REAL BABY KICKS!!!

For real this time, guys!!!  Drumroll .... I felt the baby kick last night! And kick and kick and kick.  It was crazy and fun and amazing.


I was at a huge college-wide meeting last night, and I was just sitting there with my hands on my belly (to signal to the strangers at my table that I was pregnant and not just bellylicious -- we had assigned seating so we could meet new people.  Like a cruise ship.  Lame.) when one speaker handed the microphone over to another speaker.  This guy REALLY wanted to make sure we heard him, and he was SHOUTING into the microphone.  He was so loud that I felt the vibrations.  It was unreal.  Then, all of a sudden, I felt a little pop under my hand.  I knew it had to be a little kick, but I waited and thought about it for awhile. What if I had imagined it?  But then, pop pop ... pop ... pop pop pop!  A bunch of little kicks, like my little one was saying SHUT THIS GUY UP!!  WHAT IS WRONG WITH HIM AND WHY CAN'T HE MODULATE THE VOLUME OF HIS VOICE?? I AM TRYING TO RELAX HERE!!  It was amazing.


I kept feeling little kicks, and then as soon as loud guy handed off the mic, they stopped.  I have a sassy little baby that is sensitive to loud noises, just like momma. 

18 Weeks/5 Months!

Today I am 18 weeks, which marks the beginning of the fifth month!  It feels big.

This week the baby is probably about 5 1/2 inches from head to rump.  He or she is also busy flexing his/her arms and legs ... which I have yet to feel.  Today I thought I felt something that resembled the flutter people have described, but it's hard to be sure.  We were at the emergency vet's office with our beloved dog, Cleo, and I was very agitated, when all of a sudden I felt a little something.  I can't be sure if I was imagining it or not, but Jeremy said the baby could tell I was mad and was kicking me to tell me to snap out of it.  This baby is definitely taking after, bossy baby!


If the baby is a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place.  If it is a boy, his genitals will finally be noticeable by ultrasound, even though we will not have our big ultrasound for another two weeks.  


HOWEVER, there is BIG news on the gender front.  Brace yourselves.  Last night, Jeremy said he had decided that it was most important that *I* be happy, and if that meant finding out the gender, he was on board.  I am still a bit confused.  He claims he is sincere, but I think there might be a chance he is using some sort of Jedi mind trick on me and is just trying to get me to change MY mind and want to wait.  Oh well, because it is only SLIGHTLY working.  I feel bad, but have not a SINGLE doubt in my mind that I want, nay NEED, to know the sex of the baby and that knowing will put my mind at ease and allow me to plan the way I would like.  More updates on that as they happen.


As far as me, I am doing well.  I am struggling with insomnia and being unable to breathe or get into a comfortable position in bed, but I knew that was coming and know it will just get worse.  It's no fun, but I know it could be worse.  During the day, I generally feel great.  Unless I go too long without eating.  Jeremy discovered that yesterday on a short road trip we took.  Not pretty.  I will just have to get better about packing food.  


Overall, all is well, I am really excited to be 5 months pregnant, and I can't wait for the ultrasound!!

More Stuff For the Baby and More Gender Woes

I did not set out for Monday to be a big baby day, but it turned into one.

First, I went to visit my dear friend Melissa at her new house, and she gave me a gift for the baby!!  And look how perfect it is!!

Isn't that wonderful?  I think I am going to put some headphones on my belly and start playing it for the baby tonight.  I have such wonderful friends!!

After I spent some time with Melissa, I met my mom and dad for dinner.  After a delicious meal, we headed to Target to return some maternity clothes my mom had generously bought me ... but didn't fit. Sooo frustrating, since I had other shirts in the same size by the same designer, but these were like 15 sizes too big.  Grrr.  And then there really wasn't much there.  It really seems like when I was wishing I were pregnant, I saw awesome and inexpensive maternity clothes in my size everywhere, and now that I need them, there is like one rack at Target.  Oh well.  I got one really cute shirt, anyway.  

