Slip-On Jeans

Ladies and Gentlemen, we have hit 23 weeks in our pregnancy and we have officially graduated to maternity clothes!  Yes, that's right.  The bump is just getting too big for my pre-pregnancy clothing, and today my Mom and I headed to a maternity store and bought some goods.  Not only will Baby & I be stylin', but we will also fit into our clothing.  And, we will have something to wear for the next +/- 3.5 months - that is definitely a plus!

Fortunately, the maternity store had a prosthetic foam bump that was there to project your size in the next three months so you could try clothing on and have confidence that it should fit you for the next few months.  We had fun with that bump!  I struggled a bit getting my clothes on and off toward the end and we were cracking up!  If I'm struggling with a foam bump at 5.5 months, I don't know what I'm going to do with a real bump at 8.5 months!

Another thing that was quite a surprise to me was the lack of real buttons.  For those of you that are unfamiliar with maternity clothing, you don't button and unzip your maternity jeans - you slip them on!  I was confused at first, wondering how I was going to unbutton the jeans and keep that expandable cloth belly part on.  Thank goodness my Mom was there to show me the ropes!  Once I actually figured out the method to the madness, I got a taste of true maternity clothing!  And those clothes are so comfy!

I suppose our bump just needed a little R&R from the beach too because we are well on our way with our growing belly!  I also suppose I can stop excusing the lack of our bump being due to my incredibly strong abdominal wall... (Like that was really the case before...)

For your viewing pleasure, a glimpse at our projected bump in three months:

This should be sometime around the
beginning of October!

Sun, Sand, and Surf

And putt putt...and ice cream...and boogie boards...and sunblock...should I keep going!?

Brian and I whisked all 2.5 of us away, threw Jack in the car, and headed out of town for a little Outer Banks, North Carolina beach vacation.  And it was just what the doctor ordered!

We stayed in Nags Head.  The beach cottage that we rented was small, but quaint, and the access to the beach could not be beat!  The sun shone down on us each day we were there and we left with sunkissed skin.  (My "tan" will most likely fade in t-minus 2 days since we are back in landlocked Ohio, but it was nice to know that my skin has still got it!)

This was Jack's very first visit to the beach and we were so happy that we got to bring our furry friend along!  It was so much fun to see him romp around in the waves, play ball, and enjoy the sunshine as much as we did!

I will spare you from my typical wordy post-vacation posts and supply you with an album full of photos and viddies.  Mind you, as I mentioned, this was Jack's first beach vacation, so there are a lot of pics (and viddeos) of our puppy dog!

North Carolina, we miss you already.

Click here for the full beach vacation album!

Got Spinach?

We received the official word today from the doc with the results of my blood test.  Fortunately, my thyroid tested out normal; however, it turns out that I have officially crossed the border line and am now on the anemic side with my iron levels.  My iron has always been slightly on the low side, but low has always been my normal.  Being slightly lower than normal with my iron level could be a cause of my tiredness and exhaustion that I am still experiencing.  At this point, there is nothing to worry about.  I can either add more iron into my diet or take another supplement - that is, in addition to the prenatal vitamin.

SO, not to worry!  Just bring on the spinach!

Halfway Home

Ladies and Gents, we are halfway through our pregnancy!  HALF WAY!  That is amazing!  We are only 20 (more or less) short weeks away from bringing our baby girl home, and that is simply unbelievable!  We are so looking forward to meeting our little bambino!  Here is our recap from the first 20 weeks:

Physically
1. Nausea - the nausea has subsided 100%.  That was pretty much resolved at the start of the second trimester, which we are very thankful for.

2. Tiredness - while the nausea did subside come trimester number two, the tiredness and exhaustion have made themselves quite comfy in our (read: Mommy and Baby's) world.  I cannot seem to get enough sleep.  Ever.  I'm working on that.  I'm hoping this is just preparation for what is to come.  I will just roll with the punches on this one.

3. Headaches - I still have the occasional headache.  I'm still not 100% sure what causes them, but they come and go as they please.  They have decreased in frequency, but they are still there.

4. Digestion - I've given up.  I honestly believe that I no longer have a GI tract.

5. Bladder Control - I still think it's crazy when I feel like I have to pee like a racehorse and I sit on the throne and only a little tinkle comes out.  All that feeling for just that little bit of relief?!  And so, this is just one more thing that I am getting used to.

6. Bump Status - we are still working steadily on this...stay tuned.

Cravings
You know, they say that every pregnancy is different.  In my pregnancy, I haven't had a ton of cravings.  These are the ones that I can remember over the past 20 weeks: a shirley temple (before we even knew we were pregnant), blueberries, and an egg and cheese biscuit - but only from Mickey D's!

I still love blueberries!  They taste amazing every time I have them!  As does grenadine, as you know, but I don't really want an egg and cheese biscuit anymore.  I must be over them!

Weight Loss/Gain
I have officially made it to the positive side of weight gain.  During the first trimester, I actually lost four pounds.  Then, I gained two of those pounds back.  That was one month ago.  I have since gained four more pounds - putting me two pounds over my normal weight, or having gained six L-Bs since we started moving up the scale instead of down.  My doctor says that everything is going well and she is not concerned with anything!  So, we are moving up, folks!

At our appointment today, our sweet girl's little heart was beating wonderfully at 140 bpm.  She has her moments where she is very active, but I haven't noticed a real schedule.  When I feel her moving during the day, I think, 'YES!  She is awake during the day!'  And then I snap back to reality and remind myself that everything is not always as it seems.  If our little bambino sleeps during the day and wants to play at night, we will deal with it.  Then again, if she so happens to sleep at night and play during the day - we won't be complaining!

While I was at the doc today, I did give some blood to test my thyroid and my iron levels.  Apparently both of these may affect my tiredness level, so we will have the results of those tests soon!

We just can't believe that we are at our halfway point!  It is so crazy!  Here's to the next 20 weeks!

Week 20 bumpity bump!

For your viewing reference, here is our bump one month ago at 16 weeks!

Slacker

I have been such a slacker at keeping up with our blog recently.  And I have no real excuse.  We've been chillaxin' to the maxin' so far this summer - hanging around the house, tending to our little garden, spending time with our growing bump, anticipating those little eyes that will soon be looking up to us, going to the dog park, enjoying the beautiful warm weather, planning our baby's room, planning our sunroom, planning our beach vacation, and trying to get enough sleep for all 2.5 of us.  (Yes, I am still tired, but I'm trying not to complain.  Sorry.)

We have made some progress on the paint selection for our sweet girl's room.  We've narrowed our search down to two colors:

Feather Gray and Mystic Fairy.

We both really like the Feather Gray color, but the Mystic Fairy looks AMAZING at night, so the verdict is still out on that one.

We will be sure to keep you posted - paint colors and all!  And we hope you all have been enjoying your summer so far!

And So It Begins...

While we were out shopping, Brian noticed a t-shirt that he said he had to get.

Said t-shirt.

At first, all I saw was red scarlet - thinking it would be another OSU tee.  And then he showed me the real reason he had to have it:

LOL!

And I couldn't stop laughing!

Yes, we bought it!

And, no, sweet girl, your Daddy is NOT kidding.