Monday, January 27, 2014

Overview: Weeks Twenty-Three, Twenty-Four, and Twenty-Five

In the next three weeks, we almost finished the nursery! There is an important message at the end of this post regarding the nursery!

WEEK 23: Well the last time I blogged, Tommy and I painted  the nursery and Tommy put together the crib. This week the rest of the furniture arrived and Tommy put everything together just as it was being delivered.  Up first we have the glider and the ottoman...it is soooo comfortable.




Next we have the changing table:



And last but not least, the dresser:



 
The furniture fits nicely in the room and I love the way everything turned out. It's so hard to try and picture how everything will look without actually seeing it, but it all worked out beautifully!
 
The baby: is the size of a spaghetti squash! Gavin is now more proportioned from head size to the rest of his body and is looking more and more like a newborn.






Mommy's Health: I get occasional cramps, which is a result of my uterus "practicing" for labor. The uterus is actually exercising its muscles.  My back hurts occasionally when I sleep on it wrong. I always sleep on my side (even before I was pregnant) but it's hard to get comfortable with this big belly in the way! Plus, sleeping on my side causes my belly to pull on my spine. I tried using pillows and they help a little.  
 
 
I had to give up on my elliptical and light weight lifting. I started getting dizzy after working out for twenty minutes, then fifteen minutes, then ten...it was just not worth it. The good news is, I have been doing prenatal yoga videos in place of the elliptical. I love it! I learn breathing techniques, calming positions, and a connection with my baby that I've never had before. I feel incredible on the inside and out.

WEEK 24: On Friday, January 10th, 2014 we had our third sonogram. This sonogram was needed to find the aorta pump from the heart that the tech could not find during the anatomy sonogram. This time, she found the aorta pump. We weren't worried... if you remember the last post where I explained the anatomy sonogram... the tech couldn't find the aorta pump, but there was no sign of trouble because his heart was beating fine. Gavin was just moving around so much that they couldn't get an accurate picture, so we had to go back. This time, the tech got the picture and everything was documented! My baby is healthy and growing at the perfect rate! At this time, he is 1.7 pounds. Here is my handsome son:




My mother-in-law and my sister accompanied us this time to see the baby "in real life." My sister managed to take a picture of us in awe as we watch our baby move around in my belly.


On Monday, January 13, 2014 Tommy and I had our monthly OB appointment. Tommy and I (and my doctors) are proud to say I gained four more pounds. I gained a total of ten pounds in six months...not bad. We heard Gavin's heartbeat and I went over my birth plan with the doctor. She said everything I want is doable and realistic. I still have to finalize some decisions and research a little more, but as soon as I have my "final" copy I will share my birth plan in an upcoming post.
 
The baby: is the size of an ear of corn! Gavin is rapidly developing his senses and can sense whether he is upside down or right side up. What a genius! His respiratory system is also rapidly growing. His lungs are developing in preparation for breathing. He's breathing amniotic fluid in and out of his lungs. He is practicing for when he comes into this world and takes his first breath (I just got the chills).
 
Gavin and my uterus are right above my belly button!
 


It is January so there is no fresh corn. We had to improvise!

 

Mommy's Health: Those pounds I've gained do not want to stop at four. I am constantly hungry. I can control myself and I still eat healthy (once in awhile I'll splurge on something that's more satisfying over healthy...but that is rare). It's just I eat a lot more food than I usually do and I'm not used to it. Here is a sample of what I eat:

Breakfast- scrambled egg whites mixed with one egg with broccoli and onions and cheddar cheese and a potato steamed into "hash browns" and orange juice.
Snack- Apple and Greek yogurt
Lunch- peanut butter (or Nutella) and banana sandwich and trail mix (raisins and nuts)
Snack- a cheese stick and whole wheat crackers
Dinner- Chicken, veggies, pasta
Snack- frozen yogurt with bananas

Other days I have oatmeal, blueberries, many different varieties of veggies and fruits... I'm full just typing everything! Also I drink eight to ten glasses of water a day and I do my prenatal yoga!

 

Week 25: This week Tommy and I completed more projects for the nursery. Gavin's nautical nursery is coming out perfectly!
 
We bought a nautical canvas painting, a blue glass jar with rope, and sea glass in a jar:



 
A nautical lamp:
 
 
 
We bought a wooden oar and Tommy painted it white. Then he spray painted gloss white on it. We bought G-A-V-I-N letters and packaging rope to create his name (I braided and knotted the rope). We bought wooden anchors and I painted them navy blue:
 
 
 
 
Nautical pictures in frames:
 
 
 
We bought nautical stamps and I used the nursery paint left over to create these outlet covers:
 
 
The baby: is the size of a rutabaga! Gavin's body parts are continuing to become more proportional to each other. Baby fat is also continuing to fill in his wrinkled skin for a smoother look and more hair is growing, developing texture and color. Now Gavin and my uterus are halfway between my sternum and my belly button.
 

