted to go over everything Dr. Reeves and I have discuss and been through with 3 pregnancies now. I work in the medical field I know that the History notes in the computer and real life knowledge is not always the same. So I needed him to know I'm terrified to have a c-section, i've had pre-eclampsia twice, pitocin doesn't do well for me, Tallen was tangled in his cord and so that also traumatized me, Lakelyn's labor lasted 2 days and all of these things so that the questions or requests that I have would make sense to him. So he immediately makes sure I knew what happened, that they are cousins and family and treat patients in the same type of way, but the best thing he said was that Dr. Reeves was ready to come back!!! I wanted him to take all the time he needed but selfishly was hoping he would be around to finish out this pregnancy because I was stressing! Anyway, Dr, Givens was sweet. Checked the heart beat which sounded in the 150's but he didn't actually tell me. Measured my belly but again didn't tell me what it was measuring. Checked my cervix and said no change. Thankfully he did not hurt me at all! A tiny bit of pressure, but literally couldn't feel a thing! Also mentioned that because of my history of pre-e I was very likely to get it again, but thankfully I seem to get it at the very end when I'm full term vs having to have the baby pre term. He said Dr. Reeves would probably want to induce me at 39 weeks and I could talk to him more in detail next week about that. He did go over the 3 ways they do inductions which is pitocin (the  most common way, but it doesn't work well for me), cervidil which is like a tampon thing they use and its usually used to soften cervix but can sometimes start labor for women, and then some other type of pill that can be taken orally or vaginally. I actually had already planned on asking Dr. Reeves if I could try the cervidil and be at home to see if it worked and if not then go and start pitocin. So i'm glad he did bring that up and I will be asking Dr. Reeves about it next week. I don't want to be induced and if I have to I don't want to do it at 39 weeks. I'd really prefer to wait until 40 at least. This is what we did with Tallen and I ended up going into labor/pre-e a little after 39 weeks. So, I am going to ask that as long as everything is still looking good at my next week 38 and the following 39 week appointments that we push an induction off until at least 40. I think he would be ok with that. We will see though. Anyway, that was it as far as my appointment with Dr Givens went.

So, I will update next week with what the plan is for the rest of this pregnancy!

37 weeks

How far along: 37 weeks  3 days!
Baby Growth: Baby is about 19 inches long and weighs about 6 pounds! He/she is pretty much fully developed and just packing on the baby fat at this point!
My Symptoms: I am exhausted all of the time. This big pregnant with 2 kids is tough. My patience is so little and I hate it and try my best, but it's so hard.

I have a good bit of pelvic pain and it makes sitting and sleeping and walking very difficult. 

 Heartburn I thought was easing up, but still terrible at night. This its the worst this time than my other two.

Swelling is here and not going away. My knees down and my hands are so bad by the end of the day, but elevating them and staying off of them help which is good.

 

Gender: Unknown!

Weight gain: I am going with about 30 pounds. According to my doctor's notes I have not gained any weight in about 4 weeks. 

Maternity clothes: All the time. Or Tylers clothing. Its still so hot here too which makes it hard because nothing fits and my other two pregnancies at this point it was cold so i wore sweats all the time.

Stretch marks: I think its just the old ones.

Belly button in or out: flat still, but seems to have a little knot like it wants to poke out.

Sleep: I wouldn't say its the worst, but its not the best. Insomnia is starting to kick in some. I will be so tired at night and usually fall asleep but I end up waking up in the middle of the night because of pain or to pee and then can't fall back to sleep.

Best moment this week: The weather finally dropped a little bit down to the 80's. Its still warm during midday but man is it soo much better than the 90 degree weather we've had. Also, finding out my doctor will be back in office and seeing me next week. More on that in a few.

Worst moment this week: My in laws are on a cruise and so i'm so nervous i'll go into labor while they're gone. We plan to have them keep Lakelyn and Tallen while we're at the hospital so it would be super stressful to have to find a plan B. Also, makes work a little more stressful because I need to be keeping my feet up and not on them so much, but Tyler and I have obligations there and then I also have Lakelyn's school drop off and pick up, gymnastics, appointments for me, and just so much this week. I'm exhausted, but only one more day until the freaking weekend!!!! They will be back Sunday and my next appointment is Monday and then after that its all fair game on this baby coming! PS. I really want an October birthday baby though, so even though everything hurts and I'm exhausted I'm hoping the baby stays put until at least the 1st!

