22,23,24 Weeks.

Wow! I'm so behind!  It has been a crazy past couple of weeks. We went to Mesa, Arizona last week for a Line-X conference.  It was so nice to relax in the warm weather.  The only thing that could have made it better is if it was freezing cold here. Unfortunately, it was only about 10 degrees colder here than it was there.  Oh well, the 10 degrees was worth it!
I had another appointment just after we got back from Arizona.  I only gained 5 more pounds this month! Not too bad, especially since I did nothing but eat while we were in Arizona.  I have another appointment in 4 weeks and then start going every two weeks after that.  YIKES! Things are going by fast! I better get busy, lots of stuff to do between now and then.

22 Weeks (2/12)

23 Weeks (2/20)

 No picture for 24 weeks. Sorry.

How far along: 22-24 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 19 pounds. I really hope it starts to slow down soon!
Maternity clothes?: Even some of my maternity clothes are getting snug  :/
Stretch marks?: not yet
Sleep: I missed my body pillow while we were in Arizona
Best moment this week: Soaking up some warm sun.  JanMarie brought some cute clothes by. Chris loved the KU dress and shoes. And the worst moment: Major charlie horse in both legs! It was terrible. My calves are still sore 3 days later.
Movement: She moves all the time! Getting stronger everyday
Food cravings: While we were in Arizona I bought about 10 oranges from a guy on the side of the street (he only charged me $2!). They were so good and juicy! I've eaten all but one of them!
Gender: GIRL!
What I miss: Really wanted to get in the hot tub at the hotel!
Milestones:getting past 24 weeks!

From Babycenter:
(22 weeks)
At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. Her lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and s he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath her gums. Her eyes have formed, but her irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment.
If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers her body and the deep wrinkles on her skin, which she'll sport until she adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside her belly, her pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

(23 weeks)
Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

(24 weeks)
Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts her at just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn),  she cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now, and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once she hits the outside world. Her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

21 Weeks

21 weeks
2/6

Now that we know baby Ireland is a girl, many hours have been spent on the internet looking for all kinds of fun things.  Ideas for nursery decorations, bedding, strollers, carseats, names, clothes and many other girly things. She got her first girly outfit this week from Heather. I can tell she is going to be very spoiled! The spare bedroom is slowly being transformed into the nursery but has a long way to go. We have a lot of work to do in the next few months!

How far along: 21 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  I weighed myself at work last Monday and it showed another 2 pound weight gain (16 pounds total ughgh). On a positive note, I weighed myself again that Friday and it hadn't changed at all! Yay!
Maternity clothes?: Less of my normal clothes fit everday.
Stretch marks?: nope. I've been 'lotioning and oiling, oiling and lotioning' everyday (said like Squence)
Sleep: It's still spotty.
Best moment this week:  I saw her kick! Of course when Chris came to look she quit.
Movement: She is a wiggly little thing
Food cravings: Oreos and milk were the sweet of choice this week
Gender: GIRL!
What I miss: Bending over without feeling like I'm being squished.
Milestones: Another week down.

From Babycenter:
Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well.

20 Weeks

20 weeks  1/28

I'm half way done! This photo was taken a few days before I was actually 20 weeks, but I was already all dressed up!  It has been an exciting week. We found out baby Ireland was a girl, we got to see her in 3D, and we got to share the news with our family and friends at a big party.
Since I am half way I thought I would do a little comparison.  I might regret this later, but here ya go.

12 weeks

20 weeks

Wow, that's crazy how much 2 months and 14 pounds changes things.

How far along: 20 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  I probably gained 5 more pounds from all the cupcakes I ate this weekend
Maternity clothes?: Still in between maternity shirts and regular shirts.  One pair of maternity pants are getting a little snug
Stretch marks?: nope, hope it stays that way!
Sleep: I slept for 12 hours Saturday night!
Best moment this week:  Sharing with everyone that baby Ireland is a girl
Movement:  She is a wiggly little thing
Food cravings: Still loving the sweets!  Cupcakes were the sweet of choice this week.
Gender:  GIRL!
What I miss: Being able to work out like I used to. It's not as easy as it used to be.
Milestones: Half way done

From Babycenter:

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel —the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against her torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of her head to her bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, she's measured from head to toe.)
she's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for her digestive system. She's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in her bowels, and you'll see it in her first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).


This reminded me, when we had our 3d sono we saw little girl pee! Kind of gross, but cool at the same time.

It's a....

