22 weeks

How far along? 22w2d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... spaghetti squash, which seems huge!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: Your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment.
Maternity clothes? All bottoms, most maternity shirts. Still getting away with longer tank-tops or t-shirts.
Sleep: It's still hard to stay comfortable most nights -- and the whole "up all night having to pee" thing -- but sleep still doesn't totally suck.
Best moment this week: Two great things to share: on Saturday, Heather and I made our way down to the local outlet malls and spent six and a half hours shopping. It was sort of wonderful! You don't get to spend nearly an entire day truly bargain hunting when you're accompanied by a toddler, so it was nice to have that mommy time. I came home with about 12 new outfits for Baby Girl and, while I think boy shopping is about four thousand times more fun, I got some really cute stuff. Seeing her outfits hanging in her closet made it seem a little more real!

Also, Ethan got to accompany me (and my mom) to my doctor's appointment at the perinatologist today. They still needed to get a couple more measurements that baby wouldn't let them get at my anatomy scan (baby must know I love the peace of mind of all these ultrasounds!). Anyway, while he was mostly bored sitting in the exam room, he was super cute when watching his sister up on the screen. "What's she doin' mommy? I think she's drinkin' orange juice!" was my favorite of his quotes of the day!
Food cravings: Still with my cereal and ice cold milk kick. On occasion, anything salty sounds delicious -- especially ketchup, which is gross (and weird). We had Shake Shack the other day and it. was. heaven.
Food aversions: No real aversions still. Some things just don't look appetizing, but I'm hardly sick when it comes to eating like last time.
Baby's Sex: She's a girl!
Baby's Name: ...is a secret!

And, for fun, flashback to 22 weeks with Ethan when I actually looked 22 weeks pregnant and not 42 weeks pregnant! But, to be fair, I was miserable and sick and about to be put on bedrest so I'll take gigantic over that anyday!

21 weeks

How far along? 21w4d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... carrot, length-wise!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now.
Maternity clothes? All bottoms, most maternity shirts. I've been living in plenty of long tank-tops or less than non-maternity stylish t-shirts that I can get away with still for the time being.
Sleep: Ugh, sleep isn't my friend these days. It's already getting harder and harder to get comfortable (and stay comfortable). I either wake up miserable or having to go to the bathroom -- both several times per night.
Best moment this week: Watching Ethan have a blast on Easter. The holidays are getting even more fun the older he gets and the more he really "gets" things. He loved coloring eggs and was so excited that the Easter Bunny paid him a visit.
Food cravings: Still with my cereal and ice cold milk kick. On occasion, anything salty sounds delicious -- especially ketchup, which is gross (and weird).
Food aversions: No real aversions, but I've noticed I crave sweets a whole lot less this pregnancy. Ice cream doesn't even sound good on most days whereas I was living on vanilla shakes last go 'round. I've turned down ice cream each time I've been asked if I want any lately -- sort of bizarre.
Baby's Sex: She's a girl!
Baby's Name: Is finally finalized and still a secret until she's born! I love hearing Ethan say it.

20 weeks

How far along? 20w1d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... banana! A breech banana that kicks me in the bladder!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion.
Maternity clothes? All bottoms, most maternity shirts. It's hot in Florida (um, duh) so I'm basically living in t-shirts or tank tops anyway. It's easy to get away with non-maternity versions if they're long enough, but mostly I've moved into maternity tops as well.
Sleep: I'm still always tired and can't get enough sleep, but I'm also waking up 3-4 times a night to pee. I attribute this to the fact I wound up in the hospital and now have been instructed to drink a ton more water than I've been drinking before.
Best moment this week: Well, having no more dizzy episodes and life being able to return to a (modified) normal, but also taking Ethan to meet the Easter bunny today! Contrary to his grumpy pout, he loved the bunny (the girl taking the photos, not so much):

Food cravings: I've actually finally started having my first real craving: cereal. I can't get enough cereal. I've never been a cereal person pre-pregnancy, but it's the most delightful thing in the world now. I made my husband go to the store and buy me all the cereal that I would never in a zillion years let Ethan eat and I've been eating it with ice cold milk once Ethan is in bed at night. I can't get enough. It's weird.
Food aversions: No real aversions.
Baby's Sex: I guess girl, my husband guesses boy. Ethan has flip-flopped back to boy.
Baby's Name: Is still a secret!

