18 Weeks - Quickening

As of Wednesday, December 5th, I am 18 weeks pregnant!  At this point the baby is the size of a sweet potato, so he or she is my sweet tator-tot this week!  This is my first pregnancy post for a few reasons:

1. I have been blessed with the easiest pregnancy on the planet so far.  I have very few complaints and the pregnancy has been generally very uneventful (now, I'll just say a little prayer that it continues this way!)
2. I was slacking on taking belly pictures, until this week, when I finally admitted that I'm not just bloated anymore and that this baby is showing!
3. I have been keeping a hand-written pregnancy journal and felt blog updates about the pregnancy were redundant.  The purpose of the journal is so that baby can someday read all about how I was feeling and what I was thinking while they were growing into a tiny human, and/or so that I can compare notes with any subsequent pregnancies!  Tyler enjoys the journal as well because he likes to read about what I'm REALLY thinking.  I'd like to eventually have him write a couple entries himself. 

Yep, there's a baby in there! 18 weeks

Tyler swaddled a sweet potato.  He is already trying to win Father of the Year!

This week's biggest pregnancy highlight is that I got to feel the baby moving!!  I have heard him/her kicking like crazy at the heart monitor during my midwife appointments, but until two nights ago, I had not yet been able to feel the movement (at least not that I could discern.)  I don't know how else to describe how it felt, except that it felt much like it sounded on the monitor, "WOOSH!"

Two nights ago, I awoke around 3am to incredible hunger pangs.  This is also a first in the pregnancy.  I have felt unexpectedly and ravenously hungry at several moments throughout the pregnancy, but never in the middle of the night.  The hunger comes on STRONG and FAST!  I'll be fine one minute, then the next I can think of nothing else but eating ANYTHING that instant!  When the hunger started at 3am I was exhausted and annoyed that my stomach DARE wake me up, so I tried to ignore it and laid in bed miserably trying to go back to sleep.  Finally, at 4am, I conceded that it was not going away and I got up to get a bite to eat.  I am TRYING to eat healthily, so I went for trail mix and some pecans.  I also had a tall glass of water, (which I later came to regret as I woke up every 30 minutes to use the bathroom for the rest of the night!) 

When I went back to bed, I could not fall asleep.  I was exhausted, getting really frustrated, and for the first time I was thinking negatively about this pregnancy... but at that moment, I felt the "woosh, woosh, flutter, woosh."  It's as if he or she knew in that moment that I needed a reminder of the little miracle happening inside me.  I teared up a little.  I had been waiting very impatiently to feel the baby move, but times before when I thought MAYBE I was feeling the baby, it wasn't obvious enough and could have been ruled out as gas.  I was so excited and enjoying every tiny flutter, THEN, baby suddenly stopped moving.  SO, I poked at the baby a few times in hopes that the movements would start again.  Hahaha... I'm going to be an awesome Mom.  The poking didn't work, so I guess baby was done with his/her performance for the night.  It was a great feeling, though, and I can't wait to feel it again!
 

Pregnancy Bonus:  Re-discovering "virgin" daiquiris! Who knew "virgin" drinks come with sprinkles??

Pregnancy Downer:  Not enjoying FREE cocktails at weddings! Here we are, all smiles, nonetheless!