Ohhhhh, We're Halfway There!

Ohhhh, Livin' on a prayer! Take my hand and we'll make it I swear!

(sorry couldn't resist a little Bon Jovi shoutout)

Yes, this pregnancy has made it halfway! 20 weeks last Friday! Getting to this point, coupled with finding out that the baby is a girl, has made it all feel so real! We are actually going to have this baby! After so many months of heartache, I get overwhelmed at times just thinking about how we are finally going to get what we have wished for. We are actually going to be parents! We get to start our family here in our cute little house! It's just unbelievable at times.

We are off to Buenos Aires on Wednesday for a week with family. I can't wait to see my grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins and family friends. This is a truly special time that I get to share with all of them. I am a little nervous about the 10-hour flight, but will be following all the doctor's advice: wear my oh-so-attractive support stockings to prevent blood clots, drink lots of water, get up and move around, do stretches, eat snacks, and try to relax! And oh yeah, try to milk the fact that I am pregnant for all that it's worth :)

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

On Wednesday we went in for an ultrasound and doctor's appointment. We knew that we were going to find out the gender of our baby, and I was like a kid on Christmas! I barely slept the night before. Most friends were guessing boy, a poll of my students showed that more of them were predicting boy than girl, and since I have been calling the baby Mike Jr. I decided to predict boy as well.

While we were sitting in the doctor's office waiting room, the song "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" came on the radio. I started singing along without realizing it, and then I turned to Mike and told him that song was a sign that we were about to find out we were having a girl. Fast forward 10 minutes, and there we were with the ultrasound tech showing us the "girl parts"! The ultrasound itself was completely surreal. We got to see lots of body parts, including all 4 chambers of her heart beating, her entire spine, and several cute profiles. She was squirming around in there too!

Here is her cute little head and body:

This is one of her very long legs! I hope she gets Daddy's height and isn't doomed to the petites section like me!
OK, so apparently the white spots are the "girl parts".
One last parting shot of her head:

We won't get to see her again until 36 weeks. Boo. But I'll keep you updated on how this little girl is causing me to change as she grows in there!

19 week pics

It's been a busy time around here, and I never got around to posting last week's belly pix. These are from Friday Mar. 12 when I was 19 weeks pregnant.

check out my new haircut! chopped about 4 inches off that day.

17 week pics

i am trying to wear the same outfit and do the same pose so i can eventually see some growth!


i think that i look rounder in regular clothes though, so i switched outfits for ya!
see, now the bump is a little more evident!
and this is what i *hope* that i am actually looking like!

i know, i am a neurotic wierdo. but it's so fun! i know some women hate being pregnant but i love it so far! you experienced women can make me eat my words when i am 36 weeks in July heat and humidity. :) but for now, i have no complaints! 16 days until we find out the gender...

Great appointment!

OB appointment went well today. My blood pressure was normal, weight gain normal, no sugar or protein in my urine, and strong heartbeat in the 150s! Our next appointment is on March 17 and we will get the big ultrasound that reveals the gender!!

Since my practice has 5 doctors and any one of them could be on call when i go into labor, they like for you to see a different one each time you come in so that you don't have a stranger delivering your baby. I really liked the doctor we had today! She had a great attitude and was very patient and informative. So far other than my own OB, she is the one i would want to have there when Baby Lowe is born.

Today was also momentous in that i finally shared the news with my team at school. It was very sweet to see how excited they all were!

That's all for now, kids. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Here is a valentine for all you followers of my blog...belly pics! These were taken on Friday, when i was exactly 15 weeks


.

I'm a little nervous about putting my face on here but i guess it was going to happen eventually! This is me wearing my Valentines tshirt and my new maternity jeans! They are oh-so-comfortable but i am already sick of having to hike them up all the time. Why can't they just stay up without me constantly tugging at them?? Oh well, if that is my biggest complaint then i guess i am in good shape.

Next up: OB appointment on Wednesday afternoon!

Welcome to the 2nd trimester!

Snow, snow, snow! 20+ inches on the ground from the weekend storm, and another 10-20 forecast for tomorrow! Truly like nothing i've ever seen.

