Expectant Elizabeth: 33 Weeks

Gender?  Baby Boy!!

Weight gain? 30 lbs

Size? About 15 inches, 4 pounds, the size of a Durian fruit, says the books. This is funny as it's known to be the smelliest fruit in the world!

Stretch marks? Still none yet, knock on wood! The best stuff has been an oil that came in the Earth Mama Angel Baby gift set Sean bought me. Also, one of his patients who is a prenatal nurse recommended Bio Oil which I started using when Earth Mama ran out - also great to use! In the beginning I tried using the Palmers that everyone raves about but just didn't like the smell.

Maternity clothes? Still making use of both maternity and pre-pregnancy though my non-maternity pants are getting a little tight in the bum area! I've also had to purchase a a maternity support belt as I have been having pain in my pelvic floor area; the doctor was right - it helps! And I had to buy the ugliest pair of compression socks; but they help with the swelling in my feet. Vanity has now gone out the window.

Sleep?  Not as great as it once was. I am tossing and turning to get comfortable and my once large-capacity bladder has now shrunk, giving way to those midnight bathroom calls.

Miss Anything? Let's see...my small waist, running, martinis, bending over, lifting things...all these things I used to take for granted!

Cravings? Berries! Yogurt with almonds, chicken salad, SMOOTHIES

Symptoms? Heartburn, heartburn, heartburn. And it's a bitch. The company that owns TUMS loves me now. Fatigue, swollen feet, pelvic floor pain as my belly gets bigger.

Belly button? Still in!! Its amazing, but its holding in there.

Best Moment this week? We picked out some paint samples from Home Depot to test out the colors on the baby's wall. It was neat to see everything start coming together in terms of our plans.

Looking forward to? CLOSING ON OUR NEW HOUSE THIS FRIDAY!!! It has been great staying with our friends but I'm super ready to get into our new house and making it our own.

Exercise? Too be honest, it's been minimal. Aside from walking daily, that's about it. My energy levels and all that has been going on have just not allowed more to be possible

Expectant Elizabeth: 24 Weeks!

Gender?  Baby Boy!!

Size? About 12 inches, and a pound and a half!

Stretch marks?  None yet. But I've gotten that damn linea nigra! I was reading up on it and apparently it's caused by a melanocyte-stimulating hormone that's made by the placenta. They say that the more fair you are, the more likely you are to get it. Oh well, at least it's temporary! Guess it's a one-piece bathing suit for me!

Maternity clothes? Still making use of both maternity and not, thank goodness.

Sleep?  Just last week I was saying "I never have to wake up at night to use the restroom". Well I spoke to soon. Every night this week! Plus my back has been killing me. So my dear husband stopped by Babies R Us on the way home and bought me the Boppy Pregnancy Wedge. Woo-Hoo! Thank goodness. That has helped with back pain so much!

Miss Anything? Still alcohol - geez, it sounds like I'm an alcoholic! But I'm not, I swear. I just miss being able to sit out on the deck with a nice refreshing beer. Non-alcoholic beer doesn't cut it. And have you tried the "de-alcoholize wine"? Disgusting.

Cravings? Still with the pickles. And ice cream. But not together, no worries - not that crazy!




Symptoms? Again with that damn linea nigra.

Belly button? Still in much to Sean's dismay.

Best Moment this week? Starting to look at registry stuff. Not in the stores but just online. I know we need to register soon but we have no place to put anything so I'm hesitant.

Looking forward to?  Getting this damn move over with!! Too stressful for me and the baby.

Exercise? Workout DVDs. And seeing as how it's in the 90s but feels like 120938103 degrees out to this pregnant lady, walking outdoors has been minimal.

Expectant Elizabeth: 23 Weeks!

Gender?  Baby Boy!!


Size?  Large Mango - yummy! Haha. Just over a pound and over 11 inches long!

Weight Gain? 20 lbs! That was as of week 20 and my doctor scolded me for gaining too much weight too quickly so I haven’t gained a pound since.

Stretch marks?  None yet, still have to keep up with the lotion – found the best one when Sean gave me the “Mommy” gift set from

Maternity clothes? I finally broke down and bought some maternity pants! My MIL gave me a gift card for my birthday to Destination Maternity (thanks Jessica!) so I bought some work pants and tops. I’m using the rest to buy a bathing suit for our upcoming Charleston trip. And my sister was very nice in giving me bags of her old maternity clothes! And a best friend gave me her maternity jeans which are SO comfy. Way better than using the belly band.

