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Thursday, May 27, 2010

16 Weeks-An Avocado

*I started this post earlier this week but did not manage to finish it yesterday.  Explanation to follow...

Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.

My Week
-Last week of school for the 09-10 school year!
-I thought the exhaustion was supposed to end in the first trimester but has just now started for me.  By 3 pm I am FIGHTING to keep my eyes open no matter what I doing.  Two days this week I have fallen asleep at 4:30-5 pm and then woke up around 9 pm.  I'm hoping it is just the build up and flurry of activity of the end of the school year and it won't be a permanent thing.
-I'm having trouble shaving my legs because I get dizzy when I bend over in the shower.  Any other time...I'm fine...weird.
-I've decided that I'm having round ligament pain.  I have had a weird stretching, pulling sensation in my low abdomen since the a few days before I was pregnant.  It kind of feels like the pain after waking up with a very full bladder constantly.
-My first pair of maternity jeans arrived yesterday and they are actually really cute!  I also ordered one black maternity shirt that is adorable and I will be wearing long after this baby is born.  The maternity jeans are still too big but my regular jeans have gotten a little uncomfortable.  The  mornings are ok but I'm usually miserable by the afternoon.
-  My once very squishy stomach has changed.  Don't get me wrong...it is still very squishy...but the underside has gotten rock hard and is sticking out approximately an inch farther than before.  It is uncomfortable to sit hunched over (which I do a lot at my laptop. I know! Bad!).  It is actually improving my posture!
-I have an appointment with a dietician next week.  I'm excited.  I've always wanted to ask what I should be eating that would have the most benefit to my body.
-Hiding a pregnancy in a high school is almost impossible.  More gossip and preying eyes than you can imagine.  It has become increasingly difficult to keep it from my students.  Several have suspected and been asking prying questions about my nausea, my saltine crackers, my freakishly long hair and nails, and so forth... "Wow Mrs. J, my nails only got that long when I was taking my prenatal vitamins!" "Mrs. J, are you ever going to have kids? I bet we make you not want to have any, huh?"  It has mostly come from my students that have babies or are currently pregnant.  I've managed to brush off comments other teachers have made around students and I myself have slipped up a couple of times. "Oh yeah I've heard of that new children's store...I'm going there as soon as I find...er...out what gender my friend is having."
Earlier this week a phone call was put through to my classroom during the school day which is REALLY weird.  They don't do that.  Students were sitting in my room.  But the lady that was calling was very pushy (probably why she got through) and was asking about plans for a student group I was supposed to sponsor this next year.  I had been trying to compose an email to notify her that I had been reassigned to other activities but I hadn't sent it because I hadn't had a chance to speak to my principal again.  Finally after about 8 minutes of her not giving up and students sitting there listening, I finally just told her that I was expecting a baby and since I would be out for maternity leave next year that someone else was going to sponsor that group.  I'm not going to say that made her quiet right away because it didn't but it definitely shortened the conversation finally.  Once I hung up the phone and had all those eyes staring at me I said, "Yes, I'm having a baby and I'm very excited."  The kids went nuts!  They were so excited which was very cute.  I actually had one girl (who I've had to write up multiple times) sit there dumbfounded for almost 5 minutes before finally speaking up and saying, "You're pregnant? Oh...I'm so sorry for how I've acted this semester."  lol  I just about died laughing.  The funniest part was that several boys agreed with her and started apologizing also.  If I'd known that...I'd have been "pregnant" all year long.
-Once the cat was out of the bag I broke the news to each of my classes.  Luckily it was the last day that I was going to have most of my students this year so it was pretty good timing.  With the semester exam exemptions that were put in place I actually have very few students testing.  Today I had 7 total.  Tomorrow I will have 8.  Friday I will have about 6.  Next time they see me I'll be 29 weeks along.  Crazy!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

15 Weeks-An Apple *Updated*

*The baby's heartbeat has been regularly staying in the 150's to low 160's.  I didn't want to forget.  
*I ordered a snoogle pillow on Monday evening and it arrived today!  That is amazingly fast for out here.  Hopefully it will help the back pain I've been having.  Otherwise we might permanently move into the guest room.  I'd go by myself but I'd miss Kevin too much!


Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds. Finally, if you have an ultrasound this week, you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or a girl! (Don't be too disappointed if it remains a mystery, though. Nailing down your baby's sex depends on the clarity of the picture and on your baby's position. He or she may be modestly curled up or turned in such a way as to "hide the goods.")
My Week
-Finally have my classroom back!  BUT...I've been at training M-W.  I'm hoping my students are actually getting something accomplished.   They don't have many grades with being homeless for 2 weeks and all...
-The training has been Princeton Review training and I'm enjoying it.  I'm learning to prepare students for taking the ACT.  Much of what I've learned has been test taking strategies such as process of elimination, guess & check, skip the harder questions...BUT we're also learning MUCH more.  My brain hurts.  Especially on the Algebra, Geometry, and Trig tests.  Those parts of my brain have cobwebs from being neglected for a VERY long time.  Right now I'm hoping this baby is listening and learning...ha...he/she may have to help mom.
-Speaking of the baby...remember how we didn't really celebrate mother's day?  Well there is one thing that we did do.  We made a purchase...or rental really.  I have had the immense pleasure of listening to my little darlin's heartbeat multiple times in the last week.  Kevin and I rented a fetal doppler and have had a blast using it!  I promise we're not bugging the baby constantly.  It is so fun to find the heartbeat.  There have been a few nights when the baby has been stubborn and won't come out of play but it is ok.  I haven't "panicked" which is what my mom assumed I would do.  I just didn't worry about it and tried again in the next day or so.  When I start having physical stomach pain...then I'll panic. And yes...I spoke to my doctor about it and she said it was fine.  It was only about $20 a month!  I found out about it from this post on K. Law's baby blog!  Once I saw her video of it I knew I wanted one myself!  But don't worry....you won't be seeing any videos of my fat rolls on here...so rest easy everyone.
-I had the WEIRDEST sensation in my stomach while I was in class yesterday.  It was like a pushing from the inside out and it pushed against the table in front of me.  I know it is probably gas since I'm not really far enough along to feel the baby yet but it was definitely the weirdest gas that I've ever felt.  It just pushed straight out and didn't go up at all.
-I have been feeling very good this week other than I cannot keep my eyes open.  This probably has to do with the fact that I sit in a room for 8 hours a day (yes I'm having to work from 8-5 this week) listening to someone else talk.  It's much easier when I'm the one doing the talking.  Our poor trainer...I think he thinks that I'm narcoleptic even though I haven't actually fallen asleep.  Just a LOT of head bobbing...
-I have so much to do before school gets out for summer but I kind of just want to bury my head in the sand (aka my bed covers)...
-Well I wanted to write more but I've GOT to get in bed now.  I didn't get home until almost 9.  Immediately after training today I had to run home, freshen up, and head right back up to school for the Academic awards assembly.  I was so "kindly" volunteered to hand out the career & technology department awards.  Yes that was slightly sarcastic.  Oh wait...it gets better...none of my students got any of the awards...because I wasn't asked who I wanted to submit like ALL the other teachers were.  humph.  I had to sit on the stage facing the audience.  yeah.  great.  I just keep reminding myself...9 more working days and then 2 glorious months of summer!!!

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

14 Weeks-A Lemon

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.



My Week
-Kevin was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Society this week.  He looked so handsome up there!  I was so proud of him!
-I'm sooooooo ready for school to be out.  
-I move around 4 times between 3 different rooms during the school day right now.  Ugh
-I've felt pretty good this week with one exception.  I'm hoping the nausea is starting to fade now.
-The one exception is that I've developed back pain that isn't going away.  It isn't the sharp, take your breathe away kind of pain.  More of dull, constant ache that really bugs me when I bend or step down stairs.  It feels like there is a grapefruit (round, knot like) sitting on the very bottom of my spine.  At first I thought it was just from our mattress.  I've never really liked it and it does cause me some pain first thing in the morning that usually goes away during my shower.  This pain doesn't go away.  I've tried sleeping in the guest room for 2 nights and will try it again tonight.  Has this happened to anyone before?
-Allergies still here but manageable.  
-I had my 2nd appointment with my OB this week.  It went really well and she said all of my blood work (including blood sugar, immunities, thyroid) came back with great results.  I was really disappointed because according to my scale at home I have lost anywhere from .5 to 1.5 lbs since my last appointment but according to the scale at the doctor's office I gained almost 3 pounds.  The doctor wasn't worried at all and said it was probably just because I was weighing late in the afternoon and I'm retaining some water compared to weighing 1st thing in the morning like my last visit.  
-They scheduled our next sonogram for late June.  I will be around 20 weeks at that time.  I really wish I didn't have to wait that long to find out if the baby is a boy or a girl but oh well I guess.  It's going to be a long 6 weeks.  
-It is going to be really busy around here for the next couple of weeks between the end of school and activities that I'm required to attend after the normal school day.  
-Did I mention I'm really ready for summer?  My brother's swimming pool is calling my name.  My doctor recommended swimming and relaxing!  Sounds GREAT!  

