Week 25: Mon, Dec 30, 2013

Weight: 118 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): 36 inches 

Nickname for baby this week: "our little cauliflower" -looks like we're moving on to vegetables! :)

Symptoms this past week: stiffness after sitting/laying for a little while, some lower back and hip soreness/pain, a very tight belly that feels like it could pop if I eat too much at once, redness on front of belly, swelling in feet (mainly the left foot) so I've been drinking more water and conscientiously trying to put my feet up when sitting, increase in need to pee (a few times more per day), moodiness, pregnancy brain, shortness of breath, and I definitely feel the baby moving often! They say the 2nd trimester is the easiest and the least symptomatic but since my 1st trimester was so uneventful, this trimester seems harder/worse.

 Body changes: bigger boobs [I bought my first two bigger bras yesterday! It feels so good to have bras that fit well now, so much so that I didn't want to put my old bra back on and wore a new one out of the store (paid for it first, of course)!] My belly is getting ever bigger. I was thinking "is it ever going to stop??" and then remembered I still have 3+ more months to go. dang! Who new that skin could stretch THIS much...it's quite an amazing thing! 

When I wear some of my looser older shirts, I think that you can't really see my belly that much and tell that I'm pregnant. Like the other day, for instance, I had on a flowy shirt and this stranger downtown said as I walked past "are you having a boy or girl?" I was a little surprised he could tell I was pregnant but I guess there's no hiding it at this point ;)  

Week 24

Weight: 117 lbs at home, but 118.2 on the doctor's scale

Circumference (at belly button): 35.75 inches 

Nickname for baby this week: "our little canteloupe"

Symptoms this past week: same as last week unfortunately. B/c of the constipation, I'm trying to drink more water and conscientiously trying to eat more fiber by looking at the amount of fiber in things or eating foods that are known to be high in fiber, like lentils! And my fave vegetables, artichokes, are super high in fiber…yay! I also bought some flax seeds that I put in my cereal and started taking flax seed oil supplements. Flax seeds are excellent omega-3 sources too. And my lower back pain (plus overall stiffness, especially in my hips) is becoming more regular, especially after laying on my back or sitting for 15+ minutes. Also, an early symptom is still around, and that is that my pee has a green tint to it. It'll probably stay greenish the entire pregnancy, I'm guessing.

 Body changes: the bump is getting obscene, in my opinion, probably b/c it has nowhere to go but out, so out it is going! It looks just like I have a basketball under my shirt, which is appropriate since Cor LOVES basketball. Also, not only do my boobs seems like they are bigger/fuller in general but they seem more normal sized in the morning but bigger by later in the day. Anyone know why?

The OB checkup on Friday went well…the baby's heartbeat and my fundal height (the length of my uterus) are good. My next checkup is in three weeks.

Week 23: Sun, Dec 15, 2013

Weight: 115 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): +35.5 inches 

Nickname for baby this week: "our little grapefruit"

 

Symptoms this past week: pregnancy brain (I forget many things and have trouble doing anything even slightly complicated), lower back pain, the need to pee a couple of more times per day, vaginal discharge, feeling the baby move, & constipation :( so I'm eating more fiber. In the past few weeks, I had been waking up with charlie horses or pain in the ball of my left foot. So I googled "charlie horse causes" and think the cause may be a calcium deficiency (which is totally plausible b/c baby takes a lot of my calcium) so I've been popping a couple calcium chews every day, which I should be doing anyways, and both the charlie horses and foot pain have gone away! Oh, and I forgot to mention that for a few months, I've definitely tinkled a tad when I sneeze :|

 

 Body changes: an ever growing baby bump, boobs are definitely getting bigger, my complexion is great (except for the occasional forehead pimple…I've been told I've definitely got the pregnancy glow :)

We have our next appt with the OB on Friday...wonder what my weight will be on their (more accurate) scale. And curious about my blood pressure…last time it was SUPER low.

 

Week 22: Mon, Dec 9, 2013

Weight: 115 lbs (2 1/2 lb weight gain since last week! I better not keep that up or I'll have gained 45 lbs at 38 wks, or full term). They say a lb a week is good, so even though I exceeded that this week, I didn't gain hardly any weight the entire 1st trimester so it's probably ok…now where are those chocolate donuts? ;)

Circumference (at belly button): 35.25 inches (gained an inch!)

