24 Weeks: Hello Baby GIRL!

When my ultrasound started this morning, this is what we saw:

SUPER tightly closed legs!  So on we moved to her brain, heart, ect.  Finally we were able to catch a glimpse of her "girly parts."  They look a little blur to me, so I just took her word for it.  I asked Cory if he was surprised he said "No, I've always thought it was a girl."  "But you keep talking about it being a boy! "  I replied.  "Yeah, that's because I wanted it to be a boy."  Men!  They make no sense!  I think he is secretly (or maybe not so secretly) happy about her being a girl.  He always talks about how cute the little girls in our ward are.  I'm pretty sure we are going to have a Daddy's girl on our hands! 

Here are some pictures of her adorable little face.  We both think she looks like Cory's sister, Katherine.  She has the same cute little button nose, at least she seems to.  

3D of her face.  I love how she has her hand under her chin.

Profile view.

All her organs look good so that is definitely good news.  She is kind of small at 1lbs. 4oz. but my doctor told me not to worry about that because it is so early still.  She moves around like crazy.  It was so cool to see and feel her moving at the same time.  We also saw her swallowing some fluid (gross, I know) but it was so neat to see her little mouth moving.  I think she has just the cutest mouth!  

Now if we can just think of a cute name to match our super cute girl! 

Yep, Still Crazy

This weekend when I was so sick I woke up at least once an hour all night...didn't cry.
Monday morning when I go out to my car for work and discover it has been broken into...didn't cry.
Last night when my husband kissed me with his terrible, no good, very itchy beard...burst into tears.

He was pretty shocked and kept asking what was wrong.  All I could say was "I just hate that beard."  *sniffle, sniffle*

He shaved.

Baby Playlist #1

Since I made this a few weeks ago, there are already several I want to change.  Some of my choices seem downright weird to me now, but they make me happy all the same.  I'm planning to make another once we find out boy or girl.  Most of them are love songs because I feel like a huge part of pregnancy is falling in love with the little baby you are growing.  Some of them just make me laugh and dance.  Others have helped me through the hard days.  It really is a big mix, but I feel like it represents how I've felt pretty accurately as well.


The House that Built Me- Miranda Lambert: This song represents how I feel about the home I grew up in and I hope Cory and I are doing a good job building that place for our little baby.


Haven’t Met You Yet- Michael Buble: Already I’m so in love with someone I haven’t met.

Dancing With Myself- Billy Idol: Dancing to this song just makes me happy. Can’t wait to embarrass the munchkin…

Fireflies- Owl City: Being pregnant is sort of like being in an alternate universe. I feel like this song represents that well.

Obsessed- Mariah Carey: Sorry baby, I’m so obsessed with you.

I’ve Got You Under My Skin- Michael Buble- This is the kind of thing I find humorous.

I Can Transform Ya- Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne: Personally, I don’t think any mix is complete without Lil Wayne, especially when he says: “Hey Little Momma, I can transform ya.” I have definitely been transformed.

Baby- Justin Bieber: The chorus of this song appears in my head all the time. Also, I've become slightly obsessed with Justin Bieber.  Don't judge me.

Can’t Help Falling in Love- UB40: Love the vibe of this song and I can’t help falling in love with our little munchkin!

Feeling Good- Michael Buble: Obviously, I really like Michael Buble. Also, this is my favorite “feel good” song. It reminds me I do feel good sometimes.

Bach’s Suite for Solo Cello No. 1- Yo-Yo Ma: I LOVE this so much it is my ringtone and will be the first music we play for baby.

December- Norah Jones- I’m not due until January but I love this song about longing for something.

In the Strength of the Lord- Jenny Phillips: The weekend they thought I was having a miscarriage I listened to this song what felt like a million times. It’s been my go to song on hard days ever since. “He believes I can do hard things if I will trust Him and walk forward in the strength of the Lord.”

Where Can I Turn for Peace?- Katherine Nelson: “Constant, He is, and kind. Love without end.”

*Also, in case you're wondering why I posted this today, the internet filter is down at work and since I wrote this post on my work computer, it makes posting it from here way easier.  Thank you evil basement nerds (aka the IT department) for making this rainy Friday a bit better! :)

23 Weeks: Dancing with Myself

23 weeks.  Wow.  When I think about it, it seems crazy.  People usually ask me when my due date is and when I respond with "Mid-January"  that seems so far away.  It's NEXT YEAR, for goodness sake!  It's also only 4 months away.  4 months!  I don't even know if it is a boy or girl yet!  How can I only have 4 more months to prepare??  I haven't even started on the nursery.  I don't even have a crib picked out.  I've bought two sets of diapers and wipes and thats about it.  For a complusive planner and list maker, this is not good.  I have a feeling I'm just going start spitting out lists the minute we know boy or girl to make up for all this lost time. 
On how the baby and mommy are feeling front, things are great.  I still have bad days but my good days have become MUCH better. Kind of sad how much medicine it take to make that happen, but I'll take it. 
You can definitely tell I'm pregnant now as well.  I'm terrible at taking belly pictures though.  I literally have only taken one.  But people have started asking about the baby now instead of just looking questionably at my stomach area.   I consider this an improvement. 
I can also feel the baby moving around and kicking now which is so strange.  Also strange is how normal it feels already.  Last Friday morning I was laying down for a few minutes watching my tummy and all the sudden I saw and felt it kick simultaneously.  I burst out laughing it was so cool!  Right now the kicks still aren't super consistent and they are mostly after I've eaten.  When I get around 28 weeks the baby will be big enough that I can feel most of his or her movements.  Right now it really depends on what he or she is doing and his or her location. 
Less than a week now until the ultrasound and I'm so excited to be able to stop saying "him or her"  and "he or she."  The grammar freak in me just won't let me say "their" or "they."  Both of our moms are coming to the ultrasound and I'm really excited about that.  I think it will be a really special experience to share with both of them.
Earlier this month, it was suggested to me that I make a "baby playlist."  I loved the idea and made one pretty much immediately. It has helped me feel so much better.  It sets my mood for me and I spend a lot of time dancing at my desk these days.  :)  I wrote a post about all the songs a few weeks ago but for various reasons, mostly me being lazy, I haven't gotten around to transferring it from word to my blog.  Maybe I'll do that next week to keep my mind off the ultrasound countdown...Only 6 more days! :)

