Well Ladies, it’s been a long time. What with the holidays and doctor’s appointments, plus being a little under the weather (stupid cold season), I just haven’t posted. So I apologize. And trust me when I say I have not forgotten about you! (My mom has made that near impossible by asking when I am going to post again. So here you go Mom, this is when I am posting again ❤ ). Since I have not posted since… what?… week 8, I think (geez, I am really behind), I’m doing a group post. I can’t remember exactly what happened each week as far as when I started getting aversions to certain foods or things like that (I know, I’m terrible. I should have written them down in a book somewhere for later reference).
Before I do an update, though, I just have to go over everyone’s reactions to finding out. Cause it was priceless (If you are new to the blog, click here to see how we told everyone). Hubby’s sister and her husband were the first to open their boxes (if I remember correctly). We didn’t get to see their reactions over Skype, but they called us immediately after opening and were VERY excited.
My mom and stepdad were the second to open their boxes (cause no one else had gotten them yet for some reason). This time, we ere able to use Skype to see their reactions. Well, my stepdad was all excited about the cookies and popcorn; Lucy (their little Schnauzer) LOVED her Woofies buscuits (click here to get the recipe for your pups). My mom, being of good Christmas spirit, was just going to put the present under the tree and open the card. THAT was no go. She froze mid-standing up with a look of confusion/surprise on her face when Hubby and I said, “No, no, no! You have to open the present now before the card.” So her and my stepdad proceeded to open it. They got half the wrapping paper off when my mom got this look of “I’m not sure whether to cry, laugh, jump up and down, or all at the same time”. It was obvious that she was happy for us though. My stepdad on the other hand took a bit longer (haha… total understatement) to catch on. We told him to read the back which says “Merry Christmas! Love, [Hubby], Monique, Zane, and Baby Conner”, and still had this big look of confusion on his face. So he read it again, and finally got it, but immediately said “Nuh-uh!” as if it were a very early April Fool’s joke. He was shocked to say the least. But it made for a great reaction.
Hubby’s parents were the next to recieve and open their box. I’m not the best at being able to read his parents reactions yet, I’ll be honest. Even still, I know for a fact this his mom enjoyed the popcorn (it was almost all gone by the time we ended the conversation on Skype about an hour after the package was opened). They were all definitely surprised (seriously, who isn’t though?) and eager to help out. His mom is a home health nurse and works with pregnant moms and newborns for a living, so she is chock full of knowledge from just about every kind of background (particulary, very young first time moms). His mom and dad had similar reactions to Brian, in that they seemed to think it was a joke. His brother (who has two of the most adorable, sweet little girls) was really happy for us, too.
My brother was the next to open his package, though his was lost in the mail for about 4 days or so, I think (the tracking number said it had been delivered, but he didn’t actually have it until several days later). When he finally did get it, Hubby and I were at the store, so I told him (via text) he could open the package and enjoy the goodies inside. Once we were home, we all got on Skype so that we could watch my brother’s reaction. When he saw the picture on the ornament, he seemed to already know, but read the back anyway. His response was, “Oh cool! When is this gonna be? No time soon, right?” Hubby and I couldn’t help but laugh, which got us strange looks from my brother to which I said, “No, in July,” between laughing. I could tell he wanted to give me a hard time, but I could also tell that he was genuinely happy for us (I mean, I am his little sister after all).
My dad technically recieved his package in the mail before my brother, but didn’t open it until last. Not to mention, it was the least thrilling response out of everyone’s. He doesn’t use Skype, and I didn’t tell him to open the present before the card. So, of course, the card got opened first. According to him, his response to the card was “Oh no, it can’t be.” Then he opened the present, to which he said his thoughts were “Yea, I guess it is,” (heartwarming, I know). Well, he then called us (luckily we were at home; I would not have done well in public with this). After telling me his reaction, he then says, “And I was just about to take you off of the insurance. But I guess now that you have this… um… condition, we will need to keep you on it.” This made me mad for two reasons. There’s the obvious one (who the hell in their right mind calls pregnancy a medical condition?! Escpecially to their own daugher!), then there is the fact that he hadn’t mentioned to me that I was going to be removed from his insurance (which covers literally EVERYTHING), which especially important to know now with this b.s. Omacare coming up. I would have entered this year under the impression that I am covered, then get billed by the government because I don’t have insurance. Yea, thanks dad. (Okay, I’m done. Think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts).
