It's Fat Tuesday...

...in more ways than one!

I noticed for the first time today that my feet looked a little swollen when I got home from work. It takes a lot I think to notice swelling because my feet are pretty skinny and bony but have been looking a little more not so bony lately. :)

Since I have been devouring baby shower cake for the last 3 days, I am celebrating Fat Tuesday with a little fat-free Lifesavers frozen sherbet and telling myself it's just as good!

32 Weeks

And going strong!

At my 32 week appointment I measured exactly 32 centimeters and had gained about 4 pounds in 3 weeks. Strong heartbeat and everything looks good. We talked for quite a while about c-sections vs. vaginal deliveries and scheduled the delivery for April 10, provided I don't chicken out! The interesting thing was that there are actually fewer "risks" to an infant during a c-section than during vaginal deliveries.

My old friend Michelle and her husband Jim Bob came over for dinner Friday night. Michelle and I finally got back in touch and discovered that we are due just 10 days apart! However, since she is having twins (and some complications) she will be delivering at 36 weeks. You know, since spending some time together, I feel much smaller and more comfortable. I really have it pretty easy. :) And I am really excited that Noah will have more friends so close in age to play with. (Although he may think all friends come in sets of two!) Emma and Eli, we can't wait to meet you!

Then, on Saturday, we had the first baby shower at our house, hosted by our friend Kelly. It was fun, beautiful, and I was impressed that so many local folks were able to come. A lot of my girlfriends just live too far :( Big kudos to Kelly for an awesome party! Noah got a ton of cute little onesies! Clothing was the most popular gift for sure. Jeremy's parents gave us the ever-popular Boppy and slipcover. And my niece Madison's mom is making my blog into a Creative Memories digital scrapbook for us! It was my plan for documenting the pregnancy but everyone knows how I am about keeping up with that kind of stuff! And I am always especially thankful for those "practical" gifts that I recognize are less fun to buy. :)

This cake was beautiful and sooo yummy!

Eat your heart out chocolate-covered strawberries!

My mom made this quilt. It is beautiful and I was quite surprised she made it considering I have to twist her arm to get her to hem a pair of pants!

Much love and gratitude to everyone!

Happy Valentine's Day 2009

We had such a nice Valentine's this year. We didn't go out or buy gifts (except for Jeremy buying me some sweet little baby things). We stayed in and hung out together. Jeremy made banana pancakes for breakfast. Then for dinner, I made my aunt's lasagna recipe with asparagus and chocolate molten cakes for dessert. And I must say, it was to die for! No wine of course. :(

For our after dinner entertainment, we decided to forego going to the movies and put together baby furniture instead. Haha. We are so exciting. It looks great though. (Today, we're getting the chair rail up and touching up paint so that the nursery will be somewhat ready for the first baby shower next Saturday. Ya'll come see it!)

As Jeremy said, this was our last Valentine's as a couple. Next year, we will be a trio. :) Hope you all had a great one, filled with lots of red, pink, chocolate, and some love!!

Silly Question

Why has some creative genius not invented a Belly Bra yet?! Can I just get some support for this big, achy thing? And if it could just keep all the baby body parts in appropriate places, that would be great too!

30 Weeks

We are three-quarters of the way there! Whoo-hoo! Honestly though, another 9 or 10 weeks sounds like forever. Here are the belly shots. They are not great pics but you can tell how much I've blossomed lately. Literally, it seems like my stomach just popped in the last couple of weeks!One gentleman was even kind enough to ask me if I was smuggling basketballs. Haha, right? I actually didn't mind! I really am all belly, as another friend put it. The rest of me hasn't changed too drastically and from behind, I don't really look pregnant.

Yes, I went brunette. (My mother noticed that, and probably sighed, before she noticed anything else :) I am doing this with the intention of staying away from hair color completely for a while to save some money. We'll see if I am able to stick to it.

To keep myself occupied, we got started on the nursery this weekend! I have been on a mission the last few days to get things taken care of. (Like getting the car maintenance taken care of, cleaning out junk, etc.) Then we had this lovely 75 degree weekend in February and I thought we should jump on the chance to paint while we could leave the windows open.

I had never realized how depressing the room was painted all gray, which was what the previous owners left us with. Now it is kind of like being under the ocean. Much more cheerful. We just have to do a little touch up to the paint and put up a white chair rail. Sorry the pics are hard to see much of the effect; it is such a small room, making photographing it a little hard.

Other stuff to update. At my last doctor's appointment I was measuring 28 at 29 weeks, which is fine because it can depend on the baby's position. I had only gained one pound in two weeks, probably due to the fun little stomach virus that visited me. Well, Noah thought it was fun at least. Or maybe he just wanted out! He kicked the heck out of me all day. (Jeremy does an imitation of what Noah was doing that night and it's pretty funny.) I was worried that it might hurt him somehow but the doctor said he was safe from catching the bug and probably just reacting to all the gurgling on my insides. Lovely thoughts. Thankfully, the fever stayed low. And that's how I spent my not-an-ice day last Tuesday and the real ice day on Wednesday. The next doctor's appointment is February 20.

Noah has also developed the ability to push out random body parts. They usually come out my sides but occasionally he attempts to push straight out forward, which is even more unsettling. So every now and then, I let out a little yelp and try to push him back, causing people to give me funny looks. :)

I am now working two nights a week with the new night school program, which has been interesting, or not, depending on how you look at it. But they are paying me well and it's just for this month!

I think that's about it. Have a great week!

Who Does Noah Look Like?

It's not hard not to look at them and try to figure it out, I know. Even though he will probably change a ton before he's a month old. Jeremy thinks he has his lips and chin. And we are a little puzzled by the big nose and think maybe it's just certain camera angles. After all, big noses don't run in the family. :) And don't anyone dare say that he has my eyes because I have prayed specifically for Jeremy's eyes!! (Mine have lots of problems.)

I am a little ticked because these pics are all slightly blurry looking to me but the printouts aren't. There are 34 total. And the technician put the videos on a VHS tape so we can't watch or post them. We didn't realize when we left that they weren't on the CD too.

Here is the foot that has been poking into my ribs all day:

He occasionally popped one eye open and looked right us:

Boy parts, if you can figure out where they are:

Rubbing his eye:

Nice shot of the hand. He is pillowing his head on the placenta on right of the pic:

He has some tiny fuzz on the back of the head but not much hair:

He refused to get away from the placenta. I think that's the umbilical cord on the left.

Peeping at us:

Having a good sleep on the placenta:

Making a face. Looks like he is puffing out his cheeks. And that nose...

Thanks for checking out our sweet little guy! He is just perfect! Sorry about the videos. We got to watch him yawn and "breathe" and make faces, which was all great. I hope everyone else gets to witness such an exciting little miracle sometime too!