Nickname for baby this week: "our little papaya"

Symptoms this past week: symptoms are mostly the same as last week…lower back pain, need to pee a couple of more times per day, tightness in belly (usually after eating), vaginal discharge. But in the past week, baby has been moving A LOT! It doesn't hurt at this point (no jabs to my organs) but I can really feel it, mostly in the evenings/night. How do you keep your fetus from sleeping during the day and being awake & moving at night??? At least it's not enough to keep my awake/wake me at night……yet.

Body changes: an ever growing baby bump (bending over is getting harder so I've started spreading my legs first and then bending over, very lady-like ;)  

I've been hearing "your belly is so little!" from everyone, but today my coworker (who I haven't seen in a week) said "it's so big!" so that was nice to hear, b/c it sure feels big to me! And no, we're not having twins. Hopefully there's just a healthy baby in there who's eating well. 

My innie belly button is becoming an outie and is getting stretched…poor belly button :[ But I've read that it'll go back to its previous innie status once my belly shrinks back down.

Boobs are definitely getting bigger but I can still fit most of my regular bras.

 

I may need to buy bigger jeans in the next couple of weeks. My fave pair (and most other pairs) are getting a little "fitted".

Here's an extra foto. It's my prego xmas pic:

And Cor's version ;)

Week 21: Sun, Dec 1, 2013

Weight: 112.5 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): 34.25 inches

Nickname for baby this week: "our little pomegranate"

 

Symptoms this past week: definitely have felt the baby moving/kicking multiple times a day (it feels like gurgly gas that won't come out); symptoms are mostly the same as last week: tightness in belly (usually after eating), vaginal discharge, lower back pain, need to pee a couple of more times per day.

Body changes: a growing baby bump…it's now noticeable to strangers, have had some comments this week. Because of my bigger belly, it's definitely getting harder to bend over and I'm walking a little differently.

 

Week 20: Sun, Nov 24th-Half Way!

20 weeks…half way there! Wow, 5 months have gone by fast! This is just the beginning I'm sure. From now on time is going to speed by. 
I'm trying to enjoy all the things I take for granted, most especially my quiet downtime and moments of having nothing to do…sigh……

Weight: 111 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): 33.5 inches

Nickname for baby this week: "our little banana"

Symptoms this past week: baby movement/kicking usually felt while laying in bed after waking up, tightness in belly (usually after eating), vaginal discharge, lower back pain, need to pee a couple of more times per day.

Body changes: a growing baby bump; my boobs are a little fuller and tired sooner; belly skin is a little itchier. 

We're having a...

We don't know! But the tech who did the ultrasound does ;)

So the news from the 2nd trimester ultrasound is great! Everything about the baby looks normal! The doctor did say that where the umbilical cord meets the placenta is a little off balance (not sure exactly what that means) so I'll go back in my 3rd trimester at the beginning of February for another scan (and because of my "advanced maternal age"). But I saw my OB later the same day and she said that's nothing to worry about. A friend told me too that the doc at the scan has to tell you every little thing they see for liability reasons. So I'm not going to focus (and thus worry) on it.

The fancy UCSF machine is 3D capable so we got to see our baby in 3D too! It's so amazing that the baby is no longer a little peanut-shaped blob but now a fully-fledged human with developed legs, arms, hands, nose, spine, everything! Pregnancy is quite an amazing, mind-blowing thing...a microscopic being formed from a tiny egg and sperm grows into a living, breathing person! Mind boggling! 

Our baby posed for quite the perfect profile shot...must know I'm a photographer and is practicing posing ;)

Week 19: Sun, Nov 17, 2013

Weight: 111 lbs!

Circumference (at belly button): 33.5 inches

Nickname for baby this week: "our little mango"

 

 

Symptoms this past week: a distinct fluttering in my lower left abdomen that lasted about 8 seconds (from what I've been told, this was the baby), prolonged headache that turned migrainish, tightness in belly (usually after eating), v. discharge, a few days in a row of minor abdominal cramping (probably from stretching muscles, or as many people will say, "round ligament pain" due to stretching).

Body changes: my baby bump is definitely showing, at times it feels huge to me but I know it's not really that big yet; my boobs aren't exactly bigger but seem slightly fuller (sweet!). The fine hairs on my belly are more noticeable (b/c I can seem them easier now that they're a few inches closer?)   

 

 

 

**Note! We have our 2nd trimester ultrasound, aka anatomy scan, tomorrow. This is going to be a big one: 45 mins long with a high-tech ultrasound machine. We're having it done at the UCSF satellite office in Monterey. We're waiting to find out the sex the old-fashioned way but could probably find out tomorrow if we wanted to.

