17 Weeks

How far along: 17 weeks
Weight gain: 5 lbs. 
How big is the baby?: The size of an onion (about 5.1 inches long and weighs about 5.9 ounces according to thebump.com)
Maternity clothes: I've started to wear these Be Maternity Seamless tank tops that I received for Christmas (thanks Mom and Emily) underneath my clothes. They are just extremely stretchy, comfortable, and long. I have two—one in black and one in white—and I highly recommend them!
Stretch marks: No, but I can tell this week that my stomach is really growing! 
Sleep: This week has been very busy, and I've had no problem falling asleep. I occasionally wake up in the middle of the night here and there, but it's not bad. I usually just fall right back asleep afterwards. 
Best moment this week: This week has been busy with our first forensics (speaking and acting) tournament on Saturday. I am the coach of the team and am loving it so far...besides the fact that I had to wake up at 5:30 A.M. on a Saturday because our bus left at 6:30. We didn't get back to the school until 4:30 P.M. It was a LONG DAY! However, it was totally worth it! I am so proud of my team and what they have already accomplished. The tournament that we attended had thirteen schools and most of them had very large teams. Our team is fairly small, and I really would love to get more students involved in the program. I decided to have our team stay for the awards ceremony after the competition because I was for one, interested to see how or if our team placed, and the kids expressed to me that in previous years they hadn't stayed for the awards. The ceremony host had the top five placing competitors or groups come up on stage and they would award places fifth through first. It was absolutely amazing to hear that we had a duo place first out of twelve teams! When our two students were called for first, our team just went crazy! The kids were shocked and so proud. I had another student place second out of seventeen teams, which was also wonderful. I think attending the awards ceremony positively impacted the kids because they are more motivated than ever before, and they realized that they can compete with the bigger schools with bigger programs. After the tournament, Michael and I drove to my hometown. My mom decided to throw an olympics party today. We ate a lot of food, played a number of games, and everyone wore red, white, and blue! It was so much fun to see my family! 
Miss anything: I suppose I miss not being able to sleep an entire night without waking up, but I feel that my pregnancy has been a breeze, so I can't complain. I'm so thankful I haven't experienced morning sickness.
Movement: I can't seem to feel anything yet, but it should be happening soon! I can't wait to feel our little bambino moving around! 
Cravings: Valentine's candy (sweethearts and sweet tarts)! :)
Queasy or sick: Nothing lately
Looking forward to: I'm looking forward to my upcoming doctor's appointment on Friday and also Valentine's Day! After this appointment, we will make the appointment for our exciting, upcoming ultrasound! Also, this week is snow week at school, which means dress up days. Tomorrow is college apparel day, so that means a UMD sweatshirt and jeans for me! :) 

Have a great week!