Here's the belly at 30 weeks (and above at about 6 weeks, before I finally took a pregnancy test). I was in probably the best shape of my life before baby 4 and the change to the bigger me has not been easy this time. I have continued to exercise regularly and as vigorously as possible, but my body apparently has a pregnancy mode that just cannot be beaten down. I ran until 22 weeks or so and then felt that my knee was done. I still wake up at 5:30 three times a week to do the "Insanity" video series with a friend. I still play volleyball on Tuesdays (although no one is really intimidated by my blocks at this point). And, I can still ride a mountain bike with two kids in the trailer. All of these activities are getting more difficult and if the weather would hold I might give in to long walks and easy bike rides for the next 10 weeks. I am looking forward to the other side of pregnancy, but I'm trying to remember to enjoy the baby moving inside me and all the other little joys while they last. This past weekend, we went to Utah and camped out for three nights and hiked some slot canyons and played around at Goblin Valley. The toddler in a backpack/sleeping on the ground combo was a little uncomfortable, but we had a blast! Especially Silas, who was still asking for one more "venture" at 8:15pm on the third night.
Another BIG change...we went from one bench seat to two. Yep, in January we caved to necessity and purchased a big, fat Suburban. Last weekend in Utah, I was so thankful for that big lug!! Even without a fourth carseat, we needed every inch of it. (The old '93 Rodeo, that once jumped off a 40 ft cliff, is still trucking as Christian's work vehicle, no worries.)