And for fun, here's a look at how incredibly ginormous I'm getting faster than I can keep up with this pregnancy:

19 week bumpdate

How far along? 19w1d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... heirloom tomato!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting.
Maternity clothes? Still all bottoms, most maternity shirts. Longer regular shirts are still doing the job but not as well these days.
Sleep: I can't get enough sleep, still. I feel like I'm always tired. Nighttime sleep is okay -- it's hard to get comfortable and I wake up 2-3 times per night to pee, so that's no fun.
Best moment this week: Ethan finally got his hair cut! I've been putting it off because he's the worst at getting his hair cut, but it happened and we all survived. And he looks about 5 years older, though that part makes me sad!
Food cravings: No super must-have cravings, but salty food still sounds so much better than anything else. Especially ketchup. Which is weird and gross.
Food aversions: No real aversions.
Baby's Sex: I'm still guessing girl. My husband guesses boy. Ethan is back to guessing girl, too.
Baby's Name: Is still a secret!

And for fun, here's 19 weeks with Ethan:

18 week bumpdate.

How far along? 18w1d. I forgot to post my 17 week bumpdate but I'm doing this one on time so that counts for something, right?
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... bell pepper!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now.
Maternity clothes? Definitely all maternity bottoms, even leggings, and a mixture of shirts. Long enough regular shirts still work but I'm more and more in maternity shirts these days.
Sleep: I had my energy back for a little bit but now I can't get enough sleep. I wake up at least 2 times per night to pee and it's my husband's busy time at work so I have a hard time falling asleep when he's not home. I attribute these to my sleep woes.
Best moment this week: We scheduled our anatomy scan! April 14th at 9:00 a.m. and I can't wait!
Food cravings: I've finally started getting some cravings -- mostly for salty things, like fries and ketchup. I can't get enough salt all of the sudden, which I'm trying to ignore because it's not the best craving.
Food aversions: Aversion is a strong word, but sweets don't appeal to me at all this pregnancy. With Ethan, I couldn't get enough chocolate or candy or ice cream but none of that seems that good right now. It's sort of bizarre.
Baby's Sex: I'm still guessing girl, my husband is still guessing boy (and so is Ethan, at least as of today).
Baby's Name: Is still a secret!

And for fun, here's 18 weeks with Ethan:

My tummy is way bigger and pointier now than with Ethan but I've weirdly gained a lot less weight this pregnancy than with my last. (Probably because now I get to chase around a toddler.)

16 week bumpdate

How far along? 16w6d. If I'm posting this before tomorrow, it still counts as sixteen weeks and I didn't miss it (...right?). Also, I forgot to take a facing forward picture but I'm still posting this sort-of on time, so...
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of an... avocado!
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.
Maternity clothes? Still pants and some shirts, but still some regular shirts, too.
Sleep: This has not been my week for sleep. I've been dragging all week.
Best moment this week: Well, I wound up in the ER after jinxing myself that I hadn't been yet this pregnancy (and had been three times by this point with Ethan). I had some stomach pain and everything was fine, but I did get to see baby on ultrasound and that part was awesome.
Food cravings: I've been eating a lot of peanut butter on crackers, but it's hardly a craving. More like tolerable.
Food aversions: Nothing in particular.
Baby's Sex: I think it's a girl. My husband finally made his guess, which was boy.
Baby's Name: Is still a secret!

And for fun, here's 16 weeks with Ethan:

15 week bumpdate

How far along? 15w4d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of an... apple! And since it's my baby, probably a big honeycrisp apple! Just saying.
Baby's development of the week: Per Babycenter: She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs.
Maternity clothes? Definitely pants, but I'm still able to get by with longer tank tops or t-shirts and haven't moved onto 100% maternity just yet.
Sleep: Sleep is made possible thanks to my Snoogle.
Best moment this week: Finally feeling the first little flutters of movement this week. I don't remember feeling movement until a lot later on with Ethan. (I just looked it up on my past updates -- I was 18 weeks along when I first felt Ethan wriggle in there!)
Food cravings: Still no "must have now" cravings, but I am still drawn to red meat. Which grosses me out as much as it satisfies my cravings because I really don't like to have (or feed Ethan) so much red meat. By dinnertime, most other food just seems impossible to swallow.
Food aversions: My dad had a glass of red wine this evening and I couldn't even go near him. The smell made me feel sick to my stomach! But I'm still just fine with food, unlike my last pregnancy.
Baby's Sex: I still completely think it's a girl, but I did reference baby as our boy's name in my head the other day and it made me smile a little. I keep imagining that I think it's a girl and we are surprised that it's a boy, but obviously my priority is just having a healthy little baby regardless of what sex it winds up being!
Baby's Name: Makes my heart go pitter-patter when I think of it (both boy and girl).

