25 weeks!

How far along? 25 weeks - only 15 weeks to go! Eek!


Total weight gain/loss: +18 pounds

Maternity clothes? It's been so warm this week, I pulled out maternity leggings and cute dresses. Fun!

Stretch marks? Continuing to creep their way in. I cannot say I'm a big fan, but I am getting used to seeing them in the mirror.

Sleep:  I am becoming more uncomfortable at night - hopefully I find a pillow combination/position that I like soon! It will likely look something like this:

Best moment this week: We had an in-dept ultrasound with the perinatologist yesterday - and everything is okay with Henry's kidneys! No more talk of inducing early, or anything else scary. He will check up on us in the middle of May just to be on the safe side, but it was such a relief!

Movement: He is starting to kick hard enough that I can see my belly move almost every day. So cool! And look at his adorable foot! :)

Food cravings:  Today I thought I would not live if I did not eat Panera immediately. I might have survived, but I did not take that chance. Mmmm... Panera.

Gender: He showed off for us at the doctor again yesterday. He's so proud! Still won't show us his face very well, but we did see that he has some hair on his head already!

Labor Signs: 

 

Belly Button in or out?  In - I'll be surprised if it sticks out after all, but we shall see!

*New Question*  What do we want to teach Henry about?  Other parts of the world. The kids I watch after school recently were asked if they know how to speak "African" (their family is from Nigeria). Really people? Really?? I felt so bad for them - and they thought it was so ridiculous that someone would think there was such a language - but I sadly was not that surprised...

What I miss: Bratwurst.

What I am looking forward to: Continuing with some warm weather. I love all the sunny days we've been having!

Weekly Wisdom: This week I have been reading a book about why us in the developing world have made breastfeeding so complicated. It has been really interesting and empowering. One of the most interesting things I learned is that brand-new infants can actually "crawl" to the mother's breast to eat if they are placed on her abdomen. (I even watched a video of it because I wasn't sure I believed it at first!) I always think of infants as so helpless (and in many ways, they are) but it's cool to think of all the instincts and reflexes babies have at birth.

Milestones: At 25 weeks, babies are considered "viable" - they have a chance of survival outside of the womb. I plan on keeping Henry snug inside for another 15 weeks or so, but I think it's amazing that if he came now, he would already have a fighting chance. It makes it feel even closer to his arrival!

Daddy's thoughts:

So it got warm again.  It's weird because it wasn't that terrible of a winter, it's only March 14th and yet I'm still thinking "Man, I thought spring would never get here!"  I have no conception of how weather is supposed to work, I just believe I deserve 70 degree spring/fall all the time.  This much warmth makes me think about being outside, and now with Henry!  We're getting a pretty awesome stroller (or so I believe), which folds up simply by grabbing a handle on the base of the seat.  Should be easy to transport anyway.  I think Graco makes it.  So we'll be taking him on plenty of walks when he's old enough to go out.  There's a little park on the corner by our house that I walked by today.  Seriously, when I say little, I mean it.  I think postage to Lichtenstein would completely cover it.  Apparently Peoria is full of these little guys.  Somewhere to take Heinrich, at least.  

   And campus.  Just having survived self-diagnosed pneumonia, I've finally cleared myself (with a doctor's note I wrote on the back of an envelope) that I could go running again.  I go through campus today which was kind of weird 'cause all the students are at home on spring break.  That too will be Henry someday, won't it?  "Hey mom, dad, I'm going to be in my room talking to my friends online for a while.  Come bring me food if you feel like it."  And so on like that.

  As you all know I'm a U of I alum and Nicki is true to her Bradley roots.  She keeps insisting our kids will come here (not really, she just calls them her "Bradley babies", whatever that is supposed to infer).  I was in a seminar 2 weeks ago that talked about putting money away for your kids' schooling.  It actually looks pretty affordable, which is nice, because I can only assume that the cost of college will near the total debt of Lichtenstein by then.  As long as they get out of the house.  :)

 Nicki's had more aches and pains with the change in the weather, which she's always been fairly sensitive to anyway.  She says my massages saved the day though, so that's nice.  At least I know what my super power is now.  Teleportation would have been nice but I'll take what I can get.  Anywho, things seem to be going pretty well.  Looking forward to Tate's Birthday Party/St. Patrick's Day celebration at my sister's this weekend (St. Tater's Day?).  I'm also very much looking forward to mom's cake.  I haven't had that since...Eli's birthday in Septembuary?