Miss anything:  Being a nice mom instead of a moody one and having a lap for my babies to sit in.

Movement: All of the time. Such an active baby unless someone is watching!

Cravings: hmm.. nothing really.  

Queasy or sick: feel good mostly

Wedding rings on or off: On

Looking forward to:  Tyler's parents getting back home so that I am not so stressed about where my kids will go and being able to finally be done with working until after the baby and seeing my doctor since I haven't seen him for an appointment in almost 3 weeks!

Belly Pictures:  I haven't actually done a belly photo yet for this week, but I will update this when I do!

35 weeks

How far along: 35 weeks and 4 days!

Baby Growth: Baby #3 is about 18 inches long and weighs about 4 1/2 pounds! His/her central nervous system and lungs are just about mature. If he/she were born now she would do generally fine!

My Symptoms: I am exhausted ALOT! I get out of breath really easily and also lose my patience quickly which I try not to do, but I just can't help it!

I have a ton of heartburn. Its daily and it lasts forever. 

The pelvic pain is here for good and makes sleeping pretty tough. It hurts so bad to turn over from left to right and I will get pains in the hips and a bad soreness/ache around my belly if I lay on one side for too long. If i try to sit up too much I will get awful pains in my back. It is a lose-lose situation.

I have also been getting the lightening pains as well as some pressure in my bottom like i'm about to deliver which is NO fun! That hurts.

 

Swelling... in the hands, feet, legs, face. Just everywhere!

Gender: Still haven't found out!

Weight gain: I have not done as great watching what i'm eating this time because nothing ever really sounds good, but I have gained a total of 30 pounds and still have a couple more weeks to go, so I'm sure I will add a few more pounds. Hopefully it won't be anymore than about 5 and I would be ok with that. As long as its not an addition 15 like I did with Lakelyn!

Maternity clothes: All day, everyday!

Stretch marks: Yep.. they're old ones from previous pregnancies, but you can still see them.

Belly button in or out: flat but you can feel a small part of it like it wants to poke out. I've never had it poke out before so we'll see.

Sleep: awful, just tossing and turning all night and getting up to see a few times. So there really isn't much of it.

Best moment this week: We had a hurricane come by our coast this week - didn't make direct landfall, but had some strong winds, but thankfully no damage.

Worst moment this week: The hurricane that came through shut down the town which meant my appointment was canceled and it was a longer one with an ultrasound, NST, blood work a cervix check and everything. 

Miss anything:  not being in pain, sleeping, breathing, laying down, getting up easily, walking like normal, holding my babies, letting them sit in my lap, clothing that fits, i mean you name it.

Movement: This is probably my most active baby. Constantly moving, wiggling, rolling, kicking, and running out of room!

Cravings: I eat alot of cereal! Frosted Flakes. 

Queasy or sick: feel good..

Wedding rings on or off: On-barely. Sometimes I have to take them off when I get too hot.

Looking forward to:  Seeing the doctor and being checked actually. Its like one of those things where you don't want to do it by any means, but you want to know what is going on. I'm so torn on whether or not I will have this baby early, on time, be induced or what. I really want to make it to October 1st, but at the same time that seems like centuries away right now with the amount of pain there is. Also, would love for these 90 + degree temps to GO AWAYYYYYY! It is too dang hot to be this pregnant!

Belly Pictures: I got my maternity photo back as well as had Tyler take some more "bare belly" ones. They are a bit revealing so I will only share a few of the ones he took here and make a separate post of our maternity session as a family!

32 weeks

How far along: 32 weeks!

Baby Growth: Baby is about 17 inches long and weighs about 4.25 pounds. His/her bones are hardening and he is keeping  his/her eyes open more and more!

