21 WEEKS

Riley has been very active this week! I have been feeling her move more and more! I feel her a lot in the afternoon (around 2-4PM) and when I am lying in bed ready to go to sleep. I have to rub my belly sometimes to tell her to go to sleep too. lol

Daddy Ryan is constantly touching my belly so he can feel her too. I wish he could but I know she's still small for him to feel her kicks and punches. But I know when she gets bigger he will be able to :)

We had the repeat ultrasound done on Friday. This time Riley was moving quite a lot! We saw her kicking her legs and opening and closing her mouth. The tech confirmed again and made sure that baby p is definitely a girl! I am also showing a lot more, I think I have come to the point of my belly popping out already. I can't suck it in anymore! hehe. Riley wants to show herself to everyone now!

It seems like everyone is pregnant! This weekend I found about two more other pregos! It makes me so happy when I find out other women are pregnant, especially ones that I know!

Here is my belly pic from this week; I got even more bold and decided to share a frontal shot of my belly!

At the ultrasound, the tech took a pic of her little foot:

We got the cutest pic of her, which is by far my favorite one of her. I love it. It is a picture of her butt and legs (if you are looking below her). SO CUTE!!!!!!! =)

Ryan's aunt and uncle got Riley goodies from their trip in Peru (she's ready for the winter, especially with those cute moccasins!) Thanks Tita Gay and Tito Tom!

love,

baby p aka Riley

20 WEEKS

Baby P is 20 weeks and 4 days old today! We are halfway there!

I just had an intern at my job do an ultrasound on me and so I was able to see Riley again :)

She was laying laterally in my belly and she was moving around; she even had both of her hands at the side of her head. I also saw her little heart beating <3 data-blogger-escaped-br="">
My Riley bear is so cute! Daddy Ryan was a little envious too, but we get to see her again on Friday! We were scheduled again for a repeat ultrasound because the doctor wants more images of her. They said she wasn't moving enough, but everything was fine. We were told that we may or may not get called in for another ultrasound at the last appointment. But if this is another reason to see her again then of course we will take it!

Another exciting week ahead for us!

Below is my 20 week belly pic from early this week.

I also made mini collages of all of the belly pics I have been taking since we found out about baby p. Weeks 12 and 13 are missing because around that time is when we gained two weeks.

love,
baby p

PS. I forgot to mention that this week I have started to notice increasing movement in my belly. It just might be my baby girl moving in there and I can finally start feeling her! I feel it a lot while I am sitting down. It feels like bubbles bubbling (like hunger pangs) and sometimes it feels like butterflies fluttering. It is a weird feeling sometimes but definitely comforting. I love it. :)

19 WEEKS, ULTRASOUND, & GENDER REVEAL!

Hi everyone!

This post is coming late only because our ultrasound was on Friday and I am now just getting around to writing a new post! It has been a very busy weekend needless to say. Daddy Ryan went to Las Vegas after our appointment, yesterday I attended a bridal shower for my bro in law's bride to be, and most of today consisted of me doing absolutely nothing really LOL. I am still waiting for Daddy Ryan to come home though..me and Baby P miss him terribly! =(

Here was a sweet text exchange from us this morning:

We can't wait till he comes home already! =]

First thing's first, (lol I am sure you are all waiting for me to reveal the sex, but I am saving the best for the last!) here is this week's belly picture (19 weeks along):

My uterus has migrated at and a little above my belly button and it is really starting to firm up. I took a frontal shot too, but I am much too shy to show that on the blog right now. I started using Bio Oil at night after I shower because while I know stretch marks are inevitable and not proven to be prevented with the use of cocoa butter or oil, it still makes me feel more comfortable if I rub it on my belly. Plus, I am sure Baby P doesn't mind the mini massage either ;) The sacral pain has improved quite a lot since last week, although I do still feel it sometimes especially when I get out of bed. Sleeping on my side has been helping a lot, I notice that if I am lying on my back for too long it gets sore. I received my first pregnancy massage last Monday and it was heaven! I fell asleep during it and I didn't want it to end. I think they just might be a monthly indulgence for me until the baby comes. It was also really helpful for the back pain I was feeling too. I have slacking off with my prenatal workout DVDs so I made a conscious effort to do it this weekend, so far I have done it twice. I do still take my walks, but work has been busy lately so for a few days it was hard for me to squeeze one in. 

