m.a.i.l. t. ime: five.

It's official - we will become a family of five in December!

and to be a little more specific it will be a family of...

1 girl and 4 boys!

In April we found out we were expecting! We kept the news to ourselves until Mother's Day we shared the news with our parents and siblings. We left the rest of the world clueless for many weeks, but by now it's more than obvious (by the growing baby belly) so I figured I'd make it my blog official as well!

I've tried to keep a short journal of my pregnancy this time around and I'll post it here in case you're wondering how I've been feeling - but mainly for me so it doesn't get lost in the shuffle of the rest of my files!

Weeks 4 & 5

Feeling good with normal energy.

Week 6

Starting to feel very tired and anxious

Week 7

Very tired - went to see Dr P and he did an ultrasound to check on baby - heart was beating very strong. Dr P thought it was as strong as an 8 1/2 or 9 week old baby! Shared the news with parents & siblings on Mother's Day.

Weeks 8 & 9

Still very tired and starting to become very sensitive to smells - a busy week 9 as Grandma Michele was staying with us in Florida

Week 10

I could hardly stay awake! I would be sound asleep by 9 or 10 and even fell asleep on the couch at 6 or 7 a few times! We went back to Dr P this week and he tried to find the heartbeat with a Doppler, but after a few minutes switched to another ultrasound. Baby looked great with a strong heartbeat in the 140s!

Weeks 11 & 12

Still tired and even more sensitive to smells - gagged at lots of things - especially raw chicken! Feeling very sick after eating - I would rather not eat than feel yucky afterwards.

Week 13

A little less tired, but still very sensitive to smells and feeling yucky after eating.

Week 14

Same as week 13 - went back to Dr P. Found heartbeat with Doppler beating at 156bpm and baby was sitting very low. No weight gain since 10 week appointment.

Week 15

Still a little tired, but much better. Smells still bother me and my shirts are definitely getting tight! Eating seems to be a good thing again!

Week 16

Another very tired week - but mainly because I worked a full time work week.Started to feel little flutters of baby kicking - could definitely tell it was baby by the end of the week. Usually felt the movement when lying in bed between 9 and 11 at night. Shared the news with our church small group and other friends.

Week 17

Much less tired, still sensitive to smells and find myself gagging at least daily. Smells like raw chicken, dirty diapers, dirty dishes among many things make me feel sick! Wore my first maternity shirt to a Mom's Night Out dinner. Feeling baby move often - still little flutters, mostly in the evening, but sometimes during the daytime

Week 18

Feeling good! Went back to Dr P this week and he found the heartbeat quickly with the Doppler beating 148bpm. He said my uteris was sitting in just the right spot and things were looking good. Up 1 pound since last appointment at week 14. Feeling baby move a lot more and at all different times. Movements feel more like little nudges rather than flutters.

Week 19

Still feeling good! In maternity shirts about half the time, but can still make other shirts work too and haven't dared to try on the maternity pants!

Week 20

Another good week - feeling good and still well rested - and good thing too for this week - we had 2 full days of laser tag events and my birthday get-away with Mark in Chicago. Definitely into maternity tops most of the time and I am very noticeably pregnant.

Week 21

The big ultrasound week! I was very nervous during the ultrasound and worried that the technician would have a concern - but everything looked great. We were able to see all of HIS organs and see that they appeared to be functioning as they should be. The technician was an older lady who had been doing this for years, she was very confident that it was a boy (but of course no guarantees!). Based on his measurements in the ultrasound he would be due December 22 which is a few days after my calculated due date of December 19. We celebrated Levi's 3rd birthday this week. I wore a pair of maternity pants one day this week!

Week 22

Still feeling good, but feel very uncomfortable after eating this week. I ate half a bowl of cereal and felt like I ate the entire box and another day I ate 2 toaster waffles and felt so full that I ate an entire turkey. Definitely having to cut back on portions so that I'm not miserably full, but not feeling the need to eat more often. Went back to Dr P this week, he found the heartbeat quickly (I forgot to ask how fast!!), he had no concerns about the ultrasound or my pregnancy and said the eating thing was nothing to be worried about. Gained 5 pounds since last appointment! Baby is still sitting low, but is getting closer to the "regular" range.