Thank God for Second Trimesters...

My week 13 bump...

It's like a little slice of Heaven...no more nausea, welcome back energy, and bring on the baby bump! I feel SO much better, I'm actually able to do housework again and I have a little bump to show the world why I haven't felt so great for the last 12 weeks! I'm loving week 13!! Still not sure about my wardrobe and moving into the next stage of clothing, so, for now, I'm down to 3 pairs of pants I can wear to work, which is definitely testing my creativity of outfits each day. Tony and I are leaving for the beach in about two weeks, so my next challenge will be finding some "beachy/vacation" clothes and a swimsuit...yikes! We'll see how that goes...

Baby seems to be growing and growing, I find myself getting anxious for baby to get big enough that I can feel it moving, it'll be so exciting! One of my books says baby is about 3 inches long and about the size of a peach...we've come a long way since the olive stage!

I went to the doctor this past week to have my throid levels checked, which was the initial reason we weren't able to have children right away...and everything is perfect! I have to go in for continuous checks every 6 weeks until the baby is born, small price to pay to be able to carry this little miracle! What a blessing!!

Baby's 12 Week Pictures...

Baby is taking up lots more room than the first set of pictures...growing!!!

An interesting picture of the bone structure of baby's head/face

This one is my favorite, you can see baby's little arms and legs...

but the best part is, baby did a flip between pictures, now baby's head is on the right which it definitely wasn't in the first two...pretty amazing!!!

12 Week Checkup!

Well, Tony and I went in for our twelve week checkup yesterday and we have all good things to report!! The doctor had a hard time finding the baby's heartbeat at first, which was a little scary. Tony and I probably had looks of horror on our faces, even though I have read in EVERY pregnancy book I have that it is not uncommon to not be able to pick up the baby's heartbeat externally at 12 weeks. Still...we were slightly panicked.

So, having a difficult baby pays off, because we got an ultrasound out of it! Nevermind that we will get billed for that later, what matters is that the baby is happy and healthy...yes, happy, we saw it with our own eyes. Our little one was moving around like CRAZY, it was the coolest thing to watch. The nurse got us some great pictures, and we did hear the heartbeat finally...at 154 beats per minute, baby is doing just fine!!!

As far as mommy is concerned, they did have to take my blood pressure twice, no worries, thank goodness, but the first time was a little higher than they wanted it to be, but by the time I left both numbers were below the normal standards. Whew!

I've also managed to gain 8 lbs, which I'm pretty happy with, I've been eating SOOO much lately, and the doctor seemed okay with it. So that was good too!! And...I managed to polish off a whole box of Scooby Doo Macaroni & Cheese all by myself for dinner tonight...impressive!!

Tony and I are headed to Hocking Hills, OH tomorrow for a couple of days to celebrate our upcoming 4 year anniversary. We had no idea when we booked the cabin I would be 3 months pregnant...so much for me enjoying the hot tub! But, I do get a pregnancy massage out of the deal, which I am stoked for, so that will be nice! It'll be good to get away just the two of us, we'll appreciate this time we have now more and more as November 28th gets closer and closer...

All good things to report!!!

How big is mommy...

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

In the spirit of graduation season...

Baby has officially graduated from an embryo to a fetus at the end of week 10! So, here we are at week 11 and it's hard to believe I am a week away from the end of my first trimester. According to the books, baby is about 1 3/4 inches long and about the size of a large lime...lime's must be smaller than I am thinking they are, I'll have to check one out next time I'm in the produce aisle at Giant Eagle I guess. At any rate, baby should be starting to open and close it's fists and is moving around pretty freely in it's comfy little womb. Yeah, baby!!

As far as mommy goes...or grows...yikes on the wardrobe! I had a couple days this week of "outfit crisis on my way out the door and almost late for work"...but I ended up dressed everyday and that's what really matters! Thank goodness Tony took me shopping last weekend, I'm thinking that was only the first of many trips to buy the next size up in EVERYTHING!! Gotta love pregnancy...and I really, really do love it. What an adventure this has been and there is so much more to come!

Still Nauseated...but surviving...

So, morning sickness has turned into evening sickness. But, on the bright side, the pregnancy seems to be moving along nicely...baby must be growing like a weed. Overall, I am feeling better, but it doesn't help that I just ate a Pomegrante Mixed Berry popsicle, that was a really bad idea, apparently. It sounded good, who knew baby would not be a fan. So, now it is on to find the next food to settle my stomach. It's a game I like to play these days...

As far as baby goes, the end of next week will put baby in the fetus stage officially. I will be at the end of my 10th week!! According to the many books I have, baby is actually looking like a person more and more everyday, and all major organ development is virtually done, now it's just a matter of growth, growth, and more growth. Baby is about the size of a medium green olive...although, I have to say, my waist is getting marginally bigger compared to that. I still haven't tackled shopping for new clothes yet...and one of these mornings while I'm getting ready for work, I'm really going to be out of luck in the pants department! Yikes!

Tony has been wonderful, he made me the biggest plate of french fries a girl could ask for the other night, which I inhaled and slept like a baby. He has been more than gracious, making Subway runs, getting me water refills, listening to me cry...and cry...and cry. I think I am entertaining for him most days.

Spencer...I could KILL!!! The dog and I are NOT friends right now...so, things aren't looking so good for Spence.

But the BEST NEWS OF ALL...is that baby Jackson is here!!! Andy & Stacey had a beautiful baby boy this past Saturday morning (early, early morning) and he is beautiful!!! My first nephew...so exciting!! It will be so fun to watch him grow, and someday (in about 6-7 months), play with his new cousin!! Congrats to Andy and Stacey!!

No More Saltines, please...

Well, I am happy to announce that my morning/afternoon/evening sickness seems to have subsided. Or at least for the last few days it has... so, we'll see. It couldn't have come at a better time, though, because if I had to eat one more saltine, those were going to make me sick...ick!!! Whatever hormones were making me feel nauseated left my digestive system and, I believe, went straight to my tear ducts. It's been non-stop crying for me since Monday, which is quite entertaining for Tony. It's one of those "crying for no reason, the world is going to end, I'm going to be a terrible mom, why in the world am I crying so much" kind of cries. Gotta love hormones...I do laugh about it between the tears. It's ridiculous.

I am now battling a sinus infection/cold of some sort that Tony was so kind to share with me...as if he hasn't done enough already. So, that has made the last couple days less than pleasant, but I think I would take this over baby sickness anyday.

Less and less of my pants are fitting and I have yet to go shopping for my first set of "I'm having a baby" clothes. But I imagine within the next week or so it is going to become nesessary...leading worship last Sunday morning with my pants unbuttoned was an interesting situation...of which I'd rather not have too many more.

Well, that's about it for now. Keep praying for the baby, losing the morning sickness caused a little panic within me, but I have to believe baby is still growing just fine and I have just graduated onto another stage of pregnancy.