18 Week Ultrasound

I know, I know...two posts in one week...I'M ON FIRE!

Today we went for our 18 week ultrasound with my mom's ultrasound tech friend. She has been so sweet, and has let us come just about every 4 weeks to see the baby. She always gives us SO many pictures, and really takes time to show us all of his parts (external and internal) to make sure everything looks good. I can't tell you what a relief it was in the first trimester to be able to see the baby so often. The first trimester is stressful for any mother, especially a first time mother, but to be able to see the baby so often really reassured us that everything was progressing as it should.

SO, anyway, we got there and I hopped up on the table, excited to see what the baby looked like. She put the goo on by belly, and found him right away with no problem. His head is just to the right of my belly button, which means that right now he is breech. She said this is completely normal, and that he will probably change positions several times before January. She also said that my placenta is on top, which means it may be harder for me to feel the baby kick. This completely made sense to me, as I have felt the baby kick or move before, but not as frequently as my friends around the same week as me have. Most of my friends that are in the 18th week are feeling the baby move frequently now. I have felt a little "nudge" that I was sure was the baby (and not something else) a few times, but not on an hourly basis or anything like that. She said as the baby grows his kicks will get stronger and I'll be able to feel them all the time. That's definitely something I'm looking forward too! The baby was being very modest when we tried to look between his little legs to "confirm his manhood", as my friend Megan so cleverly quipped the other day. Anyway, the ultrasound tech (whom I shall now refer to as Jennifer, since that is her name) said we would look at other things while we wait for him to relax his little legs. She checked his brain, heart and stomach and said everything looked good, and was measuring right on target. She said he was about 5 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, which is perfect! Finally we came back to his legs...he still wouldn't open them! She wiggled her little probe across my belly, and tried to get him to uncross his legs, and finally it worked. Its DEFINITELY a BOY!!! She is 100% sure. She has a special heat sensor on the machine to detect the umbilical cord and she said it was definitely "boy parts". Colt and I are so ecstatic! Towards the end, we tried to get a good profile shot of his face, but we were unsuccessful. He looks like a demon because you can't see the eyeballs/eyelids on a standard 3D ultrasound. We got to see him open and close his mouth and stick his tongue out at us. Jennifer said he must like to stick his hands in his mouth because he kept trying to do that throughout the ultrasound. We started talking about how we probably woke up him because he's so lazy, and he began to shake his fist at us! Obviously these are all coincidences, but I like to think he has a big personality already! :) All in all, it was a great ultrasound today! Its always nice to be able to see the progress of our baby.

My next OB appointment is in two weeks. That will be my DOCTORS appointment, but I will be getting my 20 week ultrasound at the office when I'm there. This is not Jennifer, but my OB office's ultrasound tech. They will measure all of his parts and make sure he's doing well, but I'm confident after today's appointment with Jennifer. I asked about the frequency of the ultrasounds that I'm getting and my doctor's office said its completely fine to have so many ultrasounds because there are some women who have had troubled pregnancies that have to get ultrasounds every week, and it does no damage to the baby. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I will post pictures below! :)

My 16-17th Week, My Colt & My Dog

Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in posts! Week 16 was lovely! Colt took me to the beach last Monday. Going to the beach as a pregnant gal is definitely different than going pre-pregnancy. I got a cute bathing suit, that was actually a "normal" suit, but it kind if looked like a maternity bathing suit. I got a brown tankini top that covered my belly, but it was a looser fit so it looked kind of like a maternity top. The bottoms were brown with cream polka dots. We'll see how much longer that fits me! :) My belly is growing by the day it seems like. We were sitting on our blanket at the beach, and Colt said, "I wonder how many people don't realize you're pregnant and just think you have a gut." I can always count on him to say exactly what I'm thinking. I'm actually very thankful for a husband that's so honest. I asked him the other day if I looked like I had gained weight. I think I've gained about 9 lbs. so far (now I'm almost 18 weeks) which is right on Target for what they say I should have gained. I know that question is impossible for a man to answer without feeling uncomfortable. He said, "I'm not answering that because its a cardinal rule of manhood to never answer that question." I told him I didn't care, that I knew that I had, I just wanted to see where he thought it looked like I had gained the most weight. He said, "Well just in your arms...and in your face, and that's it. And in your belly, but there is a baby in there so that's why...and that's it." I started laughing so hard. He said, "What? What did I say?" I said, "Just in your arms and face and that's it. And in your belly, and that's it. Annnnnd in your legs and butt, but that's it.... maybe in your hands and feet, but that's it." We both had a good laugh at that. I'm very appreciative for an honest husband, that makes me feel beautiful , even when I feel my worst!

