We're having a......(gender reveal)!

Hello everyone!! How are you? I feel like it's been forever since I've been on here. Pregnancy has made me quite a bit less motivated to do everyday life things, and I'm having to accept that it's okay not to do everything if I don't have to. I used to be someone that put so much of my worth and effort into what I accomplished...I'm grateful to have grown over the past few years--it was always so anxiety provoking and shame producing...

Anyways, I have officially made it to 20 weeks and a few days (when you were a kid, did you tell people you were "7 and three-quarters"?? I feel like pregnancy is like that for me)!! This past Friday we had our 20 week scan and found out the gender. Ya'll I was so freaking anxious and nervous on the ride there. I thought I just might get sick or wet my pants 😂. I've found the overall OB experience to be very rushed. My appointments are only about 5 minutes long. So getting to see the baby for like 20 minutes was such a fun experience for me. Not to mention getting to see the baby in detail--we got to see the profile, the heart, the brain, baby's arms and legs, etc. It was such a great experience...

Which leads me to the gender. We had contemplated not finding out during the ultrasound, but wanted to be 100% present without being afraid of seeing something that would give us a clue. Finding out the gender helps us to better connect because we no longer have to call Baby "baby" or "it", and we get to make dreams about Baby's life, and plan the nursery...and buy clothes 😉. 

We're having......

A BOY!!!

Friday night we had our parents over for dinner and the reveal. We bought blue poppers and wrapped them in brown paper with "Boy or Girl?" written on them. We had them vote what gender they thought we were having--2 and 2. Here's the video of them finding out (my mom is the precious one who hugged my mother in law. 😂

Is this outfit not the cutest?!?

We're so excited about this little boy joining our family and providing so much joy over the years to come. For those of you interested, I figured I would share my pregnancy experience so far.

Food cravings/aversion

Thank GOODNESS my food aversions have gone away! It seems so silly, but not wanting or enjoying some of my favorite foods and experiences was really sad for me. Around week 17 or 18 I started to want coffee and desserts. And I've finally moved away from eating asiago bagels with eggs for breakfast everyday. I haven't had many food cravings, but still want more carb-based meals. I DO put cream cheese on a lot of things, which is new for me, but I'm really enjoying it. I've also craved hot dogs--which is not me. I usually think hot dogs are disgusting. And yet, every time I see one, I want one. Pregnancy is SO WEIRD!!

Body image

Honestly, body image has been pretty rough throughout the pregnancy. I've had so many expectations of what my body would do or what it "should" do, and reality has been very different for me. I assumed I would have this "cute little baby bump", but instead have just gotten wider everywhere. Guys, my love handles are growing like weeds!! 😂I've heard there is this belief that women should only gain weight in their belly during pregnancy, and this could not be further from the truth! Sure, that may be some women's experience, but it's not the typical woman's experience. Our bodies need to gain 8-12 pounds of fat simply for reserves for baby during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Apparently this is deposited mainly in the love handles, hips, and thighs as DHA is stored in love handles. DHA=fat for brain development. I'm starting to think our baby boy is going to be very smart with all the DHA I'm apparently storing! 😉

I read the "Does the Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat" book, which was helpful for bolstering my confidence in my body and my experience. I've also had to remind myself that everyone's experience is different. And just because so and so hasn't gained weight in her lower half and isn't showing yet, doesn't mean that my body is wrong for gaining weight and showing. We're just different. Different doesn't mean better or worse. I also had a conversation with my OB about not discussing my weight with me. It was good for me to be able to draw those boundaries so that I can protect myself in the future. 

Look at that sweet face profile!! 😍

Other body changes

Thankfully the nausea has gone away for the most part. I'm still dealing with acid reflux on a daily basis (for me it's not burning, but more of a relaxation of the stomach and esophagus, resulting in the feeling that food is coming back up....sorry for the graphic detail😳). And I have to be careful about the foods I eat for my stomach. It's just more finicky and I have to be careful about my choices. I love apples right now, but they kill my stomach, so I have to be choosy about how much and what other foods I eat them with. Other changes include my eyelashes falling out, so that's cool...and I'm now feeling the baby move and kick. It's the GREATEST. I absolutely love feeling him kick because it really connects us. Isaac has even been able to feel him, which was such a neat experience for him. 

Exercise

Continuing to move my body is really important to me. I want to be physically fit and have endurance for the labor, because I know it is going to be strenuous and difficult. I want to be sure that I'm continuing to move my body so that it is more ready for this. However, just because I'm continuing to move my body, doesn't mean it looks the same as it used to. I've scaled it way back. Partially because I don't have the energy to do what I would have in the past, and partially because things just feel weird. Running is a form of movement that is NOT comfortable for me. I don't like the way it feels for Baby to move up and down each time I take a step. So I've been doing a lot of walking and then have done weights on my own or a weight lifting class. But being aware of how my body feels at each time is something I'm really conscientious of. 

I'm sure that as the summer progresses and it continues to get hotter (how is that even possible), I will take advantage of the pool at the Y. I'm thinking floating and swimming will feel great on my body. 🙋

And that's all for now. Thanks for celebrating with us!! :-D