So what is an anatomy scan? The tech will look at everything (organs, body parts, etc) to see if there are any current or potential physical issues. Of course we hope for no major problems…hopefully it has 2 legs, 2 arms, a brain, heart and is overall very healthy! I'll post an update with the results once we get them. Keep us in your thoughts/prayers please :)

Week 18: Sun, Nov 10, 2013

Weight: 110 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): just under 33 inches

Nickname for baby this week: "our little sweet potato"

 

 

Symptoms this past week: tightness in belly (usually after eating), v. discharge, tired lower back, abdominal cramps (twinges), pain in the ball of my left foot. The fatigue that I experienced in the first trimester is gone so I have the energy again to do more things, especially during late afternoon-evening (when the fatigue hit the hardest).

Body changes: Besides my growing baby bump, no body changes. 

Week 17-Sun, Nov 3, 2013

Weight: 110 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): 32.75 inches

Nickname for baby this week: "our little onion"

Symptoms this past week: tightness in belly (usually after eating so bloating?), v. discharge, tired lower back…I had a massage so that helped the back :). Now I know why they say pregnant women's hair is often thick...I lose a lot fewer hairs over the course of the day.

Body changes: Besides my baby bump growing, no body changes. According to many sources, I should start to feel kicks...but up until 20-22 weeks, they may just feel like gas and not be distinguishable as kicks.

Our first major baby purchases!

Our first toy…got this little gem for $5! Cor can teach our child about basketball from a very early age :)


















 

We stopped at an antique store in Soquel yesterday and I found this awesome little end table/shelf. It's the perfect size for an IKEA changing pad…yay!

Saw this brand new video baby monitor on sale for less than full price. We tried it out and it works great! Has sound and video.



And last but not least, I got a box full of kids hangers for free via Freecycle (an online site where people offer and request free items). Not like kids hangers are expensive but now I've got 30-40 free ones to get me started :)

Week 16-Sun, Oct 27, 2013

Weight: 110 lbs

Circumference (at belly button): 32.5 inches

Size of baby: an avocado 

Symptoms this past week: tightness in belly, bloating, tired lower back, milky discharge (from my nether regions). My appetite has not increased drastically but I do notice I can/want to eat a lot more in one sitting, and I crave snacks frequently. It'll be interesting to see what my weight is at my next prenatal appt :)  

Body changes: belly is a tad bigger…I can still easily see my feet though ;) My brother-in-law noticed my belly through a regular, non-fitted shirt…so I'm starting to show, at least to those who know I'm prego…yay! :)

♫ "I hear your voice, it's like an angel sighing, I have no choice, I hear your voice, Feels like flying" ♫

On Wednesday I was driving to work and Madonna's Like a Prayer came on the radio. So many times in my life, I've heard a song and related it to whatever was going on in my life…when I was single, songs made me think of romance and guys I liked. Now that I'm married, they make me think about my husband or whatever I'm feeling. But Wednesday was the first time I felt that a song's lyrics were talking about my unborn baby. So much so that it brought me to tears. And that was also the first moment in my pregnancy that I have not just felt "pregnant" (a new idea to me of what I am at the moment) but that I actually have a living, heart-beating life in side of me that I am nourishing. Cory and I have created a whole new life and that is an amazing thing. Someone said to me that I should write more about what I'm "feeling" in my blog. But up until now, I really have not felt much more than sometime off in the future we will have a baby and eventually our lives will change. It's just been too distant of an idea to feel much about. Except that I know I am, since I don't really FEEL pregnant (except for the occasional symptom) and don't really LOOK pregnant, it hasn't been really apparent to me. But after hearing the heartbeat again the other day at my 3rd prenatal appt (more about that next) and starting to get a baby bump and thinking about major baby purchases, it's really becoming real.

Since my bump is expanding, I've had to wear a belt with some bottoms the last couple of days b/c it was too tight to fasten the button. So this is how I drove to work one day
:)

I had my 3rd prenatal appt the other day. It was just a quick checkup with the OB. I gave a urine sample, had an audio ultrasound and heard the heartbeat (130 beats/minute, a good rate!) and asked the doc some questions. I've only put on about a pound since my last doctor's visit, probably because my appetite has not increased yet. But the doctor said it should on its own eventually. Until then, people keep saying when I mention that I'm prego, "really?? You don't look pregnant!"