Merry Christmas!

It's a few days late, but we wanted to say Merry Christmas!!





I think next year's picture is going to be a little more difficult to arrange - a 10 month old plus the two kitties. Because don't let them fool you - while they might not look thrilled with this particular photo, I don't think they'd agree to being left out. They absolutely love Christmas. From the moment Jason starts the fire they are right there with us. And they know that the stockings are for them!

(See both waiting patiently ...)


It's present time! We also have some cute video of them playing with their new toys - just like little kids! Can you say "spoiled?"


Instead of posting the actual video, here is a pic of Pickles having a grand time attacking the mouse.


And afterwards, posing calmly with the stocking.


Cali got confused and thought that she was a present.


Someone mentioned to me that this would be our last Christmas without toys. Not quite true, as we had one fun toy that was opened. Santa brought an auto workbench for Luke and Daddy. It was one that we'd found 3 years ago - but hadn't seen since then. Santa works in wondrous ways though and it ended up in our living room this year!

31 weeks

"This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy."

I'm hoping to update more later, but for now this is all you get. The thing that stuck out for me in that paragraph is that he's heading into a growth spurt. You mean he hasn't already been in that???? I feel like I doubled in size overnight!

When will Baby Fletcher get here?

Our due date is February 22, 2010. As of today we officially have 2 months and 5 days until our due date …. Or 9 weeks and 4 days …. Or 67 days …. however you want to look at it, it’s getting closer!

Last night Karen and Patrick both said that they thought he’d come in January so I thought I’d go ahead and set up a “baby pool” for people to make guesses.

Some background info:

-Only 3-4% of babies are actually born on their due dates.
-Most first-borns are born after their due date.
-Jason was born 3 weeks early, for no apparent reason.
-I was born about 1 ½ weeks early – my mom had preeclampsia and they had to induce. In an interesting side note, our due dates are almost the exact same. She was due somewhere between 2/21/80 and 2/23/80 – I was born on 2/13/80. Luke is due on 2/22/10. Potential for a big 30^th birthday present to me? You decide. :)
-The due date is on a Monday. According to a study I found, the most popular day for babies to make their entrance is Wednesday. Sunday is the slowest day.

-According to one study, the average weight of a newborn is 7.5 lbs, and the average total body length is 19-21 inches.
-I was 6 lbs, 3 ounces and 18 ½ inches long.
-Jason weighed 7 lbs, 9 ½ ounces and was 20” long.

-At my 20 week ultrasound, Luke was measuring (head, stomach, femur) about a week and a half ahead. However all measurements of my belly have been dead on with how far along I am.

So, now it’s time to make your guess! There will be a fabulous prize (to be determined later) for the winner. And ps – if you get the sex wrong, you have serious problems.

Go to the link below to enter your guess. You don’t have to register or create a log-in or anything – just make a guess! :)

http://www.expectnet.com/games/LukeF

30 weeks

What an awesome day! First, as of yesterday I am now 30 weeks! This week his weight is comparable to a large head of cabbage - 3 lbs!

"Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds like a head of cabbage. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep his eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means he can only make out objects a few inches from him face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)"

Today started with my 30 week appt with Dr. Box. I just want to say again how much I love her - she is such an amazing dr and person! Anyways, I'm measuring right at 30 weeks and his heartrate was just perfect.

Then Jason and I went to our 3D/4D ultrasound. (More on that in a minute.)

Then I took my mom and sister to the Melting Pot for lunch! Cheese fondue, salads, and chocolate fondue - yum!

And then I had an hour long prenatal massage! Heaven. Although the first 10 minutes or so were funny because I was trying to relax and Luke decided it was time to play. Kicking, jumping around, swinging from my rib cage - I'm not sure what he was doing! Finally he realized it was sleepy time and we both took naps during the massage. I could go to one of those every week.

Ok, back to the ultrasound. It was so amazing! We saw him open his mouth, swallow, yawn, stick his tongue out, suck on his thumb, play with the umbilical cord, hide from us, bring his foot up to his face, wave, smile, and even open his eyes! He was a little turkey most of the time and kept one hand up by his face. She said that probably means he'll play with his hands a lot.

At one point when she was sort of looking up at his face (not dead on) I immediately thought that it looked like my nose. Right then Jason goes "he has your nose!" Most of the face front pictures I don't see it, so it will be fun to see what it really looks like. She also commented (and I think she's the 3rd person) that he has chubby cheeks. :)

We did about 10 minutes and then I got up and stretched, trying to get him to move his hand. No dice. Instead he brought his other up, and then for good measure brought his foot up too.

