22 & 23 Weeks!

Note to self: Time is flying by! I am now unable to keep up on weekly blogs! I have to combine them, which is crazy. Where does the time go? Sadly summer is over and school started two weeks ago. Going back to work was fun initially because every one was SO surprised to see me pregnant! But then things started to change depending on what I was wearing. One day some one would say "wow you look so cute" the next day I would wear something different and I would get the comments "are you sure your not having twins?" or "you are big, what does your doctor say?" These comments really got to me last week, sending me home in tears and anger that women who have children really would say something like that to someone who is newly pregnant for the first time. Ugh. So frustrating. I am trying to grow thicker skin, but sometimes I just explode and say mean things back because I can't always control my verbal diarrhea! Thankfully my doctor is understanding and not concerned at my weight gain. My latest come back is, I am 6'2... I am not a small person to start with and being pregnant doesn't make you smaller! 😆

How many weeks pregnant?

22 & 23

Which trimester are you in?

 2nd!

Baby’s size?

Baby is approx 11inches and 1 pound! Baby is a whole pound and growing!

Have you started to show yet? 
This question will be removed at some point. Yes, showing and rounding out.

What are some of your pregnancy symptoms?
Well, as my pregnancy app reminds me, I have definitely realized that pregnancy affects you head to toe and pretty much every where in between. My worst pregnancy symptom right now is called "pregnancy brain" or also known as "your brain on progesterone". Returning to work recently, I am so slow to remember things and have lots of difficulty coming up with the correct words and sentences. Writing an email takes SOO much time! And if I get too distracted I can't seem to remember what I was working on. This is a major problem because my job is constant interruptions all day long! Ugh. Its SO exhausting! Making decisions is also difficult. I feel so indecisive about big or small things. I get very annoyed of myself! 

Physically I am starting to notice some ankle and feet swelling by the end of the day or after a long walk. I am also having on and off leg or toe cramping. Still struggling with severe constipation and really unsure how to cope with it. Oh and I realized the hard way that my "go go gadget" arms are not very long with a belly in the way! Ouch! I never would have thought leaning down on the belly would hurt.

Happy or moody most of the time? 
Week 22 very moody and tearful, Week 23 feeling much better. I am pretty excited to reach 24 weeks=6months next week!

Any cravings?
Hamburgers are delicious! I also like salads. I pretty much like all foods except chicken. Bacon is ok in very small amounts. Oh and sweets are a problem! I crave any sweets ALL the time!

Any food aversions?
Chicken

Sleep?
Sucks! Sleeping is more difficult. I finally broke down and bought a pregnancy pillow thing on Amazon, still deciding if I should keep it. It seems I am too tall for it! Ha. Story of my life. I sleep really well on my back with my arms above my head but then my arms and hands fall asleep and I shouldn't be sleeping primarily on my back anyways. I'm still pretty exhausted by bedtime, so falling asleep has not been the problem.

Highlight of the week?
Week 22: I had a very rare weekend to myself as Jameson was out of town with friends for a beer festival. I had to work my last two shifts at my summer job but I was able to treat myself to a massage and got my nails done. I also had a meet up with some of my nursing college friends who I had not seen since in 10 years. Very busy weekend!
Week 23: "staycation" with Jameson in San Jose. We would have loved to plan a quick trip to Cabo or some where exotic however we just needed one night to "get away". Being that we live in a very expensive area finding a hotel thats affordable to escape to is actually really hard! Thankfully we decided on one and made the best of our 24 hours "away". It was really nice to just hang out, eat good food, listen to live music and then wake up in a hotel and only have to drive 30 minutes to get home! Here are some of the pictures from our "get away":

My first eating competition experience. Taco eating contest. Got to witness the famous "Joey Chestnut" eat 94 tacos in 8 minutes! So gross! 

All dressed up!

First destination Vino Vino. They had wine on tap so Jameson was able to get 2oz tasters. I enjoyed the cheese board thoroughly with my water :)

If you have never been to CREAM, look it up and GO! Omg! They have upgraded to not just ice cream cookie sandwiches but now you can have a brownie! Or a "cro-nut" which Jameson got. This was so good but so big, I actually could not finish it. Thankfully we our hotel was about a half mile walk home, so I felt better knowing I had some time to "walk it off". (yeah right!)

Sunday we spent THREE hours touring the famous Winchester Mystery House. It was interesting the first 30 minutes...I compromised to go on the extended tour.

Are you wearing maternity clothes yet?

Yes! Learning what type of clothes hide my belly and what clothes "accentuate" my belly. I am trying to make the maternity clothes a fun project! 

