Baby Besido

2 days old :)

2010-03-07T21:37:00.000-05:00

Krewson Lee joined the world Friday morning, March 5th, at 11:32am. :)

He was 21 inches long and weighed 8 lbs 11 oz.

Dave and I are tired but doing well. Krew is healthy as can be and is eating like a champ.

Thanks so much to everyone for your prayers and support!

Our little swaddle-escaping Houdini...(he was tightly swaddled maybe an hour before this...)

40 weeks 5 days

2010-03-04T11:48:00.000-05:00

Yup, still pregnant. Getting some signs labor could start soon. I pray that it's true.

Had to go to the doctor yesterday...I was a little worried I was leaking some amniotic fluid. Turned out to be a false alarm, although the doc didn't provide any explanation as to what I WAS experiencing. (I really don't think they know what's going on 75% of the time in any case.)

I've thought and wondered and prepared for this baby to come into the world to such an extent that I'm starting to lose the excitement. I'm just tired of it all spinning in my head!! My brain is getting tired of the topic. It's ready to move on. Does that make sense?

I just pray to God daily...multiple times daily...that He will give me the patience and peace I need until this baby arrives. One day at a time...

40 weeks 2 days again

2010-03-01T13:11:00.000-05:00

Just got back from a doc appointment. I am now 2 cm dilated and 50% effaced. Whoo hoo!!!

Apparently I was her third overdue baby today. Must be something in the water. :) She asked if I wanted to be induced, and I said not until necessary. So then she said she would schedule me for an ultrasound and nonstress test for Friday, and I can schedule an induction date (probably for next week) at that appointment. However, she also said that she doesn't think I'll need to go to the appointment on Friday based on the progress I've made in less than a week. She thinks he'll arrive before then. She also said that his head is very low and that she thinks he's an average-size baby, maybe a high 7 lbs or low 8 lbs. (How can they tell this stuff??)

I've been having some good contractions lately, so I'm so glad to hear that they're finally serving a purpose. I've also had various other signs of impending labor, but I'll keep the details to myself so as not to gross anyone out. :)

Ah I feel so excited now. Not much longer!

Now working from home, so I get to stay in my sweats all day. Sooooooo much more comfortable. :)

40 weeks 2 days

2010-03-01T09:14:00.000-05:00

Dear Krewson,

All the tickers on my blog are now jamming. They don't know what to do because you haven't come yet and you are confusing them. (Actually, one or two of the blog tickers are really smart and are stating that you are overdue. The other tickers are just panicking and spitting out random dates and days. One completely quit working.)

So come on my dear son. We are ready.

Love,
Your Mommy

40 weeks

2010-02-27T17:39:00.000-05:00

Dear Krewson,

Today is your due date. So you are allowed to come out now. Just wanted to let you know, in case you missed the memo.

Love,
Your Mommy

39 weeks 6 days

2010-02-26T12:58:00.000-05:00

I'm due tomorrow. TOMORROW!!!

Actually, according to the OB-GYN, my due date is today. However, the OB-GYN and I are basing our dates off of different information, and I know for a fact that mine is more accurate. So I'm really due tomorrow. :)

Today is my last day in the work office. If lil' Snoke hasn't arrived by Monday (which I'm starting to think will be the case), I'm just going to work from home. I think my coworkers are starting to get a little nervous about me being in the office with my labor expected to start at any time. And I understand their nervousness. Especially for the ones who have not been pregnant or had a wife/SO who's been pregnant. I mean, really, before learning what I needed to know for my own pregnancy (which included the first half of my nine months), I was definitely under the impression that labor happened like they show in the movies. BAM your water breaks or BAM horrible full-blown contractions start and within one hour there's your baby. (For those of you who are still under that impression, the truth is that it very rarely happens like that. Only about 10% of women have their water break before labor, and in most cases labor starts out slow and easy enough that you can stay at home for hours before heading to the hospital.)

I'm actually quite calm about the whole thing now. When I first reached the point where I was considered full term, I got sooooo anxious. I was like, holy cow, my baby can come at any time. All of a sudden there was this great urgency and I was so excited I could barely see straight. I knew he was allowed to arrive at any time and would be healthy, so I wanted him OUT and I wanted him out NOW.

Now, three weeks later, the anxiousness has faded. The reality that he can come at any time (but ISN'T) is simply old news. I've adjusted. No more nervous nights of me twiddling my thumbs, searching for something, anything, to do. I've quit hoping every day that today will be the day. Not because I don't care, or because I don't want today to be the day, but simply because a person can only handle so much of that type of excitement. Eventually it must fade and you must settle back into life. Which is what I've done. I've become used to it. The state of being in constant limbo is now familiar and comfortable. So now I'm ready, but I'm a calm ready. Which is probably much better, anyways. :)

In any case, hopefully I will be providing you all with a birth announcement sometime soon. The day is definitely coming!!! :)

39 weeks 4 days

2010-02-24T10:59:00.002-05:00

Went to the doc yesterday. Had the awkward exam that every pregnant woman sort of wants but really doesn't want. And the results? I am a whopping ZERO centimeters dilated. Yes, that's right folks. His words were, "Nothing yet. You're completely closed."

COMPLETELY CLOSED??? SERIOUSLY???? So all this horrible cramping and back pain and contractions have done NOTHING??? Oh, this is just stupendous. Just wonderful. Labor is going to be awesome. I don't get to skip the first 3 to 4 centimeters like the majority of my friends. Nope, I get to go all the way from 0 to 10 in one shot. Sweet.

Then I mention to the doc that the baby hasn't been moving near as much as I'm used to. The doc asks, "Have you been doing your kick counts?" I told him that yes, I had, but that that is what actually concerns me. In the past, the baby has always been so incredibly active that I haven't had to do kick counts. And now all of a sudden I do need to do them. The doc asked if I got the proper number of kicks when I did do the test. I said yes. But then he said he still wanted to do some fetal monitoring.

So then they hook me up to this machine with two belts around my stomach. One measures the contraction level of my uterus, the other measures the baby's heart rate. They also gave me this little stick with a button on the end and told me to push the button every time I felt the baby move. The nurse said, "As long as baby cooperates, you'll be on here for about 10 to 15 minutes. If baby doesn't cooperate, then you'll be on here a while longer. After that, if baby STILL doesn't cooperate, then you get to go to the hospital so THEY can do the monitoring." I responded, "Well, let's hope he cooperates, then!" (Hospital! I don't want to go to the hospital!! But cooperate? What exactly comprises a baby on a fetal monitor "cooperating"?? Come on Krewson, COOPERATE!!)

So I sat there. And sat there. The nurse brought me some juice and I guzzled it down. Then I sat there some more. The baby didn't move. No budge, no nothing. The doc came in after about 15 minutes and looked at the chart that had been printing out from the machine. He responded, "Well, it doesn't look bad, but it doesn't look as good as we'd like it to." Great. "Just sit there a while longer."

Well at this point I started getting a little anxious. I'm like, ok baby, you didn't cooperate for the first 10-15 minutes. You now get one more shot. If you don't cooperate now, we have to go to the hospital. PLEASE COOPERATE!!!

After another 10 long minutes of waiting, he finally started to wriggle and roll. I was like, oh, thank goodness. He did a roll here, a roll here. A couple jabs at the belts on my waist (like I've mentioned before, he does NOT like things protruding into his space). I got to push the button quite a few times. And then the doc came in, took a look, and said, "Ah, that's what we want to see. It looks good." Thank the Lord. He stopped the machine and unhooked me, then told me I am to do kick counts three times a day, and if at any time I feel concerned I am to come back into the office for more monitoring.

Needless to say, I left the appointment feeling a bit frazzled. Zero centimeters and one long half-hour of waiting to find out if my baby is ok are a but much on the pregnancy hormones. I went home and cried to Dave for a little while, then I felt better. He acted really goofy and silly to cheer me up. As much as I hate it and get annoyed while he's doing it, it usually works. It's hard to keep crying when your husband is bouncing around saying insanely stupid things.

Ah, the drama of being pregnant And soon I will leave it to join in the drama of being a parent. :)

39 weeks 2 days

2010-02-22T12:08:00.001-05:00

BELLY SKILLZ

So here is my 39 week 2 day belly picture:

Now, I don't know if this is atypical for pregnant women, but I've discovered recently that I have the ability to suck my pregnant belly in and up...really quite far. I'm somewhat proud of this achievement. :)

Pretty impressive, eh???

I've also discovered that Krewson is laying so incredibly low in my belly at this point that I can completely flatten out my abdomen at my ribs, to the point where it's pushed back to where it was before I got pregnant. It then leaves my belly jutting out, providing a flat surface that works wonderfully as a little shelf. :) Check it out:

Haha ok does anyone else think that's just WEIRD-looking?? My body is so strange!!!

Just wanted to share my belly skillz. Hey, a 39-week-2-day pregnant girl's gotta find SOMETHING to keep herself entertained!!

38 weeks 6 days

2010-02-19T15:05:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let all you devoted readers know that as of 3:05pm today I am still pregnant and not in labor. :)

Today is Dave's birthday (happy birthday to my hubby!) and tomorrow night we are having a small get-together for him, so hopefully Krew will decide to wait until at least Sunday to get things moving. (Although he technically has another week until his due date and can wait even another week or two after that before the docs will kick him out.)

Hope everyone has a blessed weekend!

38 weeks 4 days

2010-02-17T14:36:00.001-05:00

Yesterday when the doc walked into the exam room for my 38 week checkup, he took one look at my belly and his immediate words were something along the lines of, "Well, you're just about done cookin', aren't ya?!" I thought to myself, "If you are referring to the size of this gigantic thing protruding out of the front of me, commonly referred to as a 38-1/2-week pregnant belly, then YES, I am just about done cooking. PLEASE GET THIS THING OUT OF ME." But instead I smiled and provided my typical, cheerful Kara response of "Yup!" Internal sigh.

The doc appointment went well. I've gained 37 lbs and seem to be holding steady there. Not bad. He said it's a couple pounds over what they recommend but I look fine so he's not worried. He said he thinks I've got a "good-sized baby in there" but that my body "looks good" so he's not worried about the fit during labor. (What exactly does that mean, that my body "looks good"? That my pelvis has appropriately expanded to the point where I'll never fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans again? That I look fit enough for a 36-hour labor marathon to get this "good-sized baby" out of me? Huh? What does that mean??)

But really, it was probably my favorite doctor's appointment so far. It was with a doc I'd never seen before, and he really was soooo cheerful and put me completely at ease. When looking at my chart, he even looked at my job description and asked what I do, sounding as if he really cared. I was like, holy cow, how many doctors actually take the time to even pretend to care what I do for a living?? Ummm....NONE. This guy was probably the first one ever. Which immediately shifted him into the position of Kara's new favorite doctor. He is now my top choice for the delivery of my baby. Not that I get to choose. It's luck of the draw...whoever is on call that day/night, that's who I get. And there are 8 doctors. Which puts my chances at 1/8 = .125. Hmmm...not great. But one can be hopeful. :)

I didn't get any tips as to whether he thinks I'll be on time, early, or late. In fact, he didn't check my cervix or anything. Which, I must be honest, I didn't really care about. First of all, those type of bodily "checks" are not overly fun or comfortable. Especially with a male doctor. Second of all, even if I am dilated or effaced, I've read and heard enough to know that it doesn't tell you much in terms of when your labor will occur or how long it will take. So I don't really understand the point of the cervical exams anyways.

Things I can tell you are that I am cramping daily, some days much worse than others. Back aches come and go. Lots of Braxton Hicks contractions that are getting stronger and stronger. But no pattern to anything yet. So we'll see. Hopefully this lil' Snoke doesn't plan to stay in there TOO much longer. :)

38 1/2 weeks

38 weeks 3 days

2010-02-16T09:31:00.000-05:00

My mom just emailed to tell me that her friends at work threw her a surprise "grandma shower" today. Isn't that so sweet?? They're having a cake at lunchtime, too. :)

38 weeks 2 days

2010-02-15T12:47:00.000-05:00

Baby Besido is still hanging in there!

Supposedly (I've read), I'm not supposed to be growing much more until the baby is born. I beg to differ. I feel like every morning when I look in the mirror my abdomen is extending 5 inches farther than the day before. The elasticity of the female body is truly amazing. I have yet to develop any new stretch marks to join the stretch smudge between my belly button and my belly piercing hole. I keep smothering on the lotion twice a day, praying my belly can make it another two to three (or four...dear Lord, please not four) weeks without the skin breaking any more. The stretch smudge continues to get darker and larger, and now has some little lines shooting out of it, but if I can contain my stretch marks to that then I will be one happy woman.

I worked so hard for so long to prepare for Krew's arrival, and now I've found I have everything done and nothing much to do. Work is all caught up. The house is clean. The nursery is ready. I know how to use the carseat, stroller, and bouncy seat. The monitor is set up and has been tested. I've read pages and pages on pregnancy, labor, and caring for a newborn. I even took notes on some of them and saved them in a Word document for easy access later. (Am I extreme? Yes, at times.) We've trained and prepared our dogs (yes, I bought a book on how to do that, too, and we went through the steps). We took childbirth and breastfeeding classes. I've made lists of people to contact after the birth. I've written my birth plan. I've packed my hospital bag. The list goes on and on. And now all of a sudden I've hit the end and I'm like....ok...now what?? I feel like I'm just twiddling my thumbs. Our evenings and weekends are pretty much clear because you can't exactly make big plans when your baby is due to pop out any day. Thank goodness for my Tuesday Bible study. I'd probably go insane without at least one busy evening during the week.

I think my next plan of action is to continue reading books on caring for newborns and to cook some meals and start freezing them. That will at least fill SOME of my time. Anyone want to provide some other suggestions?? Or want to provide some freezable meal recipes?? What on earth did all you other women who have had babies do during the last couple of weeks???? Help me!

37 weeks 4 days

2010-02-10T13:05:00.000-05:00

Yup, the belly keeps growing!! Here is its size as of today:

37 1/2 weeks

Miscellaneous information I've read recently that I found interesting is the following:

*The fingernails and toenails actually begin to form on the palm of the hand and sole of the foot and then migrate to their final positions at the end of each digit.

*In about another week, your baby’s foot will be slightly longer than the length of his thigh. Take a look at your own thigh to see how big that is relative to the size of your feet. Such odd proportions will change somewhat after birth.

*Within the next three days, the circumference of your baby’s head will roughly match the circumference of its shoulders and its hips. After this time, the abdomen may be greater than the head. (Krewson's abdomen was already bigger than his head a month ago. Not sure what that means. Hmmm.)

Finally, I mentioned previously that I had a very nice baby shower in Raleigh a couple weeks ago, but I haven't shared the pictures yet. So here they are. :)

Chit-chatting at the start.

Kristin and her mom, Sally, who hosted the shower.

Me and the ladies responsible for the shower.

Playing some games.

The most amazing mocha drink ever.
(Decaf, specially made for me. :))

Go Wolfpack!!

All the girls.

They made me stand up so my belly was in the picture. It looks massive.

Dave's mom, me, and Sally.

37 weeks 2 days

2010-02-08T13:14:00.000-05:00

A couple of you mentioned that whenever I don't write a blog post for a couple days, you wonder if I'm having the baby. So I thought I'd write a quick blog post to let you know that no, Krewson has not been born, and yes, I am still pregnant. (And huge. And getting huger by the minute.)

