Dear baby Epp,

Why do you have to be SOoooooo active, squirming and jabbing your mom so much when she is required to sit here with 24 oz of water in her and hold in her uncomfortably full bladder for an entire hour?

Maybe you could take a nice nap for the next bit, so mom doesn't feel quite so much like she's going to burst with every jab.

Love you! Dad and I are excited to see you this afternoon!

~Mom

Ultrasound day

So today, we get to see our baby for the first time. Anthony's picking me up after work and we'll go meet this little one...

I am most interested in seeing how s/he is lying in there, i have a hunch that the bulge on my right side is the bum, and the flutters/jabs at bottom left must then be arms. Unless it's upside down in which case those may be leg movements. I'd really like to put a name to the body parts i have been poking at. Really, now would be a good time to find out if i'm actually smacking him/her on the bottom or donking them on the head. Yeah.

Another thing that will be good is to confirm there's just one in there. I know rationally that if it were twins, there would have been other signs by now, but this past weekend, three people saw my expanding girth, found out i was at 22 weeks, and asked "are you SURE it's not twins?" So those conversations put that thought into my brain....yeah. I figure the dr. would have not had such a hard time finding a heartbeat the first couple times if there were two to choose from, and we probably would have heard more than one at some point.... maybe?

Don't know if i'll have a chance to post after the appointment today, but probably by later tomorrow there should be an update.

More members in the belly buddy club...

Welcome to our friends Mark & Nicole who have joined the belly buddy club, with an EDA of August 25.

This is in addition to Mike & Amanda - EDA August 23, Tracy from my old job - EDA early August, and i'm sure there's at least one more that has currently slipped my mind.

I also realized the other day that all 3 of my closest girlfriends from high school have had babies in the past 8 months...Angela in May, Stacey in December, and Lynnette in January! And they've all been boys! So we'll see if i cap off this little group with another boy, or if my darling girl will have her pick of boyfriends! Funny how we'll all have had our first child within 14 months of each other, especially since some have been married for nearly 7 years and others for about 2 years.

Fetal Movement Categories

So, with baby epp being much more active as of late, i have realized that there are definitely different types of movements/feelings that I have experienced...

1. The Jab - presumably a leg or arm, this feeling is in a very specific spot, and produces a sudden poke or kick-type feeling. Sometimes causes me to jump a bit, and i'm sure they only get stronger.

2. The Flip - a larger scale movement, accompanied by the feeling you get in your stomach when you do a bit of a free-fall on a fair ride or roller coaster. May or may not be accompanied by jabs or squirms. Happens maybe once every 2-3 days.

3. The Squirms - again, more widespread than the jab, but less general movement than the flip. Sensation is in multiple areas at once, and is not just one contact, but many smaller patters. Can last for a few minutes at a time, punctuated by jabs. These are the most frequent movements, often felt for a few hours each day (thankfully just during the day).

4. The Clench - I think this one is actually the uterus muscle squeezing in, holding for a few seconds, then releasing. Belly feels quite tight and firm while this is happening. Not painful at all, just like when you squeeze a muscle tight. Happens maybe once or twice a day, often while using other abdominal muscles (i.e., to sit up in bed, etc.).

5. The Bzzzzzz - No clue what this one is, but you know the feeling you get when you're on something that is vibrating? Now imagine that feeling just in your uterus area (sorry, guys!), it just quivers for a few moments. Has anyone else felt this one? Any ideas as to what causes it? Happens for a few seconds, maybe every 3 or 4 days at most.

Friday's quote of the day

"I'm going to be a daddy!" - said by Anthony, accompanied by an incredulous look and silly grin when he felt this kid move for the first time, and saw my belly move on the outside.

We had quite an eventful evening last night, and when we finally arrived home after 1am, baby was quite active. I called Anthony to come quickly, and he was able to feel a lot of the kicks and movements that I was feeling. He was so very excited, and it was definitely a moment where this all became more real for him. I joked that now he had proof that i wasn't just getting a fat belly from overeating.

What a special moment, though. It really put into perspective how different his experience of all this is from mine, i go through each day with the reality that there's a child growing inside me, but for him, it's been a fairly abstract concept, only becoming more concrete with experiences like seeing the positive pregnancy test (i knew, but that was his 'proof'); noticing my belly suddenly expand overnight, and now feeling the movements that I have been feeling for a while. And each moment when it has become more real for him, it has also become even that much more real for me, as I see his reactions and the silly little grin.

I just know Anthony is going to be a great dad, and a wonderful partner in parenting for me. Just seeing how he already talks to the baby and interacts with my belly is very heartwarming...

baby likes blues

So, it was baby epp's 2nd live concert experience last night, it was a great show with Michael Kashammer opening and then Colin James with his Little Big Band.

