26 Weeks

How far along? 26 weeks 4 days

Total weight gain/loss: I really don't know cause I haven't stepped on the scale
Baby Comparison: Size of an English hothouse cucumber (those long cucumbers in the grocery store)
Maternity clothes: Wearing them all the time except for at work, thank goodness for scrubs
Stretch Marks:  None yet and I hope it stays that way
Sleeping: Sleeping through the night and trying to sleep on my side
Best Moment this Week: Chris finally felt Carmella move
Baby Movement: Little bits here and there
Food Cravings: No real cravings
Gender: It's a GIRL!!

Belly Button in or out: Belly button still in
What I miss: Bending over to pick something up and being able to get back up with ease
I am looking forward to: Being done with my glucose testing
Milestones:  Baby could live outside the uterus if she had too, but stay baby stay!

 26 Weeks 5 days

Tahoe Baby Shower

Our first baby shower for Carmella was this weekend and it we had a blast.

My sister and mom rented an amazing and beautiful home in Zephyr Heights where they threw us a co-ed shower. The house was breathtaking and had unbelievable views from every room.  Here are a few shots from the deck.

The weather was perfect and so were the guests.

Look who came to the party, Sophia. All grown up and excited to meet her cousin but I must admit she was a little confused when she found out that baby was still in my belly.

Let the shower festivities begin!

Stephen and his Fiance, Whitney flew out to help us celebrate.

And we helped them celebrate their new engagement!

It was great to see some of my oldest girlfriends, Vanessa and Jaime. Truth be told some things never change and that is how much fun I have with these girls. Thanks for coming and helping celebrate our baby girl!

My mother in law, Cindy made the trip out with us and she is so excited to meet her newest grand-daughter.

Everyone spent some time decorating onesies for the baby

and even Sophia joined in the fun.
Now we have lots of one of a kind onesie's.

Next up it was time for some presents, this little girl is already being spoiled by all her family and friends.

And you can't have a party without a cake, yummy.

Look at how cute the animal decor is.

Thank you just doesn't seem like enough. Everyone showered our sweet baby girl with so much love. We're so excited for this next chapter of our lives and we can't wait to share it all with you.

A huge thank you to my mom and sister for all their hard work and putting together a spectacular baby shower for Carmella. We couldn't have asked for anything more, everything was truly perfect. The only thing missing was a picture of us with the best hostesses! Maybe we can cut and paste one?

Love and big thanks to everyone for helping us celebrate the newest addition to the family!

Glucose Test Results

So after stalking my doctors office and hunting down my glucose results. I was informed Friday afternoon on our way to Tahoe for our first baby shower that I failed my first glucose test. Can we just talk about a melt down!!

Let's just say I was 12 points above the normal and I freaked out.  The doctors office has decided to retest me and hopefully the results will be different because I am not really sure I can handle this right now. Truthfully I am not even sure I want to write this blog. Enough said before I break down again, this is so embarrassing!

Glucose Tolerance Test

Ahh yes the infamous Glucose Tolerance Test (GTT). This is a test where they check pregnant woman during weeks 24-28 for gestational diabetes. About 6 weeks ago the American Diabetes Association changed the way they test pregnant women for Gestational diabetes. They used to do preliminary blood work and if you failed you would have to do a four hour glucose test. Well now they have gone straight to a 2 hour glucose tolerance test.

Having assumed they would draw my preliminary blood first, I woke up bright and early Wednesday morning ready to have my blood draw.  Except when I read the lab slip I saw the words fasting and 2 hours. I was stunned so I called the lab and they informed me that I had to be fasting for 10-12 hours and have my blood drawn at one hour increments for two hours. I told the technician that I had better come now because I was starving!

So I headed down to have my blood drawn. It started with a fasting blood draw and then they make you drink 75 g of fruit punch that basically tastes like a flat fruit punch soda.

Then you wait........ the technician told me I had to sit in the waiting room and wait an hour to have my blood drawn again. No drinking water, no moving around and just sit there. Are you serious?? This is going to be a long 2 hours, not to mention I have been fasting for 12 hours. Good thing I brought some magazines to catch up on. I have to say sitting in a lab office watching people come in and have their blood drawn and then walk out is pretty boring. And truthfully who really likes having their blood drawn?

So after my first hour lab draw I was feeling pretty good until I stood up and realized the tech did not apply enough pressure to the puncture site. As a result blood was dripping down my arm onto my yellow tank top. Uh oh!! So after cleaning myself up he gave me permission to go out side and clean the blood off my shirt. I found a nice bench in the sun and the next hour flew by. Finally I had my two hour blood work drawn and I was free to go home. But of course they asked if I was ok to drive home or if I need to call for a ride. I mean seriously a pregnant lady just gives you all her blood and hasn't eaten in over 14 hours and you're just now asking if she is ok. Yeah I am ok to drive just show me the food. So home I went to a yummy lunch!!

And now we wait for the final results. Oh what fun the waiting is!!

25 Weeks

How far along? 25 weeks 2 days

Total weight gain/loss: +13.8
Baby Comparison: Size of an eggplant
Maternity clothes: Yes and I think I am going to need a few more tank tops. (it's going to be a hot summer)
Stretch Marks:  None so far
Sleeping: Using a body pillow and still sleeping through the night
Best Moment this Week: Hasn't happened yet but going to visit my family in Tahoe and celebrating our first baby shower
Baby Movement: She is moving around when I finally sit down
Food Cravings: hmm no real cravings this week, just waking up famished
Gender: It's a GIRL!!

