Jak & Lannette's Baby Blog

I’ve been a bit remiss jotting down things, but here it is! First off, this week’s pregnancy photos are up (as are last week’s, and the week’s before, etc.). We’ve been visiting the doctor every week now since Baby’s been at 36 weeks. This is normal and it’s been fun seeing how things are progressing every week.

Week 37: The baby is full term! All things are good, and the baby has dropped 1/2 cm. It didn’t sound like much to me and the doctor’s reply to that was something like this, “Oh, it doesn’t sound like much, but when it comes time to pushing, every little bit lower that baby is, is like heaven.” Then she took a copy of my paperwork aside and said she’ll be sending it over to the hospital so it’s ready for the big day! Whooo!

Week 38: all things still good, and the baby has dropped another 1/2 cm. Funniest part of the checkup was at the end when the doctor said, “If you make it to next week’s appointment…” It really put things in perspective that the baby could come at any day! Eek!

Today: And that brings us to today’s appointment at 39 weeks. I made it to the appointment – the baby is still holding off. Thank goodness because I’m still preparing my paperwork for taxes. Things started off at my appointment as usual: the doctor checked my uterus size and the position of the baby. All was good! The baby is sitting a little bit lower and has grown a little in the past week. She then checked the baby’s heartbeat which was nice and strong to start. But within a few seconds the heartbeat had slowed some. She asked if we heard that, which we did, and she said to keep listening. After another few seconds of the lower heart rate, it went right back up to where it normally is. She said it wasn’t anything to be too concerned about (it could have been due to me being on my back for the check up), but that she would send us to get a non-stress test after our appointment, just to make sure. Then she proceeded with a bit of an internal exam to check on my progress. Things are progressing slowly, but progressing nonetheless. Then, she applied a little (ok, a lot) of pressure for a few seconds, and then she was done. It sounds like I have started to efface, so she swiped my membranes a little to see if would help things progress a little more. It may or may not, but we’ll see!

The doctor then told us a little more about the non stress test, which is done at the hospital. It’s just a regular procedure, and not something you have to be kept in the hospital for. She also called the maternity ward to make sure they weren’t too busy and to let them know she was sending me over. She did tell us that most likely we would get tested, then just leave. But, on the off chance it was something (and she stressed that it was a very tiny chance), that it might mean they would keep us and we would be having the baby soon! So off we went to the hospital for the test.

The lady in admitting was really nice. A little crazy, but nice. We headed upstairs to the delivery area and the nurse at the station already knew who I was and what I was there for. We were led into an assessment room and I got comfy on the bed and Jak got comfy on the chair in the room. It was quite calming – dim lights and pretty cozy. Our nurse was super friendly and explained what the gizmos were and what they were measuring. Two gizmos were strapped across my belly: the top one measured contractions (or my laughs or coughs, etc.) and the lower one monitored the baby’s heartbeat, which we could hear, too. Then she handed me a button, which I was to press every time I felt movement from the baby. And then the monitoring began.

Non stress test

It was interesting seeing how the baby’s heart rate changed when I was either having a braxton hicks contraction, or when the baby was moving around. For the first while, the results were “textbook” which made the nurse very happy. Then the baby started acting up a little, which actually had the nurse take the print out results back to the nurses’ station to check with someone else. What that meant for us was simply more monitoring. The nurse kept checking on us, and I kept clicking the movement counter button, and Jak kept watching the monitor, me, and my belly. Then, the nurse came in, did one last check and said all was fine and we were done! They were just trying to get a good reading of the baby’s base heartrate, which was hard because it kept changing with Baby’s movements or my braxton hicks contractions. And as for monitoring the baby movements? Baby New was a rock star and there was no question that he/she was moving around just fine.

It really was a non-stress test. It was comfortable and educational, and of course, since things are fine, we walked away happy. And we knew that the baby and I were healthy, so I think the scariest part was knowing that IF they saw or found something, we would have had to stay, and we would have had the baby pretty quickly. I know it can be any day now, but we weren’t in that head space at all when going to our regular dr’s appointment. Having her send us to be checked out reinforced our belief in her – we’ve been happy with my doctor from the beginning and this is just another reason why.

So our next plan of action? Finish packing our hospital bags! They’re mostly packed, but we have just a few things left to put in, and we’re going to do that PDQ!

We’ve officially hit the beginning of the 9 month mark! We only have 4 weeks left until we get to meet this little person! That’s 4 weeks if the baby’s timing is right.   We had our doctor’s appointment today and things are still on track!  My uterus is right on size for my pregnancy week (did you know that the diameter of your uterus should measure the same cm’s as the week you are?), the baby has a strong heartbeat at about 148, and my blood pressure is great. Yay! My doctor also took a look and has no concerns about my ability to deliver the regular way. In other words, my pelvis size is not a concern, and that’s a good thing. The baby is still heads down – he/she has been in the right position since at least the 32 week mark. The doctor said at that time that the baby will stay that way and lo and behold, he/she has!

I’ve been wondering lately if the baby has started to drop a tiny bit – I kind of thought it may have, just because of the difference in pressure I feel. I’ve also thought there was a very slight difference to the shape of my tummy, but it really is so slight that I thought I could have imagined it. But today the doctor confirmed that, while the baby hasn’t “dropped”, he/she HAS moved down a little bit! Hee hee!

We’ve started preparing the nursery now, too! It’s been painted and we’ve picked up a crib and crib mattress. We just have to get the guest bed out of there and then we can start putting in the baby’s things. We’re still looking for a dresser, which we’ll also use as a change table. And I think we’ve found one we like!

That’s about it for now. Oh, this week’s pregnancy photos are up! Oh, and we got to view our proofs from our maternity photo session.  LOVE them! It’s going to be hard picking which ones to get developed.

