Drum roll please...

I can't believe it but we are almost halfway through pregnancy.  Only a few more days and we'll be at the 20 week mark.  Which means only another 4 (or 5) months until we get to meet Baby J and only 4 more months to get ready.  So far up until this point, my pregnancy has been largely enjoyable.  Of course it's not all roses and sunshine, but I am very lucky to not have not suffered through morning sickness or bouts of nausea.  I feel physically, emotionally and mentally healthy despite my growing size.  I am always surprised when people tell me I'm not very big yet because I feel much bigger than I am (my belly photos make me look huge). I am still able to do almost everything I enjoy (except running because it makes me pee and drinking alcohol for obvious reasons). Every now and again my back will start to ache, but I broke down and bought a pregnancy pillow that has saved me from sleepless nights.  

Let's just take a moment to send a shout out to the brilliant people and Leachco, the makers of the Snoogle. This pillow is brilliant. It supports your neck, provides a comfy rest for your back (or belly depending on which direction you are using it, and aligns your hips to keep you in perfect sleeping position. I have a hard time staying asleep on my sides and usually wake up on my back in the middle of the night - a big no-no for pregnant women in their second trimester because the weight of the belly puts pressure on the spine and can cut off blood/oxygen supply to the baby. They say even the right side isn't that great because there is a main artery on that side that can get compromised.  So left side it is! While not perfect, this pillow helps keep me in check - and I love it for that.  I would recommend this pillow to anyone who wants a little extra support throughout the night.  The only downside is the size.  I call it the "marriage wrecker" because it takes up so much of the bed puts a wall between Tom and I.  Not conducive to snuggling at all.  But for the next few months, it's worth it to get a good nights sleep!

Look, even this dog likes the Snoogle!

We had our big Anatomy ultrasound last Friday.  The appointment lasted about an hour and the technician preformed a detailed scan of the baby's anatomy and physical structure to determine if it was healthy and growing as expected.  I have decided that Baby J is going to be stubborn (like an unnamed parent with a Y chromosome) because almost the entire time the baby had it's hands crossed in front of it's face like like it was saying "Oh no! You're not going to get a picture of me!".  As Tom said, the baby looks like a skeletor because you could very clearly see the bone structure and organs.  At one point, we could even see the mouth moving like it was trying to talk!  The technician was having a hard time getting all the images she needed, so she had me roll over on my left and then quickly roll back, over and over again trying to trick the baby into moving.  At one point, I went into the bathroom and jumped up and down and that seemed to help.  The reason I call this the "big" appointment is because at this ultrasound they are supposed to be able to determine the baby's sex.  We have been dying to know what we were going to be having, so we were very excited when Friday finally rolled around.  So now, without further ado, the baby's sex is....*drum roll*...

...UNDETERMINED.  What?! Yes, that's right.  The technician spent an hour plus looking at the baby, but she wasn't able to tell from the genitals if it was going to be a boy or a girl.  The baby had it's legs crossed and it was hard to tell.  She said she didn't see a penis, so it must be a girl.  Ummm, no...just because you don't see it, doesn't mean it's not there!  I asked her how certain she was, and she said she was 70% sure it was a girl.  Well, I'm sorry but 70% isn't enough for me to feel confident about.  She did disclose that she was new to PAMF and like I said, she seemed to be having some trouble getting what she needed.  But to be fair, a lot of babies don't cooperate during ultrasounds.  It's not an exact science.  I whined about it to my doctor and she assured me that most ultrasound technicians throw out a percentage like 70-80% because they can only go on what they see - and often it's very hard to see.  She assured me that we could look again at my next appointment - 8 weeks from now. GAH!! We had wanted to send out a fun announcement with the babies ultrasound picture and announce the sex, but we can't in good conscience do it now because there is a 30% chance that baby J could be a boy.  I'd hate to get inundated with pink dresses just to find out that our baby is indeed a male.  Poor little guy would have lots of effeminate clothing.

19 weeks

So for now, the baby's nursery is going to be decorated in yellow, green and blue and we'll just have to wait like back in the "old fashioned days" to find out.  Either way, we are more than relieved that they baby is healthy and growing.  We won't have to wait too much longer until we can hold him or her in our arms.

C-c-chico

We spent this past President's day weekend in Chico visiting Tom's family.  We typically try to make it up to Chico on our three day weekends to maximize the visiting time and minimize the traveling time.  It's only a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive,  but after a work day it can feel much longer.  Sadly we realized at the last minute (but thank goodness we did) that Tom did not get Monday off.  So a two-day visit it was.   We drove up late on Friday night after work and arrived just in time to crash into bed. On Saturday we had breakfast with Richard (Tom's dad) and after a leisurely morning drove over to Oakmont to have lunch (they call it dinner, something I can never get used to) with Tom's grandmother Agnes.  Agnes is now 95 but still full of spirit.  She has muscular dystrophy which means she can hardly see anymore, but her hearing and memory are sharp as a tack. Tom's mom and dad, and his Uncle Ted joined us for lunch (dinner) and despite what we had been told about the food, it was actually pretty good.  I don't expect food in a retirement home to be well seasoned or salted, so perhaps my expectations were pretty low. Regardless it was nice to spend time with Tom's grandmother.  She always has great bits of wisdom to share which she is quite famous for.  So famous in fact that Tom's sister Claire has screen-printed three paintings that are now hanging above her bed of her favorite sayings "haste makes waste", "this too shall pass" and "waste not, want not".  Agnes is very religious and when she was able bodied, spent much of her time helping others.  She fully embodies the spirit of helping others and using only what you need.  She is quite possibly the most thrifty person I know.

