Healthy Jo Equals Healthy Baby

So I started writing this post over a month ago, but due to having exams I really hadn't been doing as much exercise as I'd been planning to so it would have been a bit of a pointless and somewhat hypocritical post really. But my exams are over! So I have started exercising more :D

The reason for this is... I went to an antenatal class back in the beginning of May and we were given a leaflet stating 12 reason why you should exercise (sensibly) whilst pregnant.

They were:        
1.   Promotes a healthy lifestyle.
2.   Alliviates symptoms of pregnancy, like back ache and swelling.
3.   Sends more oxygen rich blood to the baby via the placenta.
4.   Increases endurance levels for labour.
5.   Reduces the likelihood of needing obstetric intervention like forceps and caesarean.
6.   Increases the ability to cope with labour anxiety and pain.
7.   Aids a faster recovery from labour.
8.   Improves sleep patterns, particularly in the first two trimesters.
9.   Helps you return to your pre-pregnancy weight, stamina, strength and flexibility quicker.
10. Enhances your self-esteem, body image and improves confidence.
11. Helps significantly with the treatment and recovery from post natal depression.
12. Keeps you stronger to lift and carry your baby after birth.
13. Helps you be fit enough to go up 5 flights of stairs in Valencia (this is my own addition, we have our apartment sorted for our 6 months in Spain and it is completely ideal apart from it's on the fifth floor with no lift, but it only means more exercise so it's not so much of a bad thing I hope...)

Are these not completely motivating to stay fit?! So since then I have been doing 2x1 minute planks each morning, 15 press ups and the occasional lunge or squat, however now my exams are over I have got the time to go to gym classes twice a week and Ethan wants to go swimming once a week starting next week too! He's also encouraging me to cycle into the city center rather than get the train as it only takes 25 minutes (for him!) but I haven't been able to muster up the courage to do that yet as it's really hilly on the way back :l

Healthy Jo is going to keep up this healthiness (as long as my body lets me) for a healthy baby and hopefully a far more pleasant labour, although I don't think labour could ever be described as pleasant... Haha

Baby boy!

I'm a bit late, but we're having a healthy baby boy! I think this is really exciting because everyone (including Ethan and I) thought we were expecting a girl! At first when we were told it was a boy Ethan and I were slightly taken a back because we were convinced (in reality based on nothing) that it was a girl and in the last couple of weeks had even been referring to it as she but we both feel really excited that its a boy. 

It's funny, because lots of people thought/wanted it to be a girl (mostly so they could buy pretty clothes etc) I've found I've got really defensive about people saying things like 'you're joking, it's actually a girl isn't it' to the point where I've even deleted comments on Facebook because I feel like they're offending my poor unborn child. In reality I know it's a silly thing to get defensive about as they don't mean anything unkind or they wouldn't be saying it at all! Haha, but it is a funny reaction to have.

It took me a while to get to sleep last night (as usual) and so I was just thinking about that fact that we're having a boy and how funny he will be if he is anything like Ethan! Although he was very difficult as a baby I've heard so hopefully it will be a little more like I was as a baby (from what my parents have said I was pretty much the prefect child ;). I know it's going to come with so many ups and downs but I cannot wait for our beautiful little family to grow and to be able to experience the miracle of being a mother. Admittedly I still feel way too young to be referring to myself as a mother (in the nearish future), not so much because of my age but more so because I look 12 still! Haha

Every now and then I picture in my head what our baby might look like as a mix of Ethan and I've come to a rough idea in my head...

This photo is amazing!

Ethan is the one in the middle (not the baby, that's Thea) with his cute blonde hair and blue eyes.

Then this is the youngest photo of me I could find on facebook, with my chubby cheeks!

They were so small and cute!

Cutest little child ever!

So I came to the conclusion that our baby may look something like my younger brother, who had really blonde hair, blue eyes like Ethan and I and my chubby cheeks! He was just the cutest child growing up ever! He's now 12 which is crazy!! Whatever our baby looks like I think it will be the scrummiest little baby you could ever meet! :)

Gender Predictor Krispy Kremes!

Tomorrow we have our 20 week scan! For some reason this seems to surprise everyone as quite a few people have said 'I thought you had only just found out!' However that was nearly 4 months ago now! (We found out at 3 weeks because I was impatient to test and it amazingly was actually positive by that point!)

