17 Weeks

What I typically look like when not in a tank top and yoga pants for pictures

Nothing super exciting happened this last week in the world of Baby M but he is definitely continuing to grow!  I still don't think any strangers would think I might be pregnant from looking at me but my jeans are starting to feel a bit snug.

And the side bump view :)

 This week we received several fun baby gifts from friends and family.  I was particularly excited about the pack-n-play that my in-laws bought for us!  I plan on setting it up next to our bed for the first month or so of Baby M's life so that I don't have to go all the way to the nursery every two hours for feedings so this will be a very useful item right from the start!  I have had several requests from people for the link to our Amazon registry (tricky Amazon hides the registries under the wish list tab) so I'm going to post it here for anyone who is interested.  Please feel free to make suggestions about products to add or things we probably won't use.  It is hard to know what is really worth it with a first child, especially since every child is different.

Yes, I got paid to do that :)

This coming week is exciting because I have a doctor's appointment on Monday so we can get some official stats on my and Baby M's progress.  It will also be a hard week for me because it is my last week of working with the sweet little guy in the picture above.  I have been working with him since September and it has been a joy.  I will really miss him as well as his family and the staff in the classroom that we are in.  It wouldn't be safe for any of us (me, him or the baby) for me to keep working with him since it involves frequent lifting and he weighs about 60 pounds.  I wouldn't want to risk dropping him as my center of gravity changes or hurting my back or sending myself into premature labor so while I am sad about leaving him I know it is the right decision.

Now onto the regular update:

How far along: 17 weeks 
Baby is the size of a: sweet potato which personally didn't help me picture it since sweet potatoes come in a lot of different sizes but he should be around 5 1/2 inches long

Total Weight Gain:0- After losing 4 pounds initially I'm back to the same number that I was the day I found out I was pregnant

Maternity Clothes: No, my jeans are starting to feel a little snug but they still fit

Sleep: Sleep has been pretty good but I definitely get up more for bathroom trips

Best Moment of the Week: Having J put his head on my stomach and say "Hi Baby Boy!  We can't wait to meet you." I love that he is bonding with the baby :)

Miss Anything: Diet Coke

Movement:  I still haven't felt anything but hopefully soon!  He was quite a mover on last weeks ultrasound.

Food Cravings: Panera Mac n Cheese

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick:Well I have a cold this week but nothing is making me nauseous, I just don't have a ton of energy at the moment

Have you started to show yet: There is a hint of a bump

Looking Forward To: my doctor's appointment on Monday- I love hearing Baby M's heartbeat!

16 Weeks- Gender Reveal!

J and I are very excited to announce that this week we found out that our sweet little one is a...

It's a Boy!!!

BOY!!!  We were so excited to find out the gender and we were not disappointed.  I was very worried that the baby wouldn't cooperate for the ultrasound but he was super active and we got several very clear views showing that he is in fact a he.  I read up on ways to get the baby moving before my appointment and all of the advice seemed to recommend either a cold drink or orange juice half an hour before your appointment so I drank a nice cold glass of orange juice and it worked.  We were able to see the little one moving all over the place.  It is amazing to see how much he has grown over the past four weeks since our last ultrasound!  We could see legs and arms, knees and elbow, hands and feet, and my personal favorite, fingers and toes.  We could see a sweet little nose and lips and a nice straight spine.  We also got to see the heart beating which was pretty cool. 

Sweet Baby M

We decided to go to a non-medical ultrasound facility that specializes in 3D/4D ultrasounds because otherwise we would have had to wait another 3-6 weeks to try to find out the gender at our anatomy ultrasound and we weren't feeling that patient.  I truly didn't care if the baby was a boy or girl but J had his heart set on a boy.  When the tech placed the ultrasound wand on my stomach she immediately said, "Oh I already know what it is!" but then she made us sit there in suspense for a few minutes while she tried to get a better angle so that we could see before she announced that it was a boy.  After spending about fifteen minutes showing us his "pee-pee" as the tech kept referring to it from all angles she told us she was 1000% sure that it is a boy.  I'm sure it is just a pet peeve of mine but I truly hate it when people say words like pee-pee.  Just call it a penis.  Maybe it's the nurse in me but cutesy nicknames drive me nuts.  But that was just a minor annoyance that really doesn't matter since now we know our sweet little one is a boy.  Now we get to the fun part- shopping! So far I have only bought one outfit and a little football but I'm sure over the next few weeks we will start acquiring all sorts of little boy stuff :)

