Nothing like the flu to help a girl keep her girlish figure during pregnancy

My little banana has grown this week! She is about 10 1/2 inches from crown to rump and weighs about 12oz. Most people are finally realizing that I am pregnant from my "look." I've been pretty sad about all the things that I haven't been fitting in these past few weeks, and my cousin Payge got to have a "shopping spree" in my closet of all the things I can no longer wear. The biggest thing has been my dress pants. I am not quite ready for maternity, but I'm also not really fitting in my regular ones anymore.

I guess the "big" happening this week was the reappearance of the flu in my wonderful life. I had it once in January (which was much worse than what I had this week) and then Friday morning about 12:30, I started waking up with terrible stomach pain. It actually hurt to even touch my stomach and I could barely go back to sleep. Finally, embracing my fate, I got up at 1:30 to let the fun part begin.

I have to say... my husband is so wonderful. I cannot imagine what it would be like to sit there and watch me get sick and hold my hair and get me cold wash cloths, but he is so nurturing during those times. He was up with me every time I got sick and then had to go into work after only a few hours of sleep. I felt so terrible for him! I also felt super bad for my coworkers because we had several out on vacation on Friday so it was the WORST possible day for me to get sick. Being sick makes me feel so bad for others...haha! I had to stay upstairs in bed all day because I couldn't go downstairs where the previous night's dinner skillet laid unclean in the sink, reminding me of all the late night festivities I had just been through. I'm sure that's enough image for most of you, so I'll just move on...

I am looking foward to vacation next week and hopefully getting a little R&R. I haven't been sleeping as well and I've had several headaches lately. Work is getting harder to be up on my feet all day and my poor back pain is just peaked by Fridays. Hopefully I can catch up on some sleep, get a little sun, and rejuvinate my spirit and body just a little.

Hopefully this hasn't been one big complaining session, but this week looks up comparitively so maybe next week's post will be a more enjoyable read. Have a great week!

HALFWAY THERE!

As you can see by my 20 week picture, although I'm not "huge", baby and I have been growing! This week, she is about the length of a cantaloupe (6.5 inches). This week's interesting fact is that she is busy starting to make meconium (black, tarry, nasty poopy) which she will have in her first little diaper for daddy to change! :) I am enjoying rubbing this one in for Nathan! Last night we were at a friend's house and I was changing her son. As soon as Nathan saw that there was a little #2 in the diaper, out of the room he went! We are gonna have to work on this!

The past week has been wonderfully exciting since we have found out that baby is a girl. It's nice to be able to refer to her as a "she" because it helps give her some identity and makes it feel all the more real for us. Both sides of the family are super excited too.

She has been moving A LOT! Sometimes it just feels like she's rolling around in there and then sometimes she is full on kicking and punching. Nathan was able to feel her for the first time on Tuesday which was a wonderful treat for him.

I have bought a few cute little girl things for her which is so much fun! I have to try to show some restraint or I'll buy out the store! My friend Stephanie's littlest girl was born in October so she already gave me a bunch of the clothes that she wore in her first year. There are so many cute wintery things that I can't wait for her to wear!

Glad to have a 3 day weekend so we can get some rest and have some fun. It'll be busy at work the rest of the week, but so worth it. Have a good Memorial Day!

It's a......

GIRL!


Little baby Seago is now officially "little baby GIRL Seago!" I had my ultrasound at 9:30 ish this morning. I woke up not feeling well at all and I thought 'Why of all days, today?' But by the time I was on the table I was feeling a little better. It was neat to see all the pictures of her and hear her heartbeat (and see it pumping!). Her HR was 138bpm which is really good and normal. She has all her fingers and toes and all her bones are there and intact! I also have gained 5lbs since my last appointment 6 weeks ago, which was a nice thing to hear. When they got to the part about telling us her gender, the tech was very dramatic....

"You guys... are having.... a .... little....................................girl."

The little stinker is stubborn... she wouldn't move her head (which is currently pointed downward) in a place where her brain could be measured so the tech kept hitting my belly with the ultrasound head. Not a good thing, because they make me pee in a cup every time I am there and I downed a bottle of water pretty quickly before I got there. I am not very excited about peeing in a cup, but I was so happy when she finally handed it to me. Ha ha!

Daddy Nathan is very excited and I keep hearing the expression "We are having a little girl!?!" over and over. It's adorable. He will be wonderful with her.

We bought her first little girl outfit. It's a little pink sleeper that says "Mommy and Daddy's Sweetest" with a big strawberry on it. It is soooo cute!

So everyone is excited and we can't wait to meet her in October!


By the way, we don't have any names picked out yet!

18 weeks

So I am at the 18 week mark... just a few short weeks from being HALFWAY through! Wow! I really can't believe it because at my 6 week mark, I was going "how am I going to do this?" Glad to report that I am feeling really good except for headaches and back pain/SI joint pain. Both of those things can be pretty disabling at times.

So at 18 weeks, the baby has started moving like crazy, but I only feel it occasionally. One day I thought my pager was going off, but I realized that the vibration I felt was not where my pager was... I'm assuming that is the baby, but I'm sure I'll feel him/her much more soon. He or she is passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. It is about the size of a sweet potato now.

