16 Weeks = BlackBerry Phone / Turnip

Do you prefer practical analogies or fruit/veggie analogies? Here are some pictures to show the approximate size of little Baby Butrimas this week:

She's getting pretty big, huh?! From a poppy seed to the above, in just 12 short weeks. Amazing. 

The bump is also growing. Here is a picture I snapped Friday night after work. 

(One of the cute little numbers I got with Mom when we went shopping last weekend.)

We also narrowed down the crib search last weekend! Yeah! Here is a sneak peak of the crib we like.

(Love the skirt at the bottom!)

We went to Lowe's last night and got some paint samples for the nursery. I wanted to post a picture of the samples painted on the wall, but I didn't get to painting them today. 

We got a lime green sample that is similar to the green in the picture of the nursery colors I shared in an earlier post. I also got a lavender sample, in case we need to go a bit lighter. The lavender is also very similar to the nursery color shared in the earlier post. The post was 14 weeks!! if you care to go back and check them out. 

And now ... for the much awaited weekly survey :)

How far along? 16 Weeks
Total weight gain: 6lbs 
Maternity clothes? Yes. I still wear the belly band with a few things though. 
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: I guess sleeping will never be the same. Mom did get me the Snoogle last weekend. It's easier to sleep with than the pillow I was using, but I still wake up sore and stiff. 
Best moment this week: All of the baby's movement. It brings tears to my eyes every time I feel a stronger kick or a new/different feeling. 
Miss Anything? I can't thing of anything new. All of the things that I've mentioned previously though. 
Movement: More movement each day. She's moving around right now, actually :). It's such an amazing, yet indescribable feeling. 
Food cravings: I've been craving potato skins (carbs), you know the potato-ey, bacon-ey, cheese-y, salty and ranch-y taste? YUM!! Oh and the baby loves doughnuts ... just sayin' ;)
Anything making you queasy or sick: The nose is still alive & kickin'! Woowee!
Have you started to show yet: I got my first official "stranger" comment regarding my baby/bump. So that lets me know I'm showing to everyone else, not just me :)
Gender prediction: Girl
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy :)
Looking forward to: Our family beach vacation in just 2 weeks! 

15 weeks

Hello, loves! 


I don't have any really exciting news this week. However, this weekend I know we are shopping for the crib!!! So I will probably just have to post after that ;). I'm also posting a bit early this week since I have dinner plans with Ash tomorrow night and my Mom gets here around lunch time on Friday (YAY!). I'm so excited to spend a "pregnant" weekend with my mom. I think this is a special time between moms & daughters :). 
Other than that - just growing this lil bump out. I thank God for the 2nd trimester. The 1st went fast, but it really was awful. I hear that the 3rd is a little worse, so I am just enjoying the time now. Although I am still in this limbo period of feeling pregnant and not feeling pregnant. I think as I start to feel more movement, or heavier movement, and as the belly grows I will feel more pregnant. 

After work today

How far along? 15 Weeks
Total weight gain: 6lbs
Maternity clothes? Something borrowed! :)
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Still no pillow. Still waking up stiff. 
Best moment this week: Cleaning the house and completing ALL of my laundry-from start to finish (all in 1 day!)
Miss Anything? The gym. 
Movement: I was feeling her a little yesterday and the day before. It was little movements, not a kicking feeling or flutter. Hard to describe. 
Food cravings: Sweets and salad.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Just still some meats.
Have you started to show yet: Yes, more & more
Gender prediction: Girl
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy
Looking forward to: This weekend! 

14 weeks!!

4 weeks, 14 weeks

I always thought 14 weeks sounded so...pregnant. Being 14 weeks feels like quite the accomplishment. When I look at the picture of me at 14 weeks I feel like it isn't really me...is that strange? Probably. I guess it's kind of hard to get used to a "baby bump". But I welcome it with open arms. It's exciting that even strangers know I am pregnant. It's such an exciting time in my life. I just hope that I can get back to being as skinny as I was before I found out I was pregnant, lol! I finally got back down to a size 4! That was also the goal - to reach a goal weight before I got pregnant. I'm hoping it will make for an easier "bounce back". All moms reading this please don't burst my bubble ;). 

