22 Weeks

Can you spy a photo bomber? ;)

How far along: 22 weeks
Total weight gain: Five pounds. I find that it's easier and easier to gain weight...and for some reason my shirts are starting to get really tight. Hmm...
Maternity clothes: I have everything I need! John did buy me a cute maxi dress though. It's super comfy and I think I've already worn it like 5 times even though I've only had it for a couple of weeks.
Stretch marks: Just the same few on my sides. I recently read an article that said there's nothing you can really do prevent stretch marks, but I'm still trying. Cocoa butter for the win!
Sleep: Still doing OK with sleeping, though I do wake up more frequently during the night. I also wake up sore sometimes.
Best moment of this week: The holidays! We had such a great Christmas and New Year's with family and friends. We also both got a few days off work and that was really nice to just spend time together.
Miss anything: Nothing really this week.
Movement: Every day! John has yet to feel anything. That's going to be the next exciting milestone!
Food cravings: Nothing really. I'll eat pretty much anything.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope, not for many weeks now. Hallelujah!
Have you started to show yet: Oh yeah. Sometimes I forget that I am and when I look in the mirror I'm surprised.
Gender: BOY!!!
Labor signs: Nope. Way too early.
Belly button in or out: In. Let's hope it stays that way for a while, haha.
Wedding rings on or off: On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I feel like my emotions have leveled out over the last couple of weeks. Hmm...I'll have to ask John, but I'd say I'm mostly happy.
Looking forward to: Going on our "babymoon" to the Park City area! Yay! (Another post to follow on that)

Oh boy! It's a BOY!

On Dec. 23, we found out we are having a BOY! John wanted a boy all along, and I didn't really have a preference, so it's safe to say we are both ecstatic! Of course, we would have been ecstatic if it was a girl too! Anyway, we waited until Christmas Eve/Day to announce the gender to our family and friends, and did so with a cute pic of my belly in front of the tree (below). We also took a present to both of our parents for them to open on Christmas that revealed it was a boy with some blue mints and blue baby rattles. It was a lot of fun! We are going to be naming him John Edward Jr., "Johnie" for short. We can't wait to meet him in May! 

 

Couldn't resist getting him his own stocking for Christmas next year!

A cute little profile shot from our 20 week ultrasound.

20 Weeks (Halfway there!)

How far along: 20 weeks
Total weight gain: Three pounds. I am starting to feel quite round. But I'm only halfway there!
Maternity clothes: I have everything I need as far as maternity clothes go. I have a few pairs of pants for weekend/work, two dresses and a few shirts that work for the office or weekends.
Stretch marks: I've started to notice some slight ones on my sides. Yay for stretch marks...
Sleep: Still doing OK with sleeping, especially because John gave me one of my Christmas presents early. He got me a pregnancy pillow and it's so nice. It really does help me to sleep because it supports my back and belly.
Best moment of this week: I finally felt the baby move for sure! I have been feeling little flutters/bubbles for a week or two now, but I wasn't sure if it was the baby. On Friday, I know I felt baby for sure!
Miss anything: Nothing in particular. We did go out to a sushi restaurant and I couldn't get my favorite roll. I guess I missed being able to eat it.
Movement: See above. Finally! It's so weird, but cool at the same time.
Food cravings: Nothing much this week. I have eaten a variety of stuff and have been feeling pretty good with all foods/smells.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. It's so nice to finally be over that feeling!
Have you started to show yet: Yes, for sure. I feel like my belly is huge, but I know I have a LONG way to go before I'm done.
Gender: We find out Dec. 23. That's only 2 days away! Eeek!
Labor signs: Nope. Way too early.
Belly button in or out: In. Let's hope it stays that way for a while, haha.
Wedding rings on or off: On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I am emotional. I can't help it. I'm mostly happy, but we've had a rough week this last week. Someone went on a spending spree with our debit card and we have had to do several repairs to my car, which are two things that really suck right before Christmas.
Looking forward to: Finding out if we're having a boy/girl on Dec. 23!

18 Weeks

How far along: 18 weeks
Total weight gain: Two pounds. It is amazing how fast the weight starts to come on all of a sudden. I went from gaining nothing to a pound a week in the last two weeks. Is that normal?
Maternity clothes: John bought me the dress in the picture above. I love it! I needed it for work events and our friends' wedding and any other nice things that come up between now and baby.
Stretch marks: None yet, but my belly is getting pretty round.
Sleep: I am finally back to being able to sleep normally after having a cold that lasted 2 weeks. I'm enjoying every minute of it, because I hear eventually it's going to get harder and harder to sleep comfortably.
Best moment of this week: Well, it's still early in the week, so I'm hoping my best moment will be feeling baby move for the first time.
Miss anything: Not really this week. I find that I really enjoy being pregnant, even though there are some aches and pains!
Movement: See above. Still nothing. Hoping for something this week!
Food cravings: Nothing weird. I still drink a lot of juice.
Anything making you queasy or sick: I have felt queasy a couple of nights in the last week or so, but when I go to bed it goes away by morning.
Have you started to show yet: Yep. I even had an acquaintance, who didn't have any idea that I was pregnant, ask me today if I was expecting. I guess it's finally obvious to the world now.
Gender: We find out Dec. 23. I started a fun online poll for close friends/family instead of doing a gender reveal party. Right now it's split about 50-50 between people who think it's a boy and people who think it's a girl.
Labor signs: Nope. Way too early.
Belly button in or out: In. Let's hope it stays that way for a while, haha.
Wedding rings on or off: On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I think I'm still pretty happy, but again, I do find myself crying at weird stuff...even NFL commercials. What's up with that?
Looking forward to: Finding out if we're having a boy/girl on Dec. 23!

