Less Than 100 Days to Go...

We are now at week 26 which means we now have less than 100 days to go! It's hard to believe that 26 weeks have already gone by, it seems like the next 14 are going to take forever. I have definitely felt lots of changes the past month including my weight, belly size and the movement of our little monkey. The kicks are getting stronger and his movements are more often. It's such a wonderful feeling to know that there is a little one inside of you. Even better, Nick can often feel him moving too. We are excited to get the nursery put together here soon. We have had so many other household projects, including re-doing flooring in multiple rooms and re-landscaping our backyard, that we have put the baby's room on hold. I am ready to start nesting and get things in order. Too much chaos makes me nervous at this point in the game.

However, we did buy our crib a few weeks ago and I absolutely love it. Although it is still sitting in the box, I feel a sense of relief that one of the big furniture purchases is out of the way. The best part is that it comes with the changing table which eliminates having to purchase another piece of furniture and it frees up a lot of space in the room. I couldn't help but fall in love with the jungle theme, it's too precious. This may not be the one that we get but I'm sure it will be quite similar. (The picture of course is one from the store, not from the crib set up in the room). I hope now will come the fun part of decorating the nursery. I'd rather not stress about what colors to paint, but knowing me, I will until it is completed. I'm crossing my fingers that we will be able to finish the nursery (or the majority of it) before the baby shower at the beginning of July. This way, we will only have to fill in the missing pieces, and not put the entire puzzle together.

I thought it would be fun to try and update every week (I reiterate the try portion of that statement) of the changes and growth of the baby. It's at the fun point now where the baby is growing rapidly and of course my moods are constantly changing that the documentation of it will be fun to look at later on.

How Far Along? 26 weeks
Total Weight Gain: 15 lbs. (not too bad I think)
Size Of Baby: About 2 lbs. and 12 to 13 inches. Baby is the size of a head of lettuce!
What's Baby Up To? Baby's ears are more developed and he can hear mommy and daddy's voices now. He is inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid which will give him good practice for when he takes his first breath once he is born.
Maternity Clothes? Of course-I can still wear some of my pre-pregnancy shirts but most bottoms and tops for that matter are maternity.
Stretch Marks? Nope. Not yet.
Sleep: Most of the time pretty good, once I can fall asleep I am usually out for the night. But, he is usually active right as I lay down so sometimes it takes me a while to get to sleep.
Miss Anything? Tying my shoes, thank goodness it will be summer time and I can wear sandals from here on out.
Best Moment This Week: Nick was able to see Mason move. After feeling his tough kicks, Nick looked at by belly and was able to see our little boy active.
Movement: Moving like crazy, some days more than others
Food Cravings: Nothing too outrageous, just a sweet tooth.
Anything Make You Queasy or Sick: Chinese food. Uck.
Gender: Boy
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Heartburn. Horrible Heartburn.
Belly Button: Still an innie!
Wedding Rings: Although my fingers swell quite often, the rings are still on.
Happy or Moody: Every week changes but this week was so happy. Lots of great things going on right now so nothing to really be moody about.
Looking Forward To: Getting more furniture and items to prepare baby's nursery. Mama is getting anxious.

Our Peanut is a Boy!

We were lucky to find out this week that our little peanut is a baby boy! It seemed like we had to wait forever to find out. We are so excited to finally know what to expect and are definitely ready to break out all of the blue! Baby looks very healthy and everything seems to be going great. Thank goodness! At 21 weeks baby seems to be getting bigger and bigger by the day.

Now we are ready to finally begin picking things out for the nursery, choosing paint colors and preparing for our little boy to come. Luckily, we had names for a boy and a girl picked out even before we found out we were expecting. So when we found out we were having a boy, there was no doubt in our mind that our little one would become Mason James. Although this name is making its way up the popularity list, it was about what name sounded best for us. Thus far, I don't know of many Masons but it could be that once he is in school, there may be 4 other boys with the same name. For now (and I'm sure when he arrives), the name is absolutely perfect for him.

Now that the tough part is out of the way (that is deciding a name), we have all of the other small decisions that seem so huge at this point. Preparing the nursery and registering are just a few of the things that are on my mind daily. I hope that everything will come together, in a timely manner, and my stress will be at ease. From this point forward, we pray that everything continues to go smoothly and baby Mason stays healthy and grows just as he should. Everything else that will come with having him in our life, is just icing on the cake.

Halfway Done!

I cannot believe that we are already halfway through the pregnancy! It seems like it has gone so incredibly fast! I'm sure that the next 20 weeks may not feel as fast, August feels like so far away. After the first few visits with our doctor, she told us that as of week 20, we could rest assure that the baby was here to stay. It's certainly a relief to know that we have finally reached this point in time and that hopefully the rest is not so stressful.

