18 Weeks

How far along? 18 weeks and 2 days.
Baby is the size of a(n): Sweet Potato
Maternity Clothes? Nope! We observe "casual summer" at my office, which just means you can wear jeans every day. Since I have a pair of jeans I got last month a few sizes larger, I have managed OK without maternity clothes. However, starting next week we have to go back to business casual, so I am in need of some work pants!
Sleep: OK, nothing new to report.
Best moment of the week: I tried to help Peter study for a quiz the other night. Since i know nothing about medicine, I just starting randomly naming things I could recall seeing from the slides he was looking at earlier. He didn't think me generating questions from memory seemed like a beneficial way to study, and he insisted the eyes (which is what I asked him about) were not on the quiz. The next day he sent me a picture of his quiz, and the FIRST question on it was what I had asked him the night before. Looks like I make a pretty good study buddy after all. ;)
Missing the most: Cheese. I saw a commercial for cheese and really wished I could have some soft cheese and crackers...and salami!
Cravings: Coconut.
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Belly button in or out? In.
Looking forward to: Labor Day Weekend! We are not going anywhere, but it will be nice to have an extra long weekend. I get to leave work early on Friday and hopefully Peter will have some free time this weekend, since his first exam of the semester will be over!

17 Weeks

How far along? Barely squeezing it in this week. Picture was taken at 17 Weeks and 6 Days.
Baby is the size of a(n): Onion
Maternity Clothes? Still no!
Sleep: A bit restless this week. I tried adding a regular pillow next to me to try to condition my body to not roll over. I still wake up on my back! Oops! :)
Best moment of the week: Prenatal Massage! I was not sure how this would work, with the whole no laying on the front or back thing, but switching from one side to another works pretty well! It was a super relaxing way to end my week.
Missing the most: Nothing comes to mind! Feeling pretty great this week.
Cravings: A little bit of a sweet tooth this week perhaps!
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Belly button in or out? In.
Looking forward to: Hopefully feeling the baby soon. Supposedly now is the time when most new moms start to feel the baby moving around in there. Keep you posted!

16 Weeks

How far along? This picture was taken at 16 weeks and 4 days
Baby is the size of a(n): Avocado
Maternity Clothes? Still no! Though I am feeling more and more like it might be time.
Sleep: I am a very active sleeper, which may become a problem for me. According to my Dr. I still have a few weeks before I need to worry about sleeping on my back, however I did notice later in the week that laying on my belly is no longer comfortable. :( When I end up on my belly, my body has started waking me up, which isn't very pleasant. Apparently I need to start shopping for "boyfriend pillow."
Best moment of the week: Hillary getting to come to my 16 week check-up! She got to hear the heartbeat with me. Baby Mullins apparently has gotten pretty active; my OB had to keep chasing him/her around to keep track of the heartbeat! Also pretty neat-baby news is officially out. While most of our family and some others knew already, at 4 months we thought it might be time to announce the baby news.
Missing the most: Sleeping on my stomach. Scratch that, sleeping however I want and not worry about it, including my stomach.
Cravings: Nothing stands out right now.
Wedding rings on or off? On!
Belly button in or out? In.
Looking forward to: Attending some more prenatal yoga classes! The yoga studio Hillary manages has regular prenatal classes, and I am really excited to get some more tips on modifying and meeting some other mommies to be!

15 Weeks

How Far Along? This picture was taken at 15 weeks and 3 days.
Baby is the size of a: Navel Orange
Maternity Clothes? Still working the regular pants in a larger size.
Sleep: Going well so far!
Best Moment of the Week: This has to be Saturday August 8th. Peter started orientation this week for medical school, and Saturday was his White Coat Ceremony. I am so incredibly proud of him. It has been a long journey to get here, collecting degrees along the way, but this is the one that will mean the most. Before the ceremony started, there was a slide show of thank you's from the new class of medical students. I was touched to see Peter's message to me. He may think he wouldn't have made it this far without me, but I know his drive, intelligence and passion would have gotten him there too. :) Also pretty special was that Peter's parents were able to come for the weekend to join in the celebration. I know they are so proud of him as well, and being able to spend some more time with family was wonderful. They are so supportive and I could not ask for better in-laws!
Missing the most: Nothing comes to mind right now. Feeling pretty good!
Cravings: The occasional root beer ;)
Wedding Rings on or off? On!
Mood: Excited. Maybe it was having Mark and Jill here and thinking about our growing family. Maybe it was starting to do some baby shopping! Or maybe I am just starting to feel more pregnant. Whatever it is, I feel excited this week!
Looking forward to: Starting the 4th month and our 16 week appointment. Since Peter has classes next week, Doula Hillary is stepping in. This will be the first time she meets my OB, so I am excited to have her join the fun.

