Weekly Update: 16 Weeks

Okay, so I know I'm a day late. Yesterday was a bad day. I had a very long day at work and then a bad headache all night.

How far along: 16 weeks (and one day)!

How Am I Feeling?: Good, just tired.

Mood: Jealous. My coworker Jenn found out last night that she's having a girl. I want to find out too!! 5 Weeks, 4 days until we find out. Not that we're counting. :)

Clothes: We had a coupon for 30% at GAP/Old Navy so we went shopping last weekend. We ended up at the GAP Outlet hoping that we could find some really good deals on maternity clothes. Their selection of shirts was awful. Any potential ones I found were stained or ripped. I did, however, find some pants. The first pairs of maternity pants I bought had a full elastic panel, which means it covers your entire tummy. I'm sure these will be really nice when I get bigger because they will stay up better. Right now, though I feel like I have to keep pulling them up because they are a little too big. At the GAP Outlet, I found some pants that just have an elastic waistband. I am in love with them right now. They are comfortable because they stay up like my pre-pregnancy jeans, but they also stretch out so I don't have to worry about them being too tight by the end of the day. I also bought a couple of shirts online from Old Navy and Burlington Coat Factory. They should be here soon, so I'm excited to see how they look.

Sleep: I am still really tired. I thought that during the second trimester you were supposed to get most of your energy back. I'm still waiting for that to happen. I do sleep a lot better at night though. I am usually falling asleep on the couch early.

Appetite: Hungry. Beyond hungry. I can't get full. It is so frustrating! I remember before I got pregnant, I always thought it would be so nice to be pregnant because you are supposed to eat more. Now, I envy the people that can eat a meal and feel full after it.

Cravings: Everything. Anything. And yet, nothing at all. Crazy, I know. It's very difficult to explain. I feel so hungry all the time that I feel like I could eat anything. When I actually think about eating something, nothing sounds very good.

Gender Predictions: I still think it's a boy. I'm nervous now though because Jenn was positive she was having a boy and she's having a girl. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Best Moment This Week: I think I feel moving!!!! I think. It's like little tiny flutters. It just feels different from anything I've ever felt. When I think about what it could be, I actually picture a little baby flipping around like crazy. I really think I can feel it moving around.

What I Miss: I still miss eating a big dinner and actually feeling full.

What I am Looking Forward To: Knowing for sure that what I'm feeling is actually the baby. I want to feel a strong kick!

Milestones This Week: Feeling the baby. Even if I'm really not.
I also read somewhere that the baby can hear us this week. I love that.

How Big is Baby?: According to The Bump, the baby is the size of an avocado.

Your Baby - 16 Weeks Pregnant
Your baby's nails are well formed and some babies are even in need of having their nails trimmed at birth. Your baby is emptying his or her bladder every 40-45 minutes. The limb movements are becoming more coordinated and vigorous. The head is erect and the legs are developed. Both the gender and muscle movements are easily detectable with ultrasound. Your baby is approximately 4 inches long and weighs about 80-85 grams (3 ounces).

The Nursery: Part Deux

Today is Daddy's birthday. No, not my daddy.... baby's daddy. (Or my baby daddy if that's what you choose to call him.) Today is his last birthday of freedom. Today is the last birthday where he gets real presents from me instead of handmade presents from our kids. :) Maybe.

So what does Daddy get to do on his super exciting last birthday of freedom????

He gets to paint the nursery!!!!! Woo hoo! Yippee!!! What a great way to spend a birthday! Now before you all think that I'm a mean wife for forcing him to paint the nursery on his birthday, let me set the record straight. I told him he didn't have to paint anything. I told him he could sit on the couch and watch movies and play baseball all day. He WANTS to paint the nursery. Who am I to deny him what he wants???

We went to Ikea last weekend and bought some furniture for the nursery. It is so super cute! We both love it a lot. We were excited to get started on the nursery so on Sunday, we went out and bought paint. We spent hours in Home Depot agonizing over which color would be perfect. (I'm not even exaggerating. Well, maybe it wasn't hours... but it was a long time. And we did agonize!)Oh, you want to see what color we chose? Be forewarned. This color is not for the faint of heart.

That's right. It's a super bright, super bold limey-ish green color. We think it will be awesome and will go perfectly with our crazy monster themed room. The whole room will just be a mass of super bright colors. I can't wait to see the finished product!!

Weekly Update: 15 Weeks

How far along: 15 weeks!

How Am I Feeling?: I've had a headache for a week. :(

Mood: Happy, excited.

Clothes: Half and half. I need more maternity shirts since I actually look pregnant in those as opposed to just looking fat in my regular shirts.

Sleep: I seem to be sleeping better through the night.

Appetite: Always, always, always hungry. Except for last night when I apparently forgot to eat dinner.

Cravings: Fish fry. We're going tomorrow and I'm so psyched!

Gender Predictions: GAH! I just don't know anymore!

Best Moment This Week: I guess my week was pretty uneventful.

What I Miss: I miss eating a big dinner and actually feeling full. I feel like I haven't been able to eat enough all week.

