18 Weeks

Hellooooo baby bump!

Bebs: Head to rump, Bebs is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and s/he weighs almost 7 ounces. The baby's busy flexing his/her arms and legs, blood vessels are visible through thin skin, and ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from the head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his/her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after the baby's born, too! If Bebs is a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If Bebs is a boy, his genitals are noticeable now.

News from Maternal Fetal Medicine: I received a voicemail from one of the nurses at the hospital to give me the results from my sequential screening ultrasound and bloodwork. Everything with Bebs is great! Baby tested 1 in 10,000 for a genetic disorder such as Down's Syndrome or Trisonomy 18, and tested 1 in 6,000 for Spina Bifida. We were ecstatic with the good news! :)

The Furnace: Lots of things have been happening around our house lately! First of all, I am happy to report that Merry and Pippin only lasted at the SPCA about two weeks before they were adopted. :) That makes Hubs and I feel much better about giving them away.

Our new bedroom is completely finished! I'd still like to get curtains and some artwork on the walls, but in terms of all the work that was done to it, moving furniture, etc....we are done! I don't know if this is a psychological thing or what, but we both said that our bed is much more comfortable and we've both been sleeping better since moving into that room! I've been happily sleeping on my side comfortably and hugging my KU body pillow all night, too. I can only lay on my back for a few minutes before it gets uncomfortable, and laying on my stomach is pretty much impossible now.

Mama Hebs painting the trim

Hubs and Dom prepping the installation of the ceiling fan

Hubs and Hebs!

Jason has already moved all of his clothes into his dresser, but alas, all of my clothing is still in piles in what will eventually be the nursery. I spent quite a few hours organizing my side of the closet, ironing maternity clothes and arranging shoes. (Hubs just LOVED that, lol). I'm just at a loss for what to do with all of my "pre-pregnancy clothes" that no longer fit. So far I left all my jeans, dress pants and dresses in our old bedroom closet and I think I may do the same with my other shirts and sweaters. Even looking at those clothes makes me a bit sad I can no longer wear them. Ridiculous, I know!

We also went out and purchased 4 baby gates (AKA pug gates!). The gates are really more for Dexter's sake than the baby's...or let's face it, my sake. There is a large gate separating our kitchen from the weird open space living room/computer room, and a small gate separating the kitchen from the dining room. This has become Dexter's area. We have left him out of his crate during the day (and overnight!) with no accidents. So far, so good! Every morning I come downstairs I find him in his crate, and every time I come home from work, he's been sitting in his crate, too. I would love to know what he does all day with this newfound freedom!

"Mommy, what the heck is this??"

We got two more gates like this, also. One for the top of the stairs (when baby is here) and one at the top of the little steps leading down to our TV room (for Dexter)

17 Weeks

Check out that bump!

Bebs:  Baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — the lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Bebs weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and s/he's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. S/he can move her joints, and his/her sweat glands are starting to develop. I've definitely felt a lot of fluttering and "bubble" sensations! Bebs is definitely wiggling around in there!

Yum Yum donuts!

Hubs and I had quite the busy weekend! Friday night we went to Musikfest with our friends Jeff and Dom. Jeff was kind enough to bring one of my favorite foods--donuts!--to help fatten me up. :) That was very sweet of you; thank you Jeff! :-D

When I woke up Saturday morning I wasn't feeling too hot. I was too dizzy to get out of bed myself, so Hubs helped me up and I darted into the bathroom. More morning sickness. After that, I continued to get ready for yoga. (Nothing was standing in the way of me and my yoga class!) My yoga buddy/co-worker/friend/life partner Schlupp kept an eye on me during class since some of the moves were making me feel a bit nauseous again. After class Schlupp and I asked our yoga instructor, Charlyn, for advice on gaining weight in a healthy way.

