Family Friday: 19 weeks

Warning: Family Friday posts are an open and honest update of our pregnancy.  There will be references to lady parts, internal organs, and bodily functions.  There will also be photos of baby bumps and ultrasounds.  If any of this bothers you, please stop reading now.

19 Weeks

THE BABY:

 -  is about 6 inches long from head to rump
 -  weighs about 8 ounces

 -  is designating specialized areas in the brain for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch

 -  is forming a waxy coating (vernix caseosa) on his/her skin to protect it from the amniotic fluid

 -  has arms and legs that are now in proportion to the rest of the body

WEIGHT:  + 6 pounds total.  Another whole pound increase from last week :/

BODY:  My waist is still at +2.5 inches, my lower belly has increased to +2.75 inches, and my hips have stayed the same at +1 inch.  I finally have a real baby bump!  My lower belly is now firm and if I lay on my stomach, it feels like I'm laying on a ball.

THE GOOD:  Movement.  I only felt that one somersault last week but this week (especially the past few days) I've been feeling a lot of movement!  It still makes me catch my breath every time.  It is pretty amazing to feel but honestly it freaks me out a little too.  Having something alive inside of me moving around reminds me of all the Alien movies I watched when I was younger :)  I know that seeing Baby G on the ultrasound in a couple weeks will help change that image.

THE BAD:  1) Irritability.  I'm generally amazed by how calm and relaxed I feel during this pregnancy but I swear that for a few days every month, I get short-tempered and irritable!  To top that off, I always get a pimple or two at this same time as well.  Is it possible to still get PMS while you're pregnant?  I swear that my body is still on a monthly hormonal cycle.  2) Round Ligament Pain.  I imagine I'll be experiencing these short, sharp pains for months to come.  It's bearable, just annoying.

FOOD:  I'm not craving anything in-particular this week, but I am craving sweet things in general and sweet liquids more than food.  Some of the liquid sweets that I go for include sweet tea (black or Korean citron), decaf soy mochas from Starbucks, and my morning protein smoothies which are a sweet blend of vanilla, chocolate, and fruit.

EXERCISE:  The best exercise this week was a 4-mile walk at sunset with Johnnie and Dulce :)  I only went jogging once this week but I have been riding my bike as transportation around base more.  I finally did The Perfect Pregnancy Workout DVD that I bought months ago.  It is a sculpting workout that uses almost every muscle in your body, including abs and kegels!  It includes beginner, intermediate, and advanced modifications for almost every exercise.  It was a great workout and I definitely felt this (in a good way) the next day.

OTHER NOTES:  Johnnie is home!!  We've been on this island for about three months and he's been gone for two.  He has had a few days off this week so we have been busy getting things done.  We finally bought a mattress for our new bedroom set, we bought a fence for the backyard so Dulce can have some freedom, we got Johnnie's car registered, and also got Dulce registered.  It is SO nice having our family back together again :)

Don't forget to vote for Baby G's gender in the top right corner of this page.  As I'm writing this, guesses for boy and girl are tied!  I still have no idea myself, although I did have a dream the other night that we're actually having twins and I was worried about exchanging the stroller that we got!  Two more weeks until we find out!!

*******

"Life is tough enough without having someone kick you from the inside."

~Rita Rudner

Related Posts:

Announcement	21 Weeks	32 Weeks
11 Weeks	22 Weeks	33 Weeks
12 Weeks	23 Weeks	34 Weeks
13 Weeks	24 Weeks	35 Weeks
14 Weeks	25 Weeks	36 Weeks
15 Weeks	26 Weeks	Maternity Photos
16 Weeks	27 Weeks	The Birth
17 Weeks	28 Weeks
18 Weeks	29 Weeks
19 Weeks	30 Weeks
20 Weeks	31 Weeks