5 months

Last week we had our big ultrasound - the anatomy scan!  No, we didn't change our minds about finding out the gender, and the ultrasound tech that I had specifically requested did a great job of keeping it a secret.  The tech and OB who met with us after the scan said that baby looks fantastic and there are absolutely no concerns (yay!).  The placenta is nice and high, and also located along the backside of my uterus which they told me is likely why I felt fetal movement so early on.  Baby was moving around so much the tech had a hard time getting some views but eventually saw everything he needed to.  At the end when he turned on the 4D picture so we could see the face, I was having a contraction and poor baby was squished right up against the uterine wall.  When baby did move his/her head the arms and hands were up over the face.  So we didn't get a super clear picture but from what I saw I think this one looks a bit like it's older brother!  Here is the best picture we got, everything below the nose is baby's arm, you can't see the mouth in the photo even though it looks like you can.

I left the ultrasound feeling overwhelmed with gratitude, and that feeling has not faded.  Not that I expected anything would be wrong with the baby, but the fact of the matter is that not everyone gets good news at their ultrasound and really, the chance of a congenital abnormality is a real one.  And then there are couples who try for years to conceive and can't.  Or have miscarriage after miscarriage, even if they have already had a successful pregnancy.  Or try for so long only to have an ectopic pregnancy.  Maybe it's because I work in healthcare where I see these things on a regular basis, but I just feel so fortunate that we were able to conceive quickly when we wanted to and have a healthy, growing child and a seemingly healthy second on the way.  I do not take these things for granted, and my heart is saddened for those who might find themselves in very different, difficult situations. 

So, that felt a little heavy for a pregnancy update.  Onward to a lighter topic.  Last week we also had our second visit at the birthing center.  Since during this appointment I knew I would be seeing the midwife who caught Arlo, I made sure to schedule it on a day off where I could bring the little man along.  It was pretty awesome to be back visiting our favorite midwife, and crazy to think she was the first one to hold our now two-year-old.  Arlo was most interested in asking me "what's that?" and pointing to every single thing in the room during the appointment.  Baby's heart rate sounded great in the 160's.  Belly measured 22 weeks and I am only 20!  Eek!  Weight gain is up 8 lbs which is the total for the pregnancy so far.  Here is a picture of Arlo with Allison, he was not at all interested in holding still so this is the best I could get:

In terms of how I am feeling, I have to say I am now feeling pretty great!  Definitely more like my old self than I have this entire pregnancy so far, and much like I did when I was pregnant with Arlo.  About two weeks ago I decided to start taking an iron supplement that I already had on hand, just to see if it made any difference in my energy level.  And perhaps it is a complete coincidence and I would have started feeling better around that time anyway, but within a few days of starting it I felt like a new person.  I haven't had any lab work done yet and have never had any problems with anemia so I don't know if it's really the iron helping or what, but I plan to stay on it just in case.  It's so nice to have energy again and I am getting back to doing a lot of things I haven't felt like these last few months.

Symptom wise I started getting braxton hicks around 17 weeks.  Actually I had them for many weeks before but I would only notice them when I would lay down and my belly would be all firm feeling and in a strange shape.  Now I notice them as a tightening in my belly and it feels slightly uncomfortable, large, and heavy.  I am getting several (sometimes maybe even up to 10 or so?) throughout the day.  I mentioned it to the midwife and she said it's completely normal and recommended a herb that may quiet down my exercising uterus.  I have been trying to drink more water and rest when I feel several within in a short time.  I remember having braxton hicks with Arlo but feel like it was so much later in the pregnancy.  Other symptoms - very mild and occasional round ligament pain (actually a lot less than I had with Arlo), and craving everything sweet.  Oh my.  My chocolate and ice cream cravings are getting out of control.  Perhaps why I am measuring two weeks ahead?? 

Since the ultrasound went well and I am pretty darn obviously pregnant at this point, we decided to make the baby news facebook (and IG) official this weekend.  Here's the picture we used:

"conversations with baby brother or sister.  baby 2.0 coming in August!"

