16 Weeks and Gearing Up for a Crazy Few Weeks

Happy Friday!

I am now 16 weeks pregnant (4 months) -- almost half way!  Ben and I pulled out a ruler last night and held it to my belly and were slightly shocked to see how big 4 1/2 inches really is.  The fruit/vegetable equivalent of our child is now an avocado, and the baby has eyelashes and hair, and teeny tiny tastebuds.  The baby can also hear us now, so I'm trying to get Ben and I to stop talking like sailors when we are at home (it is surprising how often we swear once I started paying attention to it!). 

Next week we head to Boston for 5 days to celebrate my friend Julia's wedding, and to eat A LOT of lobster.  This blog will be plastered with pictures of seafood in approximately 10 days.  I'm on a mission to gain weight and can think of no better way to do it than eating delicious crab and lobster smothered in butter and cannollis every day. The following week is Dad and Joleen's wedding, the weekend after that we will be visited by the Olson clan, and the weekend after that we head to St. Louis to visit family.  It is going to be a crazy 4 weeks, but lots of fun and we can't wait for all of it.

Have a great weekend everyone!

16th Week

Hello family :)

Well I finally got my husband back, and we spent the weekend napping, watching season 9 of NCIS, and eating lots of food.  I am extremely happy to report that I gained a pound over the weekend (my first since getting pregnant... 'bout damn time!).  I think it took eating 3 pounds of chinese food court food, but whatever the reason, me and my apple will take it. 

So what is happening in the 16th week of pregnancy?  My body is producing 50% more blood which makes me hot and light-headed.  The increased hormones are also causing oil glands to work more, leaving my face more shiney... which is a nice way of saying I have more pimples now than I did when I was 16.  Oily skin and flushed cheeks are what make women 'glow' during pregnancy-- it's not quite as romantic when you know the physiology behind it is it? ;)  I am also experiencing super stuffy ears, which is a product of increased blood production.  It's causing me to yell out checkout people "I'm sorry, what was that?!?" when they talk to me in a store... I can't hear anything.

By the end of this week little baby will be over 5 inches long.  Baby is currently preparing for a major growth spurt that will happen over the next few weeks.  If I think my heart is working hard, I just have to compare it to the baby's and I'll stop complaining-- it's little itty bitty ticker is pumping 25 quarts of blood a day. 

Between 16 and 20 weeks moms can feel the baby move, and I'm really looking forward to that.  I know he/she is punching around in there already, so it will be amazing when I can feel it's little ninja moves. 

I have a noticeable belly now, so the next time we see you, there will be no question over whether or not I'm pregnant.  

Have a great Monday everyone!

Love,
Blair & Baby Apple

Harlan at Daycare

This was definitely our doing...

Day 2 of Ben being in Chicago.  Harlan has been especially gooey and sissy-like since Ben left, I think he is sad.  We spent the afternoon preparing for our visit to the vet (which makes Harlan extremely anxious). 

I got my treat before the vet (icecream cone) which Harlan very much wanted.

After realizing that I wasn't going to share, he gave up and sat in my lap while we watched TV.

He stayed in my lap until it was time to go to the vet, I think he knew something was up...

Once we got to the vet, Harlan was shaking non-stop and stayed in my lap the entire time (Well, at least he tried, his front half stayed in my lap, and he tried a couple of times to jump all the way up but would teeter with not enough space and just jump over me).

Harlan does not have anaplasmosis or lyme disease (the tick diseases they drew blood to test for), but he does have a severe case of 'i'm-a-giant-pansy-itis'.  Apparently the cause is being babied and spoiled rotten by your parents, and the cure is... well, there is no cure.  

Harlan Fights a Cherry Tomato... To the Death.

There is only so much Harlan and I can do to keep ourselves busy.  Fortunately, he does not require much in order to be entertained/ing... Today's foe-- the cherry tomato.