Thoughts on 2009

I wanted to take a minute to reflect on what a year 2009 has been, but first I'll update on my unplanned OB appointment this morning. For the last few days I've been feeling weird pressure in weird places, so I called the OB yesterday and they had me make a last-second appointment for this morning. Everything was good, and the nurse explained that as my uterus grows larger and moves further up and out of my abdomen I will experience more and more unusual aches and pains. The nurse also did a quick cervix check, and she described it as "long, long, long, and closed." I like the sound of that. So my mind is back at ease and 2009 can continue to end on a high note.

I have mixed feelings about this year. January through May were probably the worst 5 consecutive months of my life, and of our marriage. If someone told me in April that we would still be married and expecting a little baby boy one year from then, I would have been relieved and thrilled... and I am!! I would never want to give up the time from July until now, as I have loved every minute of being pregnant. So overall, 2009 was a rollercoaster of great highs and the lowest of lows. I'm ready for the new year, and excited for all that it will bring us (especially holding our baby boy and 4 months of summer vacation thanks to good timing on our part)!

Here's hoping that 2010 is a wonderful new year for you as well, and if you're still stuck on the IF rollercoaster (from hell), I hope it's a FERTILE year, too!!!

24w0d

Christmas has come and gone just as fast as it usually seems to. I could have received no gifts this year and been perfectly content just to be pregnant. It's truly the best gift I could ever hope for. I hope 2010 brings many of my Cycle Sista and IRL friends healthy pregnancies of their own! Too many of you have been waiting so much longer than anyone should have to.

Today we used our Christmas money to order the swivel/glider chair and ottoman for our nursery. (Click here to see it.) We'll have to wait 4-8 weeks since it's a custom order type thing, but we have time. It's so comfortable, I might even sleep in it before baby is born!

24 week update:

Current cravings: Chocolate (it had to happen eventually)

Current energy level: Great! A full week of sleeping-in has helped!

Current appetite: I can eat a lot more at a time now

Current mood: Happy

Baby movement: Sometimes I think he's throwing a dance party in there!

Oh, My Aching...

Hips! Sleeping is becoming a rather painful experience. I often wake up to find myself on my back, which makes my back hurt. But sleeping on my sides is absolutely killing my hips. Anybody out there have a good tip to help?

Otherwise, everything is going well. I had my 24 week appointment yesterday and baby seems to be doing just fine. His heart rate was in the 140s, but it took a while to locate. The nurse kept finding my heartbeat, and every time I think it skipped a beat. I kept thinking, "That's way too slow!!!" I worry much less these days since baby kicks, punches, and body spasms on an hourly basis, but I can still scare easily! And as for me, I've gained 13 pounds on the nose. I'm very happy with that. It's never been easy for me to put on any weight, and that's about the exact number the doctor said I should gain by now. Apparently it should start climbing fast now since it's time for baby to start packing it on.

My dad came into town Tuesday night. He brought his dog (a welsh corgi), who doesn't mesh too well with other dogs. Within minutes of getting home from dinner, we were peeling Shannon off of Gilbert, who clung to me until they left shortly after. My poor puppy! I already feel bad for him and how neglected he'll be in 4 months. Yesterday we decided to keep the dogs separate all day, so my dad took me shopping at Hot Mama as part of my Christmas present. My closet and I are extremely thankful! :)

Christmas this year is so much more fun and joyous being pregnant. Last Christmas we had pretty much just found out that trying the old-fashioned way was going to get us nowhere, and we were pretty depressed. I listened to the Charlie Brown Christmas CD our friends made us on a daily basis because it seemed melancholy and relaxing. I still love that CD, but now it makes me feel happy and relaxed. A much better combination. Thank God for science and miracles!!

23w0d

This is gonna be short and sweet. Brian's parents have been with us since Saturday morning to celebrate Christmas. We got some great baby loot, including a stroller travel system, a pack and play, and several adorable outfits. It's been fun visiting with them! Brian gave me my Christmas gift today. It's a plug-in back massager, and possibly the most thoughtful and perfect gift he's ever given me. Now it's time to prepare for my dad's arrival tomorrow night. I love winter break and all that goes along with it!