My Symptoms: I am getting to the point of just being exhausted and I think its mostly because it's so hot outside and I have 2 kids! If I go into the office to work I am basically no good by the time i get myself and 2 kids dressed and ready and packed into the car when its already 90 degrees outside first thing in the morning. If I work from home, I typically have a little more energy because let's face it, none of us get dressed. I roll out of bed and get a few things done for work and then have a little morning time with them and get us breakfast and clean up the house and what not. Then I let them play   destroy the house and watch TV while I get some more work in before lunch time. I'll get us all lunch and then its nap/quiet time for them and I get some more work in (usually able to finish up my work day at this point). I usually have a little bit of energy left and i'll do a little more housework and hopefully have time to relax myself before they wake up from naps. Once they're up around 3-4pm sometimes 5 depending on when lunch happened we will all watch a movie or play until we start dinner or daddy gets home. This is the time where i'm usually exhausted by.. sometimes I get to catch a quick 20-30 minute nap while they're still napping and if so, I usually get enough energy to cook dinner or play. If I don't then it's usually a movie and lay on the couch afternoon and text Tyler 100 asking when he will be home!  None of that has much to do with my symptoms, but whatevs!

My feet and hands tend to swell almost daily. My feet more so than hands and I think its from sitting in a chair or standing on them majority of the day.

Most of my pain happens at night trying to sleep. Rolling over is painful and sleeping on one side causes hip pain. I usually am good during the day, but closer to the evening depending on how much I did during the day will determine how much back pain, feet pain, pelvic pain i have. Overall, this has been the easiest regarding all of the aches and pains. 

Getting a tonnnnn of braxton hicks contractions. I never noticed them with Lakelyn really, and with Tallen I did, but they weren't as intense or nearly as many.

Heartburn I think this time has been the worst. It's basically every single night. Kid better have some hair, although I won't hold my breath on that one!

 

Gender: Still unknown :) i'm so proud of myself! I have had so many opportunities to find out since I was alone during an ultrasound, but I didn't/haven't! It was so hard at first, but once I got passed the 20 week mark and the ultrasounds that "can finally tell you" it has gotten easier! I go back and forth so much on what I feel like the gender is. My overall guess is boy. This pregnancy in no way mimics either Lakelyn's or Tallens and there really isn't any similarities to either of their pregnancies. My reason for guessing boy is because of how active this baby is and because the heart rate has been in the 134-136 range twice now at the same point in pregnancy when Tallen's was where as Lakelyn was around 150. That's all I got. 

Weight gain: I did the math at my appointment last week and I have gained 23 pounds. I am ok with this. If I hold steady at the "normal" 1 pound a week, I will be right at 30. 30 is always the goal. Lakelyn we missed it by 15 pounds and with Tallen I think it may have been 3 pounds over, if that. 

Maternity clothes: There really isn't an option when it comes to bottoms, either maternity or leggings/pjs. Tops are either maternity, tshirts or sweatshirts (its 100 out so sweatshirts are a rare inside occasion)

Stretch marks: I haven't seen any new ones yet, but I can see the old ones very well.

Belly button in or out: flat/in 

Sleep: as good as it gets really. I wake up often to roll over or pee. I didn't wake up to pee nearly as much with my other two.

Best moment this week: Got to see baby on ultrasound! Only a few seconds of a profile, but better than nothing!

Worst moment this week: The ridiculously hot weather

Miss anything:  being able to move easily, sleep better, cold weather, clothes that fit, being more active with my kids, letting them sit in my lap or me hold them.

Movement: This baby is super active! I would probably go as far as saying more active than Tallen was. However, Tallen wasn't quite as stubborn when someone would try to see or feel him move. That was Lakelyn. She very rarely moved and NOBODY besides Tyler really got to feel her move because she'd stop instantly! This baby isn't as bad as Lakelyn, but not as good as Tallen was as far as letting people see/feel.

Cravings: I want soda a lot which is typical in all of my pregnancies as well as junk.

Queasy or sick: I typically feel pretty good. 

Wedding rings on or off: On.

