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A huge THANK YOU to all of you who read my updates. I absolutely love being able to share this pregnancy with our family and friends, and it means so much that people are interested in my ramblings… =)

I hope to see most (if not all) of you at some point this year. K? Thx.

Also, keep the comments coming! I love them, and almost always leave replies- be sure to check back or mark the box that contacts you when a reply is posted.

With that, I’m gonna go make a sandwich. Baby wants a snack!

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 4,100 times in 2011. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 3 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Wow! These past 2 weeks have flown by. I’ve been so busy with Christmas, New Years, my wonderful nieces coming to visit, my wonderful Melissa coming to visit, starting a new job, and FEELING OUR BABY KICK to write up a blog post.

You know, the usual. I’ll make this the baby post, and move along with the 18week photo:

I think I understand why my belly is sticking out so far-- sweet potatoes are HUGE!

How far along? 18 Weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +8 lbs O_0  I blame this on cannolis and pizza.
Maternity clothes? Yep. I converted at 16w, 5 days, and haven’t looked back. I found that I can wear most of my shirts if paired with maternity jeans and leggings.
Stretch marks? Not so far.
Sleep: Sleeping great!
Best moment this week: Obviously, feeling baby and knowing for sure that I was feeling baby. So strange, yet hilarious and awe-inspiring all at once.
Miss Anything? Eh. Not really. I’ve been eating delicious food for 2 weeks. I love the holidays + second trimester!
Movement: Yes!! Still light, but very frequent.
Food cravings: None that I can think of. Well, avocados. Lots of avocados.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!
Have you started to show yet: Yep! Strangers are now noticing. =)
Gender prediction: Still leaning towards boy…
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! And energetic! Wooooooo!
Looking forward to: My parents coming to visit this week. I’ve been DYING to see them, and for them to see the house.

So now I have a sweet potato kicking around in there. Actually, as I type this, I can feel him/her getting more comfortable. I felt the first little kicks on the 30th of Dec- there was just one or two while lying in bed trying to fall asleep. I wasn’t positive that’s what I was feeling until almost a week later. I was driving back up from Manchester at 6am (taking the nieces to the airport before my first day at my new job). I had a long day ahead of me and stopped for coffee. About 20min into my cup, I felt kicks. Lots of kicks.

I spent my work day staring into space with a stupid grin on my face, waiting for the next kick. I felt them off and on all day, and ended up having to explain to my coworker (who was trying to orient me to the job) why I was acting like such an idiot. Totally worth it.

Anyway, I still rarely feel it from the outside (Luke hasn’t gotten lucky yet), but it’s frequent enough for me to spent the majority of every day waiting for more. Yoga was an interesting endeavor. It’s even harder getting into a pose when every time I squish my squirmy I can feel him/her even more strongly. I also feel more kicks when the Apple Smuggler takes up residence on my ever diminishing lap.

Baby is now over 5 1/2 inches long from rump to head- that’s big. All the parts are where they belong, and the protective coating (called the myelin sheath) around the nerves is developing. I’ve decided that means I need more fat in my diet, as I’ve been wanting lots of avocados and cheese this week. =)

2012 is starting with a bang, and I’m so incredibly happy with the course this year will take. Thank you All, for joining us on this adventure!

Yesterday, I had the great joy of spending the entire day with an old and wonderful friend from nursing school. I hadn’t seen Laura in over four years. In that time:

Luke and I moved 3 times, Laura and Adam moved twice… we lived in 5 states total: from the East coast, new england, the southwest, and the deeeep south.

Laura gave birth to two of the sweetest boys I’ve ever met. Gus is 3 and Mack is 18 months.

We both are pregnant: Lornitzo Number 3 is due in about 7 weeks!

Thankfully, only one of the 4 of us is still in school! 😉

Anyway, it’s been a busy time for all- so when I got an email that they’d be in Vermont (actually only an hour away!) for Christmas, I was psyched that we’d have a chance to catch up. We spent the day hanging out with the kids- Laura and I drove up to a ski resort where Gus was taking kiddo ski lessons- it was adorable! Here’s a video of Little Man skiing- gotta love his huge grin at the end!

