Weeks 25-28

Weeks 21-24

Nanner St.Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Great! Still a bit tired, but I am getting used to it lol!

Milestones: Feeling baby move this past week! Guy and I were sitting down last Thursday night watching Vampire Diaries and I felt 2 little kicks right by my belly button. It has gotten more frequent every day since then and today I don't think baby has slept at all today lol! Baby has been very active!

How do I look? Pregnant... round belly and big boobs lol! I feel really good in my own skin though! I love my little belly :) And the hubby loves the boobs haha!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a banana! Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

What am I craving? I continue to crave salty foods! Party pizzas and Mac&Chz!!

Aversions? Peanut Butter

What do I miss? Nothing at all!

What am I looking forward to? Baby showers!!

I haven't stopped smiling in days.
Feeling so very blessed and lucky...

Cantaloupe St.Vincent

Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, speaking of the diaper situation... baby's genitals are now fully formed!

Mango St. Vincent

Sweet Potato St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Great! I continue to have menstrual like cramps and I still think it is between the baby moving and my uterus growing.

Milestones: We had our BIG ultrasound Friday, the 16th, (which actually was week 17, but oh well lol)! It lasted for about any hour since the u/s tech has to measure and get pictures of all different things... the femur bone, the heart, the stomach, the bladder, the kidneys, the brain, etc. I am happy to announce that the baby is 100% healthy! But, I am glad it lasted long lol... We had a full hour of just watching baby! The first thing we found out was the sex though! And, wow, I can't even begin to tell you how excited Guy and I are!! We will be announcing the sex to everyone at Christmas time so be on the look out for your Christmas card in December! It will be the best present for our families!

How do I look? Pregnant... round belly and big boobs lol!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a sweet potato! Your fetus has become amazingly mobile (at least compared to you), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. And, baby's finally big enough that you'll be able to feel those movements soon.

What am I craving? I continue to crave salty foods!

Aversions? Peanut Butter

What am I looking forward to? Feeling flutters of movement for the first time... Registering... Going home for my baby shower in January...

And for your viewing pleasure... a belly pic 17w6d

Onion St. Vincent

Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.

Avacado St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Great! I have started to get a little crampy, but I seriously think it is the baby moving and stretching my uterus. When the cramping starts, it may only last for 10-15 seconds. Hurts like mentrual cramps, but comforts me knowing that the baby is moving!

How do I look? Pregnant... round belly and big boobs lol!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a avacado! 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

What am I craving? I continue to crave salty foods!

Aversions? Peanut Butter

What am I looking forward to? Finding out the sex next Friday... Feeling flutters of movement for the first time... Registering... Going home for my baby shower in January...

Naval Orange St. Vincent

Lemon St. Vincent

Peach St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? I feel great! Well, minus the gas pains lol! I continue to sleep A LOT - 12 hours on some nights minus the 10 trips to the bathroom lol! I have added Dr. Pepper here and there back into my diet so the headaches are gone!!

Milestones: Second trimester - woo-hooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What is the little bambino up to? He or she is about the size of a peach! The baby may be sucking its thumb and is practicing breathing in & out. Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long and weighs nearly 1oz.

What am I craving? Everything it seems like lol!

Aversions: Still Peanut Butter

What do I miss? Having energy!

What am I looking forward to? Oh! So much! I am so excited about this trimester. I can't wait to feel the first flutters & movement! Registering, the BIG ultrasound and getting to find out the sex, getting a distinct baby bump, & feeling better more energetic!

Plum St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? I think we have covered that in detail ;) I have been sleeping a lot and having headaches.

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a plum! As you move into the second trimester, baby shifts into the growth and maturation stage. After weeks in the critical development stage, almost all of baby's systems are fully formed.

What am I craving? Mexican food!

Aversions: still peanut butter

What do I miss? My sex drive is still MIA. Hoping it will kick into high gear as I get into 2nd tri!

What am I looking forward to? Oh! So much! I am so excited about finishing up this trimester and heading into the 2nd trimester. I can't wait to feel the first flutters & movement! Registering, the big u/s, getting a distinct baby bump, & feeling better (hopefully) just to name a few things!

That about wraps it up! I am overjoyed to be pregnant and trying to enjoy every moment. It feels more real every single day and I am looking forward to all the milestones that await. Thank you all for sharing this journey with me...

Lime St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Tired! Still having headaches every other day or so.

How do I look? Same

Milestone of the week: Starting my new job!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a lime! Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through. But, fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future.

What am I craving? Brownies

Aversions? Peanut Butter

What am I looking forward to? Starting to show more and more... feeling the baby move for the first time... and finding out the sex in 8 weeks!

10w5d

Prune St. Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Still pretty tired. The nausea seems to have subsided, but the headaches have started!!