Maternity clothes are now in full rotation and have been for a few weeks now.  I was still fitting into some non-maternity stuff but realized that I had a full maternity wardrobe already and why not get as much use out of it as I can, and be way more comfortable at the same time!  Here are a few more pictures we took the other day, I am 20 weeks here:

for comparison, here is 20 weeks with Arlo:

And here is what happens when you try and involve your two-year-old in the photos, and all he wants to do is get down and play:

I have been asked a few times if I had any feeling one way or another on the gender.  And really, I don't!  If I absolutely had to guess though, I would probably say girl and that is based on symptoms alone.  This pregnancy has been the complete opposite of Arlo's, and so in my mind it makes sense that something is different this time around.  That being said, I will still be quite surprised if we actually do have a girl.  And also confused if this baby is a boy - how could two boys equal two such drastically different pregnancies??  My medically inclined mind would want that explained, and not just "every pregnancy is different."  I need more than that!  ;)  In either case, we will be super excited and love this baby like crazy no matter what the gender.  I think about having a little brother for Arlo, and my mind conjures up images of them playing trucks and trains together while wearing matching pajamas and that feels just right.  And then I think of a little girl and how neat it would be to experience one of each (and eventually teach her how to crochet and sew) and that sounds amazing too.  So really, it's gonna be pretty rad either way.

Since the gender will be a surprise until birth we need to come up with at least two names (and two middle names) that we both like and agree on.  And that fact alone would probably lead you to believe that we have made some progress in the name department, and honestly we really have not.  We have a boy name that we first heard shortly after Arlo was born, and Erik and I both liked it immediately.  But we haven't settled on anything and have always struggled coming up with girls names that we both really like.  We will not be telling anyone what it is until baby is born and named, but I can tell you that it will likely be another uncommon name.  We both tend to like unusual names and I find myself drawn towards names of the old fashioned kind.  This is one reason I don't want to share the name ahead of time, you will always get someone who thinks (and isn't afraid to share) how weird they think the name is.  And the other reason is that we really want to make sure the name we pick out actually fits the baby when we meet him/her.  Maybe we will just let Arlo pick out the name.  Last time I asked him he said we should name the baby "Peanut Butter."  That's a solid name, don't you think?

I will wrap this up with some life updates.  I was going to make this a separate post but will elaborate on these things more later...  In a few days, my parents are coming to visit!  They will be on Arlo duty for much of this weekend while Erik and I furiously work on two major house renovation projects we are hoping to accomplish before this summer.  We have already started, and mostly finished, the kitchen project, but still have quite a bit to do in there.  And I am set on having a renovated laundry room before this kiddo arrives, so we are hoping to at least get a start on that while we have the grandparents around to help with the little man.  Other house projects on the "to-do before baby" list include painting the nursery, our master bed & bathroom, and some closet organization downstairs.  I am in complete nesting mode and thankfully it's rubbing off on Erik.  Our other big task right now is finding me a new (to me) car.  I refuse to put two kids in the back of my tiny subcompact so this car purchase will need to happen before this summer.  We know the vehicle that we want, it's just a matter of finding it in the right color, year, and in our budget.  We thought we had found it a few weeks back, and Erik even flew up to NJ with intent to purchase and drive it home, but we found out at the last minute that the dealership had not accurately represented the vehicle and we were not comfortable with some things that had been done to it.  Anyway, the search for our unicorn vehicle continues...  In my usual nesting style, I have also picked up a few baby things recently.  Double stroller, check.  A few gender neutral onesies, check.  Newborn sized cloth diapers, check.  This past weekend I even pulled out all the newborn stuff I had in storage and oxicleaned, washed, folded, and organized it by size and gender.  Yes, I am doing all this stuff really early, but I know how time just seems to fly by and the more I can get done now the better.  And I think my very-large-and-round-end-of-pregnancy-self will thank me for it! 

Next up, hopefully some pictures of a renovated kitchen and laundry room (crosses fingers), a post about moving Arlo to his big boy room, and some craft projects I have been working on recently!

10 weeks + an ultrasound

these pregnancy posts were kept private until we were ready to announce the happy news to friends and family.  this post originally written on 1/29/16. 

I wasn't going to write another pregnancy update until month three but I am popping in today with some exciting news!  We have our first picture of 2.0:

I have realized a big perk to working in a department with it's own ultrasound machine and nice CRNA's who are willing to help me use it - an early peek at 2.0 that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to have!  We have a couple of ultrasound machines in our department that the anesthesia team use primarily for peripheral nerve blocks and to start super difficult IV's.  Well, I work the evening shift when the machines are never in use, so I decided yesterday to sneak away for a few minutes and see if I could get a look at the baby.  I tried first with the fancier looking machine, which, also turned out to be the more complicated one, and I couldn't figure it out using the deep wand, which I would need to see the baby.  Just as I was putting it back a CRNA popped by and I asked him if he knew how to use it.  When he realized it was for me he got really excited and kept saying "this is SO exciting" ha!  We couldn't get the correct wand on the first machine to work, so he got the second one going for me and then stepped behind the curtain to give me privacy.  I found an image of the baby immediately and couldn't contain my excitement.  He said "you can see something?!" and I told him yes and if he wanted he could some see it too.  I think he was more excited than I was and I think we were both surprised that the baby is so fully developed at just 10 weeks.  I could see it's little head, body, arms, legs and even the feet!  He/she was pretty active, kicking and dancing all over.  I could have watched the screen for a lot longer but I kept it pretty short to just around five minutes.  I took several screen shots with my phone, and a couple of short videos. 

