17 weeks, 1 day

I think I've officially felt the baby move. I thought I felt it a while back, but my doctor convinced me it was just gas. Not like she didn't believe that I felt a kick, but she could probably sense my uncertainty as to whether that's what I was really feeling or not, so maybe she was just trying to let me know what it COULD be. I feel like it should be possible to feel the baby move that early on, but who knows. But now, I'm pretty sure I've felt some movement.

Updates:

Physically:
-I'm *hoping* the vomiting is done. I did throw up on Sunday afternoon, randomly, but I think it was just a fluke. I had just eaten a pickle and drank some water, and it came right back up. It usually doesn't happen like that. I can usually feel it coming on. At around 14/15 weeks, the vomiting took on an irregular pattern. It wasn't happening twice a morning anymore like it had been from weeks 6 - 13, so I was hoping that this was a sign that it was coming to an end. At that point, it started happening only once a day, and sometimes even every other day. And now, here I am, 5 days free of vomit. Keeping my fingers crossed. As for the nausea, that's starting to fade too. I find myself less aware of feeling the need to puke, and I'm not 'needing' to snack constantly (even though I'm not needing to snack, I am still snacking far too frequently).
-I've officially begun to gain weight. At my 16 week appointment, I had gained 4 pounds (thanks to me being able to keep most of my food down!) During my pregnancy with Kellen, I think I had gained something like 6 or 7 pounds by this point, so I'm a little behind. But, I'm not going to worry about it because I'd actually prefer NOT to gain as much as I did before (approx. 35 lbs). I'm not going to worry about it, though, because as long as I continue to eat healthy and monitor my portions, all is well.
-Cravings - during weeks 10 - 14, I craved bad-for-you foods, which I didn't crave before. I found myself wanting Big Macs and hamburgers from McDonald's. French Fries. Ick. I usually hate that stuff. Hadn't had a Happy Meal in years and years (probably since high school), but this time around, its all I really wanted. Maybe that's why I finally started gaining some weight? Now, the thought of that food makes me want to hurl. I've recently been craving BLTs. I do not like bacon, but BLTs just make my mouth water. I've also been snacking a lot on chocolate, which isn't my preference in terms of sweets; I typically like really sour stuff (sour patch kids, gummy worms) or ice cream. Not really wanting that stuff as of late.
-Acne. Ugh. Seriously, I look like I'm 13 again. Gross. I had break-outs last time, but I can't remember if they were this bad. As soon as one pimple goes away, another one 'pops' up the next morning.
-Bloody noses. I didn't have them much the first trimester, but now they seem to be occurring a couple times a week. Not an issue though. A little bloody nose never hurt anyone.
-Definite baby bump. No hiding this bump. It came sooner than last time, that's for sure. I'm wearing maternity tops and pants on almost a regular basis now. I sometimes wear some of my baggier jeans, but end up unbuttoning them around lunch time because it feels like I may be smooshing the baby.
-Tired. Always. Oh well. Such is life.


Mentally/Emotionally:
-Feeling pretty good. I try to remain optimistic that everything is going to be great with the health of the baby, but I occasionally get paranoid and think about what happened to my sister...I try and find ways to snap myself out of it (ahem, like maybe it isn't a good idea to pull out pictures of Lexi, which then leads to hours of sobbing). Once I'm able to push those sad memories to the back of my head, I'm able to bring the paranoia level down a notch. I'm guessing I'll get more paranoid as the pregnancy progresses, but I'm hoping I'll be able to maintain my sanity and have faith that BP#2 is going to be healthy-as-can-be!
-Super excited, and not really that stressed about 'how' we're going to cope once we have two little ones at home. I figured I'd be spazzing about not knowing what I'm going to do for a job next year, but I trust that I'll find something that will work and allow me to be home more often. I'm also hopeful that Aaron will find a job closer to home (one that also pays more $$$$).
-Can't wait to meet this baby!!! He/she is going to be so loved! Our ultrasound is in 1 1/2 weeks. We've decided that we are NOT going to find out the gender. I liked not knowing last time, so I see no reason why we have to find out this time either.

Thanks for reading :) (My next post will probably have some cute pics of BP#2!!!)