17 weeks

How Far Along: 17 weeks, 2 days

Size of baby: somewhere between a turnip and a sweet potato. Baby weighs about 5 oz. now and is about 5" from head to toe.

Sleep: A bit interrupted this week due to a trip to the hospital with my dad and the birth of my sweet little nephew, but when I do fall asleep, it's good!

Total Weight Gain: +9.6 (0 from last week, so next week might be a big gain)

Symptoms: MY MORNING SICKNESS IS FINALLY GONE! WOOHOO!! Other than that, all the usual: heartburn, stretching pains

Movement: YES! Lots more movement this week. The day I went walking at the hospital with Sarah then sat down, the baby went crazy. S/he moved a lot, and I could feel the movement for about an hour.

Go-to eats: Nothing I just had to go back to this week, but the cravings are definitely hitting. Last night I went to eat at Furrs with Dad, Ryan & Zooey and just had to have some of their chopped steak right then. Weird.

Best moment of the week: Increased movement & hearing Baby's heartbeat (156) at the doctor's office.

Gender: I don't know...I am really wondering if this one's a boy.

What I’m looking forward to: The big ultrasound on May 8th!

Milestones: No more morning sickness! Baby's skeleton changing to bone, umbilical cord is growing stronger, Baby can move his/her joints and sweat glands are developing.

16 weeks

How Far Along: 16 weeks, 1 day

Size of baby: avocado (approx. 4" long & weighs about 4 oz.)

Sleep: Better except for having a cold. :)

Total Weight Gain: +9.6 lbs.

Symptoms: fatigue is going away more and more, some nausea, but praise God not as much!, tailbone hurts when I sit too long (I didn't have this with Zooey and am wondering if it has to do with my previous pregnancy and the back labor with her), a lot of saliva (another one I didn't have with her - so weird!)

Movement: Yes, and I'm starting to feel him/her move a little more. 16 weeks was when I started to feel Zooey move a lot, too.

Go-to eats: broccoli, avocado, Girl Scout Trefoil cookies with cream cheese icing (it IS as delicious as it sounds!), this spicy mustard I got a couple of weeks ago at this festival thing I went to

Best moment of the week: Increased movement the last few days and hearing Baby's heartbeat on my Doppler (it was 150).

Gender: ? Still no clue, but I'm not really trying to guess. Like I did with Zooey, I tend to call Baby a "him." Ryan & Zooey think it's a girl, and Zooey is very adamant about this! :)

What I’m looking forward to: Ultrasound! Only about four (or five depending on insurance) more weeks to go!

Milestones: Baby's tiny ear bones can hear loud noises & Baby may startle when hearing them, body fat is starting to form (on Baby not me - HA! - although it is for me, too, LOL), Baby's eyes are making small movements behind closed lids, and s/he is practicing sucking.

I am very thankful that the last few days I seem to (maybe?) be turning a corner with the whole morning sickness thing. Heartburn's kicking in, but at least for now, that can be managed. I'm also thankful that I am wanting to eat healthier foods again (notice the broccoli up there?). I am starting to have a lot more energy and am even going to attempt to go grocery shopping and clean the house today. I was SO happy that I had enough energy to actually play with Zooey and do some crafts and things with her for about an hour or so the other day, whereas I've usually been too wiped out after her nap to do much but rest and read to her. I could tell she was happy, too, and then she played by herself for a good amount of time while I made dinner. Now, I just need to try to muster some energy to start exercising again. :)

A cute story this week: I told Zooey that Baby can hear now. Here's the conversation:
Me: "Tell Baby 'hi'."
Z: "Hi Baby!" (right up to my tummy)
Me: "Say, 'love you, Baby.'"
Z: "Love you, Baby. BABY, OBEY NO DISOBEY!" For this, she wagged her finger at my belly. So funny!

16 weeks, Baby #2

16 weeks, Zooey

15 weeks

How Far Along: 15 weeks

Size of baby: apple

Sleep: been worse this week; I keep waking up around 3:00 and am usually awake for about an hour

Total Weight Gain: +8.8

Symptoms: I am still feeling sick most evenings. :( I am hoping this goes away soon!

Movement: Yes, although baby's still small, so I don't feel him/her move as much as I know I will in the upcoming weeks. I can feel more movement in the evenings when I'm sitting still.

Go-to eats: avocados, apples (how funny, considering baby's estimated size!), pepperocinis

Best moment of the week: Zooey kissing my belly and saying, "Love you, Baby."

Gender: ?

What I’m looking forward to: Feeling better! The big ultrasound. :)

Milestones: Baby can sense light, Baby's ears can probably pick up the sound of my voice this week, s/he is practicing breathing amniotic fluid now.

Ryan and I got to enjoy an impromptu date night last night, thanks to our Hanen class being cancelled & the sitter already on the way to our house. Over dessert, we talked about what we're going to do when the baby comes, space-wise. We initially thought we were going to convert the garage into a room for Grandma, but we decided we'll just have the kiddos share a room once Baby starts sleeping through the night (before then s/he will be in our room in the pack n' play bassinet). I feel relieved to know we have a game plan for that now.