How do I look? Same

Milestone of the week: Getting settled into our apartment

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a prune — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby has now completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature.

He's swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including his kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they'll continue to develop throughout your pregnancy.

If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

In other developments: Your baby's limbs can bend now. His hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. The outline of his spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from his spinal cord. Your baby's forehead temporarily bulges with his developing brain and sits very high on his head, which measures half the length of his body. From crown to rump, he's about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, your baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.will too.)

What am I craving? Nothing really is standing out this week... I am slowly starting to eat sweet things again.

Aversions? Peanut Butter and Bananas

What am I looking forward to? Going to our dr's appointment Tuesday. We are meeting our new dr here in Fayetteville for the first time!

Green Olive St.Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Still pretty tired. I seem to have nausea for a couple days then i won't have it for a couple days. And on the days that I do have it, it's pretty bad!

How do I look? Same

Milestone of the week: Moving to Fayetteville, NC

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a green olive! Your little embryo has now officially graduated to fetus-hood. Adding to the excitement, a Doppler ultrasound device might be able to pick up the beating heart. With basic physical structures in place and increasingly distinct facial features, baby is kind of starting to look like... well... a baby!

What am I craving? Still anything salty and fruit

Aversions? Peanut Butter and anything sweet.

What am I looking forward to? Starting to show more and more and feeling the baby move!

8w4d

Raspberry St.Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Tired! Morning sickness continues... but I w

How do I look? A little bump is starting to form

Milestone of the week: Hearing the heartbeat for the first time (171 bpm) and getting to see the baby move during the ultrasound!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a raspberry! Your baby is growing like mad, putting on about a millimeter every day and continuing to straighten out in the trunk. Though you cant feel it yet, baby is moving those little arms, legs and (now only slightly) webbed fingers and toes like crazy.

What am I craving? Salty foods

Aversions? Anything sweet

What am I looking forward to? Feeling the baby move for the first time!

Blueberry St.Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Tired and a strong sense of "ICK". Nauseous still every morning! The nighttime waking to go pee is super annoying!

How do I look? Same.... just a little bloated

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a blueberry! Baby's brain -- both hemispheres! -- is growing fast, generating about 100 new cells every minute. Arms and legs are emerging as joints start to form, and a permanent set of kidneys (baby's third!) is now in place.

What am I craving? Salty foods

Aversions? Anything sweet... well, except sweet tea :)

What am I looking forward to? Starting to show more and more and for this nausea to go away!

Discovery of the week: Your Pregnancy Week by Week

Sweet Pea St.Vincent

Weekly Update

How am I feeling? Tired! Not really nauseous, but a very queasy tummy. Oh the bloat!! None of my pants button and if it wasn't for the belly band, I would be a miserable momma. Hair & nails growing, growing, growing!!

How do I look? Same.... just a little bloated

Milestone of the week: seeing the flutter of the baby's heartbeat! Amazing!

What is the little bambino up to? Baby's now the size of a sweet pea! Growing like crazy, baby is starting to sprout eyes, ears, nose, cheeks, and chin. Those little hands and feet -- still webbed like paddles -- might wiggle by week's end, the heart is beating (almost twice as fast as yours!), and blood is starting to circulate.

What am I craving? Not too much - an oyster po-boy is what I wanted today. My mind will most likely change tomorrow.

Aversions? Peanut Butter and anything sweet.

What am I looking forward to? Starting to show more and more...

Weight gain: +4 lbs.

Discovery of the week: What to Expect When You're Expecting & The Belly Band

5w6d

We got to see the flutter of a heartbeat today! 114 beats per minute!

5w

Guess what.... I'M PREGNANT!!!

I took 4 tests last night lol... yes, i was denial a little bit!! They ALL came out positive so...



I scheduled an ultrasound this morning to confirm everything! Well, there is a little bebe in there!! It is already the most beautiful person I have ever seen!! I will update this as soon as I get any new information! Promise!!

5.3

Bummer! I didn't ovulate this month!! Don't know why I did last month but didn't this month?! So, on to trying again! Dr. T decided to put me on 50mg again. I figured she would bump it up since I didn't ovulate, but she didn't. Once again, don't know why! And I have a UTI! Real fun week I am having lol!!!

BFN

Started my cycle Sunday afternoon... BUMMER! On a good note though, at least the Clomid worked and I did ovulate! On to Clomid Cycle #2! I will start the Clomid Thursday!

I ovulated!

The nurse called me yesterday afternoon to let me know my progesterone level was 19.5! That is the highest it has ever been! So all we know, at this time, is that I ovulated! I have to wait 2 weeks and take a pregnancy test. This will be the longest 2 weeks ever! I wanted to take one last night lol! I am just so excited that the clomid worked! We are getting somewhere now!

Happy Nurses Day!

