Pieces are all coming together now

I am so excited about giving birth! I had my first Bradley class yesterday, and that went really well. I feel like these classes will truly prepare me to give birth. We actually got lots of homework to do before our next class on Sunday. I also had a doctor appointment today, and my doula attended it. I asked my doctor some questions about when she would show up during labor, when I would need to push, etc. I liked her answers and feel like she is very supportive of me and my desire to have a natural birth. I feel like all the pieces are coming together and that I might actually accomplish the kind of birth that I want!

Also, only 3 more days (2 work days) until Thanksgiving, so that really has me excited as well! All the yummy food and plenty of relaxation time... Can't wait.... hmmmm..... :)

Have a great Thanksgiving, everyone!

Finished the baby's quilt!

Now I just need to find a darn crib... ;)

Let's hear it for the boy!

I heard "Let's Hear it for the Boy" by Deniece Williams on the radio while driving to work on Friday. That really perked up my day. It is such a happy song. It reminds me of my husband, especially the lyric "And maybe he sings off-key, but that's alright with me." LOL It also makes me think about my son. When he finally makes his entrance to the world, I will be so happy and excited to hear his voice (crying). I'll be thinking, "Let's hear it for the boy!" Thus, this song might be a good soundtrack to play in the background when I am in labor. I'll have to remember to download it.

Nothing all that new this week. I am starting to feel like a real pregnant lady because I feel soooo sore in my hips whenever I get up from lying down. Also, when the baby moves, my belly seriously looks like there is an alien in there. LOL Before, I just saw twinges, but now I see full-on pokes. He must be getting big because my belly button is officially an outie now!

I am excited about my most recent purchase. I just ordered 4 wall decals for the baby's room and the infant car seat I have been eyeing for awhile (it's supposed to be super safe).

This is the Chicco Keyfit 30

And this is one of the wall decals I bought. The baby's room will have a Dr. Suess theme because my brother and I loved reading his books as kids.

I signed up for 12 weeks of Bradley classes. I am going for a natural, unmedicated childbirth experience. I want my husband to be very involved and my main source of support, so that is why I went with the Bradley method. I start in about 2 weeks. I am so excited!

This baby DOES throw punches!

I had another ultrasound on Tuesday, and it went great! They wanted more pictures to make sure the heart was OK and that the cord was not wrapped around baby's neck. Everything is fine! I had a different ultrasound tech and she seemed more understanding about wanting to see the baby and get cute pictures. She printed pictures of his foot (2x), his body (3x), and his face. It is amazing to see he has noticeably grown in 2 weeks. Also, I have confirmed that he has taken at least one of my facial features: my long philtrum. What is a philtrum, you ask? It is the piece of skin that has a groove in it that is between the nose and the mouth. Here's a picture I got from nlm.nih.gov

And here is a picture of my baby boy's profile that shows a longer philtrum.

It is exciting to know that this kid really will take after us. He really is OURS!

Also, I found out at the ultrasound that he has flipped inside me. 2 weeks ago his head was down by my cervix. Now his FEET are down by my cervix. This explains the many kicks I have felt on my bladder. LOL Weird feeling that is, I must say. I still feel kicks (or should I say punches) by my belly button and videotaped my belly moving/jumping today. I say "there" after every punch that makes my belly visibly move. You might want to click on "Full Screen" to see it better because his movements still are pretty small.

Also, over the last week or so, it seems like my belly has gotten huge all of a sudden. Prior to this week, I could pass as non-pregnant. Now I am very obviously pregnant. I am wondering if this has to do with his change in position or just where I am at in pregnancy. (Maybe a lot of people have a belly growth spurt around 22 weeks?) Anyways, the first picture below shows me at 21 weeks and the second picture shows me at 22 weeks. What a difference!

Last but not least, I have been working feverishly on my baby quilt and the whole front side is almost done! I picked a really simple design that I knew would work, so that is partly the reason why I am getting so much done so fast. I am thinking that I will try another design and if I like how it turns out, I will make this quilt a reversible one! I'll show pictures when done.

Have a great weekend!

Coughing, quilting, and cooperating

"I wish nothing but the best for you..."

I've been obsessed with Adele's song "Someone Like You". So beautiful. I think about my son when I hear this song, even though it is about unrequited love. The lyric, "I wish nothing but the best for you", does fit how I feel for him though.