Have any stretch marks?

Yep starting to notice some. I have continued to lather my belly in coco butter. 

Has your belly button popped out?

Still an innie, but getting very very shallow!

Feel any kicks? 

YES! This is the best reminder why I am doing this! When ever I have a cry fest I swear baby knows how to make me start smiling because it starts kicking! The kicks vary on the location and sometime they feel close to the surface and sometimes they seem super deep. Its such a CRAZY feeling! I can't wait for Jameson to feel them!

Gender prediction:

Forgot to mention, during week 21 I did have my first dream that involved my doctor accidentally telling us we were having a boy. I was SO mad that she told us that when I woke up I was still mad. Ha ha! I kind of thought it was real and then realized it was my first gender prediction dream! As of now, I still think its a boy because I think baby boys are SOOO cute. (Having 3 nephews I spend a lot of time with makes me a bit biased!)

How has Dad been this week?

I think enjoys hearing me say "baby is kicking", but he wants to feel it! He is also a bit annoyed that his "office" is now being turned into a nursery and that his desk has to be moved in to the dining room... it will be worth it soon enough!

Bump Photos:

22 Weeks - size of a spaghetti squash

23 weeks - size of a papaya 

Movement!

Note to self: 
Remember this, 8/9/17, 10pm, 21 weeks and 6 days....

While I was contemplating re-writing all the information I just lost in my last blog post Baby Wilder decided to finally make it's first appearance in order for me to feel it consistently!!! OMG! This is crazy. I can't wait for Jameson to be able to feel it on the outside! Yay!

20 & 21 Weeks!

Note to self: Weeks are flying by! I knew this would happen sooner than later, but I can't believe week 20 & 21 are almost over and I barely wrote anything down! Crazy. I know time only flies faster when the baby comes but slow down! Its such a weird time game. It's definitely an experience I want to remember and 'enjoy' being that it is my first pregnancy, but I feel like this whole time (so far) all I have wanted was time to speed up so I could just feel better. There have been a few other times in my life that I felt that way too. Deep grief is something sort of like a waiting game that you want to end all the time, but then you realize that if it goes away then it may feel worse because you've "moved on". You feel stuck in a place where you can't seem to move forward and everything around you just keeps moving on.
Pregnancy is even different. I feel like my mind has barely wrapped around the idea of being pregnant while my body has jumped three steps ahead! Being 1/2 way is so exciting but then its also kind of scary because we are now preparing for the "end" (as my doctor describes it). It is definitely a indescribable experience until you are IN it!

How many weeks pregnant?

20 & 21 weeks

Which trimester are you in?

 2nd!

Baby’s size?

Baby is approx 7inches, 11 oz, size of a banana

Have you started to show yet? 
Yes! I am beyond showing! Sadly somehow I gained a bit too much weight too fast... so I need to sloooow down. The doctor said our baby was in the 82nd percentile for 20 weeks, so at least some of the weight gain is baby :) 

What are some of your pregnancy symptoms?
Very hungry all the time! Trying not to give in to ALL my cravings... My lower back is starting to hurt a lot. Especially my hips. Ugh. I also have pretty bad round ligament pain that has made me concerned enough to call the doctor but then was reassured it is just normal. I ordered a "belly support band" in hopes to help with ligament and lower back pain. Also still dealing with constipation... who knew it was so hard to poop! 

UGH!!! COMPUTER GLITCH - Typed everything for these last questions for the last hour and it DID NOT save!!! UGHHHH!!! 

Happy or moody most of the time? 

Any cravings?

Any food aversions?

Sleep?

Highlight of the week?

Are you wearing maternity clothes yet?

Have any stretch marks?

Has your belly button popped out?

Feel any kicks?

Gender prediction:

How has Dad been this week?

Instead I will just post the photos and cry in frustration!

Highlight of week 21= Annual mother daughter summer trip. This year we stayed "local" and spent some time in Laguna Beach:

This picture does NOT do justice. This was a nutella filled donut-croissant pastry. SOO GOOD!

Churros! (not as good as our wedding ones!)

Social media announcement! (Had to wait 5 months to take this photo!)

20 Weeks!

20 Weeks Bare belly!

21 Weeks!

21 Weeks bare belly

My first major baby clothing purchase. I thought it was pretty cute for being "gender neutral". Baby W's first sweatsuit!
Size 3-6 months

Anatomy Ultrasound photos & videos!

