Week 19

Week 19!

 

Here is my 19 week picture...again after a dinner of Mexican food...maybe I'm beginning to see a pattern :)  I think it is actually starting to look like a "real" baby bump now!

 

 

Baby Boy Kirby is now around 6-7 inches long and approximately 8.5 ounces. This means his size can be compared to:

 

 

Heirloom Tomato

 

 

 

Softball

 

 

 

Grapefruit

 

 

 

 

Mango

 

 

Baby Boy Kirby's Week:

 

• The hair on his head is starting to grow!  (I hope it's curly like his Dad's)

 

• His brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch.

 

• Brown fat is starting to develop (it will continue to develop until delivery);  this helps give him energy after delivery!

 

• He now has more control over the movements he makes, like kicking, rolling, etc.

 

• Right now, he is only awake for about 6 hours a day.

 

 

My Week:

 

• I'm starting to feel him move!  It's very cool.  Took me a while to figure out what I was feeling, because in my head no one's descriptions fit...

 

• The round ligament pains are still there occasionally, but nothing that is bothersome.

 

• I read that numbness and tingling is normal right now in hands and feet.  I don't feel it all the time, but have noticed that my hands and feet tend to "fall asleep" faster if I don't move enough.

 

• Back aches are starting.  Might be time to buy a belly band!  And a pregnancy pillow...

 

 



Week 18

Week 18!

 

As usual, time is flying by.  Another week gone, another week closer to Baby Boy Kirby's arrival.

 

 

The pictures are getting hard to do...I never feel like they turn out well!  This one was after a day of sleep (I worked last night) and a dinner of Mexican food....

 

 

 

Baby Boy Kirby is now about 6 inches long and between 6-7 ounces.  This means he is compared to:

 

A Dragonfruit

 

A Bell Pepper

 

A Sweet Potato

 

Baby Boy Kirby's Week:

 

• He is moving and flexing his arms and legs quite a bit!  I'm so ready to be able feel these movements....hopefully soon!
• Yawning and hiccupping are common now, although I can't feel them...
• His hearing is becoming more clear.
• A coating on his nerves, called myelin, is forming and will continue to form through his first year of life!
• Vernix is now coating his skin to protect him.

 

 

 

My Week:

 

• Still tired!  But as before, I can handle that without the nausea.

 

• Leg cramps have been killer the past two nights!  I didn't realize it was pregnancy related until I was reading some info for my post today.

 

• My uterus is now the size of a cantaloupe.

 

• Luckily haven't had too much swelling, maybe a small amount after working (my feet/ankles may have looked like this after a 12 hour shift before, I just wasn't paying attention!)

 

• Skin breakouts still terrible....ready for that to pass!!

 

• Some round ligament pains are starting I think...no sharp pains, just a soreness.  Seem to notice it more when I've been in one position for a while then move.

 

• Sleeping is a little awkward.  I've always been a stomach sleeper, and I'm finding it hard to break that habit.  Even when I start on my side, I seem to always wake up on my stomach.  Doctor says it won't harm the baby right now, and soon enough it won't be possible anyways.  





 



Week 17

Week 17!!

Once again, another week has flown by!  These moments are going by so incredibly fast, I can only imagine what it will be like once Baby Boy Kirby gets here!

This has been an amazing week....we now know we are having a little boy!  I can't quite describe the feeling of having yet another confirmation that there is really a tiny life growing inside me....I guess surreal is about as close as I can get!

Baby Boy Kirby is now about 5.5 inches long, and weighed in at 6 oz as of this past Thursday.  I've read the following size comparisons:

The Palm of your Hand

A Baked Potato

A Pickle

And An Onion

Baby Boy Kirby's week:

• Joints are movable, so I hopefully will start feeling him move very soon!!  There was one night about 2 weeks ago where I am fairly certain I felt him turn...but I can't wait for more regular movements!

• His sweat glands are now developing

• Now that his little ears are formed and in place, loud noises can startle him!  But the more he hears and gets used to now, the better he will sleep when he gets here with us.  :)

• Adipose tissue (that cute baby fat!) is forming now, so he will start getting a little more chubby

• The umbilical cord is growing in length and becoming thicker to keep up with the growing baby!

My Week:

• The nausea is still being held at bay most of the time....
• I keep reading that the frequent peeing should be getting better.  But it definitely isn't for me!  But at the US on Thursday, they said he is sitting way down in the bottom of the uterus right now, which I would guess means he is still putting more pressure on my bladder.  Hopefully he will move up a little soon!
• The tiredness is still there too, but I'm kinda used to it now!
• I got my first set of cloth diapers in the mail!  It was a sample pack with one Fuzzibunz, one BumGenious, and one Kawaii.  I think I have ruled out Fuzzibunz, but I love the other two!  So looks like I will get a variety of BG and Kawaii in both snaps and velcro.  Now to find all the good online distributors...
• Went to a friend's baby shower, and had so much fun seeing everything she got!  I was mentally taking notes!
• Now that we know we are having a baby boy, I am looking forward to start picking out some stuff!!  We think we are gonna do shades of orange and grey in the nursery.

Talk to you all next week!!

It's A............

