Having Some Fun!

So, I found this online photo editing site that converts normal pictures into vintage polaroid's. I find it very fun! And very addicting!

Feeling the Baby Kick

So, for the first time last night I felt the baby kick. I've been trying to pay attention to any possible movements lately, but I can never really tell what is the baby and what might be a-hum gas. But last night was definitely the baby kicking and moving around.

It all started around midnight when yes, after I just posted about not being sick for three days, I find myself running to the bathroom in the dark to puke up anything that might still be left in my tummy. After wards, I came back to bed and laid half-way propped up trying to relax a little. About a minute or so after I calmed down, the baby started going nuts. I could feel it both inside my belly and to the touch when I put my hand on my belly.

Unfortunately, Matt didn't get to experience this with me because he was sleeping, and it all happened so quickly that I didn't wake him up. I'm sure that there will be plenty of times in the future though that he'll get to feel a good strong kick or two.

Our 4 Month Appointment...

The appointment went very well. We got to listen to the babies heartbeat, and visited with Dr. Walker (which was our first meeting, and turned out to be very entertaining talking about old sports injuries ((she was very young and played bball in college)) she also has bad knees :-) the heart rate was 168 beats per minute and was very strong.

We found out that all the testing they did last time turned out perfect, we have no concerns right now; the statistics they gave us say that we have about a 1 in 10,000 chance of having any problems with the baby - which is the best "score" you can get. I do have to go to a follow up appointment to get more blood work done - bummer I know, but I think knowing that everything is doing great is worth it.

I lost one pound! I know that should be a bad thing, but its sorta nice that I've stopped gaining at such an insane rate. Dr. Walker was not concerned about this, and says that fluctuations in weight are normal. I just think I stored up some extra fat in the beginning and the baby has now eaten it, lol.

She did prescribe me some medicine for migraines which I"m not sure if I will use yet, although I have been getting a lot of headaches lately. When I say a lot, I really mean I get one headache and it lasts for days. They are not horrible, I would say about medium to low intensity, but the problem is that they just don't go away, so towards the 3 day mark I start to get really irritable. She assured me that this is normal, and that if I feel like it, I can take the medicine she prescribed to me since Tylenol hasn't helped at all. I hate the idea of taking any more medicine since I'm already on anti-nausea meds, but I'm also hoping to get off of those soon.

My Nausea.

Knock on wood, I haven't been sick for 3 days now. Although, I'm not 100% sure if its because I'm fully into the second trimester when things are supposed to get better, or because I've been insanely crazy about taking my medicine. At this point, I wake up in the middle of the night to take it, to help alleviate being sick in the mornings, and then always take it on-time or slightly early to avoid getting sick.

My Belly at 16 Weeks/4 Months

My First Baby Purchase

So, I haven't bought anything for the baby because we have been waiting to find out if we are having a boy or a girl. However, that doesn't mean that I haven't been looking :-)

So the other day, I was walking through Nordstrom and found the cutest newborn onesie that I just couldn't pass up. So, I splurged and spent the $9.95 on my first Baby Facas purchase. I think that it will be very cute on both a boy and a girl.

My New Job....

So, since I was recently laid off, and recently got pregnant - its been a little hard to find a job in marketing. Originally I was just going to do photography jobs on the side, to help supplement a little, but lately I've been considering working a retail position at a store that I can benefit from. So, I did a little research and places like Babies-R-Us etc. really don't give good employee discounts. On average they range from about 10% to 15%, and you CANNOT get that discount on things like diapers or formula. So I was slightly bummed because it just doesn't seem worth it.

BUT...

I found out that Pottery Barn gives employees a 40% discount. That sounds nice right? Oh, but it gets even better! That 40% discount gets extended from Pottery Barn, to Pottery Barn for Kids, to West Elm, and then finally to Williams Sonoma (including all their outlet stores)! So, I decided to get a seasonal position through the holidays so that I can benefit not only on the discounts, but gain a little extra money as well. I went in and applied, and because of my marketing background they are actually going to train me in Design, so that my main job will either be doing custom orders for full rooms and/or designing the displays etc. The pay isn't that grand, but I still think I'll have a lot of fun with it. Not to mention that I LOVE Pottery Barn for Kids, and can now actually afford to shop there for the baby's crib, bedding, clothes, decorations, etc.

I know, I know.......your all thinking that I'm just going to blow my paycheck at the place that I work.......but in this case I feel its 100% justified because I would be spending my money on the baby anyway whether I worked there or not.

Can I Have a Needle and Thread Please...

So, after talking to one of my old friends (thanks Sarah!), she recommended doing the needle/thread/pencil trick. You take a needle, thread it and then stick the needle into the eraser on the pencil, and hold it lead-side down over the belly. If it swings up and down you are having a boy, if it goes in circles then you are having a girl.

So, after searching the house for a pencil and a needle w/thread, Matt and I tried it out! And according to the pencil we are having a BOY!!

Then I researched old-wives tales a little further and found another needle/thread trick as well. It has the same basic principles just without the pencil, and instead of putting the needle over the belly, you hold it over your left hand. This time we got circles, which means were having a GIRL!!

So, who knows what were having. We should find out for real on September 14th!

