I can't believe that I've been pregnant for four months now. Well, three that I knew about. :) Only 24 weeks, tops, to go.. and that really doesn't seem that far away!
I check four different websites for development information each week, and they vary a bit. Basically, our baby is between 4 and 6 inches this week, and weighs around half a pound!! He/she has finger nails, toe nails, eyebrows and eyelashes... and our baby can grasp with his/her hands, kick, and somersault! Of course, I still can't feel anything, but they say that it can take a little longer to notice that it IS the baby when it's your first pregnancy.
There's one odd thing which I wonder whether or not it will make it more difficult for me to feel movement. For as long as I can remember, I've always been able to see my heartbeat in my belly button. There must be a huge vein or something that is laying right underneath the surface of my stomach. If I'm laying down, I can watch it and see my belly button pop up a little with every beat. Now that I'm pregnant, my body is pumping 20% more blood, so it's even more noticeable. If I stay still, and pay attention to my body, all I feel is that heartbeat! It may not affect me feeling movement whatsoever, but I wonder if it will delay when I can tell for sure that it's the baby.
I have a feeling that my weekly picture that we're taking tonight will look a bit different from last week. I feel huge! I stood in our closet for what seemed like an eternity this morning, trying to figure out what to wear. Most of my shirts don't seem to be long enough anymore! I end up tugging down on them all day, which gets old. I was THIS close to wearing a maternity top, but none of them are form-fitting, so they still make me look like a blimp. Needless to say, it was vetoed--I don't have enough of a belly to fill them yet.
Well, lots to do, and my morning is already getting away from me. Hope you all have a great day!! Only ONE more day till I hear our little baby's heartbeat again! CANNOT wait! :)
Work is absolutely CRAZY today, so I don't have much time for an update, but....
It's warm today, and there are birds happily chirping outside, reminding me that spring is soon to come~
My coworker asked yesterday where I'm hiding this baby, but Ryan and I both are starting to see a little belly~
"The belly" is really, really low... if this baby turns out to be a girl, I will be absolutely shocked! Of course, the heartbeat was really high at our last ultrasound, (meaning "girl" according to the old wives' tale) but the baby was very active, which could account for that. Hmmm..~
Ryan felt the need to tell me last night that he will be thrilled if it's a boy or girl.. I think he thinks that I don't want to disappoint him. :)
I made a new recipe last night, "Sweet & Tangy chicken," and Ryan completely cleaned his plate. I guess it was pretty good. :) He's the better food judge right now, since my tastes are a little off. ~
I think I'm over my Fruit Roll-Ups obsession. It's a good thing they're only 50 calories each, because I was majorly addicted for a couple of weeks. Of course, now I'm wanting chocolate, so... maybe it was better when I was wanting Fruit Roll-Ups instead. :)
If I had my camera at this very moment, you'd see that it is an absolute winter wonderland in northern Virginia! It started sometime Saturday night, lasting pretty much all day yesterday, and they say we got 6 1/2 inches in our town. It's absolutely beautiful! We were supposed to get freezing rain overnight, but we didn't.. so here I am at work. :) Ryan brought me in, though, because my car is buried.
We had a really great weekend! We drove down after work on Friday to see Mom & Dad S., who live 2 1/2 hours south of us, and we had a really great visit with them. Unfortunately, though, the forecast was calling for a "winter mix" from Saturday night through Sunday, so we had to cut our trip short. We left around 10 PM Saturday night to beat the storm.
At first, they were only calling for around 2-4 inches with sleet and freezing rain on top, (here we go again!) but we wound up with way more snow, and no ice. At least it's pretty, and not dangerous this time! :) It's going to get pretty warm today, though, and will basically stay that way all week, so this snow won't stick around for very long. It's so pretty to look at, though!
I guess we've really had a decent winter after all. :)
Well, I thought the nausea was behind me, but I've had some pretty weird bouts of it every now and then. Saturday morning, about an hour after breakfast, I started to feel really hot, and felt like I was going to have to throw up. I've had this happen a couple times before that. Then yesterday, with dinner practically ready, for whatever reason the smell of the chicken cooking really turned my stomach. (I ended up sitting down after fixing Ryan's plate, and fixed waffles half an hour later!) I know it's probably just hormonal fluxuations, but I had really hoped the nausea was a thing of the past. :)
It's official.. our warm weather is gone. Actually, it wouldn't be so cold if it wasn't for the wind. It's going to get up to 40 today, but the wind is downright violent. I came in to work and noticed that one of our big stone planters flanking the entryway had blown over. Let me tell you, they are NOT light!