Sorry for my absence. I've heard from a few friends that they worry when I don't at least post to say that everything is fine, so I will try to get on here a bit more regularly.

So as you can see from the title of this post, I'm now officially in the 2nd trimester! Last Friday was the end of the 13th week/beginning of week 14. Happy to say that the nausea is mostly gone! I still feel very tired at times but I think that will be the case for most of pregnancy. The belly is growing, though for now I just look fat and feel bloated. I want my cute little belly bump! Pants are no longer comfortable, so when I am home I wear pj pants and when I am out I use this fun contraption called a belly band which holds up my pants even though they are unbuttoned underneath the band. Tomorrow I am going shopping with my mom for maternity clothes! I love shopping in general, and this type of shopping is particularly fun (i hope)!

My friend's sister has a fetal doppler that she is very kindly letting me borrow! We used it for the first time this morning and heard the baby's heart beating. This is very reassuring to me since it's been 3 weeks since my last appointment! My next appointment is Feb. 17 and i can't wait!

The combination of getting to the 2nd trimester, hearing the heartbeat, and seeing the expanding belly have inspired enough confidence in me to start thinking about baby gear and registry! Holy moly is this overwhelming! I went to Buy Buy Baby today to get out of the house and left feeling very dazed. I have a lot to learn! So I am going to take this one step at a time, concentrate on learning about one item and then move on to the next. PLEASE comment and give me advice/share experience if you are so inclined!

First up: cribs.

At BBB they had these convertible cribs that can turn into a toddler bed and then a regular bed. Is this worth it? Also, what about right after baby is born? Is it worth it to get a bassinet or moses basket? Where did you order your crib and what brand? Anything in particular to look out for?

a good day!

It is 6:05 pm. Here is what is usually happening with me at this time: I am so exhausted I am ready to retire for the night, I am so nauseous that nothing sounds good for dinner, I am devoid of all motivation to do anything except lay on the couch. But not today! Today I am upright, entertaining dinner options and just now starting to feel tired from my day. Dare I say I am turning a corner? I even went to the grocery store after school! (sidenote: do not go to Trader Joe's on the first day you are feeling well. i bought way too many unneeded items! but everything just sounded so darn good i couldn't resist...)

Cravings are CRAZY!

Here is the latest photo of Baby Lowe! S/he is 11 weeks 3 days in this picture. Yesterday we had an NT scan, where basically they are taking measurements of the baby's neck to see if it appears to be at risk for Down's syndrome. Baby checked out perfectly! On the left you can see his little face and ear. In the middle those little white spots are fingertips, and on the right that white blob is his foot hanging out up in the air. What a cutie!

Yes, i am referring to the baby as a boy. With zero evidence, just a hunch. We won't find out that information for another 2 months. My latest nickname for him is Mike Jr. That is definitely NOT going to be the name we go with, just something that makes me laugh!

As i progress through pregnancy, it's been funny to me the different foods I've been craving. At first it was all dairy: cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese. Then the thought of dairy made me want to yak, but anything citrus was hitting the spot. Yesterday I started craving sweets like crazy. As a chocolate lover, this is not really new, but the difference being all i want is ooey, gooey caramely stuff. So bizarre.

Heartbeat, sweet heartbeat!

This morning we had an appointment at the OB and we were able to hear the baby's heart beating! We had previously SEEN the heart beating on ultrasound, but today they used a Doppler machine so that we could HEAR it! It took a little bit to find, which definitely frightened me a little, but it turns out that the nurse needed to put the instrument a little lower on my belly and then it came up right away. It was a beautiful sound! I had asked M to record video on his phone so we could play it back...but we were a little overwhelmed and it never happened. Also, the nurse didn't tell me what the heartrate was and I didn't think to ask. I was just on cloud nine breathing a huge sigh of relief.

I had made a promise to myself that if everything went well today I would do my best to start believing in this little guy and stop assuming that something is going to go wrong to take it all away from us. So today is the first day of my new optimistic attitude. Baby Lowe is not going anywhere! This is the one that was meant to be. In August I will be holding this baby in my arms, not just in my heart.