Under The Big Top: Week 20

Woo hoo! We are half way there. I can't believe this pregnancy is half way over! Monday was the official 20 week marker and I spent most of the day thinking back to the day I told B we were expecting a small package in October. He was in Houston, Texas at the time and I had vowed to never announce something like that via phone so I had to wait about 16 hours before I could spill the beans. But luckily, I was able to tell my best friend first who helped me come up with a way to tell him. The morning of his arrival, I called my OB to let them know and they wanted to schedule a confirmation appointment ASAP. I took off to the office, saw a completely different doctor in the practice than the one I normally see and got the news (along with tons of "homework") that I was in fact expecting a little one. B and I normally write messages to each other on the mirror in our bathroom. So much so that we now have a cup with dry erase markers available for colorful pictures. I wrote on the mirror "Make room for another DAWG in the house". Well, B didn't catch on. He came running out of the bathroom and said "NO! We don't need another dog". I held up the pregnancy tests and said "That's not the kind of dog I'm talking about". I'll never forget the expression of surprise, nervousness and fear that came across his face. We then sat down and talked about everything from appointments to when to tell our families. Unfortunately, we went home that night to visit family and I ended up not being able to tell them until Easter. It was hard but I'm glad he made me wait so long.

Sorry this week is a little late. B had a family dinner on Monday night and ended up scoring tickets to the Braves game for Tuesday night after our ultrasound. Here's a picture from the game!

This week has been great. The baby is now measuring about 12 ounces and is the size of a banana. The ultrasound showed everything is developing as it should and all of baby's measurements are perfect. This week the baby is starting to guzzle down the amniotic fluid and is even developing taste buds. Boy and girl parts are also formed enough to determine what the baby is on a sonogram. Sorry, still not finding out so you'll have to wait with us to see what we get! Be patient. Only 5 months to go.

After the ultrasound, the physician wanted to check me out too. He always asks just about the same questions but then he threw in a new one. How are you feeling? Any swelling noted? Is your urine clear? Are you feeling any contractions? WHOA! Beg pardon? Contractions?! Um... I thought the "c" word was a long way off but it is possible to feel them this early in the pregnancy. But, it definitely isn't a good thing. For the record, I'm not feeling anything close to that and the mere thought of contractions (20 weeks or 40 weeks) makes me want to poop myself.

The good: Baby is still kicking and moving like a little champ. B is pretty upset that the baby decides to "rest" when he tries to feel the movements but his time is coming. The baby's check up was spot on but mine was also. My blood pressure was a little high for my liking at first but the nurse rechecked it and it had come down. I may have been just a little nervous going in for the first official pictures of the baby.

The bad: Round ligament pains are still really strong. The doctor said to start going for swims because it relaxes those muscles and helps relieve some of the pains. OK! I'm also beginning to get hungry a lot more frequently which is a good thing but I've lost my appetite for everything. I'm not getting sick or anything, I just can't tell you what I want to eat. Nothing sounds appealing.

Enough with all of this rambling, here are the ultrasound pictures!!!