Looking forward to:  Deer season starts on Thursday which will be fun and probably make time move quickly, but I hope some cool weather comes in soon! I know fall doesn't technically start until September, but I wouldn't be mad if the 90 degree weather went away for good. I can deal with 80's and low humidity until "official" fall. 

Belly Pictures:  I will have to update with one!

27 weeks

How far along: 27 weeks, 1 day and officially third trimester! holy crap!
Baby Growth: Baby is about 14 1/2 inches long stretched out and weighs about 2 pounds!

My Symptoms: I have good bursts of energy, but starting to get exhausted very easily. I think having 2 kids and working so much plus its the worst 2 months of summer coming up that its just getting to me.

Sleeping at night is starting to get tricky at this point too. I'm at the point of needing to toss and turn all night from left side to right side. 

My feet tend to bother my too if I'm on them for a good period of time.They will also feel like they are swelling up some too if i let them hang down or don't get in enough of water.

I have been having more braxton hicks than I did with my other two kids too. 

Gender: dont know!

Weight gain:  I haven't gotten my exact weight, but i think its approximately 15-18 pounds! I really need to keep an eye on it!

Maternity clothes: officially need all maternity clothes.. unless its sweats or leggings or tshirts

Stretch marks: No, just old ones

Belly button in or out: In

Sleep: It has been ok, but not the best since i'm tossing all night long and my dog as had this kennel cough for 3 weeks and coughs ALL.NIGHT.LONG even after buying medicine they swore would make it better. The weeks prior to that i had a sick toddler with hand, foot, mouth that was literally up all night long. 

Best moment this week: We had a 4D ultrasound and it took 3 different times to get enough images together that they didn't offer me to come back again. I still don't feel like we got great stuff, but it is what it is. I think i'll try again at 32 weeks.

Worst moment this week: the heat and this weather. 

Miss anything:  I miss the cold weather, i miss having clothes that fit, I miss being able to sleep well.

Movement: Super active baby. Moves all the time.

Cravings: maybe candy and soda. Coffee

Queasy or sick: feeling good.

Wedding rings on or off: On

Looking forward to:  COOLER WEATHER!!!! its forever away still, but man i'm so over this! I don't want to rush this pregnancy since its my last and i'm not sure what I am going to do with 3 kids, but I just don't want it to be hot anymore!

Belly Pictures:  I have a few pictures to share.. including ultrasound pictures! I will update!

Cruising with littles

I have alot of questions about how the cruise was with two little kids. So I wanted to do a separate blog post on that instead of replying to so many messages with the same info!

This was Lakelyn's 3rd cruise and Tallen's 2nd. I was pregnant with him for the first one. Also, pregnant with baby #3 during this one. Next cruise I will NOT be pregnant! lol.