And now for some pictures! I had a hard time getting these to show up well - we have the hard copies and I took these with my camera. I'm going to try to scan them and see if they're any better. We also have a video of the 15 minutes that I could watch over and over again.



Waving at us, or flipping us off - take your pick.

Baby shower!!

My mom and sister hosted a wonderful shower yesterday! They did such an amazing job with everything and we are so thankful for our amazing friends and family.

I posted this before, but here were the invitations that they made:


I think I only cried about 4 times (surprised??) and the first time was when I walked in and saw all of the decorations. It was a blue/green elephant theme - which matches our nursery.

The table with the cupcakes, before the food:


There are no pictures, but the food was chicken salad sandwiches, cucumber sandwiches, veggie tray, fruit tray, bacon wrapped dates, a cream cheese/sun dried tomato/pesto torte, and cupcakes!


And they had chocolate elephants on them!


For favors they had pretzel rods dipped in chocolate:




This was a diaper cake that my friend Anna made. My mom found the little elephant and painted it to add to it.


On that same table there was a punch bowl, a blown up picture from the ultrasound that we had recently, and bowls with blue and green M&Ms. In a different place in the room there was also a baby picture of Jason when he was little and one of me (which I'll need to scan and post sometime - you won't believe how blond Jason was!)

We started out eating and then played some games. There was a quiz type game that asked several questions about babies (how many bones are they born with, how long is the average umbilical cord, when is my due date, etc.) Then we played a "Price is Right" game - they held up various baby items - diapers, wipes, bottles, a onesie, etc - and we had to write down how much we thought it was. Then we added up and whoever had the closest total won. I came up with $56 for everything. The correct price was $40.48. Someone came within 2 cents! I made Jason do it later and he came up with $59. We were both happy that things don't cost quite as much as we thought they did.

Then we played a relay race. You had to unsnap a onesie on a baby doll, take off the old diaper, put a new one on, resnap the onesie and pass the doll to the next person. My team won. :)


Then it was time for the gifts! So many amazing amazing gifts! This was the second time that I cried. I opened that first one, saw a cute onesie, and just couldn't believe that this was actually happening.


I'm not a big fan of how I look opening presents so no pictures from that. Here are just some random pictures though.

Me, Kim (a great family friend who provided so much support during the last few years), Jason's mom, and my mom:


I thought this was a cute picture of my mom. You can kind of see my sister behind the balloons.


And one of part of the rest of the room:


Me and the wonderful hostesses:


Jason and I when he came to help load things up:

And me unpacking the loot when we got home! I mentioned it before but we got so many wonderful things and are so very thankful! Pack n play, umbrella stroller, clothes, toys, nursery rhyme cd, blankets, bedding, bath stuff, diapers, monitor, stuffed animals, bibs, feeding things, books, my diaper bag, a handmade nursing cover, baby carrier, and a gift certificate for a prenatal massage!!! (Which I'm using tomorrow!)

Sorry for the long post! It was just such a great time and I'm still excited about it! I'll probably do my 30 week post tomorrow but in case you were wondering, he is the weight of a good sized cabbage this week.

12/13/2001

What a great day that was - I met Jason! (Picture wasn't taken that actual night, but close enough.)


Who knew that 8 years later we'd be at a baby shower for our little boy?!?


Pictures from the shower to come later! It was such a great day with amazing friends and family!

29 weeks pregnant - 77 days to go!

"Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

Your baby's very active now. Your practitioner may ask you to spend some time each day counting kicks and will give you specific instructions on how to do this. Let her know if you ever notice a decrease in activity. You may need a nonstress test or biophysical profile to check on your baby's condition.

Some old friends — heartburn and constipation — may take center stage now. The pregnancy hormone progesterone relaxes smooth muscle tissue throughout your body, including your gastrointestinal tract. This relaxation, coupled with the crowding in your abdomen, slows digestion, which in turn can cause gas and heartburn — especially after a big meal — and contribute to constipation as well."

I can certainly agree with the comment that the baby is very active now! Last week when we were being checked out the ultrasound tech asked me if he was always that fidgety. And then when I was being monitored they kept having to come in and move the little belt thing - he'd flip from one side of my belly to the other and we'd lose him for a bit. There are times, if I'm really busy, that I won't feel him - but if I just stop what I'm doing and relax for a minute I can feel him going at it again.

