Goodbye little belly (25 weeks 1 day)

...and hello bigger belly! I'm definitely getting bigger by the day. I have to say it's quite an odd phenomenon to have your body change so rapidly. As soon as I get used to being one size I'm bigger before I know it. The good news is I'm not too big according to the midwife. I didn't gain any extra weight more than I should have in Croatia! I'm gaining about a pound a week which is exactly what they suggest. I'm still hoping, in my own vain little way, to not gain enough to surpass Ryan's weight :) I've posted a new belly pic below...I just got back from a walk on a hot Maryland evening so please excuse the red cheeks and very messy hair :) In the leggings and tight t-shirt it was a good belly outfit so I figured I'd better seize the opportunity.

I've started working pretty much full time now which is really exciting. Besides actually really liking what I do, having a second income is going to be soooo fantastic...and obviously pretty necessary with Cooper on the way! I'm finally in the real world, I realized that my first day of work was really my first day of work for the rest of my life, no more summer breaks or Christmas vacations...I guess at almost 27 it's about time to enter the work force! I held out for a pretty long time though :) I also consider myself lucky that I'm not pregnant and working long hours in a retail position. I'm able to sit as much as I want in the pharmacy and everyone there is SO nice! They love asking me about the baby and constantly make sure I have food or something to drink and somewhere to sit, they're so great.

So tomorrow Ryan and I are finally going to REGISTER!! I'm beyond excited! I wanted to do this months ago, hehe. I've made a list and I'm all prepared but I also know once I get into the store I'll get a little gun happy :). I also have two very good friends planning a baby shower for me and I'm super excited about that too. I'm lucky to have people local who love me enough to do that and I'm super excited to hang out on my deck with a bunch of good friends and eat and drink till we're stuffed! Should be lots of fun!

Enjoy the belly pic below and I'll probably post more after we come back from our mini-vacation to Michigan for July 4th. Have a happy holiday!

Back in the real world (23 weeks 5 days)

So unfortunately we are back from our wonderful vacation in Croatia. We spent eight full days seeing the sights of Dubrovnik, Split, Bled, and Zagreb with some small stops in between. Croatia is beyond beautiful and we had a wonderful time seeing the sights, meeting the people, and eating the food...particularly the food. Croatia has many Italian influences and so a lot of the food is pizza, pasta, and seafood...and GELATO! Yum! I definitely let myself indulge while on vacation, and with a midwife appointment looming this Friday I'm a bit scared to hop on the scale!

Otherwise, the trip was great, being pregnant really didn't slow me down at all. I was able to do all the walking and see all the sights. I really barely feel the extra weight. I was having some back problems before we left but that cleared itself up and I swear I don't feel pregnant until it gets in the way (bending over, reaching to grab something, etc.) We even did a little pampering and I managed to score a prenatal massage in a spa on Lake Bled in the Julian Alps! My only little set back was having to pee all the time! But seeing as the average age on the trip was pushing 60 I wasn't the only one having to go a lot!

Now that I'm back I have noticed that my hands and ankles are a tiny bit swollen and I'm hoping to stave it off by staying off my feet as much as possible and getting my diet back in order! I really don't want to have to take my rings off for months or have cankles :(

Cooper is definitely making himself known in my belly...he moves around A TON! Definitely after I eat and then in the evenings/night time of course when I want to go to bed. Sometimes he kicks so hard we can actually see it from the outside! I'm not big enough to pick out the different body parts yet, but you can see a distinct jiggle...it's CRAZY, definitely feeling a little alien invasionish. Part of me doesn't want to actually believe that I will have to push this child out of me...eek. I also have to be honest, whenever anyone asks if he is kicking I say yes and the first thing they say is "oh isn't it the best feeling in the world?" And my honest answer is...no! I don't really like the kicking, it feels so weird especially when he kicks inward instead of outward toward my belly. Don't get me wrong, I love knowing that he's awake and moving all his parts but as for the actual feeling of the kicking...no I don't really like it...does that make me a terrible person/mom? If so, too late now I guess.

I will try to get some more good belly pics and post more. I imagine I'm gonna start getting bigger much faster now. I still feel pretty small for 5 months, which I'm happy about, but who knows what the next 4 months hold! For now (until work starts) I plan on resting, relaxing with my feet up, and FINALLY getting around to registering and decorating the room!



Looking over Lapad Bay in Dubrovnik



Walking the walls of Dubrovnik