The last 2 weekends

Mike and I have been pretty busy the last 2 weekends, mostly thanks to the increased energy that I have been feeling lately. I am 17 weeks today, so here's a new picture (the baby really seems to be growing a lot lately...)

The baby has also been moving like crazy, I feel him or her several times throughout the day, and Mike even got to feel the baby move for the first time on Sunday night--he was pretty excited about it!

Mike gave me one of my Christmas presents this past weekend--it's from a web comic called Sheldon Comics, and it is one that Mike and I both enjoy to read. This comic is a flow chart about whether or not to eat a cookie, and the end result for all the answers is to just eat a cookie!

On Saturday, we had the Schimmel Family Christmas in Ankeny. In Schimmel tradition, the gifts were hidden throughout the house, and we had clues that we needed to follow to find our gifts. This year the clues were in word scrambles and codes, so things got interesting... turns out I'm better at word scrambles than Mike ;)

We also had a delicious dinner! Bruce made prime rib and baked potatoes for dinner and creme brulee for dessert--it was absolutely AMAZING!

Before we left Ankeny, Mike and I stopped by Kohls. My mom had sent me a gift card to buy myself some maternity clothes, and holy cow, you can get a lot of stuff at Kohls for $50! I got a long sleeve black t-shirt, a button sweater, and some new socks.... and we still had $8 left over, so we picked out some onesies for the baby :)

Here's a random picture of Meatloaf looking very relaxed while Mike petted her.


As I am getting more of my energy back, I am also getting more of my appetite back. I can finally say that I have gained weight for the first time in this pregnancy--I weighed myself this morning, and I have gained half a pound :/ Its not much, but it's a start. So as I was saying, food is finally looking and sounding good... not all foods yet, but some foods, which is more than what it had been in the past. Mike got a HyVee gift card a few weeks ago from work, so we treated ourselves to some crab legs--and expensive beer for Mike, sparkling grape juice for me--and we had ourselves a little stay-at-home date during the snowstorm last Saturday. We watched National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, and just relaxed... it was nice.

On Sunday, I made my mom's beef stew for the first time.... something about snowstorms gives me the urge to make soups, so I called my mom and got the recipe. It tasted just like my mom's!

Movement

I have reached another milestone in the pregnancy--I can feel the baby move! I first felt it on Friday after school, and wasn't quite sure if it was the baby, but I've been feeling it ever since, so I know for sure it's the baby. I can only feel it when I am sitting or laying down--I would guess that's because I'm not moving and can feel his or her movement better that way?

Everything I read about the baby moving said it feels like flutters or bubbles, but it doesn't feel like that to me... mostly it just feels like something bumping the inside of my lower stomach. It is still too early for Mike to feel it--we tried, but failed... maybe in a few weeks when the baby is bigger and stronger :)

15 Weeks

We had our 14 week appointment last Monday (and I have been meaning to blog about it since...), and Dr. Leeds says everything is looking and sounding good. We got to hear the heartbeat again, this time for a little longer than last time, and he measured my tummy and told us that I am measuring right where I should be. I had lots of questions for the doctor about my appetite (because I have almost none), weight loss (because I am still down 11 pounds from my starting weight), exhaustion (because I sleep 10-12 hours a night and am still tired), and mouthwash (because brushing my teeth has turned into quite an experience)... and his response to all of them was, "You are pregnant, that is normal." I really like the doctor that I have chosen... he is very calming, and I always feel reassured and less worried when I leave his office (thanks to all the girls who recommended him to me :) )

Our next appointment is a big one--the ultrasound!! We will finally get to see our baby!!

Here's what I look like at 15 weeks.

For the fun of it, my sister got a gender predictor test for us. She happened to find them on sale for $2 (and I checked on Amazon--people pay $30 for this test normally :/ ) According to the package, it is 90% accurate, according to the directions on the inside, it is 82% percent accurate, and according to all the angry reviewers on Amazon, the test is only sometimes accurate... So long story short, we took the test, and it says that we are having a BOY. My sister took the test, and it says she is having a GIRL. By the end of the month, we will both know what we're having, so we'll see if it's right...


On Thanksgiving night, Mike and I made a quick stop at Wal-Mart for some cream cheese, and we ended up buying a bunch of baby clothes that were on sale. We had a lot of fun going through the racks and seeing what we could find, and this is what we came home with.

Busy Weekend

Mike and I have had a busy weekend! Saturday, Mike cleaned out the garage and put up all the summer stuff for the winter (bags, camping stuff, my bike, etc), and I cleaned up the plant beds. I began taking down the fence for our garden, but my stomach started to hurt from all the bending over, so Mike finished the job for me :). Mike also hung the outside Christmas lights.

