18w2d - Baby belly makes it hard to sleep

Ok, first things first. It's been requested that I add a belly shot. This was taken yesterday. I know you don't have anything to compare it to, but it's definitely starting to move up and fill out a bit. So, here it is! No hiding that bump now.

Last weekend we ventured into uncharted territory. We actually went into BRU. Heck, I was even there twice! Once with an experienced mom girlfriend and then back again the next day to show Mr a few of the things we looked at.

It's so fun to look at cribs and think about what baby's room might look like. And to look at strollers and think about how it's going to feel pushing baby around. At this point we still haven't made any purchases, but we're closer to a decision, at least on the crib.

Now, on to the title of this post. Last night was rough. I wasn't uncomfortable as far as aches or pains, but, for the first time, it certainly felt like the belly was getting in the way of finding a comfortable position. We went to bed around 11:30 and I had tiny cat naps until 3:30am when I finally got up and took a sleep-aid. I guess it finally kicked in and I slept until about 9:00am. Does this mean it's time to bring in the pillows?

Oh yeah, I think I felt my first "flutter", or whatever you wanna call them. So far just once, but it was definitely something that I hadn't felt before.

What's happening with baby: Week 18 - Sweet Potato

Your fetus has become amazingly mobile (at least compared to you), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. And, baby's finally big enough that you'll be able to feel those movements soon.

17w0d - Happy New Year!

So much for timely updates. I started this post on Thursday (on time) and never came back to it. I'll just keep it short, and pretend it was on time and edit the post stamp.

Happy New Year!
After an afternoon nap, I was good to go and managed to stay awake past midnight. Yippee!

New Year's Eve has always been kind of a big deal to us, as it's the anniversary of the beginning of our relationship. Hard to believe it's been 6 years already. Things sure have changed since our first New Year's Eve spent together.

My recent investment, Palmer's Cocoa Butter Massage Lotion. I'm doing two applications a day in hopes of minimizing stretchmarks to the belly. It's a great lotion that really stays with me all day.

Can I just say, I absolutely hate my Motherhood Secret Belly Fit jeans. The stretchy material just drives me nuts and itches like crazy. The lotion actually helps a little with that, but having an extra layer of material between my skin and that stretchy fabric is about all that really helps. I don't know how people can love these pants.

What's happening with baby: Week 17 - Onion


Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.

16w4d - Our little avacado

Oh, our baby is the size of an avacado. That makes me think of all the Mexican inspired meals we had along our journey. We even perfected a homemade guacamole. I thought for sure Mexican would be my food craving of choice, but I haven't really had much of a craving for anything let alone our favorite Mexican. I know, there's still time.

Now that Christmas is over, things should start to settle down around here a bit. Just a few more weeks and we'll hopefully be finding out whether baby is a he or a she. And then, there's that nursery to tackle! I'm surprised we haven't even looked at stuff for the baby yet. I guess that's just good self-control and maybe a little procrastination in clearing out the room. I already have a few ideas of what I like and how I want the room to look. The big factor will be if we are decorating in boy tones or girl tones. If it's a girl, I have a feeling it will be a VERY girly room.

What's happening with baby: Week 16 - Avacado

Watch what you say... tiny bones forming in baby's ears mean the little one can now pick up your voice. Eyebrows, lashes and hair are starting to fill in, and taste buds are forming. And, if you're interested, an ultrasound might be able to determine gender.

15w5d - Christmas week

Wow! Christmas is just about here and I'm almost to 16wks. This Christmas is so different from the last two years in so many ways. Instead of mourning a loss, we are celebrating the new life growing inside of me.

Today I had my 16wk appointment with my OB. It was just one of those quick appointments. I got to hear baby's heartbeat on the doppler. It's dropped a little, from 169 down to 158 bpm. According to their scale, with clothes on and what I gave them as my pre-pregnancy weight (which was actually pre-IVF weight) I have gained 6lbs. My doctor said that was perfect. Yeah! My next appointment will actually be my targeted level II ultrasound. I can't believe I'm only 4 weeks away from being half way through this pregnancy.

Besides a few episodes of RLP (round ligament pain), I continue to feel great every day. I really can't complain. I'm getting excited to start to feel baby move in the coming weeks.

It must be getting close to time to start buying stuff for baby and working on the nursery. (I can't wait!)

What's happening with baby: Week 15 - Naval Orange

Continuing the march towards normal proportions, baby's legs now outmeasure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably still can't feel the movements.

*I need to try to get these weekly updates posted closer to the beginning of the week, not the end of the week.*

14w5d - Exciting weekend

Another week down, and out to more friends.

Friday was a fun day. We went to the Science Museum of Minnesota to see the CSI exhibit. While we waited for our show time, we wandered through the Disease Detectives area. One of the experiment stations was an ECG display. It was the strangest thing to see, the machine was picking up baby's heartbeat along with mine. If I didn't know better, I'd think I had some major heart issue. So cool.

Saturday evening we went to our friends' White Elephant Party. It's been a few years since we've been able to go so it was great that our schedule was open and allowed us to make it this year. We had a good time telling some close friends that we're expecting. Once again, shock and excitement took over. Seeing reactions like this makes me feel so good about not telling anyone when we were trying. For all these years everyone just kept thinking we didn't want kids.

My next OB appointment is next week. 16 weeks. Can you believe it? Time sure is going fast. I continue to feel great every day which must be contributing to the time going so fast. I feel so sorry for the girls who are so sick throughout their pregnancies. Why can't everyone feel this good? I know I have a long way to go, but surviving the first trimester without an ounce of nausea or morning sickness sure was a blessing.

What's happening with baby: Week 14 - Lemon

Your adorable little fetus is busy with thumb sucking, toe wiggling, and (not so cute but equally amazing) making urine and breathing amniotic fluid as the liver, kidneys and spleen continue to develop. Lanugo (thin, downy hair) is growing all over the body for warmth.

13w - Someone's Excited!

It's official! Grandma got bit by the new grandbaby bug. I think it's safe to say she's anxious for the new little one. She hit the clearance rack at Kohl's and came bearing gifts. 16 maternity tops that should get me through a good majority of my pregnancy. There is a lot of short sleeve stuff, but if I toss on a sweater it should be about perfect through out the winter. She really scored and got all of this for about $100.

Week 13, Wow! that feels like such a milestone. The first trimester is almost over. I have my next OB appointment scheduled for the week of Christmas, and our Level II 'Big' u/s is already scheduled for January. Having been the one watching other people's pregnancies for so long, I never thought my own would be going by so fast.

What's happening with baby: Week 13 - Peach

Your fetus is forming teeth and vocal cords... savor this, their non-functional phase. Baby is approaching normal proportions, with a head now only one third the size of the body. Intestines are in the process of moving from the umbilical cord to baby's tummy. (Much more convenient.)

12w4d - Spilled the Beans

Finally, the cat's out of the bag. Our families are really excited and were certainly surprised by the news. I made a collage of the few photos we have of baby and gave each set of parents a copy.

We'll slowly now start telling the rest of our family and friends with most of them finding out through our Christmas card. For now, we have sworn our families to secrecy. It's been such a long journey that we really want to tell people ourselves. If we've been able to keep this secret for so long, it really shouldn't be that much to ask for them to keep it to themselves for a few weeks.

I didn't see my sister for the holiday, but did tell her over the phone. She seemed pretty excited to be a "real" aunt and said she didn't think it would ever happen. She has several nieces and nephews through her husband's side.

Of course we got the "I thought you didn't want kids" comment. I just replied that we changed our minds. We told our families what we went through to get here, but I don't think they really grasped the magnitude of the challenge or the extremes of our journey.

After telling my mom, I found out that I have her to thank for no morning sickness. Apparently she and my sister never really had any to speak of either. Here I was thinking maybe it was because of the constant fluctuations of hormone levels through so many cycles of treatments. At any rate, I feel very thankful to have been skipped over by the morning sickness fairy. (So far at least!)

The first 12 weeks have gone by pretty fast. I just can't believe how close I am to being out of the First Trimester.

And now, what's happening with baby: Week 12 Plum
As you move into the second trimester, baby shifts into the growth and maturation stage. After weeks in the critical development stage, almost all of baby's systems are fully formed.