Our Last Christmas

My friend Hilary posted a blog not long ago about her "First Christmas" - something I am still rejoicing over! While she was preparing to celebrate her first, everyone around us kept telling us to enjoy our "Last Christmas" - last Christmas without kids, that is. As if we don't normally enjoy Christmas or something. So, I tried with all my might to "enjoy it" for what it was, but everything inside me, both literally and figuratively, kept jumping forward to next Christmas and how wonderful it will be with our baby boy. In the end, I can safely say I did thoroughly enjoy our "last Christmas" complete with all the hopes and wishes it brought for next Christmas.

Thank you to everyone for making our Christmas so wonderful this year. It was truly amazing and we are so blessed to have such a beautiful and generous family.

22 Weeks

How your baby's growing:

At 11 inches and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

21 Weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like he's practicing martial arts as his initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know his better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now.

He is very busy moving around and swallowing amniotic fluid. You most likely have felt your baby move by this time and have realized that he is not necessarily on the same schedule that you are. As your baby swallows amniotic fluid, his digestive tract is continuing to mature. Your baby is also receiving some of the caloric intake from the amniotic fluid.

Home Sweet Home

It's official!!! We now have the keys to our very first house!! We couldn't be more excited or relieved. It's been a long, arduous process, but with a very sweet ending: home-sweet-home. Not just another apartment, but OUR place, where we can do whatever we want without hearing dogs trample above us, fight for a parking spot at night, or settle for out-of-date appliances. Now, that's what I call sweet.

Of course, you can't be a home owner without visiting a big-box home improvement store, right? So, immediately after we closed, we headed back to the house and made a list of things we needed. Because the list included re-keying all the locks, Jamie stayed behind to man the house while I drove up the street to Lowe's. After finding the light bulbs, caulk, air filters and getting the locks re-keyed, I headed back home. As the doors opened to the parking lot, I was awestruck by the biggest, brightest, full, double rainbow I've ever seen. I still can't describe how perfect this rainbow was. I know, it sounds too good to be true. But I stood there, locks in hand, in awe of the gift God had just given me. ...yet another confirmation that this is where we exactly where God wants us. And, that is sweeter than anything else. Here are pics taken from my phone. Sorry for the low quality - I'm hoping to get a nice new phone for Christmas... hint, hint Jamie.

Half Way There!

20 weeks!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.) He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system.

Our sweet boy is becoming more active each day! He's kicking and flipping around all the time, especially early in the morning. I told Jamie it's like I have an internal alarm clock! I don't mind though. I like feeling the little guy bounce around - it lets me know everything's ok. He also kicks if I eat anything cold, like ice cream, or warm, like hot chocolate. The best part is that Jamie has felt him move, too. I can't wait for the rest of the family to feel him kick!

Call Me Mrs. Clause

While riding home from church last Sunday, I realized that I have quite a few things in common with ol' St. Nick. The whole conversation started when I began to hold my belly as we hit a few bumps in the road. It went something like this...

Jamie: "Is he kicking?"
Me: "No, my belly is just jiggling..."
Jamie: "Oh, like a barrel full of pudding?"
Me: "Uh, well, sort of..."
Me: "...it's more like a bowl full of jelly!"
(Laughter)
Me: "Yeah, I'm just like Santa, both of our bellies jiggle like a bowl full of jelly!!"
More laughter, then driving for a little bit more...
A few minutes later...
Me: "You know... I actually have quite a few things in common with Santa."

And that's how the list began. So, here they are... all my similarities with Santa:

- A belly that jiggles like a bowl full of jelly
- An insane & totally unhealthy love for cookies and milk
- Rosy red cheeks, thanks to the new mommy glow, also known as hot flashes.
- I am now responsible for at least one elf... no, not Jamie, haha!
- I'm pretty sure I'll need a magical sleigh equipped with flying reindeer to haul me around by the time May gets here.
- I have been making a list and checking it twice!

So, there you have it! Maybe I'm Santa in disguise?! You never know! :)

You know you're pregnant when...

So, confession #1: I almost ate a whole bag of chocolate covered Sweet Sixteen donuts this morning. Like, I ate 10 out of 16. And, yes, the fake chocolate frosting was wonderful. ...just typing about them is making me want to go buy another bag...

19 Weeks!

How your baby's growing:
Your baby's sensory development is exploding! His brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that he may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to him, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.

Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. (***OK, Time out! The doctor said 10 ounces at 18 weeks was normal! Looks like Cancan is an overachiever just like his mama and daddy... and he likes to eat, too!)

His arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of his body now. His kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on his scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on his skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid. (Pickling... we'll have none of that, I tell you. Talk about gross!)

How your life's changing:
Think you're big now? You'll start growing even faster in the weeks to come. (Oh, great...) As a result, you may notice some achiness in your lower abdomen or even an occasional brief, stabbing pain on one or both sides — especially when you shift position or at the end of an active day. Most likely, this is round ligament pain. The ligaments that support your uterus are stretching to accommodate its increasing weight. This is nothing to be alarmed about, but call your practitioner if the pain continues even when you're resting or becomes severe.

You may be noticing some skin changes, too. Are the palms of your hands red? (Nope, not yet...) Nothing to worry about — it's from the extra estrogen. You may also have patches of darkened skin caused by a temporary increase in pigment. When these darker patches appear on your upper lip, cheeks, and forehead, they're called chloasma, or the "mask of pregnancy." (Yippee! Red palms and dark patches! Just what I wanted for Christmas! haha)

Packing

With the re-inspection scheduled for Monday and the closing a little over a week away, the packing has finally begun. I'm so thankful Jamie will be in town this time! For the past two moves, he's been traveling, leaving me to pack up our whole apartment! He made a comment last night saying how most of our stuff was already packed up... little does he know, it grows. I can't wait to see the look on his face when we're finally done. You know, that look of utter amazement paired with total exhaustion? Then, we have the actual move... :) But it's worth it! In a week and a half, we'll have the keys to our new house!

It's a Boy!!!

Here are this pictures from our ultrasound today! Yep, it's a boy!!! And he's very healthy, happy and active!!! During the ultrasound, we saw him rolling around, kicking and even chewing! According to his measurements, he weighs about 10 ounces and has a healthy, strong heart that's beating 148 times per minute! We are very happy and relieved that everything is in the normal range. Please keep praying that things continue to go smoothly as we await the arrival of our little boy in May.

It was a close race, but the poll results are in! Out of 22 votes, 13 of you voted for a girl and the other 9 voted for a boy! Congrats to the nine voters who got it right! For those of you who were rooting for a girl, there's still a small chance. Ultrasounds are only 80% accurate in predicting these things! :)

Be sure to click on the pictures to enlarge them.

-- This is the first 3-D view of his face and hand. That big fuzzy mass on the right is the placenta.




-- Side shot of his face. The placenta is covering part of his face in this picture.




-- Here you can see a little smile! Doesn't he look content?!





-- Another view of his face, with a hand over the left side and the placenta covering the right side.



-- And, here's the money shot! Yep, this is a clear view of his little bottom.




-- 2-D profile pic - look at that cute little nose!




-- Cute baby!




-- That's his hand covering his face. He played with his hands and feet the whole time we were taking measurements!



-- And, lastly, he's waving - see all 5 fingers! (This is a view from the top looking down, the same view you'll have when you cradle him in your arms!)

18 Weeks!!

How your baby's growing:

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born.



Only two days until we find out if this little bell pepper is a boy or girl!!!
Don't forget to vote!!!