Sunday, May 9, 2010

What to do with today...

Mother's day has definitely been an off day for me in recent years...as much as I was thrilled to spend to the day doting on my amazing mother it was also a glaring reminder of the fact that I was broken, unable, or unworthy.  This year though...it's a little different...and while I know many people will say that I'm not an actual mother yet... in one way...I kind of am.  It still doesn't "feel" real but of course I know it is.  I mean I read the updates about the baby's development and am in complete awe at the little person growing inside me.  A true little person that is a little bit of me and a little bit of Kevin.  I know the first time I feel the baby will be amazing and it will start to "feel" real but until then every morning when I wake up I will continue to ask myself..."Was I dreaming?  Am I really going to be a mom?"

It isn't like we celebrated today or anything.  I didn't receive any presents but I was told "Happy Mother's Day" a few times and the few times I heard it...it made my heart skip a beat!   Justin (my brother) and I cooked lunch for mom and had a wonderful time visiting with her, dad, Kevin, and Alicia.  I made the main course and Justin made the brownies.  My parents had to rush back home though because they have a lot of stuff going on at their house right now.  (That is more exciting news that I will be sharing very shortly but not quite yet!)  So...what to do with today...I don't know about you...but as for me...I will give thanks to my amazing Lord for the thrilling and terrifying responsibility he has placed in my life and ask repeatedly that he protect this baby and help me do everything I can to be the best mom-to-be possible...

Oh and I didn't forget...  Happy Mother's Day, Momma!  I am extremely grateful for having such an amazing mother and this year I realize even more how lucky I am to have such a great teacher as you.   Maybe...just maybe...if I can manage to remember even a 1/4 of the great things that you did...I'll be able to be a good mom myself.  I love you!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

13 Weeks-My Little Shrimp

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

My Week
-Sundays have a pattern of being a serious nausea day.  Again...the rest of the week is pretty ok until I brush my teeth.
-I survived TAKS tests.
-These allergies will never go away...never.
-Everything is still very unreal to me.  Each time I wake up I have to ask myself if I've been dreaming.  I don't know when it will seem "real".
-My cousin had her baby boy on Saturday.  I haven't been able to see him yet but I'm so excited!  I cannot believe that our babies will only be 6 months apart.
-It amazes me how looking back I can see how God has been subtly guiding instances in my life.  There were several situations that occurred that were hard to understand at the time but now I can see how they have shaped me.  For example: If you've read backward in my blog, you'll remember that Kevin and I acquired some debt when I was working part-time last year and had to pay out of pocket for cobra health insurance.  I came to the realization this week that we wrote the final check and paid everything off on the weekend I should have found out I was pregnant.  But of course...I didn't find out until weeks later.
-God has really made a change in my heart recently.  Just a few years ago I would have been devastated at the thought of having a baby and not being able to stay at home with it.  God has changed some circumstances in my life along with changes in the lives of those I love that make the idea of working more bearable.  Although it isn't my first choice, it is the best for my baby and our family.  Children get sick and they need health insurance!  It was devastating when my mom lost her job as a clerk when the prison closed but now she will be able to watch the baby during the day for me which is a HUGE blessing!  I have a job that allows me to leave work at 4 pm each day and gives me almost 3 months off each summer.  I will also have quite a bit of time off during next school year after delivery and then I'm hoping the spring will go by quickly.  At this point, I feel better with my mom watching the baby than I would doing it myself!  lol Getting pregnant has made me realize just how little I actually know about babies and it is terrifying!!!  Kevin and I have decided to re-evaluate my working situation at the end of each school year.

-I had a blast at my friend's baby shower last week!  I was able to see several of the teachers I used to work with in Eden.  I miss them so much!
-18 more school days!
-Kevin is being inducted into Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Society this week.  I'm so proud of him!

Monday, May 3, 2010

If I hear...

"but it's after TAKS...we're not supposed to do anything anymore!"...one more time...I think I will scream!  I am not a babysitter and have no intention of showing movies until the end of the school year.  We still have time to LEARN something and we will...even if it kills me.  Considering I've been kicked out of my computer lab for the next 2 weeks while they administer online end of course exams to almost every kid in the school.  After being shuffled with a rolling cart full of laptops between 4 classrooms today...I will apparently be spending the next 9 school days sharing an auditorium with 2 male coaches classes except of course during the one act play performance day when I think I will be in the cafeteria or library.  I'm soooooo ready for this school year to be over....