There’s only 5 more weeks to go! Holy smokes! We are so beyond excited, and at the same time it’s so crazy to think that everything is going to change in a matter of only 5 weeks. Crazy! We still have to prepare the nursery (it’s still a guest bedroom!). It’s been prepped and taped for painting – we just have to actually paint it, and get the guest bedroom stuff moved out of there. We’ve picked a crib and hope to go get it this weekend. Yay!

Things going on: I’m still being inundated with Braxton Hicks (BH) contractions.  I get them a lot and they’re getting stronger! But they’re still just BH’s, so it’s nothing to be really concerned about. Whew! I definitely have the pregnancy heater working now. I think it kicked in about a month ago. And with the heat going, I’ve had a couple of episodes of having slightly puffy feet and ankles. Luckily it’s only happened twice, but I have a feeling as these next weeks progress, it will probably occur more often.

It’s funny. Now that the baby is stronger, there have been some crazy tummy watching sessions. There will be big slow sweeping movements mixed with faster thumps, and sometimes my whole belly seems to be exploding with little movements all over. It almost always makes me wonder out loud, “What caused that?” or “What is that?”

Oh, the weekly pregnancy photos are up!

We had so much fun today – we had our maternity photo shoot!  This is something I’ve always known I wanted to do, and I’m so happy to have done them. This is an amazing time and I am still so in awe of what the human body can go through – what MY body has gone through – and I knew I wanted to capture that. The photographer was so nice and had a great energy.  It took a lot of searching to find her, because I knew I wanted a certain style for my pictures. After checking out her website and having had some initial email correspondence I knew she had the right vibe I was looking for. When we arrived at her studio this afternoon, everything was confirmed when we were greeted so warmly and made to feel so comfortable.

It will take about a week (maybe 10 days) to get our photos up onto an online gallery, but she did send us a few “sneak peaks” already. And we’re loving the results so far! Celebrating 34 1/2 weeks (8 1/2 months) of pregnancy, here are the sneak peaks:

We had our regular check up today and things are going well!  The baby is growing according to the charts and the doctor is super happy with how things are going. I think she’s also excited for us that we’re nearing the home stretch!

Things going on: SO much movement happening in my belly these days! It’s actually so funny to see how much is going on. And we sort of know the position the baby is in, so it’s been fun trying to guess what exactly he/she is doing in there to create the bloops and movements that’s going on. We’re really enjoying watching and feeling the baby move because I’m sure it will soon be too big and chubby to move around so much. Hee hee!

This week I’ve also noticed that I’ve hit the pregnancy “swelling”. My feet are getting a little puffier these days. I still fit my shoes, but sometimes by the end of the day my little feet are looking like they could use a good dose of rest and relaxation. I must remember to put them up and maybe soothe them with a nice Jak-massage.

This week’s pregnancy photos are up! I’m getting big!

Edit: I looked down and it seems the swelling has hit my ankles, too. 

This week’s pregnancy photos are up! I feel like I’m getting HUGE! Even just within the last couple of days, it feels like the baby is really pushing out on my tummy and it’s gotten harder to do things.  It sure helped that time when Jak helped put my socks on me. 

It’s also gotten harder to ignore the Braxton Hicks contractions. When they first started (in my 6th month), I wouldn’t have even known they were happening, except that my hand would happen to be on my tummy and I could feel the tightness. Little by little they have gotten stronger and I can now feel them on my own. In fact, these days, they’re getting even stronger and I find that sometimes I have to take a step back and let it pass before continuing whatever I was doing. But it’s normal! Whew! My doctor has gone over with us the feeling of a real contraction and how it differs from a Braxton Hicks so that we’ll (hopefully) know the difference when the time comes. I love how reaffirming she is!

We had our doctors appointment today and things are still on track! It’s so exciting! Our OB walked into the room saying, “Wow, we’re getting close – 7 1/2 weeks left!” She then did her usual measuring and checked the baby’s heartbeat (152) and felt my tummy to check the baby’s position.  (It still blows me away how much she can push and manipulate my belly!) She called Jak over again and he could feel where the baby’s head was. And where was it? Down near my pelvis, where it will stay until he/she comes to greet us! The baby hasn’t “dropped”, but it has positioned itself properly to prepare for things! So it’s head down! Then the doctor pointed out an area on my belly saying that’s probably where I feel most of the kicking, and it almost felt like she was a psychic. I was surprised and said YES! I don’t know why I was surprised. This is what she knows and does, after all. 

She then went on to say that things look great, we’re doing well, and that she doesn’t have any concerns that we’ll be having a giant baby or anything like that. WHEW! She’s basing this on the growth of my uterus, and the size of Jak and I as the parents.

And now, from this point on we’ll be seeing her every two weeks until April, when we’ll be seeing her every week. I can’t believe how fast things are moving now!

Wowee, was that ever amazing! We were just sitting here, relaxing on a Friday evening when Baby decided to perk up. And boy, did he/she perk up! It started with a bigger-than-normal kick which caused me to quickly look down at my tummy. Then there were these huge, fast, belly moving kicks, and some big sweeping movements across the whole side of my tummy. It was the most amazing thing to see and feel! I’ve felt and seen the baby kick and move before, but it was nothing like the flurry or strength seen in tonight’s actions. Jak and I were just watching with amazement! And laughing, too, because it was so weird to see little bits on my tummy bloop out like that.

The baby must be getting bigger and stronger! 

WOW! Only 8 more weeks (give or take a little) until we get to meet Baby New! These last couple of weeks the baby has been very active! Jak still laughs at my little exclamations of “Whoa!” when the big boots happen, or when the baby tickles my ribs. Then we both laugh and marvel when we watch my belly blooping, moving, swaying, blipping… it’s something I don’t think I could ever tire of watching. I know there’s only a little while longer for these big movements, because the baby will be getting more and more confined as he/she gets closer to meeting us on the outside world.

