16 weeks!

I've decided to track my pregnancy on my blog. I'm bad at writing stuff down, so this is as close as my kids getting to a pregnancy book. I thought about it at first and was like "that is so annoying, nobody really cares about you being pregnant but you and your family", but then I was all like, "well I don't really care if it's annoying." Also, I really like seeing other people's baby bump updates, so I'm jumping on the annoying pregnant lady bandwagon and blogging my pregnancy. JUDGE ME. 

So, here we go. I started taking belly photos at 4 weeks (not kidding, there was no belly, but I was a little over excited about the whole thing and got carried away), but once I got sick I had to stop. Since I'm trying to forget the trimester-that-shall-not-be-named, so I can maybe decide to get pregnant again one day, we're going to start from week 16. And never, ever talk about the horrible things that happened during the first few months of this pregnancy. It was like a top secret initiation into motherhood that only me and baby experienced and we'll never discuss it ever again. Soon, we'll forget it ever happened.

The second trimester has been kinder to me. I have been really enjoying watching my body change. I am in total awe of how it just knows what to do all by itself and I'm kind of just along for the ride. It can actually be frustrating how little this process needs me and how little control I have over this pregnancy. This whole thing is absolutely amazing and has totally changed the way I see my body. I feel really lucky that I'm having such a positive experience with my body image during pregnancy, since I know a lot of women struggle with that. At the same time, I'm also kind of shocked how NOT pregnant I feel. Unless I am listening to the baby's heartbeat on a doppler or seeing the baby on the ultrasound I have a really hard time believing there is actually a human in there. It's like two minutes after the proof I'm back to "But how do we REALLY know it's still in there???", I'm a lot like a small child who hasn't developed object permanence. It's a big peek-a-boo game with the baby right now, and I'm floored each and every time I see/hear it. Which is also kind of fun.

The lessons of this pregnancy so far are: Patience, faith and how much we take for granted having control over our own bodily functions. 

No one tells you how awkward taking these photos is.

 

How far along?  16 weeks! One month 'til half way!!!!

Total weight gain/loss: Still down 10 pounds, but that’s a 2 pound weight gain since last week, we’re catching up!

Maternity clothes? Pants no longer button. I’m caving and buying a bellaband.
Stretch marks? No, but itchy, itchy skin on my stomach and lower back.
Best moment this week: I'm 83.5% sure I felt the baby move for the first time this week.  It almost felt like a little fish ran into me from the inside. It may have been gas, but it’s way more fun to think it was baby. (It happened again tonight!)

Miss Anything? Sleeping on my back, lattes and runny yolks. I would do terrible things for some sunny side up eggs.
Movement: Possibly, but let’s just go with yes because who can prove me wrong??;)
Food cravings: Food in general. Lots of it, please.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Mornings and nights, teeth brushing, car rides and various foods/smells. And the smell of hairspray.
Have you started to show yet: Yes! I’m obsessed with my mini baby bump and rub it and stare at it often. It’s still not as big as my pre-pregnancy food baby bump, but we’re getting there.

Gender: From weeks 12-15 we consistently called it “he”, but this week switched back to “she”. I think maybe because we finalized our girl name this week(!!!), so baby girls are on our minds. I want to pretend I have this maternal sense and have a real feeling of what it is, but honestly I have no idea.  
Labor Signs: None.
Belly Button in or out? Still in.

Wedding rings on or off? On, they are actually falling off quite a bit because of all the weight loss.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I say happy, Kyle might say moody!
Looking forward to: Movement! I have changed the lyrics of “do you wanna build a snowman?” to “little baby please kick mommyyyyyyyy” and various other pleas for the baby to kick me. Hasn’t worked yet, but I’m hoping the baby will get annoyed by the constant tummy pokes and singing that it will start kicking harder so I can really feel it. 

Also we have a doctors appointment soon and we'll get to hear the baby's heart beating away again. Last time we even got to hear ninja baby kick the doppler a few times. I have cried obnoxious happy tears each time we've heard the baby so far. It's my favorite thing in the world (other than seeing my mini-kyle karate chop on the ultrasounds. Also AWESOME.) and if I could spend hours just listening to baby's heartbeat I would be the happiest. 

Favorite Development this week: Baby’s hearing is starting to develop and he/she's able to hear my voice! Kyle has used this new opportunity to hum loudly on my belly in case the baby can pick up the vibrations of his voice with it's newly developed ears. I say doubtful, but he can have his pretend hearing if I can have my pretend kicking. As long as we're both bonding with the baby, right?

xo