So now that it is looking like we are officially having another kid, it's time to slowly start spreading the news to friends and family.  A few people already know out of necessity (it would have been pretty impossible to hide that morning sickness from everyone) but I am excited to start telling people.  I don't expect these pregnancy posts to go live for another month or so, I would like to be safely into the second trimester before it really becomes public information.

In other super exciting news from yesterday - we also heard back from the home birth midwife I have been trying to get in touch with for several weeks now.  She is one of the only legal home birth midwifes in the area, and from what everyone was saying about her, I thought she was planning to take a sabbatical this year and not be available.  I was so shocked when she wrote back that while August was looking to be a very busy month birth-wise for her, she is currently accepting patients and wants to meet in person!  I will write more later on our decision to choose a home birth, and I am not even 100% sure it's going to work out, but I am now more hopeful than ever.

Back in a couple of weeks with the three month update.  Yay, baby!

37 weeks

Post written Monday, December 23rd...  Posted today because I forgot to add the pictures and post yesterday!

Whew, what a week.

I have finally (mostly) recovered from the epic flu that tried to wipe me out completely.  When I wrote my last post, I thought I was starting to recover, but I was wrong.  Thursday around lunchtime I started shaking uncontrollably and couldn't warm up.  Eventually I did, with the help of many blankets and two heating pads, and then the fever was back with a vengence.  Erik was working from home that day and finally had had enough, he called our family practice and got me an appointment within the hour.  I tested positive for Flu A and had the start of an ear infection as a bonus surprise.  Since it was too late for Tamiflu, they basically said just keep doing what I was doing (tylenol, fluids, rest, etc.) and keep them updated on my symptoms.  I had actually been offered Tamiflu on Monday from the Midwife when I called them about my symptoms...  But I declined as I was unsure of the safety of the medication.  It is considered Pregnancy Category C, meaning there is not enough research on pregnant women to know if there are harmful effects or not.  I also did not get the flu shot this year (same as years past) and I stand by that decision, even after the hellish week I had being so sick.  Knowing what I know now, I might have given a little more consideration to the Tamiflu...  But we do what sits well with our soul at the time of making a decision, and it didn't feel like the right thing at that time.  What I did realize though, is that I will be passing on antibodies to the baby in my breastmilk, so it is likely he will receive natural immunity to this years flu from me.  Somehow thinking of that as a possibility sort of makes this all worth it...

The next day was Friday, and we had our weekly check-up with the Midwife.  Because I was still so sick, I was seen in one of the back rooms that can be accessed without going through the birthing center, and risking spreading my germs to the other pregnant mamas and babies in the waiting room.  It was no surprise to me when I learned that I had lost a pound from the week prior, as my appetite had been non-existent for nearly a week and I was only eating small meals because I knew I had to.  What I didn't expect, was for baby to measure smaller than the week prior when they measured my belly.   At this appointment, I was 37 weeks and 2 days, and only measured 33.5cm, down from 34 the prior week.  This means I was measuring about 3 1/2 weeks behind the average measurements for my gestation.  This was a bit concerning to the midwife and she recommended we schedule a growth ultrasound ASAP to be sure that the baby was growing appropriately and that there was enough amniotic fluid surrounding him as well.  Since it was so late in the day when we were seen on Friday, we were left to worry all weekend about this information, until we were able to have the ultrasound today.

After Friday's apppointment, I called my Mom to fill her in.  She didn't seem the least bit worried, and actually said the doctors told her the same thing when she was pregnant with me.  They told her I was small, and that my head was only in the 5th percentile.  Well, as you can see I turned out okay and now my head it huge, ha!  So that was a bit reassuring.  As it turns out, we really didn't have anything to worry about.  The ultrasound today was perfect, everything measured completely within normal limits, and they even said he "passed the test with flying colors."  They estimated his current weight at 6.5 lbs and he is considered in the 20th percentile for growth.  Quite honestly, 6.5lbs sounds like it's right on track to me for being almost 38 weeks, but they still consider him on the smaller side.  The ultrasound tech was impressed with how much "practice breathing" that baby was doing during the scan, you could see his little diaphragm really working, which was pretty neat.  He turned on the 4D imaging so we could see his face, but our little guy had other ideas and had a hand completely blocking it!  Ha!  All we saw was a distorted image of his nose and a tiny part of his mouth.  I am glad we didn't get to see him too clearly, I have really been looking forward to the first look we get at him when he is born and going into the ultrasound I was a little dissapointed that our surprise might be ruined a little.  Not to worry though, our little guy fixed that problem by throwing up a high five at just the right time.  See, he is already smart!

