18 Weeks

Rough picture day... this might be the best we got! :-)

Weeks: 18

Baby: Size of a pear, about 5.5 inches and 6-7 ounces! Baby is starting to hiccup, yawn, and move around!

Total weight gain: I’ll know after my appointment Wednesday!

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep:  I’ve been going to bed early and sleeping hard for 10-12 hours a night. I guess baby and I are growing!

Favorite moment of the week:  I felt baby kicks Saturday morning for a good hour or two! Best feeling in the world! I’ve felt them several times since then, but it’s not very consistent.

Miss anything? No. I’ve had a rough pregnancy as far as how I’ve felt, but really, I love being pregnant. It’s so special!

Movement: Yes!!

Cravings? Random things…nothing consistent. I’ve been wanting over-easy eggs, but I don’t think I’m supposed to eat those while pregnant. This week I’ve also been wanting (and indulging) sweets like crazy, and I’ve never been a sweets eater. It’s weird, and I want it to go away.

Anything make you queasy or sick? Nothing specific

Gender prediction: Either a boy or a girl. ;-)

Labor signs: Nope

Symptoms: New symptom alert: nosebleeds and acid reflux. Last night I had horrible reflux, unlike any I’ve ever experienced. It felt like hot lava flowing through my esophagus. I’ve also now reached the stage where if I don’t get enough calories, I have to spend my energy trying not to pass out! Woohoo.

Belly button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Pretty good

Looking forward to: Appointment Wednesday, and scheduling our 2^nd ultrasound for 21 weeks! I am more excited to just see our little babe on the ultrasound than I am to find out the gender. It’s hard having seen him/her only once so far. I can’t wait!

Freak-out moment of the week: None

Thankful for: I’m so, so thankful that I’ve been feeling better! I feel like I say this every week, but Ryan is so sweet to talk to the baby and encourage me throughout my pregnancy. I think he was genuinely disappointed when he realized that I could feel the baby’s movements, but he couldn't yet. Ha. He’s the best, and I’m thankful that my sweet little boy or girl will have a really great daddy, just like we both do.  :-)

17 weeks

Weeks: 17

Baby: Baby is the size of an apple (about 5 inches and 5-6 ounces)! The kidneys are producing urine, and the liver is producing bile. Cartilage is turning to bone. And the BEST part--the milestone that I have been waiting for--is that the baby can HEAR! Ok, so that's not the best part. This is really selfish, but my actual favorite part is that all research suggests that the baby can hear me and not you. :) He/she can hear my heartbeat and my voice, and I'm super proud about that!

Total weight gain: Update coming after October 30th. :) 

Maternity clothes? Not really, but I am using my Be-Band more.

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep: I've had a couple of sleepless nights, but for the most part I sleep great. I try not to drink anything an hour or two before I go to bed so that I don't have to get up to pee. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. 

Favorite moment of the week: 1) I think Ryan and I have agreed on a girl name and a boy name. Definitely the girl name, and 95% sure the boy name.
2) I saw an elderly lady really looking at my bump at one of the craft shows I went to on Friday. She didn't say anything, but it was obvious that she noticed. :-)

Miss anything? Not really.

Movement: Some flutters here and there, but no kicks.

Cravings? Nothing consistent, but I've had a few random (not bizarre) cravings. I sent Ryan to the store twice this week--once for Dreamcicles and later for Velveeta and Rotel, which I never want again.

Anything make you queasy or sick? This was the first week that I've been really bothered by smells. Fudgey smells (nothing new) and sweet coffee drinks, like cappuccinos, are not smelling so great to me. 

Gender prediction: I don't know.

Labor signs: Nope

Symptoms: Symptoms were better this week. I felt nauseated and threw up only one time this week, which is serious progress! This is also the first week of pregnancy in which I have felt hungrier than normal.

Belly button in or out? In.

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Normal

Freak-out moment of the week: I really can't think of one!

Thankful for: I'm thankful for our friends and family who have shown such genuine interest in and excitement for our baby! It mostly makes us more excited, too!

16 Weeks

Weeks: 16

Baby: Size of an avocado, between 4 and 5 inches in length, and 3.5-4 ounces in weight. 

Total weight gain: 1 pound at my last appointment... I'll know an update on Oct. 30. There is a discrepency between our scales, so I leave that part to them!

Maternity clothes? No, but I am using my BeBand on my higher-rise pants. 

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep: Sleeping great, but this entire pregnancy I've had really vivid dreams that keep things quite interesting. This week, specifically, I had some really strange ones!

Favorite moment of the week: I have been uncomfortable with the thought of having a boy, which I mentioned in my last post. Tuesday night I had a dream that we were getting our 21 week ultrasound, and it was clear that our little babe was a boy! We gave him a name and worked on a super cute nursery. Ever since then, I've been very, very excited about the possibility of having a boy. I feel the same way about a girl, but now I'm dying to know if my dream holds any truth! It'll be a win-win either way. :)

Miss anything? Not really.

