Going Sledding with Daddy

Christmas Day

SJ meticulously removes all the bows from every gift she can reach...


Opening gifts with Pedro's help:


Sledding!

Christmas Eve

SJ gets to ride Cousin Gavin's four-wheeler!

Merry Christmas!

Sick Girl

This was Shirley Jean most of the day yesterday. Poor girl--I felt so terrible for her. Luckily, she seemed to feel a lot better today, and I expect a full recovery by tomorrow morning.

What the...? Why the...? How the...?

I guess we no longer have a full deck.

The best part? I pulled the card out of her diaper to take this picture.

26

I had a doctor's appointment last week, which went very well. BittyWee's heartrate is around 150, and my blood pressure was at 108/60, which was good to hear since I'd been having such crazy nosebleeds and headaches the week before. Fern wants me to keep a close eye on my headaches, but since week 24, I haven't really had any problems.

I don't know if you can tell from the pictures, but I feel like BittyWee has gone through a major growth spurt in the last week or so. All of a sudden, doing regular jobs are getting a lot harder, and my stomach is getting a lot more cumbersome. There isn't really anywhere for SJ to put her leg when I hold her on my hip anymore! My lap is also getting a lot shorter for story time. :)

People ask me all the time if Shirley knows there's a baby in there. I think Shirley knows something is going on, but I highly doubt she has any idea what's coming. I've been trying to use Christmas as an opportunity to teach her about babies, talking about Baby Jesus ("Beebee!!!"), etc., but I don't think any of this will hit home for her until BittyWee is here for about a week and doesn't leave. We may have an issue then. :)

I have noticed many Braxton-Hicks contractions this week. I didn't have any with Shirley. They're weird.

Anyway, here are some factoids about BittyWee:

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 (an English hothouse cucumber) from head to heel. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take two to three days.

Merrrrry Christmas.

I had my heart set on sending out my Christmas cards in tomorrow's mail so today I was on a mission. A Christmas card mission. A Christmas card mission from God.
Well, you can imagine how it went. Shirley Jean LOVED getting dressed up in her special dress and shoes, but then was not at all interested in having her picture taken. I took 109 photos, and got four mediocre photos for our card. Here is just a sampling of what I'm talking about:

My mom and husband told me to relax and walk away from it for a while, but I ignored them and forced the issue. I insisted on finishing the Christmas card with the four usable photos (I'm not kidding), and now I'm feeling insecure about it. It's too late now. Everything is paid for, sealed and stamped.

Laundry Baskets: Who knew?

Busy Bee

Excuse me, Mama, but I have a lot of work to get done.

Oh, to be 24 again.

I'm starting to get used to the fact that I'm pregnant again. (It took a while.) At this point, I'm feeling good, my appetite is good, and I'm sleeping fairly well at night. My only complaint is that getting off the couch is getting increasingly tough, and I find my growing stomach in the way more than it used to be. I definitely can't "slip through" tight spaces like I used to...
Oh, and I can't go up a flight of stairs without gasping for breath--very attractive.

Your baby's 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.

No. Thank. You.

Shirley Jean doesn't need any help getting her shoes off, THANK.YOU.VERY.MUCH.

Sunshiny Day

Every time the sun shines outside I think, "This is probably the last time..."

So, we decided to enjoy some time outside today.

If you give a Shirley a cookie...

...she's going to make a huge mess!

Extrovert, much?

We had company tonight for a few minutes, so SJ was hamming it up for the crowd...

I swear, if our next child is an introvert, we're going to think something is wrong! :)

Ultrasound Day!!!

Ultrasound Day was last week, but (like my birthday) I like to make special events last as long as possible. The technician for our appointment was incredibly thorough and we got to see everything on BittyWee from the umbilical cord to the brain, lungs, heart, stomach and kidneys. It was really exciting to see what God is knitting together for our family.

BittyWee's heart rate was in the 140's (if you're keeping track), and the tech determined that s/he is 13 ounces.

