21 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 21 Weeks

Size of baby: Turtle is the size of a banana

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I've gained 13 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: I LOVE my maternity clothes. I can still wear a few regular shirts/sweaters but I definitely prefer all maternity clothes.

Gender: It's a GIRL! Brooke Henley Femiano!

Movement: She's moving a lot! I feel her moving every day now.

Sleep: I mentioned my concerns about sleeping on my back to the midwife as our last appointment and she basically told me NOT to worry about it. My body will notify me before Brooke would ever be effected by it. So, needless to say, I'm back to sleeping on my back every now and then...and its' been the best sleep I've had so far this pregnancy.

What I miss: Nothing really.

Cravings: Jalapeno Chips

Symptoms: It's nearly impossible for me to put on my socks without grunting. Bending over is starting to get REALLY uncomfortable.

Best Moment this week: Our friends Mack & Caitlin came to visit with us on Saturday and with them they brought a very sweet baby gift. A PINK Georgia outfit (pink pants, pink Georgia t-shirt and a pink zip up Georgia hoodie) and sweet girly receiving blankets. It was our first girl gift. I will remember it forever. :)

Gender Reveal

On Thanksgiving Day we did our big gender reveal to our family (parents and siblings). It was VERY hard for me to NOT tell anyone since we found out the day before Thanksgiving. It was less than 24 hours (22 to be exact) but it was probably the longest day ever. At least I kept myself busy preparing for Thanksgiving (which we hosted at our house this year).

I think I've recapped the nickname Turtle before now, but I'll do it again. Back at our very first appointment, after we received our first ultrasound pictures, we were sitting in the waiting area to be seen by the doctor and Mike and I were looking at the black and white squiggles. I made the comment "You know, a lot of people say it looks like a bean or a peanut...but I think ours looks like a Turtle." And so, the nickname Turtle stuck. It's kind of hard to see, but maybe you can make out the turtle shape too.

I had been thinking of ways to tell the family the gender of our baby almost immediately after we told them that we're expecting. I googled 'gender reveal' and 'revealing the sex of your baby' and probably everything remotely close to that under the sun for ideas. I didn't want to do the cake thing...where a bakery does the cake either pink or blue and everyone (including us) found out at the same time. But...I did really like the idea of a pink or blue cake. So, I came up with the idea of doing a cupcake cake...as a turtle! Perfect! Below is how the cupcake cake turned out.

So, on Thanksgiving Day everyone arrived around noon and we were all anxious to dig into the turtle cupcakes. All our family members were just staring at the cake and looking at the sides, trying to figure out what was under the brown and green icing. Everyone took a cupcake and they all peeled back the foil wrappers at the same time to find that it was PINK inside! I captured this fun reveal on our little point and shoot camera, so it's not great.

And please excuse my voice...I think I sound funny on video. I'll have to work on that because I'm sure I'll be posting tons of videos of Brooke and I'll be doing the crazy high pitched Mom voice to get her to blow bubbles and laugh.

I LOVE watching everyone's reactions. Every time I watch this clip it makes me smile. :)

20 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 20 Weeks

Size of baby: Turtle is the size of a cantaloupe

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I've gained 11.5 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: I LOVE my maternity clothes. I can still wear a few regular shirts/sweaters but I definitely prefer all maternity clothes.

Gender: It's a GIRL! We found out at our 20 week appointment (the day before Thanksgiving). It was by far my most favorite appointment....no blood work AND an ultrasound to determine it's a girl!

Movement: More and more flutters. Mike was able to feel a kick/jab the other night.

Sleep: Depends on the night. Some nights I wake up to pee once or to re-situate and other nights I sleep all the way through.

What I miss: Nothing really. Getting a good nights sleep consistently.

Cravings: Still craving sweets and Moes. And Thanksgiving dinner food!

Symptoms: I've been super hungry this past week...growth spurt maybe? I've also been experiencing a lot of pressure. Its not really a painful pressure just an uncomfortable pressure. I mentioned this to the midwife at our appointment and she said it could be my pelvis/pubic bone separating. OUCH! It's crazy to think that my body is repositioning bones and muscles.

Best Moment this week: There were so many best moments this week. We got a crib and dresser last weekend. We found out that we're going to have a daughter and got to feel Brooke kick. We got lots of ultrasound pictures and got to hear her heartbeat (139).

We're officially half way to meeting our daughter!!!! I thought our 20 week appointment would never come and now I can't believe we're already half way finished!

19 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 19 Weeks

Size of baby: Turtle is the size of a mango

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Somewhere along the way I gained more weight than I was reporting...it was an honest mistake any preggo lady could make. I've gained 9.5 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: I LOVE my maternity clothes. They are soooo comfortable. I would highly suggest anyone investing in a pair of maternity jeans...especially for Thanksgiving dinner. :)

Gender: Counting down the days!!!!!!

Movement: Still just a few flutters.

Sleep: Depends on the night. Some nights I wake up to pee once or to re-situate and other nights I sleep all the way through.

What I miss: Just being comfortable. My body has been experiencing some 'growing pains'. It seems to come in cycles. It all starts out with an itchy belly...I'm assuming because my skin is stretching (although no stretch marks yet, thank goodness) and then the next day or two I have an intense amount of pressure all in my torso. Imagine all your inside organs feeling like they're being pushed and squished into your rib cage, because that's the only way I can describe it. Its very uncomfortable. Then a day or two later it seems like my body adjusts to the pressure. And then, it starts all over. I know I shouldn't complain because it's only the beginning. There's a lot more squishing to do over the next few months.

Cravings: Sweets. Sweets. And more Sweets. I can't seem to get enough cake, cupcakes and candy...which is very odd since I've never had much of a sweet tooth. I blame Mike for passing on the sweet tooth gene.

Symptoms: Having a bladder the size of a pea. I think I visit the bathroom at least 25 times a day. I feel like Turtle has placed a sack of marbles on my bladder.

Best Moment this week: Mike went on a business trip to Ireland and brought back a cute green onesie. I thought it was so sweet and thoughtful for him to bring back a little souvenir from his trip. AND...I've been feeling more and more flutters. :)

18 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 18 Weeks

Size of baby: Turtle is the size of a sweet potato

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 7.5 lbs

Maternity Clothes: Loving my maternity pants and slowly gearing up for some maternity shirts/sweaters.

Gender: Still don't know but I have a cool idea how we're going to reveal the gender to our family on Thanksgiving Day. HINT: A Turtle something will be involved. :)

Movement: Still just a few flutters.

Sleep: I'm back on the crazy sleep train. I've been having wacky dreams again and I tend to wake up several times a night because I can't seem to find a comfortable position.

What I miss: Since I'm only treating myself to one caffeinated drink a week I'm really missing a Starbucks Peppermint White Mocha. All the red Starbucks cups are making me jealous! I definitely miss coffee.

Cravings: Moes and cinnamon sugar twisted/braided doughnut. I'm also still enjoying sweets.

Symptoms: Still the emotional basket case...although some days are better than others. I somehow seem to cry even when I'm not upset....like when the song my Dad and I danced to at my wedding came on the radio the other day. I cried like a baby on 285 while listening to Steve Curtis Chapman. I also cried to Darrius Rucker's "It Won't Be Like This for Long". Who am I?!?!?!?!?!

Best Moment this week: Finally getting that cinnamon sugar doughnut. I'd been craving it for DAYS!