Hi Daddy!

Sweet Poppy, I am so excited to see you in a couple days! I really cannot wait!! A tiny little part of me is sad that you will lose the nickname we've come to love, because we can then start calling you by your real name... but that's okay. I'll be thrilled to know what to really call you, and thrilled to be able to move forward with our preparations for you! :)

As of yesterday, your little flutters and tickles and movements have progressed to pokes or jabs or kicks. Instead of a little tickle or a funny shifting feeling.. I can feel a quick jab here, and poke there and I LOVE IT! Last night, after eating a big bowl of oatmeal with quite a bit of brown sugar on it, you got to kicking me like crazy! At one point I put my hand on my belly just hoping I'd be able to feel you on the outside and share this with your daddy, and I could!!! You kicked my fingers!!! Daddy rushed over and put his hand on my belly, then you got stage fright. Daddy gave up after a couple minutes and went back in the kitchen, and not 20 seconds later you started poking me again.. Daddy ran back and waiting again. Nothing. Finally, he just sat down next to me and held his hand there, and when I kinda pressed his hand down a little harder, you poked him!!! He got all wide-eyed and asked if that was you or me (your daddy is silly like that sometimes) and when I told him it was you, I could tell he was so proud. I am so glad you finally invited your daddy in on this adventure! I can't wait til we both can feel you everyday. I haven't felt you poking around yet today (but I have been really busy with your cousin), so I am about to eat something sweet to see if I can get ya dancin' in there! :)

We love you baby. Happy 18 weeks in there. 

See you in just a couple days, love bug. 

17 weeks, 1 day

Isn't that crazy? I remember when saying "7 weeks" sounded like a big deal! Saying 17 weeks makes me sound so... pregnant! :)

The most exciting update I have to share is that I can now sporadically feel Poppy wiggling around. I say wiggling around, but really it just feels like I'm being flicked from time to time. The first movement I felt was last Monday (right around 16 weeks) while I was sitting on the couch, hunched over the laptop. I felt what I thought must be the "flutters" everyone talks about and it definitely made me stop what I was doing and stare at my bellly, willing Poppy to move again. After a minute I felt it again... and a few minutes later I felt it one more time. It was so strange, but so exciting, and its hard to describe the feeling. I get why people say "flutters", but I don't feel like that accurately describes the sensation.. I felt like I was being tickled with a feather duster for a second. It didn't feel like a kick or punch, it didn't feel like bubbles popping, it didn't feel like a lava lamp (as I've heard these first movements described)... it was just a quick, fluttery tickle with a feather duster that wasn't soon followed by gas - so we were convinced it was Poppy letting his existence be known in a way that doesn't involve me perched on the bathroom floor, finally! Yay!

I didn't feel any other definitive movement again until Saturday, when I was laying in bed reading at my sister's house. I had just downed a glass of Pineapple-Orange-Banana juice and I guess Poppy was on a bit of a sugar high. I was feeling pokes and tickles and movement for a good 15 minutes. I was convinced A would be able to feel from the outside so I called him in there, but sadly he could not. He looked like he had really gotten his hopes up about it, and then when I told him Poppy wasn't moving anymore - he looked pretty disappointed. But this is about the time my BIL could feel movements with their baby, so I keep telling A it will happen soon!

Then the last time I felt Poppy move around was last night as I was making some envelopes for my sister's baby shower invitations... either Poppy really likes Arby's Roast Beef Sandwiches, or he really doesn't like it when I lean against my craft tables for hours at a time. I don't know if I should tell him 'I'm Sorry' or 'You're Welcome'.. but I do know I so enjoyed feeling him wiggle. And I really hope I soon start feeling him on a regular basis.. not only when I sit just right or consume crazy amounts of sugary beverages. 

In other (not-at-all-exciting) news, we are very impatiently waiting for some blood work results to come in! Last Thursday I was informed by my previous employer that one of the twins had just been diagnosed with Fifth's Disease, and that the first question from their pediatrician was if G had been around any pregnant women. She had in fact.. me! I had just kept them that Saturday afternoon/evening. I was told to promptly call my OB and tell them I was exposed, so I did. My OB wanted me to come in immediately for a blood test to detect whether or not I am already immune, and whether or not I've been infected. Apparently if you are before 20 weeks pregnant, you and baby are at a much greater risk of not only being infected with the disease, but also suffering what can be very severe complications (ie, fetal heart failure). I was told that if I came back positive for Fifth's Disease, I would be referred to a perinatologist for close monitoring for the duration of the pregnancy. Of course, all the information I was given sent me into total panic mode.. but a lovely woman on my local baby message board told me that even if I was infected, there was only about a 30% chance the fetus would be infected as well. So that's a 70% chance that IF I got the disease, the baby would be perfectly fine. I was also told by the lab tech that most adults are immune from prior exposure and don't even know it... so we are really hoping I am immune! And if not, we are going to pray that Poppy is in that strong 70% category! 