We put up our Christmas tree and decorated it over the last week. One evening after that, we (me, Jason, Cali, and Pickles) sat on the couch, with a fire in the fireplace and just listened to Christmas music. Jason and I think it's so wild to think that next year our little family will be bigger!

How far along: 29 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +20.2 lbs
Maternity clothes: I have a complaint here - why can't more stores carry maternity clothes?? I've been struggling to find something that I just love to wear to a shower.
Stretch marks: So far I really feel like I'm lucky in this department. Those words will probably come back to haunt me later.
Sleep: It was touch and go without my snoogle (left it at Anna's a few weeks ago) but I have it back now.
Best moment this week: Even though it was scary having to be there, I just loved seeing his face on the ultrasound last week.
Movement: See above. In fact, right now he has the hiccups.
Food cravings: This was when we were in Bloomington over Thanksgiving, but I was so excited that they had a Sonic - we had to stop and get a cherry limeade. Yum!
Gender: Boy!!!
Labor Signs: Nothing. This was sort of interesting though - I was reading my pregnancy book last night and in the week 29 chapter they talked about preterm labor. I had at least 3 of the "signs" last week - I guess I understand why the wanted to monitor me for 4 hours!
Belly Button in or out: Sort of half and half. I swear the top part of it is constantly sticking out now.
What I miss: Being able to sit on the floor to work on craft projects.
What I am looking forward to: My first baby shower, our 3D/4D ultrasound that is next week, and working more on the nursery
Milestones: Nothing huge that I know of

Now for some pictures!

Jason and I have known what our little boy's name would be since before we found out he was a boy. Well, the first name anyways - we haven't officially decided on a middle name yet. It hasn't been a secret - if someone asks we'll tell them. I just hadn't publically announced it or anything. I wasn't even thinking in my post last week and called him by his name - I've been thinking of him that way for the last 14 weeks and it just naturally came out. And I was caught! So in case you missed it:



His official first name will be Lucas, but I imagine 99% of the time we'll call him Luke. (Unless he's in trouble, then his full name might be used!)

As you can see from the picture above, we've been doing some things in the nursery. I decorated the wall letters over the weekend. Originally I was going to paint them, but realized I'd never get the circles and lines as perfect as I wanted. Scrapbook paper and decoupage were a perfect solution!

We also now have the dresser/hutch in the room. My mom came over and sanded down/painted the top of the dresser so it is now a light green, to match the rest of the accents in the room. The little wooden toys at the top, and the rocking horse bank on the right were Jason's when he was a little boy.



We also now have the old toy box that my sister, brother, and I used when we were little. It currently is filled with tons of stuffed animals. The two that were deemed worthy enough to sit on the top (for now anyways) are Jason's "Mutt" and my "Lolly." Mr. Bear sitting over on the right is the first stuffed animal we bought for our baby. He used to have a fugly bow on, so I made a tie out of some ribbon that matches the nursery.


And lastly, I got the invitation for my other shower in the mail - Anna and Anne did such a great job! Bring on the milk and cookies!!!

I'm looking at you!

(If you don’t see it right away – that’s his forehead at the top, then his eyes are the dark spots, his nose in the middle, his chubby little cheeks and mouth are under that.)

I ended up back at the doctor/hospital last night. They wanted to know if the spotting continued and as of yesterday afternoon it hadn’t stopped yet. They had me come in and did an ultrasound to make sure that the placenta was still attached and in the right place. (Sometimes if it is lower it can cause bleeding.) They also checked the length of my cervix, which happened to be really long. Then I had an appt with my OB. She did an exam and went over a bunch of other things. My mom was with me at the time and we thought I’d just be leaving then, but Dr. Box said that they wanted to monitor me for 4 hours (yes 4 hours!) and if all looked good then I’d be allowed to go. (At this point I'm thinking WHAT? There's a chance I might not be leaving???) Then she started asking questions about how much I’m working, etc. I was scared to death that they were going to start talking bed rest! Luckily when she found out I just sit at a desk all day that line of conversation stopped. Anyways, they made me get in a wheel chair and took me back down to triage. At this point Jason got there and my mom left. They took several vials of blood to check for things (my platelet count came back low earlier this week so I think that was part of the reason.) In the 4 hours I was hooked up I only had 1 contraction, and Luke did just fine. He was moving all over the place and had the hiccups a few times. So at 7 they let me go back home. At that point the spotting had all but stopped. We still have no idea what caused it, but all of the big things were ruled out. Instead of waiting 2 weeks until my normal appt I have to go back next week to see Dr. Box. Until then I’m not allowed to lift things, exercise, do any strenuous activity, etc. (Not that I ever do those things anyways!)

