Uncomfortable

I woke up this morning having some Braxton Hicks contractions. No big deal, right?
The truth is that it really wasn't that painful, just more uncomfortable than anything, and not a very fun way to start the day. The bummer is that I stayed uncomfortable for most of the morning.
This poses a problem.
At work, or in public, or wherever I may happen to be, when people ask me how I am feeling, I can answer one of two ways: 1. I can tell the truth. 2. I can say I am fine. To be fair, #2 is usually the truth. I'm not a total liar.
If I say I am fine, people are thrilled.
If I say I am feeling a little uncomfortable, every. single. person (except Mrs. Gray). says, "If you think you're uncomfortable now..."
In the same vein as Carla's post, I'd like to change this phrase. No, I'd like to obliterate it.
Stop saying that to me. Stop telling me "this is nothing." I really don't have a lot to complain about, I know. Some girls have really hard pregnancies, and I'm so thankful I'm not one of them.
But sometimes, I am uncomfortable.
You asked.

The same goes for, "If you think you're tired now..."
That one's almost worse.

Week 29

Today officially marks my first day of Week 30, but I thought I'd share my pictures from Week 29.

Richard and I went to Target the other night to spend our gift cards. I purchased some infant pacifiers. For what it's worth, I am planning to teach my baby to suck its thumb, if it doesn't come out doing it already, but I've been dreaming about spending $3 on some infant pacifiers, just in case.

Poor Richard.

The idea that I would want to spend my Christmas money on pacifiers for a baby "we don't even have yet," completely baffled him.

"What would your mom say if she knew you were doing this?" (I think he thought my mom would have been on his side.)

"I think she would say, 'If spending $3 on pacifiers makes you feel more ready, then go ahead.'"

He didn't look convinced. In fact, he teased me all the way to the check out.

Finally, I asked the cashier for her opinion, "Did you buy things to get ready for the baby that your husband didn't understand?"

"Like pacifiers?"

"Yeah!"

"My kids all sucked their thumbs."

Ugh.

I still think my mom would have taken my side.

Hunka, hunka burnin' love...

Dear Brett Favre,
Please stop.
You are a married man.
You have a family.
I am a married woman! I'm about to be a mother!
This simply cannot go on any longer.
I will not sit in the stands at your games, no matter how many winks, waves, or dashing smiles you send my way (anymore).
I will not visit you and your mother in Louisiana (ever again).
I will not run away with you (again) while my husband who loves me is out getting me a strawberry shake from McDonald's (again, again).
I love you, too, just not in the same way.
Sure, you're incredibly handsome, wealthy and an all around good guy, but so. is. my. husband., Richard. Remember Richard? Your biggest fan? He would be crushed if he saw me riding your shoulders to victory at the Super Bowl (like last time).
Please just stop.
I'm sorry, but this affair must end.
Sincerely,
Erin


p.s. Will you please pass this message on to Prince William? Thanks!


p.p.s. Dang.

Major General Meltdown

My name is Major General Meltdown, but you can just call me Erin.

I am a highly decorated veteran and known for such meltdowns as, "Why Won't You Get a Manicure for the Wedding?!" "The Dog Ate My Cole Haans!" "The Dog Ate my Scott Sandals!" "What Do You Mean You Threw Away an Entire Set of Dishes?" and most recently "Please Stop Leaving Your Boots at the Bottom of the Stairs Where I Trip on Them Every Time I Come in the House."

I don't mean to toot my own horn, but I feel that my career is reaching its zenith at this point in my life. Without pregnancy, the "Boots Incident" never would have happened. Neither would have the "Your Dad Will Love This Christmas Present, What are You Talking About?!"

With each brilliant career, it happens occasionally that innocent bystanders get hurt. Toes get stepped on. Shadows fall over shining faces.

It is at this time that I would like to offer a Purple Heart for Valor to Richard J. Desvousges for barrelling headlong into crisis after crisis, even in the face of insurmountable odds, as was particularly the case with "Please Change the Garage Lightbulb," and "You NEVER Take the Garbage Out," coupled with "You are SO Inconsiderate!" Never shying away from a meltdown and choosing the best option for resolution, whether it be hiding out until the storm has passed or confronting the situation as it stands. Richard, please accept this medal as a token of my deep appreciation for the services you have provided and will continue to provide. Your commitment is honorable.

