Halfway There!

20 weeks down 20 to go!  The baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now and is 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana.  Hard to believe what started out the size of a poppy seed is now the size of a banana on it's way to the size of a watermelon!  We have been super busy this month and time continues to fly by.  Jason and I are anxiously awaiting my dr. appointment tomorrow to find out the sex of the baby!  My to do list gets longer by the day and once we know the sex it will be time to start really getting ready for the arrival of this little one!

20 weeks

18 weeks

18 weeks down, 22 to go!  The second trimester has continued to go smoothly and I'm feeling really good.  My energy levels have returned pretty much to normal which is a good thing considering we have a very busy month (4 weddings, birthdays and my 10 yr high school reunion!).  I can't believe that in two weeks we will be able to find out if we are having a boy or girl.  I think that will only enhance the bond I'm beginning to feel with the baby and we can finally start planning for the arrival.  I feel a little guilty that I haven't made one purchase or really made any decisions on the nursery etc.  I have a feeling that once we find out the sex I will go on a spending spree ;)

A few new things over the past few weeks.  I am 90% sure that I have felt the baby move!  I have been feeling some flutters and bubbles over the past week or two and and I'm pretty sure it's the baby kicking and not just my digestive system.  It's different than anything I've felt before and it's such an amazing feeling to know that the baby is in there moving around and giving me little love taps to say "hi".  Jason is so anxious to be able to feel those movements from the outside.  I think in some ways he's a little envious that I get to experience all of these little miracles during pregnancy while at the same time I find myself a little envious of him for not being bound by some of the pregnancy restrictions/changes I face daily and being able to maintain "normal" life for a little while longer.

We have nicknamed the baby Little Ick.  Well, I should say my niece, Millie, nicknamed the baby.  Little Ick is a character from the children's show Little Bear and she thought it would be the perfect name for the baby.  I think it's cute and it stuck :)

The other big change is my growing belly!  I am definitely showing now and while I'm excited to have an official baby bump it's been a little harder to get used to than I anticipated.  I have felt very self conscious over the past several weeks as my belly gets bigger.  Some days I just feel fat rather than pregnant and I think, like many women, I have a skewed body image.  Thankfully Jason is there to constantly remind me that I'm not fat, I'm pregnant and he's always telling me how beautiful I am.  He's such a good hubby :) Over the past few days I think my belly has really started to round out and look much more like a bump and not just a few extra lbs :)

I was not really prepared for all of the comments and attention my belly would get.  While most people have very kind things to say like "oh you look so cute" I have gotten a few comments regarding how big I am or even the "maybe you are having twins" comment. Thank you for essentially telling me I look huge.  I know I have to let these comments roll off my back, but man they really get under my skin.  I know they mean no harm and are just showing interest but they are not what an already self conscious woman wants to hear.  I mean if you think I look big now, what are you going to think when I'm about to have this baby! Here are some bump pictures.  Any guesses on boy or girl??

14 weeks

16 weeks

18 weeks

How Far Along: 18 weeks
Size of Baby: approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and weighs almost 7 ounces
Total Weight Gain/Loss: +6 pounds
Maternity Clothes: So far just two pairs of maternity pants for work and a few tank tops.  I'm taking advantage of all my summer dresses!  A friend also gave me a huge bag of maternity clothes that I'm sure I will be sporting soon!
Movement: I'm pretty positive that I have felt those first flutters of movement!
Symptoms: Some occasional fatigue still, but overall I'm feeling great!
What I Miss: My pre-pregnancy body.  It's an adjustment getting used to my growing belly!
Girl or Boy: We will find out in two weeks!
Belly button In or Out: Still in
Stretch Marks: Not yet.
Cravings: Bacon still always sounds good, although I don't eat it too much.  Lately avocados and tomatoes with cottage cheese.  Sounds weird but it is yummy!
Best Moment This Week: Feeling those little flutters and twitches!

Let's Talk Pregnancy

So far this baby has been very good to me!  The first trimester flew by and it's hard for me to believe I'm already on to the second.  I feel very lucky that I did not suffer from morning sickness at all and really had no aversions to food or smells.  I had a few waves of nausea here and there but nothing that lasted more than a few minutes.  I was extra tired through the first trimester which may have led to a few mood swings (sorry J!), but even that was probably not as bad as it could have been.  All in all so far pregnancy has been a great experience!  My boss keeps telling me that I am going to have a lot of babies because I'm having such an easy pregnancy and I will be willing and eager to do it all again.  We'll see how the rest of this journey goes! 

A couple of pics to document my growing belly:

9 weeks

12 weeks

Overall Review of the First Trimester:

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +2

Maternity Clothes: Not in the first trimester, but I just got some maternity pants today!

Movement: Not yet!  I can't wait to feel those first flutters!

Symptoms: Luckily not many!  Fatigue, frequent trips to the bathroom and sore breasts.

What I Miss: I miss being able to have a glass of wine or beer with dinner and sushi.

Girl or Boy: We should find out on August 1st!

Belly button In or Out: In - let's hope it stays that way!  It will freak me out if it pops out!

Stretch Marks: None yet. 

Cravings: No specific cravings really.  Although I started drinking apple juice and eating applesauce a lot.  I also will never turn down ice cream and bacon has been exceptionally delicious to me!

Best Moment This Trimester: The first dr. appointment at 9 weeks where we got see the baby and hear the heartbeat.  It was such an amazing moment for Jason and me and one I will never forget!  That moment made everything very real!

