Pregnancy Questionnaire 24 weeks

I realize that I missed a week of this, but it has been a challenging month.  I also realized as I typed this out that there were a few things I never wrote about that I should follow up on, but not tonight. =)

How far along? 24 Weeks
How big is baby? 9 inches, 1.7lbs The size of an eggplant!

Total weight gain/loss: seem to be holding steady which in theory means I'm losing while baby gains!

Maternity clothes? Yep!  Even the stretchy normal clothes feel a bit tight around the middle.

Sleep: Getting tougher.  I have to swap between regular pillows and my pregnancy pillow each night just to try to keep things in check.

Best moment this week: Nick finally felt baby boy!
Movement: Very active.  I have to look back at this from my first pregnancy because I am a little surprised at how much I feel him.  Not the level of activity, but the strength of it!
Food cravings: No cravings.  Getting tougher to eat as my hormones increase.
Food Aversions: no problems.
Gender: It's a boy!!!!

Labor Signs: none

Pregnancy Symptoms:  More and more every day!  Feeling very round and heavier each day, still experiencing the bone/joint pain (though much better since finishing the mountain play), blood sugar is going up, heartburn nearly every day, contractions with too much activity... I'm sure there are more but those are the majors
Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Just the freedom of not being pregnant.  Energy, sleep, freedom to eat whatever I want whenever I feel like it...
What I am looking forward to: Our growth scan which will tell us how big little man is!
Upcoming appointments/events:  OB on July 10th, Growth Scan on July 31st
Weekly Wisdom: Often in pregnancy, the answer is rest.
Milestones: I'm sure I had some but simply can't think of anything.  It's been a challenging month to say the least.
Bump Picture: 24 weeks!

Pregnancy Questionnaire 20 weeks

How far along? 20 Weeks - Halfway!!!!

How big is baby? 7 inches, 11 ounces- Getting big!

Total weight gain/loss: Still down. Still not tracking this. =)

Maternity clothes? Exclusively. In fact the few non-maternity pants I could still wear are now getting tight... Guess I'm going to have to invest in some more options for the summer!

Sleep: Starting to really feel the pregnancy now.  I've started using pillows to make sleep a little easier on my body and have a pregnancy pillow on its way.  I really hope it helps like it should!

Best moment this week: Having our anatomy scan

Movement: Little boy is getting more active for sure.  I have an anterior placenta as I mentioned before which limits what I feel a bit, but I feel him more and more every day.

Food cravings: None really.  Just hungry most of the day!

Food Aversions: none other than the occasional aversion to a strong smell (onions, garlic, etc)

Gender: It's a boy!!!!

Labor Signs: none

Pregnancy Symptoms:  Constant pain as my bones and ligaments give in to the relaxin already flooding my body, can't lay on my stomach, occasional (mild gratefully) heartburn, constant hunger, extra fatigue... Probably more but those are the most prevalent today!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Being able to override and "just do" without consequences.  Tonight I wanted to take a family walk and had to be reminded by Nick that we should do the long loop because I might hurt a lot from it and I have a show tomorrow.  About a block into the walk I realized he was right.  Time to get my body into water aerobics before it is too late to strengthen!

What I am looking forward to: Getting my house organized after a year of being checked out, and in prep for our little man!

Upcoming appointments/events:  Fetal EKG and OB appointments on June 11th, Endocrinologist and Breast Cancer Surgeon on June 12th.

Weekly Wisdom: Your body is pregnant, even when your mind wants to ignore that fact.

Milestones: Anatomy scan

Bump Picture: 20 weeks!

Anatomy Scan

This week we had our anatomy scan ultrasound.  This is the big scan where they are looking for regular growth, and appropriate development of all organs etc.  They look at the bladder, kidneys, heart, lungs, bones, stomach, diaphragm, etc.  Usually this is also when you find out if you are having a boy or a girl.  Since we are impatient and already found out, we used it for confirmation of the sex.  (Yes, we are still having a boy.)

Everything looks great!  Baby is growing big and has all the expected body parts. =)  They are having me go back for a fetal echo cardiogram because I am on insulin, but not because they saw anything concerning.  So there will be another ultrasound in another few weeks!