16 Weeks

Keep in mind this was taken right after I had Thanksgiving dinner ;)

How far along: 16 weeks
Total weight gain: I've officially gained my first pound! I have been trying to eat really healthy (with the exception of Thanksgiving), so I think that's really helped to keep the weight gain low.
Maternity clothes: I ordered a couple of things online from Gap, including a pair of maternity jeans and the dress I'm wearing in the pic! I didn't really need them yet, but they were on sale! If you know me, I can't ever pass up a good sale! ;)
Stretch marks: None yet, but my belly is getting pretty round. Any day now...but hopefully not!
Sleep: I had a cold for a week and that really messed with my sleep.
Best moment of this week: Going to my doctor's appointment and hearing the heartbeat (a healthy 151!) and spending Thanksgiving weekend with the family!
Miss anything: Not being able to take meds while sick. That really sucked.
Movement: Nothing yet. I'm starting to get impatient. I want to feel something!
Food cravings: I've gotten a lot better about food. I'll eat pretty much anything, though some things I used to love don't taste as good (like chocolate), while other things I used to not care for taste really good (like orange juice). I've also been eating a lot of guacamole. I guess that's a craving.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing really. While I was sick when I was coughing sometimes I'd feel queasy right after but no barfing occurred. Whew!
Have you started to show yet: Yep, I think around 15-16 weeks is when my belly officially popped.
Gender: We find out Dec. 23! Eek! According to a tarot reading from my Aunt Kara, it's a boy.
Labor signs: Nope. Way too early.
Belly button in or out: In. Let's hope it stays that way for a while, haha.
Wedding rings on or off: On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I've been pretty steady with my emotions, though I think John would say I've been harder to live with. I do cry at commercials now though, which is really weird. They don't even have to be that sentimental...but man those holiday ones get me going!
Looking forward to: Finding out if we're having a boy/girl on Dec. 23 and celebrating our last Christmas season just the two of us.

 

John and I at the Zermatt after our Thanksgiving feast with his parents. I'm so
grateful for all our blessings, especially the fact that we get to be parents soon!

 

14 Weeks

I should get this dressed up for every bump shot!

How far along: 14 weeks
Total weight gain: None. I made it through the first trimester without gaining anything, but we'll see how long it lasts. My appetite is starting to come back!
Maternity clothes: Still none. I'm putting this off as long as I can.
Stretch marks: None yet, but I won't be surprised if they show up soon.
Sleep: Still pretty good, but I have been waking up about once a night for no reason. At least I can always go back to sleep.
Best moment of this week: Going to a black tie event with John for an event I was covering for work (see post below). It was a really fun and romantic date for us!
Miss anything: My appetite, having a day without nausea
Movement: Nothing yet, but I can't wait to feel something!
Food cravings: This last weekend I was going to kill someone if I didn't get chicken fried steak with country gravy. It took all day to convince John that I needed it, but he finally took me out to get it. The whole Madison clan joined us. It was fun.
Anything making you queasy or sick: I was actually telling John the other day that I was starting to feel better, but then I threw up in the middle of eating dinner. So apparently, I'm not over it yet.
Have you started to show yet: Yeah, I still think I just look bloated, but my pants are getting tight!
Gender: We won't know until the week before Christmas. Everyone keeps guessing boy though.
Labor signs: Nope. Way too early.
Belly button in or out: In. Let's hope it stays that way for a while, haha.
Wedding rings on or off: On.
Happy or moody most of the time: I've been happy, except for the day when I needed chicken fried steak. I had a bit of a conniption fit.
Looking forward to: This weekend we are finally going to clean out our storage room so that we can start moving things from our guest room into it so that we can convert the guest room into a nursery. I'm excited to get that project done! We've put it off for too long.

And, just for fun, here's my Halloween "costume":

A Black Tie Affair (AKA Adult Prom)

Last weekend John and I got to get all dressed up and go to a black tie event I was covering for work. We had such a great time! John put on his suit and I put on a fancy dress and even got my hair done for the occasion...it was so much fun, and totally felt like we were getting ready for the prom! We went to the Grand America downtown and enjoyed a nice dinner, program and fun after party (though we didn't make it past 10 p.m. -- it's hard to stay up late when you're growing a baby!). Pictures below of our fun night!!

The Grand America grounds were beautiful. We had fun taking some Prom-inspired pics outside.

At the after party! Lots of tasty beverages (John with a martini and
me with ginger lemonade) and appetizers were served.

I think John was chewing in this picture...haha