Oh What a Feeling!

A few weeks ago at my doctor's appointment, my doctor said to expect to feel fluttering from our little critter soon. Since that day, and even before, I have been anxiously awaiting those little movements. I finally felt them on Tuesday, August 10th during my 17th week of pregnancy. I had heard baby movements would feel like butterflies on your skin or eyelashes on the palm of your hand. To me, it feels like a tiny little bug crawling across my belly. It actually makes me want to scratch my tummy! It is simply incredible! I have felt Critter several times a day since Tuesday. Sometimes,.I even shake my belly to see if I can spark some response! Being able to feel that little baby makes me even more anxious to find out if those movements are coming from a little boy or a little girl. We find out on Aug. 17th and I will be sure to post the big news along with a recent belly pic!

Second Trimester

 We are in the second trimester and I am glad! I'm certainly not complaining about pregnancy, but the first trimester was not enjoyable at all. I was tired/ crabby all the time, ate like a horse, and just in general didn't feel like myself. As of today, we are 15 weeks pregnant. Although we officially started the second trimester last week, I'm a little behind on my blogging. Here are some things that have been going on recently:
1) I have discovered that the heat makes me really uncomfortable (and makes my gagging worse). How did I find this out? I went to a Cardinals game with my husband in 92 degree weather. Even though I drank lots of water, I still came home feeling sick (I'm sure the crowded Metrolink didn't help). Therefore, I will be spending a majority of my remaining summer days indoors.
2) I have gotten lots of things for Critter. My sister in law has gone out and gotten us lots of cute outfits I can't wait to put on Critter when he or she arrives. In addition, my aunt has been cleaning out the yard sales on Critter's behalf. I truly don't mind second hand stuff and Critter has a whole box full. She also got us a great deal on a 3 piece travel system and saved us about $80!
 3) Almost none of my pre-pregnancy clothes fit! Typically, I would be upset about this, but I'm actually excited. I can't wait for the day when I am "showing" and everyone else (strangers included) will be able to share in our excitement more fully. As a result, I have been shopping for maternity clothes. Like I said, I don't mind second hand gently used things and I have been hitting the resale shops. I know I won't be wearing maternity clothes forever and I don't want to spend a fortune. Call it cheap, but I prefer thrifty. In the last few weeks, I have gotten 8 tops, 2 pairs of pants, and one complete outfit for $25.

We have another appointment on Tuesday. This one will not include an ultrasound, but I'm still looking forward to it. I'm excited to hopefully be able to hear Critter's heartbeat for the first time. I'm not expecting any problems, but keep your fingers crossed for a growing, healthy  Critter (and Mommy too)!

Second Ultrasound

We went for our second ultrasound on July 1st. I had been telling Brandon for weeks that I felt as though something may be wrong with "Critter". At the beginning of my pregnancy, I "felt" pregnant. I could tell my body was going through some major changes. I was tired all the time and woke up every day with an upset stomach. As time went on, those symptoms had started to fade (as they are supposed to) but that made me very nervous. When we went into the room for the ultrasound and the tech turned on the machine, I was immediately reassured. I knew what to look for this time and spotted our critter right away. So much has changed since the last ultrasound!! We could identify arms and legs. The coolest part was seeing "Critter" move. It's weird to be able to see him/her move when I cannot feel the movements!

Critter is growing just right and is about the size of a fresh plum right now. We saw a different doctor in the group this time, and I really liked him alot. He gave us lots of encouragement that things are going well. My next appointment is at the end of the month to check heart rate and such, but I will not have another ultrasound until August 17th. That's the day we will find out if we have a girl or a boy critter!

Cry Baby

Although Brandon says I'm more hormonal than my typical self, I haven't noticed it...not until Tuesday. Brandon has been pretty supportive and has even been making my breakfasts and lunches on his days off. On Tuesday, he asked me what I wanted for lunch and I honestly didn't know. He asked more than once and I started crying because I thought he was yelling at me! I'm not talking one glistening tear, I'm talking full blown hysterical sobbing! He even asked if I wanted to go out to lunch. My response was, "No! I'm being crazy and crazy people shouldn't be allowed to leave their houses!" The part that surprises me the most is I knew the whole time I was crying that it was completely nuts and I just couldn't stop. If I'm acting like this in week 10 hold on to your hats for week 40!

Baby Loves Brownies!

So my cousin's three year old son is convinced that this baby will be a boy. In fact, Brandon has told him to refer to "Critter" as Charlie( as this is the chosen name for a boy). We were at my cousin's house today when her little boy climbs into my lap and starts feeding me pieces from his brownie. He then pats my belly and says, "Charlie, do you love these brownies?" Even after I said the baby was all filled up, he kept giving them to me saying, "Charlie likes it!" It was super cute! However, I wonder how confused the boy will be if our critter turns out to be a girl! 

Maternity Clothes

I know that it is a few weeks too early to be wearing maternity clothes. However, my cousin gave me some hand-me-downs and I decided to try them out the other day. I have just one thing to say. How did I live my entire life without maternity pants?? Those things are incredible!! No snaps, buttons, zippers, or ties digging in to my ever expanding belly. I was in heaven!!! I'm probably going to go to some consignment shops in the area next week to try to find some winter wear. I'm most concerned about that as I will need some business casual attire for the school year. I got plenty of great suggestions on the best places to shop from my Facebook friends. In addition to cute outfits for myself, baby has gotten some pretty awesome outfits as well. I'll be sure to post pics later!

The Gender Debate

In addition to "How far along are you?" The two main questions I get are "Are you going to find out what it is?" and "Do you have names picked out?" The answer to both is yes. As for the names, it's a little too early to post those as the girl name changes on occasion. As soon as we are able, which I think is about 16 weeks, we will find out the gender. Right now that is the main topic of discussion at our house. Brandon thinks it's a boy and I say it's a girl. We actually have a $50 bet on the gender outcome. Brandon's evidence for a boy is the morning sickness which we have heard is more common when pregnant with a boy. In addition, the heart rate at the doctor's office was 118 a typically male heart rate. My evidence for a girl is based on the information I got from the Chinese Gender Calendar. Plus, I just have a feeling that this will be a little girl. It doesn't matter either way, we both want a healthy baby. Perhaps I should set up a poll. What do you think?