The Pregnancy Files - Halfway There!

Today I'm 21 weeks and 4 days. It seems like it has taken forever to get this far, and it feels like I still have a very long way to go. Having said that, summer has passed so quickly! It's amazing how much time passes when you're busy, and this summer has been one of those times.

The last time that I wrote about this pregnancy, I was 14 weeks along. At that point, I'd only been feeling movement for a little over a week, and that was very sporadic and wasn't every day. Now I'm feeling movement every day, multiple times a day, but it's still very light except for the occasional pummel.

Also, since that last update, we found out that we're TEAM BLUE again! I knew it! This is the only time that I have ever been correct about the gender of one of my kids. I just had this gut feeling that this was a boy. At seventeen weeks, I had an ultrasound after I'd had a slight scare. The tech had told me she thought she saw little boy parts but to not trust her judgment, because she might be wrong. But then two weeks later, during my 20 week scan (which was done at 19w1d), it was quickly confirmed that baby is a boy!

Little Baby J, who has been dubbed "Skeletor" because of this image. :P

Since finding out that Baby J is a boy, we haven't done much shopping. We've had some things handed down to us, and that helps a lot. We have a lot still to buy yet, but we're not in a hurry. I bought one set of boy-themed items to announce his gender and shared it on Facebook, but other than that I still haven't done a whole lot of shopping yet for clothes and other items. Save for one thing....

Pre-fold diapers! This image is a bundle of thirteen Indian pre-fold diapers that I've slowly been throwing into our towels and whites washes so that the diapers can shrink down to their proper size and become absorbent. I still have another dozen that need to begin the washing process. This is my first time cloth diapering, and after my second son's constant rounds of rashes and prescription-grade diaper rash cream, I decided to make baby's life a little gentler (though my life a little more hectic by all of the washing) and do something a bit different.

I also plan on doing a bit of sewing some regular diapers. With the help (and patterns) of my dear friend Steph from Pampered Cheeks, I've got a good head-start. I just have to get all of the fabric bought, cut, and sewn. In other words, I've not started sewing yet. lol

So far I'm not having any complications in pregnancy, other than your standard, run-of-the-mill stuff. I still am dealing with costochondritis, though it is mild and I've not had to take any Tylenol for it. I'm hoping it stays that way, though with baby moving up closer and closer to my ribs, I feel like I'm not going to get a break for long. I've not been doing my relaxation exercises at all and haven't for months, and I need to get back into that. Totally my fault that it's not getting better. My lower back pain has actually been better since I hit second trimester, but I have occasional flare-ups.

Baby's stats right now:
-Weighs roughly 12 ounces
-Length about 10.5 inches long head to toe, or about 7-8 inches head to rump
-Growth is slowing down so that fat can start to accumulate under the skin and organs, while fully formed, are maturing
-Baby hears sounds and responds to them
-Eyelids and eyebrows are formed