But anyway, we are so excited to see the baby again tomorrow, the 12 week scan feels like a life time ago now! We are also hoping to find out the gender, which lots of people are also surprised about, but if they have the technology to be able to tell you then why not find out, you're going to at some point anyway and it just means you can enjoy buying cute clothes over the next couple of months! (I know they sometimes make mistakes but from what I learnt from my lovely friend who is a midwife they are pretty accurate the majority of the time, especially if the baby is one of those that has no shame and has it all on show... haha).

So in preparation for the scan tomorrow we decided to buy a Krispy Kreme gender predictor doughnut! I never even knew they sold them until a couple of days ago and there was no way I was missing out on getting one!

Please excuse my face with it's lack of make up etc! 

Ethan and I took turns in taking a bite until we got to the centre and it was BLUE! So we shall see if it was right tomorrow...

Also we thought it would be funny to have a poll to see what people thought we would be having and Facebook has changed so you can only have a poll for a facebook page rather than your own profile, so if you go on to Ethan's blog vote for which one you think it will be! The last time I had a look a girl had the most votes :) www.bleno.com/what-gender-will-our-first-baby-be/

EXCITING TIMES!!

We have movement!!

I only wrote a post last week (or sometime around then) and mentioned that I hadn't started to feel our little bubs move yet, however this is no longer the case!!

Around the middle of the week, I started to notice this feeling when I was lying down that felt something like a little bubble of air pop (that doesn't very accurately describe the feeling but that's the only way I can think of). At first I thought it could possibly be the baby moving as it sounded similar to things I'd read about but thought I'd wait and see if it happened again before I got too excited.

Excitingly it happened about 3 times the next day and the next! Since then I've been able to feel it with my hand actually make a little push against my stomach! Even better Ethan was able to feel it too today!

It's amazing to be able to actually feel it move, even though it's really only very tiny movements at the moment but it's so exciting knowing they are going to get bigger and stronger and more often soon enough (and maybe slightly annoying when it decides to have a fidget session while I'm trying to sleep haha). It's so reassuring being able to feel the little movements and know that the little baby is still there and growing, particularly as I seem to have gotten over all of the usual pregnancy symptoms so it's easy to almost forget I'm pregnant at all at the moment!

However, in other news I have a little bump!! It really depends on what I'm wearing though as to whether it looks like an actual little baby bump or just podge haha. I'm looking forward to it getting a little bigger so it looks like a proper baby bump, but I love that I have a bump at all! :D

This is my favourite new jumper ever and it was on sale!

Final thing, Ethan and I went to go see The Great Gatsby on Friday and it was completely amazing!! It was so powerful and Leonardo Di Caprio and Toby Maguire were perfect for Gatsby and Nick Carraway! Ethan even loved it even though he has never read the book before! So I HIGHLY recommend everyone to go and see it! :D

Pregnancy joys...

I'll admit there may have been a hint of sarcasm in the post title today... There are many joys of pregnancy, but there are also some not so joyful occasions!

One of my favourite joys in pregnancy is food! I'm hoping that this will soon be replaced by feeling the baby move but for your first baby that's more around 20 weeks or so I've heard, but every now and then I do lay still and wait for something but nothing yet sadly.

Back to food, I've not really had any craving as such, where I feel like I need to have X so much! More I just particularly fancy things, such as mayo in the first few weeks, then baked beans and now buttery mash potato with gravy (SO GOOD!). I've also discovered I've reverted back a little to my early teen loves of chicken flavoured Super Noodles, Cheese and Broccoli Pasta 'n' Sauces and Golden Nuggets for breakfast! Those three things make me so happy! I know none of them are particularly nutritious so I just have them as my occasional treat for lunch (the cereal for breakfast obviously) and then we're back to the nice and healthy vegetables for dinner, ideally with mash potatoes and gravy! :D

 

                                                                 My three favourites!I feel that being pregnant has made me have a much greater appreciation of food because I get hungry quite a lot so it is just so satisfying enjoying good food! That makes me sound as though I'm over indulging, I'm not, I've actually only put a pound on (so far...) which did concern me at first but after reading on the internet a bit I decided that as I'm eating when I'm hungry and good healthy food then it's not a problem, a few people said the weight piled on like crazy in the third trimester so we shall see what happens, I guess each body is different :)

However today has not been as much of a joyful occasion! I decided after a few weeks of putting it off I really needed a new bra fitting. Hello maternity bras... They should really not be classified as lingerie! However I will admit that they are quite comfy and it's nice having a bra that fits my ever expanding body! (I've gone up 4 cup sizes! I'm hoping that's that area of my body's expanding done for the rest of the pregnancy now...)

