24 Weeks!

How far along? 24 Weeks! Baby Rivera is 8-9 inches long and 1 ½ pounds in weight.

Total weight gain/loss? I have gained 8-10 pounds according to my home scale. I swear it changes on a daily basis depending on what time of day I weigh myself.

Feeling Sick/Signs of Labor? The fatigue has returned. Getting through work at night is becoming more of a challenge. Braxton hicks are a normal part of my life now. I have them daily and some can be quite uncomfortable. But I am reassured that this is all normal and part of the body’s way of prepping me for childbirth.

Clothing? Dressing myself is not super fun anymore. I am finding myself less and less comfortable in my clothing. I really don’t want to spend a lot of money on maternity clothes because I know I won’t be wearing them for very much longer, so I just have to force myself to reuse the few items I have left that fit and make it work. Fortunately, this week, my girlfriend gave me some of her maternity items that she wore last year when she was pregnant, so I hoping to get some good use out of those.

Stretch Marks? Nope.

Sleep? It is still the same, pretty good at night and lousy during the day. I nap when I can.

Movement? She is definitely a busy girl in there. I feel her a lot more at night then during the day.

Cravings? I feel as if my sweet tooth issue is getting worse. I still can’t get enough candy corns. They are delicious…and pure sugar! But I balance it out with vegetables, I promise. I still enjoy salads.

Gender? Getting more and more excited for this little girl to arrive. John and I are so curious about she looks like.

What I miss? Now that holiday season has kicked off, I definitely miss having champagne and staying up late with my friends at holiday parties. I can only last a few hours before I get exhausted and annoyed with all the drunken people. At least now I have an excuse to eat more. I guess all the calories I save on drinks I make up with in food.

Upcoming Events? Another OB appointment this week, but bedsides that, it should be a quiet week and weekend. Just what I need.

Best moment of the week? My friend, Carly’s, Halloween party was quite amazing. It was fun to see such an awesome group of people all dressed up an enjoying themselves. I look forward to all of the upcoming holiday events!

How far along? 23 Weeks! Baby Rivera is 8 inches long and over a pond in weight.

Total weight gain/loss? I have gained 8 pounds according to my home scale (luckily I didn’t put on as much weight as I thought in New York).

Feeling Sick/Signs of Labor? Overall, I am feeling great. I have discovered a new issue that I don’t like….horrible leg cramps. Sometimes I wake up with the worst Charlie horse cramps in my legs that are almost unbearable. I also have Braxton Hicks almost every day. They are not painful, but definitely noticeable when they occur.

Clothing? Clothing is becoming more of a problem. I am definitely running out of things to wear, but I don’t want to buy too much because I know I will get bigger. I did find a pair of jeans in New York that have and elastic waist, but aren’t considered maternity jeans (pretty excited about that!) I still find myself wearing a lot of stretchy pants, with tank tops and sweaters. About 75% percent of my pre-pregnancy clothes do not fit me anymore.

Stretch Marks? Nope.

Sleep? Trying to sleep throughout the night is troublesome, mostly due to my lack of comfort. Trying to sleep during the day is even more of a problem. You would think after working all night, it would be easy for me to sleep throughout the day, but the is not the case. I guess the lack of sleep is a good thing when it comes to preparing me for when the baby arrives.

Movement? She is moving a lot, some days more than others, but I always feel her. I really enjoy feeling her strange movements. I swear some days she is trying to break out of my abdomen. I am convinced I am growing a future Broadway dancer in there.

Cravings? I think the cravings are picking up. I bought pickles this week and they are quite tasty. I also can’t get enough of the candy corns and candy pumpkins.

Gender? All I have to say is this little girl is beyond spoiled already.

What I miss? General comfort. I can’t decide what is worse between the lack of sleep, clothes not fitting, constipation, gas, heartburn, fatigue, etc. I chalk it up to the joys of pregnancy.

Upcoming Events? Halloween is next weekend and there should be some fun things going on around the city. I plan on using the occasion to dress up, expose my belly, and rock it.

Best moment of the week? Our trip to New York was amazing. Not only was that the best moment of the week, it was one of the highlights of the year.

More Babymoon Photos......

A few more photos from our Babymoon.....

New York City Babymoon 10/2011!

John and I just returned from our babymoon that we celebrated in New York City, and it was one of the best trips I have ever taken. We took that city by storm. Six days of non-stop eating, shopping, touring, and broadway show watching. Here is a little recap on the highlights of our trip...

We started off our trip with reservations at a fantastic french restaurant. We filled our bellies with amazing food, then called it a night due to the fact that we needed to get up early for the next days adventures. We spent the next day shopping in Soho and waiting in line for tickets to a show. We scored great seats to Billy Elliot and the show was great. We were so impressed with the young talent. We continued to eat through most of the weekend, and again scored great tickets to two more shows, Phantom of the Opera and Spiderman.