Although I have enjoyed the feeling of being pregnant and knowing that I am going to be a parent, I definitely miss the times of being young. I do have friends that are in the same position that I am: married with children (or 1 on the way at least). But I still have friends that are still enjoying going out occasionally and having fun. I always wanted to be a mom, first and foremost before anything else. I just don't think I realized how much your life changes when you become responsible for another. I cannot help but laugh when looking at this because it certainly describes the changes between partying and pregnancy.

Although I miss the times that I am able to go out and be a part of the party scene, I have a great husband, family and really supportive friends. They know that even though I am lame and unable to party with them, they still invite me and make sure that I am a part of things. (Usually though it's to be the designated driver). Soon enough I will be able to join in the festivities again but I guess until then I will take in the joys of being a soon-to-be mama. I have heard that once the baby is hear, you miss being pregnant. I will have to see for myself soon enough I suppose.

Boy or Girl?

It's almost that time to find out whether our little peanut is a boy or a girl! It's such an exciting time. We are so ready to start preparing. We keep talking about what we think it is but there is really no way to tell until we can get that confirmation. Mothers intuition is telling me boy, although we are hoping for a girl. However, as long as baby is healthy the gender doesn't matter. As first time parents, it's hard not to be excited about finding out the gender! We will find out April 9th!

I cannot help but read in the books and look online about the different wives tales about predicting gender. Some are obviously way more ridiculous than others. My favorite to have come across stated that if you don't eat the heel in the loaf of bread then you are having a girl. Really? Nobody likes to eat the heel of the bread. Just absurd. However, there are some that I question as they are not too far fetched.

1. If you are carrying high, break out the pink. If you are carrying low, its a boy. (I don't think I am big enough to tell yet so this one is tricky.)

2. During your ultrasound and/or doctor visits, heart rate of 140 or above indicates a girl and beats below 140 indicate a boy. (Baby's has been all over the place every visit!)

3. Craving sweets indicates a girl and craving salty foods indicates boy. (I have always loved sweets, even before a baby was growing to enrage new cravings.)

4. Chinese Gender Chart--indicates a girl and so many people swear by it. We will see if I fall into that 90% accuracy or not.

5. Mayan legend. If mothers age at conception and the year are both even it's a girl, if one's even and one is odd it's a boy. (Age 24 in 2011, one even and one odd. Mayans guess a boy.)

6. If you are breaking out like crazy, it's a girl. Baby girl wants her mama's looks, therefore the breakout. (I figured that it simply was the increase in the pregnancy hormones.)

7. When your face gets fuller and rounder when pregnant, it means you’re going to have a girl.  If your face is long and narrow, it’s a boy.  (My face looks the same as before I was even pregnant. Not sure what to make of this one.

8. If your legs get really big, you’re having a boy.  If your legs stay in shape and lean, it’s a girl. (I don't think that I have examined them enough at this point to decipher how they have changed. I don't think that I want to know!)


9. If you have dreams that you are having a boy, you will have a girl.  If you dream about having a girl, it will be a boy.(I have had dreams about both, but more dreams about having a boy. I think that is why I was so convinced that it is a boy).

10. If you're sick as a dog during the first trimester, it's a girl. Little to no morning sickness indicates a boy. (I thought I was never going to stop throwing up. Was absolutely miserable. Girl?)

After reading all of them, half would indicate a boy and the other half would indicate a girl. I cannot seem to convince myself that any of these are true since every woman is different. However, we seem to get a kick out of reading a lot of them and trying to figure out if they apply to this pregnancy or not.

Come soon enough, we will find out whether to start buying in pink or in blue. Mama's instinct says blue...

From Misses to Maternity

I think one of the first things that all women think about when they first realize that they are pregnant is "When am I going to have to wear maternity clothes?" I'm sure that some women are more excited for that shopping experience than others, I was definitely not one of them. I have been procrastinating as long as possible to make the dreaded shopping trip. Now, after 15 weeks of pregnancy, I had to cave. Not that the pants are absolutely necessary at this point, but I am sure uncomfortable wearing my regular jeans. I knew that getting a pair of maternity jeans would relieve my stress on the belly as well as the stress on baby.

The only jeans that I could picture in my head, were the "full panel" jeans. Those lovely jeans that have the giant elastic band that goes clear up to the chest. I couldn't imagine how small bellied mommies could possibly wear these jeans. I told myself I would suck it up and manage, anything would be better than the pressure and indentation that my current jeans leave daily. Luckily, I was naive in the world of maternity as there are a plethora of "band types" to choose from.