We started our prenatal classes this week. We’ll be going once a week for 6 weeks, and will hopefully learn everything there is to learn.    The first class was fun – there are 8 other couples at varying stages of pregnancy. I think I’m about in the middle. The instructor started the class by handing the partners balloons. Jak and my first thought was that they were going to have to blow it up and stuff it under their shirts. Nope! She had them blow it up to the size they thought a newborn’s head would be. Once they were done, she told us the average circumference is 34 cm, then measured each person’s balloon. It was interesting to to see how off almost everyone was. Jak’s balloon measured 41 cm around, so I was glad to know it would be smaller than that.

I feel like there’s so much more to do. We’ve gotten some great items handed down from family and friends, but we still have to get the necessities – a crib, diapers, wipes, perhaps some clothes that the baby can wear home from the hospital… and whatever else might be deemed a necessity. Luckily I think we’ll be getting a handy dandy list at one of our classes.

Now that the countdown is closer, Jak has started a baby poll! We’ve already had some responses and it’s been fun seeing the guesses come in. OK, and scary too – someone thinks I’m going to have a 15 lb baby?!?  Aye yah! 

Oh, this week’s pregnancy photos are up!

Maybe you’ll be a drummer, Baby New!  Today you’ve been squirming and thumping a lot, and just now it felt like you were doing a huge drum solo on a stage in front of a sold-out crowd. 

New pregnancy photos are up! And today is Baby New’s 30 week mark… yup, only 10 more to go!

This has been an exciting week, as the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics have opened! We got together with some friends and family to watch the opening ceremonies and Baby New really reacted to all the drumming! We also got up early to see the torch being run through our neighbourhood, hit some of the free Olympic venues downtown, and got together with family at the Molson Canadian Hockey House. While there, we saw hockey legend Lanny McDonald, and Colin James performed. It was baby’s first concert! Well, his/her first concert other than being at one of my concerts.

Watching the Olympic Torch Go By

Things going on: Baby New is busy kicking up a storm. The big kicks still cause me to say, “Whoa!” when they occur, and the rib touching ones make me squirm. It’s the strangest feeling getting the inside of my ribs touched/tickled! It was funny when Jak felt my belly being kicked today – it was such a kick that he said, “Whoa!” too! I asked him if he said it just because I do, but it was because he was surprised by how hard he was kicked.  Hee hee!

The baby (and the baby belly) is growing. Jak laughs at my silhouette almost daily now. He’s amazed at how my belly can protrude the way it does, and thinks it’s funny that my width has changed so minimally – that it’s all out front!

I sometimes get stuck on the couch now if I sit a certain way and feel a bit like a turtle that’s been tipped onto its back. I can’t sit straight up/forward because of the weight of my belly, and I can’t roll over onto my side to get up because of the size of my belly. It makes both of us laugh, though. But I keep thinking, “Oh my gosh, I still have 10 weeks more to grow!”

30 weeks! (I still seem to photograph small - I'm bigger than this looks, I promise!)

This past week the baby has been getting stronger and more active. It’s been fun watching my belly move and bounce as the baby moves. And the little baby has found a new place to kick me – on my right ribs. It doesn’t hurt, but it definitely brings a new sensation, one that is more jolting than anything. I think as the baby gets stronger, though, I may be in for some bruised ribs.

But a really neat thing just happened! I was sitting here and could feel the baby pushing on a part of my tummy. I put my hand on that spot and it was hard to the touch. I’ve been experiencing some Braxton Hicks contractions, where my whole tummy gets really hard (no other symptoms, so unless I’m feeling my tummy I wouldn’t know I was having one), so I wanted to see if this was the case. I lightly pressed my tummy and no, it wasn’t a Braxton Hicks. I felt something of the baby! I can’t tell if it was a heel, or an elbow, or what,  but I felt it! It was small, like if you run your finger over your first knuckle while making a fist. Then the baby reacted and shifted whatever it was away. It was the craziest, weirdest feeling! I just felt a part of my baby! How cool is that?? I wonder what it was?

We made our first baby product purchase today, Baby New! Now we don’t have to worry about how we’re going to transport you here and there because we bought your stroller today!  Yay!

We love the “i’coo” and all its features. It even can hold your carseat, which we got handed down from a friend! And the sales staff at the store we got it from were fantastic. They even stayed after hours to put it together for us so we could just take it home and not have to worry about setting it up. I love that it has a separate bassinet that we can use on the stroller, or just as a bassinet. I love multi-function things. Daddy likes the compactness and functionality. And he loves that it’s light enough for me to be able to pack it up.

Just purchased your stroller and we're bringing it to the car!

We just had our monthly doctor’s visit. Everything is going well!  The baby is growing as he/she should be and I’m doing great. Our doctor is very pleased with everything and has no worries or concerns. Baby’s heartbeat was nice and strong and in the 150′s.

The coolest part of today’s visit was when the doctor checked out my belly.  She measured it as usual, and it’s bang on for being at 28 weeks.  Yay!  Then she felt around a little and called Jak over.  She put his hands firmly down where she had just been checking and said, “Do you feel that?  That’s your baby’s head.”  And he could feel it! Then she put my hands in the same spot, but I couldn’t tell what I was feeling for. Plus I was just way too excited and giddy that Jak had just been able to feel his baby’s head. 

It was also fun to find out our research and conclusion was confirmed.  In the past month there have been two occasions where I’ve been pretty sure I experienced a Braxton Hicks contraction. It wasn’t something where I went, “Oh my gosh, is this labour?” It was just funny timing where I happened to be feeling my tummy and all of a sudden it would go very hard, then subside, and that was it. I described how it felt to the doctor today and right away she said that indeed those are Braxton Hicks (which, by the way, are perfectly normal, so it’s nothing to be concerned about).  It’s so nice to know that Jak and I were right on!

It’s officially here – we’re at the third trimester mark! Things going on? Growth! My belly already feels like it’s busting out, which is freaky since this is the start of the BIG growth period.  Eek! Jak was away for a few days this week and when he came back last night he could see the difference in my belly. How crazy is that? Just a few days!

