Peanut Moving Inside Belly

I was finally able to piece together all of the different film I had of Mckenna moving inside of mommy...



Pretty crazy right?!?!?

Sweet Belly Shot

35 weeks

4 Weeks and Counting

AHHH that's right, only 4 weeks until D day!! As of Saturday, my due date was exactly 1 month away. I could not be more excited to be getting so close to meet this little love. I will miss having her inside me, with me all the time, feeling her every move, but I will LOVE being able to look at her sweet little face and hear her little cry!!

I have decided that the thing I will miss most about being pregnant, is feeling Peanut's every move. Somehow I feel like I am sharing special little moments with her that no one else knows about - like we have a little secret every time she nudges me, kicks my bladder, wiggles around to get comfy. But I will say, as Peanut gets bigger in my compact 5'2" torso, she is starting to impede upon my ribs a bit. For some reason, she LOOOOVES to snuggle both feet or her booty right up under my ribs on the right side. It's funny, never my left, always my right. The other day she was snuggling her booty up into my ribs like usual and I looked at Ronnie and said, "She must have my booty...I think she's 50% booty!" So in honor of Peanut, and her booty wiggle into my ribs, here's a little music video we made a couple years ago. Bring on that booty, Peanut, momma's ready to be snuggled for another 4 weeks, as long as you don't break my ribs :)

A Weekend Out of the Hole

As you maybe saw (see last post) Ronnie busted out of the joint on Friday. We got home int the late afternoon and preceded to do nothing...it was glorious! We lounged around on our couch and watched TV, made smoothies for dinner (which I had been dreaming about for a week), and just enjoyed being back home together. We then, of course, enjoyed a good night's sleep in our own bed - such an awesome feeling. I'm sure anyone can related. You go on vacation, you sleep at a friend's house, you visit your in-laws, regardless of where you're sleeping, there is nothing like coming home and sleeping in your own bed. Well after 3 weeks in a cot and hospital bed, we were excited to be back in our own bed.

Saturday was an errand running day. We made a grocery store run. Obviously 3 weeks not home leaves you with a very empty fridge. Then we ran to some clothing stores to find me an outfit for me to wear in our maternity photos (more on that in a second). As a result of this chore, I have now realized when you don't shop for clothes - when you're 8 months preggo and nothing fits. Needless to say, I bought only what was necessary and felt wayyyy better about the world when trying on shoes. Ever notice how that works? If you're not feeling sexy, you just buy shoes...you're feet can still look good, right?! Unfortunately not totally true during pregnancy, as my feet often look more like paws than feet, but anything was better than trying to figure out what size and style shirt would fit my belly tight enough to see a bump, but loose enough to not look awkward. Anywhoo, I found a couple shirts that worked, so I was happy in the end. Ronnie even found some steals on sale that I convinced him to buy. So it was a success. Errands were followed by a relaxed night with Josh and Chrissy. We watched a movie and vegged out. It was fun getting to hang out again (it had been too long, since we were in Tucson).

So that brings me to Sunday...maternity photo day. I decided to treat myself to a little pampering for the photos. So I had a friend of mine (who also did my hair for our wedding) do my hair. Nothing crazy, she just blow dried it and added some casual curls. AND I had my makeup done (figured I can go all out since this may be the only time I do maternity photos). The photo session was a blast, as it was a friend of ours that took the photos, so it was casual and fun. She took photos of me, my belly, and of us together. I'm excited to see how they turn out...and we'll share some of them here when we have them.

So that's it..that was our first weekend out of the hole. And a crazy side note, we're 35 weeks, tomorrow, so it may be one of six weekends we have left (give or take depending on when Peanut decides she's done cooking). CRAZY!!!!

Nesting: Playroom Addition

As of tomorrow (Tuesday) we will be 31 weeks pregnant - WAHOO! Somehow 31 weeks sounds WAY further along than 29 or even 30 weeks (silly how your brain can work that way sometimes...who knows why that sounds so much further along). So the clock feels like it's really tickin' fast now. Therefore, we decided this weekend was a good weekend to get crackin' on the playroom. Our house's common areas (family room, dining room, kitchen) aren't great places to play, so we are making the bedroom next to Peanut's nursery (connected by a jack and jill bathroom) a playroom. The plan is to have all of Peanut's toys live in there, and much of the play happen in there, but obviously everything will make its way out into the rest of the house a ton, but at least the toys will have somewhere to "live". We went on Friday and purchased a sleeper sofa (figured it could double as another guest room if we ever needed the space). Then on Saturday and yesterday, we ran all over the place shopping for additional furniture and storage for toys. In shopping for furniture, storage, and decorative stuff, we stumbled upon a ton of reasonably priced puzzles, books and toys at Tuesday Morning (I've never been - WAY cool store).