Well done, son. Well done.

This is Major General Meltdown, signing off.

Week 28

Kitty is bonding with DesvousJunior already!

This week, my baby has eyelashes (I hope they're like Richard's!) and will turn its head toward a continuous light from the outside. The baby is starting to put on weight for life outside the womb. It weighs 2.5lbs this week, and measures 15.75 inches from crown to heel. (Sophia was 20.25 inches long--baby won't get much longer! Just chubbier! In the last four weeks alone, Baby's weight has doubled.)
At this point, I find it necessary to tell you all that in the amount of time it's taken me to write this much, I finished off an entire pint of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie. I have never been a chocolate--or ice cream--lover, but let's put it this way: Pedro has given up on even looking my way while I'm eating.
Anyhow, Rich and I are signed up to take a weekend childbirth preparation class the second weekend in January and I am looking forward to it.
Other than the fact that I require food every two hours on the dot or I turn into a shaking mess, I don't have a whole lot else to report. : )
Next doctor visit: January 4, 2008.
Time flies when you're having fun!
I keep imagining what our baby will look like, especially since Richard and I look so different. Our features are absolutely nothing alike. Will the baby be dark or fair? Will it have freckles or a beard (only kidding...sort of)? Will it have hair? What color will it be? It's so fun to daydream about this little child poking me in the ribs. It makes the discomfort of not being able to put my shoes and socks on in the morning a little more bearable! More on that later.

Glucose Update

Another post?! I know!

I just got off the phone with Fern's nurse, Alex. She said that my numbers came back perfect, though a little on the low side. (Not sure how that qualifies as perfect...)
She said that I measured at 95, which is a little low, which may explain why I have been having dizzy spells (cue Scarlett O'Hara). She said that I really can't go more than a couple of hours without some sort of sugar like carbs or juice, but that my hemoglobin levels are fine and the fact that my glucose measured at 95 is not cause for concern.

I think I got all the terminology right here. Let me know if you see something off.

In Dreams

On Saturday night, Fern came to me in a dream.
She was at our house with us, helping get the nursery ready. Dad was insisting that the baby is a girl, and mom was insisting that no way, it's a boy!
Fern laughed and said, "Show me your belly."
I obliged.
She said, "It's clearly presenting a triangle. It's a girl."

What the crap?!
I have to wonder if she's right...
We shall see.

27 Again

Can this count as my
27 week photo? I think it's as good as any!

The Nursery Weekend

What a wonderful weekend!
My parents came to spend the weekend with me while Richard was out of town, and to help me get the nursery ready for DesvousJunior.
It was an entire weekend of baby! I couldn't be happier than when all the conversation revolves around me. : ) Just kidding. We talked about other stuff, too.
The only thing we still need is a crib, which Dad and Richard will hopefully be able to refinish over Christmas weekend.
I am so thankful to Dad who worked incredibly hard on the paint, and to Kristi who came over to help tape and spackle, and to my mom for keeping us all moving!
I couldn't be more pleased with the results (click on any image to enlarge):


Huh?

Lauren "helping" by occupying Pedro.

Dad (The Painting Guru) working on the first coat.

Kristi & Erin spackling between coats.

Papa Duffert & Erin consolidating paint.

The changing table and ever-present Diaper Genie.
Lamp and dresser that will either turn cherry or lime green sometime in the near future...

You can see that the room is a nursery / Mandi / Papa & Grandma Duffert's room... Note the twin beds on either side of the window.

Week 27

I went in for my glucose test today.
It's funny that everybody talks about how everybody talks about how bad it is, but it's really not that bad.
Well, I'm not going to do that.
I didn't mind the drink. What I minded was that everybody wanted to chat while I was trying to drink it. The nurse and lab tech wanted to know all about my Christmas plans, how I'm feeling, etc., so that I felt rude trying to drink something in front of them. Go figure.
About an hour after I finished the beverage, I started feeling light-headed and dizzy, along with the same tunnel vision and sweaty shakiness that I experienced on Wednesday night. No one seemed concerned and as soon as I stuffed. my. face. for lunch I started feeling better. I'm interested to find out the results of the test. If I had to guess, I'd say I seem to be having some blood sugar issues...
My stats from today's visit:
BP: 122/72
Fundal Height: 27.5cm (perfect!)
Baby's heartrate: 156--much higher than last month!
Total weight gain: (drumroll please!) 13 pounds!! Yahoo!



