Week 23

It's been a very minor-ly eventful week.  Bryann and I were able to get into the new house on Wednesday to take some measurements so we could do some cost analysis of what it will take to fix the porch and re-do some of the kitchen and master bathroom.  I went to book club with the ladies on Thursday and had a wonderful time hanging out and talking about literature (as always)!

I feel like I had a growth spurt over the last couple days, but it could very well just be that I'm having some severe digestion issues and/or bloating.  I ran out of my prenatal vitamins and am waiting for the rx to refill, and I suspect that might have something to do with the digestion troubles.  I had another OB appointment on Thursday, and my OB says everything looks great, that I'm measuring exactly where I need to be, and that things are progressing as they should.  Bryann and I are going to look into taking some birthing classes later this summer, so she gave us some materials on that stuff, too.

What Baby T has been up to this week:

• Baby girl is just over a pound and measuring 11.5 inches - the size of a mango.  
• She is squirming a lot and I can even see her move under my clothes!
• Her lungs are developing more blood vessels to prepare her for breathing
• She can hear voices and loud noises - apparently she's getting used to loud noises that happen pretty often (like Sam barking at everything passing down the street) and they won't phase her when she's born.  

Pregnancy symptoms this week include: 

• No more nausea!!  At least not at all this week.  I DID get sick over rotting food smell, so I'm still sensitive to yucky smells, but I wasn't sick in the mornings all this week!  I'm hoping the sick phase is officially done!
• Baby kicks and rumbles.  Sometimes I feel like she's kicking and punching at the same time because I can feel movement on both the left and the right side of my belly.  
• I've hit a growth spurt and I've gotten to the point where I'm doing some serious reevaluations of the clothes in my closet.  Gotta save up some of my fun monies to buy some more maternity clothing...

What I miss: 

• Nothing new here.  Beer.  Having a drink with my friends.  Being able to lift things and be helpful.

What I'm looking forward to:

• Strangers on the street asking me about my pregnancy.  Is it weird that I WANT that to start happening?  Even though I'm popping out more, no one has commented.  

Week 22

I went to Baby Shower #1 this past weekend!  I have only been to 2 other baby showers in my lifetime (and 1 of those was in high school) so it was fun to be at AND be pregnant!  I picked up a lot of good tips & tricks from other moms that attended.  Like put doggy pee pads down on the changing pad so I don't have to wash the changing pad cover so often.  Genius!

Other than that, it's been a pretty ho-hum week 22.  We won't be able to move forward with the house stuff for a couple of weeks, other than get the repair addendum stuff done.  We'll do the appraisals in the middle of May, so until then, we're just sitting around in our half-empty staged home trying not to mess it up too much so we don't have to clean like mad men when the appraisal finally DOES get scheduled.

What Baby T has been up to this week:  

• Callie is weighing in at 1 lb. and measuring 11 inches - the size of a spaghetti squash.
• Lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more defined and she is even growing tooth buds under those tiny little gums!
• Her pancreas is developing the most this week
• She's still pretty wrinkly and covered in languo (fetal hair) but she's start to plump up in the coming weeks

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• Slightly better nausea than before.  There was actually a day or two when I didn't have any AM sickness at all, and I thought I was done with the sick phase, but then it started again on Wednesday.  Alas... I hear it will pass eventually
• Digestive issues.  Seriously.  I need to have a heart-to-heart with whoever decided what to tell non-pregnant women about what it's like to be pregnant.  I heard all about the morning sickness, the fatigue, the back pain, the feet swelling, and the stretch marks, but no one EVER said I'd be constipated and gassy all the time!  NOT COOL people!  Not cool....

Food cravings/aversions:

• Cannot get enough chocolate ice cream... I could eat it for every meal!  I have eaten it for dinner before... Don't tell Bryann!  :-P 
• No aversions anymore.  Yay!

What I miss:

• Beer
• My clothes fitting me.  I'm afraid at this point that I won't even be able to get back into my pre-pregnancy jeans.  Some of them I've already handed over to Goodwill.  I can't even get them over my ass anymore.  

What I'm looking forward to:

• Not being sick anymore
• The 3rd trimester "glow" and energy I'm rumored to have

The Ultrasound

I had my ultrasound done at 18 weeks, 3 days at Willamette Falls hospital where I'll be giving birth.  I was a complete nervous wreck all day long prior to going in because I just couldn't wait to hear it we were having a boy or a girl!  Also to hear that everything looked the way it should - that the baby had two legs, two arms, and a fully fused spinal cord.

They had me come in with a full bladder to take the initial set of shots.  As soon as I walked in the room, I told them I'd heard a rumor that they'd let me get up and pee after the first couple pictures.  :-)  (I had drinken a LOT of water... and ended up getting up three separate times.)  The ultrasound took about an hour and a half, and it was pretty boring to be honest.   Bryann literally almost fell asleep sitting in the chair next to me.  I probably could have fallen asleep, too.  A lot of the screen views they were looking at made absolutely no sense to me, so I kind of glazed over for half of the ultrasound.  AND they wouldn't tell me the sex of the baby until the very end!!  I think that's the FIRST thing they should tell you!  Well, ok they should say everything looks good FIRST, and then the sex of the baby second.