  My beard's getting longer.  Someone said it made me look more "fatherly".  Someone else said it took my baby face.  I didn't even know I had one of those!  We'll see what the family thinks this weekend.  They'll probably think I look like I come from Lichtenstein.

    -Ben

24 weeks! From Daddy's perspective!

How far along? 24 weeks (as we said up there!)


Total weight gain/loss: Not sure, but she's been keeping track of her diet pretty closely this week.  Apparently Bochantin's scolding her for gaining too much weight had an effect.  More veggies!

Maternity clothes? As far as I'm concerned, any clothes you can get on when you're pregnant are maternity clothes.

Stretch marks? Oh yeah.  Good news though:  Not all of them are stretch marks!  Some are varicose veins...

Sleep:  Pretty good overall I would say.  Not that I would know that intimately, apparently since I became a resident I can sleep through a hurricane.  Today she apologized about 6 times for waking me up last night.  However...

Best moment this week: Seeing Nicki at the end of a long day at work.  I've been on the road a lot this month, which gives me a lot more time to just sit around missing her.  Kind of nice when I get home and she's there.  And pregnant.

Movement: 5th Movement, D Major, Concerto.

Food cravings:  She got a wicked craving for bacon the other night.  Can't say that's too unusual, I mean, hey, I could go for some bacon right now.

Gender: Yes, with a side of manhood.

Labor Signs: I have seen way way too many of these lately.  This month I've delivered 3 (soon to be 4) patients.  None of these were the Vark, of course, but they all happened at night.  We were talking the other day, though, and she said I could deliver him when he comes out if I want to.  And I'm pretty sure I do, but I haven't made my mind up 100% yet.  Either way, I won't be the one managing her (or him).

Belly Button in or out?  In, but in an outly sort of way.

*New Question*  What do we want to teach Henry about?  King Arthur.  Definitely.  I'm reading The Mists of Avalon right now and it reminds me how into knights and magic and kings I was as a kid.  So cool!  He can be Sir Henry, Lord of Washcloths or something.

What I miss: Planning ahead and thinking "This will be great, we'll just do this in the fall", etc.  Now it will be different forever.  Or at least for 20 years or so.  We'll still be cool in our late 40's, right?

What I am looking forward to: Thursday.  Nicki is looking forward to seeing the Lorax with her sister on Saturday.

Weekly Wisdom: Little guys respond pretty well to the whole "tough guy" idea.  Today I had to put a few stitches in a 6 year old's temple, and when I told him, he burst into tears.  I was expecting him to do what all children do when I try to console them: run to his mother and never look at me again.  But he didn't.  I told him how cool he would be with his stitches and that he would look like a decorated war hero.  I think he got the gist of it, because he stopped crying and let me do it.  (He had his eyes shut pretty tightly during the whole thing.)  So the lesson here, I guess, is that little boys like to be told how strong they are.

Milestones: 22 miles to Canton.

23 weeks - 6 month mark!

How far along? 23 weeks! Since pregnancy is not exactly 9 months long, pregnancy months start at odd times. Today is the 6 month mark! Can you believe that? It seems like it is going by way too fast.


Total weight gain/loss: Clearly my scale at home is not working. I had my OB appointment today and I've gained 18 pounds. That's 9 pounds this month! She wasn't too pleased, since gaining 9 pounds a month is not a good pattern to start. No more second dinners for me... But I am only 5 pounds over her target weight for me this week, so I am doing relatively well!


Maternity clothes? As you can see in the picture above, one of my last "fake maternity" shirts is starting to get pretty tight. It's cute though, so I am going to keep wearing it as long as possible :)


Stretch marks? They are definitely starting to creep around from the back of my hips towards the front. Eek! I saw a picture recently where the woman was showing of her stretch marks and referring to them as "earning her tiger stripes". I don't know about tiger stripes, but I guess it's a good way to think about it!


