16 weeks | Baby #4

1.22.17 | 16w1d

Sixteen weeks!


I feel like my bump is larger at night and smaller in the morning, but always fairly noticeable. Someone asked for a comparison picture from all of my pregnancies and I can't help but smile at the first time around compared to the fourth. Holy. Moly. Seven years later, this uterus knows what to do, I suppose!


Biggest happening of the week:

I officially accepted the job offer to become Rehab Supervisor at my office. It was a long(ish) road to get to this point, to make sure the job will suit both me and our department, but I'm so excited to start this next chapter in my career!

This means that I will stay part-time at 20 hours per week, but will change my hours to work Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday for five hours each. I'll most likely work 9-2pm, which is pretty ideal, since I can still do school drop off and pick up. I could also push it back to be later in the day if I want, and perhaps in the summer I could get to the office earlier than 9am.

We had a powwow with Tony and Lois after I got the offer, but before I accepted, because we needed to know if they are on board for watching the kids four days a week instead of the usual three days (or really, two-and-a-half days). We had a really great talk and they are down to each take two days a week, since Lois is now also retired, and the days will remain short and won't go past school pick up. We can always reconvene and hire out childcare if it gets to be too much, especially after baby is born. Who knows what life will look like then, but for now this should work just fine.

I will not be seeing patients anymore, except rarely and usually when I'm supervising another therapist for their yearly review. I'll be in the office for basically all of my hours which is a gigantic change for me, as a treating PT for twelve years. Moving into the office and into management, while remaining part time is pretty amazing and something I cannot pass up right now. I'll get to eat a hot lunch at an actual desk, without driving around and shoveling food in my mouth between patients. I won't have to do as much paperwork at home. I will have a new set of challenges supervising our whole rehab department of about 60 therapists, instead of managing a caseload of patients. My boss is excited to have me join the team at the office and I'm excited to bridge the gap between the field therapists treating patients and the office staff. I'll get to use a skill set that doesn't always translate into patient care, with my organizational skills and my love for helping new therapists get started in our company. It's going to be a great move for me!

I also need a 'real' work wardrobe now. And a work bag that isn't a diaper bag, or a 1990s backpack that I've always used to haul around my laptop and papers into patients' homes. I have the wardrobe nailed as I found many great pieces at Motherhood Maternity and Pea in the Pod. Still looking for the perfect work bag, though.

Winners!


Didn't get the top but should have.


Didn't get the top, too flimsy. Yes to the black pants, I figure you can't have too many of those working in an office.


Yes to black top, yes to gray pants. Also will look better without my obnoxious socks as the centerpiece.


Yes to the tops, obviously the jeans won't be for work but I still bought them. They were half off and long enough and made me feel like a hip pregnant mom. Not an easy task, my friends!


So that is the big news around here! I start this new adventure tomorrow and appreciate all of the kind words on Instagram already. I knew 2017 would be a big year for us, but add this to the list of things that makes it CRAZY big!

The other big thing I wanted to mention here is that I felt the baby kick me from the outside this week. I hadn't felt a ton of movement at all before this, but now the baby is going crazy every evening and pretty much anytime I sit down. It's noticeable now, and one night before bed I laid my hand on my belly and felt baby kick right up into my hand. Milestones like these are still just as magical as the first time around. There's a real person in there, just growing up a storm, waiting to come out and complete our family. Seriously mind-blowing when you stop and think about it.

I'm definitely in the sweet spot of pregnancy when I have good energy, no pain, am sleeping great, and can eat anything and everything in sight. And I have been, trust me! Baby must have had a growth spurt or else I'm just pigging out because all food sounds delicious and my appetite is getting to be out of control. This week sweets became my favorite again and I randomly bought mini Heath bars, Swedish Fish, and sour watermelons at Target one day....just because baby wanted them. I also suggested we get custard after dinner one night as a family, which is not usually my thing but it was amazing and just what I needed.

I'll get the quad screen blood test this week and then the ultrasound is just over three weeks away. I feel like the rest of the second trimester is going to fly by with my new job, and I'm not complaining but I want to make sure I'm enjoying this as much as possible, too!

Cecelia randomly told me that she is super excited for the baby to be born, and she told me my belly is sure getting bigger. Porter will say that he wants to help with the baby by getting me a diaper, which only makes me think about potty training him in the next few weeks/months to see what it's like to have only a newborn in diapers. I've always potty trained the other kids while on maternity leave with a new baby, would be nice to avoid that again since Porter will be older than T and C were. Truman remains the most excited and seemingly the most helpful big brother ever. He has decided that if he is wrong, and this baby isn't a girl (and isn't named Rose), he wants the baby boy to be Percy. Cecelia says Oreo, Julie, or Yoda are her favorite picks right now for names.

In reality, I'm making a list of my own for both boy and girl names. I don't traditionally share these with Nate until after we know if it's a boy or a girl, and this time I'm even more nervous to share them with him because he tends to shoot down my ultimate faves. And I have a few repeat favorites that he's always disliked, but I'm hoping he's had a change of heart. We will see. I probably won't share the top picks here but maybe some of the runners up?

In house renovation news, our architect came over to measure the house for his sketches, which will become blueprints. It's really happening!! Between the renovation, my job, this baby, and Nate's job we are feeling very happy/blessed/excited with all that is to come in the next several months. It's crazy-awesome and also just plain old crazy. ;)

That's pretty much it for this week. Baby and I will be rocking it in the office tomorrow, can hardly wait!


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