Tuesday, July 16, 2019

"Raising Men Not Boys" Book Club

Hey moms of boys...
This is for YOU!
I read this book a while back and it's one of the BEST parenting books I've read when it comes to raising sons.
It's faith-based, it's practical, it's thought provoking, & it's relevant. 
I've been wanting to do this for a while, but I finally decided to do an on online "book club" where we will meet virtually on Sunday nights to discuss it. We'll read 2 chapters each week and we'll have a private FB group where I'll post a Zoom link for each week's gathering. (So it's FREE other than buying the book!) Each week we will share our thoughts/questions/challenges etc. & we'll be praying for each other and our sons. Our final week, I'll gather questions ahead of time and we'll have some of my fave boy moms (of grown sons) on to share some insight & wisdom with us.
By the way...Today is Amazon PRIME day! If you have Amazon Prime, I want to encourage you to go order this book ASAP (whether you can join the book club or not). **I think you can use the code PRIMEBOOK19 to save $5 off a purchase of $15 or more on books. Great time to stock up on some books!
We are starting THIS Sunday (7/21), so if you do plan to join us you'll want to go ahead and order ASAP to get it in and be able to read the first two chapters! Moms of boys ANY age are invited to join us (one of the chapters is all about raising teenage sons), so feel free to pass this along or invite a boy mama.
Here's the link to buy Raising Men Not Boys.

Here's the link to request to join the FB group.

 I'm so EXCITED to do this with all of you!

Saturday, July 6, 2019

Baby Butler #4 is 26 Weeks

I can't believe I'm already 6.5 months! This is flying by and I know it'll be October before we know it. My official due date is October 11th, and we can't wait to welcome our sweet baby girl to the mix!

My Symptoms: I can feel that my SI joint is out of whack (probably because I always sit with my left foot under me), so I just bought a package to start seeing the chiropractor more regularly. They are certified in the Webster technique, which I recommend when seeing a chiro during pregnancy. (I personally go to help keep everything in line & totally trust our chiropractors.)

I randomly threw up this week for the first time this entire pregnancy. We met my mom for lunch, & I grabbed a garbage bag out of the back of the car on the way there because I just KNEW I was going to yack. (I was nauseous off and on until week 16ish but never threw up.) Sure enough while we were eating, I had to run to the bathroom and I puked my brains out. Once and done! Not sure what happened exactly? 

I get SUPER full to the point that it is very uncomfortable when I eat, so eating smaller meals more frequently and trying not to overdo it because I feel like my stomach with bust!

Still wearing a wrap (you can see it in some of my pics) to help support the umbolical hernia. Probably need to be wearing some compression stockings/socks to support these gorgeous varicose veins I'm rockin. 

Other than that, I really am feeling good and I'm very thankful! No swelling and I'm not miserable the way everyone acts like I should be during the summer. I am feeling more content with this being our last baby though. (Did you ever think you'd hear me say that?) I am just tired & Jonathan says it pretty much every day, so it'd have to be the Lord's plan and a heart change (especially for Jon) for us to have another.

Appointment: Everything looked great at my appointment. I met a new doctor and he was very nice and personable. EK had a strong heartbeat. I was only measuring 22 weeks when I laid back (even though I'm actually 24). Blood pressure was good. Next appointment is my glucose, so I'm looking into options for that besides the glucose drink. I try not to be "that girl" too often, but I'm just not comfortable with it after reading some of the ingredients. I'll prob do the jelly bean deal with some non-GMO jelly beans. 


Maternity Clothes: Yes! All the dresses. Wearing mostly workout clothes during the week. (I have maternity workout leggings from Target that are super comfy.)
Movement: Our girl is wild just like her brothers were! Sometimes it tickles or catches me off guard. Girlfriend is strong already! Love the sweet little reminders. (And trying to peel back on caffeine after learning from my DNA kit that I am a slow metabolizer of caffeine.)

Sleep: Meh. Sleeping okay. Toss and turn all the time. Older two boys wake me up sometimes. Get up to pee. 

Cravings: Watermelon & s'mores!
Supplements: Taking the BEST pre-natals I've found on the market, and they are custom made for me by IDLife. I'm taking a multi, probiotic, omega 3, D3, folate, iron, & magnesium. Still doing bone broth protein + an unflavored collagen in the mornings & taking a B complex since I found out I do in fact have the MTHFR gene mutation as well as FUT2.

Nutrition: Definitely need to step my veggie/smoothie/juicing game back up!
Work Outs: I have been feeling really strong during my workouts the past couple of weeks...once I get going that is (it takes me a minute), I took my first yoga class this pregnancy and LOVED it! I always forget how much I love yoga till I do it.

Best Pregnancy Moment This Week: Well it definitely WASN'T when the very overweight man at the gym asked me when my twins were due. Lol! Really, it's probably that I've reached the phase of pregnancy where I am CLEARLY very pregnant and everyone wants to talk to me about it. Most people say normal stuff, but sometimes I run into the people with limited communication skills who want to say something and just don't know WHAT to say...so they say something borderline rude/inappropriate. I enjoy meeting new people and a sweet new blessing is always a great conversation starter. I love seeing people's face when they ask if it's my first. Ummmmm, not quite. ;)

Really though, some highlights have been seeing some friends whom I ADORE & haven't seen in forever!!

LOVED seeing this sweet BFF!!! P.S. She started a podcast! Go check out "You're Not Alone!"

Celebrated this beauty at her shower for sweet Vada Jae! Isn't that the cutest name?? 

Loved having these awesome house guests all the way from Michigan!

Special trip to Montgomery to speak at a nutrition seminar with these friends!

Fun making memories on the lake with alllllll our boys!

Celebrated this sweet lady's baptism! She and I got our specialist's degrees together. Such an honor to be part of this special day with her.

Goals for next week: Drink more water! Obviously there is a trend this pregnancy. Thankful for Hydrate! It's pretty much the only thing keeping me from being dehydrated since I can't seem to make myself drink water. (We made a shift in our house to some products that are GMO free, soy free, gluten free, and have no artificial colors/sweeteners etc.)

Siblings Pregnancy Comparisons:
26 Weeks with Jase
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Week 24 with Kade
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Week 24-30 with Beau
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