Update on belly size

Last week, I measured my waist at school. It was 40 inches!!! Dang! (As you can see, my butt has been trying to keep up.) Now my belly is even bigger and moves. I can sit and watch as he kicks and squirms inside me. Kinda weird, but really cool. I already love him and he isn't even going to show for about 3-4 months.

Keep on growing, keep on growing

Alex is now about 2 1/2 times bigger than Emily. The ultrasound girl guessed 1 pound 9 ounces. Patrick asked how big he might be at delivery and she said he might be around 8-8 1/2 pounds if he makes it to 40 weeks. It is hard for me to imagine him bigger than Emily, though I can feel the difference. He is strong, and apparently is getting a bit squished now.

I will enter my third trimester in two more weeks! Breathe a sigh of relief.

He's Grown!

New picture and update

This photo was taken last weekend, so it is not perfectly acurate. I think he has stretched me out some more since then.

This past weekend Patrick and I worked on the yard. I had so much fun. Patrick did most of the work, though. I really wanted to shovel, uproot trees, and everything, but knew better. I let him do that. He removed the two dead trees from the front yard and filled in the holes. We also went back to the Natural Gardener and bought more soil and two trees. Patrick shoveled the dirt while I fit the bags around the bottomless bucket and tied them up. We now have the garden all filled and I planted peas, lettuce, spinach and carrots. I can't wait until they germinate! Fresh veggies! And it has only taken a year to get it going.

Food

Recently, my appetite has gone into overdrive. I want to eat everything I see. I even ate a shrimp yesterday at my mother-in-law's house! Today I wanted a candy bar, a McDonald's sausage biscuit with grape jelly and a Chick-Fil-A sandwich with extra pickles. I got a bite size Baby Ruth instead. Ice cream sounds yummy. Peach cobbler sounds yummy. I want to eat it all, but my tummy is not holding what it used to. I feel extremely full after one large glass of milk-without even eating anything! That means I am eating all day long--which means I am thinking about food all day long. I am afraid that my my will grow bigger than my belly if I indulge myself of my whims.

Sunday at church, everyone noticed that I was pregnant. People who I thought already figured it out all of a sudden start asking me about it. It was weird. I know how big my belly is now, but I forget every once in a while and get surprised when I look down. I wonder if my weight gain is going there instead of my hips-that would be okay with me.

I am going to the doctor (the regular one) this Friday and then to the specialist on the 13th. I can't wait to see the new pictures! He will be close to 24 weeks by then and so much bigger. I can feel him everyday now and he is getting strong. He must like to stand up because I always feel him kicking towards my bladder. I wonder if it is a game for him. You know, he may take after his father in that regard, always making jokes.

I imagine him in my arms and want to sing a song of praise every day. God has heard my prayers and is faithfully carrying them out.

My second cousin

My cousin, Christy just had her little boy, Zakaria a couple of days ago and I just had to share with all. He is absolutely beautiful. (With them as parents, you couldn't get ugly if you tried.) :)

Prayer

Patrick had to call me from work to take him to the doctor this morning. His vision doubled and he was dizzy. The doctor thinks that it could possibly be a result of some of his medications or even (lets pray for not) a brain tumor. I am taking him to get an MRI tomorrow to rule out this worst case scenario. Please keep him in your prayers. He has a follow-up visit next Tuesday. Hopefully things will miraculously get better by then with no further medical aide.

Jump the Gun

Well, I did it. I couldn't wait any longer. I started my registries. Babys R Us and Target. BRU is the only one with items listed because that is all I know Patrick agreed with. I will wait to add items to the Target registry until I can get Patrick to come along with me.

For all who wonder. . . I don't mind second-hand baby stuff. I am planning to buy a lot of stuff from Craigslist and garage sales myself. The stroller and Pack'N'Play are the only things I want to be new. Other than that, Have fun shopping for bargains!

I am getting the nursery in order as well. Last night I went into the nursery and decided to arrange all the clothes and nicknacks to make it look like a room. Patrick suggested that I use the turtle lamp as a night light. It is so cute! (Thanks John.) It will give just enough light for me to feed/cuddle without waking him up.

The dresser is on its way as well. It was listed as being on backorder and wouldn't be in until March. Lucky me. I love putting stuff together-especially Alex's furniture. I will send pictures when the room gets more ready. I figured that just in case he wants to show himself a little early, I can have most everything ready.