So hopefully these fun little trips are over for now!

And for some really great news, I passed my glucose tolerance (gestational diabetes) test! Yay! We were worried about that one because I'm insulin resistant which I guess makes me higher risk for it.

Here's another picture from yesterday. You're sort of looking up his nose, and at his open mouth. Not sure if he was yawning or swallowing, but it was so cute when he opened it up. We're having a 3D/4D ultrasound in a week and a half, and especially after seeing him yesterday, I'm beyond excited for it.

28 weeks, full moon, slightly confused baby

So as of Monday, I'm 28 weeks pregnant! And that means that this week he weighs the same as a Chinese Cabbage.

"By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world."

This week also marks the start of doctors appt's every 2 weeks, instead of 4. I had my 28 week one earlier this week and all went well. I measured exactly 28 weeks (this is based on the tape measure around the belly method), his heartrate was right about 160 (where it typically is), and she could feel his head, which was down low. He can still move around a lot, but that's where he is now. I also had my gestational diabetes test, where you drink the fun drink that gives you a sugar high, only to make you crash an hour later. We'll get the results of that back sometime later this week.

This week also brings about a full moon (specifically today) and I think that confused my body and the baby. Don't they know that we have a few more full moons until anything is supposed to happen?

Everything is fine, but we ended up spending a few hours in Labor/Delivery triage last night. I apologize to any males that read this, as this might be too much information (sorry Patrick!), but about 4:30 yesterday I noticed some pink spotting. Not tons, but enough to freak anyone out, especially because it hadn't happened before. I called my OB nurse and next thing I know they wanted me to come in (which actually made me feel a little better.)

It was after 5 at this point so we went to the maternity floor, checked in, and had our own little room in the triage area. They drew several vials of blood to check for things like infection, and the thinness of my blood (because of the blood thinner that I'm on.) They hooked me up to the monitors again and we waited. He was doing just fine (which I already knew because he'd been kicking all afternoon!) and I only had one contraction while I was there. (As a side note, that one was more interesting than the other tightening sensations I'd had before. It was a little more intense and lasted longer. It wasn't related to why I was there, but interesting that it happened while I was on the monitors.) The OB on call also came in and checked me out and cervix was still tight and closed and up high.

So basically they couldn't find any real reason for the spotting, other than that Lovenox can sometimes cause it. For the most part it has stopped, but if it starts again or doesn't completely go away then I have to go back in.

I have a friend who had the same thing happen to her, and the way they explained it to her made me feel better. Basically at this point the cervix is so vascular and beoming more sensitive that basically those tiny little blood vessels burst and you get what would be comparable to a nose bleed in your cervix. That makes sense to me, so as long as it doesn't happen again, I feel ok.

So that was our fun for this week! And as a fun "it's a small world" side note - we found out as we were leaving that an old friend from highschool and his wife were in the room next to us!

28 weeks

I'm really tired so will update tomorrow, but I'm 28 weeks pregnant now! Yay!

27 weeks - 91 days to go!

"This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like the head of a cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with his legs extended. He's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and perhaps even sucking his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if he were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother him, so just relax and enjoy the tickle."

According to most websites/books, I'm in the 3rd trimester now! (I've read anywhere from 25-28 weeks, so this seems like a good estimation.) Seriously, where is the time going??

So let's see - big things this week:

We hung up new shelves in his closet, so that's all ready to be organized with tiny clothes and other fun things. Jason did a great job with it, while I handled the important jobs like handing him the drill when he needed it.

We're also in the process of painting the top of the dresser. One more coat and I think that's done. That will leave just fun crafty projects for the nursery.

Last night we had an appointment with the pediatrician we thought we were going to go with - and we loved her! Check something else off the list. :)

My belly button is so close to popping out. In fact, I was visiting Anna this weekend and started coughing and then laughing (which always makes it pop out) and I swear it took a good 20 minutes to go back in.

I haven't been sleeping very well. Part of that is probably because I left my trusty snoogle pillow at Anna's, but hormones could also probably be blamed.

And lastly, I got my first "twins" comment this weekend. I was checking out at Walmart and the cashier asked me when the big day was. I responded that it was the middle of February and got "Oh Lordy! Are you sure there's not twins in there??" I thought it was pretty funny - she caught me on a good day.

