Week 23

Well, the belly (and Ella) is definitely growing! Take a look:

Week 21 aaaaaaaaaaa Week 23

I got offered a position at the front of the bathroom line when traveling yesterday, so I guess it must be obvious to most people now. Chris said I'm starting to get the "pregnant-woman walk," too!

In more exciting news, I am starting to be able to tell where Ella is hangin' out in my uterus. I'm actually pretty sure I felt her head today! It's a little creepy, but definitely cool. She's also making me pee about 100 times a day. It feels like she literally steps on my bladder and dances around! Maybe she'll be a ballerina :)

Out of town

I'm out of town visiting my family right now, but I wanted to give a quick update. Here goes:

1) Leg cramps SUCK. I woke up with charlie horses in both my legs, and they've been sore for two days now (despite stretching, yoga, and hot showers).

2) Ella likes to kick her daddy! Whenever he puts his head on my belly and talks, she kicks his head :) This morning I was snuggled up next to him and she kicked his butt. It's cute! She's actually been going crazy today with movement. I think she bruised my uterus!

3) I'm eating A LOT. I ate four stuffed squash/zucchini tonight for supper, and I could easily eat more. I think Ella is going through a growth spurt, because my belly is growing EVERY DAY. You will be surprised when you see this Sunday's pictures!

4) I am obviously growing a lot because I got my first random stranger pregnancy comment. The cashier at the grocery store said, "You look like you'll be having a little one soon!" Cool!

That's it for now. I'll update on Sunday with pictures when we return.

It's a....

GIRL! Just like we thought! Here are a few pictures to quench your curiosity:

This is her whole body and head from the back.

She is apparently sitting on the ultrasound here, and you can supposedly see her private parts!

She already LOVES to play peek-a-boo!

And here is her darling Skeletor face.

If you're like me and Chris, it's a little difficult to tell what's what, but I think we get the idea :) She covered her face with her hands the whole time, and they were trying really hard to get a measurement from her nose to her mouth. I guess that was to see if she had a cleft palate..I don't really know! They finally got it, though, after jabbing my abdomen to make her move. The perinatologist said that everything looked and measured normally, and she weighs 15 ounces! Almost a whole pound!!!

Chris is really excited, although now he's stressed at the prospect of having a daughter. I think he's worried that he'll have to be "proper" all the time. :)

So now, we can finally start referring to little Freedlet as Ella Gray.

Less than 24 hours away...

Just wanted to remind everyone that tomorrow is the big day when we (hopefully) find out if this little kickboxer is a boy or a girl! He/she has really been going crazy in there today, and I've even seen movement through my shirt! Maybe he/she is as excited as we are and is looking forward to the big day! :) Then again, maybe it was all the sugar in the three root beers I drank today...

Cute Shoes!

I don't know why I was so concerned about it already, but I've been looking at little soft-soled shoes for babies. It seems like they are ALL made of leather! However, I found a really great company that makes ONLY vegan baby footwear... IsaBooties. And they are so cute! Expensive, yes, but so are all the other soft-soled shoes made of leather. I'm excited!

Oops!

Nevermind! I'm in a better mood now :)

I need a pool!

I finally discovered the perfect exercise for a pregnant woman--swimming! It is SO cool because I have become incredibly buoyant! I've always floated pretty well because, well, I have a high percentage of body fat, but now it's amazing! Most things that require physical exertion become painful after a short time, but I felt like I could have continued swimming for hours today. I went to Michele's house to visit Sierra today and took my new preggo bathing suit along with me. I'm so glad I did! I had the best time floating around and swimming laps. I even jumped off the diving board several times! Now to convince Chris that we need an in-ground swimming pool at the new house...

Over halfway there!

I can't believe that I'm 21 weeks pregnant today. Time really is flying by! Here is a picture from tonight compared side-by-side with the picture from 2 weeks ago. Am I much bigger?

Week 19 aaaaaaaaaaaaa Week 21

I feel HUGE! Also, are you diggin' the new maternity jeans? I could show you how they really fit, but it's a little embarrassing. I have the beige stretchy part folded down several times. It actually goes all the way up my belly right below my boobs! Hot, right?!? :-)

I guess I haven't been posting lately for two reasons: 1) I am so busy with all the changes going on with the house and the end of the school year! We've been de-cluttering, organizing, and cleaning like crazy. 2) I've been feeling really well lately. I had horrible, horrible issues with allergies, but that's over now and I'm feeling great! I think I already sort of have the pregnant lady waddle (even though I'm not really big enough to "waddle", per se).

I'm so excited that school is over, but I do have to go back tomorrow to finish updating cumulative files. I decided to teach half of summer school for a little extra money (I'm thinking I can maybe buy the glider I want if I can convince Chris), but that won't start until mid-July. No, Tor, it won't interfere with the beach! :-) I will teach July 9-10, then July 21-31. It's cool because it's only 4 hours a day, 4 days a week. It should be pretty fun--kids generally enjoy summer school.

I'm sure I will be updating more frequently now that school is out. I'm a little worried about getting bored, but I figure I can catch up on my blogging and online pregnancy discussion boards. I got out of the computer habit when we had the hardwood floors refinished and we stayed with friends, but I know I'll become an addict once again.

Awake again...

I wish I could sleep, but I just...can't. It's about 5:30, and I've been up for about 2 1/2 hours now. I've looked at all my regular sites and can't think of anything else to do now. I can't breathe (congested), and I keep coughing (which wakes Suki up). Now that I'm awake, I'm REALLY awake. Work should be fun!

In other news, this looks like a cool event. Too bad I'm not a stay-at-home mom yet...I would totally drive to DC for it! I do think that many vaccines are important, but I really don't like the way they are manufactured and administered. Chris and I are still thinking about how to handle vaccininations once little Freedlet is born...I hope more options are available soon!

Week 19

Here I am in all my pregnant glory!!! :-) I actually think I look a little smaller than last week, but maybe it's the pants. Or maybe I was bloated last week...who knows!

Week 19

I think I started having Braxton-Hicks contractions yesterday. I got some pretty bad cramps in my lower uterine area, and they got more severe this afternoon (I actually left work a little early). I called my midwife's office, and she suggested resting, taking Tylenol, and applying a warm compress. That seemed to help, but I still get a little stabbing pain every once in a while. They said there was no need to worry unless I started bleeding, and I definitely don't have any of that! I think I just overworked myself this weekend with trying to get the house ready for sale. I lifted WAY too much stuff and probably got a little dehydrated. I promise to be better in the future! ;) I should also add that Freedlet is still moving around quite a bit, and I even saw him/her move my belly from the outside tonight! Weird!