Bumpdate - 16 Weeks with Baby Girl

How Far Along: 16+ weeks
Total Weight Gain (so far): 5 lbs

Sleeping: Only so-so, but less because of the pregnancy and more because of the furry children.  Once they wake me up (2 - 3 times a night), I have to potty.
Eating: Lots of smoothies and fruit.  Meat doesn't do much for me (except unhealthy meat, see below), and I'm still grossed out by bell peppers (after making a bell pepper dish around Week 8 and never recovering.)
Craving: Anything bad for me - fast food burgers, bacon sandwiches, pizza, tacos, BBQ, french fries, fried pies, etc.  When people say they craved salads during pregnancy I raise an eyebrow. The only type of salad I crave is one covered in full-fat ranch, Bac-os, shredded cheese and croutons.
Wearing: The maternity clothes have all been pulled out.  I don't know why I tried to resist them - sooo comfy and my belly is thankful that I pushed away my pride.
Feeling: Physically pretty good - just some stretching pains in my belly, and pretty tired and worn out by the afternoon. "Tummy issues" that require a daily prune juice/Metamucil cocktail.  Emotionally good, too.  I don't feel hormonal at all (hopefully my friends and family agree.)
Loving: The increase in confidence and decrease in fear and concern for this pregnancy; the growing belly; days without nausea - yea second trimester!  Also a huge fan of the couch by around 8PM
Missing: A good Pinot Noir.  It finally sounds good again.  I also miss running, especially with this lovely Spring weather!
Dealing With: The skin of a teenager.  With JB I had such flawless skin I could have been on a Neutrogena commercial.  Not so much now. My friend says baby girls try to steal their mama's beauty (and maybe I believe this…)


Best Moment(s) of the Month: Going public on the blog and Facebook; Finding out about a little GIRL* and telling our families; Being able to brush my teeth without dry heaving; people asking me if I'm pregnant (this actually doesn't bother me, although I always say "wow, you're a risk taker!" before confirming)
Worse Moment of the Month: Lots of belly pains (stretching, "gastro") that make me paranoid something is wrong (even when I know it's not); having to wait 4 weeks between doctor's appointments, without any baby kicks yet for constant reassurance
Looking Forward To: Feeling some movement!!  With JB I didn't feel anything until 22 weeks, so this statement may be repeated next month, too.  Also, ending my Lovenox shots in the belly (this week)

* I never shared how James and I found out about a little girl.  We had some advanced blood work done due to our history, which also provided gender.  When we went in for our 12 week appointment, we were not yet aligned on whether to find out by ourselves or with our family.  (Honestly James would wait until delivery day to find out, but that was sooooo not happening.)  I initially felt it was a girl, because I had been so much sicker this time around.  The NT scan made it look like something was in-between the legs, but the sonogram tech stated it might be the cord.  However, I convinced myself I had been wrong and that it would be a little brother for JB!

When the nurse walked in with our test results and a huge smile on her face, we yelled "DON'T TELL US THE GENDER, only the good news the he/she is healthy".  She said all looked great (huge blessing), then licked and sealed the envelope. She then stalked our doctor to warn her about our wishes before she came to see us.  The doctor played along to not reveal the gender, although she did slip that the test ruled out "things like Monosomy X" (which caused our third miscarriage, and only affects females).  I was back to being on the fence about gender…

We (and by "we" I mean James) casually said we should just wait to open, so we calmly ate lunch at our new fav Thai place with the envelope sitting on the table.  For real - I was dying from anticipation. The only thing that distracted me for a minute was my Pad See Ew.  Finally James suggested we order a coffee and open the envelope.  He took a first pass…and said nothing…I grabbed and looked…and saw nothing but stats and numbers and medical mumbo jumbo!  Obviously the test is not meant for a gender reveal (understandably), and there was no "It's a _____!" on the document.  Finally we saw "XX", drew upon our high school science classes, and figured it out:  GIRL!!!  :)  (Further review of the results did say "female fetus", which only confirmed.)

Cue lots of squealing and OHMYGOSHICANNOTBELIEVEIT's from both of us.  Honestly we would have done this for either gender, but mentally moving from "it" to "she" and thinking about all the wonderful things a daughter/sister brings is incredibly special. We are thrilled!