So 1 couch, 2 pillows, 1 throw, 1 "rocking cow", 2 shelves, 12 nylon storage boxes, 38 books, 4 puzzles, 3 toys, and 2 stuffed animals later, the playroom is getting close to being ready for Peanut. We didn't get many toys or "baby things" (like jumpers, bouncey seat, swing, etc) because we're registered for all of that, so it will come with time (after the shower).

Anywhoo, check out what we have so far:

Couch - moreso for mom and dad than Peanut - and a fun "rocking cow" that sings songs.

Storage on one side of the closet. No toys in there...yet!

Storage on the other side of the closet.

The small storage shelves are already filled with books and puzzles from this weekend! We got a little carried away!!

So there you have it! That's Peanut's playroom thus far. It's mainly just the bones. Can't wait to get a rug, stuff for the walls, and all the fun baby stuff like a jumper, playmat, bouncey seat, you name it!!

We get to "see" Peanut today!!

Just random little tidbits about my Peanut...

Today we are heading back to the 3d/4d ultrasound place to get another scan done. We really enjoyed the first one, and although it's not covered by insurance, we think it is worth every penny. They're all about getting good shots of your baby and providing as many pictures as possible. We also opted to get a DVD of the entire ultrasound and I'm sure that we will be doing that again. Be sure to tune into the blog this weekend or Monday as I'm sure we will be posting some pics!!

Another thing I thought I would mention (only because it's so crazy to me), is that now Peanut is getting to the point that we can feel individual body parts. There are times that I could swear me and Peanut are shaking hands! Just before I started writing this blog, I'm pretty sure that I was able to identify almost every one of her body parts. I also got as close to holding her as one could possibly get at this point as I had her head in my right hand and her butt in my left. It's so freaking cool!!

We've also started to read to Peanut per the suggestion of a librarian here in Chandler. Granted, she was talking about after they are born, but we figured it's never too soon. Peanut usually becomes very active when we read to her and I'm of course "sure" that she is reacting to my voice. Probably not, but it sure makes me feel special :)

I can tell you this, I'm absolutely screwed.

Thankful Thursday - 3rd Trimester & Gentamicin

It's thankful Thursday time! We all have so much to be thankful for and we love to take this opportunity just to write down each and everything that comes to mind. as I mentioned, I no longer have the "linkytools" but I invite you to share your thankful blog in the comments section. Without further ado, here's what we're thankful for:

Mandi's List:

I'm thankful for food. Today I had to go in for a 3-hour glucose tolerance test (yes, that means I failed the 1-hour. I was 133 and the cut off is above 139, but anything in the 130's they do a 3-hour on just in case. We'll keep you posted with results). However, the one thing I learned from this fasting test is how much I am thankful for food. I had to go in fasting for 12 hours, and then it was 3 more hours until I could eat...and for this preggo momma, who eats every 2-4 hours, that was not awesome. I've never had a lunch taste so good! I sure am thankful for food.

I'm thankful for a bigger Peanut. Peanut is growing and healthy, and I am so thankful for that. But the thing I love the most this week is that Peanut is getting big enough that I can sometimes feel a body part moving under the skin, and actually FEEL the body part. It's not just the movement, but Peanut's body that I can feel. It is so incredible!! I am so thankful for the bond I can build with my baby as I feel her wiggle around.

I'm thankful for being in the 3rd trimester! As of Tuesday, we were 28 weeks pregnant. Man, I am SO thankful to be in the 3rd trimester. We are counting down to the end now - only 12 weeks left. Looking at the calendar it looks SO close and I think the next several weeks will fly by (as we have a lot on the calendar), but then it'll probably slow down as we get close to the end and time will crawl by. Also, t feels great to know that if I were to have Peanut today, she would have a 90% survival rate. Knowing that we've made it to a point that Peanut would likely be ok if I went into labor, brings a lot of peace to my often worrying mind!

