Fruit is my new friend!

14 Weeks

Fruit tastes so good to me right now! (Better than eating chips and bread, which is all I wanted a month ago!) For the past 2 weeks I've been loving granny smith apples. Now I'm hooked on peaches and grapes. I was buying frozen peaches because local produce wasn't looking so great. But this week we bought some fresh peaches and green grapes and I can't get enough!

As you can see, my belly is starting to pooch out. There's definitely no concealing it now. Everyone at work thinks it's so cute, but I know people out in public just think I've been eating too much. :)

The dresses are definitely coming in handy. I have room to expand in them and they are not constricting around my waist, especially after I eat lunch, when my belly starts to protrude even more! I can still wear 2 pair of pants and 1 pair of shorts, but probably not for very long.

I think I'm going to have to buy some maternity clothes soon. I just can't stand anything fitted around my waist. I don't know what I'm going to do about running shorts. They are getting snug and I don't think they make Nike maternity running shorts!

Hope you are enjoying the updates! Email me anytime at sblyons@sc.rr.com.

Where did this belly come from?

14 Weeks
How your baby's growing:This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

Wow, all of a sudden my belly is sticking out. Last week, as you can see in the 12 week picture, I just look a little bloated. Well, this week that has changed considerably! All of a sudden, I have a small pooch. Even a coworker noticed it on Tuesday. I told her it was getting harder to hide it now. :)
I had a marathon shopping day on Saturday. I was on the hunt for summer dresses that would have room for me to expand. I don't think Ricky knew what he was in for. But he shopped with me the whole day. He is such a sweetie. I finally found the jackpot at JCPenney. I bought 6 dresses and they all have room a for a growing belly! I'm down to only 2 pair of pants so thank goodness I found dresses!
I will post a new pic of my belly so you can see what I'm talking about. Everyone at work thinks the pooch is cute. But I'm sure people out in public just think I've been eating too many donuts!

12 Weeks Pregnant - Alert the Media!

12 Weeks
How your baby's growing:The most dramatic development this week: Reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder.Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over two inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce.

So I'm officially 12 weeks pregnant today. Which means today is the day my Mom, Dad, Mother-in-Law, and Grandparents can tell all of their friends. I think they were as anxious as I was to reveal the news! I had my doctor's appointment this afternoon and everything went well. We got to hear the heartbeat again and it was in the 140's. We got to hear it for a long time today. The doctor said everything was perfect. I go back in 4 weeks for a regular appointment and in 8 weeks I will have my next ultrasound. That will be the first week of August and they will check the organs, extremities, placenta, umbilical cord, etc.

And if the baby cooperates, they will be able to tell

if we are having a boy or girl! Since my last post about

chocolate, I have had a bit of relief. I had a scoop of

chocolate peanut butter frozen yogurt in a waffle cone

on Friday and it was delicious! And I felt okay after eating it. However, I had a cookie on Saturday and it wasn't so great.

I guess it just depends on the day...

No More Chocolate! :(

Most of you know how much of a chocoholic I am. I would eat it morning, noon, and night if it didn't make me gain weight! I usually eat a few pieces during the week then splurge on the weekends with brownies and ice cream. Rarely do I pass up an opportunity to have chocolate.
Well, guess what...now that I am pregnant I CANNOT eat chocolate! No cake, brownies, ice cream, candy bars, etc. Sometimes I can handle a chocolate chip cookie, but only if it sounds good at the moment. Isn't that ironic?!?
I still haven't given up on dessert though. I'm determined to find something I can tolerate! I'm thinking maybe apple pie or some type of cobbler that has a lot of crust. Bread and starch seem to taste really good right now. If that doesn't work, I will just stick to my new night time snack...a bowl of Life cereal.
I guess this is a good thing though. I was trying to find a way to cut back on chocolate and sweets. It's just a bummer that I may not be able to eat ice cream all summer! There's nothing better than a scoop of chocolate ice cream on a hot summer day...maybe I should try sherbert.
The saga continues...

10 Weeks

How your baby's growing:Though he's barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.

What do I want to eat...the million $ question

I am normally the most healthy eater you will ever meet (except for my brownie splurge on the weekends). I take my lunch to work and eat sandwiches, tuna, salad, fruit, veggies, etc. My husband and I try to eat out only once or twice a week, and I usually eat fish and veggies when we go out. But for the past 4-5 weeks, all I want to eat are carbs! Chips, bread, pastries, pizza...basically anything starchy. I still get in my banana each morning with cereal, fruit during the day, and an occasional salad, but some days I just cannot stomach them. And because I am normally a big fruit and veggie eater, I feel guilty when I don't get my proper servings in. And now we eat out a lot more! I've made the mistake of going grocery shopping for the week and then I end up throwing away half of what I bought because I don't want it. So now, we plan dinner about an hour before we eat. :)I hope this doesn't continue for the next 6 months. I'm going to drive Ricky crazy!

First Ultrasound - May 20, 2008

Today we went back to the doctor for our first ultrasound. The main reason we had an ultrasound so early was to confirm how far along I was. It was hard for them to go by my monthly cycles because they are nowhere near regular. I had actually calculated the due date based on ovulation date, so I was pretty sure I was 9 weeks.
Well, what do you know! I was 9 weeks exactly. That means we are having a Christmas baby! Our official due date is December 23, 2008. Hopefully we will get lucky and have the baby a few days early so we can be at home on Christmas Day.