Getting There

Well, yesterday we got the second coat on the trim and the corner shelf. We were also able to get the doors done as well. The main door and the closet doors, those closet doors were in a pain in the arse. It really is looking great in there especially with the shelf up and the doors hung back up. Still to be painted is a sun in the opposite corner from the shelf, some grass above the baseboard, ferns in the corners, and some small animals here and there.

Painting This Evening

So we matched some colors on the rainforest gear and got a wall color and a trim color. We spent most of the evening painting together, it was really nice doing a project with each other. We got the walls done, and then I did the trim and Kim went to sleep as she was tired. The trim is going to need another coat I beleive, I'll do that in the morning. Then all we have left is the door and the closet doors. I think while we are at it, I may sand down the dressers, so we can figure out a paint scheme for those. I was thinking all different colors, ones in the rainforest stuff.

Nesting is great fun!

Starting to get a room ready for Bean is such fun, and it makes the upcoming events of birth and raising a child a little more "real". Clay put together the baby gym and then decided we should start doing a bit more, he was right.

Now I'm itching to go get some paint, get the walls ready, and have a blast making the room even more attractive. I was laughing that the baby bed is now flanked by my beloved Sopranos posters, especially the one with Tony Soprano scowling...I think that can come down and be replaced with something a little more baby friendly.

We put the baby clothes in a little dresser for now until we get the other one stripped and painted. I still marvel at the little socks, just thinking that tiny feet will be filling them soon makes me cry. I've been a big crying pregnant girl the last few days. Tears of joy and happiness, so it's all good.

The Baby Has A Room Now

So today we started making the baby's room today, and planned the rest of we want to do with it. We took the bed out of Kim's old room and a few other things went to new homes around the house and garage. Things yet to be done are a new coat of paint, we're gonna match a couple of colors on the crib for that. We have a dresser that we're gonna strip and also paint to match. We want to get kid oriented paintings and such, and a small bookshelf for the baby's books. Kim even talked about may be getting a rocking chair in there. It's not much yet, but it is a start and I think it's looking quite good. I will try to get Kim on here to update soon, she's slacking off a bit...Hahahahaha!

Fetal development in pregnancy week 23

At this point, you’ve pretty much adjusted to the fact you’ve got a moving little gymnast inside of you, but now they’re going to kick up the party a notch because they can hear and react to sounds from the outside world. Sounds from your alarm clock, a thunder roll, or that darned car honking at you across the intersection can actually jar their little ears enough to elicit a kick or violent bout of squirming. Of course this also means that their little ears are picking up the sounds of your voice and those near you. So go ahead, sing a lullaby to your little angel—if they start kicking, it’s likely they just want you to stop… or maybe it was a kick of approval? You decide. Their little pink taste buds are still growing and their bones are continuing to ossify (harden). Your baby's tiny veins are visible through their translucent yet wrinkly skin. (Think of it this way: they’ve been swimming in the equivalent of a long hot bath for the past 23 weeks, so you can’t blame them for being a little prune-like.)

Past The Half Way Point, And Still Going..

About a week and a half ago Kim was saying that she wished she felt the baby move more often. Well, it looks like you really do get what you ask for sometimes. Here we are more than a week after the half way point and this kid is all over the place. Kim said that yesterday at one point she looked at her belly and said to the bean "enough already", he had been repeatedly poking her for some time. My favorite thing to do now is lay with my hand on Kim's belly and feel my baby kicking, I have been talking to it more as well. I warned him that mommy is weird and not to worry about her, she'll be ok. I think I should warn him about my family too, hahaha.



Kim quote of the day: "What is that breastfeeding class all about anyway?"

Fetal development in pregnancy week 22

The grow must go on! No wonder you’re getting so big, you’re now housing a wonder baby-- (that weighs nearly a pound and measures nearly a whole foot in length (30.5 cm). Their perfect little pancreas is now further developed and they’ve also started producing their own hormones! Your baby's future in the circus as a world-famous tight-rope-walker is secure: their inner ear is now developed to the point that they have their own sense of balance. Lucky for your little explorer, balance also promotes physical dexterity, which has them actively feeling out their surroundings—where skin, body parts and umbilical cord are the big sensory experiences. Your foot-long baby, is looking a bit like an oversized raisin right now as more and more wrinkles are showing up each week. Not to worry, all that excessive wrinkling is just their skin’s way of planning ahead for the time when they’ll start piling on that irresistible baby chub.

She's Definelty Showing

I can really tell that Kim is pregnant by looking at her. Not only is she glowing (since the beginning), but now her baby bump is quite noticeable now. You know, I didn't think that Kim could get any more beautiful and sexy, boy was I wrong. I look at her now and just sort of grunt, because words just can't describe how beautiful she is to me. I don't know if it's the way she just oozes “sexy”, or the fact that she's carrying my baby in her womb. I think it's a little bit of both that makes her so yummy. Don't get me wrong, Kim was quite yummy before, she just has a little "beauty lagniappe" now. Every second I spend with her I find something new to love about her, she is just plain amazing. I really lucked out; I got a beautiful, intelligent, sexy, funny, and honest woman to spend the rest of my life loving...



In other news:


About a month ago we got a flat tire, a big piece of metal decided to lodge itself right in there. A few days driving on the stupid donut and 65 bucks later we got ourselves a brand new shiny tire; the old one could not be fixed for the mere 30 bucks. Yesterday, we pulled into the garage after going to the video store and got out to the sound of the front tire hissing. I changed out the quickly deflating tire for the donut yet again and inspected the damage. I found the hole right in the middle of the tread, so I think this one will be quite fix-able. Then again, I thought the other one could be fixed too. Apparently, the hole was too close to where the tread curved up around to the sidewall to make an effective patch job. The hole in the “new” flat tire is smack dab in the middle, so I think I am right this time; let’s hope eh…



P.S.