Our first cruise was Carnival - Ecstasy out of Charleston in September during Labor day 2017:
- Lakelyn was 2 years old on this cruise. It was fine. Small boat, you pretty much saw everything the first day. The food was average. They have an app you can download which has a messenger thing on it and I think it was like $5 for the entire cruise to be able to message your party. It was actually really worth it since you can't use your cell phone service. They also had a couple of internet packages to chose from for like posting to facebook and such. We did get this, but the only down fall is they block any type of videos like netflix and stuff.. They had tons of photo places set up before dinner times to have your picture taken and the photographers were decent. Not the best, but they instructed you and did what they could to get the kids attention and pose you and stuff like that. You  could view your printed pictures a few hours later or the next day, but the photos themselves were super expensive and there is not an option to buy like a digital package for all of the pictures. You also get the ones that were put out, so if everyone has touched them that's what you get. The play area for the the kids was OK. Consisted of a slide for small toddlers, a medium for kids probably 48" and then a large slide. Also had sprinklers and such between the slides and plenty of seating. Bar tenders came around constantly asking if you needed a drink and not just alcohol. They were great about getting regular sodas and such too. There was only one pool and it was fairly small. There was a burger place and a Taco place outside near the pool area as well as a bar. The rooms were your typical small cruise room and my biggest issue with this cruise was the room was hot!! You couldn't turn down the a/c as it was as cool as you were able to get it. I had them check it several times and even know they admitted to the room being warm they claimed it was normal. It was not! I had to argue with them to get me a fan. Once we got that situation somewhat sorted with a fan, it was manageable. Lakelyn was not fully potty trained yet, so we brought all of that stuff with us and didn't really get any type of questions for it. I'm mainly referring to the water slides/sprinkler area. We did not take her to the pool. It was too small and she had no interest. She played on the slide the entire time and we were totally fine with being able to sit in our chairs right by it and watching her. We brought on a small umbrella stroller which made it easy to get on the ship, off the ship, and to shop around and do our beach excursions. Getting on the ship was awesome. They let us bypass the line and go straight to the check in and then they didn't make us take her out and fold it up for the metal detectors either which was nice! Having it for the beaches too was great because even though pushing it in the sand sucked, when we had to wait in line for the shuttle to take us back to the boat she was passed out and was able to sleep in the stroller instead of someone having to hold her the entire time in the heat. The crew always made a point to notice her and accommodate her! Really did an awesome job with that! They had several Dr. Seuss themed things going on. We did the story time, build a bear, parade, breakfast. It was fun and we enjoyed watching her enjoy it! We did send her to the child care place one time while we did a show or something and they were great! No problems and she actually did well there too which I was surprised about. They gave us a little phone in case they needed us. They had several workers in there and it was very well "baby proofed" I guess you could say. I felt safe leaving her in there knowing she wasn't able to escape out of there and that they do alot of checking before letting anyone take her out. We did do an "adult only" comedy show one evening and they let us bring her in which I was happy about because it was late and she fell asleep almost immediately. We were still able to enjoy stuff while having her. Overall, it was a breeze taking her with us. We didn't have any problems other than the hot room situation and feeling some movement from the ship being so small.

This is the Disney Dream boat vs our small carnival boat on the right. Such a big difference in person.

Some photos of us during the first cruise, I was clearly pregnant with Tallen.

The photographers did a much better job at trying to get her attention and also getting photos during dinner, and there were so many options prior to dinner you could stop at. Photographers here were much better and I didn't have to ask them to get all of the photos. 

Second cruise was again Carnival Ecstasy out of Charleston on Thanksgiving day 2018:
- I won't go into a lot of detail about the ship, you can read that above. Everything was the same. We did have Tallen this time and he was 10ish months old and Lakelyn was 3 1/2 years old. Lakelyn was fully potty trained, but Tallen obviously was not and he was also on formula still at this point. He ate regular food too, but still getting regular bottles throughout the day. This made it a little tricky, but not all that bad. We had one of those formula cup things that you can measure out 3 bottles worth in and always kept a bottle of water with us. We again had an umbrella stroller but it was a double one this time. Check in went the same and was great, getting off the boat went great. The biggest difference on this cruise was again it's a small boat so you feel a lot of movement and we had extremely rough seas!! I have never been sick on a cruise, but I was sick along with everyone else and crew members. The day we got on the boat was cold and windy so you couldn't play in the water or anything so there wasn't a ton to do and we had been on this cruise before so we had seen like everything on there. The second day we were at sea and this was the worst day. I stayed in the room the entire day super sick. Couldn't do anything other than lay in the bed. I even had zofran with me from my pregnancy with Tallen and it didn't touch the nausea! It was so bad! The kids weren't bothered and Tyler did take them to do some stuff and try the pool and things like that. It did storm and was kind of windy and cool so they didn't stay out there long. We did a lot of napping and I did a good bit of black Friday shopping online! The next day we were at port and this was also an issue because our excursion was delayed by an hour and a half. we were to be down there at 8AM, get there and they delayed it to 9:30AM because of the rough seas - which is fine, but at least make the announcement on the boat or something. Wasn't a huge deal though, we just walked over to the shops for a bit. Got back over there at 9:30 waited with everyone else, start walking over to where you board the tender boat and by this time were close to 10:30 and they let us know its CANCELLED! So now, half of our day is gone and we have to scramble to find something to do. I get that it was a safety thing and it had to be cancelled, but it still really sucked that half our day was wasted. We ended up catching a boat ride from one of the local people out there and they took us somewhere kind of close to Atlantis. a group of us walked around to find how the heck to get to Atlantis and then stood in line foreverrrrrr to buy tickets to get in. We chose just to do the beach thing there which was the same price that we were refunded from our excursion (the refund was an onboard credit though and we had to pay out of pocket for this). We were also able to walk through the aquarium part and stuff too here. Overall we probably could have done whatever we wanted here because nobody really checked anything, but we seriously only had like 2 hours by this time. Lakelyn was set on a beach so we went to this little cove thing they had because their beach access was SCARY bad waves. We spent a little time there then ate a quick and super expensive lunch there and then walked through the aquarium and then paid for a taxi this time back to the port. Again, if we had the day to plan to go there it would have been much more fun, but we made the best of it and it was fine. The next day back was much calmer seas and sitting out by the kiddie slide area wasn't too bad with the breeze, but when the water sprayed on you it was chilly and the kids did get kind of cold too. So again, the cruise and everything itself was not bad, we just had bad weather. This made us not want to do this ship ever again and vowed to do bigger ships at that point forward.