By the way, I want to give props to all of you mom's out there who are strapping your kids in carseats on a daily basis, in Florida, in the middle of August. I walked from my garage, out to my car in the driveway the other day, and was sweating before I even opened the car door. I can't imagine having to strap a squirmy toddler into their seat before turning on that AC. I guess I'll figure out how you do that soon enough! :)

Now for the mushy stuff...

I've been meaning to write this for a long time, but I keep avoiding it because I want to express my thoughts clearly, and I haven't felt like I had enough time (or patience) to. I think I need to give a "shout-out" of sorts, to Colt and all of the husbands of pregnant ladies out there. When a couple plans to have a baby (assuming its planned), its a 50/50 decision. Both the husband and wife decide when a good time would be to start "trying", decide what goals, or responsibilities they need to take care of before pregnancy, etc. When the woman finally does become pregnant, I think sometimes it can switch gears from a team effort, to a one WOMAN show. Everyone wants to know how she's feeling, how she's doing, is she sick, is she showing, what's she craving etc. etc. etc. All of these questions are fun for women to answer because this is new and uncharted territory for us (and who doesn't like talking about themselves :) ). Once I got over the constant nausea, and I started to think about things other than how I could keep my dinner down, I started thinking about Colt. How would it feel to have a wife/husband who was throwing up 3, 4, or sometimes 7 times a day! I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. It doesn't matter if you have kids. If you're married, and your spouse has ever been sick, you know it stinks for not only your spouse, but for you too! From the beginning of our marriage, Colt and I have always been, not only husband and wife, but pals. Even if we had never hit it off romantically, we would have still been best friends. Just like when you're a child, and your next door neighbor/best friend, was sick, you knew it was going to be a boring day of playing inside by yourself. From about 7 weeks, up to week 12, I was sick as a dog everyday. This meant not having an appetite for anything, so when something sounded tolerable, we HAD to eat that. This also meant falling asleep on the couch almost every night very early, due to exhaustion from work, and pregnancy. During this time, it was very difficult for me to do almost anything since I was working 10 hour days and was very sleep deprived. Colt completely picked up the slack. He did all of the cleaning, all of the laundry, the occasional grocery shopping trip, and A LOT of listening to me complain! Its true that you learn more and more about your spouse as you meet every new stage of life together. In our two years of marriage, we really haven't had any life changing milestones. I don't want to say that I have LEARNED so many great things about Colt in these last 17 weeks, because I always knew he was a good man, and a great partner, but I've been continually reassured of his unique character. He has been nothing but caring, considerate, selfless, and more than anything, he shows me love, everyday. Throughout this pregnancy, I've been reminded time and time again, what a rare friendship, and relationship I have with Colt. I never expected marriage to be this fun and truly easy. If there's one thing I want our baby to know that I'm thankful for, besides my relationship with God, and the family that has brought me to know and love Him, its my relationship, and marriage to Colt.

I hope you all know, the purpose of this post is by no means to boast about my life, or relationship, but to express my true feelings, as I'm feeling them, to our baby, my husband, and friends who know my motivation behind this blog. Anyway, thanks for reading everyone! I should have more to update you with after our ultrasound this week!!!

P.S. Colt and I babysat for Sawyer Murphy (Peter and Lauren's new baby) tonight for a little while, and Moe was and SO JEALOUS and desperate for attention! He'll need to get over that quick! We still love him though.

Gettin' my kicks!

I just wanted to write a quick update post...SO I think I may have felt my first little kick tonight!!! I have been anxiously waiting to feel something for a long time. I know they say that you can usually start feeling the baby between 16 and 20 weeks, but that wasn't stopping me from laying very still every night just to be sure. Tonight at 10:30pm (at 15 weeks, 6 days & 22 hours-haha!) we were riding in the car to get a slurpee, and I felt a little knudge in my uterus. At first I thought it was just a fluke, even though it was very apparent I felt something. I said to Colt, "I'm not sure but I think I just felt a kick!" I waited a few seconds to see if I could feel anything else, and a few seconds later, it happened again...and then again, in the same spot. The only conclusion I can come to is that it was a kick, seeing as how I have nothing to compare it to. If it turns out I'm wrong, I'll let you know. Haha! The best part, is that the Frank Sinatra song, "Time After Time" was on the radio. Anyone that knows me, knows I have loved Frank Sinatra since I was little. I told Colt, the baby must like him too! :)