Movement: Nope, but I'm so ready!
Cravings? Nothing consistent except pink lemonade.

Anything make you queasy or sick? Maybe my vitamins? I've skipped out on them the past couple days and have felt much better. 

Gender prediction: I say boy, although at home I do constantly refer to our baby by our girl name. :-)

Labor signs: Nope

Symptoms: I had a couple of good days this week... ha. I've had random symptoms. Puking, headaches, nosebleeds, lethargy. 

Belly button in or out? Very in. It has caved into the deep abyss. 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Normal

Freak-out moment of the week: Wednesday I was begging Ryan to agree on going to an ultrasound clinic to find out the gender sooner than 21 weeks. While I am trying to exercise patience, I've decided to rely on one of my stronger qualities: stubbornness. I am determined to wait til our 21 week appointment, and I will.

Thankful for: I'm still thankful I recorded our babe's heartbeat at our last appointment. I didn't have the best week, and listening to it did help keep things in perspective.

15 Weeks

I got about 8 inches chopped off my hair on Thursday! I feel like a free woman, rid of my blanket. Ha. Each day since, I have declared my excitement over it, so I know I made the right decision for myself!

Weeks: 15

Baby: Size of an orange... obviously the baby isn't as "fat" as an orange, but is the length (head to rump) of one! Baby should weigh about 2.5 ounces. Isn't it crazy that we all began that way?! He/she is more purposeful with movements, such as sucking his/her thumb!

Total weight gain: 1 pound

Maternity clothes? Nope

Stretch marks? Nope

Sleep: Sleeping great! If you are pregnant and don't have a body pillow, I highly recommend getting one.

Favorite moment of the week:  1) Hearing our baby's heartbeat again! I recorded it on my phone and have listened to it a "few" times since Wednesday. The heartbeat this time was 146 bpm; it was 173 last time at our 10 week appointment.
2) My mom gave me a lot of baby things that were mine--such as clothes, shoes, and blankets--that she has hung on to all these years! She also gave me a couple of photo albums full of pictures of me as a baby and young child. My favorite of these: pictures of her when she was pregnant with me, and pictures of her holding me in the hospital! So special. :-)
3) Ryan and I went for a walk the other day, and I noticed during it when I looked down that I could see my bump without using my hands!

Miss anything? Not really.

Movement: Nope, but I know I will freak out with happiness when it happens!
Cravings? I haven't really had any this week, but I'm figuring out that for some reason fatty, caloric foods leave me feeling a lot better than other foods. My body is burning a lot of energy just by growing my baby, and I'm thinking I may have been doing a poor job of replacing what is burned.

Anything make you queasy or sick? It seems to be getting better. I seem to have better days when I eat a few different things in the morning. Right now it's toast, green grapes, and cheese for breakfast!

Gender prediction: To build on what I said last week, I've actually panicked about the fact that we might have a boy. I grew up with only sisters, and the only babies I've babysat have been baby girls. So, to be honest, the boy part scares me and I just don't want to deal with it. :) There. I said it.

Labor signs: Nope

Symptoms: Getting better, although I might have said "this is my new normal" in response to feeling like death, and there might have been tears. Our appointment was the next day, and that is why I recorded our baby's heartbeat. Not only is it just a great idea :), but listening to it helps me keep things in perspective when I'm not feeling well. 

Belly button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Mood: Pretty consistent, with one exception. Ryan and I love to pick on each other. We always have. It's normally hilarious and I always win hold my own and beam with pride. But not 15 weeks pregnant me. Nope. Apparently I can't handle it. To make it worse, Ryan could quickly tell this was the case and would.not.stop. SO, in my defense, I was being intentionally provoked! I knew exactly what was going on, but I felt completely incapable of handling it. I didn't get seriously mad or cry or anything, but I kept begging him to stop before one of those things happened. I did, however, have sense enough to record a few quotes in my phone. At one point I told Ryan "I'm dynamite and you're fire!" I also went into the room by myself and said "I just need to take a break from you." He just laughed. I knew he understood when he was praying over our dinner that night and included the following statement: "...just help calm Megan's nerves and help me to not drive her nuts." Yep. And lastly, I said "you're about to be living with your parents for a few months because I can't handle you!"  It was all in good fun, and he definitely further provoked me on purpose.  Oh, and this was all in a span of just two days...really almost just one night. Things have gotten better, and I don't think I need to say which one of us wised up and made a behavior change. ;) Husbands of pregnant women, all involved parties are better off if you don't intentionally provoke her to anger or anxiety.

Freak-out moment of the week: I freaked out the night before our appointment about the longevity of pregnancy, questioning how women have more than one child. Ryan helped put things into perspective, so I'm back to taking it day by day, knowing what each day holds is extremely important to our baby's development.

Thankful for: I'm thankful for my doctor. I really like her!