Clomid Cycle Numéro 1

I went to the OB/GYN yesterday and it was quite a pleasant experience. I have the best doc in the world! She looked over all the labs, etc. from the RE in Tulsa and she could not figure out why he never drew a 21-day Progesterone or and LH/FSH. Je ne sais pas! I just assumed he knew what he was doing lol! Anyway, Dr.T decided to go ahead and proceed... She prescribed me 200mg Prometrimum to induce menses and 50mg Clomid to induce ovulation.

I started my 10 day dose last night of Prometrium. After AF arrives, I am bound to a strict day-by-day situation. I will take 50mg Clomid on days 5-9. (I am debating on whether to start taking BBT. I have done that before and it gets quite frustrating.) Anyway, days 12,14,16 are hopefully conception days (hehe!) and then I will have bloodwork on day 21 to check my Progesterone level. If it is low, then we will bump up the dosage of clomid to 100mg next month. If it is high, then we will wait a week and take a pregnancy test!

Everyone keep their fingers crossed and continue praying!! Thanks guys!

On the road again...

The road is all the lies between us and Shreveport, Louisiana! The hockey season is over, didn't end the way we would have liked, but we are looking forward to getting back home with family! The guys played all the way to the last game and the fate just wasn't in their hands. But, hey, everything happens for a reason and there is always next year!! But, we thoroughly enjoy the summers since it is relaxation everyday all day until the next season starts back up. We are not too sure as of right now what next season will bring but we are trusting God! And as soon as I have details on where we will be, I will blog all about it :)

I have an appointment May 5th with my OB/GYN to start this fertility stuff up again. The plan right now is to do a 21-day Progesterone blood test to see if I am ovulating then possibly start Clomid. After I get the results and we figure out where to go from there, I will also blog about that as well :)

It will be so nice to get out of this hotel and eat some home cooked food lol! I am craving things that can only be cooked on a stove!! I also think this is a great time to be going home because my mom is needing lots of help at her shop (www.moms2bee.com) since her worker decided to quit VIA TEXT! Absolutely unbelievable! So, looks like I will be helping her while Guy is out golfing lol! Good times! Also this summer will be our 1st anniversary so we are totally looking forward to that! Well, I hope everyone had a fabulous Easter and the next time I blog, hopefully I will be full of good news :)

Round 1 Champions!

The Fayetteville FireAntz have defeated the Columbus Cottonmouths and are moving on to the finals against the Knoxville IceBears! The first round went all the way to game 5 and last nights game was pretty intense! But the FireAntz prevailed and Guy got his 3rd shut-out since we have been here! Amazing! Guy's stats are unbelievable! He has posted the only shutout during the playoffs and has a .906 SV%! Wow!

The Championship Round Schedule is as follows:
Game 1: @ Knoxville, Friday, April 3rd @ 7:35 pm
Game 2: @ Knoxville, Saturday, April 4th @ 7:35 pm
Game 3: @ Fayetteville, Friday, April 10th @ 7:35 pm
Game 4: @ Fayetteville, Saturday, April 11th @ 7:35 pm
Game 5: @ Fayetteville, Sunday, April 12th @ 5:00 pm*
Game 6: @ Knoxville, Wednesday, April 15th @ 7:35 pm*
Game 7: @ Knoxville, Thursday, April 16th @ 7:35 pm*
Note: * if necessary
(all times EST)

You can watch the games on the internet at www.b2tv.com.

"History, Heroes, and a Hometown Feeling"

After 30 hours in the car from Canada, Guy and I are now living in Fayetteville, North Carolina for a couple of months. He signed a contract to play with the Fayetteville Fireantz of the SPHL in hopes of making it to the playoffs. It is a tight race with all the teams being within one or two points of each other. Guy is playing amazing! Won all 5 games he has played! Pretty impressive!

The team has put us up in the Holiday Inn Bordeaux. Not very homey, but we are making the best of it. Living on sandwiches and microwave food. Not easy to stay on a diet! So I am just trying to make healthy choices and not pig out on junk food, which would be so easy to do! There is a small gym here and you would think that it would be easier for me to go since it is so close. Quite contrare, it seems harder!

Fayetteville seems to be a pretty good town though. The people here are super nice. It stand true to it's motto "History, Heroes, and a Hometown Feeling". We are eager to hopefully get out and experience some of the history here. We are looking forward to the annual Fayetteville Dogwood Festival if we are still here. Seems like fun! It is home to Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base so everwhere we go we see someone in the armed forces, which continually reminds us of the people fighting for this country and our freedom. And it really does have a hometown feeling. I feel closer the Shreveport than I am. It almost feels like home here.

