21 weeks (ish)

Due Date: April 5th, 2012

Musings on the Weekly Photo: Bump appears to be moving up, but not so much out.

Marination Time: As of today, 21 weeks 5 days. Purple shirt is 21 weeks even, belly shot is from today.

Weight Gain: Will know at Friday's appointment.

Maternity Clothes: Mostly the same, although I busted out the full panel maternity jeans for Turkey Day and they have become more of a staple this week despite being not quite necessary. So comfy! I will admit that a lot of shirts are becoming too short due to The Belly. Damn you, long torso.

Fruit of the Week: Banana. Where in the world is a banana larger than a canteloupe? I think we're now measuring length as of this week, which would explain such things...

Name: Same dilemma.

Gender: Team Green.

Movement: It's a party! This bebe is going to be a firecracker. Is it weird that sometimes I feel like a character in "Alien"? I mean, it's really cool, but at the same time, it's really really weird.

Cravings: FRUIT. I want watermelon BAD, but it is now out of season. Waaaaah.

Annoyances: My hips! My tailbone! My belly! I've made the mistake a few times this past week of being too productive (I went on an organizing spree on Black Friday), and man have I paid for it. Owie.

Highlights of the Week: We have an ultrasound on Friday and Mike was given the day off, so we're going to try and brave Babies 'R Us afterward and start a registry. Eek!

the name game, vol. 2

While making dinner...

Mike: "Stew! There's a name!"
Dianne: "Stewart?"
Mike: "No, just Stew. Like the meat."
Dianne: "Yes, 'Mike and Dianne love meat so much, they named their first-born child after garbage soup.'"

End: convo.

20 weeks aka Halfway!

Due Date: April 5th, 2012

Musings on the Weekly Photo: We be bumpin'! Maybe we've finally gotten to pregnant > cupcakes?! Even Mike was commenting on how it's definitely "rounder." Haha. I also got dressed and felt cute this week. Yay for things to do outside of the house. :)

Marination Time: As of today, 20 weeks 2 days.

Weight Gain: Not tracking it at home, so we'll stick with net -3 from the doc appointment.

Maternity Clothes: Same.

Fruit of the Week: Cantaloupe.

Name: Same dilemma.

Gender: Team Green.

Movement: All the time! Especially first thing the morning after my (one cup) of coffee. Then usually again around 5ish and then sometimes when I'm trying to fall asleep.

Cravings: Nothing new. Still love sandwiches. Still love carbs. Mike bugs me almost every day to eat more vegetables, so I'm trying to do that even though they don't sound the best! At least they don't make me nauseous - potatoes just taste so much better!

Annoyances: Lunch meat really grosses me out. Before it was simply unappetizing, now the idea just makes me want to hurl. Must find my protein elsewhere! Also, the uterine stretching is a wee bit uncomfortable. Some days I just have to remind myself to take it easy even though I feel invincible, otherwise I pay for it...

Highlights of the Week: HALFWAY! April seems so far away, but in reality I'm halfway done baking this cookie. Woo! Also, I was feeling almost like myself this week and was uber productive (see "annoyances"). What a breath of fresh air!

19 weeks

Due Date: April 5th, 2012

Musings on the Weekly Photo: Unless I'm wearing a tight shirt and you knew me before, you definitely can't tell anything is up. It would be really easy to hide if I wanted to! Especially now that it has cooled off and I'm wearing sweatshirts more often. Mike and I sure can tell, but that doesn't mean much!

Marination Time: As of today, 19 weeks 4 days. Pic was 19 weeks even.

Weight Gain: Four pound gain between doctor's appointments, net gain of -3.

Maternity Clothes: Now that my belly has moved up and the bloat has gone down, I can wear 99% of my clothes as long as the shirts are little longer and the pants are cut low. I am also wearing a cami or BeBand underneath most of my t-shirts just to get some extra length.

Fruit of the Week: Mango! Which seems about the same size as a grapefruit, but whatever.

Name: Still only have one boy name, have tossed around a few girl names we don't hate.

Gender: Team Green.

Movement: Every day, on the inside and outside! Baby looooves peppermint hot cocoa and hint of jalapeno chips (not together).

Cravings: Unfortunately this was a week where nothing in particular sounded good, so everything made me feel a little yucky. I blame my cold.