What I am Looking Forward To: Feeling the baby. I really can't wait!!!

Milestones This Week: none

How Big is Baby?: According to The Bump, the baby is the size of a naval orange.

Your Baby - 15 Weeks Pregnant

Rapid growth of your baby continues at this point. The skin is very thin and you can see the blood vessels clearly underneath. The scalp hair pattern is developing while fine hair (called lanugo) covers the baby's body. Your baby is approximately 12-14 cm (3.7 to 4.1 inches) and weighs about 50 grams (1.75 to 2 ounces). Your baby's taste buds already look like a mature adult's and doctors have learned that the amniotic fluid that surrounds it can smell strongly of curry, cumin, garlic, onion and other essences from a mother's diet. Your baby's bones continue to harden and retain calcium very rapidly. At this point in the pregnancy the placenta will begin to take on the job of hormone production to sustain the pregnancy, which was the job of your ovaries up to this point. Your baby's eyelids are now firmly shut, and will stay closed until the third trimester.

Weekly Update: 14 Weeks

How far along: 14 weeks!

How Am I Feeling?: I feel pretty good. My legs get really restless at night which is super annoying.

Mood: Happy, excited.

Clothes: Half and half. I have to unbutton most of my regular pants at the end of the day but I don't have enough maternity clothes yet.


Sleep: Still waking up a lot during the night. I've had the craziest, most vivid dreams too.


Appetite: Always, always, always hungry. Last night, Ben made me a 3 egg omelet and some goetta and I was hungry 15 minutes after eating it.

Cravings: Spaghetti-O's. My pregnant co-worker Jenn mentioned that she had some for lunch today and now I want some. I haven't had spaghetti-o's since my brother, Bill was young!


Gender Predictions: unknown. We find out May 4th. (That's way too long to wait, IMO)

Best Moment This Week: I always like going to the doctor. It's just exciting even if they don't really do anything.

What I Miss: My legs sitting still.


What I am Looking Forward To: Ben's birthday on the 23rd.


Milestones This Week: I guess learning exactly when we will find out the sex, even if it's farther away than I thought.


How Big is Baby?: According to http://www.thebump.com/, the baby is the size of a lemon.

Your Baby - 14 Weeks Pregnant
Your baby's body systems are starting to work on their own. The digestive system practices moving food along the intestines and through the renal system and he can create and eliminate urine. He also continues to practice breathing the amniotic fluid in and out of his lungs. Your baby has tiny, soft nails on his fingers and toes, is growing hair and may even suck his thumb. Your baby is approximately 10-11.5 cm (3 1/2 -4 inches) and weighs approximately 1.5 ounces. Also, your baby's blood is beginning to form in the bone marrow and blood vessels are beginning to connect various parts of the fetus to another. The joints and muscles allow your baby full body movement so your baby is able to move around. The baby's neck is getting longer and his chin is no longer resting on his chest. The eyes and ears continue to move into place. The hands are becoming functional and reflex movements often occur. Nourishment now comes from the placenta. Remember, some of what you eat and drink is getting through to your baby. The doctor can tell if your baby is a boy or a girl using special tests. Amniotic fluid is an amazing substance. It completely regenerates itself every three hours. We do know that it is partially composed of urine from the baby, but where amniotic fluid in general is made we are not sure. Modern medicine still has some surprises left.

Doctor's Appointment 2.0

Our second doctor's appointment was today. (I don't count the very first time we went to the doctor because they just had me pee in a cup and told me I was pregnant. Like I didn't know that from the home tests that came back positive...) As usual, they had me pee in a cup. I'm getting quite good at it! They weighed me and I found that I had only gained 2 lbs! Which is really good. (I thought it would have been 10 or 20 with the way I've been eating. I guess baby is just soaking up everything I don't need. Thanks, baby! Mommy loves you!!) I went back to the room where the hubs was waiting and had my blood pressure taken. Then the NP came in and answered a few questions that I had thought of after my last appointment. She had me lie back on the bed and she felt around my tummy to see how I was growing. She said I was growing perfectly! It was weird because when I push on my tummy, it stills feels squishy, but when she was pushing, it actually felt hard! Then we listened to the heartbeat. That never gets old. She said is was between 140 & 150 beats per minute which is perfect! So to sum up the appointment, I'm perfect, Baby is perfect... what more could we ask for? I also got my H1N1 vaccine. It didn't hurt but my arm felt like dead weight all night.

Then we talked about my upcoming appointments. I was so excited because I know that they can tell gender between 18 and 22 weeks. I'm supposed to go back every 4 weeks. If I keep that schedule, at my next appointment I would be just shy of 18 weeks. I thought maybe we could just schedule the appointment for 5 or 6 weeks away so that it would be easier to see if we're having a boy or girl. She said that she would see me again in 4 weeks and then 4 weeks after that we would have my "big" ultrasound. So I said in my most pathetic voice "Oh, so I'll have to wait until 22 weeks then?" She said that they're going to do it that way so they can be absolutely sure of the gender and also since I had an earlier ultrasound, they want to see a lot more growth and waiting would just be better.

