19 Weeks

What a week! Mike and I spent some time in New Orleans (pictures to come later), we had our 19 week appointment, I got the house fully clean, and we finished with our gender reveal party. I must say that I am SO not looking forward to going back to work tomorrow. I just keep telling myself that it's the last nine weeks for this year and the most fun :-)

Anyways, here is my 19 week picture and stats. I must say that baby Fleisher has really made an appearance this week. He is definitely expanding my belly and booty - haha!

(pardon the roughness - I had been working in the yard and took Bella on a walk right before this was taken)

How far along: 19 weeks and 3 days
Baby's size: a mango - 6.5 inches and 10 oz (although baby measured closer to 20 weeks at our appointment)
Maternity clothes: few new tank tops and dresses for warm weather
Sleep: I wake up at least once a night
Best moment this week: Finding out we are having a BOY and sharing the news with family!!!
Miss anything: sleeping on my stomach
Movement: he has been more active this week!
Food cravings: nothing specific
Anything making you queasy or sick: onions and veggies
Gender: BOY!
Labor signs: nope
Symptoms: hip pain, headaches, pregnancy brain, major clumsy moments, sciatica
Belly button in or out: in
Wedding rings on or off: on
Happy or moody most of the time: very good/excited mood
Looking forward to: coming up with a name for this little guy

Side note - the reveal video will have to wait until tomorrow - Mike is fixing it for me

Gender Reveal Party

We finally were able to answer the question of boy or girl! This week, Mike and I had our 19 week ultrasound. We were blessed to find out that our baby is healthy and developing correctly! That was our #1 concern. Then, the ultrasound tech asked if we wanted to know the gender. We have gone back and forth over the last several weeks about if we would find out at the appointment or at the gender reveal party my mom and sister were planning. In the end, we just couldn't wait :-) We were so anxious to find out if we were adding a son or daughter to our family. The ultrasound tech got 2 clear pictures of our SON!!!! Yep, we are having a BOY!!! I will never forget the feeling of hearing this for the first time. Nor will I forget Mike's reaction - he was beaming looking at his son on the screen!

Now on to our party. My mom and sister did and AMAZING job organizing and decorating for the party. Our theme was "What's it going to Bee?" even though Mike and I already knew, we were excited to see everyone's reaction...they did not disappoint! Below are a few pictures of the party...enjoy!

Note: I attempted to upload the video of the reveal, but it was taking forever. I will try to be more patient tomorrow when I do my weekly update.

Mike and I (parents-to-be) before the party.

Door decor

The adorable cake made by Mickey's Special Affairs in Little Rock. The box to the left was for gender reveal #2 (an outfit)

More of the decor - that's our son in the picture :-)

The cake after the big reveal - blue = BOY!!!

Baby boy's first outfit - it says "I blow bubbles"

Lena came to celebrate! I have known this girl since we were little. She is one that I go to for advice since she already has 2 little ones. We missed you Katie and Laura!

My coworker BFFs came to celebrate too!!! These girls make my job that much more enjoyable! I can't wait to find out if Sabra and Lindsay are having a boy or a girl in 2 weeks!!! Oh, the mustaches are to represent us having a boy. As part of the party, guests were asked to choose a mustache if they thought it would be a boy and red lips if they thought girl.

To end the night, Mike and I posed with both sets of grandparents :-)

We cannot wait to meet our little boy! Now the fun begins with decorating the nursery, registering, and coming up with a name!!!!

18 Weeks

I can't believe we're getting so close to the halfway point of this pregnancy! Each and every week has been such a blessing. Plus, I get to share this experience with 2 of my best friends/co-workers!!! Our due dates are all within 1 month of each other! We will be starting the Aqua Moms class at Baptist in April, which will add even more fun to this whole experience.

I'm so very excited about this weekend because it starts the beginning of my spring break! Mike and I are going to New Orleans for a few days to relax. I have been craving a break, so this week will be just what I need. To top it off, we will find out if we are having a boy or a girl! Can't wait!!! Here is my 18 week picture - not much difference.

How far along: 18 weeks
Baby's size: a bell pepper - about 7 oz and about 5.5 inches long
Maternity clothes: nothing new
Sleep: still pretty good
Best moment this week: I'm almost 99.9% sure I felt baby move around 2 am one morning!!! It felt like he/she was swimming laps :-)
Miss anything: I'm pretty content right now
Movement: pretty sure
Food cravings: white cheese dip and ice cream
Anything making you queasy or sick: onions and veggies
Gender: we will know in 1 week!!! I'm still predicting boy
Labor signs: nope
Symptoms: hip pain, headaches, pregnancy brain, major clumsy moments
Belly button in or out: in
Wedding rings on or off: on
Happy or moody most of the time: very good/excited mood
Looking forward to: a lot - New Orleans, ultrasound on Wednesday to see baby (we haven't seen him/her since week 7), gender reveal party on Friday (BOY or GIRL)!!!

17 Weeks

Totally not doing good keeping up with belly pics...oops! I'll go ahead and just document the stats for week 17!