The Blog...

I'm changing my blog once again! I went back to a basic template because people have been having problems commenting on the posts. The comments are super important to me because I wanted to add them to the baby book after wards, so that we can remember not only what I was thinking/feeling, but what others were thinking as well.

My New iPhone...

So, as an early birthday present Matt gave me a new white iPhone 3G-S. So I've spent most of my evening sorting through different applications (apps) to add onto my new phone. I came across several pregnancy apps, and after doing a little research I decided to try iPregnancy.

Most of the features were standard when comparing them to the other pregnancy apps, but there is one feature that stood out "the baby name picker" - I absolutely love this feature. It works at random, and when you give it a shake, it will spin through possible baby names and land on one. Kinda like playing a baby name slot machine. Matt and I have a pretty good idea of the names we like (James & River), but in the 2 minutes I spent shacking it I found a middle name that we both really liked - James Anderson Facas. We have been struggling to find a boys middle name that we both agree on, and this one just seems to fit.

Other features that the app has include: current gestational age in days/weeks/months, progress bar based on trimester, 3-D picture of the baby at current age, baby info including size/weight/current facts etc, baby name picker, doctor visit calendar tool, and doctor/hospital info storage that is easily accessible. Overall its just a handy tool.

Thinking about the baby room...

So, Matt and I have started planning for the baby room. We still don't know the sex of the baby, so its still all up in the air of what we will really do. We are currently painting the room a neutral tan color, and will probably go with a light blue wide bar around the top along with the light blue ceiling. I know that blue typically isn't used in a girl room - but I don't really want frilly decorations for a girl anyway, and we can still add plenty of decorations to make it suitable for a girl. Since neither I nor Matt are talented in the art of mural painting, I've decided to go with wall decals to add the kid-like touch.

As a gender neutral room, I was thinking about having a large tree that is along the same wall as the crib. The picture below I think is great as a full wall length, and the colors of both the tree and leaves can be changed to whichever I choose. I would most likely do a dark brown tree with green leaves.


For a boys room, both Matt and I like the world map. I know its a little grown up, but you can make it very fun and kid friendly because it doubles as a chalk board. I would probably place it above a long dresser, and add baby boy/kid elements to it to spruce it up a bit.

For the girl room I want to add some type of floral wall art above the crib. This one also appears to be more adult, but I think that once its placed in a nursery that it will look adorable.

That Pesky Brown Line...

Fourteen weeks out and I have gotten that pesky little brown line trailing up my tummy, fading away at my belly button. It's called a linea nigra. The "line" is supposed to be the center point between the left and right side of your abs, that starts to seperate as your belly grows. When it first appeared, I was probably 12 weeks along and I kept blaming it on my underwear or pants leaving a mark on my lower tummy. I guess I have officially gotten that classic badge of pregnancy. Unlike stretch marks, the "line" disappears shortly after giving birth so I'm not very worried about the line.

The "line" didn't come as a big surprise to me because I have been experiencing a lot of slight cramps, and pulling lately. This is called round ligament pain in the lower abdomen, and doesn't really seem to be something to worry about. I feel the sharp pain consistently throughout the day, but its something that once you feel it, it's gone again. I find myself either touching my belly or just letting out a sigh when it happens, but that is all.

Both of these symptoms just mean that the baby is growing which makes me feel happy about whats happening both on the inside and outside, and makes the idea of having a baby a little more realistic.

Sleeping...

So, in the past couple of weeks my sleeping habits have changed. In the beginning I would wake up once or twice and make a trip to the bathroom. Now, I'm having problems falling asleep, and then staying asleep. I wake up at least 6+ times a night. Half for bathroom breaks, and the other half because I wake up starving, and can't go back to sleep until I've filled my stomach with something. The hard part about eating in the middle of the night is that I can't just lie back down, otherwise I get sick. So, after I'm done eating my mid-night snack I try to sit up for at least another 30 minutes or so.

Another change is that my dreams are insanely realistic. They typically take place about a week ahead of the current date/time, and I find myself wanting to sleep longer so that I can figure out "how the story ends." I can also, wake up, remember the entire dream, and then continue the dream when I fall back asleep if I want to.

I also find myself nodding-off around 7 pm or so - how insanely early is that? I am constantly trying to force myself to stay awake so that I don't stay up extra late.

Tired of being sick...

So, I'm at that place - switching between the first and second trimester, where I thought my "all day sickness" would start to come to an end. In the past I've tried to keep the complaining on the blog down to a minimum and only talk about the good things that are happening, but now I've come to a breaking point. I'm just tired of being sick all the time. It seems as if my anti-nausea medicine isn't working like it did in the beginning, and more then ever things are setting me off, and I'm making more trips to the bathroom/sink/trashcan.

I've tried just about everything that I can think of: organic ginger tea, ginger-ale, 7-up, eating small meals, peppermint, drinking lots of fluids, anti-nausea candy, saltines/soda crackers, etc. I still have high hopes that this will all alleviate soon, I just hope its sooner rather than later.

On a side note: Matt and I went to brunch last Sunday, and since we got all dressed up we decided to go ahead and take a picture. You can see that I'm really starting to show at 13 weeks.