OH! My dad’s side of the family was told on Christmas Eve during our big get together. Let me tell you, I was paranoid about telling them. More so about my Oma’s reaction than anyone else (sidebar: Oma means grandmother in Dutch). She is a very outspoken, older lady and will tell you exactly what she think about something. Towards the end of the evening, we decided to hand out the cards. Unfortunately, the “Love from, ….” part was blurred because it was a smaller font with white lettering on a red background and the red ink bled a little bit. Still, my girl cousin was the first to get it (even though her mom and dad had both already looked at the card before her), and then my aunt M. My cousin just stared at Hubby and I with this look of little kid excitement (she’s 20, though), mouthing “OH MY GOD! REALLY?!” across the room. We just beamed smiles back at her and nodded our heads. My Oma and oldest uncle, both had a hard time reading it, but my aunt M could, so she read it outloud for everyone. At which point, those who could read it or hadn’t caught on at all got huge looks of surprise on their faces (totally not worth the paranoinia). Though when my Oma gave me a hug, she whispered in my ear, “I thought you guys were gonna wait?” Well we were, but life doesn’t like our plans obviously (and can I just say, I HATE that comment?) After hugs went around to both Hubby and I, everyone started asking questions (due date, names, etc), and my cousin and Aunt M both offered help as babysitters. Everyone was super excited, which was great after my dad’s reaction.
My mom’s side of the family was last to know. I told them all (well most) on Christmas day. I Skyped my MawMaw (grandmother) just as everyone was arriving (go me!). Her and I chatted for a bit, I talked to my youngest two cousins for a bit (adorable, but they have grown WAY too fast. I still remember when the A (the girl) was a baby and S (the boy) was about 2 and always asking to sit in my lap all Christmas Day. They are 11 and 13 now I think). There just never seemed like a good time in the conversation to tell MawMaw. Well, then comes my Uncle R. He gave her a card (and me a hard time, as usual). Which kind of broke a way for me to tell her. I showed her a couple of pictures from the extra card we had (the others were supposed to make it in the mail, but never quite did). She didn’t quite get it, but with a little bit of coaxing, she blurted out, “Oh my gosh! I get another grandbaby for Christmas!” She then immediately turns to the cut-out window the looks into the kitchen from the TV room, yells for everyone to quiet down (they were mostly all in there eating snacks and goodies), and says “Guess what! Guess what!” all excited, bouncing in her computer chair and waving her hands about. My cousin (the mom of the two I mentioned earlier) immediately responds, “Nique’s having a baby.” To my MawMaw responds by nodding her head super excitedly and saying a quick, enthusiastic “YEA!” It was amazing.
The last person I had to tell before putting the announcement on Facebook was my Uncle K. He is basically like my grandfather on my mom’s side because Granddaddy passed away when my mom was about 14. So telling him personally is a HUGE deal. It’s not a good thing if he has to find out through social media or someone else. I’ll admit, I was really concerned about his reaction. He had already given me a lecture on why I should wait to have kids. I finally got the nerve to call him on New Year’s Day. And it went really well. He was very happy for us. He jokingly told me, “It had better be a boy, and if it’s not tell them to take it back.” I couldn’t help but bust out laughing, which got a chuckle out of him. He has all girls, but he wouldn’t trade them for anything.
So now, that I have documented everyone’s reaction, time for the update! If you have stuck with me this far, YAY! and thank you. If you just skipped all the way down to this part, that’s okay too. I most likely would have done the same to everyone else. Everything above is more for my own benefit than anyone else’s. So here it goes, each picture is in order from week 9-13 and the update is based on most recent picture unless otherwise noted:
9 weeks
10 weeks
11 weeks
12 weeks
13 weeks
How far along? 13 weeks 2 days
Total weight gain: 4 pounds. Which I think is normal, but I keep being told to eat more… I think not.
Maternity clothes? Pants: yes. The pair from Old navy it SUPER comfortable. The pair from Zulily, not so much. The actualy jean material has no stretch to it, so it digs into my sides.
Stretch marks? Nope!
Sleep: Lots:) It’s wonderful. Though there have been a couple nights where I have super weird dreams and get really restless so I’ll toss and turn almost all night
Best moment this week: Telling my Uncle K about the baby. Over the past several weeks, the best part was going to the first ultrasound and hearing that little heartbeat (and it’s so quick!)
Miss Anything? not that I can think of.
Movement: Not that I can feel, though apparently little one (or Jelly Bean as my mom calls the baby) is quite active
Food cravings: Twizzlers. or cold, sweet stuff.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Red meat (mostly the smell), omlets, and something else that I can’t remember
Labor Signs: None
Symptoms: Fatigue… crazy mood swings.. Most everything else has evened out or gone away
Belly Button in or out? In!
Wedding rings on or off? On 🙂
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy most of the past few weeks, with a few disputes with Hubby.
Looking forward to: Nothing is planned for the next week, really, which seems really sad now.
Here is a picture of the ultrasound as 11 weeks and 1 day, about the size of a lime. This was the best Christmas by far. We went the day after Christmas:)
Little one is now about the size of a peach, an increase of about 1.3 inches based on average sizes between weeks 11 and 13. Even still, Baby is only 3 inches! It seems so small, but so big at the same time, since that is about 1/4 the average newborn length. Since the ultrasound, the estimated due date has shifted from July 16 to July 14, based on the ultrasound. Though based on menstrual cycle it would be July 15. So at least everything is within a day haha.
Well that’s all my news for today. I will try to be better about posting weekly. And I hope that you all continue to enjoy my posts. I will soon (over the next couple months) be lots of DIY projects for nursery decor. Feel free to check out my
Pinterest page.
Mo (;
DIY Home Raising 