That same night we also went to Joann Fabrics to do some looking around.  I found some fabric on sale that would be perfect for receiving blankets.  

One was a cute neutral:

This picture isn't amazing, but if you look hard, you can see pink, blue, and yellow.

And one was the prettiest little girl print in the whole wide world:

I figured I should make a few and then if I don't have a girl, I can save them for a little girl who might come in the future or give them to the next friend who has a girl. Either way, it was too cute to pass up.

Finally, I found a good pattern for baby bedding, since I have been LESS than impressed with the bedding I have found thus far.  Nothing is really THAT great, and everything costs WAY too much money, so I figured I could make my own:

Now, here comes the real problem:  Fabric.  If I am going to lovingly make all this bedding, I want it to be for that baby, and not just some neutral boring something.  I found the perfect fabric for a little girl's princess bedroom, and I have visions of a baseball bedroom for a little boy, BUT Jeremy is still being stubborn and wants to keep the sex a surprise.  Everyone knows there is no WAY I will make bedding AFTER the baby is born -- even though Jeremy still maintains we could do all the decorating after the baby is born so I could have a gender-specific bedroom and he can have his surprise.  I mean, come on.  He is clearly grossly underestimating the amount of exhaustion that will be happening around here when that newborn shows up.

I started looking for neutral stuff, and there is nothing I like ENOUGH to design a whole nursery around it.  I am just very disappointed.  I want to celebrate our little boy or little girl, and, in my mind, that includes a fun nursery and clothes that aren't ALL green or yellow.  How can I find a way to make both me and Jeremy happy???  (No, seriously, I need guidance!)

So Impatient

So, apparently some women can feel kicking as early as 16 weeks and most can feel it by 18 weeks.  I am 17 and a half weeks ... and NOTHING!  I am dying here!  I spend most of my time with my hand pressed on my belly, hoping and waiting.


I don't have too much more to say, but that has been my main focus lately, just dying for a little movement!  Come on, baby!

17 weeks (plus a day) belly picture

I didn't get a belly picture yesterday, so 17 weeks and one day will have to do:

When Jeremy showed me the picture, I said, "Holy crap!  I'm huge!"  It doesn't look that big when I am looking down at it!  But I know I will look back at these pictures and laugh, wondering how I could think THAT was huge, when the real hugeness was yet to come. :)

17 Weeks and I Can't Stop Eating!

The 17 week descriptions I have been reading are a lot less exciting than previous weeks.  Other weeks are full of exciting things that make me want to end a million sentences with exclamation marks, but this week is a little short on exciting.


Now that I have made everyone want to stop reading already:  Week 17.

This week, the baby is probably about 5 ounces and 5 inches from head to rump.  His or her skeleton is finally transitioning from cartilage to bone, and the sweat glands are beginning to function.

Jeremy and I just talked about how all the measurements are actually head to rump, and if you think about little legs too, it's much longer than we have been imagining.  We held up our hands and got an estimate of the baby's size, and it was pretty cool.  It's definitely no longer a little soybean, but a little miniature baby doll!!

As for me, I am feeling better.  I am definitely out of the first trimester, and my nausea is pretty much totally gone and my appetite is BACK and bigger than ever.  It is kind of strange all the little things I can feel now that the nausea isn't so huge that it takes over everything.  My stomach definitely feels weird -- moving hurts, and my body is already trying to convince me that bending over is a bad idea.  My bump is getting very hard and my skin is feeling pretty stretched out.  Moving around is just so different that it is a little frustrating and exhausting already.  My hips have been hurting, so I have been slowly increasing how much exercise I get every day.  

I am also pretty unable to get comfortable at night.  Everything I have read has said to practice sleeping on your left side, and it is bad to sleep on your back.  I know that will be more true later on, but it still freaks me out that I fall asleep on my side and ALWAYS wake up flat on my back.  Any ideas on how to convince my body to only sleep on one side?  Especially since I wake up with aching hips from lying on my side on our crappy mattress all night?  Please advise! 