This week, DesvousJunior can open and close its eyes. Its retinas detect and process light (that little thing we call sight). Rich and I argued about what the baby can see right now when it opens its eyes. I maintain that it can see quite a bit of light, but he disagrees. : ) I think I've been feeling baby hiccups occasionally, which is pretty common from here on out. Baby also weighs right around two pounds, depending on who you ask and is between 14-16 inches long with its legs fully extended.
I don't know you all are getting bored with my factoids, but I just find this stuff so interesting.

I'll keep you posted on the glucose test.
There won't be a 27 week photo of me because Rich and I forgot and now he's out of town. Maybe my mom will take one for me tonight, but no promises!

Pride? Puh! Who needs it?

I managed to do ALMOST ALL of my Christmas shopping last night.

I braved the crowds with my trusty list (which I opened today--I was checkin' it twice!--and ripped in half. GASP! Jenny, I thought of you and your precious lists :) and spent a LOT of money. It's quite the shocker when you do it all at once and you see that bill at the end of your efforts. Yikes. I was on my feet for 5 hours straight last night and I'm paying for it today. I'm tired, sore and cranky.

I was about a half-hour into my shopping extravaganza when my vision suddenly went very blurry. I began to shake and sweat and sincerely thought I would faint at the checkout. I made it to my car and sped immediately to Potbelly Sandwich Works (fitting, right?) where I ordered a peanut butter & jelly on wheat (I wanted something with a lot of sugar and protein to get my blood sugar back up), with chips, juice and a chocolate-banana malt.

I ate so fast that I'm surprised I didn't choke. I was FAMISHED, literally.

I finished my record time and immediately wanted more.

I went back to the counter and ordered another hoagie. While I was standing in line, I tried to rub my pregnant belly as much as I could in case anyone noticed that I was on my SECOND. SANDWICH. How humiliating.

The girl finished fixing my sandwich, turned around and hollered to me, "Are you going to eat this one here, too?"

Um, yep. Thanks.

New rule: Don't let your blood sugar get below FOUR when you are pregnant.

Morse Code

Dear Richard and Lauren,
Please stop putting your fingers in my belly button.
It hurts. My belly button is stretched to the max.
Love,
Erin
p.s. No, you cannot send messages to the baby through my belly button, whether spoken or in Morse Code.

Christmas Party

On December 5, my division had a "Holiday" Party. People got all dressed up for the shindig, and I wore my new dress, as some of you may remember, which did little to hide my growing body.

Earlier that day, my VP announced to the entire division in a quarterly meeting that I was pregnant. Until that moment, two-thirds of the division didn't know I was pregnant, and it's fair to say that I know or have spoken to most of the people in our group, simply because of the nature of my job.

So...at the Christmas--I mean Holiday--party, I not only unveiled my baby bump, but my secret was out ahead of me.

I kid you not, I couldn't get from the table to the buffet and back in under 15 minutes. Everyone wanted to congratulate me, or tell me they had no idea, tell me stories about their own children, or simply shake my hand. Surprisingly enough, no one tried to touch my belly.

It sounds silly, but it all made me feel so special. What a special memory--the Vice President cared enough to announce it, and everyone else cared enough to share in our joy. People were practically falling over themselves to congratulate Richard and I.

A very sweet Christmas and Pregnancy memory.

Week 26

I am so behind!

Week 26 was definitely a good week for me. I remember Naomi saying that she was ready to be done being pregnant by the end of her pregnancy and at this point, I guess I just don't feel that way! I reserve the right to change my mind, however...

In week 26, I had SERIOUS oatmeal cravings. Plain. I could eat it by the pint, gallon or fluid ounce--however we measure oatmeal. I also craved CocaCola, which caused a bit of a dilemma. CAFFIENE. I've been drinking about one caffienated beverage per day (in the morning), but wanting coke all the time poses a problem. Follow? Anyhow, I managed to find liquid gold, friends. Caffiene free CocaCola. NOT Diet. So, no caffiene or fake sugar for DesvousJunior, but if mommy closes her eyes and the coke is cold enough, she doesn't notice the difference! The only bummer is the 140 calories per can. Yikes. Some things are worth sacrificing.

I sometimes wonder what Richard thinks of my weird cravings, but he never said a word.