One thing that they confirmed for me was that I have an anterior placenta.  This means that the placenta is on the belly button side of the uterus.  It doesn't pose any risk to me or the baby, but does mean that I will feel less movement early on.  I had already suspected this might be the case since I haven't felt much movement in the kick/jab/tap arena, but have definitely felt hits to my cervix and big rolls.  Sort of feels like a win to know my body so well that I was able to determine that I had an anterior placenta without being told.

I'll leave the update there since my next questionnaire is coming up!  Twenty weeks (halfway!) this Friday!!!  Feels like it is going fast (sort of).  I have a LOT to get done in the next few months.

Profile 19.5 weeks

pregnancy questionnaire 18 weeks

How far along? 18.5 Weeks

How big is baby? 6 inches, 8 ounces (that's half a pound!!!)

Total weight gain/loss: Still down.  Still not tracking this. =)

Maternity clothes? Exclusively.  I popped this week. 

Sleep: Pretty much can't sleep on my stomach now without a pillow or something angling me.  Other than that, I'm sleeping decently.

Best moment this week: Not sure I really had any pregnancy moments this week.  Amazing how different it is with number two!

Movement: Starting to feel more again.  Lots of big rolls and the occasional jab.

Food cravings: Tonight I suddenly wanted some sauteed carrots (in butter and sprinkle of brown sugar).  So I made them, and they were delicious!  Closest thing to a craving I've ever had I guess!

Food Aversions: none really

Gender: It's a boy!!!! 

Labor Signs: I feel the occasional contraction but so far I understand that is normal.

Pregnancy Symptoms:  I can't lay on my stomach, when I bend over I have to separate my knees for my belly, I can no longer do plies during warm ups at rehearsal, occasional contractions, hungry all the time... that's all I can think of! =)

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Not much.  Just energy I guess.

What I am looking forward to: Getting started on the nursery (once I finish the mountain play)

Upcoming appointments/events:  The anatomy scan is May 29th

Weekly Wisdom: You keep getting more pregnant- it just happens!

Milestones: "popping"

Bump Picture: next time!

Doctors Galore!

Through a series of unplanned circumstances I ended up with three doctors appointments last week!  Usually when I do this, I plan them back to back on the same day, but this was three appointments on three days.  This is my quick recap on each appointment!

Monday I saw my oncologist for a follow up.  You may recall I happened to find out I was pregnant the night before I was scheduled to see her so she was the first to know I was knocked up!  At that appointment she told me she wanted to see me for manual exams every trimester since we can't do the planned MRI's and mammograms during the pregnancy.  That is what this appointment was.  She was completely happy with me.  There are no physical changes of concern and so far the pregnancy has treated me really well.  My doctor even mentioned that in preparing for a talk with a group of OBs that she was giving, she reviewed literature regarding pregnancy in survivors, and came across a couple that indicated it had a sort of protective effect in some triple negative survivors.  They aren't super reliable studies (the numbers just simply aren't there so they are definitely qualitative evaluations) but both my doctor and I said "we'll take it!".  Best of all, she doesn't want to see me again until November, after delivery.  Her confidence gives me confidence.  I also asked her about the insulin I am taking for the gestational diabetes (more on that in a minute) and she said from the cancer perspective, it is a good thing.  So that was a relief!  I will still see my breast surgeon next month for a follow up, but I think after this I will be able to get back on track with my twice yearly check ups!

Wednesday I was at my endocrinologists office for my regular check up.  I am supposed to see them every two weeks to check in regarding my blood sugar numbers.  Now that I have things under control I'm hoping to push it to every three or four weeks providing that things remain the same.  With my first pregnancy I was under the Kaiser model which had me call in my numbers weekly, and I never once actually saw an endocrinologist.  It is a little strange for me to have to actually see a doctor for such a simple purpose as long as things are going, though I do appreciate the ability to have conversations that are a little more in depth than simply reporting my numbers.  Anyhow things are looking good on that end.  I've mostly had great numbers and haven't had to change a whole lot in my diet to get them.  I was put on long acting insulin (slow released over 24 hours) because my fasting numbers were consistently above where they want them.  They want me under 95 and I was between 101 and 95 each morning.  It is a very small amount that I am taking though (10 ius) and I am hoping it will be sufficient as the pregnancy goes on.  Typically you see a hormone spike happen around 24 weeks so if anything changes that will likely be when it happens.  Until then, I will enjoy being easily diet controlled with my little shot each night.

