16 weeks

At our hotel "Casa Regular" in Las Terrenas

Our baby is the size of an avocado!

What's been happening this week:

We went to the beach!  Our friend Donna coordinated for a group of around 16 of us to go to the beach for a few nights to celebrate New Year's in Las Terrenas (quite the task I imagine but she did it well).  It was my first time at this beach and it was really beautiful, especially the drive to and from, weaving through mountain roads along the coast was breathtaking.  We stayed in a hotel called "Casa Regular" Hotel, which you probably guessed means "Regular House" Hotel.  My sister-in-law Paola asked why they named it Casa Regular and the owner said well, it's not a good hotel necessarily but it's not a bad one either, it's just regular.  Dominicans are funny like that sometimes.  This week I finally went off my hormone pills, which was really scary for me cause I think the extra progesterone is what's been keeping this baby going (that and all of your prayers too :).  What I didn't know was all the side effects from going off of them and that you're supposed wean yourself off instead of going cold turkey, which I didn't realize til I was in the middle of nowhere, so I've had some major migraines and insomnia this week.. but it's getting better now, and I guess where better to go through that than at the beach where my only responsibility is laying under a palm tree and listening to the waves.  Oh and I did want to get a picture of me on the beach instead of our hotel room because it is such a pretty beach, but since all I wore was my bikini you'll have to email me if you really want to see (cause I'm guessing most of you don't).  I swore I would never be a pregnant woman who wears a bikini but this is not the kind of place you can just run out to Sears and pick up a tankini so I figured when in Rome... and just let it all hang out Dominican style. :)  Other symptoms this week have been really sharp pains in my abdomen and sides, is this what kicking feels like?  Anybody?  Anything I tell my doctor he just writes me a prescription for Tylenol (not that you need a prescription for it here, you can get serious narcotics right over the counter), but I never take it cause I'm trying to make it through this pregnancy med free so I just grin and bear it. 

Oh and the best news of the week (which I got by phone at 1a.m. last night so my grogginess probably didn't express my true excitement) is that my dad is getting married!!!!!!  Debbie, who I worked with this summer, will be an awesome step-mom and I couldn't be happier for both of them.  I've already inquired about planning a Dominican beach wedding on their behalf but haven't heard back yet - stay tuned. :) 

 Congratulations love birds!!