Charlyn had a ton of great tips and basically pulled all the food out of her cabinets! We talked about avocados (ok, I guess I seriously had to give them a real try...other than Jess's famous guacamole!), nuts, quinoa, hard-boiled eggs, Clif bars, and making smoothies with frozen fruit, Greek yogurt and some brown rice flour. I was inspired after talking about nurtrition with Charlyn and stopped at the store on my way home. (Can someone please tell me on the days when you are unshowered, sweaty, and have disgusting hair...that those are the days you run into literally everyone you know at the store??)

Organic tomato from my friend Dave's garden and the dreaded avocado!

While shopping I picked up some quinoa, Clif bars, frozen fruit, avocados and spinach in addition to a few other necessities we needed. I was excited to give avocados a second try when I got home. I have to say, they're not that bad. I enjoyed eating it. Of course I had to cut it into bite-size pieces, try not to "mush" it up, and covered it in coarse salt--but hey. I ate it and it was good. The organic tomatoes from Dave's garden were absolutely delicious!

Saturday afternoon our friends Jeff and Dom came over to help us finish up our bedroom painting project. They were able to help Hubs install the new ceiling fan/light fixture!

New fan/light fixture!

I will write another post later this week on the new bedroom, but I just wanted to give a shout out to Jeff and Dom to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of the help they gave us! I hope the lasagne and beer were good enough for all the hard work you did! :)

Saturday night we had a few friends come over to sit on our deck and enjoy some munchies and beers. As you can see, Dexter got a little carried away... ;-)

Dexter, the party pug!

Sunday Hubs and I woke up incredibly motivated to FINISH PAINTING! We gave a second coat to the trim, window frames, door frames, and doors while listening to some of the best music our CD collection from the '90's had to offer.

Last night I had the second part of my sequential screening test. I had one vial of blood drawn, and that was it! We thought we were going to get a second ultrasound, but no such luck. We will get the results in 3-5 days if it is discovered the baby has any genetic abnormalities. The first ultrasound and blood draw looked good according to the OB/GYN, so I am not worried.

Oh! One more thing! Yesterday I received a gorgeous flower arrangement from my cousin Katelyn who lives in Maryland! I was completely surprised and felt so loved.

Gorgeous flowers from Kate!

Bebs and I have been thinking about (and missing!) you, too, Kate!
I'm not sure if Dex misses Lilly, though... hehe ;)

Thank you Katelyn! They are beautiful! :)

13 Weeks

Here I am at my desk!

Bebs: Baby is the size of a shrimp this week...which is probably fitting because I've been craving seafood lately! This past week I've had crab cakes, crab legs, crab dip, shrimp and lobster bisque...oh my! :) Bebs now has fingerprints on the tips of his/her tiny fingertips! Veins and organs are also clearly visible through his/her thin layer of skin. Bebs' head makes up just a third of his/her body size now. Bebs is 3 inches long and weighs nearly an ounce. I still don't believe I've felt any definite movement yet, but I can tell something is going on in there!

What's going on in there?

 Hebs:  I felt pretty sick this week. I stayed home from work on Monday due to some morning sickness issues and an intense migraine. Hubs and I went to the beach over the weekend with my family and I wonder if I got over-heated or dehydrated? So I spent most of my time Monday in the bathroom or on the couch. I also called the chiropractor a few times (with no answer) to see if I could get in to get adjusted to help relieve my headache. I am going to call back later this week and hopefully get through so I can make an appointment. I've been having headaches everyday and Tylenol just isn't doing it for me, and I am unable to take anything stronger.

Aside from feeling a bit sick, Hubs and I had a great time at the beach with my family! We played games under the "E-Z Up," got a few slices at "Macko's," and enjoyed time on the beach, boardwalk, and mini-golf!

Sequential Screening, Part 1: July 10

Bebs had a photoshoot last week! We went to the hospital to the Maternal Fetal Medicine department to do the first part of our two-part sequential screening. A sequential screening is an ultrasound and bloodwork that is done in your first and second trimesters to determine if there is a chance your baby may have a genetic disorder, such as Down's Syndrom or Trisomy 18. The ultrasound tech measures the thickness of the baby's neck; the more fluid in the neck, the higher the chance of the baby having an abnormality. The ultrasound results, as well as bloodwork from the Mommy, are then sent to a lab to be analyzed.

