There is definitely some kind of belly goin’ on. . and not all of it is baby, I’m sure! 
My due date is February 12, and since today is August 13, I have approximately 6 months to go. I should have posted the pictures yesterday but I didn’t get a chance.
So far this pregnancy has been almost easy in the physical sense. Sure I have my bouts of queasiness, but only one time was I really sick. I get very tired if I do too much in a day, but my biggest struggle right now is the bad moods I get in *can I blame the hormones?*. I get so much more impatient with the kids, mainly all the nonstop talking and questions and issues that arise with them. There is always so much going on around me and most of the time I’m so tired I just want to curl up on the couch with a blanket and say, “go away and leave me alone!” Ha!
I was thinking about this last night when I went to bed at 8:30 (!!!I taped the gymnastics, and have no idea right now who won the women’s team comp. so no fair spoiling it for me!!!). I think I just need to be careful right now not to do too much and to try to be wise about sending the children outside as much as possible to get their energy out. I need to slow down. I’m convinced of this because I did a lot yesterday and I ended up a weepy mess at bedtime. But I had gone out with the kids to several stores in the morning (and I carried Caleb a bit), and then music lessons and the grocery store at night with the five of them, and I had gone on two long walks. No pregnant woman can match the energy of five healthy children!! Along with the typical stuff going on in a day (children, unexpected phone calls and even Mr. Inspector came to look at the basement and garage work) it was enough to show me WHY GOD HAS BEEN MAKING ME SO TIRED. . . .I need to take care of myself or I will crash.
So, today I do have several things going on. Our old neighbors are coming over at 10 this morning to bring us their cat. See, a couple of years ago we gave them Patches’ brother, Tiger M. (Patches is our cat that got hit and killed in the road a few months ago). They have had the cat for 2 years but now have to give it away. Since we gave him to them, they called us first. Grace has been begging us for a new cat ever since Patches died so IMO this was an answer to prayer. Tiger M the cat is coming back and Mrs. L will be here with her 4 children to drop him off. Her kids are all heartbroken and I’m not looking forward to witnessing the emotional goodbye, poor things.
The other thing going on is that I was “completely shocked” yesterday to have a neighbor up the road call me to invite me and the kids to her house!!! We have lived here for 2 years and haven’t had anyone invite us over. We live in the country so we rarely even see anyone but this lady’s granddaughters must have noticed my kids playing outside and begged her to call us so they could play with them. Lucille (sp?) is her name and she sounded SO nice on the phone. We are all set to go over there at 1:00 this afternoon to meet her 8 and 12 year old grand daughters and go swimming in their pool. I can’t believe I might be making a friend! Lucille even told me that she has an in-law apartment that she made into a scrapbooking studio for herself and her daughters and that I could join them anytime I wanted to. She babysits her grand daughters and makes them do school work every morning of the summer so she was very interested that I homeschool. Also, her parents used to own the land that my house is on!
Despite the fact that I have these “dates” with friends, I still plan on taking it easy today so that when Rich comes home I’m not a blubbering mess! LOL
I have probably written too much this morning. Thanks for “listening”. This post was supposed to be just the simple fact that God has brought me through the first three months of pregnancy and I am so grateful.
I’m also grateful for a new cat for Grace.
And grateful for new friends.
And grateful for the energy of my five children, even though I cannot keep up. LOL
Thanks for the encouragement and prayers!
Good to be Home 
Sounds like you have good day for you going! wow..one trimester done! 2 more to go!! 🙂
3months along already. Wow. You look beautiful. I hope you have a great time with your neighbor today. I love you Shan! Miss you. Elisha
Happy Birthday – 3 months old!
maybe twins? I remember the first six months whizzing by but the last trimester taking forever. rest. a lot. take care.
I enjoyed your post today. We have a baby due here across the hall in January, so I can kind of use that young lady’s progress to compare yours, although this is a first baby for her. She is one of “my girls” and comes to my cell group. I am glad resting is a priority. I know it must be hard to fit it in to your busy life, but you do need it! I remember being a blubbering mess a time or two myself! Thanks for coming by and catching up on my posts. I was thrilled to see you had been there to comment. Blessings to you and your dear family.
