Week 19

I started a new prescription prenatal vitamin. I didn't realize that I had the option to ask for them until Poole insisted I call my doctor immediately. Evidently, unlike over the counter vitamins, they contain DHA for brain development. No one told me! So, the first night I took one around 5:00pm. With in one hour I turned green and lost my dinner. I've discovered that I'm safe if I take it right before I lay my head down for the night. Once, I forgot and woke up around 3:00am. I decided to take one but by 5:00am I was heaving in the bathroom. So, needless to say, they are REALLY strong. Speaking of 3:00am "wake ups", I am up at least 2 times a night to pee. A few nights this week I couldn't go back to sleep so I just laid awake for an hour. That certainly isn't fun when I have to get up at 5:30am. This was the first week that I felt pressure on my bladder which constantly made me feel like I had to pee. In fact, all day Sunday, all of my insides just simply felt weird. I didn't feel her kick all night or day, which is unusual. I figured she was facing towards the inside of my belly with her back towards my belly button. All day, my insides felt crampy and strange. I guess she was kicking all of my organs!
We cleared out my office and master bedroom. The extra furniture is in the garage and the desk is in our bedroom. The orange room is now taped off and ready to be primed. We bought all the paint at Lowe's today and had intended to start. However, after rearranging and moving furniture, we didn't feel like we had time to get 2 good coats on the wall. So, its now taped off and ready to be primed next Sunday.
I went to JoAnns Fabrics and chose 7 samples of pink fabrics. Sally is making our crib set and window treatments. We narrowed it down to 2 fabrics..one is light pink with white polka dots and the other is hot pink with a swirly pattern. I'm really leaning towards the polka dotted one but we'll see after the room is painted. I put the fabrics in the picture and hopefully you can see them. In the background, you can see the orange room taped off and ready to be painted. The mermaid lamp is in the picture but its hard to see. I'm going to change the shade to which ever fabric we choose for the room. So, that's about it. Oh, I found a photographer who does prego pics and newborn pics! She has a double package deal and her pics are beautiful . I can't wait to show all of you!

Week 18

Not too much happened this week. I think I grew a little. I had some cramping earlier in the week which is attributed to the ligaments around the uterus being stretched. I felt her kicking and/or punching again this week. Its the same "thumping" as last week. First I felt it on the right side and then she moved to my lower abdomen. Its still too faint for Tim to feel. Hopefully he will in the next few weeks.
We've cleaned out my office now and are ready to paint. Next weekend we'll tape the baseboards and paint the primer. We're going to take our time and stretch it out over a few Sundays. There really is no hurry except we're excited to get the nursery all set up. I've chosen a pale yellow called "Belgian Waffle". It looks very "beach cottage". It goes with the mermaid artwork perfectly. I also found a mermaid lamp, a beautiful sea blue picture frame and some starfish at The Pavilion and a white book shelf at a furniture outlet off Market Street. I'm slowly piecing together the decor each time we get paid so it doesn't end up costing a fortune all at once. I've found the furniture I want from Babies R Us. I've found a crib, dresser/changing table combo, dresser and glider but we're going to wait a little longer before we order them. We have to take baby steps because it can be very expensive!
I'm posting a picture of the first bathing suit that Porter will wear. It also has a matching hat. The picture doesn't do it justice because it is the tiniest article of clothing I've ever seen! It only goes up to 13 pounds and she may only get 1 wear out of it (depending on what she weighs). That's ok, I only need to get 1 picture and I'll be happy:)

Week 17

This week was by far the scariest and most joyful week of my pregnancy. It started Monday when my nurse practitioner called to tell me I screened positive for being at risk for Downs Syndrome. She wanted me to schedule a genetic ultrasound and genetic counseling with Wilmington Fetal Maternal. I got off the phone and immediately called Lewis and Poole. I was on the verge of panicking and needed them to be my reality. Both of them were encouraging and sure that it was a false positive. I felt much better, until I got home. When I saw Tim, I just burst into tears. I felt like all of my joy had been sucked out. He was so wonderful to me. He was very positive and sure that everything was ok. We both believe in God and His will. He gave us this child and no matter how it turned out, we would love it. I prayed alot over the next few days. Not prayers for a healthy baby but prayers of strength. I emailed my friends and asked them to pray for my family also. Everyone was so supportive and they told me stories of other women who tested positive. No one had ever told me this! I really felt like I was the only woman in the world this had happened to.
I was able to get the appointment for Friday. Originally, they weren't going to be able to get me in for 2 weeks. I don't think I would have made it that long. It just sent me into a tail spin of "what if's". At the ultra sound, they measured different parts of the baby. They looked at the bladder, kidney, spine, brain, femur, arm, heart, etc. It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. After, we met with the genetic counselor and she told us more in detail about the testing. Basically, they draw your blood at week 11 and week 16. They measure the levels of 5 hormones. They should be below 1.0. Two of mine came back around 1.6. They took a statistical formula that combined this and my age. The result screened me positive for Downs but negative for spina bifida and trisomy 18. The genetic ultrasound measured parts of the baby to see if the size looked like a normal baby or more like a Downs baby. I am happy to say that they do not think I am at risk! The baby looks healthy and normal. There's only a .05% chance that my baby has Downs. I'll take those odds! I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Prayer is so powerful!
So, the sonographer told us we were having a girl! We were just so excited! Tim now feels like its real. We've named her Porter Celeste. Celeste is my middle name and I saw the name Porter on facebook. I fell in love with it. We are decorating her nursery with mermaids. For Valentine's Day, we decided to buy a piece of art work and a little rug for her nursery. Both are beautiful mermaids!
I haven't gained any weight this week. I'm eating more fruits and veggies..just like the doctor ordered.
I started feeling some movement this week. The only way I can describe it is like a "thumping" or "spasm". Its definitely not gas, like I originally thought. Her little fists or feet are lightly bumping me and I love it. I have to be really still to feel it. Tim won't be able to feel it for another 2-3 weeks. I can't wait until he feels her kicking!!
Oh, and it snowed this week. I'm attaching a picture of our pregnant-snow-beach-bunny. My father law requested in and I just had to make one!

****I am laughing in my photo because my husband said, "Lift your chin so everyone doesn't see your rolls!"

Week 16

I finally feel completely normal again. I'm not nauseous or overly tired. I'm still eating like a horse but other than that, I feel great. The baby is now a size of an avocado. Toenails and fingernails have formed too. On Thursday, I had 2 doctor appointments. First, I gave blood at Wilmington Fetal Maternal. This test was part my first trimester screening. Next, I went to my regular OBGYN. I was hoping for an ultrasound but had to settle for the listening to the heart beat on the doppler. It was strong and loud. I couldn't stop smiling:) Its such a sweet sound to hear. I'm up 19 pounds now....my nurse told me I need to start eating more fruits and vegetables! I've gained 7 pounds in 1 month. Evidently, that's a little much. Oh well, I've craved carbs for so long now. The weeks I was sick, 9-14, I had to eat whatever I could keep down....pop-tarts, pizza, swiss cake rolls, oatmeal cream pies. Nope, no veggies or fruits. I didn't want them! I'm happy to say that now I can stomach salad, strawberries, pineapple, corn, etc. I'm going to make more of an effort to eat better, especially since I'm not exercising. Oh, We scheduled our next ultrasound for March 1st. This will be when we find out the sex. Yay!