Thursday I ended the week with my monthly prenatal appointment.  I thought I was seeing my regular OB but actually ended up meeting the doctor whose practice it is (my OB is the junior associate in the office).  So I have now met all three "baby catchers" in the office.  The good news is I love all three of them!  No matter who delivers my baby I will be lucky to have them.  I also had the opportunity to chat with her about their policy regarding when they will deliver me.  You may recall from my first pregnancy that it is standard of care to not let women with GD go past their due dates.  There is a laundry list of reasons this is the case, but I have no issue with this.  Unfortunately with Bella I had the added factor that my blood pressure was borderline high towards the end, and as a result they didn't want me going past 39 weeks.  So I was induced at 39 weeks and 1 day.  I know my body was not ready.  It worked out for the best, but it was a long and frustrating process.  Mentally I am much more prepared for anything this time.  My gut tells me this baby will likely come before its due date and I have nothing to worry about.  But if that isn't the case I am totally ready to handle the challenge of induction this time.  The doctor confirmed that they won't let me go past my due date, but her attitude about the induction is very different.  I shared the highlights (??) of my birth story with Bella and she was shocked at some of the decisions they made with me.  I feel confident that many of the less than ideal moments will not happen this time around, not only because my attitude is different, but also because of how my doctors will handle me.

So it was a week full of doctors but all pretty much good news!  I think my next medical update will be our anatomy scan ultrasound!  Hooray for that!  Phew- was that enough info in one post??? =)

It's a boy!!!

I know, this is so crazy overdue but it has been nuts these past couple of weeks!  I've mentioned that I am performing in this year's mountain play and we open this weekend!  We've been in crunch time with rehearsals (mostly up on mount tam) and on top of that, I've had appointments up the wazoo!  So I am backtracking quite a bit to catch you all up on the last few weeks.  First things first, we found out we are having a boy!  This post is all about that, and how we shared the news!

At our last ultrasound (the NT scan) they scheduled our anatomy scan, which is usually when you find out the sex of the baby.  Well for some reason (actually, it was because the ultrasound doctor- not tech, doctor- determined since I am "big"- aka fat- ahem, yeah), they wanted to push the date as close to 20 weeks as possible.  That meant we weren't going to have the ultrasound until May 29th!  I told Nick that and he was none too happy with that idea.  So for his birthday I scheduled an elective 3D ultrasound in St Helena where we would not only get some fun pictures of our little one, but also find out the sex.

Nick had the day off of work for his birthday so we cruised up to wine country for our ultrasound!  The tech was wonderful and we plan to go back when we are about 29/30 weeks for another photo shoot.  Little man was very cooperative giving us some clear shots so that there was no question- none of that "look at me" sort of business, but just not hiding either.  You may remember from my anatomy scan with Bella that she was curled up in a ball forcing us to have a second scan and no reveal!  So here is our sweet boy.

After our ultrasound we wound our way back through wine country, enjoying lunch at V. Satui (delicious!) and hitting up a couple of wineries for tastings.  I should clarify, Nick was tasting, not me. =)  It was still a beautiful day in wine country.

Once we were sure we had a confirmed sex, we invited our local family and friends for a little gender reveal dinner.  Since I didn't really get to reveal the pregnancy in a festive way, I wanted to do something fun for the sex.  We had everyone pick a team and wear a lei with that color (pink or blue).  We made everyone "suffer" through dinner without knowing the answer (though plied them with beer and margaritas, since it was cinco de mayo after all) and finally brought out the cake!

I baked a cake and dyed the batter blue.  Then I covered it up thoroughly so no one could tell if it was pink or blue until we cut it open!

Ta da!  The vote was split pretty much 50/50 regarding if it was a boy or a girl so it was really fun to finally get to reveal the answer.

We are very pleased of course to have both a boy and a girl.  It would have been awesome either way but I think most people want to experience parenting both a boy and a girl and we get the pleasure of doing so!  Now the challenge is picking out the name!  If it had been a girl we would have been all set, but boys names are very challenging!  We have a few contenders but it is looking like this may be a game time decision!  So no promises on name reveals until little man joins us.  I am open to suggestions though!  Share your best boys names with me!

Pregnancy Questionnaire- 16 weeks

I know I am SO late in posting this, but life is crazy.  I will post another post filling you in on the rest of our lives (3 doctors appointments this week!), as well as a post on our gender reveal party and ultrasound, but for now, here is the quick update!

