Week 19

Today I am officially at 19 weeks- so close to being at the halfway mark!  I am still feeling great so no complaints there.  The main thing I've noticed lately is that I'm having some problems with balance.  I was on the elliptical machine yesterday working out and I had to grab the handlebars at least twice to keep myself from totally falling off.  You wouldn't think the elliptical machine would be a high risk exercise, but I guess for me, at this stage, it is.  I took Ellie running on Wednesday and I think she was happy that I was moving slower than usual.  Pretty soon she's probably going to be dragging me down the sidewalk.   

All the books say that swimming is a great exercise to do while pregnant, so I'm hoping to start back up on that again.  I swam a fair amount last spring and summer to train for a triathlon, so it will be good to get back into it.  I have no idea where to find a maternity swim suit for swimming laps, so I'm sure that's going to be an adventure in and of itself.  We'll see what I find, but DON'T expect to see any pictures of it. 

Baby is moving a lot still, which I love.  The other day I was driving in to work, listening to some cheezy pop song, and baby seemed to love it.  I don't usually feel baby move in the morning at all, so this child must be a fan of dorky pop just like mama.  Wyatt, looks like you may be in for it!

We have our big ultrasound this coming Tuesday (4/13), where they'll check to see if baby is a boy or a girl, and also scan baby's anatomy to make sure everything is developing normally.  We are so excited the day is finally drawing close! 

At 19 weeks, baby is supposed to be about the size of a large heirloom tomato now, about 8 1/2 ounces.  Too bad we don't have a garden right now or I just might have an example of what this looks like.

Week 17

I'm at 17 weeks 2 days now, and still feeling great.  I had another checkup on Friday, and everything was good.  Baby's heart beat was at a strong 150 BPM.  I was so happy Wyatt was there with me for this appointment; this was his first time hearing the heart beat.  It is so reassuring to hear that baby is doing well.  I had another round of blood drawn for more tests; we should get results at our next appointment. 

The next appointment I'll have is the one where we'll find out if it's a boy or girl, so the time is definitely drawing near.  We are ready to know!

Either I'm highly delusional or I've been regularly feeling baby kick since this Wednesday.  It's been the same feeling since it first started, and although it's getting more regular, it's still a bit of a strange feeling.  It's crazy that something that small can exert enough force that you can feel it.  According to a baby website, this week baby is about the size of a turnip (around 5 ounces). 

Here's a picture of me yesterday, at 17 weeks 1 day.

I think it's safe to say I'm showing now...

Houston, we (think we) have baby movement!

I'm pretty positive I first felt the baby move yesterday.  I was at work, and I felt a definite wiggling, almost the feeling of someone tapping me on my belly (but of course, it was in my belly).  It happened probably 8 times within a couple of minutes.  I'm almost positive this was the real deal because it was a definite feeling of movement, not just a faint flutter (like a muscle twitch), and it felt like it was happening in the right place (rather than underneath my rib).  It was so exciting to feel; my heart actually started racing.  I'm hoping to keep feeling these from here on out, mainly because it helps me know that baby is doing well, but also slightly to prove to myself that I'm not totally delusional. 

I am excited for a fun weekend.  Wyatt and I are off to a date night tonight.  We may even be crazy and go see a movie after dinner.  We'll see. 

Happy (almost) weekend everyone! 

Random Encounter

So this past weekend I went to Austin to visit my sister.  We did a lot of shopping, eating, and lounging, so all in all, it was a great time.  One funny/disturbing incident that I have to share.

My sister and I go to Target on Friday evening, looking for various things that are on our list (and no, the movie New Moon was not on the list, why do you ask?).  As we're in the entertainment section (again, not desperately searching for New Moon and wondering why it isn't on the shelves yet), we witness a family's inner workings in the video games aisle. 

There's a mom, a boy (maybe 10 years old?) and two other siblings (I think).  The boy is holding up a video game and is on the cell phone at the same time.  The mom is looking on.  The boy says "Hi dad, can I have this video game?"  (Can't remember what the name of it was.)  "It's rated R for extreme violence, blood, nudity, sexual situations, adult situations..."   And I think he even listed a few other items after that, I just can't remember what they were.  His mom is just standing by her son through all of this, calmly awaiting a decision. 