Ronnie's List:

I'm thankful for my opportunity to spend some time with the good folks out in Kansas City this weekend. I've been invited to speak at their CF education day on Saturday and I'm really excited to share my story. I love being able to speak face-to-face with members in the community, and sometimes I even get to meet people that I know from the online community. I certainly hope that's the case on Saturday!

I'm thankful for this blog. This blog gives me the opportunity to talk about anything and everything. And although talking, or writing in this case, about stuff I care about is enjoyable, I especially like the interaction that takes place on RSBR. It's amazing how willing you guys are to share tips and tricks about topics I discuss on this blog. I've been struggling to come up with veggie centric meals, I voiced that concern and within hours I had comments and emails giving me suggestions. I seriously couldn't ask for anything more!

I'm thankful for inhaled antibiotics. I still think inhaled antibiotics are the best thing since sliced bread. These things go right to the source of the infection and most of the time, no matter which drug it is, it feels like something is working. I just started another cycle of inhaled Gentamicin (an oldie but goodie) and I'm hoping that it holds off a trip to the Hole for a little while longer!

So, what are you thankful for today?

Peanut before Glider?

Yesterday we went to Buy Buy Baby to finally buy our glider for the nursery. I have been putting it off for the last 5 weeks because I was nervous to pull the trigger on one. You see, they don't have all of the gliders available to "test drive" at the store, so you can't necessarily sit and feel the one you order. Also, none of the gliders out on the floor came in a fabric I liked. So that meant I had to order a glider I had never sat in, in a fabric I only saw a little swatch of. And to add insult to injury, once ordered you can't cancel it. It could be the ugliest, most uncomfortable chair in the history of the world, and we are stuck with it. Everything about that made me anxious and not want to pull the trigger! However, yesterday felt like it was a good day to be a risk-taker and buy the glider and ottoman.

So we went to Buy Buy Baby and bought a great looking, upholstered chair and ottoman in a fabric that looks like it will be beautiful (a creamish/tanish color). It's the same glider as in the picture (top right of blog), but it's in a different fabric. Well we got the chair ordered and then were told when we could expect our custom beauty: 10/6/11-11/6/11. As soon as I saw those dates I thought to myself, "What? Are you telling me peanut is SO close that I may finish incubating this little nugget before they can assemble and deliver a chair?!" The thought was thrilling and scary all at the same time. It made me panic a little bit thinking, "shoot, what else haven't I done that if I don't do it now it will be 'too late'?" But more than anything I was just excited. We are due in 12 weeks from tomorrow...which means peanut is considered full-term at any point 9 weeks from now. FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!!!!!!!! I, obviously, am hoping to be one of those lucky ladies that has her first just glide right out at 37 weeks...however, I am fully aware that I will likely be sitting, twirling my thumbs at 41 weeks wondering if peanut will ever come out.

So here's where I need your help. What are things that I should be doing (or should have done) at or before 28 weeks? This first time mom has no idea what exactly should be done at this point, but all I know is that if a glider can take up to 13 weeks, there must be other things I need to get on the ball and do. So help me out here...what did you have done before 28 weeks? What can I leave for the last minute?

26 Weeks and Getting Big!

It's been a few weeks since I've given a baby and belly update, and I had a few people ask for belly shots, so I figured I could post about baby and put up the most recent belly shot.

I am 26 weeks pregnant tomorrow, and the pregnancy is still going very smoothly. Peanut is still growing (I assume because my belly is growing faster now (what feels like daily) and her kicks and flips are feeling bigger. According to babycenter.com, she is about 13.5 inches long head to heel and 1.5 lbs. She's growing into a legit little baby these days! Ronnie and I absolutely LOVE to watch peanut move around. Her movements are so big these days, I end up with crazy lumps and bumps. I love picturing what she must look like; what body part we must be seeing. Feeling her move has been the most enjoyable blessing of this whole pregnancy. I can't believe the bond I feel with this little nugget without ever seeing her, just by feeling her inside me. Sometimes I sit distracted for minutes on end watching all her movements. Such an incredible process and beautiful miracle!