I'm wearing my new jeans today, and they are fabulous! No more Bella band, no more constantly checking to make sure the band is covering my completely unzipped zipper-- only comfort. Ahhhh, comfort. Everyone at work has said they look just like regular jeans. Unfortunately, they weren't cheap, but I didn't have many options thanks to being tall. Besides, I'll be wearing them for at least another two pregnancies, so I'm sure I'll get my money's worth. (for anyone wondering, they're the Gap's "Long and Lean" jeans. Don't let the name fool you, though, they're not made for tall people unless you order the "tall" size. :)
I think Gracewas the only one who noticed that my weekly belly picture I post on Thursdays was noticeably absent. I had left my card reader at work! So, here's the 15 week belly pic from Wednesday:
I think I shrunk from last week!! Well, I may have filled out a little bit, but I think the pooch looks smaller. Also, Ryan didn't use a flash this time, so my belly kinda blends in with the wall. *sigh* My coworker is also pregnant, and she thinks it's taking longer for me to really show because I worked out a ton before I was pregnant. (and did lots of ab work) She's having her third child, so she was showing almost immediately. It's fun, though, because our due dates are in the same month; she's due two weeks before me. :) It's great to know someone else going through this.
Well, this weekend is going to be fun! Tucker's going to stay with my cousin, his wife, and their two girls, so he's going to have a LOT of fun with the girls. (he always comes home exhausted after staying with them!) Ryan and I are heading down to see his parents. :) It's been forever and a day since we've seen them, and we're really looking forward to it.
La dee dah. Ever have a day when you're just HAPPY, and not entirely sure why? You could even have reasons that could keep you from being happy, but they.. don't. Well, that's me today. :)
For one, I'm dealing with some nausea again. It's not constant, thank God... it's mainly in the mornings, and sometimes comes in little waves in the evening. Last night, in particular, I wasn't feeling too hot. I was feeling pretty awful, right up till bedtime. This morning I'm back to drinking Sprite, which is big for me because I'm an all-water-all-the-time kind of person. But hey, I've got to drink something, and water sounds disgusting right now. Must be a flux of hormones, eh? Hopefully it goes away before this weekend. :)
I'm always hungry. I brought THREE bananas with me for snacks. I think I have some low-fat poptarts in my drawer, too. :)
Our dog should be thankful he's still living today. Seriously. Ryan and I were both in the family room last night, and our bird, Bella, (my bird, really. Ryan just tolerates her) was chirping to come out of her cage, so I took her out. Tucker had a FIT, because all of the attention wasn't on him. He's greedy when it comes to our attention, and will seek out ways to be bad to GET our attention. We eventually realized that Tucker wasn't in the room anymore, so I went to search him out. I found him in the bedroom.. he was on the bed, so I yanked him off before noticing that he had left us a present. He PEED ALL OVER OUR BED! (this is the SECOND time this has happened) The comforter, both sheets, AND the mattress pad all had to be thrown into the wash. (thank the good Lord it didn't make it through to the actual mattress)
Our dog is not really doing much for his cause. As it is, we're wary about what he's going to be like with a baby here. He is SO desperate for attention, and gets mad when he doesn't get it. We really don't even smother him with attention anyway, so WHY he's like this, I don't know. We're pretty much this-close to getting rid of the dog.
In other news, I LOVE my new jeans! :) I'm just thankful they fit, and are long enough. Unfortunately I can't get jeans just anywhere, thanks to my height, but I was already used to that before I got pregnant. :)
Well, we're definitely finding out at our next ultrasound if this baby is a boy or girl, given we get a good, clear shot. I'm DYING to know! I think it will make picking out a name easier, too. We have a boy name we're 100% happy with, but would still need to settle on a middle name. On the other hand, we have THREE girl names we haven't been able to choose from. Our 'favorite' changes from day to day. If it turns out that this baby is a boy, we won't have to narrow it down, though. :) If it IS a girl.. well, at least we'll be prepared.
Thing is, I really WOULD be happy if it's a boy OR girl. I see the plus sides of both. :) On the one hand, Ryan would LOVE to have a boy first, and would be over-the-moon, which would make me happy. I love little boys, and hope that when we have one he looks just like a little Ryan, it's just.. I don't understand them. :) Guess that's why I have a husband! Little girls, though.. they melt my heart. And it helps that their little baby clothes are the cutest things on earth! (especially those little dresses!)