Hump Week

I am half-way though! Twenty more weeks to go. My son (wow, it is awesome saying that) is moving and kicking now, especially when music is on. He loves the worship songs at church.

In another week, he will be the same size Emily was when she was born. I love knowing what he looks like.

My belly seems to get bigger every day and my stomach seems to be smaller. I cant eat as much as I used to in one sitting. Lately all I think about is cottage cheese. I bought a 48 oz. tub just two days ago and it is almost gone. I did some research and found out that 75% of pregnant women crave dairy during their pregnancy so I guess I am not unique. I just hope that it doesn't lead to gaining too much weight. You know, dairy is quite fattening.

June is going to come up on me quickly, but for now it seems quite a ways off. It gives me plenty of planning time.

Look at my Crib!

Patrick and I just put this together last night. It was a lot of fun. I love putting things together and kinda took over a bit. The dresser won't be in until March, so this is it for a while. We are thinking about leaving the crib on the wall as you see it in the first picture. Our bedroom shares that wall and we can see him from the door. Are we getting nervous yet?

New Photos

Consignment terrors!

Have you heard of this? What a terrible law. In February, no baby clothes or toys will be able to be sold unless the company privately tests its inventory for lead. Apparently, not many can afford that.

Read this article to find out more: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-thrift2-2009jan02,0,2083247.story

Painting!

Well I am back in my classroom now. A small class made it quite easy to come back.

I love knowing I am free to be a regular pregnant lady and not have to worry all the time about something happening. God has assured me that He is taking care of everything and I need not worry. I hope that all of you can join me in that reassurance and peace.

On Sunday, Patrick and I began painting the nursery again. We did all four walls and the ceiling! I need to go back and touch up a few areas, of course, but it is looking cute. Green on the bottom 1/4 like grass and the rest is sky blue. Two clouds are already up. In order to keep the room ventilated enough we opened the window and had a fan blowing out the fumes. (In case you forgot, it was very cold that day.) We ended up warming it a bit by having another fan blowing the indoor heat into the room from the hallway. I did not have any warm clothes to paint in so the warmth was appreciated.

Yesterday as I was getting out of bed I noticed I was a bit stiff. Apparently painting is a good workout. I am sore today as well. When the soreness goes away I will tackle the room again for the touch-ups. I can't wait until it is finished so I can post a picture for you all to see!

Nursery News

My grandmother gave each great-grandchild's parents a special gift of money in order to help with furniture and whatnot. Patrick and I have been shopping around and found a crib we both love and a dresser that can double as a changing table. I am very excited and can't wait until we buy it and can set it up in the room.

We went ahead and bought the paint for the nursery and painted almost all day long. I am almost finished and then Patrick will be able to add some of his artistic flares in the way of trees, grass and bugs. When it is all finished, we can then buy the furniture and start setting up the nursery.

I am also beginning to research and make a mental list of all the goodies for my registry list. I am going to try to make it so that there are not duplicate items and I have only what I need. Hopefully, I will have a nice list that is easy to use. Note, I will not register for clothes since that is something I think everyone can find on their own perhaps at a nice resale shop where I cannot register.

June is coming so slowly. Maybe that is a good thing.

Happenings over Christmas break

I found out Christmas eve that my other sister-in-law, Christine, is going to have a baby in late August! And John and Charissa are having twin Girls!!! Three little princesses for my brother and sister. There must be something in the water here. My cousin is due in two more weeks and will hopefully send lots of pictures from Lebanon. The family is growing quickly.

I have begun to feel Alex moving about and it is very encouraging. He is about 5 1/2 inches long now from head to rump and his arms and legs are getting quite strong.

Candy (my cat) ran away again three days ago. That little terd cat. I have resorted to hugging my blanket at night since she isn't there. I wonder if she knew we were going to find her a new home and went searching herself. Please pray that she is safe. We are worried that without her claws for protection, she is a lame duck for all the dogs around here.

I went shopping for clothes! I went to Motherhood to use the gift card Chrissa and John got me for Christmas. I ended up buying two pairs of pants, a sweater and some unmentionables. Proud of me! As most people know, I don't shop for myself often--especially pants. Now I can return to work on Monday with clothes that fit. I apparently popped out a bit over the break. None of my old pants fit anymore. (of course it has nothing to do with the goodies I chowed down the last couple weeks)

Last Saturday, Patrick and I went to visit his Papa in Fredricksburg. He owns a ranch with lots of horses and chickens. I was very excited to pet them all. One horse in particular won my heart. She loved me too. She followed me around and was very quick to come over to me. You can't tell by the pictures, but she had the most beautiful light blue eyes. I felt as if she could speak to me just by looking at me. I only got to spend a little time with her since it was getting cold and we had dinner reservations that we had to get to. We ended up having a wonderful time. After dinner we went back to the ranch and Papa made a fire in an old stove out on the porch. A great time was had by all.

