Mommy’s Corner is a weekly series exploring our journey in becoming parents, our love for our ShuGar baby, and general topics related to mommyhood.
It’s that time of the month to give you my preggo update! I also realized I forgot to mention that Mr. ShuGar and I are tracking our baby’s development based on time of conception (fetal age) and not pregnancy age. What that means is that I am sharing my update of the 16th fetal week, but actually the baby is officially 18 weeks when these pictures were taken. Make sense? I know for me it was confusing because I thought it odd that you start counting the age of the baby before the baby actually existed. That’s why we decided to count our own time, but I explain this so you know why I may look bigger than just 16 weeks.
In my 16th week…
My doctor’s visits…
have all come out with baby ShuGar showing signs of being healthy (huge sigh of relief!). I cannot tell you the ups and downs for these past months with test after test and doctors telling us,” Everything looks good, but you have to take this additional test,” time and time again. It just makes you happy then anxious, which is a roller coaster of a maternity ride.
ShuGar boy looks…
sooooo unbelievably cute! He’s about the size of a large tomato. Aaahh! The latest test was for our second trimester screening with the scary specialist for the anatomy ultrasound. During this screening, the specialist measures everything about our baby: his limbs, heart, organs, head etc. He checks for any abnormalities and then informs us of the results on the spot. Our ShuGar boy kept on moving around so it was hard to get a good shot. However, he managed to capture a few with ShuGar baby sucking his thumb! Oh-Em-Gee! I nearly died. If the pic tells us anything, he’s looking like a right-handed fellow.
My body feels…
bigger. My weight has gone up significantly. I believe I have now gained 15 pounds! Wow! I have learned that every woman starts showing at different times. For me, so many people can notice now and have told me, “You’ve popped!” It’s nice to flaunt my baby bump and the curves that come along with it. I do sometimes feel uncomfortable at night because it’s harder to find that sweet spot to sleep on. Sitting has also gotten a little more challenging.
My clothes…
are either 100% maternity clothes or made from super stretch material. I have gone shopping to supplement my wardrobe because, apparently, I like to wear tight, skinny clothing, which is not welcoming for the belly. Not to worry; I have an excuse to shop! I’ve gone to the usual suspects: Target, the Gap, but I am itching to buy some sexy evening wear for winter. I am obsessed with winter fashion and I definitely want to show off the ShuGar bump. Stay tuned for an upcoming maternity fashion shoot for ShuGar Fix Mondays!
ShuGar baby has…
moved!!! Yes, I felt the lil guy. I almost didn’t realize it was him because it was so faint. Mr. ShuGar tries to feel him, but his movements are still too small to feel externally. I will use my mom’s words in describing how it feels. It’s as if a little fishy is swimming in my belly. I like to equate it to my baby boy is dancing inside.
ShuGar baby likes…
music! He definitely belongs to Mr. ShuGar and I since Mr. ShuGar is a musician, with a doctorate in The Beatles, and I am a dancer who loves to shake it! We play him John Lennon’s Beautiful Boy, the Beach Boys’ Don’t Worry Baby, Mozart and Chopin every night. We consider it his musical education. Funny thing happened the other evening I was driving home. I was listening to Michael Jackson and all of a sudden ShuGar boy started swimming in my tummy! He’s just like his mama 😉
I crave…
ramen….SO badly. Of course, I am avoiding all ramen because of the high sodium, but I sure want it badly. Still wanting Korean and Japanese food overall, which has its limitations in what I am allowed to eat. Daily, I prefer veggie options or meat. I am avoiding fish and chicken as much as possible because I kind of gag. Ugh. ShuGar boy does love his meat (we’re having carne asada for Thanksgiving to satisfy my craving!). I also love eating any form of pasta. Makes me feel so good! Overall, though, I limit these cravings and force myself to eat lots of fruits and veggies, fish every week, and a low sodium diet. I ain’t gonna lie; I’m counting down the days for my sushi reunion!
I can’t stand…
Chicken. Fish. Gross. Double gross. The smell sends me into a really bad mood. I am still trying to suppress the gag reflex, but ShuGar baby does not like these foods. I’m still really sensitive to any smells so anything too strong I try to stay away from. I can’t stand the smell of the sink when all the dishes are piled and waiting to be washed. Even worse is the trashcan smell under our kitchen sink. Mr. ShuGar knows better than to remove any trash when I am within a few feet away!
I feel…
overjoyed, nervous, overwhelmed, overly emotional, anxious, silly and blessed beyond words.
I’m amazed …
that ShuGar boy chose me to be his mama! It’s such an empowering experience to carry a living, breathing, moving human being inside of you. It is true that you feel like you have this immense responsibility and power to carry this child into the world. I’m amazed at the love I have for him for an eternity. It’s just a magical feeling to feel him be a part of me. I have a whole other understanding of what it means to be a woman and the entire female experience. I thought women were strong before, but now I see that they are warriors and literally carry the human race. I have never felt more proud to be a woman than these past few months. I feel lucky to be given this unbelievable gift!
Thank you for reading and sharing our baby experience! All your kind words throughout this process have filled my heart with love. I read all your comments, tweets, likes, instagrams and I cherish them all! I have the best followers in the world!
Photo cedit: Peter Shushtari