 

Mommy's Health: I feel great! Yeah my back is sometimes sore, I still get tired, and I'm always hungry, but none of those symptoms compare to the overwhelming amount of joy I feel when my baby boy Gavin moves. Even just thinking about him I get butterflies. I am so in love.
 
On Saturday, January 18th 2014...6:00 A.M. Tommy and I went to Labcorp so I could get my gestational diabetes glucose test done and out of the way. They make you drink this gross sugary drink (even more sugary than Hawaiian Punch) which has to be finished within five minutes.


 
 
THEN they make you wait an hour, THEN take a tube of blood. NOT FUN. If you "fail" the glucose test, they make you take it again, but instead of waiting an hour, you have to wait three hours! There is also a five hour one. Luckily, three days after my test I received a call from my doctor stating I do not have gestational diabetes. Phew.





Nautical Nursery News: I have been working on a seperate post strictly for the creation of Gavin's nursery. In that post I will reveal where we bought everything and explain how the oar, picture frames, and all other crafts were created. Once the nursery is done (probably after my baby shower at the end of March) I will be posting this information!

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Overview Weeks Twenty, Twenty-One, & Twenty-Two

WEEK 20: Gavin is now moving around so much that I can see him squirm outside my belly. He jerks and kicks and moves my whole belly around. I can even put a deck of cards on top of my belly and watch Gavin rock it back and forth. He is so strong, It is just incredible. I can only imagine the painful feeling of Gavin moving when he gets bigger and there is no more room left inside! 

Tommy and I painted Gavin's nautical nursery! It looks so adorable. Tommy measured out the room. The bottom quarter of the wall is dark blue (representing the ocean), Then, there is a gap of white waves (made with wave patterned frog tape which represents the white caped waves), and the remainder of the wall is light blue (representing the sky). 








After Tommy measured the wall and made sure all outlines were level, he put blue painters tape around the room, closet, and windows. Then it was time to paint! We painted the room and here is the outcome:





Tommy also restyled the closet. The closet in the nursery used to be a normal everyday standard closet: one pole starting from one side of the wall and going straight across to the other side of the wall. Now the left side of the closet has five shelves with dark blue and light blue cubby baskets to hold Gavin's shoes, socks, hats, bibs, extra diapers, and many other accessories. On the right side of the closet there are two poles connected from the shelves to the wall to fit more clothes. We also bought nautical closet dividers from Etsy, ranging from 0-12 months. I'm in love with these dividers! Here is the finished closet and dividers:






Another exciting event that happened this week- my students found out that I am pregnant. I had a meeting with a parent and they noticed I was pregnant. She came to the conclusion based on the "glow" I have, not by my round belly. You see, I wore big sweaters to work to hide my belly because I did not want my students to question my pregnancy. So the parent did not notice my belly, but still knew I was pregnant. Wow, she's good. After I confirmed her belief, I told her I was already half way through my pregnancy and she couldn't believe it. The reason for delaying the reveal of my pregnancy to my students is well...I teach fifth graders and they are ten and eleven years old. I have no problem telling adults, I mean all the other teachers know and I don't mind the parent's knowing. It's just, how would I go about even bringing up the subject to them? I tried on many occasions, but it just seemed weird to me. "Alright boys and girls! Take out your reading books and go to page 105. Oh, and by the way I'm going to have a baby!!" Again, that's weird. Plus ten and eleven year old students asking me random questions about my fetus is something I was not prepared for. My students love to ask questions and I have a respectful and trusting relationship with them... But I was not ready for their pregnancy questions. I could just imagine: "Are you going to get fat?" "How did this happen?" "How long does it stay in there?" "How does it eat and breath?" "Does it poop in there?" and the ever so popular, "Where do babies come from?" I didn't want to give away any information that parents might have already told them, or uncover the parent's white lies (like the stork)...or maybe some parents haven't told their child anything! It was just a topic I was trying to avoid as long as possible. I also didn't have the heart to tell them I am not going to be there for the last two months of school. The fifth grade end-of-the-year party is a big deal. They go to middle school next year! I'm already upset I'll miss the celebration. Anyway, that parent asked me if it was okay to tell her daughter the good news. My first reaction was "NO WAY!" After I thought about it for a minute, my thoughts were more along the lines of: "Well this would save the awkward conversation of having to bring up the subject and announcing the news...now the students can find out among themselves and ask me for the truth!" I told the parent it was a good idea to tell her daughter/my student about my pregnancy. Well the next day, sure enough, the class knew, but not right away. It was our "Winter Celebration" party and students brought in food and drinks, movies, and handed me gifts. The student whose mother told her the news gave me slippers as a gift and told me, "You are going to need those!" and her card said, "congrats!" The other students were confused and questioned why the card said "congrats." I asked the student if she told anyone and she said, "Only one person, my best friend." Well her best friend is also in my class. Now the rest of the class is yelling, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN DID SHE TELL ANYONE? WHAT DID SHE TELL HER??" I told the student it was okay for her to tell the rest of the class, and she did with a big smile on her face. All the students were very excited and asked minimal questions (phew). SUCCESS!
 
