18 Weeks Pregnant - Heard the Heartbeat Again, 1-1/2 Weeks Until the Sex Determining Ultrasound!!!

My wife is now at 18 weeks. That's right, I skipped week 17, got a bit behind on the posting. However, I will catch up in this post. My baby is now about 5-1/2 inches from crown to rump, about the size of a bell pepper. He or She (yet to be determined) is now about 7 ounces in weight and is flexing his or her arms and legs. My wife is feeling the baby A LOT! She will tell me each time she feels it by saying "Baby" in an excited voice and clutching the bottom of her belly. I can't feel it yet, but I hope soon.

So far we've had 2 prenatal exams and an ultrasound at 8 weeks, and we just had another regular exam this week where our midwife measured the uterus to be about exactly 5-1/2 inches in length and we could hear the baby's heartbeat again! It was strong and normal. It was a perfectly normal 145 beats per minute and sounded wonderful. Our midwife is really nice also. She said there are many options for delivery such as a water birth, hypno-birth (which apparently is just like it sounds), and the standard epidural traditional lie on your back ordeal. So far my wife feels like the water birth may be the best option. I can get in the water with her and hold her while she goes through it. Also, they say it helps with contractions and can minimize tearing, but we'll see when that time comes. You cannot have pain medication with a water birth, but they said if the pain is too great when you're in the thick of things you can always change your mind and you're in a hospital so there are many other options. I think the thing I like best about a midwife is that they are really dedicated to a birth plan and really want my wife to make the best decisions for her and our baby. She is very supportive!

Now for the most exciting news. We have the Sex Determining Ultrasound in only 1-1/2 weeks!!! It's a little bit before the standard 20 week waiting period, but they said the technology is there to find out sooner. I can't wait to find out and be able to refer to my baby as he, or she, instead of "It." In case you're interested. I do not have a preference of a boy or a girl. Contrary to popular belief, not all men are so caught up in their own legacy to have to have a boy. I would be perfectly fine with a girl I just want my baby to be healthy and happy.

Sympathy Weight Update: Current Weight is 201. As it turns out I had some scale difficulties last week and it was totally inaccurate and had my at 192 by mistake. Total sympathy weight gained to date - 16 pounds! I would like to stay at 200 pounds or less, I've never weighed this much! I know, some of you that are older are probably laughing. "You ain't seen nothing yet, boy"

Well that's all for now, next week my baby will be the size of a large heirloom Tomato!

See What's Happening Inside the Fetus this Week

See how big my baby is getting week by week, now it's a Bell Pepper

17, 18, weeks, move, feel, sex, determining, ultrasound, kicking, 2nd trimester, baby, c-section, home birth, Father, Man perspective, Men pregnancy, morning sickness, pregnancy, sympathy weight

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16 Weeks Pregnant - My Baby Has Toenails, Sympathy Weight Update

My wife is now at 16 weeks. This week we are now in the rapid growth phase. The baby has now grown to about 4-1/2 inches long and about 3-1/2 ounces in weight, the size of an avocado from head to bottom! The uterus is now growing and stretching with the ligaments holding it in place are strengthening and growing. My baby's scalp pattern is starting to form which will eventually create the hair growth. She is feeling the baby more now which is very early. She gets happy and tells me when she does. I can't feel it yet but I get happy too just knowing that my baby is doing well and moving up a storm!

Her morning sickness is mostly gone but she still takes a combination of half of a 25mg of Unisom sleeping pill with a vitamin B6. There's no telling when she will be able to stop taking this, but we hope soon. She is also getting very tired and is starting to become more limited in her physical ability. We were raking leaves the other day and I needed to do most of the work because she cannot exert or bend over too much. I love her and am happy to do most of the work though, I gave her the leaf blower and that worked out great!

I think this week we were less stressed. We watched a great movie about pregnancy that you should give a look if you're expecting. It's on Netflix streaming and is called "The Business of Being Born" and stars Ricki Lake. It's a controversial documentary that looks at the business of the hospital system and the potential harmful side effects of things like drugs and Cesarean sections (C-sections) and strongly advocates natural and home birth. It was very interesting and made us think about how she'd like to give birth when that day comes. She doesn't think she would want a home birth, but it's something to think about. We have been bonding more over the little things and are growing closer as mother and father to be.

Sympathy Weight Update: Current Weight is 192. Actually lost a few pounds. Total sympathy weight gained to date - 12 pounds.

Well that's all for now, next week my baby will be the size of an Turnip!

