15 Weeks!

September 12, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• May feel fluttering movements
• Baby can grasp, squint, frown, grimace, and suck thumb
• Legs have grown longer than arms
• Body is now longer than head
• Three bones in the middle ear begin to harden
• Fingernails and toenails are growing
• Eyebrows begin to grow
• Length (3.98 inches); weight (2.47 oz)

What we are up to:

• Still feeling better, but not hungry
• Watched "What to Expect When You're Expecting" movie
• Bought the baby an indoor swing
• Finally starting to show and am no longer able to suck in the bump
• My pants still fit, but are tight around the waist
• Had a little photo session with Shawn! (see below...)
• Have been listening to the heartbeat every night and recorded it for a second time on my iphone
• Sent out invitations for the gender party
• Started working out again and running with Reg outside
• Have been drinking water like crazy straight from the gallon pitcher

Little LaCasse is an avacado!
Time for some guacamole!

from babycenter.com

Our "Forever Lazies!"
Too bad they don't come in baby size.

Listening with the Belly Beats doopler (well worth the money).

"The greatest thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother."

Finally got a picture in our scrubs together.

Yikes.

14 Weeks!

September 5, 2012~2nd Trimester!!!

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Thyroid gland has matured
• Begins producing hormones
• Prostate gland develops (boys)
• Ovaries move from abdomen to pelvis (girls)
• Able to suck thumb
• Bones are getting harder
• Lanugo covers the body
• Length (3.42 inches); weight (1.52 oz)

What we are up to:

• Back to being nauseous on-and-off and lack an appetite
• Midwife found the heartbeat at our last office visit (around 152) and she predicted that it's a girl!
• Got cleared by my midwife to compete in The Tough Mudder
• Bought more supplies for the gender party
• Found a great deal on diapers online and 270 of them arrive today!
• Went to Babies 'R Us for the first time together
• Have been taking evening walks around the neighborhood with Reg while talking about the baby

 

My best friend started sending me cards in the mail that have a series for the entire pregnancy, starting with the second trimester!



 

 

Little LaCasse is an orange!
Ate that right up after the picture!

from babycenter.com

13 Weeks!

August 29, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Diaphragm begins to inhale and exhale
• Neck is getting longer
• Hands become more functional
• All nourishment is received from placenta
• Length (2.91 inches); weight (0.81 oz)

What we are up to:

• Baby is a peach!
• Started feelings weird sensations is lower abdomen (like rice krispies) and I think it might be the baby!
• Feeling much more normal and not pregnant
• Gender revel party date is set and people know the date
• Picked out a photographer for maternity and newborn session
• Made growth chart ruler with the help of Shawn
• Started reading "Belly Laughs" books (for anyone with a good sense of humor, these are a must! I read the whole book in one sitting and laughed out loud like a psycho the whole time)

 

from babycenter.com

The start to our oversized growth chart ruler!

Little LaCasse is a peach!
And no, those aren't stretch marks on my belly. The dog got me right before the picture.


 

12 Weeks!

August 22, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Vocal cords begin to form
• Eyes move closer together
• Ears shift to the side of the head
• Liver begins to function
• Pancreas begins to produce insulin
• Length (2.13 inches); weight (0.49 oz)

What we are up to:

• Shawn and I are in love with the baby
• Shawn is excited to be a Daddy and is eager to find out the gender
• More of our friends and family know about the pregnancy
• I feel MUCH better...No nausea and less fatigue
• Nursery is completely primed
• It's starting to feel more and more like fall outside!
• The heartbeat has been around 168 and is much easier to find
• Shawn can't imagine life any other way than with me and the baby

 

from babycenter.com

Prime time!

Shawn already practicing his skills at inserting a carseat base.
(Baby's first exposure to curse words...)

 

Little LaCasse is the size of a lemon!
Perfect addition to all the water I am drinking :)

 

So glad God is with "Baby of the way..."

 

11 Weeks!

August 15, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Nearly all structures and organs are formed
• Fingers and toes have separated
• Hair and nails begin to grow
• Genitals begin to take on characteristics
• Amniotic fluid begins to accumulate
• Kidneys begin to function
• Intestinal wall muscles begin to contract
• Length (1.61 inches); weight (0.25 oz)

What we are up to:

• Went to prenatal appointment together to collect health histories
• Shopped at Hobby Lobby together for crafty supplies for all of the baby decor ideas running through my mind
• Got my blood work done for prenatal labs
• Went on a long hike together since we had a random run of fall-like days (my favorite!!)

Little LaCasse is a plum! YUM!
Fruit is more appealing to me than ever.

Baby's first race!

If you haven't noticed by now, I am wearing the same shirt in every picture.
It's simply to make the pictures more comparable, not because I don't own many shirts.

