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Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Crazy Kicks

This morning I woke up at 5:15am because baby was kicking up a storm! The most wonderful thing: I sat in bed watching my stomach, and, for the first time, I SAW the baby move my tummy! My skin actually visibly poked out! I could not believe that this is even possible at 24 weeks, but I guess it is. The baby didn't stop, either. I felt movement--intense movement-- for the next 45 minutes, until I got up. I also noticed today that my stomach is noticeably bigger than it was yesterday. I have a theory that the baby has shifted and is now snugged right up against my abdomen...what else could it be? I didn't even eat ice cream last night! :)
Our little one is definitely moving about in earnest, and it is the most amazing thing. It's a little freaky (the movie "Alien" comes to mind, and also I wonder if something is wrong or if the baby is claustrophobic or something!), but mostly it's wonderful and I am reassured that our little one is getting bigger and stronger. I know when I hold our baby for the first time I will marvel at how I knew the baby even before he/she was born!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Some Notes on the Midwest

When I was in India I had a sudden perception of a "wind." I had been contemplating life and grappling with the lessons of Buddhism for a little while, and then suddenly I had a moment of clarity. It was in this moment of clarity that I had an abstract vision of the earth with a steady wind always flowing over everything. In that moment things came together for me, and I realized the futility of worrying over small things in the face of such vastness. I realized the futility of concerning myself with the transience of life; that the wind will rush on, that all things will continue...I am just a drop of water in an endless ocean.
I was reminded of this perception of wind this morning as I was walking to work. The wind is relentless this morning! But then, it often is out here. The funny thing is, the midwest wind doesn't bring to me feelings of clarity. It doesn't make me feel at peace. There is something empty about the wind that blows here. It also reminds me of the futility of life, but there is no reassurance that things will go on and that there are greater forces beyond me. The midwest wind whispers of despair, of death and decay. It whispers of the endless ocean of prairie, of abandoned farms, of loss. It hints at nothing greater. It tells me that this is all there is. And that this is nothing.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Tummy Pictures

So, since a certain SOMEBODY has been pestering me for pictures of my bulging belly (Ruth, you know who you are!) haha--I decided to take a couple of quick tummy pictures this morning. Hopefully this weekend I can remember to get Travis to take some cuter ones! For now, this is what I have...at exactly 23 weeks!
The tummy is dressed and ready for work!
The tummy earlier, pooching out!
Profile shot of the tummy...notice how I can no longer effectively "suck it in"! (Believe me, I'm trying!)


Monday, March 17, 2008

Daddy Gets Kicked!

Travis felt the baby kick for the first time! On Friday night I was lying in bed (after eating 1/2 a pint of Ben & Jerry's!) and I could feel the baby moving around. So far Travis hasn't been able to feel the baby, since usually the baby moves only briefly or too gently, but I decided that we should see if he could feel anyway. So put his hands on my tummy and we were both very quiet and within just a few seconds he got a huge kick! I could feel my stomach push against his hands, that's how hard the baby kicked! Travis actually felt about 5 movements and kicks before the baby calmed down, which was amazing! I think these kicks were the 2nd most amazing moment in the pregnancy (behind hearing the heartbeat for the first time!). It was so thrilling to feel the baby push my stomach against its daddy's hands...it was such a beautiful, connected moment. Our first family moment! :) I've been feeling the baby more and more lately...It seems like baby is most active after I've eaten, and that I'm better able to feel baby when I'm laying on my back. I'm starting to wonder what each movement is...some movements feel so different from others that I'm starting to recognize them, and guess which ones are kicks or flips or jerks, etc. It's such an awesome, amazing feeling!

Friday, March 14, 2008

Baby's Appointment Report!

