2nd trimester

They say you can start to relax when you enter the 2nd trimester. You start to feel your energy come back and feel more "normal." I have to say that this is a huge milestone for me but I wouldn't go as far as saying I am completely starting to relax. I am still cautiously optimistic, but definitely getting more excited as I start to feel things grow a bit more in the tummy area.

Rick and I were at a party last weekend and it was the first time that everyone was openly announcing the pregnancy. I am not one for the spotlight (ha, no comments from the peanut gallery...not one for the spotlight when I am sober, that is. Hehe), it makes me uncomfortable. I prefer to have the party so I am in the kitchen busy with food and stuff and have a few glasses of wine first. But well, with being pregnant and all, no drinking and cold sober...Anyway. But it was fun to hear how excited everyone was and of course all the same questions, which I'm not sure everyone knows the answers to. So here's the first of my small FAQ list:

1. When are you due? April 17


2. Do you want to find out if it's a boy or a girl? Definitely


3. Where are you giving birth? John Muir


4. Have you felt any movements? No.

It's funny that there are 3 trimesters, yet the first one isn't 3 months, but more like 3 1/2 months, so the 2nd trimester actually starts at 14 weeks. Which, when thinking about it, actually makes sense because the Dr's always calculate the 2 weeks when there is no way there is any baby growing anywhere. Anyway, thought I'd throw in a little trivia there. So here's my 14 week profile. Still no definite bump there, but it's growing!



14 weeks

NT scan ultrasound

I opted to have an NT scan which basically helps rule out if the baby will have certain chromosomal defects; where they perform an ultrasound and do measurements. I was excited and nervous at the same time and couldn't wait to see the baby again! Rick came along for the show this time, so he could finally see that there is really a baby in there. No, that new gut I got in the last few days is not just from the late night frozen yogurt runs. The Dr. told us right away that the baby was looking great and the measurements were perfect, right on target. She also let us hear the heartbeat which was way more emotional than I had thought. We both got a gold star at seeing exactly where the nose, fingers, heart, and legs were. We could even count the 5 fingers in one of the pictures! She said the baby is about 3 inches long and the heartbeat is 158 bpm, good and strong.

12.5 week ultrasound

12 weeks

Almost at the end of the first trimester! Seems like it's taken forever but at the same time it's gone by so quickly too. I'm not really "showing" yet. It's pretty weird because in the morning I have no tummy at all and by the end of the day I have this huge gut. I would do a picture comparison but am to self conscious to post a picture of what looks like fat at this point. So I'll stick to the morning belly shots, which I think show the true tummy or what I like to think of as the true tummy, before the pasta and the bread and the frozen yogurt (and yes, gas) make their way into the scene and distort everything.

The heartburn seems to have gone away! I am still not eating like I used to but I did venture out of the bland comfort zone and had some spaghetti last night with the spicy marinara sauce I made. I even had salad! Apparently the symptoms start to go away around 11-12 weeks and one starts to feel normal again. I'd like for a few symptoms to stay around, just for comfort. At least until I can feel the baby kick or something.


12 week profile