32 Weeks Plus Some

Here is the photo that was taken last Thursday at the 32 week mark. I am definitely getting rounder and more uncomfortable. Due to my increased weight, I am making more pronounced foot impressions in my flip flops. This makes them somewhat uncomfortable. But if this is all I am complaining about, I am doing pretty darn good.

Below are some pictures from my mom, Mimi, and Katie's visit a couple weeks ago. The first shows some of the goodies that my mom and Mimi purchased for Miss. Siena. She is going to be a well-dressed little girl! I will post a picture later of the ADDITIONAL clothes that my mom got for her. The second picture is of Operation Wash, Sort, and Put Away for our collection of little girl clothes. It took four loads of laundry and hours of folding and sorting. I was thankful for the help.

We had our Newborn Care class last night. I think that we were both surprised that we actually learned quite a few things and were glad that we took it. Greg is now a champ at swaddling. The diaper changing may take some more practice. I actually heard him today giving advice to a co-worker (who has 2 kids) on how to soothe a crying baby. That gave me quite the chuckle! We have tonight off and then we go to the Breastfeeding class on Wednesday. Greg thinks that he will be less involved in this class and has questioned his need to go. I told him that he could skip it if he wanted to, but I did not mean it.

32 Weeks

I will have to add my 32 weeks picture later. It is still on my camera, which is in the car. What can I say - I am too lazy to go outside right now and get it.

I did want to post some pictures from our ultrasound today:

The first two pictures are of the face and head. The last picture is of her little foot. It blows my mind how big she has gotten in the 12 weeks since the last time we went for an ultrasound. She weighs 4 lb 5 oz now and measures exactly in the 50th percentile in every category. Exactly perfect. Her head is already down and the placenta is not blocking her exit. The nurse said that she even has hair! She was very active during the ultrasound - moving all over the place.

Greg has already given her (my belly) lecture about braces because he spotted her sucking her thumb briefly. There was even a bribe involved - something about a longer chain attached to the radiator.

Greg also insisted that the nurse check once more to make sure that she is indeed a she. She is.

I will sleep much better tonight knowing that the baby is growing perfectly and snug inside of me.

Beach Trip

We returned on Monday from a trip to Surfside Beach, SC. My grandmother, Mimi, has had a beach house there since I was about 6 years old. We were there with Mimi, my mom, Katie, and David. The trip was filled with bike rides, sunbathing on the beach, bowling, put put, and alot of good food. I think the highlight of our vacation was taking Katie to the pier for some fishing. There was a group of crusty old fisherman with an 11-year-old Katie mixed in. She hung in there with them, though, and managed to catch a whiting (the first video) right away. She was then determined to catch a shark. After 2 hours of patiently waiting, she was able to reel in her shark (the second video). Congratulations Katie!

A recent conversation

Greg: Jerry said that he might be able to get us tickets to the Tennessee game.

Me: Ok, when is the game?

Greg: Near the end of September. (It is Sept. 19)

Me: Do you honestly think that I am going to go to a football game at almost 10 months pregnant - in FLORIDA!

Greg: Maybe just I will go to the game.

Me: Maybe.

30 Weeks

I am 3/4 of the way through and still smiling! Although, I have to admit that there are definitely uncomfortable moments every single day. Bending over without a struggle is a thing of the past. Getting out the car takes a little longer than it used to. Those little kicks and jabs that I have loved so much all along are starting to be a bit painful at times (especially when they are to the ribs or bladder). Enough complaining, though! I am healthy, the baby is healthy - so I am VERY happy.

We had a great appointment yesterday with a different doctor in the practice (my doctor is out with surgery, but recovering nicely). Greg and I both really liked the new doctor and may consider switching to her. She was very personable and spent much longer with us than my doctor ever has. Don't get me wrong, my doctor is very competent and has alot of experience, but her bedside manor is a little stiff. We just felt more comfortable with this doctor. I am seeing her again for my next appointment.

Now for the best part - I have to give Greg total credit for this one - When the doctor asked if we had any more concerns (because I had already gone over several), Greg told her that I have been worried that my stomach is not getting large enough. At first I was embarrassed, but the end result was worth it. She said that I measured right at 29 to 30 weeks, but that she could put 29 on the chart and order another ultrasound at our next appointment in 2 weeks (wink, wink) if I am concerned about the baby's size. You see, my insurance technically only covered the one ultrasound that I had at around 20 weeks. But, if there is a medical concern, the doctor can order additional ones that will also be covered. SCORE! My doctor would NEVER have done this. Do you see why I REALLY like this new doctor?

In other news, Greg has finished painting all but one piece of furniture for the baby's room (the hutch over the desk). My mom, grandmother (Mimi), and sister are coming to visit this weekend and I plan to put them to work. Katie can help Greg move furniture around the room to find the best place for it and help me put the crib together. Mimi can help fold laundry after I wash the mountain of clothes that Robyn gave me. My mom can help give decorating advice. It will be nice to have the help. We are all headed to the beach next week for a little vacation - the last one before you-know-what.