Enjoy the day ~ blessings to you. What is the cat’s name?
Those pics are so sweet. You’re so beautiful.
You look beautiful! 🙂 Such sweet pictures.
When I was expecting Jakey (he was my fourth) I was so incredibly impatient and yes….downright moody and mean. Everything irritated me for the first 4 months or so….and after that things leveled off until about my 7th month…then I was super tired and super irritable. I know it shouldn’t be like that- but unfortuantely it was.
My midwife said I expected way too much of myself….and did way too much. But I would sit at night and think….”Should I not do laundry? Not do our homeschooling? Not cook? Not clean? Not take the kids to music lessons?” There wasn’t a whole lot I could cut out of my life- ya know? I’m sure you do.(lol)
Enjoy your time with your new friends!! That’s exciting. I’ve lived in our new house since May 1st- and two ladies have come over to introduce themselves. One of them stayed for coffee and coffeecake. 🙂 It was really nice.
Shanda I got excited thinking about how Feb is right around the corner and then I will be able to see the face of your new little one! You looks so peaceful in these pictures, you can’t tell at all how busy your days are from the feel of the images! LOL!
There is something really special about neighbors, I hope your visit goes well!
Shanda, you look ADORABLE! I am so excited to see these first “pregnancy pics.” Congratulations on making it through the first three months, and yes, praise God for Baby’s safety thus far. I had to laugh at what you said about the bad moods, because it reminded me of my mom’s pregnancies when I was growing up. We would always be able to guess when she was pregnant because of those same moods. Ha! As you mentioned, I think fatigue is the reason; you’re right, how can a pregnant lady be a match for a bunch of healthy children? You seem to be doing a great job at maintaining balance in your life with your extra physical limitations at this time…keep rested and relaxed! ❤
Hoping you are able to rest a bit more today. How lovely to meet new friends!
Yes there’s a belly and yes there are moods and yes, blame them all on the baby! (why not?)
Sounds like a lot is going on, but good stuff. Have a good visit today!
I remember always being tired, especially in my first trimester. It sounds like a busy day that you have planed. The second appointment sound like you might get to sit down and relax a little. Hope you have a great day, God bless
Kelly
Sounds like Tiger M. might be from God!You’re right about being more sensitive to noise, jabbering, and arguing – it IS due to hormones and how much your body is demanding from itself! Sometimes there isn’t any “self” left to share with others!
I remember feeling this way with my youngest child. When you have other children it is easy to get short fused. Slowing down is the key, letting lots of things go is also key. My grandson is due in 6 weeks and I’ve watched Kelly go through this even though they do not have other children. JJ (my son) comes to me occasionally and asks for advice as to how he can make Kelly less moody… HA! I am having so much fun watching them. It’s really cute! 🙂 Good luck with your pregnancy and you certainly are one blessed lady to have so many children!
Wow so many new Blessings in your life! You must be overwhelmed with it all!
I was always tired the first couple months of my pregnancies. Just try to rest and nap when you can and remember your vitamins.
Hugs
Congrats on the new addition to be added….Danish Doll told me I should check out your site and I am glad I did….I am expecting again too…due March 10th, but I expect a late Feb delivery is most likely…this is number 5 for us and we are homeschooling too. This has been the worst pg time for me yet….very sick, very tired….and the grouchiness….boy, can I relate to wanting to lay on the couch and tell everyone to get away from me….but, as I am sure you know, one can’t with other kids around….I would like to subscribe to your site so I can keep up with you too. I am always happy meet a new friend with,…or without….a similar lifestyle. Blessings to you and your growing family……
Charlotte
I’m so excited for you!
Slow down and enjoy it… who knows if this is the last one. 🙂 I’m glad you’re getting to know your neighbors. That’s so exciting. I hope the kids… and you… enjoy it.