23 week update:

Current mood: Relaxed

Current appetite: Seems to be normalizing, maybe

Baby movement: Much to Wendy's dismay, baby has been a little sluggish the last few days. But most days he goes totally wild around 9:00pm. Hopefully that will change when he's born!

22w0d

Not a lot new this week. We registered at Babies R Us over the weekend. It wasn't quite as fun as I had imagined it would be, and it didn't help that the dusty atmosphere of the store was bothering Brian's allergies halfway through. The most annoying part though was getting home to find that when I view the registry online, no pictures show up, and only 7 of the 42 items have a price listed. It says all items are "in-store" only, so people can't even order stuff from our registry online and have it shipped. Oh no. You have to go to the store, find it, buy it, and ship it. Soooo helpful. We'll definitely be registering at Target as well.

I went to a baby shower yesterday for a friend who is due in January. It was fun seeing what she got (I was taking mental notes for our registry), but it also made me really anxious for my own shower. Part of me is still stuck in that "when will it be me?" mentality. It's weird. Unfortunately planning showers is also going to be a hassle since most people who want to throw me one live in MN, and I don't want to fly while I'm pregnant. We'll have to see how it all works out.

22 week update:

Current cravings: Nothing

Current energy level: Pretty good

Current appetite: I like to eat

Current mood: Excited for winter break to start!

Baby movement: Baby's movements are getting strong! He's quite an active little guy. :)

Here's a still frame from our video of the ultrasound. His face is on the right, looking directly at the screen.

Me at 22w0d

It's A...

BOY!!!

Ah yes, everyone I know is having boys. I guess we're just going with the flow. The ultrasound was pretty amazing, and we videotaped it for posterity. The doctor explained everything in more detail than I could sometimes comprehend. I was holding my breath a lot since I didn't know if he would say something good or bad about each organ system. Everything looked good, minus a condition called pyelectasis. Basically, the kidneys aren't draining fluid as fast as it's building up. Apparently he has a mild condition of this, and it could very well correct itself before birth. But he'll need an ultrasound 4-6 weeks after birth to make sure there are no structural anomalies within the kidneys. The doctor also mentioned that my placenta was kind of low, so he wants me back at 32 weeks to check on it. He suspected that might also self-correct as my uterus grows, and for now I have no restrictions on activity. It's amazing how I can get so much good news (brain, heart, spine, etc. look good), and all I walk away remembering are the words "pyelectasis" and "low placenta." I'll try not to worry too much...

We went out to Target afterwards and bought a boy outfit, then went home, loaded the video onto the computer, and called our parents to Skype with them. The awesome part was being able to use the screen share function to show them the video. It was fun to see their reactions as they watched.

This weekend we'll finally register. And it's time to get serious on the baby name front. Let the fun begin!!

21 Weeks

Anticipation of tomorrow's ultrasound is running high here! The poll I set up is confirming my prediction of boy. Two of our friends back in MN are expecting as well, and we're all due within a month of each other. They're both having boys, and you would think someone has to have a girl (I swear nearly everyone I know has had boys!!!). But, I still think this little munchkin has boy parts. My jaw will drop if I hear otherwise. We've devised a fun way to let our parents know tomorrow night, but I can't divulge the plan here since both grandmas actively follow my blog. :) No matter what the results, I can't wait to see what baby looks like now. It's going to be so cool!!!

21 week update:

Current cravings: Nothing

Current energy level: A little tired here and there

Current appetite: Hungry!

Current mood: Excited and impatient!

Baby movement: Baby's kicks, punches, and rolls are getting pretty darn obvious. It's amazing to see it kick through clothing. Yesterday was also the first time it felt like baby maybe discovered my bladder. For a couple minutes, every time s/he kicked it made me feel like I had to pee!

Kids Say the Darndest Things

I must look especially large today, because all of the kids were commenting about my belly. This morning it started with a classroom aide stating that I "popped." Then this adorable little kindergarden girl pipes up and questions, "You have a baby in there?!" She just kept staring at me, mostly in what looked like disgust. Later on I was holding my anger management group with two rambunctious 3rd grade boys. As I was bringing them back to class, one of them commented, "Miss, you look pregnant." Um, yes sweetie, I am. The other boy contributed this gem: "Pregnant women are always grumpy." From the mouths of babes. They seriously crack me up.