As you may or may not know, we're putting most of our money on the tech being right in the fact that we're having a little GIRL. So I've been doing some thinking on nursery ideas and we've been trying to decide on her name. 

Our top runners in the name department are Harper and Brynn (with a possible modification to Brinn). We do not have any middle names picked yet. 

Harper Butrimas 

Brynn Butrimas

...Hmmm

******************************

We really like these colors for the nursery. I am thinking about painting her walls the lime green color. I'm also thinking white furniture. 

I'm not a fan of all of the baby theme rooms with the cartoon animals and pastel colors. I am liking the really modern, bold color look. I've seen some tree stencils that are really cool. Maybe we'll think about doing a stencil of some sort. Not too sure yet! :) I also like the nurseries I've seen where they have the letters of the baby's name hanging over the crib. That's cute. Or just the initials. 

I think that should bring you just about up-to-date! :)

How far along? 14 weeks...26 to go!

Total weight gain: 5lbs 

Maternity clothes? UPDATE! My AMAZING sister-in-law, Kelly, is letting me borrow her entire maternity wardrobe. I'm talking work pants, jeans, shorts, tops, dresses, skirts, EVERYTHING! I'm a very lucky girl! 

Stretch marks? Nope.

Sleep: Finally going to buy a body pillow this weekend. Hopefully I'll be mad I've waiting so long and will be sleeping like a baby again. Sleep isn't bad, I'm just not as comfortable and am always stiff when I wake up.   

Best moment this week: Hearing my baby girl's heartbeat :). I had a monthly check-up on Wednesday. 158!

Miss Anything? Most everything I have mentioned before.  

Food cravings: Give me the sweet stuff! Or the salty stuff... :)  

Anything making you queasy or sick: Some meats. 

Have you started to show yet: Yes. It's still hard to believe. I check out my reflection ever chance I get, LOL. 

Gender prediction: Girl :) 

Belly Button in or out? In 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy with bursts of energy...woah! Haha

Looking forward to: My momma coming to town on the 15th!! Mommy/daughter shopping & pedicures and so much more! <3 

13 weeks

I apologize ahead of time, this post is pretty weak :)

Just added this photo as my Facebook cover page. Courtesy of Maria from my secret Facebook group page :) Thanks for letting me steal it! 

How far along? 13 weeks

Total weight gain: I'm not sure. I'll know for sure next week after my appt. 

Maternity clothes? Yes. Not much fits these days. 

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: It's alright. A bit uncomfortable.  

Best moment this week: Having Monday off!!

Miss Anything? My brain! Sometimes it just stops working. I feel like a ditz!  

Food cravings: Hubby got me Sour Patch Kids over the weekend. Ever since I've been craving those & Starbursts.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: Some meats. 

Have you started to show yet: I say yes. My belly isn't hard yet, so it's not baby, but you can definitely tell I'm PREGNANT! 

Gender prediction: Girl :) 

Belly Button in or out? In 

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy :)

Looking forward to: Planning & shopping!

12 weeks = major mile stones

Little baby Butrimas...sucking her thumb perhaps? 

Tech said 70/30 GIRL...looks like pac-man to me! Thoughts?

Blurry bathroom pic? Yes. But when your best friend asks for a belly pic, you stop what you're doing, go to the bathroom, and click ;).  

Wow, 12 weeks already! I just can't believe how much has happened just over these last two weeks. For starters, look at that belly! Showing - sort of a "pop" as the girls on my secret FB page like to call it. Then there is, well, the baby. Last time we saw her (yes, I will be referring to baby as her from now on...unless we find a growth has happened on the next u/s ;)) she was just a little nugget. Big head, blob for a body and the size of a fig or something. We're up to a peach now! It says 11cm on the sonogram. That's 4.5 inches!!!! Holy cow!

