Week 22

Hope everyone had Happy Holidays. It's been mad, crazy busy in our neck of the woods.  Holidays can do that.  Today is New Years Eve.  I would love to be getting all dolled up to go out with friends and drink sparkling apple juice.  Unfortunately, I have managed to get sick.  :(  Thankfully, I am the only one with the illness.   But it still sucks to be sick.  I want to curl up under the covers while my momma takes care of me, unfortunately I gave up that privilege when I started wearing big girl panties.  LOL

EM is enjoying the post holiday and season playing with all his new toys.  One of the great things about being over seas is that packages get here whenever they feel like it, so he's still getting Christmas gifts.  :)  We got EM the Cars movie (first one) and Shrek (the series), he loves them and I get the bonus gift of sofa hour long sofa cuddles.   And if there's popcorn, I'm getting nominated for the Best Mommy Ever award.  :)

We got a box in the mail of some of EM's old baby clothes, I can still EM in all is fluffy glory wearing these outfits.  So thankful that I'm able to reuse EM's clothes.  Nice quality baby clothes are very expensive here, and ordering EVERYTHING through the mail gets tiresome.  You miss out on the sales and rummaging through the racks at Ross and TJMAXX for those hidden treasures.

Babylove #2 is moving up a storm.  I went from nothing to lots and lots.  I started feeling movement around the end of 21 weeks.   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.

Wishing everyone a safe, happy and kiss-filled New Year's!  2012 is going to be an awesome year.  I can feel it!  Claim your blessings now!  :)

What's the same and is it a boy or a girl?

Part of my quest to figure out the gender of Babylove #2 involved me comparing this pregnancy to the first.
Morning Sickness:  None the first time, none this time

Cravings:  The first time, I wanted comfort food all the time, mashed potatoes, baked mac n cheese, lasagna, old fashioned Southern banana pudding and OJ.  This time.  No real cravings.  In fact, I often struggle with what to eat, cuz I'm not craving anything

Aversions:  The first time around meat; This time around, meat.  The smell of raw meat will send me into a cleaning frenzy

Size: I think I was bigger at 20 weeks than I am this time around.  Though this time, the girls seemed to outgrow their holders in the first month, with the first one, I didn't get new bras until after the birth.

Weight Gain: See above  This time, I'm not "throwing caution to the wind", but I'm not being restrictive either. I just don't go overboard every day of the week.

So all this stuff coupled with my husband's (and EM's) insistence has me thinking I'm having a girl.  Actually EM tells me there are two girls hanging out in my belly.  LOL  So I spend a lot of time thinking and praying cause I am really quite terrified of having a girl.  I had to get my mind around having a little girl around.  Plus i was going to go broke with a little girl.  There are so many cute things for girls.  After boys pass 12 months the cute clothing options start to dwindle.  I have to admit I am also really afraid little girl hair.  OMG, you can ask my sister about the times we had together when she was little and I was trying to do her hair.   Plus, I can't shave it off when time gets tight.  LOL

So you can imagine my surprise and shear delight when the OB tells me that Babylove #2 is ... a BOY!  I was so relieved, but now I'm kinda missing that little girl that I was starting to come to terms with.  I would love to say we'll try for a girl next time, but I quite honestly think the next one would be another boy.    At any rate I'm so happy.  Plus the frugal mama inside is relieved that I'll be able to use most of EM's stuff again!  Whoop!

Week 20

Half way there ... in theory.  I was 3 weeks a five days early with EM, and history has a way of repeating itself.  That means we're more than halfway there. AAAAHHHHHH!!!  Que Sera, Sera! :)

EM has a serious obsession with cars and trucks.  He wants to take one everywhere he goes.  If there is a topographical change in terrain (A hill, grass, dirt, pavers, etc) he MUST stop and drive his little vehicle over it.  The other day I put him to bed with a stuff animal.  I went back to his room before I turned in for the night to discover this...

I had to remove the truck so he wouldn't poke out his eye while he slept.  I need to find him a stuffed truck to sleep with.

I felt babylove #2 kick for the first time week.  It was after a late night drink of OJ.  :)  Babylove also gets quite excited when there is Indian and Filipino food coming down the hatch.   Baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)
He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

Week 19

EM had a bowling date this week with some of his buds.  It was a LOT of fun.  The boys would get so excited and yell and scream congratulatory words when your ball made it to the end.  Seriously, if you're not feeling to great about your bowling game, you need to bowl with these kids.  EM would carry his ball up to the line and give a push to send it on its way.  Ya'll, it took the durn ball 5 minutes to get to the end of the lane.  When it got to the end it might have hit 3 pins.  Still this warranted some serious applause.

 

Pay no attention to the other ball that's stuck at the end.  We wouldn't let that minor technicality hold up our game.

A little dance to help the ball down the lane.  Poor ball needed all the help it could get.

As you can see, it was a close game!   He obviously gets his bowling skills from his mom.  :)

Babylove #2 is doing quite well.  Still not feeling any movement, but I know baby's in there dancing up a storm.  Baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.
Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

I'm starting to look pregnant and not like I was over indulgent at the buffet table.  :)  How do I know? Because the guys at work are starting to ask questions.  Most guys know to keep their mouths shut about a woman's expanding waist line, but when it's quite obvious they they can't help themselves.  :)
Here's a visual...

 

How far along?  19 weeks

Total Weight Gain:  Ummm... next question

How big is baby?:  baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato.

*Maternity clothes?: Mostly, today I wore a non-maternity sweater.

*Sleep?: Eh!  It's alright.  EM has started waking up at 4AM to come in my room and ask me if I want to read a book.  Uh, no!  Mommy wants sleep! 

*Best moment this week?:Watching EM play around with his friends while attempting a game of bowling.

*Movement?:  I can't feel it.  My placenta is in the front providing an extra layer for kiddo to kick through, so until those little leg muscles are strong enough to kick through that I won't be feeling anything.

*Food cravings?: Fruit and Fruit Juice

*Labor signs?: Nothing to report

*Belly button in or out?: yes to both.

*What I miss: My chipmunk

*What I'm looking forward to: New Year's Day!

*Milestone: I can no longer bend over at the waist to pick up things off the floor.