I love feeling and seeing the baby’s movements! It’s so strange and surreal how little flutters have turned into little thumps, and now some of those thumps are getting stronger. Then there’s the occasional time where I can feel (and see) the baby moving or turning. I think that’s the strangest feeling right now. Probably because it hasn’t happened too often.  There’s still room for the baby to do his/her crazy fast movements, too. Is he/she practicing to be a sprinter?

Other stuff? I’ve only had a couple of real “hormonal” episodes to date. How has that affected me? Well, last week I actually did cry just out of the blue!  Weird, indeed. But Jak was a trooper and consoled me through it, then a few minutes later I was back to being good.

I am getting really excited to have the baby join us on the outside world. We still need to get things organized and purchased, and prepare the nursery. Maybe it’s a good thing that the room is smallish – not so much painting.  Hee hee.

In the meantime, we are trying to savour our quiet time. In a few months, it’s all going to change!

Oh, and yesterday’s pregnancy pics are up!

New pregnancy photos are up!

I can’t believe this is the last week of my second trimester! While I have the proof of Baby New reminding me everyday that he/she is there, it still feels so surreal. This week has been easier on me – I guess the baby has shifted back to a more comfortable position so it doesn’t feel quite so heavy in my tummy.  Whew!

I am definitely “looking” pregnant these days but it still surprises me when someone doesn’t realize it. I had a little gig this past weekend where we sang on stage. It was a reunion of sorts with the cast of Flower Drum Song! Apparently the mom of one of the cast members said she didn’t even realize I was pregnant when she saw me singing. Crazy, eh? On one hand it was flattering to know I must not have changed that much. On the other, however, I was thinking, “Did she think I had this belly while doing the show?” 

I can’t believe there’s only 14 weeks left until we get to meet you face to face! Time is flying by and there’s so much we have to do to prepare for your arrival. But we’ve got a good start and it’s been fun gathering hand-me-downs from our friends and relatives. It’s also been fun shopping (well, “idea” shopping so far) for the rest of your things.

This week has seen some big changes in you! You’ve become much more active not only with kicks, but with some new movements, which are more slow and methodical. Then there’s the fast paced movements where it seems like you might be trying to run or box. And what’s really cool is that you’re strong enough so that most of the time these movements move my belly as you’re doing them. It’s such a neat thing to see these little blips on my tummy! It’s like your way of saying hello to us on the outside. Your daddy will sometimes catch me with a silly grin on my face because I’ve been feeling and watching you move.

The other big change is that you’ve gotten really quite heavy in my belly! Not that you’ve grown super fast weight wise, but you sit differently now and you feel veerrrrry heavy. And I think because of that, I have a new level of tiredness – during the weekend I had three naps! I’m not sure what’s in store for the next three months, as this will be the time you get bigger and bigger.    Luckily for me, your daddy has been very supportive!

Well BabyNew, it has been a while since Daddy has posted on here. That’s not to say I haven’t been paying attention though!

You seem to be growing nicely, and only putting a little pressure on Mommy so far. If all goes to plan, you will be helping Mommy gain about another 10-15 lbs. Should be fun! We have the paint for your room picked out, but will probably wait until Aunty Sandra and Unlce Ted come and go (they aren’t really your Aunt and Uncle, but it keeps things less complicated).

You’ve kicked or punched my hand a bunch of times now which has been pretty cool. I think you should try to push Mommy’s belly button out

Friends and family have been nice enough to pass some baby things to us, which will help when you bust out. Still ots to get though. Yikes!

That’s all for now.

Daddy-1, out!

I was sitting here at work this morning, feeling you kick around.  I called your daddy over and he came and put his hand on my belly. He felt a couple of your normal kicks, then all of a sudden, we felt something new! He felt it on his hand and I could feel it in my belly and we both looked at each other and went, “Whoa!”.  Instead of a normal kick, it was more like you you drew your elbow (or maybe a knee, a hand, or possibly a foot) across my tummy. It was very cool! And I’m so happy your daddy happened to be checking you out right then so he got to experience it, too!

I just saw my belly move from you kicking it, Baby New!!!  I’ve just finished dinner and was relaxing on the couch and I felt you kicking.  Instead of just feeling you kick, I decided to check out my tummy, and I could see it moving as you kicked!  It’s not a great big move, but there’s definitely movement!  Hee heeeeee!

24 weeks and you’re moving my belly. 

Oh, and today’s weekly pregnancy pics are up!

We couldn’t resist taking a few pictures with my belly before taking down our Christmas decorations. We just took these tonight.

This is very strange indeed… this will be our last Christmas as just a duo.  I’m looking forward to sharing this fun time with you, Baby New, and introducing you to “Christmas Chaos”!

Baby New's "almost" Christmas (at 22 weeks)

We celebrated your “almost” Christmas by getting a special ornament.

Our "Parents To Be" ornament

We were at a family dinner last night and my nephew Kyle, who’s 5 and a half, decided to write a letter to Baby New!  At the end of the evening, we were presented with this great little letter which gave us a huge laugh!

Dear Baby New

Hope you have a good waterslide

Love Kyle

There have been definite stages to my tummy growth, and a couple of very distinct impacts on my bellybutton. Today is one of those days. We just got home and I changed into my comfy clothes. While doing so, I checked out my tummy and was taken aback by how shallow my bellybutton had seemed to become within just the last 14 hours! It wasn’t in my head, either, as I called Jak over and he exclaimed, “Whoa!!”

It’s still there, and it’s still an innie, but it’s definitely a slow goodbye to my bellybutton. I knew it would happen, I just didn’t expect it to be THIS changed so early on.

Baby New, you’re right on track for being 21 weeks! We had our second ultrasound today, and this is where they look at your development. We even got to see you on a big screen TV while they checked out everything and took all sorts of measurements. They looked at your head size, your heart, your spine, your spinal cord, your hands & feet, and they measured your femur! Your heartbeat was at 148. It was really cool when the ultrasound technician showed us your heart. We could see the chambers of it, and she explained how it develops, and that yours is exactly the way it should be.