I also just read that 95% of all babies are born within two weeks of their due date. We'll pretend for a moment that statistics never lie and that that number is in fact correct. (Being a statistician, I am acutely critical of any published statistics I read, but we'll go with it for the time-being.) Since some babies are born beyond 2 weeks after their due date, this means that there is a less than 5% chance of Krew being born prior to 38 weeks. That's this Saturday (five days from now). So...you can all breathe easy at least until Saturday. Once Sunday hits and you don't hear from me, you're allowed to start wondering. (And praying that Krewson is in fact making his world debut, if you so desire. :))

I'm so excited for this little boy to be born!!

36 weeks 6 days

2010-02-05T09:56:00.000-05:00

Three weeks. Three weeks. Three weeks. :)

Dave and I finished up our classes this week. We had our fifth and last childbirth/childcare class and then also attended a breastfeeding class. I really enjoyed both of them...I learned a lot and they made me feel so much more confident about the life changes we're soon going to be facing.

My pregnancy symptoms continue to come and go. I have some days that are horrible, and others that are not so bad. The last 12 hours haven't been great. By the time we left class around 9pm last night to head home, the skin on my legs was stinging. I told Dave I knew my legs must be really swollen. We got home and I looked and sure enough, my ankles were so swollen that I could mold them like play-doh. I took a bath to relax and do some reading and propped my feet up. As I was doing that, I began to feel a burning in my throat, which quickly progressed to feeling like my entire dinner's contents were trying to climb back up my esophagus. Ironically, we were out of Mylanta, Tums, and milk. The only possible remedy I could find in the house was Pepto Bismol, which honestly didn't do much. As I was trying to fall asleep in bed, I was fighting the constant lump in my throat that was prompting me to throw up. (And strangely enough, the lump and reflux was easier to deal with when I was laying flat than when I was propped up. Don't ask me how that works.)

I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight (I'm thinking there was an abnormally large amount of caffeine in the "decaf" latte that Panera served me yesterday) and then woke up quite frequently to abdominal cramping and pelvic pain (which I attempted to relieve twice by getting up and using the bathroom). And then at the wonderful hour of 5am, I was wide awake, just laying in bed, staring at the wall. Thinking about who knows what. Babies. Feeding babies. All the changes coming up. Wondering when he'll make his appearance. I laid there until 5:45am and then thought this is stupid I'm wasting time, so I got up and began my day. I found that my ankles were still moldable (so much for swelling decreasing while you sleep) and that I was facing another random day of terrible pelvic pain. I got my zombie sleep-deprived self ready for work, headed out the door, and on the ride to work enjoyed the sudden return of burning acid reflux in my throat. I almost had to laugh. The symptoms never end. If it's not one thing, it's another. And yes, dealing with everything sucks once in a while, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. It will all be over soon. And then I'll be holding my baby boy. Which I know will be so amazing. :)

So I don't think Krew has changed much from a week ago...he's just in there getting chubby and growing his brain a bit. He's actually full term as of tomorrow...isn't that awesome!! Way to go baby boy, we made it all the way.

36 weeks, 6 days

35 weeks 5 days

2010-01-28T21:45:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was one month from our due date! Yay!! Lil' Snoke will be arriving soon!

Being pregnant for this last month has been quite interesting. I experience "prelabor" (as of a week from now, will be considered "labor") signs nearly daily. At this point I pretty much just ignore them (although I might try to alleviate them) and assume they're going to go away. Because they always do. And if I called the doctor every time I felt them, I'd be calling twice a day. I think that'd be a bit much.

For an example of what these "prelabor" signs look like, on Tuesday morning as I was getting out of the shower, I suddenly felt "menstrual" cramps and then my lower back tensed up and started hurting. I proceeded to have wave after wave of back pain. I thought to myself, Hmmm...this is definitely not normal. However, when is my body normal? I'd read and heard enough to know that it could develop into back labor, so I laid down on the couch on my left side with a heating pad against my back and then emailed my work office to let them know I'd be working from home. Sure enough, within about an hour the majority of the pain had subsided. (I ended up staying home all day just to be safe and also due to Maggie ingesting a gallon of what appeared to be cooking oil from the neighbors' garage, but that's a whole other story.) So once again, just chilling out and dealing with the "prelabor" sign on my own appeared to be most beneficial and efficient.

At any rate, lil Besido is still growing like crazy (I now measure 42 1/2 inches at my belly button but seem to be staying steady at about 30 lbs of weight gain) and has developed quite his own personality. One thing that is very obvious is that he likes having his personal space. He does not like things pressing against my abdomen. This would include my desk, my arm, or my coffee cup. Today in our staff meeting, I sat with my cup of tea on the top of my belly and giggled as I watched it go up and down, up and down, up and down. He was pushing really hard with his foot directly into the bottom of the cup, so it continuously raised and lowered, raised and lowered. About an hour prior to that, he had kicked the edge of the desk I was leaning against so hard that it made me burst out with an "ouch!". He really is good with his feet. Maybe he's following in his daddy's soccer footsteps. :)

Another cute characteristic we've noticed is that Krewson seems to love Dave's voice. It used to be somewhat disappointing, because Krew would be moving around and I'd tell Dave, so Dave would get down near my belly to talk to him and feel him move. But as soon as Dave started speaking, Krewson would stop moving. Almost every time. And of course this was sad for Dave, because he wanted to feel his son wriggling around. Over time, however, it's become a blessing, because we discovered that we could use it to our advantage. Now, whenever Krew is kicking too much and I'm having trouble getting comfortable or falling asleep, Dave gets close to my belly and talks to him. And within 30 seconds the movement usually stops and Krew settles down. It's pretty amazing, and so sweet. If that would just continue after Krew is born, our lives would be set! Easy parenting, here we come. ;)

Alright, here's the weekly pic:

35 1/2 weeks

And check out this great use I found for my belly!! It's a shelf to hold my water bottle directly at the level of my mouth, so I can sip as I desire while I work. Quite ingenious, if you ask me. :)

And here is the weekly update from all the pregnancy emails and sites I subscribe to:

Your baby should weigh between 5 to 6.75 lbs and be 17.5 to 20.5 inches long. (Based on last week's ultrasound, I'm assuming he's over 6 lbs now.)

Your baby is continuing to put on about an ounce a day in weight.

His gums are firm with ridges that look somewhat like teeth, though his actual pearly whites won't start breaking through until he's between three months and a year old.

Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in his or her little body. Most of your baby's bones and cartilage are quite soft as well (they'll harden over the first few years of life) — allowing for an easier journey as your baby squeezes through the birth canal at delivery.

Most of his systems (from circulatory to musculoskeletal) are ready for prime time.

There should be a sufficient amount of surfactant in your little one's lungs for them to work well on their own now.

By the time the baby is born, the fully developed placenta covers 15–30 percent of the space inside the uterus and will weigh 5½ pounds! The placental tissue itself weighs a mere pound and a half, but it takes 4 pounds of blood to keep it functional.

Your baby needs to eat even when you’d rather not. Several small meals a day are still best at this point for most women.

You're doing the full-term pregnancy waddle, the result of hormone-triggered loosening and softening of your connective tissue. This is your body's way of getting ready to squeeze a big baby out of a small space. Unfortunately, those loose joints can lead to some pretty serious hip and pelvic pain — but hang in there!

You’ll notice more fluctuations in your energy level this month. Fatigue is experienced by most pregnant women, but this month, you may find that fatigue alternates with periods of extra energy. Use your energy bursts wisely doing things you absolutely need to do and preparing for the birth and time after birth. Don’t overdo it, though! You might need to conserve some of that energy for later.

One last thing to mention: I had another great baby shower this past weekend. I will share pics from it soon. :)

34 weeks 5 days

2010-01-21T14:55:00.000-05:00

Ahhh, the days are passing quickly! :)

Here's your weekly picture update:

34 1/2 weeks

And for what's going on this week:

Estimates for the baby's size are from 16.8 to 20.25 inches and 4.75 to 6 lbs.
(Krewson is estimated to weigh 5 lb 10 oz, which is supposed to be about the 54th percentile. I think this matches up pretty well with these numbers.)

Most of your baby's growth over the next month or so before you meet will be in weight (with a gain of anywhere from one pound to several), not height (baby's pretty much reached the in utero limit in that department).

If you were to have your premature baby now, you'd be happy to know that there is a 99 percent chance of the baby surviving.

Lungs are almost fully developed, but if born now the baby would probably be put in an incubator. It still doesn't have enough fat deposits beneath its skin to keep warm outside your womb.

Your baby is drinking about a pint of amniotic fluid a day now and urinating the same amount.

Thanks to antibodies crossing the placenta the baby is developing immunities to mild infections.

As the mother's abdomen stretches thinner, light is visible inside the womb, helping baby to develop sleep cycles, reactions, and responses to her surrounding environment.

For me:

Braxton Hicks contractions may be getting more numerous and stronger, and discomfort and sleeping problems are common around this time. (Yup.)

Your blood pressure will probably be slightly higher than what is normal for you when not pregnant. (Yup.)

Before all this pregnancy stuff, your uterus was a small ball the size of your fist and was tucked neatly away behind your pelvis. Today your uterus is the size of a small watermelon and reaches all the way up to your ribs.

At this point in your pregnancy all the blood has gone to your belly ... literally. Nearly 1/6 of your body's total blood volume is chugging around in the vessels in your uterus. (Wow.)

In the United States, just 12 percent of companies offer paid maternity leave, and only seven percent have paid paternity leave, according to a report from the National Partnership for Women and Families. (I get a partially-paid maternity leave - I am very blessed!)

34 weeks 2 days Ultrasound and Doc Appt

2010-01-18T14:27:00.001-05:00

We had our ultrasound this morning!! It really wasn't that exciting, because Krew was so big that you could only see sections of his body on the screen. No cute profile picture like last time. The ultrasound tech did print out a couple shots of his face for us to have, which was much appreciated. But, as you can see below, even they don't show much.

A side shot of his head.

His face, looking straight on.

She confirmed that he is indeed a boy, which I was very very glad to hear. :) He's definitely head down, which is good news. And, although I'm still measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule, Krewson appears to be right about on target. His estimated weight was 5 lbs 10 oz, which is in the 54th percentile. The doc later told me that it may just be the way he's laying inside of me that is causing my uterus measurements to be larger than normal.

I asked for a copy of the ultrasound results as we were walking out, then I looked everything up online to see what it meant. Here are his stats:

BPD (diameter between two sides of head): 85.0 mm, 44th percentile
OFD (diameter between front and back of head): 113.6 mm, 64th percentile
HC (head circumference): 320.7 mm, 59th percentile
FL (femur length, longest bone in body): 67.0 mm, 42nd percentile
AC (abdominal circumference): 310.9 mm, 70th percentile
EFW (estimated fetal weight): 5lbs 10 oz
Estimated gestational age based on ultrasound: 35 weeks
Fetal heart rate: 170 bpm

Put all this information together and you can deduce that Krewson is short and fat with a squished head. Spectacular!!! :) (Don't worry Krew, we'll love you no matter your body proportions.)

I asked the doc if I could start working out again after what happened with the contractions two weeks ago. He told me to wait two more weeks. He said something along the lines of, "We'd really like him to stay in there a couple more weeks. Give it two more weeks, and then you can work out. Your weight is right on target, you don't NEED to work out. I know you WANT to work out, but you don't NEED to. So just wait two more weeks, then go ahead." In other words, they want me to get to about full term, and then if I work out and Krew pops out, all is good and well. Which I guess makes sense. Doesn't thrill me, but makes sense.

Alright, that's about all for now. Don't forget to check out our nursery pics, which I posted this morning. Dave did an excellent job. :)

34 weeks 2 days Nursery Pics

2010-01-18T09:52:00.002-05:00

Dave finished up his design on the nursery wall last night!! I think it looks great. :) The nursery is now about 99% complete...we just need to put the handles back on the dresser (after we decide if we're going to paint them or not). You can check out the pics below. :) It's a little hard to see the green on the wall in the picture, but you get the idea.

Also, I have my ultrasound in about an hour, which I'm pretty excited about. I will share pics as soon as I get a chance.

33 weeks 6 days

2010-01-15T13:22:00.001-05:00

Here are some pics from my baby shower in Charlotte last weekend! It was a good time with lots of great women. Dave's mom did a great job hosting the event. The theme was "A Baby is Bloomin'" and then there were all kinds of adorable flower decorations. So cute. There was also yummy food, fun games, and of course it was exciting to get gifts. Thanks so much to everyone who came!!

Three of Krewson's many many great grandmothers.
(Like seriously, it's hard for me to keep count, haha.)

33 weeks 4 days

2010-01-13T15:39:00.002-05:00

Just 6 1/2 weeks to go! Yay!

Little Besido is still growing like crazy. I have gained about 11 inches at my belly button and about 30 pounds overall (eek!). Looking at me, it seems like the inches should be more and the weight should be less, but I guess looks can be deceiving. The baby appears to be head-down at this point, but he switches his position quite a lot from side to side, so sometimes his back is on my right and sometimes it's on my left. And sometimes I can't feel it at all, so I would assume at those times that his back is along my spine?

And alas, I have developed a stretch mark. Or should I call it a stretch spot. I have what looks like a purple smudge between my belly button and the remains of my belly button piercing hole. (I guess that's what I get for being a rebel, hehe.) I know it's a stretch mark-spot, because when the light hits it a certain way it glistens. It's quite interesting, and I find myself staring at it quite frequently when I get out of the shower. I have yet to see any stretch marks elsewhere though (yay!). We'll see how long that lasts. :)

Here are some pics of this week:

I decided that generic smiles are overrated and wanted to provide you with a more entertaining look.

Let's play a game: Where are Kara's intestines?

A few pregnancy updates from my weekly sources:

The estimates for his length are 16 to 20 inches.
The estimates for his weight are 4 to 5 1/2 lbs.
(Since my baby appears to be on the giant-er side, I would guess he is in the upper range of these numbers. Monday's ultrasound should help somewhat confirm. [Although ultrasounds can be way off.])

During this week, the baby will grow 1⁄2 inch longer.

Over the past week, his head circumference has increased by about another 3⁄8 inch due to his rapid brain development. The critical period for the development of the baby’s brain occurs in these last months of pregnancy.

His arms and legs are continuing to fill out from fat accumulation. He's dimpling at his elbows and knees and forming creases around his wrists and neck.

The percentage of fat on his body is about 8%, compared with only 1% of his body weight at 20 weeks. At birth, his body fat will be about 15%, helping him to keep warm.

Your baby’s eyes will open during the alert times of its daily cycle, and close when he sleeps.

Regardless of the eye color your baby will end up with, right now his eyes are blue. The pigmentation process in his iris won't be complete until his eyes have been exposed to light for several weeks after birth. His final eye color may not be evident for years.

Your baby is moving around less frequently, mostly because of the cramped quarters. Of course, it may not seem as if he's settled down—now that he's so big, you can feel even the slightest movement. In fact, since your baby is right up against the wall of the uterus, you're probably getting good at guessing which body part (foot? elbow? arm?) is protruding.

Since the amniotic fluid volume has reached its maximum, you can now think of your baby as resting on the walls of your uterus rather than actually floating in a fluid-filled space. He is still bathed in amniotic fluid, of course, and that fluid is replaced continuously by your efficient system.

