Still going

Still having contractions. They've picked up in frequency and strength. We will most likely be heading to the hospital sometime tonight. Hopefully tomorrow we can introduce our newest addition.

Waiting

I started some contractions this morning. But they are really far apart. So we'll see if they develop into anything.
I'll keep you posted.

Prepping

My body is getting prepped for birth. I've been having contractions everyday. They are just Braxton Hicks but every time I wonder if it's for real. I feel nervous and excited at the same time. But alas it's all been false alarms. But we are getting close to meeting this baby girl or baby boy.

Addendum

I do have something to add to my last post. I was thinking about the growing baby. It will never cease to amaze me. The creation of life. The growth of life. For 38 weeks this life has been growing inside of me. And soon it will be here to hold. And it will continue to grow and to change. Nobody teaches this or makes this happen. It just does, all on its own. Although women get pregnant every day and babies are born every day, It truly is amazing.
We were looking at Nicholas' newborn pictures. The day he was born and the weeks after. I don't even remember who that baby was. I don't remember him being so swollen and puffy looking. He just looked perfect to me. And he still looks perfect to me today. I guess that is part of being a mom. Your child is always perfect in your eyes.
So.even though this baby isn't even born yet, it is still perfect in my eyes right now. Growing, developing just as it should, perfectly.

38 Weeks

I think I say this every week, but I can't believe it! Only 2 weeks to go. Every day I wonder If today is going to be the day. It could be. But I have a feeling this baby is holding on for next week,39 weeks. I am ready. But not as anxious as I was a few weeks ago. I know it's coming soon so we'll wait and be ready for when it happens. The room is ready, as it is going to get. Things are washed. Bag is packed. Friends and family are set up to jump in with Nicholas. So when the baby says so, it's go time.
I'm tired tonight so I don't have much to say tonight.

Week 37

Still hanging in there. Saw the dr today and all is good. She just delivered a baby this morning so she is all ready for this one. We decided Baby could come on the 15th. Both our schedules are free. Hee hee
I've been feeling some Braxton Hicks. Which probably means nothing. Just more uncomfortable for me. Baby gained another pound and a half this week. It was probably the brownies Baby was eating.
Okay all for now.

It's here

February has arrived. The month this baby should be born. It can come any day now. Well, except the 14th. I feel this baby needs it's own special day and not have to share it with the whole entire society.
Nicholas came only 2 days before his due date. So we'll see how comfortable this wee one is in it's current home. Mommy is quite uncomfortable.
But baby if you are listening, you come whenever you are ready. Preferably this month though.

Pics as promised

Here's the belly pics as promised. Week 36.

It's kind of funny because these aren't even maternity clothes. But it's the most comfortable "can leave the house in" outfit.
I had to include a comparison picture. Below is me in this outfit when I first bought it back in September.

Only 1 month to go

36 weeks! I've said this before but I can't believe it is almost over. It is very bittersweet. Pregnancy is such a blessed time and also a trying time, especially with a toddler along for the ride too. I have definitely enjoyed the latter half of this pregnancy more than the first half. Not to say I am not ready to have this baby. I am ready. Although I think if I went into labor tomorrow, I might be a little freaked out. We still have some things to prepare. But I also know everything would fall into place. I would like baby to develop and grow a couple more weeks. I am just anxious to know more about this little one. I can already tell this baby has a personality all its own. It's strange to explain it but I just know in the way Baby moves and seems to "communicate". Baby does seem to be all knees and elbows, poking everywhere. As I think back I do remember this about Nicholas. It is just not a very vivid memory.
Doctors visit today. I did not end up going last week for the stress test because of snow. I had taken my BP here at home and it was good so I reported that to my doctor. After my visit today, All is well with me and baby. I've gained just under 32 lbs so far. The weight gain seems to be slowing down so that makes me feel better. I do seem to be all belly. Just as long as the baby is a healthy weight, I'm good.
I sure would like this snow to stop now. I don't want to go into labor during a snow storm. And driving in this stuff makes me anxious.
I have a picture that I'll get up tomorrow. Now it is time for sleep.

Pregnant women tend to get huge

It is hard to know how to feel and react when people comment on how huge your belly looks at the end of a pregnancy. I'm 35 weeks. This baby will come in just over a month. Should I be big? Yes. Do I want to hear how big I am? No.
I do wonder if the tactful people are just being kind when they say I look good, all belly. But I don't want to hear that I look big. Although that is exactly how I feel. So keep lying to me. Tell me I look good. I'll believe you.

