21 Weeks

It's hot here and I noticed last night at dinner that my oh, so comfy heels were not oh, so comfy anymore. Due to said heat, when I took my shoes off I noticed lots of marks because my feet had swelled up slightly. Great, here we go with the swelling. We are having an unusually hot spring and I have a feeling this is the beginning of a long, hot summer. I know the folks back home are swearing under their breath at me because they just had a spring blizzard, but for those who don't know what "long hot summer" means in San Fernando Valley terms, it means temperatures of 100+ every single day (by 100+ I mean anywhere from 103 to around 112), no rain, rare clouds. It sounds lovely, but consider being pregnant and having 2 extra months of this summer tacked on. Not that we will get 100+ quite yet. Right now it is about 90. If you need to reach me this summer I will be floating like a giant whale in the pool.
My fingers are swelling too, so I decided it was in my best interests to say a temporary goodbye to my engagement ring. I am a sentimental fool and didn't want to take it off, but I figure it's better than having to get it cut off of my finger at some point. My wedding band is slightly bigger so we'll see how long that lasts.
Now onto the fun stuff! I saw the baby move from the outside of my belly for the first time today, and Paul was able to feel some light kicks. It really just looks like my belly pulsates every so often but it's really exciting. I've been looking forward to this part of pregnancy and I'm glad it's finally here. I'm glad Paul can finally share in a little bit of the fun too.

20 Weeks- Halfway through!

Yep, it's happening. She's growing. Just 2 weeks ago the maternity pants were slightly too large and now, despite having lost a pound since then, they're the only pants I can fit into in the gut area. Today I got a pair of maternity pants that are so comfortable I will be sad to give them up after pregnancy. Goodbye rubber banded buttons and zippers that only go up halfway and hello elastic, stretch waistbands! Life is good.

In other exciting news I can now feel the baby. The first time I felt her was the day I was 19 weeks along. At first the movements were scarce and light, but every couple of days they get stronger and more frequent. As I'm writing this I've been kicked just under the belly button twice. Sometimes they actually feel like little kicks, but mostly it feels like an eel is swimming around in there. I haven't heard anyone else describe it that way, but it makes sense to me.

Now that we're halfway through the pregnancy, Paul and I decided it's time to start figuring out what we need to make this baby at home so we went to Babies R Us on Saturday and registered. We're not completely done, but we've picked out all the important stuff and then some. Pretty soon we'll start on the nursery at which point I hope to have figured out how to post pictures on this thing.

Happy Easter and Spring!

FYI- This was actually posted on the 18th, not the 13th. That date was from an old draft.

Move over Ginger Ale, make room for Buckler!

Got an email from my friend Stephanie the other day reminding me about something I would have never given thought to before pregnancy... non-alcoholic beer. Let's face it, pre-pregnancy I would almost never choose beer over liquor, and frankly, I like alcohol in my alcoholic beverages (sorry, but I don't believe 0.5% counts- if you do, read the statistics here and feel better http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/FetalAlcoholSyndrome.html) I thought I kicked the beer craving but last night I saw some people drinking beer on Three Sheets (a funny show about drinking on Mojo HD) and it was all over. Paul offered to go to the store and get some of Stephanie's recommendations, one of which was Buckler. I was a little skeptical, wondering if it would taste like the real deal. When he got back and I took the first sip I was in non-alcoholic beer heaven! Thanks Buckler. Now I can kick back with a cold one and relax. Sigh...

19 weeks

Today we had our second trimester ultrasound. The doctor said everything looks great. The organs, blood flow, and size of the baby are all just as should be at this point. Right now "the Mave" weighs 9 ounces, and once again they confirmed it's a girl. That's good because I couldn't help but buy some cute girly clothes after the last ultrasound.
We don't have any great pictures of the baby right now because she was sleeping, but I'll post them later anyway once they're scanned in. She was pretty cute, resting the right side of her head on the placenta like it was a pillow.
As for mommy, I feel great. No more fatigue or major symptoms, and even the cravings have subsided a bit (except for pickles... I just can't get rid of that one). My belly is growing by the day, and though I haven't graduated into maternity pants yet (they are still slightly too loose), I have had to use the rubber band expansion trick on most of my pants. Now I'm just waiting 'til I can distinguish the baby moving from gas! Not as easy as it sounds. I will let you know when I can tell for sure. :D

Ginger Ale

I'd like to take a brief moment to give props to my favorite pregnancy beverage, Ginger Ale. Not only has it relieved my nausea time and time again, but it's the closest thing I'm going to get to a beer any time soon! Thank you, Ginger Ale!

17 Weeks- Adventures in Cravings

I'm not much of a blogger unless there is a purpose, and thanks to my friend Jenny, I've decided pregnancy is about as purposeful as it can get. Since most friends and family are far away, I figure this is a good way to keep everyone updated on the pregnancy.

So on with it then...

Right now we're 17 weeks along (Paul is pregnant too, you know) and the baby is doing well. For those of you that don't already know, "Mavis" is a girl. Mavis is just a nickname, by the way. We don't think our daughter would be very happy about having a name that rhymes (a la Julia Gulia), so we're currently trying to narrow down a list of possible replacements. :)

As for the pregnancy the very annoying first trimester fatigue has pretty much worn off and so has the nausea for the most part, though I was never as nauseous as a lot of pregnant women I know. Now onto the new/continuing symptoms: forgetfulness, indecisiveness, and cravings. I think I would forget my own head if it weren't attached to my body. It really is amazing how mentally challenged I am at the moment. Along with this comes the inability to make a decision, no matter how small. Don't anybody invite me to a wedding anytime soon because the chicken or beef option would send me into a dither. Really, that was a bad example because it seems I am having an aversion to chicken (fried or bacon-wrapped excluded) . The idea of touching or smelling a raw chicken breast is vile. Can't do it since I've been pregnant. You think none of this makes sense? Join the club! Here's another puzzler. I never liked beer but right now I would give my right arm for an icy cold hefeweitzen! I don't really miss any other alcohol too much (no offense my lovely friend champagne), and beer would have been my last choice before pregnancy, but it's my first choice now. Other frequent cravings are cantaloupe, strawberries, hot sauce, vinegar, pickles, olives, cream cheese, french fries and pizza. I suppose by the looks of it I mainly need salt and vinegar. During the first trimester I had a huge craving for red velvet cupcakes, but let's face it, it was that cream cheese frosting I really needed.

So there you have it, my first blog. Our next ultrasound is on March 7th and they'll be looking closely at the baby's heart, brain, etc. For those of you that missed out, here is the link to the video recorded at the last ultrasound, around 14 weeks: http://youtube.com/watch?v=xTxt4XPPzmk