18 Weeks

July 5th.
During the 18^th week we traveled to Seattle. I was a little nervous to fly but everything went smooth and poppy was quiet. I made sure I got up during each flight and stretched my legs. I am so thankful that Sara has a lot of friends in Seattle because I came back with a lot of maternity and baby clothes. Very awesome peeps in Seattle!

I am finding maternity clothes to be the most comfortable for me now. I can still wear my dress clothes for work but everything else I am switching to maternity. I had another Dr. appointment this week. Everything looked great and she said to keep doing whatever I am doing. The baby’s heartbeat was 150 again. She said I will probably start to feel obvious movement in the next 2 weeks. I think I have probably felt some already but it is so sporadic that I don’t know if it counts.

And some bonus pics from vacation!

 

 

17 weeks

June 28th.

We toured the hospital this week. The tour group was unexpectedly large and I was by far the earliest pregnant girl. I felt kind of silly that I’m hardly showing but it also made me feel pretty good about how much of a planner I am. I’m really glad we did this so I can be more comfortable with my surroundings once we arrive there. When the nurse educator was talking about the delivery process I started to get a tad emotional and excited. I’ll be ready when the time comes.

We also started looking at cribs, strollers and other things to prepare for our registry. There are too many options out there! We found a crib we both like, but the stroller/car seat decision will probably take us longer.

I switched over to maternity/nursing bras this week, why did I wait so long? I’m feeling pretty good!

16 weeks

June 21st.

We signed up for our Bradley Classes that start in August! You gotta love a class that tells you to bring pillows with you each time. This is the only class I will take because they also cover newborn care, breast-feeding and exercising.

I haven't read as much as I probably should about pregnancy because reading about everything that could go wrong would only stress me out. With labor and delivery though I know I might have some control over how things progress and I want to know everything I can to stick to staying drug-free. I am currently reading Ina May's Guide to a Natural Childbirth and Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way.

It's been a pretty quiet week on the baby front. I think a growth spurt is in the works because I'm starting to feel my stomach sticking out more. Maybe I can say I am feeling little flutters inside but I could be mistaking it for something else.

15 weeks

June 14th.

I read that pregnancy can bring on some crazy dreams and so far I have had my fair share . They started at about 12 weeks. This week was the first time that I dreamed about my baby though. In the dream we had already brought it home and it was a little boy. He was really tiny and had blonde hair and blue eyes.

I’ve felt pretty good except for my first dizzy spell. I sat down as quick as I could and I felt better. I hope I don’t have too many of those.

My lower abdomen is starting to get harder so it’s only a matter of time before I pop out there. First thing in the morning before I get out of bed my stomach is pooching out a lot and is hard! It’s like everything else settled down and gave the baby room to pooch out. The first time I felt it I was freaked out. It’s definitely an adjustment.

14 weeks

June 7th.

Whew! The second trimester. It’s crazy to think I’ve completed a whole trimester. I know time is going to fly by now that more people know. I told my work this week. Really just my boss, HR and my unit. Everyone seems really excited for me. I will slowly continue to tell more people but we are still enjoying having a little secret. Until I am obviously showing I feel no need to tell everyone. Right now I just look like I have packed on some weight.

So far this week I have felt really great. On the food front I’m able to eat more types of foods again. Matt can count on me to eat dinner with him instead of eating separately.

I read that the baby’s hands and feet are about ½ inch long. So precious and tiny.

What's it going to be?

We have been calling it poppy for the longest time and that sounds feminine to me so I refer to it as she. “She wanted ice cream. “ She wanted me to take a nap.”

Matt thinks it is a girl but I have a strong feeling it is a boy. I don’t want to get my hopes up one way or another so we will patiently wait for July 12th to come around. The big ultrasound.

For fun I wanted to test out some of the old methods for determining the sex of a baby.

Pee in a cup with baking soda in it and see if it fizzes. It did not fizz = GIRL

Less morning sickness means boy.  I had my fair share = GIRL

Craving sweet stuff or salty stuff? Sweets = GIRL

Chinese Predictor Chart says GIRL

My skin has broken out more= GIRL

Is the fetal heart rate over or under 140 beats? Over = GIRL

Ring Test. Put your wedding ring on a string and dangle it over your belly to see if sways back and forth or in a circle. Back and forth =  BOY

Mayan Method. If your age at conception and year of conception are both even or both odd mean Girl. I was 30 in 2013 = BOY

Dearly departed great-grandmother’s message from above = GIRL

13 weeks

May 31st.
Our baby has fingerprints this week! This is a big accomplishment for this forensic science nerd.

In the first trimester the baby’s growth is very minimal because the vital organs are developing. Now is the time that its rate of growth is the fastest. From last week to this week it grew 1 inch putting them at 3 inches. That is huge considering it takes 12 weeks just to reach 2 inches. My point in saying all this is I have noticed! Right at the start of this week my jeans were very uncomfortable. I don’t visibly look pregnant yet but at this rate of growth it won’t be much longer.

We had our 2nd prenatal visit this week. The Dr. found the heartbeat instantly and she said it sounded perfect between 140-150 beats. She said my blood pressure and weight were great and the blood work showed that my vegetarian diet is providing excellent protein and iron to the baby. I told her some important delivery wishes I had and she supported them. She said as long as no emergencies arise then they will let me labor however I choose to.