How far along: 17 weeks and 1 day
Baby's size: a turnip - about 5 oz and about 5 inches long
Maternity clothes: nothing new
Stretch marks: nope - but I have developed a rash :-( I think it's from my lotion - boo!
Sleep: off and on usually, but since I've been instructed to take Benadryl for the rash, I've been sleeping great!
Best moment this week: Seeing/feeling the changes in my growing belly
Miss anything: still not being able to sleep on my stomach.
Movement: still can't tell
Food cravings: no specifics
Anything making you queasy or sick: onions and veggies
Gender: not yet - we just scheduled our ultrasound when we will find out - 2 weeks!!!
Labor signs: nope
Symptoms: back pain, hunger, and fatigue
Belly button in or out: in
Wedding rings on or off: on
Happy or moody most of the time: This week has been weird - I've been very weepy
Looking forward to: Feeling baby boy or baby girl move/kick for the first time!!!

15 Weeks

I am putting my pride aside and posting my first belly pic. Yes, I have a gut and a butt, but I still want to document this precious time in my life. I can say that the baby is beginning to make an appearance! Here I am at 15 weeks prego!

How far along: 15 weeks and 1 day
Baby's size: an apple - about 4 inches long and about 2.5 ounces
Maternity clothes: Still a few pants and shirts. Since my belly is getting bigger, maternity pants allow me to breath easier.
Stretch marks: nope!
Sleep: A little better since I started sleeping with a pillow between my knees.
Best moment this week: Hearing baby's heartbeat today at our appointment! It was strong at 158 beats per minute!
Miss anything: still not being able to sleep on my stomach.
Movement: Possibly - can't really figure out what I'm feeling.
Food cravings: still nothing specific - the peanut butter crackers I was eating as a snack are now not so good.
Anything making you queasy or sick: onions and peanut butter crackers
Gender: not yet - we just scheduled our ultrasound when we will find out - 4 weeks!!!
Labor signs: nope
Symptoms: back pain and headaches
Belly button in or out: in - mine may take a while to pop out because I have a "black hole" belly button, at least according to Mike :-)
Wedding rings on or off: on
Happy or moody most of the time: It depends on where I am. If I'm home, I'm typically happy. If I'm at work, it's a toss-up.
Looking forward to: Starting to pick out a neutral paint color for the nursery and really thinking about what furniture to get!

Second Trimester

On Wednesday I entered the 2nd trimester! I am thrilled to have made it to this milestone and can't wait to see what is in store for Mike, the baby, and me these next few months! I have been pretty tired lately due to work being busy, but other than that I have felt great.

I'm behind on "belly pictures", but I have been keeping up with my mirror-turned-chalkboard where I update the baby's size and include other neat information. I found this idea on Pinterest and am having so much fun! Here is the one I did for 14 weeks -

Warning - I am NOT an artist

How far along? 14 Weeks and 2 days

Maternity clothes? a few pants and shirts - I have been feeling claustrophobic in my normal clothes
Stretch marks? none yet!
Sleep: not very good since I am no longer sleeping on my stomach. I wake up constantly with back and hip pain.
Best moment this week: crossing over into the 2nd trimester!
Miss Anything? sleeping on my stomach and cherry coke
Movement: none that I've noticed - I hope to feel him/her soon
Food cravings: nope! I really haven't had any true cravings, just a better awareness of what I actually want to eat. I have become stubborn about what/when I want to eat.
Anything making you queasy or sick: onions
Gender: ??? We will find out in late March, but I'm predicting boy! We shall see :-)
Labor Signs: negative
Symptoms: back/hip pain, mild heartburn, huge appetite
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, but tired most of the time. The more tired I am, the more moody I get.
Looking forward to: Thursday when we go back to the doctor and get to hear his/her heartbeat again! I do wish we could have an ultrasound, but we have to wait until 20 weeks :-( I'm also going shopping with my mom and sister tomorrow to look for decor for the gender reveal party!

From 2 to 3

Yes, that's right. Our family is expanding from 2 to 3! Mike and I were thrilled to find out I was pregnant on December 4th.

The positive tests brought about joy and anxiety all at once. Since we had suffered a miscarriage in August, we were excited and worried out of our minds at the same time. Due to my previous loss, I had to go in for immediate blood work. Praise the Lord, everything came back just as it should be. We decided to wait to tell family until after our first appointment and ultrasound. On December 29th, we saw our little baby and heard his/her heartbeat for the first time! What a relief! We immediately took the ultrasound pictures to share the news with family!

We went back to the doctor on January 26th and were able to hear the sweet heartbeat for the second time. What an amazing sound! This last appointment made this pregnancy feel more real and I am finally getting to the point where I can enjoy this new journey - instead of being filled with fear. Of course, I still have my moments.

Baby Fleisher is due August 15th, and we can't wait to meet our new addition! I plan to use my blog as a journal of sorts to help document this time in our lives. I cannot wait to see what the Lord has planned for Mike and I over the next 6 months. But, I truly cannot wait to see what He has planned for our little son or daughter!