As for momma, I am still feeling good and still able to be really active (which is priority numero uno for me...second, of course, to peanut growing and developing properly). I am still running 5 mornings a week - about 2.5-3 miles at a time, and then I do another form of cardio for 30-60 minutes in the afternoons, as well as lift 3 days a week. It feels great to be active. It gives me a sense of "normalcy." I feel a little more like myself, and a little less like a bloated, host-body to an alien. As you can see in the photo (below) I am finally getting a legit pregnant belly, and man it is crazy to see myself with a belly! I am having some cramping and discomfort as everything is growing and shifting, but nothing crazy. Peanut is sitting WAY low and seems to like nestling into the WAY outside of my stomach, so I often have a lot of pressure WAY low and WAY forward in my belly, as peanut uses the front of my uterus as a hammock. I'm not complaining though, the best part about it is that many times during the day I have a HUGE lump on one side or the other and can see exactly where she is all curled up, which makes me feel like I am so just closer to her somehow!

Also, I promised I would post my weight gain on the blog...sooo I will hold true to my word (GULP). I am currently up between 12 and 13lbs, depending on what I ate the day before. I must say, seeing the numbers climb isn't the best feeling in the world, but hey, it's all baby, right?!? (Insert smirk and eye roll here). We will see how the climb continues. I'm not sure what is "normal" at this point, but I think I am on track and unless something goes crazy in the next 14 weeks, I will likely land in the recommended 25-35 lb range.

That's about it...enjoy the photo!

Picture taken at 25 weeks (last Tuesday)

Half-way There

Welp, this is it. This is the week I've been waiting for since hearing the words, "you're pregnant." It's week 20. Week 20 means we're half way through this pregnancy and, better yet, half way to holding our precious little baby in our arms. As you can tell, I've been counting down the weeks until I could say we were half way there. When I really think about it, it's a little silly that I put so much stake on the 20 week mark...considering that means I still have 20 weeks left, which is kind of a long time. Regardless, I'm thrilled.

So here are a few tid-bits on momma. My belly is starting to show, although it's still pretty tiny. I'm hoping that means I'll stay on the smaller side throughout the pregnancy, but I think I will likely be small, small, small, and then BOOM, blow up. We shall see. My weight is climbing far faster than peanut's, with a grand total of 10 lbs (gulp...I promised I'd share, but that may change as I grow ;-) !!) My acne is getting better, but it's still not great. I think it's going to be with me until peanut is born, but I've accepted it at this point. It's been a good lesson in vanity and accepting that which I cannot change.

As many of you read, we had an ultrasound last weekend and found out that we're having a little girl (high fives and big smiles). We are totally thrilled at the idea of having a baby girl, although we've decided to hold our excitement back a tiny bit until we have another scan at 28 weeks to confirm that it is in fact a little girl. It may sound silly, but I've seen way too many stories online of parents being told "girl" only to be told "boy" a few weeks or scans later. So Ronnie and I still call peanut, "peanut" but we do slip in "she" and "her" pretty frequently.

And for that reason, we're still holding off on buying adorable headbands and tutus for another several weeks. But my mom is going to be in town in two weeks, and as some of you may remember reading in previous posts, my mom is like Martha Stewart. Anywhoo, she's only here for a few weeks, and she probably won't be back until it's baby time, so I don't want to miss my chance getting her great insight...plus, this is the stuff that moms and daughters are supposed to do together. Therefore, we're starting to think about the nursery, and are going to make all the big items neutral, and then just add gender-specific touches (ie furniture, bedding neutral; pillows, wall decor gender-specific). I think the nursery is just as much for mom and dad as it is for baby...since parents spend a lot of time in there. So we're making it a space that feels really relaxing and calming (this stress ball needs relaxing and calming). So below are two pictures of my nursery inspiration...I'd love to hear your thoughts!

My Belly's Shrinking?

We are 18 weeks today! So little peanut is about the length of a bell pepper. We haven’t posted belly shots in a while, so here they are. For some reason my belly actually looks like it’s shrinking in some of the photos, but I’ll just blame the photographer (cough, cough, RONNIE). I swear, it’s getting bigger and my jeans are finally getting pretty uncomfortable…but the rubber band trick is still working – except for the fact I have a major muffin top all the way around because they’re just simply too tight. The muffin top could also have something to do with the 9 pounds I've gained to date (no idea where my weight gain is supposed to be at this point, I'm just trying to hit my goal of keeping it to 10lbs at 20 weeks...we'll see). I think it’s getting to be time for some maternity pants, but I’m cheap, so I’m putting it off!

