Due Date
Well, today's the day. Unfortunately, I don't think our baby knows that. I'd imagine that there is a distinct lack of calendars or other timekeeping devices in there :)
How I'm Feeling:BIG. Uncomfortable. Tired. Emotional. Apprehensive. Nervous excitement. Wanting to meet our baby. (Eek, that was not the most positive list... It's not as bad as it sounds, I promise!)
New Stuff Last Month:- More 'practice' contractions
- Various icky late-pregnancy symptoms
- Some swelling in my ankles and fingers by the end of the day
- Outgrowing more of my maternity clothes
- Feeling the baby drop (and now worrying every time I sneeze, hehe)
- Lots of hip pain
- A couple of prenatal massages... ahhh...
- Finished my weekly Prenatal Yoga classes
- Finished working, and started mat leave
- Lots of doctors appointments
- Packed for the hospital
What's On Mommy's Mind:I think that every day makes me a little more excited to meet you. Whether or not I'll have any idea what to do when you get here is another question entirely... But your daddy and I are very much looking forward to meeting you and bringing you home to live with us.
I'm starting to get pretty uncomfortable now, but I'm making sure to enjoy these moments. I still feel lucky to be pregnant with you, and to get to experience all of this.
The doctor told us again last week that you're doing well, and that everything's ready to go... We're just waiting for my body to decide that it's time. It sounds like such a simple thing, but it's so hard to wait and wonder. But no matter how long these weeks seem right now, you'll be here before we know it and we'll look back on this someday and wonder where the time went.
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
I don't really feel like taking a new picture right now. Maybe later today. For now, you can all just deal with this one from late last week :)
Psst! Click on the 'Month By Month' tag below to view past updates and belly pictures.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
Nine Months
I can't believe that we're here already. Today, I hit the 36 week mark, and I'm officially full term. It seems like we just found out that I was pregnant... And here we are, basically ready to go and just waiting for these Braxton-Hicks contractions to turn into the real thing.
How I'm Feeling:Happy. Round. Excited. Nervous. Emotional. Tired.
New Stuff Last Month:- Feeling some baby hiccups (super weird)
- The beginning of Braxton-Hicks contractions (kind of unnerving)
- Some swelling in my ankles and fingers by the end of the day
- Two baby showers with my friends
- Outgrowing some of my maternity clothes
- More weekly Prenatal Yoga classes (becoming increasingly awkward)
- Lots of progress on the nursery, now almost complete
- Maternity photo shoot with Anja
- Meeting our obstetrician, Dr. Best
- Four more days of work... not that I'm counting :)
What's On Mommy's Mind:Everyone told me that - by the time I hit nine months - I'd be begging someone to induce labour. I don't feel like that at all.
Sure, I have moments when I'm incredibly uncomfortable. But I'm not finished being pregnant yet. I love being pregnant (who knew!). I love feeling you move around inside of me, and carrying you with me everywhere I go. I love feeling like every part of my body is doing what it was made to do, growing this baby so that you're strong and healthy, and adapting so that I'll be able to take good care of you. I love feeling so totally connected to you, and being able to .
Don't get me wrong... I'm totally excited to finally meet you. I've just been enjoying this slow process of getting to know you, and I can't believe that it's almost over. Soon, I'll absolutely and undeniably be your mommy.
We're almost ready for you to come home. Your nursery is very close to finished now. It's peaceful and bright and beautiful and everything we hoped it would be. I've been spending so much time in there - adding things for you and for us, sitting in the chair, and reading some of the books that are sitting there waiting for you. It's my favourite room in our house, and I'll love it even more once you're here.
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
Psst! Click on the 'Month By Month' tag below to view past updates and belly pictures.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
Eight Months
You know you're in the home stretch when you feel like you spend more Quality Time with doctors than with actual people... Sheesh. We're definitely nearing the final sprint. I have less than four weeks for work left - and then Thanksgiving, and then three weeks until the expected arrival of our baby girl. I can't believe how time is flying by...
How I'm Feeling:Tired. Busy. A little bit crazy. Round. Excited. Emotional.
New Stuff Last Month:- Very strong kicks and squirms
- A very odd-looking belly button :)
- A second session of Prenatal Yoga
- Starting to get the nursery ready
- More heartburn
- A second glucose test (normal!)
- Feeling very protective of Baby
- Mostly wearing flat shoes now... BOO
What's On Mommy's Mind:Hi Briony. How are you doing in there? Seems like you're having a pretty good time, if all that wiggling and moving around means that you're happy. My books say that you're over four pounds now, and seventeen inches long. No wonder you're squirming so much - it must be getting crowded in there!
Part of me can't help but poke at my stomach every once in a while, asking you to come out. And part of me is really sad that soon you won't be a part of me anymore, that you'll be out there in the world and I won't be able to feel every movement you make. It's complicated.
