Week 16

16 w 6 d

16 w 6 d

Where did the week go?!  Between work and studying for the PE, time seems to fly.  It also helps that I had a dentist, OB, and hair appointment this week, which kept me pretty busy.  I had hoped to make a stop by another daycare for a tour, but I had to work later on Thursday when I had planned on going by the daycare.  Oh well, there's still time.  Most places I've talked to have plenty of openings for January 2012.  Even though I'm taking 3 months off, my family has volunteered to take care of the baby through the end of the year.  It helps that my mom works for a college and has the last two weeks off.  My memaw is also volunteering for several weeks, and she is excited.  When she came into town today, she wanted to go by Hobby Lobby to buy yarn because she is going to crochet while she watches the baby.  It would be really cool if she could knit a blanket - my great grandmother knitted me one when I was an infant.  I was still a baby when she passed away, so I don't have any memories of her, so it's neat that I have the blanket as a keepsake (Mom, if you're reading this, I meant to mention that I want to get this from your house).

Someone remind me to close the closet door next week when I take the weekly progress photo...

How far along?: 16 weeks 6 days
How big is baby?: According to What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Started the week as the size of a Avocado and about to be a Onion.

Weight gain?: No gain this week. Total gain is 9lbs.

Stretch marks?: No
Maternity clothes?: I wore maternity pants practically all week, except Monday.  I did find some jeans that are below the belly and has belt loops!  I was able to wear my shirt tucked in and with a belt!  Woohoo.  Thank you Old Navy.  Since the jeans fit so well, my mom ended up buying me another pair of jeans and a pair of khakis.  I'm so excited for these jeans...eventually, I'll need some longer shirts.
Sleep?: I am sleeping very well.  In fact, too well.  I don't hear my alarm or remember turning off my alarm for several snoozes.  I can still sleep comfortably on my stomach.  This week, my dog did not try to steal my body pillow - I guess she learned it was mine!
Best moment this week?: There were plenty of moments!

• At the 16 week appointment, I found out AJ's blood type is O-; we have the same blood type (0.5% chance of two people both having O-).  This means I won't have to receive the Rhogam shot at 28 weeks.  All of our offspring will be universal donors - hopefully they'll take after me and not have an issue with having their blood drawn.  In addition to finding out the blood type, the anatomy scan was scheduled for April 19th!
• At work, the site superintendent gave me a parking spot upfront.  I am very thankful for the spot, and I'm sure when July and August roll around, I will enjoy it that much more.
• AJ assisted the sheriff's department in finding and arresting the people who broke into his work truck and many more vehicles. 
• My grandparents came to town, and I was able to take a quick break from studying to eat lunch with them.  They also placed their bets on the baby (Gender, weight, length, date of birth, and time of birth)

Worst moment this week?: Going to the dentist.  I had some cavities from childhood that were failing and needed to be refilled.  I am not a fan of the dentist because of an incident that happened while my orthodontist was installing my braces - let's just say that lots of pain and blood was involved.  Anyway, I don't like people messing around in my mouth, but I've learned to trust my dentist.  The part that was so bad about the cavity filling was that I could smell everything so well.  The gloves they were wearing smelled like a strong bubblegum flavor mixed with burnt plastic.  Then when they were drilling out the old filling and preparing the tooth, I could smell burnt metal.  I wish the dentist would let me fall asleep (and I could have!) so I didn't have to smell everything.  It's disgusting - if you're thinking about getting pregnant, get those cavities filled now.  The worst part is due to me being pregnant, they can only do so much work, so I have to return for more filling. UGH.
Food cravings?: None this week. 
Symptoms?: None.

Exercise?: 4 days of weight lifting.  My tennis partner was out of town, and then it rained on Saturday.
Gender?: Hopefully we'll know April 19th!!
Movement?: I feel some occasionally, but it's not consistent
Belly button?: Still an innie, but as mentioned previously, less of innie - shallower

What I miss?: I would say chocolate cake, but that would be a lie because some of the guys at work brought in chocolate cupcakes which made me want more chocolate cake.  Let's just say that I gave in - but hey, no weight gain, so it's all good.

Labor signs?: too early!
What I'm looking forward to?: Less than 2 weeks until I take the PE!  My sister's birthday is on the day of the PE, but she's coming into town next Saturday, and I will see her for a dinner, so I'm looking forward to that.

Shooting Range

You know what good stress relief is?  Going to the shooting range, taking a .22 pistol, and going through half a large box of ammo.  Taking out frustration on paper targets all while keying in your shooting precision.

Well, not while you're pregnant, unless you're law enforcement and need to complete your qualifying exam. 

