8 Months Pregnant! Let the Countdown Begin!

I haven't been updating our blog as often as I usually do because of A) Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's... B) We moved the day after Christmas and C) My sister had brain surgery. Kind of a lot for the past month. My goal is to try and post a blog at least once a week. I'm sure it won't always be easy (or maybe it'll be easier since I'll have a ton of new pictures) when Little Brother arrives but I'm going to try really hard!

I realize I'm not very good at taking a weekly or monthly pregnant picture. I think I only took one or two official "Hey, look at my pregnant-self!" picture with Ethan and I was about 8 months pregnant so I guess it's that time again.So here it goes...

 Hi! My name is Heather and I'm 8 months pregnant or 36 weeks.  It's a boy!

There you go.

I've gained 13lbs so far and Little Brother is almost 5lbs and about 18in long (according to my Baby Center emails). Other fun facts about this pregnancy are as follows:

-Little Brother constantly has a foot in my ribs since I've got virtually no torso space for this kid.
-He's all elbows and knees sticking out in random places around my belly. 
-I can still see my toes-I just can't reach them.
-Slip-on flats and shoes with no laces are heaven-sent.
-Trying to unpack a household while 8 months pregnant isn't all that fun.
-Sleeping comfortably is a long-lost dream.
-Rolling over in the middle of the night is a maneuver worthy of medals and a miracle if I don't wake up Dan.
-Retrieving socks from the back of the dryer is now Ethan's job. It's a good thing he loves helping with the laundry.
-I crave anything sweet. Sometimes it's chocolate. Sometimes it's Skittles or ice cream. You are my best friend if you bring my something sugary and covered in chocolate!
-Morning sickness raised it's ugly head again. Good news is it's only been a few days a week and it's actually in the mornings. Bad news is nothing (and I mean NOTHING) works to alleviate it. I just have to wait it out. :(
-My belly button has been off center for months now.
- I eat about 20 meals a day since I get full after about 5 bites. I feel like I'm constantly eating.
-Taking a deep breath is pretty impossible. Little Brother is encroaching on my lungs, stomach, bladder...etc.
-It's getting harder and harder to hold Ethan on my lap, which is his preferred place to sit unfortunately.

The biggest thing I've noticed between Little Brother vs. Ethan that I've noticed is that Little Brother kicks and moves around a whole lot more than Ethan ever did. I can't sit down without my stomach turning into the ocean and feeling like this kid is going to punch his way out.  It's a fun feeling. I love that he has such an active personality before he's even born.

This whole pregnancy has been different than it was with Ethan though. Boys are not the same! At least, not for me. It's been a whole different rodeo this time around from different morning sickness, weight gain, and baby movement.

Still, I'm feeling good. My appointments are like clockwork-take my blood pressure, measure my tummy, listen to Little Brother"s heartbeat, doctor asks if I have any questions, no questions, see you next week!  And I even talked my doctor into inducing me a week early so technically I only have 3 weeks left! Little Brother's room is still coming together but once it's finished and the moving boxes are put away, I'll post some pictures.

Update on Lisa:
She's loving being at home and with her kids. She's resting still and on a strict regiment to take naps and not pick up anything heavier than a gallon of milk. She was able to attend the blessing of our brother Kevin's little girl, Addyson, on Sunday but couldn't come to the luncheon party afterwards. No large groups of people for her.  Dan and I went up to Midway after the luncheon and hung out with them. It was fun sitting and talking while the boys watched football. Ethan had a blast with all his cousins, as usual. Still no news yet on her pathology report. We found out it's normal for these kid of report to take awhile. She's prepared for a bad outcome (radiation and chemo) but we are still hoping and praying for the best.   They are still planning on going on their Mexico trip next week with my parents, Cody's parents, and Cody's brother and wife. Dan and I (mostly me with lots of help from friends and family!) will be watching her 4 kids all week long for them. She's been given the ok from her doctors to go and I figure she probably deserves a vacation after this month, especially if she ends up having to do chemo.