On Saturday we had the pleasure of attending a friend's baby shower in Chattanooga, TN.  It just so happened that we had a 16 week ultrasound scheduled for the Thursday before.....so we decided to make a day of the Chattanooga trip and have a Gender Reveal Party with our families.

We went to our US on Thursday, and explained to the US tech and the doctor that although we did want them to look for the sex of the baby, we did want them to tell us right then!  Instead, we had brought an envelope with a card for them to write down what they found.  :)  As we were leaving the office, we stopped at the information desk and asked the volunteer to call a friend who was making the cake and tell her the gender.

And then comes Saturday....Patrick and I are so lucky.  We have a wonderful immediate and extended family who chose to share this special moment with us!  We had a few snacks, and then cut the cake!!  Here are some pics to tell the story....

Starting to cut the cake...can you tell I was slightly excited!?

Seeing the inside for the first time....

Pulling the piece out...

And it is definitely BLUE!

IT's A....

And to finish this post off....I cannot even put into words how lucky I am.  I grew up with a kind, generous, and loving Mother who taught me trust in myself and trust in family.  I have two amazing Grandmothers who cared for me as I grew up and encouraged me throughout the years.  I have amazing Aunts who have all been wonderful examples to me.  And then to top it all off, I somehow added a wonderful Mother-In-Law (and grandmother-in-law) that treats me like I've always been a part of the family.  I can only hope that I take all I have learned from this outstanding group of women, and use it to raise this little boy in a loving home where he will be treasured.  

And now that I'm sitting here crying happy tears.....Happy Mother's Day to you all!

Week 16

Week 16

How is it already week 16? Only 4 more weeks to go and I'll be halfway there.  Crazy!

So I tried with the picture.  Patrick isn't the most patient photographer, especially when using an iPhone....

Baby Kirby is now a little over 4.5 inches long, which means he or she is about the size of :

An Avocado

A Starfruit

And even a Rubber Ducky!

What Baby Kirby will be up to this week:

• Eyes and ears are moving to their permanent positions on the head, making the baby look more normal and less like an alien!

• Patterns are forming on the scalp, even though hair isn't really growing much there yet

• Back muscles are strengthening, which is allowing baby to begin to try and straighten out a little. All measurement right now are crown to rump (head to butt) because of the way the baby stays curled up.  These forming muscles will soon allow those measurements to be the actual length of the baby!

• The tiny little heart is pumping about 25 quarts of blood every single day

• The umbilical cord is now fully formed between the baby and the placenta which gives the baby all its nutrients.

• Baby is breathing in and out on a regular basis, although it is currently breathing amniotic fluid and not air (He or she won't have air in the lungs until after birth)

My week so far:

• This little baby has now stretched my uterus to the size of a melon!!  No wonder I have to pee so much!  Although I hear that should get a little better soon....

• This past weekend we took Baby Kirby to his/her first music festival....Shaky Knees here in Atlanta.  Wasn't the best weather, but we had a blast with some friends visiting from Nashville.

• Nausea continues to be held at bay....thank goodness! 

• My regular jeans no longer really fit....at least not comfortably...luckily I got a few pairs of stretchy waist jeans from a co-worker!  And my Memaw bought me my first full maternity outfit this past Friday... thank you!!

• I ordered a sampler of the three brands of cloth diapers I am considering using, and I can't wait to get them!  I will post pics when they get here.

• Next update....gender announcement!!

Week 15!!

Week 15

Sorry, no pic of me this week!  Mine and Patrick's schedules didn't match up well enough to catch a pic early in the week.  Promise there will be one next week!

Rewind to Week 14 for a second!!

I noticed that I didn't post all the info I wanted to for Week 14.  (Thanks to the pregnancy brain I guess..)

Baby was about 3.5 inches long and compared to the following items:

A Lemon:

A Nectarine:

And a human fist:

And now on to Week 15!

Baby Kirby is now about 4 inches long and compared to the following items:

An Apple

A Beefsteak Tomato

A Pear

and An Orange!

New developments for Baby Kirby in Week 15:

• The legs are now longer than the arms!  All bones are still hardening.

• Fingernails and toenails are growing

• Bones in the ears are hardening, meaning the baby will be able to hear us talking!

• The thumbs are now allowing baby to grasp

• Tiny taste buds are forming

• Little baby can now hiccup, even though I can't feel much yet

• Eyes are beginning to perceive light through the eyelids

New Developments for me in Week 15:

• Nausea is pretty much gone!  My accu-pressure bands are like my safety net though...I can't quite leave the house without them yet!

• So that energy boost I keep reading about in the 2nd trimester....definitely has not hit yet.  Maybe never will since I work nightshift and have a crazy schedule...

• Definitely starting to notice the "bump" now....don't have any maternity clothes yet but luckily I've never been one to wear tight clothes, meaning most things still fit.  :)

• Beginning to feel slightly overwhelmed at all we have to do!!  I feel like the time is going by so quickly, I need to get moving on making some decisions.

• Have gotten some wonderful cloth diaper info and resources from several friends, and am very excited about ordering some soon!  Just a little more research...

See y'all after the weekend with a Week 16 update!