Sleep: I've been sleeping a lot lately - I think Henry must be going through a growth spurt because I am much hungrier and exhausted than I was last week.


Best moment this week: Ben felt Henry kicking this week! It was awesome to see the look on his face when he knew that's what he was feeling. So adorable.


Movement: I guess I thought the kicking would come slowly, but he has just been going to town this week. I can especially feel him in the evening when I put my feet up and when I wake up late at night. Sadly, he would not wake up and move this afternoon for the sonogram, so we have no new cute pictures of him.


Food cravings: Carbs carbs carbs. I guess I know where that 9 lbs came from...


Gender: He was proudly showing off his manhood for the ultrasound today, even though he wouldn't show his face. :)


Labor Signs: I actually had what may have been some Braxton Hicks contractions this week. That's not labor by any means, but it kind of freaked me out at first. It's nice to be able to have Ben around in those situations - he expects these things to happen and he knows they are nothing to worry about. It's very reassuring.


Belly Button in or out? I think it looks more in than it did before - maybe it won't come out at all!


Wedding rings on or off? Off


What I miss: Sleeping on my back.


What I am looking forward to: Today the ultrasound showed his kidneys are still dilated, even more than last month, so I have to go see a specialist, who will do a detailed scan and make a determination on what, if anything, needs to be done. It's making me anxious, even though it's probably nothing to worry about. So I hope I can get in to see him soon. I am looking forward to seeing what he has to say, and reviewing whether anything out of the ordinary needs to take place for the rest of the pregnancy.

Weekly Wisdom: Some people told me that we shouldn't call the baby by his name until after he is born - but I am glad we refer to him as Henry. It makes me feel even more connected than before. I can't wait to meet him!


Milestones: I seriously cannot believe we are already 6 months along. He'll be here before we know it!

22 weeks

How far along? 22 weeks!!

Total weight gain/loss: I haven't weighed myself since last week. Then I was +11 pounds.

Maternity clothes? I don't know what I would do without them! It's so nice to have clothes that actually fit like they are supposed to. Anything to be more comfortable is good really.

Stretch marks? I haven't noticed any new ones this week - so that's good!

Sleep: I've been sick since Sunday, so sleeping has been a bit harder than before. Hoping to get better soon!

Best moment this week: My family is so excited about my little one - it was fun visiting! And my dad said he would baptize Henry when he arrives. That'll be so special :)

Movement: I felt real kicks this week! Only four or five, but it was really cool!

Food cravings: Mushrooms, mushrooms, mushrooms!

Gender: Can't wait to meet our little man!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Belly Button in or out? Still in!

Wedding rings on or off? Off

What I miss: Cold medicine

What I am looking forward to: Next week I get another ultrasound! I hope Henry gives us a cute picture :)

Weekly Wisdom: I learned not to sit in one position for too long - I get really stiff afterwards! 

Milestones: Depending on his own pace, Henry may have hit the one pound mark this week! Keep growing buddy :)



Daddy's Thoughts: 

   Another week and we've been very sick here at casa del Rathert.  I diagnosed myself with pneumonia, whether that's true or not, and am still coughing up a storm.  Worse is Nicki has caught this stupid thing too, although I hope she doesn't get it as badly as me.  I've actually been sleeping downstairs in the guestroom as not to wake her up with my nocturnal coughing.  This is actually going to be nursery but for now it's still got a bed in it.  Nicki calls me her "dorm room boyfriend" while I'm sleeping down here.  To be fair, this has actually been better for me as I hadn't realized before that she now needs about 15/16 of the bed to sleep at night.  We slept together at her parents' the other night and I realized then that I didn't have enough room to turn over!  Still, I can't complain, I'm sleeping pretty good down here and if it helps her sleep, all the better.
   In other news we asked Larry to baptize Henry at some point in the future.  He was delighted to be asked, of course, and even said some hokey things about "baptizing him with his tears".  Love you Larry.
   We haven't been home to see my parents in a while but that largely has to do with the Nickster's schedule working at the Na'Allah's.  A 4 hour drive is a bit much when you're pregnant and you get off work at 6 p.m.  In any event, we will be coming down for Tate's birthday party in March, which should be awesome!
   Life around here is otherwise fine.  We've been cleaning the house a bit and other boring stuff that I'm sure you don't care to read about.  I went in for a delivery Monday night and Henry left me a really nice note on my pillow saying he was proud of me.  Mommy may have helped.  Jury's still out.