For those of you unaware of New Orleans lingo; “lagniappe” is French for “A little something extra”.

An alien in my tummy!

Wow is what comes to mind when I think about all the movement I'm feeling in my stomach. Bean is quite the athlete in-utero! My favorite time to feel it is when I'm in bed on my back. All of a sudden my stomach feels tight and there's a hard spot. I can push softly and someone pushes back at me! They're bouncing around as I type this. Quite trippy!

We bought a little heartbeat listener thingy when we first found out I was knocked up. It's been sitting around because you couldn't hear anything till now. We still don't hear the heartbeat with it, but you can hear it when Bean moves, it's a weird swishing noise. I like to play chase the baby with it...aren't I bad?

Our Little Gymnast

Well, we already know we have an active baby on our hands. Now, as he/she is getting bigger Kim is feeling the activity more and more, and I have felt my baby kick my hand more than a few times now too. The bean seems to be active most when Kim lies down to watch a movie with me or go to sleep (usually the same activity, hahaha). She feels it periodically throughout the day as well, which is good. Everything we have read says that a really active-in-the-womb baby is a healthy baby. We have tweaked the names yet again, and as far as I know these are the final draft names. At least until we decide to change them again, hahaha... If it's a boy he will be Dexter Clayton and if it's a girl she will be Pearl Allison. So if it's a girl she will have the same middle name as mommy and if it's a boy he will have my first name as a middle name. Clayton has been in my family (the estranged Bowman side) for a few generations.

Fetal development in pregnancy week 21

Your beautiful little miracle-gro baby will be putting on a full ounce and a half this week (up to 16.5 oz), but that’s just the beginning! Within the next five weeks, they’ll really be packin’ it on! For now, we’re pleased to report the addition of rapid eye movement (REM) a key component to any baby’s healthy sleep schedule. And in the dermatology department: their thin soft skin is very red, failry translucent, and a bit wrinkled. Not to worry, it’s not a premature aging disease. It's just their clever little body setting them up with extra space that will smooth out once your little one starts packing on the baby-fat. That won’t be for a few more weeks, though. So for the time being, your munchkin is still a little lean mean growing machine! The beginnings of what is commonly called “brown fat” is just starting to fill in to help your baby retain some body heat, which is crucial as they’re not yet capable of regulating their own body temperature.

New Baby Stuff Today

A big thank you goes out to My friend Jess from New Orleans for buying us one an Ultimate Baby Wrap. Jess and I ran away from Hurricane Ivan together and spent 9 hours going 40 miles. I knew that after that whole thing and we didn't hate each other we'd be great friends for ever. Plus, I couldn't think of anyone else that I would rather be stuck in Nashville with, hahaha (Jess: remember that mexican restaurant by the hotel??)


This thing will really come in handy to carry the kid around and still have hands free to do other stuff too. Thank you, thank you, thank you Jess, you're the best!!!


There is still plenty of good stuff on our registry, if anyone would like to buy us some baby swag...



In other news:


We had a Doctor appointment today and found out the results from the genetic counseling. Kim has less chance than a 20 year old for having a baby with DS. It's 1 in 1800 for Downs and for Spinal Bifida it was 1 in 10,000. So it looks like we won't be doing a amneo, just really don't need to put her through that.


We heard the heart beat again on the doppler, he found it instantly this time (no searching). Then I talked to him and got him to schedule a new ultrasound, one more chance to find out the sex, may be... June 27th we have an appointment for the sonogram. We have seen this Doctor a couple of times now, he's a pretty cool guy. He was like "you guys have been through a lot, I think you deserve a break here" and told us he would make up a reason for another ultrasound. That ws pretty right on as far as I am concerned...

Pregnancy Limbo...

For a couple of weeks now I've felt like I'm in some sort of limbo pregnancy wise. It's weird. At the beginning my boobs got sore, I was so tired all the time, mood swings plagued me...but it FELT like I was pregnant.

I've gotten to the stage where my energy is back for the most part, my boobs aren't really sore anymore (although the sensitive nipples are still there. sorry if that's TMI), my mood swings are less frequent. I feel the baby move a little each day, my belly is a bit bigger according to my pants, but it's like I've stalled. I know that sounds funny, I'm just an impatient girl. It's hard waiting. But it's all worth it.

I have another doctor's appointment in the morning. I missed one when I was in the hospital, so we're making up for it. I hope they listen for the heartbeat again, it's a sound that makes me so emotional and happy.

Fetal development in pregnancy week 20

This week you’ve got about 10.5 inches and approximately 10.5 oz of solid baby-miracle-goodness! Their little delicates bones continue to ossify and toughen while their itsy bitsy finger and toe pads are finishing up. Your little monkey now has teeth buds, although they’re hidden beneath the gum line. And finally! Their limbs have reached their relative proportions—no more alien baby! Their cute pink lips are more defined, and might be helping out in a bit of prenatal thumb-sucking. If you have a little boy, then their tiny testes are descending, though they have not yet passed the abdominal wall. What’s more, eyelashes and eyebrows are also visible. At this point, your little one really looks like a miniature baby—and we do mean miniature as your little swimmer currently weighs a mere eighth of their final birth weight. With half the pregnancy behind you, the most significant gains are yet to come!