http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenloveskev/4474560285/
Sorry for the late start on this baby post, we actually were at the Doctors this morning and GUESS WHAT??? We have are sonogram scheduled on April 13th to find out if it is a boy or a girl!!! Eeeek that’s only 13 days away!!!! That is going to be a big big day 1. because of course we are finding out if it is a boy or a girl but 2. I have my citizen test in the morning. haha!
I always go to my monthly check ups with my list of questions in hand. I have started writing them down during the month so when I get there I don’t forget them. Today I asked about…
1. My weight gain and if I was at a good and healthy amount. Answer yes. I have gained 3 pounds since my last appointment a month ago. She said it was good that I have been going to the gym 3 times a week.
2. When we needed to sign up for birthing classes. Answer: 28 weeks
3. Sleeping. I have been have the worst time sleeping lately which of course is not helping the overall tired feeling I am having. I just sleep terrible every night. I am always so uncomfortable and I wake up on my back all freaked out because I am not suppose to sleep on my back. She told me to try laying with a pillow under my hips so that it would be ok to sleep on my back and then maybe I would sleep better than laying on my side. I have always been a stomach sleeper so this whole new sleep positions are throwing me for a loop.
4. My allergies. I have ridiculous seasonal allergies that have lead to the school nurse having to give me an epipen and the ambulance rushing me to the hospital. oh boy! I posted this blog post 2 years ago with some terrible pictures of me and this funny video Kev took of me in the hospital. This is after I have been on a steroid iv for like 3 hours too. When Kev meet me at the hospital (because it happened at school) he said he couldn’t even recognize me. They had asked what I had eaten that morning and I said an orange, so everyone was saying the orange is what did it to me, even though it wasn’t. That’s why Kev asks me in the video “what do I have to say to the orange that did this to me?” haha since then me and oranges have had a healthy relationship.
Anyways my midwife said that I can take my regular allergy medicine if I need to and that of course if I need to use my epipen that I should by all means use it and then go the ER of course. Fingers crossed that doesn’t happen again this year.
5. A pediatrician. She said we should start looking for one now and recommended a family practice that is actually right down the street from us.
6. If cocoa butter was something that I should be using on my stomach. My midwife said that stretch marks are genetic and also come about from rapid weight gain. So since she said my weight gain was good this ones up to you mom! Hehe. She said its good to use cocoa butter later on because as you start growing more your skin gets itchy from stretching and it can help relieve it.
ok well those were my questions for this month but I did get a question yesterday from a reader asking about being vegetarian and being pregnant. It was not a question for me when I got pregnant whether or not to eat meat-I wanted to stay vegetarian. I just talked about it with my midwife. I was already pretty conscious about what I ate and made sure I ate the right about of veggies, fruit, protein and things like that, so it was a really easy switch to being pregnant. I just really make sure I am getting enough protein, but seriously if you are a healthy eating vegetarian you are getting enough because your meals are based off of dark greens, beans, tofu and brown rice. Now the big question for us is, will the baby be a vegetarian or not? Hmm that is something we are working on, I am leaning towards yes but that is something I need to discuss further with a pediatrician.
ok on to my letter. I really want to keep this up and be able to make a little book of all these pictures and letters for the baby and keep it until they are old enough and then give it to them as a keepsake…
Dear Baby:
Its week 18. You are never going to believe that happened this last week?? I felt you move. We were laying in bed and I had my hand on my stomach and I felt you. I think you were doing somersaults. That’s what I am imagining anyways because boy that seems awful cute. I have only felt you move a couple times. I have to be really still with no noises or distractions. You are very subtle, but its because you are so small. I read that you are the size of my hand stretched open this week. That seems amazing. When we were laying in bed the other night your dad noticed that my belly button looked shallower. Which seems like a very funny thing to think about but it seriously is. I don’t really know your belly button typically goes from an innie to an outie but I am thinking its got to be soon.
