17 Weeks

How far along? 17 weeks

Total weight gain:  10 lbs. up 4lbs in the past 4 weeks. Now weighing in at 130lbs (eek!) up from 120lbs to begin with.

Maternity clothes? No, just surviving on leggings, the belly band and cute belts.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: I was sick this week but despite that, and the constant peeing, I am sleeping okay. Although still getting used to not sleeping on my back.

Best moment this week: Hearing the heartbeat again when we went for my check-up. It was SO loud and easy for the doctor to find this week which was really cool.

Miss anything? My bikini body? Just kidding!

Movement: Feeling some “fishy” movements here and there.

Food Cravings: Mandarin Oranges

Anything making you queasy or sick? Still not eating ground beef

Have you started to show yet? Yes I think I am officially showing now. I had a student ask me if I was pregnant this week. He was nervous I was going to say no! I should have said no just to be funny hahaha. Either way, I am embracing my belly now as I feel I now look pregnant and not just chunky!

Gender prediction: Still boy

Labor signs: No.

Belly button in or out? In. Going to have to take my belly button ring out at some point though!

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or moody most of the time: I had my first weepy pregnancy moment this week when I realized how big my belly was! Hello hormones!! To my husband’s credit he was very understanding and is ALWAYS telling me how beautiful I look which is reassuring as I get bigger. I think I scared even myself though as I have never been the girl who thinks she looks fat in anything!

Looking forward to: Our next ultrasound and starting to pick out nursery things! I got a giant giraffe to match my giraffe lamp that I had as a baby. Both are just adorable!

I had the stomach flu this week. Let me just say…YUCK. It was horrible. No more horrible than having it when I was not pregnant but horrible nonetheless. After disinfecting everything I am hoping that hubby dearest does not catch it (see my blog post a while back on the man cold…could you imagine a full blown man-flu!?). Regardless, despite being tired and still no appetite I am on the mend thank goodness. This week we got to go to our monthly check up and everything seems to be going smoothly! Hearing baby’s heartbeat is always so reassuring not to mention pretty amazing as, despite the belly, I sometimes forget I am even pregnant! We are definitely looking forward to our next ultrasound which should be in the next month or so. Oh, and we got a new due date based on our dating ultrasound. Our new due date is April 9^th which is about a week behind what the doc originally thought (but what I already knew) hence why there has been a two week wait for this blog post as my body was catching up!

Yummy!!

So I realized that I haven't posted a recipe in what seems like ages. Which is funny really because I have been STARVING since about the 7th week of my pregnancy. Like seriously, will eat anything in sight.  And since I am the regular dinner maker in my house I get to make whatever I want.  I just made a YUM recipe that I found on Pinterest. Probably not that good for you, but yummy none the less. So here it is (and it's super easy too, I promise!).

Chedder Bacon Ranch Chicken Penne (long name!)

1 pound Penne pasta

6 strips of bacon, diced

1 tablespoon butter

2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-size pieces

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 packet ranch dressing mix

2 cups milk

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package directions in boiling salted water; drain, return to pot, and keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Drain all but one tablespoon of bacon drippings from the pan.

3. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the butter to the reserved bacon drippings, then add the chicken to the same skillet. Cook until tender, no longer pink, and slightly browned.

4. Sprinkle the flour and ranch dressing mix over the chicken, stirring to coat evenly. Stir in the milk, and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened and bubbly. Stir in the cheddar cheese and half of the reserved bacon; cook and stir until the cheese is melted. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.

5.Toss the chicken and sauce with your pasta and serve with the reserved bacon on top. To be honest, I just put all the bacon in with the chicken and didn't bother with any on top.

16 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 16 Weeks

Total weight gain:  I will find out at the doctors next week as I don’t have a scale in my house. I hope not too much!

Maternity clothes? Still making due with my own clothes. I did go and try on maternity tops on the weekend (the pants are WAY to short so they just aren’t going to happen). What a disappointing experience. EVERYTHING was giant, even if I had a big belly! Even the size xxs. So I guess I’ll have to survive on my own clothes.

Stretch marks? None yet

Sleep: Still getting up to pee and have a glass of water 2-3 times a night.

Miss anything? As my hubby sat down with a frosty glass of Stella to watch the Packers/Texans game with me I was supremely jealous.

Movement: Just some flutters here and there but nothing major.

Food Cravings: Chocolate ice cream with waffle cones.

Anything making you queasy or sick? Just red meat still

Have you started to show yet? Just a little belly (which gets so bloated and huge by the end of the day) but nothing that screams pregnant lady. Which is unfortunate, because I just feel like I look fat.