I was the same way during pregnancy. If I over did it (non stop go go all day like I’m known to do!) I’d be crying and hate life by the evening!! Take it easy and don’t feel guilty about it!! I know it comes naturally to feel guilty about it cause you know……….we arent’ human or anything and we don’t need rest and we must be hard workers and all:):):):)
You look so beautiful! I’ve been wanting to see your baby belly, but didn’t want to ask. Thanks for sharing! Praise the Lord for a healthy pregnancy so far. Try to take it easy and get plenty of rest. I pray that your visit with your neighbor and her granddaughters goes well. I can’t imagine anyone NOT loving you and your family. You are a beautiful person- inside and out!
precious pictures!! you have a perfect excuse to do no more than necessary, and maybe even let some of the “necessary” go at times…=) Blessings to you~
your pictures are sooo cute! And thanks for your prayers for my mom. her surgery went great yesterday and they dont think it has spread to her lymph nodes. praise the lord. we’ll receive confirmation of this, as well as the plan of treatment on Friday. so we need to still pray, but for now, we are thanking God!
I love those pictures! You look so beautiful (even if you are not feeling so beautiful)LOL!
I just have to say something about David going to school: my son who is 6 now also had (has?) a speech delay. What I learned is that a speech delay is not just that he has a hard time forming words it is also a language delay meaning he doesn’t understand language like a “typical” child would. The speech therapist explained that if he doesn’t have some special help from a professional, he will just become more and more frusterated and by the time he is around 2nd grade, he will resist school and really have “holes” in his learning that he can’t fill in. I say that to say he has had 3 years of speech therapy along with other development therapies and it has really made a huge difference for him. I am so thankful for all the help he has had and the public school he attends really has teachers and staff that truly care and love him. I will be praying for your family as you make this transition, it will be GREAT don’t worry!
I am so glad you have three months behind you~ that is a good feeling 🙂 I always feel a relief when I make it to that point — I like your pictures here ~ I hardly see that bump, but it’s there oh so tiny and it’s LIFE ~ God has given. :)Hope you enjoyed the gymnastics! I LOVE IT — though … last night had me coming out of my seat!
how beautiful you look….and always content in your face despite the tiredness….so take care of yourself and let the Lord lead you ~ blessings on the new friendship!!! God is everywhere and leading you to new things!! blessings.
@resolved2worship – I watched my tape this morning and it stopped right at midnight!! Ugh!!! I saw everything but S.Johnson’s floor-ex and the rest of the last rotation. I yelled and made all the kids jump when I saw A.Sacramone fall off beam, I was so disappointed. Then, I could not believe she fell on floor, too. Poor girl ~ she looked sick about it. I’m just relieved we got the silver. I’m hoping that Johnson and Luikan (sp??) both do really really well in the all-around.
This was another beautiful post! Your very tiny tummy is just precious 🙂 and I love these pictures! Blessings!
Bless you and your sweet baby belly….you are such a cute little mommy. Love the pictures of you and your baby tummy. Sounds like a nice day…what a blessing of a cat. Hope all the kids have fun. We had children that were summer friends as our Grandparents and it was so fun when we got to see one another! Hugs, Jenny
You always look so cute….new friends and scrapbooking nearby-what a treat! Enjoy!
You are wise in saying that it’s smart to save some energy for when your hubby comes home…so he will not find you an emotional mess! I am still trying to learn this…at 32 wks pregnant! =)Good reminder.
life is amazing ~~! n it is a beauty of grace
Wow 3 months, before you know it you will be holding your new baby:)
Sweet lil tummy! just think there is a little ‘un in there!!! I love it. Glad to hear about Lucille and the cat and Grace and God’s grace. I pray daily for you and Rich. hugs from here. m
Yay for the 3 months! But I am so excited to see the next 6 months go by… (cause I wanna know if its a boy or a girl)I am so happy that you have found a friend in the country…my grandma used to live out in the middle of nowhere on a farm…but now that they live closer to people its better…
Woo Hoo! One trimester down, just 2 more to go!I think that you look great!!Enjoy the time with your neighbors!
beautiful pictures!
I love your pics Shanda. so priceless and beautiful.. praying for you friend. God never gives us more than we can handle.
Congratulations on making it through the first trimester! I think that’s the hardest when you already have kids around, just from the sheer exhaustion.
Your due date is exciting — my littlest was born on February 14th, and he has been a valentine in every sense of the word!