The top of your uterus can now be felt approximately 5 ½ inches above your belly button.

Seventy-five percent of women in their third trimester have trouble sleeping.

If your cheeks are looking as round as your belly these days, you're in good company — most expectant women start sporting that gathering-nuts-for-the-winter look in their third trimester.

Dave and I have our second childbirth/childcare class tonight, and then our ultrasound is on Monday. I will be sure to provide updates of both. :) Also, Dave's mom threw a baby shower for me in Charlotte this past Saturday...I have pics which I will be sharing soon. :)

God bless!

33 weeks 2 days

2010-01-11T12:30:00.003-05:00

Ah, today is one of those days when I'm just tired of the pain and in the mood to whine.

I have pelvic pain that radiates not only through my pelvis and hips but also down through my inner thighs halfway to my knees. Supposedly this is a result of my pelvic bones preparing for birth. Not every woman gets this pain, but I am a lucky one. Essentially, it makes it so that any movement in which my legs are not glued together hurts horribly. This includes shifting in bed, getting out of bed, putting on pants, washing my legs in the shower, walking, going up or down stairs, getting in and out of my car, shifting my position in a chair, etc. You can read about it here: Pelvic Pain During Pregnancy. When I am experiencing it, this pain tends to get worse when I work out too hard and then it gets better when I rest. However, as I mentioned in my previous post, I am on a prescription for no exercise right now. Which means there isn't really anything more I can do to alleviate the pain. I will definitely have to mention it to the doc at my appointment next Monday.

I have not had any more all-day contraction sprees, but I do get random bouts of them, especially in the evenings. They are now getting stronger, so that some of them cause me to catch my breath, and I have to pause what I am doing for a moment to let the contraction pass. I am glad we learned a couple breathing techniques in our childbirth class last Wednesday (I will share more about the classes later), because I'm getting a chance to practice them and get them ingrained in my head before the real deal comes. The contractions tend to always occur after or during doing anything physical (and sometimes in between)...this includes vacuuming, picking things up off the floor, carrying an item, going up the stairs, etc. It concerns me that I'm going to be on a prescription for no exercise for the rest of my pregnancy. Which would be bad for several reasons. A) I don't sleep well when I don't exercise. B) I get restless legs syndrome when I don't exercise. C) I am more likely to get anxious when I don't exercise. D) I can't eat as much when I don't exercise. E) I have much less energy during the day when I don't exercise. These reasons A-E are what keep me motivated to climb on the elliptical 4 to 5 times a week and are also the reasons I do NOT like being restricted from working out. (And are all reasons I encourage anyone who doesn't work out to get started!)

Add to this the horrible leg cramp in my calf that occurred at 6:45am this past Saturday morning. Both Dave and I awoke to me yelling, "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!..." as I squirmed and did all I could to calm the cramp down. Dave grappled to massage my leg as I tried to flex it as I'd read I should. I don't know how long the cramp lasted, but it worked my calf muscle enough that I have been sore and somewhat limping the two days since then. It feels like the after-effects of hopping a mile on my right leg. Pretty crazy. Leg cramps are actually quite common during pregnancy, and I get several light ones almost every night. This, however, was by far the worst one I've experienced. The others are calmed with a quick flex of my leg. This one required a whole lot of flexing and a whole lot of massaging. My friend Casey said when she was pregnant she used to wake up and just start punching her leg because she'd get them so bad. Poor girl. I now feel your pain.

Then there's other weird abdominal pains I get that I have no idea what they are. And the sciatic nerve pain that feels like a constant bubble sitting in my back above my right butt cheek, that causes shooting pain and for my right leg to collapse if I step on it wrong. And the rib pain that now occurs almost every afternoon and has me stretching my body back as far as possible while still being able to reach the computer keyboard. And the swelling that leaves my left foot (yes, just my left, not my right) so bloated that my skin stings from the pressure. And the inability to breathe. And the fluctuating body temperatures. And the insomnia. Everything is building up. To the point where I want to burst at times. (In fact, this morning, I did. I had about a 30 second cry fest all by myself as I was trying to get out of bed, exhausted from insomnia with my body aching and aching. And then I felt better (emotionally). Although, clearly not enough better to prevent me from writing this twenty-page rant about my pregnancy pain, hehe.)

And yes, yes, yes. It's all worth it. I would do it all again. Or for much longer if necessary. Any of it for my child. But it doesn't take away the fact that I am experiencing it daily and that it makes life a bit difficult at times. God is teaching me patience and endurance, this I know. I know He is using this to help mold me into the mother and person He wants me to be. But oh how I wish the molding would be over soon!! Six and a half weeks. Keep your eye on the prize. It will be over in just a month and a half and then I'll have a bundle of joy in my arms. I can't wait.

32 weeks 4 days

2010-01-06T13:28:00.000-05:00

My marathon of Braxton Hicks contractions finally ended mid-afternoon on Monday. I averaged about 10 contractions per hour all day up until that point. Suddenly they began to wane and I went back to having the occasional contraction once every hour or two, if that.

I went to the doctor yesterday for my 32 week checkup and talked with her about what had happened. She asked if I had called while the contractions were occurring and I said yes, but that the phone nurse had suggested I wait to come in until my scheduled appointment. She checked my cervix and I was not dilated at all and my amniotic sac did not appear to be ruptured, so that was all good news. The baby's heartbeat sounded great. She put me on a prescription for no strenuous activity "until this issue is resolved", for at least a week. She said she doesn't even want me running up the stairs. I'm not allowed to do my elliptical machine, either. (Which means I'm going to need to be more careful of what I eat. Boooooooo.) She told me that if the contractions start to occur again, she wants me to drink a bunch of water and lay down on my left side for an hour. If they continue after that, I'm supposed to call again.

Ironically, after being home from the appointment for just a couple hours, another contraction marathon began. They lasted all through Bible study, and then after the Bible study girls left I laid down and they seemed to decrease a bit (to about every 10 minutes). I went to bed after that, with plans to call today if they continued. When I woke up this morning, I had several in a row, and then suddenly they stopped again. I've only had a couple since then.

So we'll see what happens. It would be nice to have a reason for all this, but it may just be one of the body's many mysteries. I must admit that I'm a little worried that if I call again they'll do something crazy like put me on bed rest. I definitely do not want that. I was whining and complaining last night for the 30 minutes I was laying down due to the contractions before bed. There were just so many other things I wanted to be doing. Don't get me wrong. I love reading, playing on the computer, and watching movies with my hubby. But I had a to-do list that was calling my name and there was nothing I could do to check off a single item. So frustrating.

Anyways, on another note, my uterus was again measuring large yesterday, so the doc requested that I get an ultrasound at my next appointment to see how big the baby is. Yay! I can't wait to get another view of Krew. :) The appointment is on Jan 18th, so I'll have some pics to share after that point. Dave and I are also excited for one more confirmation that Krewson is indeed a little man and not a little woman. :)

Alright here's your weekly picture.

32 1/2 weeks. I didn't have a half-finger, but you get the idea. ;)

Thanks so much to everyone who has showed concern over the last couple of days! I really appreciate all your thoughts and prayers. :)

32 weeks 2 days

2010-01-04T13:28:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure what's going on, but I am having an abnormal number of Braxton Hicks contractions. :( I've had these quite often since the middle of my pregnancy, but suddenly this morning they became much more frequent than usual. I had 5 or 6 while I was in the shower and they were making me so uncomfortable that I laid down in bed for another hour before heading into work. They continued while I was laying down and while I finished getting ready, so I called the doctor's office on the way to work and left a message. The phone nurse called back and talked to me a bit about them, and when I told her how often they were she said that yes they should probably see me. However, my 32-week checkup is tomorrow, so she said that it should probably be ok to wait until then unless I am very worried. She said that they will be more concerned if I notice a pattern to the contractions or if I show any signs of bleeding. Neither of these things are taking place, so I seem to be fine for now. She said to take it easy, drink lots of fluids, and call back if I feel like I need to come in at any time.

I've started recording the time of each contraction once I got into work. I've had 31 since 9:49am this morning and it is now 1:27. So 31 contractions in around 3 1/2 hours. That's quite a lot. They generally say to call the doc if you experience more than 4 in an hour. I'd say I'm a bit beyond that. The good sign, however, is that the contractions are typically very short. Longer contractions are more worrisome. I really feel like everything is probably fine, but I can't help but be a little concerned. If you'd keep me in your prayers it'd be appreciated. :)

I'll provide an update whenever I get one!

God bless,
Kara

31 weeks 5 days

2009-12-31T15:41:00.003-05:00

I'm reaching the end of Week 31!! Whoo hoo!! This past week, Krewson enjoyed a wonderful Christmas riding around in my belly. So amazing that at Christmas next year he'll be nearly 10 months old!

Our baby classes start up next Wednesday, which I'm looking forward to. Supposedly we'll learn all about labor and caring for a newborn. The classes are every Wednesday night through February 3rd. Which sounded just fine until I thought about it a few seconds longer and realized that this is only 3 weeks prior to my due date. We didn't pick the dates of the classes...the hospital did...and man are they cutting it close! Hope he doesn't plan on coming too early!

Krewson's movements in my belly have gradually become bolder and stronger. No more flutters or little pokes. Nope, now my entire belly rolls and distorts and jumps. He apparently does not like it when I put any pressure at all on my abdomen. If I lean against my desk, wear pants with a tight band, or lay my arms or a book on my belly, it doesn't take long before he starts pushing and kicking back. You'll frequently see a book I'm reading bouncing up and down, and the other day I was leaning against my desk and he pushed back so hard that it pinched my skin! Crazy boy.

I tell Dave about my crazy abdomen movements and shapes all the time (and probably much more than he'd like), but it's really hard for anyone other than me to get really excited about it until they actually see them for themselves. Then last night Dave was talking to Krewson with his head near my belly, and suddenly my entire abdomen contorted and rolled and a huge lump shifted from the left to the right. Dave's eyes got wide and he was like, "Was that you or the baby?!?!" I told him it was the baby...he was pretty amazed. :)

Along those lines, I had a dream the other night that I gave birth to Krewson. Then after he was born, I still felt strong kicking inside, so the docs were like, "Oh, you must have another in there." So I gave birth to another son. Then I was freaking out about having two babies when I started feeling more kicking and the docs were like, "Well, there must be a third in there." At that point I really started flipping out. And then I woke up (thank goodness!). And now I'm thinking, it's pretty funny, but I bet Krew was tumbling and kicking me while I was sleeping, and that's why in my dreams I kept feeling kicking after the babies were born. His kicks have yet to fully wake me up, but apparently they're making their appearances in my dreams!

Lets see, what else. My first baby shower is in Charlotte in a little over a week, and I'm pretty excited. I'll definitely give an update on how it goes. Also, I made a simple bedskirt for under Krew's crib last night. That way I can use the underneath area for storage. I'll have to take pics and share. :)

Oh, this past week I thought I was getting my first stretch mark. This pink line all of a sudden appeared on my skin and refused to go away. I was certain it was going to get worse and become stretch mark numero uno. I even showed my friend Sasi at work, and she agreed, "Yep, that's how they start!" Then, after a couple days, it just completely disappeared. I have no idea what it was. I keep lifting up my belly to see if it's making a reappearance, but no sign of it yet. God apparently wants to bless me with a little more time of stretch-mark-free bliss.

I guess the other thing that's really standing out to me about pregnancy right now is the number of Braxton Hicks contractions I get. I seriously get them ALL the time. ALL day long. Sometimes they even make me catch my breath a little because my whole midsection squeezes up so tightly. My mom said she had a lot of these during her pregnancies, too, so it might just be a family thing. They really feel crazy though. Not very comfortable at all.

Alright here's a picture of me and a corresponding diagram so you can see what's going on in my belly right now. :)

Yes, that's right, that baby is huge!! I just can't believe God expects me to carry this child in my abdomen for 2 more months while he gets BIGGER. Clearly, God's ways are not my own. (See Isaiah 55:8-9.)

Here is the info from all the pregnancy updates I get. Read and enjoy.

*He weighs 3 to 5 lbs (4 lbs seems to be average) and is 16 to 19 inches in length (head to foot).

*He's entering a growth spurt. For the next eight weeks, he'll gain weight faster than he increases in length, at the rate of about half a pound a week. His appearance is similar to that at birth, but he will fill out more.

*He is beginning to develop his own immunity to mild infections. If he were born now, he could survive outside the womb and resist some disease.

*Your baby's appearance changes rapidly this week. Most of the wrinkles disappear from his face, and there may be a lot of hair on his head. In fact as the lanugo hair on his body begins to fall off, the hair on his head grows even faster. By week 32 some babies already have a thick head of hair while others have only a few strands.

*Your baby sleeps approximately 90 to 95 percent of the day now. (I would have never guess this.)

*Your blood volume has increased by 40% to 50% during the past 32 weeks. This allows your body to accommodate both you and your baby. This increased volume is also important because it makes up for the amount of blood you will lose during delivery. (Um, ok, scary.)

*You've probably gained about 3 to 4 pounds this month. Don't be alarmed—gaining a pound a week is quite normal during the last trimester because your baby's demand for nourishment increases as the baby experiences the final growth spurt before birth.

*Are you waddling? This is because the ligaments in your pelvis have softened, allowing your hips to spread in preparation for birth.

*As the skin on your belly expands, you may notice numb spots or highly sensitive areas on your upper abdomen or rib cage. (Oh yes.) This is because as your skin stretches, the nerve fibers in it stretch too. This can create extremely sensitive or insensitive areas on the skin, but this sensation will cease once your baby arrives. (Thank goodness.)

That's all for this week! Happy New Year everyone!

30 weeks 4 days

2009-12-23T12:49:00.003-05:00

Krewson continues to grow and grow!

I went in for my 30 week checkup yesterday, and everything looked good. When the doc listened for his heart beat, the strongest signal was in my lower-left abdomen. I asked her if she could tell which way Krew was laying, and she said she was pretty sure he was head-down already, with with his back curved on the left side of my body. She said the bump I've been feeling in my upper abdomen is probably his butt. So cute. :)

She also said my uterus is measuring almost 2 centimeters larger than average at this point. Apparently they'll keep a watch on it, and if I continue to measure large a little later in the pregnancy then they'll do an ultrasound to make sure he's not getting too big. She didn't say what comes after that, but I'm assuming that if he does look like he's getting too big then they'll induce me early. Which would just be crazy. You always focus on that 40-week mark and assume that's the end, but in reality you have no clue. It could definitely be earlier, and I need to keep that in mind! :)

In the meantime, as long as he's healthy and growing then I'm content. :)

Here's my 30 1/2 week pic:

And here's what the baby websites have to say about Krew this week:

He's about 16 inches long head-to-foot and weighs about 3 lbs.

From this week on, your baby will continue to gain around 1/2 pound a week until shortly before birth. So he will gain about two pounds this next month. (Remember the average size of a newborn is about 7 ½ pounds and 19 to 21 inches long.)

Chances are your diaphragm is feeling a little cramped these days. Okay, a lot cramped. That's because your uterus is pushing up against it, crowding your lungs and making it more difficult for them to expand fully. The result: Your body is spare on air, and will be until your baby drops near the end of pregnancy in preparation for birth. Your baby, however, is happy as a clam since he gets all the oxygen he needs through the placenta.

