25 weeks!!!

How our baby's growing:

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

Holy Cow! 24 weeks!!!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon. In the past few weeks, the top of your uterus has risen above your belly button and is now about the size of a soccer ball.

The craziest thing happened yesterday...

I was sitting in church (I get kinda light headed when I stand up and sing) and the baby wasn't kicking at all. I chalked it up to the fact that the little one was probably asleep. But Ryan had a solo song yesterday, the song started with him playing the piano (keyboard) and singing...just him. All of a sudden the kid goes crazy and starts kicking like their kickboxing class just started. All throughout the song the baby was kicking away...until the song ended. As soon as the song ended, and Ryan stopped singing and playing...the baby stopped kicking. It was if Pounds could recognize Ryan's voice and was reacting to hearing it's daddy! I made sure and told Ryan when he sat down after worship & it totally made his day! He (& I ) wanted to make sure everyone knew that his kid knew him! I already knew that the baby can recognize voices and sounds-which is why it's beneficial to talk to your belly when you're pregnant. I guess we're an example of what every night talks with your baby can do. Almost every night Ryan talks to the baby...let's it know he's it's Daddy and then tells the baby goodnight. I guess our kid already listens to us....a good sign, maybe? Anyway, we were excited...even if it was just a coincidence, it is still pretty cool...and we're going to go with the baby could her it's daddy!


24 weeks tomorrow....time is flying by!

toodles,
:) jen

I went to the doctor's today for my monthly visit & everything went great. I got to hear Pounds heartbeat...loud & strong! The baby has been kicking/punching/head butting so much lately that I wasn't worried at all if I'd hear the heartbeat! Plus...I gained some weight! About 5 pounds actually! The doctor seemed happy that I put some weight on. Now I just need to maintain the weight gained. I knew I had gained some weight...if nothing else-my belly had grown a lot in 4 weeks! I'm a pretty good judge of my body and how it changes-so I knew I had put on a few. But as my belly grows as each day goes on...my belly button seems to be disappearing! It's crazy! A very fun and exciting thing though. Pounds is making room in my belly...so it's to be expected.

I go for my glucose test in 2 weeks. I should take it in about 4, but since we're leaving for vacation in 3 weeks, I am having another appointment with the doctor in 3 weeks and he wants my test results by then. It's a one hour test, and I have to "sweets fast" for 24 hours before. I drink this highly concentrated sugar drink, wait for an hour, and then they take a blood test. Hopefully I'll "pass" it and won't have to take the 3 hour test! Fingers crossed!

Well, there's our doctor update...no ultrasound...but the baby's heartbeat was more than enough to bring a big smile on my face!

toodles,
jen

23 Weeks!!!

How our baby's growing:

Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

p.s...I look tired in the picture...mostly because I am!! Being on my feet all day is starting to tire me out. :/

22 Weeks!!!...and still in my last pair of "normal" jeans

Well, this weekend my parents came into town for the 4th and we had a great time with them. It's always nice to see them, especially when it's on our own "turf." We got to just hang out and I even got to go to Target and register for little "Pounds" (my dad came up with the clever name for LBS since LBS is an abbreviation for pounds-very clever and we're sticking with it) It was a lot of fun to browse through all the cute baby stuff. My mom really wanted to be able to feel the baby kick, but since I can't make the baby kick on demand or anything, I wasn't sure if she'd get the chance to feel a kick. But on Friday night I was sitting on the floor in the living room and felth the baby start to move and kick and so I had my mom put her hand on my tummy with hopes for a kick....and she felt one! The best part was her scream when she got to feel it! It was great! Unfortunately "Opa" (my dad) didn't get to feel Pounds pounding away...maybe next time!

Ryan and I also went into Santa Maria and registered at Babies R Us this weekend. That was a lot of fun. There was a much better selection of baby stuff there and we had a great time just looking around. It was crazy to see all the gadgets they sell for a baby...a lot of them not needed...just tell you kid to not touch the stove...duh!? At any rate, we had a blast and it got us even more excited for Pounds arrival. On the ride home we finally came up with names for if it's a boy and if it's a girl. & no...we're not telling anyone! It's gonna be a surprise! Just know that if it's a boy, he'll have the initials RCS, and both names are super cute and we can't wait to use one of them for our little one!

Enjoy reading about "Pounds" this week...it's growing fast & time is flying by!

toodles,
jen

How your baby's growing:

At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.