Annoyances: Headaches. I've had them since week 5, and although they've gotten better, they're still hanging around most afternoons. But they're better than they were, so that's an improvement!

Highlights of the Week: We're almost halfway! Quad screen came back all normal and I love feeling movement every day. Life-wise, we went to Bullhead City to visit family this weekend and Reef had his first swimming lesson! 

the name game, vol. 1

Dianne: "It's hard finding a name that works with Dotter."
Mike: "I know, I've always thought that."
Dianne: "It sucks. Like, we can never choose a name that ends with -er, and so many cute names end in -er!"
Mike: "What kind of name ends in -er?!"
Dianne: "Well, like Harper. You probably hate it, but I really like it."
Mike: "Well, if we're just going to be ridiculous, let's name the kid Refrigerator."

End: convo.

I told you girl names have been difficult. But so is having a serious naming conversation with my husband. :)

18 weeks

First "official" post, so a little bit of background. I'm going to do a list each week with a photo, that way we can see the progress! This first one will be a bit more involved info-wise then we'll try and to keep it shorter from here on out. :)

Due Date: April 5th, 2012

Musings on the Weekly Photo: The "bump" sure changes a lot between morning and night, and also seems to depend on where baby is hanging out. Ah, the joys of a long torso. Most of the time, I just look like I had one too many cupcakes. Side note: I always take these photos after my morning walk, so that justifies my "workout" wear in every. single. picture.

Marination Time: 18(ish) weeks. I technically switch on Thursdays, so today is *officially* 18 weeks, but my due date has been fluctuating about a week at the doc, i.e. the "ish."

Weight Gain: Well, during the first trimester I lost about 10 pounds, so in this category I'll do a "net weight gain." I also wasn't weighing myself regularly before getting pregnant, so it's really an estimate. As of my last appointment (10/5), I was "net" -8 I think? Next appointment is Monday!

Maternity Clothes: I can wear most of my regular clothes but workout clothes, jeans with a BeBand and maternity pants are way more comfortable. Any pressure on the belly is a no-go. 

Fruit of the Week: Grapefruit!

Name: Don't worry Mom, "Cletus the Fetus" isn't going to stick. We do have a boy's name we really like, but won't make any decisions until we meet the little gal/guy. Girl's names have been, needless to say, a big challenge (more on that tomorrow). We also don't plan on really sharing them with people. I'm paranoid I'll end up hating the name if we share it too often. Plus, in the end, it's our decision not anyone else's!

Gender: Still on Team Green aka we're not planning on finding out. But I will say that I think it's a boy and Mike thinks it's a girl. We shall see who prevails! Muahaha.

Movement: Periodically. I felt the first "flutter" the Tuesday before we left for Japan (Oct. 4th), then for sure felt movement during and after the Tae Ko performance in Okinawa on Oct. 13th. What a hoot! Baby was having a party! Future drummer kid. Last week was the first time I actually saw my belly moving - there were definite kicks instead of flutters. And Mike got to feel him/her too! Now it has abated a bit. It definitely seems to depend on where baby is hanging out as to whether or not I get to feel anything. My torso is so long, he's still got a lot of space to hang out in thus far!

Cravings: Sandwiches! Especially from Subway - but only veggies or BLTs. I also crave straight red meat (cheeseburgers and steaks, specifically) which is wierd since I don't like red meat. Can you say iron deficiency?

Annoyances: Mid-afternoon I definitely hit a lull and god forbid I'm anywhere with people at that time. I'm not so nice. 

Highlights of the Week: Baby-wise, more kicks! Life-wise, we got a new puppy! His name is Reef and he's been great to keep me distracted and active. Tired puppies are good puppies = lots and lots of walks! Izzy loves him. 

The "Bump"

Here are some photos of the "bump," although most days it really just looks like I ate too many cupcakes. It's easier to see with my shirt rolled up! In clothes... you guessed it - cupcakes. I'll just say it's where I store my extra cookies.

Next post we'll start the official updates. Again, apologies for the crappy cell phone pics.

hello!

... and welcome to my "family" blog. I'm not comfortable throwing a ton of personal information out onto my photography site, so I decided to create this as a way for our extended friends and family to follow along with us as we grow our family by one more! I'll try to post at least weekly with updates, info, photos, etc. A lot of my "weekly" belly pics are going to a la Blackberry, so please don't be too disappointed! Enjoy.