24 Weeks 2 Days

Less than 16 weeks to go!  And boy am I ready...for feet that don't look like puffy pillows, to not finding chocolate irresistible, to be able to sleep on my back and stomach, to not peeing every time I sneeze and EVERY 10 minutes...but mostly because we can't wait to meet Nora.  Friends of ours gave us a TON of baby stuff last week, and we've set out the bouncer and swing in the living room, and it's a constant reminder of what's to come.  We can't wait to see her swinging in her swing, giggling at the dogs, with her messy black hair in pigtails and little chubby legs kicking happily :)  This is what we envision anyway.

We had our follow-up ultrasound this morning, and it took about 30 minutes to finally get some good shots of the remainder of the organs that they couldn't measure last time since she was moving too much.  Same story this time, wow she's a mover!  She was playing with her feet and touching her face, she was even kind enough to turn from her back onto her belly.  I think she was mooning us, she's already so much like her daddy :)  Each night I wake up at least once, and I always notice that she's kicking quite a bit as I try to get back to sleep.  I guess it might be the kicking that's waking me up?  It's moved from a slight cramping feeling to a definite swift kicking feeling.  Although, I think that she's actually punching since it's usually low in my tummy and she's been head-down for quite a few weeks now.

Below are a few more pics, taken today (boy do I look tired!).  Kinda convenient that I'm wearing the same dress as I was in my pics last month, it makes it easier to see the difference in size, although I think my growth has definitely slowed.  However, I have gained 5 more lbs since then, making my total gain at 16 lbs.  Not too bad!  If I keep up at a pace of 1 lb a week, I'll still just about meet my goal of under 30 lbs :)

20 Weeks 6 Days

It's been a long time since my last update, as pointed out by my college friend (and all-time favorite derbier) Brittany Griggs.  I've hit the mid-way point and am now eagerly counting down the days until we can meet her...yes, I said "her".  We found out in week 17 that SHE is a GIRL!  I surprised myself and was so excited to hear "it's a girl!", but I'm not sure that I wouldn't have been just as excited to hear "it's a boy". 

We've completed quite a bit in these last 4 weeks.  We registered at both Target and Babies R Us, got the crib and changing table set up, are half-way finished painting her accent wall in the nursery, ordered material to make her curtains, and filled half her closet with washed and sized clothing :)  Of course, we've had a ton of help from my mother-in-law, and were given items of clothing and furniture from other family members too.

Reading my last post and thinking back, there have been a few positive changes from then until now.  The stretching has subsided a bit, and my hips only hurt every once in a while.  The swelling is still pretty bad, but only at times when I've been on my feet for a while or on especially humid days.  Drinking tons of lemon-water helps though!  I've grown, as expected, and have hit a total gain of 11 pounds.  As Nora accounts for a whopping 1 of those pounds (at an adorable size of only 10 inches), I'm expecting this second half of the pregnancy to bring with it more than the first did, as she gains around 6 more!  Not too sure where I'm gonna put her yet... 

I finally felt her start to really move around 3 weeks ago.  I hear it described as a fluttering or like gas pain all the time, but I feel like it's more of a mild cramping feeling.  Like the kind you get at the very start of your period...not painful, but a definite odd feeling in my uterus.  I felt her on and off a bit before that, starting around week 14, but now it's ALL the time, especially on my way to work in the morning, just a few minutes after I've eaten, and when I'm riding in the car with my husband.  He thinks it's because she enjoys Classic Rock, but I think it's just the heated seats.  We had our "anatomy ultrasound" last week and she was squirming around so much that they couldn't get an accurate reading on a few organs and we have to have another ultrasound in a few weeks.  Boy do we have an active little one!

Below are a few pics of the tummy and the nursery :)

 

16 Weeks 2 Days

Describing this week in one word, "WHOA"!  After a week of stretching, a 2-lb. weight gain, and constant heartburn, I am officially a whale.  When comparing the 15 week pics with the new 16 week pics (below) I can see exactly why this past week has been incredibly uncomfortable.  In addition to the beachball tummy, my fingers are at an all-time plump, my face is slightly puffier than it had been, and I wake up at night because my hips hurt.  Oh yea, and I've got the acne of a 13-year old boy.

BUT, all this for a great cause :)  Our little grape can officially hear!  I'm just waiting for the moment when Josh starts forcing me to sit in front of the turntable while he "educates" the grape through old Thin Lizzy and Elton John albums.

Just 6 days until our gender appointment and we have officially settled on our names:  Norah Alice or Ville (pronounced Vill-E) Scott LaRosse.  Our families and friends are all rooting for a girl, I think mostly because they're so much fun to shop for..the barettes, the dresses, the tights, oh my!  Josh and I still don't have an ounce of preference, we just want to know what it is already!  But this time next week I'll be writing my update, and I finally won't be refering to "it" as a piece of fruit :)

15 weeks 2 days

Ahhh the long-awaited 2nd trimester!  The sickness may have let up around week 11 or 12, but the fatigue was still oh-so-present.  The start of this week brought with it a ton more energy, and just in time.  My house was filthy, our refrigerator was empty, and all our clothes were either dirty or in a clean but crumpled pile in the laundry room (my husband doesn't believe in folding).  But finally I've got a bit caught up and I am officially enjoying being pregnant.

I've gotten my full appetite back (aside from an aversion to fried chicken) and I'm once again gaining weight, 6 pounds total as of today.  Although, as you'll see in the pictures below, it's ALL gone to my belly.  Thankfully, I've passed the "wow she's got a gut" phase, quickly onto the "awww, she's pregnant" phase.  I've also developed quite an addiction to chocolate, even moreso than I had before I was pregnant.  I'm trying to limit myself, but wound up taking the candy dish to the bathtub with me last night anyway.

Only 13 days until we find out what our "little grape" is!  We scheduled a gender ultrasound at a place in Malvern, which guarantees 100% accuracy from 17 weeks on http://www.innerviewultrasound.com/.  Our appointment is on April 13th. 

And now for some belly shots! 
Both at 15 weeks & 1 day:

12 weeks 2 days

Ok, so I'm a little behind already.  We've known about our baby for roughly 7 weeks now, and I'm just getting around to starting my blog.  Already you can tell I'm a procrastinator, so don't even ask about the nursery!  Maybe my procrastination is a bit of a blessing in disguise, because up until this point I've been less than pleasant.  Weeks 6-11 were pretty terrible.  I got sick every time I ate, and then when I didn't eat, I still got sick...m-i-s-e-r-a-b-l-e!  I'm still pretty selective about what I eat, depending on the time of day.  Usually after about 2pm I'm in the clear, but it's all waffles and peanut butter sandwiches up until that point.

Other than the insane morning (noon and night) sickness, my other symptoms have been stretching-uterus pains, a very active bladder, and an inability to sleep through the night.  Through this whole first trimester, my most common thought was, "WHY would anyone love being pregnant?"  But, now that I've nearly hit the blissful second trimester (or sexin' trimester as one of my co-workers calls it) I've been able to pull my head out of the toilet long enough to look around and notice that a few other things have changed as well.  My belly is now very noticeable, in fact, people question whether there's just one in there ALL THE TIME.  My boobs have gone up a size, and I now only fit comfortably into one of my bras.  And I noticed this morning that my hips look different ??? wider and higher perhaps ???  I didn't think this all happened until later, but apparently my body (unlike myself) is NOT a procrastinator.

Below are two pics of me at 10 weeks pregnant.  New, updated pics coming soon!