We had our NT scan on Friday. This is to test for a bunch of different chromosomal disorders, including Downs. Even though we are not at risk for any of them, I think it's standard practice at most offices unless you're just against all testing. Our view is it's better to find out sooner than later. We'd like to have more time to prep, research and prepare if we need to. So the scan was an ultrasound and a finger prick. After I read more about the NT scan, I was really nervous to get it done. There are a lot of false positives, and the results aren't even 90% accurate. So I just focused on seeing the baby again. I was really excited to see her again on the screen because I knew she would look like a baby, finally. (Everything looked normal, thankfully.)

So we got in the room and the tech put the (surprisingly) warm jelly on my belly and started scanning away. [Now, I'm not sure if you remember, but the 1st time I went through this, all I could do was laugh. It was bad, and we didn't get to see much. So all I could think was "please don't laugh". I was really calm though.] We saw our baby! She was really still, and it scared me at 1st, I thought there might be something wrong. It turned out she was just sleeping :). Once the tech had to jab the wand into my belly she woke up and started moving. When we saw her sort of sit up, and then rub her eye I lost it. She was moving her hands and feet...acting like a real baby. It was amazing. Bron and I were just beaming with joy.

Bron let the tech know that we were really excited to find out the gender if she can tell this early. So when she was done with her measurements and showing us the baby moving all around, she moved the wand and I saw two legs...I knew what was coming next and I got really anxious! She said, "well, it might be too early, but it looks like you're having a little girl". My eyes welled up again and Bron was smiling so big. He said "so, would you say like 60/40?" The tech said, "I'd probably say more like 70/30". She reminded us that this was not to go out and paint the walls pink or buy anything gender specific, but that it was a pretty accurate guess. She saved the picture for us, so that we could say down the line that we found out at 12 weeks, as long as nothing grows down there ;). 

She printed about 6 pictures and showed us to the next waiting room. Of course I was still trying to pull myself together as we sat down. After waiting, texting, and looking at all our photos again it was finger prickin' time. Finger pricks aren't bad though. She got a lot of blood from it. She put like 5-6 quarter-sized circles on a piece of paper. I found this very strange. I can only guess that they look at it under a microscope when they get it at the lab.

So there you have it, our most exciting appointment yet. And, from what I hear, it only gets better from here. This is truly an amazing blessing and experience that I am grateful for every day. 

How far along? 12 weeks 

Total weight gain: They didn't weigh me at the appt. and every time I weigh myself here it's the same. So I'm sticking with 3 lbs still. 
Maternity clothes? Yes. I bought some hideous pants at Destination Maternity last Monday. They are capri's for work that look like my butt is in a parachute. (I guess I should add that they looked cute the 2 minutes I had them on in the dressing room. I'm hoping I'll grow into them.) I also got a cute skirt and two tops from Target. I'll be working to expand. I'm looking forward to H&M opening up soon in the Avenues. They have some cute maternity clothes on their website - and they're cheap! 
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: It's alright. A bit uncomfortable.  
Best moment this week: See the novel above ;). 
Miss Anything? Hmm, I can't really think of anything this week. Well, except my mom. She's planning a trip in a few weeks though, don't you worry. 
Food cravings: I've had a lot of different cravings this week. Many that I haven't been able to fulfill because they aren't very specific. But I had Chili's for lunch yesterday and it was the most amazing meal I've had at Chili's (& I didn't even have queso!)...I think it was the carbs haha. 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Some meats. I also get pretty queasy in the AM when I'm getting ready. Usually right after the shower. I get too hot. 
Have you started to show yet: A little more, yes. 
Gender prediction: GIRL! 
Belly Button in or out? In 
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy :)
Looking forward to: Planning & shopping more, feeling kicks and picking names. 

