27 weeks!

How far along? 27 weeks. Yesterday marked three months until our due date! Yikes!! Two more weeks to go in the 2nd trimester - then the home stretch (literally). I have also hit the point at my doctor's office where I start going every two weeks instead of once a month. I am going to be seeing a lot of that awful wallpaper...

Total weight gain/loss: +22 lbs. This month, I gained 4 pounds - perfect! Glad to know I'm back on track. 

Maternity clothes? Even some of my maternity shirts are starting to get a bit short these days :) Good thing I have a few long and stretchy tank tops to wear underneath!

Stretch marks? Nothing new - I wonder if the ones I have are the only ones I'm going to get?

Sleep:  Most nights I go through this ridiculous routine of building myself a little pillow nest. By the morning, the bed looks something like this:

Just kidding. But wouldn't that be a sweet place to play??

Best moment this week: Lots of people looked at my belly and grinned at me this week - much better than getting glares! People must be in a good mood :)

Movement: He has settled into a regular pattern - he always squirms and kicks around 1-2 pm and 9-10 pm. And he's always moving if I wake up in the middle of the night too. He has other moments, but I can count on those two times.

Food cravings:  This afternoon, I made fajitas. I was really looking forward to them - but I added way too much lime juice... yeah, they were not so tasty. I can check that off my list of things that sound yummy. 

*New Question: Nursery: All the clothes are put away, and organized by size. The books are in a straight pile, and the bibs and burp clothes have their own little baskets. I also framed this print and put it on the dresser. :)

It's been all over the internet, and I just couldn't resist! 

Labor Signs: Nope! And let's hope it stays that way for another few months!

Belly Button in or out?  It's practically flat at this point. Eek!

What do we want to teach Henry about?  The importance of saying please and thank you. It's a complete cliche - true - but the kids I nanny for are great about saying thank you when I serve dinner or get something across the room for them. It always makes me so happy, and it makes the day go by so much better when everyone is being polite. When they are grumpy and decide not to be polite, we all end up having a bad time.

What I miss: Getting up from the couch in one fluid motion :)

What I am looking forward to: Ben has been in Chicago at a conference for chief residents (woo hoo Ben!) this week, and I can't wait for him to come home! We actually have the whole weekend off together too. I'm hoping the weather stays nice so we can spend some time outside. 

Weekly Wisdom: I find that when strangers try to talk to me about my pregnancy - good or bad - the best way to keep the conversation short is to smile and be as nice as possible, even when I don't feel like it. 

Milestones: Henry is (probably) up to two pounds now! Grow little man, grow!

26 Weeks!

No, I could not put the fudge-cicle (read: Nutella-cicle) down to take this picture.

How far along? Read the title!  Duh!

Total weight gain/loss: Dunno. I haven't weighed myself this week. After I found out our scale was so inaccurate, I figured it wasn't worth it. I have an OB appointment next week, so I will find out then.

Maternity clothes? Ben took me shopping earlier this week and bought me some new shoes, a skirt and a dress. They're so cute! What a great husband.

Stretch marks? Lemme check... oh, yep. Still there.

Sleep:  Work has been particularly stressful this week - enough that I let it get to me before I try to fall asleep, which is a terrible plan. One good night of letting it all out though, and I feel a lot better.

Best moment this week: We got to go to our nephew's 4th birthday party on St. Patrick's Day. It was fun spending time with some other pregnant ladies (there were at least 4 of us there). One (she would be my sister-in-law's sister-in-law - whatever that is...) has a due date only one week before ours. It's nice to hear other people's stories :)

Movement: Ben got to see him shake my belly yesterday. He's getting strong!

Food cravings:  Nothing in particular. Over most of the weekend, I ate a lot of junk though - fast food on our drive, Burger Barge for a friend's birthday Monday, and so on. I felt terrible by yesterday. So I am back on the healthy eating wagon. I just feel so much better when I eat real food instead of processed "food". I spent the last two mornings baking fresh bread. Mmm... Also, I think kneading bread on a daily basis should take care of your upper body workout.

