21 Weeks

How far along: 21 weeks, 6 days

Maternity clothes: Still just wearing my looser fitting exercise pants and sweats for the most part…thank goodness for the job that I have!

Stretch marks: Nope thankfully!  I am using straight Shea butter mixed with lavender (AMAZING stuff…thank you Rebecca!), and Burt’s Bees Belly Butter to help avoid them.

Sleep: Pretty good, but I am now starting to get a little more uncomfortable.  My doctor has officially told me to try and stay off my back, so I am try to get creative with pillows to make side-sleeping a little more comfortable.  My belly even feels big enough now that I like putting a folded blanket or flat pillow underneath it.

Best moment this week: Obviously finding out that we’re having a baby girl!!  (Technically we found out last week) When I went to my appointment, they tell you to drink 32 oz. of water an hour before the appointment (trust me, it’s more than you think), and by the time we got in to the room, I had to pee so bad!! Lol…luckily the ultrasound tech let me go to the bathroom, but just not empty my bladder all the way (so the baby is still nice and pushed up out of my pelvis so they can see more on the ultrasound).  As she started the ultrasound, she asked if we wanted to know the gender and we both said yes.  I could have sworn I saw a little boy part right at the beginning but the tech said it wasn’t that haha.  She kept swirling the ultrasound probe around my belly, and it was so cool to see how much more our baby has developed since my last ultrasound!  I understand for the most part what I’m looking at when I’m seeing an ultrasound, but as I was making out what I thought was her face, the tech then says, “no, that’s her bum”…oh great, I’m already a bad mom lol.  Anyways, right after that she says, “It’s a little girl!”  I was already caught off guard cuz of the whole face/bum mix-up, so it surprised me when she said it all of a sudden (since I really was somewhat convinced we were having a boy), and Hesston immediately was like “Yes, I knew it” and did a little fist pump lol.  We are both so happy to be having a girl though, and can’t wait to see her and hold her!

{Cool shot of the umbilical cord going into her tummy!}

 It's a girl!!

Miss anything: Not really at the moment.  I’m still fairly comfortable, I still am allowed to eat most of the foods I crave, so for right now, I’m good!

Movement: Yesiree!  I will admit that a few nights ago, I got a little nervous because I was having some weird pains and not feeling very well, and to top it off, hadn’t felt much movement in the last day and a half.  It’s easy to get nervous when you have such little control over a situation.  Anyways, luckily later the next night after I laid down, I started feeling her a whole lot more (her movements are definitely starting to get more distinguishable from just gas bubbles haha) and my mind was put at ease J  I am excited to feel stronger and stronger movements though, for peace of mind and just because it’s such an exciting feeling!

Food cravings: Still my Cream of Wheat, scrambled eggs, toast with raspberry jam (ya, breakfast food all around these days).  Also, pretty much the only vegetable I can actually get myself to eat these days is steamed spinach with lemon juice and salt (you probably think I’m crazy lol), but I grew up eating it that way, and I LOVE it!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still no.  When I get cramps though (what I’ve deduced to be a uterus growth spurt or Round Ligament pain…which is awful by the way), I do start to feel a little nauseous if it’s really bad.

Have you started to show yet: I would definitely say so!  It’s nice to actually have a more obvious belly now especially considering I’m already past halfway!

Gender prediction:  GIRL!!

Labor signs: Nope

Belly button in or out: Still in, but I’m noticing my belly is starting to stretch it out and make it look a little flatter

Wedding rings on or off: On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy happy happy!

Looking forward to: Buying more baby stuff!  It has been next to impossible to not buy everything in sight now that I know we’re having a little girl.  We are trying to avoid buying a whole lot since there is a chance (and hopefully a good chance) that Hesston will get a job and we will move soon after the baby is born.  Hesston just doesn’t want to be stuck moving a whole ton of extra things, and I can’t blame him.  It is hard to wait though, so I tide myself over by just filling up registries and only buying a few small “easy to pack” things.

...just a few things to tide me over ;)

20 Weeks - Halfway There!

How far along: 20 weeks, 1 day

Maternity clothes: Yep, I officially need them!  I’m actually wearing my first pair of maternity jeans in this picture!  My sweet friend Michelle let me borrow these since I haven’t gotten any yet, and MAN are they comfy!  I will definitely be on the hunt for more J

Stretch marks: Nope, but I can feel my belly stretching more and more.  A wonderful client of mine got me Shea butter with lavender in it for Christmas (such a doll!), and I will try using that and maybe a few other things to keep my skin as soft and moisturized as I can!

Sleep: Still really good!  Luckily I am already a side sleeper so it won’t be a problem having to be stuck on my side for the next few months.

Best moment this week: I’d say it’s between getting some maternity clothes (regular pants, including my workout pants, are just too tight and hurt my belly, so it was nice to get some looser fitting ones) and buying our baby’s first toy!  I found the cutest stuffed elephant (neutral colors since we don’t know the gender yet) and could NOT resist getting it lol

Miss anything: Pregnancy-wise, no.  But I sure miss our friends!  We have gotten very close to a few other couples in Hesston’s grad school cohort over the last year and a half, and 3 of them are all starting their jobs now, and have moved to other parts of the country (Chicago, Michigan, and Houston)…I already miss them dearly!

Morning sickness:  Nope

Movement: Yay, finally I have!  It is getting more obvious when it’s the baby, and it’s so cool!  Just tonight I felt something move in two different spots of my belly, and it did it again a few seconds later!  I can’t wait to feel more!!