But, overall, I am feeling much better.  I am just more uncomfortable than anything, and I will take that over my first trimester experience any time!!  I am looking forward for the fifth month to begin soon!!

Doctor Appointment Number 3

Today was another doctor's visit, and, for some reason, I still never know what to expect when I go and I am shocked by how short they are.


Anyway, I was slightly nervous, because the first time I went, I got horribly lost, and then the second appointment Jeremy drove -- and took two different ways on the way there and back -- so I was feeling nervous that I didn't REALLY know how to get there.  I mean, I had directions, but I was nervous, because, you know, it's an important appointment and the last thing I want is to be late.  Also, the first time I went and got lost, I had directions ... just the WRONG directions, so I was worried that it might happen again.


However, I got there.  AND, Jeremy called me to say he got out on lunch early so he could be back in time for an afternoon meeting, and that meant he had JUST enough time to drive over and meet me for the appointment.  It made me so happy!


At this appointment, she calmed my nerves about some of the pains I have been having (she assured me they were just ligament pains) and we got to hear the heartbeat again!!!  Here's the thing ... it sounded really strong and steady, but then it would sound like it was being interrupted by another heartbeat!!  I swear!  Jeremy even agreed with me.  But did I ask the doctor why it sounded like two heartbeats?  Noooo.  I was too excited.


I gained a few pounds since last month, but I still haven't gained back all of the 20 I lost, and she didn't say anything at all about my weight, so I am assuming all is well there.


Also, my blood pressure was 104 over 60!!!!  Isn't that really low??  Or am I just being a worrier?  I am always an exact 120 over 80 person, so that freaked me out.  But, the nurse said "Oh, that's great!"  And did I ask the doctor about it?  Nooooo.  I was too busy asking the other questions I had prepared.  Sigh.  So, now what do I do?  Wait until next month to ask about it?  Double sigh.


BUT, I get an ultrasound on April 16th at 10 AM!!!!  Jeremy and I are SOOOOOOOO excited!!  I am already counting down the days!

Maybe Something Helpful?

After reading my post on my personal blog about how I have NOTHING for the baby, my genius mom reminded me of something:  Way back in the summer of 2003, when I didn't even have a boyfriend (a month before I met Jeremy!), I found some baby girl clothes on super sale ... and bought them.  

Apparently I also bought a copy of my mom's favorite book:

Maybe I bought it to have on hand for friends who had babies and then I just threw it in with the clothes and forgot about it?  Who knows?


But again, here we are with the same problem: helpful if we have a girl, not so much for a little boy!  Also, most of them are 6-9 month clothes ... and they are also summer clothes.  I am due at the end of August.  I'm no mathematician, but that doesn't seem to add up.  Oh well.  Clothes are clothes, right?


My mom loves the story of how I brought them home and hung them in my closet until I could think of a good way to store them, but then a few weeks later my Aunt Julie came to visit and spied them ... she was horrified!  She approached my mom and said, "Is there something you need to tell me?"  When my mom told my aunt that I just bought them because I was crazy, I don't think she believed her right away!  She probably kept an eye on my stomach for a while!  Love that story.

A Decision. Finally.

Nothing that exciting, but ... we decided what to do about the stroller/car seat debacle.  Jeremy and I were seriously confused about what to do.  Travel system and then upgrade the car seat later or big convertible car seat and "regular" stroller?  We had heard so many opinions we couldn't keep it all straight in our heads.

We realized there were pros and cons to each, but we couldn't figure out which would be better for us in the long run when it comes to both finances and practicality.  We want our baby to be safe, but we have like ... no dollars to spend, so every product decision counts.  Also, we know we will get a lot of stuff from the shower, and we are SOOOO grateful for that, but we can't just count on getting all the important things from the shower.