14 weeks

15 weeks

16 weeks

17 weeks

What do you think? Is it looking bigger to you? When do you think I’ll officially “pop”?

It's ALIVE...

A little update from Baby Land, just one day shy of 18 weeks. I finally have felt peanut MOVE! I've been pretty sure that I've felt little peanut move every once in a while for the last couple of weeks. But the last two days I'm even more sure that it's peanut. It is wayyyy too low to be my stomach growling and feels nothing like gas, so that leaves one option: baby! Any ladies out there that have been pregnant before or currently pregnant and want to tell me if I'm right? Here's what it feels like (my best description): put your hand on your cheek. Now quickly run your tongue along the inside of your cheek. It feels like what you feel on your hand (did that description make any sense?). Well regardless, that's what I've been feeling and I absolutely LOVE it. I don't get to feel it very often. It's generally only after I eat (normally lunch or dinner), when I'm relaxing/sitting on the couch, half laying, half sitting, face-up. And they come in waves of 2 or 3, but they always quit too soon.

The coolest part is that not only have I been feeling peanut, but Saturday and yesterday Ronnie felt it!! Since I know they come in 2 or 3, when we were on the couch hanging out after lunch (both days) and I felt the first little movement, I had Ronnie put his hand on my belly. After a few minutes of holding really still and being very patient, Ronnie got to feel one little movement each day. As soon as the little "pop" happens, we both look at each other and say, "Woah." Ronnie usually follows his "Woah" with a "I felt that" and mine is followed with a "see that's gotta be peanut.....right??"

Another cool development is the ability to FEEL exactly where my uterus is. It's a bit of a crazy feeling, but if I lay flat on my back, I can see and feel a big "ball" in my lower abdomen, from my pelvic bone to about a half-inch to an inch below my belly button. It's a trip! In the mornings it's always the most exaggerated (probably because I'm not as bloated and haven't eaten in 10 hours), so I often lay in bed for several minutes just running my hands over the "melon" that used my be my flat belly. It is my absolute favorite. I like to picture little peanut in there, and love the thought that my hand it just inches from where he/she is camped out!

If you can't tell, I'm starting to become really fascinated with this little being inside me and the changes that peanut is causing in my body (and the FUN changes, not just the acne and bloating which I've known all too well for the last 18 weeks!). I cannot wait for all the fun to come. It is finally becoming REAL and I can't imagine what it must be like to feel baby many times a day in full force!

That's about it from our neck of the woods. Who's doing something fun for Memorial Day??

**By the by, that is NOT a legit picture of my belly. If and when we can make out peanut's toes we'll probably be too fascinated and shocked to remember to grab a camera!!

Top Ten Reasons to Find Out The Sex

On Friday we posted our latest ultrasound video. Being 15 weeks, we thought we could possibly find out the sex, since with the right shot, you can take a really good guess at it. But as you saw in the video, our nurse went back and forth, initially thinking girl, then suspecting girl, and ending the appointment with her best guess, "boy...but we'll have to wait and see." Our IVF clinic is still giving us ultrasounds (just being nice) so we're going to sneak in one last one on Thursday before the baby doesn't fit on the screen, with the hope of finding out the sex.

We got a lot of comments on the video saying that being surprised was the way to go. And I felt the same way most of my life. I always thought I wanted to be surprised. In fact, when I played out my baby's birth I envisioned hearing "It's a ____" out of the doctor's mouth and being so shocked. However, since getting pregnant, my perspective as changed. I figured I'd put together my top 10 reasons for wanting to find out the sex. So here is goes:

1. I hate calling the baby "it". We call our baby Peanut as much as possible, but sometimes there are contexts where he, she, or it is necessary. And something about calling my sweet, precious, totally-loved baby "it" feels cold.

2. I constantly am running my own movies of the future, and having a gender would help my movies along. I want to know if I'm picturing a little boy playing with trucks and begging his daddy to play catch in the yard, or a little girl feeding a bottle to her baby and wearing around mommy's high heels (How's that for fitting your child into gender-specific roles? I just realized as I was typing that that I don't quite have to force my children into stereotypical roles. And I will say, a little girl of ours will be a complete tom boy...but these are my made up movies - so that's what I envision).