When you come home for the first time you will meet your kitties. They are sisters and I know you will love them and they will love you. Gully is so cuddling already but I think she knows that you are coming because she has been acting super needy. She has to wedge herself in between me and your dad every night. She never wants to be anywhere we are not and sometimes I will wake up and she will be curled up right next to you, like she knows you are in there and wants to be close by too. Pirate, I don’t think knows what is going on but that is just her personality. They are good cats and I hope they transition well to you being home.
Well baby. I hope you move a lot more this week. Its fun to feel you in there!
I will write more again next week.
Love,
Mom
This is so cute! I can’t wait to find out if it’s a boy or girl, that’s so exciting! I hope that you will be able to post a collage of all these pregnancy photos at some point down the road, I think it would be really interesting to be able to compare them side by side!
My friend actually titled her pregnancy blog “A Vegetarian Pregnancy”. Another one of my friends eats salmon, other than that she is vegetarian. She’s had 3 and they all turned out fine 🙂
I’ve never heard about the no back sleeping rule. Gosh, there is so much I don’t know.
Oh! What a wonderful post! Your questions/answers are very helpful! Are you two hoping for one sex over the other!? Are you planning on sharing baby names? Good luck next week and I hope you have a better time sleeping through the night!
You pregnancy portraits are amazing!
http://senseofstyleiseternal.blogspot.com/
So adorable!
YOu look wonderful!!! Here’s a couple tips for ya: 1. get the “Snoogle” pillow! YOu can buy it on Amazon or at babies r us, etc.et….it absolutely SAVED me with both of my pregnancies and pretty much solved my sleeping problems 2. I have been a vegetarian for 7 years and was throughout both of my pregnancies…it is absolutely ok and healthy to do so…my first baby was 8 lbs. 15 ounces and my second was 8 lbs. 12 ounces!!! Now my kids are veggie too and they are healthy and happy!!!!
Can’t wait to see what are going to put in your store!!! ( Also I bet you are on pins and needles waiting to hear what Toby and Jenni have in a week or two!!!)
xoxoMelissa
You definitely need to get a special pillow to help you sleep. I’ve been wrecked since early December and had the first good night of sleep last night thanks to a body pillow and some lavender. Holding on helps you stay in on position all night and kind of mimics tummy sleeping. I read in ‘What to Expect…’ that you should sleep on your left side too, but I don’t really know why.
Look for something like this:
http://www.mothercare.com/Mothercare-Sleep-Body-Pillow/dp/B001NZJVQ0/sr=1-5/qid=1270157468/ref=sr_1_5/276-4164011-0026312?_encoding=UTF8&m=A2LBKNDJ2KZUGQ&n=42800041&mcb=core
hey there lovely! i had a crazy allergic reaction to citrus too! the hormones may be the cause of that for me… it is nice to know there is someone else out there with the weird allergies too! <3
ok the cocoa butter thing really does make your belly feel better the bigger you get… at least i loved it especially towards the end when i was getting soooo huge. my stomach felt like it was stretching every minute. the cocoa butter helped to soothe it. and i didnt get one stretch mark on my stomach with either kid, so i dont know if thats just coincidence or not. 🙂 and i gained a ton of weight with both kids, (55 and 65) sooo i dont know.
anyway, you look great! cant wait to find out what you’re having. im of course partial to little girls.
oh I love how you sign it “mom” awww, you never cease to make me smile every week!
These photos are amazing…I’m so excited for you to find out about the sex and your citizen’s test!
These are really good questions to ask your doctor — I’m not having kids yet, so some of these are ones I would never think of, like allergy medicine. I have majorly bad allergies too, which were once so bad that my teachers thought the dark circles around my eyes were a result of getting beat up on the playground. Nice to know that there’s someone out there with bad allergies too!
this is so adorable. it really is. i’ve just started reading your blog and i love it. i think it’s perfect that you’re writing letters to your baby. you’ll be a great mum!
Jenny, it’s ok you can blame me for every one of your stretch marks (if you get any) because I blame you for all of mine hehe 🙂 I gained 65 pounds when I was carry you but I know you’ll be better at watching your weight than I was. The pictures are sooooo sweet, I just want to put my hand on your belly!