We then brought Gus home (stopping for a huge diner lunch for the two pregnant ladies… 😉

While Gus was napping, Mack was on a roll- he LOVES to be tickled, and becomes almost paralyzed from laughing so hard. I loved it. I also loved that it took him about 3 minutes to decide I was good snuggle material. I love me some snuggling! Here is a video that will have you laughing (if not, you need to re evaluate your sense of humor- laughing babies are ALWAYS a laughing matter!)

Here are a few pics that made me smile- sorry for the fuzziness, but it’s pretty easy to make out that beautiful round baby belly! I can only hope I look that adorable at 33 weeks!

LOVED seeing you, Laura Darling! I can’t wait to hear if life has decided to bring you up north!

YAY!! We just need to install some more pine flooring in the kitchen and oil/stain the whole mess. Our house is mostly dust free! This is fantastic! Anywho, There’s obviously much more to the house, but I need to clean, so this is what you get. =) You could always come to visit, and I’ll be sure you get the full tour. Okay? Yes.

The house is kind of dark up front, but in a cozy way. And when all the lights are on, we can do puzzles. That’s the light measure measurement gauge we’ve been using as of late.

It’s exactly what we had hoped for, and now we can move on to other projects! Luke moved almost 2000lbs of scrap wood into a trailer and then to the dump yesterday. That’s not counting the several hundred lbs we cut to length to be used as kindling, and the TON of cool old wood we stored cause it’s too awesome to be thrown away. He’s a busy guy, and now we can park in the garage- just in time for single digit lows!

A few more projects need to happen before baby comes, but nothing we can’t handle on our own. To Frank and Sandy- did you notice we switched the living and dining room?? =) It’s so much better now!

See you all in the new year!! Love, Us.

Helloooo! I’m late this week, but it’s a good thing. I’ve been having so much fun, I just had to wait til I had time to do a few really epic blog posts. =)

I’m starting with this video, because I’m in love with these sounds, and have been trying to get them on camera. So, Granny, Boompa, Frank, Sandy, Paula Randy– Wanna hear your (great)grandbaby kicking?

@ 0:53, and @ about 1:08-1:12 are some kicks- it basically sounds like feedback (the same sound you hear when I rub the monitor too quickly on my skin) the difference being I’m holding the doppler perfectly still, so the sound had to come from the inside. Stomach gurgling sounds different… I promise. 😉

And the picture this week is a little dramatic as well.

This bump, the real deal, popped out at 15 weeks, 5 days. I know because I woke up feeling great (ie: Not Bloated), and couldn’t suck in that belly for the life of me. Also, baby’s heartbeat was suddenly about 1.5 inches higher on my belly, and I can now hear it from 3 sides, instead of just the front.

How far along? 16 Weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +4.8lbs
Maternity clothes? Still walking around with my pants undone, and buttoning up for special occasion. 😉 I’ve put it off so long, I’m down to ONE pair of pant I can wear in public.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Sleeping well- the dreams are a little crazy, but if I’m sleeping through the night, I’ll take it.
Best moment this week: Hearing baby kick on the doppler. I wasn’t sure that’s what it was until I you tubed some other videos. Also realizing that kiddo is moving around like crazy in there!
Miss Anything? Still sushi. I had a few sips of a delicious red wine over Christmas dinner, and I missed that for a few days as well. =)
Movement: Nope, can’t feel anything yet, but it’s coming!
Food cravings: None that I can think of. Eating pretty much all the standards I loved before pregnancy
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope! I’m back!!!! =D
Have you started to show yet: Oh good god yes. I love it!
Gender prediction: Still leaning towards boy…
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! Still very sleepy… but getting better. I went to bed around 10 a few nights this week. Woooo!
Looking forward to: My awesome Nieces and Best Buddy coming up to see me for New Years! It’s going to be so much fun! And yes, probably next week’s entry will be late too. =P

I’m going to go straight to the pic, because it’s THAT exciting!

It's worth taking the extra moment to zoom in on her face... seriously.

