16 Weeks

I'm a few days late on posting, but most of that is caused by me just being busy or flat out exhausted. Looking back a few weeks when I thought I was tired was nothing compared to recently. Seems like in the last week or so, by the afternoon I'm ready to crawl back in bed for a few hours- and I usually do! Thankfully, I am blessed with a husband who works hard so I don't have to, and I have the luxury, just about every day, to really take care of myself and baby. It has been pretty funny trying to explain to Doug why it takes me forever to eat and why I smack (bad habit for sure- but now I can't help it), or why the house seems to be a bit messy lately. My energy level has just taken a big hit AND many times it just takes me a bit to catch my breath.

Baby is about 4.5" long right now- the size of a large avocado, and all my organs are starting to shift up. Combine that with increasing my blood flow up to 25 quarts in the next few weeks, and I just get wiped out so fast! It's pretty funny to be eating and have to take breaks so that I don't exhaust myself. Having allergies right now doesn't help either.

The neatest thing to happen in the last two weeks???? I can now feel baby move! Yup- just a few days after turning 14 weeks, I was laying in bed on my right side when I felt this strong vibration just above my pelvic bone. The best way to describe it is to say that it felt like a small fist was shaking rapidly between the surface of my stomach and my back. Coolest feeling so far! It was sporadic at first. I felt baby maybe a few times after that until this past week. Now, it's almost guaranteed that I will feel our little one moving when I'm laying in bed or if it's after I eat a meal at night. I remember last week going to eat Mexican food (of course) with my cousin, Jenn, and her daughter, Kyla. We were sitting chatting after finishing our meal about labor and all of a sudden I felt three quick taps along my waistline- completely caught me off guard. Baby has also been moving a bit in church, which is so precious- like a reminder that this is a miracle from God.

On October 15th, exactly 4 weeks from today, we will find out if our little one is a boy or a girl. We've already planned a gathering with family the following Saturday. It's going to be so incredibly hard to keep the secret from everyone for a full 6 days, but so exciting to share it with everyone. I'm hoping to actually record the ultrasound and our reactions when we are told.

If you compare belly pics between 16 weeks and 10 weeks, the difference is incredible! Just in the past two weeks, my belly has grown over an inch, and I think at this point, according to pregnancy forums, I have "popped." My husband is in love with my belly, and usually when we are together in public, he can't help but just place his hand on the belly with a huge smile on his face. Makes my heart melt and tear up just a bit- another new thing for me. I cry all the time!