Two weeks, two weeks

Until the big ultrasound! I cannot wait...I am nearly 22 weeks now, and it is so strange to not know what we're having. I'm still pretty set on a girl, but it could very well be a boy. I'm totally thrilled with either--I just can't wait to know and get a name and some special items picked out for this little one. :)

The honeymoon is officially here, which is great. I feel good, the belly is growing, the baby is moving. I'm still only up 4 pounds which is starting to annoy me. Based on my weight gain with Ian, this is totally normal and the pounds will pack on in the third trimester (I gained 21 of the 30 pounds gained with him between weeks 24 and 39), but it's frustrating to not have that scale move. I've added more high calorie 100% juices and things like chocolate milk to my tons and tons of water in an effort to gain a little weight. I'm also not being conservative with the mayo on my cheese sandwiches. So I guess there are perks to being a slow gainer...I can have all the wonderful, fatty, high calorie foods I want without worrying too much about it. ;)

20 weeks--halfway!!

Not much to say beyond that. Just really excited to hit the 20-week mark. In 4 weeks, I will hit the age of viability. I really can't wait to reach that milestone. :)

Thought I should add some pics of the belly. And, for comparison, a pic of 20 weeks with Ian.





With Ian:

Ultrasound scheduled

For December 1 at 10pm. Yes, a month from now in the middle of the night. Going to see about the possibility of a referral...I'm kind of pissed.

16-20 week appointment--19w4d

Finally had my 16-20 week appointment today. It was two days shy of 8 weeks since my last appointment!

Baby's heartbeat was only 130, so pretty low (normal range, but low...Ian's was in the 150s and this one's was 160 at 12 weeks). So now I'm really curious to find out what we're having. I know the HR isn't a reliable indicator at all, but that would definitely scream BOY! if it were!

I got my order in for my ultrasound, but when I called I was told that radiology has to review the order first and I can call back tomorrow after 1:30 to schedule. I want to schedule it NOW. I am pretty sure I am the only one in my March due date club who has not had her ultrasound yet. I knew I'd be one of the last being due on the 25th, but seriously the APRIL girls are having theirs before I do. Sheesh. :p

Other than that, not much to report. I have to go to the lab in the next day or two and pee in a cup, which is always fun. Also need to get in for my flu shot...I hate shots. I skipped it last year, but with being pregnant and with all the strange illnesses Ian brought home in the month of October (Croup, pneumonia, strep, pink eye) I'm thinking I should probably get it this time.

Will update when I get my ultrasound date...can't wait!

The Advantages of a Late Ultrasound

I've come to terms with the fact that I likely won't get my ultrasound until 22 or 23 weeks. It was really upsetting at first, but I'm getting better. I have my next appointment on Tuesday at 19 weeks and 4 days, and at that time we will schedule my u/s. The problem is that they schedule anywhere from 2-4 weeks out ANYWAY, but we have Veteran's Day on the 11th...followed by a Friday "down day" which means non-emergency offices will not be open. The next week is wide open, but because Hazen's shop's manning has been cut in half the ONLY day he can come with me is that Friday afternoon. The next week is Thanksgiving week. Hazen is available on both the 22 and 24 at any time (Monday and Wednesday) but then Thanksgiving is Thursday and, you guessed it, another "down day" on Friday. So, basically, I have no choice but to be okay with a late ultrasound.

Now, to the advantage part of this--the gender should be VERY obvious by that gestation. So I figure I can be pretty confident in whatever they tell me (and, BTW, I am still convinced they are going to say it's a girl. My "instinct" is really strong regarding this...so I'm probably wrong, lol).

In other news, I took my last Unisom on Monday night. Haven't had one on Tuesday or Wednesday. So far, so good. I don't feel awesome, but I'm not nauseas and I'm not throwing up. This is the fourth time I've tried to stop them, so I'm really hoping it works this time--I REALLY hate taking any kind of medicine unless I absolutely have to. I don't even like to take Tylenol. The downside is that Unisom is now marketed as a sleeping aid, whereas it was originally an anti-nausea medicine (obviously still used that way, but not marketed as such). The last two nights have not been the best sleep-wise. I wake up several times, I can't get comfortable, I have one long stretch where I absolutely cannot get back to sleep. So I am missing the sleep-aid part of it, but don't want to be dependent on sleeping pills either. So I'm going to suck it up and hopefully my body quickly adjusts to not having that help and will let me get a little more sleep.

The 18 week belly

I don't like anything touching my belly, so I roll it over. Definitely starting to look (and feel!!) pregnant this week. The couple of days of serious growth I had were painful. Hopefully soon people notice I'm growing a little person as opposed to just gaining weight. ;)

Feeling Kicks!

Last night, hubby felt the baby kicking. It was so much fun--I really love it when other people can start feeling it, too. It will be a bit longer before I let other people try (uterus is still slightly below my bellybutton...no one needs to be putting their hands there!), but it's really great to be able to share it with my hubby. :)

At the beginning of the week, I was getting a little worried because Baby was being stubborn and really wasn't moving much. I was eating, drinking orange juice, having ice-cream, anything I could to get the stinker to move for me. Not much was happening. Wednesday afternoon the movements started to be more regular again, and then yesterday (Thursday) they were pretty strong. On top of that, the sides of my belly were really hurting, especially if I coughed or laughed (those round ligaments are no joke!!). I seriously grew just over yesterday...it was painful. I'll take a pic in the next day or two so you can see the difference between 16 weeks and 18. Ouch!

I can very rarely feel the baby on the outside. Last night, I was laying in bed and s/he was pretty active. I put my hand on my belly and was immediately kicked! I had Hazen put his hand on me, and sure enough, he was given two big kicks. It was fun to see his reaction. He faked feeling it once with Ian and I knew he wasn't telling the truth. The time he really did feel it, I could tell it was genuine. These times were definitely genuine--he would gasp or say "wow!" at exactly the right moment, without me having to say "Did you feel that?". So cool!!