Bump Watch and Gender Guesses

Here we are at almost 5 months into the pregnancy (wow), and I just started to really show last week. I feel like I've been showing for about a month now, but not everyone would agree with me (hey, I think I know my body best!). I guess I offically "popped," belly button and all, at 18 weeks (Brett gets a chuckle out of that term, which I did not know even existed until I started reading pregnancy books). My doc said that since I am taller and have a long torso the baby has lots of room to stretch out, and that most women do not show until later for their first pregnancy. Well, the day has finally come when my belly broke that barrier. Whoohoo!

14 weeks

I am still wearing most of my usual clothes (barely), with the help of the Bella Band (thanks, Clarisse!), and I am also sporting lots of free-flowing dresses and peasant tops. If I dress the bun just right, people don't look at me strangely now when I say I am expecting. Hooray! I am looking forward to wearing all of the maternity duds that I got from Craigslist and Motherhood.

Sporting the 16-week belly (and a new haircut!)

Here are some pics of the updated belly...at first, it looked like I just finished eating an entire pizza, but now it has started to take shape. Fun stuff! We'll be sure to keep you posted.

Front view (Brett's idea :)

19 weeks

Also, we are only one week away from finding out if our little bambino will be a member of Team Pink or Team Blue! With all the excitement, Brett and I are counting down the days (okay, maybe hours), and I am having a difficult time concentrating and falling asleep at night. Any predictions? I have added a little poll to the top left of this posting...feel free to guess away!

Trilogy...

Of symptoms...pregnancy symptoms, to be exact. Sorry to disappoint those who were looking at the blog based on the subject and who may have gotten their hopes up on some talk of a Sci-Fi movie or the latest must-have reads. I'm not a creative writer, so it's the least I could do to lure readers in.

Although I've lucked out on the morning sickness/nausea front, I have still experienced my fair share of symptoms that go along with being preggo. My top three (not my favorite three, just the three that seem to keep reappearing) are: allergies, headaches, and heartburn (oh-my!). Now, these are by no way new to me or my body, but they have definitely been amplified over the last several months. Being a native Texan, and living in Dallas now for almost three years, allergies are apparent and come with the territory. So, I didn't expect them to disappear. However, my books tell me that with pregnancy, women fall into three categories when it comes to their allergies: 1/3 will improve, 1/3 will stay the same, and the other third will get worse. Guess which group I'm in! Well, I tried to tough it out and not take anything at first (I'm an anti-medication kinda girl...or maybe just cheap), but when my sleep and work were being interrupted, I had to break down. Needless to say, Zyrtec has been a must-have the last couple of weeks!

To go along with the sniffles and congestion, my head has been feeling the pain. My doctor said headaches are most common in the second trimester, mostly due to hormones...but I have diagnosed mine as allergy-related (I hope my self-diagnosis makes all of my med-school and doctor friends laugh :) I have heard for some time now that Tylenol is about the only thing you can take during pregnancy...wrong. I still have not buckled under the headache pressure, but when I do, I'll let you know the remedy. And the third symptom I have been blessed with is...dun, dun dun: heartburn. I won't go into the details, but those who know me well know that I have had an issue with acid reflux for several years (it usually came down to me either A) eating my lunch too quickly at work, or B) eating and then hunching over books or a computer during grad school). And I hear it only gets worse in the third trimester! Goodness...

With more exciting (and probably less TMI) news, I went to the doctor last week for our 16-week check up. Everything is looking great! My doctor tried to play her hand in gender prediction, but she ended up canceling out any guess. She said, based on my symptoms (i.e., hunger, lack of morning sickness, etc.), she would guess we are having a boy. Then, she listened to the baby's heartbeat (ah, breath-taking), and changed her mind saying based on the rate, she would say it's a girl. She didn't tell me the reading, but at our 10-week check, we heard the heartbeat and it registered at 140 bpm (smack-dab in the middle). So, I am just as neutral as I've been...I guess I don't have the best maternal instinct. I hope I do, just not when it comes to my own body!

I digress, but the most exciting news is that we go in on May 4th to find out if we're having a little Brett or Courtney. That day couldn't get here any sooner!

March Celebrations!

We traveled the last two weekends in March to take part in great get-togethers for loved ones and their special occasions. Two weeks ago my friend Lindi and I drove to Abilene for our gal pal, Wendy's, baby shower. She and her husband, RJ, will be welcoming a little girl into the world sometime in May. How exciting!

It was a wonderful shower, with fantastic food and fun games (the ones that Wendy allowed :) We had so much fun showering them with gifts and cute outfits (so precious) and helping them get a little more prepared for when their baby girl gets here. Awwww....here is a picture of her sweet nursery. The last weekend we drove to Boerne (north of San Antonio) for Brett's grandmother, GiGi's, 90th birthday celebration. It was so much fun!

Here's a shot of our niece, Riley (drool and all), during our road trip! She sang most of the time that she was awake, which helped keep us awake. What a cutie-pie!

Over fifty people from across the country (Texas mainly, California, Oklahoma, and Illinois) came in for the special occasion. We had a great time watching old family videos (tape reel and projector screen included), hearing about special memories and stories of GiGi, visiting with family and friends and, of course, eating great food!

A picture of the Winters crew...Brett (looking off) and me, Jared and Bryn (they are having a girl in July!), Cade and Jessica, with their girls Ruby and Riley, Will Ed and Cynthia (a.k.a., Papa and Granny), and the guest of honor GiGi, Gussie Turnbough, at the bottom/center of the picture. We were without Kayla, who is in American Samoa. We miss you, Kayla!

It was such a nice time, and we were so happy to be there. With six children, 20 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren (and four more on the way!), GiGi has been a big influence in everyone's lives. As a wonderful mother/grandmother/great-grandmother, Christian, artist, singer, cook, story-teller (the list could go on and on!), she is one special person and an inspiration to many.