Hey everyone!

I’ve got a special blog post for you today… My posts usually feature photos I take of other people, but this one has photos of me (and my baby bump)! We’ve officially made it to 30 weeks of pregnancy, and it’s hard to believe that baby will be here sometime around 10 weeks from now!

If you missed my first two (bump)dates, check them out here: Baby Announcement & 20 Week (Bump)date. They cover a lot of the basic information, including our specific due date, how we told our families, and an explanation of the fact that I have a high-risk pregnancy even though it doesn’t really feel like it.

My 30-week Pregnancy Update

 

 

Photo credit once again goes to my husband! Photos by him, edits by me.

I’ll run through some recent frequently asked questions, but feel free to leave a comment or contact me another way if you’re wondering anything else! I’m a pretty open book!

Remind me – do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?

Nah man! We just want a healthy baby, and we’re excited to be surprised when the baby arrives! A neighbor of ours asked if it’s a boy or a girl, and we told her we’re waiting to find out… She then asked if we’re waiting to have a baby shower after the baby comes! I said no, and she said “but that’s HARD!” Haha, she could not seem to wrap her head around buying a gift for someone without knowing if baby is a boy or a girl. I told her there is pleeenty that baby needs that comes gender-neutral, haha!

We have focused on getting fairly gender-neutral stuff so far, but we also don’t really buy into gender stereotypes – it’s all a social construct. If we have a boy and he ends up in pink, or if we have a girl and she ends up in blue – awesome. We don’t care, and we don’t think our baby will care either.

How are you feeling?

I’ve gotten into the habit of saying “knock on wood, knock on everything…” when someone asks this, because things are still going so well! Many pregnant women have difficult, unenjoyable pregnancies, and many others are unable to conceive or experience miscarriages. Friends, I see you.

I don’t know how I got this lucky, but my pregnancy continues to be easy without many of the typical negative pregnancy symptoms / side effects.

• No heartburn, no swelling, no back pain unless I sit on the couch in a weird position for too long

• Right as I turned the corner into the third trimester, I started getting pretty tired in the afternoons. I think I’ve given into a nap a couple of times, but most of the time I feel the need to keep on trucking through work. I also don’t nap very easily, so it would take me a while to fall asleep and then I’d be groggy after, haha. I do feel like I’ve been getting enough rest overall, though, so don’t worry! I’m taking it easy when I can.

• When I walk for long periods of time or simply a lot in one day, I’m definitely feeling it in my hips. We walked all around downtown Raleigh with our friends Haley and Michael when they were visiting – about 2.5 miles total – and I was really feeling it that day! I came and crashed on the couch for like 10 minutes, and then we went and walked around the farmer’s market – ha!

• I’m also getting more winded when I take our dog on a walk… or maybe when I go on walks in general. It used to be pretty easy for me to record myself talking on an Instagram story as I walk downtown, but I was so out of breath the last time I did it!

• TMI warning – the biggest negative symptom I’ve had recently is some rectal bleeding when I use the bathroom. It’s a bit alarming since that’s my main symptom when I have a flare with my ulcerative colitis, but I don’t have my other usual flare-like symptoms. My doctors and I are fairly certain it’s pregnancy-related and due to downward pressure from the baby, and not a colitis flare. I’m working with my OB and GI doctor to try to determine a little more certainly one way or another, but I’m thankful that it’s painless, at least.

• Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, and all the snacks… I often do feel like I’m eating for two, and I grab a snack when I start feeling hungry again!

 

 

Any recent ultrasounds?

Yep, I had one at the 28-week mark a couple weeks ago! Because I have ulcerative colitis, my high risk doctor wanted to keep an eye on the growth of the baby, so we scheduled a 28-week ultrasound early on. They took measurements of baby and watched its movements, and everything looks good! God’s showing up big-time, because not only is baby growing just fine, but he/she/they was/were actually in the 88th percentile and measuring on average 8 days ahead of schedule. (I was 28 weeks & 1 day at the time, and baby measured at 29 weeks & 2 days.) My brother and I were both big babies, so I’m wondering if this will be a big baby too! I’m just glad that they seem to be getting the nourishment they need!

