Baby Schuchter: Week 22

Baby Size: Papaya... I have a feeling at this point they are going more by weight than length...

How I am Feeling: This week was a little hard.  My eczema took a tasty turn for the worse and spread all over my face.  I resembled a raccoon just with red markings instead of black.  While I looked pretty rough, the worst part was how my face was constantly burning.  It hurt to blink, smile, and talk.  Once my eyes and neck started clearing up, my lips got hit with the epidemic.

Finally, yesterday things started clearing up.  It is still noticeable, but my face burns significantly less and the red is less noticeable.  The combination of Cetaphil, not washing my face, not wearing make up, taking Tylenol  and restarting my pre-natal vitamins apparently is doing something!

Food Cravings/Aversions: Really nothing!  Weird how things change.

What I am Excited About: Life when the baby gets here.  I am excited that David is able to take lots of time off and that I don't have to worry about things like maternity leave.  While I am sure we will be exhausted and have no idea what is happening, I can't wait to spend time with our family of 3!

Sweet Thing the Husband did for Me: I was feeling very guilty for all the money I had spent one day.  I had gone grocery shopping, filled up my gas tank, signed up for a sewing class, and spent tons of money on things to help my eczema.  I started apologizing for all the things I bought for my face to try and heal it.  He stopped me and said that he could care less about how much I had to spend on those things, and he cared more about me feeling better.  Definitely made me feel cared for and loved!

Boy or Girl: This will be the last week I probably leave this in.  We did find out, but aren't going public with the news :)  Just ask me!

Something I have Done to Prepare for the Baby: I have thought a lot about which items I want to register for.  That counts for something right?  I have a shower in March, so I am trying to hurry and do my research then go registering this week.

Moms, if you have any suggestions on things you couldn't function without or strong feelings about any certain items let me know!

Funny Moment: I haven't found too much to be funny with not feeling so well if I am completely honest!  I will say though, when the baby kicks my bladder it is one of the weirdest feelings.  All of sudden I think I need to run to the bathroom, but then I don't.  Then I do!  Then I don't.

Random Fact/Thought about the Baby:  I can now see my stomach move whenever the baby kicks.  It happens so frequently that often times I am afraid that other people can see my stomach moving and it will freak them out!

Bump Picture: This is one of those pictures where you again should just look at the bump and not my eczema infested face :)

22 weeks!

Baby Schuchter: Week 21

Baby Size: Pomegranate... no idea how this is bigger than a banana at least in length, but everything thebump.com says is correct, right?!

How I am Feeling: Compared to that fun 1st trimester I feel good!  Unfortunately, I do have some interesting, pesky symptoms that are not enjoyable, but better than nausea!

I have always struggled with eczema from when I was young.  It has improved as I got older, but it took an exciting new twist this week!  Not only are my arms covered (normal for winter time), my face is also covered!  Around my eyes has taken the brunt of it and I look like David beat me (he did not).  Between washing my face less, no make up, and Aquaphor I am hoping it heals soon.  I can handle the red eyes and looking a little funny.  I just wish my face didn't burn.

I also have another new addition to the symptoms list: swollen ankles.  This past weekend I was at the gorge and consumed entirely too much salt.  After the first night my ankles were noticeably bigger and so I immediately think I probably have pre-eclampsia.  The life of a high-strung, Google symptom searching hypochondriac!

Turns out I simply needed to eat less salt, drink more water, and put my feet up.  Thank you all you other moms who assured me their ankles also swelled up around this time!

Last, I think I am experiencing some of that round ligament pain, but I am not sure exactly.  The baby also seems to like to sit on a nerve in my back (maybe sciatic?) which leaves me very immobile and unable to lift my right leg up.

Pregnancy sure comes with some weird symptoms.  I promise my list is over. 

Food Cravings/Aversions: No aversions!  I think I still am always craving chocolate, but Skyline is another big one!  What I would do for some cheese coneys...

What I am Excited About: My belly!  I actually look pregnant.  My mom saw me in a tight fitting tank top today and she was even surprised by how much it has grown the past couple weeks.  She very generously bought me some maternity clothes today which included a pair of maternity leggings.  If you are pregnant, go to Target and buy some.  I love them.

Sweet Thing the Husband did for Me: When we first found out we were pregnant, Old Navy greatly deceived us with one of their sales.  We thought their maternity skinny jeans were on sale for $20.00 and found out at the counter it was mislabeled.  Ever since, David would check sales online at Old Navy to see if the jeans I so loved were on sale.  In the middle of writing this post he exclaimed that they were on sale for $25.00.  He called the store to make sure they had my size and had them set a pair aside for me.  We then drove to the store and he used his precious gift card from his birthday to buy them.  You are awesome hubby!

Boy or Girl: Still not saying :)  If you want to know, just ask me.  I will probably tell you.

Something I have Done to Prepare for the Baby: Not too much.  More discussion of names, but sorry baby, not too much happened!

