Pregnancy Update - 17 Weeks

Hi Everyone

So since I am starting to feel a lot more in my pregnancy as well as showing a little bump, I have decided to take my Tia's suggestion to doing an update every week or 2 weeks as my baby grows. I think it is an amazing idea especially when I want to look back at this experience and hopefully show my little one one day how grateful and excited I am to be carrying such a Blessing!

Baby Update:::

As you can see, I am 17 weeks pregnant and baby is about the size of a turnip.
(I just want to apologize for the bad quality of the picture, unfortunately these pictures do have to be taken on my phone. Hopefully one day I can get an awesome camera to capture all the gorgeous memories I am going to be making.)

According to the pregnancy app that I am using, BabyCenter, Baby James' umbilical cord is growing stronger and thicker. Baby James' sense of hearing is developing which I am extremely excited about because I do love to talk to my baby and I love that now when Steven talks to the baby, it will be able to hear and recognize not only my voice, but dads' voice too.
The baby's skeleton is also starting to to turn from rubbery cartilage into actual bone...gotta keep on that milk!! Lol

Mommy's Update:::

Lately I have been experiencing some nausea in the mornings which hasn't happened for a while. I thought I had passed that stage when I was able to eat what I wanted and not feel sick by the mere thought of food, but lately the nausea seems to come back every other day or so. It isn't as bad as it was before, I am still able to eat well and keep anything down and smells don't bother me anymore either which is AMAZING!!

I have also started to feel baby move a lot more now! It's the most incredible feeling and I cannot wait to feel how much stronger my baby will get in the next few months.
I also kind of feel bad because I will get so excited to feel the flutters and my poor husband just kind of sits there with a sad look on his face, patiently waiting to be able to feel his baby move! Hehe

 Nursery Update:::

We finally have a crib!
It's not as fancy and it's actually really plain, but I love it! We still need to put it together, unfortunately the people that gave us the crib did not give us all the parts, so we will need to go and buy a few things, but I will make sure to post a picture up on my next update because it should be put together by then! Lol

We are still trying to decide on themes for the nursery. Right now we are thinking of some gender neutral ideas because we still do not know what we are having.
I am thinking of doing either a cute little Disney theme because of the huge Disney fans my husband and I are or I was also thinking of a cute little African/Safari theme because of my background...
(If you are wondering, I did ask Steven if he was okay with that, and his exact words were, "It's your baby and you're in charge of decorating the nursery, you do whatever you want, I'm just here to pay for it all!"...needless to say, I have one amazing husband!)

If any of you have any cute or unique ideas about what to do for the theme, please leave a comment down below! :)

 Cravings:::

Right now, my cravings have been all over the place, it's like I can't have just one simple craving!
I want a lot of sweet things, like chocolate cake, twizzlers, cereal, cookies, and any type of candy really! Lol
I have also been wanting scrambled eggs with spinach and Tabasco sauce....I know....weird!  

Next Doctors' Appointment:::

My next appointment is my 20 week follow up appointment and Steven and I are both extremely excited for this one because we will be finding out the gender of our baby!!

I am going to be finding out first and since I kind of didn't surprise Steven with the pregnancy like I wanted to, I decided that he will be the first person I am going to surprise after this appointment!

Please, if anyone has a cute idea on how I can surprise him, leave a comment below because I have NO idea on how to do it! Lol

So that is it for my 17 weeks update. I will be back in about a week or 2 to talk about any new changes and also to announce the baby's GENDER!!

I hope you all have a Blessed and amazing week further! :)

 

Happy Homemaker Monday

Good evening friends!

I know I am doing this a little later than I planned, but today has been all over the place!

Actually.....we've been all over the place this whole month!
We finally moved into our new home and we only finished packing everything yesterday! I tell you...this momma is so sore and so exhausted!

Okay...enough of my yapping, let me get this post up as soon as possible now! :)

I am linking up with my Aunt Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom so be sure to head over to her amazing blog to read some of her amazing stories and to find some other awesome bloggers! 

As I Look Outside My Window:
I love my new neighborhood. We live in base housing and so there are people constantly walking their dogs and kids playing in the streets. Right now it just got dark and everyone's porch light is on.

Right Now I Am:
Sitting on the couch in the living room watching hubby throw the ball around for Tater. My nerves are a little shot right now because the last thing I need is for the ball or the dog to knock something over and break it!

Thinking and Pondering:
Whether I should look into getting a part time job now. I constantly feel so guilty for my husband having to bring in all the finances and provide for, not only himself, but for me too. I feel I should be contributing a little bit at least so he doesn't feel like he has the weight of everything on his shoulders.

On My Bedside Table:
My Bible, some journals, and my new favorite read - Drums of Autumn by Diana Gobaldon

On My TV Tonight:
I don't really have anything to watch as I finished watching Outlander. The only thing I really watch with hubby is WWE and Total Divas, but other than that I have just been enjoying my book rather than watching TV.

Listening To:
Hubby is watching a Batman movie on Netflix. I am not really into these types of movies, but I love spending time with him, so I thought I would do my computer stuffs and tolerate the loud TV for a couple hours! LOL

On The Menu for this Week:

Monday - Salsa Chicken in the Crockpot
Tuesday - Spaghetti Bolognese
Wednesday - Tilapia with steamed veggies
Thursday - Creamy ranch chicken in the crockpot
Friday - Possibly a date night, so not really sure
Saturday -
Sunday -

On My To-Do List: 
I still have a ton of laundry to do from the move, so need to tackle that tomorrow morning,
Sweep and mop the floors because Tater keeps tracking mud into the house!

My Simple Pleasures:
Lately it's been opening the blinds and windows around the house. I know that sounds weird, but now that I have a house with so many windows, I just love opening all the windows and having fresh air flow through. In the apartment, we only had one window which was in our bedroom and a glass sliding door that led to the balcony, but I couldn't open that because that's where Tater would go and do his business and also because the apartment was right next to a mountain, there would be so many bugs that flew in. So right now, I am loving the amount of light that shines through and the air that flows.

Lesson Learned the Past Week: 
I need to let go and let God. Lately I have been finding it very hard to just let things be and to trust that everything will be alright. I have a very hard time trusting people, and that is kind of taking a toll on my marriage, and so I've learned that if I don't figure out a way to let things go, I am going to lose a lot more than my mind.

From The Camera: 
My very first belly pic!
I know I don't really have much of a belly, but I promise it's there! LOL

Prayer List:
For my marriage. It's not in any kind of danger, but still could use some prayers.
My little niece who is back in the NICU after another surgery.
My family, that they are kept safe here in the States and in South Africa.