20 Weeks - IT'S A BOY!!!

BABY BOO IS 20 WEEKS ALONG AND ABOUT THE SIZE OF A MELON

HE IS GAINING WEIGHT STEADILY AND ADDING FAT FOR INSULATION AT BIRTH

Well, turns out my "Mother's Intuition" was totally wrong haha!  We are so excited to be expecting a little boy!!  We had the anatomy scan this week and as soon as she moved the wand down to his little bottom it was immediately obvious that he is a boy.  I was so surprised!  He looked so cute in there too.  He was kicking and it was crazy to see AND feel him kick at the same time :)

Now that we know the sex it makes it all so much more real.  We've started narrowing down names (although we won't tell until he is born!), and I can really focus on decorating the nursery!  My original inspiration still stands, but we'll add in boyish details like airplanes (as a nod to Tim's lifelong love of aviation).  I'm so excited to get started!

19 Weeks - Holy Cuteness

BABY BOO IS 19 WEEKS OLD AND ABOUT THE SIZE OF A SWEET POTATO

THAT'S 10.5in LONG AND 10.5oz!

BOO CAN HEAR MY HEARTBEAT AND MUFFLED NOISES FROM OUTSIDE.

I have been spending the last few weeks perfecting our registry and adding some cute new items!  Tim and I took a trip to Buy Buy Baby to try out strollers and car seats/carriers, of which there were MANY.  It is so overwhelming!  But we started with ones we had heard good things about and went from there.  In the end we chose a Chicco car seat/carrier and a City Mini stroller with 3 wheels and an easy one-hand method of folding.  Both are now on the registry!  I also recently found the cutest bath stuff at Target - adorable hooded towels and a whale tub.  SO CUTE!!  There are times when trying to figure out what to register for is super overwhelming, and other times when it's just plain fun :)  

In other news, I have been feeling Boo move in there more and more!  It happens almost every day now.  I feel it most when I'm lounging on the couch or in bed.  I think being in a reclined position tightens the area around the baby so it's easier to feel.  It's so exciting!  I'll probably change my tune when she's kicking me in the ribs...

18 Weeks - Flutterby Baby

BABY BOO IS 18 WEEKS OLD AND ABOUT THE SIZE OF A PAPAYA

ARMS AND LEGS ARE BUSY FLEXING AND MOVING

I've started feeling Boo move in little flutters and it's SO exciting!!  I've been anxiously waiting for it and it happens mostly when I'm lying down to go to bed.  There have been a lot of physical changes.  My hips (which have always bothered me with nagging discomfort) have begun to KILL if I lay on my side for extended periods of time.  At this stage it isn't safe to lay flat on my back (the baby's heart rate can drop due to circulation being cut off) but I can't sleep on my side because I wake up with both hips throbbing and pain shooting down my legs.  So I built my own personal Preggo Pillow Pile with a combo of throw pillows, my previously useless body pillow, and my bed pillows.  Now I can sleep on my back but in a reclined position and it is oh-so-comfy!!

17 Weeks - What We've Been Up To

BOO IS 17 WEEKS OLD AND ABOUT THE SIZE OF A MANGO!

HER SKELETON IS CHANGING FROM CARTILAGE TO BONE.

I don't have any baby-specific updates to talk about this week so instead I'll blog about what we've been up to lately.  We recently took a trip down to Daytona Beach to visit my grandparents who moved there a couple years ago from Hawaii.  They love the warm weather and I don't blame them!  

This is my Dad's father, Joe, and step-mother Christie, and this is the first time they've met Tim!  Since they lived all the way in Hawaii we never had the chance to see them, and they couldn't come to the wedding because they happened to move to Florida right around the same time.  So we took a trip to visit them, finally!  It was a great weekend!  We had fun catching up, cooking dinner together, and enjoying the nice weather.  We went to the Blue Springs park, where manatees and other wild life hang out in the beautiful springs and rivers.  There weren't many manatees there that day but it was a gorgeous place, perfect for a leisurely walk.  