And finally, a couple 37 week photos...

37 weeks + 6 days

At 37 weeks baby B is the size of a bunch of Swiss Chard, weighing in at 6.5 lbs (and this week I know I am right!) and measuring a bit over 19 inches in length.  He is considered "early term" this week, but it's still considered safe enough to head to the birthing center should I go into labor at this point.  "Full term" is now considered 39 weeks, and I am pretty confident that he is going to stay put until at least that time.  

37 weeks + 6 days

I don't think I need to write my usual blurb about how I am feeling, obviously I have been feeling pretty darn awful from this crazy flu!  However pregnancy-wise I still feel fantastic and I am so glad to have returned to my happy, healthy (mostly), round-bellied self.  The braxton-hicks contractions have really picked up in the last two days.  Today they were very frequent, sometimes 6-10 per hour.  They never follow any pattern though and seem to stop if I change what I am doing, so I know it's just my uterus doing it's thing to get prepped for the big day.  They have grown much stronger now, and during a few I have really been aware of when they start and stop, whereas before I only noticed mid-contraction that they were occurring.  Still not painful, but definitely stronger.  Also on Friday at the Midwife appointment my 36 week test results came back, and I was negative for everything - including group B strep!  I was so relieved...  I have refused so much stuff already I didn't want to have to fight them about unnecessary antibiotics too.  Fortunately I can cross that minor worry off the list  :)

Today my parents and sister are arriving from Tennessee and I am so excited for them to be here.  They had to postpone their trip a little to make sure I would be recovered enough for them to visit, and thankfully, I am.  Feeling happy, blessed, and very much looking forward to another great Christmas surrounded by loved ones!

22 week ultrasound + gender reveal party‏

If you missed the "gender reveal" announcement, read this post first!

Friday, September 6th was a day filled with so many wonderful things, I would actually compare it to the excitement of our wedding day (almost exactly two years to the day prior!)  The day started very early for me, I was too excited to go back to sleep after I woke up at 4am, and ended up downstairs in the kitchen baking cupcakes for our gender reveal/housewarming party that evening.  I was so nervous for the ultrasound we had scheduled in the afternoon, plus we had so much prep yet to do for the party, I spent the entire morning buzzing around the house but feeling that I was not actually getting anything accomplished!  Fortunately Erik (Mr. Always Calm and Collective) finished up the last of the "to-do" list, scrubbing and cleaning, taking care of Lucy, and helping with the last minute party details.  Before we knew it, it was time to leave for our 1pm ultrasound! 

At the hospital where we were having our ultrasound, I sat nervously in the waiting room flipping through pregnancy magazines but I don't remember anything more than looking at the pictures of the cute babies.  Erik played games on his phone like it was no big thing...  Boys!  We were called back by the ultrasound tech, who I quickly informed that we did NOT want to immediately know the sex of the baby, and she should tell us to look away when she scanned those "revealing parts."  We told her that we wanted her to write down the gender on a card we had provided, put it in the envelope, and seal it up well so we wouldn't be tempted to peek!  I was surprised at the high-tech setup the ultrasound room had.  There were two large monitors, one in front of the tech (she was facing my head) and one that was in front of Erik and I, so it was like a large TV right in front of us and we could clearly see everything.  The first thing we saw was the little feet and legs, and soon after that she told us to look away, she was moving up the body and the "boy/girl parts" were next to be scanned.  We started at each other (partly because there were so many screens in the room there was no where to look, and partly to make sure the other one was not sneaking a peek at the screen!)  We were smiling wildly and giggling a little, and I remember it felt like quite a while that she wanted us to look away.  "How sure are you of the sex?" I asked when we were allowed to turn our eyes back to the screen.  "Absolutely positive" she responded.  Not more than a few minutes later though, as she was describing what we were seeing on the monitor, she said "and now he is..."  My stomach did a little flip flop, terrified that she had just accidentally told us the sex (after all she had just finished learning that information herself!)  I said "did you just say 'he'??"  She didn't skip a beat, just said she called ALL babies "he" because parents get mad when their baby is referred to as an "it."  I had a strong feeling she had slipped up but Erik said later he truly believed that she was being honest, and she would have said that no matter what the sex of the baby...  I guess we will never really know, but I will say that I was a little less surprised when we learned the answer later in the day...  After all that, she then scanned the major organs, kidneys, stomach, and up to the heart.  When she got to the heart, she seemed to be taking forever to scan it.  At least 20 images were saved, all while she pressed the wand deep and hard into my belly, I guess trying to get the best picture she could.  After what seemed like forever (but was really probably only 2 minutes or so) I finally asked "is everything okay with the heart?"  Her response was that they take "a lot of heart pictures."  Somewhat reassuring, but I knew as the tech she wasn't allowed to discuss any results or abnormalities with us.  When she got up to the head and face, he was flipped around and facing my back so she had a hard time getting a clear picture.  She kept jiggling my belly, encouraging him to move.  Finally he did a little bit, and when she was able to see the face turned on the 4D imaging (which was a big surprise to me - I thought we would only be seeing the little one in 2D!)  It was really indescribable seeing him for the first time.  He looked like a real baby, with a sweet little nose, mouth, and closed eyes...  I think we both initially sat there stunned.  It's one thing to feel him kicking and swimming on the inside, but to see a sneak peek of his face was something else completely.  He really is there - and looks like a tiny human!  Haha...  His "face" photo is framed and currently displayed in the dining room so we can see it several times a day...

