big 33

how far along?  33 weeks

development:  the babe is weighing in around 4.2 to 5.8 lbs and measures 17.2 to 18.7 inches. the coming weeks mark a time of astounding growth (about half a pound a week) and brain development. the pupils of his eyes can now adjust to light, and his lungs continue to develop.
this week, thebump.com compares his growth to a durian, which i'm betting not too many people are familiar with - i know i wasn't. it's apparently a stinky, tropical fruit found in thailand, malaysia, indonesia and other parts of southeast asia. 

from thebump.com

maternity clothes?  some, yes 

sleep?  been sleeping ok at night, trying to rest as i need it

stretch marks?  maybe a few on my hips

best moments this week:  child care class  •  picking out blinds and shelves for the closet  •  assembling the crib (just need a mattress now)

miss anything? enjoying a cold highlife with the hubby… ahhh, the champagne of beers!

movement:  pretty consistent movement... most of the time it's pretty tame, but there have been times where i'm startled as to how violent a quick movement seems! i've read that he could be moving hundreds of times per day now.

food cravings:  not really craving much, except maybe ice cream. been kind of indifferent to food lately.

anything making you queasy or sick? no

gender:  boy… "sons are the anchors of a mother's life." ~sophocles

pregnancy symptoms:  being generally uncomfortable most of the time  •  restlessness in the evenings

wedding rings, on or off?  on

happy or moody most of the time?  mostly happy, a little emotional from time to time

looking forward to:  pulling all of the babe's stuff out of the garage closet and finding a home for everything  •  our baby shower this weekend, seeing friends and family and celebrating our babe!  •  trip to ikea soon for odds and ends  •  warmer weather!

to do list:
- figure out daycare
- decide on our babe's name (his first name is pretty much set… trying out middle names)
- wash and organize baby clothes
- pack hospital bag (started my list and have a few things prepped)
- make appointment to be sure our car seat is properly installed (yes, we have one - received as a gift!)
- attend hospital tour and two child care classes
- write out birth plan and pre-register at hospital
- figure out how to handle maternity leave, insurance, paperwork etc.
- prepare frozen meals for post baby boy
- baby proof the house (mainly - buy new coffee table not made of glass. farewell, panther… we've been close these past 10 years, lol)
- write thank you notes for gifts received from our family baby shower in chicago

^^^ loving our stroller and car seat travel system, can't wait to use it!

33 weeks down, just seven more to go... seven! march 18 will be here before we know it!

live love squash

how far along?  32 weeks

development:  the babe is now the size of a squash, weighing between 2.5 and 3.8 pounds and measuring 15.2 to 16.7 inches. i don't know what kind of a weirdo squash this is below, but i'm following what thebump.com is telling me each week, lol. we passed the pineapple stage last week, at 31 weeks. by now, all of his senses are fully developed, and he's going through major brain, nerve and eye development - his irises now react to light! the ovia app on my iphone says that one of his favorite activities now is sucking on his thumb, which improves coordination and familiarizes him with his own body.

from thebump.com

maternity clothes?  yes! 

sleep?  been sleeping ok at night, trying to rest as i need it

stretch marks?  maybe a few on my hips?

best moments this week:  lots! - picking out carpet for the babe's room  •  hospital tour  •  family dinner, and being surprised with gifts and time celebrating our babe-to-be  •  doctor's appointment - hearing his heartbeat and checking in on the growth of my belly!  •  child care class  •  saturday morning sleeping in and homemade buttermilk pancakes  •  receiving the crib we ordered

miss anything? laying on my belly  •  wearing 'normal' clothes - i feel like i'm constantly pulling my pants up and my shirts down to make sure everything's covered

movement:  pretty consistent movement, usually feeling him on my upper right hand side

food cravings:  nothing really crazy. glad to see that giant is still carrying the chocolate soy milk i love in the mornings - i thought they were going to discontinue it

anything making you queasy or sick? no

gender:  boy… "prove yourself brave, truthful and unselfish, and someday, you will be a real boy." ~the blue fairy from disney's "pinnochio"

pregnancy symptoms:  back aches  •  feeling large, but no swelling in my feet (thank goodness)  •  restlessness while relaxing on the couch in the evenings  •  a mind that won't stop thinking sometimes at night

wedding rings, on or off?  on

happy or moody most of the time?  mostly happy

looking forward to:  seeing the babe's room come together  •  finishing out the second of two child care classes  •  our next baby shower in a week and a half!

notes from dad: keeping busy working on the baby's room!

