20 weeks

Well, I'm half way there. Seems so hard to believe, really. We haven't done much preparing for the baby yet, but I think I'll be more motivated once I find out if the baby's a boy or girl. We have an ultrasound scheduled for February 9th, so I hope we can find out then.

The other day I discovered a great little maternity store here in Sioux Falls. It's a consignment shop, so all of the clothes are far less expensive compared to buying them new. I went there today and came home with some great things. I even found a pair of pants that fit, something I thought would never happen. I found clothes from Old Navy and Motherhood Maternity and nothing was over $10. The owner said they receive new clothes each week, so I'm sure I'll be returning. What a great place!

On another piece of clothing news, Chris and I received some new (used) ski jackets and snow pants from my dad. He came across them on the side of the road of all things and after failing to find the owner, decided to send them to us. They're top of the line gear (Columbia and such) and they fit! Go figure. We're going snow tubing next weekend with some folks from church, so we'll try 'em out then. I guess it pays to pick stuff up on the side of the road.

Last bit of good news. On Monday, I'm going in for a free message. Yep, free! A whole hour too. The message therapist that works at my chiropractor clinic is working toward becoming certified in pregnancy message. She needs to gain some experience and receive feedback from clients, and my chiropractor asked if I would be interested. Who would turn down a free message? So on Monday I'm going in for an hour of pampering. I can't wait.

19 weeks

The baby is starting to make his/her presence a little more known to the world. To those who don't know me, it's still hard to tell I'm pregnant, but that's ok. Last week I felt the baby move! All my experienced mom friends kept trying to explain what it felt like, but until you feel it, it's hard to know. It was wonderful!

I also went maternity shopping this week. It wasn't too exciting. Probably the neatest thing was that they provide you with a tummy pillow to wear when trying on clothes so you know how they'll fit in 4-5 months. It made me excited for the months ahead, but even more so for this little person to be a part of our family. I can't wait to meet him or her.

Chris and I toured a gym (Sanford Wellness Center) in Sioux Falls today. It looks like a good fit for us. I'm excited to start taking their "Working out for 2" classes. They have a great facility with cardio machines, weights, gym, a pool and tons more. Plus, they have an on-sight daycare for when baby arrives. Doesn't get any better than that.

18 weeks

The bump is starting to show more, but most people still just think I had too much turkey for Christmas. That's ok. I'll be large soon enough. Chris and I are starting to look for gyms in the area. We were really active this summer, playing ultimate frisbee, taking walks with the dog and such. But since winter came, we haven't done a whole lot. There's a 24 hour place right here in Tea, but it's just a gym. There's no basketball court, or pool or any group classes. So we'll probably be looking in Sioux Falls somewhere.

We're also starting to look at pregnancy and childbirth classes. There's quite a few offered through the hospital, but our midwife also gave us information about the Bradley Medthod of Childbirth, which is a system of natural labor techniques. We're still looking into it to see what will work best for us. I guess we still have a little time before June comes, but in two weeks we'll be half way through the pregnancy, which seems so hard to believe. I don't know where the last 4 months have gone, and I'm sure the next 4 will go even quicker.

17 weeks

So here's the baby bump picture from last week. I should have started taking them a while ago, but up until last week, there really wasn't much to see. I was still wearing my regular jeans through Christmas. Now they don't button, so I use a Bella Band (which is the handiest invention if you ask me). It's a stretchy piece of fabric that slips over the top of my regular pants, allowing me to wear them unbuttoned. And it just looks like I've layered a tank top underneath. I had some friends recommend it to me and it's great.

I've been feeling really good. The hardest part of the pregnancy so far is my changing body. Even harder is trying to find clothes that fit. I've been the same size and shape since high school, so I had clothes shopping down to a science. I knew what looked good, what size I was, where to shop ... now, none of that applies anymore. But Chris is being a trooper. He even offered to accompany me to the mall to do some shopping. What a guy, huh?

Welcome

We've entered the blog world. With the baby on the way and many friends and family so far away, we wanted a way to keep everyone updated. Chris and I will post about the baby, life and whatever else comes to mind.