Wow! The anatomy ultrasound was such an amazing experience! You wait SO long (almost 5 months) to finally see what this hormonal body changing thing looks like and then you are blown away! It was such a fun TWO HOURS! Haha. The baby was position with its whole body horizontal (head towards my left hip, feet towards my right hip) and face towards my back, so this made it near to impossible for the ultrasound tech to get the proper measurements. As I have been told the anatomy scan is for the doctor to make sure the baby has all the proper looking organs, the bones measure right, the brain and head measure correctly and to discover any heart abnormalities. 

Because of how the baby was laying, (and "not cooperating") the technician was pushing and shaking my belly in hopes to get the baby to flip over... did not work ;) During the hour of her pushing and trying to get the baby's measurements, she had to turn the monitor off just in case the baby moved all the sudden and opened it's legs to reveal the gender... no such luck on the baby moving to the preference of the tech, but while the monitor was off she got the cutest photo of baby's right foot! She also printed a copy for us which was awesome. So after the first hour she said she would show the doctor the images she got and be back to let us know if we would need to come in a different day in hopes the baby would be cooperating... 

Then the doctor came in (fetal medicine doctor who we had not met before) and wanted to get a better look at my cervix so he needed to do a vaginal ultrasound... oh goody :/ BUT once he confirmed my cervix was a good length, he then was actually able to see the baby perfectly because of how it was laying. We saw all 4 chambers of the heart and even the valves moving. IT WAS SO AMAZING! Then they were able to locate the kidneys, bladder, gall bladder, stomach, liver, diagram, aortic arch, arteries.... so much grey! We had no idea what they were looking at, but the doctor and technician were SO excited! It was really fun!

Our Baby checked out perfect, after they finally were able to see what they needed to see!

We only got a few blurry pictures, but the videos are pretty cool! If you don't know what your looking at, don't worry we barely do as well! 

Baby's right foot with 5 little toes :)

Blurry side view of baby's face (the ball like thing in front of the face is the umbilical cord)

Blurry side view of baby's face (the ball like thing in front of the face is the umbilical cord)

Video of Baby's tongue (really hard to see)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9qa-3_Gzkf5ck91c21Cak1abEk/view?usp=sharing

Video of Baby sucking and heart beating 

(baby is just sucking the amniotic fluid not sucking its thumb or anything - also very hard to see if you are not sure what you are looking at)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9qa-3_Gzkf5TnJnd0VpT1pmcUU/view?usp=sharing

19 weeks!

Note to self: Each week I keep forgetting important things that "I want to remember". So I plan to have a note-to-self section here. This week my note to self is that my lina negra (dark line that develops from your pubic bone up to your navel and may extend to the top of the abdomen) that is a hormone produced by the placenta called melanocyte. This hormone also darkens other parts of the woman too :) My line developed between week 17 & 18. It does not develop with all pregnancies and sometimes it doesn't go away until you stop breastfeeding!

How many weeks pregnant?

19 weeks

Which trimester are you in?

 2nd!

Baby’s size?

Baby is approx 6 inches, 6oz, size of a banana or a really big tomato

Have you started to show yet? 
Yes! My belly is rounding out more, less fat feeling and actually pregnant feeling. When your best friend tells you, "you look pregnant, there is no mistaking it!" Makes me feel better about it all. Also since I can't fit in my scrubs at my Menlo Pediatric job I made an outfit with this ugly "nursing scrub jacket" and everyone at work says "I wish I had a reason to dress that cute" I am feeling a lot better about showing :)

What are some of your pregnancy symptoms?
Very hungry all the time! I am trying to eat small meals but then I get to meal time and chow down! I really need to slooooowww down my eating because I get so full! This week I had an event that I actually got really dehydrated and had the WORST leg cramps all night long. The next day my wedding ring did not fit :( I was a swollen crampy mess! Thankfully drinking a ton of water and napping made the cramps and swelling go away!

Happy or moody most of the time? 
More of a moody week :/

Any cravings?
Chocolate coconut Almonds (from Trader Joe's) Yum! Raw Almonds are still my favorite snacking option. I eat A LOT of avocado! Air heads and licorice are still a daily treat :)

Any food aversions?
Chicken and bacon. True aversion.

Sleep?
Only a few more days of sleeping on my back and enjoying every night of it. I keep trying to sleep with more pillows but can't seem to figure out how to have them help my positioning, they just end up on the floor. 

Highlight of the week?
PEACH FESTIVAL! My favorite summer time day of the year! This year of course I was not drinking wine, but I still got to enjoy great company, great food, and too many guava sodas (hence the leg cramps listed above). Here are some pictures:

Sam and I cooling off in the wine cellar. 

Sam sharing his kettle corn with Harper (one of our friend's kids)

Only Belly photo taken this week! 