Guy left yesterday on the longest road trip of the season, we hear. He will be gone for 3 days. Nothing compared to the1-2 week trips in the CHL. So Honey and I are hanging out in the hotel watching movies. Late at night we throw her ball down the hallway to tire her out a bit. She enjoys it! We also found an awesome dog park here, but it has been pretty chilly here, so we haven't been able to go lately. She likes going and just smelling all the other scents that have been left behind lol.

Guy and I have started the 40 day challenge of The Love Dare. I whole-heartedly recommend this to anyone and everyone that is married. It is from the movie Fireproof, which also was an amazing movie! We are learning more and more about each other everyday and learning how to deal with things in a more patient and godly manner. We are now on day 17 and it has been an unbelievable jouney for the last two-and-a-half weeks. We are learning to love each other despite of our flaws, meanwhile loving those flaws because it is a part of who we are. God has blessed me with an incredible husband and I love him EXACTLY for who he is. He may not be perfect, but he is perfect for me! I challenge you to get the book and take the 40 day challenge with your spouse. You will be amazed at the way God will open up your heart and mind towards your spouse.

Pill junkie

We are now here in Canada and are finally all settled in! Wow, is it cold up here!! Guy planned an amazing Valentine's weekend! We got all bundled up Friday afternoon and Guy took me ice skating at The Forks and then got us a hotel room at Inn at the Forks. Super nice hotel with rose petals on the bed, chocolate covered strawberries, champagne, and roses with I Love You monogrammed on the petals! Very thoughtful on my husband's part! I must say, I did an amazing job picking an incredible husband!

On the topic of trying to conceive, I am now feeling like a pill junkie lol! I am taking EstroSense which is a hormone balancing formula and I just added 160mg of Vitex yesterday. I have read on the internet that people have had amazing results with Vitex, so I am hoping we can add the positivity! We shall see! Also I am taking prenatal vitamins, extra folic acid, Vit D, Vit C, and 2 pills for Essential Fatty Acids. Updates to come if anything should occur!

I am also continuing to watch my diet and I bought a gym membership last week. I have started going to aerobics with my husband's Auntie Carrie and we are having a blast! Our class was Butts and Guts and I was in a lot of pain the next couple of days afterwards lol! The instructor worked our thighs more than ever!! We did more squats than I ever want to do in my life again lol!

I wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day and a wonderful weekend. I hope everyone has some time to reconnect and recharge this weekend - don't forget the romance :)

While we're waiting...

Well, since we are going to be in a rut for the next few months with no insurance and no where to obtain fertility services, i have begun to explore the option of alternative therapies to aid in our journey of trying to conceive.

First off, I have started (tonight) myself on a Low Glycemic Index Diet. Not too sure how this is going to work out since my first experiment with a Low GI meal was not so good. I made Vegetable Ratatouille... and it may sound good, but it wasn't lol! It called for red wine, which I am not too fond of and all I could taste was bitterness. Also, I can't figure out why the company who packaged my bay leaves crushed them all up. The entire time I was trying to eat, I kept finding bay leaves, and if you don't know, you can't chew up a bay leaf lol!

I am also adding some rigorous exercise to my regime. Well, once we get to Canada next weekend lol. 45-60 minutes of cardio a day and one day of Pilates or Yoga. Also, we will see how that goes. Most of you know how I feel about exercise!!

I will keep you updated! Should be quite entertaining!

Post 4

Guy went a did his SA about a month ago, which all results came back normal. I also had my SIS yesterday, which was absolutely not fun at all! Basically they insert saline through a catheter into the uterus to see if your tubes are patent. As for the actual procedure, well, i was a little surprised by it. The insert the speculum and grab your cervix with a long allis clamp to hold on to it while he slides the catheter in. When he did that, I thought I was going to jump off the table. That was probably the worst part of the procedure. A catheter goes in through your cervix so that they can inject this saline wash (feels like a gallon, but it's more like 20 ml) and then they reinsert you with that ultrasound-dildo-cam-amabob. So he starts moving it to look at both sides and flooding me with this saline and... surprise, my tubes are open!

The entire ride home I was caught between throwing up or passing out... I got home without doing either, thank God! I rested the entire evening hoping I would feel better today. I didn't and I have come home early to try and rest off the cramps.

Now that we know what needs to be done, we are having to put all of this fertility stuff to a screeching halt! We have decided to call it a season here in Tulsa, Ok, and move to Canada for the next 4 months and then settle down in Shreveport, La. I researched fertility in Canada and IVF is half the price it is in the states, but the catch is... it takes a year to get in and be treated. So, when we get back to Shreveport we will pick all this up and press on. As for now, the doc put me on Yaz to keep me regular and to try and decrease my testosterone count.

On the way to work yesterday morning, I was listening to the radio when an amazing song came on... "In Better Hands" by Natalie Grant. Wow! What an amazing message!

"There is hope when my faith runs out, Cause I'm in better hands now"