^^^ my fender pup... eight more weeks of this desk view 

^^^ selfie... oh so delicious and cute cake, celebrating with family!

randomness:

last week's evenings were busy, consumed with grocery shopping, a labor & delivery tour at the hospital, carpet shopping and lengthy conversations about daycare. i found myself somewhat emotional towards the end of our tour at the hospital, seeing labor & delivery and then the maternity floor where we'll be spending the first few days of our boy's life. we're keeping busy with things around the house and our minds are full of things to be weighed and decided on!

feeling grateful for family and friends that are surrounding us at this special time in our lives - i feel like i can't say it enough. it really means a lot to us that so many are supporting us, showering us with gifts, but most of all their love for us and our little one.

today's appointment at the doctor went really well, considering the doc seemed hurried, which kind of annoyed me. everything is checking out great - my blood pressure, the babe's heartbeat, the measurement of my belly and his positioning. since i feel his movements most in the upper right part of my belly, the doc said that's likely where he's doing his kicking and his head is down (where he should be for delivery and will probably stay like that since he's getting bigger and that's the most comfortable position for him). my belly is measuring right around where it should be - i felt lucky i managed to get this bit of information out of the doc that i found interesting and hadn't known before: measurement height in centimeters from top to bottom of my belly (called fundal height) should roughly equal the number of weeks pregnant, give or take 2 cm. today measured 32 cm, right on where it should be, considering we're at 32 weeks (so it could have been between 30 cm and 34 cm).

appointments from now on: the next two will be within the next month, two weeks apart from each other (feb. 3 and feb. 17), and then one appointment a week during the final month.

tonight's two-hour child care class was the first of two that we'll attend. obviously we can't learn everything there is to know about caring for a newborn over the course of four hours, but i think it's a good start. we covered feeding, cleaning and bathing tonight - it was pretty general, but informative and something i'm glad we're doing.

the babe's room is coming together... it's now painted two shades of grayish blue. we purchased a remnant of carpet which we love, some fairly inexpensive padding and anthony picked out the trim and is in the process of painting it. i have to get busy making/hemming the curtains.

to do list:
- figure out daycare (i think we're leaning toward one - just have to finalize it)
- decide on our babe's name (his first name is pretty much set… trying out middle names)
- wash and organize baby clothes
- pack hospital bag (started my list and have a few things prepped)
- make appointment to be sure our carseat is properly installed (yes, we have one - received as a gift!)
- attend hospital tour and two child care classes (one down!)
- write out birth plan and pre-register at hospital
- figure out how to handle maternity leave, insurance, paperwork etc.
- prepare frozen meals for post baby boy
- baby proof the house (mainly - buy new coffee table not made of glass. farewell, panther… we've been close these past 10 years, lol)
- write thank you notes for gifts received from our family baby shower in chicago

32 weeks down, just eight more to go!

kind of a big dill...

since i was kind of a slacker on taking proper photos this week and didn't want to delay this post any longer, here are a few quick pics i took looking all comfy and such.

how far along?  30 weeks

development:  the babe is now the size of a cucumber, 15.2 to 16.7 inches long and weighing in at close to 3.8 pounds. he's growing quickly, putting on up to half a pound each week until his debut. his eyes are in place, and he's been opening and closing them but they're still developing so vision is poor. he's also just about strong enough to grasp a finger.

maternity clothes?  can i say how both comfy and annoying maternity jeans are? sure there's a nice stretchy paneling covering my belly, but nothing to really hold my pants up! my belts are lonely.

sleep?  been getting a decent night's sleep most of the time

stretch marks?  nope

best moments this week:  starting a new year with my love that will be full of new adventures! 

miss anything? wearing a belt and pants with a zipper  :)

movement:  pretty consistent movements throughout the day. i've felt the babe jabbing into my ribs on the right hand side more than once lately.

food cravings:  tried some v8 v-fusion light concord grape raspberry juice and i think the bottle was gone in a matter of a day - so good!

anything making you queasy or sick? no

gender:  boy… "of all the animals, the boy is most unmanageable." ~plato

pregnancy symptoms:  back aches  •  shortness of breath at times  •  feeling like i'm starting to waddle

wedding rings, on or off?  on

happy or moody most of the time?  happy

looking forward to:  being able to finally decide on a daycare  •  hospital tour next week  •  thinking about birth announcements

notes from dad: I am feeling really good this week. Work on the baby's room is in full motion. We are cleaning up from an awesome holiday season. We have been daycare hunting, discussing what crib we want. Baby care classes are coming up soon... all the things that expecting parents do. Already really busy with our little one.

so, it's the first full week of 2014, getting back into the swing of things! it's a bunch of random stuff going on this week...