*New Question: Nursery: We have started to make some progress actually! Carrie sent us home with several totes full of clothes, which I have managed to sort out, and hang up or put into drawers. There are still a few piles on the bed, but I am almost done with them. I'm excited to get the bed out of there, and start putting the room together for real!

Labor Signs: I'm no expert of course, but I may have had some Braxton-Hicks contractions a couple of days this week. That is Ben's guess based on my ridiculous explanations of what I was feeling anyway :)

Belly Button in or out?  In - but getting stretched pretty tight!

What do we want to teach Henry about?  The difference between processed junk food and yummy, wholesome food that doesn't require a factory to be produced. I miss our farmer's market during the winter - by the time Henry gets here it will be in full swing again. I can't wait! The unseasonably warm weather has me tricked into feeling that it is much later than March!

What I miss: Waking up without my feet and/or hands still asleep.

What I am looking forward to: One of our friends from Tennessee is coming to visit tomorrow! We only get to see Lauren a couple times out of the year, so we are really excited! 

Weekly Wisdom: As is probably already clear from this post, I got a big nutritional wake-up call this past week. I feel like it's important to use common sense and balance while living a healthy lifestyle. I have generally tried to do what is best for my health, and now my family's health as well. :)

Milestones: Since Henry can hear more than just my voice and loud noises, Ben has been reading him stories at night. It's quite possibly the most adorable thing that has ever happened. Ever. Last night, he read The Cat in The Hat. By the way, that story is really strange. I mean, the Cat is basically trying to tell the kids they can't have fun without destroying the house, and that they probably shouldn't tell their mother what they've been up to. It's weird for that to be the icon of Dr. Seuss, if you ask me.

Daddy's Thoughts:

So I'm reading the Hunger Games.  I know, just what you were looking for in a baby blog.  I'm told the target audience for the books is around junior high or "young adults" (seriously, what does that mean???).  I'm getting wrapped up in the injustices in the book, thinking "this isn't fair!" and such, right on cue.  So I'm a junior high kid in that sense.  I bought all three in hard cover in case Henry wants to read them some day.

I wonder what kind of books he'll like?  As the Vark said, I've been reading him Dr. Seuss through her tummy, and he seems to be enjoying it (actually he just stops kicking when I read, which is different in the sense that he usually drives his mom nuts with all his thrashing about).  Maybe I'm getting daddy powers already?  "Young man, what do you think you're doing?"  Whoa.  I'm not ready for that.  My voice dropped three octaves in my head when I read that.

By the way, "One Fish, Two Fish", very little to do with fish.  Once they get done with Sad Fish they're out of the water and on to...arts and crafts?  I don't know, it's like Seuss was just writing a book about whatever wandered in to his mind.  Like a Kate Nash song or something.  

Seuss inspired.

I can't wait until we can move on to the longer books like The Lorax and The Better Butter Battle (personal favorite).  And I didn't go see the Lorax movie.  Someone told me that it ends with the Onceler fixing everything he corrupted and the Lorax telling him "good job, buddy" or something like that.  That's not the point of the book!  You can't just work hard and hopefully fix all of your hastily made, ecosystem altering mistakes!  When you ruin the environment, it's gone!  Kaput!  Wasteland city!  You cut down the truffala trees and left an empty gray landscape full of dead barbaloot bears!  You can't take it back!

I guess I am at least comforted by the fact that they're using the Lorax to sell SUVs.  Wait, did I say comforted?  I mean mortified!  This is just a half step below having Jesus advertise for hamburgers!  Why are my childhood memories for sale?!?

The price of my childhood apparently.

Henry, by now in the future I'm sure you've figured out how to go back through old versions of the internet and you're reading your mom and I's blog about you right now.  And if that's the case, let me tell you now that I'm sorry that there weren't any original stories or movies for you to enjoy growing up.  All we had to choose from was The Land Before Time 47 and yet another pirate movie when it came to entertaining you.  For that reason we had to lock you away and protect you from all that crap out there.  I hope the first 23 years haven't been that lonely while you were locked in your room.  At least you've got your Dr. Seuss books in there.  And at least you don't have to fight to the death with some other kids for my entertainment.  I hope.

  Daddy

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.