Food cravings: Still wishing Logan had a Del Taco…probably good they don’t lol.  I do like Cream of Wheat with bananas or scrambled eggs lately

Anything making you queasy or sick: Thankfully not…especially since I work in a gym and that could have been a very bad thing haha

Have you started to show yet: Oh yes!  It’s getting harder and harder to hide it.  At least I think I’m close to being out of the awkward “just looking like I have a pooch” phase

Gender prediction:  Well, things have kind of changed on that front.  I was shopping about a week ago, and just wasn’t loving the girl stuff (probably cuz I was at Wal-Mart lol), and I just liked the boy stuff more.  And I somewhat had an epiphany, where something was telling me it was a boy!  And I was actually really happy about it!  Our friend said their nurse actually kept track of people’s gender predictions and how accurate they are, and said that Dads are about 50/50 (basically the odds to begin with lol), but Moms are actually right 75% of the time! Hesston still wants a girl, but I guess we will see!!  I still will be happy either way J

Labor signs: No

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: On, and thankfully still plenty loose

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy (and getting more excited)

Looking forward to: Finally knowing the gender!  Appointment is tomorrow morning!!

18 Weeks

How far along: 18 weeks, 6 days

Maternity clothes: I definitely am starting to feel more of a need for them!  Jeans still fit, but they definitely get tight and hurt my belly sometimes!  I full on un-buttoned AND un-zipped my pants at the movie theater the other day LOL

Stretch marks: No

Sleep: I have still been sleeping pretty good.  I actually had a sleepover with my friend Ryann last night on air mattresses (her house is empty cuz they're moving to Houston next weekend), and our husbands had built a snow fort in their friend's yard and wanted to have a sleepover in it...and it was NEGATIVE 17 degrees last night! Crazy boys!!  We slept great in the warm house though haha

Best moment this week: Getting to borrow my friend's fetal heartbeat monitor!  I totally put it on my stomach and got the heartbeat right away!  The definitely doesn't happen most of the time for people since those monitor's aren't that high tech, and it's hard to get it in the right spot, but I somehow hit right on it on the first try!  Super cool!

Miss anything: Being in better shape!  I kinda let excuses get in the way of me working out, so I am going to start swimming next week since it's really good exercise (especially for pregnant women).  It's nice that I work in the same building as the university's swimming pools too!

Morning sickness:  Still no...definitely grateful for it too.

Movement: Yes, I really think I can say that I have!  It's still not a super obvious feeling to detect (what I think a lot of women say about the first movements)...but I'm starting to distinguish more and more what the baby feels like and what probably just gas bubbles feel like lol

Food cravings: OH ya...I am feeling hungry ALL the time...and will get the randomest cravings.  We were walking through Wal-Mart, and I wanted Pop-tarts really bad...and I never eat those lol.  I also want Del Taco like all the time, but I think that has more to do with the fact that Logan doesn't have one haha.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope, not at all.

Have you started to show yet: Yes, for sure I would say.  Especially after I eat a big meal lol

Gender prediction:  Still hoping for a girl, but we will see!  Half of my friends refer to the baby as "she" and the others say "he"...I still am trying not to jinx anything and keep calling the baby "it" for now.  Luckily not for much longer!

Labor signs: No

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy

Looking forward to: Feeling the baby more and more!

17 Weeks

How far along: 17 weeks, 6 days
Maternity clothes: None yet...luckily I get to wear workout clothes basically every day for my job lol
Stretch marks: Nope
Sleep: Sleeping just fine so far!  However, this morning, and a couple other times, I have had the most PAINFUL charlie horse in my calf muscle...so bad it woke me up and throbbed for a solid couple minutes...ouch!!
Best moment this week: Hearing the heartbeat again! It's always such a relief to know baby is still going strong in there...crazy how fast their hearts beat too (about 140-150 bpm!)  We also got to finally tell our best friends that we are pregnant..we've been keeping this secret in for a long time!!
Have you told family & friends: Yes, finally!  We are actually making it "Facebook official" tomorrow on New Years day!
Miss anything: Not really...maybe sushi, and also being able to take any decent medicine for colds/pain relief...you  pretty much can't have anything when you're pregnant!
Morning sickness:  None...thank goodness for that :)
Movement: Yep, totally think I can say that I have!  It's so fun, especially at night laying in bed.  I will feel a tight pressure on one side, and can push on it, and can tell there a hard "lump" on one side, and it's soft on my other side, and I'm convinced that's the baby hanging out there...so cool!
Food cravings:  Still love my Crispix cereal, orange juice, and bananas
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope...I've gotten really lucky with my pregnancy
Have you started to show yet: I definitely think so!  Sometimes it depends on the day, and also on the clothes I'm wearing, but I am definitely having a harder time keeping my stomach "flat"...good thing we're going public tomorrow so I don't have to hide anymore!
Gender prediction: Don't want to try and guess...I'll admit we want a girl, but I also don't want to feel disappointed if it's a boy.  We'll find out in about 2 1/2 weeks!
Labor signs: No
Belly button in or out: In
Wedding rings on or off: On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, but I definitely have my moody/cranky moments lol.  Hesston I'm sure is ready for me to not be grumpy anymore!  I don't notice it all the time, but I definitely get impatient more easily, and frustrated with silly things.  It's probably the stress of my job more than pregnancy though haha.
Looking forward to: Finding out the gender! My ultrasound appointment is on January 18th, and I am so ready to be able to start shopping for baby stuff and making this whole thing feel more real!