This weather is unbelievably gorgeous! After the bitter cold temperatures we've had for weeks, this is such a welcomed change. :) Now that I've had a snow day, and had a *good* storm, (even if it was topped with ice!) I can honestly say I'm ready for spring!
Springtime makes me happy. It's full of new life, and it actually brings back a lot good memories of my childhood. Though, I am awfully sentimental these days, so that could explain it. :) Spring also makes me think of Easter, which is my second favorite holiday. I adore Easter.
And do I even need to mention that the sugary, marshmallow-y Peeps are now on the shelves?!
I'm 15 weeks today, which absolutely blows my mind. (I only have 25 more weeks to go!) I'm really loving my little belly, and it's making it much more real for me. We only have one more week till my next appointment. No ultrasound next week, but I'll hear the heartbeat again! Also, I'll get to schedule our BIG ultrasound, which will most likely be between 18 and 20 weeks, depending on what they suggest.
I'm very anxious to start to feel movement from this little guy or girl! I should probably enjoy it while I can still get uninterrupted sleep, (aside from the bathroom breaks) but I'm really excited to feel our baby, and connect even more. Not too much longer from now, our baby will be able to hear me, too! (and eventually the outside world, including Daddy, too)
I'm still so excited and thrilled to be pregnant. :) If you couldn't tell.
In other news, MY GAP MATERNITY JEANS CAME IN!!!! I had ordered a pair online, the kind that sit under the belly, and can work throughout your entire pregnancy, and while I LOVED them... they were too short. I'm 5'9", and sometimes I can get away with regular inseam, but most times I can't. My Mom and I went to the Fair Oaks mall to exchange them, but apparently all of the tall sizes are popular and sell out immediately. They were able to call another semi-local store, though, and get them to send me a pair they had in stock! I'm just thrilled they arrived before Friday, and the weekend, so I can be comfortable in jeans again! :)
Wow. I could definitely get used to long weekends like that! :) Like I mentioned before, I've never had a President's Day off before. As a matter of fact, my last company didn't take off many holidays at all, so I love my new job even more now! I have another one in May, then two days off for July 4th. :)
We had a fantastic weekend! Our "Valentine's" dinner on Saturday was amazing. We made reservations for the new Clyde's Willow Creek Farm, and it is definitely one of our new favorites! It's also a good thing we made reservations, because as of 6:00 when we got there, there was already a 2 1/2 hour wait for those without reservations! The even crazier thing is that it can hold well over 400 people. (over 600 when the weather is warm, and the patios are open)
The restaurant was really beautiful... it looks "lived in," and cozy, but it's very elegant as well. Old-time charm. We got an appetizer of crab and artichoke dip paired with delicious bread, then Ryan got the crabcakes, and I got the filet mignon. Ever since I've been pregnant, we've switched meal roles! :) To top it off, we got the brownie sundae for dessert! Mmmm. It was a really great, romantic evening all-around. Date nights are so important, and still will be even after our baby arrives.
I spent the rest of the weekend taking advantage of being able to sleep in AND nap! I can't get nearly as much rest as my body seems to want these days. :) We went over to my parents' house on Sunday afternoon, and got a surprise... another inch of snow!! It was so beautiful to watch.
On Monday, my Mom treated me to my first-ever Cheesecake Factory experience. I'd never been, and she's frequently asked to visit there as a Mystery Guest, so I was able to go as well. :) They serve HUGE portions, so I had half of my teriyaki chicken with steamed rice, and then split a slice of their original cheesecake with my Mom. :) I'll tell you what... this baby ate well this weekend! ;-)
Now it's back to work, and it actually hasn't been as busy as I had anticipated. I'm thrilled that it's already Tuesday, though! :) Tomorrow marks 15 weeks for me and Baby S. Can you believe that? This pregnancy is absolutely flying!
