Bruise from Nurse Nicole

Here is a treat that Nurse Nicole left me. :(

Hello Exhaustion?

Wow... a wave of tiredness came over me last night. Out of nowhere I became exhausted.

I didn't really run around a whole lot yesterday, stayed inside most of the day. But I was watching the game with Mike and around the third quarter I became getting sleepy. A different kind of sleepy. So sleepy, I could barely keep my eyes open. I felt heavy and tired. Very weird. I then made a zombie walk up to the bedroom where I just fell into a deep sleep.

Dreams were very weird too. I had everything from:

- Driving on very winding streets in Michigan or Wisconsin
- Basketball game/tournament for boys that were dressed like Pasco colors, but named for Carrollwood
- Wooden House that I was snuck into with friends that could not be identified
- Red sports car
- Visiting a house where I hung out with my best friend Keely's son Jones to make sure he was ok at his new day care
- Snow
- I even think Buster made an appearance.

Go figure. People have asked if I have been exhausted or tired, and right at 16 weeks, last night it hit me. Maybe baby was having a growth spurt? Who knows. I slept for at least 10 hours.

16 Weeks

Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length . Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.

Went to the doctors today. My blood pressure was fine 100/64, same as last time. I have gained two pounds. I am still down three pounds from when we found out we were pregnant. Nurse took more blood work from my arm today. Usually they always go for the hand, but Nurse Nicole got my right arm first try.

Blood work from Stage 2 of the test says that we are in the least percentile of abnormalities. Still have one more stage to go.

No sonogram today, but she did the doppler. I swear I held my breath until she found it. Then we heard the most beautiful sound, beating away. "Nice and strong, regular."

We asked her questions about flying in June, July and August. She said all is ok as long as I feel good. She said get lots of fluid and walk the length of the plane every hour. Dr. Bevilacqua was who we saw today, very sweet.

Our Cowboy

Today Buster was out meandering in the yard. He had no idea that he had a visitor. Sitting on top of the fence spying down at him. For about 3 minutes, Buster kept smelling over in the corner of the fence. He smelled this cat. He just couldn't find him. He kept sniffing all around the fence for minutes... THEN... the cat as he stood with his hair standing straight up.. balancing two paws on one post, two on the other starring down at Buster... The cat flinches and their eyes meet.

Buster starts to growl, with a few barks. He said, "Come into this space and you won't leave the same way you came in." They stand dueling eye to eye like to cowboys in a showdown. I was kind of scared for the cat. They stood still for seconds that seemed like hours. Then Buster flinches and the cat tip toes speedily across the entire fence line as fast as lightning on his way to anywhere but here.

Buster protected his space. He is our cowboy.

What is Baby Higgins going to look like?

Ever wonder what Baby Higgins will look like? Well, thanks to technology we may know NOW instead of waiting 5 months. This site takes Mike's face and my face and morph's them together. It is really cool. Who knows if Baby Higgins will look like this, but it was fun to try it!

15 weeks

15 weeks...Continuing the march toward normal proportions, baby's legs now out-measure his arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably can't feel the movements just yet.

We are 15 weeks and so excited. Food is still weird for me. We battle every day. Chipotle food is still great, especially barbabcoa, bowl, rice, fajitas, mild, sour cream and cheese. I eat that for lunch a few times this week. Home meals are still iffy. Still have an aversion to chicken. Went to Chili's and most 99 percent of the time I get the quesadilla explosion salad. Until, I heard about a lettuce recall in Florida where precut lettuce has been found with Ecoli. So I asked the waitress, "I am sorry, I am pregnant and paranoid, does your lettuce come "precut" and she said yes. I ordered a burger. Burger was ok. First burger I have had in months. Food is just weird right now. Still love lemonade. Can't get enough of it.

I do love Subway Veggie Subs. Those are a highlight these days and of course Sweet Tomatoes. Keep those veggies coming! I still fit into everything and haven't gained a pound. I am at 225. I go for a check up this week. We may even find out if it is a boy or girl. Mike is on team boy and is proud to tell everyone who asks. He will be just as pleased with a baby girl that will melt his heart I am sure, but he is on Team Blue for now. He has two names that he has settled on. We are far from having that discussion "settled". But it does keep your mind busy thinking of names. I keep praying every day that Baby Higgins grows nice and strong, whatever the sex and whatever the name. Just a healthy baby is what I am praying for. Here is the bump photo at 15 weeks. I still just look overweight with too much chub, but here it is.

Rays Game

My mom won Rays Baseball tickets from ABC news and so we went to the game. We had a great time! Rays won with a homerun from Longoria in the 3rd inning. I had a pretzel and popcorn. Mike had a footlong hotdog. It was fun outing and I hope we can go to more games. They are winning all the time and have one of the best records in baseball. I just wish the Tampa Bay area would support them more.