Thank goodness, I didn't have to buy the jeans that I was absolutely dreading. I'm not sure if I will regret it later down the road or not but I decided to go with the demi panel. These sit nicely below the belly and have plenty of room for baby growth. Although those with the full and extended panel leave much room for growth, I can't be sure how big I will be or how uncomfortable I may need  to buy them. Being pregnant during the summer is going to be absolutely terrible. The horrible heat that Colorado gets will be extremely uncomfortable for a pregnant woman. That means that I will then have to go shopping for shorts and tanks that I will only be able to wear for 3 months! 

I think that I will wait before doing anymore maternity shopping as the price tags are not cheap. Hopefully I will be able to go a little bit longer without having to worry about buying shirts. I would definitely much rather spend money on the baby than myself. I would have liked to wait at least another 5 weeks or so before buying jeans but it just wasn't worth it anymore! With our next appointment this week, we should be able to see how measurements are coming and how baby is growing. It might give me an idea of when I will have to make this glorious shopping trip again.

Feeling Uncomfortable

I cannot help but search for pictures online and look through baby books and magazines to give me an idea of when I should be showing the pregnancy and how I may look. It seems to be a curiosity for never experiencing it before. I use the books that tell me "Your baby is the size of a lime," to help me in estimating where it may be sitting and how big before I will feel it. Unfortunately, I feel nothing but uncomfortable. I have began to feel pressure in my lower abdomen and it is the worst. My jeans are too tight and maternity pants are too big! I see a small difference in my lower stomach and that is it! There is no sign of an actual shaped 'baby bump' so at this point I try to keep myself comfortable without worrying what I look like from another perspective. I understand that each woman is completely different with each pregnancy but I am hoping that within the next few weeks I can begin to have a small bump. Maybe this will eliminate some of the discomfort and give me a little bit of confidence in what I am wearing. I am certain that the discomfort will arise again later in pregnancy, but at that time, I should be in those clothes that are made for expecting mommies. For right now, I feel it may still be a little too early to be shopping in the maternity section.

I talk to many different women and I hear so many different things about pregnancy. At times, I wish there was some consistency in having a baby so I can really understand it. At this point, I have no clue what is going on, what to expect or what is going to happen and it absolutely drives me crazy! Living with a man doesn't help either cause they don't know squat about anything. I guess I have to take each day with a grain of salt, try and educate myself as much as possible and pray that my mommy intuition will eventually kick in--and not steer me wrong. 

Baby Looks Like A Baby!

February 1, 2011

About 9 weeks through the pregnancy I and I finally began to start feeling normal again. I regained my appetite and was not feeling quite so nauseous anymore. I was starting to have a better outlook on pregnancy. However, I woke up one morning and thought that my pregnancy was all over. With the thoughts of miscarriage running through my head since I found out about the baby, I couldn't help but have overwhelming emotion that morning. I called the doctor just to be safe, explained my symptoms and was told I needed to be seen. I took it easy that day trying to prepare myself for what the future of the pregnancy may look like.

When I arrived to the doctor, the only thing I kept thinking was that I wanted to see my baby and hear the heartbeat. Of course, they anxiously make you wait until the last few minutes of the appointment. I was finally admitted to ultrasound and was graciously relieved that I could see my baby fluttering and heard the strong heartbeat (around 200bpm!) I was given the news that everything was fine with baby and that I had a small blood clot, or a chorionic hemorrhage,  around the area where the baby was growing. I was assured that everything should be fine but to make sure to take it easy, no heavy lifting or moving, and hope that my body absorbs the clot. (Luckily, I have a wonderful husband to take care of all the dirty work for me.) Although I was relieved, the 'mommy' side of me couldn't help but continuing to worry until I really knew that everything was okay.

Our follow up visit was great! There was no sign of the hemorrhage still and the baby was growing great and still had a strong heartbeat. My mind was definitely put at ease to know that this clot may have just been a small bump in the road. We went in on the 1st, 11 weeks, for our infamous Down Syndrome and Trisomy testing. As I find out that we have to wait 4 weeks in between testing and then wait an additional 4 more weeks before finding our results, made feel feel a little uneasy again. I'm sure its common between all first time mommies but I am still not sure how I should react to everything. However, our ultrasound tests went amazing! Everything measured just how it should be and we were so excited because baby finally looked like a baby! There was certainly a noticeable head and little body and it was no longer just a white peanut, there really is a baby in there.

At that point,  I realized that it doesn't matter how testing comes back but that we have an amazing miracle joining us is the greatest gift I could get. I could not feel the baby and I didn't look as though I was having a baby but I knew that one day, when it did happen, it would be indescribable.