The first nursery purchase!

I really liked the Ikea Stockholm Rand Rug I shared with you all, that is {possibly} due back in stock in April. However, I wanted a back-up plan. I am really digging the Chevron rugs I found while searching around for other black & white rugs.

 

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Chevron rug in a nursery 

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I have been searching around for a decent Chevron rug and they have all been pricey or sold out or had terrible reviews. And then I went to Rugs USA yesterday and they are having a sale on the Milliken Black and White Vibe Techno Rug! I purchased the 7'8 x 10'9. It will cover almost the entire floor which is perfect for a nursery with tile floors. I can't wait to see it in there :)

xoxo,
Megan

Gender guesses and Antibiotics

Just a random list of some pregnancy adventures :)

• We started a list at work so everyone could guess the baby's gender. Right now it's Boy 9, Girl 5. We should know for certain on February 6th. I can't wait! We also scheduled our anatomy scan for March 2nd.

•  My first urine culture came back positive with bacteria. I thought I may have contaminated the sample {I didn't see the signs regarding prep}, so I had a repeat done. There was still bacteria, so they think I have a very minor bladder infection. I am on 2,000mg of Penicillin for 7 days. Fingers crossed I am clear at my next appointment.
• I had my first crazy pregnant lady meltdown. Over a sandwich. I never thought it would happen to me, but it did. Nick went on a bike ride last night. He left at around 5:15pm, and the place he rides is an hour away in traffic. He told me they were going to our favorite sandwich place afterwards. He offered to bring me back a sandwich, but I declined. I was pretty hungry and I knew I couldn't wait. I tried to eat a bean burrito and almost threw up. I tried chips, same thing. Ugh. All I could think about was my favorite Fender Club sandwich. By 7pm I realized that I needed it and I text Nick my order. I didn't hear back so I called him. No answer. Crap, he must still be on the bike ride :/ He called me back at 8pm. At that point, I thought I was going to die if I did not have that sandwich right that minute! I asked where he was and he said he had just finished the ride. Commence freak out. I was whining and complaining and begging him to get his food to go, asking him what took so long. He said he still needed to eat, drop off his cousin and get home, and that he wouldn't be home until around 9:30pm! At that point I lost it and practically yelled at him "Fine. Whatever. Bye" and hung up. Poor Nick LOL. Then I cried. I cried over a freakin' sandwich! My stomach was going crazy by the time Nick arrived home at almost exactly 9:30pm. I have never eaten that fast in my life! It was so good. Meat is a part of my life again; that turkey and capicolla on the sandwich tasted so good. I apologized to Nick and explained that pregnancy cravings make you crazy. He just laughed at me. I love that man.
• We received the first trimester b/w results back and everything was negative. Our risk for Down Syndrome was 1 in 10,000 and our risk for trisomy 18 was 1 in 100,000. The other prenatal b/w I did came back great and I am not a carrier for Cystic Fibrosis. We are so thrilled that everything looks good so far. We have more b/w next month to look for markers in the second trimester.
• I am enjoying this pregnancy so much now. My fears and worries have lessened considerably. I am beginning to look pregnant and hopefully soon I will feel movement. I love this baby with every ounce of my being. It's such an incredible feeling.

xoxo,
Megan

13 weeks

No more weekly ultrasounds with the RE :( I will miss those.
I will start bump photos next week instead.

How far along: 13 weeks. Some websites say I am in the second trimester now and some say this is my last week in the first trimester. Regardless, time feels like it's flying right now!

Total weight gain/loss: None
How big is Baby: Baby is about the size of a peach, or 2.9 inches long!
Maternity Clothes: Yes! I love them! My pre-pregnancy shirts still fit, but I am in maternity pants only. My Old Navy stuff should be here tomorrow.

Sleep: Sleep is good. I do wake up on my back and it's uncomfortable. I think I am going to buy this body pillow and see if it helps.

Movement: Not yet. I can't wait! The u/s tech told me that I have a posterior placenta and should really be able to feel baby once he starts moving :) From what I have read, most women begin to feel baby move between week 16 and 25.

Food cravings: Fish tacos {in limited amounts of course}, granola bars, cereal, soup, salads, bread, Sour Patch Kids, smoothies, waffles, peanut butter & honey sandwiches, bean & cheese burritos, tortilla chips, and rice.
Food aversions: Meat {chicken, pork & beef}

Gender: We are 90% sure baby is a BOY! I scheduled a gender scan for February 6th to confirm.

Symptoms: Nausea and dry heaving/gagging. Fatigue. Round Ligament Pain.

Best moment this week: The NT scan was amazing. It's also been so fun to see how excited Nick is about this baby. He is going to be an amazing Dad.
What I am looking forward to: Confirming baby is a boy in two weeks.