I was talking to a friend recently about going to the shooting range - we were going to go early on a Saturday morning, but the range didn't open early enough.  She asked if shooting while pregnant was safe.  I didn't know, but I didn't feel the lead exposure would be that severe to create an issue if I took preventative measures.  However, I decided to search the wonderful internet for more information. 

Thank you, Google, for bringing it to my attention that not only is lead a concern, but so is NOISE.  Of course, I wear hearing protection, but the baby does not.  The baby can respond to noise as early as 16 weeks; the ears are structurally complete at 24 weeks.  Since I have had ear troubles as a kid (not as a result of my mom going to a shooting range), there's no way I would want to take this risk while pregnant.  My mom also had similar ear troubles, so who knows if my inner ear troubles were genetic or a development/growth issue.   There's no way I would want to increase the possibility of my child having hearing issues, not when I can prevent it!

So this is what I found out:

• Use lead free ammo
• Shoot outdoors
• Wear a respirator
• Minimize the number of rounds you shoot
• Don't eat or drink 1 hour after shooting
• Use a silencer when possible
• Wear heavy clothing or soft body armor covering the abdomen
• Wash hands

There's a study I was reading that observed lambs to test the noise factor, and what they found was the fetus was not significantly protected against loud noises.  Additional studies found that there was hearing loss in babies.

This forum actually has a similar summary (actually longer), with references that authors used related to the studies conducted. Shotgun World

So as far as stress relief goes - I guess I'll stick with working out.  Playing tennis in the warm sunshine helps a lot, and I can find suitable substitutes as necessary.  I was definitely looking forward to a shooting range trip after I finish my PE Exam in early April, but I guess I'll just stick with making truffles for my sister's wedding!

Week 15

15 w 6 d

Welcome Spring!  I love the warm weather and sunshine.  I was outside a lot this week despite having a lot of studying to do.  The weather definitely helped my motivation to study since I really enjoyed my breaks in the sun.  Luckily, the daylight savings time really didn't affect me.  The first night, it was hard to fall asleep, but I quickly returned to my normal pattern and had no issues getting up in the morning.  I was able to stay up until 10 PM on Friday, which I can't normally manage to do...usually I'm calling it at night before it's 9PM.



How far along?: 15 weeks 6 days
How big is baby?: According to What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Started the week as the size of a Naval Orange and about to be a Avocado.
Weight gain?: Gained about 1 lb this week! Total gain is 9lbs.
Stretch marks?: No
Maternity clothes?: Started wearing some maternity pants!  I wore below the belly jeans, which sadly don't accommodate a belt and casual khaki pants with the full panel, which meant no shirt tucking. :(  When I wore the khaki pants, numerous people pointed out the untucked shirt!...as if I need a reminder.  I'll try to get past it because eventually I will have to, but it's difficult.  I did try using the panel to roll down and hold the shirt in a tucked like appearance, but it didn't work out.
Sleep?: No issues sleeping, though one of my dogs thinks the body pillow is meant for her.  Still sleeping on my stomach.
Best moment this week?: Just the great weather!  Being outside walking the dogs and playing tennis was awesome.
Worst moment this week?: Some jerk broke into AJ's truck.  Not a fun morning for him, and it sucks cancelling credit and bank cards only to wait for their replacements to come in the mail.
Food cravings?: Pickles and gummy candies.
Symptoms?: None.
Exercise?: 3 days of tennis and 3 days of weight lifting.  Great week!
Gender?: Too early to tell
Movement?: I feel some occasionally, but it's not consistent
Belly button?: Still an innie, but as mentioned previously, less of innie - shallower
What I miss?: The taste of diet pepsi!  I had a dream this week that I was at the movie theatre buying popcorn, and concessions was selling fountain caffeine free diet pepsi!  I was so excited, but every time I told the guy taking my order what I wanted, he couldn't hear or understand me.  So, I left without a drink. :(
Labor signs?: too early!
What I'm looking forward to?: Less than 3 weeks until I take the PE.  So I'm looking forward to having my time back!  It's been almost 3 years since I have been able to not crack a book and study - started my Masters in the Fall of 2008.  I also have another OB appointment coming up this week, so I look forward to it, too.

Week 14

Weeks are passing quickly!  I contribute the feeling of time flying by due to constantly studying for the PE...less than 4 weeks.  I'm sure time will feel like it slows down after I get past this exam and my sister's wedding, but only time will tell. :)



How far along?: 14 weeks 6 days
How big is baby?: According to What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Started the week as the size of a Lemon and about to be a Naval Orange.
Weight gain?: Another 1.5 pounds gained! Total gain is 8lbs.
Stretch marks?: No
Maternity clothes?: Still wearing my regular clothes, though mom did buy me some maternity jeans, khaki pants, and shirts.  I wore one of the shirts on Friday - it's a long orange polo and I needed orange on Friday (Go Tigers!)  But the length of the shirt was not needed, yet.  I've completely given up on wearing belts, which I hate the look of a beltless pair of jeans, but oh well.
Sleep?: Sleep is still great, and I can still sleep on my stomach.
Best moment this week?: Feeling the baby "flutter kicking" earlier this weekend.  The movement isn't every day, but when I do feel it, it's an awesome experience.  I practically stop what I'm doing and enjoy the moment.
Worst moment this week?: My dogs go into a fight when no one was home.  It wasn't too bad, but they were limping around at night and not eating their dinner.  One of them drank so much water the next morning, her breakfast came back up.  I've been babying them ever since, esp. the dog who is still limping - though she could be faking it for attention because I catch running around in the yard!
Food cravings?: Mac & Cheese...and pickles.  I have at least two pickles a day.  YUM.
Symptoms?: None.
Exercise?: Routine continues.  With the warm weather, I hope to maintain playing tennis. 

Gender?: Still to early to tell
Movement?: Felt some, but it's not every day
Belly button?: Still in, though it seems shallower.  Less of an innie, but still an innie.
What I miss?: With warm weather and yard work upcoming, I'm sure I'll miss being able to have an ice cold Bud Light.
Labor signs?: too early!
What I'm looking forward to?: Being done with studying!!! 

Movement!

So I felt an odd movement in my lower abdomen on the left hand side.  I was pressing up against my desk, and I thought it was due to the large construction equipment moving around outside.  However, the equipment stopped moving, and I still felt the movement.  Then it disappeared.  My second thought - gas.  But there was none (yeah, TMI, but what did you expect?!).  Then the movement began again - it felt like a quick fluttering; I picture someone doing flutter kicks on his/her back.

So the fluttering would quit and then pick back up again.  It would stop all together and resume hours later.  I quickly researched if it was possible to feel movement this early on, especially first time moms.  The answer I found was that it is possible to feel movement!  So I feel confident that I felt the baby fluttering around.  The movement was so awesome,and it made my day.  Once I realized what was going on, I had a big smile on my face...though it was a distraction from work when the fluttering would occur.

Week 13

Yay for the second trimester!  I've been told it's the best of the trimesters, so here's to enjoying the next 13 weeks and 3 days.  From a personal perspective, there's a lot going on in the 2nd trimester.  I take the PE Exam April 8th, my sister gets married April 16th, I turn 28, and I'm going to the Beaufort Airshow April 30th.  Who knows what May has in store - Clemson baseball game?  In addition, we hope to find out the gender of Baby Bowers in late April.

In other news, I sold the Harley.  I was sad to see it go since I enjoyed it so much, but I knew I wasn't going to ride it until after the baby was born, and I most likely wouldn't have had time to ride, anyways.  It wouldn't be good for the Harley to sit idle for months and months - tires rot, battery wears down, gas breaks down, etc.  So I was happy to find a new owner - his first Harely - so I'm hoping he enjoys the heck out of it.

How far along?: 13 weeks 6 days
How big is baby?: According to What to Expect When You’re Expecting: Started the week as the size of a Peach and about to be a Lemon.
Weight gain?: Hello 2nd trimester and weight gain!  It's like my body knew the second trimester was here, and on Wednesday, my weight shot up 1.5 lbs, which is roughly what I am suppose to gain each week during the 2nd trimester.  So make that 6.5 lbs total!  So I know most people look at my weekly picture and think, no way does she even have a bump, but that 6.5 lbs went somewhere.  My pants still fit the same, my boobs haven't grown, and my stomach is no longer flat.  Yes, to most people, there's nothing noticeable, but if you knew my stomach beforehand, you would definitely see the difference!
Stretch marks?: No
Maternity clothes?: Still wearing my regular clothes
Sleep?: No issues with sleeping, or sleeping too much.  Though my dogs don't let me sleep in.
Best moment this week?: I used my Doppler and easily found the Heartbeat - the baby was holding steady at 160 BPM.  In addition, selling the Harley relieved some stress.
Worst moment this week?: My favorite college team losing to its rival in baseball. 
Food cravings?: Seafood!  I still have not been able to satisfy my catfish craving, but I think I'll get the opportunity soon.
Symptoms?: Nonexistent.
Exercise?: Continued with the normal routine and was able to play tennis again this week.  This time, though, my  knees weren't aching afterwards thanks to the new orthotics. 

Gender?: Still to early to tell
Movement?: Nope, still too early
Belly button?: Still in
What I miss?: Nothing that comes to mind right now.
Labor signs?: too early!
What I'm looking forward to?: Looking forward to April - lots of good things happening that month.