Sam drying off after spending lots of time in the misters!

Group Photo! 

(Not pictured: Megan, Justin, Liz, Brandon, Jen, Joe, Harper, & Hailey!)

Are you wearing maternity clothes yet?

Yes! Finally found some jeans and leggings to make my wardrobe more complete! Still wearing lots of dresses and maxi skirts.

Have any stretch marks?

Not really that I can see. but it is definitely getting hard to see anything on or bellow my belly. 

Has your belly button popped out?

Still a stretched out innie!

Feel any kicks? 

Not yet... I am hoping any day now! I want to feel that connection!

Gender prediction:

Nothing this week. And we did not get any peaks during our anatomy ultrasound either (which is best to keep our surprise going!)

How has Dad been this week?

We were both so shocked on watching the anatomy ultrasound! The baby looked like a skeleton face! haha! We got to see the mouth open and close and see the heart really clearly which as so cool. Dad can't wait to feel the baby move as well! We also bought some paint to test out in the nursery ;)

Here is the delayed video of Sam's Day out:

Video of Sam's day out to Train town!

18 weeks!

Notes to self: Well, that came super fast. This was a MUCH better week. When people ask "How are you feeling" I now can be honest and say "this is a good week" because I know the difference :)

How many weeks pregnant?

18 weeks

Which trimester are you in?

 2nd!

Baby’s size?

Baby is approx 5.5 inches, 5-6oz, size of a sweet potato

Have you started to show yet? 
For sure. I am a "show-er". There is no hiding it now. I literally don't fit in any of my pants. I can't even fit in my hospital scrubs that I usually wear to one of my summer jobs. I am trying to embrace it and be on top on finding other options before I start crying...

What are some of your pregnancy symptoms?
Actual headaches that need tylenol to take them away...kind of the hang over feeling I had during 1st trimester but with more engergy and no nausea. HUNGRY! Almost HANGRY at times... Trying to make good choices but if I am craving a cheese burger... Baby gets a cheese burger :). This week's symptoms are more manageable. One new things happened which was quite scary, I almost passed out in the shower, not sure why but it was not pleasant... will be asking my doc about that.

Happy or moody most of the time? 
Still moody, but looking forward to our anatomy ultrasound and being half way cooked!!! 

Any cravings?
Well there are a lot of things I really like. Most recent craving was a cheese burger and it was SO Good! But I was really really full after! Ha! Still munching on raw veggies and ranch and raw almonds... all healthy and good snacks. Oh I also eat way too much cheese!

Any food aversions?
Chicken. True aversion. Yuck.

Sleep?
I have a few consecutive days off before my summer break is over and I am sleeping in while I can!

Highlight of the week?
Much needed GIRL TIME! I had one night to hang with all my girls who have kids and been through this once or twice and thoroughly enjoyed feeling normal again. Also hung out with Katie (best friend from HS) and did some wedding planning with her. It's quite crazy how just talking about something other than the baby or pregnancy can relieve a lot of stress. Wedding planning (for someone else's wedding) was very therapeutic! 

Video of Sam's day out to come! 
(technical difficulties with Jameson's computer)

Are you wearing maternity clothes yet?

Yes and no. Ordered some pants that have yet to arrive. I am crossing my fingers they fit for the next 6 months! I am running low on options. 

Have any stretch marks?
Every night after Jameson gives me my injection he uses the "chocolate butter" - my pregnancy nose makes the coco butter literally smell like chocolate! It is a nice gesture that he makes to take care of my growing belly. 

Has your belly button popped out?
Still an innie, waiting for the week it pops! Jameson has been taking weekly photos to monitor :)

Feel any kicks? 
Nothing yet. But I really do not know what a feeling could be. I feel some pains hear and there. Occasionally I will feel gas, but it is usually gas... I don't even know where the baby could be? Hopefully on the ultrasound next week I will have a better idea on "where" to feel the kicks.

Gender prediction:
None this week. But baby girl clothes are starting to look just as cute as boy clothes!

How has Dad been this week?
Great. My favorite thing that he has started to do, is 1) read his dad book 2) tell me fun facts about the baby or my pregnancy I don't know yet! My favorite so far was the other day when I was hungry and didn't know what to eat, he suggested carrots and ranch and then proceeded to tell me that the baby can now suck and swallow amniotic fluid and that the amniotic fluid changes flavors based on what I eat, so eat more carrots and maybe baby will like carrots! hahahaha!


Gift for baby from Auntie Katie

Week 18 Bump Photos:

17 Weeks!

Please feel free to disregard this bitch/complaining/honesty session....I am sure all of this is normal, but just wanted to get it out while I remember...