So, anyway, we had a lovely little investigative trip to Babies R' Us yesterday, since it is the only place in our area that has more than like five display models out and they don't get mad when you play with them (and bash them into things) for hours.

We picked out our "favorites" of all the pieces and then looked at the combinations.  Based on what we picked out, we would be spending about the same money either way we decided to go, so we decided to go for the travel system and then getting a bigger car seat when the munchkin outgrows the infant seat.  That way, we get the bonus of popping the kid in and out of the car and the stroller very easily, and we can bring a sleeping kid places more easily.  I am actually hoping to be a "baby wearer" and use my sling as much as possible, but it will also be nice to have a small seat to take places, like when we are visiting someone or I am going to the grocery store.

I think what really sold us was how much we liked this travel system:

It was lighter, easier to use, more agile, had more bells and whistles AND was about $90 cheaper than any of the other nice systems.  It even has a spot to store WIPES up near the "mommy" cup holders!!  Wipes! 

I know this is not a huge decisions in the grand scheme of having a child, but it was a big decision for us, and we worked like a team to get there.  We were like pros, I have to say. :)

So here's to more big decisions to come!  I know we can do it!  

16 Week Belly Pictures

I remembered late last night to take 16 week belly pictures.  Still counts!

I guess I AM pretty big ... no wonder everyone keeps asking me if there is more than one in there!

16 Weeks and Lots of Updates

I don't know why, but sixteen weeks seems "big" to me, like a substantial marker in the land of pregnancy.  I have no facts to back up why I feel this way, but that's true for a lot of things in life.

This week the baby is probably about 5 inches long and weighs around three ounces.  The fun things growing this week are on the theme of "tiny":  toenails (!!), eyebrows and eyelashes (!!!), and all of the tiny bones in the ears -- so the baby can hear and recognize my lovely voice.  I'll have to remember to talk and sing to him/her more often.  Actually, last night Jeremy had a little conversation with the baby.  I have been having some sharp pains that come and go (the doctor says I am fine), and I got one while I was talking to Jeremy.  He asked, "baby?" and I nodded, so he got real close to my belly and said "Hey, baby, can you please stop hurting your mom?  She is working really hard to grow you, so stop that nonsense in there."  Then he kissed my belly and I melted into a tiny pool on the floor.  What a guy!


Overall, however, I am doing MUCH better than those first three dramatic months.  I don't feel "amazing," but I feel solidly "good," almost normal, and that is leaps and bounds away from all the feelings of death I was feeling only a few short weeks ago.  I guess I understand now how women say you will forget all the bad parts really quickly and get pregnant again, even if pregnancy is horrible.  So, there IS a chance this baby won't be an only child! 


In other breaking news, the "to know or not to know" debate is really gaining steam.  For those of you who don't already know, I REALLY REALLY REALLY want to know what we are having.  I want to plan and shop and decorate the nursery, and I want the baby to have SOME clothes that are not green or yellow.  Jeremy wants it to be a surprise, even though he knows surprises are at the top of my hate list.  At any rate, we both realize that the other has good reasons for feeling the way he/she does.  So ... I guess it is not really heating up so much as it is at a standstill.  Oh well.


One thing that we do seem to be in agreement with is keeping the baby's name a secret until he/she is born.  Or, rather, it is really important to me and Jeremy is willing to play along.  


AND we have a boy's name that we both really like and we are 99% sure we will use if the baby is a boy, which is VERY exciting for us, since this is the first name we have agreed on in the six years we have been discussing baby names!  Victory!  We have a name that we both like for a girl, but I have one small hang-up with it.  Jeremy's homework is to make that go away, and I will be on board for the girl's name too.  So, even if we don't learn the sex, at least I will know that the names are all ready to go and I won't have to panic when I go into labor! 


Well, that was a long post, but fun for me.  I keep trying to post more so I can use this to look back on in years to come and remember all these little things.

Baby Talk

Today was a big baby day.  Well, kind of.