If you look at the pictures closer, you can see the kiddie area I have talked about. The slides that they loved, the area around the slides they could play in and sprinklers and tons of seating for the adults. Royal Caribbean had nothing like this for the smaller kids.

Also, the Cat in the Hat breakfast we went to on both Carnival cruises. It's cute and something for the kids to do. They also have story time and like a build a bear workshop for kids too. Much more kid friendly than our Royal Caribbean one.

Example of our double umbrella stroller and just let them nap on the go.

Cruising is fine if your kids are flexible enough to sleep where ever, so that you don't have to miss out on much. This was Tallen during dinner one night of our 2nd Carnival cruise.

And Lakelyn...  

Third Cruise was Royal Caribbean - Mariner of the Seas in May 2019:
-Lakelyn was 4 and fully potty trained, Tallen was 1 and not potty trained and again I was pregnant. We brought the double umbrella stroller and they were not nearly as accommodating with us as Carnival was. I think like 3 separate times we had to close it up and unload the kids and reload them in the stroller again. I get the protocol, but its an umbrella stroller and there's not storage on it.. you can see the entire thing. We got on the boat and the boat itself was pretty nice! Much nicer overall than the Carnival Ecstasy. However, there was NO type of sprinkler or play area for kids under 48" other than the pool. Which they did have 2 pools which both had a "beach" type ledge which is like ankle deep and like 4  decent size hot tubs as well as a separate adult area that had its own pool and hot tubs. You'd think the grumpy adults that didn't want to get splashed would go to their adult pool, but nope they still hung out over at the other ones and complained and got rude with kids that were being kids.  They had the wave rider thing, a basketball court, a big water slide, a climbing thing for kids, escape room, this trampoline jumping thing, hammocks. However, if you are not 48"-56" tall you basically cannot do anything other than the regular pool or the little climbing thing (this climbing thing is something you'd see at like Mcdonalds or something and its in a area that is SUPER HOT and there is NO water around it besides the surfing thing, but you don't get wet from the surfing thing unless you are surfing on it). So, here is where it gets good.. you are NOT ALLOWED in the pools or hot tubs if you are not fully potty trained, not even with swimming diapers that are specifically made for this. So there is NOTHING, I repeat NOTHING for anyone that is not potty trained to do besides sit in the hot sun. This was super, super frustrating and really made us and tons of other parents very angry. We ended up just saying "yes he is potty trained" because I was not going to watch my baby cry because he was hot and wanted to play in the water with his sister! What could they really do make me prove he was or wasn't potty trained? Sorry, but get rid of gigantic basketball court that NOBODY used and put some sprinklers up for these babies and toddlers! This was the BIGGEST issue. Luckily we only had 1 day that we had to worry about this because we only had 1 day at sea. So, since we found all of this nonsense out on the first day on the boat we had planned to take Tallen to the child care room during his nap time and spending some one on one time with Lakelyn together for a bit and then also taking her there and then spending some time together just us. Well, Tyler goes and gets Tallen changed and a bottle and takes him and they have like 5 kids in there and she said they're full. The next opening is 2 days from then... this would be our last day on the boat and we would be out doing an excursion so we wouldn't need it. So needless to say you couldn't even take your kid to the child care because they were always "full".  This gave us even more reason to ignore their constant asking if Tallen was potty trained! And when I say constant i'm not lying.. so many different crew members would continuously come up to us and ask us if he was potty trained or that he couldn't be in the water. The trampoline thing was shut down the entire cruise as well as the escape room which we wouldn't have been able to do anyway because you had to be i think 16 and over. Tyler did do the surfing thing which left me watching both kids in scorching hot environment with NO water and very little shade for about 2 hours so that he could do it 2 times. I wanted him to be able to do it though so we all suffered the heat. They did not have very many photo places like Carnival did and the photographers were AWFUL!! Like my 4 year old did better than them! We prepaid for the digital photo package with gave us all of the photos which I did like but wish they had better photographers and more photo options. The food was decent. They didn't have nearly as many bartenders or crew members walking around asking to get you a drink and if you dare ask for a soda they weren't as friendly. They had this soda machines in like 2 places on the boat where you can fill your cup with soda, but they were like always out of drink. Also the bars only had coke, diet coke and sprite from a 2 liter bottle. The crew members were not nearly as friendly or accommodating to the kids as they were on the Carnival cruises. We had a couple of decent ones, but not alot. There also wasn't shows or things for the kid either like they had on Carnival with the Dr. Seuss stuff. The excursions were nice, had no issues there. They also have the internet package thing which was actually pretty pricey, but you could watch youtube and such even though the signal wasn't the greatest and this also allowed you to facetime and text through imessage and all. So, while overall if you have older kids or are cruising with adults this would have been great, I DO NOT recommend this boat with little kids. I can't speak for other Royal Caribbean boats, but I have learned a lesson in make 100% sure there something for little kids to do before booking a cruise.

