What will 2016 bring?

With the beginning of a new year comes an abundance of experiences to be had. Every year, I can't help but wonder what we'll see and do throughout the next twelve months. I'm sure it's the same for so many others.

This year is no different...but that's not to say we have no idea what the year has to hold. We know of three things that are expected to happen just in the first half of the year.

What? Oh, enough with the mystery, you say?

Okay, then. The three things are actually three babies that are due in 2016. First, Caitlin has a baby due any day now. Karissa's baby will be arriving sometime in the next couple months.

And...last, but not least, our baby is due in July.

!!!

Yes, that's right--and it's due exactly six months from today.

I got the positive test on November 9th, at exactly 4 weeks and 2 days. Dan was out of town for work, so that night when he called, I sent him this picture:

Of course, he was excited, but cautiously optimistic. After all, it's our third pregnancy, and obviously it hasn't worked out in the past. However, it's the first time we've made it to the second trimester, which is why it's no longer a secret.

We kept it to ourselves for over a month. But after the first ultrasound, I had to tell someone, so we decided to tell our parents... (Although, if it was up to Dan, we'd have waited until the baby was born.)

Baby at 9.5 weeks

We waited another week (until Christmas) to tell the rest of our family. Still, we didn't want to say anything to anyone else until after my next appointment, which was yesterday. I was measuring right on track and baby had a heartbeat of somewhere in the range of the 150's-160's, so everything looks promising.

For the first twelve weeks, I felt pretty awful at times, although I can't really complain because I know others have it much worse. Mostly, I was just plain exhausted.

A couple weeks ago:

I've started feeling better, but still get random waves of nausea, plus various fun, new symptoms. To be honest though, no matter how miserable they are, they are very reassuring.

Today, baby is exactly 14 weeks and about 3.5 inches long. I'm at the stage where I just look fat to most people (I'm sure everyone at the gym this morning was thinking I really need to work on that pudge). Although I get a little achy at times from stretching and growth, mostly it's hard to believe there's a tiny human in there--at the moment, anyway.

I plan on updating every couple weeks, mainly for myself, since this blog is the only type of diary I keep anymore. And of course, you're welcome to come back for the weekly updates!