22 Week Bumpdate

     Here's me at 22 weeks and 6 days pregnant!






























At 22 weeks, our baby is about 11 inches long, the length of a spaghetti squash!



     I've also read that the baby is the size of a small doll.  That's kind of cool to think about.    Baby girl is about 1 pound (WOW!) and resembles a miniature newborn now.  May I get another ultrasound now, please?!?? I want to see what this little girl is going to look like when she's born! ;)  

     Lips, eyebrows, and eyelids are more distinct, and her eyes are formed; however, her irises don't have pigment, yet.  She can now hear my voice, heartbeat, and everything going on inside my body.  She has a sense of touch now, and is exploring by touching her face and umbilical cord.  Kinda cool, huh?

     Last Saturday, I got myself all registered at Babies-R-Us and Target.  That was SUCH a process!  My sister and I spent all day registering, and then I came home to spending 4 more hours on the internet finalizing and putting on the finishing touches of our registry.  In the end, it's finished, and I'm happy that it's finished.

    Over the last couple of days, I've been feeling Brynlee move like CRAZY!  Full on thumps!!!  Last night, I watched my tummy move for the first time!!!!  For like 30 minutes straight!  I texted Tyson at work and said, "Just finished spending the last 30 minutes watching my tummy move.  Cheap entertainment."  Baby girl was thumping about all on my right side (go figure), and where she was thumping, I saw the thumps come out from underneath my tummy.......or however you can explain it.  It was really neat.

     So far, Brynlee seems to be like her mommy, a night owl.  She's quite calm and quiet during the day.  She moves, but it's more docile.  At night, it's a party!  Jab here, jab there, roll here, somersault there!  It's endless.  I told Tyson if this is any indication of what she'll be like outside of the womb, we're in big trouble.  

     Hugh and Nancy came into town for Thanksgiving.  It was great seeing them.  They got to see my ever growing bump and Nancy got to feel Brynlee move.  She didn't give her a nice punch, but she moved for her.  I was so happy to eat, eat, EAT!  I mean, I LOVE to eat pregnant or not.  Tyson likes to call me "a fat girl trapped in a skinny girl's body."  There's no denying it!  This is what a pregnant lady's Thanksgiving plate looks like...

     Ooooohhhh yeah...  All those carbs!  Baby girl seemed to enjoy it.  After we ate, she started moving about.  That's when I decided to offer my tummy for my stepmom and mother-in-law to feel.  This was the first time they felt their granddaughter move, and I was determined to get Nancy to feel her before she headed back for Georgetown.

     Overall, I feel all right.  As good as I'm going to feel pregnant.  I'm still adjusting to the ever growing bump.  It kind of gets in the way.  Hugging Tyson is always fun with the whole "butt out hug" thing.  I feel like I've reached a point in my pregnancy where I feel Brynlee knows what's going on and can sense some things.  I don't know....I just feel it in how she moves.  Anyways!  Survey time!

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How far along? I'm posting this at 22 weeks and 6 days

Total weight gain/loss:  I've gained 12 lbs. from my pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity clothes? I actually finally broke down and bought 3 maternity shirts and a sweater.  The sweater was an early Christmas gift from my mother-in-law when she went shopping with me.  Thanks Nancy!

Stretch marks? Nope.  None.  Vitamin E oiling and Mustella creaming it up, HOPING I won't get any.

Sleep: Pretty decent.

Best moment this week: Witnessing Brynlee's movement from the surface of my skin.  So, SO cool!

Have you told family and friends: Of course. :)

Miss Anything?  A nice adult beverage and my tiny, unpreggo, fit self.

Symptoms: Lately, the right lower side of my back has been aching, along with round ligament pain.  Yucko!  Oh!  And that lovely bladder pressure feeling. Double yucko!  

Movement: We've graduated from feeling little muscle twitch feelings, to thumps, to feeling her thumps from the outside, and now SEEING her thumps from the outside.  Oh my little girl!

Food cravings: Fruit and Sprite

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still good!
Have you started to show yet:  Ooooohhh yes I have!

Gender prediction: All girl!

Labor Signs: I think I was good this week.  I had tight cramping, but I think it was Brynlee shoving herself to different spots and round ligament pain.

Belly Button in or out?  Inny, inny!  

Wedding rings on or off? On.  

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, pappy!

Looking forward to: Feeling Brynlee and how she responds to mine or Tyson's touch and our voices.....or just sounds in general!

21 Week Bumpdate

     Here is little ol’ me!  21 weeks and 4 days preggo, having to push my blazer back so you can see the belly better! :)

     This week, Brynlee is the size of a carrot.  To me, that’s not any different than the size of a banana from last week.  I’ve been quite tempted to go to a grocery store and hold a carrot up to my belly to get an idea of her length compared to my belly size.  My belly sure does look a lot bigger for just a little ol’ carrot!

