My Cat.

Yes, this is a picture of my cat. She was too cute last night and I had Ryan take a picture and then realized that not only is this a picture of my cat, it's also a good picture of my BABY BUMP!! This is first good picture of it since our weekly pictures don't show it but people who see me in person say I definitely have one. ANYWHO... just wanted to post it because I was really excited. ((and Zsa Zsa is SUPER cute))

14 Weeks!!!!

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

13 Week round-up: Buh-Bye 1st Trimester!!!

This is a little late because Ryan and I have a stupid virus on our computer.

This week has been pretty boring. No news to report. I'm just anxiously anticipating the first movement!

This picture really doesn't show the bump. I swear, there is one though!



Total Weight Gained/Loss? - not sure! My appointment on 5/5 will let me know.
Maternity Clothes - Bought a Belly Band this week and I'm conflicted. It's annoying cause it rides up, but definitely has allowed me to squeeze into some pants and just keep them unzipped/unbuttoned.
Sleep? - MUCH BETTER. I've had a couple of very restful nights, which I'm happy about and trying to enjoy before this little one starts kicking me.
Best Moment of the Week? - Hands down- Our Ultra Sound. AMAZING
Food aversions- CHICKEN
Food cravings- PBJ and Easy Mac... YUM
Gender - unknown
Labor Signs - Nope!
Belly Button - Looking a little more bloated!
What I miss - Wine. Hot Yoga.
What I'm looking forward to- Some kicks/movement!
Weekly Wisdom - Never take any day of this amazing experience for granted.
Milestones - Started the 2nd trimester!

13 week Ultra Sound!!!

Ryan and I went to get our ultrasound today where they test for Down Syndrome, Trisomy-something or other, fragile X, etc and everything looks GREAT! Our baby is healthy and had a heartbeat of 159 today. It's crazy to see the difference in the two ultrasounds we've had so far. The baby was just a blob with a heartbeat before and now it's a REAL BABY! The baby was stretching and rolling over and Ryan even caught him/her break dancing. We think that the little one waved at us at one point too. I wish we could've had a video of this ultrasound, but the pictures are terrific. Now Presenting... Baby H!!! ((you can click on the picture to enlarge))

A New Obsession

Peanut Butter and Jelly. Strawberry jelly to be exact. And the bread MUST be toasted. I'm obsessed. I have not had PB&Js since I was little, and I don't even think I liked them that much back then! I've ruined a number of dinners in the past week by eating a PB&J right before dinner. Poor Ryan, I am constantly walking around smelling like a 4 year old. For all you investors out there, you may want to buy stock in Jiffy and Smuckers.... I hear they may be going up.

I was just looking for a pic online of a PB&J and ran across the image below and it made me have a serious case of the LOLs! GAWD. Are we really going to own one of these soon???

12 Weeks!!!

Total Weight Gained/Loss? - not sure. I need to buy a scale and a tape measure. On second thought, maybe not.
Maternity Clothes - Getting there... I braved Target's maternity section this week and did a little browsing!
Sleep? - Tired, but I think it's now due to stress and working a lot.
Best Moment of the Week? - I THOUGHT I felt something down there, but realize it's really early so I prbably imagined it.
Food aversions CHICKEN
Food cravings- PBJ and Easy Mac... YUM
Gender - unknown
Labor Signs - Nope!
Belly Button - Looking a little more bloated!
What I miss - Wine. Hot Yoga.
What I'm looking forward to- Our Ultrasound this week!
Weekly Wisdom - Never take any day of this amazing experience for granted.
Milestones - Almost out of this First Trimester!!!!!!

12 Weeks (and 1 day!)

I'm ALMOST out of this 1st trimester and I could not be happier! It's strange to think that Ryan and I will be a family of 3 in just 6 months. WOW. Here's how the little one is progressing...

How your baby's growing:
The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.

Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over 2 inches long (about the size of a lime or plum) and weighs half an ounce.

It's about time.

My pants are getting tighter and I think it might be time to brave the maternity departments at Target and Kohl's (I heard these are the best, and when I say best, I mean most affordable). I'm really not looking forward to paneled pants or elastic waist bands, but this definitely in my future, so I might as well embrace it! At least I'll be comfy and that is certainly something I can't say for myself right now. I'm down to my last pair of "fat" pants and they are FILLED. yuck. Luckily, Ryan keeps assuring me that it's okay and I'm supposed to get big. It's hard to accept though.

Luckily, Kairee already ventured into the maternity section at Kohl's and has already warned me that it must have been designed by a man because they put the huge tent-wear (ie. maternity clothes) next to the skimpy, see through lingere. Good thinkin' guys. I think they just want to remind us to start thinking about getting right back into shape once this kid pops out! ugh. At least I've been forewarned about this dreadful floorplan so I can go in with my blinders.

Anyways, I think I've mentioned it on here, but my best friend Kairee is also pregnant, just 1 week behind me. It's already been a lot of fun, I can only imagine what the next 6 months (omg- 6 months!? this is going to FLY!) will be like going throught this together. I'm sad that she's all the way out in CO and I'm here, but we talk or email daily and have been eachother's sounding boards through this first trimester. It's nice to have someone to call who's going through the same thing and ask if "XYZ" is normal, or something weird/funny that is happening. We haven't told the rest of our girlfriends yet (except for Lisa!), since we're waiting until we're both out of the first trimester, but we're SO excited to let them in on our news and we have a funny e-card and and even funnier poem that we're going to send them all in the next couple of weeks to announce. I am just so excited to share this experience with her.