  Until next week!
    Daddy Ben

21 weeks - Happy Valentines Day!

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

Ben and I successfully put the playpen together. It was sadly harder than it looked... Oh well, practice makes perfect!

How far along? 21 weeks!!

Total weight gain/loss: +11 pounds

Maternity clothes? As one of the kids I nanny pointed out this week, "Aunty Nicki - good thing you got those big clothes - normal ones wouldn't fit you anymore!"

Stretch marks? Sadly, my cocoa butter plan is not working out as well as I hoped. Worth it nonetheless!

Sleep: Still battling some insomnia. At least I can take naps!

Best moment this week: I was talking about him with Ben and just as I said "Henry", he moved! I'm sure it was a coincidence, but it was still really cool!

Movement: The flutters are starting to get a little bit stronger - soon they will probably feel like full kicks.

Food cravings: Maybe it's just the Valentines Day commercials, but I have eaten a lot of chocolate this week. I even made Carnival Cruise Line's chocolate melting cake. I ate it every night on our honeymoon. So good!

Gender: It's a boy!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Belly Button in or out? Still in!

Wedding rings on or off? Off

What I miss: When bending down was a simple thing.

What I am looking forward to: Showing off my growing belly to my family this weekend!

Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy the good days - I am feeling so much better than I was even just a month ago!

Milestones: We definitely felt like beginning to set up baby stuff in the house was a big deal! So far, we have the playpen in our room, the extra dresser in the baby's room with all his books ready to go and a few clothes we got at Christmas in the closet. Baby clothes are so cute! (Except maybe that Cardinals shirt...)




Daddy's Thoughts: 

I've been thinking about Henry's name a lot this week.  Henry.  It's a good name, right?  I mean, I really like it.  We've been postulating what we're going to call him for short:  Hank, Harry, someone suggested Hal, there are a lot of possibilities with this name, and I love it!  Honestly I don't see us really calling him anything consistently other than "Henry" but I think Nicki and I call each other by our actual names about once a month, so you never know.

Anyway, it occurred to me that Henrisaurus is in good company with his name.  I'd like to take this opportunity to remind you of all the great men named Henry.  Or at least some of them.

First you've got to start off with the big guy, the original H, I'm talking about Henry VIII.  You know it's funny, he was the 8th guy to carry the name Henry in the Tudor family, but he's definitely the one that gets all the credit.  Probably for having the impossible figure of 6 wives to his name.  Also he is where we get the phrase "Every Tom, Dick, and Harry" because after his reign, Henry became such a popular name in England that you couldn't throw a cat and not hit some poor defenseless kid named Henry.

Then you've got Henry Kissinger, the Vark's personal favorite.  For a while there we were considering doing my residency near Clemson University South Carolina.  We didn't end up going there (obviously) but a big selling point was old Austria Breath went to school there.  You know, I hate to be one of those guys who says that history depended on one person, but you have to give this guy credit:  It's entirely possible the nuclear war could have broken out if he hadn't been Secretary of State.  Someday this could be you, Henry B!

And then there's Henry Ford, a personal favorite of my dad's (see white 1997 Ford F150 in his driveway).  Actually, if I'm not mistaken, Mr. Motorcity was quite a jerk, but he did make a heck of a lot of automobiles during his tenure in charge.  So that's cool.  But you also have to remember the guy who really built up Ford Motor Companies, because Ford was really too crazy to be a dependable CEO.  His name?  Henry Lawrence!  Yeah, that's right, the job still needed a Henry.

And we could go on (and I feel that we probably will at some point), but that's enough for tonight.  Oh wait, Henry Philips!  He made your screw driving experiences 1/2 as difficult!

