Easter 2008

These are from Easter... sorry they are late, I completely forgot that I was going to put these up here!! I was 16w4d when these were taken... the others in the photo are my baby sister, Hunter, my Mom, Michele and my 2 fur babies, Rocco and Mya!!

Belly Picture- 17w2d

Here we are:) This is actually me trying to suck it in lol!! At least it isn't shaped all weird anymore!!

17 Weeks Pregnant!!

Sorry this is a few days late... I've pretty much been working and sleeping. I'm back to being sick and tired. Threw up on Easter during the Sunrise Service, twice on Tuesday and once today. I'm still feeling a little nauseous even after eating a sandwhich, so I'm expecting to be sick again before the day is over:( Everyone keeps telling me that it should be over soon... but I remind you that I've been hearing this for almost 2 months... so it's starting to lose it's significance!!

I felt the first real "jabs" from the baby in Sunday School on Easter! It was the first time I could actually feel the baby stretching and kicking! I haven't felt him move very much this week, but when I do it's very obvious!!

We have picked the names we want!! Now we're just waiting to find out what the sex is!! We are so excited about the upcoming ultrasounds! Thomas has it written on the white board at his office so he makes sure that he is able to call in for it!!

I know that I have been a little less than thrilled about going through this pregnancy without Thomas with me... Two of my friends have had their babies this week and one is in labor as we speak! And going through this has really made me realize that I might not have gotten through this deployment if I wasn't pregnant! A lot of you know the struggle I went through while we were trying to get pregnant... I couldn't imagine going through this wave of new life without the hope of new life growing inside of me. It is amazing to me when I dream about this little child that God blessed Thomas and myself with. I dream of the smiles and the love... nothing concrete... all abstract, but none-the-less real! Seeing my precious baby's face up on a u/s screen in a few weeks is going to be the most amazing moment of my life thus far and to not have Thomas by my side will break my heart... but to imagine not having that moment at all is unimaginable! So please, just send up a little praise to God when you read this... Not only did He create the life growing inside of me... He gave me a blessing I was starting to think I wasn't worthy of.

Now, back to the fun stuff you all check in for! The Fun Facts about Baby Whitten in WEEK 18!!

*Vernix (a white cheese-like protective material) forms on baby's skin with the lanugo (soft, lightly pigmented hair covering the body and limbs); both serving to protect your baby's skin during the months in water.
*Your placenta continues to grow and nourish the baby. Don't forget those prenatal vitamins!
*Tiny air sacs called alveoli begin to form in lungs. He'll be putting these lungs to good use in just a few months!
*Her vocal chords are formed. She goes through the motions of crying but without air she doesn't make a sound.
*Features of your baby's heart, including ventricles and chambers, should be visible during an ultrasound.
*Your baby measures about 5.59 inches (14.2cm) this week and weighs about 6.7 ounces (190gm).

Belly Picture-- 16w3d

I could have sworn my stomach felt different this week! Like it felt thinner... Guess not!!! I look even bigger this week than last! I guess it was just wishful thinking lol!! My stomach is getting harder and you can feel from the outside where the baby is, so that is great for my touch-happy mom!!!

16 Weeks Pregnant!!

This past week was pretty neat. I felt the baby move almost everyday!! It's still nothing as obvious as jabs or kicks... but the only way I can explain it-- It feels like those nervous butterflies I get when I'm realy excited about something... Like when I see Thomas for the first time in months... It's not necessarily a pleasant sensation, because I feel almost nervous or nauseaus, but the thought that I am feeling my child move in side of me is very pleasant!

Wednesday night I had a pretty terrible migrain. My mom called that night and we spent forever trying to figure out what kind of pain medicine I could take for it!! Then I eventually ended up throwing up... on the phone with her:(.. But I felt great after that and slept it off!!

Other than that, this week has pretty much been like every other week! But I am back in Jacksonville for Easter! I went dress shopping with my little sister and actually found something that I like!! Being home is very relaxing! It's so much better to be surrounded by family than wasting away on my couch:)

Anywho, here are the Fun Facts about baby in week 17!. Sorry I'm a few days late on this, but I'll get a belly pic up in a sec and post some pictures of easter on Sunday or monday!!