I'm starting to feel more like your mommy every day. I had a scare this month when someone bumped into the back of my car at a red light. It was a tiny little accident with no real damage to the car. I was only hurt a little bit, and you were absolutely safe tucked away inside of me. But it made me really angry that someone would be so careless around you. I realized that I can't always protect you. And that was really scary for me, because I want you to grow up safe.
Things are starting to change around our house... Your daddy's been working to move his things out of your room so that we can start painting and moving your things in. In the next couple of weeks, it will be all set up - just waiting for you to come and live with us.
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
Psst! Click on the 'Month By Month' tag below to view past updates and belly pictures.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
Seven Months
Okay. So Month Seven is almost officially over. But I've been busy :)
So I'm for-real pregnant now. Not that I wasn't before... But it's just that I feel really pregnant now. Some days, I feel - and look - really, REALLY pregnant. And my coworkers love to remind me of that (often, and usually accompanied by no-fatties-allowed jokes). One of my former clients stopped by our office last week and screamed when she saw me - before proceeding to absolutely maul my pregnant belly.
Baby is perfect, as always. She's kicking away and developing some impressive-feeling kung fu skills. I'm glad that she's happy in there, because this Mama-to-be has been a little less so out here. My arthritis / fibromyalgia seems to be back, and it's putting a bit of a damper on everything - even though I'm fighting against it as hard as I can.
How I'm Feeling:Emotional. Large. A little bit tired. Excited. Wanting to buy lots of things that are tiny and cuddly and pink. Full of anticipation.
New Stuff Last Month:- Another ultrasound (and lots of pictures)
- Finding out that Baby is a GIRL! with a NAME!
- Incessant kicking, often visible from the outside a la Alien
- My first significant weight gain (sigh...)
- Prenatal yoga classes at Moksha
- The return of my arthritis / fibro symptoms
- An achy, stretchy feeling on the sides of my stomach
- Heartburn (ew)
- Glucose test (double ew)
- Really wanting to meet Baby soon (but not *too* soon)
What's On Mommy's Mind:Baby, you really surprised me this month. I thought that I was pretty tough and under control, but seeing you on that ultrasound and hearing the words out of the technician's mouth that you were a girl... I'm pretty sure that - if we'd moved the ultrasound wand any higher - they would have discovered that my heart had melted into a great big puddle in my chest.
The night after the ultrasound, I completely broke down crying. It sounds so silly, but I was crying because I missed you. I loved spending an hour with you, seeing you moving around on the screen and watching you react to every poke at my stomach. And then I knew that I needed to say goodbye, that we wouldn't see you again until you're born in November. And it made me cry. I'm just so fascinated by you, and I want to get to know you.
It was so much fun to make the phone calls and let everyone else who loves you know that we're adding a baby girl to our family. And it was a really special moment the first time your Daddy and I could call you by your name. Last week, we made the decision to share that name with family (and anyone who asks). It was just getting too hard to keep it a secret, because you're not 'Baby' around our house anymore :)
Since then, we've picked up a bunch of baby girl things to help get ready for you to come and live with us - some clothes and books that I'd been looking at, but hadn't bought for you yet. I picked out some of my favourite girly books - 'The Paper Bag Princess' and 'Big Sarah's Little Boots' - and some little shirts and dresses (not ALL pink, but some of them).
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
Is anyone else super-amused by the fact that these obligatory belly shots are getting sloppier and sloppier? We're down to pyjamas. I'm not really sure how we can go lower than that... Stay tuned! :)Pssst! Click on the 'Month By Month' link below to view past updates.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
First Baby Pictures
(and the news you've all been waiting for!)
August 7 @ 13.45
Baby, your Daddy and I are *so* excited to see you again today! I was so excited, I could hardly sleep last night. We're going for an ultrasound this afternoon to get pictures and videos of what you look like right now, and we're also hoping to take a peek and find out if you are a boy or a girl. It doesn't matter to us at all, we just want you to be healthy and happy. But we are looking forward to starting to get everything ready for your arrival.
I'm glad that you're still too little to be embarrassed, because I'm sure that I am going to cry through most of it (so it's probably a good thing we'll be getting a video to watch again later).
August 7 @ 19.35
You're a GIRL! And, as predicted, you made your Mommy cry (enough that I saw some tears in your Daddy's eyes too). You were such a little monkey again, making it tricky for us to get a good picture of your face - all tucked away in the back of my tummy, and holding your hands up to your face the whole time. But you were not shy at all about showing us that you're very much a baby girl :)
I don't why I'm crying about this so much... I'm just so in love with you, and I think you're the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I know that when you're born, I'll spend hours and hours just staring at you... For now, this is the closest we can get - and so today was very, very special. We haven't even met you yet, and your Daddy and I are already convinced that we are the luckiest people in the world.
