19 Weeks

Well, as of Thursday of last week I am 19 weeks along.  Our cute little girl is now the size of a mango!

My new symptoms:  acid reflux has started in (I've had it since I was a teenager, so not surprising); more back, hip pain; more cramps & small pains; and an evergrowing midsection (yep, the bump is getting more and more noticable).  And, as promised, a few bump pictures! :)

Now, I have a big favor to ask of all you friends & family out there.  I have started to look at baby stuff for registry...and there's so much out there!  I could spend weeks trying to figure out what to get and what not to get!  I would love it if you would leave comments below or email or message me with your suggestions for what is necessary and what is not...what brands are good...what you would recommend new and what is okay to have second-hand (yes, I'm more than okay w/ second-hand or hand-me-downs in clean, good condition).  :)  With Little Miss Hardy being our first baby, we don't have anything yet!  (Except a car seat and a stroller - a great second-hand deal that I couldn't turn down!)  :)  And I'm a little overwhelmed looking at everything that is available out there!

(And, please, respect each others comments.  People may have differing opinions on things and that's okay.  I'm open to any and all suggestions!)  Thanks!  And love you all!

IT'S A...

We had our ultrasound today!  And it's certain...it's a GIRL!!!  It was so neat to have the ultrasound specialist come to our house and hook his equipment up to our TV so we could watch everything!  He explained everything along the way.  And even gave us a DVD at the end of our ultrasound!

Our baby girl measured exactly at 18 weeks (and I'm 18 weeks today).  She's 9oz. And she's measuring to her exact due date...July 24th!  Her spine...her jawbones...her heart...her stomach...her brain...her bladder...everything looked perfect!  Yea!  (No signs of spina bifida, cleft palate, holes in the heart, etc., etc.)  She has long skinny legs and big feet!  Ha-ha!  She moves a lot, but I still can't feel it (or don't know I am).  Her body is functioning the way it should be...i.e. heart beat, umbilical cord, fluids moving through her like they should, etc.  It is such a big relief to know that our baby is healthy!

The first thing that came to Curtis' mind  when we found out it is a girl was that she's not going to be dating!  And, now he's going to have two of me around (he's going to have his hands full!).

And all I could think was, this tomboy is going to have to learn to like "girly!"

We are so excited!  And anxiously await getting to meet our new little girl and welcoming her into our lives and loving her!

Are You Counting Down?!?!

Are you counting down?!?!  We are!!!  Two more days!  And then we'll know what our sweet little Jelly Bean is!  We can't wait!!!

Our ultrasound is scheduled for Thursday, followed by a Dr's appointment on Friday.  The ultrasound tech comes to our house and hooks his equipment up to our TV so we get to watch everything on the big screen!

Right now, the vote seems to be at a pretty even 50/50 on whether Jelly Bean is a boy or a girl.  (This includes votes outside the blog.)  According to the Chinese gender chart, it's a boy.  Other people say it's a girl because I've had some small breakouts...and supposedly little girls steal your beauty.  I'm not showing enough to tell if I'm carrying high or low...so we can't use that wives tale.  So, it will be interesting to see what the result ends up being!  

Don't forget to check back Friday for our gender reveal!!!

4 Months Now! Almost Half-Way There!

Wow!  Can you believe I am already 4 months along!  It all goes by so fast!  We are almost half-way there already!  Unbelievable!

Our baby is now the size of an avacado (about 4.6 inches long and weighs about 3.5 ounces).  Our little Jelly Bean is forming tiny bones in it's ears, making it possible for it to hear our voices now!  (I keep hoping Curtis will start singing to it!  I'd love for our baby to have his beautiful singing voice!)  They say because of this, the baby will recognize our voices after it's born.  The baby is also growing hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows.  And forming taste buds!  Such a busy week for baby!

I am continually growing.  It's fun and crazy at the same time to see my body changing as the baby grows!  I am still always tired, but have a lot more energy than in my first trimester.  My appetite is growing.  And my hunger is more frequent.  Still, no major cravings.  Although, a bowl of cereal always sounds good to me - day or night. (But, for anyone that knows me really well, I was that way before I ever got pregnant.  Ha-ha!  Curtis has always teased me that I need a larger bowl for my cereal - like a mixing bowl!)  I am still getting migraines and smaller headaches, but they are tolerable.  My sense of smell continues to be heightened as I get further along.  And I am experiencing quite a few more cramps and pains as the baby and I grow.  I don't notice the baby moving yet, but know that that will be changing in the weeks to come.

Well, enough for now!  Stay tuned for more updates!  And maybe some baby bump pictures in the near future!