And for fun, here's 15 weeks with Ethan:

14 week bumpdate

How far along? 14w2d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Lemon! That seems so big all of the sudden.
Baby's development of the week: Baby can now squint, frown, grimace and -- pee! Hooray!
Maternity clothes? Maternity jeans, but shirts are still whatever. I haven't gone out and purchased any new shirts yet and am still wearing whatever is in my closet, maternity or not.
Sleep: Better thanks to the Snoogle, but the three times a night bathroom breaks are getting old. Sometimes I have trouble falling back to sleep but I can't blame that on baby.
Best moment this week: Ethan does NOT have strep, it's just a virus -- we've been through that rodeo once this pregnancy, thankyouverymuch.
Food cravings: I'm not really craving much, but I'm still making myself hard boiled eggs a lot. I never ate or liked eggs before my pregnancies, but this was a thing for both of them so far. The other day I thought I would die if I didn't eat a cheeseburger, so there's that.
Food aversions: It depends. There are certain times of the day where nothing sounds good and everything makes me want to vomit (like when my husband eats peanut butter in the morning, but then I make myself a sandwich in the afternoon just fine). I'm not really having strong aversions to things like I did with Ethan.
Baby's Sex: I still have this gut feeling it's a girl. I think the more I scare myself with my rants about the societal expectations of girls, the more I convince myself I'm having a girl. At this point, I don't really have a preference other than a healthy baby, but I definitely always pictured myself surrounded by little boys!
Baby's Name: Is none of your business just yet, but awesome. I feel so relieved.

13 week bumpdate

How far along? 13w5d. Better late than never again, right? I do manage to snap my photos on the right day, but getting around to posting is sort of my problem.
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Pea pod, nearly three inches long and weighing nearly an ounce.
Baby's development of the week: Fingerprints have formed on baby's cute little fingers!
Maternity clothes? Still in maternity pants but half and half with maternity shirts. I did finally cave and order a maternity swimsuit, though. Counting down the days until it arrives because Ethan's swim classes are brutal with my old one.
Sleep: Awesome now that the Snoogle is once again in my life. If I can only master waking up not to the overwhelming feeling of nausea, that'd be super.
Best moment this week: Starting to feel the nausea slowly fade away. If only my energy could come back in it's place.
Food cravings: Still no "I must have this now!" cravings, but I've been making more and more meals with tomato sauce because I just can't get enough, which is weird because I don't like tomato sauce. The same with hardboiled eggs -- I've been wanting them frequently which is also weird because before pregnancy I didn't like eggs.
Food aversions: Anything and everything that isn't a bagel before 11 o'clock.
Baby's Sex: I've always wanted four boys, but I can't shake the feeling that I'm having a girl. So much so that I haven't given any thought to if it's a boy -- all of my thoughts and plans have been focused on it being a girl (nursery, etc.). Sort of a weird feeling! I was right in guessing Ethan was a boy and I felt this strongly about it so I'm getting anxious for our anatomy scan!
Baby's Name: Is finally perfectly awesome, regardless of boy or girl.

12 week bumpdate

How far along? 12w4d and suddenly actually looking pregnant. I heard this can happen faster with the second, but I didn't believe it. Point proven, baby #2.
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Lime! Baby weighs around half an ounce and is just over two inches long.
Baby's development of the week: Reflexes! Baby's mouth is even starting to make sucking movements, his eye muscles are clenching and his little toes will curl.
Maternity clothes? Shirts are still fine, but I'm in maternity jeans. I'm also about one swim lesson away from needing to be cut out of my swimsuit, so I probably need to bite the bullet and get a maternity one soon, too.
Sleep: My husband ordered me a Snoogle tonight so fingers crossed sleep is about to get better. I have a hard time getting and staying comfortable.
Best moment this week: I got to hear baby's heartbeat again on Tuesday at my monthly check-up, so that was awesome. When we asked Ethan how he felt about the girl name we finally decided on, he said "YES!" That sort of made my day.
Food cravings: Carbs for sure.
Food aversions: Everything that isn't a carb, basically. I feel like less and less sounds appealing the more pregnant I get.
Baby's Sex: My guess is still girl.
Baby's Name: Finally figured out! But still a secret.

11 week bumpdate

We can gloss over the fact I'm just about 12 weeks by the time I'm actually posting this, right?