-
Here's a front profile (with her little hand up there, almost in the way - and chubby cheeks!) and a side profile of her face. Isn't she beautiful? :)
Guess this means that more than half of my friends are terrible guessers... And that Crystal's 14 for 16. Impressive!
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby
Six Months
So remember my frustration about trying to figure out how far along I am? Geoff and I went to my Week 24 appointment today... Only to discover that (based on the ultrasound we did in June), Week 24 might not be Week 24... Based on the ultrasound results, the due date *may* be closer to November 10. Then again, it might just be that Baby's a little on the small side. In any case, it makes no difference - as long as the estimated date from the ultrasound is within two weeks of the estimated date from our calculations (ie. my shoddy, no-good birth control pill packs), they'll keep the calculated due date as the *official* due date. So, we're still planning around November 3 - but I think that solidifies my decision about working all the way to October 10 (Thanksgiving) instead of throwing in the towel any earlier.
Other than that, Baby is perfect. Lots of kicking and moving around, and a heart rate that seems to be holding steady at 150. The only hint of a complication is that Baby was in a breech position during the Week 19 ultrasound. Blech. Not *great* news, but if that's our only potential worry - that's awesome. (And my midwife mother-in-law tells me not to worry about it at all until Week 36.)
How I'm Feeling:Hungry. Happy. Achy (just a little). Excited. Optimistic. Definitely pregnant.
New Stuff Last Month:- Ultrasound results (perfect!)
- Incessant kicking, sometimes enough to make me jump
- My first stretch marks
- Able to feel some kicking from the outside
- My first stretch marks
- Achy calves, hips, and lower back
- Starting to look obviously pregnant to friends and strangers alike
What's On Mommy's Mind:Well. You are quite the feisty little monkey, aren't you? You've made me laugh out loud so many times this month with your furious kicking - and what I can only assume must be karate chops. It makes us wonder what kind of a kid you're going to be... And I guess that, in a couple of months, we'll know. I think it's pretty much guaranteed that our life is going to become *much* more interesting :)
It's still so exciting to hear your heart beating, and to feel you moving around in there. We heard your heartbeat at the doctor's office again today, and I still get a lump in my throat every single time. This month, I went to go spend a day with your Grandma when she was sick, and she got to feel you kick for the first time. You made her so happy. I know that the whole family is just as excited to meet you as we are. I don't know how we'll be able to keep them from spoiling you - especially your Grandpa. He acts pretty tough, but I know that you're going to turn him into mush.
Your room still looks the same - full of your Daddy's 'toys' - except for the addition of a comfy white glider chair. Your baby blanket is draped over one of the arms, along with a little Tigger from your mobile. It's just waiting for you.
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
Pssst! Click on the 'Month By Month' link below to view past updates.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
Five Months
Argh. I'm getting seriously fed up with all the books and websites that count weeks and months of pregnancy differently. According to *most* of them, I'm living in Month Five right now - and any way you slice it, I'm officially more than halfway done. Now there's a bittersweet revelation.
I feel like I've been doing a lousy job of documenting this pregnancy (at least compared to what I imagine *good* moms probably do), so I am officially introducing my monthly pregnancy update.
How I'm Feeling:Worried. Happy. Excited. Nervous. Healthy. Hungry. More energetic. Emotional. POOR :)
New Stuff Last Month:- Our first glimpse of Baby in an ultrasound
- Feeling the first little flutter-kicks
- Screening test results (negative!)
- Outgrowing my last pair of non-maternity jeans
- Watching my upper stomach start to expand... and expand...
- Starting to feel less fat and more pregnant
What's On Mommy's Mind:It was so amazing to finally see you this month, and to experience some signs that you're really in there and that you're happy and healthy. I wish you could see your Daddy's face whenever he hears your heartbeat at our doctor's appointments... We're both so excited to welcome you into our little family soon. Daddy has started visiting with you almost every night, pressing his ear up against my tummy so he can hear your heartbeat and all the kicking going on in there - and there's lots of it!
We started shopping for you this month. I hope you like Classic Pooh, because we went a little crazy with it. It's been so fun to start collecting baby things - everything is so small and so soft. When I've had a bad day, your Daddy sometimes picks up one of the receiving blankets we have and just presses it into my hand... It makes me smile every single time. We've made most of the decisions about what your nursery will look like, now it's just a matter of cleaning out all of your Daddy's toys from in there and putting it all together. I think that the most fun thing for me to pick out for you so far has been hunting for a rocking chair. I know that you and I will spend many, many hours sitting there together.
You have no idea how much we love you already, and how excited we are that you're coming. We can't wait for our little family to become three people. You are so wanted, so anticipated, and so loved.
Labels: Baby Talk, Letters to Baby, Month By Month
