Week 24 Bumpdate

How Far Along? 24 weeks. That didn't feel like too terribly far along until I did the math and realized that 24 weeks = 6 months. How on earth am I six months pregnant?! 

Musings on the Weekly Photo: 

Feeling BIG this week...

Sex: Sweet baby GIRL - our sweet little CFK :)

Weight Gain: Yea, so I don't know why I ever thought this was a good idea to publicly update each week, but I'm just going to skip this going forward.

Maternity Clothes: My Old Navy Maternity yoga pants are making my world right now. Seriously, I walk in the door after work and put them on, take my walks in them, prep dinner/relax... it's nice to be comfy and not straight into pajama pants when I get home. The sweater in my pic is maternity but soooo beyond comfortable and feels moreso roomy than maternity. I bought a shirt from Target last week that has a tie below the boobs/above the stomach, and THAT feels maternity. It's comfy but I can't help but think it feels a bit tent-like. I've started looking for a dress to wear to my Massachusetts baby shower and I'm striking out left and right. 

Baby's the size of...: A demi-baguette (not surprising, considering how many bread-related carbs I've consumed this pregnancy) and a cantaloupe! The toy of the week is a G.I. Joe doll, which Brian got a kick out of. Girlfriend weighs about 1.5 lbs this week and is over a foot tall. She has a hair color and is starting to develop taste buds (love).

Nursery: At a temporary standstill. We've designated next weekend to be the big crown molding project, and are hoping to make our voyage to IKEA next Sunday to pick up our  dresser and a few other odds and ends I've been keeping lists for.

Movement: ALL OF THE TIME and I'm totally obsessed. There truly is no better feeling than those little bumps and kicks, mainly on the right side of my stomach and really low on my abdomen. She's also decided that night time is party time, and I'm noticing if I wake up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, she's awake too and will put on a little show before settling back down. I'm not even complaining - it keeps the crazy side of me calm, knowing that she's moving and shaking in there.

Symptoms: Can hunger be a symptom? Because I feel hungry ALL OF THE TIME. Like first trimester hungry, where I go from totally fine, to super nauseous, to I need to eat something immediately. My restless leg issues had settled down for awhile but appear to be back, especially on days when I've been on my feet a ton. Lots of weird aches and pains in my lower stomach that initially scared me enough to send me to the doctor earlier this week, but they checked me and said everything is fine, definitely not contractions, and just the standard pains of all of your internal organs shifting and repositioning to accompany a uterus the size of a soccer ball (insane). Shortness of breath and I can definitely tell if I push myself too hard. There have definitely been a couple of days where I just FEEL pregnant.

Brian: Has been the cutest this week. He constantly uses baby girl's name now, and talks about what kind of little girl she'll be. It makes me feel so happy because I know he's just going to be the best dad. Brian's cousin and his wife (and one of my best girls) welcomed their first baby (a girl!) last Friday night and I think it really connected with him that that will be us in just a few short months. Before he left for a trip this week, I was still in bed with Molly and he gave me and Molly a kiss/pat goodbye, and then came back to give baby C a kiss too. Seriously, melt my heart.

Sleep: Meh. Good nights come and go. Molly's had allergies and has been up off and on all night, most nights, so I constantly wake up with her/because of her. She's feeling better though, so fingers crossed we all get back to normal. I'm also struggling more and more to get comfortable and stay comfortable once I'm in bed, and getting up for trips to the bathroom multiple times a night isn't really helping.

Workouts: Two long walks, squats, and I downloaded Hilaria Baldwin's prenatal yoga DVD to try as well (thanks for the suggestion MHM!).

Cravings: Tart lemonade. Wheat Thins. Grilled cheese and tomato soup. A pumpkin spice donut. Pasta (cream sauce, not red sauce). A kale/broccoli slaw salad that I buy at Trader Joe's. Wavy Lay's and French Onion dip (did it for football last Saturday and it was WORTH IT). Dove Milk Chocolate. Pizza.

Aversions/Dislikes: The smell of cigarette smoke still gets me. I was behind a car in traffic the other day and the driver was smoking like a chimney - it was TORTURE. Raw chicken. Anything too sweet.

Annoyances: Bad drivers are a recurring item on this list. Allergies.

What I Miss: A good glass of red wine, especially now that the weather is getting cooler. Being able to wear all of my cute fall clothes.

Best Moment This Week: All of the crazy kicking, and seeing Brian get more excited every day for our little family to grow. Molly has also been super sweet and attentive to me, and is attached to my hip/lap/BUMP.