Gender prediction: Boy still

Labor signs: None

Belly button in or out? In. And I’m curious as to when this really happens for everyone?!

Wedding rings on or off?  On

Happy or moody most of the time: Soooo happy.

Looking forward to: My 18 week doctors appointment, feeling some more movement, and getting a bigger belly.

Oh and PS my amazing husband decided to get in on the chalkboard action this week! Didn't he do an awesome job?!

15 Weeks

How far along? 15 weeks

Total weight gain: 6 pounds

Maternity clothes? Just the bella band so far (and I can still button my jeans it just isn’t sexy with my growing belly)

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Still sleeping well and peeing only 1 or 2 times a night now.

Miss anything? Not missing anything this week

Movement:  I SWEAR I felt something this week while I was drinking an eggnog latte. It didn’t feel like gas it just felt like a fish swimming around in there or something! Maybe I’m crazy but I think I felt movement

Food Cravings: Still Macintosh apples. Oh and Japanese Village.

Anything making you queasy or sick? Red meat

Have you started to show yet? Still just looking a bit chubby

Gender prediction: Boy

Labor signs: None

Belly button in or out? In

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or moody most of the time: So happy!!

Looking forward to: Our next baby doctor appointment at the end of the month (so we can hear the heartbeat again) and getting a bigger belly!

My must haves for being a new mommy!

As I embark on my second trimester I feel the excitement growing and my shopping monster is just itching to get out. There a few items on my wish list (and already bought list...OOPS! haha) that I thought that I would share with you.

The first is my new diaper bag which I just ordered off Zulily.  For those moms and moms to be out there who haven't checked out this site...do it! It basically offers you different sample sales everyday for you and the kiddos.  Much to my excitement today they were offering Timi and Leslie diaper bags.  Since seeing this bag in one of my pregnancy mags I have been dreaming about it. It is cute, functional, stylish, and is lacking all things that make it look like a diaper bag to an outsider. The result? Beauty and functionality without Winnie the Pooh.  What do I mean by that? I'm talking about those diaper bags with cartoon characters and such on them. It's not for the baby to carry, its for YOU to carry so why does it have to look like a baby blanket? Okay, so I'll have to get a separate diaper bag or backpack for dad to carry as he won't be caught dead with this one but I am so okay with that.

Isn't it so cute?

Second on my list of must haves is the Ergo Baby.  After reading reviews and researching baby carriers that would work for both my hubby and me I have decided that the Ergo Baby is for us. It may not have that cute factor but it is functional and it comes with a newborn insert for when babe is still very tiny. This is next on my "to purchase" list.

Third is Mustela stretch mark cream.  I have been using this every morning and night to fend off stretch marks and it is so nice and it smells great.  I hope that it does the trick.  The downside is that no one really carries it in Canada so you either have to order it from Sephora (where tube #2 is coming from) or buy it on a trip down to the States (where tube #1 came from).  Either way, I have heard this stuff is THE BEST and blows any other cream out of the water. Lets hope thats true.

So far those are all the things I want or couldn't live without out. I know that there will be lots more as my pregnancy progresses!!

14 Weeks Pregnant

How far along? 14 Weeks

Total weight gain:  Still only about 6 pounds

Maternity clothes? Just the bella band. My jeans still button but not very comfortably so the bella band just pops over the unbuttoned top button and its sooooo much more comfortable!

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Still sleeping well and the peeing has diminished to just 1 or 2 times a night

Best moment this week: Getting to FINALLY spill the beans to everyone!

Miss anything? Being able to cook with anything besides chicken. Beef still turns my stomach.

Movement: Not yet but we are so looking forward to that

Food Cravings: Cupcakes!

Anything making you queasy or sick? Still can’t even think about ground beef.

Have you started to show yet?  Looking a little chunky for sure. It definitely gets bigger by the end of the day

Gender prediction: Still boy!

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: Starting to get a bigger bump and showing more

This week was a good week. I’m so glad the fatigue of the first trimester is gone and I don’t feel like I need a nap at noon anymore!! It was so nice to let the cat out of the bag and let everyone know about our special news.  After seeing the heartbeat and hearing it at the doctors I felt everything was finally real and progressing as it should so that we could finally tell the world our amazing news!! We went to the baby fair this week and my amazing mother in law bought us some really cute hats and we learned some more about cloth diapering as I think that’s the route we are going to go. My mother in law has some great patterns and fabric for cloth diapers and they are just ADOREABLE as well as functional! I had to bust out the bella band this week and it is an AMAZING invention. I need to get one in all colours!! So much more comfortable than being squished into jeans that shouldn’t quite button! I can’t wait until I’m showing a bit more so it looks more like a baby in there than just one too many cupcakes!