How far along? 16.5 Weeks

How big is baby? 5 inches, 5 oz As big as a turnip!  Or a better frame of reference, the baby would fit right into one of my hands.  Sweetness.

Total weight gain/loss: Still down.  Still not tracking this. =)

Maternity clothes? Nearly exclusively. 

Sleep: Sleeping fine as far as pregnancy goes, though I am about a week out from no longer being able to lay on my stomach.  As it is I have to angle myself slightly to avoid too much pressure on my lower stomach.

Best moment this week: Finding out the gender!  (more on this later)

Movement: Interestingly enough it has sort of calmed down.  I thought I would be feeling a ton of movement by now since it started so early, but now when I feel things it is usually big rolls, or the occasional kick to the cervix.  No taps yet.

Food cravings: No cravings.  Still wanting to eat more often than "normal" but the ravenous hunger has subsided.

Food Aversions: No aversions though I am still very sensitive to smells in foods (like onions which normally bug me, make me nauseous now).

Gender: It's a boy!!!!  Again, more on that later.

Labor Signs: I actually saw a contraction during our gender ultrasound last week- it was crazy.  And will be talking to my OB today because I've been having some cramping which makes me nervous.  I do not need to be placed on bed rest for this pregnancy!

Pregnancy Symptoms:  Round ligament pain, almost can't lay on my stomach, extra tired, and just feeling more pregnant each and every day.

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Not much.  Just energy I guess.

What I am looking forward to: Wrapping my brain around this whole having a boy business!

Upcoming appointments/events:  The anatomy scan is May 29th

Weekly Wisdom: Listen to your gut- I knew I was having a boy but didn't trust it!

Milestones: Finding out the sex

Bump Picture: 16.5 weeks!

A little tease

Today we found out the sex of the baby. Nick didn't want to wait another month to find out at the anatomy scan so we booked a gender determination scan through a 3d ultrasound business. I thought it would be a fun way to spend nicks birthday. We went, we saw, we know!

But I'm not telling! Not yet anyhow. We wanted to reveal the sex in a festive way since the pregnancy took us by such surprise that we didn't reveal that in a fun way.

Don't worry- I'm not torturing you forever. I plan to reveal sometime next week after we have a small "reveal" party this weekend.

Until then- accepting bets! Are we team pink again? Or team blue?

Questionnaire Week 14

How far along? 14 Weeks

How big is baby? 4.5 inches, 2-3 oz As big as a Navel Orange!

Total weight gain/loss: I keep being told at my doctors appointments that I've lost weight.  Gotta love that GD diet! =)

Maternity clothes? Although they are still too big it is pretty much exclusively what I'm wearing.

Sleep: Other than the horrible cough I've developed from the eight hundredth cold I had this week that's making it hard to fall asleep and waking me up in the morning... Sleep is still pretty good.  Though I am noticing that I will not be able to lay on my stomach much longer.

Best moment this week: Making the decision to transition Bella to a twin bed which opens up furniture options for baby #2!  This kid may get a fully furnished room prior to arrival yet!

Movement: Little bits here and there.  Still nothing major but enough to know the little bugger is in there!

Food cravings: No cravings, but I am starving nearly all the time.  I am ready to set an alarm once an hour just to make sure that I eat!

Food Aversions: No aversions.  The nausea seems to be back a little but I'm hoping it is just other circumstances.

Gender: No idea still.  Considering an appointment to find out sooner, but the anatomy scan is scheduled for May 29th!

Labor Signs: none

Pregnancy Symptoms:  Exhaustion, occasional nausea, easily overheated, and definitely having strains in my uterus when I cough/sneeze/etc.

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: This week I would have been very happy to indulge in a frosty margarita or beer.  C'est la vie!

What I am looking forward to: Just each day as it goes along!

Upcoming appointments/events:  Next prenatal is May 10th and the anatomy scan is May 29th

Weekly Wisdom: Give yourself a little credit.  I spent a week stressed out over my glucose numbers and it turned out my test strips were bad!

Milestones: NT Scan and 1st trimester bloodwork are done- everything looks great and super low risk for abnormalities.  Further proof that cancer can't touch my future. =)

Bump Picture: Next post I believe is my next photo shoot. ;)

Seeking balance

As my pregnancy continues I keep working towards finding balance. This is true in many ways but particularly this week I am challenged with health as I view it, and health as my doctor views it.