In week 26 baby weighed right around 2lbs (wow!) and measured 15 inches from head to foot. No WONDER I'm starting to show. If it's a boy (today, I don't think so), it's testicles are starting to descend. TMI? I don't care--I think this is all really cool.

Oh, before I forget, Lauren got to feel the baby move this week (12/8/07)! Who's next? (Noonie.)

*Yow. Not the world's most flattering pic. Sorry. Personally, I can't see a lot of difference between 25 & 26's photos.

100 Days!

My ticker* says I have 100 days to go!
Woohoo!



*Not that I put any stock in estimated arrival dates whatsoever!
It's still pretty cool. : )

I forgot

I forgot to tell you guys that Richard got to feel the baby move on the evening of Wednesday, November 21. : )
It was a fun moment for me and I think a pretty weird one for him. He said it was nothing like what he expected.

25 Weeks

I'm not keen on posting photos on the internet that show more of my skin than I would show on the beach, but this photo made me say, "Holy CRAP," when I looked at it last night. Richard said, "Yeah, you got really pregnant this week."

Here is a close-up photo of what's going on this week. *If you click on the photo, it will take you to the website. Drag your cursor across each underlined word and you can learn about DesvousJunior!
This week, Baby weighs about 1.5lbs and from head to heels measures about 13.5 inches. Isn't that cool?! It is about the size of an average rutabaga.

Baby is also beginning to "fill out" by gaining body fat. Its hair is also recognizable by color and texture, though it may change after birth.
Birth...which is getting closer and closer. I should get to work!

Advertisment

I was flipping through Rolling Stone last night and came across this ad.

I can't believe how much it looks like me and Richard!

Doubtful

Just when I start to doubt myself and my future parenting skills, or patience, or energy, God uses something fun to give me the confidence I need in myself.

Like this little man, Easton James, my cousin's little boy.

I had such a blast spending the weekend with him.

Shredding documents found in Grandma's basement. The photo didn't turn out very well, but you get the idea.

The aftermath.

Normally this sort of thing would give me a stroke, but instead (after a moment's panic, I admit)I found it highly amusing. And hey, it kept him busy.

All in all, spending time with this dolly made me very excited for my own baby to arrive.

Thanks, E-man. Love you.

Futbol

Holy crap.

I just read that this week my uterus is the size of a soccer ball.
That's insane.

1926

My great-grandmother wrote to me on my birthday to tell me what it was like to be pregnant 81 years ago. I thought it would be fun to share.

Dear Erin:
I do wish you a very, very happy birthday. I'm sure Richard has something big planned for you. First of all, I want to tell you what it was like to be pregnant in 1926. I didn't go to the doctor right away. Nobody did. But in the 2nd month when my morning sickness was so bad, I went to see what the doctor would suggest. Mainly, it was just grin and bear it! Not to eat anything in the morning with milk in it and just something dry. Mine sometimes lasted all day. So, then he started to give me other orders for pregnancy. Be careful what you eat. Eat a well balanced diet, including plenty of calcium so your baby will have strong bones. Important to do exercises, not strenuous, but walking a lot. The next thing was to be sure you wore a girdle. In those days there weren't stretch girdles, they were all corsets, so he said to buy a corset with laces so you could make it bigger. His explanation was that you needed something to help you hold up the load in your belly. If the muscles had to do it all themselves they would stretch out too much. By giving support, they would regain their normal condition after giving birth. I didn't go every month, but went at about 4 months and he asked if I felt life yet and I said "no" and he said in about 2 weeks I would and he was right. So from then on it should have been 4-1/2 more months until I delivered. It happened that my baby was two weeks early. It was a boy, my son Charles. The doctor said it was normal for boys to be early and girls would be late. Then, after giving birth you stayed in the hospital 14 days and became so weak you could hardly walk. Then I got my mother to stay with me for a couple of weeks until I was strong and able to take care of the baby. Chicago at that time had a wonderful program for mothers and babies. Every month after the baby was born we went to a free clinic mainly to check out the baby, see if it had gained the right amount, if everything was normal and to be sure to continue breast feeding. If you had too much milk, they suggested you get a breast pump and pump out the extra milk. That way it was always fresh. And, of course, every other breast every day. At 4 months we would start feeding baby food. I think it was called Pablum at that time. At 6 months you could start feeding mashed potatoes or mashed carrott and things like pudding, even ice cream and from then on increase the food. So when you weaned the baby, he'd be eating on his own, drinking milk and water. The next thing they taught you when you went to the clinic in the early months was how to train your baby to be out of diapers by the time they were 15 months old. There were no Pampers, you just washed diapers. Certainly no one would have a baby in diapers at 18 months. The doctor said if the baby could say "mama" or "daddy" they could also say "potty". I took that seriously and Charles was out of diapers at 15 months and Shirley at 14 months. If you had a child that wet the bed, it was not a lack of training it was some ailment the child had and you just had to wait until the child outgrew it. So that was my pregnancy in 1926. In 1928 when I was carrying Shirley, I didn't do so good. I ate too much and I gained too much weight and so did my baby. My first baby was under 8 lbs. Shirley was over 9 lbs. So, it is important to eat right. So much for all of that.