When the ultrasound was done, the tech left the room, stating she was going to seal up our envelope along with the images of the "revealing parts" as I wanted a printed copy of those as well.  When she left I told Erik I was worried about all of the heart images she took, and while he tried to reassure me that everything was probably fine, he still didn't look completely convinced of that himself.  After around 10-15 minutes (but seemed a lot longer) another lady came into the room followed by the tech, and introduced herself as one of the clinic physicians.  I froze, not realizing that a physician would be discussing the results with us that day.  I waited for the bad news, already imagining our baby requiring heart surgery (sometimes it's a bad thing to work in healthcare - you see and know too much) and tried to brace myself for the bad news she was about to give us.  "Everything looks great" she said, "I don't see anything abnormal and we can detect about half of all birth defects through ultrasound."  WHEW.  I think Erik and I both took our first breath since she walked in the room.  Relief set in, we were handed our sealed envelopes with our card and photos, and we were off to our next destination... The balloon store!

I don't remember it being too tempting to look in the envelope during the 40 minute drive from the hospital back to the balloon store near our house. I was busy most of the drive talking excitedly with Erik about how cute the 4D pictures were, texting my parents (who were on their way to our house at the time) and texting Erik's mom to let her know how everything went.  When we arrived at the store, Erik carried in the giant cardboard box I had prepared for the balloons. We handed them the "secret envelope" and told them to fill the box as much as they could, with pink balloons if the card said girl, and blue for a boy.  We left the store to be sure that we didn't accidentally see anything while they filled the box, and headed to the nearby co-op to pick up a few last minute party supplies (beer and cupcake frosting - the important stuff!)  We returned about 20 minutes later to pick up the box, and asked them to put extra tape across the top - just in case ;)

We arrived home about 5 minutes before my parents showed up (they came all the way from Tennessee for the party!)  And thank goodness for my mom being there. The next couple of hours were a giant rush to get things in order for the guests arriving at 6pm, and without her help I think they would have found me sitting on the kitchen floor with cupcake frosting in my hair and broken glass on the floor (yes it really got that crazy!!)  We finished the last minute prep just minutes before the first of our friends showed up. The next thing I knew the house was full of people, and it was nearly 7:30 - time to go outside and open the box!!!

We all headed out into the front yard with the mystery balloon box set up on the lawn.  I stepped back to take a picture of everyone that was there, and suddenly realized how many people had showed up!  I immediately had three thoughts, the first was "when did all these people get here?" The second was "wow, these are a lot of my very favorite people - all in one place, how cool!" And the third was "yikes this is a lot of people looking back at us waiting for this box to open!" Ha! We even had Erik's mom joining us from Michigan via Skype, and my sister watching from Chicago via FaceTime.  I wanted to give a little speech ahead of time, to thank our guests for coming and to mention a few "old wives" predictions about the sex of the baby. I was so nervous (mostly to open the box and find out the long anticipated answer) but I was also growing increasingly nervous with all those eyes on me!  Luckily I had jotted down a few notes about what I wanted to say, but even with that help I still had a hard time getting started, ha!  

It was no secret to anyone that my feeling on the baby's gender was that we were having a girl, but before we opened the box my last thought was that it could really go either way (especially given what the ultrasound tech had said earlier in the day.)  After my "speech" and a few nervous smiles at each other, Erik cut open the tape that was sealing up the box.  As I looked in all I remember seeing was a sea of blue floating up towards us.  I remember looking up at Erik and seeing the biggest smile I have ever seen.  It felt like such a surreal moment, like we were the only two people in our yard for just those few moments. I didn't care my guess was wrong, and I knew before we opened the box that I would be thrilled either way, and we both really were!

Watching the video back, I was surprised at how everyone cheered when the balloons came out, and a few people yelled out "it's a boy!"  I don't remember that at all!  I guess I was lost in my own world.  You can watch the whole thing here (including my nervous, fumbled speech, hehe):

To say that I felt blessed after the party would be an understatement. I was so touched by how many of our friends showed up, and was really reminded of how lucky we are to have met so many wonderful people in the time that we have lived in NC.  I was so excited that night I laid awake in bed thinking of our little boy-to-be until after 2:30am (mind you I had been up since 4am the previous day!)  Too much excitement for this girl I suppose. 

A few more pictures from the party:

We asked the balloon store to put the ultrasound card in the bottom of the box...  It's a boy!

I set up my vintage typewriter for guests to type a note for the baby...

Taking name suggestions!  I had to laugh when a few of our guests wrote down their own names  ;D

Chalkboard voting station!

Chalkboard voting station - obviously after the box was opened!!!

Over the next couple of days it really started to sink in that we are having a boy. Erik developed the "pregnancy glow" himself, and several times we said to each other "we are having a boy!" and that was all it took for us to get all smiley and start hugging. On Saturday my mom and I went shopping for fabric as she plans to make the baby a quilt, and she wanted me to pick out the pattern and fabric colors. I already had the quilt design picked out (I saw it months ago on Pinterest and fell in love immediately, fortunately it works for a boy or girl depending on which colors you use.)  Since learning the gender, I have also packed up all my "girl clothes" from my recent yard sale-ing adventures (just in case they will work for future little B's) and started going through the boy stuff I had bought.  I had two boxes packed up in the nursery closet full of mostly boy and gender neutral stuff, and am surprised at how much stuff we already have. This little guy is set for the first few months, and anything I pick up from here on out will be size 6 month and larger. I was just a little sad to pack up the adorable dresses and girly onesies I had bought, but then I found some equally cute boy stuff I had bought a while back and forgot about.  My new favorite things?  Anything that involves a monster or dinosaur!  ;)  Maybe one day I can dress a little girl in a frilly dress and headband, but right now I am in total boy mode.  Little blue hoodies that say "beep beep" on the front and tiny green corduroy overalls are now filling the nursery closet, and I am loving it! I can't wait to meet this little guy, and I am so happy we got to learn the gender in front of our wonderful friends and family.  Thank you to everyone who came and made it such a wonderful and memorable experience for us.  I can't imagine having it any other way!

22 weeks + baby B is a...

We are so very happy and excited to announce that baby B is a...

BOY!!!

Our gender reveal/housewarming party last Friday was a wonderful success, and I couldn't have imagined a better way to find out the gender of our sweet little baby!  I plan to write an entire post about the party and ultrasound, but I couldn't wait to make the announcement...  little boy it is!  Yay!  :D

More on all that excitement a little bit later...  Here we are at 22 weeks, bump and baby growing bigger everyday it seems!  :)

22 weeks + 3 days

At 22 weeks our little guy is the size of a papaya, measuring around 10.5 to 11.8 inches in length and weighing in at about 12.7 to 20.8 ounces. We were told at the ultrasound on Friday that he weighs around a pound right now, and the midwife informed me at my appointment yesterday that he measures in the 43rd percentile for growth, which is considered average.  

22 weeks + 2 days

According to thebump.com, at this stage, he is sleeping in cycles and spends around 12-14 hours per day asleep.  I can definitely tell when he wakes up - he is getting to be quite the little wiggleworm!  Nearly every time I am in the car he starts kicking and moving about as well.  Either he likes the vibration of the car or he is already a car guy like his Father, but in any case I have decided to pick up one of those little vibrating baby chairs for him to use after he is born.  Hopefully the vibrations are something he likes, and the chair can mimic that!

I am actually having a few new symptoms these days as well.  My belly button started "flattening out" around week 19 or so, and now it is starting to slowly pop out just a little.  I also seem to be getting out of breath more easily, especially if I am trying to walk and have a conversation at the same time.  I still walk Lucy everyday for 25-45 minutes, and I am on my feet most of the day, whether at home or at work.  I am doing yoga when I can, but in recent weeks it has been rare for me to have the time.  It is one thing I am focused on getting back into more seriously in the very near future.  I feel soooo good after yoga and this past weekend it really seemed to help stretch out my tight muscles.  And finally the newest symptom, is I am starting to develop that "mask of pregnancy" across my forehead and cheeks.  It is a weird spotty darkness appearing rather unevenly.  I can't say that I am enjoying this symptom, but it's not really that big of a deal either.  I guess it's part of the package deal, haha...  It should fade after delivery, but I am not all that worried about it anyway.

This weekend we will be celebrating our two year wedding anniversary (which was technically yesterday) by taking a little trip to Charleston, SC.  We are staying at a sweet little bed & breakfast outside the city, trying to give ourselves a nice mix of fun and relaxation all in one trip.  After this weekend things start to calm down for us, as we only have two more short trips planned before the due date in January.  My plan is to go further into "nesting mode" (although if you saw the nursery closet you would think I was already there!) and spend most of the next few months getting ready for the arrival of this little peanut.  There are blankets to crochet, etsy patterns to write, and baby vibration chairs to research.  You know, the important stuff in life!

Next up, the details on our gender reveal party, and the fun way we found out this little munchkin in my belly is a B O Y!!!  :D

"It's a boy!"

11 Weeks + the Parental Announcement!

Finally.....  We got to share the happy news of the pregnancy with all of our immediate family!  We told my parents and sister last weekend on Friday night (E's parents were unavailable then), then on Saturday morning got to make the big announcement to his family.  Everyone was of course, very excited - and I think we did a pretty good job surprising all of them!  I captured their reaction on video...  See below for a clip of the best parts!   (Side note:  if you are just starting to read this blog, at the time of writing this the settings were still set to private.  It did not go live until after we shared the news with everyone...)

To tell my parents, we called them up and told them that we were thinking of getting something for the house, and we wanted their opinion of it first.  They asked what it was, and I said it would just be easier to e-mail over a picture so they could see it for themselves.  The picture we sent over was the ultrasound photo.  My Dad has really been wanting to buy us a housewarming gift of our choice, and before he saw the photo he asked if this might fall in the budget for their gift to us.  I laughed and told him I didn't think so, because this "item" was going to be very expensive.  We all had a good laugh over that once they learned what it was!


(note: this is really more of just an audio recording than anything else since I basically just recorded me holding my phone to capture their reactions.  The video of Erik's parents reactions was much better since I actually recorded Erik instead of just the phone.  Rookie mistake!)


It was a little trickier trying to think of a surprise way to tell Erik's parents since we are in North Carolina, his Mom is in Michigan and his Dad is currently on the east coast for work.  We had to call them on a 3-way call to tell them both at the same time.  To set up this video for you a little - Erik and his Dad are always joking about building this huge garage in our yard and making the upstairs an "in-law" apartment so they can move down and be closer to us.  At the beginning of the video, Erik starts in with their usual back and forth commentary on this "planned project" and asks them how many kids we would need to have to get them to move on down and live in the not-yet-built "in-law suite."  I don't think his Dad realized right away where Erik was going with that question, haha  ;)




So here we are at 11 weeks (actually almost 12) and I am feeling even better than last week.  The nausea has almost completely subsided, and most days I don't even have any.  Energy levels are still not quite normal but pretty close to it.  The biggest change this past week is in the belly area.  I am still not really looking pregnant, but there is a lot more roundness going on down there.  I read somewhere that this is the time to wear "loose, flowing clothing" to hide the beginning of the bump, but I have found myself embracing what is there by wearing fitted tanks and shirts (except for at work where I am still trying to hide it!)  It's a little bizarre to look down and not see my usual self, but it's also pretty awesome to think about what is going on in there.

11 weeks + 3 days

The baby is as big as a lime this week (that seems huge to me!)   Measuring in at about 1.6 inches long, he/she has about a 1:1 head to body ratio, and now weighs in at about .25 ounces.

Developmentally, the fingers and toes have lost their webbing, and tooth buds, hair follicles, and nail beds are forming.  Apparently this little one is also already waving it's arms and kicking it's legs quite often.  I wish I could see or feel it, but I know that comes much later...

Yesterday I went yard sale-ing (a favorite Saturday morning activity of mine during the spring/summer) and scored a few sweet things.

In my treasure hunting (primarily for baby stuff in recent weeks) I am always on the lookout for wooden toys and found this little Haba fish.  Since these things cost anywhere between $12-18 new on amazon, I was pretty happy to pick up this little guy in excellent condition for only $0.50.  I have scored a few other Haba toys for around the same price at previous sales.  I also hit the jackpot at the thrift store and picked up five new pregnancy/baby books (for only $1 each), including two by Dr. Sears.  I have read great reviews on his books and I am looking forward to reading those.  When I got home, Erik and I had a lot fun reading through the Baby Name Wizard together.  He picked out names that I said "no way" to and everything I picked out he didn't like either, lol...  Fortunately we have some time to settle on just the right one.  Although I will say -we do have a girl name that we both agree on, but that will remain between just us for now.

The shoes in the above photo were not found at a yard sale, I actually had to buy those from the store...  But I do have a good reason for baby shoe shopping already...  This upcoming week is when we are planning to share the pregnancy news with extended family and friends.  I thought of a clever way to tell my co-workers and it involves this photo (and the baby shoes) below...

I plan to secretly hang the photo up at work this week on the bulletin board with the caption below it "Someone's family is expanding by two feet.  Can you guess who?"  I have a feeling it won't take them very long to figure out who put it up there, but it will still be a fun little way to share the news.  Our first appointment at the Birthing Center is on Tuesday, and if all goes well we are going to share the news with everyone else.  Just two more weeks left of the first trimester - I am so happy to be right where I am  :D

8 weeks + 1st Ultrasound!

Yesterday we had the very much anticipated first ultrasound.  For the few days prior, I couldn't think about anything else.  By yesterday morning, I was so incredibly nervous my stomach was doing flip flops and I could barely eat breakfast or lunch.  Erik and I went together (he actually almost didn't make it due to our scooter not starting, luckily our next door neighbor was nice enough to give him a lift to the hospital!)  The ultrasound was performed by a physician (likely because it was done for the study) and she was so nice and sweet it made the whole experience that much better.  Right before she started, I was nearly shaking from nerves and felt like my heart would beat straight out my chest...  But as she began, before she even said she saw the heartbeat - I actually saw it.  I saw the little peanut and beating heart right there on the monitor.  (The night prior I spent some time online looking at videos of early ultrasounds so I would have an idea of what I was looking for.)  Next to our wedding day, it was one of the best moments of my life.  I immediately started crying tears of relief and happiness, and then was able to relax a little more as she took measurements and allowed us to hear the heartbeat.

Here are a few of the baby's stats we learned yesterday:

• There is in fact, only one - whew!  (not that I would mind having twins, but it would immediately make me ineligible to continue my prenatal care at the birthing center, so it was something I was a little worried about.)
• Baby is 18mm long (0.71 inches) about the size of a raspberry
• Heart rate is 176 BMP, completely normal for this gestational age
• According to the measurements, they estimated me at 8 weeks and 3 days.  Not too far off from the 8w 1d I had calculated!  (You might think this is a pretty standard calculation from the LMP, but my unusually long and somewhat irregular cycles makes it harder to figure out when ovulation might occur.  Plus the cycle we conceived I actually ovulated an entire week late due to me being sick.  So I was pretty happy that I was so close to determining our date of conception on my own.)

The physician said that everything looked great and the baby's measurements were excellent.  I asked her the chances of a miscarriage after hearing the heartbeat and she said only about 7%.  So much relief set in, and for the first time this entire pregnancy I really felt like this is really going to happen.  When we left the clinic I felt like I was floating on a cloud, I was so very happy!  Erik recorded the entire ultrasound on my ipod.  See below for clips of the best parts!


Erik took this video while I was in the bathroom.  The physician had explained a little about the procedure before she stepped out to let me get undressed.  Erik decided to provide to you his own explanation of the machine, hehe...  (Note, this was a transvaginal ultrasound, not the external abdominal kind...)

The very beginning of the ultrasound.  You can hear my shaky, crying voice as I realized there was a heartbeat.

Hearing the heartbeat for the first time.  Ticking along at 176 beats per minute.  Erik joked afterwards that the baby must be a natural cyclist as it already had a good time trial heart rate.  ha!

Now that we know everything is progressing okay, it is really hard not to call up our parents and tell them the great news.  (Side note:  if you are just starting to read this blog, at the time of writing this the settings were still set to private.  It did not go live until after we shared the news with everyone...)  We have decided to stick to the original plan though, and wait until my parents visit in 2 weeks.  We will tell Erik's parents around the same time.  We were sent home with a couple photos of the baby, and the plan is to let my parents "find them" in the nursery as we are giving them the new house tour.  We will do something similar with Erik's parents via Face Time on the iphones.  I hope we are able to capture their reactions this time around as well!