17 weeks!

How far along? 17 weeks

Baby is the size of an: Onion, about 5 inches long and 5 ounces 

Total weight gain: 8.5 pounds! Eeek! But totally within normal range at this point. 

Stretch marks? Just the one on my boob!

Maternity clothes? I'm wearing my belly band on a daily basis and it's getting pretty annoying. My pants are starting to fit a little too snug even with the band, so it's definitely time for some comfy maternity pants! 

Sleep: Still only getting up once to go pee, but tossing and turning so much that my sleep is getting interrupted from changing positions so much. 

Best moment this week: Finding out the gender! I'll write more down below! 

Miss anything? My favorite beer.... Dos Equis. Soon enough.... 

Food cravings: Nothing new this week! Just hungry all the damn time.

Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope! 

Gender: BOY!!!!! 

Labor signs: Hopefully not for a very long time! 

Symptoms: Peeing and hungry all the time, gassy, occasional headaches which are probably work related- not baby related, I've started getting sharp jabbing pains in my lower abdomen. Like low low pelvic area. Use your imagination. They hurt and pretty much stop me in my tracks. The nurse practitioner at my OB GYN's office didn't seem too concerned by them and just said to drink more water, which I already drink a ton of, and to get a belly support belt. 

Belly button in or out?  In.

Wedding rings on or off: On.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy.... And my sassyness has gone up a notch this week. Baby is giving me less of a filter this week. 

Looking forward to: Feeling movement! 

This was the most exciting week yet. Last Friday we had our 3D/4D ultrasound done and found out we're having a boy!!! Our parents, my sister and brother in law all went with us and because Chris' brother and fiancé are in Texas, we face timed them so they could find out with us! As soon as his goods showed up on the screen I blurted out, "It's a Boy!!" I instantly started crying. It was so emotional and amazing to know what our little miracle is. We've had a boy name picked out for years so it wasn't hard to figure out what his name was going to be. It's nice to finally call baby by his name, Caleb, rather than 'it' or 'baby', although I still catch myself reverting back to those. 

After the ultrasound we all went to lunch and then to Buy Buy Baby to do some browsing. Naturally, Chris and I had to buy something..... So we splurged and bought a 4Moms Mommaroo. It's amazing and I wish they made one for adults! 

We also had a prenatal appointment this week, where we met with the nurse practitioner because my OB GYN wasn't in. She was very thorough and went through quite a bit of information with us. We heard Caleb's heartbeat and it was a strong 148 bpm. I've gained a total of 8.5 pounds so far, which is totally within the normal range of 5-10 pounds by this point. I try to eat as healthy as I can, but sometimes Caleb wants a Veggie Works burrito from Del Taco and that's what he gets. Meat or leftovers don't always sound the greatest. I'm drinking well over 72 ounces of water a day and peeing all the time as a result. Sometimes I can't get enough ice cold water. 

At our appointment, we got our orders for the anatomy ultrasound and fetal echocardiogram. The anatomy ultrasound will be February 20th and should take about an hour. Our fetal echocardiogram is scheduled for March 3rd and will take about 2 hours. They're going to monitor and look in depth at Caleb's heart to check for any abnormalities. According to Dr. Norian and my OB GYN, babies conceived via IVF have a slightly higher risk of heart abnormalities and no one really knows why. 

Chris and I are such planners that we've already started working on the nursery. We have paint picked out and a basic idea of what color schemes we're going to use to decorate. I'm not set on a theme and don't really want one. I'm not into super baby themed nurseries with animals, planes or trucks. So we'll see what we come up with and what the final outcome will be!

 

By the way, my belly feels large and in charge this week. Caleb is definitely making his presence known and growing! I still haven't felt any movement yet though! 

Alissha