Looking Forward To: A relaxing weekend at home! I'm aiming to get a few closets cleaned out and prep our front yard/porch/window boxes for fall. Mums and pumpkins are calling my name.

Week 23 Bumpdate

How Far Along? 23 weeks!

Musings on the Weekly Photo: 

I'm feeling more pregnant this week. Also, shoutout to the weird donut stomach issue that appears to be going on - that's not awkward AT ALL.

Sex: Girl

Weight Gain: To the surprise of everyone, I actually lost weight while I was in Texas this past weekend, so I'm back at 14 pounds total. 

Maternity Clothes: Living in anything elastic waist. Basic tees are my favorite, especially the Gap PureBody line (the black tee in this pic is one of them). They're super comfortable and stretch to fit my bump but keep their shape - win! We have an event this Saturday night that is "cocktail attire," so while I'm dreading it, I bit the bullet and ordered a maternity dress from Gap and another non-maternity but bump-friendly option from Old Navy. We'll see how that goes. 

Baby's the size of... : A grapefruit/Barbie doll! We've officially hit a foot long and weighing in at 1.10 pounds. Something about hitting a pound makes things feel so much more real.

Nursery: I made my master list yesterday of things we need to buy, and October 8 (our next free weekend - craziness) will be an epic shopping/ crown molding install weekend.

Movement: ALL OF THE TIME. Based on how active this babe has been at all of our ultrasounds, the doctors have been telling me that once I feel her move, it will be constant. It is, and I love it. Brian felt her move for the first time on Saturday morning, and I'll never forget the look on his face. Now he acts like an old pro - "Felt that one. Yep, felt it again." She really put on a show for my parents this weekend while we were in Texas, and they were over the moon to get to feel her little kicks. 

Symptoms: I had my first bout of swelling on our flight from Boston to Dallas last weekend. Let me tell you, that is NOT sexy. At all. I was really good about drinking water, moving around, flexing/moving my feet/legs even when I was sitting. And then I stood up once we landed and were waiting to get off the plane, and noticed Brian staring at my feet. I looked down and I kid you not, I felt like I was in that scene in The Nutty Professor where Eddie Murphy's body starts randomly blowing up. It took a solid two days for the swelling to go down, and I haven't had issues with it since. But seriously-- that is insane. Also struggling with allergies/congestion this week - super stuffy nose, insane sinus pressure, really bad headaches. I've always been really good about getting more than enough water in, but I have an insatiable thirst this week. I could drink a liter of water and still be thirsty - is that a symptom?

Brian: He was so excited to feel Little Miss moving around, and it was great having him there to say hi to everyone at the end of my shower, and go through our gifts together. He knows I've been feeling a little worn out this week and is great at stepping up to help - cooking dinner, helping with laundry, taking over Molly duty. He's also still REAL excited about his nursery projects - I'll let him run with that one.

Sleep: Eh, here and there. I'm still adjusting to not sleeping on my back, and have actually woken up on my stomach a number of times. Molly has also been having insane struggles with allergies and wakes up throughout the night... and of course I wake up with her. The vet prescribed her Benadryl which has knocked her out into doggie dreamland, so I finally got a good night's sleep last night. Still waking up to pee at least once

Workouts: A good long walk in Texas but LORDY it was hot outside. We've been so all over the place this week, this just hasn't happened - I have good weeks and bad weeks, but at least I'm trying!

Cravings: Tart lemonade. Tomato soup. Turkey sandwiches. Those gross pink and white frosted circus animal cookies (I KNOW). Tzatziki sauce - Greek for supper tonight! Bananas. So many cravings were satisfied while I was home - queso + chips, sausage balls, Chick-fil-a chicken nuggets, kolaches, Bluebell Banana Pudding ice cream (have mercy).

Aversions/Dislikes: Raw chicken, cigarette smoke, Greek yogurt, Swiss cheese 

Annoyances: That I can't take much of anything for these awful headaches and sinus issues. Bad flights (there was a lot of prayer involved, flying from Dallas back to Boston on Monday). 

What I Miss: I was missing having a glass of wine with my dad while I was home, but aside from that, I can't think of too many things this week!

Best Moment This Week: My amazing baby shower! Seeing all of my family and best girlfriends. Brian and my parents feeling the baby move. All in all, it was a good one.

Looking Forward To: A cold front this weekend! Bring on the fall decor and good comfort food. Oh, and my Old Navy maternity yoga pants should be delivered tomorrow, so I'm pretty sure I'll just be living in those, forever and ever.

