17 Weeks

I'm 17 weeks! 

I'm so happy to say I'm feeling SO much better now!  I know some women are nauseous throughout their pregnancy, but I'm so thankful mine seems to disappear right around the middle of the 15th week!  

Here is a picture of my belly then and now! We were on our babymoon in Florida when I was 15 weeks with Carys, which explains why I would be wearing a tank top in March! I feel so much bigger this time around, but it's probably just because my belly popped out a little sooner.  Looking at these photos there isn't really much of a difference.

One bummer is that I have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes again.  I was devastated when I found out I had it with Carys, but I knew my chances were pretty high that I would have it again this pregnancy, so it wasn't much of a shock.  Because I had it before, they tested me early.  Anyone who has failed the 1 hour test and had to go through the 3 hour test knows that it's no picnic, but can I just say that it's practically torture when they make you take it while you are still experiencing morning sickness!  I couldn't eat anything all morning, so I arrived at the office already feeling horrible and things just got worse from there.  About half-way through the test, I got sick and apparently getting sick during your test is an automatic fail.  My doctor did say that I could take the test again in a few weeks, if I wanted to be sure, but there was no way I wanted to go through that again!  So, it's back to eating a reduced carbohydrate diet and testing my sugar 4x's a day.  Thankfully with Carys, I was able to control my blood sugar with just diet and exercise, and so far just watching what I eat has been working this time too.

A lot of blogs I read do weekly pregnancy highlights.  I know myself better than to think that I will keep up with this every week, but I figured I would try to do it a few times during this pregnancy because I know I will appreciate being able to look back on it someday.  Also, it's fun to compare this pregnancy to my pregnancy with Carys since I didn't blog back then!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 17 Weeks

Size of baby: About 5 ounces and 5 inches long, around the size of a baked potato

Maternity Clothes: Yes please! I've been wearing maternity jeans and pants for awhile.  Also wearing my regular pants with a Belly band.  I can still wear most of my normal tops though.

Gender: Don't know yet!

Movement: Last week I started feeling little wiggles, and now it's pretty regular when I am sitting still or laying down.

What I miss: Treats - Ice Cream and Pizza mostly! 

Cravings: Mostly Carbs and Peanut Butter, but with my diet that's gotten a little tricky! I started buying mini bagels, and I love those with cream cheese or with hot ham & cheese.

Symptoms: Just some belly aches and pressure from growing.  It feels more intense this time around and I have to be extra careful when I roll over, cough or sneeze!

Best Moment this week: Feeling the baby start to move - such an amazing feeling!

And of course, I can't do a blog post without some pics of Big Sister

 This is usually what I get when I ask her to smile!

Blast off!

We've started talking to Carys about me having a baby and her being a big sister.  The other day we were looking at a magazine together and there was a picture of a pregnant woman.  I told Carys that she had a baby in her belly, just like Mommy.  She looked at the picture, looked at my belly, and then lifted my shirt to check it out!  It was so cute, and I am constantly amazed at how much she understands.  So, I had to explain that the baby is inside Mommy's belly and she won't be able to see him/her for awhile!  

She's all Country

Last weekend, the weather warmed up quite a bit and Carys was antsy to get outside.  When Scott opened our back door to take the garbage out, Carys ran out onto the deck and then refused to come in!  Scott, not minding a little outside time himself, decided that the melting snow was perfect packing for a snowman, so the two of them went to work.  

I passed out our snowman kit and also offered to get them some socks and shoes, but apparently they were already too busy to be bothered!  

And the finished product!  I love these two crazy, barefoot bumpkins!

(Disclaimer: No toes were frostbitten during the making of this snowman.)

Gymnastics

Carys started a gymnastics class in January and it has been so much fun.  She loves it and I can already see a vast improvement in her motor skills since we started.  Her "coach" is also the owner of the gym and you can tell that she loves teaching Carys's age group.  She does such a fantastic job!  

Chasing her around wears me out, but even on the days I wasn't feeling well I was still excited to take her because she just has so much fun!  I was a little disappointed that we had to miss a class when we took our trip out west.  Thankfully we were able to make up that session up during the weekend class, and that meant Scott was able to go with us! They had a different instructor for this class, so Carys was a little leery at first.  He was really great with the kids and did some of the same routines, so she warmed up in no time.  Another bonus...since I didn't have to chase her I was able to snap some pictures!

So, here's our little gymnast hard at work!

Using her muscles!