3. I don't want a gender-neutral nursery. The nursery is one of the best parts of pregnancy. You get to put together your child's space and make it a place that suits the baby, while still being a room that you'll enjoy in the wee hours of the night. I want a nursery that is perfectly-suited to a little boy or that is girly for a girl. Plus, I'm not that into yellow or green - two of the go-tos for gender-neutral nurseries.

4. Gender-neutral clothes are hard to come by. My friend recently had a baby and in shopping for her little bundle, I found that the girls' sections and boys' sections are huge, but you have to search high and low for cute gender neutral clothes. And being the advanced planner that I am, I know I will want quite a few outfits on hand before baby comes home.

5. Narrowing down the name game. We've started playing the name game since finding out we were pregnant. But we have a tough time narrowing it down to less then 5-10 names. Once we know the sex, we can really start to focus on just the boy names or just the girl names, and finally reach a conclusion. Otherwise, we're constantly churning names for both and I have a feeling we'll never get there by D-day.

6. Bonding. This one sounds a little silly, but I will say it anyways. Something about knowing the sex of the baby seems like it will help me bond while the baby is still in my tummy. When I feel Peanut kick, I want to be able to picture who it's coming from. It kills me that I have to wait another 6 months before actually seeing this little nugget's face, but being able to at least picture a little boy or girl helps - who knows why.

7. Hand-me-downs. We have cousins and friends who have kids of both sexes. And they are generous enough to pass down some things they're no longer using. However, it seems like our house could become a giant store unit pretty quickly if we're collecting both boy stuff AND girl stuff. And then, what do you do with all the stuff of the wrong sex? So knowing the sex will keep our selection limited at least by 50%.

8. Ronnie needs at least 6 months to prepare if it's a girl. Ronnie has ben very honest since the beginning that he wants a boy. "Why?" you ask. Because he knows that a little girl will have him wrapped around her little finger. So he needs some time to strategize how he will remain THE boss-man, while he would be melting inside when she simply looked at him. The joke is on him though, I think a little boy may have the same effect on him :)

9. I'm impatient. I LOVE surprises, but I have always had a tough time not peeking at Christmas gifts before their wrapped and under the tree. It's the same way with the baby. I want to be surprised, but I just can't keep myself from peeking!

10. Ronnie needs to plan exactly what the tattoo will look like on his bum...

KIDDING! There will be no tattoos in this household.

So let's hear it! Did I forget any reasons? Do you TOTALLY disagree? There's still time to change our minds...so let's hear what you've got!

Second Trimester and National News

This week is an exciting week for us in "baby land". We are going to be 14 weeks pregnant tomorrow (Tuesday) and therefore are officially in the second trimester. Quick side note: I keep finding different definitions of when the second trimester officially starts, but 14 weeks is the latest I've seen, so that is what I went with. Anywhoo...I'm thrilled that we are officially out of the "danger zone" that is the first trimester, and we are now allowing ourselves to get fully excited. Well, to be honest, I was pretty fully excited, but I kept trying to remind myself that I should remain a bit reserved until the second trimester mark.

Now starts the "fun" part of pregnancy, or so I read. Supposedly the second trimester is the easiest and the most comfortable. I haven't had any real morning sickness, so I think I'm probably in the lucky bunch that made it through the first trimester happy and comfortable, so this will likely be more of the same for me. I will say, the one thing I'm hoping the second trimester brings is a balance in my hormones, in the hopes of clearing up some of this raging acne I'm experiencing. It has steadily gotten worst over the last 7 weeks or so, and is full blown now. It's a bizarre really - a ton of acne all over my jawline and cheeks. And the worst part is that it itches and burns at times. I'm hopeful that my body will begin to stabilize and my face will steadily clear throughout this trimester, but I'm not holding my breath - my new "friends" may be here to stay until after little peanut is out of my belly. If I can push my vanity aside, we will post pictures of it - and considering Ronnie keeps saying "MAN WE NEED TO TAKE PICTURES OF THIS", my guess is that pictures will be up at some point soon.