I thought I would just answer that quiz thing every few weeks. The answers were all starting to sound the same!

26 weeks - and oh what a night!

So as of yesterday, I’m 26 weeks pregnant, have 98 days until my due date, and the baby is the length of an English hothouse cucumber. Can’t say that I’ve ever seen an English hothouse cucumber, but that’s what he is.

“The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches from head to heel. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.”

Also, here is a diagram of what he actually looks like in there now. Poor guy is starting to look a little squished! Of course, it’s only going to get worse as we go on!




So, now for the small excitement of yesterday. I’d been having the Braxton Hicks occasionally, but that’s completely normal. Yesterday, for whatever reason, they picked up. I tried to sit with my feet up at work and drink a lot of water (which was what they said to do if I had more.) By mid afternoon they were getting to be about 2-4 an hour, consistently. I called my OBs office, just to confirm that this was normal. They weren't painful and I didn't really have anything else going on. I wasn’t worried, but just wanted a little reassurance. They ended up having me come in to get checked out – better to be safe than sorry.

I got there at 4:15, they were running late - I think it was about 5 before I was seen. I gave a urine sample, they checked my cervix (all closed!), and did the test to check for something called fetal fibronectin. This is a protein that is produced during pregnancy that acts as a glue, attaching the fetal sac to the uterine lining. It’s typically present in early pregnancy, and then again later – but it should not be there between 24 and 34 weeks. They do a test to make sure that it’s negative – which means that they can be 95% certain that I will not go into labor in the next 2 weeks.

They also decided that they wanted to hook me up to a monitor to watch the “tightening” I was feeling. Because it was now after hours I had to go down to labor and delivery to have it done. Just as a precaution, I was actually wheel chaired down. It was actually nice – my OBs office is on the 4th floor of the hospital, which is the same floor as labor and delivery. They wheeled me out one door, and there I was! I had my own room (identical to the one I will have when I actually delivery – which is so nice it’s like you’re in a hotel.) I had two belt type things strapped around my belly – one monitored the baby’s heart rate, and another monitored me. I also had a little button I had to push whenever I felt him move – which was a ton! He was digging all of the excitement. :) (Or annoyed by it – hard to say.) Anyways, during the 1 1/2 hours I was hooked up they saw several of the "irritations" - nothing more though. Yay! All the tests came back fine too, except one that said I was slightly dehydrated. Apparently that, plus being on your feet more (which I was this weekend) can cause the increase in BH. Everything else is just fine and he’s staying put to cook some longer.

I was never all that worried, but it’s nice that they suggested I come in to do all of that. I love my OB (she was actually who was on call last night and who discharged me) and it was reassuring to know that everything is fine.

So that’s how I spent almost 4 ½ hours of my day yesterday! Now I’m just taking it easy and making sure to get enough water!

100 days to go!

Until my due date that is, so probably not until he actually gets here. I just can't believe how fast time is flying!!

PS - To those that read the blog in google reader, the prior post about the quilt is probably all funky. I hit publish too soon, and the pictures were all out of order then. It's fixed on the actual blog now.

PPS - To those that don't use google reader, that probably made no sense - just ignore. :)

And so that this post has a picture too, when I got done with the quilt I made a little squishy toy block!

First project = all done!

How I spent my Friday night/Saturday - in pictures:

It started out with a bunch of this:


Which then turned into this:


After sewing them all together, and sewing each row together, I had this:


Then I spent about 3 hours doing this:




To get a close up that looked like this:


And after washing it and drying it, I ended up with this amazing ragged edge quilt! I love it!!

25 weeks

Before I start with the baby update, I wanted to say congratulations to my sister! Karen found out yesterday that she got a job! She's going to be an attorney for the Department of Children Services. Yay!!

Now for the baby update .... for this week, I give you one of the ugliest pictures (it ranks up there with the gross sweet potato week) - he's now the weight of a rutabaga.



"Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. His weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but he's beginning to exchange his long, lean look for some baby fat. As he does, his wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and he'll start to look more and more like a newborn. He's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture."

This week has been pretty emotional for me. We're quickly approaching double digits (104 days until my due date) and I've gotten pretty overwhelmed. I woke up at 6:30 on Sunday just to make lists of what I need/want to get done. It will all get done and we have plenty of time, I just let it get to me.

We got the registries finished over the weekend, started some of the nursery projects, and I called and scheduled a meet and greet with a pediatrician today. When some of the projects get a bit more completed I'll be posting pictures!