He now almost fills up your entire uterine cavity and his arms and legs have grown much plumper, thanks to the continued growth of subcutaneous fat. Your abdomen may be aching as it swells and your rib cage and pelvis may be sore as the baby gets bigger and fills up all the space you have available. It's a wonderful thing that your baby is growing so well, but it may not feel that way. You will find yourself with lots of aches and pains from the pressure and the decreased amount of room in your abdomen.

If you are feeling uncomfortable sitting, try to be more aware of your posture. As your baby is becoming bigger and bigger by the week, you will find yourself slouching more. Trying to maintain proper posture will help relieve some pain.

He's now processing information, tracking light, and perceiving signals from all five senses.

He's also putting in longer stretches of sleep, which is why you're probably noticing more defined patterns of awake (and moving) periods and sleeping (pretty still) periods.

Some babies suck their thumbs so vigorously while in the womb that they're born with a callus on their thumb.

Until next week! Merry Christmas!

29 weeks 4 days

2009-12-16T12:31:00.002-05:00

29 weeks and 3 days! Whoo hoo!!

Here's a pic of how I look this week:

What the pregnancy email updates have to say about Krewson this week:

He is about 15 inches head to toe and weighs about 3 lbs.

Space is getting really tight for the baby. He will have his knees tucked up to his chest now all the time in the 'fetal position'.

All 300 bones in the little one's body are present and accounted for now, though some of them will fuse after birth, leaving a grand, lifetime total of 206.

Your baby is now able to hear your voice and the voices of other family members and even make a distinction.

Much of the lanugo — the soft, downy hair covering your baby's body — is beginning to disappear now because both fat and the brain are regulating your baby's body temperature (so no need for that furry coat anymore).

He is able to use all five of his senses, hearing sounds and seeing bright lights in his mother's environment, and tasting, touching, and even smelling the amniotic fluid surrounding him.

His toenails have grown and are completely formed.

Lately I've been paying a lot of attention to his position. He tends to keep his back on the right side of my belly and then I can feel his kicks and flutters from his hands on the left side. I can't figure out if his head or butt is at the top of my belly, but whichever it is, I love to play with it and push it side to side. (I'm sure he just loves that, haha.)

I'm really having a pretty easy pregnancy right now. My biggest annoyance is probably the rib pain I get several times a day. You'll regularly see me trying to stretch my body out so my uterus stops jabbing into my ribcage. It can be quite painful!

I thought I'd share some pics of the nursery...it's definitely coming along. :) We are in the process of ordering vinyl sticky paper so Dave can put a design on the wall behind the baby's crib, and I'm thinking of ideas for images/words I'd like to frame and hang. We also need to put the handles back on the dresser and I have to get all the baby clothes and supplies organized.

As you can see, the color of the room looks quite different depending on the lighting.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the baby clothes are definitely stressing me out. Just to give you an idea, here are some pictures of what I have to go through:

A completely full hamper.

A pile in the crib.

A pile on the edge of the crib.

An additional pile in the closet, with some outfits already hung.

And I haven't even had a baby shower yet!!! I am very blessed, I know, but the amount of clothes we have already is just craaaaaazy. I am pretty excited to dress my baby in all of them, though. :)

28 weeks 6 days

2009-12-11T11:15:00.000-05:00

I'm trying take a weekly picture at this point since my belly seems to be growing so rapidly. So here is a picture at 28 weeks 6 days:

And here is an image to give you an idea of what Krewson looks like in there:

Yup he's getting big!!

28 weeks 3 days

2009-12-08T14:22:00.001-05:00

The third trimester has begun!! I am now 28 weeks and 3 days pregnant. Crazy.

I had my 28-week checkup this morning. I ran through the bagillion things that have gone wrong with my body over the last month (random stabbing and cramping pain after urinating, pelvic/groin pain, sudden severe UTI last Friday night...) and the doc seemed less than concerned with all of it. So I guess things are just fine. :) I also gave blood for my glucose tolerance test...prayers that my slice of toast and cup of cottage cheese this morning didn't mess it up, because I sure don't want to go back for a 3-hour exam. (And just for the record, the doc's office told me to eat a normal breakfast...but I still have this fear that it is going to mess up my glucose levels somehow and then I'm going to be stuck there with them sticking needles in me every 10 minutes for 3 hours.)

My uterus is measuring 28 cm now, which is right on target. And Krewson is wriggling around like crazy. The doc seemed somewhat surprised by how much movement he was making during the exam. She made several comments about what an active baby he was. As she was trying to listen to his heartbeat, my stomach was bumping all over. After her remarks, I felt a twinge of pride in my unborn child...like it's my first glimpse of his personality, ya know? Of course I may not feel so joyful about his never-ending energy when he's mobile and ripping our house to shreds. But for now I will cherish it. :)

On another note, Dave and I finally got the baby room painted this past weekend. We also put up the valance that my mom made and put on the cushion covers for the glider, and I really like how the room is looking. :) I will have to take pictures and share. Dave is in the process of selecting supplies from online so he can make his design on the wall behind the crib. I can't wait to see the finished product.

Speaking of baby rooms...for any of you moms out there...any suggestions on how to sort baby clothes? I've got a dresser and a closet. And no idea what to put where. Every time I go in to organize it, I get frustrated after about 5 minutes and have to leave the room. And this isn't normal for me. I'm normally quite the efficient organizer. But these baby clothes have me stumped. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. :)

And for anyone interested in Krewson's growth stats, the baby websites say that at this point he is probably around 15 inches long head-to-toe and weighs around 2.5 lbs. Pull out a tape measure and check it out. He's getting big!

27 weeks 5 days

2009-12-03T14:34:00.000-05:00

Here's a pic of me at 27 weeks, 5 days:

:)

27 weeks 4 days

2009-12-02T10:42:00.000-05:00

Today Krew and I played together for the first time. :)

He had some body part (I don't know what it was) shoved into my upper belly. So I pushed on it. And he moved it to the left. So I pushed on it again. And he moved it to the right. Then I pushed on it again. He moved it further to the right. I pushed again, and he moved it away for a second then surprised me with a bump lower in my stomach.

He apparently got tired of the game because the body part is now MIA.

It was entertaining while it lasted. :)

27 weeks 3 days

2009-12-01T10:45:00.000-05:00

Krewson's recent developments (according to all the online info I read):

*He now has his eyes open, blinks, and responds to light.
*His lungs are developed enough now that if born, with intensive care, he'd have a very high chance of surviving, with a 50% chance of not having any serious long-term complications.
*He weighs over 2 lbs and is 14-16 inches head-to-toe.
*While sleeping, he goes through the same sleep stages that we do.
*Within the last couple of days, he's begun jutting his butt into my upper abdomen on a regular basis. Then I'll feel little jabs somewhat nearby, which I'm assuming are him kicking his legs. My belly continues to visibly bump and move all over the place. It also continues to entertain me during work meetings.

We went to Indiana last week and received a ton of cute clothes for Krew from my parents, my grandparents, and my friend Jessica. Krew's wardrobe will not be lacking. :) My mom also made the valance and chair cushion covers for his room, which look great. Once we get the room painted, I'll share pictures.

Alright that's about it for now. :)

25 weeks 3 days

2009-11-17T16:43:00.002-05:00

Things are going well on the pregnancy front these days. Dave has been busy painting all of the nursery furniture, which is coming along nicely. I took "before" pics and will share everything after it's all done. I'm pretty excited to be putting the nursery together. And a little anxious. Just around 3 1/2 months to go!

Here are some tidbits I've collected this week from the various pregnancy update resources I have:

*Feel like you're carrying the Karate Kid with all the kicking going on? Your baby is actually practicing all kinds of movements that will eventually be used in life on the outside — including pedaling against your belly, a sort of prewalking skill. (I've been feeling this lately! It's crazy! When I lay down at night on my side, it feels like he's "running" against the side of my body. In a location I didn't think he'd be able to reach. Very crazy indeed.)

*Your baby measures about 9.2 inches from crown to rump and weighs almost 2 pounds now. Its hearing is fully developed. As the fetus reacts to sounds, its pulse increases. Your baby will even move in rhythm to music. (Awesome, I want to feel my baby dance!)

*During the remainder of your pregnancy you will grow about a ½ inch per week. If you have been watching your weight throughout your pregnancy and have been sticking to a balanced diet, your weight gain should be between 16 and 22 pounds.

*About 4 out of 10 babies born now may survive (with intensive care ervices).

*Look who's looking. Your baby's eyes — which have been closed for the past few months (so that the retina, the part of the eye that allows images to come into focus, could develop) — are beginning to open. What this means is that your baby is able to see what's going on now (unfortunately the view in your uterus isn't all that exciting). But do try this at home for kicks (baby's that is): Shine a flashlight at your stomach. Your baby might kick in response (as in: "Get that light out of my eyes!"). (I read somewhere that this could hurt the baby's eyes, so I think I'll resist.)

Krewson has definitely been keeping me entertained lately with all his movement. In fact, yesterday I was sitting in a work meeting when I felt him start to go crazy. I looked down, and it looked like there were fireworks going off inside my belly. It was bumping and bulging all over the place. I started to get embarrassed, so I tried laying my arm over my belly to hide it. No use. My arm started bumping all over the place. I didn't know what to do, so I just kinda tried to look around and pretend nothing was happening. It was actually quite humorous and it took a lot of self-control to keep my face straight. And now, even as I write this, I look down and you can see my belly wiggling all over. It's so amazing. I wonder what he's doing in there.

It also amazes me when I feel all the places he can reach now. Sometimes I will feel his movement way down near my pubic bone and other times it will be up near my lungs. I'm also feeling on my left and right sides, like all the way over at where you bend when you bend straight to the side. It makes me wonder where all my internal organs are currently hanging out.

In terms of pregnancy pain, I'd say my biggest complaint is that my sciatic nerve appears to be pinched and so I have constant tension above my right butt cheek. It feels like I need to crack my back or something, but nothing removes the pain. Sometimes if I stand or sit wrong, it will shoot pains all through my back, so I have to be careful about not making any movements that are too quick. I asked the doc about it and he said there's not much I can do other than Tylenol and a heating a pad. So I will just deal.

I also appear to have a mild case of diastasis recti, in which my abs have separated. When I flex my stomach a certain way (which happens to be the way most people get up from laying down, roll over, etc.), my stomach forms a triangular shape when you look down from above. When I'm flexing, you can stick a couple fingers between the two hard halves of my abs in the area around my belly button and it's complete mush in the middle. It's somewhat freakish. I've read online that if I do the type of movements that cause the triangular shape, it can actually make it worse. The link I provided above ("diastasis recti") gives the following precautions:

Avoid all activities that place stress on the midline, that stretch or overly expand the abdominal wall through everyday activities, exercise or inhalation techniques.

Some Types of Movement to Avoid
•Movements where the upper body twists and the arm on that side reaches backward, such as during a tennis serve.
•Exercises that require lying backward over a large exercise ball.
•Yoga postures that stretch the abs, such as “cow pose,” “up-dog,” all backbends, and “belly breathing.”
•Most traditional abdominal exercises that work the exterior abdominal muscles, such as crunches and oblique curls.
•All exercises that cause your abdominal wall to bulge out upon exertion.
•Rising from a supine position by rolling up and twisting at the same time. Instead, roll first onto your side, and then use your arms to help push yourself up to a sitting position.
•Lifting and carrying very heavy objects.
•Intense coughing while your muscles are unsupported.

So, um, that leaves me with about two abdominal exercises I can do. Awesome. In the meantime, it's pretty entertaining to show my friends the triangle on my belly and offer them the opportunity to feel the giant gap between my ab muscles. You can feel straight to my insides...I suppose you'd be hitting the uterus. I just hope it doesn't start bulging out like they've said it can. I don't want a perma-triangle preggo belly.

Alright, well, to finish off the post, here is a pic of me at 25 1/2 weeks, and also a diagram showing what my insides supposedly look like right now. Enjoy. :)

24 weeks 5 days

2009-11-12T11:21:00.000-05:00

I think Dave and I found a daycare!! I am so relieved. We just went and checked it out this morning. It's called Kiddie Garden, and it's run by a couple mothers who decided to open a small personal child care service. They rent a townhome exclusively for the daycare and have designated rooms for different child age groups. It's just a bit out of the way for Dave on his way to work, and actually could be on the way to work for me too if I didn't mind going that way. (The interstate in that direction gets very backed up and can add 10-30 minutes to my trip depending on the morning.) It definitely wasn't a giant, fancy, brand-new, gleaming day care, but it was comfortable and personal. I really liked the lady who would be taking care of Krewson, and the place seemed very safe and sanitary. They follow all of North Carolina's daycare regulations, and they're CPR-certified. There are usually only a couple infants there each day, and it seems like they get a lot of personal attention. And most of all, the cost is over $450 cheaper per month than where we thought we might be taking Krew. What a relief. All we have to do is put down a $50 deposit and we have a spot secured.

Thanks so much to Breanne for letting me in on this little Kiddie Garden secret. And thank God for answered prayers. :) Now Dave and I can have a little bit of breathing room with our finances!

24 weeks 4 days

2009-11-11T15:15:00.000-05:00

Well I'm over 6 months pregnant now! How crazy is that. :) I had my 24-week prenatal appointment yesterday and everything was fine. Krew started moving around during the dopplar, and we had trouble hearing his heart because all we heard was the "swoosh swoosh gurgle" of his movements. He settled down after a bit and the doc got a good listen. After my next appointment, I start going to the doctor every two weeks. It makes me excited, because that means we're on the definite home stretch. :)

Our friends Emily and Sion are due to have their baby girl tomorrow!! Last I talked to Emily (this morning) there was no word of Ellie making her appearance, but I know that Sion and Emily are quite anxious. :) I can't wait, either! Here's a pic of me and Emily this past weekend...her at 9 1/2 months, me at 6 months.

Some information on Besido Krewson's latest developments, based on various sources:

* He's about a foot long head to foot and about 1 1/2 lbs. (I'm thinking our Besido might be a bit bigger than that. My uterus yesterday measured 26 cm, which is 2 cm bigger than average.)

* He may put on as much as 6 ounces this week. That is 1/3 of his total body weight. That is comparable to a 130 lb. woman gaining 43 pounds in one week! (Pretty impressive.)

* The lungs are gaining blood vessels now, preparing them for taking over the task of getting oxygen into the blood stream.

* He is working out his own waking and sleeping periods, and they won't always coincide with yours. That explains the tap dance routine at 2 am. (Ah, yes.)

* Unborn babies respond to music, so go ahead and expose yours to lots of different types. See which ones your baby likes the best. (I think we're set in that department...he's been listening to music for quite some time now.)

I also wanted to share some pics of some items friends/family have purchased for us lately.

First, there's the little onesie that Jaclyn got me from Target. (You can read about that shopping trip here: 22 weeks 4 days.)

Isn't it so cute??

Then, while we were in Florida for Dave's ultimate frisbee nationals, my grandma gave us two more outfits.

So sweet. I like the hat. :)

Finally, my friend Vanessa (you can check out her blog over at Blue Ridge Baby) made us a little cap to keep Krew's head from getting cold. She knitted it herself, which is pretty impressive. :)

Thanks so much to everyone for all the gifts!!

