Pregnancy - 13 week update

How far along?  13 weeks

How big is baby?  The size of a lemon or kiwi according to my phone apps - around 7.4 cm and 23 g.

Total weight gain/loss?  I'm now 55.7kg, another loss which is surprising seeing as my bump is definitely growing and my boobs are huge BUT it's only a tiny loss so I'm not concerned.

Waist?  I haven't measured it this week.

Stretchmarks?  Only the ones that have been there for years.

Maternity clothes?  Still not necessary - I'm quite fortunate that most of my work trousers were bought when I was a bit overweight and since I've got into shape they've been big around the waist, so now I'm slowly growing into them again.

Sleep?  Mostly pretty good this week - although I've been doing overtime so I missed my lie in this morning.

Best moment this week?  Being completely medication free - I've been on some kind of IVF drugs pretty much continuously since August so it's weird to not be taking anything other than my pregnancy vitamins!  Also I'm actually starting to look pregnant - I can't stop stroking my stomach :)

Movement?  Nothing yet - hopefully only a month or so until I start feeling it though.

Food cravings?  Cheesy nachos, which I made about an hour ago.  I ate way too many and now I feel sick, silly girl!

Food aversions?  Nothing in particular.

Gender?   I always pictured myself with a boy, but lately when I think about when the baby comes I'm seeing a girl... maybe a sign?

Labour signs?  Definitely not.

Pregnancy symptoms?  The "morning" sickness is starting to subside and although it can still be bad, it's not every day any more.  I've also had a little more energy and got back to some exercise this week.  My boobs have grown a lot in the last few weeks so I desperately need to go bra shopping!

Belly button in or out?  In.

What I miss?  Cuddles with our second cat.  He was always really snuggly but lately he's decided ALS is his favourite and I'm out.  However, our first cat (who never used to bother about cuddles) hasn't left my side for the last 4 or 5 weeks which is absolutely adorable.

What I am looking forward to?  Now I'm in my second trimester (how exciting) I'm looking forward to having that pregnancy glow and having my energy back... I'll wait and see if it ever happens!!

Upcoming appointments/scans?  I see the Consultant on 15th May, midwife on 17th May and have my next scan on 17th June.

Weekly wisdom?  Embrace the excitement!  When you tell family and friends, they'll most likely just want to go shopping with you, talk babies and show you cute things they've found.  Enjoy it, it's one of the few times in life everyone will want to help you out - they'll probably be less keen when there's nappies involved.  Also, bear in mind that not everyone is particularly interested in babies so don't chew their ear off about it if they just want to chat about normal stuff.

Milestones?  Hitting the second trimester and being medication free.

Bump picture:

It's starting to really turn into a little bump now, rather than just bloating/fat!

Also, here's a little picture from our scan last week, I meant to post it on my 12 week update but completely forgot.  Little Pip wasn't playing ball and was trying to hide behind the placenta so it's not the clearest picture but it was amazing to see him/her wriggling around:

Pregnancy - 12 week update

How far along?  12 weeks

How big is baby?  The size of a plum according to the apps on my phone (around 5.3 cm).

Total weight gain/loss?  I'm now 55.9 kg (in powerlifting terms I'm now in a whole new weight loss).  No major loss this week though so that's a good sign.  I think I'm mostly just losing muscle.

Waist?  27 inches so an inch on again in the last week - oddly I'm getting bigger but lighter at the same time.

Stretchmarks?  Only the ones that have been there for years.

Maternity clothes?  Not for a while yet.

Sleep?  Hit and miss.  Some nights I'll sleep pretty solidly, other nights I'm awake almost all night.  I'm not particularly uncomfortable or anything, so I don't know why I'm not sleeping but I'm well known for being a bit of an insomniac so it's nothing new for me.

Best moment this week?  I can't choose just one!  We've hit that 12 week "safe" mark, we had a scan and got to see little Pip today and we bought our pushchair.

Movement?  Nothing yet - hopefully only a couple of months until I start feeling it though.

Food cravings?  Nothing in particular.

Food aversions?  Lucozade.  I drink a fair amount of Lucozade Sport drinks but I can't stomach them at all at the moment.

Gender?   Absolutely no clue.

Labour signs?  Definitely not.

Pregnancy symptoms?  Pretty much the same.

Belly button in or out?  In.

What I miss?  Having the energy to do things!

What I am looking forward to?  Starting to buy more things now that we've passed the 12 week mark.

Upcoming appointments/scans?  I see the Consultant on 15th May, midwife on 17th May and have my next scan on 17th June.

Weekly wisdom?  Shop around!  We've had our eye on a particular travel system/pushchair for a while but avoided it because it was way too expensive and didn't even come with a car seat.  Today we found it in another shop cheaper than before and that included a car seat too.  So glad we didn't give up and buy something else/buy it for the higher price.

Milestones?  That 12 week mark!

Bump picture:

Starting to get a serious little chunk going now :D

Pregnancy - 11 week update

How far along?  11 weeks

How big is baby?  The size of a fig according to the apps on my phone (around 4.1 cm).

Total weight gain/loss?  56kg so I've lost again this week despite trying to make all my meals really high calorie because I know I'm not eating very big portions.

Waist?  26 inches so an inch on in the last week, despite losing weight.