The 11 week round-up!

Total Weight Gained/Loss? - 2 lbs gained
Maternity Clothes - Not yet! But I wore a pair of pants with an elastic waist this week
Sleep? - Feeling tired, bt getting better. Have very weird, vivid dreams.
Best Moment of the Week? - Hearing the heartbeat!!!!!!
Movement - Apparently, the little one is moving a lot in there now... I just can't feel it.
Food aversions- CHICKEN
Food cravings- Nachos, cereal.
Gender - unknown
Labor Signs - Nope!
Belly Button - Looking a little more bloated!
What I miss - Wine. Hot Yoga.
What I'm looking forward to- Our Ultrasound this week!
Weekly Wisdom - Never take any day of this amazing experience for granted.
Milestones - 169 bpm heartbeat... strong and healthy!!!

11 Week Check Up

We finally met with Dr. Strachan today and were very excited for this appointment because we were able to hear the heartbeat! Our little one is workin' hard and the heartbeat is 169-175 bmp. Apparently, this is a "sign" that it's a girl too (another old wives tale! If over 140 bmp, then it's a girl). What is Ryan ever going to do if the baby IS a girl!?! Between the dogs, cats and me- he already has a house full of women! Anyway, it was a relief to hear because all I do is worry these days (see previous post). We have our genetic testing next week and get another ultrasound- I am BEYOND excited. I think this next one will actually look like a little human instead of a blob.

On another note- I was changing out of my work clothes this evening and caught a glance at myself in the mirror... I'm really showing now! It literally happened over night. I went out and showed Ryan and said "when did THIS happen!?". He had the same reaction I did! I swear, I still had somewhat of a flat stomach last night... not anymore!

11 Weeks Today!

Fetal development in pregnancy week 11: fetus in third month Maybe you’ve noticed… your baby is a super-duper grower! Your lil' fetus will be gaining a substantial amount of weight this week and has already achieved fruit-size-status comparable to a plum. What's more, your little scientist is already starting to explore their body, focusing most intently on touching their head, and especially their face and mouth. Their mouth in particular will provide them with hours of entertainment. This happens not only because your baby is gaining coordination, and is therefore able to move a hand on command, but also because their palms have gained sensation and can actually “feel” what it touches.They're also developing their swallow reflex this week. And lastly, your baby's smelling and other olfactory senses will begin developing this week, which when combined with the maturing taste buds, will provide your baby with their first experiences of taste and smell.

Worry.

I think I'm officially on my way to becoming a mother. I am worried about EVERYTHING. I'm worried that the baby is okay constantly (I haven't told Ryan this, because I don't want to worry HIM). I worry about our appointment tomorrow and hearing the heartbeat. I am worried that the baby will have dependency problems (and that I caused it by that time I tied one on with my girlfriends before I knew I was pregnant- stupid, I know). I worry that I didn't have one ounce of morning sickness and am I really pregnant- I know, another stupid one... cause I am. I worry about money. I worry about carrying this baby to term and having a healthy baby. I worry that I'm still not out of my first trimester and there's only a week and a half to go, but we're still in that "scary" period. I am even worried that if I sneeze too hard, the baby's going to fall out! YES. I realize it. I am CrAzY right now!!! I can't help it.

Okay. Just had to get that off my chest. Speaking of chest.... these boobs are getting ridiculous.

10 Weeks!!

Total Weight Gained/Loss? - not sure- we have a Doctor's appointment this week!
Maternity Clothes - Not yet!
Sleep? - Feeling tired still, but getting a little better.
Best Moment of the Week? - Telling Ryan's family the news!
Movement - Nope
Food aversions- CHICKEN
Food cravings- In N Out Burgers, cheerios.
Gender - unknown
Labor Signs - Nope!
Belly Button - Looking bloated.
What I miss - Wine.
What I'm looking forward to- Our Doctor's appointment this week and getting to hear the heartbeat!
Weekly Wisdom - Never take any day of this amazing experience for granted.
Milestones - 2.5 months- Almost done with my first trimester... That was fast!

Easter Surprise!

We were SO excited to finally get to tell Mark and Shelly the good news. It really felt like we were waiting forever to tell them, but we were cetain that Easter was the right time and our "egg" got even more of a reaction than we were expecting!! Here's the video, I think this sums it all up:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xCN0iSQa50

A Boy or a Girl?

Ryan and I have decided not to find out the sex of the baby. I just feel like there are little surprises in life and it would be fun to save finding out until the end! In the meantime, I have resorted to "old wives tales" to determine the sex.

Sandi claims since my wedding ring goes back and fourth, rather than spinning in a circle, it's a boy. Also, since I am craving sour things and cheese and other proteins- Boy.

A funny thing happened last night though... we had ordered Chinese food and as Ryan broke apart his fortune cookie, he flipped out and told me that I had to see his fortune. on the back of his fortune it literally said one word- "Daughter". We thought it was so funny! Also, the ancient chinese gender chart says it'll be a girl too. This all makes me a little nervous that if I do, in fact, have a girl... will it come out chinese!??! The picture below is blurry, but it also says some of my lucky numbers are 2 and8, so if it is a girl and she is born on the 2nd or 8th, then this will be pretty freaky!


I'll keep you posted with the results from other sex determining tests- how fast the heart is beating, a drano/pee test (??), carrying high or low and if my ass gets big (and please don't tell me if it is.)!

That's all for now. We are SO excited to finally tell Ryan's parents tomorrow. I created the egg last night . It's super cute... check it out:

10 Weeks Today!

How your baby's growing:

Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.