First Timers

Bron and I had our 1^st official baby shopping outing this afternoon. Our 1^st stop was Buy Buy Baby. They just opened a Buy Buy Baby (I had not previously heard of it) on the Southside. If you too have not heard of it, or been there yet, it’s EXACTLY like Bed Bath and Beyond – only with all baby things. I know. Amazing. I’m definitely registering there. So I decided we should go and take a tour and only check out 1-2 big ticket items so we wouldn't get overwhelmed our 1^st time baby shopping :). It was really cool and I didn’t get too side tracked – of course Bron really helped in that department lol. They have a few nurseries set up, just as they do bedding and beds at BB&B. I really like the changing tables with the drawers underneath and came across one that was staged with wipes and newborn diapers. I picked up the teeny tiny diaper and...lost it haha! Tears right there in the store. As I walked away embarrassed, trying to hide from anyone that might be able to see me I started to tear more because I was tearing on our 1^st trip hah. So I pulled it together and Bron was already trying to show me another changing table he liked. We checked out the City Mini stroller (awesome!) and a few other things. We did make 1 purchase…our 1^st pack of Pampers – size 1.

Off to Barns & Noble we went. Every boy name I throw at Bron he immediately vetoes, so I wanted to get a book to keep all our suggestions together in one place. (We are 90% sure on our girl name.) While we were there we got baby’s 1^st book. Surprisingly, it wasn’t a childhood favorite for Bron or I but it was short, sweet, and shiny so I thought it will be a good 1^st book. That might be the thing we’re most excited about in the nursery, the book collection. We can’t wait to fill the shelves with children’s books! Old ones, new ones, tall ones, short ones, ones with texture, ones with noise…BOOKS!

Our last stop was to Old Navy. I’ve been sporting this belly band for a few weeks now and I thought it might be time to at least try on some maternity jeans. I only had them on for a few minutes, but OMG what a life changer…okay maybe not that dramatic...but they were awesome! SO much more comfortable than the stupid belly band!! They just didn’t want to fit my calves (capris) and were a little loose on the booty. So we’re going to Motherhood tomorrow after work to start my maternity collection. Bring on the BUMP! ;)

I will leave you with some exciting things for this week: Tomorrow I'm buying my 1st of many maternity clothing items, getting back to the GYM (because I have some energy back & it feels awesome), and our ultrasound that is scheduled on Friday. This ultrasound is especially exciting because SOMETIMES the tech can tell the gender on the 12 week ultrasound. I'll be 12 weeks and 2 days so we'll see. Keep your fingers crossed! 

11 weeks!!

Mother's day before our lunch date <3 

How far along? 11 weeks 

Total weight gain/loss: Still only about 3lbs 
Maternity clothes? Not yet. 
Stretch marks? Nope! But my belly is getting monkey-like with all this hair! What the heck! Haha
Sleep: I'm sleeping well. 
Best moment this week: Felling good.
Have you told family and friends: Yes! 
Miss Anything? I've missed alcohol this week. I didn't think I would even think about a drink while pregnant, since I didn't drink much before. But I get in the mood for, or cravings for wine, beer and margaritas. :)
Food cravings: Ice cream. I got Ben & Jerry's American Dream. YUM. 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not this week, thank goodness!
Have you started to show yet: A small bump that is most likely bloating. But it's in the right spot so that's all that counts right? ;) But I can tell baby is getting bigger. 
Gender prediction: This has changed this week too. I'm back to not being sure. (Indecisiveness...also a semi-new thing during pregnancy. So many huge decisions!)
Belly Button in or out? In & hairy...ew 
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy :)
Weekly Wisdom: Don't listen to all the crazies. Everyone around you seems to be a doctor when you're pregnant. Listen to your intuition and your own doctor. 
Looking forward to: I'm on serious "feel watch" for the 1st flutter of movement. I do realize that usually this doesn't happen for some time, but it CAN happen this early, lol.