New Week.... New Clothes!

What a week! We had a repeat ultrasound on Tuesday and got to see our HEALTHY, GROWING baby girly again... the lady who did the ultrasound said she has some chubby cheeks! And she has the cuuuuuuuutest little profile :) Little did I know that they were also planning to do my glucose tolerance test. Apparently our doc likes to 'suprise' test her patients so as to get a more realistic reading, as opposed to the more traditional fasting test. And boy were we suprised! Michael took the morning off of work to go with me to the appointment, but had to be back by noon for a flight. Well, the glucose test takes over an hour... so a little heads up in this situation would've been nice. Fortunately we were able to see our baby girl, meet with the doc, do the glucose test, stop for Starbucks, and get back to Kingsville just in time.

I've been pretty conscious of my eating habits while I've been pregnant and haven't had a whole lot of crazy, awful cravings (Captain Crunch, chocolate chip cookies, pickles, extra sharp cheeses). When I have had a craving I'll take a few bites to satisfy and be done with it. I've still been exercising at least 5 days a week. Doc said I'm 'perfect' as far as weight gain... YAAAAAAY!! While I was on the treadmill at home this morning I glanced over at our baby jogger - can't wait to little girl is old enough (they say 6 months) to head out for a run with me. I'm looking forward to family bike rides, walks, and maybe even running together some day :)

That glucose stuff is terrrrrrrific-ible! Like a super sweet orange gatorade that gets worse with each swallow. Bleck.

We're heading north for Christmas next week and I just realized that I have hardly any long-sleeved/sweaters/winter clothes that fit comfortably with my growing belly! Here in Texas I'm still wearing tanks and shortsleeve cotton shirts with a light cotton cardigan if it gets chilly (I'm talkin 68 degrees). Soprano and Express Featherweight Tees have been GREAT because they stretch so well. Stretching sweaters? Not so much. SO - with the nearest maternity store or department store with a maternity section being an hour away, I headed to *gasp* Maurices and was pleasantly suprised. Leggings and long sweaters... and some flat black suede boots... I love my heeled boots, but I probably shouldn't be wearing them a whole lot.

I've been having baby dreams this week too... she is the most beautiful little girl! Can't wait to meet her! She kicks and flips all the time... I think we have a little athleta on our hands :) Daddy says no dance team and no cheerleading (and to er, "stay off the pole")... I say, whatever she wants to do (obviously off the pole)! The world is hers for the taking!!

25 Weeks Pregnant
You’re 25 weeks pregnant and it’s probably dawned on you that soon you’ll actually have to deliver this baby. (A little scary, but exciting!) What’s cool is that most hospitals will let you preregister, which means you can put in your paperwork early, so the day you go into labor, you don’t have to stand around filling out a bunch of forms before you get admitted. Maybe you’re getting nervous about delivery, or maybe it’s your haywire hormones, but you might start to have trouble sleeping around week 25. This is a common complaint of many moms-to-be. Some people will tell you that’s just your body’s way of prepping you for sleepless nights with baby, but those comments won’t help you get the rest you need! Experiment with different strategies for getting some sleep. One idea is to drink extra water early in the day, so you can start tapering off your intake as you get closer to bedtime. That way, you might need less bathroom breaks during the night and can keep sleeping. After all, now that baby’s crowding your bladder, you’ve got to pee. A lot.


Baby's the size of an eggplant! During month six, the average fetus measures about 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches and weighs about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds.

Baby at 25 weeks She's enjoying her new sense of equilibrium -- she now knows which way is up and which is down.
She's growing more fat and more hair too!

Pregnancy symptoms at 25 weeks
Constipation. Be sure to eat plenty of fiber-rich foods!
Hemorrhoids -- baby is putting a ton of pressure on your digestive tract. And the constipation certainly isn't helping.
Gas and bloating. Your hormones are slowing down digestion, creating excess gas.
Heartburn. Since baby is pushing on your digestive system it can push stomach acid up your esophagus.
All-over aches and pains, thanks to hormone fluctuations.
Trouble sleeping. It's tough to get comfy with that big belly in the way!

6 months! Holy Cow!