I feel like I'm definitely starting to bond with Baby more now that I can feel him/her moving. I think I'm a lot more busy running around this pregnancy than I was with Zooey, so I think it's been harder for me to just sit and think about it like I did with her. I've also felt a lot more sick than I did with her, so I think that's made it harder to enjoy it so far. I'm so excited to find out the gender! Only five (or six, depending on insurance) more weeks until the big reveal! I'm hoping Baby cooperates. :)

Baby #2, 15 weeks

14 weeks

How Far Along: 14 weeks

Size of baby: lemon or naval orange, depending on the app

Sleep: pretty good, except starting to get up to pee more

Total Weight Gain: about 8 lbs.

Symptoms: My appetite and energy are returning. I still have nausea some evenings. Round ligament pain has gotten worse

Movement: YES! I realized last weekend that what I thought was Baby really was Baby. It's still very off and on, though.

Go-to eats: Pepperocini's, cherry peppers, milk (which I figured out is upsetting my stomach, so I'm not drinking as much cow's milk :/ ), herbal iced tea

Best moment of the week: Movement! Starting to feel better most days. Also, today I went to Sarah's and finally heard Baby's heartbeat and some movement on my Doppler!

Gender: ?

What I’m looking forward to: No more morning sickness; the big ultrasound!

Milestones: Baby's urinating and has started to swallow, can possibly suck his/her thumb, is sprouting downy hair.

14 weeks Baby #2

14 weeks, Zooey

13 weeks!

Yay! Out of the first trimester!

How Far Along: 13 weeks

Size of baby: peach (3")

Sleep: pretty decent

Total Weight Gain: +5.2

Symptoms: still nauseous in the evenings, round ligament pain

Movement: I think so. I've felt some little flutters that definitely don't feel like gas.

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity all the time. It's ridiculous how big I am compared to my pregnancy with Zooey - and I've gained less weight!

Go-to eats: frosted mini wheats, avocado, Ritz crackers

Best moment of the week: end of first trimester!

Gender: ? Ryan thinks girl; I'm still not sure what to think.

Ramblings (advice, wishes, thoughts, feelings): We're telling Ryan's parents tonight, so soon we'll be public! I'm excited about that.
I super miss my mom this week. I've cried a lot over how she's not here for this baby, but I have also rejoiced that Sarah and I have grown closer and been able to share pregnancy together.

What I’m looking forward to: movement and finding out the gender

Milestones: Baby has fingerprints, vocal chords are developing, his/her head is becoming more proportionate to the body, and if it's a girl, she already has 2 million eggs in her ovaries!

February

Some cute stuff from February:

~Zooey says, "Yummy yummy yummy" when she is eating something she really likes.
~Zooey's praying more and more on her own. :) Overheard earlier in the month: "Thank you God Alex, Peter Pan, Rey, RaRa, no cow CFA, Mommy, CFA, cow CFA, thank you God. Amen"
~Her favorite song right now is "Trust & Obey;" she also likes to hold up her Fisher Price Zoo flag and march around the living room singing "My Country 'Tis of Thee."
~Her language has improved SO much! She got a review from her SLP and when doing an inventory for the Hanen class, I counted at least 267 words! She's doing really well, and we are so proud of her!
~Everyone told me that I'd want Zooey to talk so much but then she'd start and wouldn't stop - and I'd want her to stop. I don't want her to stop, yet! She's definitely talking all the time. It's great!

Valentine's Day lunch with some friends

Valentine's Day candy

 

A rare snow day - and the first time she really played in the snow!

Little Firefighter

Hugging Micky - this is how she falls asleep most nights

 

12 Weeks

How Far Along: 12 weeks

Size of baby: key lime

Sleep: SO much better. I zonk out about 9:30 most nights and wake up right when Zooey does, about 7:30, waking up only to pee. :)

Total Weight Gain: +6.3 (but this was after breakfast this week - normally I weigh same time, before breakfast). :) Excuses??

Symptoms: morning sickness in the evenings, fatigue

Movement: Too soon to feel

Maternity Clothes: Yup. I packed up all my winter clothes and decided to just go with it fom here on out.

Go-to eats: lemonade, Frosted Mini Wheats

Best moment of the week: I heard the heartbeat last Friday! It was beating strong at 165. Praise God!

I'm also excited that I seem to be getting some of my energy back and haven't needed to nap as much and the morning sickness seems to be dying down a little bit.

Gender: ? Ryan's guess is girl. I'm really unsure..."Chinese Gender Chart" says "girl" :) It's all for fun until the big U/S

What I wish people knew:

What I’m looking forward to: Morning sickness being completely gone (although praise God, it's easing up!), 2nd trimester, movement! Gender ultrasound!

Milestones: Baby's reflexes are devloping: s/he'll start opening and closing fingers, sucking with mouth, curling toes. :)

12 weeks, Baby #2

12 weeks, Zooey...notice the difference?!