Time just keeps getting away from us. I’m sure the holidays make it seem faster. I am so excited for Christmas! One of my love languages is definitely gifts. 😂 I love to give and receive. I’m so excited to see the kids faces when they open up the stuff we got them! Plus my nephew Travis is going to be so excited to open gifts this year I just know it. The most exciting news of today is I finally felt little baby Mac move!!! I have had a few times when I thought maybe but I couldn’t be sure. Then today I was sure! She even gave me a couple extra kicks so I knew it was her. I immediately texted Karen the great news.

Last week is when they were in town for a drs appointment. It was a quick visit but a great one. I told Dr Sammons that I still couldn’t feel her moving yet and that it bothered me because I wanted to feel her by now. I told her I thought I had an anterior placenta. That’s when the placenta grows in front of baby so it can be harder to notice the early movements because they have extra cushioning. She reassured me that lots of women don’t feel anything until 20 weeks. I just have been pregnant so many times now I know what it’s supposed to feel like. 😂

Plus like I said I did have a few times I was like well maybe that was her but it just wasn’t enough to convince me. So we got to the fun stuff and did an ultrasound. Oh my is she just perfect and beautiful. She is so much bigger then the first few times we saw her. It’s crazy how fast a baby grows in there. Especially since we saw her as the tiniest little 6 day old embryo that they had to magnify times like 1000 so we could see her! There was no missing this little girl she was very wiggly and loved to move her little hands and feet all over. We could see all her little fingers! Also turns out I am basically a dr now since I self diagnosed my anterior placenta! Lol. I was right and that’s why I wasn’t feeling her yet.

Early on these movements are so small and tiny I have to be laying down and quiet to really even notice them for sure. She will get stronger each week and will quickly be able to kick hard enough you can feel from the outside and even see it. I really hope by our next big ultrasound she’s kicking hard enough for Karen and Rodger to feel her! It was so special and fun watching them see her on ultrasound. Karen thankfully took pictures and videos because I was so excited seeing how happy they were that I didn’t do anything but watch them enjoy their baby. 🥰

Because of my old age 37 😂 I’m considered advanced maternal age. That means I will get to go to a high risk Dr to look at the 20 week ultrasound. We are actually going to be doing the scan at 22 weeks because that’s when they could get us in. They will look at all the important stuff and we will get to enjoy seeing how cute and perfect she is in there. They may want to keep seeing me up until delivery day or they may let us just do regular Drs appointments we will just wait and see what they say. Regardless I’m just so happy and excited that we have made it.

These last 21 weeks are going to fly by. I’m so excited and a bit sad. I love everything the end of pregnancy brings. All the joy and excitement the planning. Guessing each day if it’s the day baby Mac is going to choose for her big birthday debut! I’m going to do my very very best to soak it all in and enjoy every last moment of this last pregnancy. Now I’ll add what baby girl is up to this week for week 19 since that’s technically tomorrow and I’ll add the cute pictures Karen took of her.

19 weeks pregnant is how many months?

If you’re 19 weeks pregnant, you’re in month 5 of your pregnancy. Only 4 months left to go! Still have questions? Here’s some more information on how weeks, months and trimesters are broken down in pregnancy.

How big is my baby at 19 weeks?

Six inches long this week and just over a half pound in weight, your baby has gone through a bit of a growth spurt. 

Vernix develops

Your little one may have a cheesy varnish this week.

Say what? You read that right — a protective substance called vernix caseosa (vernix is the Latin word for “varnish”; caseosa means “cheese”) now covers your fetus’ skin. It’s greasy, white and made up of that downy hair known as lanugo, oil from your baby’s glands and dead skin cells.

This waxy “cheese” may not sound too appealing, but it’s there for good reason: Vernix protects your baby’s sensitive skin from the surrounding amniotic fluid. Without it, he’d look very wrinkled at birth — sort of what you’d look like if you soaked in a bath for nine months.

The vernix sheds as delivery approaches, though some babies — especially those born early — will still be covered with it at birth, so you might get a look at your baby’s first anti-wrinkle cream.

Your Body at Week 19

Leg cramps

There’s nothing like getting into bed at the end of a long, exhausting day — especially when you’re pregnant. Aching for a good night’s sleep — literally, if your back’s been acting up again — you throw back the covers and prepare to happily drift into dreamland.

But if you’re like many expecting moms, something may be keeping you awake tonight — besides what color to paint the nursery: leg cramps.

These painful spasms that radiate up and down your calves are very common during the second and third trimester. While these cramps can occur during the day, you’ll notice them — oh, baby, will you notice them! — more at night.

No one knows for sure what causes them, though there are plausible theories aplenty. It could be that your leg muscles are just fatigued from carrying around all the extra weight of pregnancy. Or that the vessels that carry blood to and from your legs are compressed by your growing uterus at 19 weeks pregnant. 

There’s also speculation that it may be somehow related to diet or not being fully hydrated, though this hunch hasn’t been substantiated by studies.

Whatever the cause, you’ll need a quick fix when a leg cramp does strike — especially when it’s standing (or lying) between you and a good night’s sleep. So here’s one for you: Straighten your leg and gently flex your ankle and toes back toward your shins.

Feeling baby’s kicks

Your sister said baby kicked by this point in pregnancy — and so did your best friend — but so far, you haven’t felt a thing. Except those gas bubbles this morning … those were gas, weren’t they?

Maybe, maybe not. Those first tiny kicks can be felt many different ways — generally starting between week 18 and week 22, though it can be a week or two later if this is your first pregnancy.

Sometimes you might feel like something is swimming inside you (which it is!), while other times those first fetal movements may feel more like bufferflies in your tummy.

Once your baby grows bigger, you’ll be able to easily tell what those little kicks feel like, so there won’t be any mistaking them for something else. Learn more about fetal movement during pregnancy.