23 Weeks

What's Happening with Joycelen?

• She is more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango).


• Her kicks and punches are becoming more pronounced and I can definitely feel her movements.


• I may be able to see her squirm underneath my clothes.


• Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that her increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as Baily/Boss barking or the roar of the crowd at football games— probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

What's Happening with Mama?

• Total weight gain/loss: 15 pounds


• Maternity clothes? Yes and yes.


• Best moment this week: Daddy "hearing" Joycelen's kick. I've been trying for days to get Joycelen to kick so that M could feel it, but the movements are not pronounced enough. So he put his ear to my tummy, and then she kicked twice in rapid succession and he "heard" them.


• Food cravings: Oatmeal with peanut butter, Granny Smith Apples


• Belly button in or out? In.


• Stretch Marks? Nope


• What I miss: Riding comfortable in a car for longer car trips. The trip to Atlanta this past weekend was taxing. I hurt in my hips for several hours afterwards.


• What I am looking forward to: Another ultrasound of Joycelen.

What's Happening with Daddy?

• Daddy is still busy with work - but thankfully it is only 1 project instead of 2.
• He has always been trying to get back into a work out routine.
• He is planning on installing bookcases in Joycelen's nursery in the coming weeks.

22 Weeks

My niece London (2.5) decided that she wanted to in the picture with "Joycelen".

What's Happening with Joycelen?

• Joycelen is 11 inches and almost 1 pound, and starting to look like a miniature newborn.
• Her eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and she's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums.
• Her eyes have formed, but the irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment.

What's Happening with Mama?

• Total weight gain/loss: 15 pounds
• Maternity clothes? Almost exclusively.
  Best moment this week: Hearing Joycelen's heartbeat at the doctor's office and being able to record it for Daddy to listen to.
• Food cravings: Oatmeal with peanut butter, Granny Smith Apples
• Belly button in or out? In.
• Stretch Marks? Nope
• What I miss: Being able to wear my high heeled boots. I wore a pair on Friday night and my feet were swollen for hours afterwards. Looks like I'll be sticking to low heels and flats from now on.
• What I am looking forward to: Trip to Atlanta this weekend and then to Lowe's to pick out paint colors for the nursery.

What's Happening with Daddy?

• Daddy has had to close at his office this week, which means he has been working later than usual. However, he still makes time to cuddle with Mama and talk to Joycelen.

Pictures from Halloween

Goblin Cheesballs....

My niece Kaitlynn's First Halloween. She almost fit into my candy basket.

Mikey and I in our costume. I'm a "bun in the oven" and he is the baker.

Happy Halloween!

Fall is one of my favorite season because it includes:

• College Football Season (Go Jackets, Beat Vandy!)
• The changing of leaves - I love the beautiful shades of red, orange, and gold.
• Pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin
• And 2 of my favorite holidays - Halloween and Thanksgiving.

I have been very busy this week celebrating Halloween. On Wednesday night, our church had a fall festival complete with candy apples, games, and 2 hayrides. M and I enjoyed the hayride with all of our nieces and nephews (that would be Lacey (5), London (2.5), Treveor (4), Trenton (2.5) and Kaitlyn (1 month). Yesterday, the daycare that is part of the health system I work for, brought the kids over to trick or treat. I had a blast handing out hershey kisses to a myriad of pirates, pumpkins, princesses, and other cuties. (I got lots of good ideas for next year). Today I am burning my pumpkin scented candle and preparing for tonight's activities, which include:

• A neighborhood hayride w/ trick or treating
• A cookout at my sister-in-law's.

I have made a pumpkin cheesecake to take and hope to make some Goblin cheeseball's to enjoy as well. M and I still need to finish our costumes. Needless to say, it is going to be busy around here. What are each of you doing for Halloween?

21 Weeks

What's Happening with Joycelen?

• She weighs about 3/4 of a pound and is rougly 10.5 inches long.
• Her flutters are starting to turn into distinct punches and kicks.
• Our baby girl now has her eyebrows (hope they are like Mama's, not Daddy's) and eyelids.

What's Happening with Mama?

• Total weight gain/loss: 15pounds
• Maternity clothes? Almost exclusively.
• Best moment this week: Feeling what I think was Joycelen's first real kick.
• Food cravings: Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal, Omlets, Greek Yogurt
• Belly button in or out? In.
• Stretch Marks? None so far
• What I miss: Sleeping thru an entire night. I am either awake because my position is uncomfortable or because I need to answer nature's call.
• What I am looking forward to: Halloween Party on Saturday Night

What's Happening with Daddy?

• Daddy's bad tooth had him down for several days - he mostly slept on the couch as he waited for pain medication to work.
• On Tuesday, Mama took Daddy to the dentist for part one of his root canal. The dentist had to drill a hole to let all the infection drain out of the tooth. This made Daddy very sick.
• But by Wednesday when the dentist put on the temporary cap, Daddy was feeling 100% better.

A Year Ago Today....

Here's how my life was forever changed one year ago:
10/27/2008

Active Saturday

During the first few weeks of my pregnancy, I suffered with horrible fatigue. All I wanted to do was sleep - and usually on Saturday I did just that.... I'd sleep in late, take an afternoon nap, doze while watching t.v. in the evenings, and go to bed early. Thankfully, my fatigue disappeared around week 10 and has shown no signs of reappearing in my 2nd trimester. In fact, I seem to have an abundance of energy. Here's what I've done today:

7:30 - Wake up and dress for workout
8:00 - Level 1 of The Shred DVD ( I skipped the ab exercises)
8:30-9:00 - Dusted the living room, the master bedroom, wiped down the counter tops in the master bath, scrubbed the tub, started a load of laundry, and changed the bed linens
9:00 - Breakfast
10:00 - Cleaned up the kitchen from breakfast and switched laundry
11:00 - Shower time
12:00 - 4:00 - Watched the Georgia Tech Football game with hubby. Made a Subway run at half-time
4:15 - Folded a load of laundry and put it away
5:30 - Second workout of the day - Cardio intervals thanks to SparkPeople

Up next is a quick shower and dinner with my in-laws who just got home for their week long cruise. What have you been up to today?