Next time I'm going to have to try to get a video of her 'jumping' on the trampoline - it's hilarious!

   

Trip Out West

In February, we flew out to Lake Havasu City, AZ to visit with Scott's parents.  They spend the winter there and it is absolutely beautiful.  The last time we went I was about 5 months pregnant with Carys.  This time we had Carys and I was pregnant with baby #2 - it's amazing how quickly things change!  

The one part of the trip we weren't looking forward to was the 4+ hour flight to get there.  I had Carys's bag stuffed with snacks, toys, and books to help keep her entertained.  We also loaded up the ipod with episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and that turned out to be the biggest hit.  This girl loves Mickey! 

Making herself comfortable!

We figured flying was a good reason to make an exception to our bedtime only paci rule, and I'm sure the surrounding passengers appreciated it! 

 It was a good thing that we were prepared for the flight, because by the time we landed I think we had pulled out every trick we had, but thankfully we managed to arrive meltdown free!  Once we got there, we had a nice, relaxing week.  Unlike previous trips, we didn't really have too many plans other than to spend as much time as possible outside soaking up the sun, so that's what we did.

Carys loved running around the back yard and her favorite part was looking down at the three dogs running around in yard below.  She learned how to say "hi" while we were there and she would yell "hi" and then "mu-wah" to blow them a kiss.  The poor dogs weren't sure what to do, so they just barked at her non-stop!

The weather was so nice, that we went downtown everyday to walk along the water and play in the park.  Of course Carys loved every minute!

Another part Carys didn't mind was the non-stop attention from Papa and Meme.  This girl loves her grandparents!

Carys discovered her shadow, so Meme showed her how to make her shadow dance!

Midweek Scott and I were able to sneak away for an overnight date night.  We decided that we loved being in Havasu, so we just stayed in town and booked a room down by the water.  It was so nice to be able to go out to lunch, take our time eating, and really have a chance to talk.  After lunch, we took an extra long walk, got some ice cream, stopped at a brewery, and then headed back to the room for a nap.  We had planned on going out for dinner too, but I wasn't feeling that great, so Scott picked up some takeout and we watched a movie.  It was a really low-key night, but it just felt great to reconnect and spend time with just the two of us.

The beautiful view from our room

The rest of the week, was pretty much the same - more sunshine, parks and walking!  After all the snow we had been having back home - it was exactly what we needed!

Thanks Papa and Meme for a beautiful week - we love you!

Hibernating...

First off, thanks for all the kind words about baby #2.  We are so thrilled!  I am due September 3rd, so that puts me in my 15th week.  This is exciting to me for two reasons:

1. We are out of the scary first trimester 

2. This is the magic week that my morning all-day sickness went away when I was pregnant with Carys (fingers crossed)!

So, the last couple of months we have had tons of snow!  That combined with non-stop dry heaves and feeling like I need as much sleep as a newborn meant that I haven't felt like doing much, so with the exception of a few activities here and there, Carys and I have been making like the bears and hibernating!  We did find ways to pass the time though...

Like trying new hair do's, piggy tails!

Pretending the sun was shining,

Baking cupcakes, yum!

Getting excited about a new dishwasher, or at least the giant box it came in!

Bringing some snow inside to play!

Coloring with our friends Minnie Mouse and Baby,

Trying on Daddy's shoes,

Having a tea party with more friends,

and modeling our new backpack!

And if you are wondering how much snow is a lot - check out these pictures...

Poor Scott had to do SO much shoveling and snowblowing, and was running out of places to put it!  Carys loved it though.  She loves to be outside and the cold doesn't seem to bother her one bit.  She definitely has Yooper blood!  In fact, we took her to the park one weekend.  We brought her sled to pull her around, but she was fascinated with trying to walk in the snow and wanted nothing to do with the sled.  

We also went snowshoeing another weekend.  Unfortunately, that didn't last too longer because a blizzard started as soon as we got out of the car.  The snow was coming down so fast and thick it was hard to see.  We did manage to hike out to the lake and back, but that was it.  Both times - I ended up pulling the plug because I was getting cold and both times Carys had a meltdown when we put her back in the car!

I promise - Carys was having fun!

So that about sums up the last couple of months.  Carys started taking gymnastics, so we have been doing that once a week.  It's exhausting chasing her around, but she loves it, so that makes it totally worth it!  Also we did manage to get unburied and escape the snow for a week.  We headed out to sunny Arizona to visit Scott's parents, so stay tuned... I'll be posting those pics soon!