The size of a mango.

We're 19 weeks pregnant and the baby is the size of a mango. It's hard to believe that the baby started out to be the size of a poppy seed (maybe even smaller) and now it's the size of a mango. By week 21 it'll be the length of a large banana measuring 10 inches long. I'll definitely be feeling those kicks by then! Right now I'm not experiencing that little feather lightly tickling the inside of my stomach anymore, but I am feeling more of a solid movement sort of rolling around very slowly. Gene can't quite feel the movement from the outside of my belly just yet, but here soon enough he'll be able to see the baby kicking a mile away. And now the baby is sitting lodged right under my right boob. It doesn't hurt, but I can't really bend over as easily as I once could and don't suspect it'll get any easier! ; )

Also, in a couple of weeks, May 6th to be exact, we're going to find out (hopefully) the sex of the baby. If he/she is in the right spot we'll know for sure. BUT I am literally dying with anticipation!! It doesn't matter to us what we have and we're not going to start decorating the baby's room until we get back from England anyways, but still!!! These next 2 weeks are going to be SUPER, SUPER slow and I'm going to be up alllll night the night before just because that's the way I am. More importantly I want to see the ultrasound and have them tell me that it's a healthy baby. Boy or girl it doesn't matter. . . I just want a healthy, healthy happy baby.

Happy Birthday to Gene!!

I am truly blessed to be married to this sweet, affectionate, caring, ambitious, loving, hard-working, and the best cuddly honey's in the whole world!!! I couldn't imagine being with anyone else, and I couldn't be happier!! Gene, sweetheart, I love you and hope you have an awesome birthday!!!

Thank God for Chiropractors!

For the past 3 weeks I have had excruciating pain in my pelvic area. I wake up in the middle of the night in tears because I can't roll over to my other side because it feels like somebody's making a wish as they pull (or should I say rip) my legs apart. When I get out of bed I can barely walk. One night I had a nightmare that I was miscarrying (is this normal??) and I jolted myself awake crying in pain. Thinking my dream was reality I hobbled myself to the bathroom praying everything was okay. And of course it was, but as I sat there in so much pain I immediately grabbed the bible of pregnancies What to Expect When You're Expecting to see what was happening to me. I was NOT expecting this symptom - for sure! Symphsis Pubic Dysfunction. That's me, that's what I have.

This picture above is what our pelvic bone looks like normally.

This is what is looks like during pregnancy.

And this is me. Misaligned and in alot of pain - me.

It's rare, like 1 out of 300 women get it, but it's starting to become more common, especially in pregnancy. In a normal pregnancy a hormone 'relaxin' softens and relaxes your muscles, ligaments, and pelvis so they can spread open to make room for the baby to pass through the birth canal, but for women with SPD that gap can cause severe misalignment, which is why there's so much pain. It feels like someone took a hammer and hit me really hard on my pubic bone. I can't roll over in bed without tucking my legs under me and rolling them together at the same time. I also have to sit flat and put on or take off pants or shoes (no more standing on one leg and leaning). It hurts WAAAAYYY toooo much! And I understand that pregnancy does things to your body that just is. You're making room for a baby to grow and that can really alter everything about you, but to be in this much pain just isn't normal.

So, after calling my OB and not getting the answer I wanted (they told me to take ADVIL and put a heating pad on my pubic bone) I called my friend April Simmons who happens to be a Chiropractor and she immediately knew how to treat my problem. She had a patient with the same symptoms and while she was doing her internship she witnessed alot of pregnant women in the same situation. Luckily April (or should I say Dr. Simmons) is in my network so she adjusted me and gave me some stretches that I can do to help alleviate the pain. Unfortunately, nothing can cure SPD except to wait until after the delivery once the hormone is out of my system and let everything sort of shift back into place. So in the meantime, I hobble around like a funny pregnant lady except I'm not nearly big enough to look like I'm pregnant and I need to keep up on my adjustments. I'm still very surprised at how well I'm taking this. As I've said before I'm the biggest baby I know when it comes to pain or anything being out of place. So, maybe I'm just growing up. ; )

Could it be? Did I actually feel the baby move?!?!?

Last night after I finished studying for a quiz, I sat down on the couch to eat a yummy dinner Gene brought home from one of my favorite restaurants. I just love my husband! He takes such good care of me. ; ) Anyways, while I'm sitting there I feel this funny tickling feeling around my belly button. I thought maybe my shirt had brushed across my belly making me itch so I scratched my tummy, but as I sat there with my shirt up over my stomach I starting thinking that maybe it was something else. I told Gene I thought there was a possibility that the baby moved, but since I hadn't experienced this before I really didn't know what to expect. So I waited and waited but it didn't happen again. : (

BUT. . . this morning as I sit here at work (very, very still) I really truly believe it's the baby moving. It feels like someone's taking a feather and lightly brushing it around my belly button very slowly, but it feels like it's coming from the inside of my stomach. Then once it's gone around a few times, it'll kind of trickle down near my underwear line and move back up to my belly button. I have literally sat here for almost an hour doing nothing, but stare down at my stomach so that I wouldn't miss this moment. I don't even know what to say. Is it really happening??? Am I just imaging it??? Is that the baby really moving in my stomach??? Could it be that there's a baby in there moving around, growing, kicking, sleeping, stretching and yawning??? I just can't explain the awe I'm feeling right now. Truly, truly an amazing thing to feel.

4 months pregnant!

So, last night I finally caved and bought a few maternity

clothes. I couldn't take it anymore squeezing into my regular clothes and feeling just plain fat. After trying a few things on at Target I was feeling much better about my pregnant body. Not only were the items reasonably priced, they fit, they were comfortable, and made me feel like a million bucks! After getting a few things for casual wear, and a belly band, I went to Penny's to get a few more things for work. The belly band is a spandex material that goes around your waste like a tight belt, but it gives you plenty of breathing room to grow and hide the fact you can't zip or button up your pre-pregnancy clothes. It's super comfy, I love it! Now I can incorporate some of my new items with my regular stuff and feel like I have a whole new wardrobe without going too crazy with the clothes shopping. When I got home I modeled all of my things for Gene's approval (not that I needed it, but it's really nice to get his opinion) I couldn't wait to wear one of my new outfits. So, after overexerting myself cleaning a much overdue messy house today, I'm going to have dinner with a very dear friend of mine, Dana. We've chatted over the phone and emailed quite a bit lately, but I haven't seen her since before I got pregnant. So, it'll definitely be nice to catch up in person!!