Now that we know the gender and are more than a third of the way through this pregnancy I decided I should probably get started on the registry process.  It is overwhelming how many different products and choices have to be made for a baby.  I decided to register on Amazon because they have a huge variety of products and lots of customer reviews on everything which is very helpful.  It's very stressful to try to make sure that everything you are choosing is a good and safe choice.  I have decided to take the advice on this great blog from an occupational therapist to help me choose which toys are going to help the baby develop because the astounding number of baby toys on the market makes it hard to choose.  I am planning on doing a second registry at either Target or Buy Buy Baby but doing one was more than enough for one day! 

Now onto the regular update:

How far along: 16 weeks

Baby is the size of a: turnip- honestly I couldn't picture a turnip but he is about 5 inches long according to the ultrasound

Total Weight Gain: -1 pound

Maternity Clothes: No, my jeans are still fitting just fine but I'm sure that won't last much longer

Sleep: I slept pretty well this week!

Best Moment of the Week:  finding out that we are having a BOY!!! And also getting to see him move around on a huge screen.

Miss Anything: turkey sandwiches

Movement:  None yet but it's supposed to happen soon

Food Cravings: Wingstop Cajun wings and fries- I gave in and it was delicious!

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Have you started to show yet: I feel like there is just the hint of a bump but J and my coworkers don't seem to agree

Looking Forward To: Picking out fabric and accessories for the nursery!

15 Weeks

This week I went back to work and I have to say it is definitely getting harder to lift my patient.  He is a sweetheart but he can't help me lift him at all and he about 60 pounds so transfers are starting to get difficult.  I will only be working for a few more weeks because after that it won't be safe for my patient, the baby or me.  I love my job and I have truly enjoyed working with this patient in his classroom but the health of all three of us, particularly the baby comes first so I will follow my doctor's recommendation.  I have definitely started to get tired more easily and find myself going to bed at 10:30 on work nights where I used to stay up until 11 or 11:30.  We didn't have any appointments or anything this week so there isn't really any news on the baby front.  We can't wait to get an ultrasound later this week to try to determine the gender of our little one!

15 Weeks- Headed to the Gym

Now onto the regular update:

How far along: 15 weeks

Baby is the size of an:Avocado

Total Weight Gain: -2 pounds

Maternity Clothes: No, not yet but I bought a maternity tank top this week

Sleep: I have been waking up once or twice a night but nothing too bad and I have been falling asleep a little earlier than normal

Best Moment of the Week:  feeling how high the baby has moved in my stomach- I'm not sure if the baby appreciates all of my poking!

Miss Anything: Diet Coke!

Movement:  None yet

Food Cravings: queso

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick:the guy at the gym with too much cologne while I was on the elliptical made me a bit nauseous but I don't think that was a pregnancy thing :)

Have you started to show yet: No though my stomach does seem to be getting more firm when I push on it

Looking Forward To: Hopefully finding out the gender of our little one this week!!! I can not wait to start putting together a nursery and buying little tiny clothes!

14 Weeks

I have now officially entered my second trimester!  We had a very quiet New Year's where we stayed home and watched Netflix.  I know this probably sounds boring to most people but it was a perfect night for us and some neighbors were kind enough to light some (probably very illegal) fireworks at midnight that were pretty impressive.  I had a bottle of sparkling cider and J drank creamsicles (whipped vodka with orange juice- it literally tastes like a creamsicle).  The rest of the week has been pretty quiet.  J had to go back to work on the 2nd and I had the whole week off so I got some cleaning done and took care of some projects that I had.  I have really enjoyed the time off and I'm not feeling ready to head back to work on Monday but I'm sure I will be happy once I get there!  We decided to make our facebook announcement about the pregnancy out on New Year's Day since that was when I hit 14 weeks.  It is always nice to get encouraging messages from friends so that was fun!