Back to the awesome parts of this pregnancy. I am starting to get a little more of a belly (pictures will be posted in the next few weeks, once there's more growth). I'm excited to start showing. Right now it's just big enough to look like I could be pregnant, but not quite big enough that anyone would be confident enough to ask when I was due. Now I'm just counting down the weeks until I have a legit belly, and REALLY eagerly awaiting the day that I can feel our little peanut moving. In the meantime, I'll wonder if every tummy rumble and gas bubble (is that TMI?) is the first little feelings of peanut moving.

And on a totally different note, I feel the need to at least mention the major headline of yesterday. Ronnie and I watched the breaking news of Bin Ladin's death most of the evening last night. Now let me first say, I am not into politics - so I won't get political on you all today. But I will say a few things. First, I think it's great that after 10 years, we finally found him. I am especially thrilled that this day has come for the families affected by 9/11 and for the all the troops that have worked towards this moment. Second, I was pretty impressed by Obama's address. Whoever wrote that address did a really good job. I can't imagine the pressure of having to write something like that in just a few hours time. The thing I liked best about it, is that I think it was very mindful and geared toward an international audience. Anywhoo, I'm no political analyst, just felt like I should at least acknowledge the big current event!

**BE SURE TO WATCH HAWAII FIVE-O TONIGHT ON CBS. THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT SURFING, SALT WATER, AND CYSTIC FIBROSIS. WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR OUR FRIENDS AT THE MAULI OLA FOUNDATION AND AMBRY GENETICS FOR GETTING CF TO BE WORKED INTO THE SHOW. GREAT AWARENESS!!!

Week 12 Ultrasound

We had our 12 week ultrasound yesterday and just like every ultrasound before, it's a bit tense until you see the little heart beating. Fortunately this time we saw the heartbeat right away and even got to check out our baby's brain, spine, kidneys, etc. It still amazes me that a little human no different than me, just a bit smaller, is growing inside of my wife. Enjoy the video - it's truly amazing.

Itty-Bitty Belly

It's been awhile since we've given you a pregnancy update. You've had several baby updates, but I figured I'd posted the promised belly shots and fill you in on me the lady carrying the beautiful little peanut.

I still am feeling pretty good. I am definitely less sleepy than I was in the first 8-10 weeks or so. However, I have experienced a tiny bit of nausea for the last 2 weeks. Nothing major and certainly nothing that can't be handled by eating something. I find that I most frequently get a little queasy when I'm hungry, but occasionally I'll get a bit of an upset stomach after I've just eaten. I haven't been nauseous enough vomit or even come close. So I would say I've been very fortunate and haven't really experience the type of morning sickness that many suffer from.

And while all these hormones haven't caused terrible morning sickness, they have wreaked havoc on my skin. My face is more broken out than it ever has been in my life. It drives me totally nutso, to be totally honest. Not only does it look horrific, but it actually itches most of the day. But as I say to Ronnie, I don't have much of a choice, so I just have to own it. I have just been washing it twice a day and have let it hang out for the world to see (aka don't wear makeup for fear of making it worse). I'm hopeful that I'll get a visit from the "pregnancy glow" fairy sometime at the beginning of my second trimester, but I am bracing myself to look like a hormonal teenager for another 6 months (gulp).

As you'll see from the belly shots, my belly is still pretty small. Definitely small and unnoticeable to someone I've never met. But believe me, it is bigger than it was pre-pregnancy (my jeans show it all too well by my inability to button them)! My belly is about the size it was when I was bloated. So I bloated, deflated, and now I think any belly is from peanut.

As for my weight, I promised to post it - a decision I may eventually regret. I may ask you to never speak of these numbers again and to keep them just between us ;-) I am a 1 day shy of 12 weeks and am up 5 lbs (give or take a pound depending on the day). This puts me a little above some of the recommended 1-3 you read on some sites, but I'm not too worried since some say 3-5 during the first trimester...I just need to hold steady for another 2 weeks! I am hoping the ever growing numbers on the scale get easier to digest once there's a legit baby bump to blame.

That's about it. Check out the belly shots below!

8 weeks

Weight Gain: 4 lbs

9 Weeks

Weight Gain: 4 lbs

10 weeks

Weight Gain: 5 lbs

11 weeks

Weight Gain: 5 lbs

11 Week Ultrasound

Just recently we went in for our 11 week ultrasound. I don't think Peanut was too happy that we were disturbing him/her and it took some "encouragement" to get him/her moving! Make sure you watch around the 6 min mark to really see some action in the womb :)

Slacker Monday?

