My dear friend Amanda had her baby girl this past Saturday morning. Look at this priceless photo…
Stella Kathryn was born Saturday, September 17, weighing 6lbs, 4 ozs and measuring 18 inches long!
Welcome to this world, Stella for star!
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So here I am at 19 weeks…
While I still don’t have what I would call a real “bump” I decided I am ready to begin taking belly photos.
Side note: sorry if you find it weird that I’m lifting my shirt, but otherwise it really doesn’t look like anything. I will put my shirt down once it becomes obvious under clothes.
I’ve gained 9 pounds.
I’m now wearing maternity jeans, but I’m still in all other normal clothes.
My sweet little passenger is now the size of a mango or a large heirloom tomato, depending on which website I look at. At the doctor this week Baby K’s heartbeat sounded strong and we learned that our prenatal screening tests were low-risk for the major genetic disorders and do not need to do an amnio. Hooray!
Baby K craves Beef, Milk and Watermelon the most.
Baby K is moving around and I’m pretty sure I can now differentiate between baby movement and gas or uterine growth. Sometimes it feels like soft little internal punches, sometimes it feels like s/he is balling up and sticking her/his little tush out and sometimes it feels like a rolling motion. I love this so much!
R and I have gone looking at baby items such as strollers, car seats and rocking chairs.
Baby K has already received a couple of presents and I purchased her/his first clothing…
First clothing purchase (I just couldn’t resist):
First present from “Grandma B” (she couldn’t resist either):
Second present from our friends Dan & Reagan (the diapers were addressed to “Dad”):
Things I’m thinking about are…
–Breastfeeding: to take a class or read a book instead?
–Infant Care: I’ve never lived with an infant, but R has lived with several, so he’s way ahead of me in terms of comfort and ease around small babies. We will probably take a class.
–Labor/Delivery: Get a doula? Take a class? I will definitely not make any kind of real birth plan but instead go with the flow and do what feels right in my body as labor progresses.
Our Anatomy/Gender ultrasound got moved up one week, so we’ll hopefully learn if Baby K is a boy (like we and most everyone else thinks) or a girl (which 2 people think) this coming Friday morning! Just 4.5 days 3 days until we get another glimpse of the passenger. I’m so excited I can hardly stand it!
My mantra leading up to this ultrasound is: Healthy Happy Baby, Healthy Happy Baby.
And that’s the word on the pregnancy street.
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My husband is a semi-finalist in the 2011 Slamdance Screenwriting & Teleplay Competition for his Spec episode of Mad Men!!!
Click right here to check out the website with his name & script listed under the “Teleplay” list.
I would like to point out that he is one of only 8 Semi-Finalists in this category (out of hundreds of submissions, I’m pretty sure). I would also like to mention that this was the first tv script he’s written – Ever. That’s hot!
He rocks and I couldn’t be prouder.
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I don’t have any photos to share here – this post will be word heavy…and it also may end up being a bit of a rant. My apologies.
I’ve heard many women say, “I loved being pregnant!” and all I can think is, “Really“?
So far this has not been my favorite experience. Constant sickness for 4 months. Weird puffiness that doesn’t look like I’m pregnant, but rather like I ate too many burritos. Persistent nausea that resurfaces every hour if I don’t have a snack immediately. Fatigue. “Worried sleep” because I should be on my left side instead of on my back. Anxiety over whether or not I should be feeling the baby move, but I don’t and is everything ok in there? People saying “you don’t look pregnant” (ie: all the symptoms and nothing much to show for it except bigger cleavage, which I don’t actually appreciate). Realizing I eat a lot of feta cheese and having to order without it. Gagging on vitamins because I’m terrible at taking pills. Losing my words mid-sentence (what was I saying?). Frequent dizziness. A stuffy, stuffy nose all the time. Flat, lackluster hair and regular skin breakouts on my cheeks (what)!?
Where is the second trimester Golden Age of Pregnancy I read about? When will the day come when I don’t wake up feeling icky-ew. And where is my glow, my increased energy and my cute baby bump?
All that complaining being done, I do love some things…
Reading my pregnancy app and learning how my baby is developing week by week. When R sticks is face on my belly and talks to baby. Putting my hand on my belly and saying “hi, baby, whatcha up to in there?” or “ok baby, let’s go to work, get ready to dance”. Having R think of the baby as my “passenger” and therefore getting that nickname. Playfully imagining our spoiled cat meeting baby in February, packing up his knapsack and moving to Arizona wailing “I’ve been replaced”! Rearranging our living room furniture to accommodate a changing table or other baby furniture in our one-bedroom (yep, we’re staying here). Having fun visualizing myself growing a lemon, an avocado, a turnip, a sweet potato.
I’m excited for our next ultrasound to catch another glimpse of our sweet potato passenger and to hopefully learn she/he is healthy and whether or not Baby K is a she or a he.
And those are my thoughts on pregnancy at this stage of the adventure.
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August began with our trip to Costa Rica, (which you can see here) and continued wonderfully. It was the first month in a long time that I haven’t had a two-week work trip. It was so nice to be home with my guy, and my cat and in my own bed. I also enjoyed getting time with family and friends. Here are the highlights from August…
My friend Amanda is having her first child, a baby girl, in late September and so she had a baby shower. She looks fantastic and it was fun to catch up with her and her friends from all different places. In this photo is Amanda and some of her friends (who were, coincidentally, very coordinated – they blended well together, we noted).
The next day, my parents threw a Luau pool party at their house and invited all of R’s family (and my friend Chelsi!) to swim, eat, play and dance. We had a grand time!
R taught our youngest niece (3 yrs) to swim! She was swimming the length of the pool by the end of the day. Amazing…
We also had a balloon toss and a hula dance contest. How cute are my sisters-in-law and my friend Chelsi?
My Mom and Chelsi get along so well, I love it. It’s like she a part of the family…
And my Mom throws a good party. Fun was had by all.
Hooray for August and a delightful summer!
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