7 Weeks...

...to go! I can't believe it! It is right around the corner. I'm getting excited. I want to be done speculating and wondering how this new little person will fit into our family. And more importantly how we will handle an infant along with crazy man (that would be my son). But we will wait 7 more weeks to meet this little one. Not that I don't have 100 things to do before then. Nothing for this baby is ready. We want to move Nicholas into the bigger spare room but he doesn't seem to want to go and he is very attached to his crib. Yes, still, at two and a half. Which I think, "why change something that is working." Anyway, the room is not ready. The bedding is not washed. The clothes are not washed. The hospital bag is not packed. Nothing is ready...oh, boy. I could be freaking out a bit now that I type this. Let's move on, shall we.
The baby should be weighing over 4 lbs and measuring about 17 inches. Let me tell you, I feel all of those inches. This baby moves all over the place and all the time. It is really quite crazy.
I'm feeling good. I really should not complain about anything. The baby is healthy. I'm healthy. What more could we ask for?
I will try my best to get a picture up soon. Please be patient with me.

31 Weeks

We had an ultrasound done on Thursday. Everything looked good it seemed. We'll get a report from the doctor next week.
The baby seems to be measuring right on and weighing about 3 lbs 8 oz. We got a good view of the face. It looked chubby to me. We still don't know the gender, so don't ask. We all just have to wait.
I'm getting excited and ready to meet this little new person.

30 Weeks!

Can I just say it again. . . 30 Weeks!

I knew this was coming but holy cow it seems to have flown by. Now only 10 more weeks and we'll have a new little muffin to adore.

I am getting anxious to know the gender now. Boy? Girl? Boy? Girl? We won't know until this little one decides to come.

And boy oh boy does this baby move. I am just amazed at how much this baby bumps and rolls, that's what it feels like at least. I do hope this is not an indication of activity outside of the womb. I really need a calmer baby this time around.

I am increasingly uncomfortable. I sleep well most of the time. I am too tired not to. But it's hard to move and get up and down with Little Man. Of course he's so flexible and small, he wants me to crawl into his tent or tunnel of cushions but Mommy just doesn't move like that right now. I try to make him pick things up off the floor for me. Sometimes it works.

So on one hand I am ready to not be pregnant any more but on the other hand I am not ready for this little infant to be here yet.

I dream of what it will be like to hold a tiny little newborn again. To nurse it and rock it and change it. I also dream of how it will change our lives completely to have another child. What it will mean for Nicholas and our relationship with him. So many ups and downs. It's really best to just not think about it and let what come, come.

I had a doctor's visit today. Everything is looking good. Heartbeat was a cinch to find. They do think I am measuring a tad on the small side. But we're not really worried. I carried small with Nicholas too. However, we are doing an ultrasound next week just to check on the size of baby.
Good news: the head seems to be down. That's a relief to me because our ultrasound at 22 weeks showed the baby to be breech.
I've gained a total of 22 lbs. so we are right on track. The doctor's seem to think I am all belly. Which I suppose is a good thing.
And this baby is bumping away at me as I type this. I'll be curious to find out if the measurements show the baby to weigh more or less than average at this stage. Although I never fully trust them when they estimate, they never seem to be right.

Welcome Third Trimester

27 weeks. The third trimester is here.
I'm tired. And I probably do too much. But hey, I have a 2 year old that doesn't stop and a house to take care of. Oh and there is also Christmas to prepare for, my favorite holiday. I always wish I could do more, but the energy level is just not there.

So onto the stats: According to babycenter.com the baby is measuring about 14.5 inches. That seems really long. Only 5 more inches to a birth length. And weighing about 2 lbs. I feel like I've already gained a ton of weight and the largest weight gain is yet to come. Maybe this will be a chunky baby.

This baby is such a mover. I just can't believe how much it moves. I would have to wake Nicholas with strong nudges just to make sure everything was okay. But once he was born he never stopped moving. So if this baby is even more active outside the womb, we're in trouble. We're hoping this one is more of a sleeper, though.
We have a doctor's visit this Friday. It seems like forever since we've been. This will start our bi-monthly visits though. So we will see a lot of the doctor.
I'll try to get some pics up in the coming weeks.

Week 23: The Mango

So the little mango is doing well. We had a doctor check up yesterday and everything is on track and looking good.
Strong heartbeat. I only gained 4.5 pounds this month. Wahoo!!! So I am at about half of the weight I should gain. But I like to eat. My latest craving, milk.
So nothing else to report this week.

22 Weeks

Just some pictures this week.