Oh, the pink

When I first started looking at baby decorations, my plan was to do the room in green and chocolate brown. My thinking was that IF we have a second child, we could use the bedding again. My plans changed when I ended up getting the adorable "Zoo Baby" bedding. The colors in the bedding and decorations are light and dark bluish gray. Green and brown would not really work with these colors. I also decided that the room would need a little something to make it more girly given the colors of the bedding. Therefore, I decided to paint the walls blush and bashful (pink and pink) - much to Greg's dismay. He was REALLY not too thrilled at this idea. I think that he was ok with the idea of having a girl, but had not fully come around to it. Green and brown just seemed easier for him to deal with - they did not scream GIRL! They eased him in.

Something changed when Greg started painting those walls. It is like the pink seeped into his system and took over. He suddenly wanted to make the room as "little girly" as possible. I almost fell on the floor when he suggested that we get new switch plate covers that had rainbows or flowers on them. He even picked out a fan at Lowe's that was pink, green, and yellow with flowers and butterflys on it for the room. That's right, macho Greg was wheeling a cart around Lowe's with this giant pink box in it:

This little girl is having quite the effect on her daddy and she is not even here yet. Oh boy! The funny thing is that I don't think he even realized what is happening (he will now, after reading this post!). He still thinks that he is going to be the disciplinarian, i.e. the "mean" parent. I have a feeling that this little girl is going to look up at Greg with giant eyes and he is going to melt. We will just have to wait and see what happens!

In other news - we have somewhat decided on a name. We reserve the right to change this name, so nothing is written in stone (or on a birth certificate) yet. As of right now, we are going with Siena Lynn(e) - we have not decided on the spelling of the middle name yet. My mother's name is Lynne and Greg's mother's middle name is Lynn. Siena is the name of a city that we spent some time in (and fell in love with) when we were in Italy. We think that it is a beautiful city and would make a beautiful name! Siena is home to the famous (in Italy) Palio di Siena (Il Palio) horse race. Horses with riders representing each of the 17 neighborhoods in Siena compete in a race that lasts approximately 1.5 minutes through the streets of the city. The race occurs twice a year - July 2 and August 16. Hopefully we will go someday!

28 Weeks

An update is long overdue. My apologies. I have been quite busy at work with actually doing, well, work. It has really been cutting into my blogging time. We were also out of town for the 4th of July weekend (I will save that for another post).

I have reached the 7 month mark. Only 3 more months to go and we have so much to accomplish still. Greg is going to paint the nursery this weekend and I will (hopefully) start sanding some more of the furniture. It is fantasy football draft selection weekend, so that is going to cut into our work time on Saturday. Sunday should be more productive. We have decided not to have the carpet replaced in the nursery and to have it professionally cleaned instead. We took a look at it last night and decided that it is actually in pretty good condition.

I passed the 1 hour glucose test from a few weeks back. Health-wise everything seems to be going nicely. I know that I am continuing to gain weight, but I am making a genuine effort to keep it under control. Hopefully, last month was the worst it will be.

I feel the baby kick and turn frequently. She seems to be the most active at night. Every kick is makes me feel more confidant that she is snug and safe in there. I started taking a "Mothers In Motion" water aerobics class this week. I am surprised that it is actually a pretty good workout (although I do still go and walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes beforehand). I have enjoyed meeting other women that will be having babies around the same time that I will. My favorite part of the class is the end when we lean against the wall for relaxation time. After 1 to 2 minutes, I feel the baby start to move around inside.

My good friend, Robyn, came for a visit several weekends ago. We had fun having girl time. She got a (short) break from her hectic life with 2 kids and I got tons of advice - and hand-me-downs!!! Below is a picture of some of the things that Robyn brought for me - an excersaucer (sp?), an activity mat, a bottle sterilizer, and TONS of little girl clothes. These are just the 0 to 6 month clothes. She is going to pass more along as her daughter outgrows them (Josie is only 10-going on-11 months old now). Not pictured are the breast pump and bottle drying rack that she also brought along. These things are going to help out sooo much - THANKS ROBYN!!

I also received a goody bag of clothes from Greg's mom, Karen. Below is a picture of the clothes she sent along. The stack in the background is all sleepers. My favorite is the tiny little jeans jacket - so cute! THANKS YAYA!

During our 4th of July trip, I was able to visit with both of my grandmothers in Greenville. We had a great time going out to lunch and went on a trip to Goodwill afterward. Each of the grandmothers had a bag of gifts waiting for me. Mimi (my maternal grandmother) gave me a handmade night light for the babies room and a special picture frame that she had been saving for some time. We will find some cute to use in the frame - perhaps a baby picture? Grandma (my paternal grandmother) gave me an afgan that she crocheted and another pink blanket for the baby. Both of the blankets will be wonderful additions to the room.

I also made my first baby clothes purchases during the trip. I think that I have shown a great deal of restraint by holding off until now to buy ANY clothes for the baby. I had a coupon for the Gap Outlet that I used for the blue dress (right). Mimi actually paid for the red outfit, but I picked it out myself during out Goodwill trip.

I will try to do another post sooner rather than later. My next doctor's appointment is not until July 23rd. I am meeting with another doctor in the practice as my doctor will be out due to surgery. This is a good thing because I have doubts that my doctor will actually be the one in the delivery room with us (due to her health problems). This way I get to meet more of the doctors in the practice.