The baby: is the size of a small cantaloupe! Gavin's skin is now covered with a waxy-like substance called vernix. This protects his skin from becoming chapped or scratched. He is also starting to produce meconium. This has to do with digestion and will accumulate in his bowels and eventually pass during delivery or in his first diaper. Amazing! The uterus is now level with the bellybutton! And boy does he move!




 
Mommy's Health: This week I have been very argumentative, usually about the most random unimportant things. And the arguments mostly took place with my mom and husband. I don't even remember the little quarrels, they were just pointless.

WEEK 21: Christmas was this week and on Friday, December 20th 2013, Tommy's sister and her three kids came over to take pregnancy Christmas pictures for us in front of our fireplace. This was so last minute! Tommy has been working crazy hours and things kept coming up causing us to put it off until the next day. Well we ran out of days to put it off. Luckily, the pictures came out great and since it was five days before Christmas we went straight to Walgreens (that night) to print out Christmas cards. We addressed, stamped, and sealed the cards to send to everyone the next morning. Call that cutting it close! Everyone received their cards just in time for Christmas!


 
The baby: is the size of a banana! Gavin's digestive system is developing and he can begin to swallow amniotic fluid and absorb small amounts of sugar. Gavin is still kicking and moving around like a crazy little baby! A kicking pattern is starting to form and can be tracked.





 
Mommy's Health: This week, according to my mom and husband, I was still starting arguments. I didn't even realize I was doing it!  But I did notice how forgetful I have been. I usually have a good memory, guess not anymore. I can't remember names, what I was going to say, what I walked into the room for, where I am going while driving... It's awful! I'm not used to it! Gavin is stealing all of my brain cells. 

WEEK 22: This week was New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. We went to a Japanese Hibachi for New Year's Eve dinner. My sister, mom, Tommy, me, and some family friends met us there. We had a great time! Then my family and I went back to my mom's house to bring in the new year. We played games and before we knew it, we started the sixty second countdown to 2014. Well, 2014 is here, and that means: the year of GAVIN!!! My due date is in just four short months and there is still so much to do!

Gavin's crib came in the mail the day after New Years. Tommy put it together that night and I can't wait to get the bedding and the rest of the furniture we ordered. We are waiting for the glider and ottoman, the dresser, and the changing table. I'm so happy with the way Gavin's nursery is turning out!





The baby: is the size of a grapefruit! Gavin's senses are really developing this week. Taste buds are forming and nerve endings are developed enough for him to experience the sensation of touch.


 
Mommy's Health: Well according to my baby app, stretch marks might begin to appear this week, I am happy to report that SO FAR there are no signs of stretch marks. No itchy sensations, nothing. I do put lotion on my belly to keep it from getting dry and flaky, hopefully that is/keeps working. Now that I'm showing more, I love when people come up to me and rub or touch my belly. Some women hate having their belly touched while pregnant. I don't get it? I'm proud to have the miracle of life growing inside me and I don't mind sharing the feeling with others, even strangers. I don't get what the big deal is... so everyone can touch my belly! Gavin loves it as well! 
 
I guess my argumentative behavior has dialed down. No one has complained about me starting arguments anymore! But I am still forgetful, here is a funny story: It was time for bed. I followed my normal bedtime routine, brushed my teeth, washed my face, then it was time to take my contacts out (I have really bad eye sight). I opened my contact case, filled it up with eye contact solution, closed the case, and put it back in the medicine cabinet. I go to put my glasses on and everything is blurry. I take my glasses off and everything is clear. I do this about three more times, and concluded that my vision has been cured. It's a miracle!!!!! I could see!!! I sat down on the bed and thought "how could this happen? I know I took my contact case out, filled it up with solution, and wait..." I stick my finger in my eye and yupp, my contacts were still in my eyes. "WOW," I thought... "What an idiot!" I swear this kid has to be a genius because I have no brain cells left.
 
What to look forward to next post: We have a sonogram next week on January 10th. We are also going on a "babymoon" to the Poconos that weekend for a three day two night all-inclusive getaway. SO EXCITED! We have a regular OB doctor's appointment the following Monday. And hopefully we get the rest of Gavin's furniture. So much coming up!