I can’t believe I’m 6 months pregnant! 24 weeks translates into 6 months, right? I keep asking Michael that… it just doesn’t seem possible and I certainly don’t feel like I look 6 months pregnant like I thought I would. Bigger? Yes. Huge? Not yet. Although, a friend of ours saw me at the squadron Christmas party on Saturday for the first time in several months and the first thing he said was, "OH MY GOD! You’re huge!" This coming from a guy that they call The Hulk and also made an appearance on American Gladiators did not exactly make me feel tiny (kidding ;) it was all in good fun)… considering he is the one that is huge. I told his girlfriend that she has some ‘training’ to do.

Anyway…. Thanks to my wonderful Grandma and parents we now have our jogging stroller and crib all ready to go! The crib came in this week and Michael assembled it yesterday – it’s adorable and I love how the room is really starting to look more like a baby girl’s room! It took the two of us to figure out how to assemble the crib mobile though J The rocker should be in this week and then we’ll be able to arrange the furniture better. I can’t wait to add little touches… like wall shelves, letters of her name, pictures, and maybe even some fun vinyl wall decals ordered off of Etsy. My only dilemma so far has been the closet. Our house is relatively small with very little storage space. Baby’s room previously served as our guest room/my craft room. Well, I decided to keep half of the closet dedicated to my craft things since I plan to use them even once she is born rather than haul it all to storage and save the other half for all things baby girl. Now I’m worried that half of a closet isn’t enough room for her things. Thoughts?

Here’s the 24 week update!Drink up! Around 24 weeks, your doctor will order a Glucose Tolerance Test -- one of the more memorable prenatal tests -- to see if you’re at risk for gestational diabetes. Basically, the test is designed to see how your body processes sugar, so you’ll be asked to drink a cup of a sweet drink called Glucola (which reminded us of Gatorade) and then hang out for an hour. Once the hour is up, you’ll have your blood drawn and then it will be tested to see how your body has processed the sugar. You know what’s also sweet? Those movements and kicks you’ve been feeling. They seem to get stronger every week. At week 24, baby’s progress isn’t just about internal stuff, it’s about her looks too. With pinker, more opaque skin, she’s looking more and more, well, like a baby. You, on the other hand, are probably experiencing some of the discomforts of the later months of pregnancy at week 24 -- leg cramps, backaches, swollen feet. Hang in there, mama-to-be!
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Baby’s the size of a papaya!
Your 10.5-to-11.8-inch fetus weighs about 12.7 to 20.8 ounces and every week she gets closer and closer to being ready to survive (and thrive!) in the outside world.


Baby at 24 weeks

• Her see-through skin is gradually becoming more opaque.
• And it's got a new pink glow, thanks to the small capillaries that have recently formed.

Pregnancy symptoms at 24 weeks

• Swollen ankles and feet. Be sure to elevate them while you're sitting. Not yet, thank goodness!
• Leg cramps, which can be sign of dehydration. Yes.... terrible ones!
• Back aches -- Yup, still!
• Linea nigra. That's the dark line that runs up the center of your belly. It will fade after baby's born. Nope.
• Stretch marks, which may continue to appear as your skin stretches even more. Fortunately, no.

Maternity Clothes: Almost all maternity… jeans especially although I still wear a BellaBand so I can wear a pair or two of my favorite non-maternity jeans. I can still fit into regular tops, but if I’m feeling extra self-conscious I’ll throw on a maternity shirt. My grandma also sent me some super cute maternity dresses! I wore one to our Christmas party and got lots of compliments on it.

Movement: LOTS! She rolls over, kicks, punches…. We even saw her move from the outside, which was pretty neat. She’s most active in the late afternoon/evening… I can’t get enough of feeling her wiggle around!

Food cravings: Extra sharp cheddar cheese (w/ pickles...), Regular Coke (NOT giving into this one, so Coke Zero will have to do)

Symptoms: Sore feet and aching back!

Exercise: Gradually decreasing the intensity. I still exercise 5 days/week. I usually do 3 days of circuit training (i.e. 20 minutes of total cardio time plus lower/upper body strength moves) and then 2 days of 30-45 minutes of cardio. I haven’t been running much because it hurts in my groin! So it’s either the elliptical or fast-paced, incline walking, which does my heart rate just fine.