How far along? 11w5d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Fig! Just over 1 1/2 inches long. Though at my last ultrasound this past Tuesday, baby was measuring about five days ahead.
Baby's development of the week: Baby is now almost fully formed! The hands will soon be able to open and close into fists.
Maternity clothes? I finally caved and bought my first pair of maternity jeans on Thursday. I was tired of living solely in leggings and yoga pants. Maternity shirts, thankfully, haven't become mandatory yet.
Sleep: Sleep is still happening as regularly as usual except I can't make it through the night without having to pee anymore.
Best moment this week: I got to have an ultrasound on Tuesday and see the baby actually looking like a little baby instead of just a blob, which was cool. I also got to hear the heartbeat for the first time at that appointment which is always awesome.
Food cravings: Ketchup, as weird as that sounds. Everything just sounds better with ketchup, which is admittedly gross. I've also been really craving red meat which doesn't make me happy because I typically like to ensure red meat isn't a dietary staple in our household.
Food aversions: Nothing and everything. Things rarely sound good, but nothing is really making me sick like they did with my last pregnancy. I was craving a honeycrisp apple the other day, took a bite and was immediately repulsed, so that's sort of annoying.
Baby's Sex: My guess is still girl.
Baby's Name: Still a secret but, fingers crossed, I think we may have finally figured this one out.

nine week bumpdate

How far along? 9w4d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Grape! That seems so big for some reason.
Baby's development of the week: Baby's heart has divided into four chambers and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth.
Maternity clothes? None yet, though I'm totally only wearing leggings, yoga pants and sweatpants so it's easy to avoid at this point. I definitely feel so bloated around the middle of my tummy that pants seem more like a torture device than a piece of clothing. I am wearing a maternity shirt in these photos but, to be fair, it's pretty much my favorite shirt and I've been wearing it since I was pregnant with Ethan. I'm just stylish like that.
Sleep: I've started the waking up to pee somewhere around 4-5 a.m. and getting comfortable is tricky, but so far sleep is still a non-issue. My husband has been taking over Ethan's ridiculously early wake-ups so that I can sleep in until the last possible moment which is very much appreciated.
Best moment this week: I think we may have actually agreed on a girls name. You don't know how stressed out I've been about the fact we've never, ever, ever agreed on a girls name.
Food cravings: Toasted bagels and seltzer get me through my days. I've also found that popping Sour Patch Kids help with the nausea. Today at the movies, Ethan pointed to a box of Sour Patch Kids at the concession counter and said, "those are my mommy's medicine." So, there's that.
Food aversions: Nothing really bothers me like it did with my first pregnancy, but don't talk to me about food before noon or I'll puke on you.
Baby's Sex: I'm still guessing girl. My husband still refuses to guess.
Baby's Name: Still a secret but, fingers crossed, I think we may have finally figured this one out.

eight week bumpdate

I definitely forgot to post my seven week update last week. I took the photos and everything. Oops. Speaking of photos, I'm debating moving my full length mirror from my closet so you don't have to stare at that disaster scene every week. Anyway, I'm eight weeks (and three days!) along already. I had another ultrasound today with my doctor and we got to see the baby's heartbeat flickering away. Baby 2.0 is measuring perfectly this week again, still putting my due date at August 30th. I will be having a repeat scheduled c-section a week earlier than that, but due dates have started to mean nothing to me after my water broke with Ethan at 36 weeks.

I'm finally starting to feel nauseous, which kicked in with week 7. If I don't start my morning with a plain toasted bagel and some seltzer, it's just bad news all around. Unlike my pregnancy with Ethan which resulted in severe all-day sickness, I typically feel better by 9:30 or so and can continue to function like a normal person. The nausea is more like grogginess and I've only been really sick once so I'm still pretty relieved. It truly is funny how two pregnancies can be so different.

How far along? 8w3d
Due date: August 30th, 2014
Baby is the size of a... Kidney bean
Baby's development of the week: Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways.
Maternity clothes? Not yet, but I've been living in yoga pants for the sake of comfort. Nothing sounds less fun than wearing jeans right about now. Thankfully we've been having a cold front down here in South Florida that makes my sweatpants and yoga pants wardrobe acceptable.
Sleep: I'm still sleeping just fine, though it's hard to get comfy sometimes.
Best moment this week: Seeing that little healthy heartbeat on ultrasound today and having my husband be there! He wasn't able to get off of work to see Ethan's so it was exciting to have him there today.
Food cravings: Seltzer.
Food aversions: I'm slowly getting to the point where more and more things sound unappealing. Today I had to keep stepping away from the pasta sauce I was making because it made my stomach turn.
Baby's Sex: I'm still guessing girl but we obviously don't know just yet.
Baby's Name: Boy name is 100% settled, girl name is about 90% settled -- but both are a secret until birth this time.