Anyways, the last week or so has been pretty uneventful. I have a persistent cough that is going on 3 weeks now. I finally caved and started taking antibiotics. My doctor said they were safe. I feel a little better, but still coughing some. Hopefully, it will go away soon. I had a little scare the day after I started taking them because he hardly kicked at all that day. He wasn't following his "usual" pattern of kicking within an hour or two of lunch. He got right back to kicking like crazy the next day, so I was relieved.

I gave up finishing my quilt for the spare guest bedroom. I'll finish that later. I want to get started on the baby quilt. Since the baby's room will have a Dr Seuss theme, that is the kind of fabric I bought for the quilt.

I can't wait to get started! Here is a picture of the spare bedroom quilt I started.

And this is a picture of the first, and only, quilt I have done. I made it for the master bedroom. My husband and I sleep with it every night. It is very warm! :)

In other news, my belly button is pretty much flat now. (What?!) That is the most shocking part of pregnancy for me so far. I thought I would be 30+ weeks when my belly button would go flat. Oh well.

Also, on Tuesday I have another ultrasound scheduled. Junior was moving so much before that they could not get good pictures of his heart. Hopefully, he will cooperate more this time. :) I am hoping I can get a full body picture to take home because I did not get one last time.

In less than 2 days, I will be 22 weeks! Yipee! Grow, baby, grow!

We are having a...

I'm having a sweet baby boy! I already love him so much. I can't even put into words what I am feeling right now. Maybe the words will come to me later.

The ultrasound went well today. I have to come back for another ultrasound because I guess my boy was moving so much that they couldn't get good measurements of his heart. I am not worried though. I have always had a feeling that he has a strong heart, both physically and symbolically. Hopefully, they can give me a good full body picture of him because all I got today was 2 penis pictures (LOL) and a profile face one.

Have a great week!

Baby kick brings new love (cue sentimental music)

Exciting news! For the last week or so, I thought I was feeling the baby poke my hand while I was lying down at night. I was not sure because I haven't ever really felt the typical "flutters", "bubbles", and whatnot that you are supposed to feel when baby is moving. Every once in awhile I feel something weird going on in my uterus; I can't even describe it. Well, whenever I have gotten this weird feeling (usually when I am lying down at night), I put my hand on my tummy below my belly button. I could have sworn several times I felt small pokes and even the occasional roll. Every time I swear I feel something against my hand, I shout for husband to come into the room to see if he can feel it. So far every time we try, he says he can't feel anything or says it's hard to tell what he is feeling. Last night, on the other hand, he put his hand on my tummy for a few minutes and actually felt some pokes and even a roll! I couldn't believe it! I guess I really am officially feeling the baby move. :)

In other news, I went on a major shopping spree yesterday (well, major for me, at least). I needed an extra pair of maternity slacks for work, casual pants for weekends, long sleeved shirts for work and weekends, and some fitted, stretchy tees for layering under sweaters and whatnot. I was a little worried I wouldn't find much or would have to pay a TON of money because I read that maternity selections for most stores are online now. I don't like buying clothes online because I don't want to be stuck with clothes that don't fit right or have to pay to return them by mail.

Anyways, I first went to Burlington Coat Factory because I read on Baby Center that their maternity clothing is reasonably priced and they were correct. The shirts did not seem of good quality and I was skeptical whether they would really stretch appropriately as I get bigger. The jeans and casual pants, though, looked nicely made and fit me well, so I bought two pairs of weekend pants there as well as one shirt. Then, I went to Savers (a thrift store). Man, I hit the mother-load there! They had a lot of maternity clothes in my size, in good condition, and did not look out of style at all. Plus, a maternity winter coat for $10! I ended up also getting 2 fitted tees, a work shirt, a long sleeved shirt, and corduroy pants. I also went to Gordman's, which was a bit disappointing. It is all Motherhood Maternity stuff and we have that store in the same mall. I did find and buy a long-sleeved shirt there that was cheaper than at the Motherhood store. I went to JC Penney's, even though I went there a little over a month ago already because they have such good prices and quality. Plus, they were having a store sale. I bought 2 sweaters and 1 pair of work pants for $60 total that would normally be $80.

Now I am super excited about Monday, October 3 (like I wasn't before, right?). I want to find out the sex and start buying things for my son or daughter, start working on his/her quilt, and get going on getting the baby's room ready. A lot of my worry has fallen by the wayside and I just want to start bonding with my son/daughter. I want to start listening to music more so baby can hear. I want my husband to start talking more to him/her in my tummy. Heck- maybe I'll even try hard not to get annoyed when people rub my belly without asking first! LOL