They had 2 of these pools, you can see the ledge that is shallow which was the only option for small kids, except they weren't allowed to play there if they weren't potty trained.. so basically the hot sun is where they got to hang out.

This is the basketball court and rock climbing wall.. was rarely used on this cruise. We literally saw like 3 kids play here and climb the wall. Easily could have been made into a kiddie area.

These are the hommocks and the "climbing" thing that, again, were so pointless.. nobody came here really because its boring after a couple of minutes and it's also SOOO HOT up there. There's no water to cool off in or anything. Just HOT AIR.

 If you look at my totally exhausted and burning up child with super red cheeks, you can see the surfing thing that Tyler did, which had us sitting here dying in the heat for about 2 hours so he could ride 2 times. You will also see the large green and yellow slide as well as a blue slide. Neither of which anyone under 58" I believe it was could do. Or maybe the blue one, you could be 48". I can't remember it was irrelevant to us since Lakelyn was not 48"

These are a couple of the "professional" photos that were taken and yes i basically had to beg for the photographer to "take one of just her" "take one of just him." "grab one of me and her" Tyler got none of just him with the kids.

Cruising with little kids at least for us was not bad. You just have to make sure there's stuff for them to do, and that the childcare is available to use. Also, it will depend on you and your family. Are you ok with pushing around a stroller and letting them sleep in it while you enjoy shows and stuff on the boat. Or do they have to be in the room and asleep in a bed at a certain time? You for sure want to make sure you are flexible with this and that your kids are too. If they wont sleep in a stroller, it may not be so fun having to either hold them constantly or go to the room at 8pm each night. Unless you are cool with that. I will say it also really helps if you have others cruising with you. Both times on Carnival we had Tyler's parents with us and the last one on Royal Caribbean it was just us. Also, make sure you bring plenty of diapers and wipes and a sippy cup or bottle for them. Make sure whatever they need you bring because there really isn't an option to go buy them on the boat or even off the boat. I always bring overkill on diapers and wipes. I always bring both kids a cup/bottle. I have a blanket for both kids which helps them feel like its home when we go to bed.

He slept in the bed with us, but behind him and in front of Tyler, you can see his blanket and his lovie deer thing.