Well, we certainly had a memorable Valentine's Day! :) I left off after my last post was on Tuesday, during which the snow and sleet that were coming down all day actually prompted my office to close shortly before 3:00! (I was told when I started here that they NEVER close)
We got up on Wednesday morning at our normal time, and turned on the news. During the night, we got freezing rain, which turned into a sheet of ice thanks to the frigid temperature, followed by 4 inches of additional snow, topped with a thick layer of sleet. (which turned into yet another sheet of ice) So, needless to say, this wasn't just your average snow storm. It was a MESS. Around 7:30 AM, I got a call from my boss saying that they CLOSED THE OFFICE, and was then instructed to have a great Valentine's day! :)
It's a good thing they closed, because I never would've made it in. They did an okay job later on in the morning of clearing off the roads, but had neglected the middle of intersections. If I had to actually TURN anywhere, I would've gotten stuck. We took our Explorer out for a very quick trip to Home Depot to get a shovel (we live in an apartment, we don't have one!) because my car was blocked in with snow from the plow, and just in that short trip we saw FIVE cars stuck in the snow. (we did stop and help one of them get out, the other 4 already had people helping) Like I said.. it was a mess!
Ryan, unfortunately, had to go in to work later on in the morning, since he's the manager of the office, BUT he was able to leave early. :) We got each other little gifts, and a card, and I made a yummy dinner and dessert there at home. It was a PERFECT night to stay inside!
Ryan took my 14 Week picture on Valentine's night. I am absolutely AMAZED at how much my belly has changed this past week!
Whoa. It's funny, because I can still see my rib cage, but my flat tummy is nowhere to be found! I also wore my new Gap maternity pants for the first time that night, the roll-down kind which are supposed to be good for the entire pregnancy, but they still are a little big on me! Oh well, so much for not showing for a while, huh?
But I'm happy! :) It must mean our baby has plenty of room to grow in there. I'm still convinced we're having a boy, too. Of course, wait until we find out, and it turns out to be a girl! ;-) I really just feel like it's a boy, though. We shall see! (and pretty soon, too!)
Our table all dressed up~
Us! (aka- the one-perk-of-pregnancy shot)
I did work yesterday, but had to play catch-up after being off a day. Furthermore, the town's roads are a total mess, and parking is near impossible. I tried to get into two great spots yesterday, but couldn't get my car in them! The plow had come through, but didn't do the sides of the road where we can park, so there's a huge mound of ice that you'd have to get over in order to park there. Thank goodness for meter parking right outside our office! Totally worth the 5 bucks or so it costs for a day, especially since I have to really be careful walking around on the ice! I don't have the greatest balance to begin with.
Well, TOMORROW we have reservations for a gorgeous new restaurant in the city we live in, and I can't wait! Ryan tried getting reservations there 3 WEEKS before V-day, and there were already booked. We tried every place we could think of that allows reservations, (since everything else would be way too crowded) and every place was booked! So, Ryan made the reservations for Saturday night instead. :) I'm so excited! We get TWO Valentine's celebrations. :)
Well, there's the update on us! It's been a fun week, but I'm happy that it's FRIDAY again, and can't wait to sleep in tomorrow. :) AND, I get Monday off for President's Day, which is a first for me. I'll take it! :)
Well, I'm here after all. :) After my second middle-of-the-night bathroom run at 3:20 AM this morning, I looked out the window and saw a whole lot of nothing. Between then and 6 AM when the alarm rang, we already had an inch of snow! It's supposed to snow pretty much all day, then turn over to a snow/sleet mix later in the day, and then to freezing rain overnight. (calling for 1/4-1/2 inch of ice!) Baaaad for early morning commuting, so tomorrow may be a different story.
Tomorrow's 14 week picture will definitely look a bit different than last week's! I clearly have a little baby belly now. When we're laying in bed, I just run my hands over it--it's just below my belly button--and I'm amazed by it. Above my belly button is flat and normal, then right below is this cute little belly. I was reading my 14 week e-mail newsletter this morning, and it said that the baby is the size of a clenched fist. (no longer compared to fruit!) Well, that would certainly explain this cute little belly! I just love it. Even Ryan loves running his hand over it, knowing for sure that there's definitely a baby growing in there.
Here's the 14 week development picture, too: (amazing!)
The newsletter also said that our baby is moving practically all the time now, which is really exciting. I probably have a few more weeks to go till I feel anything, but it's just incredible to know that he/she is moving around, kicking, and possibly sucking his or her thumb already.
Wow! The snowflakes are really getting bigger! If it keeps up like this, we could have quite a bit of snow by the end of the day. :) I love it!!