I would like to start this weeks blog post with brutal honesty. This week has been rough for many reasons. Mainly I am feeling so "out of control". I feel like I put in my head the expectation that pregnancy should be such a happy and exciting time, ALL the time, but to be honest it is not happy ALL the time. I feel out of control of my mind, my body, and my heart. I feel like my high school girl stage where I was negative, sad, teary, up then down, then up, then hating life again... for no apparent reason. My emotions are on HIGH ALERT. I literally cry for no reason or get super mad when there is no reason to feel that way. My poor husband thinks I am out of my mind (bc i feel like i am!) and that I don't make any sense. I literally came home yesterday to a clean house & kitchen, cleaned up soon-to-be baby room and I got mad at him for moving something! Thats all i said to him but that he shouldn't have moved something... I didn't even acknowledge anything nice that he had done. I feel so helpless. To top off the emotions, my 'sharp' mind is disappearing. I forget things all the time, i change my mind in an instant, and I lose certain words. In addition, I feel like I am physically growing nonstop (I know I am growing a human)... but my boobs are exploding out of my bras and my bra is too tight on the loosest clip, my pants only fit when I am standing... who only stands? and I just feel so fat, SO FAST! I thought I was watching what I was eating but when your hungry, tired, hot, and moody licorice and veggies straws are the only thing I want to eat! Lastly, my heart is making me feel like I regret not being newlyweds longer. We went from total bliss to pregnant! Of course that is what we wanted and talked about, but in a weird way I feel like I am mourning a loss of just "us". Of course everyone says that will soon be forgotten once the little one is put in our arms, but all these feelings are just overwhelming. Whew. 

How many weeks pregnant?

17 weeks

Which trimester are you in?

 2nd!

Baby’s size?

Baby is approx 5inches, 5oz, size of a turnip

Have you started to show yet? 
Yes. I have now noticed how different everyone "shows". Being that I am an early shower, I am nervous to see what happens in the next few months. I am trying hard to embrace the fact that there is a human growing inside and how much of a miracle it really is. 

What are some of your pregnancy symptoms?
Slow... I feel as though I am walking through mud or sand at all times. Occasional headaches, constipation, Forgetfulness, on and off stuffy nose, increased appetite

Happy or moody most of the time? 
Super moody. 

Any cravings?
Finally figured out a true craving... Coconut! I did not like coconut before pregnancy, but currently I love anything with coconut, especially trader Joe's chocolate covered almonds with coconut. I also had an iced coffee (yes i drank coffee without barfing!) made with coconut cream... I have no idea what it was but it was SO good! I also really like Almonds as those taste similar to the fresh coconuts we had in Tahiti. I also still really enjoy licorice (both red & black) and veggie stix (the unhealthy kind).

Any food aversions?
Im not a huge fan of chicken or bacon. I will eat both, but would prefer neither. Which makes eating sandwiches hard, since I am not supposed to eat deli meat, my fall back is chicken or BLT's. 

Sleep?
Sleep has been good to me this week. I think its because I have been such an emotional wreck!

Highlight of the week?
Jameson and I got to spend the day with our nephew Sam (my brother's kid). For all of our nephews 2nd birthdays we gave them an "Auntie & Uncle" day out gift so that we could spend some quality time with them and our brothers and SIL's could have a day to themselves! 

Video of Sam's day out to come! 

Are you wearing maternity clothes yet?

Yes and no. Yesterday had trouble with my hospital scrubs as the shirt was already a bit short and the pants are high waisted... it as a very uncomfortable day. Again, trying to embrace the changes but frustrated with not fitting in my clothes.

Have any stretch marks?
Every night after Jameson gives me my injection he uses the "chocolate butter" - my pregnancy nose makes the coco butter literally smell like chocolate! It is a nice gesture that he makes to take care of my growing belly. 

Has your belly button popped out?
Still an innie! Jameson has been taking weekly photos to monitor :)

Feel any kicks? 
Nothing yet. They say 18-22 weeks is typical. After dinner I lay on the couch and try really hard to feel something, but I have yet to feel anything consistent. Hoping it comes sooner than later!

Gender prediction:
We started discussing names and we came up with one boy name we both liked enough to write down, but cannot agree on any girl names... we'll see if that changes. Also not knowing the gender has really helped with my shopping problem!

How has Dad been this week?
Thank god only one of us has to go through the emotional rollercoaster! Can you imagine if men had to? I am so thankful he can put up with my mess of emotions and still remind me the positives when I am crying for no reason! 

Week 17 belly photo

 Brave belly shot