As you know I've been diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes. I struggled immensely in the beginning trying to understand how my blood sugar works and why I would get crazy numbers in such unexpected ways. I know that the diet helped immediately because I went from feeling horrible all the time with very serious food aversions, to feeling nearly human again pretty quickly. Now I can eat just about anything and my energy is significantly improved.

The second series of challenges came when I was following the diet to the best of my understanding, eating 3 meals and 3 snacks each day, watching my carb intake, and reducing carbs if my numbers came back too high. I avoided all sugar and was eating high fiber and whole grains. My numbers were completely erratic still. I was put on oral medication at bedtime because my fasting numbers were consistently high. My fasting numbers improved immediately but I still struggled some with mealtime results. I even began having random anxiety attacks (twice in the middle of the night with no apparent cause).

I decided that I was carb starving myself (potatoes not Prozac!) and needed to figure some things out. I began eating more carbs again, figuring if I eat well and still get bad numbers, perhaps my body just cannot regulate itself and the doctors would help me. Well once this decision was made, my numbers balanced out. For the last several weeks I have had almost no inexplicably high numbers. I've seen consistency regardless of what I eat, and the few high numbers I've had were very easy to explain (like not eating lunch until 3pm after a high stress morning!).

Sounds like I'm doing fantastic now right? Well, sort of. The last week or so my weight gain has spiked. I went from 10 lbs under my pre-pregnancy weight to at pre-pregnancy weight in about 3 weeks. Could just be baby and appropriate growth, but my diet has left me feeling guilty.

The foods that give me consistently good numbers are things like hamburgers, philly cheesesteak sandwiches, and ice cream for my bedtime snack. In no world that I have ever lived are these things on a "healthy" diet. I also eat a lot of salad, but it still doesn't feel truly healthy.

So now I am faced with the challenge of trying to get my diet back to what I believe to be healthy (fruit, veggies, protein- limited sweets and treats and simple carbs!) without sacrificing my good glucose numbers. If I am eating well, I don't mind gaining weight because I will be confident that it is for the right reasons. If I continue eating these high fat, questionable foods and gain weight, I am going to be worried and stressed for the rest of my pregnancy that I am setting myself up for post pregnancy disaster.

The good news is that I believe I can do it, and better understand my body now and how it is processing food in general. I also am done with the major projects at home that have destroyed my energy (like painting the nursery) and can possibly up my time in the pool each week. I am quite certain that the exercise is helping me.

So wish me luck and seek balance for yourself. It's one of the best things we can do for ourselves after all!

Weekly Update

I know I'm a day late... Oh well! ;)

How far along? 26 Weeks

How big is baby? 15 inches Head to Toe (we've changed measuring tactics this week), and 2.2 lbs. About the size of a cucumber.

Total weight gain/loss: Not sure- haven't weighed myself, but either still down a couple of pounds or about back to pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity clothes? Exclusively (well except for dresses).

Sleep: missing it greatly.

Best moment this week: Finishing painting the nursery!

Movement: Consistent and strong. The remote definitely bounces now when it's on my belly!

Food cravings: none

Food Aversions: nothing very unusual

Gender: All girl!

Labor Signs: only getting bigger every day!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Sleep! (still)

What I am looking forward to: getting the carpet and furniture in the nursery so I can begin to decorate!

Weekly Wisdom: Numbers on a meter are not the only signs of health. =)

Milestones: Hiccups!

Bump Picture: I realize I keep failing this miserably... I'll try to get one tonight again!

Hiccups!

I forgot to mention in my earlier post (in my haste to post before my day got away from me) that I think we had the hiccups for the first time this morning! Or at least the first time I felt them.

Isabella occasionally moves into a position where she is right on my cervix. I don't know if it is her head or not, because I feel her hitting me on the cervix. This morning though, when I was preparing my breakfast, I thought she was hitting me in the cervix again, but then I realized that this wasn't as hard, and it was about 10 times in a row at regular intervals. Pretty sure that was my baby girl having the hiccups right on my cervix!

The great news is that means she is practicing breathing. We want those lungs nice and strong! Now if she would just not sit right on my cervix.... =)

Bedding!

So as my dear friend Courtney pointed out, I have been lazy with the pictures. I promise (yet again) to get a bump picture for tomorrow's weekly update. Also Nursery pictures can be expected soon- but not yet! I finished painting yesterday (with much thanks to Nick and Lorraine who I couldn't have finished without), but it is just an empty room right now. So once we hang the light and get the furniture, I will post a preview photo.