She slept on the Pullman bed that she was technically not allowed to sleep on cause she wasn't 6, so we lied and told them Tyler was sleeping on it, but you can spot her blue blankie, and if you know her.. she is obsessed with it. Also bottom right of the photo, you can see her sippy cup.

Our next cruise we are hoping it will be a Disney one. Everyone has said its the BEST! We did Disney World last year for 5 days and while the cruise will be more expensive, I'm hoping it will be worth it! Side note about Disney World, TOTALLY worth it! Tallen was 11 months old and rode like everything. Hardest part with waiting in lines without the stroller.. kids always wanted to be held. Also, DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT go in the summer time! Unless you like heat! We went right before Christmas and it was a DREAM! It was fairly cold (cold enough I had to actually buy a jacket and blankets) but with all the walking and stuff it was so much nicer than the heat! I also really recommend staying on the resort and doing the dining plan if you are a family that likes to eat and not about packing lunches and stuff. We all had a blast at Disney World!

Up next for us is Great Wolf Lodge! I'll be sure to let you know how that goes! If you have any other questions about cruising with little kids, just let me know! I'd be happy to answer!

22 weeks!

How far along: 22 weeks

Baby Growth: Baby is about 11 inches and 1 pound which is pretty accurate since 2 weeks ago  he/she was measuring 12 oz. Baby's eyes are formed but lack color. He/she is looking like an actual newborn just not as fat and not as big!

My Symptoms: I am doing pretty good! I have had this lingering cold and cough that just will not go away since we got back from the cruise 2 weeks ago! 

I get some pelvic pain if I do too much in one day, but it hasn't been too bad lately, thank the Lord! This pregnancy has been SOOOO easy so far. I'm so nervous that the third trimester and deliver will be awful because of how easy its been. I pray it's all just easy and this means baby will be super easy! 

Gender:  unknown!

Weight gain:  I am at about 8-10 pounds gained. It fluctuates a little. I am ok with this because I know its pretty normal for this point, but really hope I can stay under 30 total pounds gained. With Lakelyn i hit 45 pounds and never got the extra 15 pounds off. I was super close to being back to my pre pregnancy weight with her before I got pregnant this time! With Tallen I only gained like 30-33. I got back to my pre pregnancy weight with him by just watching what I ate and drank! I was on my way to losing Lakelyn's weight when I got pregnant. So like I said hoping the weight stays under control so that after breast feeding when I can finally work on my weight again it will go down to what I was before I got pregnant this time. 

and yes my body is one that holds on to every bit of weight while breast feeding and ANY type of change will affect my milk supply! Walking, not drinking or eating enough, sit ups, legit EVERYTHING messes with me so I am unable to do too much unless I want to make a switch to formula. 

Maternity clothes: ummm.. yes. if it doesn't stretch then it doesn't fit.

Stretch marks: No new ones! I don't believe I got any new ones with Tallen and i'm hoping for the same this time.

Belly button in or out: In

Sleep: It has been pretty good, but this cold does mess with me some. Either congestion and can't breathe or super sore throat that will wake me up. Once i'm awake it's hard to fall back asleep because my husband likes to snore!

Best moment this week: This week just started, but last week.. I'm just grateful we made it through the week and it was a short one because of memorial day. It was so dang hot!

Worst moment this week: The crazy weather!! Seriously we hit 100+ temps for like a week straight! and its only MAYYYY! It's not even legit summer time yet. I'm probably going to die before July gets here. I am not a fan of the heat anyway and now i'm largely pregnant during it? nope..

Miss anything:  The cold weather!

Movement: Starting to get more and more of it and its getting stronger and stronger <3

Cravings: I can't think of anything off the top of my head, but i've been into alot of sweets and sugar. 

Queasy or sick: Been feeling great!

Wedding rings on or off: On

Looking forward to:  We're going on another little vacation next week to Great Wolf Lodge! Hoping that is fun. July has some good stuff coming up like Christmas in July  movies, Prime day. 

Belly Pictures:  Didn't even realize there was a piece of string on my shirt! Oh well, just shows how great I was feeling!