THE 17th WEEK
*By week 17, your baby weighs about 4.97 ounces (140gm) and is 5.12 inches (13cm) long.
*He or she has a much more normal "human" appearance now. She holds her head more erect and her body and limbs are longer in proportion to her head.
*Pads are forming on his tiny fingertips and toes. Soon those individual swirls and whorls will be apparent.
*Her eyes are looking forward now, but they are still firmly closed.
*Meconium (composed of products of cell loss, digestive secretion and swallowed amniotic fluid), is accumulating in the bowel. This black gooey substance will become your baby's first poop!
*The umbilical cord is growing thicker and stronger and continues to rush blood and nutrients to your growing baby.
*If your child is male the prostate begins to develop.
*Her skeleton is tranforming from cartilage to bone. The bones remain flexible to make the journey through the birth canal easier.

Update

I had my 16 week appointment with my midwife yesterday! It was a pretty quick visit and nothing very eventful happened!! I got to hear the baby's heart beat for a few minutes. The guy found it right away and held it there for a bit since it was the first time I had really been able to hear it for more than a few seconds! It was very special and I actually cried a little! I have to go in for some blood work tomorrow to check for cystic fibrosis and any elevated risk of down's syndrom and I called in to radiology today to make my anatomy u/s appointment! The first lady that I talked to argued with me for a few minutes that I wasn't 15 weeks yet. I kept trying to explain to her that I was infact 15w6d and that I was just sitting with my midwife yesterday and that she put in the order herself! But she wasn't having it... she kept fighting me so I just got off with her and called back in a few minutes and made the appointment with another lady right away!! the earliest appointment they have is for the 14th of April at 8:00. So it looks like Im having two u/s in one week!!

I know it's not anything great, but I wanted to update you guys a little! I'm on my way out to the chiropractor to have my back looked at! So pray that this works and that the pain will stop soon!!

Belly Picture-- 15w2d

Here we are!! I'm in Jacksonville with my family and couldn't be happier!! I have been pretty bored and lonely in Fayetteville without Thomas there with me. But it's great to be back "home" and have my family surrounding me!! My little sister, Hunter wanted a picture with The Belly... so I couldn't resist putting it up here and showing off Baby Whitten's #1 Aunt!!

15 Weeks Pregnant!!

Wow... Here we are, week 16!! I'm sure you've noticed that I am never short of amazed at how far along this pregnancy is moving! And thankfully, it is kind of flying by:) That only gets a smiley face because the faster the pregnancy goes the faster my hubby comes home and thinking about that day always puts a smile on my face!!

Anywho, back to the baby! I have my 16 week appointment on Monday (15w5d) and we will be scheduling the next ultrasound then too so I will be seeing my baby soon!! That u/s is done at the hospital here on base, just the regular 2-D black and white one that will check on the baby medically and all of that important stuff!! But the u/s I am most excited about is scheduled for April 18th in wilmington, N.C.!!! It's going to be a 3-D/4-D ultrasound... meaning that we will be able to see the baby in 3 demensions and the 4th demension is time... I will get to see her moving around in real time:):) It's going to be a very special day! So far we have both sides of the family planning on being there with me (My mom, dad and two sisters and Thomas' dad, step-mom and sister... I'll be waiting to hear if his mom will be there!) and Thomas will be able to call in on the cell phone and find out the sex of the baby at the same time as all of us:):):) So definately check back in after the 18th to find out if we're having a boy or girl!!!

So far nothing has really happened to make me "feel" pregnant besides the morning sickness (which I think just made me feel sick, not pregnant! lol) so I've kind of been bummed a bit, feeling like an imposter almost!! But it's starting to turn arounf for me!!! Nothing too extraordinary has happened but the baby bump is starting to get in the way of every day life! I'm starting to have to sit differently and sleep differently, I defiantely can't bend or twist to get things like I used to. All-in-all it's just annoying at this point since I still just look like I have a beer gut haha! But I am thankful to finally have to adapt to pregnancy!