Until then- I received our bedding! Here are some pictures!

Comforter (sorry it is blurry!)

Bumper!

Wall Hangings!

Amazing the difference

It is truly amazing the difference than one night of good sleep can make for me. This is generally true anyhow but even more so when pregnant. Of course being pregnant I'm tired most of the time, or at best not tired, but easily made that way. My recovery time from activity is terrible and my endurance even worse.

In a perfect world, I would be allowed to sleep for as long as necessary until I feel rested. Sadly this would make it nearly impossible to hold down a job or do anything semi-functional in my life.

Anyhow last night, by some miracle, I managed a good night of sleep. It was a standard length and I still had to wake up to my alarm clock, but by some miraculous chance, I woke up feeling somewhat rested! As a result, my blood sugar numbers for both fasting and breakfast were decent, and I got to work, not only on time, but early! Amazing.

So for the next few months my goal is to try and figure out what will allow me to get a good night of sleep. Lord knows I'm in trouble once Isabella is here! =)

Weekly Update

I'm seeing a pattern here! Hopefully I'll have more interesting things to write about as the pregnancy progresses so it isn't just one post between weekly updates!

How far along? 25 Weeks

How big is baby? 9.2 inches crown to rump and about 2 pounds- apparently still the size of an eggplant.

Total weight gain/loss: Still down about 4 lbs from pre-pregnancy. This baby is clearly growing now!

Maternity clothes? Yes- I don't like to wear the few non maternity items that I can because now I just look HUGE in them! =)

Sleep: Not so much lately. Between sore hips and arms that fall asleep when sleeping on my side, sleeps been eluding me.

Best moment this week: watching my belly bounce due to her kicks!

Movement: Stronger and more frequent. I pretty consistently feel her after meals, in the morning and at night.

Food cravings: Still no food cravings.

Food Aversions: still hate onions and strong smells in general

Gender: All girl!

Labor Signs: still feeling possible Braxton Hicks contractions on occasion, but nothing really.

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Sleep! (still)

What I am looking forward to: Really being able to see her from the outside. As "alien" as it is, it made me smile last night.

Weekly Wisdom: pregnancy is a crazy crazy thing

Milestones: Seeing movement on the outside!

Bump Picture: I promise to post one when I take it tonight at home.

Oh Baby!

Our little girl is becoming increasingly active and strong these days. I feel her most often in the morning when it is about that time to wake up (usually right when I'm getting hungry) and then after meals. It is still somewhat sporadic (Nick tells me regularly that I 'never' tell him when she is moving) so not easy to have someone feel her from the outside. The other night though she kicked me hard enough that my whole belly bounced. Guess that means I should prepare myself for some "alien" moments when I can see her moving around.

Not much else new to report. The nursery is nearly finished with painting. I have some trim to finish but the walls and ceiling are done. We are still waiting for the furniture to be delivered, but it is at the store ready to come here. Then hopefully in the next month we can get the carpet put in and actually have it decorated! My goal is to have the room set up by mid May when my shower for friends will be. Since the shower will be at my house it will be fun to be able to show the room off. I'll also be sure to post a picture once there is something to take a picture of!

Other than that, I'm just cruising right along! I'm wishing for a nice vacation but doing well other than that! =)

Weekly Update

Yes I realize I'm a day late but c'est la vie. =) No picture either... That will just have to wait till next week!

How far along? 24 weeks (That's six months!)

How big is baby? 9 inches crown to rump and about 1 3/4 pounds- the size of an eggplant.

Total weight gain/loss: I haven't weighed myself recently- tell you next week!

Maternity clothes? Yep

Sleep: Not so much lately. Between sore hips and arms that fall asleep when sleeping on my side, sleeps been eluding me.

Best moment this week: Nearly finishing the paint in the nursery!

Movement: Very regular, though mostly internal still. Nick gets frustrated that he never feels her but it's so sporadic!

Food cravings: no cravings per se.

Food Aversions: Doing well but I'm realizing I have a true hatred of onions

Gender: All girl!

Labor Signs: Starting to wonder if I'm feeling Braxton Hicks contractions. Not sure yet, but I think perhaps!

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Sleep!

What I am looking forward to: Finishing the nursery and getting some decorating started!

Weekly Wisdom: listen to your body!

Milestones: Painting the nursery!

Busy week!

