24 week check-up

I had our second appointment with our favorite midwife on Wednesday. We had seen her for our very first appointment where we got to see the baby at 7 weeks and confirm a heartbeat, etc. It was great to be back with her and I plan on seeing her until the end. We got a good report on Shmu and received our 3rd trimester packet with all sorts of papers to fill out. We've got to register for the birth, write out our birth plan and choose a pediatrician among a few other things. We also got a list of classes we can sign up and attend, including a hospital tour. It seems that all of a sudden we're thinking and planning for baby's arrival... and that is so fun but just a tad bit crazy!!  

This past week I've felt this baby grow stronger and stronger and it seems so real that we'll have a baby and not some alien or dragon thing. In other words, Shmu feels like a real baby and the kicks are taking my breath away, literally! This baby's most recent favorite recreational activity includes kicking off of my ribcage and exercising its legs back and forth. This just feels marvelous to mom, as you can imagine! Still, it's fun to feel how much this little one has grown! Speaking of growing, here's a 24/25 week bump pic. 

Happy Easter & 23 weeks!

After our Easter morning church service, my family joined us at our house for dinner. It was fun to finally feel well enough to cook, clean and be up and about without the smell of the food or the preparation of it making me sick. So good to feel "normal" again!! :) When we were done eating, I laid down and my mom and sister both got to feel the baby move a few times. I was disappointed because my strategy to get the baby moving didn't work as well as it had for us a few days ago. Rudy and I got quite a show for about 15 to 20 minutes where the movements were so strong it was a bit uncomfortable for me. Today, Shmu just hinted at really being in there. Nevertheless, the baby performed for the family! Good job, Shmu! This is Shmu's last week as a papaya (month 5). Baby is almost 1 pound and will gain 6 ounces of weight this week, alone! 

We also got a super fun surprise in the mail a few days ago... a life-long friend of my family and second mom to me, Vicki Jensen, sent us a beautiful handmade blanket!  Without knowing that our bedding for Shmu's crib will be alphabet/numbers, she just happened to match our theme with an alphabet blanket! Thank you, Vicki!!

Happy Birthday Rudy!

Ru turned 29 today! He started his morning with breakfast on the red "You are Special" plate and had fun things to open or read throughout the day. People at his work brought gifts and food, too! Tonight, Ru and a group of guys went K1 Speed Indoor Go-Kart Racing and had so much fun! It was adorable to see all these grown up men riding around, racing each other looking like little boys. Rudy said he could have raced all night, it was so much fun! All in all, I think he would say he had a great day! Here are some pictures of the main event.

We registered today!!

I've been so looking forward to this day! A girlfriend of mine who has four kids went with me to give advice. Her help was so valuable!! We worked quickly, made good decisions (I think!) and it still took us 2 hours!! I am amazed at how many things first time parents need. We basically stuck to all essential items and there were still so many choices to make. When Ru got home from school, I showed him our registry online and he helped check out reviews and change some things. By the time he was done just looking at all our items he said he was exhausted! :)

It was so fun, though, to think of Shmu and our future with this little one. We definitely bonded, Shmu and I, as registering makes this whole thing seem so real! When I finally got in my car, Shmu kicked and started moving around. I think we're both happy with our choices! :) I can't wait to actually get these items and start setting up our "nursery" (baby shares a room with office space and guest futon). Overall, it was a super fun day! 

Spring Break!!

Rudy and I are officially on spring break together for the next 1.5 days! :) Ru had his week off from school last week (although he still worked 40 hours) and my vacation has just begun! Fortunately for me, that means a complete break! What do we plan to do with ourselves? Well, we had originally planned on going to some beautiful mountains in Pennsylvania. Since I was too sick to book our free hotel (60 days in advance), we are staying home. We will be flying in June and hopefully get some more "us" time squeezed in before August. I'm just so excited to have 7 days to do whatever I want! That will definitely involve sleeping in, swimming/cycling on a daily basis, reading, registering at Babies R Us and Target :), and organizing both my classroom and my house. I especially want to get a lot of sorting, throwing away and cleaning done in my classroom before June rolls around. I'm going to try my hardest to pack away as little as possible for us to store (until I return to teaching) but I can't make any promises. I have a TON of good stuff! 

We had a great doctor's appt. last week, although I did get in trouble for not drinking enough water. It still repulses me from when I was so sick. However, to stop these pesky contractions when I work out, I've got to more than double my intake.  Shmu checked out fine on his/her ultrasound measurements and tests. We requested a printout of the results and Rudy was thorough about asking questions. It was neat to see how much he knew about the body and how Shmu is growing. Speaking of growing... I feel the baby moving so much! The head is still facing down (ON MY BLADDER) and its legs are kicking on the right side.  Here's the measurements of our little papaya: 

We read that Shmu can hear noises from outside the womb (maybe I won't have to play Mozart so loudly now!) and that its face is fully formed. Shmu's brain will begin to grow rapidly this week and continue growing at the same pace until baby is 5 years old!