Start of the Second Trimester

How Far Along? 13 and 14 weeks
Baby is the size of a: Peach and Lemon
Maternity Clothes? Nope. However, I did have to increase my pant size pretty quickly. As early as 6 weeks I would say my pants fit snug, though not because of a belly. During the 13th to 14th week is when you could really start to see a bulge starting to form around my middle, which is kind of exciting! For now, sticking with regular pants in a larger size seems to be working. Unfortunately I can't wear some of my favorite shirts to work anymore-button front just does not work with a growing body!
Sleep: Getting better! I was waking up at 4am every day to go to the bathroom, which is really annoying when you don't get to go back to sleep for much longer. That has stopped, and I am sleeping the full night again. I know this will not last, so enjoying while I can!
Best Moment of the Week: We got to see my parents during these weeks, and go to Disney World! We are huge Disney fans, so baby already has one trip under his/her belt! Also pretty neat, during the 13th week we had two ultrasounds. We did the first trimester testing sonogram and got to see baby beeb again. It looks like baby might take after Peter. The ultrasound tech said baby didn't want to wake up, so she kept pumping my belly to try to get some movement. This is not so pleasant when you have to come with a full bladder. Once baby woke up, it looked like a little swimmer is in the making! We saw lots of kicking. We also may have been given a hint as to whether baby looks boyish or girlish. ;) We won't know for sure though for a few more weeks.
Missing the most: My normal exercise routine. Pre-pregnancy, I used to go to yoga 5 or more times per week, and became addicted to inversions! I also used to practice hot yoga, and Doc said this is a no go for now. I was feeling pretty icky for a few weeks in the first trimester, not to mention super exhausted. As a result, I feel out of shape. Now that I am feeling better, I am trying to make an effort to get back on some sort of routine.
Cravings: Root Beer. Daddy is finding this hilarious, as this is the only soda he likes and I rarely drank it before.
Wedding Rings on or off? On!
Mood: I think good, but if you ask Peter he might say otherwise. ;) I tried to tell him my baseline for moodiness is much lower than a normal person, so I am probably just about as irritable as a normal person now.
Looking Forward to: Peter's White Coat Ceremony! So proud of him. More in the week 15 post!

First Trimester Fun

We were so excited when we found out I was pregnant, so of course I had document the moment! Our first month picture was taken in our final days in Charlottesville. While we didn't share our happy news broadly for a few months, we did tell Andy and Hillary the next day when they arrived in Charlottesville to help us move. Hillary had been training to be a doula, and was aware of our plans to start a family. Shortly after they arrived, we told Hillary we actually knew of someone that might need a doula next year. Since she was looking for births to observe for training, and potential future clients, she was intrigued and asked "who!?" We smiled and replied "Us!" I think it took a minute for the news to sink in, but then the hugs commenced. It has been nice having our little support system in them. Being identical twins, Peter and Andy have always been close, often stating that they share a soul. I spent the early years of our relationship with both of the boys, and last year living with Andy and Hillary part time really strengthened my relationship with both of them. We now live less than a mile from each other. We operate as our own little family sometimes, which is nice considering all of our family is 3,000 miles away. Hillary has been great, "clocking in" for doula time whenever I felt nauseated or came home with a headache. If anyone is in the DC area in need of a Douala, let me know! 

One of the difficult things about living far away from family is figuring out how to share big news. Fortunately, Peter's parents were visiting at the end of June, so we were able to tell them in person. My parents we were not going to see until about a month later, so we decided to share the news over the phone. First, we emailed a picture of Lacey with a bandanna on that read "Big Sister." We had them open the email while we were on the phone. Not expecting the news, they thought we were adopting another puppy. Wanting to have a baby always seemed like a personal decision to us, so I guess few people knew of our plans. I just assumed most people would expect it given we have been together for 9 years! You know that they say about assuming! :) After the shock wore off, both of our parents are very excited. It will be the first grandchild for both families, and the first great-grandchild for Nana. We already had our first pictures from an ultrasound, so it was exciting to share. In fact, our first appointment was full of emotions. Peter received his MCAT scores while we were in the waiting room, moments before we saw our baby for the first time! Through a linkage program with the post bach he completed, the final piece deciding if he would start medical school this fall was meeting a score requirement. He did very well on the exam, and it was that moment that we knew for certain his dream to become a physician was finally coming true. Looks like this will be a big year!

New Adventures

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder! The last year has been quite a journey for our little family. Our baby puppy girl Lacey, or as some of you may fondly know her, "our human child with a fur disorder," and I spent last summer shuttling between Charlottesville, VA and Alexandria, VA each week. Starting in September, Lacey moved in full time with Peter in CVille, while I continued to hit the road each week, not to mention shacking up with his twin Andy and fiancee Hillary. Sound insane? Perhaps not the most conventional marriage for a year, but for us it worked. After completing a Masters in Clinical Psychology and a second Masters in Public Health, Peter knew his educational journey was not over. His dream to become a physician to better tackle the health issues he is so passionate about was something that could no longer be ignored. This is what brought us to beautiful Charlottesville. He completed a Post Bacc Pre Medical Program at UVA, while I split my time between CVille and my office in Northern Virginia. Through all of the miles, chaos, and stress, we both wanted to start growing our family. 

I think Peter had a gut feeling that our hope to grow our family had come to fruition. The week leading up to our final move he kept asking me if I was pregnant. Since I already had some tests at my weekend home (I started referring to Charlottesville as my weekend vacation home), I figured no harm in waiting a few more days. We had to drive down one last time to finish packing before the final drive north. The next morning, Lacey insisted on getting me up as usual, so I stumbled out of bed to take her out. Then I remembered! I went to the bathroom, took a pregnancy test, and popped outside with Lacey. When I returned, I was pretty sure I saw two lines (wish I would have kept a digital test on hand)! Peter was still sleeping, so I tapped him to wake him up. As he peered out one eye, I said, "I think I am pregnant."