16 weeks and counting...

How far along? 16 weeks
Maternity clothes? I bought a white maternity tank top and have started shopping for pants.
Stretch marks? Applying lotion religiously to keep these away
Sleep: It's been much better lately. But I think it's time for a new mattress.
Best moment this week: Just enjoying the belly
Movement: Waiting anxiously for this!
Food cravings: Spicy food, especially Mexican.
Gender: Two more weeks.
Labor Signs: Not for a long while.
Belly Button in or out? Still a cinnamon roll, but the center is rising.
What I miss: Fitting into all of my jeans comfortably.
What I am looking forward to: Finding out if our little babe is a girl or a boy and then spending all of our money on stuff for him/her.
Weekly Wisdom: Don't squeeze into pants that don't fit. It's not worth the discomfort just to prove to yourself you can still wear them.
Milestones: Well ... I turned 26 today so I guess that counts as a milestone. Enjoying being another year older and embracing what life has in store for us this year.

16 weeks and I've grown an avocado!

Watch what you say... tiny bones forming in baby's ears mean the little one can now pick up your voice. Eyebrows, lashes and hair are starting to fill in, and taste buds are forming. And, if you're interested, an ultrasound might be able to determine gender.

2010 is going to be 'bumpin'!

You are now reading the first of my weekly belly bump photos and pregnancy update posts. Here you will get to watch as my bump grows throughout the rest of my pregnancy and hear all about how I am feeling and new developments.

(Why do I feel so much bigger in person than I look in these pictures?)

How far along? 15 weeks
Maternity clothes? Not yet, but loving stretchy materials and long shirts
Stretch marks? Hoping to avoid these all together ... but need to invest in some cocoa body butter to keep the skin stretchy.
Sleep: Could be better. I'm going to need to break the habit of the dogs sleeping on the bed. They take up a lot of space.
Best moment this week: Finally feeling a true baby bump, not just the chub that has taken over my midsection. And the look on Brian's face when he felt it for the first time.
Movement: Nothing yet, but looking forward to it!
Food cravings: I love food, but nothing in particular ... just anything with a bold or spicy flavor.
Gender: Three more weeks until we find out!!!
Pregnancy symptoms: Last week I started having some severe headaches. I guess it's caused by the blood vessels expanding to accomodate all of this extra blood my body is making and water retention. Otherwise, I'm feeling good.
Labor Signs: Let's keep these away for oh, another 20 weeks or so.
Belly Button in or out? Ha ha! Was it ever either one? Still a cinnamon roll ... curious to see how it's going to change. (this might deserve a weekly post of its own.)
What I miss: This week I could have used a nice glass of red wine and a bubble bath (see pregnancy symptoms above). Both are not recommened ... but were really appealing when I had a killer headache.
What I am looking forward to: Actually looking pregnant. I feel like I have grown but everyone else says they can't even tell I am pregnant. I know I should appreciate this now, but I'm excited to have a belly I can show off.
Weekly Wisdom: hmm ...
Milestones: Made it through the first trimester without much trouble. Was able to avoid morning sickness or anything major. Embracing the second trimester and all the excitement that comes with it.

15 weeks!

Continuing the march towards normal proportions, baby's legs now outmeasure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably still can't feel the movements.

Baby Hall at 9 1/2 weeks

I finally was able to get a picture of the sonogram from our 9 1/2 week appointment. We are so excited to see how much our little babe has changed, since our next ultrasound is at 18 weeks ...

Snapshots from the holidays

I finally got my camera fixed, sort of, and was able to save some pictures we took over the holidays. Here is a montage of holiday photos from ICE! with the Hall family and the snow on Christmas Eve, as well as our first family photo with the dogs and my nieces while we are at it! Enjoy!

ICE! was giant ice sculpture exhibit with The Grinch theme. It was 9 degrees in the exhibit so they give you big blue parkas to wear.

The dogs were so excited at this "white stuff" ... oh who am I fooling, I was running around playing in the snow with the dogs.

Happy holidays from Brian, Jen, Roxy, Mack and Baby Hall!

And one last picture of my beautiful sister and her adorable daughters before we went to see Santa!

From poppy seed to watermelon

So I have always loved when people blog about the size of their baby each week with the little fruit and veggies posts, so I am going to start this each week. If you want to see the different stages our little babe has gone through up until this week, you can see the list here.

Your adorable little fetus is busy with thumb sucking, toe wiggling, and (not so cute but equally amazing) making urine and breathing amniotic fluid as the liver, kidneys and spleen continue to develop. Lanugo (thin, downy hair) is growing all over the body for warmth.

The first three months

I was thinking I should probably backtrack a little and share some information about how the first three months of this pregnancy have gone, before I get to all the new and upcoming stuff.
I feel like I have been pretty lucky so far, with only slight nausea and fatigue for about three weeks. No throwing up or anything crazy, just had to eat about every two hours otherwise the hot flashes and sick feeling would hit. I can't complain though, I love to eat, and what better excuse?
My co-workers started looking at me funny, since they didn't know I was pregnant and started eating everything in sight and making frequent trips to Sonic for their junior breakfast burrito. It's not my fault there is one across the street from our office and they are only $1. But I HAD to get it with the hot sauce, because anything bold and spicy hits the spot.
Brian, or should I say our bank account, was most excited about my lack of desire for Starbucks anymore. I have always had a weakness for Sbux and sweets in general, and couldn't even stand the sight of a latte or cookie.
But let me tell you how much my mouth waters at the thought of sweet pickles! I feel like its a total cliche pregnancy craving, but when I saw the giant jar of sweet and spicy pickles at Costco, I HAD to have them and am eating them by the bowl full.
I think Brian was getting a little concerned by the mass quantities of food I was consuming and was prepared to see me blow up to the size of a blimp in a matter of days. Fortunately for us, that mighty appetite and nausea has subsided and I am down to only eating every 4 hours, plus maybe a little snack in between...but the sweet tooth is back with a vengeance.
Other than that, life has been going on like normal.

... and then there were three.

On November 7, I found out something that would change our lives forever. While Brian was out of town taking care of "business", I was left with this lingering feeling that there was some business of its own going on in my belly. Why I felt that way, I am not quite sure, but it turns out my instincts were correct and after peeing on quite the sophisticated little piece of equipment it was confirmed.
We are having a baby!
Holy crap we are having a baby. I can't describe all of the emotions that flooded through my body after the longest two minutes of my life. I wanted to call Brian immediately and share the news, but knew that I had to wait because for one, that kind of news shouldn't be shared over the phone, and for two, he didn't need any distraction during his trip.
And I wasn't quite sure how he would react. I mean, we had always talked about starting a family and knew that it would happen eventually, but was he ready? was I ready? All of the sudden all of these thoughts of life flashed through my head and I knew. I knew we could handle this, I knew we were as ready as we would ever be. Ya you can always say that you would like more money, a better job or a nicer home, but we have a great home, good jobs and are making a living so when it comes down to it, we are ready.
Holy crap we are having a baby! Even today, 13 weeks into the pregnancy, it still doesn't seem real. We have seen the little babe wiggle its arms and heard its heart beat at our first appointment at 9 weeks which made it a little more real. We will be going back in this week for another check-up and hopefully get to see the little babe again.
I have been anxiously waiting to share the news with the World Wide Web, and finally feel comfortable. So look forward to hearing all about this little thing growing from a poppy seed to a watermelon inside my belly. I can't wait to share it with all of you!