30 weeks

The baby is doing new tricks to get my attention - like kicking in new places! So far, most the kicks have been on my sides just under my ribs. I love relaxing, laying down, watching protruding bumps move around. Sometimes a flurry of kicks will make my belly shake! I think the rhythmic small movements I feel are hiccups. All very cute. Kicking further down is not so cute or comfortable! So the baby has 10 weeks to flip from head up to head down. Mom and Dad have 10 weeks to: paint 2 bedrooms, hallway, bathroom, rip out all carpet on first floor, refinish wood floors, buy a couch, assemble the crib, do the holiday thing, and whatever else is on the long list of getting ready for baby!


Last weekend we learned about childbirth for 6 hours straight! Chad was the best father - actively participating as a volunteer to demonstrate "pushing". As you can imagine he made the whole room crack up. I hope I can smile as I remember his attempt at pushing when I am going through that stage in a couple months!

Baby Shower

Last weekend we were blessed with another baby shower. This time the baby's Wisconsin family and friends gathered for a fun-filled ladies' afternoon. The baby had a LOT of lovely aunts and grandmas there - 1 aunt, lots of great aunts,1 grandma, and even a great-great aunt and great grandma! We played fun games, told funny pregnancy stories, and ate really good food! My favorite part was hearing a letter my grandma wrote. My Aunt Cindy is the sixth out of seven kids, so when my grandma was in the hospital after having Cindy, she wrote a letter to her other children. It was so cute - describing their new baby sister, making sure they were behaving at home, and most of all showing how much she loves each of her kids!

My godmother, Auntie Belle, made these adorable cookies by hand!



As you can see, I am very happy to have the youngest Packer fan!

My mom decorated the house in baby stuff she found from when her, I, and her sisters were little - it was so cool! These little dresses were worn over 40 years ago and are still in great condition and still extremely cute!

I passed!

Well, I passed the glucose test. And then I passed out!
I went in at 8:00am to chug the "orange drink". I didn't think it was that bad. Then I saw the doctor - talked about H1N1 and a little about early signs of labor. She said the heartbeat is good and no cervix activity, so now we're on to bi-weekly visits.
So I am waiting in the lobby and feel really tired and hot. I get called back for the blood test-no big deal-I dont have a problem with needles. But I start to feel light headed and sweaty. I tell the nurse I feel like I'm going to pass out, so I put my head down, took deep breaths and she brought me an ice pack. I felt like I was sleeping hard for a long time, so I dont know how long I was out. Thankfully I was sitting in the lab chair the whole time. She brought me a juice box and I felt much better, but have been exhausted all day.

Here is some 28 week belly - still looks pretty low...is it a boy???

Startle kick?

Some of the loud noises that produce a kick: the postage machine at work, clanking of doing dishes in our tiny sink, 6:00 am alarm clock. Baby can tell the difference between light and dark and also responds to dad's voice. 85 days to go!!!

Week 27

I have not been very good about taking weekly belly pics, so I am making up for it by having a 27 week photo shoot so you can see the baby proof from all angles :)
Added bonus: the photo shoot was in our lovely green and gold bathroom - GO PACK!

Baby Shower

Sunday was our first baby shower. The West family hosted a lovely party for our little one and he/she got lots of cute necessities. The best gift of all is the baby will grow up surrounded by such great family and friends.
I'm glad the tradition of wedding and baby showers is still carried on - I love ladies parties! The support of female relatives and friends is so important and comforting to me. Not to mention there is always tons of delicious food (loved the blueberry cake!). Valentine knows something is up - she was sniffing all the presents and wished the stuffed animals were for her!

go.daddy

Chad participated in the Twin Cities Marathon on October 4th. It was his first marathon and he did a great job! He has been training all summer and put in a lot of hours hitting the pavement.

He woke up early Sunday morning and headed to the start line at the Metrodome. I was cheering him on at mile 14 - he was lookin good! The weather was cool and the scenic route took him around almost every lake in the metro! I was so proud to see him run down the final stretch past the St. Paul Cathedral. What an accomplishment to push yourself for 26.2 miles! He was very happy when he was done.

He was also very happy his 2 teams won this week! Yes, the Vikings defeated the Packers...some were happy, some not so happy. The household rivalry is going to be more heated now that we have more on the line. Cleary, our children will be fans of the better team - so every win counts. The Twins also won the tie-breaker to win the division! It was exciting to see them catch up to Detriot and win a close game! Hopefully the MN winning streak carries on to the Gophers this weekend for Homecoming.

I had the baby dream...

I don't think I have had a dream about the baby until last night. I don't remember it exactly, but I was going on a trip or going somewhere on a plane. The baby's foot was emerging from my belly button then going back in! Then the whole baby came out of my belly button and it was very tiny and I put it back in my belly - WEIRD! What's your interpretation of that!?!

My drive to work was dark, cold, and rainy this morning. When I got downtown I saw the most unusual rainbow! The sky to the east was pink and the sky to the west was black and right down the center was a colorful, vertical rainbow. It looked like it was coming out of the Foshay Tower up into the sky. It was so beautiful against the skyline in the morning dawn.

I had my first experience with a stranger rubbing my belly this morning. I was standing by my desk and a customer felt the need to rub (not just touch). It could have been because the UofM "M" is really big right on my belly and I think it makes it look extra big and irresistable to touch! She predicted a boy - if that is valid for anything. I didn't think I would mind and I guess I really didn't care, but it was a little strange.