Funny Moment: It happens quite often that I get stuck in tight spaces or think I can fit behind a chair someone is sitting in, but it doesn't work out.  I am used to being able to eyeball whether or not I can squeeze past someone and I forget to take into account this growing stomach.  I end up knocking things over or having to choose another way to go.  I suspect this will get worse.

Random Fact/Thought about the Baby:  We will go for a random thought about the baby this week!  With having so many close friends that are pregnant and due at the same time, I cannot wait for our kids to grow up together.  It is so cool to think about all of us raising kids together and our children experiencing what good community is like from birth.  It is even better how many of those friends live in walking distance.

Bump Picture: Since the dance studio is on break this week, I actually have on real clothes and am not sweaty for my bump picture!

21 weeks

Baby Schuchter: Week 20

Half way there!  Half way there!  To change it up a little, some questions will change and some will be kept.  I like variety!  Also, I am actually going to try and post a bump picture every time (hopefully).

Baby Size: Banana

How I am Feeling: I have felt great about being pregnant and feeling pregnant!  My left hip still has some interesting tingling/pain going on.  The pillow between the knees no longer works, but if I fall asleep on my back (I know this is against the rules), I usually roll over in my sleep and then the pain doesn't start.

I do have a really bad cold that has turned into my weird muscle condition as of today  (lots of muscle pain, soreness, and fatigue that lasts a week).  We think I have already had it while being pregnant, but it was before I took a test.  That makes me feel better that this will hopefully not affect the baby, but I do have a lot of fear around how fast my heart is beating when I just sit here.

Food Cravings/Aversions: I am not sure this is considered a craving, but I am back to LOVING chocolate.  This was a normal occurrence pre-pregnancy and I am quite happy to be able to enjoy chocolate.  I think I am past any food aversions.  Yay for the next half of pregnancy!

What I am Excited About: We know what the gender is!!!!!!!  People would say when you saw the baby on the ultrasound or felt it kick that it would feel more real, but this definitely makes it real.  It helps me imagine what it will be like when the baby is born.

Sweet Thing the Husband did for Me: The amount of pots and pans that man washes is infinite. We had our family over for a gender reveal dinner and I trashed our kitchen.  I made the dinner in the morning and left all the dishes piled in the sink.  What did he do?  Came home from work and did them all.   Next, we had our families over which left more dishes.  I wasn't feeling well, so after everyone left he told me to go sit on the couch while he did all the dishes.  He is awesome!

Now with my weird muscle condition going on, he told me to rest as much as possible and not to worry about being productive.  He asked what time I would wake up today and I told him whenever he did.  He instead told me I should sleep as long as possible.  The amount of grace and freedom I experience from him is unreal!

Boy or Girl: Can't say yet :)  Once everyone who we need to tell not through social media finds out, I will probably post it!

Something I have Done to Prepare for the Baby: We have talked more about names now that we know the gender.  There is one name in particular that stands out, but I do think we will wait to make the final decision until the baby is born.

Funny Moment: During our ultrasound, we had the technician write down whether it was a boy or girl on a piece of paper and put it in an envelope.  When we got home, I set in on the table next to a water bottle that consistently leaks.  An hour or so later we looked over and the envelope was soaked.

I thought she wrote it with a Crossroads pen I had in my purse, so we took a piece of paper, wrote on it with a Crossroads pen, and soaked it with water.  We wanted to see if the ink would bleed or if it would still be readable.  It was!

I then dried the envelope with a hair dryer and all was well!

Random Fact/Thought about the Baby:  Random fact of the week: Every morning I freak out thinking I acquired crazy stretch marks over night.  I then come to my senses and realize the crazy red lines all over of protruding belly are lines from my t-shirt and sleeping.

Bump Picture: Here is the 19 week and the 20 week.  Now we are caught up!  Yes, my muscle thing makes me really tired hence the crazy, puffy eyes I have going on.  Look at the belly not my face!

19 week

20 week

20 Week Ultrasound

We just got home from our ultrasound and I am so excited!  I spent much time and energy deciding whether or not to find out the gender, so I thought I would share this very ironic story and also give the update on how the baby is developing.

David and I decided that we would find out the gender, but have the technician write it on a piece of paper so we could go out to dinner and find out.  As the technician goes through the brain, face, heart, spine, stomach, etc. she says everything is looking perfect and there are no problems.  Yay!

The baby currently weighs 10.5 ounces and is measuring more like it is 19 weeks, but that is still in the margin of error.  My due date stands as June 26.

I knew we were getting to the part of where she would try and find out the gender, but the issue she kept having is that the baby was extremely hyper.  Why did I drink that coffee?!?!  I am glad I did not drink any juice or that would have only made the movement more crazy.

The technician kept trying and trying and I got the feeling we were not going to be finding out the gender.  She explained that the umbilical cord was between the legs and blocking every view.  Even with all the crazy flipping, the cord would not move.  The lady went above and beyond to try and find out the sex.

By that point I came to terms that we would not find out and could only laugh.  And I thought I had control over the situation!  All of a sudden she flipped the monitor back around towards her and said, "Got it!"