21 Weeks

We had our ultrasound this week. It was so ex.cit.ing!! The baby is weighing about a pound and right on schedule. We saw the spine looking so nice. The baby waved it's little fingers, opened and closed it's mouth and stretched it's leg which both were tucked up and folded. The baby is sitting breech at the moment. This was a concern of mine with Nicholas so I just hope the baby will turn in the next 18+ weeks. The heartbeat was strong at 150 bpm. It was just so cool. I forgot how cool it is to see your baby in the womb. The baby was so active too. It could have something to do with the breakfast sandwich and decaf I had on the way. Ha!!

We opted for not finding out the gender. Joe asked me moments before if I would cave. But I like not knowing. I want to push the baby out and then say, "what is it?" And call the baby by it's name. The technician said it might have been hard to see because of the legs being folded up, so it worked out perfectly.

Can you feel my excitement? I think I needed the confirmation also that everything with this baby is developing good. And it is. So it's good.

Okay, about me. I am feeling good. Feeling big. I probably gained a ton while we were on vacation. We ate all the time! I was so stuffed after about every meal. But the german food was so good and I wish I could still eat it. But more about that in another post. Joe says we were so active, walking everywhere that we burned it off any way. I hope that's true. We'll see next week at the doctor's visit how much I gained this month.

I'll try to get the ultrasound pics uploaded soon. Be patient with me.

Week 20: Halfway There

I've made it to the halfway mark. Only 20 (give or take) weeks until the birth of our new little one. If you would have asked me in month 1 or 2 I never thought I would get to this point alive. Well, not really but it was rough going there for a while.
According to babycenter.com, The baby is now weighing around 10.5 ounces! Wow!! How did it get that big? And measuring from head-heel 10 inches. It's amazing these little beings fit inside us and then come out of us through a not so large space. I think that's one of the most fascinating things about pregnancy.
And how nature takes over. If you think about how humans start (just 2 little cells) and what we end up as, it's pretty amazing. And a woman's body just knows how to do it all.
I try not to worry about all the things you can worry about during pregnancy and have faith in my body. Even with all the medical advances, it's not 100% accurate. We just have to trust that our body knows and will do what it needs to do. Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for the medical technologies we have for in case something does go terribly wrong we aren't dying in childbirth like they did ages again. Pardon me, I digress.
So the baby has started producing meconium, that black sticky stuff that is their first bowel movements. Nice stuff.
It's all pretty exciting. Joe and I were just discussing the birth of Little Man and how it happened. Pretty exciting. I am thankful to have this experience again.
All for this week. I really need to take a picture for you but I am bad about getting it uploaded. I'll have more from vacay in a couple of weeks.

Week 19: The Tomato

Well I am almost half way there. I feel like it's slowly but surely.
So the baby is about 8.5 ounces and 6 inches--the size of a large heirloom tomato. The hair is sprouting on its' head.
We had a doctor's visit this past week. Everything is looking and sounding good. I gained 8lbs in the last month. I know! I'm making up for the loss in the first trimester. I'm measuring 19 weeks and the heartbeat was strong. The baby actually kept moving everytime the doctor found the heartbeat. Ha! We are going for our first ultrasound on October 18th. It will be so cool to see this little peanut.
Questions I was asked this week:

Do you feel that you are carrying differently than you did with Nicholas?
This baby moves...ALOT! I can't believe how much I feel this baby. The baby feels like it is sitting low, as was Nicholas. He was always on my pelvis. But I suppose at this stage the baby would be sitting low because of size.
Any cravings?
Things I have been enjoying: breakfast sandwiches, cottage cheese, pretty much anything I can get out and not have to cook it. It's terrible but I just want food prepared for me. I don't want to have to work for it.

Not a lot to report this week. We are just chugging along, getting bigger.

Week 18: The Bell Pepper

Well, the baby is now around 5.5 inches (the length of a bell pepper) and 7 ounces. Baby Martel is busy flexing arms and legs. I'll tell you I can feel it. I am just amazed at how much I can feel this baby moving already. If you remember me mentioning earlier I didn't even feel Nicholas moving at this stage and I've been feeling this one for over 2 weeks.

Not much to report this week so I won't do questions. I have been feeling pretty good. Over the cold I came down with last week, thank goodness. Feeling bigger and rounder and enjoying the new maternity clothes. Still eating like a mad woman but don't seem to be gaining much weight so far. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow so we'll see what that scale reads.

That's all for now. Hopefully I'll have more next week and I'll try to get a picture too.