Good mornin'! The weekends really never last long enough, do they? However, it was a great one nonetheless! We slept in till 9:30 on Saturday morning, and let me tell ya... it was much needed, and just as wonderful as I had hoped it would be all week. :)
We did lots of running around on Saturday, including a Babies 'R' Us run, since we had a one-day-only coupon to use! We decided to get a baby monitor, which I completely wanted Ryan to pick out, for obvious reasons. (anything gadget-related is all him!) Here's what we came away with..
It's a little bigger than it looks in the picture, but isn't it cute? I think it looks more like a cell phone than a baby monitor. :) The nice things about it are: 1) it's digital, and 2) it has a rechargeable battery, which is a big money-saver.
We hadn't planned on buying anything else, but we looked around a bit before checking out. We looked in the diaper bag section, and not only found one that I really loved, but also found a discarded 15% all diaper bags coupon! So, we got this diaper bag for less than $20!
This is the bag, (Carter's Easy Access) but in BLACK faux-suede with light green stitching. The inside is light green also, with polka dots. :) It's VERY cute, and will be fine for a boy or girl.
So, we wound up getting just those two things, and didn't spend much at all since we had coupons. :) I love coupons.
Funny thing is, there was one diaper bag that I just fell in LOVE with. I was flipping through one of the 6 pregnancy magazines they gave me at my last appointment, and there was an advertisement for Caden Lane with a diaper bag that I just adored. Yeah... I looked it up online... come to find out, it's $160! For a DIAPER BAG, people!
That's not the most expensive I've seen, though.. the Juicy Couture ones are over $300. Sorry, but we could buy our crib for that price.
The rest of the weekend was pretty relaxing... and I definitely napped. :) I have to take advantage of that when I can! Though, I also did work out on Sunday afternoon, so I wasn't a total bum. :)
This winter storm they've been calling for since Friday is turning into a major disappointment. They went from calling for 6-8 inches (possibly the "big snowstorm" I've been hoping for!) to just 1-2 inches of snow followed by a "wintry mix." (read: possibly pretty, but definitely dangerous) I don't care how good of a driver you are, what kind of vehicle you're driving, or what kind of tires you have. NO ONE can drive on ice! So, we'll see how that goes. It's supposed to start up late tonight, into tomorrow morning, and last all day tomorrow.
Hope you all had a great weekend, and have a wonderful Monday!
Let me tell ya, people pay more attention than you might think! One of our agents came in a few minutes ago, and asked how I was doing. "What, not "great"?" he asked. "What did I say?" I asked. "You said you're "doing good," but you always say you're doing GREAT," he told me. "I'll work on that!" I said.
Despite that, though, I really am doing great! :) I was exceptionally busy yesterday, and the first half of the day was rather interesting anyway, but! We had 3 inches of snow on the ground! :) It was wonderful! The roads weren't bad at all, and it was a light, fluffy snow. :) Tucker LOVED it! Practically everyone in my office yesterday was saying, "so, you must be happy!" I guess I haven't exactly hidden the fact that I LOVE snow. I'm pretty much one of the very few here who do. Some of the snow is still hanging around, though. It hasn't gotten above freezing all week, but the sunshine yesterday melted some of it anyway.
So, if you're wondering what made the first part of my day at work "interesting," it's because... our president announced that our company is merging. Yep, it's certainly deja vue for me. Didn't I just go through this last year? Nothing has been signed yet, but it will be sometime in the spring. Things should run as-is for roughly 2 years after that. Honestly, after asking some questions and getting more information, it doesn't sound like what I just went through with my last company, and I'm trusting that everything will be fine. So, that's that.
Well, yesterday marked 13 weeks for me and our little peach, so Ryan took a picture last night before dinner.