Alsooo.... I'm pretty sure I felt the baby flip over the other day:) I was laying in bed and flipped over to turn out the light and sure enough there was this little sensation that I have only ever dreamed about! And to be honest, it felt exactly how I always thought it would but like nothing I have ever felt before! I teared up for a split second and then got a little freaked out by the idea that there is, infact, some little child of mine growing inside of me!! It is a very surreal concept to actually wrap my mind around... but I think I'm getting there!!

And finally, the Fun Facts about Baby Whitten's development this coming week!!
WEEK 16
*Fat begins to form underneath skin, providing your baby with insulation for the coming months.
*Did you know that both baby and placenta are now about the same size?
*Your little one has reached 4.57 inches (11.6cm) and approximately 3.53 ounces (100gm).
*His head and neck are held straighter now.
*This is a week of "mights!" You might hear the tiny thumps of his heartbeat with an external monitor now. The genitals are developed sufficiently that an experienced sonographer might be able to determine if your baby is a boy or a girl.
*Her heart is pumping as much as 6 gallons of blood a day and beats at a rate about double your heartrate.
*If you could take a peek inside, you would witness your child's reflexes in action! (Sucking, swallowing and blinking are now evident.) She is probably even hiccuping even though you don't feel it yet!
*Your baby has learned to breathe! This is apparent from the regular movements of his chest. Isn't it amazing that he is able to breathe "underwater," inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid? These actions help the lungs to develop and grow.

Belly Picture- 14w2d

Here we are!! I'm not sure what to write about!! I think I'm finally showing a bit!! But I'm still convinced I'm just getting fat lol!! Here's to looking forward to the day when it will be unmistakable:):)

more info on week 15

**Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. **

I found this in a weekly email I get from babycenter.com! I thought the drawing was good and that the extra info would be fun to know!! I'm definately going to try the flash light trick! Even though I doubt I'll feel him yet, it's just neat to think that there's a little person rolling around in there!

14 Weeks pregnant!!!!

Wow! I honestly am blown away that I'm this far along! Not that I thought I would have lost the baby... But I never really let myself think about being pregnant while we were trying to conceive, no less think about being in my 15th week!!! But I am sooo thankful to be here andddd to be feeling better:)

Things have been pretty uneventful so far but things should definately be picking up here in the next month! And I guess to start that off I can tell you that I can definately feel where the baby is:) It is really amazing! I went to start using my stretch mark cream and while I was rubbing it into my lower abdomen I felt how hard it was in one spot! The baby is still very low, coming only a few inches (if even that) above my pubic bone ((so when you look at the belly pictures, sadly the "bump" is my fat lol the baby is below that right now... i.e. why I'm not very comfortable with people touching my "belly" right now... because it's just fat, and there's nothing cute and rub-able about fat! ;p))
The fun facts below say that I might start feeling the baby move... I haven't so far but am soo excited about it getting closer:)

There aren't any good pictures on pregnancy.org of what the baby looks like this week, so I'm sorry about that! But there are a ton of neat facts for you to read and I will get a belly picture up in the next few days!!


*You may begin to feel some fluttering movements as baby kicks, flails, twists and turns (but don't panic if you don't yet). She can also grasp, squint, frown, grimace and maybe suck her thumb!
*Your baby's legs have grown longer than the arms and the body is now longer than the head.
*And you'll be happy to note that he is moving those arms and legs often!
*His skin is very thin -- so thin blood vessel are visible. It's covered by a fine, soft layer of hair called lanugo. Lanugo comes from a Latin word meaning "down." *This hair is thought to help insulate your little boy.
*The three tiny bones in his middle ear have begun to harden. The auditory centers in your baby's brain haven't developed yet, so she might not really understand what you say but her hearing capacity is in the process of developing.
*Fingernails and toenails are growing.
*Eyebrows are beginning to grow and even the hair his head is sprouting. It will probably change color and texture after birth.
*All this and your little one is an amazing 3.98 inches (10.1cm) long and may weigh 2.47 ounces (70gm).

Belly Picture- 13w3d

Sorry it has been so long for one of these! It's a little blury, but there I am in all my chubby glory:) And here's a picture that I'm sending to Thomas... I have to "frame" the bump to be able to see it... but here ya go! enjoy and I'll try to stay on top of it for you:)