Pregnancy update: 15-20 weeks

Hello my lovelies! Since a bunch of you expressed an interest in reading more about my pregnancy on the blog, I decided it was time to do a little update on what was going on these past few weeks. The last time I posted I was 13 weeks along and just had my nuchal translucency scan and let me tell you... a few weeks in pregnancy 'terms' mean a whole bunch of (drastic) changes - not just a bigger belly. :)

Milestones

Week 15 - This was the most stressful week of all... it was a week where a sudden change had happened in my body that made me feel like I wasn't pregnant anymore. I just woke up one day and felt totally normal, my belly felt softer and flatter, my breasts weren't sore anymore and my ligament pain was gone. I had a little (read: huge) panic attack because I was certain something had gone terribly wrong and the pregnancy has ended (even though I hadn't shed a drop of blood all throughout my pregnancy - which is a first sign that something is actually wrong). What had happened in reality was quite simple - I entered the blissful second trimester where the placenta takes over and provides everything for the baby, drastically lessening the hormonal tole on your body. I would be very happy if someone had told me about this change sooner... :)

Week 16 - I had a regular checkup at my ob/gyn and had the pleasure of hearing my baby's heart beat on the doppler for the first time. It was a quick, no fuss check up but still... it was awesome. :)

Week 18 - On the very first day of week 18 I started to feel my baby move and kick. I have been having some 'feelings' from week 12 or 13, but I was never sure if it was the baby or my stomach or cramps or what... and they happened so infrequently and were over so quickly that I really had no idea what I was feeling. But as week 18 progressed I started to feel my baby every day - sometimes more, sometimes less, but everyday none the less. Baby's kicks feel amazing to me, because they are a confirmation that something really is growing inside me, but to be honest sometimes they can be quite unpleasant/borderline painful as well - he/she loves to kick me right down in my lady bits... not so fun, I can tell you that. :)

Week 19 - My fetal doppler for at home use had finally arrived (I ordered it from eBay - $25) and I was able to listen to my baby's heart beat whenever I wanted. It was and still is a great way to calm my nerves and to know that everything is alright. I usually listen to him/her before going to bed or when I wake up and he/she loves to kick the doppler and then 'run away' - like come on mom, leave me be! :D

I have now just entered week 21 and I'm feeling great. I am still trying to shake off a bug (I've had a nasty cold/cough for about two weeks now and puked because of it on numerous occasions), but other than that I couldn't be better. We've almost finished the nursery which is a part of our bedroom (you can check out the pictures on my Instagram, if you haven't seen them yet) and now have all the 'big things' set for our peanut, only small things left on our shopping list. :) 

Next week I'll be having the level 2 ultrasound (morphology screening) where my ob/gyn will asses how the little one is growing and developing and hopefully be able to let us know the sex (I'm quite sure we're having a boy, but we'll see). :D

That's about all I have to say for now... I mean I could go on and on, but I though you'd like to read the more interesting bits. :) I'd love to answer any question you have for me personally or about pregnancy in general, so don't hesitate to leave me a comment. :)