So I'm officially 17 weeks pregnant now and I figured it was time I start updating on my pregnancy. I probably won't do weekly updates, more likely just when I go to the see the midwives (which was actually 2 weeks ago, but who's counting?). So here we go, an update of the last 4 months.
Weeks pregnant: 17
Estimated due date: May 15, 2013 (hoping to make it at least TO if not past this date!)
Symptoms: Aside from a slightly weakened immune system which has left me with a couple of colds, I haven't really had any symptoms. First trimester came and went without any nausea or vomiting, but plenty of tiredness (which could also be attributed to the toddler that was still waking every 1 1/2 to 2 hours every night to nurse, more on that in another post!).
Feelings: (Feelings, whoa-oh feelings. Anyone else get that song stuck in their head when they hear that word? No? Just me then, alright.) Anyway, I'm feeling really good right now. I've got some energy back and I don't have a cold right now. I'm excited for our next appointment: ultrasound day!
Baby's size: 5 ounces and 5 inches, so teensy!
Weight gain so far: Don't hate me, but this is how it went last time, too. By my first appointment at 8 weeks, I was down about 11 pounds from the last time I'd weighed myself a couple months earlier. Since then I gained 2 lbs, but lost it and I'm down to my starting weight again. (Last time, the initial loss was more like 20ish lbs...)
Movement: I keep thinking I feel flutters here and there, but nothing consistent or blatantly obvious yet. But both times the midwives have tried to find the heartbeat, he/she squirms away and makes it impossible (Benji did the same).
Gender: No idea. My pregnancy is going the same as Benji's, so that makes me think boy. But I really have no idea. We go in for our anatomy scan soon (not telling when) and could find out the sex then, but we're not sure we're going to. We didn't want to find out with Benji, but kind of got talked into it, and in all reality, it would have been pretty hard to avoid since the first thing we saw at the ultrasound was him frog-legged and showing off his bits. Maybe this one will do the same and we won't have a choice, but right now I'm torn on whether or not to find out.
Maternity clothes: Haven't bought anything new, and probably won't. Timing worked out just right and I'm pregnant in the same seasons again, so I can wear everything from last time. I could probably still fit in my regular clothes, but I've switched to the wide-elastic-band type pants (not the full panels yet) and I've worn a maternity shirt once so far.
Baby stuff: We're really not planning to buy a lot for this baby. If its' a boy, we're all set for clothes, and everything else we got for Benji was gender-neutral, so we've still got the swing, bouncy seat, bottles, burp cloths, blankets, baby toys and all that. And we're planning to cosleep again, so we're not even going to get a crib for this little one, since Benji's is still sitting unused in his room, it seems like a waste of $200-300 dollars. So the only things we'll really need are a car seat, a baby floor gym (which we never got for Benji, but it would have been nice to have), and clothes if it's a girl. And I might get a better breast pump if I can get insurance to pay for it, but that's not really "baby stuff" is it?
Big brother prep: So far we haven't really done anything. A baby growing in mommy's belly and not coming out for five and a half more months is a completely abstract and foreign concept to a 20 month old, especially one who's still not great with language. As we get closer we'll start reading books about being a big brother and talking about it more, but so far all we've done is say "you know there's a baby in mommy's belly?" once in a while, and he usually says "no."
So there's the super-long first pregnancy update, hopefully the rest will be a little shorter since they won't be 4 months worth of updates in one.
