17 Weeks

Today I am:

 17 Weeks!  

That's hard to believe.  Time really is passing by fast.  Our sweet one is growing fast and now the size of a...

 Sweet Potato!

 And here is what baby is looking like around this time.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along:  17 Weeks

Size of baby:  A sweet potato (5.5inch, 5oz)

Most dramatic development this week:  Meconium (baby's first poop) is starting to accumulate in bowels.  And baby now has its own set of unique finger and toe prints.  Also, baby can now hear some sounds, including voices :)

Total weight gain:  2-4 lbs  Will know for sure after MD appt in a couple of weeks.

Gender:  We know, and will announce Friday at our Gender Reveal Party

Movement:  Still waiting

Sleep:  I'm now using my "Snoogle" (pregnancy pillow) every night now and I do love it!

Cravings:  Still nothing in particular.  It's different things on different days.

Anything making you sick or queasy:  Not really.  The n/v has improved drastically.  Occasionally a bad smell will catch me off guard, but most of the time, I'm pretty good.

Symptoms:  Heart burn/reflux has reached a new level.  And lots of foods cause it, not just spicy ones.  I'm taking Zantac on a more regular basis.

Best moment of the week:  Just had an overall good, relaxing week.  Nothing too exciting, but it was good!

Looking forward to:  Our Gender Reveal Party!!

One of our friends, Chastity, sent this to me.  I thought it was cute, and probably going to be true for our little one :)

~"Children are a gift from God; they are His reward."  Psalm 127:3TLB~

Family Time

Tonight, we enjoyed supper and some family time at Wick and Patti's.  Patti cooked a delicious meal and afterwards we played some games with Gracie.

I snapped this cute pic of Uncle Josh and Gracie while playing UNO, which Gracie won. :)

Love spending time together as a family.

~"Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise."  Psalm 100:4~

Happy Birthday Kaci

Last night, I went to Fuddruckers to celebrate the birthday of my best friend, Kaci.  We had yummy food and a great time celebrating!!

 Best buds!

 Kaci and James' sweet babies, Jameson and Aly with their Mimi, Medina.

Happy Birthday my sweet friend!  Love you and so thankful for our friendship!!

~"I have come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10~

16 Weeks

Today I am:

4 Months or 16 weeks pregnant!  Moving right along :)

 Our sweet one is the size of a turnip.  And because I wasn't sure what a turnip looks like (or tastes like), I had to find a picture...

A yummy, or not so yummy TURNIP!  But tasty or not, our baby is growing by leaps and bounds!  The beginning of this past week was very productive for us.  We got the baby's room all cleaned out (minus an ironing board) and started working in the garage.  We got about half of it cleaned and organized.  Organizing is my happy place!!  We still have some work to do, but definitely got a lot done.  On Tuesday, we went to Baby Impressions and had our gender reveal u/s.  It was a precious moment and we were so excited to find out.  Another accomplishment this week, we chose the name.  We have been tossing up lots of names for both genders, but once we knew for sure what it was, we got down to business and agreed on the name!!  And we love it!!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along:  16 Weeks

Size of Baby:  A Turnip (Or the size of your palm:  5 inches, 5oz)

Most dramatic developments this week:  Putting on body fat.  This marks the first week that the baby is bigger than the placenta.  The brain is now regulating the heartbeat, which is now beating more regular.  Also, baby is sucking, swallowing and chest is moving up and down, all in preparation for life outside the womb.

Total weight gain:  still about 1 pound

Maternity clothes:  oh yes!

Gender:  We already know :) and will be sharing with everyone on January 24th.

Movement:  Still haven't felt anything yet, but I truly can't wait for that moment.

Sleep:  Not too bad

Cravings:  Different things on different days.  Cashews have been a little snack I have enjoyed this week.

Anything making you sick or queasy:  The day after I wrote my 15 week post about feeling so much better and the n/v subsiding, I threw up twice in one day.  But since Tuesday, I have felt pretty good.  I will occasionally feel nauseated and maybe gag, but haven't thrown up so Yay!

Symptoms:  Groin/inner thigh pain, on the left side.  It has to either be just normal stretching and pulling, common during pregnancy, or I really have pulled a muscle.  It's happened twice now. It gets better with a little Tylenol and a heating pad.  My cold and reflux have gotten better, without meds :)

Best moment of the week:  Finding out our sweet baby's gender on Tuesday at Baby Impressions.