How far along: 25 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +14.2
Maternity clothes: Yes! I'm actually pretty excited - I get to find a fun maternity dress to wear to my cousin's wedding that is in January. Shopping trip!
Stretch marks: Nothing new. This isn't a stretch mark, but something sort of fun - You can now see that fun line that goes straight down my belly (linea nigra.) It's getting darker. :)
Sleep: This week's fun dream involved the singing group Straight No Chaser, a train, a cruise ship, and Kermit the Frog. With things like that going through my head, no wonder I'm not getting any great sleep.
Best moment this week: I got an invitation in the mail for my first shower! It's a neighborhood/family friend one and the invitations are adorable - I cried! (See picture below) My sister and mom did such a great job!
Movement: A lot! I tried to get it on video last night but it's not a good enough recording to post on here.
Food cravings: Nothing this week
Gender: Boy!!!
Labor Signs: Nope
Belly Button in or out: Pretty close to being flat.
What I miss: Being able to sit on the floor to work on craft projects.
What I am looking forward to: Working more on the nursery
Milestones: Nothing huge that I know of

And while it doesn't fit the format of prior belly pictures, here I am last night. He's definitely in there! I actually had my first meltdown about someone's comment last night. Two people yesterday commented on the size of the bump - one who said that they didn't know how I'd make it until February with how big I was already. When Jason related that story to me, I promptly burst into tears. I can laugh now - I love my belly and what it means - last night was just a little emotional. :)

And here is the front of the shower invitation! I love it!

24 weeks

"Your baby is growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon."

I think it's amazing that he has gained 4 ounces in a week. I'm also pretty sure that if that's the case, he's well over a pound now, based on my last ultrasound when they estimated 13 ounces.

Something else that I thought was interesting, apparently in the past few weeks the top of my uterus has risen above my belly button and is now about the size of a soccer ball. The rising uterus probably explains the arrival of heartburn. I'm not sure that I've ever had it before, but it's shown up everyday since Saturday now.

Other things that have happened in the last week or so - Jason actually got to SEE him move my belly. It's pretty funny to watch - I think he was doing the hokey pokey one night. Kick your leg out here, kick your leg out there ..... and you shake it all about. Also sort of neat was that one evening he positioned himself so that I actually saw him sticking out (not sure what part of him though.) Not just a kick/punch, but however he was positioned was making my belly all lopsided.

I've also started to have braxton hicks contractions. They're completely normal, but I was surprised to feel them already. Apparently they start a lot earlier (12 weeks?), you just don't normally feel them until later. It's this sort of sudden tightening of the belly, and then it's rock hard for a little bit. As long as it's not more than a few a day, I'm ok. If it gets to be a few an hour then I have to call Dr. B. She said that if I do feel them picking up I'm supposed to empty the bladder, lay on my side, and drink lots of water.

We had our 24 week appt yesterday and all went well. She used a measuring tape, basically from the top to bottom of my belly and said that I was right on track. (Probably not the most scientific method, but it made me feel good.)

My weight gain is doing fine too. Quite honestly I was nervous. Overall I knew it was fine, but the last month has been a pretty decent increase so I wasn't sure if they would say something.

We haven't done much else in the nursery - although have tons of plans! Lots of things to make/decorate. We actually did just buy the letters to put his name above the crib - I just have to decide how I want to paint them.


How far along: 24 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +13
Maternity clothes: Yes! Now I'm looking for a coat option - mine is starting to get a little snug.
Stretch marks: Nothing new.
Sleep: I'm actually doing ok here. In fact - 8 1/2 hours last night, with only two middle of the night bathroom trips.
Best moment this week: Watching him kicking/punching
Movement: A lot!
Food cravings: There was one night that I wanted a sprite to drink. I'm embarassed to admit it, but I actually ended up in tears over it.
Gender: Boy!!!
Labor Signs: Nope - I wouldn't really call the BH contractions a labor sign.
Belly Button in or out: Pretty close to being flat.
What I miss: We were at some friends on Halloween and they had made some spiked apple cider. I'm not going to lie - I wanted some.
What I am looking forward to: Working more on the nursery
Milestones: According to my websites/message boards - 24 weeks is considered viability day. Meaning at this point if something happened, there is a chance that he'd survive, and they'd try to save him. Obviously not optimal at all, and I really have no sense of relief at being here, but I'd still consider it a milestone.