11 weeks and another sneak peak!

We went in yesterday for a quick little check-up and we got to see our little Mango again! The first ultrasound was amazing just as confirmation that I was actually pregnant and getting to hear the heartbeat. BUT, today we could actually see tiny hands and legs and even a little nose/ears! That feeling was indescribable, seeing a real little baby in there and hearing the heartbeat, suffice it to say there really are no words.

I also know that I have been slacking on the Hawaii photos and hopefully I will get some up this week, but I am still clearly a few weeks away from trimester 2 and the extra energy everyone swears I will have to do things like post pictures!

In addition to the update from babycenter, here's my quick "mom" update: I do have what at least appears to be a bump. It's quite small, but has started to get a few pats around the office none the less. Similar to last week, the morning sickness has been at a minimum, although not gone entirely but the lack of energy is still going strong! So, without futher ado, our 11 week update from babycenter:

Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden. She's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two -- nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

10 Weeks (and 1 day!)

Sorry for the late posting, the last few days were pretty crazy, getting in town on a red eye Monday morning and then getting right back into going to work on Tuesday... I had no energy for even a blog post last night! So, first off the Mango Mama update: I am feeling a bit better this week (thanks in part to some new prescription prenatal vitamins). I'm still very sleepy and hungry all the time, but it seems like the nausea is starting to taper off a little bit. My normal jeans are officially horribly uncomfortable and I think I need to go invest in some new jeans!

Here is the news from BabyCenter:

Although he's barely the size of a kumquat -- a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom -- and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, your baby now has completed the most critical portion of his development. This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in his body rapidly grow and mature. If you could take a peek inside your womb, you'd spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.

I also intended to put up some Hawaii photos today, but unfortunately between getting our new couch delivered (yay!) posting this, AND re-listing the condo I am now pooped and out of time before mandatory relax with hubby time. So check back soon for some pictures of our awesome trip!

9 Weeks!

Mango had quite an eventful 9 week "birthday" today. We went spelunking in some caves, exploring a botanical garden and viewing a few waterfalls on the other side of the Island. After all that I'm quite pooped, but here are a few of our favorite pictures from the trip so far (these are from yesterday):

And on to the Mango update, at 9 weeks:

Your new resident is nearly an inch long -- and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form -- as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks." Today, Mango is about the size of:

Aloha!

We just got to Hawaii last night and so far we have been very pleasantly surprised with how well our Orbitz vacation package is panning out! First we got to the car rental place where they said they were out of what we were supposed to get so instead we got a nice lil' Mustang convertible. When we got to our hotel, the Kona Coast Resort, we had a nice poolside dinner with a view of the beach before we checked in to our awesome condo.

This morning we had another beautiful view at breakfast, then went the farmer's market where we stocked up on lots of delicious mangoes... it seems a little weird to feed Mango mangoes, but if he/she's anything like mom and dad, she/he will love them!

Hope you all have a fabulous Mother's Day, I'll be back on Tuesday with Mango's 9 week update and some Hawaii photos!

Meet Mango!

Hi Everyone! Mark and I were beside ourselves with joy when we found out we were expecting our first baby! I was super torn on whether or not to start a blog because I've had more than one failed attempt at keeping them going. This is certainly a huge adventure in itself and I'm sure it will be tough to keep it up, especially once we have actually "met Mango" in December! That being said, I also love looking back at my sister and Lori's old posts and I know how much it means to me to get to read about them when they are far away... so I can't promise it will be updated as frequently as it should be, or even that it will last forever, but I can promise I will try!

So all that being said, for the next several weeks I wouldn't expect too much excitement on here (other than some pictures of Mango's first big trip to Hawaii coming up next week). Today I am 8 weeks pregnant, which means that the sleepiness and nausea seem to be in pretty full effect. I feel like I can't complain though when I realize just how much little Mango is up to in there, here's a quick update on week 8 from babycenter.com:

Your baby is now 5/8 of an inch long, about the size of a kidney bean. Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. His arms have lengthened, too, and his hands are now flexed at the wrist and meet over his heart. His knee joints have formed, and his feet may be long enough to meet in front of his body. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways."

And even though that says Mango is a kidney bean, the bump says our baby is the size of a: