Saturday, May 31, 2014

Baby #2 - 15 Week Bump

Finally! A real bump photo. It only took (almost) four months. And it's already a week old since I'm 16 weeks tomorrow. Ahh, baby number two syndrome. Sorry, kid. The trend is likely to continue, I'm afraid.

At 15 weeks I'm feeling pretty darn good. The only rough stretch of this pregnancy so far was weeks 6-10, which I wrote about in my first trimester post. With the exception of a few very minor symptoms, I've had it easy. My memory is fuzzy but honestly, it sure feels easier than it was the first time around, with the exception being that when I'm tired, there's no rest for the weary because instead, there's an almost 18-month old to chase after.


The Babe: According to The Bump, baby Barnacle is about the size of a naval orange, 4 inches long, 2.5 ounces.

The Belly: I feel like I'm much bigger this time than I was with Cece but when I compare the pictures, it's not that far off. I think the biggest difference is that I started showing much sooner the second time. I haven't checked recently but I'm guessing my weight gain is roughly the same too, up 4-5 pounds at 15 weeks.

Cravings/Aversions: Feeling so much better than I did early on. I could barely eat anything weeks 6-10. Appetite is back to normal, maybe slightly more robust than normal. Had aversions to coffee, sweets, Mexican food early on. Feeling more comfortable with the first two, still not digging Mexican though. Craving salty food. Wanted roasted turkey sandwiches day after day for two weeks. Bacon. Yes, bacon. Ate McDonalds chicken sandwiches two days in a row. Yes, McDonalds. Yikes!

Movement: Feeling small flutters at night if I'm sitting very still and in just the right position. Felt Cece movements around the same time during my first pregnancy.

Sleep: Ok. Up at least once to pee. Still able to sleep perched on my tummy (my favorite way to sleep). That won't last much longer and pretty soon I'll be big enough that back sleeping will be outlawed too and I'll feel obligated to sleep only on my left side. I hate that rule. 

Missing: Spicy tuna rolls and beer. Mmmm, beer.

Other Symptoms: Only minor ones. Headaches. Heart palpitations. Some dizziness. Tired. All things I experienced with Cece. Something new though - been feeling a little loopy lately, like a space cadet, especially notice this when driving. Better figure that out, that could be dangerous.

Difference between Pregnancies: Biggest difference is that this time around I have a lot less time to think about being pregnant. With Cece I thought about it constantly. Worried about it. Felt it. With baby number two there are days when I forget I'm even pregnant at all.

What I'm Excited For: Finding out what we're having in a few weeks. Feeling more regular movements from the Barnacle.

Here's a reminder of what my Cece bump looked like at 15 weeks. Back then I was marveling at my new bump, we were considering baby names and I felt flutters for the first time.




Thursday, May 29, 2014

Cece's New School

Two weeks ago, we decided it was time to find Cece a new daytime adventure to keep her busy while we are at work. My sister-in-law has been beyond awesome as a caretaker and Cece and her cousins are besties, but with three kids of her own, it was becoming too much to handle for her. So we did some research on day care providers and found a great program at our district high school (it's actually in my old middle school!). It's about 10 minutes from home and work and runs programs from infant - preschool. I was a little nervous yesterday when we dropped Cece off for the first time but honestly, I don't think her first day could have gone any better! The program is amazing and her teacher are so, so good with her. All smiles all day and a stellar first "report card" when I came to pick her up. Cece was in the BEST mood last night and the girl actually slept IN this morning - recently she's been waking up between 5-6 AM and it's been rough on us all. I am so, so thankful we found this place. She's the newest little HK Cub (the district mascot is a cougar). So proud of her already!
 

Notice the time at the top - 7:10 AM!!




Monday, May 26, 2014

Good Friends

Good friends are like the best thing ever, aren't they? Last weekend we attended the baptism of Luke and Tessa. Luke is the son of one of my best girlfriends, Caitlin. Tessa is her niece. Caitlin, Suzanne (also pictured) and I have been besties since the 2nd grade. You might remember Suzanne practically birthed my child. Love these girls and their amazing, adorable families! So happy Cece has good friends to call her own! Oh yeah, and Cece found her pockets that day too and it was just about the best thing ever!

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Baby #2: First Trimester Bump Update

I'm currently in my 14th week of pregnancy and happily into the second trimester. So thankful to be clear of the first. I forgot how horrible it is. All in all, my second go at this was much like my first. I had many of the same symptoms (nausea, exhaustion, loss of appetite, tummy distress, lots of peeing) except this time instead of being able to take a relaxing nap on the couch when I needed to, I've been constantly on my feet chasing a very busy toddler around the house. My environment much, much different this time around. Not that I'm complaining. =) I hardly know what week of pregnancy we're on this time. With Cece, I probably could have told you the week, day and hour. I've also been terrible about taking bump pictures. As in, there are no real bump pictures except for these crappy ones I took on my phone in the mirror. Sorry Barnacle (that's it's name for now). Second kid syndrome. I was a second kid, too. I know how you feel. Hopefully I'll be able to catch up and at least provide bump pictures every few weeks from now on.

So far the only differences between Cece's pregnancy and baby #2 is that I went through a few weeks early on where I just couldn't eat at all. It was a struggle even to smell food. I had a hard time with food early on with Cece but I could still eat it. This time I lost 5 pounds between weeks 6-9. No worries though, I've gained it all back. Around week 10 life got easier and my appetite resurfaced.  In fact, it's really starting to rev up. Another pretty big difference is the type of food I'm craving. With Cece I craved fresh, cold fruit. That's still the same, though maybe not quite as strong. The big difference this time is that I could turn my nose up to almost any dessert or sweet, but if you put something salty in front of me, I'll devour it. Potato chips and pickles. Mmmmm. I definitely fit the pregnant woman stereotype.

Finally, the last major difference between my first and second pregnancy is that my baby bump has made an appearance much sooner. I hear this is pretty typical. Interestingly I started at exactly the same weight with both pregnancies (ya for loosing the baby weight) and haven't gained any more this time around than I did in the first trimester with Cece but the bump is waaaay bigger. I'd say my 14 week Barnacle bump rivals my 18 week Cece bump. Hopefully it all evens out. I gained almost 45 (!) pounds with Cece and I'm hoping nature doesn't do that again with #2. Not going to stress about it though. What will be, will be.

Baby Barnacle Bump - 6 Weeks {Cece bump at 6 weeks}


 Baby Barnacle Bump - 12 Weeks {Cece bump at 12 weeks}

Baby Barnacle Bump - 14 Weeks {Cece bump at 14 Weeks}
 

So there you go. Hi happy little Barnacle. Can't wait to meet you in November!





Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Backyard Fun

A couple of weeks ago we scored a playscape on Craigslist for a few hundred dollars. May sound expensive until you consider these things go for over $2K brand new. Yikes! Needless to say it's been a huge hit with Cece and her cousins. Hurray for backyard fun!