There's a Baby Coming!

Phew! It feels so good to let the world know. There's a baby coming! And we couldn't be more thrilled. This picture was taken last week in California when I was just shy of 16 weeks, and now I'm already 17 weeks! Now that I'm safely in the second trimester, the days are flying by, and I'm feeling great.

So what's the story? Well, the last time I blogged, February 1, was the day we found out I was pregnant! Our little trip to Walmart was to pick up another pregnancy test because we didn't really believe the first one from earlier that morning. The whole day felt surreal and I'd say it really took us a few weeks to process the news. Even now it's hard to imagine all the ways our lives will change when this little one arrives!

The first trimester was hard, but not as hard as I know it could have been. I felt nauseous most of the day and had a hard time smelling or looking at food. I was tired and a bit grumpy and overall just felt like keeping to myself. But I think these symptoms are the usual suspects in the first three months of pregnancy and I'm thankful they were all fairly mild.

And now that I'm already 17 weeks, I think I should start documenting. The photo above is actually the only "bump" shot we've taken so far. So here's the official update:

17 weeks

Baby is the size of a: Turnip (?) or that's how much baby weighs? I'm confused. In any case, baby is bigger than an avocado which is the size at 16 weeks :)

How I'm changing: My tummy has definitely been growing in the last week. I can't button jeans that I could easily close a week ago.

How I'm feeling: I feel pretty great. Although ravenously hungry. I've woken up twice in the night this week to eat. Since then I've been trying to get more calories throughout the day so I can get a full night's rest. I'm still really tired at night - Paul says I turn into a pumpkin around 9 p.m. Mom says I'm sleeping for two! I like that :)

What I'm eating: The first trimester I didn't eat very healthy. In fact, I don't think I've eaten so many potato chips my whole life! I was just getting down anything that sounded good. But now I'm feeling so much better and I'm able to bring back some more healthy eating habits. I try to have eggs and whole wheat toast every morning, and then usually a spinach smoothie with fruit and yogurt for "second breakfast." I've also been making an effort to cook nutritious meals again and I eat a lot of leftovers for lunch. My culinary weakness is cheese, though. I can't get enough! I love making grilled cheese or just slicing some up with crackers.

Other baby business: I had my 16 week appt earlier this week and got to hear the baby's heartbeat again! It is seriously the most amazing thing I've ever heard. I didn't know that hearing that little thump thump thump would have such an impact on me - but it made things "real" for me. There's someone in there! I love that little heart! In other news, I really like my midwife and I'm so thankful for her sweet guidance and presence through this process. She suggested that Paul and I take a Bradley class, so we're looking into that for the summer. I also spent a lot of our vacation last week reading Ina May's Guide to Childbirth and it. is. amazing. I'll have to share more about that later.