I gotta tell you, this kid LOVES blues and jazz. S/he danced all night long when the music was playing! I don't think i'll forget the experience of grooving along to the music along with my baby in this way.

Maybe some of the talent we've seen while s/he's been in utero will rub off and perhaps one day we'll get to go see them perform on stage! I can imagine Uncle Ging would be happy to give some guitar pointers, and of course, mommy will be teaching him/her piano (until the stage where the kid no longer wants to learn from mom, of course. After that, it would just be torture for both of us.)

No thursday nite swimming for me

Well, as much as I love Thurs nite swimming, i have to miss the next two weeks.

Tonight, well, let's just say there was a different pregnant lady who had tickets to Colin James tonight, she and her partner were going to go with friends of ours, but she is worried that the volume level will be harmful to her unborn baby. So our friends (who bought the tickets in the first place) offered them to us gratis. How can we say no? Good company, good music, and yeah. I'm not worried about the noise. Out of curiosity i mentioned the woman's reason to my dr, and she just laughed and said "well at least you'll get to enjoy the concert, and if it's good, loud music, baby will probably just kick a bunch".

Then next week, it's a choice between swimming and a free steak dinner at John's Prime Rib. Ok, maybe not so much of a "choice", as it's a work meeting over supper, but they asked if i was available and of course, free steak or swimming? Not a hard call, even though I love both. Especially given my general beef craving over this pregnancy.

Prenatal appointment 4

and all is well.

There was a JURSI shadowing my doctor today, i think i was one of his first prenatal patients ever because he really didn't know what to do, how to check the fundal height (i think that's what it's called..??), or what to ask...the dr. was really good with teaching him the stuff, though. And it was nice, because I had a list of questions (what can i take for my sore throat, what about these aches/pains, why are my hands numb in the morning, etc.) that seemed to be good textbook issues that prego ladies have, so he was able to learn a lot from the questions and her answers (as did I).

Weight gain was only one pound this past month, i was SURE it would be a LOT more, as i've been eating everything in sight, it seems, with my latest favorites being donuts, chocolate milk, and ice cream. But I guess all that extra energy is being burned by this baby growing! (and don't worry, for every "bad" snack i have, i've had at least 5-10 fruits/vegs throughout the day, so i don't worry about having the other foods). So far, the official record says i have gained 9 lbs, but i suspect it's less than that, as my estimate for where i started out was based on my home scale, which I have found out weighs in about 8-10 pounds lighter than the office scale. So i think i'm closer to 0 overall, not that it matters.

Baby's heartbeat was good again, s/he was still trying to kick that doppler thingy away, though.

Ok, here ya go. Belly pics

Sorry for the long wait, it's been weeks since i've had time to post, to actually figure out which pics are associated with which week of pregnancy....but now, for your perusal...

(yeah, i have no clue why i make funny faces while getting my pic taken...)

Ok, i have no idea how the layout will look once i publish, so here's the key:

Black shirt - 8 weeks (basically pre-pregnancy size)

Orange shirt - 12 weeks

White striped shirt & khakis - 16 weeks

White shirt & jeans - 19 weeks.

i am SOOOOOO excited!

Horray! I can now stomach Hawkins Cheezies (my favorite crunchy indulgence) again!

I ate some when i was about 8 weeks in, and i just felt AWFUL afterwards. But i saw a bag at the store this week, and they were calling my name. So i got them, and they're SOOOOOOOO yummy. Oh how i've missed them...

20 weeks and all is well

Half way there, it's hard to believe. I wouldn't say that this first 4.5 months has gone quickly, but i imagine parts of the next 4.5 will definitely fly by (and probably parts of it will drag on and on and on...)

Other than being busy, things are going well. Baby is moving a TON now, Anthony still can't feel it on the outside, though. But the highest levels of activity are during the day when i'm at work, so maybe on the weekend during the day he'll be able to feel something.

I realized that although it's a pretty cool feeling, that sometimes it isn't all that great (gasp!). Let me explain. To me, a lot of the smaller movements just feel like my stomach does when I'm really worked up and nervous over something and my gut is churning and I can't eat. So then when my body feels very similar to that due to baby, my mind interprets it as being nervous and anxious, and then i'm sitting there feeling uneasy and trying to figure out what's bothering me, what's making me feel that way.

I've also been going to the bathroom a LOT more in the past week than is usual, and moreso than i've experienced thus far in pregnancy (except for maybe a week around 9 or 10 weeks). I'm not used to having to go so often, and it's definitely an adjustment...i'm beginning to understand what my fellow "belly buddies" (and those that have been there before) mean when they say the first thing they do when entering a new building is scout for the bathrooms.