I thought this was a very sweet letter. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

23 Weeks

This photo was taken on the last day of my 23rd week, so I am not sure it's quite fair to call this my 23 week photo. Oh well!

I had my 23-week check up yesterday afternoon, and everything went great. I'm sure I'll regret saying this later, but Fern rejoiced (laughingly) to see that I am starting to gain weight! Finally! Ask me again in a month if I'm thankful... At this point, I've gained a total of seven pounds. 6 months along and only 7lbs? I'll take it. My bp was 120/62, the fundal height was 24cm (whatever that means), DesvousJunior's heart rate is still in the mid 140s, and everything looks great. Fern really put some of my concerns to rest (i.e. that I'm not getting enough protein and that my one caffienated beverage per day is going to kill my baby). She was very patient with me in going over my questions.

All in all, a very good visit.

My next appointment is on December 14th at 11am. Where we will be doing my glucose test. I really can't believe how fast this is going.

Thank goodness my nursery set arrived in the mail. Now I feel like I can start to really get ready!

Not Yet

I find myself repeating the same lines to different people.
"I'm almost 6 months pregnant!"
"I know, I can hardly believe it myself."
"I'm feeling really great, thanks!"
"I feel human again now that I'm in my second trimester."
"Ha. Ha. I know it doesn't show, but I can feel it flopping arond all the time." (This one in particular is getting pretty old.)
So, today, I said one I've been saying over and over to a woman I only talk to every once in a while:
"It just occurred to me this week that I'm almost 6 months along and I'm not ready!"
She said, "You're not?! Yikes. You'd better get to work!"

Um, thanks.

What's up?

One of my more troublesome guys called me into his office today to "chat."
He told me to take a seat.
How was I doing? How was the baby? Tell him about quilting.
I couldn't help but wonder, "What does he want?" the entire time.
Turns out, nothing.
I made the comment that I'm almost 6 months pregnant (I know!) "even though you can't really tell," and he said, "No, I can tell. Guys just don't really know what to say so we end up teasing a lot."
I just thought that was so nice.

In week 22, baby weighed-in at 1lb! (That's a package of hamburger meat! Or something less gross...) It measures over 10 inches long from head to heel. Its eyebrows are grown in, and teethbuds are showing beneath the gumline. Its lips and eyes are developed, though the irises of the eyes have not reached their full color potential yet.
I'm actually 23 weeks this week, so I will post more updated statistics later this week. I have another check up appointment on Friday afternoon.

Nuke 'Em

I brought in the rest of the cake from Naomi's baby shower to work.

People are very confused because I haven't had my baby yet, therefore it can't possibly be named Sophia Colette (though it hasn't stopped anyone from taking a piece).

Our VP just said to me, "Erin! What's the deal? Are you on the microwave plan for making babies? That was fast!"

I'm still chuckling about it.

I thought that was a good one.

Week 22

I looked at these photos tonight and said, "Wow! I look pregnant!"

Richard thinks there's been a big change in the last three weeks, but I guess I'm still not sure. For comparison's sake, here's 19 weeks.
(I'm not doing very well at taking weekly photos...)

I'm standing a lot different in the two photos. I can't tell if it makes a difference. Thoughts?

Aren't you glad I found the "pretty paper" again??

Tweener

OK.

I wore my "new" maternity jeans today (read: new as in I bought them two weeks ago and have not yet washed them because I'm afraid they'll shrink), which are really just too short. I was so excited about them initially and now I'm just feeling discouraged and frumpy.