Father's Day

Jason and I spent a wonderful Father's Day with both of our dad's at the Cardinals game on Sunday.  My sister had the great idea of getting all the families together for one big celebration and it worked out great!  It was nice to have everyone in one spot.  We met Jason's Dad and sister down in Soulard for lunch at Llywellyn's.  Unfortunately, Jason's mom wasn't feeling well so she wasn't able to join us.  We had a nice lunch and then met up with the rest of our crew to take the trolley to the stadium.  Somehow my sister manged to score 14 seats all in one row and in the shade!  Before the game we got a shot of all the dad's and the dad to be of course!

I am happy to say we brought home a winner - although it was a nail biter - walk off home run in the 9th by Skip Shumaker for the win!  We also witnessed Albert Pujols fracture his forearm which will keep him out for 4-6 weeks :( After the game Jason and I had dinner with my parents and brother at Benton Park Cafe.  It was a nice relaxing end to the day.  Of course I also had to treat Jason to Ted Drewe's on the way home.  You know how they say pregnant women really like ice cream?  I think I am proving that theory right ;)  I did get Jason a little something to celebrate Father's Day.  I found this beer mug at a little boutique in St. Charles and couldn't pass it up:  Daddy's Sippy Cup.  Perfect!

I am looking forward to next year when we will have our little one with us to celebrate Father's Day!

Restaurant of the Month: Q

Last Sunday Kelly and I ventured out to Historic St. Charles and had lunch at Quintessential.   The weather was perfect.  We finally had a break from the heat and it was a beautiful 78 degrees and sunny so we opted to have lunch on the rooftop.  We got there a little after 11 and had the entire place to ourselves.  The restaurant is also a popular nightlife spot so I guess all the other patrons were home nursing hangovers :)  The  rooftop is huge!  With plenty of tables, outdoor lounge seating and two bars it would be the perfect spot to spend a summer evening enjoying a few drinks.    They offer a large menu with just about anything you could want: lots of appetizers, salads, burgers & sandwiches, pizza, pasta and even steaks.  These days I usually let this little baby growing inside of me dictate what sounds good and that particular day it was the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich (grilled chicken, hot sauce, bacon and cheddar cheese) which I got as a wrap with sweet potato fries on the side.  Kelly got the Crab Cake Sandwich (jumbo lump crab cake, tomato ginger chutney, and chipotle aioli on a wheat bun) with the sweet potato fries as well.  My wrap was good, but severely lacked on the hot sauce so it didn't quite satisfy my craving for buffalo chicken.  It was more like just a grilled chicken wrap with some bacon and cheese.  The fries were tasty though!  Kelly said her crab cake sandwich was good and while I didn't taste it, it looked good from where I sat :)  After lunch we continued to take advantage of the good weather and walked around historic Main Street and browsed through the boutiques. Of course after walking for a while we had to stop for an ice cream cone at an old fashioned ice cream parlor.

If you are ever looking for something to do on a Saturday or Sunday, I highly recommend going to Main Street and walking around.  There is a lot of history there (I learned all about Lewis & Clark when I went there for a field trip in 4th grade!) and if history isn't your thing there are tons of shops and restaurants to keep you busy. We found several cute children's boutiques that I know I am going to want to go back to once we find out the sex of the baby! There are also often festivals or concerts going on in Frontier Park.  Jason and I stumbled upon a Scottish Festival there one time and ended up having a lot of fun! 

Finding Out

Now that we are out of the pregnancy closet, I can share some of the details of the past couple of months! Saturday, April 9 2011 started off like any other weekend morning at our house.  Jason and I woke up, lounged around for a bit and ate breakfast.  We had plans to work in the yard and Jason needed to run a few errands first. I had been experiencing what I thought could be pregnancy symptoms for the past few days, but had pretty much convinced myself that there was no chance I was really pregnant to avoid being dissapointed.  But Saturday morning something told me I should just check and see, so when Jason left I took a pregnancy test.  Almost immediately the word Pregnant showed up on the little screen. Unlike the other tests I'd taken there wasn't a NOT before that word.  I think part of me knew, but at the same time to see it, I was shocked and in disbelief.  My heart was pounding and all I could say was "oh my God! I can't believe this is happening" to myself over and over! 

It actually worked out that Jason was gone because I had a little plan on how I wanted to tell him.  I knew I wanted to do something special to tell Jason that we were going to have a baby and when he started working at New Balance, the perfect idea came to me.  I had ordered the tiniest pair of New Balance tennis shoes that I could in the same style that Jason wears. I put the positive test in the little box with the shoes. My hands were shaking so bad I could barely get the box open.  I really could not believe that everything I had been thinking about the past few months was coming true. Now, I just needed Jason to come home! I texted him to see when he would be back and he responded 30 seconds.  When he walked in the door he saw me standing there with a huge grin on my face and asked "What's up with you?"  I pointed to the box on the table.  He asked what it was and I just shrugged and told him to open it.  He was confused by the New Balance box since he didn't remember ordering anything. He opened the box and at first only saw the tiny shoes and started to say awww thinking they were a gift for our niece.  Then his jaw dropped and I knew he saw the test.  He looked at me and all I could say was "I took a test." He hugged me and we both had tears in our eyes.  He was totally surprised!  It was such a surreal moment. One that we had both been anticipating and that turned out better than I could have imagined.  For the next hour or so we just sat at the table in disbelief and talked about how we could not believe this was happening and how excited we were.  I must have looked at the stick 50 times to make sure it really said Pregnant.  After some of the shock wore off we spent the afternoon outside working in the yard and every once in while one of us would look at the other and say I can't believe we are going to have a baby!  We went to church that evening and then to dinner to celebrate.  It was the perfect day!

 

All I Want for Christmas...

 

...is a brand new, healthy BABY!!  Jason and I are so excited to share that we are expecting our first baby due December 16th!  Just in time for Christmas :)  We couldn't be happier and can't wait to meet this little sweetpea!