I think it took so long because the baby was all squinched up and refused to move, so the tech took forever trying to get a good profile picture.  They let me get up to use the bathroom just to try to shake the baby around a bit and get it in a better position.  But eventually, they got all the shots they needed and at the VERY END, told us it looked like we were having a baby girl, to which Bryann squealed audibly a little bit!  :-)

So, we've decided to name her Calista Elaine Turner.  We were completely set on other names before I got pregnant, but Bryann brought home a baby names book soon after we found out, and I randomly flipped to a page and "Calista" jumped out at me.  I suggested it to Bryann and he loved it, and we didn't really consider any other girls' names after that.  We wanted a name that was fairly uncommon and unique, and not anywhere near the top 100 for the last few years.  It turns out the names we had been previously considering were all on the top 100 list, so it's a good thing we changed our mind early!

Without further adieu  introducing Calista Elaine Turner!  (and the inner depths of my uterus... hahaha)

Alien baby eyes

There's a foot and a hand sticking up at the camera

Profile shot of baby's face

Profile shot from the other side of baby's face

Week 21

I'm writing on time!  Yay, me!!  I will reward myself by being lazy and reading all day, and having several scoops of chocolate ice cream this afternoon.  :-D

Week 21 slowed down a little bit and has allowed me to catch my breath.  It's still been busy, but not nearly as stressful as the previous two weeks.  Last weekend, we went out to the beach house with our gaggle of friends - Elizabeth, Tamara, Rian, Nate, Kimber, Paul, Rachel - and our sqadron of dogs - Samson, Ronin, Murphy, and Oscar.  Our house is a pretty tiny 3 br/1ba house, so fitting 9 people and 4 dogs is a pretty awesome accomplishment.  The weather wasn't as crappy as forecasted, so we even got out to play on the beach and explore a neighboring beach town a bit.  Bryann and I are going to try to get out to the beach house as much as possible (as much as his school schedule will allow) before the baby comes.  It's just one of my most favorite places to be.

On Monday, we did the inspection of the new house and it went really well for being built it 1980.  Both Sue and the inspector were expecting to find way more problems, but the owners kept up the place really well.  There were some issues, but the seller has agreed to fix everything on the list, and give us a small discount for the condition of the deck.  The inspection on our current house was last Friday, so we're also finished with that process.  We're just waiting on signatures from our buyers on the repair addendum, and then we move on to the appraisal phase!

Tuesday and Wednesday was choir rehearsal and sectionals for me, while Bryann had class and then was picking up a Craigslist refrigerator for the new house.  Thursday we actually got to relax and cuddle while catching up on "Walking Dead" and Friday we went to see Clyborne Park as part of our season ticket package with Portland Center Stage.  I love going to these plays.  They're always way better than I expected them to be, and they're usually plays I wouldn't normally have purchased tickets for.

In Baby news, there's not a lot of news.  :-)  I'm looking slightly more pregnant than I used to, but I still don't look pregnant enough to be 21 weeks along, or for people to notice and say something like "when are you due?"  I've had several people who, when the find out I'm 21 weeks along, gasp and tell me there's no way, or ask where I'm hiding it!  But over the last three weeks, I've seen a noticeable change so I think I'm at the growth spurt stage and will continue to look more and more pregnant as the weeks go on.  I've started to prepare for the growth spurt by applying stretch mark butter once or twice daily.  When I first got pregnant I googled "pregnancy stretch marks" and looked at the images and was COMPLETELY horrified, so I've been sufficiently frightened into using tummy butter religiously, and eating more fruit than pizza so I gain weight slowly.  Studies SAY that lotions don't actually prevent stretch marks, and that genetics play more of a role. But for now, I'm choosing to believe marketing over science.  :-P

This miracle product is going to spare me from stretch marks!  (Please let it be true!!)

What Baby T has been up to:

• Depending on which book I'm referencing, Baby is either 10.5 inches and 3/4lb. or 8 in. and 1lb.  I know... that makes no sense.  Why is the longer baby lighter?  Anyway, Baby grew to approximately the size of a carrot/banana/spagetti squash (again, depending on which book I'm referencing.)
• Baby is hard at work practicing martial arts inside my belly.  There is a TON of wriggling and squirming every time I sit down and relax!  It's recommended that I keep tabs on the movements so I can notice quickly if movement frequency changes and alert my OB.
• Baby is practicing swallowing amniotic fluid to aid in digestion later on, and is developing taste buds.  I've heard that if I want Baby to like vegetables, I'd better eat a lot of them myself so it's a familiar taste later on.
• Eyebrows and eyelids are now present, and Baby's eyes may even start to open and close soon.  Baby can also apparently see light, and will try to run away if I shine a flashlight on my belly.  