Are you ready for baby?

This is actually a pretty hard question for me! I think I’m ready? Maybe? I’m not feeling antsy for baby to arrive yet… he or she needs to stay put and grow some more before I’d like to meet them! As a first-time momma, I feel like I’m still looking forward about 2.5 months to a mysterious world of precious snuggles, little sleep, and I’m not sure what else. I don’t know what to expect exactly, so it’s hard to say if I’m ready!

Is the nursery all set up?

If we’re talking on a more tangible “are you ready?” note, nope! Not really! We’ve gathered all of the big stuff for baby (I think) and have a pretty good set of clothes & other things to start out with. (Ready and willing to accept more clothes though, if your baby has outgrown some!) We haven’t started putting together a nursery yet, and that will happen in July after our roommate starts staying at her new apartment. We assured her that she’s welcome to stay as long as she wants, but you know, something about living with a newborn that isn’t your own just doesn’t sound super appealing. 😉 We’ll make her room our guestroom, then make the current guestroom the baby’s room. I think it’ll come together fairly quickly once we start! (Famous last words, though, right?)

Are you going to have a baby shower?

Yep – I’m having two! One in Raleigh and one in my hometown of Chesapeake, VA. If I missed you for the guest list somehow (oh yeah, another symptom I am having is pregnancy brain!), let me know and I’ll send you the info! If you’d like to love on baby from afar in a tangible way, let me know if you’d like our baby registry information. 🙂 We still need everything for cloth diapering!

Will you have an official maternity photo session?

Sure will! We have a maternity session scheduled soon with one of my best photographer friends, and I already can’t wait to see how the photos turn out! That will be a nice way to a) commemorate this time and have photos of both Andrew and me together, and b) remember how awkward it can feel to be in front of the camera! It’s going to help me relate to my clients, for sure!

Are you taking a maternity leave?

YES – and as a small business owner, I recognize how important it will be for me to advocate for myself and my family in protecting my maternity leave as much as possible. With baby due at the end of August, I plan to take September and October off from sessions and weddings, and I won’t do much photography in August either. I’ll use August to (be inside in air-conditioning and) finish editing sessions from July (if necessary), edit a wedding I have at the beginning of August (with these two wonderful people!), and get other business-related things squared away before taking more official time off.

I’ve already had to say “no” to a couple of inquiries that fall within this timeframe, which honestly makes me feel sad, because I love capturing moments for people and hate turning down business! However, I know that it will be precious time with a precious little one, and so important as we start figuring out our new norms.

I plan to be available for sessions, weddings, and events again beginning in November, so let me know when you’d like to schedule something for late fall! During my maternity leave, I’ll check my email at a certain frequency and respond when I can. I won’t spend too much time on this away from baby, but I do want to make sure you know I’m interested in booking things with you for November, December, and beyond!

Do you need anything?

Same as last time – prayers would be wonderful! Our travels are winding down, but I would love to continue feeling relatively comfortable as I have some more sessions & weddings before baby comes. More than that, please pray for a healthy baby who doesn’t come earlier than when would be best… full-term would be great!

If you have any baby items you’re not using anymore, let me know what you have! We love putting pre-loved things to good use, so if we don’t yet have what you’re offering, we’d be happy to take it off your hands (and pay you!).

 

 

Thanks for joining me on the blog today!

You’re so sweet to click over to see this post with our updates and photos. We’re thankful for you as our community and look forward to all that is ahead!

Keep an eye out on social media in the next few days with a special Light Creative announcement (social media links at the bottom of this page) – I’m adding a new art offering!

Connect with me here if you’d like to schedule a session, wedding, event, or something else before or after my maternity leave!

I’ll leave you with some baby bump photos from my everyday life across the last 10 weeks! Except the 14-week photo… I’m including that one as well, because it’s hard to believe at this point that that was even a baby belly (but it was!)!

In light & love,
Kelly