I know, I don't look all that different, just fat. ;-)
In case I didn't mention it, my morning sickness has officially taken a hike. I tell you it is like NIGHT and DAY. I understand why women say that the second trimester is the best part of pregnancy! I still am always really exhausted, which should hopefully go away no later than the 16th week, and I have plenty of other fun things to deal with that I didn't before I was pregnant. BUT! I will take all of it, from the twice-middle-of-the-night bathroom breaks, to the exhaustion, to the lightheadedness, to the chest that doesn't look like mine anymore, to the little poochie tummy, over feeling sick all day! :)
Now that I'm feeling good, I can also eat more healthy stuff rather than whatever won't make me gag. Fruits, (lots!) veggies, meat, eggs, milk twice a day, YUM! Our baby must be needing more than Life cereal and graham crackers now. :)
I can't believe it's Thursday already! It's almost scary how fast these weeks are flying by now. Seriously, before I know it, I'll be 24, (May) it'll be SUMMER, then it'll be AUGUST! Okay, so that's really speeding things up, but honestly, it will get here a lot quicker than we think it will! :)
Our alarm radio popped on at 6 AM this morning, and we happened to catch the current weather: 9 degrees, but feels like -2 with the windchill. Okay, we're still under the covers, barely awake.. and with weather like that, why even get out of bed?! :)
Though, they ARE calling for a little bit of snow tomorrow morning, which could completely make this weather worthwhile to me. :)
I'm glad you guys enjoyed the newest pics of our little sugarbaby! I actually brought in my little album of pictures to show a few of my coworkers yesterday, who I knew for sure would be wanting to see them. Their favorite pictures were actually the 3 that the doctor took, which I didn't scan. Oops. The doctor came in after our technician left, looked at the baby again, and told us that everything looks perfect. Even though I'm considered really low-risk anyway, that was really nice to know!
Well, our baby has graduated from a lime to a peach this week. :) He or she is just moving on up in the fruit department. As of tomorrow, I'll be 13 weeks. Here's my weekly newsletter for this week:
Week 13: (from my What to Expect newsletter)
"Your baby is now about three inches long and the size of a peach. But don't compare your baby with the baby next door. Starting about now, babies begin growing at different paces, some faster than others, some more slowly, though they all follow the same developmental path. Growing at a universally breakneck speed now is your baby's body as it tries to catch up to the head in terms of size. Though your baby's head is about half the size of its body now, by the time your baby is ready to make his or her entrance into the world, the head will be only one-fourth as large as the body.
Your baby's intestines are also in for some big changes right now. Up till this point, they've been growing in a cavity inside the umbilical cord; but now they're moving to their permanent (and more conveniently located) address, in your baby's abdomen. And to serve your growing baby's needs, the placenta is also growing. It weighs about an ounce now and will weigh one to two pounds at birth. (something else you'll soon be able to blame your weight gain on!)
Also developing this week: your baby's vocal chords. Because sound can't travel through fluid (your baby's current habitat), you won't be able to hear any sounds or cries just yet, but oh boy (or girl) — those vocal chords will get a good workout once that baby is born."
Yep, I definitely better be enjoying my sleep now, while I can, eh? :) Hope you all have a great day!
I was anxious ALL DAY on Friday, counting down till I could leave and meet Ryan for our ultrasound. That snow they had been calling for the day before decided to make an appearance on Friday instead, and it actually snowed quite a bit, for quite a long time, on our way there and back home.
This was my first external ultrasound, (my 8 week, 2 day u/s was an internal, since the baby is so small at that stage) and because I'm still in the pretty early stages, the one and only instruction they gave me was to drink 32 ounces of water right before my appointment. I always drink lots and lots of water (8-10 glasses a day) but 32 ounces at one time is any pregnant woman's nightmare! I actually waited and drank it all while I was still in the parking lot.
They called me back actually very quickly, got me into my gown and robe, and then had me wait in a "patients' lounge." Evil things. You think you got through pretty quickly, but no, you still have to wait. :) My bladder, all the while, is telling me I need to go RIGHT NOW, and unfortunately I still have a ways to go. I start flipping through a magazine to get my mind off of it, and flipped through it so fast that I had finished it by the time they finally called me me back.
Once I was in an actual room, they called Ryan in to wait with me. Poor guy. All I could tell him was how I was in agony. I was in physical PAIN because of my too-full bladder. At that point, I was hoping the ultrasound wouldn't last very long. (aren't I terrible?!) The nurse could tell I was uncomfortable, and told me that I could go to the restroom and let out "just a little!" Just a little? HOW do you go "just a little?!" I, of course, needed no convincing, though. I figured a little is better than nothing. Haha, was I wrong. :) Didn't do a darn bit of good, but that's all right.
Our technician came in, and asked a few questions regarding how far along I was, etc. She was a VERY nice lady. She put the device over my stomach, and said she just wanted to check to make sure the baby was a good size before she sent me over for bloodwork. (Apparently, the ONLY lady there who does that was about to leave) Our baby popped onto the screen, and, full bladder or not, it was the most excitingthing in the world.