Saturday night we had a gender reveal party.  It is the new thing to do and sounded like a great way to share with everyone at the same time what gender baby Ireland was.  There are many different variations, but we decided to find out the gender just the two of us first and then share with everyone else.  I loved knowing the truth and hearing everyone's opinion and why they thought they were right.  Friday I started making cupcakes that had the correct color of icing in the middle.  The theme of the party was blue and pink everything.  Everyone was supposed to wear blue or pink to represent their vote.  We had dinner first and then the big reveal was for dessert.  Everyone was so impatient, I don't understand why.  :)
Just to add to the suspense I had everyone split into team blue and team pink.  Team blue was so big we had to split them into two pics. They are a little blurry, sorry.

team blue #1

team blue #2

team pink

Cupcakes with a secret inside

It's a girl!

Proof that my dad cheated! (really blurry, sorry)

Did I mention there was a prize for the "best" dressed?

Mom and Dad tied for second place

Jeff and JanMarie tied for first place.

 Here are some pictures of the decorations.

ultrasound pictures

More ultrasound pictures

Baby name suggestions that Karissa made for me. So cute! Some of the names on the other hand were not quite as cute!

framed ultrasound picture and flowers

It was such a fun time! A little crowded but still a lot of fun! Now I get to start buying cute girl clothes! This poor child is going to be so spoiled.

19 Weeks

19 Weeks 1/23

This was a big week!  Monday we had an appointment and an ultrasound to find out if Baby Ireland was a boy or a girl.  It was fun to see the little one squirm around, but unfortunately it was too modest (or stubborn, not sure which) to show us the goods.  Everything else looked good which is all we really care about.  I should have known that since we had this big party planned the baby wouldn't cooperate.  We had a 3D ultrasound on Thursday and were able to see what we were having!  Thank goodness the baby decided to cooperate.  Also, I gained another 7 pounds this month. :(    I have been really trying to stay away from the sweets but it's just too much to resist!  Maybe next month will be better.

How far along: 19 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  *Sigh* 14 pounds  :*(
Maternity clothes?: Yup. Some of the tops are still too big but most of my normal shirts are way too small.
Stretch marks?: nope
Sleep: Too much excitement this week to sleep well
Best moment this week:  Seeing the baby move and squirm, twice!
Movement:  Sometimes I can feel it on my hand.
Food cravings: Still loving the sweets!  It doesn't matter what kind or variety.  If it has sugar I want it!
Gender: We know, but no one else does! It has been hard not to slip up
What I miss: Not having to work so hard at finding something cute to wear
Milestones: Finding out the gender


From Babycenter:

Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.
Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

18 Weeks

18 weeks
1/15

I thought I had gotten a lot bigger from week 17 to 18 so I made sure to take a picture. Now that I look at it, it doesn't look that much bigger.  It feels bigger, does that count?  Not a whole lot happened this week, but next week is a big week! Monday we find out if the baby is a boy or a girl! I can't wait!

How far along: 18 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: We'll find out on Monday. Hoping it's not too much more than it was last month
Maternity clothes?: Yup. Starting to out grow some of my t-shirts too
Stretch marks?: nope
Sleep: Still don't have as much energy as I was hoping for.
Best moment this week: This really wasn't a very exciting week.
Movement: More and more everyday
Food cravings: Sweets! I'm trying to avoid them... until after my appointment at least! :)
Gender: We'll find out Monday!! woohoo
What I miss: Self-control. I can't seem to ignore the sweets!
Milestones: Another week down

From Babycenter:

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper)

and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

16-17 Weeks

17 Weeks
1/9

We finally got to have Christmas with both sides of our family. It was great to spend time with our immediate family. We did a lot of shopping and eating (including shrimp!). I bought a crib just before the new year. It was on sale plus my mom had a coupon! It is still in the box and will probably stay that way for a few more months. :)
Invitations went out today for our gender reveal party. I am so excited to see what everyone thinks the baby is and see their reaction when they find out. It is going to be so hard to keep it a secret for almost a week!

How far along: 16-17 Weeks

Total weight gain/loss: at least 7 lbs gained.

Maternity clothes?: yup
Stretch marks?: nope.
Sleep: Still spotty. I have good nights and bad nights
Best moment this week: I have more energy and I felt the baby move!
movement: I definitely felt it move this week (17w 3d)  . Weirdest feeling ever but so cool!
Food cravings: Sweets and fruit.
Gender: A little over a week and we'll know!
What I miss: Coffee! I've been drinking half caff but trying to skip it all together
Milestones: Movement!

From babycenter:
16 Weeks
Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now,he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.
17 Weeks
Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.