Large and in charge

Well its official. I'm feeling quite rotund. I'm noticing that my belly no longer just protrudes after a big meal or a big glass of water- it tends to maintain its melon-esque shape 24-7 now.

I am honestly the girl who looks like she swallowed a basketball. I guess having a 3 inch torso is really not to my advantage. I know people said that when they were pregnant they felt so beautiful and felt "the glow," well I apparently missed that memo, 'cause I feel gross!

Pregnancy has been very pretty kind to me (minus the 3 months of constant nauseau, and now the killer back pain) but for the most part I feel great. I have my energy almost fully back and find myself cooking and cleaning just as much as before. Could I be nesting already?

According to pregnancy weekly, Around the fifth month of pregnancy, the "nesting" instinct can set in. This is an uncontrollable urge to clean one's house brought on by a desire to prepare a nest for the new baby, to tie up loose ends of old projects and to organize your world.

You can confirm this with my husband, but I have been talking non-stop about all of the projects I have for us before baby's arrival (I'm sure he's overly excited about them all, but hey- men love tools right?).

We've finally agreed and fallen in love with a name: Riley Hope. Luke is the one who actually found the name, which was his first (and most important) baby girl name contribution. I feel like as I get further and further along, I can just picture this name for her. Riley means "courageous," which I absolutely love, and Hope is Luke's grandmothers name. After I shared this with my mom, who is battling breast cancer right now, she brought up the fact that Hope is kind of the theme for breast cancer, so we just kind of knew it was right. I mean, honestly, who knows where my hormones will take me in the next couple of months, but for now, I think we have a name!

Most importantly: Project Baby Nursery starts not the first weekend in January (because Luke is out of town on a man-cation) but the following weekend. WHO WANTS TO HELP?

Life so far

The past few weeks has been an absolute whirl wind of emotions. On the same day we found out the gender of our baby (GIRL) we had an appointment to meet a surgeon with my family, just days after we found out my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. It really was such an interesting feeling, because life brings us so many things, happiness, sadness, and sometimes a mixture of the two. While we were ecstatic about our news, we definitely felt sadness and mourned for my mom. There was the diagnosis, the waiting, the surgery, and now the healing, all while praying for her strength, and being thankful for the baby being healthy.

Besides the obvious troubles, this has been a good month, "baby wise." My belly is definitely growing, and people can now tell I'm actually pregnant and not just a fatty (some may still be confused).

I am feeling the baby move constantly; usually when I eat a big meal, lay down, or am still for a long time. It is honestly the most amazingly beautiful feeling in the world. If I ever forget why oh why my body is changing the way it is, I'm reminded by a little jab in the tummy that I've got something incredibly special growing inside of me. I find myself rushing to the bathroom more now than ever before, and it's always a rush, feeling like I can't hold it another moment. I hear it only gets worse. Luke and I registered at Target!

He was the designated scanner, and I was the list 'checker-offer'. It was a little overwhelming because Target has about 6 very compacted isles of baby items and it seemed like there was really no rhyme or reason to the way things were laid out. We ended up doing great, but making some changes online after we registered in store.

We found some adorable bedding, which is on our registry.

And I had to do everything in my power not to pick up these pink ballet slippers.

Little girl stuff is entirely too cute!

Can't believe time is going so quickly and this pregnancy journey is over 1/2 over. I have so much to be thankful for, I think it has really given me and my family the strength to overcome these obstacles and challenges. We are strong sons of guns! Next step in our journey is to get the nursery started- the guest bedroom is officially almost complete, so I'm excited to get started on baby Harvey's actual nest :)

Demolition

Honestly, in the first trimester, I thought I would never be able to have another child. For the simple fact that the sickness and fatigue were an all day occurrence for me made me think that the entire pregnancy would be more than I could handle. Boy was I wrong! Once the second trimester almost immediately began, I immediately fell like I had more energy, spunk, and determination to do "things." Now I find it almost easy tolerable to get up in the mornings, and easier to stay up late reading, or doing things around the house. I have ambition to get started on the nursery. I mean, everyone knows how much I love organization and decorating! Luke's sister gave us this gorgeous, bassinet from Pottery Barn that she was given for her children. I think she was excited to use the original bumper because it was intended to be for a girl :)

Right now, our basement is currently under complete reconstruction. Its kind of a demolition zone. We are switching what was originally our office to a guest bedroom, and what used to be our guest bedroom to our NURSERY! May be the more complicated way of doing things, but its the way I always envisioned the lay out. My husband is being a Godsend and is currently painting the guest bedroom alone. (I'm such a lucky woman) My goal this weekend is to complete the guest bedroom paint job, and get all of the furniture and decor up (most of these things require the assistance of my loving hubby). I'll keep you updated with the progress, but the pictures might scare you all right now.

After my 20 week ultrasound, I swear the baby has developed some sort of affinity for martial arts, because it feels like Bruce Lee is shooting a fight scene in my belly. I used to feel kicks mostly at night, but now throughout the day I am constantly feeling wiggles. It is, honestly, the most amazing feeling, and its a constant reminder that there is a miracle growing in my belly. Speaking of growing, is it normal to feel like a tank? My growing belly is not only result of a growing baby, but also a growing appetite. Man oh man, to think that in the first trimester I could barely stomach a meal. I'm fine as I continue to make healthy snack choices throughout the day, and honestly I feel like there's really not a LOT of room in my belly to fit food anyways, my torsos is sort of filled with a growing baby. Continuing to pray for a healthy and happy pregnancy!

1/2 way done!

Well,
Its official. I am over 1/2 way done with my first pregnancy! Wow- this has gone so quickly. I will admit, the first 12 weeks was slow, scary, and man was I sick, but now I find myself forgetting that my belly is growing what seems like 3 inches every day (Gosh, I hope its all in my head) and that there is so much going on inside of my belly.

Babycenter.com, one of my all time favorite pregnancy websites, keeps me updated weekly with the baby's progress and this is what week 20 brings:

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, baby's measured from head to toe.)
Baby is swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his/her digestive system.

We had our 20 week ultrasound on Friday, and I will admit, the OBGYN who did the ultrasound was less focused on us getting a cute picture of our baby girl (oh yes- it's a baby GIRL), and more focused on ensuring that all of her major organs were functioning properly. I really cant complain, because now we know that baby girl Harvey is completely healthy, moving, and growing, but I really wanted that well-sought out profile pic that every first time mother yearns for. This is the best the Dr did for us:

The pic is taking as if you're looking at the baby at a downward, diagonal angle, you can see the chin (which kind of looks pointy), nose, eyes, and an open mouth. The baby was opening and closing her mouth all ultrasound, and even had the hiccups in there. Again, the picture is so hard to decipher, but it was easier to see when she was moving around what is what. She's a very active baby, and I am feeling rolls and flips constantly now.

I also made my first few cloth diaper purchases on black Friday. Littleneetchers, a cloth diaper and accessories store, had a killer black Friday sale, and I scored 4 diapers for $36. I got some awesome cloth diaper info from a friend, and from sister-in-law.

Seriously- could they GET any cuter? Anyone else use cloth diapers or have any tips? Happy Halfway point :)