We spent Saturday in Central Park taking maternity photos (pics will be posted soon). John took some great pictures. We, of course, stopped at FAO Schwarz to buy goodies for the peanut. We could not resist.

Monday was our designated day to be tourists and sightsee. We started out at the Empire State building, followed by a water taxi down the Hudson to the statue of liberty, a walk across the Brooklyn bridge, completing the day with desserts at Serendipity.

On Tuesday we were fortunate enough to visit the 9/11 memorial. I thought I would be able to contain my emotions, and I did pretty well, until I saw the names of women who were pregnant and lost their lives during the attacks. That hit me like a ton of bricks. It really does put everything into perspective. The memorial was beautifully done and the designers did a great job of representing all that was lost that day.

I could not have asked for a better trip. It gave John and I a chance to reconnect without any interruptions. We talked and laughed the entire trip. We know that this may be our last major trip as a twosome, but we are very much looking forward to traveling with our daughter as a family.

21 Weeks!

How far along? 21 Weeks! Baby Rivera is 7 inches long, 11 ounces, and about the size of 5 tangerines.

Total weight gain/loss? I have gained 5 pounds according to my home scale.

Feeling Sick? I am feeling quite good. I have days where I feel fatigued, but that is manageable. My belly feels huge and I am convinced it will not stretch any bigger, but I know that is not true. Beyond the bloating and tiredness, I can’t complain.

Clothing? Still love my stretchy pants and elastic waist. I bought several stretchy tops and large sweaters to aid in my comfort. I am looking forward to shopping in New York this week for some more maternity items.

Stretch Marks? Nope.

Sleep? Sleep is great when I am not working. I have no problem sleeping through the night, but sleeping through the day is a challenge sometimes.

Movement? She is moving quite a bit now, and it is much more noticeable. John was able to feel her this morning for the first time. She kicked him twice.

Cravings? Still enjoying grapes and several other fruits. Carbohydrates are my best friend.

Gender? All Girl!

What I miss? Starting to miss wine a little. There were a couple occasions this week where I really wanted to enjoy a glass of wine with my mom (I will admit I did touch a little to my lips….so rebellious of me.)

Upcoming Events? BABYMOON in NY. I am really looking forward to having alone time with John and spending our days shopping, eating, and seeing shows! We haven’t had a week off together in quite a long time.

Best moment of the week? The anatomy scan and 20 week doctor appt. were the best moments of the week. It is so refreshing to hear that my baby girl is healthy and thriving.

It's a GIRL!! Anatomy Screen 10/4/2011

I was so excited for my "official" anatomy scan on Tuesday 10/4 and everything went great! The technician evaluated my cervical length, fluid levels and all of the little peanuts parts. She did confirm that we are having a GIRL! Her anatomy looks great; no third eye or extra digits that she could see. The baby was also very cooperative, so the scan was fairly easy and quick (I hope that is a sign of good things to come.) Her heartbeat was in the 140's and she is measuring right on track. I couple not be more excited for the little angel to arrive. Here are some pictures the tech captured during the scan.

Profile

Her foot.

Crossed Legs. She is a perfect little lady.

Her little arm

It's a GIRL!

20 Weeks! The half way point!

How far along? 20 Weeks! Baby Rivera is 6 1/2 inches long, 10 ounces, and about the size of a small cantaloupe.

Total weight gain/loss? I am up somewhere between 4 and 6 pounds depending on what scale I use (the doctor scale always adds a little more weight to me).

Feeling Sick? Overall feeling good. I have experienced a few Braxton hicks contractions in the past few weeks. I am now starting to feel PREGNANT. My stomach is expanding and I swear I have no more room to grow (even though I know there is still plenty of room to get bigger).

Clothing? All I can say is……Stretchy pants!! I live in them.

Stretch Marks? Nope.

Sleep? Sleep is good. I am starting to figure out the comfortable positions to aid in me sleeping better.

Movement? I am feeling movement now. The pokes, flicks, and kicks are subtle, but they are there. I can’t wait to feel the first big punch. Bring it on princess.

Cravings? Grapes, English muffins, and cupcakes!! I also like putting cream cheese on everything.

Gender? Okay, so I am pretty sure everyone knows we are having a GIRL. I am going to post her anatomy pictures after this post.

What I miss? I am now starting to miss my pre-pregnancy body. I never realized just how un-sexy pregnancy can be. My stomach is hairy, my veins are protruding, and I have gas beyond belief. But I am going to try my best to embrace all the unappealing parts to pregnancy and enjoy the fact that I have this amazing little peanut growing inside.

Upcoming Events? My anatomy scan is Tuesday, October 4^th. Very excited about that. I am excited to spend time with my mom this week and talk baby talk. NY next week. YAY!

Best moment of the week? Spending time with my mom, sister and friends in Seattle. My mom and I had a blast on out road trip from Seattle to San Diego.