25 Weeks!

Your developing baby now measures about 8.8 inches from crown to rump and weighs 1.5 pounds. Skin now becomes opaque instead of transparent. Its body is still covered with folds of skin like a puppy that need to grow into its skin. The heartbeat can be heard through a stethoscope or, depending on the position of the baby, by others putting an ear against your belly. Besides your uterus growing upward, it may be getting bigger on the sides of your abdomen.

How far along? 25 Weeks
Total Weight Gain? 11 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 134 bpm (at 24 weeks)
Maternity clothes? Maternity pants are nice!!!
Movement? YES! Bouncy bouncy ....
Food cravings: The ice cream is gone (almost) and after my last dr's visit and stepping on the scale, I need not buy anymore ice cream! Lately I have been into baking though. :)
Gender: Maybe a boy .... maybe a girl
Labor Signs: What's that? :)
Belly Button in or out? It's just getting a little wider.
What I miss: These days I am not really missing too much. Getting use to waking up every hour to go to the bathroom, and use to not drinking wine in the evenings (although I still miss it), and use to just getting bigger. It's hard to miss anything from before pregnancy when you sit around all day and feel and watch the baby move and kick and just come alive. All the stuff before baby will come back, but these little 3 months will not be here long.
What I am looking forward to: Ya know those winter days when it's cold and your bed is SO warm and the last thing you want to do is get up and go to work .... well, I am looking forward to just staying in bed with the baby when winter comes around.
Weekly Wisdom: All women are different, all moms are different, all babies are different, all births are different ....... everything is different.
Milestones: Baby is listening to Yanni now ... yes, Yanni. And dancing too! As soon as the baby hears music ... the flips and jumps and kicks start coming!
Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: His face was priceless when he first saw the baby trying to get out of my belly. This child was doing full out flips and jump kicks!

23 Weeks! (almost 6 months)

Baby's still the size of a papaya! (just a little fatter)
Baby's little face is fully formed...minus the baby fat, of course. The next task at hand for baby: sprouting two teeny-tiny nipples! You're now in your sixth month and your baby is about to chub up a bit. His saggy skin will start to fit his frame as fat deposits fill things out. Beginning this week, he'll start to pack on the pounds (which means you will, too!) and by month's end he'll be double the weight he is now (though you won't be — whew!). Right now, your baby's organs and bones are visible through his skin, which has a red hue due to developing veins and arteries beneath. But once those fat deposits settle in, he'll become less transparent, too.

How far along? 23 Weeks
Total Weight Gain? 7 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 142 bpm (at 20 weeks)
Maternity clothes? Maternity pants are nice!!!
Movement? YES! Bouncy bouncy ....
Food cravings: I have 4 different kinds of ice cream in the freezer .... and would love to get more if they would fit!
Gender: I just know that something is in there ...
Labor Signs: What's that? :)
Belly Button in or out? It's just getting a little wider.
What I miss: At this point, especially today ... I just miss sleep. Good ol fashioned sleep! Like for more than one hour at a time.
What I am looking forward to: Watching Matthew hold our new little baby boy or girl.
Weekly Wisdom: Apparently sleeping our your back with a papaya on your tummy causes snoring. Sorry babe. It's hard not to sleep on your back ... or stomach. I have to sandwich myself between 2 body pillows so I won't roll over. Lastnight I let M borrow my other pillow ... and he ended up with a snoring wife. Milestones: Not only can we feel baby kick ... we can see it too!
Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: He can't believe we are almost in our 3rd trimester ... but the face he made when I told him that couldn't compare to the face he had when I told him there were only 3!

5 1/2 months! (22 weeks)

Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop.

How far along? 22 Weeks
Total Weight Gain? 7 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 142 bpm (at 20 weeks)
Maternity clothes? Maternity pants are nice!!!
Movement: YES! The newest trick is trampolining on my bladder!
Food cravings: I have 4 different kinds of ice cream in the freezer ....
Gender: It's a 50/50 shot ... good thing there are only 2 choices and not like 10!
Labor Signs: Negative
Belly Button in or out? It's just getting a little wider.
What I miss: Still miss the same things as every week, but ya know ... I just love being pregnant! So I am good with all the things I miss.
What I am looking forward to: Watching Matthew hold our new little baby boy or girl.
Weekly Wisdom: Still way too soon to watch birthing videos ... I am not sure if there will be a good time.
Milestones: Not only can we feel baby kick ... we can see it too!
Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: I think we are both still in disbelief. We just lay in bed smiling and thinking about having a little one in our lives. Very surreal!

Now for some pictures!!!!

Matthew is practicing with our niece - Maria! (Austin Weekend)

And when it comes to the diaper changing part... he is done practicing!

Surprise Birthday Party for ME!

And Mikey brought me flowers!!!! (the first time he has ever bought flowers ... for anyone)

And they opened! (he was worried about that)

And my amazing husband surprised me with flowers toooo! Beautiful!

More party pictures! The new moms and dads to be!

And finally ... the ohhhh so requested belly picture. Baby is growing at 22 weeks!!!
1 whole pound today!

21 Weeks (5 months and 1 week)

Baby's now the size of a banana!

Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion, and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, if baby is a girl, her womb is now stocked up with her lifetime supply of six million eggs (the number will drop to around one million by birth).