Today is the Chinese New Year. Happy New Year! This weekend is the Tet Festival. I always look forward to it, and now I am especially excited to share this part of our baby's culture with him {Nick's momma is Vietnamese}. This year is a good year to be born too; it's the Chinese year of the Dragon. Pretty exciting stuff for our little boy :)

Bump Photos

Here is my collection of belly shots, per Denay's request ;) I just noticed that I am wearing stripes in every photo. I guess I love stripes!

4 weeks

8 weeks

11 weeks

12 weeks

NT Scan

Our scan was amazing! Our u/s tech explained exactly what we were seeing, and she was wonderful and so nice too. We got some great views of baby. We were able to see the face, nose, mouth, both hemispheres of the brain, arms and legs, hands and feet, the heart pumping away, the umbilical cord .......

.... and boy parts!!!!!!!!!!! I am so thrilled, as I have been hoping for a boy. I know it's VERY early, but there was no denying what we saw. The u/s tech was 90% sure that Baby B is a boy. Her words: I would bet money on it. I saw it first and said "baby is a boy, huh?!" Even though it's not certain, I feel 99% sure it's a boy :) She did tell us we shouldn't run out and buy every boy thing in sight hehe. However, we need to start going through boy names and get a list going of our favorites. The most important thing is that our baby looked perfect and there were no markers for any abnormalities.

I got very emotional toward the end of the ultrasound and shed some tears. It was just so overwhelming to be looking at our baby. A tiny human being that we are responsible for, that we will love and cherish, and kiss all over :) I am so happy and so incredibly thankful for these moments.

Legs and feet

Here is the money shot. See what I mean?! It's hard to deny baby is a boy ;)

xoxo,
Megan

12 weeks. We graduated!

No u/s photo today. Baby was too big for a good view. Dr. A said it was a good thing this was our last appointment with him because baby has outgrown their equipment :)

Hopefully we will get some good views at the NT scan on Friday.

How far along: 12w1d

Total weight gain/loss: None
How big is Baby: Baby is about the size of a plum! {57.8 mm}
Maternity Clothes: I bought my first maternity pants and shirt :) What have I been waiting for?! Maternity clothes are so comfortable. I bought a Liz Lange maternity shirt and dress pants from Target, plus a pair of jeans from Gap that were 30% off. Score! I also ordered yoga pants, lounge pants, several tops, two dresses and a pair of skinny's from Old Navy Maternity. There was a sale I couldn't pass up :)

Sleep: Sleep is good. Some nights I wake up to round ligament pain.

Movement: Not yet. I can't wait!

Food cravings: Fish tacos {in limited amounts of course}, granola bars, cereal, soup, salad, bread, Sour Patch Kids, smoothies, waffles, peanut butter & honey sandwiches, bean & cheese burritos, tortilla chips, and rice.
Food aversions: Meat

Gender: We are going to do an elective gender scan. I need to call and schedule the scan for around 15 weeks. We are so excited to find out!

Symptoms: Nausea and dry heaving, but it's beginning to subside. As long as I keep eating all day long, I feel pretty good. Fatigue. Emotional. Round Ligament Pain.

Best moment this week: Graduating from the RE. I can't believe we have made it this far. I never dreamed we would!
What I am looking forward to: The NT scan on Friday. I love seeing baby :)

Funny/strange side story: I am still having crazy vivid dreams.  The other night I had a dream {or a nightmare?!} that a woman I did not know, but was apparently related to me, handed me my baby girl. Somehow I missed the birth and this was the first time I was seeing my newborn. Except she was the size of a two year old! And she had the same dyed red bob hairstyle as the woman who handed her to me. I carried her around and out into our backyard, where Apollo was swimming in a giant pond. I introduced them and that was the end of the dream. So weird! I guess hormones can really mess with your subconscious.

Ciao, Au Revoir, Adios

Remember my sister? My beautiful younger sister :) She is leaving next week on a huge trip to Asia! She is exploring several countries and volunteering along the way. She won't be back until May. I am so incredibly happy for her. I know she is going to have an amazing time and do wonderful things. But I am also sad, mostly for selfish reasons. I will miss seeing her every day. I am going to be a mess when I say goodbye. We will stay in touch via FaceTime, so I can hear about her travels and she can see how big the bump is getting.

It's so crazy how different both of our lives are at this moment; she is quitting her job to travel the world and I am cooking a baby. Crazy, crazy.

I love you Sissy!

xoxo,
Megan

The Great Rug Hunt

So remember that IKEA Stockholm Rand rug I posted about in the nursery inspiration? I can't stop thinking about it! I just love it and think it would be perfect for the room. We have tile floors so we will have some kind of rug in there.

It is out of stock all across the United States. I even checked Canada LOL. I decided to email IKEA to see if they know when it will be back in stock. They replied super quick! Yay for good customer service. They said they are having a delay with their suppliers and they don't expect it back in stock until early April. Well, at least it's coming back! I can see my crazy pregnant ass waiting for the store to open the day it's back in stock :)

Isn't she a beauty?!