Looking forward to seeing what your legacy is going to be Henry!

   - Daddy

20 weeks

So I'm showing now, huh?

I knit these booties!

How far along? 20 weeks! We are halfway there! This is craziness!

Total weight gain/loss: +10 pounds so far

Maternity clothes? All day, every day! Except when I steal Ben's scrubs...

Stretch marks? They are starting to show up in new places!

Sleep: I seem to be awake from about 3-5 these days. Wonder why...

Best moment this week: I'm not going to lie, I am pretty proud of those booties!

Movement: I'm definitely feeling him!  Not a lot, but at least every day now.

Food cravings: Tonight I made fried rice with yum yum sauce (like at a Japanese grill). So good!

Gender: It's a boy!

Labor Signs: Nope!

Belly Button in or out? Getting flatter and flatter all the time...

Wedding rings on or off? Off

What I miss: Wine. Enough said.

What I am looking forward to: Next time I go to the OB, our tech is going to try to get us a good face shot with the ultrasound. I hope Henry cooperates!

Weekly Wisdom: Nap. Often.

Milestones: Halfway there!




Daddy's Thoughts:


Well it's been a quiet week in Peoria.  Unfortunately the wife has been having more pain in her low back and it seems to be of the "I'm going to be sticking around for a while" kind.  We went up to Chicago to see some old friends for the Super Bowl and she borrowed their heating pad and camped on the corner of the couch for the the entire 5 hours we were there.  This gave me some perspective of how uncomfortable she's been with this.
People keep asking me what we're going to call Henry, now that he has a name.  I'm getting a lot of "Hank" which is fine, but I'm kind of leaning toward "Harry" myself.  We'll see, I'm sure it's going to come naturally whatever we call him.  Maybe it'll be "Heisenberg" for all I know.  Kid's gotta have a nickname, right?
Nicki has also got me thinking about cars now too, and not just the matchbox kind.  We took my Accord in to have the upper ball joints repaired last week, and now that irritating shake in the front is finally a thing of the past.  That said, it's only a coop, and she's finally convinced me that I'm going to need something with 4 doors to put a carseat in.  Ho-hum, I just didn't like the idea of losing my car, I've been through hell (Rockford) and back with that guy.  Just kidding about Rockford, Rockford readers.
I have been thinking about how Henry is going to be a boy.  So now I know.  Boy stuff, right?  Trucks and roughhousing and sports and getting dirty.  That's all stuff I was good at once upon a time, right mom?  I can already imagine taking him to the farm on the weekends to see his cousins and his grandpa.  He's got a lot fun working on the farm ahead of him if he's going to be a Rathert!
I kind of wonder what kind of a kid he'll be though.  He's being raised by two nerds so there's a pretty big chance he'll at least lean nerdy.  But he might get into things I have no idea about.  Like tennis.  What if he's good at tennis?  How do you even keep score in tennis?
I am getting excited, though.  Having the little guy around is going to be great, I think, and I'm getting more used to it when Nicki reminds me that I'm going to be a daddy.
See you next week, I'm going to go buy a rule-book for tennis.

19 weeks & gender reveal!

Did you guess right?? We didn't!




How far along?  19 weeks now. Almost halfway there!

Total weight gain/loss: +10 pounds at the OB today. Woo!

Maternity clothes? You can definitely tell I'm pregnant in these clothes now!

Stretch marks? I haven't seen any new ones... yet

Sleep: Up and down. Still pretty tired all the time.

Best moment this week: Finding out the gender and seeing baby again!

Movement: Still waiting...

Food cravings: Nothing. Heartburn has been so bad, I don't really want to eat anything.

Gender: Watch the video above!

Labor Signs: No sir!

Belly Button in or out? So far still in!

Wedding rings on or off? Off

What I miss: Rolling over without hurting my sides. Lol

What I am looking forward to: Getting to the halfway mark!

Weekly Wisdom: Even though we guessed wrong about the gender, we are still so excited! We can't wait until we meet our baby!

Milestones: Duh! Finding out our baby's gender!