17 Weeks

17 weeks and I'm just feeling fat and frumpy. Ugh. This is not one of those "look at my cute bump" weeks, but here it is anyway, for documentation purposes:

Ethan and I had a pretty great week topped off with an amazing trip to the Washington Coast and the town of Seabrook. We totally lucked out and had gorgeous weather all day Saturday. It was a really relaxing trip with lots of time spent with our friends, playing in the park, walking on the beach, and hanging out at the cafe. I highly recommend Seabrook if you've never been there.

Baby-wise, we settled on names for both a boy and a girl, and will announce the chosen name when we find out the gender. The main reason we aren't announcing it now is that we want to keep the non-used name a secret in case we still like it for the next go-round. Also - be warned in advance, if you have any unfavorable opinions about the name, feel free to not say anything. We are set on our name and aren't considering alternatives. :p

I'm pretty sure I felt the baby moving this week, but it's hard to tell. The movements are light and feel like bubbles popping in my stomach, so I'm inclined to think it's just gas, but then again, no one has THAT much gas - not even a pregnant woman! teehee.

After getting books from Grandma Schwaber last week, Ethan was inspired to go unpack his box of childhood books from the garage and we found a treasure trove of Dr. Suess and Golden Books. We literally have over 50 books for baby at this point, so I don't think we'll be buying any more for a while. We are going to have the most well-read baby in town! Also, Grandma S sent us another present this week! It was one of those fake vaccuum cleaners that pops when you move it across the floor. I remember this was one of my favorite toys when I was a toddler, so I'm sure baby will love it! It will have to go in the toy closet for now, but I'm sure it will be put to good use when the time comes.

Next week is my mid-wife appointment where they will listen to baby's heartbeat and we'll schedule our BIG ultrasound appointment (the one where we find out if it is a he or a she).

How far along? 17 weeks 2 days
Sleep: I'm cutting back on the unisom - down to half a pill at night. I've added heartburn medicine to the mix so I'm trying to cut back on the number of pills I take each night.

Best moment this week: Choosing our boy and girl name
Movement: Pretty sure I felt the baby this week! It wasn't very obvious, it's a very subtle thing. I'm still looking forward to feeling a real kick!
Food cravings: No. I still have a serious aversion to most kinds of meat though.

Gender: Only a few weeks until the big ultrasound! We are counting down..
Belly Button in or out? IN

What I miss: Having moments where I don't feel like a blimpy mess
What I am looking forward to: Hearing baby's heartbeat this week at my Dr. Appointment.
Milestones: Picking the name...

This Week: Baby is the size of an onion! Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.

16 Weeks

Time is just flying by! Ethan asked me today if I was going to vote, and I can't believe it is election time again already! It doesn't seem like a whole year has gone by since the big election last year. I can only imagine what life is going to be like this time next year.

It was a busy week at work, and the week went by really quick. The baby bump has definitely grown this week:

I read that the baby is supposed to go through a growth spurt over the next two weeks, so I'm suspecting that I'm going to be "showing" soon. Ethan and I started going through boy names this week and now we have narrowed down a list of 7 girl names and 7 boy names. We are each picking our top three from the list, and then we'll try to decide on one for a boy and one for a girl. Picking out a name is fun and I can't wait to find out the gender so we can start calling the little one by it's name.

Grandma Schwaber bought the baby a bunch of books and mailed them to us, so we are already starting baby's library. She got some really great classics for us, like "Goodnight Moon" and "Curious George". She also wrote little messages in each book which was cute and I'm sure baby will love it someday.Since we have no baby furniture, the books are in the baby room on the floor for now :) The next step is definitely to start picking out things for the nursery. Ethan and I are reading the Baby Bargains book to try to find out what we need to buy.

Baby Update:

How far along? 16 weeks 2 days

Sleep: Same - still waking up several times a night. I guess it's good practice.

Best moment this week: Unpacking the baby books we got from Grandma

Movement: Same as last week - sometimes I think I feel something, but it's probably just gas. Still waiting!

Food cravings: Nope, just lots of aversions...Sausage and BBQ really gross me out.

Belly Button in or out? Still an innie - but it's getting shallower! Usually it's like a bottomless pit, so I don't know what to expect.

What I miss: having energy

What I am looking forward to: Same - feeling the baby move!