Stretchmarks?  Only the ones that have been there for years.

Maternity clothes?  Not for a while yet.

Sleep?  Lots!  I'm loving the fact that I don't work Wednesdays and it's Easter weekend so I've got a 4 day weekend coming up too.  Plenty of lie ins!

Best moment this week?  Announcing our pregnancy to the world (IVF and all).  The amount of support we've had has been absolutely phenomenal and I can't explain how amazingly loved we feel.

Movement?  Nothing yet - hopefully I'm about halfway to feeling something though.

Food cravings?  Thin, small pieces of chocolate... how handy it's Easter!!

Food aversions?  Nothing in particular, anything can turn my stomach if I smell it at the wrong time.

Gender?   Absolutely no clue.

Labour signs?  Definitely not.

Pregnancy symptoms?  All the same as before and this week I've had a severe case of baby brain - earlier today I got really lost on the way to the supermarket!  I got to a roundabout and couldn't get my bearings at all, came off at completely the wrong exit and had to turn around.  I'm laughing about it now but at the time I just wanted to cry, I felt so pathetic getting lost on a trip I do so often!

Belly button in or out?  In.

What I miss?  Powerlifting!  We're going to watch a big competition at the weekend and I know I'll be itching to lift some weights.  I'm still doing little bits but I don't feel safe doing it without ALS around and it's hard finding time when he's not with a client.

What I am looking forward to?  Hitting the 12 week mark next week and getting to see our little bubba again.

Upcoming appointments/scans?  My 12 week scan is 19th April then I see the Consultant on 15th May and midwife on 17th May.

Weekly wisdom?  Don't try baby shopping with low blood pressure and sickness!  We went looking for a pushchair earlier but every time I tried to stand still and actually look at one in detail I thought I was going to pass out/vomit and had to give up.   It didn't help that it was getting near to a mealtime and my stomach was too empty to handle it.

Milestones?  I've finally seen a little bump appearing this week which is VERY exciting for me - I can't stop staring at it in the mirror!

Bump picture:

I'm not very good at getting all of these pictures at the same angles - BUT there's definitely a little bump there now :D

Pregnancy - 10 week update

How far along?  10 weeks

How big is baby?  The size of a date or green olive according to the apps on my phone.

Total weight gain/loss?  56.4 kg so I've put on a teeny bit since last week, hopefully this means I'm getting enough nutrients in and I'll stop losing.

Waist?  Not measured this week.

Stretchmarks?  Only the ones that have been there for years.

Maternity clothes?  Not for a while yet.

Sleep?  Hit and miss.  Last night I had a 2 hour nap then slept 10 hours overnight, but the night before I kept waking up - I'd be wide awake immediately and was having serious palpitations.  I've also started feeling sick when I wake up in the night which is making it harder to get back to sleep.

Best moment this week?  Seeing my awesome husband kick ass at a strongman competition - hey, nobody said my best moment always had to be baby related!

Movement?  Nothing yet - hopefully I'm about halfway to feeling something though.

Food cravings?  Savouries.  Currently I want a burger but I think that's because I keep seeing McDonald's advertised on the TV (plus they have their Monopoly thing going at the moment and I have a bit of a gambling addiction when it comes to that).  My current go to is mashed potatoes, vegetables and gravy.  It's what my mum always used to make me when I was feeling ill as a kid (to try and get some nutrients in) so I think that's why I'm fancying it a lot.

Food aversions?  Nothing in particular, just food in general once the sickness takes hold.  I have to force a biscuit down to make the sickness go away so I can eat a proper meal.

Gender?   Absolutely no clue.

Labour signs?  Definitely not.

Pregnancy symptoms?  Plenty of sickness, a few crampy twinges, diarrhoea, dizziness/light headedness and recently a few palpitations at night.  Please don't take this as me complaining by the way - I'm detailing how I'm feeling and how my body is reacting to pregnancy but I would go through this 100 times over knowing that it's making our little miracle.

Belly button in or out?  In.

What I miss?  Caffeine has been a big one this week.  I don't like tea or coffee so I can't have "just one".  I used to get my caffeine fix through energy drinks and they are a BIG no no whilst pregnant so I'm entirely caffeine-free now.  I thought I'd be used to it seeing as it's been almost 8 months now but sometimes, on a really early work morning, you just want a boost.

What I am looking forward to?  We're going to tell the rest of our family this weekend.  We were going to wait until 12 weeks but seeing as we have already had scans we are happy to tell them a bit sooner.

Upcoming appointments/scans?  My 12 week scan is 19th April then I see the Consultant on 15th May and midwife on 17th May.

Weekly wisdom?  Eat what you can.  Everyone worries about having a really healthy diet when they're pregnant but, with morning sickness, that's not always possible.  If you can't stomach the vegetables or "healthy foods" don't worry too much as long as you're getting a good intake.  It's better to have a plateful of fattening mac and cheese than 2 mouthfuls of salad because you're worrying about eating unhealthy food.  I'm assured the morning sickness should calm down by the second trimester, so just do what you need to do to get there and focus on the healthy eating later on.  Obviously, try not to live on McDonald's but cut yourself a little slack.

Milestones?  I'm officially quarter of the way through my pregnancy today!

Bump picture:

I definitely think there's a teeny tiny bump appearing now! :D