     They say by this week the baby should be about 10 ½ inches long and weigh about three quarters of a pound.  Apparently her eyebrows and lids are present.  Sounding like she’s looking more human week by week!

     This was an AMAZING week for me, or should I say BOTH Tyson and me.  Actually, last night is what made it so amazing.  So, I was lying on the couch and I felt Brynlee shove herself allllllllllllllllllllllllll the way over to the right side of my tummy.  It hurt so badly, and I could feel a big ball of baby pushing all the way to the right.  She seems to LOVE my right side!  I placed my hand on the hard ball of baby to feel how solid it was.  I could feel her little wiggles and jabs on the inside like normal, but then she gave me a gigantic blow to my right hand.  It was the hardest blow I’ve EVER felt from her.  My eyes lit up, and I shouted, “Oh my god!  Hunny!  Come here!  She just kicked me really hard on the hand!  Hurry and see if you can feel her!”  So, Tyson quickly jogs over and places his hand on the right side of my belly where the hard part was.  Of course, she decided to stop moving and I was thinking that this was just my luck.  He sat there for about 20 seconds when all of the sudden she gave Tyson a huge jab to the hand.  At that moment, both Tyson and I locked eyes and we both smiled at each other.  Tyson was smiling like he just felt the most amazing thing ever.  I excitedly shouted, “Did you feel that?!!!!” and he replied with, “Yes!” in complete amazement.  Of course, within 5 minutes, both of us were on Facebook, telling the world that he felt our daughter move for the first time.  It was honestly very exciting.

      I had another prenatal appointment on Tuesday.  Baby girl’s heartbeat was 152 bmp and both she and I are perfect and healthy!  I received sad news, though.  Since everything was normal in my anatomy scan at 18 weeks, my insurance won’t pay for another ultrasound.  Boooo!!!!!!!!!  I told Tyson that I would REALLY like one more towards the end just to check everything out.  Unfortunately, we’ll have to pay out of pocket.  Bummer.  At my appointment, my doctor handed me information about the hospital tour and pre-registering, as well as pediatricians.  As she handed me everything, she said, “This just makes it more real!”  I was also given my drink for my gestational diabetes test that I’ll have to take in 5 weeks.  So I will be saying, “Cheers,” and sucking down what I’ve heard is one nasty drink, and then I’ll have to give MORE blood.  BARF!!!!

      So that is the highlight of this week my friends.  Nothing else is new.  I’m excited about tomorrow because both my sister and I are going baby registering.  I needed to recruit my sister because I’m in WAY over my head and need some guidance.  I started doing research on strollers and just about had a breakdown because I didn’t know where to start.  .  I’m already pretty overwhelmed by all of this.  Let’s hope this registering trip goes smoothly. 

Now for your weekly survey...

How far along? I'm posting this at 21 weeks and 5 days!

Total weight gain/loss:  I've gained 12 lbs. from my pre-pregnancy weight.  Gross to me, but I know this is all part of growing a baby.  Dr. says my weight gain is excellent, and books say I should be at 15 lbs. right now, so I'm telling myself I'm doing all right.

Maternity clothes? Nothing new!  Need to wear preggo pants, but my pre-pregnancy shirts are still working.  Although, I'm slowly starting to run out of options of what to wear.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Pretty decent.

Best moment this week: Tyson feeling Brynlee move!!!!

Have you told family and friends: Of course. :)

Miss Anything?  A nice adult beverage and my tiny, unpreggo, fit self.

Symptoms: Ugh!  Nasal congestion has been SO. BAD.

Movement: Starting to feel her move from the outside! 

Food cravings: Fruit, fruit juices, fruit smoothies, Sprite, Sprite…..oh, and did I mention SPRITE?!?!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still good!

Have you started to show yet:  Ooooohhh yes I have!

Gender prediction: All girl!  HEL-LO ruffle butts, leg warmers, tutus, and large bowy headbands!

Labor Signs: I had some tight, cramping pain earlier today actually.  My stepmom seems to think it might be  getting Braxton Hicks.

Belly Button in or out?  Inny, inny!  

Wedding rings on or off? On.  

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, pappy!

Looking forward to: Registering and seeing my in-laws!  They’re coming down for Thanksgiving, and I’m so excited!!!  I can’t wait for them to see little, miss Brynlee.  From the outside of course…

20 Week Bumpdate

Here’s me!  At 20 weeks, 4 days pregnant!  I cannot believe we’re halfway there!.... And my tummy is only going to get larger in the NEXT 20 weeks!  AHHHH!!!!!!!!!