This is probably the best picture of you from the session. It was hard to capture a good pic because you kept moving around. First you were all curled up, then you faced the wrong way, then you were stretching, then you were hiding your face behind your hands. In this picture your arms are a little stretched out and you can see your left hand blocking your face a little (it’s by your cheek). The technician kept getting me up and moving around to try to see if you would move your position, too.

It was an absolutely unbelievable experience and we are so happy you’re doing so well in there!

Best part of the session for Mommy: being able to see you and watch you move. Oh, and seeing your little feet!
Best part of the session for Daddy: seeing the four chambers of your heart, and seeing your femur. It’s a cycling thing.

Are you restless, Baby New?  There’s an awful lot of little movement going on in there today!

We’re halfway there! Things have been going so well (knock on wood!). We had a doctor’s appointment today and she confirmed that she is very happy with the way everything is progressing. My tests are fantastic, and Baby New, your growth and development is bang on to what they say it should be.   While I’ve been feeling good, it’s so nice to get confirmation from your doctor. Since my last appointment a month ago, my uterus has grown 10cm! The doctor showed me how to feel the top of the uterus, but I wasn’t able to tell. It’s a good thing she knows what she’s doing. Hee hee. She said that at about 32 weeks is when Daddy should be able to feel the top of the uterus. That will be so cool.

Your heartbeat is strong in the 150′s and we get to see you again next week at our 2nd ultrasound. The doctor asked us if we were going to find out if you’re a little boy or girl and when we told her we’re going to wait until you’re born, she said we were in the minority now!

Pregnancy photos are up! And since you’ve had that growth spurt this past week, my co-workers can actually see my baby belly now and they say I look pregnant!

So many people have commented on how “small” I am, and I was just getting to the point where I was comfortable and happy that my bump was small. I used to get a little irritated, thinking that people were crazy because they didn’t see any change (well, I still think it’s a little crazy when they would say I didn’t look any different). But then I realized that I’m just about at the halfway mark, so being my small size was probably a good thing, and I was happy!

So what does Baby New do? She/he has a growth spurt, which means I had a growth spurt! In one week (ok, more like a few days), my tummy went from looking “thick” to actually protruding outwards! The funny thing is, is that I sort of knew it would happen this week. I could feel that baby was growing, and I knew my body was preparing for a bigger growth than it had experienced up to this point. I just didn’t realize that the growth would be so quick!

I’m scared and excited to see the changes to my belly over the next half of my pregnancy! And I can’t wait for the ultrasound next week to check in on Baby New’s progress. I still can’t believe how amazing this all is.

I woke up this morning and felt a new, strange little sensation in my tummy.  I put my hand on my belly and felt these little bloops. The baby was kicking! I called Jak over and put his hand in the same spot. He wasn’t sure if he felt anything, but then sort of jumped when he felt the movement. But he only felt it once, so it was very hard to tell.

Then, just now, going to bed after a long day of traveling home (we were in Orlando for a week), I lay down and bloop, bloop, bloop! It was stronger than in the morning, and I could actually feel it in my tummy, and not just on my hand. It was so amazing! Of course, I immediately grabbed Jak’s hand and put it on my tummy. Bloop, bloop, bloop – he could totally feel the kicks, and I could totally feel the baby inside kicking! I can’t really describe how it felt, but I’m so glad Jak was right there to feel with me for the first time.

Funny timing, because just recently I’ve been wondering when I would start really feeling the baby move – not just the little flutters that have been happening. And I’ve been curious about how I’d know the difference between a kick and just a normal body process. But I knew. Right away!

SO EXCITING!!

This week’s pregnancy photos are up!

I think maybe Baby New might be shy. I had a concert this past Saturday with my a cappella group. When I woke up that day, my tummy bump was quite a bit smaller than it had been, and I was about a pound lighter than I’ve been averaging. So everyone who came to the concert (including my fellow singers) took one look at me and said I didn’t even look pregnant. Of course, I was still bigger than my pre-pregnant state (I couldn’t wear my pants and had to wear a skirt I had just purchased “just in case the pants wouldn’t fit”), but I guess they just saw me as “thicker” and not “pregnant”. I was a little disappointed but understood. But the thought of, “Do they think I’m normally this “thick” then?” did run through my head.

But the good thing is that we had a fabulous concert and all went well! I hope you enjoyed hearing the singing, Baby New! 

Verve Collective at the Delta Firehall Centre For The Arts (Nov 21.09)

New pregnancy photos are up! Weird thing, though – my baby bump seems to photograph much smaller than it actually looks in person. Weird! I guess it’s true – camera angles are everything.

Things are progressing great, as confirmed by my doctor’s appointment last week.    As of today I’m now at the 6 pound gain mark, which I’m feeling pretty good about. It’s so strange, this different mindset. Normally it’s about staying the same, trying to look thin, etc., but now I’m excited that my belly is growing, and putting on weight means the baby is being taken care of.

Things going on:

• My belly is growing! I’m not really big enough for maternity clothes yet, but my wardrobe has been limited to wearing my lululemon yoga pants everywhere. I tried on some “regular” pants, just in some bigger sizes, and they ended up looking like clown pants, because the bigger size meant everywhere was bigger.
• Sometimes in the morning Jak will see my tummy and say, “Whoa!” with a huge smile and a look of wonderment. And I love it!
• We are talking to the little baby bump.
• I get hungry quite often. Bananas have become my snack of choice because they’re so convenient. And luckily, since I’ve been pregnant, they no longer make my throat itchy when I eat them. I think I’m only eating a little more than normal these days, but Jak says I’m eating quite a bit more than I used to.