six week bumpdate

So, thank you to everyone for your super sweet comments and messages! I know our baby announcement came as quite a surprise considering I've been such a huge proponent of wallowing in endless confusion about having another little one. The older Ethan got, the harder it was for me to hide my sadness over him not having much family. I'm always jealous of people with big families, and siblings, and cousins, and I know I never want Ethan to have that loneliness or sadness. I want him to always have siblings he can count on, celebrate with, go through life with and be friends with. In my family, for some reason, the siblings are always spaced out by a decade or more. It's never bothered me until Ethan was born. I had always loved it, having a sister to dote on growing up who was so much younger than me, but then I grew up. And got married. And had a child. And realized the only way to get a teenage girl to want to spend any time with my son was to offer her twenty bucks and the promise of ice-cream. (And, frankly, that's a little depressing!) My husband and I both acknowledged how much we wanted Ethan to have family, to know family, to have siblings and eventually the time just felt right. I wanted them to have time together at home before the school years. The only thing holding me back personally was the fear of a pregnancy as horrible as mine with Ethan. I had nightmares about balancing preeclampsia and bedrest and a little boy who just didn't understand it all. But everyone kept telling me that every pregnancy was different and, well, we decided to go for it. And I'm glad we did. Because at just six weeks along, this pregnancy? So totally different.

Not that you can tell from the above photos (I took them on our errand running day!), but I'm feeling great. Awesome, even. Here and there I wake up and feel a little nauseous -- but only a teeny tiny bit -- but for the most part I feel nothing. The day I found out I was pregnant with this baby, I had just returned home from a five mile walk with friends. I had only taken the test because I thought my crockpot dinner smelled gross and I knew it was a stretch and I was setting myself up for disappointment only...there was no disappointment. It was positive. For weeks before I found out I was pregnant with Ethan, I was nauseous and exhausted, throwing up and thinking I had some kind of stomach bug. I had these horrible cramps that rendered me unable to do anything but lay on the couch and sob. I couldn't go anywhere, not even to work, without a vomit bucket next to me at all times. This time couldn't be more different.

With Ethan, we let the cat out of the bag at seven and a half weeks. I had just had my first ultrasound and everything was great with the baby, as far as the doctor could tell. With this one, after we saw that perfectly formed little baby on the ultrasound, I knew I had to do the same. It felt wrong not being able to type out my thoughts and the details with this pregnancy like I did for Ethan back when this blog was a secret to everyone except me. It felt wrong seeing people out in public and praying they wouldn't ask me "so, when's the next one?" (which they always did). It felt wrong seeing people out in public and not jumping up and down to tell them our good news. I understand that, yes, things could go terribly wrong -- but I also understand that if they ever did, I would be blogging about it. I would be talking about it. And, even so, I couldn't take another person telling me "it's still early, things could happen." I didn't realize how much I was absorbing the assumed negativity until we showed up at the doctor and I was prepared for her to tell me that I was wrong, there was no baby. So, I'm going with hopefulness and happiness.

How far along? Six weeks when these photos were taken but today I'm six weeks, three days.
Baby is the size of a... Lentil!
Baby's development of the week: Baby's nose, mouth and ears are forming as is the pituitary gland, brain, muscles and bones.
Maternity clothes? Nope, thank goodness, though I feel so bloated on some days that jeans feel uncomfortable.
Sleep: ...isn't a luxury in this house, with Ethan our sleepless wonder. But it's still going as good as it can!
Best moment this week: Our first doctor appointment and seeing baby on ultrasound, telling Ethan and having him insist we were having a baby brother AND baby sister, finally announcing it to the world (it's been a long couple of weeks).
Movement: None yet.
Food cravings: Mexican food, just like with Ethan. I think I could eat burritos ten times a day and not get sick of them. Strangely enough carrots as well -- I've been eating them by the bag lately. Oh, and seltzer. I can't get enough seltzer.
Food aversions: Nothing that makes me feel sick, unlike with Ethan when I had to even avoid certain aisles in the grocery store. Some things just seem unappealing, like eggs, but I don't flip out if my husband is cooking them in the morning.
Baby's Sex: I've strongly felt baby was a girl since the day I took the test. All I want is a healthy baby, but I'm pretty sure all those times I said "I only want boys!" is going to come back and bite me in the butt.
Baby's Name: We 100% have our boy name picked out and...well, I have my girl name picked out 100% but my husband isn't on board. We've been feuding over girl names since my positive pregnancy test with Ethan, so this is going to be another kick in the ass when we end up having a girl.