So one interesting fact that I learned about this week is that the baby is now measured from head to toe instead of crown to rump because, at this point, the baby has uncurled its legs more.  With that said, baby girl is the size of a banana from head to her little toe-sies!  The books also say that she should be weighing about 10 and half ounces by now.

Dear Brynlee, here’s a little fact about your mommy and daddy.  Mommy doesn’t like bananas, but Daddy does.  But, I do love you, my little banana. 

This week, I felt sweet, little Brynlee kick my hand from the outside.  One night, I felt a rock solid ball on the right side of my tummy, but the left side was totally soft.  I assumed this was “Miss Thang” favoring my right side.  So, I went to lie on the couch on my left side, took my right hand to my belly, and pushed on it to move her more center.  Slowly, the right side got softer.  When I finished pushing, I kept my hand there, putting pressure into it, not just resting it.  While I sat there, I felt little thumps on my hand.   I got so excited and texted Tyson at work letting him know I was feeling her when I pushed my hand into my tummy.  Unfortunately, Tyson has yet to feel her.  There’s only been two days where I could feel her little thumps.  Guess she’s just got to get bigger! Yikes....

Speaking of little thumps, I’m starting to feel her movement easier, even when standing and walking.  No longer do I have to be totally at rest.  Now, of course, at the end of the day when I'm watching T.V., she's a little mover and shaker.  No longer do her movements feel like little muscle twitches.  It feels like full on thumping.  It also feels like bubbles popping all around in my tummy.  I swear my heart skips a beat every time I feel her move. 

You’ve probably noticed, in this post, the spelling of baby girl's name.  We think we’ve decided on the spelling of her name.  I believe we WILL be going with Brynlee.  Oooohhhh I can’t wait to meet little miss Brynlee Taylor.

Are you ready for my weekly survey?!?!!!  OOOOHHHH-KAY!

How far along? I'm posting this at 20 weeks and 5 days!

Total weight gain/loss:  Since my last prenatal appointment, I've gained 7 lbs. from pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity clothes? Still sticking to my preggo pants and pre-preggo tops.

Stretch marks? No

Sleep: Pretty decent.

Best moment this week: Tyson touching, talking to, and kissing my belly.

Have you told family and friends: Of course. :)

Miss Anything?  Cocktails and my beautifully sculpted abs I always worked hard on.  I have moments where I worry all of this stretching will not allow for them to come back.  I think I almost cried the other day thinking about this…. Ha!!!!!!!!!  Thinking positive though!  They WILL come back!

Symptoms: Excessive thirst, pregnancy brain, frequent bathroom trips, slightly achy tailbone, nasal congestion!!! ß-----UGHHH!!!!  Oh!  And I FEEL like I've felt a little more emotional this week.  I CAN say that I've been pretty good on the emotional side of things so far! :)

Movement: Feeling some harder thumping from the inside, and infrequent, light thumping from the outside.  I can’t wait until Tyson feels her! 

Food cravings: Fruit juices, any type of drink that is sweet, fruit.  I must admit, I’m sort of stunned I’m not having chocolate cravings.  I was FOR SURE that once I got pregnant one day, I’d actually WANT to indulge in chocolate.  I’m actually not a HUGE chocolate fan and thought my tastes would change once I got preggo.  I tend to opt for the fruity or custardy desserts, and I still do while pregnant!

Anything making you queasy or sick: Still good!

Have you started to show yet:  Ooooohhh yes I have!

Gender prediction: No more guessing!  It's a girl!  It's a girl!  It's a girl!!!!! **Doing my happy dance.**

Labor Signs: Nothing this week.  Still trying to decide if what I was feeling over the last few weeks were braxton hicks.

Belly Button in or out?  Inny, inny!  

Wedding rings on or off? On.  

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy, pappy!

Looking forward to: The first time Tyson can feel baby girl move from the outside and registering for baby stuff!

19 Week Bumpdate

   I thought I'd post a picture of me at 19 weeks, 4 days.  Take a look at this ridiculousness.  And I'm only just about half way.  I'm starting to get scared.

            At 19 weeks, baby girl is the size of a mango from crown to rump, or she's about the length of a 6 inch sub sandwich......Nom, nom, nom!  As far as developments, she apparently should weight 8.5 oz, which I think she weights more, her limbs are all proportionate to her body, and she now has vernix caseosa covering her body which is a waxy protective coating for her skin.

