Thursday, July 11, 2013

Pregnancy: Weeks 12 to 14

Week 12:

Baby’s development:
-most of the baby’s systems are fully formed
-digestive muscle is flexing
-pituitary gland is producing hormones
-bone marrow is making white blood cells

Pregnancy symptoms:
-need to pee every 1 or 2 hours

Cravings:
-fruits and sweets

Aversions:
-none (finally, after 6 weeks of being super picky)

Movement: n/a

Gender: I’m still guessing girl

Total weight gain/loss: +2

Belly button in or out? in

Best moment of the week: soaking up the California sun with my two best girl friends

Looking forward to: my next doctor appointment and hearing the heartbeat again


Week 13:
 
Baby’s development:
-baby’s head is about half the size of its body
-intestines are moving to their permanent location inside the baby’s abdomen
-vocal chords are developing

Pregnancy symptoms:
-can't sleep for more than 2 hours without needing to get up and use the bathroom

Cravings:
-none

Aversions:
-none

Movement: n/a

Gender: I’m still guessing girl

Total weight gain/loss: +3

Belly button in or out? in

Best moment of the week: scheduling our gender ultrasound appointment for August 14

Looking forward to: Ryan starting swim lessons at the pool that we just joined


Week 14:
 
Baby’s development:
-baby makes smooth, fluid movements
-hair and eyebrows may start growing
-a fuzzy coating of hair called lanugo is providing warmth for the baby 

Pregnancy symptoms:
-I’m officially in the second trimester, and morning sickness seems to be gone for good (fingers crossed!)

Cravings:
-none

Aversions:
-none

Movement: I actually felt flutters for a few seconds this week! very exciting!

Gender: I’m not sure anymore

Total weight gain/loss: +4

Belly button in or out? in

Best moment of the week: not an actual moment, but staying busy with playdates, music together classes, mom’s night out, and having friends over

Looking forward to: My hubby and I will celebrate our 4 year anniversary next week!


Belly Growth:


From what I have heard, your uterus expands and positions itself at the front of your abdomen more quickly in your second and subsequent pregnancies. Parents.com also says that you may feel your baby move sooner, tend to show about a month sooner, and generally carry your baby lower the second time around. Interesting.


Stretch Marks

They say that pregnancy stretch marks are genetic. If your mom got them, then you likely will get them too. My mom got tons of stretch marks when she was pregnant with me, so I expected the same. 

Throughout my first pregnancy, I used Trilastin stretch mark cream and ended up with only one tiny 1 cm stretch mark on my lower tummy!

Yet I am hesitant to use Trilastin again. Since having (and beating!) breast cancer, I switched over to mostly natural and organic products, just to be on the safe side. You never know what effect chemicals/products can have on your body. So, this pregnancy, I have started using coconut oil on my tummy daily, rather than an actual stretch mark cream. I guess we will see how well it works after another 6 months or so.


Thursday, July 4, 2013

Happy Fourth!

I hope that everyone enjoyed their holiday as much as we enjoyed ours. It was the perfect mix of baking, decorating, visiting family, spending hours outside digging in the dirt (Ryan) and relaxing (us), and most of all, EATING!

We skipped the fireworks this year because we were spoiled from watching them from our balcony for the past 5 years, and couldn't bring ourselves to fight the crowds and traffic downtown. We do plan to go next year though, since Ryan probably won't remember them from when he was a baby, and it will feel like a new experience for him.




I spend the morning baking an American flag cake and chocolate chip cookies. Ryan was my special helper. He loves pouring and mixing and asking me random questions about the ingredients.



I plan on switching out this little area of our house with different decorations for every holiday season. I spray painted an plain old mason jar and turned it into a vase. The wooden words, hat, and stars are from Etsy.




We spent the afternoon at a family party at my cousin's house. They have a little boy who is only a couple months younger than Ryan. Ryan had a blast playing with all of T's toys, both inside and outside. It was especially great to spend time with some of my extended family that we hadn't seen in a while. They are all so sweet.



I dyed some rice with food coloring and made this sensory bin for Ryan and his friends to play with. It was so simple and easy to make: Mix long grain white rice with vinegar and a few drops of food coloring. Shake it up to mix completely. If you need the rice to dry quickly, stick it in the oven for 20 minutes at 200 degrees.


Happy 4th of July!! God Bless America, Land of the Free, Because of the Brave!


Monday, July 1, 2013

Girls' Weekend in Northern Cali

Last week, I flew to Northern California to visit one of my best friends, K, and to meet up with one of my other best friends, J. As I have mentioned before, the three of us, and E, have been close since high school. (We missed E on this trip because she was at home taking care of her newborn). These girls are like sisters to me and I feel so blessed to have spent time catching up with them and hanging out just like old times. I had never been to California or anywhere on the west coast before, but I found that I loved everything about it: the weather, the culture, the sights, and the natural beauty.

San Francisco


J's friend let us stay a couple nights in her condo, which happened to be the perfect location in SF for exploring. I never realized how hilly the city was until we were walking back and it was completely uphill. The picture above was actually one of the smaller hills.

On the first day, we discovered the Boudin bakery, a left-handed store, a performing pirate (which Ryan would have loved), a couple of lonely sea lions, and some various touristy shops. I ended up with a shirt that says "I'm left handed, but I'm always right."


We also saw Alcatraz Island, home of the infamous prison from the early 1900's. They built it on an island so that the criminals couldn't escape. Clever.


The next day, we had brunch at one of J's favorite restaurants, where I ate entirely too much. As usual, my eyes were bigger than my ever-growing (baby) tummy, so I ordered enough for five people and devoured it. Afterwards, we headed out for some more sight-seeing.


Our first stop was the Japanese Tea Gardens at Golden Gate Park. We walked around, drank some tea, and enjoyed the amazing weather. It was warm with a sharp crispness in the air.


We then discovered the California Academy of Sciences, which is a huge interactive museum filled with everything from earthquake simulations to rain forests to penguins. I found a few souvenirs for Ryan: non-scary dinosaur figurines and a crocodile t-shirt.

Next, we decided to stop and take pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge. It was kind of underwhelming, but I'm still glad that I got to see it.


That night for dinner, we met up with K and J's friend and went out for Spanish tapas at a place right near the condo. We shared everything, so I had the opportunity to try some new things that I normally wouldn't order. It was all so yummy!


Monterey and Carmel

We did the 17 mile drive, walked to find the best views, stopped for a delicious picnic lunch, visited Pebble Beach and Carmel-on-the-beach, and then headed down towards Big Sur and the Bixby Bridge. 









I found it all to be absolutely breathtaking and soothing for the soul. If only every day in this fast-paced, crazy life could be so peaceful. I know that one day in the future, when things get hectic, I will think back to this moment and remember how I felt.

We then checked in to a hotel in Monterey and went out that evening to the local Fisherman's Wharf.




We were fascinated by the dozens of sea lions that gathered around the dock. They were so animated and alarmingly loud. I think that we could have watched them for hours.


We had dinner at another amazing restaurant (we ate well on this trip) and received roses on our way out. It was a little random, but I guess it was nice?

The next day, we drove to Davis to see K's place before heading to the airport. We stopped at a local farmer's market for fresh fruit for lunch. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful trip with my favorite ladies.


“A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.”
-Shakespeare



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