See What's Happening Inside the Fetus this Week

See how big my baby is getting week by week, now it's an Avocado

Shop CornerStorkBabyGifts.com

16 weeks, 2nd trimester, baby, c-section, home birth, Father, Man perspective, Men pregnancy, morning sickness, pregnancy, sympathy weight

15 Weeks Pregnant - My Baby Can Sense Light!

My wife is now at 15 weeks. The baby has now grown to about 4 inches long, the size of an apple from head to bottom! They say the baby can now sense light, and you can shine a flashlight close to her belly towards where the uterus is and you may be able to sense the baby moving away from the beam. Well we tried it, didn't work, and then we stopped due to an irrational fear of harming our baby with a flashlight. Needless to say we are worried about the health of the baby these days and are watching everything very closely. My wife has also been starting to feel the baby this soon! At first she said it felt like a marble rolling around inside her, but yesterday she said while at work it felt like a little fist punching her insides! That made me laugh.

Her nausea is decreasing but she still takes a combination of half of a 25mg of Unisom sleeping pill with a vitamin B6. The doctor says it can help with the nausea and she thinks it seems to be working. Her belly keeps getting bigger and bigger which is surprising how fast she is showing. She is not a vain person but jokingly says she's getting fat. I keep telling her she's not fat, she's pregnant, there's a difference. Besides, she looks even more beautiful with new curves and a beautiful belly that she didn't have before. I love her more ever day, but with the love also comes stress.

These days I'm more stressed out than ever. It's because of uncertainty. I'm uncertain about my growing baby and knowing it's not yet "viable" yet like websites say, that is able to survive if something went wrong (I think it becomes viable in a month or so). I'm also uncertain about pending fatherhood. I know I have it within me to be a great father but I know I have so much to learn it's overwhelming. Lastly, money is also a source of stress as we are still unsure how much time both of us can get off work and how to pay for any uncompensated time off. But I have to remember to breathe. One step at a time. I do have faith that everything will work out for the best. I know if times get tough, we will get tougher, that's just the kind of people that we are.

Well that's all for now, next week my baby will be the size of an Avocado! Oh no, suddenly I just got a craving for guacamole, just what I need, more cravings! Speaking of cravings I think my sympathy weight has leveled off at around 14 pounds so far, but I'll weigh myself and give an update next week just to be sure.

See What's Happening Inside the Fetus this Week

See how big my baby is getting week by week, now it's an Apple!

15 weeks, 2nd trimester, baby, Father, Man perspective, Men pregnancy, morning sickness, pregnancy, sympathy weight

14 Weeks Pregnant: Morning Sickness is Diminishing, Total Sympathy Weight gained so far = 14 pounds! (1 pound per week)

The morning sickness is diminishing quickly. My wife still gets nauseous occasionally, but at least it's not every morning anymore. For about a month straight or more I would wake up to the sound of her vomiting in our bathroom. It made me sad because I couldn't fully relate. She needed cereal before she got out of bed every morning because the emptier her stomach was, the more she felt sick and this is still true today.

Now we're entering the 2nd trimester at 14 weeks and it seems to be getting better. Our sex life still isn't what it used to be but I'm not worried about it. I know that she doesn't want me when she feels like she might get sick on me and of course that doesn't sound too appealing to me either. I'm nothing if not understanding and am trying not to complain when she needs me. This is good practice for when the baby comes and my time is demanded significantly more.

I weighed myself at the clinic when we went to hear the heartbeat last week, and my current weight is 202 pounds up from 188 pounds when she got pregnant. That's 1 pound a week, WOW, I couldn't believe it! Now that's what they call sympathy weight. I have noticed I have been finding comfort in food more now that she's eating more and it makes her feel better. Perhaps it's psychological... either way I think I'll need to watch what I eat and exercise a bit more to regulate it more.

13 Weeks Pregnant: Heard the Heartbeat

My baby sounded like a kettle drum in an echo chamber! It was beautiful how my baby girl, or boy sounded. (we find that out at 20 weeks) Next week my baby will be the size of a lemon! (about 3-1/2 inches from head to bottom) if you want to see a slideshow to get an idea of the size of your baby week by week from a poppy seed to a pumpkin go here.

Welcome to my Man's Pregnancy Sympathy Blog!

Welcome to baby in my baby! This is a blog telling the story of pregnancy and all the physical, mental, and emotional side effects from an emotionally in tune man's point of view. My name is Justin. I'm 30, married and my wife is now 13 Weeks pregnant with our first baby. The baby is the size of a medium sized shrimp. (there's a website that compares the baby size by week to things found in a kitchen, but I'll go into that more later)

So far I've learned it's hard to know what to do, think or feel half the time, but it's getting easier. She is starting to overcome the morning sickness (no more getting bowls of cereal in bed every morning) and is starting to show more and more all the time.

I'll talk about everything, I want this to be a learning experience for me and other guys out there. We have unique needs that sometimes go neglected (and I'm not just talking about sex by the way).

Either way I'm glad you're here and I hope this can be a learning experience. I'll post more soon.