28 Weeks

See this guy?  This tub is my new BFF...

Except, yeeeeaaaahhhh, not really.  Because it tastes totally gross, and I haven't been able to successfully hide it in anything other than a smoothie.  That wouldn't be too bad, except I'm supposed to ingest it 2-3 times per day.  I have a hard time with more than one smoothie a day.  =(

Why does this have to be my BFF?  Because Dr. G said so.  Baby girl isn't doing as good a job growing as we'd hoped.  She kicked me as I just typed that.  Sorry kid, but you've gotta grow!  She was back down to 10th percentile for growth at my MFM appointment.  When babies are any smaller than that, they start to stress out.  And not grow some more.  And that freaks me out.  So protein powder it is, even though it's gross.  Even though she's only 10th%, she is still measuring at over 2lbs now, which means that my stomach is squished enough that I can't eat enough protein through food, which is why the doc wants me to drink it.  I'm still trying to eat a lot of high-protein food too though.

So that's the big deal in week 28.  This past week the crib, mattress, car seat, and baby monitor arrived at our house.  So that was exciting.  We also got new brakes and tires for my Volvo.  That wasn't very exciting at all, but I am glad to know that my car is in great shape and ready to transport our little Freebie.  Last week was also Mid-Winter Break, which meant I was able to do some nursery crafting, too.  I made a crib sheet, and am half-way done making her crib skirt look amazing (but I frustratingly didn't buy enough trim!).  Oh, I also am almost done crocheting her a pillow for the chair in there, and a cute little dress!  

28w6d

Week 28 stats:

How far along? 28w6d

Total weight gain: up 16 lbs. according to my last appointment
Maternity clothes? Yep.  I finally got wise & requested one of Keith's shirts to wear to bed.  Heaven.  Long enough, and loose enough to cover the belly.  And it's an old firefighter shirt of his from 2003, so it's nicely broken in and soft. =)
Sleep: sometimes good, sometimes not.
Best moment this week: A toss-up.  Either the arrival of the crib and/or car seat, OR when Dawn took me to get a manicure (with the hot mittens & massage, it was great!).
Miss Anything? not being a slave to my protein powder!
Movement: Tons, AND, this week I could see it from the outside!  It was funny though, she'd stop every time Keith tried to see.
Food cravings: Raspberry everything (raspberries make good smoothies!), and cherry Pop-Tarts.  I know.  But you know what?  I caved today & got some, and it was worth every bite.  I also found out that they don't contain H-bombs (hydrogenated oils), so I don't feel TOO bad...
Anything making you queasy or sick: Too much protein powder!
Gender: Girl!
Labor Signs: Nope
Symptoms: Soreness in my back & feet, and a constant party in my uterus.
Belly Button in or out? Still hanging in there!
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time:  sleepy.  Does that count?
Looking forward to: setting up the crib.  Have to clean out the nursery first though, boo.

26 & 27 Weeks

I'm failing at blogging again already.  Oops.  That's ok, as we're getting closer to d-day, that also means more fun baby stuff is arriving here, which means more stuff to talk about.  And nursery work must happen!

Week 26 stats:

*This week I had to take the dreaded glucose tolerance test.  My clinic makes everybody do a 2 hour one.   The drink was nasty, but it was pretty relaxing to just chill in a comfy recliner!  I made baby girl a hat while between blood draws.  And the best news is, I passed!

How far along? 26 weeks

Total weight gain: up 13 lbs.
Maternity clothes? yep! 
Stretch marks? none yet
Sleep: sometimes good, sometimes not
Best moment this week: going to BRU with Keith.  We were planning on buying a carseat & baby monitor... but they didn't have either in the kind we wanted.  Still, it wasn't a bust.  Just running around doing stuff with him was nice, he bought Freebs a pink Mariners hoodie (because he had to have it for his little girl!), and we rounded out the trip with a visit to Taco Time to use the Coke Freestyle machine for some raspberry Sprite. =)
Miss Anything? Not really.  It'd be nice if I didn't fall asleep every time I try to have a Lost marathon.
Movement: She's still going crazy in there!
Food cravings: Eggo waffles.  Still.  And those raspberry Sprites.
Anything making you queasy or sick: feeding the dog, raw meat, and anything else depending on the day (this is still true)
Gender: Girl!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Just sore back & feet.
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: happy, I think!
Looking forward to: getting stuff ready for this girl.

27w1d

Week 27 stats:

How far along? 27 weeks

Total weight gain: up 13 lbs. (I won't really know the real amount until I go to my 28w appt. next week).
Maternity clothes? definitely.  I tried wearing some non-maternity shirts this week, and was pulling them down.  A lot.
Sleep: hit or miss, as usual.
Best moment this week: this week was Valentine's Day.  Keith and I agreed to "Valentine's Day Light", but he ended up bringing me flowers, dinner, and a raspberry Sprite.  =)  Also, we ordered the carseat & monitor, and Keith's parents ordered our crib!
Miss Anything? chai tea lattes
Movement: yep
Food cravings: Still waffles.  Still raspberry Sprite.  Also this week I wanted Skittles, and ice cream.  Healthy much?
Anything making you queasy or sick: leftovers in the fridge.  I do NOT like sticking my nose in there.
Gender: Girl!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: tiredness.  I have been so ready for Mid-Winter Break.
Belly Button in or out? in, but I think it's just barely hanging on =(
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: happy
Looking forward to: our baby purchases arriving!

99

99 days left to go!  We're down to double-digits!

Well, hello blog!

Oops.  I, uh, haven't posted since November 6th...  And it is now February 5th!  My only excuse is that I've felt pretty terrible for the past 3 months.  I was not one of those people whose nausea stopped after the first trimester.  Add that to being exhausted from spending my days with Kindergarteners, and well, the blog took a back seat.  I am kind of kicking myself about it, because I'd love to have had that record of the pregnancy, but rest took a priority and I'm ok with that.  I'm finally starting to feel better now, but I can't say I'd trade the first half of my pregnancy for anything.  Give me puking any day for this baby in my belly!


So what's been happening since then?  A lot!  Here are some highlights:
*It took a THIRD NT scan to finally be able to do it.  First baby was too small, then too uncooperative.  Lets just say, I'm not happy that we had to pay for 3 scans, but happy to report that it turned out low-risk for everything.
*I came out to my students.  This was at 16 weeks.  They are SO excited!  They wanted to know what we were naming the baby, if it was a boy or girl, if they could meet it, etc.  My boss & I decided we'd let them tell their parents.  It's finally all out now and everybody knows.  Phew.
*Just after Christmas, we had our anatomy scan.
*IT'S A GIRL!!!
*However, also at our anatomy scan, we found out that our girl has SUA - Single Umbilical Artery.  Babies are supposed to have 2 arteries and one vein in their cords.  Ours only has one of each.  This can be a marker for some very scary bad stuff.  Which means we got ourselves our very own Maternal Fetal Medicine doctor, who we now see in addition to my beloved midwives.
*MFM wanted to see me right away after the SUA diagnosis.  Baby girl had to have a fetal echocardiogram, because SUA can indicate big-time heart problems.  Luckily, she is totally fine.  And the fetal echo was amazing!  We got to see her individual heart valves pumping (and hear them!).  Cool!
*Because of SUA, she's measuring small.  Like, she was only 10th% for growth at 20weeks.  Which means I get to be on a high-protein diet.  I also am now on 4mg extra of folic acid per day, as well as a baby aspirin to help the blood ease through the cord.
*At my 24 week appointment, I had to meet one of the OBs in the practice instead of my midwife.  She was nice, but it really freaked me out.  However, baby girl was up to 28th%, so we didn't have to go to MFM this month!  Good job, Freebie!
*This week I registered us for all of our baby classes at the hospital.  We're signed up for a breastfeeding class, an all-day baby care class, and a 5 week hypnobirthing class.  I really wanted to learn hypnobirthing, but I'm kind of nervous.  The only class available anywhere around me (happened to be at the hospital, nice) starts April 3.  The last class is May 1...  Cutting it reeeeeeeeally close!  Like, I could already have a baby before then!  I decided to do it anyway though, and hope that she takes her time growing in there.


Ok, I think that catches me up to now.  Here's a pic of our little girl at 20 weeks!

I joked that it kind of looks like she's making kissy-lips.  Keith said she's not allowed to do that for another 25 years or so.  =)

Hopefully, I will be able to resume the weekly updates too.  Ready for some belly?  BAM!

24w6d

Biiiiiiig difference from the last picture!  After I took this, I was looking at it and hit the back button on my camera.  The last picture saved on there is from 6 weeks, with a flat stomach.  It brought the situation into shocking reality!  I showed Keith & he went, "Whoa!"  Oh yeah, and sad day.  They took away Picnik.  So now I don't know how to put the week/day over my picture anymore.  Boo.  Also, this pic was from last Monday, so today I'm actually 25 weeks 5 days.

Week 25 stats:

How far along? 25 weeks, 5 days

Total weight gain: up 13 lbs.
Maternity clothes? yep!  I have a few non-maternity shirts that are long enough still, but maternity definitely fits better.
Stretch marks? none yet
Sleep: is usually ok until I have to pee.  Then there is no sleeping after that.
Best moment this week: I got a bunch of fabric in the mail to make stuff for our little girl.  Exciting!
Miss Anything? Today we took a walk and passed the Subway in our neighborhood.  I'd really love a spicy Italian sandwich... I guess someone will have to bring me one at the hospital!
Movement: TONS!  This little girl moves around SO much in there!
Food cravings: Eggo waffles.  The other day Keith asked me what we needed at the store, and I told him chicken.  Then waffles.  He asked if pregnancy has made me a Southerner now, lol. 
Anything making you queasy or sick: feeding the dog, raw meat, and anything else depending on the day.
Gender: Girl!
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: I finally feel pretty darn good.  My back gets sore by the end of the day, and often my feet are tired.
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: happy right now, but moody often.  I don't think that was abnormal before pregnancy though!
Looking forward to: working on the nursery.  We really need to get on it!  Only 100 days left!