Bebs at 11 weeks 6 days. Big difference than the first ultrasound!

The ultrasound tech and the doctor both said that everything with the Bebs was looking great! S/he was SO incredibly wiggly in there! S/he kept moving around, kicking its tiny legs, and kept trying to cover his/her eyes with his/her hands! It was really adorable. We got to hear the heartbeat again--165 beats per minute--which the tech told us was normal. I then had to have one vial of blood taken to be tested. Thankfully, I didn't pass out! I may be getting better at this! :)


"Hi Mommy and Daddy! I'm doing ok in here!"
(Hubs's favorite picture)

OB/GYN Check-up: July 12

My visit to the doctor last week was pretty uneventful. They took my weight and blood pressure (both normal) and said the ultrasound from the sequential screening looked good! The doctor also used a doppler to listen to the baby's heartbeat. It took her awhile to find it, since the baby kept squirming around and moving too much for her to get an accurate read. Once she found it, we heard the heartbeat loud and clear. I love hearing that sound!

Only 51 days until we find out if we're having a boy or a girl!! But, who's counting? ;-)

**Big thank you to Jeff, the photography guru, for editing the ultrasound pictures!**

12 weeks

The first trimester is over!!! Three months down, six months to go! :)

Baby bump! July 11, 2012

I can't believe the first three months are done! It seriously felt like that time FLEW by looking back on it. Compared to other stories I've heard from women and their pregnancies...I almost feel like I had it relatively easy! No extreme morning sickness, which I am SO thankful for!

Some symptoms I had and what (mostly) worked for me:

Dysgeusia (metal taste in mouth)--aside from brushing and flossing my teeth, sucking on hard candy, like Green Apple Jolly Ranchers, really helped.

Nausea--eating Saltine crackers, sour green grapes and getting fresh air was best. I felt better if I ate a lot of little snacks throughout the day, so I always had something in my stomach. Also, I had felt sick in the mornings after taking my prenatal vitamin. I switched to taking it at night, right before bed, and that made all the difference!

Bathroom issues--Tucks pads, drinking a TON of water.

Chest soreness--wearing a sports bra constantly!

Sensitive skin/breaking out--I had to switch my body and face wash since it all of a sudden felt like I was rubbing acid on my skin. I've been using the Aveeno skincare products for sensitive skin and they seem to be working great!

Cravings--Since I never craved anything too bizarre, I usually just gave in. :) The first month I was all about green grapes and spicy Mexican food, second month I wanted pickles and fruit, and the third month I wanted pickles, fruit and processed goodies! :-O

Weight-to-date--My pre-pregnancy weight was 111 lbs. I'm now 114 lbs. The doctor said I can expect to gain between 25 to 35 lbs!

Bebs: Baby is almost the size of a lime, weighs almost an ounce, and measures almost 2.5 inches!   Eyes are now positioned in the front of his/her face, and the ears are in position on the sides of his/her head. Reflexes have begun! Bebs' mouth is making sucking movements, clenching eye muscles, curling toes and fingers, hands open and close, and s/he may even begin to suck his thumb! His/her brain has been developing rapidly and the intestines are developing and will soon be moving into his/her stomach cavity.

We had our second ultrasound appointment last night, so we got to see the Bebs on the monitor! This ultrasound was for the first part of our "sequential screening" test. The doctor said that everything looked great so far! We got to hear the heartbeat again and it was a perfect 165! I will post the ultrasound pictures we got (we got 7 pictures!!) with a more detailed blog entry later this week!

Hebs, Hubs & Bebs at Raechel and Corey's wedding on July 7, 2012!
Adorable photo by the very talented Jeff! :)