 

10 Weeks!

August 8, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Officially a "fetus"
• Most critical part of development is complete
• Head is half the baby's length
• Eyelids fuse shut
• Irises begin to develop and eye color is determined
• Placenta begins to function
• Length (1.22 inches); weight (0.14 oz)

What we are up to:

• Quarter of the way through!
• Saw Little LaCasse on ultrasound
• He/She wiggled and "looked perfect" (per my midwife) on ultrasound
• Shawn kept getting in the way of the ultrasound screen because he was so excited, so I punched him
• Did a fluff wash with all of the baby clothes I bought so far
• Shawn primed the nursery walls (since I'm not supposed to be around fumes.  First excuse I've put to use!)
• Had my EDD right per the ultrasound. Go me!

Finally a face to go with the belly.
I just so happened to have my makeup on and hair straightened this night...

 

Our first picture of Little LaCasse!!!
Check out those little arm buds and trusty umbilical cord. What a busy bee!

Little LaCasse is the size of a lime.
Oh how I miss margaritas!

First two boxes of clothing are fluffed!

The shiny object is a quarter to represent that I am 1/4 through my pregnancy.
Sorry, I had to.

 

9 Weeks!

 August 1, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Begins to move
• Most joints are formed
• Will curve his/her fingers around an object
• Fingerprints are evident
• Length (0.9 in; weight (0.07 oz)

What we are up to:

• Heard the baby's heartbeat with the doopler (took some patience)!
• Can hear the baby move around with the doopler
• My workplace knows and is supportive (I'm neurotic and already looked into what our maternity leave policy is)
• Decided on which practice and hospital we will be using
• Officially applying Bio Oil and cocoa butter twice a day
• Started taking DHA supplements in addition to prenatal vitamins
• Excited to see the baby with an ultrasound in 4 days!



from babycenter.com

Little LaCasse is the size of a prune!
(Again, YUCK! Might come in handy when the constipation kicks in)

 

8 Weeks!

July 25, 2012

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Cartilage and bones begin to form
• Basic structure of the eye is underway
• Tongue begins to develop
• Intestines move from umbilical cord to abdomen
• Fingers and toes have appeared, but are webbed
• Length (0.61 inches); weight (0.04 oz)

What we are up to:

• Bought more clothes and supplies for baby
• First prenatal appointment tomorrow
• Ordered a doopler today to listen to the baby's heartbeat whenever I please :)



Shawn felt left out when I spent an hour each night trying to make my newly, pregnancy-induced teenage face appear better

Little LaCasse is an olive! YUCK!

from babycenter.com

 

Another card from "My Baby on the Way!"

7 Weeks!

July 18, 2012

So, I know seven weeks is still early and many people believe that you shouldn't start to really prepare for a baby and buy things or make any permanent baby related decisions until atleast the second trimester, since your risk of miscarriage decreases, but we were just so excited and continued to move along with our plans and progress.  I know I will look back at this picture when I am huge and WISH I was that small again, but at the time I felt like a whale. 

from babycenter.com

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Elbows form
• Fingers develop
• Feet appear with notches on the toes
• Ears, eyes, and nose appear
• Teeth develop under the gums

What we are up to:

• More family members are aware of the pregnancy
• Nursery is already prepped for priming (Thanks to Shawn)
• Started buying clothes and supplies for the baby (tis the season to take advantage of yard sale deals)
• Shawn is more relaxed and excited to be a father
• Bought my first set of maternity clothes (I know, I know...but some really cute fall clothes sucked me right in)



Stocked up on a book...or 4.

Shawn and our mut, Reggy, preparing the nursery for priming.

Little LaCasse is a raspberry!
 (The shiny belly is not intentional.  I had just applied Bio Oil (starting the stretch mark prevention early!)). 

 

6 Weeks!

July 11, 2012

Beats me as to where my belly picture and fruit picture are from this week and if they were ever taken, but I will leave you with my absolute favorite pregnancy related quote instead.

"No one else will ever know the strength of my love for you.  After all, you're the only one who knows what my heart sounds like from the inside."

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Lenses of the eyes appear
• Nostrils are formed
• Intestines and pancreas appear

from babycenter.com

5 weeks!

July 4, 2012

Let the belly pictures begin! I sincerely apologize about the exposed breast. At the time, I never imagined that I would make this experience public. On the flip side, this also serves as the last picture I will probably ever have where my stomach is semi-flat and my boobs are perky. Shawn and I (well, mostly me) came up with the idea to use a notecard to display which week each picture is taken, then lay in bed together after the picture and fill out the back of the notecard with our thoughts/feelings for that week (see below...). 


Little LaCasse is a blueberry! YUM!

from babycenter.com

What Little LaCasse is up to:

• Heartbeat begins
• Umbilical cord develops
• Blood is pumping
• Lungs and brain appear
• Arm and leg buds appear

What we are up to:

• Both of our mothers are aware of the baby
• We think it's a girl
• Already picked out a potential girl name
• Shawn is very scared and overwhelmed
• Stood in the nursery together and thought of ideas
• Made first prenatal appointment

Cards from my friend, Sarah, that arrive with each month of my pregnancy :)

Love, Your Baby on the Way <3