Things to sort out:

• Names!
• What we’re going to need once this little baby joins us on the outside world. All we have right now is two little pairs of socks, which Jak bought me as a first baby gift.
• Maternity leave.
• Nursery arranging.
• Guest quarters. We will be converting our guest bedroom into the nursery so we have to figure out where our overnight visitors will stay. The options at this point? It looks like they (one person) can sleep on our couch or on the floor.

• You can’t suck in your tummy anymore.
• You wake up in the morning and your hubby exclaims, “Whoa!” when he sees your belly.
• You see that the trend on the scale is an upwards one and you’re excited about that.
• Your appetite is much larger than it used to be.

We had our second OBGYN appointment today. It was much quicker than the first one, which will be like the rest of the appointments to come (except as we near the due date). Dr. Ross took the first measurement of my “belly”, which was from the pubic bone to the top of the uterus. (I don’t know how she felt it, but with a quick hand on my tummy, she pointed out to us where the top of the uterus is. I tried feeling around, but couldn’t tell.) The tummy size is pretty small still, but apparently that measurement is how they determine the size of the baby as it grows! We heard the heartbeat again – much stronger than last month! And it’s a healthy beat in the 150′s. It still blew me away to hear the muam muam sound. In fact, there are times where it just sort of hits me – I’m pregnant! There’s a little life growing inside me! That’s so crazy!

The doctor then went over our ultrasound information and confirmed that we had all been pretty bang on with the due date – just two days off. She asked if we wanted to update our due date based on the ultrasound and we both jumped on it with a, “Yes!” So the new due date went from April 30th to now April 28, 2010, a day before my birthday. 

Memorable moment: After asking how I was feeling and doing, and being very happy that I’m doing well, Dr. Ross remarked that now is the time that if I had had any nausea, it would be going away. I told her I was eagerly waiting for the 2nd trimester to alleviate the fatigue and she laughed and said, “I wouldn’t count on it…” Oh dear. 

Wow… 15 weeks already! Time is flying by so fast, and up until this week there have been a lot of times where I felt like I’ve been playing pregnant. But I think the second trimester is doing its thing. I think Baby New (or Baby Ganoosh, as we affectionately call him/her) has decided it’s time to grow. They say that’s what happens at this time, and I think things are going to schedule. Up until now, any growth that I’ve done has been pretty much camouflaged by my clothes. But now, all of a sudden my waist seems to be disappearing, and my silhouette has taken on a new shape.  Seriously – all of a sudden! Just within the past 48 hours I have developed a little tummy that rounds outwards instead of lying flat. And when I look at myself from the front, my waist indentations are not as pronounced as they once were. In fact, I don’t think it will be too long before I lose those side indentations altogether. While most of my friends still haven’t seen any difference, there are a few who have gotten excited that they have indeed seen the recent change. And if you look at this week’s pics, I’m sure you’ll see the difference, too!

The tough thing right now for me is my clothes.  I haven’t quite outgrown my pants yet, but I’m just about there. I have a pair of jeans I wear regularly and I find myself unbuttoning the top button from time to time to get a little relief for my bloating belly. Other times I undo both buttons! (There’s only two buttons, then the zipper.) And still other times I’m fine with leaving them totally done up. But when they’re done up, there’s no wriggle room anymore. They used to fit with a nice shape, and with ample room and space to spare. I know it’s getting near shopping time because the times I go with a button undone are starting to outnumber the times I leave them done up. 

At this point I’ve put on about 4 pounds, so I guess it has to go somewhere.   My doctor recommended a 25-30 pound gain and it looks like I’m finally on my way!

Oh yeah, new pregnancy photos are up!

Oh, and I can’t wait to for the decrease in fatigue! I’m still super tired… zzzzz.

As we are now in the 14 week mark and into the 2nd trimester, we knew it was time to tell our boss and coworkers. And we couldn’t wait. Here’s how we told our boss.

We put the ultrasound pic up on Jak’s big 30″ monitor and waited for the boss to go talk to Jak. The wait was agony, as he went through some things with me first. But once he headed over to Jak’s desk, Jak cleared his work off the screen so that it was just the desktop pic of Baby New. Doug (our boss) glanced at it and laughed out, “Yeah right!” Then there was this brief pause, where you could actually hear him realizing. Throughout the silent realization were a few utterances of, “really?… wha?…” then a clear look at me with a mouthed, “Are you…… pregnant?” As we beamed back at him and said Yes, his face lit up immediately and he started yelling and congratulating us, running over to hug me, etc. We share office space with his wife, so she came over to see what the commotion was and he shouted out the news to her. Then they sort of quieted and asked if it was public. When we said yes, they brought us out to the shared reception area and made a big announcement to everyone. He was floored and is soo excited for us.

And even though he’s scared what he’s going to do without me at work, his overwhelming sincerity and joy at our news trumps all.  We couldn’t have asked for a better reaction!

OK, so during this last week or so I’ve been feeling flutters in my belly once in awhile. I’ve been just chalking it up to physical changes in me, or my body preparing to grow. I’ve been doing some reading and I might actually be feeling movements of the baby!!! They say on average that baby movement will first start being felt between 16 and 22 weeks, but that’s just an average (I’m at 14 weeks). It’s weird, because I don’t know for certain if it IS the baby, but I just assumed it would be too early to feel him/her move. So now to find out I might really be feeling her/him move… WOW.

Time has been flying by! New pregnancy photos are up, although I still think you can’t tell.  I can tell, though – especially the way my pants are getting snugger and snugger.  And Jak can tell, too.    I’m excited for the 2nd trimester. Apparently I should be getting more of my energy back and I can’t wait! I’m also excited for real pregnancy growth to start happening. While my torso is going through a “thickening” phase, and I’m definitely “bigger”, that’s all I look – bigger, as opposed to “pregnant”. So far I’ve only gained somewhere between a pound or two (it keeps fluctuating), and by my doctor’s guidelines, I should gain about 8 pounds by the 20th week.  That gives me 6 weeks to pack on 6-7 pounds. Eek! Actually, while the thought of gaining the weight in a short period of time sort of freaks me out (as opposed to having had a gradual gain from the beginning), I also know that it means the baby will be growing along with me. I’m not intentionally not gaining weight – I’m just eating as I need to (which is definitely more often than pre-pregnancy). I figure when the baby needs more, that’s when I’ll need more, and when I’ll be able to eat more. And, as a plus, maybe the extra weight will make my boobs grow. They say every pregnancy is different, and by this stage, one of the big symptoms is breast growth. I’m still waiting for change there.

We’ve started thinking about baby names, and wow is it ever hard. There are soooo many names, with so many connotations. My feeling is that we’ll need to have a short list and then see “who” the baby is when he/she comes out to greet us. Of course, that’s just how I feel now. Who knows? We might come across the right name and BAM, that will be it.

Other things going on? Every time I feel something flutter in my belly I know it isn’t Baby New, but I start wondering what it will be like to actually feel the baby move. I know, all in its time.  But I sure cant wait!

12 weeks pregnant. 1st picture of Baby New!

We had our first ultrasound done yesterday and we got to see the baby! It was pretty incredible. First I was led into this quiet room where the lights were dimmed. There was a cozy looking bed set up with the ultrasound machine beside it. Up I popped onto the bed and we got down to business. A little towel was set under my belly, a little gel was applied to the ultrasound wand, and the tech woman proceeded to check things out. After a brief bit of checking on me, she said, “OK, let’s look at the baby.” Everything looked good and she said, “So, you’re at 12 weeks?” She was bang on and could tell just by the size of the baby. She even caught the baby responding to being pushed with the wand – it moved around! Oh, and the heartbeat was 160, which she said was normal. Yay!

Then they brought Jak into the room and showed him some different angles of the baby and pointed out what was what. The picture they printed for us shows the profile of the baby and if you look closely, the white blob above the belly is his/her hand. Hee hee – looks like we were being waved at!

And now, having experienced having an ultrasound I have a tip! If you’re a smaller woman such as myself, you do NOT have to drink the full amount of liquid they tell you to. While seeing the baby in my tummy for the first time made this day sooo incredible, the lead up to it was quite the opposite. The instructions I received asked me to drink about a litre of liquid within a 1/2 hour period, an hour and a half before my appointment. It turns out my bladder, as well as my whole system, can’t handle that much. On the way to our appointment, I had to pee like I’ve never had to before. I thought I could ride it out, but then all of a sudden I had this painful urge that I was going to throw up. Jak pulled into a business and led me to the bathroom. The relief of peeing was good, and we went back out to the car. Making sure I was OK, we didn’t pull away right away. And it was a good thing. About a minute later, that urge to throw up came back, and it came back strong. Jak asked if I wanted to go back inside to the washroom, but I said I wasn’t going to make it. I opened the door, leaned out and blam.  The litre of liquid exited. And just like that, my body felt “normal” again. And before you ask, no, it wasn’t morning sickness. I’ve been lucky to not have any of that. I drank about a 1/2 litre of water on the rest of the trip to the imaging place, so I was lucky to replenish some of the liquid.

At the end of our ultrasound appointment we asked the tech if having that much liquid was necessary for a person of my size, and she said as long as I have 2 glasses of water about an hour before the appointment, that should be good. We were relieved I wouldn’t have to put my body through that again, but also pretty traumatized at what it had done. But in the end, we’re all fine, and we’re now that much more knowledgeable about the process for next time.

We just got back from our first appointment with our OBGYN, Dr. Shelley Ross. And we like her. She’s this short, sunny, spunky lady. Gets down to the nitty gritty, listens to what you’ve got to say, and still makes you feel good about things. During my check up, she said that even though it’s early, she was going to see if she could hear a heartbeat, as sometimes she can with “slender” women such as myself. (OK, her just saying that gave me a chuckle.) She said that it might be possible, but that if she couldn’t hear it, it  doesn’t mean anything. Then she brought out this little fancy looking stethoscope thing, put a little gel on my tummy, and put the little wand to it. There was distinct static at first contact, then a bit more static as she moved the wand around. Then all of a sudden… muam, muam, muam. WE COULD HEAR THE HEARTBEAT! It was amazing! Even at this early stage, there it was! The doctor was pleased and told us it was a very good indication that we could hear the heartbeat. And yes, I got a little misty eyed during the process.

We’ve now got a little more bloodwork to do, and we’ve got our first ultrasound scheduled for next week. Currently we’re going off their chart for progress, which by their calculation puts us at the 10 week, 5 day mark. This is based on the mom having a regular 28-day cycle (which I don’t). The ultrasound will help them determine the due date better.

Memorable quote: How old will you be when you deliver? This cracked us up. If the baby is born on the current due date of Apr 30th, I’ll be 36. But if it’s earlier than Apr 29th, I’ll still be 35. 

Things are still going well, and we are so excited to go to the OBGYN tomorrow!  It will be our first visit with her and we’re not quite sure what to expect.  But we’ve got our family medical histories ready, we’ve prepared some questions for her, and we’ll see what happens. Mostly I’m looking forward to the doctor checking in on Baby New. I know how I feel being pregnant, and overall I feel great (knock on wood and hope the rest of my pregnancy continues the same way), so it would be nice to know that the good feelings carry into Baby New’s development. 

We took a couple more photos today. I’m not sure if there’s any change from last week. I measure the same, I weigh a pound more than last week (this is the first week where there’s been any weight difference), but today is a bloaty day, so it might just be the bloat making the difference. After all, pre-pregnant me could fluctuate within a few pounds daily. I guess we’ll see in the next few days.

New pregnancy photos are up today! Not too much has changed this past week.  Things going on: I get hungry more often, although I don’t seem to be able to eat as much in one sitting, it’s still killer on my chest when I hug, and I still get (am!) super tired.  For a few days there the extreme fatigue seemed to lighten up a tiny bit, but then it came back. You might say I’m almost used to it, but the silliness that goes with it? Poor Jak.  Oh, and the extreme bloating has subsided to a more manageable “normal” level. Yay!

We’re both looking forward to our first OBGYN appointment next week. While I feel good, it will be nice to be able to speak with the doctor and get the inside scoop. She comes highly recommended. And then… we can’t wait to share the news with our friends! We’ve been holding off on the side of caution, but it’s been so incredibly hard.

We just got some reading material tonight, highly recommended by both of my brothers and their wives: What to Expect When You’re Expecting. Of course, it’s been a pretty long day as it is and I’m staying up to get this little update done, so I think I’m going to crack it open tomorrow. Yes, it’s only a little past 10:00pm, but for me these days that usually means it’s time for me to start my winding down prep. And that’s only because I start falling asleep on the couch.

Jak has been an amazing hubby and has been taking such good care of me and little Baby New. We love you!

I just realized that since I’ve been pregnant, I haven’t felt like having soup!  Seems trivial, but I am very much a soup girl, so for me not to feel like having any is very strange indeed.  It might be because the weather has been pretty fair, but I think it might be a pregnancy thing.    After all, I can crave a nice bowl of hot soup even on a hot summer day.  I wonder if I’ll start thinking about soup again now that the weather has turned?  It’s definitely autumn out there now, which is prime soup time!

There hasn’t really been any change in the last week.  But we now have a photos page!  Complete with a couple tummy photos from today. 

OK, today’s photos aren’t very newsworthy, but it’s a starting point. 

Last night was interesting.  I was helping my dear friend, Kevin, as part of a small ensemble of singers, go over one of his songs for the musical he’s writing.  We went over to his home and it all came together very quickly.  Then we broke for dinner.  I was already in a bit of a “bloaty” stage, so when I ate a slice of chicken pizza (which was super yummy, by the way), that did me in.  The bloat came on full force, stronger than I’ve felt to date.  It wasn’t so bad during the break, because we were just sitting around, eating and chatting.  But then we went back to the music afterward.  Holy cow!  I was so bloated that it was uncomfortable just sitting in the chair.  Then to breathe in to sing… it was unbearable.  I think the group must have thought I was a bit anti-social, because as soon as we were done, I grabbed my things and said my good-byes.  I didn’t even stay for dessert!

I got to the car and undid my jeans buttons, which helped a little. Luckily the bloat went away during the night and when I woke up this morning I felt “normal” again.   Jak and I think maybe all this bloating is the body’s way of preparing itself for the growth that it will be going through.  At least that’s what I’m going to think when the bloat rears its fat little head again.

Wow, I can’t believe today marks the start of the 8 week pregnancy mark.  Little Baby New, that means you’re about 6 weeks old.  For the most part I still don’t really feel very pregnant.  The only symptoms I’ve been experiencing is the major fatigue (ok, and as your Dad put it, when I’m tired I can’t think very well), very occasional light headedness, and a pretty tender chest (hugging people is killer right now).  Oh, and just teeny-tiny inklings of nausea once in awhile (but that’s been very rare, thank goodness! And when it is there, it’s only this tiny little, barely-there type of thing).  Oh, and most of the time when I eat I get rather bloated.    Other than that, I feel great!  And there haven’t been any real physical changes yet (unless you count the bloatiness after I eat).  Not even any weight gain.  Of course, they say that’s pretty normal in the beginning.  Hey, how about that?  I’m normal!

EDIT: Later today I couldn’t decide if my tummy bloat and rumblings were because I was hungry, or if my tummy was digesting food, or if it was gassy, or if it was any combination of all things.  Serves me right for saying things were going so well.  Hee hee!

“I can’t think”.

Followed by my laughter (I have known this for a number of weeks now). With her rebuttal of, “at least I admit it”. This is true, as she doesn’t like to admit to things like that. You’ll see.

What a night we’ve had.    We told both sets of parents the good news tonight!  We couldn’t have asked for better reactions and we’re so happy they all know now. Here’s how we told them.

Telling Jak’s Parents

It was Jak’s mum’s birthday in early August and we hadn’t had a chance to celebrate with her yet. So we took the opportunity to bring over a little birthday dessert. We set it up, lit the candles, and brought it into the living room, singing. We brought the cake to her and her eyes lit up as she read the message. It said, “Happy Birthday Grandmum.” With a quick glance at Jak for confirmation (she wanted to make sure she had read it right) she jumped up and started congratulating us. I think Mark was a little confused at first because he hadn’t seen the birthday message yet, but mum quickly shared it and hugs and kisses were soon flying everywhere.

Telling Lannette’s Parents

We recently took an Eng family trip to Pender Harbour and I knew I wanted to put together a photo book for a memento for mom and dad. We sat them down and presented them with the photo book, and proceeded to go through it together. It was fun reading them the little captions and going through the pictures.  On the last page I asked if one of them could read out the caption. My mom started reading… “6 grandkids for Pender Harbour 2010?…” Then quickly realizing they only have 5 grandchildren at this point, my mom shouted out, “Really?” and she knew what we were telling her. And about one second later it clicked in for my dad, and the house was filled with shrieks, hugs, and kisses!

Telling Mum she's going to become a grandmum!

Mom and Dad finding out about grandchild #6!

….growing!

Why you ask? Well your mom seems to be having a hard time thinking of more than one thing at a time, or coming off the track it is already on…real hard. So, I figure her brain is helping your brain grow.

It’s all good though! Just have to make sure she remembers to breathe and blink

Well Baby New, your Mommy is just “technically” 6 weeks pregnant with you. I think she has reconsidered whether or not she has pregnancy symptoms. Bouts of being cold and tiredness seem to be the big ones right now. And don’t tell her I told you, but she gets a little loopy when she is tired.

Good thing we love her.

That’s all for now.

Baby New doesn’t know it, but it was part of singing the National anthems tonight at the Whitecaps soccer game. Good job!