Tender Mercies

"But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance."
- 1 Nephi 1:20
A few weeks ago, I decided that I wanted to read the Book of Mormon before the baby is born. I've read it several times but I just have really been feeling the need to do so again lately.  I finally started last night I'm so glad I did because it has already been a huge blessing. That scripture was the last one I read and it really hit me.
Pregnancy has not been an easy thing for me. Any side effect you can think of, I've probably experienced it. Some days, it's all I can do not to burst into tears; however, it has also been one of the most spiritual times in my life. I have never been so grateful for a trial or felt the love of the Lord so strongly and consistently. I know that He is aware of how I feel and I have felt His tender mercies as He makes me the mighty person I can become.  I'm so thankful for the gospel that gives a rhyme and reason to this crazy world we live in.  I don't think I could get by without it.

Halftee Love!

Earlier this week I ordered some Halftees. They came in the mail today and I totally love them! I heard about them from reading C. Jane, who always gives the best suggestions for mormon girl clothes. You can see her sporting some halftees in this post. I ordered the original in black and the boyfriend in white. On me the sleeves seemed a little shorter than on the model, like the boyfriend just looks like a regular t-shirt. I'm okay with that but it's definitely not as long as you would think from the picture. I followed their sizing chart and they both fit great! I've only worn them around the house so far but they don't ride up at all, which I was a little worried about. I would say they are comfortably snug around the rib cage.
So hooray for:
No more constantly tugging down my pre-pregnancy shirts when I wear my maxi dresses.
No more worrying about my garmets showing when the top I have on is cut really low in the arm.
Super fast shipping. I ordered them on Monday (a holiday) and they got here on Thursday.
AND I can wear them while I'm pregnant and afterward.
I'll update this with a picture of my outfit complete with a halftee tomorrow.
Update: This is the best I could do taking a picture with my phone at the office. I'm wearing the black original and its great!

20 Weeks Appointment

I had my 20 weeks appointment today.  It was wonderful.  The doctor I was supposed to see was on call and off delivering a baby so I had a different doctor in the group.  He walks in and says : “Hi Emily, I’m Dr. Y. Sorry, Dr. Z is in delivery so I’ll be seeing you today.”  I loved this because he says my name which shows he looked at my chart before coming into the room.  I want to hug him, especially when he says “You’re 20 weeks so that means you’re halfway there.  Congratulations!” My first halfway done congratulations and he said it like he really meant it.  He tells me specific things that look good and even mentions things from my pregnancy history.  As he is checking the baby’s heartbeat he explains to me about where the baby is positioned now (around my bellybutton, fyi).  When he measures my stomach, he explains all that too and about how much growth I will have throughout the pregnancy.   After that he asks if I have any questions for him.  At this point I’m tempted to say “Can I give you a hug?”  but I restrain myself and say no.  I don’t mention that I’ve called with questions several times since my last visit so that’s why I don’t have any now.  I think they may recognize my voice at the OB reception desk now.  I then checked out and got the earliest possible appointment for my ultrasound:  September 29th at 8:45.   I’m so excited to have an actual date when we will know if it is a guy or gal in there.   Everything about the experience was so positive that I’m still feeling super happy about it.  So today has been a nice escape from the moodiness I’ve been experiencing lately.  I always know that I’m happy; it just gets buried under all the other crazy emotions so it’s nice to have a day when I can actually feel how happy I am. 

The Baby/Mommy Lowdown:

*I’ve gained about 10 pounds so far which the doctor says is really good.  My blood pressure looks good also.  I can remember one of the numbers was 60 but that’s it.

*My tummy is measuring right at 20 weeks.

*The baby’s heartbeat is still going strong.  I just love hearing it!

*I think I’ve started to feel the baby move a little.  I’m not really sure and the more people tell me about how it should feel, the more unsure I become.  I will just say that I feel something which may or may not be the baby.  

*The ultrasound on the 29th is going to not only tell us the sex of the baby but it will check out its health as well.  It is an hour long and I am so excited about seeing our baby wiggling around on the screen for an entire hour!

*I picked up some tips for the sugar test I will take at 28 weeks.  I’m not sure how common these tips are, but I thought I would share them anyway.  Stick to protein and vegetables for the 2 meals before you come in for the test.  Don’t drink juice or eat starches or fruit.  Sugar is obviously a no-no as well.  The best breakfast to eat is eggs.  Since I’ve already had one 1 hour test, I’m really hoping I pass the one at 28 weeks.  That stuff is gross and holding your nose when you drink it doesn’t help. 

*I’m halfway done!  At the beginning that seemed so far away but I feel like it sort of snuck up on me.  I was honestly surprised by it when the doctor said something today.  I hope my due date will do the same! :)