I'm a bad, bad blogger

Wow...it's really been since August since I've updated this thing?? I really stink at this. But then again, we already knew that, didn't we? :)

So, where to begin?

Let's see...we found out waaaaay back on the 25th of September that we're having another little boy. :D :D :D Although the initial hope had been for a girl, I am over the moon at having another baby boy. And, better yet, we found out on the 6th of this month that he's happy, healthy, and (very much so) growing. And I've discovered that having a "high-risk" pregnancy has its perks--we've had an ultrasound each month thus far, and more will follow. One of the most wonderful things I've ever seen is the development of this baby. I can't begin to describe how it makes me feel.

This pregnancy has been COMPLETELY different from my pregnancy with MD. I'm figuring that the fact that I was 25 pounds lighter to begin with than I was with MD has a lot to do with this, and my weight gain thus far (knock on wood) has been carefully controlled. I was 20 weeks this past Saturday, and I've gained a total of 10 pounds. I'm exercising fanatically (which was ok'd by the perinatologist, as Baby's growth is very good), and I feel WONDERFUL. I'm lucky in that my morning sickness started early (around the time of my missed period) and ended early (about week 8.5). The heartburn has started earlier, but I'm pretty sure that's been because I've been craving SPICY foods this pregnancy. I'm telling you, the spicier, the better. Why? I have no clue. But I'll tell you that even the fiery heartburn that follows isn't enough to dissuade the cravings.

This pregnancy has not been without its moments of anxiety, however. About 6 weeks in, I noticed that my symptoms had mysteriously vanished one day. I freaked, because that's what happened with my very first pregnancy--the one that ended in miscarriage. Looking back, I see that THAT should have been my first clue of what a trickster this baby was going to be! My symptoms returned a day later with a vengeance, although they did continue to come and go up to the beginning of my second trimester. So, if anyone is reading this and is concerned about fluctuating symptoms, there ya go--I had the same thing happen, and now I'm getting kicked to pieces from the inside. :) The next fit of worrying came at 12 weeks, during my 2nd prenatal checkup, when the nurse couldn't find Baby's heartbeat with the handheld Doppler machine. NOT cool. We were sent straight to Ultrasound, where we saw not only a heartbeat, but a tiny baby "waving" to us from within! He pulled the same trick at the 16 week checkup, and that point we decided that this child just really likes to have his picture taken. I'm telling you, I have a feeling now that he's going to be a handful!

Anyway, it's hard to cram almost 3 months worth of catching up into one blog post...I'll have to do better about remembering to update this thing. We have a prenatal appointment this coming Friday which should be pretty basic (for week 20). We'll visit the perinatologist again on 12/4...and I'm really hoping for a 4D ultrasound, although I'm not holding my breath just yet. But all in all, I can't remember when I've been this excited--the Lord has been good!