“Hey Pete, try putting your hand here. Maybe you’ll feel her move,” I say as I place one of Pete’s hands on my belly.

Baby Girl Bier is moving and kicking quite a bit lately, and right now I’m the only one that gets to feel her move. Pete says he isn’t able to feel her move yet, and I’m guessing this whole pregnancy gig will seem more real to him once that happens.

Now that I’m 24 weeks pregnant, and almost done with the second trimester, I’m definitely starting to feel pregnant. I get out of breath a lot easier than I used to, it’s harder for me to get in/out of bed (or up from the couch, for that matter), and it’s harder for me to bend down and tie my shoes. Everything that people say about pregnancy, from what I’ve experienced, is true — from the first trimester being pretty unpleasant/exhausting to the second trimester being a breeze (which so far it has been for me).

In addition to feeling pregnant, I’m finally starting to look it. Before I got pregnant, I think I might have touched one pregnant belly (maybe two?). I figured I probably wouldn’t normally touch my friends’ bellies, so why would I do that now that they’re obviously pregnant? The strange thing is that (at this point, anyway) I don’t think it’s odd at all for friends/family to touch my belly. It’s a completely foreign feeling to have such a hard belly that’s encasing a baby! Although I might feel differently further along in the pregnancy, right now I think it’s a novelty to have people touch my baby bump.

Baby Girl Bier at 20 Week Ultrasound

Now that we’re 24 weeks pregnant, and realize that we have 16 weeks to go, we both think, “Whoa, we’ve still got a lot to do!” We’ve started planning the nursery (more to come on that in a future post), and I think it will come together pretty nicely over the next few weeks. In addition to getting ready for the baby, we’re eagerly awaiting our first Hawaiian house guest in two weeks (Katie), planning a long trip to the mainland over the Fourth of July holiday (to Wisconsin), and anticipating a visit from my mom at the end of July to help ensure we’re ready for the baby to come in September. I celebrate my birthday in August, and I’ve requested that Pete and I take the time to treat ourselves to a Babymoon here on Oahu for one final hurrah before diapers and late-night feedings become the norm. Keep you posted on what we decide!