Sleep?  Meh, with all that’s going on it takes me a while to get to sleep at night. But then when I do I’m out like a light!

Miss Anything? Alcohol!! My small waist. And running. It’s just too uncomfortable now.  

Cravings? Nothing crazy but still loving fruit. And pickles – althought I’ve always liked pickles! And hot dogs with dill relish (heat to steaming, of course).
 
Symptoms? Does weight gain count? Lol. Nothing terrible as of yet aside from the skin problems!

Belly button? Still in, but I’m sure it will pop at some point because it’s more shallow every day! Sean can’t wait as he knows my belly button phobia. Jerk!

Best Moment this week? All of the baby movement! This little boy is a kicker (or puncher!).

Looking forward to?  Finding a new house so I can NEST. We sold ours so quickly but have yet to find one. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Exercise? As mentioned above, running is kind of uncomfortable due to the size of my belly so I’ve switched to walking. I also found the best pregnancy strength training DVD on amazon.com. 


Lots of things have been going on - hence me not being on here as much - I'll explain later!

16 weeks

How far along?   16 weeks

Size of the little one?  The books say 4.5 inches, about the size of an avocado!

Gender?  Don’t know yet, but can’t wait!!

Weight Gain? 7.5 pounds

Stretch marks?  None yet, still have to keep up with the lotion.

Maternity clothes?  Not yet, although a good friend lent me her maternity jeans in case I need to break them out. So far, getting by with the belly band for my office clothes, and leggings, and dresses for outside of work.

Sleep?  Good so far minus the waking up in the middle of the night for bathroom trips. Still have to get those 8 eight hours though!

Miss Anything? Again, wine. And it's annoying to have to constantly think about what I'm eating (is this healthy? is this on the "do not eat" list? etc etc)

Cravings? Still nothing crazy. But fruit - love berries! In fact, for my birthday at work this year I preferred a tart from Wegmans rather than my usual double chocolate! Weird for me? YES. I've heard that if you crave chocolate, this means it's a girl. So perhaps another sign that it's a boy?

Symptoms? HORRIBLE acne. Worst it's been in my life. Yeah, that glowing skin they say pregnant ladies get? Not so much. I knew that it would probably be my luck to make my skin so haywire, but not THIS bad!!

Belly button? Still in, but I swear it's becoming rounder - is that possible? I've always had this phobia of having my belly button touched so this is torture and I am dreading an "outie".

Best Moment this week? Trying to figure out if it's the baby I'm feeling move. I've been getting those "butterflies" and the doc said they sometimes start as early as 16 weeks...but it could be my imagination.

Looking forward to?  putting our house on the market next week!!! This has been super stressful so one more thing out of the way and off the list is such a relief.

Exercise? Started running and Pilates again!

Expectant Elizabeth: Week 15

How far along?   15 weeks

Size of the little one?  The books say 3.5 inches, about the size of a lemon. However, at our sonogram last week Baby M was about 4.5 inches!

Gender?  Don’t know yet, but can’t wait!!

Weight Gain? 7 pounds – yikes!

Stretch marks?  None yet, but drowning myself in lotion just in case

Maternity clothes?  Haven't had to buy any yet and most of my pants are still fitting; although I did buy a belly band for some of them. Thank goodness leggings are in style right now! And lucky for me since my sister had a baby last year I get lots of hand-me-down maternity wear.

Sleep?  Good so far minus the waking up in the middle of the night for bathroom trips. But I am SO tired all the time that if I don’t get 9 hours I’m dying.

Miss Anything? Obviously, cocktails and wine. I’m not going to lie, this is hard. Especially with happy hours and winery season coming up! Also, deli meat. I love sandwiches! And running. Because I’ve been so tired, it’s hard for me to get up in the morning for my daily run. And then by the time I get home from work I’m about to pass out! Hoping this will change in the next week or so.

Cravings? Nothing crazy. I think all those stories you hear about weird cravings are largely false, from what I’ve been reading.  No pickles and ice cream topped with sardines for this gal.

Symptoms?  I’ll spare you the details of my tummy troubles.

Belly button? Still in.

Best Moment this week? still just taking it all in. I checked out more baby books from the library and it's just so amazing, a miracle, that this life can grow inside my tummy!

Looking forward to?  finding out the sex of the baby! I try so hard to say "the baby" rather than "it" but it would be nice to say "he" or "she".

Exercise? walking, light weights but hoping to get back to my running this week and perhaps some yoga or Pilates