Sunday, we both worked on putting plastic on the windows.... I know it looks so classy :/, but it really does keep our horribly insulated, drafty house a lot warmer in the winter, so its totally worth it. We also put up the Christmas tree, and I made chocolate chip cookies and homemade cheesy potato soup.


Potato Soup with bacon, cheese, and sour cream--amaaaazing!

Our tree--the cats think that the ornaments are fun dangling cat toys waiting to be knocked off the tree. (And I feel dumb admitting this, but I just learned how to spell ornament--I honestly thought the word was ordament, with a D sound, I have been saying it wrong all my life :/,--Mike teaches me so much ;)


This is the new ornament that my parents brought to me on Friday when they came to visit my classroom. Its me and Mike, having a baby :)

Our lovely plastic--it really does work!


Our outside Christmas lights


And finally, relaxing on the couch with kitties in our laps :)

12 Weeks

I am nearing the end of the 1st trimester, and looking forward to the 2nd trimester with its promises of less nausea and more energy :) I can't wait!

I am beginning to develop a small bump--here is the picture, and I promise not to show my bare tummy every time--I just did it this time because you really can't see it when I'm wearing clothes, and I am just so happy its there, I can't help but show it!


I am not quite into maternity clothes yet, but Maurene and I went shopping on Sunday and to get me started so I am ready for when my clothes stop fitting. Here are the things we got--4 pairs of "school" pants, 1 pair of jeans, and 3 shirts.


And this is the cat that made it difficult to take pictures of my clothes because he so desperately wanted to be in a picture. So here's a picture of Charles.

Our Baby

We're having a baby!

Mike and I went to the doctor on Monday for our first prenatal visit, and we got to hear our baby's heartbeat and movements on a Doppler monitor. The doctor told us that everything is looking and sound great. I am at 10 1/2 weeks right now, and due to have the baby around May 30th. The timing should work out nicely with the end of the school year, giving me an extra long maternity leave for summer :) . . . (that is, of course, if everything goes as scheduled--which I know doesn't always happen with babies or school years).

I am beginning to feel a lot better as I am getting closer the the end of the 1st trimester. I have been nauseous since week 3, and the last 2 days I have felt the best I have felt since September--Mike and I even went on a date last night because I finally felt like leaving the house for a meal. I have been eating a lot of fruit because that is one of the few things that sounds good too me... food in general just hasn't sounded good for the last 8 weeks--which is the complete opposite of how I usually am--I LOVE food, so it's strange to have the thought of food make my stomach turn for 2 months.

Other than the nausea, I have had the other typical pregnancy conditions--exhaustion and moodiness (mostly caused by the exhaustion and feeling nauseous for 2 months straight--and maybe some hormones too ;) ). My husband is a wonderful, patient person who has put up with my tired, crabby self, and I am very thankful for him! He has had PB & J for countless dinners because I didn't feel like cooking, he has run to the grocery store to get Mac & Cheese for me after me crabbing at him because there wasn't any in the cupboard when I thought there was, and he kept the house clean and laundry done because I felt like just laying around or sleeping. He really has been great through the whole thing, and I appreciate him very much!

In addition to my baby, my sister will also be having a baby in May, so we will be adding two more grandkids to the Gries family, who already has Ashton. For the Schimmel's this will be the 3rd grandkid--Isabella and Kaylen are both still under a year. And for the Entner's this will be the 1st grandkid. Our families are very excited, and so are we!

Sick.

I have been sick for a week now with a cold. I have felt absolutely awful this whole time--except for Wednesday--I honestly thought I was getting better Wednesday, but I was fooled. Since Monday I haven't been able to use my "teacher voice." I had a talk with the kids on Monday about my voice sounding funny and scratchy, and the rest of the week I had kids telling me that they thought they were getting a cold too because their voices were scratchy too--it was cute.

Normally I don't go to the doctor for a cold because I get colds all the time, I teach Kindergarten--it's going to happen. Thursday morning I was awake from 2-5 because I couldn't lay down and breathe without feeling like I was drowning on all the stuff in my lungs, so I decided it was probably time to go to the doctor for this one. Turns out I have bacterial infection in my respiratory system, probably from the cold (duh). I was given an antibiotic and sent on my way. I took a sick day half of yesterday and then today as well. Today is an inservice day at WM, so I at least didn't have to get things ready for a sub. I slept in until 11 today, and I am hoping the medication starts clearing out some of this stuff from my body soon. We are heading to Harlan this weekend for Ashton's 2nd birthday party, so I am hoping to feel better for that.