21 Weeks

21 weeks down, 19 weeks to go!

Bebs: Baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. HER initial fluttering movements have turned into full-fledged kicks and nudges. In other developments, Bebs' eyebrows and lids are present now, and HER vagina has begun to form as well.

How's it looking in there?

Anatomy Ultrasound: Hubs and I went to the hospital on Friday for our "20 week anatomy ultrasound." In the car ride over, we discussed what we thought Bebs was. I thought Bebs was a boy from the beginning (I have no real reasoning why I thought that!) and Hubs thought she was a girl.

I was actually surprised at everything the ultrasound tech, her name was Tara, showed us. We got to see the two hemispheres of the baby's brain, four chambers of the heart, her two kidneys, bladder, etc. We saw two arms, two legs, two hands, two very feisty feet, and best of all, her face! The ultrasound took a lot longer than I thought, too. We were in there for about an hour!

As soon as I sat on the bed, ready to lay down for the ultrasound to begin, I knew in my heart it was a girl. Even when Tara asked if we wanted to know the sex, I could already tell that there wasn't a penis there and that we'd be hearing "It's a girl!" When Tara told us the news, I was excited, but also a bit sad. This entire pregnancy so far I had been picturing the little wiggly thing inside of me as a baby boy with dark hair and Jason's blue eyes. Hearing something different was a bit overwhelming. Thankfully Tara noticed my "bladder was full" and needed me to pee before she could finish the scan.

In the bathroom I let some tears flow. I can't explain what I was feeling. I think everything just sunk in that this baby is REAL and it is really happening and we will be responsible for a little person for the rest of our lives, and while that is awesome...it's also a little frightening for a first time parent.

Jason was just beaming ear to ear the entire ultrasound, which made me feel relaxed again and we got to enjoy seeing our daughter squirm around on the screen. Jason had asked Tara about coming in again for a 3D ultrasound, and Tara was nice enough to take a few pictures of Bebs' face with the 3D capabilities! I may be a little biased, but she is already the most beautiful girl ever.

Stubborn like her daddy, Bebs wouldn't roll over on her tummy for Tara to get a good look at her back. Finally she moved in the right way so Tara could get a quick picture. Everything with our baby is healthy and happy!

Dr. Kainz: We had our regular ob/gyn check-up with Dr. Kainz on Monday. He reviewed the scan and said that our baby looks great! It turns out I had gained 5 lbs since my initial weight, so I didn't have to see a nutritionist, either, which is awesome. (I'd like to point out that Jason and Dexter also gained 5 lbs!) At our appointment next month I will have to get the flu shot. I also asked Dr. Kainz if it was true I really had to sleep on my side. He said that when I get bigger, sleeping on my back could be a bit dangerous because my belly would push on all my organs and make it difficult to breathe. He suggested sleeping with a body pillow and using another pillow or Jason as a wedge on the other side so I wouldn't roll over. Jason followed this advice a little too closely and sleeps right up against me now, so I have about 3 inches of sleeping space!

Registering: For those of you who read my wedding planning blog, you know that I do not enjoy registering for things! Our wedding registry made me overwhelmed and stressed and I may have bawled my eyes out in Bed Bath and Beyond in the towel section.

However! Registering for baby was SO MUCH FUN! I was a little nervous that Hubs wouldn't want to register for anything overly girly or pink, so I kept trying to find the "gender neutral" option. Finally Jason asked me what I was doing; he wanted to register for "pink things for his princess!" So if you look at our registry on Babies R Us and see anything that is obnoxiously pink (like the pink whirlpool "spa" bathtub, for example) it's because Daddy picked it out. :)

Crib bedding we registered for! The blue creature *kind of* looks like a guinea pig! hehe

Milkshakes and Body Pillows

I had a doctor's appointment last night at my OB/GYN. We listened to the baby's heartbeat on the ultrasound machine, and even got to see Bebs! S/he was hanging out in there, upside down. :) Bebs looked like a skeleton and it was a little freaky. The heartbeat was perfect!

We saw a different doctor this time--Dr. Kainz. So far we've seen someone different each time we've gone in. At first I didn't think I would like this, but I actually do! Each person we've met--nurse practitioner, midwife, doctor, even the secretary who schedules my appointments--has seriously been awesome. Dr. Kainz was the first man I've seen, and though I was a little skeptical at first, he was great. I felt really comfortable talking to him, he was funny, and he was wearing trendy glasses. :) He also introduced himself as "Greg" and knew our names right as he entered the room. I told Dr. Kainz about my headaches, and he was able to prescribe Fioricet--a stronger form of Tylenol that has caffeine in it. He said the side effect may be that my headaches still occur. Since they're still happening anyway, I figured I would give Fioricet a try regardless. Hubs is picking it up for me at the pharmacy tonight and hopefully my headaches are gone forever and I will never even need to use it!

So while everything is looking great with Bebs, there is a slight issue going on with me. Apparently I haven't gained any weight since my initial appointment; I'm 113.6 lbs and holding. Dr. Kainz assured us that the baby was getting everything s/he needed; s/he is just stealing the nutrients from me. So even though my belly is definitely bigger, I must be losing some of my weight somewhere else.

Dr. Kainz's prescription? Milkshakes! He suggested a lot of milkshakes, those Ensure breakfast drinks, and plain ol' "indulging" myself. I have two months to gain 12-14 lbs to stay on track with where my weight should be for both my sake and for baby's sake. If I still haven't gained weight by the next appointment, I'll have to talk to a nutritionist to help me figure out a better way of eating.

So, in keeping with the doctor's recommendation of "indulgence," Hubs and I went to Carrabba's for dinner last night after the appointment. Again, I felt ok eating some meat (chicken parm--my favorite!) so I'm hoping at least that food adversion is over with. :)

Now that I've reached the 16 week mark, I have to stop sleeping on my back and/or stomach. It hurts to lay on my stomach now, so I'm ok there. Sleeping on my side is really difficult! I can't get comfortable. I read some suggestions and have heard from other moms that sleeping with a body pillow helps.

When I graduated from high school, my friend's mom made body pillows for all of her daughter's friends in the colors of the college they were going to. (Great gift idea!) So I used my maroon and yellow body pillow in my dorm the first year of college, and then my brother used it when he went to the same college as me. So now this body pillow smells like a mix of my brother Ryan and my parent's house, haha. Neither are bad smells! I just think it's cute.

My parents dropped off the pillow last night (as well as a gift of onesies with mittens for Bebs!) and I attempted sleeping/wrestling with it. I went up to bed around 9:30 and saw the clock at 12, 3, 4, 5 and finally 5:30 a.m. So, first night side sleeping was a little tough. Hopefully tonight goes better and I don't wake up on my stomach like I did this morning! :-O