I guess I've been busy since it's been nearly an entire week since my last post! Well Wednesday I had my monthly prenatal check up. Things are looking good. They measured my fundal height (the size of my belly) and despite my extra padding I am perfectly on target. They expect 1 cm per week and I was 23 cm for 23 weeks! Baby's heart was strong and as usual she tried to swim away from the machine poking at her.

Other than that I confirmed that I will begin "non-stress tests" once a week at 32 weeks to ensure that there is no placenta breakdown (one of the worries with GD). Then at 36 weeks it will become twice a week! Plus another ultrasound at 36 weeks to make sure she isn't getting too big. They worry about babies that are too big without full lung development.

I will also see an MD for my next monthly check up instead of my normal OB. I asked to see one who is open and supportive of natural and alternative medicine. Hopefully this will help me get through the rest of my pregnancy without much more medical intervention. I want just enough to ensure that me and baby Isabella are okay, but not so much that it causes more problems. Always a fine balance to be had.

In the meantime I am working with an acupuncturist and going to water aerobics to keep healthy. So far so good!

I also painted the nursery this weekend! The walls are latte colored (or maybe coffee with cream). It is a really rich and beautiful brown, but not too dark. Then the doors, ceiling and trim are white. It feels really nice. I plan on using bright pink (sort of fuschia), lime green and turquoise as accent colors in the decorating process. I'm excited! I think it will come out really nice. I'll post pictures as I accomplish some of my decorating efforts.

Tomorrow I'll do the weekly check in and will post another bump picture. I think every other week at this point is more than enough! =)

Weekly Update!

How far along? 23 weeks

How big is baby? still about 8.5 inches crown to rump (about the length of an ear of corn), and a pound and a half!!!

Total weight gain/loss: Still down between 4-8 pounds. Not sure what is water weight these days and what is actual growth!

Maternity clothes? Almost exclusively. I do still have those few non maternity pants that I can wear but it is getting less comfortable.

Sleep: Hit or miss! I'm feeling those ligaments stretching more and more so if I'm sore there isn't much sleep to be had.

Best moment this week: Seeing her on the 3D ultrasound!

Movement: Pretty regularly though still not really from the outside. She sits low so most of the movement I feel is on my cervix or bladder with only some on the inside of my belly.

Food cravings: Still loving hot sauce, but I think I am officially addicted to strawberries! I wouldn't call it a craving but if I walk by them in the store I cannot resist. The smell, the taste! Oh they are just SOOOO good!

Food Aversions: Nothing extreme these days. It may be time to try a steak again.

Gender: Without question a girl!

Labor Signs: None.

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: Not eating eggs for breakfast!

What I am looking forward to: Getting the nursery painted and set up!

Weekly Wisdom: Don't over do it! Exercise is good, but a sore mama to be is not!

Milestones: Getting the 3D ultrasound was sort of a milestone. Fun to see her live and in action!

3D ultrasound

So we had our 3D/4D ultrasound today. It was a fun experience. The number one reason that we did an elective ultrasound was because I wanted (needed) confirmation of the gender. The way the tech told us at our anatomy scan (this would be the SECOND scan we went to!) was so odd, that I just was terrified that we would plan for a girl and then have a baby pop out with little boy parts!

So in my investigation for elective ultrasound locations I found this place up in Santa Rosa. It seemed good and best of all their prices were better than some others I had seen, AND they had 15% off right now. So we paid for a short 3D what we would have paid for just the gender somewhere else.

We ended up with nearly 60 photos of our little girl after only about 10 minutes of watching her live. It is truly an amazing experience to see this little baby inside you moving around. I know she is active but to see it in action will never cease to amaze me.

My favorite part I think was actually seeing the umbilical cord. I know that is a weird thing to say, but it is the first time I'd seen it in any of our scans. She had it up by her hands so you know she's grabbing on to it from time to time.

She was quite the coy baby today. Although we saw everything we'd hoped to see (profile, facing forward, hands, feet and most importantly those little girl parts!), she kept trying to move away from the "camera". She moved herself into the farthest corner she could so the tech had the wand right up against my pelvic bone just to get the shot. I think she just doesn't like things poking at her! I was thinking the same thing when she kicked Nick in the head the other night. He had the weight of his head on my belly (so on her) and I think she kicked him so he would move! =)

Well enough talk, I know you really just want to see the picture. So here is my favorite shot of the day.