     This week, I felt more, obvious movement.  Little twitches here, little twitches there….a few episodes where it feels like she’s rolling in there.  When I lie down and rest, she moves.  Of course, this is what typically happens with babies in mommy’s tummies in this type of situation.   Sometimes when I sit at work, I’ll feel her.  I often like to sit while bending my right knee up to my chest.  When I do this, I feel her much more.  I LOVE feeling her move.  It is one of the NEATEST experiences.  It feels strange, but I love feeling her move so much.  I often find myself not breathing or taking a chance to move an inch if she starts to move.  I don’t want to make any sudden movements that will make her stop because I DON’T WANT her to stop.  I just love that I’m consistently feeling her now.

     In other news, I think we've officially chosen her name.  We’re still trying to nail down the spelling of her first name, but for now….this is what I’ll put:

Brynlee Taylor Sutton

     Let me tell you a little story.  Originally, I have always loved the name Brooke.  I fell in love with that name when I was probably in the 8^th grade.  I was sitting on the school bus, and I saw that name up on a name card where the bus driver had assigned seating for the younger kiddos.  At that moment, I told myself that if I ever had a daughter, that would be the name I’d give her.  All throughout the years Tyson and I dated, I told him about that story.  From then on, Tyson would refer our future child as, "Brooke."  Fast forward to when I was about 10-12 weeks pregnant.  I was playing around on Pinterest and saw the name “Brynnley,” which we will not be spelling it this way.  Fell….In….Love…With….It.  I thought it was different, and plus, over the last 5 years, I was getting disappointed because “Brooke” and “Brooklyn” were starting to become a popular name.  This was starting to turn me off from my name I had picked out ever since I was in the 8^th grade.  I'll be honest.  It made me a little sad.

       So here we sit, I've changed what I've always wanted and decided to go with Brynlee.  Taylor is Tyson’s middle name along with his grandfather’s name.  I was just lying in bed one night, and as Tyson was walking by I said, “What do you think about her middle name being Taylor?”  It just popped in my head, I thought it was cute.  He sounded real interested and told me he liked it.  A couple days later, Tyson expressed how it made him feel real special for our daughter to have the same middle name as him.  Daddy’s little girl!!!  Anyways, we love it, and now enjoy calling her Brynlee.  But, we still call her baby girl as well. :)

     I also have officially decided the theme of Brynlee’s nursery.  It’s going to be “Shabby Chic meets Elegance.”  I want a very clean, crisp look with more creams, taupes, whites, and hints of blushes.  I also want to incorporate crystal gem accessories along with a shabby chic mirror and other accessories.  I've put together a design board (sort of) that shows the look I’m going for for baby girl’s room.  I don’t want it to look like your typical nursery.  The bedding is EXACTLY what I want, but I don’t want to pay the price the company is asking for.  So, I’m on the hunt for a person who will make it for me.  Wish me luck!  Below is my “sort of” design board for you to take a peek.  Click on the picture if you want to make it bigger.

Anyways, this week flew!  I can’t believe in a couple of days, I’ll officially be HALF WAY!  Now, for the weekly survey.  Enjoy!

How far along? I'm posting this at 19 weeks and 5 days!

Total weight gain/loss:  Since my last prenatal appointment, I've gained 7 lbs. from pre-pregnancy weight.
  
Maternity clothes? Wonderful co-workers of mine have given me a few things, but I haven't bought any other maternity stuff yet.  Still rocking the pre-pregnancy shirts!  Woohoo to THAT!  But....I have a feeling I'll have to break down and get preggo tops soon.
Stretch marks? No

Sleep: I actually had a few nights this week where I got some good rest.

Best moment this week: Feeling baby girl move oh-so-much more!  My little dancer in there...

Have you told family and friends: Of course. :)

Miss Anything?  Cocktails!!!!
Symptoms: Excessive thirst from all of this blood coursing through my veins....peeing a lot.  Feeling like I have something sitting in my pelvis...........a baby! :)

Movement: Tons more!  It just feels like tiny muscle twitches right now, with some "rolling feelings" every now and then. 

Food cravings: Any way I can get something sweet in my mouth in liquid form.... fruit juices, fruit smoothies...and this morning I REALLY wanted a Sprite.  I don't drink Sprite.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Nah!  I was good this week!  Just peachy!!!

Have you started to show yet:  Clearly a pregnancy bump and not a jelly doughnut bump anymore.

Gender prediction: No more guessing!  It's a girl!  It's a girl!  It's a girl!!!!! **Doing my happy dance.**

Labor Signs: Again, I can't tell if it's Braxton Hicks, but I did get a REAL TIGHT feeling in my tummy the other day.  Didn't hurt, and it went away rather quickly.

Belly Button in or out?  Still in.  

Wedding rings on or off? On.  
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: The first time Tyson can feel baby girl move from the outside.