Grandpa was excited about his first great grandchild :) 

We didn't plan it, but we happened to be there the same weekend as the Daytona 500!  Tim and I are not into NASCAR at all, but we thought How can we miss it if were here??  So we picked up some cheap tickets on Stubhub the day before and went to the race!

We both expected to leave early, assuming it might get boring watching the cars go round and round 200 times (200 laps = 500 miles).  But it wasn't boring!  It was very exciting and even though the race was 4 hours long, time flew by.  We had a blast!  There was a lot of fun stuff set up around the race track as well.  All the various driver sponsors had games, booths, bars, and activities set up.

Nothing goes together like Preggo Belly and Beer ;)

Finally on our last day there we spent a nice lazy day with Grandma and Grandpa before heading back to Orlando to catch our flight.  We went to dinner at Paradiso 37, a fun restaurant at Downtown Disney to reminisce about our trip to Disney World last September when we went for my 30th Birthday.  We love it there!!  We are very excited to come back one day with a little kid in tow :)

I had to indulge in a frozen strawberry mocktail :)

Once Boo is here we will definitely make a trip back so Grandma and Grandpa can meet her.  (Or him!  We will find out in 3 short weeks if Boo is a girl or a boy!)  

16 Weeks - The Excitement is Building!

BOO IS 16 WEEKS OLD, ABOUT THE SIZE OF AN AVOCADO

THE HEART IS NOW PUMPING 25 QUARTS OF BLOOD A DAY

It has been so exciting to watch my belly grow and see how others react and can tell that I am pregnant.  I have been looking forward to being pregnant for so long and it is SO exciting to actually be doing it now!  I can't wait for the next big milestone - feeling the baby move.  I had my 16 week check up with my midwife this morning and she said I should expect to feel movement in the next couple weeks.  We also listened for Boo's heartbeat with a Doppler machine and it was a healthy 150bpm.  The next appointment is in 4 weeks when we'll do the anatomy scan and find out if Boo is a girl or a boy!  I still say she's a girl... we'll find out if I'm right soon enough!

15 Weeks - The Nursery: Step 1

As soon as we moved into our house, I knew which room I wanted to be the nursery.  The center bedroom with it's big window, cute little nook, and large closet was perfect!  It's also the closest room to our own bedroom, which is important for those late night feedings.  We kept it empty because we knew it wouldn't be long before we'd start trying to get pregnant.  We've finally started decorating and so far the walls have been painted and the crib is put together!  There's lots more to do, which is why we're starting early.  We went for a beautiful soft turquoise color and got a classic white Jenny Lind style crib.  Perfect for a boy or a girl!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Nursery Inspiration

Whether we have a boy or a girl, we know we want a nursery that's fun, colorful, and eclectic.  No mountains of pink or blue for us!  The wall color and key pieces should be gender neutral.  This way we can start on it early and then fill in with more gender-specific items once we know if Boo is a boy or a girl.  I created two inspiration boards to guide us along the way, and once we know the gender of the baby we'll focus on the appropriate one.

I love the idea of a soft turquoise for the walls.  With the wood trim and breezy white curtains I plan to hang, it'll give the room a very fresh look.  We had the room painted this week and it looks great!  We also ordered our crib - the DaVinci Jenny Lind crib in white.  I would love to paint it a fun color but worry about Boo eating the paint when she's teething... not safe.  Another feature that is a must is an awesome front-facing library wall, but there really wasn't a good way to represent that on the boards.  

| Photo prints | Cloud Mobiles | Chair | Pillow | Bunnies | Paper Flowers | Letter S | Crib | Floral Rug |

| Striped Rug | White Dresser | Blue Dresser | Lamp | Elephant Bookcase |

| Screen Print | Chevron Pillow | Fox | Toy Blocks | Rug |