So yesterday we had another prenatal appointment...I think it was our 4th one! Things went well...the hospital routine is beginning to feel a bit "old hat" to me now! I didn't even read the directions when I peed in the cup this time! Haha. We met with our favorite midwife, Terry, and were happy to find out that things are moving along more normally than we could have hoped for: the tetra screen (testing for various problems, like spina bifida, etc.) came out perfect, my toxoplasmosis screen (that disease from cats) came out clear (can you believe I've never had it? I've been surrounded by cats my whole life!), my weight is surprisingly fantastic (I've only gained 11 pounds since that first appointment, and I'm more than halfway through the pregnancy!), blood pressure and all are great! We were so glad. We also asked Terry a lot of questions about the Rhogam, and we're feeling a little better about that whole thing. There's a slim chance that Travis is also negative, in which case we won't need the Rhogam. We're going to request Travis' hospital records this week to find out! If he is positive I'll get the first shot of Rhogam in 6 weeks. I feel much better about it, and understand that the consequences of not taking Rhogam are far worse! (there are no consequences associated with taking it to speak of). So, it was a good and informative appointment! Of course we listened to baby's heart...it was strong and all over the place as usual! Terry loaned us a fetoscope so that Travis can listen to the heartbeat any time! Yay!

More Snuggling in the Sunshine Pics!




Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Okay so I'm crazy about our animals!



I couldn't resist! Look how close the cat got to the two dogs! There's one big window in our dining room that lets in the most sunlight, and all the animals always want to sit in that one patch of sunshine. Too cute...hooray for spring!

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Another Baby Belly Shot!


I know that mom's going to be checking my blog soon, so I was desperate to get a good "baby belly" shot up! So desperate that I resorted to taking my own picture! I know, slightly pathetic, but at least with the white shirt against the brown door you can really see it! Plus, the shirt is so tight you REALLY get to see just what shape my tummy is taking! See those wrinkles under the shirt? The bottom wrinkle would be the maternity pants (they were my mom's!) and the top wrinkle is the top of the "Bella Band" that Ruth gave me (it's an elastic band that covers my whole tummy and is useful for holding up maternity pants, as well as pants that no longer can be buttoned!).

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

The Honeymoon Marches On!


So, yesterday I was feeling really sick for some reason. I had gotten a headache on Sunday morning that just seemed to get worse and worse. By Sunday night Travis was running to the store for a thermometer, all the medicines on the doctor's "approved medicines list" and anything else he could think of that might stave off some massive illness that would affect his baby--I mean, affect his wife. Right. Anyway, Monday morning he was appalled that I went to work, and even I wasn't so sure I should be there. Headache, sick to my stomach, shaky--just not feeling too hot! I stuck it out and fluctuated between feeling fine and feeling really sick all day. Travis called me 3 times throughout the day to check on me, and, the last time he called, he said that he wanted to make me dinner. Hmm...I told him I wasn't in the mood for pizza. He insisted that he was going to crack a cookbook and make a "real dinner." I asked him if he knew the difference between "dice" and "chop" and he said no, and that's where we left off. So I get home at 5:20pm and Travis is in the kitchen, listening to NPR with about 3 different pots and pans on the stove and yelling at me that I'm not allowed in the kitchen. He comes over, gives me a hug, and asks me what a clove of garlic is and where do we keep the olive oil. Needless to say, I'm nervous and trying to peek into the kitchen! He insists that I go take a bath and he'll let me know when dinner is done. So, I grab a book and hit the bathtub, and about 45 minutes later he comes into the bathroom with a gorgeous, garnished dinner! I still only vaguely understand what the sauce was made of, but I know there was tofu, basil, parsely, garlic, and oil involved for sure (I saw the evidence). Isn't he wonderful? Sigh. And, after all that, he insisted on cleaning up the kitchen himself while I read in bed. Bliss!

Monday, March 3, 2008

The Kitties!



So I realized that I have given so much blog space to the naughty doggies, and none to the super-naughty kitties! Here they are, being their naughty and (mostly) lazy selves! Suki is the gray cat, Dali is the tabby. Can you tell where Suki is in the last picture??? That's right! The bathtub is one of his favorite places to hang out! (Especially when there's just a little bit of water in the tub!). Weird.