I didn't stay to see what happened (kind of wish I had now).  As I walked off, my first instinct was to laugh at this.  How many more really bad things did this kid have to list off for the mom to just take the game away and say no?  Then the more I thought about it, my emotion was more sadness than amusement.  I don't at all think I'm going to be a perfect parent, but I pray I'll know enough to know that a 10 year old shouldn't be playing a game that involves extreme violence, blood, nudity, etc. 

To end on a lighter note, the New Moon movie was released on Saturday, not Friday, and was at Sam's on sale for $20.88 at 7 AM that morning, not that we were interested.

Slight Change in Plans and Updates

So I said in my last post that our big ultrasound was scheduled for Thursday, April 15th.  Well, the appointment was moved to Tuesday, April 13th, because my Doctor wasn't going to be in the office on the 15th.  Not a huge change, but I'm happy that the appointment was moved up rather than back, since this waiting thing is hard!

In other news, I know I could start feeling baby move at any point now.  I've been trying to be extra alert to notice when it first happens, but I can't definitively say that it has yet.  It's hard to tell, since I've never felt anything like it before, so it's hard to know what to expect.  I keep getting these strange muscle twitches under my rib, and for a second I wondered if that could be it.  Then I thought a little harder and realized that the likelihood that the baby is all the way up under a rib this early in the pregnancy isn't high.  So, I'm still waiting! 

Wyatt and I are hopefully going to start looking at baby furniture this weekend, which should be fun.  I found a great store that I'm excited to take Wyatt to.  I'm also trying to get a good jump on getting registered.  It's a little overwhelming considering I know next to nothing about baby stuff, but thankfully I'm not at a shortage of friends who have recently had kids, so I'm hoping to bribe one of them with ice cream or something to get them to come with me to do battle at BabysRus.  It will be an adventure, I'm sure. 

Oh, and yes, I know I need to put up a new picture of my belly.  I wish I could get by with my picture at 5 weeks, but I know that's not going to cut it.  Funny how excited you get for belly pictures when someone else is having a baby.  When it's YOU having the baby, let's just say it isn't quite as fun.  Still a little fun, but also a little bit on the shocking side too.  So all that is to say, I hope to get a 17 week picture up this weekend.

Boy or Girl?

We are scheduled for the big ultrasound on April 15th.  This is the ultrasound where they determine if it's a boy or a girl (assuming baby cooperates).  We are very anxious for this appointment; I can't wait to know.  I think knowing if it's a boy or a girl will make the pregnancy even more personal for me.  We will see! 

At this point, neither of us really has a strong feeling about whether it's a boy or a girl.  I lean slightly toward it being a girl; I'm not sure why other than just feeling like that's what it is.  Wyatt leans slightly toward it being a boy, again not for any real specific reason. 

At my 13 week ultrasound (the nuchal translucency study), I thought I might have seen something to indicate that it was a boy, but considering that half the time I can't figure out which end is the head, I don't think this is a really reliable way to make a prediction. 

We really hope to find out on April 15th.  At that point, baby shopping is ON.  I can't wait to start buying stuff for baby, but I just can't get myself to do it now since I feel like I need to know boy or girl first. 

Any predictions out there?  Do you think baby Smith will be a boy or a girl? 

And before people start suggesting names, we are already set no matter which way it goes: Ubifida (nickname: Biffy) for a girl, and Varcarious (nickname: Varcy) for a boy.* 

*Before everyone starts freaking out, yes this is a joke.  One of our favorite hobbies has been coming up with outlandish/terrible baby names and  trying to pass them off on friends, thus far, to no avail.

14 Week Appointment

I had another appointment on March 5th (which is 14 weeks along).  This appointment was really quick, which I was okay with because Wyatt couldn't join me for it.  I heard the heart beat again, and the baby was still positioned really low.  We'll see how long baby stays there! 

My doctor gave me the results from my neuchal translucency study, and thankfully, everything was normal.  I was relieved to hear that.  As much as I didn't think I'd be a worrier through this process, when it's your own baby and so much is so new, I was definitely a little nervous about the results. 

That was about it for this appointment.  My next appointment is scheduled for March 26th, when I'll be 17 weeks along.