Week 19!!

Hi sweet friends!

Welcome to week 19. 

I'm looking forward to next week (Christmas, friends, family and my 20 week Ultrasound!)

On Sunday, I'm spending the morning with my best friend Melanie (33 weeks pregnant!) and I can't wait to just hug her and spend the morning talking / venting :)

I hope you all have a a Merry Christmas and I'll see you in a week!

xo

Courtney

How far along? 19 weeks today. Baby is a MANGO! 

Total weight gain/loss: Welp. I weighed myself. I'm now up 11.2 pounds. Send help. 

Maternity clothes? I ordered some pieces from Old Navy so I'm not squeezing my belly into tops that don't like it. I can't wait to try everything on. 

Stretch marks? Bio Oil! No stretch marks.

Sleep: Waking up several times but mostly falling back asleep quite easily. 

Best moment this week: I just love when Layla & Benny talk or ask questions about the baby. It's so sweet and unexpected and loving.

Have you told family and friends: Yup! 

Movement: Nada yet - come on baby, kick me!!

Food cravings:  Today is was Taco Bell. I have zero shame.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Yup. I'm still getting nausea spells - especially around bedtime and random other times. No fun. 

Gender prediction: It's a boy! 

Labor Signs: No.

Belly Button in or out? In! 

Wedding rings on or off? OFF :( I started with swelling this week which is way earlier then my other two. The other night I couldn't get my rings off and my feet were really uncomfortable. I'm watching my salt intake but it stinks. I managed to get my wedding band on today which I love but I couldn't get the engagement ring on. 

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy. Moody. Both. Equal. 

Weekly Wisdom: One step at a time. I felt like the beginning of the pregnancy, it was going SO SLOW. And now? I'm nearly almost half way through and feeling like I need to rush to prepare. So I'm trying to just take it day by day (week by week) and enjoy this pregnancy as it's most certainly my last <3 

Milestones: My belly is BIG. ROUND. And constantly being rubbed like a genie's lamp :) 

18 weeks.

I'm 18 weeks today. 

And I feel like poo 

The nausea is intense. And yesterday I dealt with dizziness. 

AND other then one time, I haven't really worked out since October. 

I just feel yuck but onward and upward. 

:)

How far along? 18 weeks today. The size of an artichoke or a sweet potato! 

Total weight gain/loss: Big nervous mama strikes again. I didn't weigh myself. But I did eat 3 cookies this week? 

Maternity clothes? I need them bad. I will try to shop this week. I need at least 2-3 more pants and 3-4 more shirts.

Stretch marks? Bio Oil! No stretch marks.

Sleep: I'm waking up early and I'm waking up to pee and I'm waking up a bunch but mostly I'm able to fall back asleep.

Best moment this week: I had two parent teacher conferences this week and while academically, both kiddos are doing great - I'm even more proud of the little people they are becoming - the overwhelming theme was KINDNESS. Both kids are sweet to their friends and helpful and just nice. And that's all I could ask for. I hope this new baby follows in their footsteps.

Have you told family and friends: Yup! 

Movement: Not yet and I'm eagerly waiting! I keep thinking I feel something but nothing significant yet.

Food cravings:  Eh... not really. Earlier this week it was an Italian hoagie. And today it's pizza.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Yes. It stinks. But I'm still dealing with nausea quite a bit, off & on. If I think about something / smell something / brush my teeth, the gagging is there in full force. ** Update, upon writing this I ate a salad and 1 1/2 pieces of pizza and feel like I want to puke everywhere. Pregnancy is awesome. 

Gender prediction: It's a boy! 

Labor Signs: No.

Belly Button in or out? In! 

Wedding rings on or off? On!

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy. We ended Hannukah with a great celebration at our house - all 10 kiddos exchanged gifts and it was a really sweet night. Grandma came on Wednesday and we love having her visit!

Weekly Wisdom: Having a baby is expensive. But worth it :)

Milestones: Nothing to report here...almost halfway cooked! :) 

Layla Turns 7 and a HALF!!!

My little baby girl, my darling, my first baby love...

Last night we went to dinner at Chick Fil A with two of our most favorite families - The Bellanos and Carreros - and while we were there, I watched you you play with your best girlfriends while stuffing french fries in your mouth and I couldn't believe how BIG you looked - just tall and gorgeous and mature. Sometimes it feels like your whole face has changed literally overnight. 

How you look... In my eyes, you are perfect. So tall and so thin - with fair skin, gorgeous long light brown hair and big blue eyes. You seem to grow everyday. Every time we run into someone we haven't seen in a while, they comment on how tall you are. Your teeth are so cute - they are slowly falling out and the new ones are so much bigger then your baby teeth - I just love your 2nd grade smile. 

Your Schedule....You are a busy bee but, maybe more then anyone, love to just CHILL. Give you a comfy sofa, a blanket and your Ipad and you could relax for hours. You wake up around 7 AM everyday (although if I can somehow split up you & Benny for the night - you'll sleep until 7:30 / 8:00 AM). You are almost always a joy in the morning - you don't care what you wear, you brush your teeth, get your own breakfast and promptly sit down to start your day. You enjoy school - you have a great teacher and sweet friends. This is the first year you're doing aftercare and you LOVE IT - right now you go twice a week but if it was up to you, you'd go everyday. You also do Yoga once a week (which you only enjoy sometimes) and art once a week (which you love). I asked the next after school club you wanted to join and you chose MAD SCIENCE which makes you the coolest. You also started gymnastics on Saturdays this past weekend and you loved it!! Otherwise, bedtime is between 7:30 - 8:30 PM. 

Your Likes....You loved your second year of camp this past summer - you LOVE swimming, dancing and singing the most. You love reading and writing and math. You love board games. You love Karaoke and doing make up with friends. You love wrestling Benny. You love your cousins and grandparents and aunts and uncles. You love NYC and trips to Florida. You love playing with your dolls / Barbies alone. You love Nutella, going to the movies, seeing your besties and laying with your mama <3 

Your Dislikes: You dislike sleeping alone, trying new foods, going to the basement alone, when Dada & I go on a date, when your friends are mean to you at school, when people lie to you. You HATE wearing socks and too tight underwear. You hate wedgies the most. 

Your Food: STILL SO PICKY. Favorites: Bean & Cheese Nachos (Las Margaritas), Cream Cheese bagels (from camp only), Kashi Cinnamon Harvest cereal, nutella, chicken nuggets, french fries, many fruits, zero veggies.

Your Thoughts: You are really discovering and absorbing the world around you. I love talking with you for hours - you'll vent to me about small things and big things and our relationship is really beautiful. It's maybe my favorite part of life. You are a joy to be around. 

The past 6 months have been a blast - camp, starting 2nd grade, meeting new friends, discovering new things (like Adventure Guides with Dada!), playing with friends in the neighborhood - the list never ends. You're still so little and I love this age. You are pure delight my dear and I'm lucky to call you mine. 

Mama

(Here are a few pictures from the past 6 months...)