I've also made some personal purchases for Krew as I've seen things on sale online. I'll have to share those in a future post. :)

23 weeks 3 days

2009-11-03T14:37:00.002-05:00

I'm thinking that our little Besido is going through a crazy-fast growth spurt right now. Nothing about my midsection feels normal. In fact, sometimes it downright hurts. My skin feels like it might snap from how tightly it's stretched, I'm finding it hard to breathe, and I'm also getting rib pain. (I looked this up online, and apparently it's normal despite the fact that none of my reading forewarned me it might happen. Check out the article here.) And you know that feeling you get when you've eaten way too much and you feel like you might explode and you just can't wait for some of your food to digest so the pressure goes away?? Yeah, well, apparently pregnancy feels like that 24/7. At least for me. Who would have known.

Top that off with plantar fasciitis in my left foot (I guess due to feet expanding, extra weight, etc.?), nightly heel pain, daily swelling in both feet, indigestion, acid reflux, back pain, and difficulty bending over or getting up from the floor or laying down, and you've got yourself one officially-pregnant Kara. Whoo hoo.

Is it worth it? You bet. Am I enjoying it? Eh...not-so-much. At least not right now. Maybe I just need some more time to adjust.

It is pretty cool, though, how much I can feel now. Today I felt actual body parts, not just a kick or a bump or hiccups. Like I put my hand on my belly and felt something hard underneath, and then the hard thing moved across my hand. It just about made me squeel out loud. It is sooooooo weird.

Oh and I had read that the baby can startle from a loud noise, but I hadn't experienced it yet. Then, this morning, I started the coffee grinder, and all of a sudden little Krew started kicking and wiggling like nothing else. It made me smile. :)

I've now gained between 7 and 8 inches in my waist at my belly button. That doesn't sound like much, so maybe a picture would be a better representation. :) Here is my 23 1/2 week belly:

Quite the change from below, at 7 weeks!!

And it's going to just keep getting bigger...

22 weeks 4 days

2009-10-28T13:45:00.002-04:00

Krewson has started getting hiccups almost daily, and I love it. There's this rhythmic "bump bump bump" that I can even feel from the outside by pressing my hand on my belly. It's so awesome. I just read about them in a pregnancy email I get, which helped confirm that that's what I'm feeling. :)

"Have you felt a light, repetitive thump thump thump in your belly yet? Soon you may feel the odd sensation of your baby having hiccups. When babies swallow a little amniotic fluid, they sometimes get hiccups as a reflex. Some babies hiccup a lot during the second and third trimesters, often daily, while others do so only once in a while. Both are normal, and a charming reminder that yes, there really is a baby in there."

It was funny the other day...I think he had hiccups, and so I was pressing my hand on the left side of my belly to feel all the bumps. Then suddenly I felt a kick on the complete other side of my belly. It caught me off guard...it's amazing how big he is getting!

The other thing I really enjoyed reading this week was the following:

"Unborn babies at this stage typically like to lie in a transverse position (or crossways inside your belly), with their feet and bottom on one side, and their head on the other side. Your baby's placenta is now processing about 1 litre of blood per hour (or 50 pints every 24 hours) and by 40 weeks this increases to about 12 litres per hour (600 pints in 24 hours)."

I love having a general idea of how he's laying in my belly. The transverse position explains why I felt hiccups on one side of my belly and the kick on the other. :)

Pregnancy symptoms are really going pretty well. I get swelling in my feet and ankles at night, which stinks, but hasn't really caused any pain yet. I do have to be careful to not wear tight shoes or socks. I also get horrible heel pain...my heels throb at night. I have to wear slippers or crocs around the house any time I'm on my feet.

I guess the other news is that my belly has expanded to the point where I'm nervous about wearing my pre-pregnancy shirts. I'm scared that I'm going to stretch them and then not like the way they fit after the baby is born. So, I'm doing my best to switch to wearing all maternity clothes (unless I have pre-pregnancy clothes that don't get too stretched when I wear them).

Oh, also, my friends Jaclyn, Ashley, and Michelle visited this past weekend, and they brought a baby gift for me and Dave...a movement and sound baby monitor!! I was so excited to open the gift...the movement monitor is something I wanted but didn't want to have to purchase on my own. In case you're not familiar with them, the movement monitors sense baby movement, including breathing. If all movement stops for 20 seconds or more, an alarm sounds. So, essentially, it alarms you if your baby stops breathing. This helps limit the number of times you run into the nursery and quietly stare at your baby until you see his chest rising and falling (which I can envision myself doing quite a bit). This particular model also has a sound monitor, which works like any other baby sound monitor. I'm pretty psyched about the gift. :)

Also, while us girls were shopping (which we did a LOT of!), Jaclyn and I fell in love with this one particular baby boy long-sleeved onesie. After arguing with myself for quite some time, I decided that I shouldn't spend any more money on baby clothes right now. Well, Jaclyn couldn't handle walking away from the onesie, so she went back and grabbed it and bought it for Krew. It was sweet. :) I'll have to show a pic of it in another post, since I haven't had a chance to take a picture of it.

Alright, well, Dave and I are flying down to Florida tonight for his ultimate frisbee nationals, so I probably won't be doing any more posts until next week.

God bless!

21 weeks 4 days

2009-10-21T14:16:00.001-04:00

Last night Debbie gave us an adorable stuffed animal alligator for Krewson that she picked up at Ikea. It totally fits our personalities...Dave and I think it's great. And it makes us giggle, hehe.

Dave said we had to put the alligator on a pillow "like he is hunting" (???). Haha, um....ok, hunny. :) So here is the "hunting" alligator. :)

Isn't it so cute?? And the colors will go well with what we're doing in the nursery. :)

Thanks for the gift Debbie!

21 weeks 3 days

2009-10-20T11:54:00.001-04:00

Krewson now weighs about a pound!! He has hair and eyelashes and can hear our voices. And if I poke my stomach to wake him up, he'll often respond with a kick. It's fun being able to somewhat interact. :) He also loves to bounce around while I'm eating, which is entertaining.

Last Tuesday night I felt my first kick above my belly button, and it really threw me off. I had NO idea he was taking up that much of my abdomen already!! But sure enough, I pulled out a ruler and measured the length that the doctor said my uterus was measuring right now, and it went to about an inch and a half above my belly button. Crazy!

Here's a little tidbit I read about the umbilical chord a bit ago and found interesting: "The umbilical cord is so well engineered that the blood stream travels at four miles an hour and completes the round-trip through the cord and through the baby in only thirty seconds." Pretty impressive, huh? I love learning things that they don't tell you in all the normal pregnancy books. :)

Other than that, I guess the big news lately is that Dave and I purchased the mother of all strollers...a Bugaboo. Dave found it in the Charlotte Craigslist listings. I was pretty against buying it at first, but he talked the seller down on the price quite a bit to the point where it was hard to turn down. Plus they had purchased a bunch of extra amenities that were included with the price. Dave was itching for a nice stroller anyway, so I gave in. We'll see what I think. The stroller is apparently supposed to do just about everything. You can read about it here: http://www.babygizmo.com/news/bugaboo.php.

To finish out my update, here are a couple pictures (and slightly different angles) of my current baby belly. Enjoy. :)

20 weeks 3 days

2009-10-13T11:47:00.003-04:00

I finally took the time to take pictures of all the clothes I got in my $30 tub off of Craigslist.

This is all the clothes I got in the tub. You can see them in batches below. (Click on the pictures to see a more close-up image.) :)

Isn't that a crazy amount of clothes?

We also received some cute baby items from some friends of ours, including clothes, toys, and baby towels, which was greatly appreciated. You can see them below.

On another note, I wanted to share the state of my disappearing belly button. As you can see below, it's getting pretty flat!!

My view. :)

And finally, a tidbit I read today that I found interesting:

"Now that his digestive system is fairly sophisticated, your little one can swallow amniotic fluid, which makes for a surprisingly nutritious drink that helps fatten him up. The steady fat gain will help keep him warm, while the act of swallowing preps his digestive system for the hard work it will do once he's born. He can taste what he ingests, thanks to taste buds that have developed on his tongue."

So cool. :)

19 weeks 6 days

2009-10-09T12:02:00.002-04:00

Last night I purchased a 20-gallon tub of baby boy clothes off of Craigslist for $30, and holy jackpot. Krewson is set. Talk about bagillions of little onesies and outfits and sleepers. Ages 0 through 6 months, and most of them in great condition, too. (There were a few I put in my Goodwill pile due to stains.) There were even some cute overalls and pants in there. And a couple caps and bibs. It took me three whole loads of laundry to get through them all. Crazy!!

I also purchased a Bumbo off of Craigslist last night. For any of you who are now wondering what a Bumbo is, let me enlighten you:

This, my friends, is a Bumbo. You stick your baby in it so he can sit on his own once he can hold his head up. Parents rave about them...I guess babies really like them because they can sit propped up and see all around. Hopefully Krewson will share in the enthusiasm. :)

19 weeks 5 days

2009-10-08T09:54:00.000-04:00

I made my first clothing purchase for Krewson last night. Ever since we found out he's a boy, I've found myself wandering into the little boys' section in every store and digging through the clearance clothes. We've got to start somewhere!

Last night I saw this adorable little newborn onesie with a hippopotamus on it for $2. Then I found matching little brown sweats for $2 also. I couldn't resist...had to make the purchase. :)

You can't tell from the picture, but the outfit is so itty-bitty!!

I like the hippo. :)

19 weeks 4 days

2009-10-07T15:07:00.000-04:00

Dave got to feel Besido Krewson move two days ago!!! I was so excited. :) It's nice to get to share the feelings with my hubby!! We were watching a movie together when I felt the baby start to wiggle, so I told Dave where to put his hand. Krew gave him a couple good kicks. It was great!

On a separate note, today we purchased our car seat for Krewson from Albee Baby. After a lot of researching and reading, we decided we preferred the Graco SnugRide in Milan. I found it on sale on Albee Baby, and after much discussion, we decided it'd be best to just go ahead and purchase it. I can't wait for it to come in the mail! (Although I'm not quite sure what I'll do once it arrives...stare at it?)

Here's a picture if you're interested:

19 weeks 2 days

2009-10-05T16:03:00.003-04:00

I felt the baby move from the outside for the first time yesterday! I was sitting down in the morning when I felt him start to wiggle, so I stuck my hand on my belly. Within a few seconds, I felt a couple bumps on the palm of my hand. It was so exciting!!! I can't wait until Dave gets to feel him. It's so surreal.

He's been quite the squirmy baby lately. I feel him quite often now. In fact, on Saturday as I was driving to Charlotte, he was twisting his body in some crazy way that kept putting a really weird pressure on my bladder. I didn't even need to use the restroom, but I was sooo uncomfortable! I have no doubt it's only going to get worse. But at least it's so exciting and comforting to feel him. :)

Here are a few tidbits I picked up from various websites:

**This week, eyebrows and head hair are growing.

**The baby now sleeps and wakes at about the same ratio as a newborn, which is approximately 6 hours awake and 18 or so hours asleep per day. When the baby sleeps, it characteristically settles into its favorite position or 'lie.' Some babies always sleep with their chins resting on the chest, while others tilt their heads back.

**From week 14 to week 22, the placenta weighs as much as, if not more than, the baby because it must deal with the metabolic processes of nutrition. The fetal organs are not yet sufficiently mature to process food.

**Generally, the baby will be born about 147 days (plus or minus 15 days) from the time the mother first feels the baby move. (This puts the baby's birth at February 10th, plus or minus 15 days. So from January 31st to March 2nd. I sure hope he doesn't come on January 31st!! That's too early!! He needs some fat on those bones!!)

And, finally, I wanted to share the most recent additions to our ever-growing collection of baby supplies:

We purchased this changing table off of Craigslist for $40, and it came with the pad and three Pottery Barn pad covers (pink, green, and blue). We're going to paint it to match the crib. (You can see the crib here.) I think (hope) the curved design of the sides will help it blend with the crib. :)

This is a bouncy seat my mom and dad are letting us borrow. I think it's pretty cute. :) It also lights up, vibrates, responds to the baby's movements, and plays non-annoying sounds (score!). Pretty cool. :)

And finally, here is a swing to match the bouncy seat, also being lent by my parents. Once again, a very-much-appreciated item!! I've heard swings can be great lifesavers.

Our collection is coming along!! Dave and I are going window-shopping tonight to figure out what type of stroller/carseat combo we want. (Travel system or separate items? What brand? How much do we want to spend? What are important features??) I'm kind of excited to go. :)

18 weeks 6 days

2009-10-02T13:16:00.001-04:00

Man I'm excited for this little stinker to be born now. Like I'm really psyched about it. I just can't wait. :)

But since I have to wait, I thought I'd share a few pregnancy tidbits from www.welcomebabyhome.com:

**Your total weight gain at this point is between 8 and 14 pounds. Of this weight, only about 7 oz is your baby. The placenta weighs about 6 oz, the amniotic sac weighs another 11 oz. The uterus weighs 11 oz; your breasts have increased in weight by about 6½ oz each. The rest of the weight you have gained is your increased blood volume and other maternal stores. Your heart is working twice as hard as it did during your pre-pregnancy days due to your vital organs increased needs for blood. Your uterus and skin need twice as much blood as they did before you became pregnant and your kidneys need 25 percent more.** (My weight gain is probably around 8-10 lbs at this point, depending on what time of day you measure it.)

**Your waste system is working doubly hard and that includes your sweat glands. Progesterone will increase your sensitivity to CO2. Your body responds by working harder to expel CO2 from your system and so your rate of respiration increases.** (And yes I do sweat a lot now!!)

**Your body is retaining more fluid and that means more weight to lug around. The volume of your blood increases by around 40%. The increase in blood volume can be more from blood plasma than from red blood cells. Feelings of tiredness can be attributed to pregnancy anemia known as physiological anemia. You will need more red blood cells to maintain your hemoglobin levels and for that you require sufficient iron.** (Ooooh. Interesting.)

**Lower blood pressure is very common during pregnancy. This is the result of your heart having to pump larger volumes of blood each minute to keep up the extra demand on your body. Dilatation of blood vessels causes the lower BP.** (Yup, I got the low blood pressure. 105/53 when I was sick, about 2 hours after nearly passing out. I wonder what it was when I almost passed out!)

18 weeks 5 days

2009-10-01T12:10:00.002-04:00

Well, now that we know Besido is a boy, I guess we can start calling him by his real name...Krewson. :) Dave had picked this name out for his son long ago, probably before we were married. It's his mom's maiden name. I was happy to comply, as I think it's a pretty cool name. We're going to use Krew for short. The middle name is still to be decided on. We're having a hard time finding something that flows the way we want. I'll let you know when a decision is made. :)

Yesterday at the doc's office, I weighed myself while we were waiting to be called back for the ultrasound. I've been ravenous lately, so I was a little nervous about what I might see on the scale. To my shock, I hadn't gained any weight since my last appt. Nothing in two weeks. I'm like, "Holy cow, where has everything I've been eating been going???" The only thing I can come up with is that our little boy requires an insane amount of food. Just today, I had a giant glass of milk and a piece of high fiber toast in the morning. By 10 am my stomach was growling horribly (and I was actually hungry far before that). So I ate another piece of high-fiber toast with peanut butter. Still hungry. So I ate another piece of high-fiber toast with peanut butter. Still hungry. I'm like, this is ridiculous. I'd been drinking tons of fluids all along, too. I didn't let myself eat anything else until 11am, at which point I gave in and pulled out some soup and chips and salsa. I'm eating these items slowly, hoping they'll last me a little longer than the bread. I'm about halfway through the bowl of soup and I think my stomach is finally starting to feel full (which will last for about, oh, 5 minutes). At least I'll feel satiated for a short while.