Week 22 Bumpdate

How Far Along? 22 weeks, which doesn't seem too far along, but then I think of the 18 remaining weeks and have myself a little panic. Even more scary? 120 days is the countdown. I have a feeling that once we hit the double digits, a freak out may occur (poor husband...).

Musings on the Weekly Photo: Truthfully, I felt really blah for a couple of days this week, this day included. Everything felt puffy and I kept getting winded and bending over seemed harder and the bump felt VERY MUCH THERE all day long. And that belt was whipped into the backseat of my car as soon as my work day was over. The bump definitely gets bigger in the afternoon vs. the morning, so between eating lunch and all of my water, I felt like I was being cut in half.

Sex: Girl!

Weight Gain: 16lbs. I had a minor freakout to my doctor at my appointment last Thursday. This sounds crazy, but I really haven't gone crazy with the cravings. I'll indulge here and there, but for the most part I've really tried to keep it all under control and balanced! So as I've seen the scale continuously creeping up, I panicked. But my doctor assured me that everything looks good, and as long as I keep moving and continue to keep a balanced diet with the occasional indulgence, I should have nothing to worry about. She also said that a lot of women who don't gain much in the first part of their pregnancy, tend to gain towards the middle and then even out at the end. Moms, is this true?!

Maternity Clothes: Full panel jeans as often as possible and my trusty Liz Lange black and white tanks are still my saviors. All of my tunic-type tops fit well, and my more fitted tops are good, though there's definitely no hiding the bump while wearing those. Now that the weather has cooled down, I'm waiting for the internal go-ahead to start rotating leggings, ponchos, and wraps throughout the fall!

Baby's the size of... : Corn on the cob (which made me gag a little) or a Nalgene bottle. The Bump says she's the size of a coconut - 10.9 inches and 15.1 oz. Holy moly - almost 1 pound!

Nursery: We're getting there! The walls are painted and Brian's installing crown molding next Sunday! I'm still debating rug options but once we get that done, we'll start putting the pieces together. The crib is boxed up and in our garage, but we have it! And the dresser we're buying from Ikea, so we just have to find spare time (haha what's that?) to get to the store and actually buy it. Our bedding came in this week and I'm IN LOVE, so I'm pretty anxious to set the crib up so I can see it all together.

Movement: Feels like it slowed down a little this week, which freaked me out but the doctor said is normal. I also found out I have an anterior placenta, so apparently that can serve as a buffer to not feel movement as much until a few weeks farther along than I am now.

Symptoms: Pretty good this week! Still have random nausea every now and then, but not too bad. The whole getting winded thing is real (and annoying) and I'm finding it the tiniest bit more difficult to just get up quickly if I'm sitting down. My tailbone and left side of my lower back have really been bothering me too, which is frustrating.

Brian: Wonderful, per usual. He gets excited about the smallest things, and is SO amped about all of the work he's doing in the nursery. I think it's the first way he's really felt like he can be included in the baby coming, which is the sweetest.

Sleep: Not so hot. I'm a back sleeper so trying to sleep on my sides has been hard, especially with my left side of my back being so sore. 

Workouts: Three really good, long walks, which felt SO nice. I'm taking my workout gear with me on our trip this weekend and hope to fit in at least 1 good walk in my parents neighborhood.

Cravings: Sour Patch Kids. Bacon cheeseburger (I had one it was DELICIOUS). Peanut butter and strawberry jam sandwiches, which made for excellent lunches this week. Lemonade, like real, natural, tart lemonade.

Aversions/Dislikes: Chicken is weirding me out, completely out of nowhere. Cigarette smoke still makes me gag. 

Annoyances: Bad drivers and inconsiderate people top my list this week. Donald Trump's patronizing voice really irked me the other day, like to to the point that I had to turn off Good Morning America. Allergies - they're driving both me and Molly crazy. Having to fly tonight without Xanax. Seriously, call me a bad mom, but I haven't flown without anxiety meds for years now, and I'm already anxious about how I'm going to do. Just trying to stay calm and relax but... annoyed.

What I Miss: Being able to go, go, go like I usually do. My body is definitely telling me to take it easy. 

Best Moment This Week: Hearing a good, strong heartbeat at my appointment last Thursday!

Looking Forward To: Flying home for the weekend for my first baby shower! I can't wait to see my people and just spend time with everyone. It's a quick trip but will be so fun!

Week 21 Bumpdate

How Far Along? 21 weeks - my countdown is now into the teens! How on earth did THAT happen?