First of all ... I bought THIS:

I know, I know, but I COULDN'T HELP IT!!  How perfect!  And, yes, it is true that I am convinced it is a girl, but I totally would have bought an adorable corresponding boy version ... IF they had one (it was only $3!).  I am not a fan of newborn boy clothes.  They are just not cute enough.


And, I think, just MAYBE, I might finally look pregnant to people in public instead of just a big-belly type of lady.  I am making this assumption based on the fact that the produce guy asked me a bunch of questions about my "little one."


Sidebar:  Yes, the produce guy chatted me up for like 5 minutes, but this is not unusual.  If you really know me, you know that strangers LOVE to talk to me.  In the 30 minutes I was in Meijer today, the produce guy chatted with me, a lady asked me if I liked Special K crackers and then told me all about her experience with other Special K products, and the cashier told me all about her plan to retire in two years ... IF they didn't change her insurance, and if they did, then she would still work part-time and be semi-retired.  Strangers love me.


Anyway, this produce guy.  At first, I was very excited, because he said, "Awww.  How's your little one doing?" and I was all excited on the inside but just said "so far, so good."  But then he started asking more questions ... "How far along are you?"  "Is it a boy or a girl?"  "Do you have any other children?"  By the time he asked me "Do you have any names picked out?"  I kind of thought maybe he was planning on stealing my baby, so I grabbed some grapes and hauled butt.


But hey, I look pregnant! :)

15 Weeks

Today is 15 weeks, and the baby is at least 4 and a half inches long and weighs about two ounces.  It is the size of a navel orange, which is hard to believe, considering how big I am already!  EVERYONE keeps asking me if I am having twins!  I try not to take it in a bad way, since I still haven't gained back a single pound of the 20 I lost since Christmas.


Anyway, the baby is busy "practicing" this week -- practicing breathing, sucking, swallowing, curling its toes, kicking, doing somersaults, and waving its little arms around.  


I found a few amazing pictures of babies in the womb at 15 weeks ....

Pretty amazing.  It makes me want the baby to come NOW even more!

I had a few rough days on Thursday and Friday, but I am doing better.  I had some spotting on Thursday night and just about had a complete breakdown.  The doctor said I was fine, but I had some pain the next day, and was pretty panicked until Jeremy got me calm enough to fall asleep on the couch.  When I woke up, I was feeling better, and I hope to continue that way.  I haven't had any symptoms since then, and the doctor tells me not to worry, that spotting can be caused by many things, and if in very small amounts and not combined with cramping, doesn't mean the worst.

Overall, I have been feeling MUCH better.  I would not say I am feeling great yet, but when I remind myself what I felt like for the first three LONG months, I can appreciate how much better I feel.  

And finally, we got to see most of the Dimicks today (YAY!) and Grandma Dimick (or whatever moniker she will choose when the time comes!) got us two great books:

Baby Names Now: From Classic to Cool -- The Very Last Word on First Names by Linda Rosenkrantz and Pamela Redmond Satran.  

It is a HOOT.  These ladies are so snarky and just have a comment about every name.  

Like, they will tell you a little about the name listed, but then list a few that are similar but they think are much better.  They also call a lot of names overused, and, including some of the Dimick names.  Oops!

I love the little asides like, "we think parents can find a much more substantial and lovely names for girls than this."  Priceless.

However, it also includes the meanings, any special stories, the use in popular culture and when the name has been the most popular.  It is very interesting.

She also got us the baby's very first book -- There's a Wocket in My Pocket by Dr. Suess, which I had no idea was Jeremy's favorite book as a child!

Jeremy had a great time reading it today, and it even brought back the scary memories of the "Vug under the Rug" -- the image just showed a huge lump under a rug in a dark room.  

Oh, isn't that the best way to scare the crap out of a child -- leave them to create the scariness in their own minds!  It's funny how strong those memories are too, that they can come flooding back to you at a moment's notice.  Jeremy will have to use special caution when reading this book to our little one so the same fate does not befall him or her!