We have one more week until we find out the sex of the baby and get to see him/her for the first time! I haven't had any ultrasounds since they have been able to find good heartbeats each time I've had an appointment. What do I think it is? My feelings at this point say BOY. Who knows though... I could be wrong!

Because of my feelings that little baby Seago is a boy, several have asked what would we name him... Honestly, I have no idea. But my friend Holland from work suggested : Viggo Seago because of Nathan's uncanny resemblance to the actor Viggo Mortenson (see picture below). Hmmm, I'm not sure that I'm hooked on it, but it sure would be funny!
I probably won't post again until after my ultrasound on the 18th, but stay tuned!

Belly Explosion!

This is a 17 1/2 week picture taken tonight. I have been fretting this week a little bit about how I haven't gained much weight, etc. The Lord must have heard me because overnight, I sprouted this belly. The baby must have REALLY grown in the last few days. Or maybe it's all that southern cookin' I tried to squeeze in this last week. Anyway, I just thought it was update worthy! Enjoy!

Back from Mississippi

This 17th week is especially hard because the baby is now the size of an onion. The bad part is... I can't stand onions right now! Ha ha! The baby is about 5 inches long and should weigh about 7 ounces. He or she is now getting harder bones and has fingerprints! How cool!
We just got back from Mississippi on a whirlwind trip (at least it was for me...Nathan had 10 days off, while I had just 2) for Granny's 90th birthday. It was the first time that my mother-in-law's whole family has EVER been together! We had such a good time and it was very hard to leave this morning.
My in-laws were excited to see that I'm (kind of) growing. My mother-in-law Pam talked to the baby quite a bit. Mom Seago, I'm sure that he or she will definitely know that you are NOT a smoker! :) I got some advice from other family members on how to "look more pregnant." All in due time, I'm sure.

By the way, for those who haven't heard my rant yet... when I was getting an adjustment the other day, my chiropractor said "You can't tell you are pregnant yet, you just look kind of chubby." I wanted to punch her in the face! But, I chose not to let my hormones get the best of me and brushed it off my shoulder.

Well, I am in desperate need of a nap since we had to be up at 4am to make our 6:30am flight from Memphis this morning! I'll never function at church or work if I don't! Have a wonderful week!

Little Avocado

The baby has grown almost another 1/2 inch in the last week. He or she now has eardrums and can hear my voice! I have been telling Nathan not to get too used to calling the baby a "boy" or "son" because if it is a girl, she'll be able to hear him and come out resentful! Ha ha! If I had an ultrasound this week, I could potentially tell whether the baby is officially a boy or girl. How exciting.

I took another goofy "Old Wives Tales of Gender Prediction" test and it said:

You have a 47% chance of having a boy.
And you have a 52% chance of having a girl.

And Here's Why...
You are carrying the extra weight out front, so it's a boy.
The hair on your legs is not growing any faster during your pregnacy, so it's a girl.
Boys are carried low. You are going to have a boy.
Sleeping in a bed with your pillow to the south indicates that you will be having a girl.
Your feet are not colder than they were before pregnancy. You are having a girl.
You refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread. You are having a girl.
Dad-to-be hasn't been gaining weight along with Mom-to-be, so it will be a girl.
The maternal grandmother doesn't have gray hair (dyed or natural), so a girl will be born.
You had morning sickness early in pregnancy, so you are expecting a girl.
You are looking particularly good during pregnancy. Therefore, it must be a boy, because girls steal their mother's looks.
Your chest development has been quite dramatic during pregnancy. You should expect a girl.
Since the sum of the mother's age at conception and the number of the month of conception is even, it will be a boy.
A needle on a thread held over your belly moves in circles, so you will have a boy.
Your urine is a bright neon yellow color, so you will have a boy.
You have a craving for salty or sour foods, which means that it is a boy.
Your nose hasn't changed during pregnancy, which indicates a girl.
You have been craving meats or cheeses, so it is a boy.
Your baby's heart rate is 140 or more beats per minute, so it's a girl.
You have no desire for orange juice, so it's a boy.
You are having headaches, so it's a boy.
Your belly looks like a watermelon, so it's a girl.
You show them the palm of your hand, so it's a girl.
You use the handle, so it's a boy.

It's so close! The last one I took which had a few different questions in it said that we had a 53% chance of having a boy and a 47% chance of having a girl. That is too close to know. I guess we'll just have to wait until May 18th. But you watch and see, the baby will probably have its leg crossed or something so we can't tell.

As for me, I am overall starting to feel much, much better. I do still have some icky moments of nausea, indigestion and headaches, but overall, I am significantly feeling better. My cravings at the moment are cheese sticks and pickles. The baby is giving me "automatic portion control" because as soon as I've had one bite too many, I immediately feel sick. I still haven't gained much weight, but my tummy is growing so I'm assuming that is a good thing!

I have a very busy week ahead with work, appointments, meetings and traveling. I am really looking forward to being in Mississippi this weekend for a (hopefully) relaxing end to the week and to help Nathan's Granny celebrate her 90th. I better enjoy my rest today!