On another note, this pregnancy also appears to be killing my teeth. I'd heard that women tend to start getting more cavities when they're pregnant, but I never worried about it happening to me. Until I went to the dentist on Tuesday because of tooth pains. Lo and behold, I have two, possibly three, teeth that need fillings. I'm not exactly thrilled about this. I barely ever get cavities. I had one when I was really little, like third grade, and then I had a bunch at once when I was older because my sealants on my molars leaked (which means the cavities were unavoidable and had nothing to do with my personal hygiene or brushing habits). So I wasn't sure whether to be disappointed in myself or not when I found out on Tuesday that they need to drill into my head in several places. I think I'm going to vote no, that I shouldn't blame myself. If anything, I've been healthier lately in regards to my teeth. Less sugar, less coffee, stringent brushing. So I think I'll blame the pregnancy. Yay for raging hormones and a baby sucking all the calcium out of your body. Pregnancy is AWESOME!!!

But really, now that I've seen Krew and we know his gender, I feel like I can identify with him more. He's more real now. And now I just want him to come out and be born. I want to see him again and hold him. I feel like 5 months is forever to wait. I'm sure it will fly by, because there is tons to do before then, but man I wish it was closer. If anything, I wish I could go have an ultrasound every week so I could look at him and watch him grow. It's like you get this little peak at what's coming, then you just have to wait. And wait. You have a baby, but he's unreachable, because he's stuck inside of you. How bizarre is that.

At least I have his kicks to give me a little pick-me-up. They're getting stronger and more frequent now. Definitely not all the time, but I usually feel him at least once or twice a day. Sometimes there will be a whole series of kicks and I get really excited. He's actually quite the active kid. He was moving all around during the ultrasound, making it hard for the technician to get good pictures. So once he's stronger, I'll probably be feeling a lot of movement. Which will probably be fine with me. :)

18 weeks 4 days ultrasound

2009-09-30T14:13:00.004-04:00

Say hello to our little...

boy!!! :)

From the front, looking at his face and little belly.

From the side, he has his legs pulled up in front of him.

His little feet. (So adorable!!)

Scary pic of his eyeball. I think he has Dave's eyes, hehe.

A picture from the front again, showing his heartbeat (~148 bpm).

And the moment we were all waiting for...looking at his rump and legs from the bottom, with his little goods floating in between. :)

Everything checked out healthy. All his organs were in place, he was a good size. The technician said he might be a little above average, with a head-to-butt length of around 6 inches.

So there's our baby for you. :)

17 weeks 6 days picture

2009-09-25T09:42:00.001-04:00

Here are some pictures of my ever-expanding belly:

17 weeks 5 days

7 weeks 2 days

8 weeks 3 days, 10 weeks 3 days

13 weeks 1 day, 17 weeks 5 days
(Told ya I haven't grown much since I popped back at 13 weeks.
Maybe an inch.)

Growing bellies are fun!!!
17 weeks 6 days

17 weeks 5 days

2009-09-24T09:05:00.002-04:00

Last night Besido and I took a long trip to Walmart to get miscellaneous stuff needed for the new house and paint supplies for my parents. We walked up and down pretty much every aisle to get all the items on the list. About halfway through the trip, I started getting crazy bubble feelings in my lower abdomen. Like a lot of them. So either I was having crazy digestive issues, or Besido was doing somersaults. I'm thinking maybe it was a combination of both. At least some it was definitely Besido, because those weren't the typical digestive feelings I experience. They even made me giggle a little. Apparently Besido really liked the chicken and cheese quesadilla I made for dinner. I'll have to eat one before my ultrasound next Wednesday. (Ok, not really. That doesn't sound very appetizing for breakfast.)

I honestly don't understand how more movement isn't perceptible to me (or any pregnant woman at this stage). The average length of a fetus Besido's age is 5 1/2 inches head-to-rump. I mean, common, that's HUGE. Add a couple inches of legs and arms on there, that's one big wriggly non-perceivable baby. Our bodies are such impressive things.

Below is a picture of a live 18-week fetus. Blow the picture up so the length from crown to rump is 5 1/2 inches, and there you have Besido. :)

17 weeks 3 days

2009-09-22T09:20:00.000-04:00

I just read this article. This is one thing I won't be looking forward to after the baby comes, not one bit...

After the Baby: Secrets to Thicker, Healthier Hair

As it is, I already have to get my hair permed to thicken it... :(

17 weeks 2 days

2009-09-21T14:37:00.004-04:00

Well it's been an eventful past week. I got a killer cold virus that scared the crapoly out of me (because I almost passed out) and had me calling my OB and rushing to the (regular non-OB) doc. I just wanted to make sure that the sickness wouldn't hurt Besido. I apparently had really low blood pressure (like 105/53) among a myriad of flu symptoms. The doc did a flu test, and thankfully it came back negative (which means probably no risk for Besido). (By the way, have you ever had a flu test? They shove a super long q-tip-looking thing through your nostril all the way to your brain. Quite traumatic.) Then the doc sent me home with a prescription for rest, fluids, food, Tylenol, and saline spray. The rest and saline spray were probably my favorites, as they were the only two that really seemed to make a difference.

But that was last week and this past weekend. Today I'm feeling better, and anxiously awaiting the next time I feel Besido moving. (It would just be reassuring right now.) I didn't really notice any movement since I've been sick, but I'm assuming that's because my mind's been a bit focused elsewhere (moving into our new house, in-laws in town, Dave's ultimate sectionals, Jessica's bridal shower, church, etc.). Hopefully I'll feel another kick soon. :)

In the meantime, here are a few tidbits I read today about this week:

The baby will make purposeful movements now. You may notice that every time your midwife tries to use the Doppler to listen to the heartbeat, the baby 'runs' away from it. This is because the sound waves used by the devise are audible in the uterus. One study measured the decibel level as being the same as a helicopter hovering over your house. (Wow, I would try to run away, too.)
The taste buds are developed enough now for the baby to distinguish sweet and bitter. If a bitter substance is injected into the amniotic fluid she will grimace and stop swallowing. (How cute.)
My, it's warm in here. The average temperature within the amniotic fluid is 99.6 degrees F. (Holy camoly. My baby is living in a hot tub.)

16 weeks 3 days

2009-09-15T11:05:00.004-04:00

I had my 16-week appointment today, and it went well. :)

The doc said my uterus was measuring right in line with what would be expected for this time...it was about 16 cm long. (Supposedly the number of centimeters should approximately match up with the number of weeks pregnant you are.) I got to hear Besido's heartbeat, and it was just beating away. The doc said it sounded very good, and she said she thinks Besido is a girl. I asked why, and she said because the heartbeat is faster, between 160 and 170. I had read online that some people claim that girls have faster heartbeats, but I was surprised to have the doc suggest the same. In any case, I was just very happy to hear a healthy heartbeat and hear that Besido is growing well. :)

The doc asked if I still wanted to opt out of the screening procedures for abnormalities such as down syndrome, and I said yes. There is no way that Dave and I would be willing to abort the baby, no matter the results, so I didn't see the point of getting the tests done. But then I asked if any of the findings could be fixed. She said the only thing would be that if I showed positive for spina bifida, then they would do a planned c-section and be prepared to do surgery on the baby immediately after birth. Well, I definitely preferred that over not being prepared. I asked how they would do the screening and if it would cost me any money, and she said they would just do a blood test and that insurance would cover it. So I decided to have them do that screening, only. I'm really not concerned, I assume Besido is fine, but if it was free and safer for Besido, I thought it'd be best. So I let them stick me and take some blood.

The other exciting news was that the doc said I could come back in two weeks for my ultrasound instead of waiting for my next appointment in four weeks. I was pretty psyched. That means we can find out Besido's gender in just two weeks!! (That is, of course, as long as he/she doesn't sit with his/her legs crossed the whole time.) So mark your calendars for September 30th...it'll be a big day. :)

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Update to this post:

About 5 minutes ago, just about 30 minutes after I wrote this initial post, I felt the baby move!!! I was in Kristin's office talking to her and her boss, Jessica, and all of a sudden I felt this little bump-bump across my lower belly. I looked down and sure enough, it was right where my uterus would be. I completely interrupted their conversation and was like, "Oh my gosh!! I think I just felt the baby move!!!!!!!" I described it to Jessica, and she was like, "Yup, that's it." I was soooo psyched. It was the coolest experience ever!!

Way to kick, Besido. :)

15 weeks 5 days

2009-09-10T10:56:00.002-04:00

As of today, when I lay down on my back with my bladder full, I can easily feel my growing uterus, and the top of my uterus hits my belly button. (This is pretty crazy if you think about it. When my bladder's full, my uterus takes up nearly every other inch inside my abdomen up to my belly button. Wow.)

So this got me to to thinking...is my baby super big or something? Because I've read that the top of your uterus isn't supposed to reach your belly button until you're 20 weeks along. (I'm almost 16.) Hmmm. Then I thought, well, I can't feel my uterus at all when my bladder is empty, so I wonder if the bladder affects the height of the uterus.

I didn't think I'd be able to find any information on this online, but it was surprisingly easy to look up. And, as it turns out, having a full bladder can increase the height measurement of a pregnant woman's uterus up to 4.6cm (based on a study of 200 non-obese Black women between 16 and 42 weeks gestation - check it out here). Well, 4.6cm is quite a difference. So now I'm wondering...is this 20-week-belly-button estimate assuming measurement with the bladder full or with the bladder empty? I'm sure hoping it's with the bladder empty...otherwise my baby is either a) a giant or b) not one but two. (Although b) doesn't seem to be an option since I've already had an ultrasound and there was only one peanut in there.)

Below is a picture of what supposedly my insides look like at 16 weeks (which is in 2 days). Although...I don't know if this pic is completely accurate because that baby seems a bit big for 16 weeks. (Does that baby look like 4 to 5 inches head-to-butt to you?? It looks more like 6 to 7 inches to me. Of course the last time I tried to estimate 4.5 inches I guessed about an inch or more too short. So obviously my inch-estimating skills aren't the greatest.) And that white thing below the uterus is supposed to be the bladder. How would that affect uterus height? I guess if it was full, it might push the uterus up more.

This whole pregnancy thing is very interesting indeed.

15 weeks 4 days

2009-09-09T09:53:00.005-04:00

Today I discovered that I am not a freak!!!

Haha, no, but really. I found a forum where a bunch of women around my time period in their pregnancies said they were all showing. I was super psyched. And several said that they were thin and/or physically fit before pregnancy. So showing early does NOT necessarily mean I was not in good shape when I got pregnant (which many websites have suggested, leading me to quite a bit of frustration).

If you're interested in reading, you can check it out here:

Showing at 15 weeks

On another note, in case you're interested, I have not gained any more inches in my belly over the last couple of weeks. Since my last picture I posted two weeks ago, I've wavered between looking like that and looking less pregnant. However, this morning in the shower, my skin on my upper abdomen felt very tight, and my bump looks very round and perky today...so more growing may be taking place as I write. :)

15 weeks 3 days

2009-09-08T14:27:00.004-04:00

Here's the latest on Besido's development from WhatToExpect.com:

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Week 16 of Pregnancy

Listen up: Tiny bones in your fetus's ears are in place this week, making it likely that the baby can hear your voice when you're speaking (or singing in the shower). In fact, studies have found that babies who are sung to while they're in the womb recognize the same tune when it's sung to them after they are born (so choose your baby Muzak with that in mind…).

And baby's busily boning up in other ways. For one, the backbone (along with the back muscles) is stronger now — strong enough, in fact, to enable your baby to work on straightening his or her head and neck even more. Baby's crown-to-rump measurement is between four and five inches in length, and weight is hovering around three ounces.

This little one's a looker — with a face that has both eyebrows and eyelashes — but a skinny looker since there's no baby fat yet. And here's the skinny on baby skin: It's practically translucent now, so if you took a peek inside your uterus, you'd be able to see your baby's blood vessels under that thin skin.

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14 weeks 5 days

2009-09-03T15:02:00.007-04:00

A month or so ago my mom got excited and bought a bunch of new baby outfits for Besido. Now you may be wondering...do we know Besido's gender, or did my mom just buy gender-neutral clothing? Oh, neither. She bought outfits in both genders, so Besido would have a few outfits no matter what. :) Haha she's funny.

So here they are (she sent me pictures; I haven't seen them in person yet):

Pretty cute, huh? I like the girl's one with cherries the best. :) Although those little boy's overalls with the matching hat are pretty adorable, too!
Thanks, Mom!

On another note, this week marks the end of my ability to go running. I'm pretty sad about this, and I figure the pups are going to be, too, since I always take them with me. Over the past month or so, I've been mostly doing the elliptical machine at the apartment gym because it's been far too hot to run outside. This past week cooled down, so I thought it'd be nice to take the dogs for a jog. However, when I went for my usual mile-and-a-half stroll around the area, things felt a bit different from normal. I felt like I was dragging 50 lb weights on each of my ankles. My legs started burning halfway through...usually they barely burn at all. My body seemed to be moving at the pace of about .2 mph. And within an hour after the run, I had aches and pains in my knees, my hips, my back, and my leg muscles. I was like, well, guess that's the end of that. Goodbye running until next spring (at the earliest). :(

So...elliptical it will be from now on. Now I'm on the search for an elliptical to buy off of Craigslist, because I won't have the apartment gym to use once we move to our house in two weeks. So if you're aware of a good elliptical for under $200, let me know. :)

14 weeks 4 days

2009-09-02T13:22:00.004-04:00

A few excerpts from some random sites:

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At 15 weeks, the bones in your baby's ear that are responsible for hearing are developing, and her taste buds are sprouting, too. From now on, she'll get a flavour of whatever you eat via the amniotic fluid. One study showed that unborn babies swallow more amniotic fluid if it tastes sweet, and less if it's bitter – pass the biscuits!

This week sees a period of rapid growth, with your baby starting to lay down fat under her skin. She's also gaining more control of her movements; scans at this stage have shown babies playing with the umbilical cord, snuggling up to the wall of the uterus, apparently for comfort, and even fighting with their twin. Your baby will probably get regular bouts of hiccups from now on, which help her lungs prepare for breathing.

- From UKfamily.co.uk

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When will you "show"? You are at a very in-between stage right now. You may not yet look pregnant to the world -- or you may have already popped out. There is a great variation in the time your pregnancy becomes visible. This usually occurs between 14 and 20 weeks.

- From 15 Weeks Pregnant: Pregnancy Week-by-Week Guide

This site suggests that your uterus can fall forward more easily depending on the ligaments in your abdomen. My new theory is that I must have very stretchy abdominal ligaments.

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This link: http://www.yourdevelopingbaby.com/sampleChapters/7.htm has some AWESOME videos of babies moving in the womb. There's even a 15-week baby doing "aerobics", so you can get a glimpse of what Besido might look like about now. I got really excited when I saw these. :)

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14 weeks 3 days

2009-09-01T08:53:00.007-04:00

So according to the pregnancy emails I receive, Besido could now be up to 4 1/2 inches long. (That's 4 1/2 inches CRL, or crown-to-rump, or head-to-butt. In other words, it doesn't include the legs.) I read this at work and held up my fingers and guesstimated about how long that would be. I was somewhat impressed.