Looking forward to:  Having a few days off with Josh and hopefully finishing cleaning out the garage.

~"From birth I have relied on you; you brought me forth from my mother's womb.  I will ever praise you." Psalm 71:6~

Brrr

It's been extremely cold here for the past few days (well cold for SC that is).  It's been like 9-10 degrees.  In fact, school was closed on Monday due to the low temps.  They are saying it's from some kind of Polar Vortex.  The sad part is that we haven't seen one flake of snow :(  I was hoping for at least a little.  There is still hope!

But this cute girl says "Polar Vortex...what??"  I'm ready for the beach!!  She's keeping it cool inside :)

~"It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; You made both summer and winter."  Psalm 74:17~

Baby Impressions

Well today was the day that we headed to Baby Impressions for our Gender Reveal ultrasound.  It was such a special day and we have been anxiously awaiting it for weeks.  We originally had planned not to find out and be surprised at our Gender Reveal Party with everyone else, but we changed our minds :)  The place is so nice and relaxing.  We were taken back to a huge room with lots of chairs and a huge tv screen.  The lady who did the u/s was so sweet.  She started the u/s and on that huge screen we saw this...

Our precious little baby!  Be still my soul!!  For many years I have dreamed of this very moment...Holding my husband's hand while seeing the first glimpses of our child!!  And many times over the past few years, I've wondered if this moment would ever happen...if I would ever be able to conceive.  Thank you God for creating this tiny little miracle inside me.  Thank you for allowing Josh and me to be parents to this sweet baby!  And Thank you for blessing us with one of life's most precious gifts!  Little one, we love you more than you could ever imagine.  I dream of the moment when I have you in my arms...when I hear your first cry and see your precious face!  You keep growing big and strong!  We will see you soon!!

The baby was so active and moving all around during the u/s.  It is truly amazing to watch.  They gave us u/s pics and a video of the entire u/s to take home!  Truly priceless!  And they played sweet lullaby music during the u/s which pretty much had me crying the whole time.  It's also played on the video.  We are planning to go back there around 30wks to get the 3D/4D u/s.  And we will be bringing our family along for that one.  We will be announcing the gender on January 24th!  So excited!

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine

You make me happy, when skies are grey

You'll never know dear, how much I love you...

The other night, dear, as I lay sleeping

I dreamed I held you in my arms..."

15 Weeks

Today I'm

15 Weeks

 And our little sweetie is about the size of an Avocado.

Look how big he/she is getting.  I had good check-up on Thursday.  Everything was looking great and I heard the baby's heartbeat.  It was strong and in the 150's.  Our next appointment will be the big anatomy u/s.

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along:  15 weeks

Size of Baby:  An Avocado

Most dramatic development this week: Muscles are getting stronger, especially the back muscles, enabling our little one to straighten out even more.  Eyes are making small side to side movements and he/she can even perceive some light, though the eyelids are still sealed.

Total weight gain:  1 pound

Maternity clothes:  pretty much all I'm wearing now.  They are just so comfy.

Gender:  We go Tuesday to find out, but are not announcing it till January 24th, when we will have a Gender Reveal party :)

Movement:  Not yet, but anxiously awaiting that special moment.

Sleep:  Day or night, not too bad.

Cravings:  Nothing in particular this week, just been wanting to cook a little more...I know, surprising!

Anything making you sick or queasy:  Ok, so my n/v has definitely gotten better...Yay for the second trimester.  It's been nearly a week since I've thrown up.  I'm still having nausea off and on, but the vomiting is going away...Yay!

Symptoms:  I have another cold, which I'm just riding out.  The Tylenol cold meds have so many medications in them, I don't feel comfortable taking it, so I'm just letting it run its coarse.  Also, I'm having increased low back pain...but nothing a little Tylenol and heating pad won't fix.  And I'm really not complaining. I'll take colds, back pain and n/v all day, everyday because growing this little one is truly amazing and a blessing I'm so thankful for. 

Best moment of the week:  Spending New Years Eve at home, on the couch with our little family of 4...and yes, we were asleep by 9pm.  And hearing baby's heartbeat!

Looking forward to:  The gender reveal u/s on Tuesday...so excited!!

~"So be truly glad.  There is wonderful joy ahead.."  1 Peter 1:6~