Crib bummers

Patrick and I went to Ikea to try to get some inexpensive baby furniture. We could get a whole bedroom for just over $800-- crib, armoire, changing table and shelf, wall shelf, toy chest, and side table! The only problem was that the crib was short and had fixed sides. Bummer. We decided to keep looking. The bug crib sheets we saw before and wanted were not there either. Another bummer. So now I am researching on the web again and am getting scared. Every crib made for under $300 has bad reviews (mixed with good ones.) It makes me worry that I might think like the reviewers and get upset. I refuse to spend more than $300 on a crib. There are too many other things to buy with the extra money. (like paint and bug stencils!) At least I have plenty of time before Alex comes.

It's a boy!!!

Doctor Berry said that I am now considered normal and can act like a regular pregnant lady. No bedrest the 3rd trimester!!! Woohoo!!

Bored

I know that there is stuff to do, but you know, sometimes you get too bored to do anything. The gray sky doesn't help either. I know I probably have done too much already this week. It is hard staying down when you don't feel bad. At least I get to nap and watch Oprah every day.

I can't wait for Monday so I can call the baby by name instead of saying "the baby" or "it" or a generic pronoun that changes depending on my mood. Please pray that the baby cooperates.

Weird Pregnancy Food Choices

Patrick is having a great laugh at me this week after hearing my food preferences. It was all very tasty, but maybe that is only the baby talking.

Weird food #1: Oreo and pineapple Blizzard (I didn't actually order it because of the looks I knew I would get, but Patrick got the Oreo and I got the pineapple. Mixed together was very yummy.)

Weird food #2: Pickle and ranch burrito (two small dill pickles with a drizzle of ranch wrapped in a tortilla--this too was really yummy.)

Weird food #3: White gravy with toast and refried beans. Not mixed mind you, I just wanted both.

Mexican food is always popular with me, mainly the refried beans and queso. I might do that for lunch!

Viruses and Bedrest

An apology to all those who are upset in the length between blogs. Let me explain a little.

I caught a cold this past weekend and the computer caught a virus as well. While the computer was at the fixers, I went to the doctor. The cerclage procedure went quickly and easily. I was knocked out and ten minutes later, I was waking back up. Apparently the baby wasn't much affected by the anesthesia, because the Doctor said that right afterwards they did an ultrasound and he was moving all over the place. I now call the baby the dancer. I did hurt a bit after the cerclage, and they gave me vicadin. That stuff is powerful. It took away the discomfort and allowed me to take a much loved nap.

I stayed in the recovery room only about an hour before I was allowed to leave. Leftover effects of anesthesia, vicadin, and an already present tendency for motion sickness did not make for a comfortable ride home. Patrick was wise enough to take me to his mom's house which cut off about 20 minutes of the drive. When we arrived I almost puked on her steps. Thank goodness I didn't-the elementary school was just letting out and there were kids and parents all over the street. They didn't need to see a lady spilling her guts on the front porch.

I then slept a good deal and got chicken noodle soup for breakfast/lunch at 5 and papa john's at 7. You would think that after not being able to eat since 10 the night before, I would have wanted food right after getting home. But, just like always, sleep wins over hunger.

So far it has been a full week of modified bed rest for me. I started crocheting, cross-stitching, crossword puzzles, and sudoku. It is nice having other things to do since we don't have cable to occupy my days. Only one more week of sitting on the couch and I will be able to get back to normal.

I will see the doctor for a post-op check-up next Monday the 22ND. He told my parents that he will do an ultrasound and we will probably be able to see the sex!!!! I just hope the baby cooperates and shows off. Patrick and I have agreed on names:

Evelyn Ann (after his sister and both moms)
Alexander Michael (because I always liked Alex and Patrick truly admires Uncle Mike.

Hopefully we will be able to spill the beans and let everyone know next week. What a great Christmas present! Hopefully we will know about the twins as well so that the whole family will be able to celebrate together.