Belly Button in or out: Belly button still in
What I miss: Sliding through small space and not bumping my belly
I am looking forward to: Seeing my family and celebrating Carmella
Milestones:  ????

 25 Weeks 2 days

24 Weeks

How far along? 24 weeks 5 days

Total weight gain/loss: +13 (Doctors scale and numbers say I've gained less than I originally thought)

Baby Comparison: As long as a banana

Maternity clothes: Yes and I bought a cute new outfit this week, so excited
Stretch Marks:  None and I hope it stays that way
Sleeping: Still sleeping through the night and savoring every minute of it!

Best Moment this Week: Hearing baby Carmella's heart beating, strong as ever
Baby Movement: Starting to feel her move around more
Food Cravings: Bacon is my new favorite thing, especially a B.L.T

Gender: It's a GIRL!!

Belly Button in or out: Belly button still in
What I miss: A sharp mind

I am looking forward to: Meeting our daughter and finding a house for our family

Milestones: Doctor says everything is right on target and I have gain less weight than I originally thought!

24 Weeks 5 days

(after a long day at work, ugh!)

Baby Kicks

It's official, this baby is moving. I started to feel more and more movement the last two weeks and her little kicks are getting stronger. At first they would feeling like a little flutter and then like gas bubbles. What is a gas bubble you ask? Well more like the fizzing or popping of something inside my tummy. As baby Carmella continues to grow (she is the length of a banana this week) and spread herself out in her sac of amniotic fluid she is finding it a bit more challenging. I have heard that as the months continue on her tiny little space gets even smaller and turning becomes even harder.

The first time I noticed the movement I was at work and thought maybe I ate something for lunch that didn't agree with me. The next few days I kept feeling these little bubbles and then it occurred to me, this is what it feels like when my baby is moving. Having spent the past few weeks packing up our condo and preparing to move, which has been the most stressful part of my pregnancy so far. I haven't found time to sit down and feel the baby moving, so when I finally did rest the baby would start moving. Now that we're getting settled into our new place I am beginning to feel her move a lot more, which is reassuring since I was worried that all the lifting and moving I did had hurt her in some way. Everything measured perfect at the doctor's appointment this week and her heartbeat is as strong as ever.

It's funny how the baby's most active time is right before bed (of course), as when we finally lie down and turn off the lights she starts up her dance party in utero. One night, I grabbed Chris's hand and held it to my belly, she gave him a few good kicks. But since I was holding his hand so tight be wasn't sure if he as feeling her kick or his own hand pulsing. Not to worry I am sure she will give him plenty more chances to feel her kicking in the future.

So far I am loving feeling our precious little miracle moving all around, keep the kicks coming!

23 Weeks

How far along? 23 weeks 6 days

Total weight gain/loss: +16

Maternity clothes: Enjoying the expanding maternity clothes
Stretch Marks:  No stretch mark

Sleeping: Still sleeping through the night, thank God!

Best Moment this Week: Moving and packing, not the baby but our condo

Baby Movement: I love feeling her move since I have been so busy lately it's nice to know she is along for the ride

Food Cravings: Fruit and frozen yogurt, yum!

Gender: It's a GIRL!!

Belly Button in or out: A bit wider as the tummy grows
What I miss: A sharp mind

I am looking forward to: Feeling her kick and meeting her

Milestones: Moving out of the condo (not about the baby but all for the baby)

23 weeks 6 days

Baby Comparison

Every week I get an email from babycenter.com and they update me on how big the baby has grown and what she is doing this week. I find these emails interesting, especially the part where they compare her to a piece of food. My cousin Justin likes to ask me every time he sees me what size the baby is this week. I hope he doesn't think she will come out looking like a watermelon just because she is the size of one.

Since I have enjoyed these comparisons so much I decided to share them with you so you too can see just how amazing her growth has been.

4 weeks: Baby is the size of a poppy seed
5 weeks:  a sesame seed
6 weeks:  a lentil
7 weeks:  a blueberry
8 weeks:  a kidney bean
9 weeks:  a grape
10 weeks:  a kumquat
11 weeks:  a fig
12 weeks:  a lime
13 weeks:  a medium shrimp
14 weeks:  a lemon
15 weeks:  an apple
16 weeks:  an avocado
17 weeks:  a turnip
18 weeks:  a bell pepper
19 weeks:  an heirloom tomato
20 weeks:  a banana
21 weeks:  a carrot
22 weeks: a spaghetti squash
23 weeks:  a large mango

Pretty amazing to think the baby has grown from a seed to the size of a large mango. Wow when you think of it that way it's pretty incredible how fast she is growing and I have to admit I've been doing a little work too.

22 Weeks

How far along? 22 weeks 4 days

Total weight gain/loss: +15.2

Maternity clothes: Still wearing them and a big thanks to my sister and girlfriends for all their maternity clothes, so far I haven't had to buy any
Stretch Marks:  No stretch marks :)

Sleeping: Finally sleeping in well 9 AM on my days off

Best Moment this Week: Feeling the baby start to move

Baby Movement: I am beginning to feel her do some somersaults in there

Food Cravings: Still loving all fruit

Gender: It's a GIRL!!

Belly Button in or out: In but still getting wider as the tummy gets bigger
What I miss: Bending over to pick something up with ease, who would have ever thought we'd take that for granted.

I am looking forward to: Having Chris and other family member feel her kicking

Milestones: Feeling actual movement from our baby girl

 22 Weeks and 3 Days