Pregnancy Update - 18 Weeks!

We are closing in on halfway cooked! It feels like this pregnancy is going very fast now that I am not sick all day, and I am definitely feeling the reality of how our life will be changing very soon. Also, Caroline is teething her molars and is in a foul mood 90% of the time, so I get nervous thinking about dealing with two crabby babies at once! However, as I am not the first person to ever embark on this adventure, I am sure I will survive.

Let's get to the baby talk!

Size of Baby: A sweet potato!! Perfect for fall. Also perfect because I found a killer recipe for some sweet potato bread that I want to make this weekend. Yum....

"Mmmmmmmm... I die."

Speaking of sweet potatoes, I make this mashed sweet potato casserole every year at Thanksgiving and it is so TASTY. However, I only add about half the sugar it calls for, and I add shredded coconut to the topping. I highly suggest that you make this right quick. Gotta love The Pioneer Woman.

Size of Belly: Growing every day! There is no hiding this bad boy now! Here is a photo from last weekend when we took our annual trek to L.L. Bean. 

"perhaps I should invest in a maternity sweater, no?"

Actually our trip to Bean's was really fun, I got this sweater, which is not maternity but I love it so much and am practically living in it right now. I got the peacock blue, men's small, and it fits great and will fit after the pregnancy as well. CC got some adorable Smartwool socks, and a pair of slippers, which she hates wearing. No surprise there.

The highlight of the day occurred when I took CC into the viewing bubble in the trout aquarium and she FREAKED OUT because a giant, menacing trout stared her right in the face. I tried not to laugh because she was legit scared of the thing, but it was pretty funny. After that, she wanted nothing to do with trouts or aquariums.

My Symptoms and Cravings: UGH. Heartburn all over the place. Also, last time I was pregnant I got that whole "mask of pregnancy" thing that looks like patchy sun damage all over your face, which has a fancy name (melasma) that I can never remember without googling it. It turns out that if you have olive-toned skin you actually get it worse than fair-skinned people (whatever, I get a better tan than they do), and I found that when I was pregnant in the summer with CC it was way worse, which was a shame because I had a really nice tan. The speckles showed up this time right around the same time my pregnancy test popped up positive, so if you were on your game, you could actually tell I was pregnant from day one. They are better now that my tan has faded, but I don't think they are going anywhere anytime soon! Bummer. So in conclusion. NO. I don't have patchy sun damage and YES. I wear sunscreen every day. 

My cravings are staying pretty consistent and have been under control this week. I still have a THING for sugar, but the truth is, I have always had a THING for sugar, and now I just get to use pregnancy as an excuse. Its awesome. Bill says no more Pixi Stix though. 

So not much else to report except that last night when I was at work, I went to braid my hair at the beginning of my shift and when I reached my arms back, I felt a solid kick right to the center of my belly! It was crazy, considering I have not felt any other movement up until this point. I was so excited to  finally get a little "what's up Momma!" from my little love in there!

"Let's just add this sweet horse to the list of things to be filed under MINE. Since I heard I am expected to share with this new being in my house, I figure it is never too early to establish some clear boundaries."