I chose a fitted long-sleeved t-shirt and coordinating cardigan to wear with the jeans in the hopes of looking SOMEWHAT pregnant since my boss made another comment the other day. For some reason I'm desperate to prove that I actually am pregnant. (By the way, wearing jeans to work on a Friday is a MAJOR treat.)

Well, I got to work and discovered that if I wear my jeans low enough to make them long enough, the elasto-band squishes my sides and reveals my belly-button making me look flabby--NOT pregnant.

Is it appropriate to wear an oversized sweatshirt for the rest of the day?

See? Too short.

And yes, I wear crazy shoes.

It took major planning to take this photo. I nearly got caught twice. How would I explain this to my boss or co-workers?

Stronger

DesvousJunior's movements are getting a lot stronger.
I keep thinking my stomach is falling out, when really it's just a strong movement. Weird, huh?
Baby is the size of a large banana or carrot, which seems awfully skinny to me...
It weighs 3/4 lbs and is about 10 inches long from head to heel.


















I'm feeling very good these days (aside from my little neck issue) and am enjoying pregnancy quite a lot, though I find myself longing for the good old days when I wasn't "showing" and nobody cared if I drank a caffienated beverage, ate a soft cheese, or an extra piece of candy.

My conversations go like this:
Them: Do you know that has caffiene in it?
Me: Yes, I'm allowed to have up to 350mg of caffeine per day.

Them: Should you be eating that? It comes with blue cheese.
Me: It's pasteurized. I checked.

Them: Tuna for lunch? I thought that was off limits.
Me: Once a week is fine.

Them: Another coke? Are you sure you should do that?
Me: I want my baby to have a low birthweight. I stopped smoking last week. What else do you want from me??

I could go on.
Obviously, I don't want my child to have a low birthweight...answering that way usually stops people in their tracks. I KNOW it's only going to get worse from here, but some days I get really tired of everyone's "help."

Per Swampy's Request

Here is a link to our registry.

Please note, some of these items may change depending on which nursery decoration set I decide to go with.

I'm SO NOT putting this up so you can buy me stuff. Swampy asked.

Please don't read this as greedy.

Things I've heard so far today:

"Are you ever gonna start showing?"
"You're starting to show!"
"The weight of your belly could be causing your back problems."
"That doesn't look like a very healthy lunch!"
"How are you feeling? Do you feel like a million bucks?"
"You gotta remember, you're eating for two...or three."
"Are you super horny these days?"
"Your hair looks really great lately."
"Your skin is breaking out a little."

And it's only noon.

Registered

We went this weekend to register for baby gifts at Babies R Us.
It went very well. Better than I anticipated, in fact.
I have registed for 91 items that DesvousJunior absolutely can not live without.
Apparently.
I felt great about everything I got accomplished until the hormones and frustration kicked in last night. Now I'm second-guessing myself.
My biggest concern?
Decorating the nursery. I have searched HIGH AND LOW for a decoration theme that I like.
Well...I finally found one. Love at first sight--a crib bumper, quilt, window valance, all that jazz. It's gender neutral, but fun and colorful without ANY smiling animals or cheerful bugs. (My one main criteria--no smiling animals or cheerful bugs.)
I found it alright.
In Edina.
At the Galleria.
Guess how much it cost.
Just guess.


Nope.

$700.

SEVEN. HUNDRED. DOLLARS. for a blanket set that my baby will barf and poop on.
But I love it.
Now I just have to figure out how to GET it.

Name Change

OK.
Baby Ajax' name has changed.
Please refer to the human I'm growing as DesvousJunior from now on.
Pronounced "day-va*-zhoon-yer."
Thank you, Lauren. You are BRILLIANT.

*The second syllable is actually a schwa, but I can't figure out how to type an upside down e. Oh, who am I kidding. None of you care.

Per Angie's Request

Here is a photo of myself at 19 weeks. We haven't taken a 20 week photo yet, but to be honest, I think I've changed a lot even since last week! I'll try to get one up soon.

Please note--Rich was really upset that I had to switch to post-it notes in the background. I'll try to use "pretty paper" again this week!

For comparison's sake, here's my last photo, four weeks ago.

Week 20

I am officially half-way through with my pregnancy!

Can you BELIEVE it?!

I plan to register this weekend at Babies R Us. Please pray for me and that carseat aisle...

