Tis the Season

As we enter October, many people think, "it's spooky season time" as we get ready for Halloween at the end of the month. I enjoy Halloween a lot--more of the pumpkin side of things than the say, zombie side--but I tend to think of October more as, "nice weather season time" after a long, long summer of triple-digit heat. Nice weather is especially important when you're pregnant (walking around with a large belly in the sun is no fun) and when you have a toddler who loves to play outside. We've finally been able to walk around the neighborhood with him again, visit local parks, and try some outdoor toys like his trampoline, car, and wagon. I also started decorating a bit for Halloween--the best I could do with a baby plus a baby on the way. My husband was a little worried that Baby 1 would be scared by our skeleton decoration, but he thought it was awesome! He ran up to "skull man," inspected his face with his hands, gave him hugs, and seemed excited to make a new, somewhat creepy friend. Then he moved on to hugging our giant pumpkin decoration and asked to be taken on a walk around the neighborhood to visit other pumpkins.

Speaking of all that pumpkin, it's also PSL season, so I've started collecting shirts from BankyGirl Creations that show off my love of all things coffee and babies, even if the coffee has been decaf for now. The sweatshirt labeled "Coffee chugs and baby snugs" is so soft and comfortable. I ordered a size up so I could wear it through this pregnant winter, though I might just by another one after the baby comes, if I lose enough baby weight to get back to my original size (fingers crossed).

Other than feeling a little wide, the pregnancy hasn't brought many new changes lately, other than the one night I woke up with an awful charley horse because I accidentally pointed my foot instead of flexing it and Hubby had to rub my calf until it went away. I had a few of these with Baby 1 but so far just the one time with Baby 2.

Baby 2 continues to kick almost every day, especially at night when I'm lying quietly on the couch or just ate ice cream. I think of him often, brainstorming names (we're still nowhere close to deciding), and getting my Covid vaccine booster on October 6 in order to help fully protect us both. I'm also prepare for the required glucose test this coming Monday, and I've scheduled a 3D ultrasound for Hubby to get to see him (he's not allowed to come to the medical ultrasound appointments due to Covid restrictions). The 3D ultrasound will be at the end of the month when I'm 28 weeks (an ideal time for 3D images) and as an extra Halloween "treat"!

Baby 1 has been making great progress with his speech therapy, expanding the sounds and words he can say and use! We're so proud that he not only recognizes the entire alphabet but can say the sound of every letter! He can make animal sounds (cat, dog, cow, and duck especially), say the beginnings of colors (ra for red, for example), and references Mama, Dada, Papa, Mimi, and Uh-Myce for Uncle Michael so far. His most recent words include "Goo-gul" for the Google Home Hub device at my parents' house, and "T.V." for his favorite videos. I guess I shouldn't be surprised given he's the son of a millennial growing up in a very digitally-focused world. We do try to limit his screentime, and because he enjoys playing outside so much (and playing with Play-Doh) that helps. But he does learn from the videos he watches, as I'm sure I didn't accidentally teach him all the alphabet sounds myself.

Once we make it through all the fun activities and photos of the October fall season, we'll be able to move on to the focus of food in November, and then a fun and safe winter Christmas. After that, it will be full on baby prep mode as my due date is in January! It's moving fast, and I've already started to have dreams about the birth itself. In one dream my doctor came to my house for a home birth (yeah, not happening) and in another dream I scheduled a c-section at 30 weeks by mistake--way too early. I think my nerves are getting the better of me, playing out countless possible scenarios in my subconscious.

But I do need to think about how I want the birth to go. Baby season is just around the corner.