 I  got a few prenatal workout dvds that I had ordered and so far I really like them.  I like doing cardio at the gym but especially after work it is nice to have an option that I can do at home that I know is safe for the baby.  I was happy to find that both of the dvds were somewhat challenging because I really didn't want something that would treat me like I was going to break.  Pregnancy is not, in my opinion, an excuse to get lazy but I also want to be sure that what I am doing is safe.

Now onto the regular update:

How far along: 14 weeks

Baby is the size of a: Lemon

Total Weight Gain: -3 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Nope

Sleep: I have been sleeping much better this week!

Best Moment of the Week:  Having a nice quiet New Year's Eve with J

Have you told family and friends: Now that the news is on Facebook everyone knows

Miss Anything: Diet Coke!

Movement:  Nope probably not for another 4 or 5 weeks

Food Cravings: a turkey sandwich from Beach Break- Since it is a hot sandwich I got it!

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Have you started to show yet: No- I thought I might be seeing the start of a bump one day but then J looked at my stomach and said "Are you sure there is a baby in there because I don't see anything" so I guess I was imagining it

Looking Forward To: Seeing my sweet little patient and coworkers when I go back to work on Monday

13 Weeks

I hit 13 weeks on Christmas Day.  We spent Christmas in Arizona with J's family so we were able to tell them about the little one in person.  I really prefer to give big news like that in person if possible so it was nice that we had the holidays to visit both families right after we found out.  I painted another wooden frame and put the due date and "Hi Grandma and Grandpa" on it and we gave it to J's parents the first morning that we got to Arizona.  We then showed the frame to all of his brothers.  This baby will be the first grandchild on both sides of the family as J and I are both the only married kids in our families.  I have two brothers and two sisters and he has three brothers so I'm sure this child we be very spoiled!  I was also the oldest grandchild on both sides of my family and it definitely has its perks :)  I was also able to tell my grandfather who has been asking us when we "were going to have good news for him" since we got married four years ago. He is SO excited for his first great- grandchild!  A lot of our close friends from college/ high school for J live in Phoenix as well as my best friend and my aunt and uncle so we had lots of people to meet with and share our news with!  Christmas was great but it is nice to be back at our place in California again. I seem to be sleeping better now that we are back in our bed.

I wanted to share a picture of the awesome diaper bag that my parents got for me for Christmas.  This was by far the thing that I was most excited about this Christmas!  It is amazing how the things that I get excited about has evolved over the years!
Now onto the regular update:

How far along: 13 weeks

Baby is the size of a:  Peach

Total Weight Gain: -4 pounds since I found out I was pregnant- I'm not really sure how I lost a pound with all of the turtles I ate but I did

Maternity Clothes: Nope, still no sign of a bump but I did get two pairs of maternity jeans for Christmas so I'm ready whenever it pops out!

Sleep: Still woke up several times every night for no reason

Best Moment of the Week:  Getting to tell more family and friends about the baby!

Have you told family and friends: All of our family knows now but the news hasn't hit facebook yet

Miss Anything: Diet Coke! and turkey sandwiches- I don't think this one will change for me

Movement:  Nope probably not for another 5 or 6 weeks

Food Cravings: Cajun Wings with Fries

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick: Nope!

Have you started to show yet: No-  no bump, I still just feel "thick"

Looking Forward To: A quiet New Year's with J

12 Weeks

This has been a very exciting week for us!  We are preparing for the Christmas break and we got to have our first doctor's appointment with our OBGYN which meant our first ultrasound!  I had some nausea between weeks five and ten of this pregnancy but nothing too major and I had lost a few pounds instead of gaining so I wanted to actually hear the heartbeat and see the baby on the screen to confirm that everything was going smoothly.  J was able to come with me to my appointment which was great!  When we went in the doctor started asking questions about how I had been feeling and my medical history.  She determined that I was very healthy and recommended that I keep working out 4-5 times a week for the rest of my pregnancy.  As she put it "how are you going to be ready for hours of labor if you sit on the couch doing nothing for nine months in preparation."  I love this because while I am happy to gain the weight needed to have a healthy baby, I really don't want to get huge and have a terrible time getting back to my pre-baby body post pregnancy.  After we went through the questions, she pulled out the ultrasound wand and we got to the part I had been waiting for since we found out we were pregnant 6 weeks before!  So without further ado here is the first picture of Baby M:

I think it's adorable :)

The doctor measured everything and confirmed that I was twelve weeks along.  She typed hi mom and dad across the top of the ultrasound and I may have teared up a bit :)  It is really really cool to see your baby for the first time and even though it was only the size of a peach we could clearly see the head, spine and legs.  

I want to use these weekly posts to answer a few questions about how I feel so I will end my blog posts with these:

How far along: 12 weeks

Total Weight Gain: -3 pounds since I found out I was pregnant

Maternity Clothes: Nope, no sign of a bump yet.  I just feel more "thick" than normal

Sleep: Waking up several times a night for no reason- this has been frustrating for me

Best Moment of the Week:  Meeting our little one via ultrasound!

Have you told family and friends: We have told my family and a few very close friends but we will be telling Julian's family, my extended family and more friends on Christmas :)

Miss Anything: Diet Coke! and turkey sandwiches

Movement:  Nothing yet, though we got to see a little movement on the ultrasound

Food Cravings: Mac and Cheese and Cajun Wings with Fries

Anything Making you Queasy or Sick: Sometimes the smell of coffee but I am mostly over it

Have you started to show yet: Nope!  I still fit in all of my clothes and don't have a bump yet

Looking Forward To: Telling more family and friends!

 

It's Official!

J and I are very very excited to announce that we our expecting our first little one on the 4th of July!

      We found out when I was 6 weeks pregnant on November 8th.  I had been feeling nauseous all week so after spending a whole day at work scoping out where all of the trash cans were for just in case, I decided to take a test.  I had taken a test two weeks before that was negative and we had just started trying so I didn't really think it would be positive.  I was shocked and excited and nervous all at once when the two lines appeared.  It is such a rush of emotions when you realize your life will be changing forever.  I was thrilled of course but then I had a variety of thoughts about what I needed to do and change now that all of my choices would impact a growing baby.  I decided to wait to tell J until the next day after I went to the doctor's office so that I could verify with a blood test.  After the doctor confirmed that I was pregnant and gave me a folder of information I came home and showed J the positive test.  He had pretty much the same reaction that I did with shock, excitement and worries all coming at once.  I decided to immediately cut out most of the caffeine from my diet (a major sacrifice for me as I am pretty much addicted to Diet Coke), I started making sure my workouts were more consistent, I cut turkey sandwiches out of my diet and I added a spinach smoothie to my daily diet.  I ended up losing four pounds pretty quickly, probably from the increased caardio combined with some nausea that kept from eating as much as normal.  Our first doctor's appointment with the OBGYN wasn't scheduled until Decmber 19th so we had to wait quite a while to see our little one.

      We decided to tell my family about the pregnancy when we went for home for Thanksgiving.  I was so excited to share the news, particularly with my parents.  I'm not good at keeping secrets, particularly from my mom and sister so I was grateful that we had a trip planned only two weeks after we found out about the baby.  I painted some wooden picture frames and wrote grandma, grandpa, aunt and uncle on them for my family members and put the picture up above in them.  We gave them to everyone and tears, hugs and congratulations were given by everyone. I think that my parents are thrilled to finally get to be grandparents!  They were awesome about never putting any pressure on us to have a baby but I also know that they wanted grandkids and they wanted us to experience parenthood.  My mom can't wait to find out the baby's gender so that she can start spoiling her first grandbaby. 
      I want to document this pregnancy so I am planning on using this blog to do that.  I am going to start with a backpost or two to cover the first trimester.  I am 14 weeks now so I have officially made it to the second trimester! We appreciate all thoughts and prayers for a healthy and happy pregnancy and baby.