Then I went home and picked up a measuring tape so see how long 4 1/2 inches really was. I about dropped the tape. 4 1/2 inches was HUGE!!!! Seriously, go get a ruler and check it out. You'll be shocked. (To all you pregnant ladies that are months ahead of me, just let me be amazed for the time-being. I realize Besido will get much much bigger.) But seriously...I held up the measuring tape to Dave and was like, "LOOK AT THAT!!!" and he was like, "I KNOW, that's why I'm saying I'm surprised you're not even bigger!" And I'm like, "How in the world does that thing FIT in there?!?!"

Then all of a sudden the realization hit me that this little creature (yes I realize it's my child, who I no doubt already love, but regardless...) is squirming around inside of me, and it kind of gave me the heebie-jeebies. I mean, seriously. It's WEIRD. The thought of bacteria or viruses being inside of me has been known to make me squirm, so the thought of a mini-human is a bit over-the-top. How in the world did God come up with this idea??

Below is a picture of Besido's suppposed relative size compared to my body. (All pregnancies advance at different rates, so he/she could be smaller. I don't know, though, the way my belly is sticking out, I think this may be about accurate...)

Crazy, huh? The picture is from WhatToExpect.com's Week 15 page. Check it out. :)

13 weeks 6 days

2009-08-28T08:59:00.003-04:00

Well, two exciting pregnancy events happened in the last 24 hours.

First, last night, Dave and I visited our new house with his dad. We met one of the guys having a house built down the street, and while we were talking the guy said, "Is it your first one?" and nodded at my belly. I was so overjoyed. I was like oh my goodness he thought I was pregnant, not a skinny girl with a beer belly! Whoo hoo!! Of course I had just eaten a large dinner, so I'm sure this made my belly even rounder than normal, but I was still ecstatic.

Second, I'd read that sometime in the second trimester you won't have to pee as much as during the first trimester because the uterus moves out of your pelvis and more into your abdominal area. Well...last night was the first time in about two months that I made it through the whole night without getting up to pee. I was pretty proud this morning, and made sure to share my achievement with Dave. He was pretty proud of me, too. :)

Aren't those two events exciting???

On other notes, I read some random pregnancy information that I found interesting and thought I'd share:

1. Healthiest babies are born to women who gain at least 35 pounds during pregnancy.

2. The average pregnant woman loses 13.5 lbs within an hour after delivery.

3. The saline content of amniotic fluid is the same as the oceans.

4. The skin of an unborn baby, if cut by a surgical incision, heals without a scar.

5. While sleeping at night, side-lying positions with lots of pillows for additional support and comfort are ideal. It is best to lie on your left side instead of the right whenever possible. This ensures that the baby receives its nutrients uninterrupted. Cross one leg over the other with a pillow in between is best for both mother and baby. This position not only optimizes blood flow to the placenta but also ensures smooth functioning of the kidneys. Efficient kidney function means better elimination of fluids and this in turn reduces the chances of odema (swelling of the ankles, feet, hands).
- What's great about this is that my left side is my preferred sleeping position, pregnant or not. It made this pregnancy task quite easy for me. :)

13 weeks 3 days Bella Band Hubby

2009-08-25T11:26:00.006-04:00

As I've mentioned before, I've frequently used a Bella band to hold my non-maternity pants up. Here is how it's used:

My husband, however, had other ideas. The other night he came into the kitchen kicking his legs up and down and exclaimed, "Look Honey, I'm a jogger!!!"

Here is a picture of him I managed to snap through the bathroom door just before he yanked the Bella band off:

Oh yes, that is my wonderful husband wearing my Bella band as a giant sweat band. Priceless.

13 weeks 1 day picture

2009-08-23T20:45:00.006-04:00

Well I'm in my second trimester now!! Yay!! :)

I'm not quite sure what happened or why, but I completely popped over the last week. All of a sudden I can barely fit a single pair of my pants or shorts on, even with the help of the bella band. Last weekend I could still hold them shut by zipping them most of the way then using a hairband around the button and through the button hole. This weekend I couldn't zip them even an smidgen. It's just crazy. I'm so grateful I've gotten a ton of maternity pants from friends, because I would be at such a loss otherwise.

Yesterday I went through my pre-pregnancy clothes to pack away what I could no longer wear and clear out the room for the maternity clothes I've acquired. That included pretty much everything except my really long stretchy shirts and shirts that flowed at the waist. Even some of my t-shirts for working out had to be packed away, because with my belly sticking out so far they no longer reached my pant line and had turned into crop tops.

So here are the pics. Besido is officially showing.

PS If you want to see all the belly pictures, go to the right-hand column under "All the happenings..." and click on "Pics."

12 weeks 4 days

2009-08-19T09:44:00.003-04:00

I'm at 12 weeks 4 days, and my second trimester starts Saturday!!
Today I read a few tidbits that I found interesting:

* Between 16 and 20 weeks, you'll start to feel your baby move around inside you, known as "quickening." (4 more weeks to go!)

* Toward the end of the second trimester, you might also feel repeated "blips" in your abdomen -- not to worry, that's just your baby having completely harmless hiccups! (Neat. :) )

* By week 16, you'll likely be in maternity clothes due to your expanding waistline and widening hips. By week 27, you should have gained 16 to 22 pounds, but your baby will only account for about two of those. (Maternity clothes in 4 weeks! Crazy!)

* As your shape changes you may worry more about the long-term effects that pregnancy may have on your body. (Um, yeah, that's already started. :( )

* By your second trimester, your body is manufacturing estrogen in overdrive: The ovaries produce as much in a single day as a nonpregnant woman's ovaries do in three years. (Holy camoly!)

That's all for today. :)

12 weeks 3 days

2009-08-18T16:24:00.004-04:00

Today I had my 3-month checkup, and I got to hear Besido's heartbeat again. :) As the doctor was getting the doppler ready, she said, "Ok, now be aware that it sometimes takes a while to find the heartbeat." I said ok. She squeezed some jelly on my belly then stuck the doppler down and turned on the little speaker. Right away the heartbeat came pounding through. She was like, "Oh! Well! There it is!" I think she found it much quicker than expected, which was fine with me. :)

It was pounding along in the 150s. She said there's not a completely consistent heartbeat yet...that won't develop until the baby is closer to birth I guess. But she said it sounded very good. I got to listen for a while and enjoyed it quite a bit.

She also measured my uterus, which is about 12 cm long now.

Just thought you'd like an update on Besido's status. He/she seems to be growing quite nicely. :)

11 weeks 4 days

2009-08-12T11:51:00.003-04:00

I had to call the doctor again today.

Last week I had to call because I'd been sick for over a week and I was concerned that it was turning into an upper respiratory infection. (I went in, and they basically told me that unless it turned into pneumonia, they wouldn't give me any medication for it. I was like, wow, so glad I took an hour and a half off of work to drive over here for you to tell me that.)

This week I've been waking up at about 4am or 5am to severe lower cramping from my bladder being overly full. I've been assuming it's just round ligament pain. Then today I decided to check online to see if other women had experienced anything similar. Much to my dismay, many talked about similar pain and then said it turned out to be a bladder infection. Then I read some more and it said that untreated bladder infections can travel into the kidneys and possibly cause miscarriage. Well, this really didn't make me happy...pretty panicked, honestly. So I called the doc and left a message again. I'm so glad the nurses respond quickly. A nurse called back about 10 minutes later, and had me describe the pain in detail to her. She reassured me that she believes it's just round ligament pain and that I don't need to worry. I was sooooo relieved. Dave and I are leaving for Seattle in a few hours and I have no idea what I would have done if I gotten there and found myself with a full-blown UTI. Well, ok, I do know what I would have done. I would have freaked out.

Luckily at every prenatal visit they take a urine sample and check for things such as UTIs. My next appointment is Tuesday morning, so I know it will be double-checked then. That gives me some relief.

On another note, I took a couple measurements of myself this morning. I have now gained 2 lbs and measure 3 inches wider around my waist at my bellybutton (compared to when I first found out I was pregnant). This was this morning, after just a glass of milk. By evening time I always look about a month more pregnant than I did in the morning, so I would assume the measurement is a lot greater then. But for now, the morning measurement is +3 inches. :)

Alright, as I mentioned, we're heading to Seattle for 5 days, so I won't be writing for a bit. Give me a call if you need any updates. :)

Love,
Kara

11 weeks 3 days

2009-08-11T12:43:00.006-04:00

What's going on this week, from Baby Gaga:

Your little scientist is already starting to explore their body, focusing most intently on touching their head, and especially their face and mouth. Their mouth in particular will provide them with hours of entertainment. This happens not only because your baby is gaining coordination, and is therefore able to move a hand on command, but also because their palms have gained sensation and can actually “feel” what it touches.They're also developing their swallow reflex this week. And lastly, your baby's smelling and other olfactory senses will begin developing this week, which when combined with the maturing taste buds, will provide your baby with their first experiences of taste and smell.

Or, from birth.com.au:

What is happening now?

Your baby measures about 5 cm (2 inches) from crown to rump and weighs about 8 grams (0.28 ounces), nearly doubling in size during the last week!

Your baby now has a limited ability to suck and swallow, although this action is not fully mature until 24 to 28 weeks. Their taste buds have developed to taste the amniotic fluid that surrounds them and their kidneys are now functioning and secreting fluid into their bladder. Your baby will soon pass a type of clean urine into the amniotic fluid, in a continuous cycle of swallowing and urinating this fluid to keep their kidneys functioning until birth.

Your baby also breathes amniotic fluid into their lungs to strengthen the muscle under them (called the diaphragm) and to regularly practise rhythmic expansion of their lungs. Their stomach now produces gastric juices and they have about 20 baby teeth in their gums!

Your baby's sex organs are still developing although their typical male or female characteristics are not yet obvious. Under the influence of increased testosterone for boys (or the lack of testosterone for girls), your baby's genitals start taking their individual shape to look distinctly male or female by 15 weeks.You can read more here.

Your baby's movements are now more coordinated and purposeful and a few women can sense their baby moving as early as 12 weeks (although this is not common). Regular movement is now important for your baby's growth and development. Without it their muscles would waste, their joints would seize and their bones would become brittle. Movement of some description is now a daily part of your unborn baby's life (when they are awake!)

You can look at an image of what your baby may look like now by clicking here.

Physical changes

Uterus growing. By the end of this week your uterus will start to grow up out of your pelvic bones and your caregiver (and you) may be able to feel the top of the uterus, called the fundus. If this is not your first pregnancy, or you are carrying twins (or more), you may be able to feel the top of the uterus earlier (possibly after 10 or 11 weeks). You can read more about fundal heights and measuring them here.

Body temperature. You may notice an increase in your body temperature. This is due to your body's metabolism increasing by 20%, creating more heat and slightly raising your temperature. Increased blood flow also makes your skin warmer and you may sweat more. In the summer months, dressing in layers can help with temperature changes. Take care not to overheat when exercising. You may wish to read more about this here.

11 weeks 2 days

2009-08-10T08:19:00.004-04:00

Well I'm almost 3 months along now!! Isn't that crazy?? The belly continues to puff. Thank goodness that my friend Kristin loves to buy clothes and also loves flowing loose shirts. This means there are plenty for me to borrow and she doesn't notice they're gone from her closet. :)

Dave and I bought a glider chair for the nursery from a wonderful couple in Clayton on Friday night. We found it on Craigslist. It will need some touch up paint, but I think it will look nice with the crib. Here's the picture that they showed in the ad:

One of their parents had created a yellow cover for the cushions, which is removable and washable. I'm kind of hoping my mom can maybe use it as a pattern to create one for us that will match the nursery. :) If not, the yellow should still hopefully work.

So now all we need is a changing table! We're planning to also use the chest of drawers I've had since I moved to NC and paint it to match the crib and glider. I think the furniture will look nice together. :)

10 weeks 3 days

2009-08-04T15:22:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to share a picture of the giraffe and blanket that Dave and I received from G and Mary. This blanket is the one that we might use for inspiration in the nursery. :)

Not sure where we'll go with it, but Dave and I like the colors and design. :)

10 weeks 3 days picture

2009-08-04T15:00:00.005-04:00

Here is an updated picture of my belly... :)

7 weeks 2 days, 8 weeks 3 days, and 10 weeks 3 days

Yup, it's growing. :)

10 weeks 2 days

2009-08-03T14:28:00.004-04:00

Yesterday Dave's mom and stepdad bought us a crib for our nursery, and Dave and I are pretty excited!! Here it is:

Doesn't it look nice? It's a Pottery Barn crib, in mint condition, and they found it on Craigslist. It's much nicer than anything I was expecting to get, so I'm pretty psyched.

And to help complete the nursery, my mom is going to go shopping with me and let me pick out fabric for the room. Then she's going to make a pull-down cover for the window, some baby bedding (maybe a blanket), and possibly something for the walls (maybe fabric-covered wooden letters spelling the baby's name?). I'm pretty thrilled to get to choose the fabric and have a custom nursery. :) Dave and I got a baby blanket and little stuffed giraffe from our friends G and Mary this weekend, and we really like the colors and pattern on the blanket. I might try to get inspiration from it for choosing the nursery theme. :)

9 weeks 5 days

2009-07-30T12:57:00.005-04:00

This morning was a rough morning. I seem to have caught a cold, and I barely slept at all last night. My throat hurt all night long, my breasts hurt, and I had this weird thing happening where every time I tried to move in my sleep, I woke up because my abs weren't functioning well to let me move. It was so bizarre.

Between not sleeping well, having a cold, and being pregnant (aka exhausted and emotional), I wasn't in the best shape this morning. Dave told me to stay home and sleep in for a while. So I slept in until 9:30 am and then came into the office. I definitely felt better after an extra two hours of sleep, but my throat and head still feel super gunky and my body is dragging. I need to look up what medications I'm allowed to take. I know the list is pretty limited.

On a brighter note, Dave found baby slings on clearance at Walmart, so I ordered one. It was down from $45 to $25, which I couldn't really pass up. Here's the one I chose:

It's black on the inside and reversible, so Dave can use it too without looking like a girl. I'm pretty excited about it...I've heard a lot of people rave about these things. Hopefully it will work great for us, too.

9 weeks 4 days

2009-07-29T14:51:00.003-04:00

15 random things from my pregnancy:

1) Despite my ever-widening midsection, I have to-date only gained 1 lb.

2) That will change soon, as in about 2 1/2 weeks I am scheduled to start gaining 1 lb per week. (Holy camoly!!)

3) There are very few vegetables that do not flip my gag switch. Peas and green beans are about it. The thought of cooked broccoli makes me want to run for the toilet.

4) Chicken noodle soup and chicken Ramen Noodles taste absolutely amazing. Add macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes to that list. Delish.

5) I am now peeing at least once, often twice, a night. This is after I go to sleep.

6) I am having crazy vivid dreams, as is expected during pregnancy. However, I had these before, so I'm not so sure they're a symptom for me.

7) I have reached the point where the probability of miscarriage is only like 2.5%. Yay!!

8) I want lime green to be a main color in the baby's room.

9) After reading a fiction book about a bunch of pregnant women, I don't think I care whether I have a boy or a girl anymore.

10) Dave is an absolutely amazing husband and has been soooo tolerant of my mood swings and random food aversions and cravings. I love him. :)

11) My leg hair now grows about 2 inches a day. Ok, that is an exaggeration. But really, it's growing way too fast.