It felt like a gift at that point because I calmly already accepted we would not know.  She wrote down the results on a piece of paper and we find out tonight the gender.

Later, the doctor was listening for the heartbeat with a Doppler, and the baby kept kicking the Doppler.  Looks like we have a feisty one!

With all the movement, they could not get a good picture of the feet so we will have another ultrasound at 30 or 32 weeks.  I will take it!  Plus, I won't mind them double checking the gender :)

Here are some pictures!

Note: None of them expose the gender, so don't try :)

Baby Schuchter: Week 19

Baby Size: Mango

How I Feel about being Pregnant: Good again!  I definitely have a real baby bump so I can confidently wear tighter fitting shirts to show it off!

Symptoms: No nosebleeds, no nausea!  My hip has started acting very funny when I sleep though.  When I lay on either side my left hip starts tingling as if it is falling asleep, but then it gets painful.  The only true relief is laying on my back.  The pillow in between the knees trick has also been helpful.  The weird things being pregnant causes!

Food Cravings: Applesauce.  I had one little cup of it and now I just keep wanting it.  I am not even sure I like it!

Food Aversions: Chicken... It doesn't help I watched the vegan documentary, "Vegucated".  Now any sort of meat or dairy slightly grosses me out.  Add that to the list of things not to watch while pregnant!

What I am Excited About: WE FIND OUT WHAT WE ARE HAVING IN 3 DAYS.  3!  I will tell you ahead of time though, we will probably not announce it on here or Facebook for a little while, if at all.  I know, I also hate when people do this.  We haven't decided how many people we will tell.  We will for sure not tell names, but you have a chance of knowing the gender!  Especially if you see me in person and ask because I can't keep a secret or lie.

Sweet Thing the Husband did for Me: I don't think I have wrote about this before, but here is a little fun fact for you.  I was against taking weekly pictures of my bump.  It was David that convinced/asked/made me do them, and I am super thankful for it!  I am sure I will appreciate it more with the next pregnancy as a way to compare.  He knew it was something I would care about later and is willing to put up with my whining every Tuesday to accomplish the task. Thank you!

He also cleaned a ton yesterday on his only day off.  Thank you again!

Boy or Girl: I give up and have no idea.  I keep having dreams it is a boy, but I have also brainwashed myself it is a boy.  I will say most people think it is a boy, except all of my little dancers.  They think it is a girl or twins.

Something I have Done to Prepare for the Baby: Catie and I went to Once Upon a Child to scope things out.  Yay for cheap clothes!  We are looking for something small to put by our bed for the baby to sleep in until he/she begins sleeping better.  We have a Pack 'n Play with a bassinet, but I think our room is too small to fit it.  Good news is a bassinet will fit and Once Upon a Child and Craig's List have plenty.  Or if you have one that you want to get rid of let me know!

Funny Moment:  We were watching TV and the baby was kicking or flipping like crazy.  All of a sudden he/she must have kicked really hard and it made me jump because it caught me so off guard.  Apparently our baby will be a really tough little boy or girl!

Special Moment: David felt the baby move!  With all of those karate moves going on, it is no wonder he could!

I will leave you with this bump picture.  Technically it is from week 18, but we take my pictures on Tuesday nights and I normally blog Tuesday mornings.

Learning to Go Kroger-ing: Actual Trip

Carrying groceries to your third floor apartment alone sure is a work out! It is getting me in shape for carrying a car seat with a newborn though, right?

After meal planning, coupon searching, and making my list, I went to Kroger today.  My original plan was to hit Aldi first (thanks to Erin's suggestion), but I don't have a debit card and did not plan ahead well enough to remember to get cash.  Hopefully next time!

I only spent a little over a third of our grocery budget and I should only have to make one more shopping trip this month.  If I am able to save $50, I can take a sewing class with Jess, so here is to hoping I stay disciplined!   

Total Savings: 25% 

# of Coupons: 2

Biggest Problem: That darn "Buy 10, Save 5" sale.  Seriously, we have a love/hate relationship.  I love it because you can save a lot of money and it allows me to get brands I like more above the generic.  I hate it because even with careful planning on which items and how many of each to get, I either mess it up or see items I buy regularly that qualify.  It always makes me obsessively count how many items I have that apply because we all know the worst feeling is having either 9 or 11 items when you need 10.

Today my problem was the obsessive counting and how many items I love were on the sale.  I could have been seen pushing my cart into an empty aisle and counting every couple aisles, phew.  I quickly changed from the original plan of 10 items to 20.  All of them were on my list though!  

Most Exciting Sale: I needed to get deodorant so I clipped 6 different coupons and planned on comparing prices when I got there since I did not know the original prices.  One brand had a particular scent that was a close out sale item and I had a coupon for it!  Yay for cheap deodorant! 

I also got a huge pork loin roast for $7.55 and saved $5.87! Third, I bought a whole chicken to roast and use for multiple meals (thank Abby)!