14 weeks

I'm going to try to keep up with these on a weekly basis. You can't believe how relieved I am to be able to blog about this. A post catching you up to where we are now is coming soon. If you can think of something I'm forgetting to include here, chime in. (Other than belly shots...those are already on the list.)

Total weight gain: At the last appointment (on Tuesday), I was up 7 lbs from the starting point.

Movement: Nothing that I can feel yet but we did see movement on our last ultrasound (last Wednesday, 12 weeks + 4 days).

Cravings: I've wanted lemonade. Good, fresh-squeezed lemonade. I think I've just been more thirsty in general though. Lord knows it couldn't be because it's about a million degrees outside.

Symptoms: Overall, I'm not quite as tired as I have been but I tell ya...this traveling business takes more of a toll these days. My skin is still a mess. Instead of being a glowing pregnant woman, it seems like I'm going to look more like a teenage mom. And by far the most fun change is that I've become crazy emotional. Like tears-constantly-just-below-the-surface emotional. About 99% of the time they come out due to something sentimental. On Wednesday night, however, it was hard to stop them once they started. I have no idea what that was about.

Belly button: Still in. Not surprising. Even though I've felt bloated as soon as that stick said +, I'm pretty sure strangers wouldn't think I'm pregnant (just maybe had a few too many cheeseburgers, letting myself go, marriage is really agreeing with me, etc.).

Preparations: Since this is my first post like this, we may appear to be mighty productive this week. Over the last few weeks we've agreed on a crib we like and have decided to order it. I picked out fabric for a baby quilt and mobile I'm making. The mobile is about 2/3 done. The quilt piecing is about 3/4 done. I've browsed the web for some other decorative items and have a few ideas rolling around in my head. Baby received a pair of socks from Auntie J--blue M&M socks so everyone knows who the baby's daddy is. And my SIL and The Brother got him/her a fantastic children's book.

Milestones: We went to the monthly OB visit on Tuesday. Nothing terribly exciting. Got to hear the heartbeat for the 3rd time. It's just reassuring to know it's still there. I finally remembered to ask the nurse what my starting weight was so I could keep track of the weight gain. OB said I was right where I should be. The most exciting part of this week is that we finally got to let the cat out of the bag. To everyone. There's a lot of politics when it comes to announcing these things. At first, I was nervous to tell people but now I'm getting a little more open about it and it's starting to feel exciting. Also got to announce it to work people. Everyone was very excited.

Weekly wisdom: When it comes to telling people you're pregnant, just do the best you can. Some people should obviously be higher on the list but after a certain point, you may just need to send a mass email. You can either worry about people's reaction to this or you can worry about the millions of other things you've got going--like growing a human inside of you.

(Image from thebump.com)