After the bloodwork was done, I was allowed to finally use the restroom!! (Not sure why, but I wasn't complaining!) From there, we got back to the ultrasound part, which lasted a VERY long time, much to our delight. :) At first, the baby wasn't moving much, but that didn't last long! He or she began to kick it's little legs, and move it's arms. It seemed like baby felt like he or she was slipping, and would suddenly try to propel itself upwards, to get a better position. :) The baby was VERY active, and got a lot of "awwwwww!"s out of me! :) It was so, so amazing. Such a beautiful baby. We are already so in love.
Here are sevenof the SEVENTEEN pictures they sent us home with! We couldn't believe it! :) Most women I've known that have had this particular u/s got 5 or 6 pictures... we got 17!!! I've actually already put them all in a little baby album... :)
Baby S.'s face (and hand)
Trying to slide back up! :)
Obviously my own caption there :) Look at that footprint!
My favorite picture of all! Baby has his or her hands over their face. :)
Baby, hands and feet. So precious!
Pretty amazing, isn't it? Our baby grew a LOT in 4 weeks!! :) I'm so thrilled to have so many pictures, too... I just keep looking at them over and over again.
Well, back to the 3rd annual Puppy Bowl! :) We've watched it ever since they first started it! Not too much longer before the Super Bowl starts either.. again I say, Go Colts!!
Well, we didn't get to see a single snowflake. They kept changing the forecast and eventually all we got was some freezing rain which iced up our cars. There's a teeny bit of snow on the ground here at work, though. But I really don't even care about snow anymore, because...
I'm over-the-moon excited! I GOT TO HEAR OUR BABY'S HEARTBEAT! It was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard, and I did cry.
The doctor who saw me yesterday isn't my usual doctor, but I think I actually liked her more. She was VERY friendly and helpful, and was excited for me. She forgot her watch, but said the heartbeat was healthy and strong, and in the 150's. The BEST part, though, was when we all of a sudden couldn't hear it anymore, and she said, "Oops, your baby moved!" and had to find him/her again. :) It was SO amazing knowing that, even though I can't feel a thing yet, our little baby is that active already!
Ryan couldn't come yesterday, so I called him right after I left their office, and told him all about it. One of his first questions was about the heartrate, and when I told him it was in the 150's, he yelled, "We're having a boy!!' :) Sure, it's an old wives' tale, but I think it's just wishful thinking on his part. :) I personally will be happy either way, since we want at least one of each anyway.
I came home and wrote in my adorable pregnancy journal that Trish sent me weeks upon weeks ago. (the first gift we received!) I want to remember everything.
Our ultrasound is today at 3:00, so I'll be leaving just after 2:00 today. :) I absolutely cannot wait to see our baby again, especially knowing that he/she will be a movin' and a shakin' in there. We're very excited to say the least!
Well, I have some work to catch up on from yesterday afternoon. Hope you all have a great weekend & GO COLTS! ;-)
Today couldn't possibly be any better. One? Snow is in our forecast for this afternoon through tomorrow morning! It's gray and cloudy, and frigid--the perfect snow day. Two? I have my appointment today at 2:00! Absolutely cannot wait, and I can promise you that I will, in fact, cry.
Well, Ryan took my 12 week belly pic last night, but it honestly doesn't look any different from last week's! That's pretty normal, though, I think. I don't LOOK pregnant yet, especially fully clothed, I just feel FAT. :-P I know there's a baby growing in there, though, so it's all okay.
Our Baby at 12 Weeks: (from my Baby Center weekly newsletter)
Your baby's hit the 2-inch mark (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce. Her face is beginning to look more human. Her eyes, which started out on the sides of her head, have moved closer together on her face, and her ears are near their final positions. Your baby's intestines, which have grown so rapidly that they protruded into the umbilical cord, will start to move into her abdominal cavity about now. Her kidneys are secreting urine into her bladder. Her nerve cells have been multiplying rapidly, and synapses (neurological pathways in the brain) are forming. Your baby may have acquired more reflexes by now, including sucking, and she'll even squirm if you prod your abdomen, though you still won't be able to feel her move for several weeks.
I'm just amazed how quickly our baby is growing! It's so incredible to think that our baby went from a teeny tiny embryo to this so quickly:
This is the bag, (Carter's Easy Access) but in BLACK faux-suede with light green stitching. The inside is light green also, with polka dots. :) It's VERY cute, and will be fine for a boy or girl.