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11 weeks. And a video :)

Today was the most amazing day ever!!! Our little baby was bouncing all around, stretching, waving it's arms and kicking it's legs. I cannot even explain in words how it felt watching that! It was so, so amazing.

11 week ultrasound video

How far along: 11w, measuring 11w3d.

Total weight gain/loss: None
How big is Baby: Baby is about the size of a lime! {46.9mm}
Maternity Clothes: I am wearing bigger/baggier shirts as much as possible. I am using the rubber band method & the BeBand on my skinny jeans, or I wear my one bigger pair of jeans. It's almost time to go shopping for some maternity clothes!

Sleep: I am sleeping well. I get very tired by 8pm. I typically wake up once at 3 or 4am.

Movement: Not yet. I can't wait!

Food cravings: A new addition - fish! {in limited amounts of course}, soup, salad, bread, Sour Patch Kids, smoothies, waffles, peanut butter & honey sandwiches, bean & cheese burritos, tortilla chips, and rice.
Food aversions: Meat

Gender: We want to do an elective gender scan. I am going to call and schedule the scan this week for February. We are so excited to find out!

Symptoms: Nausea in the evenings, but I can tell it's getting better. I am not dry heaving nearly as much. As long as I keep eating all day long, I feel pretty good. Fatigue. Emotional. Headaches. Vivid dreams.

Best moment this week: Definitely today's ultrasound! Not much can top that right now :)
What I am looking forward to: Graduating from the RE next Tuesday, and the NT scan next Friday.

Nursery Inspiration

I am SO excited about the nursery :) I am keeping everything fairly gender neutral. I can adjust the accent colors to be more boyish or more girly, once we find out baby's gender. I am not a fan of boy nursery's being all blue or girl's having all pink. I like yellows, oranges, and greens.

I love soft gray walls, with bright accent pieces.

My favorite dresser. You can add fun knobs in any color.

I am not set on any particular furniture just yet, but I tend to like white cribs & dressers.

Bright & cheery accents. 

I also like black & white stripes.

I really, really want this Stockholm Rand rug from IKEA, but it's sold out everywhere :( And I cannot find anything like it.

Animals are a must. We have been leaning toward a semi-Safari theme. My best friend gave us this Soothing Sounds giraffe from Pottery Barn Kids. Isn't he adorable?!

Love these bright colors & the animal print collage.

Elephant & giraffe crib mobile.

I want a big, cozy, high-backed rocker/glider.

I have a favorite artist I mentioned in a post here. I already have a giraffe print from her that I won in a giveaway. I plan to buy several more to hang in the nursery. These are a couple of my favorites:

I have also been looking at fabrics for bedding, curtains, pillows, etc. My Mom loves to sew :)

The color options are endless.

{all photos sourced from Pinterest}

10 weeks!

I can't believe I am 10 weeks already!!!
Baby's arms and legs are so much longer now! I will have to post the ultrasound video when Nick and I get it on our computer. Dr. A got some good views. I am so overwhelmed with joy after each ultrasound :)

How far along: 10w1d, measuring 10w3d.

Total weight gain/loss: None
How big is Baby: Baby is about the size of a prune. {34.8mm}
Maternity Clothes: I am wearing bigger/baggier shirts as much as possible. My skinny jeans are pretty uncomfortable around my waist now. I tried using the BeBand, but my pants slip down so I am sticking to my one bigger pair of jeans.

Sleep: I am sleeping well. I typically fall asleep on the couch every day between 7pm and 8pm.

Movement: Not yet. I can't wait!

Food cravings: Soup, salad (yay for veggies!), bread, Sour Patch Kids, smoothies, waffles, peanut butter & honey sandwiches, tortilla chips, and rice.
Food aversions: Meat

Gender: We want to do an elective gender scan. Most places do them between 15 and 16 weeks {early February}. We are so excited to find out!

Symptoms: Nausea and dry heaving, mostly in the evenings. Fatigue. Emotional. Headaches. Vivid dreams.

Best moment this week: The four days off over the weekend. When you aren't feeling good, it's great to stay home and relax. And finish The Hunger Games :)
What I am looking forward to: Seeing baby again. I am also excited to get started on our home projects. I will share some nursery inspiration in another post.

I had my first OB appointment on Friday. It felt so strange to be a regular patient again. I loved my OB! I was thrilled about that. I also scheduled my NT scan for January 20th. I am looking forward to getting some good views of our little sour patch kid. I have just one {or maybe two?} more ultrasounds with my RE and then I graduate. It's definitely bittersweet, as I love Dr. A and his nurses. I also stop the progesterone at 12 weeks. I can't wait to be done with those messy things, not to mention being off exercise and sex restrictions. Yay for good news, all around. I am beginning to feel like I can really enjoy this pregnancy :)


xoxo,
Megan