Weeks 22 & 23

Baby is: twenty two weeks

Size of: a papaya

Big Developments: Baby has eyebrows and his eyes can sense light better. His hearing is improving and his brain is continuing to develop. The pancreas is developing.

Symptoms: My skin is so dry. I’ve been trying a few different things to see what helps. I broke out in a really bad rash over the weekend. It was red and itchy and covered my whole torso and chest. I had to rub cortisone on it and use fragrance free lotion and baby wash.  

Thoughts: Hiccup seems so big to me lately. He looks so big in his crib and he looks so grown up in his clothes. I know that once the baby comes he will seem so huge to me. It makes me so sad that he’s growing up so quickly but I love all the things he is doing and learning.

Baby boy: reminds me so much of his big brother. He is very wiggly at night time, especially when I’m trying to fall asleep. His movements are getting bigger so I can see my belly move when I watch it. He moves around a lot when I eat cereal or hot chocolate.

Name: We have gotten a few suggestions on names from friends but we still haven’t loved anything. I’m hoping to stumble upon a name one day that I will immediately love and be excited about. I like the idea of a simple, one syllable name but I also want to explore names that end in ‘er’ to go along with Hiccup's name.

Cravings & Aversions: I feel really dehydrated so I've been trying my best to drink a lot of water. Fresh things like veggies, salads, and fruit sound really good. Breakfast foods are still my favorite. I have been drinking a ton of milk.

Baby is: twenty three weeks

Size of: a mango

Big Developments: His inner ear is fully formed so he can hear everything that’s going on. Taste buds have formed.

Symptoms: I am very light-headed, especially in the morning. I have to take lots of breaks while I’m getting ready. It’s getting harder to carry Hiccup around because my body is getting bigger and I get tired quicker. I’m getting heartburn almost daily and it doesn’t matter what I eat. I get a rash almost daily and I feel super itchy no matter what moisturizer I use. I’ve been getting night sweats the last couple nights.

Thoughts: It’s driving me crazy to wait around to buy things for baby. I want to have his crib and start putting the boys’ room together. I know that I just need to take my time and wait a bit since we don’t have things organized enough right now to do all that.

Baby boy: is very active, mostly first thing in the morning and late at night. He moves around a lot after I eat too. I’m starting to feel him spread out a little more in my belly. I can watch my belly and see his movements. 

Name: Casey is set on a name but I’m not sure about it. It ends with an ‘s’ which I don’t like so I’m trying hard to come up with an alternative he likes just as well. I send him new names everyday but he never seems to like any of them. I think I've narrowed it down to a few names. They all start with ‘a’. One is a name we planned on using but can’t commit to right now, one is Casey’s favorite, and the last is one I keep coming back to and can’t get out of my mind. I told Casey that we might have to wait to meet our little boy to decide on a name.

Cravings & Aversions: I eat a lot of cereal and a lot of granola bars and cookies. I have soda only occasionally because I know I should be drinking tons of water, but it just tastes so good.