Now, on to the good stuff:

On the right side of the photo here, you can see BittyWee's face and skull.

Between his/her chin and abdomen (at the top) is the right fist.

BittyWee's Right foot. Five toes. Whew.

Profile pictures of growing babies are my favorite. They look the most "baby-like" to me.

I think this one is neat, too, because if you look closely, you can see TEETH BUDS growing in BittyWee's sweet jaw. Crazy!

BittyWee's left fist was all over the place while we were taking pictures.

The tech kept saying things like, "If we discover [this] it could mean that your baby has [this birth defect]. Let's find out!"and "Oh, I don't do 3D ultrasounds. I think they're a waste of time." I'm sorry, WHAT?!? She needed to work on her delivery a little bit. Also, I don't care what the tech thinks. If I ask for a 3D ultrasound, which I KNOW is something Stillwater offers--nay--boasts, I think you ought to be willing to push the button to show me my baby in 3D. I'm just saying.

Anyway, aside from that, it was a very good experience.

21 Weeks and Feeling Fine

Nothing much to report from this week. I had my ultrasound last week, which was really fun. We're working on uploading pictures (still). I hope to have them posted soon!

BittyWee weighs about 13 ounces and is approximately 11 inches long--about the length of a carrot. I feel kicks day and night, and have feel kicks on the outside frequently. Some of them are so sudden and hard that I think other people might notice, too. So far, no one has.

I also had my 21-week check with Fern. Everything is going great and she says I should have ten children. Rich and I still need to discuss.

As for cravings, I eat whatever I want, whenever I want it. Does that count?

Life at our house has been very drama-filled this week because Shirley Jean is cutting her two-year molars. She's not a very happy camper, and the slightest misstep on our parts can send her into a downward spiral of crying and whining. But...we shall survive.

WARNING: If you don't like photos of kids with food on their faces, don't scroll down.
For the record, I wouldn't scroll down if I saw this warning on your blog, so it won't hurt my feelings if you don't look.

"Do I have something on my face? Not here or here so much...but riiiiight about here?"

"Mama, gimme a kiss."
"I'm so funny!"

Fall Fun

We are that family in the neighborhood that slacks when it comes to yardwork. Turns out, everything is a lot more fun with a toddler. :) She REALLY wanted to help.

I figure you can never start them too early!
SJ thought riding on the tarp was FANTASTIC!

Rides at the Mall of America

Shirley Jean got to ride on some rides at the Mall of America the other night.

Here we are getting ready to go on the carousel.

Can you see us?

Riding on the train with Daddy.
She "Choo-chooed!" the whole time.

Chillaxin'

Shirley thinks it's so fun to mimic Daddy laying on the couch. I think she does a pretty good job.

Family Fun Night

Every week (or so) the three of us go out to dinner and then walk around the mall or do something together that doesn't involve the television. I've gotten to really enjoy our special time together.

Here are pictures from our night out last week:

SJ puts on a hat and says, "Cuuuuuuute!" Personally I think she's right. :)

19 Weeks and Happy Halloween

18

Rich and I tried six times to take this photo.

I don't think it shows how much BittyWee has grown in the last two weeks (which is a LOT) as well as it could, but I give up. Here's hoping for next week.

In week 18 I'm feeling pretty good. I still tire very easily, but my energy has returned for the most part and so has my appetite. I find myself feeling hungry more frequently than even last week and not being very picky about what I eat.

My latest craving? Whoppers. (The malted milk kind, not the hamburger kind.)

Potty Training 101

Lesson #1: The potty chair goes on the toilet.

I sincerely doubt that SJ is the first child to do this, but that doesn't make it any less hilarious.

Now, where are those disinfectant wipes...?

Parenting Test, Level Two

While Sophia was decorating herself tonight, Shirley Jean decorated the wall.

Then she learned how to scrub the wall.

It's hard to tell, but she is very sad...on the inside.

Scrub, scrub, scrub!