I’m so impressed with how you are handling everything, and how healthy you are. you are going to be a fabulous mom, I can tell already!
I would never want to know what the baby was, though… I think I’d want that old school surprise in the hospital, with the doctor yelling “it’s a ______!!”
but I’m not preggers, so I really can’t say, can I?
Allergies….I hear you! I have something called angeioedema (may be similar?), and how do you say to your boss, “Hey I can’t come into work b/c my eye(s) is/are swollen shut” Have you figured out what it is that triggers it? I’ve done more or less spot treatment rather than taking it every day, which I hear is better. Mad props for posting pics/video…it’s one of the things I wouldn’t know how to talk about as openly and esp w/ pics!
Steph
I totally agree with the suggestion of buying a snoogle pillow! i didn’t want to spend the money on one but my aunt bought it for me and i can’t imagine pregnant sleep without it! i am a stomach/right side sleeper so it really helped me stay on my left side. my sister tried it with her second pregnancy and couldn’t get used to it so just beware it doesnt work for everyone. as far as the cocoa butter, i really think any good body cream would work- it wont prevent stretch marks but i think it helps to keep them minimal if you do get them (and it feels much better to have cream on your belly than very itchy skin as you do stretch!) i am totally enjoying these pregnancy updates and LOVE the pictures!!
Hi there. I love your blog! I felt compelled to write to you just to say that and the following: I am especially moved to learn of your pregnancy, probably for selfish reasons – because it reminds me of being pregnant with my beautiful, lovely children whom I adore (they are now 12 and 3). The only advice I ever give to a mama-and-papa-to-be is this: trust yourselves and do what works. Seriously. Take in whatever information you get and pick the stuff that fits with who you are. This is an amazing journey! Savor every moment. Your idea to write letters is so touching. Your little one will enjoy reading them as an adult, knowing how loved and wanted he or she was! Anyway, sending you the best possible wishes!
This is such a cute post. I’ve been a vegetarian for more than 10 years and my baby was healthy at 7 1/2 lbs. I totally relate to your excitement on finding out the sex of the baby, I remember it so well.
As for sleeping. I could only sleep on my back until the day before the delivery. The baby and I were fine. When you get larger you may feel the baby kick while you’re lying on a side, its very weird and uncomfortable, I always felt like she was telling me to get off her. I can recommend just getting a wedge pillow and sticking it on your right side to stay off your back and lay on your leftside if you want to avoid your back. Something this small makes a difference. I was in labor already and that’s what they did to me at the hospital. The Snoogle, made me really sore, it so bulky too! You can’t cuddle up with your hubby or cats! LOL
Hi Jen, I hope the kitties and the baby will get along well. When I was a toddler I used to love playing with my uncle’s labrador (who was bigger than me), kids and animals usually get along great. You probably already know all about toxoplasmosis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasmosis) – basically Kev should clean out the kittybox now 🙂
I thought I should warn you about the Cocoa butter…my friend who was prego at the same time as me was once at the Doctors and there was an irregularity in her babies heart beat and the doc asked her if she was using Cocoa butter and she said yes…and the Doc told here that there was something in cocoa that is absorbed through the skin into the baby that was causing her babies heart beat to be irregular..so she immediatly stopped using it and the baby never had the problem again….so she passed the story onto me. I was too freaked out by that story to use cocoa butter anywhere on my body incase it got into my blood stream….instead I used vitamin E creams and Bio Oil and creams with collagen elastin in them
Hey there! I’ve just discovered your blog about 2 weeks ago, and I love all of the stuff you write about! It makes me want to start a blog, and I’m not big on journals/writing. lol My favorite posts are the letters to your baby, and I love how you talk about the practicalities of being preggers, too. Makes me want to hurry up and get pregnant, too! hahaha
Anyways, I just wanted to tell you that I thought this post was really adorable. 🙂
p.s. I wish you could decorate my house!!!! hahaha
Wow, how cool that you felt baby move! It’s so wonderful. That’s good that you’ve been writing down all your questions. I used the cocoa butter because my belly got SO itchy, especially around 6 months. I don’t know if it helped with the stretch marks. My mom didn’t have them bad and I don’t have them bad either. But when my stomach gets tan you can sort of see them. But you’re going to want something for the itchiness!
