19 Weeks

I am late getting this post up, but we are out of town this week. We came up to Maryland to visit Will's family and see his sisters' new house.
Even though I don't have a picture up, it seems as though my belly has all of a sudden grown out so much! Janet took me shopping yesterday and I bought my first pair of maternity jeans, which after I tried them on, I could not believe how comfortable they were! I am sooooo going shopping after I get home!
We had a doctor's appointment before we left and everything is going well. I got my two flu shots while we were there AND we found out what we're having!!!! I would tell it here on the blog, but we are being mean to my parents and making them wait until Thanksgiving to tell them. We wanted to tell our family's in person and make it more special since this is our first one. We baked a cake to bring with us to see Will's family and we colored the batter the color of the sex - they had to cut into the cake to find out what it was. It was a really fun way to tell everyone.
I will post pictures when we get back!

18 Weeks

My "bump" is slowly growing! I officially cannot button any of my pants and can't wear some of my jeans at all. My weight gain has stayed at 8-10 lbs. for the past couple of weeks, but it feels like I've gained twice that when I try to fit into another pair of pants.

I can also say that I feel the baby move around ALOT! At first, it was just when I was laying down and would concentrate on feeling it; but, now I feel it almost all the time - even when I'm up and doing things. It still catches me off-gaurd sometimes when it's a strong movement and I try to catch Will when it's happening, but he hasn't been able to feel anything yet.

I'm continuing to feel fine and have no complaints. My dreams are a little strange sometimes and very vivid, but I've read that it's a common thing to happen. I've also been continuing to read my baby books and get the "update" each week on the baby's growth. As of right now, the baby is about 5 1/2" long and weights 5-6oz. We only have one week until we get to see it again and find out what the sex is! I'm continuing to pray that everything is good and that the baby is healthy!

We are approaching our last busy weekend for October (thank goodness!) and will be heading up north to Maryland to see Will's family next week. It's going to be a nice, much-needed break! This past weekend we just worked, but we were able to take Sun. and Mon. off away from the shop, which was nice. The one good thing about our busy month is all the different cakes we've been able to make - here's a few from this past weekend:

Forgot to mention....

Another surprise that we got over the weekend was from our other neighbors, Rycki and Lamar. They went on vacation and brought us back a few gifts for taking them to the airport. They gave Will a keychain digital picture frame so that he can put pics of the baby on it when he/she arrives. They brought me a Christmas ornament of a pregnant woman that has a space you can write in for your due date. And they brought the baby a blanket with a stuffed duck attached (very cute!). We are so lucky to have such thoughtful neighbors that treat us so nicely!

17 weeks

My belly is slowly starting to come out - I've had a couple of neighbors and a friend at church actually notice, but I think it just depends on what I'm wearing. I've been feeling fine, just continue to be really tired (as I look in the picture) from us working so much. We have another busy week this week, but only two more big wedding weekends for October so it's good - we can see the end of the tunnel!
I got two surprises over the weekend. One was from our neighbor, Pam, who bought me my first "official" set of maternity clothes. I got a really pretty white shirt that could go dressy or casual and a pair of khaki capris. It won't be long before I have to start wearing them!
The other surprise was a visit from one of my cousins from North Carolina. Christy came and spent Sunday afternoon with us, just hanging out and catching up. It was nice.
We only have 2 weeks until we find out if we're having a boy or a girl! I think we're having a boy because that's what almost all of my dreams have been, but Will thinks we're having a girl because our family trends have been the girls being born before the boys. I am continuing to feel the baby move and some days it's more than others, but always comforting.
Well, that's it for now! Off to bed - yeah!

Oh, here are a few pics of cakes we've done recently. And my first "characters"!

16 Weeks

I have no pictures this week. We are just extremely busy with work and have barely been home to see our dog Zoe. My belly is continuing to grow and it seems like it just came out of nowhere. I weighed myself the other day and I'm still at 8lbs total for the amount of weight I've gained so far. I have begun to wear my Bella Band that I bought a few weeks ago- there are certain shorts I can only zip half-way! Yes, we are still wearing shorts here- it's been nice the past couple of days, but it's supposed to get up close to 90 degrees again by the weekend.
And extremely exciting news....I've been able to feel the baby move!! I first noticed it last Thursday when I laid down to go to bed and wasn't sure at first if that's what I was actually feeling, but it happened a couple of times. Since then, I've continued to feel that same movement (almost like a muscle twitch), but I have to be laying down and not move. I can't wait until the movements get strong enough for Will to feel them.
We have been soooo thankful that I haven't had any problems so far. We just pray that the pregnancy continues this way and we are counting down the days until our next appointment!
Nothing more to report- just a lot of work and really tired. Hope everyone is having a good week!

15 Weeks

Today was my appointment for just a check-up and it was nothing but good news! All of the blood work I had done after my first appt. came back normal and I am "on track" for progressing with the pregnancy. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat, which is always re-assuring, and we could even tell when the baby was kicking or throwing it's arms (it was almost like a quick break-up/static sound that came over the heartbeat sounds-it kind of caught me off-gaurd the first time I heard it, but then she told me what it was). The dr. said the baby sounds great and that it's heartbeat was nice and strong. I still think it's crazy how advanced technology is that you can do these things to check on the baby. I was so excited and amazed, I actually cried a little! Now, we just have to wait 4 weeks until our next appt., which is a BIG one because we get to find out what we're having! That's also when they do a full anatomy screen on the baby to make sure all the organs and brain are developing correctly. It's going to be so hard to wait!

The only symptom I've been having is being tired. By the end of the week of work, I am done. After church on Sunday, I did pretty much nothing and sat around all day- it was soooo nice. Will, on the other hand, just kept on trucking with the work he's been doing around the house. He's made a lot of progress and everything is looking great.

Here are a couple of cakes we had this past week:

This coming weekend we have 6 weddings so it will be another long week!

Hope everyone has a great week and love to all!

14 Weeks

I've been a slacker this week....it's Thursday and I'm just now doing my weekly post and I have no picture of my belly to add. (Maybe if I skip a week, we can tell a difference!) This week has been busy for us: between work and Will working on the house, it seems to never stop sometimes. There will be an end to the house work, though, because we're trying to have everything done by the time the baby comes.
I've been feeling fine this week. Not really any symptoms except being tired. My weight has jumped up by about 5-6 lbs now, but it's been a slow rise in numbers, which I think is good. It seems like I gain a lb. or 2 and stay that way for a couple of weeks. I think because we're on our feet so much during the day it's helping with the weight gain...I sure don't hold back on eating sometimes! Especially the ice cream- I had some Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Cheesecake earlier tonight and last night (it's sooooo good!).
Some of my clothes I can't wear anymore and I feel like I'm at that in-between stage where I just look like I've gained weight. Hopefully, in a couple of weeks, I'll actually look like I'm pregnant.
I have my second doctor's appointment this coming Monday- it's just a check up so we won't get to see the baby, unfortunately. I've been ready my book "What to Expect When You're Expecting," each week and it says that right now the baby is about the size of a lemon or the size of my fist. It's crazy how fast it grows each week! I can't wait until I can actually feel it for the first time!
Next month is when we can find out if it's a boy or girl that we're having. We don't care one way or the other just as long as it's healthy. Those are probably the two questions that everyone has been asking: "Are you going to find out what it is?" and "What do you want to have- a boy or a girl?" We'll be happy with whichever God chooses to give us!
Well, it's time for bed. I hope everyone is well and I'll post pictures next week!