Week 14 baby #5

September 27th- October 3rd

14 weeks with Trent

14 weeks with Rose

I can't believe Monday is October 1st! The weeks are flying by!

At 14 weeks the baby is the size of a lemon.

I got really sick on Friday night and it continued throughout the weekend. I had a fever, chills and couldn't keep anything down. Luckily, I had my doppler to give me peace of mind that even though I was feeling horrible the baby was okay! I also am so grateful that none of the kids caught it!

His/her heartbeat ranged from 157-164 bpm this week.

Weight gain/loss: Like I mentioned above I got very sick over the weekend. This morning I weighed 94.2lbs. Hoping to gain the weight I lost and some for next week!

Symptoms: Still having random nausea. It is mostly in the morning soon after I wake up, but it can come on throughout the day if it's been too long since I have eaten or if I have eaten too much. I have had some pretty bad headaches this week one that wouldn't go away! It got so painful I caved in and took a Tylenol which is something I prefer not to do while pregnant. The Tylenol didn't even help it wasn't until I took a second one two hours later, got sick, took a shower and laid down that it finally went away. Ugh! It was awful. Vivid dreams are another symptom I've had since the beginning and they have not slowed down one bit. Some dreams/nightmares seem so real and it is hard to fall back asleep after.

Movement: I feel random very gentle jabs/taps a few times a day.

What I am loving: Honestly, not knowing what we are having is so fun! I enjoy daydreaming about what gender the baby is. I have pros and cons for both and really don't have a preference which is nice. Plus, I have been able to buy a few boy and girl clothes... they're so little and adorable!

I have recently switched to a regular OBGYN from my high risk doctor only because they don't deliver at the hospital that is right by our house and I really want to stay close this time instead of driving over an hour. We have an appointment this Monday I believe she will just talk to me and possibly do the doppler? I don't really know what to expect, but I do have a 16 week ultrasound scheduled for the following Monday on October 8th!

I forgot to mention that a few weeks ago my doctor highly recommended that I start getting progesterone shots at 16 weeks to reduce my chances of preterm labor since I have a history of that. I am willing to do whatever it takes to stop my body from going into labor early and avoiding the NICU.

If you haven't been following along for my past pregnancies I delivered our first baby at 27 weeks due to severe preeclampsia Landon spent 10 weeks in the NICU. Oliver our second son was delivered at 37 weeks. I just started contracting and I was far along enough the doctors didn't stop it. Sadly, he swallowed fluid on his way out and got a small infection so he had to go to the NICU for over a week. Trent our third son was delivered at 36 weeks. Again, I just started contracting and my water broke so there really wasn't any turning back. Trent was the ONLY one out of all four of our babies that didn't need to go the NICU. To some that have been lucky enough to never have a baby go to the NICU this might not seem like a big deal, but it is. Not having your baby with you to hold and bond with those first few days is nothing short of devastating. You dream of those first few days with your baby for nine months and to have to watch them struggling with cords all over and monitors going off left and right is heartbreaking. For Rose, right around 34 weeks, I started contracting again they gave me a shot to stop the contractions when they slowed down I went home. A few days later they started up again so my doctor said it was time to get her out.  After the delivery, she was with us for about 3 hours before our nurse noticed her color was off and took her to be monitored. Rose spent 2 long, long, long weeks in the NICU for lung development.  

At the end of the day we are thankful for the great care the NICU provided for our babies, but we are keeping our fingers crossed that baby #5 won't have to spend any time there!

Week 13 baby #5

September 20-September 26th

13 weeks with Trent

13 weeks with Rose

At 13 weeks the baby is the size of a peach.

Second Trimester is HERE!!! Some say it started last week and some say it starts next week. My pregnancy app (pregnancy+) says it starts today so I am just going to go with that! Like most pregnant woman the second trimester is my favorite.

Finally, seeing a baby bump this week!

Weight gain/loss: 95.2lbs down one pound since the start of this pregnancy. 

Symptoms: Morning sickness, I have felt pretty sick every morning this week. I don't feel like eating when I wake up, but if I don't eat it gets worse. Some more symptoms this week include fatigue, vivid dreams and mild heartburn. 

Craving: Nothing this week. 

Movement: A few gently jabs here and there. 

Home Doppler: Ranged 165-168bpm 

Old Wives Tales

There isn't much evidence to support these tests, but I still like to do them purely for fun!

Trent's Old Wives Tales

Rose's Old Wives Tales

Chinese Gender Predictor Test-  I used the one from thebump.com

Mayan Gender Theory- If the age of the mother and the year she conceived are both even or odd it's a girl and if one is even and one is odd its a boy. 

Heart Rate Test- If the baby's BPM is above 140 it is a girl and if it is below it is a boy. 

Intelligender- I debated doing the kit  this time because it was correct with Landon and Oliver, but wrong with Trent and Rose. I might go out an buy one and post the results with my weekly update. 

Wedding Ring on a String Test- If it goes back and forth it is a boy and if it goes in circles it is a girl. 

Carrying Low or High- Low means boy and high means girl. 

Landon, Oliver, Trent

Rose and baby #5

Dry hands vs Soft Hands- Theory states if your hands have been dryer this pregnancy then you're having a boy and softer or the same then you're having a girl. 

Moody or Same- Moody or more emotional in general then that means your having a girl or if you've been the same then it's a boy.

