Amanda's Baby Shower

Yesterday was Amanda's Baby Shower - it was great! Amanda's Mom, Rosemary, did an amazing job on all the decorations. Everyone had a wonderful time, and Amanda got about 2 million gifts for baby Jake! Once Amanda gets everything washed and put away in the nursery, the only thing left to do will be to have the baby. I'm going to miss her pregnant belly, but I can't wait to see baby Jake!

15 Weeks Today!

I'm 15 weeks today! Not much to report - I'm feeling pretty good...and pretty hungry! My next doctor's appointment isn't for another couple weeks, but we're really hoping to find out the baby's gender on that visit! I'm getting excited for Amanda's baby shower this Saturday, so I'm sure I'll have pictures to post later this weekend. There's only about 4 weeks left until we finally get to meet baby Jake Balice! Lastly, congratulations to our friends Carine and Josh Spitz, who welcomed their beautiful baby Jillian Simone on Tuesday! We can't wait to meet her!

Babycenter.com's description of the 15th week:

Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds.

Baby Stuff!

The above images are of Baby Tipper's first "Deet Deets" (affectionately named by my nieces Mia and Maddie, these are soft, little animal blanket-type items).

We had some painters in the house earlier this week, so I was forced out because of the fumes. I honestly didn't know what to do with myself to kill time, so Geoff actually told me to go shopping! Okay, if you insist! So I found myself at Ross and TJ Maxx, and ended up buying a few cute baby items. A couple PJ's and a couple snuggly "Deet Deets" - that's what my nieces Mia and Maddie call those cute, little animal blanket thingy's. I also found some super-soft, light green crib sheets and a crib bumper. We still don't know if we're having a girl or a boy, but it looks like light green might end up being one of our nursery colors.

Yesterday we got our first hand-me-down (or hand-me-sideways, as I've been saying recently) from our nieces: a white changing table (thanks Smith family!). We also got my Grandpa's old dresser, which Geoff is going to paint white. Thanks Mom and David for so generously helping to move these pieces up from Orange County!! We really appreciate it. It'll be a while before our office is cleared out and ready to be called a nursery, but I'll post pictures eventually.

Have a great week!

2nd Trimester!

People have been asking for "baby bump" pics, so here you go. It's small, but it's definitely there! I don't normally have that little burrito bump in front (and I promise it has nothing to do with the Fatburger dinner I ate a few hours before taking these pics last night!).

Yesterday officially marked the beginning of my 2nd trimester (14 weeks!)! I think I'm beginning to feel little "butterfly" flutter-like movements, although they've been very recent and inconsistent so it's hard to know for sure. I'm definitely having intense cramping when I stand up or move too quickly, and didn't know that was something that happened during pregnancy.

I'm extremely happy to report that I haven't had any Morning Sickness over the last couple weeks, so I'm hoping that means that's all over with! When the Morning Sickness originally set in, it caused quite an issue with prenatal vitamins (it wasn't fun!), so I had to stop taking them for a while and was just taking separate folic acid. I started the prenatals back up a couple nights ago, and so far so good!

Have a great weekend!

13 Weeks Tomorrow!

We had a check-up with the doctor today, and everything seems to be going well! We weren't able to hear the baby's heartbeat yet with the doctor's Doppler device - we heard a heartbeat, but we think it was mine! So we got to see the baby on the ultrasound again (sorry, no new pictures, so that's why I posted the illustration above of a baby growing at 13 weeks). Baby Tipper was happily bouncing and moving around, flexing it's hands and opening and closing it's jaw! It's amazing how something so small can already look so big and human! According to the baby books, it's about the size of a plum now. Supposedly I should start feeling movement soon! I guess I'm already feeling some sensations, but wouldn't really call it movement yet.

I've started feeling better lately (knocking on wood as a type this!), so hopefully the morning sickness is on it's out. I think my appetite has also been picking up, so the recommended 1 pound per week weight gain may be starting soon. I know I need to post photos of my tiny growing baby bump. I'll try to do that soon!

Baby Gavin!

Last Saturday, I had the pleasure of meeting baby Gavin, who is officially 2 weeks old today. His mommy, Jen (left, in the picture at the top) is looking and feeling great! I think I held Gavin for 45 minutes or so while he slept in my arms. He's absolutely precious, has the cutest red hair, and was making all kinds of adorable koo-ing sounds while he slept!! Amanda is now in her 8th month and is getting closer and closer to delivering baby Jake - she's due next month! So I'm getting some great advice and input on the various stages of pregnancy and childbirth.

I'll try to post some pictures soon of my tiny growing belly. It's small, but it's definitely there! Someone in my class last night, who I'm assuming has overheard me talking to a friend in there about being pregnant, very cutely identified that I'm "growing." It was cute, although I think it's really still too soon for most people to be asking me if I'm pregnant! It looks like I might've just eaten a few too many burritos recently. I'll be 12 weeks on Thursday! I can't wait to be through the first trimester in a couple weeks! Hopefully the morning sickness will be gone for good soon!