Long story short, do not fall in love with baby bedding before you are even pregnant.

The bedding I really wanted for a girl has long since been discontinued. What do you expect, it's been like 3 years! Before we knew the gender, I started doing some online searching and found a few new contenders. When gender was confirmed GIRL last week, we decided on one of them.

I was pretty excited as I had really come to like the idea of the bright pink and orange flowers. The bedding is part of the new spring line and isn't even in stores yet. Late last week it was available on Target.com with FREE shipping. Yeah! I went ahead and ordered it. My order confirmation came and it said the item wouldn't be shipped until mid-February to early-March. Oh well. We'll still have plenty of time. That was Wednesday. Friday comes along and I get an email saying my item has shipped and that it will arrive on Monday! Sweet!

Monday comes along and I'm super excited to get the bedding. Ughhhh - I open the package and the bedding looks nothing like it does in the pictures online. Online it looks like the bedding is white, the bedding I received is clearly blue.

On the left you have the bedding I was expecting, and on the right, the package that arrived.

Second crazy story of the week. We started looking at a few of the big items that we might want to add to our registry. This was a few weeks ago before we knew what the gender was. We had selected a travel system that would be perfect for a boy and another that would be perfect for a girl. Wouldn't you know it, we went to start our registry and the girl one was gone. We talked to someone who worked in the area and she said that one had been discontinued, and that they didn't know what would be coming in to replace it. She suggested we go to gracobaby.com and look at the items online.

Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

Wow! Halfway point. That's just crazy. How did I get here? I think that's the question that is commonly asked by those of us who struggled so long to get where we are.

It's been a big week. Level II ultrasound, finding out gender, signing up for Childbirth classes, deciding on and purchasing our crib bedding and a few first baby items.

We got another special package in the mail this week. If it wasn't for the holiday on Monday, we would have had it in time for our ultrasound. When I opened the package and saw what was inside, I just cried. What an amazing gift, from an amazing gift of a friend. It's another Willow Tree figurine. Cherish - Awaiting a miracle Isn't she beautiful? Thank you!



Yesterday I had another OB appointment. She said I'm doing great. I was up a little over 3lbs since my last appointment, still doing very well. She isn't concerned that I haven't felt much movement yet. By my next appointment in 4 weeks, she predicts that will have changed. I still have no complaints. I escaped the first trimester without any morning sickness, and have managed to not have any heartburn yet. I feel so lucky. Maybe the 2nd half of my pregnancy will catch up to me. I do have that Glucose tolerance test to look forward to in 8 weeks!

The weekly fruit references are just about to run out. They were getting kind of silly anyways. Once you get to week 21 they group them for the month.

What's happening with baby: Week 20 - Cantaloupe. 6.5 in, 10.6 oz

Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, speaking of the diaper situation... baby's genitals are now fully formed!

There she is.  All 11oz of her.  It was awesome spending 25 minutes watching her and getting all the important measurements.  Heartrate was 147 bpm.  Everything looked good, and measurements were on track. 

So far I've only felt movements a couple of times.  After seeing how active this little one is, I can't believe I'm not feeling more yet.  When we first started the u/s, she was laying in a transverse position across my belly with her back to me.  I guess that might explain why I haven't felt much if this is a favorite position.  Maybe all the kicks are going towards the inside and I just can't feel that. 

Whoo hoo!  Now for the fun of planning for a little girl.  We are so excited! 

I'll be the first to admit it. I'm a wimp. I hate the cold. This morning we woke up to -21º air temperature. The windchill had to be something like -40º. They're saying it is the coldest it's been since January of '04.

What are my plans for the day? Staying in the house where it's a balmy 73º? Nah, I have to take the dog to the groomers and then go meet someone to pick something from her. Today. Of all days. At least it's not this cold and snowing! Oh well, while I was out, I stopped at the grocery store and picked something up for dinner. Oh yeah, and then I had to go back out to get the dog from the groomers. I don't think he's too happy with his new haircut today either.

Ughhh. Can I just say, "I HATE winter!". With that, it was today that I realized how thankful I am that our "19 week old baby" is still warm inside mommy's belly and doesn't have to be exposed to these ridiculous temperatures.

This time next week we should hopefully know the gender of our little one. I figure we should probably make a few phone calls before I post the news here...just to be fair. I can't believe it, almost half way there.

What's happening with baby: Week 19 - Mango (doesn't a Mango seem smaller than a Sweet Potato?)

Vernix caseosa, a greasy white substance made of lanugo, oil and dead skin cells (yum) now coats baby's skin, shielding it from the amniotic fluid. (Picture yourself after a nine-month bath, and the need for protection makes sense.) You might actually get to see the vernix at birth, especially if baby is premature.

Ok, first things first. It's been requested that I add a belly shot. This was taken yesterday. I know you don't have anything to compare it to, but it's definitely starting to move up and fill out a bit. So, here it is! No hiding that bump now.

Last weekend we ventured into uncharted territory. We actually went into BRU. Heck, I was even there twice! Once with an experienced mom girlfriend and then back again the next day to show Mr a few of the things we looked at.

It's so fun to look at cribs and think about what baby's room might look like. And to look at strollers and think about how it's going to feel pushing baby around. At this point we still haven't made any purchases, but we're closer to a decision, at least on the crib.

Now, on to the title of this post. Last night was rough. I wasn't uncomfortable as far as aches or pains, but, for the first time, it certainly felt like the belly was getting in the way of finding a comfortable position. We went to bed around 11:30 and I had tiny cat naps until 3:30am when I finally got up and took a sleep-aid. I guess it finally kicked in and I slept until about 9:00am. Does this mean it's time to bring in the pillows?

Oh yeah, I think I felt my first "flutter", or whatever you wanna call them. So far just once, but it was definitely something that I hadn't felt before.

What's happening with baby: Week 18 - Sweet Potato

Your fetus has become amazingly mobile (at least compared to you), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. And, baby's finally big enough that you'll be able to feel those movements soon.

So much for timely updates. I started this post on Thursday (on time) and never came back to it. I'll just keep it short, and pretend it was on time and edit the post stamp.

Happy New Year!
After an afternoon nap, I was good to go and managed to stay awake past midnight. Yippee!

New Year's Eve has always been kind of a big deal to us, as it's the anniversary of the beginning of our relationship. Hard to believe it's been 6 years already. Things sure have changed since our first New Year's Eve spent together.

My recent investment, Palmer's Cocoa Butter Massage Lotion. I'm doing two applications a day in hopes of minimizing stretchmarks to the belly. It's a great lotion that really stays with me all day.

Can I just say, I absolutely hate my Motherhood Secret Belly Fit jeans. The stretchy material just drives me nuts and itches like crazy. The lotion actually helps a little with that, but having an extra layer of material between my skin and that stretchy fabric is about all that really helps. I don't know how people can love these pants.

What's happening with baby: Week 17 - Onion


Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.