Please excuse the interruption to the regularly scheduled blogging. Today, instead of it being a legit Mandi Monday Blog, I give you a Slacker Mandi Monday Blog.

We had a great weekend in Syracuse, NY and we drove to Cromwell, CT to spend my great aunt's 90th birthday. We are spending today, Monday, with my parents (who also flew here to be here for the festivities), therefore, I spent yesterday and today NOT doing a real blog. However, we will fill you in on all the fun when we're home :)

Just a quick update, our little peanut is still doing well and we will get to see it on Wednesday during an ultrasound - needless to say, I can't wait. I want to see my little munchkin kicking and wiggling all over the place. Plus, I'm pretty sure it must really look like a human now. Still no real belly, but we'll post shots soon.

Sorry for being a slacker, but I assure you that I will not keep it up :)

First Friday: It's a Human...

...and it MOVES!!

Yesterday's ultrasound was by far the coolest yet. Our little peanut has graduated from looking like a seahorse, to looking like a real, live baby! We could instantly see little arm and leg buds and peanut actually has a visible head - in fact, a head that made up about 1/2 of the body (which we're told is normal, but scares me to death for the labor! If peanut has Ronnie's head, it could be very interesting!) Also very cool was the fact that this time you could see the umbilical cord, and watch the blood flow through it. It's little heart was beating even faster now - at about 178 beats a minute. The beating almost appeared in tandem with the blood flow through the umbilical cord.

And while all of that was so incredible to see, the most amazing part was that our baby was MOVING!! Yup, at just 9 weeks and 2 days, peanut was moving. We watched in amazement as it's whole body would wiggle, and as the little arms and legs would punch and kick. We're attaching a video, so you can see the wonder that is a tiny baby moving. You'll have to watch VERY closely though, because the movement isn't noticeable if you blink or aren't focused.

All in all, it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life - I think even more exciting than seeing the heartbeat for the first time. Something about peanut actually looking like a baby AND moving made it all so real.

Graduating to an OBGYN

Yup, graduating. At least that's what it felt like when I walked into my OBGYN's office yesterday morning. I had a strange sense of pride as I filled out my forms. I somehow felt like I now had a "normal" pregnancy. I now was at an appointment that everyone goes to. It felt good. It felt like we had crossed a certain threshold; like we made it to a certain point; like we were graduating onto "pregnancy" and not "trying to get pregnant." Unfortunately this graduation isn't as cut and dry as high school to college or college to the work force. We still have a little bit of overlap, as our fertility doc wants to see us another few weeks, but it feels good to be starting the transition.

Yesterday's appointment was just a meet and greet. I am going to a new OBGYN, so I had to fill out some new patient paperwork and then just sat down and chatted with a PA. She was oober nice. She felt like my BFF (yes, I did just use "BFF) and even hugged me as she headed out of the office. We'll be headed back next Monday for our first ultrasound with them, and then they'll see us every four until it's gets closer to D day.

Yesterday was also my LAST DAY OF PROGESTERONE INJECTIONS! If you can't tell, I'm flippin' excited - and so is my incredibly bruised, sore bum. I am thrilled that I am done with the shots, but a little nervous too. You stop the injections when your body takes over. And I'm just hoping my body will take over as it should. There's absolutely no reason it shouldn't, wouldn't and couldn't, but a worrier will still worry :) Supposedly I will feel way better once I'm off the Progesterone. They told me at my appointment yesterday that it makes you more tired, more bloated, and more "down". The only catch is that the Progesterone can keep morning sickness at bay (I learned for the first time yesterday). So I could be in for a little reality check in the next week or so. Only time will tell!

Thursday we head to see our fertility docs for another ultrasound. Again just totally routine and more for our enjoyment than their need. I cannot wait to see little peanut's heartbeat and what it's looking like this week. Hopefully less like a sea creature and more like a human! This week, according to babycenter.com, our baby is the size of a grape. It has arms and legs, even earlobes - I wonder if its earlobes will be as soft as its Daddy's?

That's it! We'll post pictures of my belly next week, and ultrasound pictures on Friday. Any guesses what it will look like this week? Maybe a Platypus?