21 weeks pregnant!

Baby Growth: This week, Baby P learns a very important lesson: how to have sleep/wake cycles. These cycles will be much like they are when she is born. Right now, her skin is still very translucent. Her brain is also beginning another period of rapid growth. Her weight gain should slow just a little bit as brain function and heart function become the main thing that his body is focusing on in the next few weeks. She also has a lot of little “details” now – toenails, eyelashes, and eyebrows! She is about 11 inches long right now and weighs between 12-13 oz. 

 

My Symptoms: Still feeling pretty good all around except for that same pesky pain on my upper right side. Which my sister said she heard it could be nerve pain that might last the entire pregnancy! Yikes! I still get back pain throughout the day and especially at the end of day. Yesterday, my stomack was hurting really bad and it was extremely tight throughout the afternoon. It kind of started freaking me out (I worry way too much, way too fast), but I laid down when I got home from work and it went away. So hopefully it was just something random that didn't mean anything.

Weight:  I go to the Doctor this Friday so we will see how much more I've gained! Last time, I was at +10 pounds. But after looking at my pictures this week, I'm feeling pretty big so it wouldn't surprise me if I have gained a good bit more.

Belly Pictures:  I'm honestly not extremely happy with these, just because I feel like I look a lot bigger than I am right now. I guess I'm so harsh on myself anytime I gain weight so I just feel "chunky" right now :) So here they are...taken by my wonderful favorite photographers, Wild at Hart Photography!

 

 

 

My favorite is this one :)

 

And here is the belly at 21 weeks, obviously taken while Momma was relaxing on the couch!

 

 

 

Gender: Still all girl! And she finally has a name now! She will be Kynslie Mary Paulk! So excited we have finally decided on a name becuase there were several we really liked and had a hard time narrowing it down! We both really liked Kynslie for a long time and Mary was Merlin's mom's name so we knew we wanted that as her middle name from day one.  :)

Maternity Clothes: I'm on the hunt for some good maternity jeans because I know I will need some as it starts gettting cooler in the next few months. I bought a few new skirts, that actually weren't maternity but they fit great and so comfy!

Movement: I can definitely feel her moving all the time now! Its such an awesome feeling! I feel her rolling around during the day some but her kicks really pick up when I relax at night and am laying in the bed. I can usually see some of her kicks too when I'm laying down.


Sleep: Still sleeping pretty good! I'm still getting up once a night to potty and I flip flop sides every so often but I  still wake up feeling pretty refreshed unless I stay up too late :)

What I Miss: Being able to control my weight gain based on what I eat. I know weight gain is good for the baby but it is so hard to let go and just put it on when I've spent my whole life attempting to be a certain size!

 

What I’m Looking Forward To: Finishing the nursery! It has kinda been at a standstill for the last week or so because Merlin is so swamped with work, school, and studying. So, we still have the accent wall to finish and then start working on the next project, refinishing the dresser! I'm just so ready for it all to come together and get all the furniture in so it feels more like her nursery! Also looking forward to our appointment Friday and getting to see our baby girl again!

Cravings: Nothing really in particular this week. I did treat myself to a Chickfila cookies and cream milkshake because it was so hot and I was craving something cold! And it was A-MAZING! It's been so long since I've had one and it was just as good as I remembered!

 

Best Moment of the Week: Deciding on her name!!! Feels so good that we can actually call her "Kynslie" and not "Baby" all the time! I also loved being able to spend time with the family at Addy's birthday party and photo shoot fun with the photog and assistant! :)

Shout out to my crafty sista for this cute idea for our name reveal and making the banner!

 

 

My Concerns or Questions: I don't have any real concerns about her right now, but I am starting to research and try to figure out what we are going to do when I go back to work once she's born. I'm only planning to only take 6 weeks (unfortunately, thats what we will be able to afford) so we are trying to find someone in their home or that can come into our home and watch her from about Feb-July, when she's about 8 weeks til about 6 months. Thankfully, my  mom is retiring at the end of July so she will be keeping her full time after that! But it makes me nervous trying to find someone we can trust when she is so teeny tiny. I feel like I'm going to be a wreck leaving her any way I look at it! So, if anyone knows a trustworthy nanny, please let me know! :)

Goals for the Week: Pick out a color that we are going to paint the dresser! I want it to be pink to put against one of the grey walls but I'm just trying to decide how soft or bright of a pink I want to use! And hopefully make some more progress on the nursery!