A few more cravings for fun...Tonight, I just had to have a Coke slurpee! We went to two different 7/11's, after the first store's machine squirted my clothes and arms with melted slurpee juice! It brought back many memories of 9th grade, when I would get one everyday after school. I've only had instant Kraft Mac and Cheese once in my life, but the night before last, I was craving some like nobody's business! We had to make a quick run to CVS. Poor, Colt. He's the best husband, and always gets me what I'm hungry for. Last night I was craving tomatoes, and for the past two days, I have made myself a delicious salad with swiss cheese and minced garlic. Delicious! I have a current obsession with real minced garlic cloves (not the "pre-minced" garlic you can buy in the jar). Anyway, thats all I can think of right now. Thursday (the 13th) is my next doctor's appointment! I will update again soon! Thanks for reading!!!

A Spending Spree and a Baby Bump

Well week 14 was pretty uneventful, if you don't count finding out he is a he (which was week 13 and 6 days). Like I said, the ultrasound tech said she's almost 100% sure its a boy, but we'll be positive at my next ultrasound which is at the end of the month. I promised myself that I wouldn't buy anything yet, until we're 100% sure, but I caved tonight at Marshalls. They had the cutest pajamas that said "Bedtime Buckaroo"! They had little horseshoes and cowboy hats on them, and it came with a little stuffed horse/blanket for the baby to sleep with (check out the bottom of the footie pants!). Too cute to pass up for the price! I also got a little church outfit that came with a hat which resembled one that Colt has. I will try to upload pictures below.

-I don't know why they're so blurry and not lining up, but whatever.

In other news, I think I may have found some bedding that I like. I have never liked the "baby" looking decor. I prefer sophisticated nurseries, that look like just another room in your house, plus a crib etc. Well, I found the perfect bedding to go with that motif, and I was so excited about finding accessories to go with the room I was imagining. I showed my mom and sister, and to my dismay, we discovered Target had discontinued it!!! I was so upset. I had been checking the Babies-R-Us and Target websites religiously for weeks to see if they had anything that remotely interested me, to no avail. I picked up the search again today, and stumbled across some really cute bedding! Its a little more "babyish" then I usually prefer, but I'm going to accessorize "sophisticatedly" (is that a word)? I will post pictures of the nursery when its completed. No previews! :)

Last week (week 14) is also the first time I noticed a "real" baby bump starting to form. Its still small, but definitely there! I've also felt a sensation that feels something like the baby is rolling around, not kicking, but just doing somersaults in there. I can't wait to feel him really kick me! This week (beginning of 15), I've really noticed the bump start taking shape. I was telling my cousins (who have had two babies each) the other day, I never realized how body conscious I would be when I got pregnant. I always just though that when you get pregnant, you get the baby belly fairly soon, and the fact that you're pregnant is easily recognizable from early on. This may be true for some lucky ladies, but not for me! I haven't gained very much weight at all, but when you've gained a few pounds, and you're still not "looking pregnant" it can make a girl very self conscious. Before I got pregnant, if I gained a few pounds, I would just exercise extra hard or try to eat a little healthier. When you're pregnant, you're not supposed to lose the weight you gain. Its a hard habit to break! Now that I'm starting to look pregnant, I'm totally digging my new body! Lets hope the enthusiasm continues! :) Another obstacle I've had to overcome was comparing myself to what other girls looked like at whatever week I was on. There are a million websites that show you pictures of what different girls look like at different weeks in their pregnancy. I found myself thinking, "Am I gaining weight faster than them? Am I getting a pregnancy bump earlier (or later) than they are?" I have always been a thin person, and I never really had to work on it. I could pretty much eat what I wanted, and the scale would vary between a few pounds, but never go past a certain number. Pregnancy is uncharted territory for me (obviously). This week, when I saw my little belly start to "pop", I finally felt like, "Ok, this is the way I look...I may have a baby bump earlier than some women, and later than others, but this is when it decided to arrive!" Pregnancy is so different for everyone, thats the beauty of it! Its definitly nice feeling more pregnant, and less chubby, although I'm told that every woman feels chubby until they see that little pregnancy bump. Anyway, so far week 15 has been great! I'll keep you posted, and thanks for reading!