20 Weeks

How Far Along: 20 Weeks (HALF WAY!)

Size of the Baby: Banana (10.5 ounces and 6.5 inches)

Total Weight Gain/Loss: +8.5 Pounds

Maternity Clothes: I'm nearly exclusively in maternity bottoms (pants, jeans, etc), but I can still fit into most of my non-constricting tops.  Nothing is comfortable squeezing on my belly anymore!  A wonderful friend gave me two HUGE bags full of maternity clothes to wear this last week :) I'm so thrilled to be able to expand my lowly maternity wardrobe! (I'm sure Alan will appreciate the expanded wardrobe too! He may have had to look at me rocking one of his 'wife beaters' this week. I'm sure he thought I was hot! ha!)

Gender: BOY, Cale Michael Hancock

Movement: I'm finally starting to feel Cale move. I wish there was an exact instant I could point to and say "oh goodness, there he IS!" But, it was a gradual thing. Being a first time mom, I think I actually probably felt him sometime last week but I just didn't know what to be feeling for (make sense?)  In times of stillness, though, I can feel his little flutter movements in my belly and the occasional strong kick or punch. I'm enjoying this private Mommy and Cale time :)

Sleep:  My sleep is just okay right now. It's a hard week to judge, simply because I spent so much of it working (getting up at 4am). There are no days that I felt like I got a real good quality of sleep.

What I Miss: Absolutely nothing compared to being Cale's Mommy

Cravings: None, really.

Symptoms:  It's becoming more and more uncomfortable for me to fully bend over to pick things up. During the early days of pregnancy I used to be able to bend over and lay my head on my desk for power naps to help with the 1st trimester tiredness.......haha, that doesn't happen anymore. It hurts!  Also, I've noticed my belly button becoming more shallow as my belly continues to grow.

Best Moment this Week:  Realizing that I was feeling Cale's little movements AND the day that his Daddy brought home furniture for his room. It was such a proud moment for me to a) see the furniture in his room and b) to see the pride that his Daddy had in picking it out!  I've enjoyed just sitting in his room during the evenings and imaging what it will be like to have him there with us (outside of my body, of course!)

.......Also, since I originally typed this out several days ago, Alan got to feel Cale kick for the first time on Thursday night :)  We were at a banquet for work when Baby Cale started kicking nice and strong. I quickly grabbed his Daddy, and he got his hand in the right place at the right time!  So fun for both of us!