I don't like bananas, but I sure love this little banana baby growing inside of me!

How far along? 21 Weeks

Total Weight Gain? 6 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 142 bpm (at 20 weeks) and then they took it again and it was between 144-146.
Maternity clothes? Just retired 2 more pants. Shopping this weekend ... again.
Movement: YES! Lots of kicking and flipping and running in there. I am thinking we have an athlete on the way!
Food cravings: Just still love ice cream, but I always have ... so not sure if that counts as a craving. Hmmm.
Gender: Lots of guesses ... half think boy, the other think girl. I still don't know.
Labor Signs: Negative
Belly Button in or out? It's just getting a little wider.
What I miss: Still miss a glass of red wine with dinner ... or before dinner, or whenever. (Mom, it is not getting easier)
What I am looking forward to: Being a mommy and Matthew being a daddy!
Weekly Wisdom: Still way too soon to watch birthing videos
Milestones: Over half way there! And tomorrow mommy will be 29! Wowzers! By this age I think my grandmother had all of her 4 kids. She thinks I am SO old.
Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: Matthew is still nesting ... just wish maybe he wanted to "nest" in his office or ... maybe flooring our attic, or cleaning something. :) He is still working on the crabgrass and doing a great job at it.

Last Friday we had our 20 week Ultrasound and appt. In the waiting room our friends Chris and Mareya came in and they were in LABOR! She was due the next day, but starting having contractions early early that morning. They planned on skipping their already scheduled appointment, but the office called them and said come in. So, we sat in the waiting room with them and had to be silent every 5 minutes or so during a contraction. I was trying to breathe for her ... and getting light headed. BAAAAA! Getting nervous about what's to come in 19 weeks.

Baby H looks great! They said everything was perfect, all the measurements and heartbeat and movement. She measured my uterus and it's 20 cm. She said it should grow about a cm a week!!! So, I think the growth part starts about now. I do feel sore in my tummy ... so I think it's expanding. I watch my neighbor who is almost 4 weeks ahead of me and she made a big jump around this time as far as growth. So get ready for some new pictures.

I was just thinking, right now Therese, Amber and myself are pregnant and our birthdays are all within 1-2 days of each other. Hmmm ... maybe it's a Virgo thing? We will have to get a group tummy picture soon. So fun!

More updates and pictures to come.
Happy Birthday Amber! Happy Birthday Therese (today) and Happy Birthday to me (tomorrow)!

HALF WAY!

Baby's now the size of a cantaloupe! Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies respond best to tastes they've already had via amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you'd like your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

How far along? 20 Weeks (Mom, that is 5 months.)

Total Weight Gain? 5 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 140 bpm (at 16 1/2 weeks)
Maternity clothes? I did buy several new tops, but none of them were maternity. Just one size larger with room for tummy to grow.

Movement: YES! And Matthew felt baby too for the first time!

Food cravings: Nope ...

Gender: People are in the guessing stage now. I have no idea ...
Labor Signs: Negative
Belly Button in or out? Stay IN!
What I miss: Sleeping on my stomach
What I am looking forward to: Being a mommy and Matthew being a daddy!
Weekly Wisdom: Still too soon to watch birthing videos
Milestones: We have our big ultrasound on Friday! Yiiipppeee. We are not finding out the gender, but it will be fun to see baby again!

Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: I am not sure when the whole nesting business is supposed to start for me, but ... for Matthew - it already has. He is a super yard boy these days! Crabgrass ... be gone! (you're doing a great job babe!)

19 Weeks ... already!

Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil, and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.) You might get to see the vernix at birth, especially if baby is premature.

How far along? 19 weeks
Total Weight Gain? 5 pounds
Baby's Heartbeat: 140 bpm (at 16 1/2 weeks)
Maternity clothes? Um ... yes ... kinda. They are just regular pants but they have a somewhat stretchy waistband.
Movement: Still waiting to see a foot!
Food cravings: And still making them up. Amber mentioned Cinnamon Toast Crunch the other day ... I decided I was craving that too. YUM!
Gender: Not sure ...
Labor Signs: Negative
Belly Button in or out? Stay IN!
What I miss: Having an alcoholic beverage at weddings!
What I am looking forward to: Being a mommy and Matthew being a daddy!
Weekly Wisdom: Do not watch birthing videos this early in the game!
Milestones: Ordered my first bridesmaid dress that is 3 sizes too big. Not sure what this belly will look like in 2 months! So, Candace has me and baby in her wedding!
Daddy to-be thoughts/comments: The more baby stuff we get, the more real it becomes. We have a bassinet from my parents next to our bed. (just to see what it looks like) Matthew couldn't believe it! He just stood there smiling with chills thinking about a little one in our room. We can't wait! Thanks mom and dad for the bassinet!

Baby stuff ...

I meant to post these last week, or the week before ... can't remember. We have been planning and saving for a while for the following items. :) Mattie is a budget/financial/spreadsheet genius!!! Thanks babe!



New car for baby! (and mommy!) It's a Chevy Traverse and it's AMAZING!

A little overwhelmed at first ... but we totally dominated that furniture!!!

The hutch and glider! And the crib ... with no mattress (still haven't done that research).

We had a great time putting together all of Baby's furniture and just trying to imagine a little person in there. Crazy!