Last week the girls went va-voom yet again, and i outgrew the last of my pre-pregnancy bras that still fit to that point. Thankfully, LaSenza had a sale on, and i was able to find a bunch in my new size for about $9 each - very nice comfy ones (good thing they were cheap, as i suspect i'll be bra shopping again before this is all over). Tony is impressed at my new voluptuous-ness, and scarcely believed me when i told him that there is more to come...I put on one of my pre-prego bras (one of the smaller ones that i had, but it fit fine before), and MAN, does that ever put it into perspective where i've come from and where i am now!!!

The Bathing Suit Saga

I'm still swimming 3 times a week, and i love it. But with my latest growth spurt, my regular bathing suit has been feeling quite tight around the middle and a bit uncomfortable. I know i could probably keep wearing it for a while yet, but i don't want to stretch it out and wreck it, it's a good swimsuit and if possible i'd like it to be in a good condition so i can wear it post-baby (assuming i still fit into it).

So, i've been on the hunt for a maternity swimsuit. From seeing the other ladies in my thurs nite aquacise class, i know they're out there somewhere, but where???? (if you know, please tell me). I have been to the maternity stores in town, they have one or two suits that are not very inspiring (i.e., navy with red piping), and they're selling for about $85-$110. Same with the two maternity suits available at the swimwear store in the mall. Walmart has ONE maternity swimsuit, it's a tankini top, but the part over the stomach is a wrap-style (i.e., it's not sewed together, it just overlaps a bit), and i know that when i go swim, it's just gonna float up around my boobs and be useless - i might as well just wear the bikini that I already own (not quite brave enough for that...)

(note: I did wear the bikini to my saturday class, with a tank over it, but the tank got all stretched out and was floating around my boobs, so it was pretty annoying. I'll have to try with a more fitted tank).

So last night, i ended up going online to oldnavy.com, they had quite a few maternity bathing suits, quite a few of which are really cute, and very good prices (about $15 - $20 for each piece of the tankini). So i decided to order some online....HOWEVER, that is when I found out they do not ship to Canada. A quick phone call to my sister-in-law revealed that her friend from Montana is coming to SK in 2 weeks, so i got her friend's address, and am shipping my swimsuits there. Yes, swimsuits - plural. I ordered a tankini set (chocolate brown) for $15, a turqouise, white and black print tankini top for $20 (i have black bottoms that fit just fine), and another tankini top (flowers with brown background, to wear with the brown bottoms) for $2. Yup, $2.00. So if they all fit, i'll have 3 functional bathing suits for about $50 CAD, and they'll reach me in about 2 weeks.

Here's to hoping!

growth spurt

This past week has been interesting. I have been insanely hungry all the time, and simply could not get full on the normal amount of food that i'm used to consuming.

I would pack my normal sized lunch (which includes numerous snacks to eat throughout the day), and i would be through all the food by early afternoon and still be ravenously looking for something else to consume.

But i can tell where all the extra nutrients have gone - boy, did my belly ever pop out last week! I was talking with Leon one night, and in the middle of my sentence, he looked at me and said "You just exploded again....you're getting big! No! Not like that, your belly!"...then a few days later, i ran into one of his friends, who said to me "Wow, Leon was right! Your belly is growing a LOT!" (nothing like 17 year old boys checking out your body, eh?)

I also had a pretty achey week - my hips, legs, and lower back were generally funny feeling at best, and downright stiff and sore at worst. I brought my body pillow into the bed on a more permanent basis, and that seems to be helping. And of course, more nausea and a bit of puking (now THAT was a bit surprising, as i've been feeling 99% well for the past 3 or 4 weeks, now it's back - i suspect ALL of these symptoms have to do with the extra girth i now have :)

Oh, and i now only have 2 pairs of my non-maternity pants that still fit at the waist - these two, of course, are the ones that were quite large on me pre-baby. So i had to take a trip to the maternity store on Saturday, and was able to find a really comfy pair of cords on sale. Mat clothes can be SOOOO expensive, i try not to buy things regular price unless i'm in love wiht the item. So far, i'm doing quite well....i have 2 pairs of jeans, 1 pair of khakis, one pair of cargos and now the cords, and the most i've paid for any given pair was $30. So for now, that's almost enough to get me through work (i rarely wear jeans to work), and i'll just pick up more items as i need them. Still good on the shirt front, have been picking up a couple here and there when i find them on sale...and with the mainstream style of longer shirts these days, i am finding lots of non-mat shirts that will work at least for the next while, until the next growth spurt.