29 Weeks

November 30, 2005 - 29 Weeks

Only 11 weeks to go! It seems so short when it's said like that...but it's still 3 months away. That's good, though, because we're still not quite ready for the baby to arrive. Part of me wants him here so badly, I want to hold him and see him, but I want his room ready and I want us to be prepared with everything we'll need for him, too. Speaking of which, the nursery is finally getting closer to becoming a nursery! Mike has been cleaning it out and taking things up to the attic. He's been doing a really good job...there was a LOT of crap in there! We still need to paint the walls and fix up my dresser (which I plan to use as the baby's dresser/changing table). Those tasks will have to be done on a weekend, though!
We had a great Thanksgiving weekend...it was nice to relax and sleep in! I've been having trouble getting to sleep at night, but I can't figure out why. We have dinner at a reasonable time, and if I drink caffinated drinks, it's usually in the mornings. Maybe it's because I haven't been able to work out this week...hmmm...I'll work out tonight before "Lost" comes on and see if that helps!
On Sunday, we put up and decorated our Christmas tree! It's right in front of our living room window, and it looks gorgeous! I love Christmas, and having the tree up is so wonderful...I even sewed a couple of Christmas stockings last night (the second one turned out much better than the first one!). Maybe I can get Mike to put the lights up outside this weekend :)
My knee has been killing me lately. I had arthroscopic knee surgery several years ago, and it's been more irritated these past few months (if I keep my knee bent for too long, I have to straighten it out slowly and stretch out the ligaments before I stand and walk anywhere, or else I'm limping). My doctor said that the soreness should go away after I have the baby, otherwise I can go to a specialist and have it looked at. Let's hope it heals after the baby's born!

28 Weeks

November 23, 2005 - 28 Weeks!

Only 12 weeks to go...it seems like a long time, but with all the things we still need to do, it really isn't much time! I have my 28-week check-up this afternoon. I'll have to get tested for gestational diabetes, which means I have my blood tested when I first arrive at the doctor's office, then I have to drink a sugary drink and wait an hour and have my blood sugar level tested again. I haven't gained a lot of weight and I'm not predisposed for diabetes, so hopefully everything will be okay!

I think that I felt my first Braxton-Hicks contractions last night. It was really strange...it didn't really hurt, I think it caught me by surprise more than anything else. I was just sitting on the floor in the living room and the entire right side of my belly just sort of cramped up for a second and then released. It didn't feel like anything I felt before (the baby's movements), and then it happened on my left side a few minutes later, and that was it.

I've noticed that our little baby has developed a schedule. He's usually very active in the mornings (anywhere from 7:30 to 10:30), then again in the afternoons (between 3:00 and 4:30), and finally again in the late evenings (9:00 - midnight). I love sitting in bed and watching him move around at night. Mike can usually feel or see him move, too. I've come to look forward to those times of the day...it's always reassuring to feel your baby kick and move around in there.

Last night, Mike and I visited a day care, just to try and get ready for when I have to go back to work. Four of my co-workers take their kids to the same day care, and they've all said great things about it. When we visited, we talked with the provider for over an hour and she showed us around her home. It seemed wonderful, and although we plan to look at other places, I really like that provider. She seemed fascinated by children (how much they are able to comprehend and learn) but she also seemed to understand young children herself. We will look around at other places just to be able to compare, though.

27 Weeks

November 16, 2005 - 27 Weeks and 1 day

I'm in my 3rd trimester! I am luckily feeling very well, although I've stopped playing volleyball because I've been more tired during the games and my knee has really been bothering me. I last played on Sunday night (the 13th) and my team did really well, so I was happy to end my season on a high note! The team we played against had a horrible attitude, though! Between plays, during a dead ball, one of them kicked the volleyball so that it almost hit me in my belly. She has no aim, mind you, and she likes to kick the ball quite often instead of just rolling it on the ground to get it to the other team. Luckily, I was behind the net (on our side of the court) and I was able to deflect it in time. I just glared at her while she said "I'm sorry" with such an attitude that it was obvious she wasn't sincere. Another woman on her team said, "That's what you get if you play volleyball pregnant."!!!! THE NERVE of her! So, is she saying that the second she finds out she's pregnant, she's going to plop herself down on the couch and not exercise? Volleyball may be a little rougher than walking or swimming, but it's certainly NOT as much of a contact sport as basketball or soccer! At least if I was playing soccer, I would know to expect a ball KICKED at me. Anyway, all the women on my team have kids and ALL of them have played volleyball while they were pregnant....so they were all pretty fired up about the other team member's comment. In the end, we beat them 2 games to 1, and that definitely made my evening!