12) I have now thrown up twice. Once was at Dave's mom's a couple weeks ago. The second time was the other morning on the way to the airport in Chicago. I actually had to have Dave's uncle pull his car over so I could open the door and vomit into a bag. I always thought it'd be so embarrassing for that to happen...but really, when it's happening, the only thing you care about is ending the horrible nausea lurching into your throat.

13) My chest has now hurt for close to ten weeks in a row. That's one long interval of chest pain. (I'm using the word "chest" for the sake of any of you readers who are male.)

14) I'm tired. Almost all the time.

and....

15) I know it's all worth it.

9 weeks 3 days

2009-07-28T09:04:00.006-04:00

This weekend we went to Collin and Brittany's wedding (which was beautiful). We told many people about the pregnancy while there, and I was a bit overwhelmed by the response. I was approached by grinning faces and hugs all night long, and I had about fifty pairs of hands on my stomach throughout the night. It was very sweet...but still odd to have so many people touching my belly. Despite the fact that others had told me it would happen, I still wasn't quite prepared. But I did appreciate all the love and attention. :)

I liked the following update from What to Expect about what's happening this week with Besido:

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Your baby's growth is fast and furious when you are 10 weeks pregnant. He or she is nearly an inch and a half long and the size of a prune, but not nearly as shriveled (even with all the time it spends in water). In fact, your baby is really taking a human shape now. Bones and cartilage are forming, and small indentations on the legs are developing into knees and ankles. The arms (complete with elbows) can flex already, but don't run to the store for a baseball bat just yet. Though your baby's arms are taking shape and getting stronger, each one is only about the size of this number 1.

The tooth bud fairy is making her appearance this week, heralding the arrival of your baby's little choppers, which are forming under the gums. (Those pearly whites won't break through the gums until your baby is close to six months old). Other systems are go, too. Your baby's stomach is producing digestive juices, the kidneys are producing larger quantities of urine, and, if your baby's a boy, he's already producing testosterone (yikes!).

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8 weeks 3 days picture

2009-07-21T09:16:00.003-04:00

I took some more pregnancy pictures last night. You can definitely tell my belly is popping out a bit. :) Yay for showing 4 weeks earlier than the average pregnant woman!!!

7 weeks 4 days ultrasound

2009-07-15T12:01:00.010-04:00

We had our first ultrasound this morning!!!

Here is Besido... :)

This one measures Besido...he/she is 1.5 cm long. :) (And if your computer resolution is the same as mine, then this picture actually shows Besido's real size!)

And this one shows Besido's heartbeat at the bottom. It was 162 beats/min. :)

I'm so excited!!!

7 weeks 2 days picture

2009-07-13T20:17:00.009-04:00

Alright I took my first uncomfortable pregnancy pictures (e.g. with my shirt pulled up and an obvious focus on my midsection) today. Here they are for all you family members and friends dying to see if I've changed.

In the first picture, me sucking in, in the second picture, me standing somewhat normal. (As you may see, I have very little sucking-in power these days.) (Oh and please excuse Rogan licking her butt in the second pic, hehe.)

I will venture to say that from these pics, you don't think I've changed a bit. Oh contraire, mi amigo. Although I haven't gained any weight, Besido is moving my insides around so much that I have gained two inches in my waist at my belly button. Needless to say, this somewhat limits the clothes that fit me well. I finally bought a belly band this weekend to help smooth things out and hold up my pants when I can't keep them buttoned. I also found a tactic today that worked well using a hairband to hook my pants button to the button hole while still leaving expansion room. And after I've had dinner and a glass of milk? There's no hope. The belly puffs out to Timbuktu and I'm left with a wardrobe consisting of t-shirts and sweatpants. I can't wait for the day when everyone (especially at work) knows I'm pregnant and I can just let it puff out as far as it wants. Ahh, just a little while longer.

But anyways, I hope you enjoyed the uncomfortable-but-I-know-I'll-want-to-have-them-someday pics. :)

7 weeks 2 days

2009-07-13T09:19:00.003-04:00

I read this update in my weekly emails from "What to Expect" - thought I'd share because I liked the info. :)

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How's your baby measuring up this week? At a length of about half an inch right now, your baby has graduated from blueberry-sized to raspberry-sized. But weekly growth is getting a bit hard to estimate, and here's why: Growth occurs at about the rate of one millimeter each day, but that growth isn't necessarily just in height. Spurts can occur in the arms, legs, back, and other parts of your baby's body. So, big changes will be occurring every which way in the coming months.

What else is changing at 8 weeks pregnant? A close-up view of your little embryo (say cheese!) would reveal a more baby-like appearance (and thankfully, a less reptilian one). You'd see an upper lip forming, the protruding tip of that cute button nose, and tiny (and very thin) eyelids. And check out those hands and feet! Your baby's webbed fingers and toes are differentiating now, so give your baby a round of applause.
All this growing is exciting for your baby too. How do you know? His or her heart is beating at the incredible rate of 150 times per minute. (That's twice as fast as your heart beats.) Your baby's digs are growing, too. Amniotic fluid increases at a rate of about two tablespoons per week to accommodate your womb's growing tenant.

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6 weeks 4 days

2009-07-08T10:13:00.003-04:00

I had my first prenatal appointment this morning!!

Luckily I had been forewarned by my fellow pregnant friends that it wouldn't be an exciting appointment. Sure enough, all they did was make me pee in a cup, sit me in a chair and talk to me, then draw half of the blood out of my body and fill it into bunch of little tubes.

I still enjoyed the appointment though. :) They gave me a tentative due date of February 25th, which is two days earlier than what I'm saying it is. (They're calculating based on first day of last period, I'm calculating based on day of ovulation, so my estimate is a bit more precise. Most times women don't know the day of ovulation, so the doc can't use this date.)

What I'm really excited about is that they're having me come in for my first ultrasound next Wednesday. It seems a little early to me (7 weeks 6 days according to their due date) but I'm fine with that. The sooner I get to see little Besido, the better. :)

6 weeks 2 days again

2009-07-06T14:07:00.003-04:00

So I know I already posted today, but I just had to add another little story.

Today I went to lunch with the stats pod (aka statistics department) from work, and part of my meal was a salad from the salad bar. Somehow a black olive snuck onto my plate, and when I bit into it I nearly gagged. I've never liked them much, but this is definitely a heightened aversion to olives. Ever since I tasted that olive at lunch, I have smelled black olives everywhere I go. I came back to work, and as I walked through the halls I smelled black olives. I went to Kristin's office, and I smelled black olives. I sit here at my desk, and if I think about it enough, I smell black olives.

Ick ick ick.

By the way, despite the fact that this skirt makes my tummy looked smoothed-out (see previous post from today), I will not wearing it again for a while. I feel wrapped so tightly I can barely breathe.

6 weeks 2 days

2009-07-06T09:51:00.005-04:00

Ah, the belly bulge. It is officially there. Never did I think that at 6 weeks I'd be hiding a tummy. I don't really weigh any more (this morning I was about 2 lbs more than when I weighed myself last week, but my weight regularly varies that much depending on the time of day and how much I've recently eaten). But my clothes are tight. I finally resolved over the weekend that for the next several weeks I am going to look like I've gained weight (and not a baby), and there is nothing I can do about it short of trying to wear looser clothing.

This morning I put on a skirt that went up to my belly button and a shirt over it that I thought made me look smooth and not bulgy. I also put on an open sweater to hide a little more. I thought I looked good. Then I got to work, and Sasi (who knows I'm pregnant) walked into my office and said, "Oh, wow, you look very..." and rubbed her belly. Great, so much for my disguise.

Wednesday is my first doctor's appointment. I'm definitely going to have to ask him or her if this early expansion is normal. I'm quite a distance from the "12 to 16 weeks" when I'm supposed to start "showing." (In fact, I'm only halfway there, haha.)

5 weeks 3 days

2009-06-30T12:46:00.004-04:00

Last night I was doing my daily mile-and-a-half jog, listening to my iPod. A song started playing with lyrics about how God is holding us even when we're in the womb. All of a sudden, I realized the most wonderful and comforting thing:

God loves Besido.

He loves Besido just as much as he loves me, or Dave, or you.

And just that realization had the most amazing effect on me. I broke out in a smile. I felt relief wash over me. Because whatever happens during this pregnancy, I know that God has Besido's best interests at heart. He loves him/her more than I or Dave ever will. It's so wonderful, and so freeing.

Just had to share. :)

5 weeks 2 days

2009-06-29T10:09:00.003-04:00

The craziest thing happened last night. After sleeping for some time, I all of a sudden woke up yelling, and my right hip was completely cramping up. I of course woke Dave up too, and he tried to massage it as I kept yelling. Tears were pouring down my face. The cramping probably lasted 30 seconds, but it was so severe. Afterwards I still felt a throbbing pain as I tried to fall back asleep.

This morning I barely remembered the incident, but I have a tight painful feeling in my hip as a reminder. I have no idea what caused the cramp. I did some reading online, and it sounds like hip cramps are common in the second and third trimesters, but definitely not so early in the pregnancy. The only suggestions were that it could be due to the Relaxin flowing through my body. I read some comments from other girls around my stage in pregnancy who were runners and found their hips to be very sore. It could be a result of the same thing, I suppose. So bizarre. I may need to find some exercise other than running, and I will definitely have to ask the doctor when I go for my first appt on July 8th.

I also had my first breakdown about my bloating this morning. I couldn't find a single outfit that fit the way it should, and I just laid down on the bed and started crying. (I'm rather dramatic at times, and pregnancy hormones don't help.) Dave suggested I wear one of my new pregnancy shirts, and I exclaimed, "But I'm not supposed to look pregnant yet!!" (I don't want people at work knowing for a while longer.) He responded, "Oh yeah." I finally picked myself up and put back on one of the shirts I'd rejected. Dave says he doesn't think it's as obvious to others as it is to me. I sure hope not. I'll be sucking it in as much as possible today to be sure, though.

Ahhh, pregnancy. :)

5 weeks even

2009-06-27T21:01:00.003-04:00

One of Besido's pictures changed today!! Whoohoo!! He/she is growing up so fast. *tear*

Still wearing sports bras. Still bloated. Got tired early last night and thought fatigue might be beginning to set in. However, it's 9pm and I'm not tired tonight. Of course, I took a 2 hour nap today. That might have something to do with it. :)

Mom L. told me Thursday night that she has a gut feeling Besido is a girl. We'll see. Just wanted to document it now in case she's right. :)

Alright I'm at Starbucks right now (our home internet isn't working) and I think it's about time to head home and climb under the covers. (Gotta get my shuteye!!)

God bless and goodnight.

4 weeks 6 days

2009-06-26T08:56:00.005-04:00

I officially love cheese and fruit popsicles. I think I could eat them all day long. Granted, I did like eating these items before, but Besido has taken my desire for cheese and fruit popsicles to a whole new level. They taste absolutely amazing.

I am getting a little tired of wearing a sports bra every hour of the day (and night) except the 20 minutes I'm in the shower. However, it's the only way to keep the pain at bay. I have to wear two of them when I go running (which I've been doing daily...with the amount I've been eating, I NEED to work out). (And yes, all you mothers, I do realize that I will gain weight and fat. But I'm only supposed to gain 2 to 5 pounds in the first trimester and about 1 pound per week for the rest of the pregnancy. At the rate I'm going, I'm going to gain 5 pounds by next weekend.)

On another note, by today Besido's amniotic sac has grown to about the size of a grape. Why, no wonder I'm so bloated!! I have a grape inside my uterus!! (*Rolling my eyes.* Why, exactly, is my stomach distended like there's a giant balloon inside of me when Besido's house is only the size of a grape??) It's kind of funny, the countdown at the top of the blog shows a picture of "me" with a bigger belly already. Obviously, no one should look like that when their baby is small enough to sit on the tip of a ballpoint pen and their baby's house is the size of a grape. However, this image matches my figure much more than you realize. It really is pretty close to what I look like. It makes me laugh.

So every day I go to this blog so I can see what Besido looks like. And every day he/she looks like a swollen tadpole hooked to a rope. I can't wait till he/she gets some toes or something. Maybe an eyeball or two. Something that helps me believe I'm building a child and not a frog. (When does the cuteness begin???)

Alright, off to continue with my daily activities.

Love,
Kara

4 weeks 4 days

2009-06-24T10:13:00.005-04:00

I got three new pregnancy books in the mail yesterday, and I'm super excited about them.

Here they are:

The 40 Weeks Devotional Guide is pretty awesome so far. I've read one chapter, and the book does a great job incorporating God into everything and of reminding you to lean on Him in faith instead of worrying about everything and trying to control it all.

The Joy of Pregnancy I've only read a bit of, but I really wanted it after glancing through it in Borders the night we found out we were pregnant. It doesn't just talk about pregnancy basics, but it also focuses on your emotions and your life, it has questions and answers from other women, and it helps prepare you for labor.

When the Belly Button Pops was rated highly by reviewers, and I also found it on a Christian website. So I thought it might be a good book to read, also.

Once I finish all these books (which will probably take me a while), I'll work on getting some baby books so I know what to do with the little bundle of joy once it's out of my body and in my arms.

Symptoms haven't been horrible so far, although I am SOOO bloated that I seriously look 5 months pregnant. No joke. I am currently sitting at work with my pants unbuttoned, because if I button them up they poke me in the stomach and make me nauseous. I did some research online last night and read in some forums, and it sounds like quite a few women have this problem early in pregnancy. I'm glad I'm not alone. Why don't they tell you these things in the pregnancy sections on websites? I haven't read anywhere, "Oh, by the way, your belly is likely to bloat out to the point where you cannot button your pants and you wonder if you were mistaken and you're actually 5 months pregnant instead of 5 weeks. Do not worry, this is a common occurence and will eventually subside." Nope, they leave it to us puffy-bellied women to figure out on our own. Thanks so much.

Oh, and my chest is now nearly too big for most everything I own except my sports bras, which I have been wearing to bed and to work all week. And I'm only at 4 weeks 4 days. They say the peak growth begins at 6 weeks. I can't wait.

Other than that, pregnancy is great so far. Every day Dave and I read together from a pregnancy journal I bought (picture below). It gives us a daily update on what's going on with Besido inside. Pretty neat. :)

Alright off I go.
Love you all!

Welcome!!

2009-06-23T09:50:00.001-04:00

Hey all you family and friends!

I thought I'd put a site together for all of you far-away loved ones who cannot watch my tummy grow on a daily basis. This way you'll be able to hear about and see the changes as they happen.

The site is called "Baby Besido" because "Besido" is what Dave and I call our baby. A messed-up text message to Evan many months ago started it all. I was joking around with Evan about baby names, and meant to send him a text saying that we were going to call our first baby "Adrienne" (not for real...although I don't have anything against that name). However, my phone thought "Besido" was a more common word than "Adrienne", and so I looked down and realized I had sent Evan a message saying, "we'll call him Besido". I was like oh man my brother is going to think I'm nuts. So I quickly wrote back explaining the mishap, and Evan was quite relieved, haha. However, I thought the incident was pretty funny, and the name "Besido" has stuck ever since. :)

(And to all you paranoid parents or grandparents out there, don't worry...we're not going to keep the name after the baby is born.)

Hope you enjoy the site!

Love you all!