Pregnancy brings such entertainment... Haha 

Potential murderer or a kind middle aged man? Such are the times we live in.

I went to visit Ethan in McDonald's whilst he was working today and claim my free Big Mac that Ethan had won (and then gave to me, he knows the way to my heart!) and as I was ordering from Ethan we had a little chat, mainly about my temptation to buy something else until Ethan informed me that it was actually sold out. However the man that was ordering next to me seemed amused at the 'friendliness' of our conversation, adding a comment or two which was fine. Ethan gave me my Big Mac and I went to sit down on a little table of my own to enjoy it. Then to my surprise the man that had ordered came and sat opposite me! The weird thing was there were plenty of other available tables and he didn't say anything when he sat down like 'Can I sit here?' or 'Is this seat taken?' he said nothing that acknowledged the fact that he had just sat down in what I felt was my personable bubble. After awkwardly trying to eat my burger without everything falling out whilst this mid 50 year old man was sat watching me (!) my coat fell on the floor so I went to pick it up which he commented on, but I didn't quite catch what he said so I just awkwardly laughed and to which he asks if I want to share his chips!

I'll admit I was slightly creeped out by him, probably because I'd been reading about the 3 kidnapped women in Ohio and we've been watching a lot of 24 where EVERYONE is suspicious. But it did make me think, in reality this man, other than being just a little bit weird didn't actually do or say anything that was threatening to me in anyway. He may have been a well intentioned man who had seen that I'd been chatty when I had ordered my food and then seen that I was sitting alone so thought he'd be friendly and come sit by me, and then offer to share his chips because I only had a burger and he had a large portion of chips.

Before I left to go home I went back over to Ethan as he wasn't serving anyone and said that the man was a little creepy, which Ethan agreed with as he was able to see where I was sitting and told me to be careful getting home and make sure he wasn't near me, which is exactly what I did, constantly looking over my shoulder to make sure I couldn't see him and that he wasn't following me.

It's sad that in our society we don't trust those around us, despite the fact that they may be kind well intentioned people because of the few awful people that do exist around us. Part of me hopes that the man was slightly 'dodgey' so I don't feel bad for having effectively rejected his kindness, but at the same time part of me feels you can never really be too careful. Such are the times we live in.       

Marriage Observation #2

I thought it was time for another blog post so here I am! (Also this morning Ethan was like pleeeeease write another post, I like reading them - so this one is dedicated to you ;) haha)

I quite enjoyed writing my previous post about my marriage observations, particularly being married quite young I think its something that other people are also quite curious about like how life is being married (and expecting our baby!) at 19 and maybe trying to found out whether its a choice I've regretted and didn't think seriously about etc. If the latter is the case you have come to the wrong place I'm afraid, marrying Ethan Wilkinson was the best decision I ever made! There hasn't been a second let alone a day where I've thought maybe we've rushed into things a bit. We knew what we wanted so we did it, age had nothing to do with it :)

I often wake up a few minutes before Ethan in the morning and my favourite thing is before he is awake enough to even talk (I'm pretty sure he's actually 3/4 asleep still) he will come over to my side of the bed (generally not very far to move as our bed is tiny and he often is partly on my side to start with...) and give me the nicest cuddle which is just the best start to the day ever!

But anyway that is just a small insight into my life which wasn't the point of my post...

My Marriage observation for today - Ethan is a bad influence!
Not actually in a negative way before anyone gets concerned, but before we were married if I wanted to buy anything I'd usually think twice and then dismiss the idea or if I wanted some chocolate I'd resist half the time (and give in the other half). Where as now if I see something I like when we're shopping Ethan will be like ahh you should get it, you know you want it etc. which is quite nice but also results in me giving in to far more things than I use to! And even worse when it comes to food because if one of us is fancying something naughty we both end up having it! In reality it's actually one of the many wonderful things about being married, however I maintain that Ethan is a bad influence :)

In other news our little baby is 14 weeks today! My feeling sick has gone but in its place I have a very sensitive gag reflex! So most mornings and evenings my throat makes me feel like I'm about to be sick any second (and has made me sick once so far but I've managed to avoid that since thankfully). I don't know why people are under the impression that pregnancy is glamorous in anyway, I've yet to discover this... But still enjoying all the unexpected things that my hormones seem to be doing, there is never a dull moment! (Apart from the regular naps haha)