Musings on the Weekly Photo: I feel like the picture doesn't show the lengths that this bump is actually going to. I also fear that point, 19 weeks from now, when I look back and think "Wow, how naive you were when you felt large at 21 weeks, you silly girl," so I'll take the small changes as they come!

Sex: GIRL!

Weight Gain: This little number is jumping each week - up 14 pounds (yikes).

Maternity Clothes: Loving my maternity jeans and any tunic tops. I have a PureBody maternity shirt from Gap that I wore for the first time on Saturday, and you could finally tell that the bump is officially in business! Still sticking with lots of non-maternity dresses, skirts and tops/blouses for work, which is good. I ordered this cute top last night and it's on its way to me - we'll see how that goes!

Baby's the size of... : A baby bok choy and a baseball hat! I read that comparison and looked at Brian's baseball cap and felt like that was huge!

Nursery: We're making moves! We picked up our crib on Monday morning, and Brian spent Sunday afternoon/Monday prepping and painting the sweet nursery. I'm in love with the color (Benjamin Moore "Gray Owl") and it has completely changed the look and feel of the space. It needs one more coat of paint to completely cover the sky blue color that was on the walls before, but then we'll be good to go! I also ordered parts of the bedding and we picked up a few other pieces while at PBK on Monday morning. I have a nursery inspiration board in the works that I'm hoping to share in the next few days -  I need rug decision help!

Movement: Lots of subtle movements, but definitely more frequently. There have been a couple of times where I felt the movement from the outside, but Brian hasn't been able to yet. We definitely have an energetic little girl!

Symptoms: Random nausea this week if I wait too long to eat (hey there, first trimester flashback - you were not missed...). Getting out of breath and winded more quickly - multiple trips up and down our stairs definitely provoke an expletive or two. Still keepin' on with the restless legs at night, but they might be getting more aggressive (didn't think that was possible).

Brian: Is so over the top cute with his "Daddy Duty" jobs. He spent days researching tools and watching YouTube videos to paint the nursery as perfect as possible (and it looks fantastic). He put up with me for close to an hour as I debated between crib bedding options in PBK, and was as excited as I was to pick up our crib. He's always monitoring me (in a non-annoying way) and fills up my water before I realize I need it, makes me sit and relax while he makes dinner... I really couldn't have asked for a better guy (as I get teary typing all of this).

Sleep: I usually wake up a couple of times a night for a bathroom break (or just because, which is fun) and go back to sleep relatively easily. On Monday night/Tuesday morning, I wasn't feeling so great and was up at 1:30am... and didn't fall back asleep until 3:30am. But the next night I was in bed at 9pm and slept straight through until my alarm went off at 5:30am so... it's a crapshoot. I'm starting to look into pregnancy pillows though - are they worth it?

Workouts: Two 3-mile walks around our neighborhood, lots of stretches, and strength training. I figure if I have little control over my midsection, I can at least aim to keep my arms and legs somewhat together. I feel great 

Cravings: English muffins with strawberry jam (baby girl is loving Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves - she does a little dance after breakfast every morning). Quiche - give me all of the quiche. Brussels sprouts. Still loving cold oranges and frozen mango. Pizza has been on my mind the last few days, and Halloween Oreos made their way into my cart on Saturday (whoops). Starting to really want fruity smoothies (I had a "pina colada" smoothie from Whole Foods yesterday that basically made my day), so I'm thinking I may look up a few recipes that I can start making for quick breakfasts. On another note, I'm wanting warm/fall-like foods: soups/stew, casseroles... all of the yummy, hearty stuff ha, like Hatch Mac and Cheese from Kate (alleluia, amen).

Aversions/Dislikes: Strong smells are too much (standing near the seafood counter yesterday at Whole Foods about did me in). I looove pasta but the thought of marinara sauce grosses me out. Cigarette smoke. 

New Symptoms: Feeling out of breath a bit more quickly, and my feet swell a little if I'm on them for too long, but nothing too terribly bad!

Annoyances: SO OVER THE HEAT/HUMIDITY AND READY FOR COOL, BREEZY FALL WEATHER. 

What I Miss: Pumpkin beer with a cinnamon sugar rim. And a nice glass of red.

Best Moment This Week: Seeing Brian get so excited over getting ready for our daughter (still crazy to type that!) and feeling this little one move so much more every day!

Looking Forward To: Our first baby shower in Texas next weekend! Cannot WAIT to see my girls, family that I haven't seen in forever... and to eat all of the food. Oh yes, the menu is "Katie's Cravings" and it's all of the things I've wanted but can only get in Texas *praise hands*