Baby Jaxton: Pregnancy-Weeks 26 & 27

Our family absolutely has NOT caught a break in over a month, so here I am again posting two weeks of pregnancy updates!! I'm probably just going to do it this way for now on. I don't know. We will see! Here's our 26 and 27 week pregnancy updates from my favorite pregnancy app, Ovia, and a few bump pics!

Week 26:

Let me tell y'all something about week 26. We decided to take a family trip to St Simons Island on good Friday. If you follow the Admirably Diverse Facebook page, you saw the pictures and live video. We were out there for 5 hours having the best time and my idiot fair skinned pregnant self didn't put on any sunscreen until I was already out there for a few hours. Biggest mistake ever. I am STILL recovering from it 2 weeks later. My legs and feet are still purple and my whole body is peeling like I'm a snake, but thankfully the swelling is gone and I didn't get burnt on my belly, chest, or shoulders. I thought I had sun poisoning, but thankfully I didn't. So I said all of that to say, WEAR SUNSCREEN Y'ALL! 

On week 26 Jax was the size of a bowling pin! Sometimes their size comparisons really confuse me because one week it'll be something huge and then the next week it's something way smaller. You'll see what I mean in week 27.

Week 26 hand size!!

And here is our week 26 bump! 

Week 27:

This week has started off great! I'm not too uncomfortable or anything (probably jinxing myself) and Jax is moving up a storm as I type this! I had an appointment with my midwife yesterday and Jax's heart rate was 150! I also gained another five pounds in the past month. So that's s total of 25 pounds and I still have three more months to go!! I'm actually going to have to work to get the baby weight off this time, unless breastfeeding makes it melt off again like after I had Camden and Ryleigh. 

This week Jax is the size on a bunch of bananas!! 

Here is his sweet little crazy fast growing hand!!

And our week 27 bump!!

Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday: Owen

"After 10 months of trying to conceive we were so thrilled when we finally became pregnant. This baby was so loved, so wanted and we were incredibly thankful for this little life! 

I went into our sonography appointment at 21 weeks knowing without a doubt that baby would be a girl, I could just feel it. I vividly remember how joyful we were in anticipation, how playful and lively we were feeling. Joking with each other and the sonographer, it felt like such a great day! Well to my absolute surprise the sonographer told us that our baby was actually a boy, and the rest of that appointment still leaves me breathless, anxious with my heart beating fast. After much time had passed, I knew deep down something just wasn't right, almost yelling I said "just show me where his hands are", and she said "I can't find them"... 

At that point it was just her last effort to try and find what wasn't there and my doctor was already on hold waiting to give us the news officially.  Our son would be born with only a small part of one arm and missing significant parts of his legs as well. I crumbled to the ground, numb from the pain, the next 3 days are a complete blur and that day still feels like the worst day of my life. 

I had never even heard of congenital limb differences before, I was in shock, this couldn't really be part of Gods plan. At that point our doctors couldn't even predict the viability of the pregnancy and didn't know for sure if our son was still healthy and growing. 

Three days after that appointment my husband and I experienced a peace that could've only come from the Holy Spirit, people we didn't even know were praying for the safety of our baby and for our fragile hearts. At every following appointment we found that our baby was indeed healthy, growing and perfect. 

In July I gave birth to our son, Owen Benjamin, and it was by far the best day of our lives. I didn't know what to anticipate, but laying eyes on him for the first time I knew without a doubt that I'd love this little boy more than I ever thought was possible. I thought that his differences would be overpowering, but all I saw was Owen and his total perfection. He was completely ours and we were completely his. 

Having a front row seat experiencing how God has changed hearts and changed lives through the life of our son has been one of my greatest joys. I believe that God created Owen with such greatness and divine purpose for his time here on earth. His sweet spirit, wise eyes, and infectious laughter captivates everyone he meets. It's a beautiful thing watching Owen's story unfold, and I'm so honored that I get to be his mama.

Right now Owen is a healthy and active 9 month old. We don't know what the future holds, but we can't wait to see his interests and passions develop as we help him achieve his dreams. We share quite a bit about Owen and his limb differences because we've become so passionate about embracing and celebrating all differences. We want everyone to see how happy and capable our Owen is and that his differences are just a small part of who he is. There is so much life he has to experience and so many wonderful things that he'll get to do. I can assure you that there's nothing sad about his differences and he is here to help change the world! 

Be truly glad, there is wonderful joy ahead (1 Peter 1:6)"

To follow Owen and his family on Instagram- @loveintheville

The letter that Owen's mom, Casey, wrote to him before he was born- https://loveintheville.wordpress.com/2016/05/09/owen-the-great/

*If you would like to be a part of Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday, please send me a message on the Admirably Diverse Facebook page or email me at katiewhiddon@admirablydiverse.com with your photo, your story, and links to your social media if you would like for others to follow you!*

Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday: Ryan Haack

"Hi! My name is Ryan Haack. I was born missing my left arm just after my elbow. It never stopped me from doing anything I wanted, though! I started a website at LivingOneHanded.com where I share my thoughts and experiences living with a physical difference. I make funny videos showing how I do things, too! I love making people laugh. One of my favorite things I’ve done is write a children’s book called Different Is Awesome! and I get to travel around the country telling kids at schools that it’s our differences that make us awesome! You can find out more about Different Is Awesome! here: www.livingnonehanded.com/differentisawesome YOU’RE AWESOME!"

*If you would like to be a part of Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday, please send me a message on the Admirably Diverse Facebook page or email me at katiewhiddon@admirablydiverse.com with your photo, your story, and links to your social media if you would like for others to follow you!*

Baby Jaxton: Pregnancy-Weeks 24 & 25

Okay, I slacked again last week on a pregnancy update. I was sick and adjusting to the kids being back home from their vacation with all their grandparents in Texas. But hopefully we're all done with all the sickness. I'm ready to be back to our normal! But anyway. Here's our weeks 24 and 25 pregnancy updates from my Ovia app and bump pics!

Week 24:
For week 24 Jax is the size of a GI Joe! I thought it was funny that last week they had him at Barbie size and now this week he's a GI Joe! 

And here is his hand size for week 24. 

And our 24 week bump! Ryleigh just loves my baby bump! And she gets verrry territorial if anyone pulls up my shirt and rubs my belly. It's the cutest thing!

Week 25:

I guess week 25 is the start of the struggling during pregnancy. Yesterday I was just sooooo uncomfortable and Cole said my belly got so much bigger than just the day before. The skin around my belly button hurts and I can't even bend over anymore. And I just can't stop thinking about how miserable I'm going to be at the end of this AND I'll be 9 months pregnant in the middle of the summer. I'm just hoping I'm being dramatic and it's not going to be THAT bad. 

This week Jax is the size of a baseball glove! 

And here is his sweet little hand size that I love so much!!

Our 25 week bump!

Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday: McKoy

"I found koy was going to be like this at 20 weeks. Koy was born on October 31 2012 he was diagnosed with phocomelia. He has over came so many obstacles and he is in school and is very smart. He loves church and fishing!"

*If you would like to be a part of Limb-Different Buddy Wednesday, please send me a message on the Admirably Diverse Facebook page or email me at katiewhiddon@admirablydiverse.com with your photo, your story, and links to your social media if you would like for others to follow you!*