Pregnancy symptoms this week include:

• AM nausea
• Weird facial breakouts.  This actually started at like week 10, but I can't tell if it's acne or not.  There's nothing to "pop" per se.  My cheeks just have a bunch of red splotches, and it looks more like acne scars than acne.  Perhaps it's the discoloring I've heard about?  Either way, it's not my favorite feature.

Food cravings/aversions

• I'm into chocolate ice cream and chocolate candy this week.  I haven't been craving candy or ice cream AT ALL before this week, so this is a slippery slope here. 
• No aversions.  I've been able to eat everything on the menu.

What I miss:

• Beer & Wine.  I feel like I sound like I have a drinking problem, but I really didn't drink that often before I got pregnant.  It's just that now that I can't have it, I want it!!  And I miss drinking with my friends at Wine & Dines and gatherings.
• Looking good in my clothes.  Bryann has started to laugh at me when he sees me after work, saying "You're soooo pregnant," to which I squeal back "What?!  No, my sweater was just askew from sitting.  Let me pull it back down.  There!  You can hardly tell!"   Perhaps I'm in denial...
• Being able to lift and carry things.  I'm not supposed to lift more than 15 lbs., so I couldn't help Bryann at all get the canopy off his truck or go get the fridge.  He had to get Rian to come help.  (Thank you, Rian!!)  I'm pretty useless lately.

What I'm looking forward to:

• Looking more pregnant
• Not being sick in the mornings
• Singing lullabys to my baby.  I've already started to compile a list!   

Weeks 19 and 20

So I've WAAAAY passed the deadline to write about week 19 (and I'm even a few days behind writing about week 20) so I'm combining the two.  My mom has been bugging me every day for the past week and a half to update my blog, so HERE YOU GO, MOM!

I haven't written because, in short, life has been crazy.  Week 19 was a blur of getting our house de-cluttered, cleaned, and ready for the photographer to come on Thursday, and to be listed on the market by Friday.  Thankfully, my parents came up to help clean, lift heavy objects, plant flowers, and keep me sane, otherwise I don't see how we could have gotten it all done.  The house had two competing offers within 12 hours of it being listed, so all of the hard work and stress was all worth it.  Even though we had offers, we didn't have everything signed until Tuesday the following week, so we had to keep showing the house for the next four days.  My parents left Tuesday morning, paperwork was all signed and in place by Tuesday night, and the inspection on our current house was scheduled for Friday.

In between all of the house business, we hosted our last Easter Brunch at our current house, had our ultrasound appointment, Bryann started his first day of Spring Term business school classes, I got to enjoy book club with the girls, and we had our 20-week-minus-1-day OB check-up.  I am a tired mama-to-be!  I'll write about the ultra sound and post a few pictures later this week when I have some more free time.  :-)

What Baby T has been up to these two weeks:
Week 19 - 

• Baby grew to the size of an heirloom tomato at 6 inches and 8.5 ounces
• Baby has been kicking up a little storm inside my belly!
• Baby's brain is developing it's sensory center and may be able to hear and recognize my voice now
• A waxy coating is forming on Baby's skin to protect it from pickling in the amniotic fluid

Week 20 - 

• Baby is apparently the size of a banana at 10.5 ounces and 10 inches head to heel (previous measurements were head to rump.  Apparently measurements change when baby is developed enough to stretch out a bit)
• Baby is swallowing more and has started to produce what I like to call pre-poo (aka meconium) which is accumulating in the bowels for the great first poo after birth!  (or the great first poo inside the womb if delivery gets complicated)
• Baby continues to kick away!  Especially when I've been sitting or laying down for awhile.  Bryann was finally able to feel Baby kick from the outside this week!  He was pretty ecstatic.  :-D

Pregnancy symptoms include:

• AM nausea or nausea at any weird smells.  My dad got to experience this first hand when he was visiting and making steak for breakfast, or boiling oysters.  Mmmmmm....
• Slightly exacerbated reactions to stress or fatigue  :-)  I wouldn't say I OVERREACT or get CRANKY per se, but I have a little less tolerance for life not going perfectly  

Food cravings/aversions

• I've been able to eat chicken again!!  Yippee!!!  
• Bagels & cream cheese
• Bananas, grapes, apples, tiny oranges
• Nothing I couldn't eat this week!  :-D

What I miss:

• Beer
• Blue cheese
• Drinking as much coffee and soda as I want
• Pants that fit me - my mom made me go maternity pants shopping and it was the worst experience ever.  I know that small framed people like myself aren't really allowed to complain about being small, but it really does make shopping for jeans excruciating WITHOUT being pregnant.  Imagine what I feel like shopping WHILE pregnant.  

What I'm looking forward to: 

• Looking pregnant - even at 20 weeks, if I'm not wearing the tank top and yoga pants I wear in these weekly pictures, I still just look like I've gained a bit of paunch right on my stomach.  
• Not being sick in the mornings.  My mom said she was sick through 6 months, so apparently I still have 4-5 more weeks to go.