Skin- If you're skin has gotten worse it's a girl and if it has gotten more clear it's a boy. I would say my skin has gotten more clear/stayed the same. 

Side You Sleep On- Right means girl and left means boy.

Morning Sickness- If you are sick during your pregnancy it is a girl and if you don't have sickness you are having a boy. 

Headaches- If you're having more headaches this pregnancy you're more likely to be carrying a boy. I have had a few mild headaches. 

Mother's Intuition- When I first found out I thought it was boy then I thought it was a girl and since then I have gone back and forth. Since we have so many boys I kind of want to say I think it's a boy, but really I have no idea. Matt thinks it's a boy! 

Skull Theory- If the skull is more square or flat it's a boy and if its more rounded it's a girl. I had such a hard time with this one. It looks like a mix between a boy and a girl skull to me, but I guess if I had to pick it looks more like a girl. 

Sweet or Salty- I have definitely been more into salty things this pregnancy.

Father Gaining Weight- This theory has to do with the baby's Daddy if he has gained weight it is supposedly a girl and if he has lost weight or stayed the same its boy. No, Matt has not gained any weight this pregnancy. I find this one so funny! 

Ramzi Theory- This theory has to do with which side the baby implants on and can only be done between weeks 5-8. This one can be tricky because it depends on which type of ultrasound you have done (vaginal or abdominal.) 

NT Scan

Yesterday afternoon was my NT scan my weight was 96.9lbs and they did not take my blood pressure. Nuchal translucency is a collection of fluid under the skin at the back of your baby's neck. The NT scan measures the thickness of this fluid to assess the risk of down's syndrome. My doctor said they like to see it under 3mm and our baby's was 1.60mm which is perfect! We were able to see our sweet baby wiggling around. Their heart was beating away at 168BPM which is much lower than Trent's 180BPM at this his NT scan and Rose's 183BPM.

Trent's NT Scan

Rose's NT Scan

Baby #5

Rose at 11w5d

Trent at 12w

Oliver at 11w5d

Baby #5 all snuggled up

Week 12 baby #5

September 14th -19th 

12 weeks with Trent

12 weeks with Rose 

At 12 weeks the baby is the size of a large plum. 

A little tiny baby bump this week? Maybe?

Weight gain/loss: 94.6lbs down about one pound since the start of this pregnancy.

Symptoms: Vivid weird dreams, weird taste in my mouth, waking up to use the restroom during the night and nausea throughout the day. Usually, I feel sick if I eat too much or it has been too long since I have eaten.

Cravings: Finally, had my first craving this week and it couldn't be more cliche... PICKLES! I am obsessed! I want them on my sandwich and on the side. I was looking back at Trent's 12 week post (linked at the top of the page) and I noticed I was also craving pickles this week!

Movement: I know it is suuuper early, but I think I felt one or two gently jabs this week. In the past, I started to feel them around 14 weeks. My placenta is posterior this time and with Rose it was anterior. When it is anterior the placenta cushions the baby's kicks and you probably won't feel them as early.

Home Doppler: Ranged from 167-173bpm

Tomorrow is my NT scan I can't wait to see our little one bouncing around! I will be writing a post all about it and one on old wives tales which are always fun!

Week 11 baby #5

September 6th- September 12th
11 weeks with Trent
11 weeks with Rose

At 11 weeks the baby is the size of a lime.

Weight gain/loss: 95.2lbs down one pound since the start of this pregnancy. I feel like I was showing a little with Trent and Rose at this point. Despite weighing pretty much the same I can honestly say there is NO bump... yet!

This week, I cut a few inches off my hair! I was so excited to take sometime for myself because this haircut was long overdue. I also turned 28 on September 7th! A big thank you to my family for making it an extra special day.

Symptoms: Still vivid dreams, fatigue and all day nausea. I have big waves of nausea throughout the day.  Luckily, it usually isn't bad enough to make me physically get sick, only enough to make me feel like all food is disgusting. I noticed that if I eat too much I feel sick or if it has been too long since I have eaten I feel sick. New this week is that I feel out of breath easily. For example, once I get to the top of the stairs I have to take a deep breath in as if I just ran a bunch.

Home doppler: I noticed over this past week the heartbeat has slowed down some. It was ranging upper 170's to low 180's occasionally high 180's now it is high 160's. I am actually glad to see it in more of a normal range because over our vacation it got up to 195bpm!


Here is our little blessing at 11 weeks heart rate was 173bpm:

NT Scan: Our NT scan has been moved up to this Friday! I will be 12 weeks 1 day.

Have a great week!

Week 10 baby #5

August 30th- September 5th

10 weeks with Trent
10 weeks with Rose

At 10 weeks the baby is the size of strawberry!

Weight gain/loss- 94.8lbs so down a little from last week. We had an amazing time at Disney World, but the heat and humidity made my nausea worse. It was hard pushing a stroller all around the park and we had trouble finding more than hot dogs, popcorn, fries and frozen lemonades.

Symptoms: Vivid dreams, waves of nausea, fatigue and waking up to use the bathroom then feeling too sick to fall back asleep. 

We had an ultrasound at 10 weeks 1 day and everything looked great! We were able to see our little ones arms and legs moving around. Their heart was beating away at 178 bpm (exactly what Rose was at 10 weeks and close to Trent at 180 bpm!) Next ultrasound will be at 12 weeks 5 days for my NT scan.