This Week: Baby is the size of an avocado. Watch what you say... tiny bones forming in baby's ears mean the little one can now pick up your voice. Eyebrows, lashes and hair are starting to fill in, and taste buds are forming. And, if you're interested, an ultrasound might be able to determine gender.

15 Weeks

This week Ethan and I started thinking about baby names. I bought a baby name book and we've been going through it letter by letter and writing down the names we like. We have a list of about 15 or so girl names that we need to narrow down. Next week will be boy names. By far the funniest name we came across was Bethan, which rhymes with Ethan. When Ethan read that one to me, I just about died laughing. - Don't worry baby, we won't name you Bethan! I have been calling the baby Bethan for the last few days though, just for fun.


Unfortunately, the "morning" sickness made a reappearance today, and I haven't been feeling good, but other than today I've felt pretty un-nauseous all week. I think it's probably going to come and go like this the rest of the pregnancy, but I'll take the occasional bad day the over non-stop yuckiness of the first 3 months! I also think the daily morning sickness is being replaced by heart-burn, but it reminds me to take my tums and I need the extra calcium, so it's practically a good thing! ahh, the joys of growing a baby.

Here is my 15 week picture. I don't think the bump looks much different than last week.



In non-baby related news, Ethan started back in school this week so I was on my own several nights out of the week. Back to solo TV watching and frozen dinners :) Oh well, it will all be worth it when Ethan graduates next March. I can't wait! We also had a pretty fun week over all. Last weekend, we celebrated Sukkot and had Sangria under the Sukkah (well Ethan has Sangria), and on Wednesday we went to a Windows 7 launch party that our friend Jacquie invited us to and met some fun new people. This weekend we just relaxed around the house, which was nice because we have a really busy next few weeks coming up!





Baby Update:


How far along? 15 weeks 2 days
Sleep: Stopped taking the Unisom this week, and woke up 5 or 6 times a night, but other than that, just fine :)
Best moment this week: Looking at baby names with Ethan
Movement: Sometimes I think I feel something, but it's probably just gas. Still waiting!
Food cravings: Not really.
Belly Button in or out? Still an innie!
What I miss: Same - Enjoying a variety of food
What I am looking forward to: Same - feeling the baby move!
This Week: Baby is the size of an orange! Continuing the march towards normal proportions, baby's legs now outmeasure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably still can't feel the movements.

Baby!

I'm really bad at updating the blog, but since Baby S is already on his/her way, I've decided to get back on the blog horse with a (hopefully) weekly baby blog! Ethan took his first picture of me at 14 weeks, and we are officially on bump watch! I think I've got a little bump going, but most people say that there's nothing there yet.

Anyway, none of my old pants fit and my whole wardrobe consists of stretchy waisted items, so I'd like to have something to show for it.

We are all super excited about the baby and we can't wait to find out the gender. Even Abbey is excited!

I have to be honest, pregnancy is a b*tch! The first trimester really sucked. I was both nauseas and exhausted all day long. It's like having the flu for 6 weeks straight. I'd like to say you get used to it, but you really don't. Luckily, Ethan has been a total champ and is a superstar around the house. He has been doing most of the cooking and cleaning, and I am so glad that I can count on him to take care of me and the baby that I'm growing!

Now at 14 weeks, I'm finally starting to feel better. Some days it's still bad, but most days seem OK. The best part so far has been announcing the news to all our friends and family. Especially the grandparents who can't wait to meet Baby S!

How far along? 14 weeks 1 day

Total weight gain/loss: +2 pounds as of last check-in. I'm not weighing myself weekly, only at midwife appointments.

Maternity clothes? Yup! I have three pairs of jeans, one pair of cords, and a bunch of tanks/t-shirts

Sleep: Same as usual, but I take 1 Unisom a night to keep me asleep and help with the m/s

Best moment this week: Not being sick every day!

Movement: The baby is moving, but I can't feel it.

Food cravings: Not really. Finally getting my appetite back

Gender: We won't know until our 20 week U/S, then we'll tell everyone!

Labor signs: nope, way too early for that!

Belly Button in or out? Still an innie!

What I miss: Enjoying a variety of food

What I am looking forward to: feeling the baby move!

Milestones: Finishing the first trimester!

This Week: Baby is the size of a Lemon! Your adorable little fetus is busy with thumb sucking, toe wiggling, and (not so cute but equally amazing) making urine and breathing amniotic fluid as the liver, kidneys and spleen continue to develop. Lanugo (thin, downy hair) is growing all over the body for warmth.