home renovation

Due to the popular demand for the infamous "baby bump" photos, see below. Neither are the best photos of me, but hey, we'll take what we can get. This is for the benefit of future posterity.

I had planned to take a "belly shot" every week. Turns out my procrastination skills also extend into pregnancy. So, instead of 21 pictures, I have a whopping two.

Here is me, thinking I was showing big time at a little over 16 weeks:

Here is me, thankful for waist-expansion Motherhood Maternity technology, at almost 21 weeks (20 weeks and 5 days to be exact):

I am half way there! In another four and a half months we'll have a new Reese in the house.

I am starting to feel like I look a little more pregnant, but mostly I just feel like people look at me and think, "Wow, she's put on some weight. Maybe she shouldn't consume her body weight in school-fundraiser-boxes-of-Krispy-Kreme-doughnuts." Come to think of it, it's hard to know how much of this new found tummy of mine is baby, and how much really is Krispy Kreme coated lard.

Here are some of the fun parts of pregnancy for me right now:
--Feeling the little saucer spin around in there. He is getting a lot stronger, and it makes me so happy every time I feel him move.

-- Buying and receiving adorable baby things. It is so much more fun to look at baby stuff now that we know we're having a boy.

-- Feeling like I have 100 times more energy than I did in my first trimester. I have been extremely blessed, and I do mean EXTREMELY blessed, and have felt pretty terrific throughout my entire pregnancy. I felt a little nauseated during the first trimester, but for the most part as long as I had a snack every couple of hours I was good to go. I only threw up once. I know. Amazing. I really am so thankful. Most of my nausea was at night time, which was also great because I didn't have to stress with morning sickness while I wrestled adolescents in the manana. Even though I felt great, I was tired ALL of the time. I seriously felt like I could sleep all day and not sleep enough. The last couple of weeks that has gotten so much better. I am still really tired in the morning, but morning crankiness is nothing new for me, so I don't really think that's a symptom of pregnancy. Last week I started going back to the gym. I talked to my doctor about it at my ultrasound and he said it was fine. I had planned to keep working out throughout my entire pregnancy, but my first trimester fatigue changed those plans. I feel like I have so much more energy now that I am being more active.

Some of the stresses of pregnancy for me right now:
-- I can't wear my wedding ring anymore because my ring finger breaks out into an intense rash every time I do. That means if someone I don't know actually does suspect I'm pregnant (rather than an over-consumer of Krispy Kreme goodness) they will probably think I am an unwed teenager (I am still getting mistaken for a student at my high school) and give me the stare down.

-- What are we going to name this kid? Seriously. Have you considered the tremendous amount of pressure that comes with choosing the name someone will be called by for the rest of their LIFE? Add to that the fact that every name I love Chad isn't thrilled with, and every name Chad loves isn't my favorite, and what do we have? Disaster. I don't know if 4.5 months is enough time to resolve this issue.

-- Waking up in the middle of the night to use the "facilities." This has never been an issue for me, and interrupted sleep isn't fun. I guess this is preparation for when the little guy arrives and interrupted sleep becomes non-existent sleep.