How far along? 15 Weeks
Total weight gain/loss: 2 1/2lbs… Up 4lbs from 3 weeks ago!
Maternity clothes? Bought a few things, but not wearing any yet. Putting it off as long as possible.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Sleeping well- this is the first week I’ve slept on my back since week 7! Might as well enjoy it while I can.
Best moment this week: Starting back on my headache preventative after the midwife promised me it was okay. This is day three of great sleep and no headaches!
Miss Anything? Sushi. I practically begged the nurse midwife to allow me some of the good stuff. She wouldn’t budge. *sigh*
Movement: Nope, not yet!
Food cravings: I made chili dogs for dinner the other night- not near as good as Sonic, but doable til I can get to the real deal.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really- cooked seafood still does it to me every once in a while.
Have you started to show yet: Oh yes. Now acquaintances are staring at my belly. Giving it the “is she?” eyeball… =)
Gender prediction: Still leaning towards boy, but everyone else is leaning towards girl. Even my subconscious- That dream is sticking with me. We don’t know what Ruby will predict. 😉
Labor Signs: No
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! Still very sleepy, with a hint of crazy thrown in to keep Luke on his toes.
Looking forward to: Getting my Christmas shopping/wrapping/mailing done!! Longer term: finding out the gender of our person. =)

Surprisingly, no felines, humans, or fetuses were harmed in the taking of this photo. Apple has actually just taken up residence on my lap. For the billionth time this morning. Lots of warm belly to rub together…

Little Geronimo or Oceana is exercising his/her little airways- allowing for lung development. His or her legs are growing longer, and s/he is more proportional by the day. They can also sense light. Eyelids are fused shut, but apparently I can shine a flashlight up to my belly to tick off my little person. Not like I would do that… Maybe I’ll bring a flashlight to the next ultrasound.

Turns out we won’t find out the gender until mid January. In general, it isn’t a big deal. The baby is either a Gertrude or a Cecil. Finding out sooner doesn’t affect this. In fact, it helps us avoid shopping for a little longer (generally a good thing). And it gives us time to work through all of our gender predictions prior to the Great Reveal.

At this point Thing One is visibly Boy or Girl, but I most likely won’t find out this week- the ultrasound machines in each exam room aren’t clear enough to get a real guess in, according to the OB. So unless someone wants to buy us a 3d ultrasound for Christmas, it’ll be mid January til we know the sex. Can’t wait!!

In the meantime, I plan on performing every single old wives tail gender determination experiment I can. In the hopes of comparing to the ultrasound gender and scientifically proving how unscientific these things are… and having some fun in the process.

If you all can think of any, PLEASE send them my way. I have:

1. One where you add some dates together- Like my birthday and the due date (or something- I’ll look it up later). If it’s even it’s a girl, if it’s odd- we have a boy! It might be the other way around… ehhh. Does it matter? =P

2. One where I pee on some baking soda to see if it foams up real crazy-like or not. The big foam is a boy. If it doesn’t do much, it’s a girl.

3. The wedding ring held from a string over your belly. If it swings in a circle, GIRL! If it swings back and forth, BOY!

4. Chinese Gender Chart: I have no idea how this works. It looks like a pantyhose sizing chart. Something about my age and month of conception. But my age changed about 2 weeks after conception so we’ll see… 😉

5. Ruby’s predictions: Now, this will be the only test that costs anything. I think it’s a psychic lady. Basically, I pay 5 bucks so she can talk to Grizelda or Balthazar in my uterus. This will not involve a string and 2 campbells soup cans… that I know of. Apparently she’s pretty accurate. It’s a little creepy, but anything in the name of science.

6. Heart Rate: if it’s consistently higher than 150, it’s a girl. If it’s lower than 150, it’s a boy.

7. Intuition. ‘Nuff said.

Does anyone have any more?? I’m not doing the Drano one- that’s just weird. I’d love more ideas, and PROMISE to do them if they don’t involve peeing in toxic chemicals. Help us have some fun!

Hello to all of you Wonderful People out there!! I’m officially over most of my 1st trimester ailments, and have been feeling great! We have a doctors appointment on Friday that will confirm our little Phineas or Philodendron is Lemon sized. I capitalize Lemon because this kiddo will be an honorary Lemons (my favorite Lemons’ live in Phoenix- Hi Yia-Yia and Amy!!!) and this week holds a special significance because of it.

So. On to the pic. I couldn’t choose, so you get two for the price of one!

