Week 18: Dog years?

Week 18 has come and gone!

Baby girl has been very active, which causes me to giggle at random times...including but not limited to: meetings, classes, and a therapy session. Luckily, the therapy session was with an 8-year-old who did not seem to notice. That was just about the only time that an ADHD symptom was helpful and functional.
At some points I imagine this is how an anteater feels as the ants crawl around in the stomach and tickle the evil anteater from within! The best torture ever...

Updates on me: Well, I had 5 doctors appointments in 5 days and then got a break! For one whole day! I was referred to a wondrous place called "Total Body Work" which mixes massage, stretching, and chiropractic and helps me not only to relax, but eases my pain! Thanks be to Jebus. Of course, in true chiropractic nature, they gave me a plan of 15 visits over 5 weeks. Luckily, my insurance covers much of it. So while I'm not completely pain free, I am able to function now, which is beyond appreciated. I am very grateful for the place that gives me a massage, adjustment, and stretch three times a week, despite their goofy ways (goofy meaning making me take a class on health and claiming to have a chiropractic cure for autism).

More importantly Chris had his birthday this week!!! Yay!! Of course, he had to work, but then he had hockey championships! Wait...did he win? Did he score? Did they go down in flames and ruin his day? I will let him tell you that in his blog!

While he got gifts from me, I felt he also should get a baby gift that he would truly appreciate. Girls' outfits are cute and all, but they don't typically humor the dads.... but I found the solution!



Yeah, I found these. But hey, the rocket scientist one is pink! Clearly for a girl!

Dream Update:
I have to explain the "dog years" title of the blog. Just last night I had a dream about our baby girl. We had just taken her home, she was tiny and cute and perfect. I put her down for a nap and when she woke up she could walk. She was not even 5 days old, and she could walk! And then I put her in her car seat to meet some friends for lunch, and she was repeating some of the words that I would say. She was already a toddler by dinner, and by the time we were heading home to see daddy, well, let's just say I should have started planning for kindergarten earlier.

It was a crazy dream, but I guess many parents out there would say there is some truth behind it. I could not tell if it was a nightmare or not. Regardless, it felt like the baby was aging in dog years or something. Quite strange. When do the normal dreams return?


Hope everyone is doing well! We love and miss you!
LOVE!

Week 17: Flutterby and bed rest?

It's a GIRL!

With any luck, she will have her father's intelligence, sense of humor, and sensitivity. But with our luck....it looks like she'll inherit her father's cranial enormity!! While I joke about our poor luck, I know we are actually quite blessed. All of our test results came back negative for genetic disorders which allows us to take another sigh of relief. And our little one seems healthy and well, a good sleeper. Any attempts to get her to wake up were futile as she would just lift her arms up to her face as if to cover herself from the ultrasound.

Chris gave you the pictures and most of the news from today's doctor's appointment. So I'll give you some updates on me, and the baby.

Bed Rest: Yes, 17 weeks and I'm already ordered to rest! Apparently I had too much fun and activity in New Orleans and now have a pinched nerve or herniated disc...not sure which one yet. The pain started with intermittent pangs when I would tie my shoes or bend over to pick something up. With time, it became anytime I would go from a sitting to standing position, and for the past 48 hours it has been with each step. Imagine, if you will, a light saber (because the pain is too sharp and precise to be any other nonfictional weapon) thrust into your bum and then making a 90 degree turn up the spine where the laser is then engulfed in barbed wire, does a dance in your cerebellum, just in time to shoot back down the spine and shoot out your toes. And all of this happens in an embarrassing half of a second where you make a yelp/gasping sound that scares others. Yes, this is overly dramatic, but it would not be entertaining if I just said "it hurts." Each step is now excruciating and apparently there is very little I can do but rest it. We actually have another doctor's appointment (3 in 3 days) tomorrow to see if I can go to a prenatal chiropractor, the term seems paradoxical, but we'll see what they say. The important thing: it's not effecting the baby with the exception of the chemicals my brain sends out in response to pain.

On a more positive note - I felt the baby move!! Don't get me wrong, the little tyke isn't tapping morse code onto my ribs just yet, but I can still feel movement. Flutters, as they call them as she adjusts and decides that she no longer wants to stick her butt up. Interestingly, I feel her most when I'm physically active, so when I'm going for a walk or working around the house. The past 48 hours have been less active and she's been resting with me. It is really not a feeling you can describe. While I'm sure later, when she kicks my bladder in the middle of the night, I will be less thrilled...right now, I cannot help but have this huge smile across my face when I can feel her. I love the idea of creating this comfortable and secure home for her, even if she does kick me around a bit.

Our baby is about 8 oz. according to the doctor. She's got 144 heart beats/minute, and she's stubborn. I couldn't be happier.

Winning names thus far:
Taylin
Elisa
Kaila

Those always seem to be our top three, so let me know what you think of them! I hope you enjoyed the pictures. I know I cannot stop looking at them!

Love you all!!

Week...what? : Skeletor Licked My Eyeball

We had another ultrasound today. The good news? Everything is looking AWESOME. Like, this baby is totally kicking ass. A head, a spine, a heart, 2 legs, 2 arms, somewhere around 10 fingers and 10 toes. Seriously, it's hard to count those things - the baby is eight ounces, so each finger is absolutely tiny, blending together with the others. The bad news? They measure various parts of the baby's bone structure to get an idea as to how far developed the baby is. Based on previous exams, we're sitting at 17 weeks. Based the measurements of the arms and legs, 18 weeks. Based on the measurement of the head? A whopping 19 weeks. Why is that bad news? That giant head has to come out of somewhere. I'll have Jules comment on that later.

I have to head off to work shortly, but here are the highlights from today's trip:

1) Everything points to a really, really healthy baby. Based on the testing they did, we're looking at about a 1 in 10,000 chance for the heavy hitters, like Down's Syndrome.

2) Pretty interesting development: this is no alien baby. As it turns out, Julia must've had a winter fling with none other than He-man antagonist, Skeletor.





3) Apparently, you can take 60% to the bank. Little baby is showing "hamburger," as our friendly ultrasound tech pointed out. No, it doesn't mean that baby is a red-meat hungry carnivore, it means that she's a girl. A beautiful, healthy, wonderful, skeletal evil villain. I'm feeling pretty good about this. I was a little nervous that if it was a boy, he'd be mighty confused with all the "baby girl" talk from the past five weeks.

4) One of my favorite pictures from today:



Check out that heartbeat.

5) Apparently, little baby girl wasn't up for showing her face much today. She stayed firmly planted, face pressed down. Not a morning baby. I can relate. But this picture is pretty cute, nonetheless:



6) Figure I need to explain the title of this post. I think the due date is in flux - Julia might be a week further along than the doctors had been thinking. It makes some sense; the first due date they told us was in late August. No matter, anytime works for me.

As far as the eyeball thing, Julia mentioned she's been having some weird dreams, but she wanted me to pass on one that I had. To keep it short, Julia brought the baby home from the hospital (pretty sure I made her drive herself home). I picked up the baby, at which point she proceeded to stick her tongue out into my eyeball. Being the man I am, I screamed like a girl, flapped my arms, and made sure to stay away from that eyeball-licking baby.

Hopefully, Julia will post some more details from today later. It was a great day. I can't get enough of those ultrasounds.

Week 16: Bumpity

Today's blog is brought to you by the letter "B!" This week was full of bachelorette prep, blood draws, barbecue sauce, and bumps!



My sincere apologies for the delay in my post, but New Orleans was quite a busy weekend! Chris and I have been quite excited as my bump seems to grow more and more each day.



Despite my alcohol-free bachelorette weekend in New Orleans, I had a blast and was very happy to be nausea-free and enjoy some good creole! Tadpole has now tasted jambalaya, gumbo, and alligator! Baby also listened to some sweet Jazz, despite the fact that most stores and restaurants counter intuitively play pop music. Given a town known for voodoo and witchcraft, we decided to cover the bump and go to a fortune teller. According to her tarot cards, I was student who was concerned about money and jobs in the near future, though my long-term future included health, family, and friends. She informed me that I work too hard, and I need to take more time for myself (surprise?). She also had two separate cards that suggested childbirth/pregnancy. She warned me to be careful -- ha! I guess it's a little late for that. She also said that my first born would be a boy...I guess we'll find out soon enough!


Oh, and apparently I had my first awkward craving. Pickles dipped in barbecue sauce. Yup. I'm weird, apparently. They taste....GOOOOOD. And I didn't even like pickles until recently.


Blood work was done this past Wednesday, and the upcoming Wednesday is ultrasound and results! So keep your eye on the blog Thursday/Friday for pictures and news!!!


Enjoy the picture of bump...though that was pre-New Orleans and the ladies said that they thought I grew just in that one weekend. More to come!

Love you all!

BABY FACTS:

Nearly 5 inches long and growing toenails/fingernails. She can hear now, mostly my voice. The baby is also growing hair! :)

Week 15 - Obama and Thumb

Hello Week 15, hello to the continuation of bizarre dreams and cravings!

This was an eventful week indeed! I barely saw my husband between late night sims and hockey tournaments, but I kept myself busy! Not only did my lovely friends (thanks McWrays) help me out by doing some of the heavy lifting and painting, but I also got to see my folks who brought curtains and grape green into our lives (thanks Nana and Popi!). I have never seen a room painted so quickly. As Chris has mentioned, it is called grape green, and I have also spent a great deal of time sitting in that room and imagining what future months will bring. I typically snap out of it when the dogs realize I'm sitting on the floor and that makes me free game for a facial saliva soaking (their specialty). In future daydreams, I will use the futon. Below is a picture, and while the lighting is not perfect and it was taken on my phone...hopefully you get an idea of the colors and yes fabric #3 from last week was the winner! My future holds making my very first blanket, baby bumpers, and a bed skirt among other things.

I have also become increasingly self-conscious as my belly grows and my pants not only refuse to button, but now the zipper follows suit in the mutiny. My shirts are now starting to feel tighter in the waist area, and my paranoia leads me to believe that others will take a second look when they see me, because they are uncertain as to whether I've just put on a few or perhaps that suspect a baby.

My latest dreams that amuse me include:

• thumb wrestling with Obama in hopes that if I was the victor, I would never again pay taxes. Unbeknownst to me, as soon as the game started I realized his thumb was so big that it would reign down on mine like a sledge hammer on a pin. He laughed somewhat maniacally and asked if I would rather pay taxes...I hesitated.


• I watched the movie Zombieland. That night, I dreamt that the baby was born, and was the world's smallest zombie. While the image brings humor, the idea of nursing said baby brings pure horror to me. Needless to say, Chris didn't make it. He is now among the undead thanks to our blood-thirsty spawn.


• Finally, I had a dream that I went on Oprah, because I had the world's smartest baby, who understood morse code through the womb and would tap on my ribs to tell me what she wanted to eat. Despite my cravings for red meat and grapes, the baby claimed she wanted Chinese food.

Take from those dreams what you will. I dare not psychoanalyze them. In just over a week, I'm New Orleans bound for my lovely sister's bachelorette weekend! I'm ridiculously excited and have a lot of fun things planned. By then, the baby will also be able to hear, so she will be exposed to smooth jazz, Aunt Jenn's giggle-buzz, Nana's apple-tini-induced singing, and Aunt E's, well, Aunt-E's normal voice, because she has the amazing ability to appear sober against all odds...though I'm sure she'll make funny faces. ;)

Fun baby facts:

Baby is over 4 inches long

She now has air sacs in her lungs and she moves amniotic fluid through her nostrils and into her respiratory tract

She is sensitive to light, despite her eyes still being closed. While Chris wants to test this somehow with a flashlight, McGiver hasn't figured out yet how to tell if the baby actually moves away from the beam.

Love you all!

P.S. According to babycenter.com -- she looks something like this

Week 15: Grape Green Zen

I found my new favorite place today. No, it's not that new drive-thru margarita bar next to the Taco Bell down the street. That was my favorite place last week. Today I found my favorite place in a slightly more baby-friendly location that doesn't serve refreshing beverages in to-go cups. This place is what used to be the game room in our house.

But compared to last week, this room is completely different. After a monumental effort from a select group of folks collectively known hereafter as the "Gigantors of Room Decorating," that game room has been redecorated and is now painted in a wonderful "grape green" color.

Saturday night, Scott, Ashley, and Julia took care of moving nearly everything out the room and taking everything off of the walls, in addition to filling in the wall-holes and throwing a layer of white paint up. We owe you huge, Scott and Smashers. You're amazing.

On Sunday, the Parks parents came down to the house and threw a couple of coats of grape green paint on the walls and stitched a window valance. Nana and Papi - thank you! We really appreciate your help.

Today, I put another coat up on the walls. While I was painting, I could start to imagine a crib in one corner and changing table near the window. I could imagine what will inevitably be this house's stinkiest garbage can, set right next to the changing table and the hundreds of adorable stuffed animals that would quite possibly fill up the crib. I could picture little hands and fingers and struggling to change a diaper. I could imagine discussing the philosophical metaphysical ramifications of string theory with Mikio Kaku. That's about the point that I realized I was standing in a small, poorly ventilated room with an open can of paint.

Once I opened a window, I got back to thinking about this room. In less than six months (holy crap) there'd be a BABY in that room. She'd be sleeping (sometimes) peacefully in that room. It seems like everyday, it becomes a little more real.

After what had been an incredibly stressful seven week stretch, I had one of those moments where I was completely overwhelmed with a feeling of peacefulness and serenity. It was grape green tranquility. My new favorite place.

Week 14: Babymoons and Ostriches

As most, if not all of you know, week 14 has been an emotional roller-coaster. Many of you have made a point to remind me not to stress, to take care of myself, and to let that husband of mine pamper me...well, we tried :)

For those ladies out there who are not done with or have not yet begun the baby-making process, I highly recommend what websites such as thebump.com or whattoexpect.com cheesily call a "babymoon." Not at all a honeymoon, but essentially a vacation typically in the second trimester when you can enjoy yourself a little more. Chris and I chose (not that there really is another option) to be economical (see how much nicer that sounds than "cheap") and went to the family lake house with pups in tow. It was a BEAUTIFUL weekend and with the exception of a detour at Wildlife Ranch, completely stress free.

Side note: If any of you get a chance to go to Wildlife Ranch in San Antonio, Texas....take it! AMAZING. Not only a petting zoo with baby goats and pot belly pigs, but it is a drive-thru zoo. All of the animals come right up to you car. Why? Because some smarty-pants at admissions gives you a bag of food! The animals you see include, but are not limited to: Buffalo, Antelope, Rams, Zebras, Donkeys, Deer (But not your regular Buffalo, NY deer), Llamas, peacocks, and the mighty Ostrich. Beware the ostrich. No really, there will be video posted on facebook in the next couple days that will give you good reason to fear and respect the ostrich who will stick his head, and treacherous beak (the beak is the important thing to focus on) into your car....and take food or whatever else he wants. In our case, Chris' nether-regions....Actually that was true for some goats, the pot belly pig, and the ostrich. There have been many questions and speculations, do with that information what you will....

Back to the purpose of the blog.

Week 14 has come and so has a little bump! I have finally caved and bought a bella band which hides my secret (the secret that most pants no longer button). As of yesterday, and continuing today I will be buying maternity clothes! I have decided that they are heaven, and I will never want to leave them.

Secret to maternity clothes #1: Apparently designers save the best and most comfy of fabrics for the pregnant ladies.

Secret #2: Fitting room attendants miraculously become overly friendly and opinionated when you try on maternity clothes.

Secret #3: You want to try them on. Do NOT assume. If you are a small in the real world of clothes, that does not make you a small in the fantasy world of maternity. Apparently I'm an extra small in everything but tank tops. Weird.

Week 14, and the second trimester has been glorious as the smell of certain foods no longer stops me dead in my tracks. Oddly enough, the texture/shape of foods has posed a problem. For example, bananas. While it has been suggested that anything phallic has caused me to become immediately nauseated (don't make that more sick than it sounds, I'm talking about carrots, celery and bananas), I think the texture of some of these are what gets me. Loved bananas. Now hate bananas. Also, the texture of or idea of chicken has stopped me from eating it. Don't fear about the baby not getting enough meat that, this carnivore is now craving red meat (which I never wanted before...). Yes, I had steak twice in one week, do not judge me.

And if you thought the rambling could not become more tangential, I am going to end this segment with another chance to vote! I've been shopping for fabrics for the nursery. Now that I have learned that it is really not worth the $250+ to buy a nursery set of blankets, sheets, etc. I will be making my baby's blanket personally and most likely curtains. Yes, I am domesticated! And again (because it sounds nicer) economical! Okay, frugal.

Thoughts?

Obviously for the pictures with multiple fabrics, you can tell which part is going to be the border, and which will be the main part of the blanket, correct? Hopefully you can. Regardless vote for #1 (aka green and blue) #2 (baby jungle) or #3 (polka dots) and then realize that I am continuing my shopping today and will most likely just add to this list. Sorry.

Fun baby facts:

Baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck her thumb. Thanks to brain impulses, her facial muscles are getting a workout as her tiny features form one expressions. Her kidneys are producing urine, which yes, means I have become the human porta-potty....gross, I know. She can grasp, too, and at the next ultrasound we may even catch her sucking her thumb.

Size: 3-4 inches -- about the size of a lemon -- and she weighs approximately 1 1/2 ounces.

Love you all!

Jules