Pregnancy: Week 18

At our last appointment the midwife-in-training told us that if we opted to do the blood test at our 18-week appointment, it would screen for any possible birth defects, so we agreed that was a good idea. She also said that these blood results would tell us the gender of the baby! We've been sooooo excited for the past month thinking we'd find out soon! Turns out... that's not true. The initial blood test does screen for birth defects based on my blood results, but it does NOT show the baby's DNA, therefore these results will not show the gender. Bummer! 

I'm really okay with waiting another month. I've felt pressured to find out the gender ASAP (my daughter is DYING to know! haha), but not knowing doesn't bother me right now. Yes, I want to know eventually. NO I'M NOT WAITING TILL HE/SHE IS HERE TO FIND OUT. But knowing the gender just isn't the most important thing on my list right now. I simply want a healthy baby! Right now I'm anxious about these screening results... no phone call = good. SO, for the next week or two I'll probably jump and worry every time the phone rings. I'm sure after that's over I'll start wondering about the gender again, but by then we'll only have a couple more weeks of waiting. Patience is a virtue, right!!?

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Today's Date: 7/21/17

How many weeks: 18

Trimester: 2nd

How big is the baby?: About the size of a bell pepper (5.5 inches from head to rump)

Weight gain: 10 lbs (ummm... why did I think it was a good idea to include this information!?) 

Food cravings: Sometimes I want lemonade but that's about it. 

Food aversions: None

Gender: Unknown

Prediction: Girl. Or maybe boy. *sigh* I really have no idea! 

Diet: Eating healthy isn't a problem, but refraining from also eating allll the junk food is a BIG problem. I'm fine during the day... and then the sun goes down. It's over from there. I wish I could say this is a pregnancy thing, but I've been this way forever. So yes, I've gained 4 lbs over that past two weeks. Oops. 

Exercise: Still going! 

The midwife said I can still keep doing everything I'd been doing pre-pregnancy. Woot! I asked about my heart rate (sometimes cardio = 185+ max HR) but she said not to worry about it. As long as I feel okay, it's fine. I avoid lifting anything super heavy, but really that's more for my shoulder! 

Aches and pains: Hip pain... I feel like an old lady every time I stand up. I think I need a hip replacement. Also some lower back pain when I wake up (just stiffness). And my feet are still swelling, this will only get worse... 

Maternity clothes: Yup. I broke out some of the maternity clothes my sister-in-law gave me and WHY DON'T WOMEN WEAR THIS STUFF YEAR ROUND. Good grief, they're so comfortable! I can still wear most of my jeans... they button but it's tight and uncomfortable so I started using a rubber band to keep them "buttoned." I wear dresses most of the time anyway...

Favorite moment this week: Baby appointment! I loooooove hearing his/her little heartbeat! 145 bpm

Also, date night with my husband! The kids are in Houston visiting my sister so hubby and I have the house to ourselves, which means we stay up late watching Netflix every night. Such party animals! 

Looking forward to: My next appointment at 22 weeks, we should find out the gender! They say that mothers just "know" what it's going to be, but obviously I don't have any maternal instincts because I literally have no idea...

Pregnancy: Week 16

16 weeks! I still feel like time is dragging! This week I ran the Fireball 5K--I really should start running more, I do love it, but I also really hate it! Other than the Spartan Sprint a couple weeks ago, I haven't ran more than two miles since the half marathon... ha! And my pace was still decent. It seems like no matter how much/how little I train, my pace barely budges.

Here's a fun little workout I did yesterday with two of my sisters and one [peer-pressured] brother-in-law (takes about 15-20 minutes but it sure packs a punch! Try it!):

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Okay, on to the fun stuff! 

Today's Date: 7/6/17

How many weeks: 16

Trimester: 2nd

How big is the baby?: About the size of an avocado (4.5 inches from head to rump)

Weight gain: 6 lbs (up two pounds in the past two weeks, eeeeeeek)

Food cravings: None

Gender: Unknown (but we find out in about 2 weeks hopefully!)

Prediction: Girl

Diet: Not great but not terrible, still keeping track of calories so I don't eat the pantry. I eat too many sweets, but I have increased my protein intake, so that's good, right? I still can't eat breakfast at normal breakfast time, but by 10 I have to eat or else I'm going to yell at the next person who speaks to me. FOOD. NOW!

Exercise: Still no issues there! Working out 3-5 days a week, still having to constantly remind myself that I'm pregnant and it's okay to scale or slow down. Breathing continues to get more difficult, and now there's the constant need to pee! haha But other than that I feel fine...

Aches and pains: Some back pain, I just can't get comfortable at night and I wake up feeling like I slept on the floor! I can literally feel my stomach stretching and that's weird. My feet are already starting to swell and ache, too. Seriously though, I haven't had morning sickness other than a couple times a few weeks ago. WEIRD. This pregnancy is so different from my first! Thank you Jesus!

Maternity clothes: none yet but I'm getting close. My athletic shorts are all getting really tight, so I may just have to buy some bigger clothes for a while. My belly isn't the problem.. it's my entire mid-section! I don't know why this baby needs for me to have muffin tops and a chubby back but I guess I don't have a choice in the matter!

Favorite moment this week: Successfully running the 5k in just over 30 minutes (30:19). It feels good to still be able to run and workout. Also spending time with family--I was off work for 3 whole days and it was so amazing! These are the last days I plan on taking off for the rest of the year--gotta save up my sick/annual leave for when the baby arrives.

Looking forward to: Finding out the gender! Hopefully my next post will include a gender reveal!