Getting Ready

Sammy is getting ready for Halloween tomorrow.  He is hoping to get a lot of cheeseburgers while trick or treating.  We have to explain to him that you don't get cheeseburgers, but candy, which he can't eat.

Grandma's 88th Birthday Celebration

This weekend Uncas, Sammy and I traveled to Wisconsin to help celebrate my Grandma's 88th Birthday.  Her actual birthday is Oct. 31, but the family decided it would be easier to celebrate the weekend before.  It was such a fun day.  On hand to celebrate with her were 3 of her children (out of 5) and their spouses, 8 grandchildren and 3 great-grand children (plus one more on the way) and three great-grand puppies!  We took over the activity room at her nursing home for the afternoon.  Lots of food and laughs were shared.  I didn't take a ton of pictures, but here are a few:

Grandma opening presents

Getting ready to sing Happy Birthday!

 Birthday Cakes

Pineapple Upside cake made by mom - yum!!!

Grandma and me

I really enjoyed seeing my aunts, uncles and cousins.  Since we live so far from most of them, who live in Chicago, it's always a treat to get together with them on occasions like this.  I think my grandma was pleased to see everyone, although at times I am sure it was a bit overwhelming too.

And speaking of long distance relatives, this weekend my big brother Rick was in town from California.  He flew into Chicago earlier in the week to visit my other grandma.  He drove up to WI on Saturday for the party and to visit my dad and mom.  Since Reid and I were also in town, we were able to spend time with him too!

 

Rick and I

Unfortunately the weekend went by far too quickly.  We left my parents late this morning, so we were home by late afternoon.  One thing that I discovered about being pregnant is that traveling becomes even more tiring and uncomfortable than usual.  Our trips there and back this weekend took longer than usual.  It was probably all the stopping for bathroom breaks, but honestly, I also needed those breaks to get out and stretch my legs and back.  It didn't occur to me until Friday night, that traveling would be so hard.  

I never did get better 20 week pictures taken.  But today Uncas took a 21 week picture.  I am definitely looking (and feeling) pregnant these days!

Tuesday Appointment

On Tuesday we had another prenatal appointment. It takes a little bit to get used to the group thing. Fortunately we like everyone in the group with the exception of one mom who constantly talks (around and around without saying much) and asks questions. Which - the asking questions part should be fine, but it's her 6th kid!!! Seriously - by the time you are pregnant for the 6th time, wouldn't you have this figured out by now?!

An interesting thing to note about the group of moms is that almost everyone is having a boy. We have 12 moms and of the 3 or 4 that aren't, they either haven't had their ultrasound yet, or they aren't finding out! It's pretty funny!

Our baby's heartbeat was sounding strong and they measured me to see if I was on track. Unfortunately I am extremely ticklish, so I was measuring around 19 weeks instead of 20. I think it's because I was tense. Oh well, the midwife didn't seem concerned and laughed about how she thought I had some strong muscles on my stomach! Now that is funny!

In unrelated news - the boulevard tree in our yard is gone! It was marked to be taken down about a month ago, much to our delight! It was dying, and Uncas was constantly worried that it was going to come down on one of our cars in a storm. When they marked it, the city didn't give any indication as to when the tree would be coming down, so I was quite shocked to pull up after class on Tuesday and see it gone. Our neighbor took some pictures and said it only too them about a 1/2 hour. So with the combination of the fact that Uncas mowed the front lawn on Monday, that tree now gone and our huge maple drops leaves very late in the season - our lawn is currently leaf free!

Halfway - 20 Weeks!

Today I am 20 weeks along with this pregnancy.  I am at the halfway point - hurray!  Here are some pictures that I took this morning:

Uncas is out of town this weekend, so I had to take them myself.  Tomorrow when he returns, we'll have to take better 20 week shots.  Ever so slowly my belly is growing.  I can definitely tell that it's bigger than it used to be.  Some things, like sitting comfortably in class or trying to get up from the recliner are a little more challenging than in the past.  I know that this is the easy part and it's only going to continue to grow from here on out.

Ultrasound - Baby Nimzlet

Today we had our 20 week ultrasound. I was really excited to see our baby again, especially since I had just started to feel it move around within the past week or so. Everything look pretty good - 2 arms, 2 legs, a nice strong heartbeat (140), 2 kidneys (at least that is what the tech said - we just thought they looked like black blobs).