I pouted all the way home. I kept saying "May??? We have to wait until May??? I don't want to wait that long!"

Did you hear that?? May!!!! So for everyone marking their calendars, we will find out the gender on May 4th.

Oh, and don't worry. We already have a special something planned for how we'll break the news.

Gender Predictions

I took a couple of quizzes this week. I wanted to absolutely know FOR SURE whether we are having a boy or a girl and what better way than with online quizzes. The results? Here goes....

According to Madam Zaritska, I am having a boy. Of course, she also said that my boy would weigh 4 lbs. I just don't think that's going to happen.

According to another quiz, I have a 66% chance of having a boy based on the fact that my mom has gray hair and I grab a mug by the handle. Doesn't seem too scientific. (And since the likelihood of my mom's hair turning back to brown are slim, does that mean I'm always doomed.... I mean destined....to have boys???

Finally, the last quiz I took gave me a 50% chance that I'm having a boy. Finally! The most accurate answer yet. Of course, I'm just hoping the other 50% is the chance that I'm having a girl and not a zebra or something.

I guess I still don't know for sure. What do you think? Maybe I should offer prizes to the people that guess correctly.

Weekly Update: 13 Weeks

How far along: 13 weeks!!!! Woo hoo! You know what that means, right? No? You don't obsess about the number of weeks like I do? Oh. Well I'll tell you what it means. 13 weeks means 2nd trimester!! Of course there are many conflicting reports on exactly when 2nd tri begins, and I suppose officially, I'll be 2nd tri on Sunday at 13 weeks, 3 days but why not celebrate now???

How Am I Feeling?: I know you want to hear about this, but my butt hurts. And my hips. And legs. Seriously. I am finding it very difficult to sit at my desk all day and when I get home, I am constantly flipping sides on the couch and in bed. I have even been working and standing throughout the day because it feels better.

Mood: Right now, I have a borderline migraine. That may have nothing to do with pregnancy and everything to do with the fact that I was put on the phones at work this week. My headache makes it hard to remember how I've felt the rest of this week.

Clothes: I went shopping last weekend! I couldn't stand it anymore. I only have one pair of jeans that still fits me okay and none of my work pants are too comfortable anymore. I bought a pair of jeans, two pairs of work pants and two shirts. I went to Motherhood Maternity in Tri-County. They had some really cute clothes, but I'll probably just make a few trips to the GAP Outlet from now on because MM was a little pricey. I had no idea what I was doing but had a very helpful associate that took me around the store and loaded my dressing room with a ton of things to try on.

Sleep: Worse this week. I just can't seem to stay asleep and when I wake up, it is really hard for me to fall asleep again. It doesn't help that I have dreams of us getting bombed and causing earthquakes that destroy the world.

Appetite: Comes and goes.

Cravings: I guess my cravings have subsided a little. Although someone said something about waffles the other day and I have wanted some ever since.

Gender Predictions: Well last night I dreamt that we had a boy. Of course, I also dreamt that he was 3 years old and we were meeting him for the first time because a girl I once knew in grade school was raising him for me. (This was before the dream about bombs and earthquakes)

Best Moment This Week: My boss, Jenn had a baby last year. She bought a home doppler monitor that she let me and fellow pregnant co-worker, also Jenn, borrow. Last night I brought it home and Ben and I listened to the heartbeat! P.S. It totally works with hand sanitizer. No need to buy that goop they use in the doctor's office.

What I Miss: Sitting for long periods of time.

What I am Looking Forward To: Sunday. Official 2nd trimester day.

Milestones This Week: My mom loves my little bump and she told me I should just embrace it. I'm still not convinced it's entirely baby bump, but I figured that my organs are all smoooshing around and sticking out and that I do actually have a bump from being pregnant. My milestone of the week: actually embracing this little pooch we'll call a baby bump instead of trying to hide it. Thanks, mom.

How Big is Baby?: According to http://www.thebump.com/, the baby is the size of a peach!

Your Baby - 13 Weeks Pregnant
There is a lot going on with your baby this week. Your baby's intestines are migrating from the umbilical cord into his or her abdomen. The villi are also forming in the intestines, and these help in peristaltic movements and digestion. The liver begins to secrete bile and the pancreas is even secreting insulin! All twenty teeth have formed and are waiting under the gums, while your baby has begun to practice swallowing by taking in the surrounding amniotic fluid and pass it back in his urine. Your baby can smile and his vocal cords are quickly developing, too. He looks more and more human as his eyes move closer together and the ears are beginning to move to what will be their normal positions. Your baby weighs between approximately 13 and 20 grams (1/2 and 3/4 ounce) and is approximately 2 1/2 to 3 inches long. The placenta and baby are about the same weight now. Most of the vital systems are developed now, and baby starts really growing, at times, growing as much as an inch this week.

What??? You want a belly picture? Okay! Here are some of me modeling my recent maternity purchases!

This one really shows off my bump, but it's also a little of a boob picture. Sorry!!!