What's up with me!?

I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted, especially with everything that's been happening.

I'll kind of sum it up for y'all...

A couple of weeks ago, the week of Oct 18, I started having increased spotting (I'd already been having some, but not enough to be worried enough to make an appointment) and cramping. That had me worried, especially after my miscarriage. ** Let me pause here to say that everything is okay!! ** Of course all of this started on our way to Athens, Georgia, where Matt was going on a business trip. Evan and I were going along for fun, who would have thought it would turn out so badly!? I called the nurse the next day and she said to come in for an ultrasound......except I was 4 hours away from home and couldn't leave since Matt was working!! She said it would be okay to wait until that Friday for an ultrasound unless it got worse. She also said to go on pelvic rest (which I had already put myself on pelvic rest since I found out I was pregnant! lol). I was still having cramping that night. I called my mom and told her, she arranged for my sister to come pick me up the next day. But thankfully Matt was able to take off work so we left the next evening and I changed my u/s to Thursday in the early afternoon. That way my sister didn't have to drive 8 hours in one day to take me home.

I was SO SO SO nervous, I can't even describe. But we immediately saw the baby on the ultrasound and the u/s also picked up the sound of a healthy fast heartbeat!! I was even measuring a few days ahead. The baby was sleeping, the u/s tech tried to wake him up, but s/he wouldn't have it. Just like big brother Evan!

Anyway, it was determined that the spotting was from the cervix and normal and that the cramping is from my uterus expanding. The midwife said not to be concerned about the cramping and only call if the spotting turned to heavy bleeding. I had cramping that night, but ever since then I haven't had any cramping OR spotting. Thank the Lord!

We've been so busy this past month with traveling and visiting with family and friends. One weekend we went to my grandparents' house, then a birthday party one weekend, then we went to Athens, then to Savannah, and then there was Halloween. Evan dressed up as a dinosaur (of course!) and was ADORABLE!! He started completely walking on Oct 27 and I'm so glad he was walking for Halloween. I LOVE that he's walking. It's so much easier and now we can go outside all the time since he isn't dragging his knees and feet around in the dirt and on the concrete.

I gotta end this post for now, but I'll leave you with some pictures...

37 Week Appointment

I'm full term!!!!! This is an amazing feeling. I guess I have spent the entire pregnancy thinking that surely something would go wrong, but here I am, just about to have him. He could come out this second and be perfectly healthy.

I had an appointment with the midwife today which went great. I saw a different midwife than our regular (Tina), but I like this one a lot too. There's actually only 1 midwife I'm not crazy about, and she isn't terrible, she's just a little too mellow for my tastes. It will be my luck she'll end up being the one to deliver Evan. ;-) Anyway, I told this midwife, G, about the bloody show and the cramps and everything. On Monday I had posted on a message board about the bloody mucus and cramps wondering if anyone else had experienced it and how long after that their labor started. Well a bunch of ladies wrote back saying I should call the doctor! I guess it isn't as common as I thought. I called and talked to the midwife on call who said everything should be fine, just wait until my appt today to talk to the midwife in person about it. But G said it's perfectly normal. It turns out that the cramps are contractions!! lol I didn't know that although I have noticed that they come and go throughout the day. The midwife I talked to on Monday mentioned that they were probably were, but I wasn't really sure if that was a 100% fact. G said the contractions are making changes to my cervix, which is causing the blood.

I decided not to have an exam. There's no reason to go through the discomfort. Even if I'm dilated, it doesn't really mean anything. I know some women walk around for weeks halfway dilated. That happened to my SIL actually, she was told by her doctor that she'd probably go into labor 2 weeks before her due date. She ended up having to be induced over a week after her EDD. All based on how dilated she was. I don't think I want to know how much progress I've made because that would make me even more impatient!!

I am definitely ready to get things going though. I hate being in limbo. I want Evan to come so that I can KNOW everything. Like, I'm tired of wondering if I have enough burp clothes or if his clothes will fit or if breastfeeding will go smoothly or if my dad will be in town when he's born, etc, etc, etc. I just want him out so that I can figure it all out! lol I'm also very impatient to meet him. I'm not like some women though, I'm not eager to end pregnancy because I'm tired of it or uncomfortable or anything. I'm actually going to miss it a lot. I love being pregnant and a big part of me wants him to stay in until his due date. I'm actually not even completely ready for him (will I ever be?). The nursery is a mess right now and isn't set up just the way I want (which is why I still haven't posted pictures). I'm hoping it will be completely decorated by this weekend though.

Oh yeah, today the midwife, G, said she doesn't believe there is any way Evan is as big as the ultrasound tech said he was a few weeks ago. I could tell she doesn't think it's necessary to have an u/s next week, but she scheduled one anyways. She felt him from the outside (she really dug in there and felt his head and all over his body!) and said she estimates that he is 7.5 lbs right now. It will be interesting to see who is closest. To me, 7.5 lbs at 37 weeks is still big, but it's better than 9 pounds, so I'm not complaining.

My brother, sister, and I were all in the 6 pound range at birth. We were also all born early. My sister and I a week early and my brother 2 weeks early. My grandma also had my uncle a week early and then she was induced a couple of weeks early with my mom since she had had a c-section with my uncle (he was breech). I forgot to ask Grandma how big Mom and Uncle Ray were...I should have! So I'm kind of hoping that these traits run in the family..... ;-)

36 Week Appointment

Yesterday was our 36 week appointment and our meeting with the pediatricians. The pediatrician visit went very well! We're really impressed with their office. It has all of the typical amenities that you look for in a pediatrician office such as separate well and sick waiting rooms, cleanliness, nice receptionists, real person answering services 24/7, open hours on Saturday, and a 24/7 on call nurse and doctor, and same day appointments. There are 7 pediatricians at the office. We were able to meet 3, all of the male doctors. I was very impressed with 2 of them. The third was nice, but just a little too mellow for me. I like doctors to be outgoing and talkative. It actually puts me more at ease. I wish there was a way to meet all of them, but obviously they aren't all 7 in the office all the time.

We haven't decided who we want to go to for Evan's first appointment, but our tour guide said that they encourage us to keep switching until we find who we want to stick with. His first appointment there will be 48 hours after we are released from the hospital. They won't be able to come up to our hospital to do the in-hospital care and circumcision, but they recommended a doctor at our hospital who can take care of him and they also recommended some doctors from another office who could come by. Anyway, I'm so glad that we found such a great office and doctors that are right next door to Matt's office. It's nice to have that checked off our list!

My midwife visit also went well. It turns out that they don't do vaginal exams every week unless I want them. And I'm happy to leave everything down there a mystery! If I'm still pregnant at 39 weeks they will do another exam, but otherwise it's optional. So the midwife just measured me (right on track) and listened to Evan's heartbeat (healthy and in the 130s). He has dropped!! The midwife said so and I can tell because I've been feeling a lot more pressure down there, even more than last week. He's also occasionally pinching a nerve in my right leg. Whoa! It feels like a jolt of electricity right in the crease between my leg and torso.

**TMI alert!**

I think I already mentioned that I lost my mucus plug on Monday. Lots of mucus on Monday and Tuesday, not so much on Wednesday and Thursday, just normal amounts. This morning - a lot. And there was a little bit of blood in it. I'm not sure if this is officially "bloody show" or not. From what I read labor usually occurs within hours to a week of having bloody show. However, I'm not sure if that's only when it happens at the same time as the mucus plug coming out. Even if it isn't official bloody show, it does mean that something's going on down there, meaning that I'm dilating at least a little.

Whether or not I will go into labor within the week, this has made me want to get everything ready!!! We are going to pack the hospital bag tonight as well as clean out the car and install the car seat.

Matt's office threw us a shower today. But I'll write a whole separate post about that - with pictures - tomorrow.

35 Week Appointment

I had my appointment with the midwife this morning. Everything is looking great! They did the Group B Strep test...I'm really hoping it doesn't come back positive. I'm just going to wait and see. I know that if it is they will give me antibiotics during delivery, but I'm allergic to most antibiotics, so I'm wondering if that would be a problem. I'm sure they could find something that could work though.

My midwife was perfectly fine with the birth plan. She actually said it was really easy, most of the stuff I listed is their standard practice already. She told us a little more about what a typical birth with their practice and in that hospital is like. They work so well with people who want to go all natural. They immediately place the baby on your stomach after birth and do all of the exams there. I had kind of planned on having them wipe him off first, but nope, they will stick him right on me. lol There will be a blanket there so I can wipe him so he won't be all slimy up against my skin. After he's wiped off a little I'm going to pull him farther up on me for skin to skin contact. Although at that point I probably won't care and will immediately pull him all the way up to my chest anyway. She said the only thing they won't do while he's on me is weigh him, but obviously they will wait awhile to do that.

They have no problems with me not wanting an IV or monitoring. The midwife is perfectly fine with any birthing position and pushing methods. She said they rarely use any interventions unless it's absolutely necessary and even then they will talk to me about it first. She said they always let the woman stretch and tear naturally, the only time they will consider an episiotomy is if there is something wrong and that will get him out faster. Even then it's my decision, she said.

I knew that our hospital network is very open minded and obviously the midwives at our practice are as well, but it was nice to talk specifics. A co-worker of Matt's delivered with this hospital system and with a group of midwives. They didn't go to the same group, but they are all part of the same system. They had a very similar birth plan to ours and the hospital worked really well with them. It looks like I should be able to have the birth experience I want if everything goes smoothly. I know everything may not go the way I want it too. I'm not stupid, I don't expect labor to go a certain way just because I wrote up a birth plan. An emergency could happen, I may change my mind about going all natural, etc. The birth plan is in case everything goes perfectly, it gave my midwife and I a chance to talk about labor and delivery, and it's given me the opportunity to think of all the different ways labor could go, including induction and a c-section. I think it's good to have a laid back attitude about L&D, but it's also good to be educated and have an idea of what I'm getting into.

The midwife also checked my cervix and all that good stuff. Which HURT!!! Really bad. lol I was just surprised, really, I didn't expect it to be so uncomfortable. They also had to take samples to test for infections/diseases, which is required by law in NC for women under 25. Matt was there and standing up by my head and holding my hand. Kind of gave me a little glimpse of what labor will be like. Pain, sweating, midwife down there, Matt up here. ;-)

Tina (my midwife) said that Evan is "really low" (she kept talking about how low he is, so I guess that's a good thing!) and that my cervix is "very thin." The cervix is still posterior. She seems really happy with it and said that everything is on track. I have another appointment next week. From now on I'll be going in once a week.

33 Weeks & Ultrasound!

My little Evan!!

A profile of his head. He's on his back facing the left. His face is right up against my placenta, but you can kind of make out his nose and lips and see his hand curled up on the far left.


Another profile of his head. This one is more distinct, you can see his nose, lips, and chin as well as that cute little curled up hand that he's holding up.


A side view of his foot. It's upside down facing the right. You can see his heel, the arch, the ball of his foot, and his toes.


His cutey foot. Check out that big big toe! He gets it from his daddy.


Yep, he definitely has Matt's feet!


A 3D of the lower part of his face. you can see his chin near the bottom, lips, his fingers that are curled up next to his lips, and his nose up near the top.


A 3D looking down at his face. You can see his eyes, nose, and his hand up by the left side of his face.


A 3D of his face. He's slightly turned and facing the right of the picture. So his forehead is at the top, his cheek is to the left, you can see his eyes, nose, and lips. He has one hand up by his forehead and the other in his mouth. :-)

I never wrote about my appointment on Monday, when I was 32w5d. Everything went great! We had an ultrasound first to see if my placenta moved up, which it has. The ultrasound technician was great, she not only checked the placenta and his growth, she also had some fun letting us see Evan and did a 3D ultrasound even though we didn't ask for one (or pay for one)! At first Evan wouldn't let us see the front of his face, he had it pressed against my placenta. So she couldn't do it, but after getting all of the measurements she needed she said she couldn't stand it, she just had to see if she could get the 3D of his face again. When she tried the second time he had shifted a little bit and we were able to see his face some! He had his hands up around his face at that point, but that made it even cuter!

She had us estimate how large we thought he was and I guessed 4.5 pounds (which is what the book says he should be around 32-33 weeks). The ultrasound tech said that he is measuring 6 lbs 3 oz, plus or minus a pound!! She was convinced he is around 6 pounds though, kept talking about how much meat he has on his bones, how chunky he looks, etc. I was really worried, but when we met with my midwife after the u/s she insisted that there is no way he is that big. She said there's a lot of room between him and my ribs, a normal amount of fluid, and my fundal height is normal. Obviously those measurements can be off as well, but it is true that I still look pretty small and haven't gained all that much weight.

Speaking of weight, I gained back the pounds I lost, plus a pound! I've been feeling so much better the past couple of weeks too. I can tell I'm getting enough to eat. Now I've gained about 21 pounds, right on track. My sugar levels have gone down and have evened out. I'm glad about that, but my dietician said not to be surprised if they start going crazy the next few weeks since the pregnancy growth hormones peak around 35 weeks and that can affect blood sugar levels. But at least they are okay for now.

So I've been pretty nervous the past couple of days about having a huge baby, but as Matt keeps saying, there's nothing we can do about it, so I shouldn't stress. We're having another u/s at 38 weeks to see what his measurements look like then. If he's measuring large, a c-section or induced labor at 39 weeks will be an option. The midwife said they aren't going to do anything before 39 weeks unless it's dangerous not to, but I'm hoping he'll come earlier than that on his own. I actually think it would be great if he comes before 38 weeks, then I won't even have to worry about making decisions like c-sections, inductions, etc. We'll see!!

The nurse gave me a chart to start counting movements. I'm supposed to count 10 distinct movements and time how far apart the first and tenth are. It should be in at least 2 hours. If he gets slower and slower or doesn't move 10 times in 2 hours at some point in the day (especially after dinner) I'm supposed to call the midwife. I was worried that this would be added stress, but so far it's been easy. I've picked around 10:00 - 10:30 AM to count his movements since he usually wakes up about then. So far the longest it's taken him to move 10 times is 6 minutes and that's because I missed his most active phase (I was busy and couldn't count properly or look at a clock). This morning he moved 10 times in 2 minutes, that's his record so far. He's crazy!!

30 Weeks & 7th appointment

I can't believe that in about 10 weeks I'll be holding Evan in my arms!! He's about 2.5 - 3 pounds now and about 14.5 inches long. I've gained 19 pounds so far, so about 16 of that is something other than baby. I actually lost a pound last week because of the new diet, so now I'm under orders to eat the max amount of carbs I'm allowed at each meal and snack to keep my weight gain steady. It seems to have worked because I gained the pound back since Friday. So far I'm still right in the middle of the normal weight gain range.

Today I had another appointment with my midwife. She measured my uterus and said it's 29 cm, looking good. Evan's heartbeat was in the 140s, also good. I asked her what she thought L&D would be like now that I have GD and she said that we might induce at 39 weeks, but we'll see how things are going. It sounds like if Evan's weight gain is normal and my blood sugar levels stay steady then it won't be a problem. I was actually surprised that she is considering inducing, I figured that she would have more of a "we'll do it all natural unless something comes up and we have to do otherwise" attitude. I think she's saying the same thing now, but obviously she thinks it's more of a possibility than I was thinking. I'm feeling very laid back about it, if we induce, we induce. There's nothing to fret about. Also, I'm not even sure if my placenta has moved up so I may not even have the natural childbirth I'm planning on anyway! No need to start making firmer plans when I have no clue if it's even necessary.

Speaking of the placenta moving, we have an ultrasound scheduled for the 20th to make sure it has moved up. I'm so excited to see Evan again!!! I'm glad that it will be the day after I get back from Arkansas because that will make me feel more reassured that everything is okay after the flights, driving, etc. My midwife also recommended a group of pediatricians that are right next door to Matt's office and about 10-15 minutes from our house. I'm excited to find out more about them, I'm sure we'll end up going with someone in that practice.

I haven't been feeling so great the past few days. Very weak, tired, and even lightheaded/dizzy. The dietician says that it shouldn't be the diet, but the midwife is thinking that it is. Also, it is normal to experience some of these things the closer I get to delivery. I just think it's weird that I was fine until all of a sudden it hit. I've been working out regularly for months now and on Monday I couldn't even finish my weight lifting because my heart was pounding so hard. The midwife said to take it easy, make sure I'm not in a position where the baby is cutting off circulation of the main arteries, and if it keeps up to let her know. I sure hope it goes away, I hate the weak feeling. Being tired I can deal with, but my muscles feel like jelly, it feels hard to even sit at the computer and type or hold up a book. Very weird. Any of you experience this?

I don't have a 30 week picture yet, so you will have to make due with my 29W2D pic:

6th appointment

Today was my 6th prenatal appointment and the blood sugar stress test. The instructions for the test were to eat a protein breakfast an hour before my appointment. When I arrived they gave me a drink that was just like orange soda, it might have been orange soda for all I know. I had 15 minutes to drink it and after that I had to wait an hour to have my blood drawn. I'll get the result in the next couple of days. While waiting I had my appointment with my midwife, Tina. She has become our main midwife. She's been our favorite so far. We really liked another one too, but she moved offices. I'm really hoping Tina will be the one to deliver Evan!

Anyway, everything looks great. Evan's heartbeat averaged in the low 140s. Once again, he was moving around a lot when she used the Doppler. I'm measuring right on schedule. My weight gain slowed a lot this past month compared to the one before. I think it will pick back up these next couple of months though.

I completely forgot to ask Tina about flying at 32 weeks. Instead I asked a bunch of stupid questions like was it okay that my stomach looks lopsided sometimes and that my pelvic area was super sore the other day (from the bones starting to separate). I guess that will teach me to write down the important questions! I am guessing it is fine though, unless something drastic happens I doubt there would be any problem.

She started talking about us signing up for birthing classes, a hospital tour, and starting a birth plan. Whoa! I guess now that I'm about in the 3rd trimester (I am in it according to some sources) we're getting down to business. Anyway, I'm trying to decide if I should take the childbirth prep classes. I'm going through the Bradley Method book and that particular class is $60 and 3 hours long. One woman I talked to who took the class at the same hospital said she thought it could be condensed into an hour and a half and that it really wasn't worth $60. So I'm not sure... At this point I'm planning on taking the infant care & CPR class (I already know infant CPR, but Matt should learn too and it doesn't hurt for me to touch up!) and possibly the breastfeeding class. I'm still not sure about that one. What do you think?

Matt and my dad installed and ceiling fan/light fixture in Evan's room yesterday. There was no light fixture at all in there...that's a 70s house for you! As a matter of fact, only 2 rooms in the house have light fixtures in the ceiling (kitchen & living room), the other rooms we just use lamps. But we wanted a fan and better lighting in the nursery. It was such hard work! They spent hours working on it. It's a good thing my dad came to help. He's done a lot of electric work in the past and we couldn't have done it without him! The final result is fabulous though. It looks and works great and I love having the bright light in there!

My grandparents and cousin are coming tomorrow for my sister's graduation. They will stay until just after the graduation on Friday. I'm looking forward to their visit, but I'm hoping to have the nursery cleaned and partially set up for when they visit. That means we need to sand down the trim and repaint it tonight! Then we can move the furniture into place and put up the valances and wall hanging. I'm so excited!

5th appointment!

We had our fifth prenatal appointment today at 22w5d! We met with our favorite midwife so far, Tina. Evan's heartbeat was strong and clear at 155 beats per minute. He was moving around when the midwife was using the doppler and it was funny to hear it and feel it at the same time. I've been feeling him move so much more lately, all throughout the day. I used to only feel him at about 7:00 in the evening and then sometimes again around 9:30. Now I feel him a lot and I can feel him move, not just kick. It's great!!! Next appointment is the blood sugar screening test on June 8.

I have a new symptom that started just before going to Boston. Shin splints. OOohhhh the pain! Thankfully it wasn't so bad in Boston except the first day. I iced them for about an hour and then the rest of the time we were there they were fine. However, after getting back home they've been bothering me every day. The past couple of days they've only been sore, not really painful, but today the pain is back. I talked to a friend of mine who is an athletic trainer and she told me how to do ice massages and how to wrap my shins in bandages. Shin splints can be really bad if you don't take care of yourself. The bones can chip or the muscles can tear away from the bone. So I'm trying to be careful, I carry bandages with me everywhere and I'm *trying* to wear supportive shoes. I absolutely hate wearing shoes and socks though, especially when it's so nice and warm outside. I love my flipflops!! I was looking forward to wearing them all summer, but now it looks like that won't be happening. I'll have to buy some nicer running shoes, the ones I have are 5 years old, ugly, and not in the best shape.

Anyway, I talked to the midwife about the shin splints today. I was hoping they'd go away, but she said don't be surprised if I have problems with them the rest of the pregnancy. It's due to weight gain and possibly walking differently. Obviously that's not something that's going to change before Evan comes. This is definitely the most frustrating thing that's happened so far, not even because of the pain, but because it means I have to wrap my shins and wear shoes during the summer. But hey, if this is the worst thing that happens, I'd be very happy. This isn't that bad at all! Anyone else have experience with this?

My back has also been bothering me a little bit lately, but I'm thinking it's just from the trip to Boston, all of the walking and then sitting in the uncomfortable plane seats. Maybe after going to the chiropractor on Thursday that will be "fixed." I know I should expect back pain, most women with healthy spines have back pain during pregnancy, a woman with scoliosis is definitely going to be feeling it. But so far so good!

Other symptoms... some round ligament pain, not too bad. I have indigestion in the evenings, but also not bad. I drink chocolate milk almost every night which helps a lot. It's fun to drink it. It satisfies my sweet tooth but is much healthier than dessert. My skin still isn't looking so great, but not as bad as it was. I'm also gaining weight and it's obvious. In Boston I had several strangers comment on my pregnancy, the first time that's happened! My belly is much bigger, my boobs have grown a lot the past couple of weeks, and I'm starting to see it around my face. My fingers swell at night so I take my rings off then and during the day my rings are definitely much snugger. I don't know if it's permanent swelling or if I've just gained weight in my fingers. So far I'm leaving my rings on all day, hopefully they'll keep coming off at night!

Matt's co-worker, K, (who gave us the glider and swing) gave us 2 garbage bags filled with baby boy clothes!!! They are all size 3-6 months too! There's also sleep sacks and swaddling blankets (which I have NO CLUE how to use) in there. A lot of the clothes are long sleeved, which should work perfectly for Evan at that size. There's a lot of socks, slippers, and hats in there as well. They are all so cute!! I can't wait for Evan to make his appearance so I can dress him all up. :-) Oh yeah, there's no way Evan will ever wear all of that stuff in the amount of time he's in those sizes. We're already planning on giving some of the outfits away. K and his wife have 2 boys, so I guess that's everything they've collected for 2 babies, plus I wouldn't be surprised if they received some hand me downs from people to add to their babies' wardrobes. We've been so blessed to receive all of that stuff, K is so nice. It amazes me how much he and his wife have helped us.


Me with the clothes from the first bag:


Matt with the clothes from the second bag, including his favorite item, overalls!

It's a....

BOY!!!!

The ultrasound was amazing! It was awesome to get to see so many details. Everything is perfect and he's even a little big, everything measured over 18 weeks but it was all within 5 days, so he's not big enough to change my due date, just big enough to be healthy. :-)

When the technician first started, he was sleeping, being so still, but his heart was beating at a healthy 161 beats per minute. She started measuring things and checking out the heart, liver, brain, spine, etc. Everything looked great and she kept smiling really big and saying how perfect he looked. After she measured most of the things she needed she decided to wake him up so that we could see him moving and she could try to get a better view of his gender parts since he had his hands between his legs (of course). She started digging the ultrasound wand around in my abdomen and it did the job. He started squirming and waving his arms and legs!! After 30 minutes she finally got a view between his legs although he didn't make it easy since after he moved his arms the cord was right in between them. She had me turn on my side and then asked me to go to the bathroom so that my bladder would shrink and make more room for him to move around. After that she showed us something that definitely looked like 2 little dots...some important boy parts. ;-) So exciting!!! It's such a great feeling to know what he is and to know his name.

When we arrived in the ultrasound room Matt asked the technician about recording it and she said it was no problem and grabbed a blank tape to put in. She didn't record the whole thing for some reason, just part of it, but it is SO COOL! We watched it last night with Matt's family and I couldn't stop grinning, just like when we saw it the first time. It's on a VHS (and we don't own a VCR), but we're going to transfer it to DVD and then I'll be able to put it on the computer too!

Just after the appointment (which was overall great, my blood and urine samples were healthy and I've gained 6 pounds since my first visit) we went to register at BRU. We only spent an hour there so we didn't get much done, but it's a start and it was something fun to do to celebrate our little boy! We ran home, grabbed the things we were taking over to the in-laws and then immediately left and stayed at their house until late last night. I returned home SO tired which is why I didn't update y'all right away.

So, you want to know his name? We've had it picked out for a l.o.n.g time, definitely over a year, maybe even more than that. Say hello to Evan!


Here you are supposed to be able to see some of the gender parts although the cord is in the way, so I'm not sure if they are obvious (they aren't to me in this pic, I only saw a glimpse when the tech pointed it out). He's facing towards the left, this is a full frontal view, and he has his legs curled up so his knees are sticking out.





This is a profile of his head and abdomen, his head is on the left and he is on his back. If you look closely you can see his nose and lips.

Here's a view of his perfect little legs!! Once again, he's on his back with his head to the left.


A profile of his head with his arm stretched in front of his face. His head is on the left and he's on his back again.

14 Weeks & 3rd appointment

So today I'm 14 weeks! My baby is the size of a lemon (I thought lemons were smaller than peaches...I feel like my baby has shrunk. I don't know what kind of peaches the people who make these size charts up are eating...or maybe they eat giant lemons...) and is moving around a lot, but I can't feel it now. I guess that's something to look forward to in the coming weeks! I'm still not showing, as a matter of fact, I think my "bump" got smaller! lol Maybe because my baby went from the size of a real peach to a lemon. I was probably still bloated the past few weeks but thought I wasn't. I can still fit into my jeans. I can button them, but it's very, very uncomfortable if I sit down or bend over! I still wear the belly band, but lately I've taken to looping a pony tail holder around the button and through the button hole to hold the button together. It still gives me some extra room, but I don't have to wear that tight belly band. It feels just like normal!

I had my third prenatal appointment today. Everything is going great! I heard the heartbeat again!! :-) She found it no problem and it was so loud and strong sounding! Much clearer and louder than last time (when I was 10 weeks). Darn, I just realized I forgot to ask what the heart rate was. I was so distracted by the wonder of it and Matt and I were both amazed that it was so much louder and clearer that that was what we were talking about right after. We've seen a different midwife each time, but I think I liked this weeks the best so far. We still have to meet one or two more and then I will start requesting to see my favorite and request her for delivery. Obviously if she isn't available I will have one of the others deliver, but at least I get a first choice.

They took a urine sample and I could.not.pee. It was so awful, trying to go when I couldn't and knowing they were waiting on me out there. I managed to get a little bit out and that was enough for the nurse to do whatever she needed to do thankfully! They didn't take a sample last time, now I know that I should drink more on the mornings I have appointments. I gained 2 pounds since my last appointment, which makes my weight gain so far...2 pounds. The nurse seemed to think that was great, the midwife didn't comment on it and I didn't think to ask.

My BIG ultrasound has been scheduled for April 8! Right now it's scheduled for early in the morning and they have me scheduled to see a male doctor afterwards to go over it. However, I'm going to call and reschedule it later so that I can see a midwife after. If I went in at 7:30 in the morning I could see a midwife, but the 8:30 slot had to go with a doctor. I think we'll just do it later in the morning or even in the afternoon. I don't want to see a doctor, especially a man. That's the reason I'm seeing the midwives at this practice!! I just didn't think to protest when the receptionist scheduled us for that slot (I refused the 7:30 slot...way too early for me, especially if I still have insomnia at that point!). But anyway, it will be on April 8 at some point during the day!!! I'm so excited!!! I'll be 18 weeks exactly then, but the midwife said that will be fine since I'm a little smaller, apparently that makes it easier to see the baby or something. So I'm putting a poll up. Do you think I'm going to have a boy or a girl? vote!

I have to admit, I've been getting some girl vibes. It's not a super strong feeling though. So I won't be surprised if it's a boy, but I'm definitely starting to feel more and more that the baby is a girl. I don't know why, it's just a feeling.

Yesterday I went to Old Navy and actually bought clothes!! I tried to buy things that will work when I start showing too. However, I was disappointed that one of the t-shirts shrank so much that although it fits now, it won't work when I get really big. But I did buy another shirt that is way cute and is baggy and stretchy, so I should be able to wear that over the summer! And I found several other clothes that I will get a little later. They are too baggy for me now, but will fit excellently when I start getting bigger. They also have such a cute maternity section there! I saw the prettiest dress that will fit me now but has a drawstring around the waist so I can also wear it when I have a huge baby bump. :-) But I'm going to wait to see if it goes on sale. I couldn't tell a difference between their maternity tanks and tees and the regular ones. I even compared the tanks. So I just bought regular ones, only $5 each!!

It's still absolutely beautiful weather here. It's supposed to get up to 80 degrees again today! Matt has his first soccer game tonight (last week's was canceled because it was so wet) and I'm planning on going along to watch. If it was cold I wouldn't go, but I'm looking forward to spending time outside this evening. Anyway, I am off to continue proofreading my friend's novel, I want to spend this afternoon outside reading instead of in here on the computer, so I better get some of it done now! I hope you are all having fabulous day!!!

Heartbeat

We heard the heartbeat yesterday! I was 10w1d, so it was early, but I'm so glad we were able to hear it! It took her just a little while to locate it, not long enough to really freak me out though. We recorded it on the tape recorder and Matt is going to upload it to the computer and even clean up the static a bit so it will be even clearer. Hopefully then I'll be able to share it with all of you. :-) The midwife said that it was about 170, very healthy. Matt timed it more precisely after we were back at the house and listened to the recording. He said it's 168, close enough. :-)

I'm so excited!!! It was such an amazing experience! My MIL called while we were at the office to say she'd be praying and then she called me again in the afternoon to talk about it. She's so super excited, which makes me really happy. She has a gender prediction...a girl. That makes 2 people who have predicted a girl for me so far! I'm still not sure what I will be having at all. I have no instinct or strong feeling yet. I'm planning on putting up one of those gender quizzes to see what y'all think, so start thinking about it. :-)

MIL said she can imagine me pregnant...she had the vision right in front of her. So she described it and I loved it so much, I want to remember it. She said she can see me wearing shorts and a pink tank top ("You know why!"). She said I will "have a little bit of cleavage....well, a lot of cleavage actually" and a basketball sized bump. She said my arms and legs are still thin and slender and when I turn around I "still have a skinny butt." lol I like that vision, it sounds good.

Anyway, I've been feeling much better the past couple of days, still tired, but in a good way. Yesterday SIL and her son came over for a couple of hours and stayed for lunch after the appointment. And today I went out with my mom. For longer than I wanted. I wanted to make it a quick shopping trip so that I could have more time to rest before our date tonight, but oh well. I am still going to try to take a nap before Matt comes home. It's been good to get out of the house a little and have some company. Usually I don't mind being alone for long periods of time, but it is a little frustrating only having one car. I didn't realize how much I'd go out for quick trips to the store or library until I wasn't able to do that anymore. We've already filed our taxes so hopefully we will soon have the money to buy a car!