One of the best parts of the appointment was when I saw its arm move and I could feel it. It was reassuring to know that what I thought was the baby moving, was really the baby moving!

Unfortunately the baby wasn't super cooperative, so we had a tough time getting some good pictures, but I actually didn't care. I know that the baby is there and looking good, so that is all that matters. Below is a picture of the baby's profile:

The tech was able to get a look at the gender, but we have no idea. Kind of strange that someone knows the sex of our baby, but we don't. Only 20 more weeks (give or take a few days) until we find out for sure! It's hard to believe that I am at the halfway mark!!!!

It's All About the Clothes

If you know me, it's not really about the clothes. But for some reason today, this post is about them.

Last year my dad bought Sammy the cutest little coat.  He actually has two sweaters, and 3 jackets thanks to my parents (and a big sale at Lands' End), but there is one that is his favorite.

Even yesterday with the snow on the ground, I would put on his jacket and he was outside for a good 10-15 minutes.  That is a very long time for him because last year, he would just run out to go to the bathroom and come back in.  We are very excited that he is still trying to explore and chase squirrels despite the chilly temps!

Also clothes related - I bought this cute shirt this weekend:

 It's hard to read here, but it says "expecting".  I figure if I wear it people won't think my belly is big from all the beer I have been drinking (which tends to happen when one goes to college, right?)  Today I met Uncas at a coffee shop after class and the woman at the register asked when I was due.  It was the first time a stranger had asked me that question, without me first saying that I was pregnant.  Then, maybe for lack of something else to say, she asked when we found out?  It was the strangest thing!  I would never think to ask a stranger that, but whatever.  We got a little chuckle out of it.

And now, because it's all about clothes today - I must finish some laundry!

October 12, 2009

These were the scenes that greeted me this morning when I woke up.  The first word that comes to mind - DEPRESSING!  I can't believe it's not even the middle of October and we are having our SECOND measurable snowfall!  That's right - second.  Saturday morning we had about .3 inches, which isn't much, but enough that the ground was covered.  This morning there is much more than that and it's still falling.  We had a fabulous September with temperatures in the 70's for most of it and now we have this.  I guess we just skipped fall this year - lovely.

On to happier things - I am in my 19th week.  Here is a picture that I took last week:

 

 

Slowly starting to get bigger, but still don't really look that pregnant;  just looks like I have a fat belly from drinking too much beer.  Probably the biggest development is that I started to feel the baby move.  It's exciting and I kind of feel like the baby is reassuring me that it's doing just fine inside of me.  I can't wait for Thursday.  We have our ultrasound and then we can see our little Nimzlet and make sure that it is growing just the way it should be.  

MIA

Sorry that I have been missing for the past week.  School had me very preoccupied as I had two tests this week.  I was busy, busy studying for them and my hard work paid off on my test on Monday, so that is good.  I am still waiting to hear the results from my test on Tuesday - I hope they are equally as good.

Other than that, life has been pretty uneventful.  Uncas discovered on Saturday morning that our shower was leaking.  Even though we ended up with a big hole in our bathroom for a couple of days, he managed to fix it quickly and with minimal cost.

Sammy hasn't been a huge fan of the recent cold and rainy weather.  In fact, this is what he thinks about it:

 

 

The other day while he was by his favorite heater spot in the dining room, I discovered that he was using his new toy as a pillow.  It didn't look too comfortable, but whatever works.

I took Sammy to the vet on Monday and despite our concerns that he had been putting on some weight, he is only tipping the scales at 8.8 lbs!  I guess not.  Maybe one day he'll finally hit the 10 lb mark . . .  Sammy also found something that scares him.  The neighbor's 16 year old cat!  Yesterday we stopped next door to chat with the neighbors and they have a very social 16 year old cat who just wanted to play with Sammy.  Sammy, however, was completely terrified of her.  I have never seen him act that way before and it was quite comical.  Finally he has a taste of his own medicine!

And one final note, we have been cheering on the Minnesota sports teams this week.  I was busying studying and went to bed early on Monday, so I didn't get to watch the Vikings-Packers game, but from what I hear, it was quite the game.  Last night we cheered on the Twins as they won their tie-breaker game.  Here is a picture of Sammy and I cheering them on: