17 weeks.

Seventeen weeks down, twenty-three to go! Holy moly. Three weeks til we find out the gender!!! I'm convinced it's a boy. There's pretty much no doubt in my mind anymore. So I'm trying to look at boy things & get excited. I've found a nursery that I want to be our "reference nursery" as I'm calling it. hahaha. Gabe isn't convinced it's a boy though. But I am. As is my mom, my brother, & my grandpa. & my grandpa is always right. So. Come December I bet we'll have little boy Staples. & so far all of the Staples girls are having girls so I suppose a boy would be okay. Plus, that means a big brother for my kids. I always liked having a big brother, even though they're buttheads 75% of the time.

So anyway. That's what I look like this week. I'm still trying to suck it in as much as I can. Which isn't a whole lot. I can suck in the very top right under my ribcage a pretty significant amount if I'm okay with not breathing. I try to do it sometimes. Gabe thinks it's funny, but it's not. We've spent some time thinking about what to register for in the last week, since we find out what this kid is soon, & my baby shower will be in August, we have to get it done. & we've spent a significant amount of time talking about baby names. & by WE I mean me. Cause Gabe is useless in the name department. We have a girl name all picked out, & I have a boy name I love, but Gabe isn't sure he likes it. So I told him to come up with names... so far he's got nothing. haha. He said he's gonna wait til we know what the baby is (even though I already know it's a boy) cause that slims down his options a lot. Really he's just putting it off.

I've become MUCH more forgetful in the last week or so. I've forgotten my keys at least 3 times, & I left my wallet at home on the counter once. Good thing I didn't get pulled over. The cop would've let me go though cause I would've been pathetic & started to cry without even trying to force it to happen. Being pulled over freaks me out. I'm also get more & more klutzy with every passing day. Not only am I dropping small items, but today while loading my car with groceries at Target, I dropped a 12 pack of Dr. Pepper. The box busted & all of the cans, except for two because they were unaccounted for, exploded all over my legs & the side of my car. I just stood there staring at it & started to cry. Then I turned & the boy collecting carts was giggling to himself. So I said, in a very serious tone, "don't ever get a girl pregnant. This will happen to her." I think I terrified him to the depths of his soul. He immediately stopped smiling, grabbed a bag & cleaned up the mess I had made. Pretty sure he won't be having sexual relations with anyone for a while.

Um. In other news. There's a really big muscular black guy that lives 3 doors down that's terrified of Anya. The poodle. I overheard him telling some friends of his that she had chased him. Which is a massive lie. The closest she's ever gotten to him is approximately 30ft. But I mean, she does have a TERRIFYING stare. & a vicious bark. (She does have a pretty intense bark, but when you see her it's hard to take her seriously.) So anyway. I had her groomed yesterday. It's even harder to take her seriously now & if he's still scared of her he should be ashamed of himself & not call himself a man. I already don't think of him as a man, but he should now recognize it himself. She has purple bows in her ears for goodness sake! She looks like a total goof now, but I love her to death still. Even though she's annoying as crap sometimes. =]

Gabe has spent the last two Saturdays in Indiana at RC place conventions. He's pretty much the cutest nerd in all the land. He's so excited about it I can't stand to stop him from going. Besides, when the baby comes he won't be able to take off for 16 hours on a Saturday. Cause I'd break all of his planes, then rip his arms off & beat him with the bloody stubs. =] I know what you're thinking, he's a lucky man to have such a wonderful wife. You have no idea! He really is.

& we leave for Arizona this Thursday! I've been looking forward to this for months. So excited. We're going to Sierra Vista for about a week (which is my official hometown) for the Staples family reunion. Sierra Vista just so happens to be where his family is from as well. & my parents were invited. & we're staying with my sister. & I get to see my brothers as well. So I'm a happy girl! I knew it was a good move marrying someone that was practically my cousin! Makes family reunions a lot easier. Anyway. Gabe doesn't know anything about Sierra Vista. & my sister & I are also forcing him to go to Tombstone...which is a real place. So it's gonna be a good time! So freaking excited.

So anyway. Here's this thing.

How far along? 17 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: 4-5 lbs.

Maternity Clothes: So far I've got 2 pairs of pants. But I'm surviving with my shirts.

Sleep: I bought a Snoogle! Which helps. But it's still not good.

Best moment this week: Finding out that Fioricet beats my migraines now!
Miss Anything? Sleeping through the night.
Movement: Si! Much more.
Food cravings: Nothing is standing out to me right now.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really. But I wake up sick at least 3 times a week. Then drinking water makes me throw my guts up.
Have you started to show yet: Yes. Definitely a bit more noticeable now.
Gender guess: Boy.
Labor Signs: No.
Belly Button in or out? In.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy. But I still get mood swings.
Looking forward to: Arizona!!!

The end.

- Alexa