Sleeping is hard – do you get bad dreams? With Anthony I had one like every night! It started for me this week. (Remember that time when I was sleeping on your floor – lol) That happened twice last night! Anthony freaks out, it’s so funny to think about it now, but I feel so bad for him!
Wow, baby is the size of your hand, that is so stinkin adorable! My baby is only and inch, but it has eyes and fingers! I think it’s so awesome.
I didn’t know you were going for your citizen test. What made you decide to do that? What do you have to do to prepare? Well, it’s all very exciting and keep up the good work with your blog. It will be really special to share all this with your child one day. xo
PS, i love that first pic, it’s very sweet
Jen, I’ve been reading your blog for a while and even more regularly now (I am preggo as well and it’s fun to see someone fashionable putting preggo outfits together!)
I was having the same sleeping problems (plus a terrible pain in my back) and a few pregnant friends recommended a pregnancy body pillow. Boppy and Snoogle are the two I’ve heard most about, and since I got a big Boppy I have been sleeping SO much better!
Just thought I’d throw that out there 🙂 Blessings on you and your growing family!
Jenn,
It is so fun to go through this whole process with you, and I very much appreciate you informing us of the questions you had because thye answered some I had as well =)
your gonna look so cute moooore prego <3
I love the pictures of both of you. You always look so happy and cute. And it’s so adorable how the cat is more or less reacting like an only child that’s about to be dethroned (Been there). I’m sure the cats will love the baby. My best friend’s daughter is one now and she is always chasing their cat around and poking and prodding him, and he puts up with it and acts like he may be annoyed, but you can tell he loves the extra attention.
You look gorgeous. Oh, so exciting that you’ll soon be finding out the sex!! I’m a stomach sleeper as well, so I can imagine your pain.
I’m so happy for you, Jen! You look amazing. I love seeing how your style is evolving with your pregnancy!
As a fellow vegetarian, I’m ecstatic to hear that you’re keeping up your lifestyle throughout your pregnancy! You’ll have to let me know how it goes and if you do indeed decide that your baby will be a vegetarian.
Jen,
I just recently discovered your blog but wanted to drop you a note about vegetarian babies. My mom was vegetarian for over 12 years before she had me and then my younger sister and brother. She raised us all vegetarian and we are all super healthy and tall — my little brother (he’s 21) is 6’4″! Our pediatrician had some initial doubts, but our household was always very conscious about food and we’ve all continued a healthy vegetarian diet. Just wanted to offer you some encouragement!
Hey Jen, I have a comment about your allergy: Did you ever pinpoint the source of your reaction? I looked at the picture you posted way back with your eyes swollen and it looks just like my allergic reaction. I have a severe allergy to sulfites – a preservative – and most ppl with sulfite allergies develop them late in life (late teens, early 20s). So when I got it, it took forever to diagnose and I spent 7 yrs going from allergist to allergist trying to figure out what it was. Over that course of time, it got increasingly worse because my body was trying to tell me to avoid this one thing it couldn’t break down but since I didn’t know what was causing it, I kept eating things with sulfites. My eyes would swell completely shut (like yours) and with the years, I started getting hives and my throat was closing up too. They went from once every 6 months to bimonthly severe reactions and I was using an epipen all the time – it was an awful way to live with it.
Anyway, I finally found an amazing allergist about 2 years ago who worked with me and we were able to isolate the allergen to sulfites and since I’ve changed my diet completely, I rarely have problems anymore. If this is something that rings true for you and you’d like to talk about it, I have since done a ton of research on it and would be happy to share. Especially since you’re preggers, I would be happy to talk to you if you’re looking for ways to avoid a reaction that forces you to use an epipen.
You can also shoot me a line at chic@academichic.com if this sounds like it would apply to you and you’d like to talk.
S.