WHEW!! Sorry about the ranting, but I just thought that most women would be pretty understanding! Needless to say, I've decided it best to stop playing until after the baby's born. Mike is training for a marathon in November 2006, so after he runs in the evenings, we'll walk together for 20 minutes or so. I also bought a couple of pregnancy workout videos. I really like the first one (The Perfect Pregnancy Workout, hosted by an ex Cirque de Soleil acrobat!) because it helps strengthen and tone your arms, legs, back, and abs but in a way that's not strenuous. You also do Kegel exercises! I haven't tried the second one yet. That one is by Yoga Journal called Yoga for Your Pregnancy. I'll let you know how that goes!

Some days I cannot wait for the baby to arrive, and then other days I feel like there's too much to do to prepare, and we've barely scratched the surface! I don't just mean things like painting the nursery or getting more organized...I get so scared sometimes about how my relationship with Mike will change. I LOVE it now, we are always there for each other and always supportive of one another. He is my stability, but also my fun and laughter! I can see him being a wonderful father, and us together being great parents, but I guess I just don't want to lose any of the closeness and intimacy we've enjoyed for the past several years. I told Mike that I'm now anxious because, even though I always want to be with him and I love him to death, I never felt like I needed him until I was pregnant. In this day and age, I know there are many successful single parents out there, and I don't know if that's necessarily what I think I need him for...but he and the baby are my whole life now....they're my family.

Some days I still don't feel so big, but there are other days when I do, and on those days I feel huge! I've also been having trouble getting to sleep at night. The past week or two, I've finally been able to fall asleep at around 1:00 in the morning. I think that's mostly because I'm more comfortable sitting up than lying down. Ahhh, the joys of pregnancy!

26 Weeks

November 8, 2005 - 26 Weeks

Today is my and Mike's 2-year wedding anniversary! I seriously cannot believe that 2 years has already gone by since our wedding...I look back on the pictures and I can remember everything that happened and how I felt and who was there...it just doesn't seem like all that long ago. We're going out to dinner tonight to the Cheesecake Factory! Mmmmm!! I think that I may just order an appetizer so that I'll be ready for cheesecake afterwards :) And, Mike actually doesn't like cheesecake (don't ask me why...I couldn't tell you...maybe the texture?) but that only means more for me!!

I can definitely tell that I've become more emotional...most of the time it's because I will apply myself to a situation that I hear about on the radio or see on TV. But sometimes this unstable emotional state can be embarrassing! I was looking for an anniversary card yesterday, and while I was reading through some in the store I started crying! Each one made me cry more! But that situation is something I can totally handle and I chalk it all up to the hormones. On the other hand, poor Mike has had to go through some strange arguments with me because I'll blow things out of proportion in my head or jump to a wrong conclusion. He really is quite a trooper.

We are finally getting things together for the baby's room! This past weekend, Mike spent a long time cleaning up all of his tools and our boxes from the nursery. We're trying to get organized and figure out what we can throw out and what needs to go in the attic. (Speaking of attic, we also got our roof replaced. Shingles were coming off and parts of the roof had sort of bulged out on one side...I'll post before and after pictures soon!) Anyway, we also bought a crib from some friends of ours and I found a cute crib bedding set called Noah's Patch. I posted a picture of the set in my Albums...it's really cute and I got it on sale! Also, I managed to finalize our baby registry so that my sweet sister could send that information out when she sends invitations to my baby shower....whew! You never know how busy you've been until you go back and figure out what you've done in such a short time!

My sister-in-law had her baby this past Friday...they named her Lauren Suzanne! She's the cutest little thing, and has a full head of hair already! Michelle had Lauren by C-section on Friday morning, and we visited her and the baby in the hospital that afternoon. Both Mike and I got to hold Lauren, (probably the youngest baby I've ever held) and I think that my pregnancy became a little more real then. I will be starting my 3rd trimester next week! It definitely won't be long until we're in the hospital holding our little boy!