spent a fairly quiet new year's eve with friends playing mexican train dominoes, listening the guys playing guitar, chatting, munching on snacks and watching the good old ball drop on new year's rockin' eve in times square. happy new year everyone!

yes, i'll admit our christmas tree is still standing in the family room, but it will be gone this weekend.

we're currently making our rounds on a second group of daycare facilities and hope to make our final decision soon. we were very impressed by the one that we saw today, and our last visit is this coming monday. all in all, we will have seen six of them. oh, the things to consider!

still on the hunt for just the right crib - there are a few we're interested in.

i'm very proud of anthony's progress in the babe's room - he's been working very hard, and has even more time now that the bears are no longer in the running for super bowl XLVII! i'm excited that the room is coming together - goodbye paneling, hello drywall and new lighting fixture! still have to • finish up painting • make a decision on how to finish/refinish the floor • all window, door and baseboard trim work • refinish and paint two dressers • cut down/hem two existing light blocking curtains from our old apartment (the babe's room is so bright in the morning!) • decorate

to do list:
- figure out daycare (hope to tie this up next week)
- wash and organize baby clothes
- pack hospital bag
- attend hospital tour and child care classes (already scheduled for later this month)
- write out birth plan and preregister at hospital
- figure out how to handle maternity leave, insurance, etc.
- make up some frozen meals for post baby boy
- baby proof the house (mainly - buy new coffee table not made of glass. farewell, panther... we've been close these past 10 years, lol.)

- write thank you notes for gifts received from our first baby shower in chicago

can't believe we're 30 weeks in. our lives will change for the better in just 10 weeks. 10 weeks til our due date!!

making this a new year to remember

how far along?  29 weeks

development:  baby w is between 15.2 and 16.7 inches long and is weighing between 2.5 and 3.8 lbs, about the size of an acorn squash or a pineapple. he's still slowly packing on the weight, his muscles and lungs are continuing to mature and his brain is developing rapidly.

from thebump.com

maternity clothes?  yep!

sleep?  i've not had a good night of uninterrupted sleep, although i probably shouldn't expect it... been tired lately.

stretch marks?  nothing yet

best moments this week:  lots of family time  •  christmas and baby shower celebrations! 

miss anything? sleeping on my stomach and back

movement:  yes, since visiting the doctor a week and a half ago i've been trying to keep count of the number of times the babe kicks me - the doctor said that i should be consciously taking count at least once a day, and i should be feeling at least 10 kicks during the course of 2 hours. obviously he's more active at certain times than others, so sometimes it's been 10 kicks within just a few minutes. in the past few days, i've noticed more slow actual motions rather than quick kicks.

food cravings:  nothing crazy 

anything making you queasy or sick? nope

gender:  all boy… "little boys are just superheros in disguise." ~ art moms

pregnancy symptoms:  back and hip pains. trying to sleep with a pillow between my legs for the most part, which helps a little. i pretty much wake up throughout the night with hip pain on one side, and have to roll over to the other side.

wedding rings, on or off?  on

happy or moody most of the time?  happy

looking forward to:  making this a new year to remember!

notes from dad:  i've been to my first shower. turns out i didn't need the shower cap, but instead a bigger car. karin and i are blown away by the amount of love and thoughtfulness we've received, and there's only more to come. the start of a new year, a year that will change our world immensely. 

we were so lucky to have such a fabulous baby shower thrown for us by family in chicago. it was overwhelming, the amount of love shown and well wishes given. i met some very beautiful ladies that i had only previously heard plenty of, and visited once again with those whom i've known for the past 10 years. it was an emotional day and one that i will remember for a long time. i am so thankful to everyone that attended and shared our special day, and especially our loving sister, mother and aunts who made it all possible.

^^^ sweets table, complete with owl cupcakes and oreo cookie truffles

^^^ adorably cute owl centerpieces made by rachell from diapers, bibs, washcloths and burp cloths 

we tentatively have our babe's full name picked out, although we won't share it until he's born. we've had so many people tell us that we may not know if the name suits him until we see him. we also would like to keep it a surprise, so we can introduce our son to you all properly (or as properly as technology allows us these days, rather than in person) lol.

to do list:
- figure out daycare
- wash and organize baby clothes
- pack hospital bag
- attend hospital tour and child care classes (already scheduled for january)
- write out birth plan and preregister at hospital
- figure out how to handle maternity leave, insurance, etc.
- make up some frozen meals for post baby boy
- baby proof the house (mainly - buy new coffee table not made of glass. farewell, panther... we've been close these past 10 years, lol.)

- write thank you notes for gifts received from our first baby shower in chicago (working on it)

week 29 down, 74 days to go. just two and a half months!