The Normal One... well, this is about as *normal* as I ever get. =)

This is how I FEEL. Like I have to crane my neck to see over my new boobs (sorry, Boompa and Dad!), and I see a big old belly staring back at me... Is it possible my belly button is pointing UP?!?

I know, I know, I haven’t seen ANYTHING yet. It’s just going to get bigger and bigger until James mistakes me for his giant peach and tries to drop a rope ladder into my enormous, gaping belly button.

Thing One should be sucking his thumb, recycling his amniotic fluid (read: PEEING), and making faces! Everyone loves the Pouty Face. Our little Lemon can pout! On a side note, I would spend allll my time grimacing if I lived in a sac of my own pee. I’m just saying.

Our super sweet, super fat, very good natured Apple Smuggler growled and hissed at Luke the other night while we rough-housed on the couch. We were in the throws of an epic tickle fight when we heard a low growl. We’re not 100% certain, but think we narrowed it down to Luke specifically, only when he was “attacking” me. How very strange… I’ve obviously had that experience with dogs. Has anyone else seen a cat get protective like that? She’s all over him otherwise, so it’s not like she’s just playing favorites.

Other than that, nothing new at the Stafford Poor Farm. The house will be done (as far as we plan to go with it) after this week. I’ll post pics. Promise. No, this time I really mean it. =)

Love to all!! I miss everyone so much more over the holidays. Enjoy the next month and don’t forget to have an extra glass of eggnog or wine for me!

Hello!!

We’re thrilled to announce the presence of a fully formed human being currently residing in my lower abdomen! Little Dometrius or Loquisha now has everything, including fingerprints. FINGERPRINTS! Now S/he will be hanging out for another 27 weeks- just growing and chilling. Waiting to make the grand appearance.

According to Babycenter.com, baby is the size of a shrimp.

I think shrimp are scary looking. Ask my mom about the Freak Shrimp we accidentally ordered at a very famous seafood restaurant in New Orleans. It was a little traumatic. And delicious. But mostly traumatic. I digress.

Babycenter.com also states that THIS is my last week in the first trimester. Everyone else (that I choose to listen to) says I’m OUT! I have chosen to completely disregard Babycenter.com this week. Who’s with me??

On that note, baby is 3 inches long and the size of a small peach. Peaches are all cute and fuzzy. Not traumatic in the least!

So here I am, in my 2nd trimester! Feeling good. I definitely have a little bump going, and have started to gain weight. Eating is very fun again, and I’m back in full culinary force. =)

So here we go! Grow, baby, GROW!

We’re moving along quite nicely. Last week was lovely- I had the whole week off for Thanksgiving, and Frank and Sandy were able to fly out for a visit. And there was food. Lots and lots of food. It was fantastic! Here are a few pics from the visit:

I picked F&S up from the airport on Tuesday night- it was clear and dry outside. This is what we woke up to on Wed morning. MAGIC!!!!

Getting ready for Thanksgiving

Luke's Baby. Frank took it for a spin~ what is it about tractors that turn grown men into 4 year olds??

I also whipped out the doppler and gave a listen to my Granny and Boompa in Phx. Then of course I helped Frank and Sandy hear their grandchild for the first time as well. That’s such a special thing to me. I have to say how glad I am that technology is what it is. I don’t listen often, but I still can’t wipe the stupid grin off my face each time!

So. On to the 12 week photo:

BUMP! Okay, more like... bump! It's not ready for uppercase yet. =)

Baby is the size of a plum (that’s over two inches, people!) and is developing reflexes. Now, when the Apple Smuggler trods on my poor belly, the baby is saying, “What the He%$?!? ” (Let’s be real- it’s my kid. She knows those words.) =-/

She will now turn away and squirm during belly poke-age, and is making sucking motions with her mouth. Her itty bitty fists are clenching and unclenching, and her face is definitely human. So cool!

So, yeah. Busy week for baby and mama. I think I’m gonna go eat some more turkey… lean protein, right?

ps: Yes, I switched from “He” to “She”- I don’t know anything more, and I still kind of feel boy-ish, but if I have a little hardcore ninja tomboy girl in there, she should know when she reads this in a few decades that I will be just as happy with little Grizelda instead of Chuck.