Pregnancy progress photos starting at 13 weeks

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13 Weeks Pregnant ~ 1st trimester is coming to a close
what to expect this week

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15 Weeks Pregnant ~ Hello 2nd Trimester
what to expect this week

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16 Weeks Pregnant ~ Tiny movements felt!
what to expect this week

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18 Weeks Pregnant ~ Starting to look & feel pregnant
what to expect this week

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19 Weeks Pregnant ~ Almost half way!
what to expect this week

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22 Weeks Pregnant
what to expect this week

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24 Weeks Pregnant ~ Getting bigger!
what to expect this week 

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28 Weeks Pregnant ~ Hello 3rd Trimester
what to expect this week 

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31 Weeks Pregnant
what to expect this week 

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34 Weeks Pregnant
what to expect this week 

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~n~

9 months old already… where does the time go?!  I can’t believe we’ve had this little munchkin in our lives for 9 crazy, love filled months.  I really did take to heart the one simple thing my nurse told me right after delivery: “they are only this little once.  You will never get back day 1, day 2, day 3 etc.”

Even on the most challenging of days, I am so thankful he is in our life.  It is so easy to get caught up in this chaotic life, forgetting to cherish the tiniest of memories.  Every night when B goes to bed, I reflect back on the day and truly treasure all the good moments we had that day.

9 Month milestones:

• B has decided instead of crawling he likes to roll all over the floor.
• Started attending diaper gym – loves to watch the other babies playing
• Has his two bottom teeth
• Still hasn’t been sick!

~n~

Ever since I bought one of those amber teething bracelets for B, he has barely drooled at all.  And there haven’t been any other signs of teething up until the other night.  I kissed him on the forehead when putting him to bed and realized his little head felt very hot.  I took his temperature and sure enough he had a low grade fever.  I knew, teeth were on the way!  I pretty much prepared myself for little to no sleep, thanks to stories from friends.

I was delighted to see it didn’t seem to bother him at all.  I slept horrible, thinking he was going to wake any second and want cuddles.  But he slept right through the night, fever and all.  He had a very low fever for 3 days and on the last day, the first little tooth appeared.  Along with that, came an all over body rash.  I was a little freaked out at first, but after some googling, it turned out to be quite normal.  It didn’t seem to bother him at all, and by the following day it had completely cleared up.  A day or so later, his second little tooth made it’s debut.

~n~

Well little B is 7 months old already!!  Where did those 7 months go?  Time is flying by unbelievably fast.  It seems like he is growing older by the day.  He’s still my cuddly baby, but I can see hints of a toddler in him.

Just in the last week, he’s finally decided to learn to sit on his own.  He always seemed too lazy to even try before.  He’s also rolling around a bit more.  Tummy time isn’t an instant freak out anymore.  Although he does get frustrated when he can’t reach his toys that are just out of reach.  You can see he’s trying to figure out this whole crawling thing, but we’re going to have to work on that whole co-ordination thing!

Ever since B was about a month old we’ve been on a very strict routine.  This has served us so well!!  He enjoys his bath time at 630, cuddle and feed at 645, and bedtime at 715.  He has been an amazing sleeper starting around the 2 month mark, and he’s only gotten better with time.  He is now sleeping 12+ hours a night, straight.  This is heaven.  We are able to enjoy some quiet adult time before we go to bed; and in the mornings we have time to enjoy breakfast and get ready for the day, before the little sleepy head decides to get up.  In addition to this, he is now getting into a napping routine.  He usually has 2 (sometimes 3) 45 min – 2 hour naps a day.  If we happen to be out during one of his nap times, he’s good with sleeping in the car or stroller.

~n~

Breastfeeding sucked to begin with, I mean sucked! I read so many mommy blogs gushing about how wonderful breastfeeding was; how it was such a great bonding time with baby… etc, etc. It was physically and emotionally draining. I’m not a crier, but I cried a lot!! Why couldn’t it just be easy?! It’s supposed to be natural right?

Benjamin knew what he was supposed to do from the time he was born; he just seemed too lazy to bother perfecting it. We would latch on fine, but was so lazy at nursing. So in order for him to continue “breastfeeding” I bought the expensive $400 medela pump, and pumped and bottle fed as often as I could, even if it was only 50-60% of his feedings. I was so heart broken to have to supplement the rest. In the end I don’t really know why I was so upset about that. Baby was just happy when he was fed. It didn’t help that breastfeeding is pushed so hard, and without directly saying it, they make you feel like a bad mother and failure for relying on help.

There were so many times I wanted to give up, throw in the towel and solely give him formula. But thankfully my husband supported and encouraged me to continue. As long as I was able to produce milk for our little guy, I knew I was giving him the best start to life I possibly could. My hubby would get up with me every feed throughout the night and feed our little guy as I sat there pumping. Without that I know I wouldn’t have been able to do it.

Finally!! After 4 months of pumping and bottle feeding baby learned how to nurse! I can’t tell you how relieved I was. No more carrying the pump around just in case I’m away from home for longer than 3-4 hours, no more pumping, cleaning bottles, and sanitizing, no more bottle warmers, just my body doing what it was designed to do. It wasn’t until this point that I was actually thankful I stuck with it for so long.

I so envy the mommas and babies out there that get it instantly. For anyone else who is having difficulties, stick with it if you can. Supplement if needed to ensure baby is full and happy or exclusively formula feed. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad or uncomfortable with your decision. They have no idea what it’s like in your shoes. At the end of the day, love your baby and enjoy your baby. They don’t stay little for long.

~n~