18 Weeks

How far along? 18 Weeks

Total weight gain: Oddly enough, down from last week. 4 lbs total. 

Maternity clothes? Not regularly but I did order my first pair of maternity jeans this week!

Sleep: Pretty good. We went to sleep & work up at really regular times all week so by Saturday it definitely felt like I was in a rhythm. 

Best moment this week: Two big ones!
1.Seeing our baby girl on Friday! I just love getting to get a glimpse at her. The doctor we met with was great and he took time to explain everything he was looking at. He measured her arms and legs (and all the bones in them), and looked at her stomach, heart, liver, brain, etc. He even counted out her fingers and toes. He pointed out her "sit bones" and confirmed that she was a girl! They gave us two adorable pictures to take home (below). He didn't mention what percentile she is in (I should have asked!) but she weighed exactly a half a pound. Her feet were 1 inch long - so tiny!
2. I could swear that I felt the baby this week! I've been feeling tiny flutters on and off but on Friday morning, I had my hand on my stomach (as I usually do for a few minutes when I wake up) and I felt this little poke from the inside - and then twice more after that. It was really light, but it was the first time I've felt something like that! So, so cool. I can't wait until the kicks are stronger!

Worst Moment this week: Sadly, this one also happened at the doctor's office on Friday. My placenta still hasn't moved and the doctor said it's still fully previa, mostly covering my cervix. Typically the placenta moves by around week 20 (as the uterus grows higher), and if it doesn't then they just have to keep checking every few weeks. We're in the check-every-few-weeks boat now, so we're going back in 4 weeks for a follow-up. It's a bummer because it means I'm still not allowed to do very much aerobic activity.

Miss Anything? Being able to get in a good workout! Yesterday Taylor and I went for a long walk (1 hour 30 mins) and by the end I could tell that I was on the verge of overdoing it. Today I'm trying to take it easy, but it's so frustrating. 

Cravings: Apples (daily at work) & coconut macaroons (trying to limit myself to 1/night with a glass of milk). We ate a ton of healthy salads and meals this week and I think it really help cut down on sugary cravings. 

Symptoms: No fainting this week! I talked to my doctor about it on Tuesday, and she thinks that the near-fainting was actually due to dehydration. 

Looking forward to: Nothing in particular.

Baby girl is the size of a sweet potato this week!

5.6 inches & 6.7 ounces 

(That's according to my app - we know she's close to 8 ounces!)