That evening we took Tom's dad and mom out to dinner to celebrate Carol's 60th birthday. Tom really wanted to go to the 5th Street Steakhouse, which is a very nice yet casual steakhouse.  The food was delicious, although Tom still insists that steaks he makes at home are better.  I can't argue with that since the man does know how to whip up a good steak! They were served with the largest mound of garlic mashed potatoes I have ever seen - probably enough to feed a family of four.  Sadly I didn't take any pictures and the photos I could find online just didn't give it justice.  We wound down the evening by watching Water for Elephants back at home.  I had read the book and loved it but I had heard some not so good things about the movie.  Apparently people don't like seeing Robert Pattinson as anything else but an angsty vampire teen.   I thought the movie was really well done and it touched me in the sense that the movie "stuck" with me long after it was over.  I highly recommend. 

The boys wrestling

Sunday morning Tom's mom and dad whipped us up a very yummy breakfast of sausage, eggs and homemade scones.  Tom and I had some time before hand to take a walk around his neighborhood.  You don't have to walk too far in either direction before you end up in Bidwell park or other remote area - something I really appreciate living in the bay area and being constantly surrounded by people and asphalt.  After breakfast Tom spent a good chunk of the morning fixing his dad's dryer (because he has to fix something everywhere we go. He is like a traveling fix-it man!)  On our way out of Chico, we stopped by Yuba City to visit Camille and the boys.  Taylor just turned 9 and is still a Lego aficionado.   Ryan is 11 months old and is already walking and running and even mumbling a few words.  They enjoyed wrestling with their uncle and during that moment it made we really hope we are having a girl!  

Ryan enjoying his Baby Einstein DVD

I was very happy to receive two huge bagfuls of maternity clothes from Camille.  I am now enjoying the elastic belly of maternity pants more than anything. They are so comfy, it's like wearing pajamas all day.  Before leaving town, Tom and I had a quick dinner at Five Rivers Tandoori Restaurant.  For whatever reason, Yuba city has a large Indian population  so there is a plethora of good Indian food available.  Lucky for us when we visit!  Five Rivers had the best samosas I've ever had anywhere.  Very big and really fresh.  If you're in the area, you should definitely make it a stop. 

18 weeks

In other news, I am now 18 weeks pregnant and getting bigger by the second.  Head to rump, the baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and weighs almost 7 ounces. He/she busy flexing its arms and legs although I still can't feel the baby move yet.  There have been a few times when I think I feel movement, but it could also just be my belly rumbling.  We have our BIG appointment to find out the sex of the baby coming up very soon.  We do plan to tell everyone, but people are going to have to wait for a little while longer because we have a special way we want to announce.  We are really looking forward to finding out so we can get shopping!

Turnip

Today marks my 17th week of pregnancy.  This week the baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord is growing stronger and thicker.  The baby weights 5 ounces now (about as much as turnip) and is around 5 inches long from head to bottom.  The baby can move his or her joints, and sweat glands are starting to develop.  

Baby or vegetable?

The baby and I had another doctor's appointment today and as always, it was reassuring to hear it's heartbeat. This was a quick appointment which lasted no more than 10 minutes - just long enough for the doctor to take my vitals and to listen for the heartbeat.  I'm always so disappointed (and in my pregnant state this is more like rage) whenever I don't get to see the baby via ultrasound.   Up until this point, I've had them at almost all my doctor visits and I've grown accustomed to getting to see my kid.  I think I appreciate the visual confirmation since the baby is too small to feel moving around just yet.  The doctor said the heartbeat was strong and that everything sounded great.  Per usual, the baby was squirming around so much that she had a hard time getting a steady read on it.  Hopefully this isn't a sign of things to come! I also had some blood drawn for the 2nd trimester genetic testing.  The first trimester testing was negative for all the genetic strains they tested for, so I'm optimistic that these results will come back negative as well. Keep your fingers (and toes) crossed.

When I first learned I was pregnant, I began taking belly shots to track the progress of my growing bump.  I didn't publish them at first because we wanted to wait until we had past the first trimester mark to make sure everything was progressing normally.  Enough people have requested to see them that I now feel obligated to share. So without further ado, here is some belly.  I am keeping the pure belly shots to myself, which I'm sure you will all thank me for.

5 weeks

6 weeks

10 weeks

12 weeks

14 weeks