This week, Ajax is 6 1/2 inches long from crown to rump, or 10 inches long from head to feet. He or she also weighs about 10 1/2 ounces this week.

I can feel movement very frequently these days, which makes The Hus crazy. He wakes me up at all hours of the night to ask me if I can feel it. I'm confident that soon he'll be able to feel it!

I must have gotten a fresh batch of hormones last night while I slept. I'm weepy and exhausted today. I treated myself to an iced coffee from McDonald's. It's terrible, but McD's can usually cheer me up. So far, so good.

Hormones rule!

Click on the photo link to learn more about how developed Ajax is this week!

Three Word Project

Head over to BlogMommas to see others!

Itchy and Scratchy

I. AM. SO. ITCHY.
I read that I am in the "itchy stage" of my pregnancy right now, where my blood volume increases by 50%. Therefore my blood vessels, nerves and skin are all agitated. In weird places. The tops of my arms, the insides of my ankles, my hairline and the tops of my thighs. Don't forget my palms and the bottoms of my feet (which I think is mostly from swelling, which has gone down significantly).
No amount of lotion helps because it's not dry skin. It's annoyed skin.
I suggested to my mom that they should put the leeches on me--drain some of this excess off.
She has yet to respond.

In other news, SUCCESS!
Mandi and I went on a shopping mission (from God) this weekend. We found her a new winter coat and me--MATERNITY JEANS!
Hooray!
I was so excited that I "frolicked," according to Mandi, in the store, and as soon as I paid I went back into the fitting room to change and wore them home. I asked the sales girl if she had a lot of women desperate enough to do that. She laughed and said, "Oh, yes. All the time."
Who cares!!? I had no idea how uncomfortable I had been until THAT. VERY. MOMENT.
The best part? Only $17.
Yay me!

Baby Loves AC/DC

I'm not just craving Oreos lately.

I can't get enough AC/DC.

I'm burning out my iPod at work.

Is it appropriate for my boss to hear me singing "Let's get it up!"?

All time favorite?

"If You Want Blood (You've Got It)."

I DEF-initely think this means it's a girl...

Rad

I am swollen and itchy today.

Rad.

Security Guards

You may not believe me (and I wouldn't blame you), but the animals have grown very protective of me since I got pregnant, particularly the cat. In fact, Pedro's actions are what made me first suspect that I might be preggers. : )

Weird, huh?

This is usually the scene when I get home from work.

Please note the Tums and remote control(s) nearby. Essential pregnancy tools.

Ouch.

I just spent $103 on TALL pants online.
I called Richard and said, "I just had to unbotton my biggest pair of pants. It's time."
He said, "Ok."
I said, "It's going to cost about $75."
He said, "So you mean $100?"
Basically.

Ultrasound Photos

The ultrasound visit was pret-ty cool.
We saw the baby moving around like crazy, sucking its thumb, sticking out its tongue, everything. It was quite the experience. I thought for sure that I would have a million questions, but instead I was so stunned I could hardly say anything!
As we left the appointment, Richard said, "That was the weirdest 20 minutes of my life..."
Rich also insisted that the doctor make sure that the femurs both looked good and strong. (LOL)
One bummer is that the doc AND nurse both referred to the baby as HE, even though we were both very adamant that we don't want to know the baby's sex. I pointed out to Rich that we've been calling it a HE since the day we found out we were having a baby, but still...it was sort of a bummer.
If you're keeping track, baby's heartrate is 134 (so slow!!), which is another sign that it could be a boy. To be honest, I don't put ANY stock in this guessing nonsense. It is what it is, and as Brenda said last night, "You can't change it anyway!"
It was a pretty cool experience to see that little baby flopping around in there and doing baby stuff!
I could go on and on, but let's get to the good stuff. The images here are not NEARLY as clear as they were on the screen, but they give you a pretty good idea of where we're at.

3D image of baby sucking its thumb (or at least attempting to!). This made me happy since I was a thumb sucker for WAAAAY too long. : )




Baby's face. The white part is its nose, the chin is pointing to the right, and its forehead is to the left. Can you see it?

This is my favorite from the appointment. Just a foot. This is the one that makes it a REAL baby to me. The rest of the pics are sort of...creepy.



Profile view of baby.
Its head is far left, the is fist at the top, connected to the forearm and elbow, which is touching the knee.