When I saw the doctor two weeks ago, she informed me that I had gained 9 pounds so far =/ She says it is good progress, but it still doesn't make me feel good. My body is changing as I can see it and feel it, especially now that my regular clothes aren't fitting me as well anymore. Ryan is constantly telling me that I should stop saying I am fat. Obviously, being pregnant is an adjustment and I am so blessed for this experience, but I guess I have to accept that I am carrying another life inside of me and with it comes physical changes. I will get there though, it is still a process that I am most certainly thankful for <3

Friday was a great day! This ultrasound I had was part of second trimester screening so it was much longer. The tech looked at how Baby P was developing so far; she looked at the baby's brain, heart, kidneys, bladder, stomach, and spine. Baby P looked good and I could definitely see a difference from a month ago...he/she is growing well and the heart beat is strong (154 bpm)! We were definitely happy to see our baby =)

So, the tech told us that the baby was sleeping because she had to check about four times to check the gender because the baby wasn't spreading his/her legs wide enough. And so she checked a lot because she wanted to make sure if there was or wasn't anything between the legs. LOL By the third and fourth time, she had confirmed to us that Baby P is a...GIRL!

Meet Riley Marie Pangilinan

I thought for sure we were having a boy and that was a majority of what our family and friends said. However, Ryan did predict a girl which surprised me. But yes everyone, we are having a little princess!  And we are very excited! Even though Daddy Ryan predicted a girl, the ultrasound just confirmed it all...he is happy and excited, but at the same time scared. He says, "I'm going to have a heart attack early!" but at the same time he knows how much she will will change his life--- in a good way of course. I'm pretty excited for a girl too, I know how much Ryan will love her and I want her to be a daddy's girl for sure. My only rule for my baby girl...NO PINK! LOL

Here are more pictures:

We were able to park at the designated spot for moms to be/new moms! 

Family picture after our ultrasound on Friday

Another picture of baby p from the ultrasound. She has such a cute profile! 

Ryan's cousin took a picture of me at the bridal shower yesterday. She is definitely growing!

love,

baby p <3

another waiting game..

At yesterday's most anticipated appointment we were under the impression that we would get another ultrasound to see the baby, but it didn't happen. I went in for a regular appointment where the doctor just listened to baby p's heartbeat (152 BPM) and I had blood labs drawn for second trimester screening. We were so upset and disappointed! :( I most especially was but Ryan calmed me down and assured me that I should let it go and be happy that baby p has a strong heartbeat and is continuing to grow well. See, best husband ever! :)

Thus, we are scheduled to get an ultrasound (we made sure!) this coming Friday before Daddy is off to Las Vegas for his brother's bachelor party. Baby P will be at 19 weeks and 3 days!

Daddy Ryan confessed last night during dinner and the night before our appointment that he feels Baby P is going to be a girl. He said "I tried to fight it for a long time, but I think we're having a girl" and then he said the sweetest thing after: "she's going to wrap me around her little finger" :) If Baby P is indeed a girl I say she will definitely make her daddy fall head over heels in love <3

However, I still feel like I am having a boy ;) We'll see next week if daddy or mommy is right!

love,
baby p

18 WEEKS

Hi everyone!

Baby P is 18 weeks and 2 days today! And tomorrow is the big day when Daddy Ryan and I find out if we are having a little boy or girl! Hopefully he/she isn't shy and hides his/her goodies! lol

This week I am really starting to FEEL pregnant! I am fully coming to terms that a baby is growing inside of me and he/she has definitely been letting me know...

At the beginning of the week I started to feel right side lower back pain; I thought I was sleeping crooked at night or it was our mattress. I even had Ryan give me a massage! (another great perk!) ;) However, it turns out that I am having sacroiliac joint pain; it is caused by hormones called relaxin that relax the ligaments and muscles around my pelvis allowing it to stretch and widen in preparation for birth and my growing uterus! I tried to do some pelvic stretches the other night, but it seemed to make the pain feel worse. I feel it a lot when I change positions when I am sleeping at night and even when I stand up from sitting for a long time. It feels like sharp shooting pain and it does feel like tears and rips in that area. I am trying very hard to sleep on my side instead of my back, which I read makes the joint pain worse. It is funny because when I wasn't pregnant I couldn't sleep on my back, but only on my my side. Now that I am pregnant I am more comfortable on my back, so now I have to keep a pillow between my legs and on my back so I can stay on my side! It's been a struggle because I'll wake up in the middle of the night and I'm sleeping on my back again! My back pain is still there and I heard it only gets more painful as the baby gets bigger! FUN! =(

I also started to have some mild heartburn! AHHH! I bought Tums for relief, but I haven't taken any. I am trying not to take any meds while I am pregnant, unless I am in a lot of pain and need it. So far I have just been dealing with it.

My belly has gotten a lot bigger and I can feel that my uterus starting to rise up a little and it just might be at belly button level and it is firming up more too! I am starting to show through my scrubs! I have already received comments from my coworkers about how I am showing. I can't suck it in anymore! =P

Here is my belly pic from yesterday morning:

Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day for us! Check back again soon! I'll try to write another post sometime this weekend!

love,
baby p