I had the blood test on Thursday and was told to expect the results Monday -- here it is WEDNESDAY and they still don't have my results in. I have called twice this week with no luck, and if I don't find out by tomorrow, someone will get an earful from this worried, pregnant mama!!! 

I'd like to end this on a happy note - so for one, I made a huge online order for some Old Navy Maternity clothes! Can't wait for that glorious package to arrive. And lastly, we find out if Poppy is a Landon or an Emmeline one week from tomorrow!!! YAY!!!

Lots of Baby Progress, baby.

Well Poppy.. you've been at it again. Making Mommy sick. 

I struggled through the week, feeling nauseous every day but managing to breathe through it and convince myself I-Would-Not-Get-Sick-Again. Then it hit me today... and hard. 

I don't know if I let myself get a little dehydrated during the week, or if I ate something that just set off my tummy... but today has been awful.

I feel okay right now, but certainly don't feel like tackling the endless list of to-do's we've created for ourselves by me being lazy and nauseous all week long. 

Guess the laundry can wait yet another day. Its not like I fit into anything anymore, anyway.

Today was a particularly bad day for me to get sick. 

Yesterday would have been okay  - I didn't have any real obligations.

But today we had a Cloth Diaper Consult scheduled with the amazing owner of diaperlicious.com (Mar). 

I managed to make it through the consult, but  not without needing to sit down a few times and not without 2 instances where I really thought I was going to pass out. Both times my heart started racing, my hearing got a little fuzzy, and I broke into a sweat - but I didn't want to make a scene and I really wanted to learn about the cloth diapers, so I didn't say a word other than "I'm going to sit down for a minute, keep going...". 

I survived though, and walked away with a wealth of knowledge on this whole CD concept. 

I'm really glad I made myself go to the appointment, and I am so glad Mar is such a CD Genius!!

So, that's a step in the right direction for planning for Poppy - getting an idea on where to start with his/her little heiny.

Some other exciting baby progress is the nursery. We are finally (fiiiiinally) done with the brown paint and white chair rail. It looks GREAT, if I do say so myself. And I think this is the first painting project with Andy and I (between our 4 residences and many painting adventures) that didn't end in disaster AND didn't involve and whining and complaining about how much we both hate to paint. 

For some reason, knowing that we were painting to prepare a special room for our long-prayed-for baby made a world of difference. We worked together (where as I usually try to weasel out of painting!) and we had such a good time. We talked about where the crib will go ("honey, our little babe will be sleeping right here by Christmas!!") and where the rocker go ("Babe, can you imagine sitting in this corner reading Landon/Emmeline a story or rocking him/her to sleep?"), where the dresser will go, how we will decorate the walls, etc. It was really a great experience. I loved seeing Andy take so much pride in his work, and hearing him talk about what lies ahead. :)

This picture was taken before the chair rail was painted white.. here it just has primer. It stands out much more now, really pops beautifully against the brown. :)

All we need now is to know if we are growing a Landon or an Emmeline.. then we can keep trucking on with the nursery setup. Bedding is picked for either/or, furniture is picked, decor is decided on - we are just in a holding pattern until April 2nd when we should be able to get a peek at the goods!! I cannot wait!!!

And the last bit of progress to report is the growth of Mommy's belly. 

Eek. 15w4d belly. 

This was during the painting adventure.. ie, no shower yet for the day, and no makeup - hence the below-the-shoulder shot!!!

We love you Poppy, more and more each day. Can't wait to visit with you in 18 short days!!!

Post 2 of 2...

Oh, sweet Poppy.. I love getting to hear your heart beating. 

I don't know why I still become a ball of nerves before each of my appointments, but I do.. and every time I get to hear or see your healthy little heart beating away, all those nerves are washed away. 

Today we heard your heart on the doppler for the first time, as opposed to on the ultrasound. While I certainly miss getting to actually hear and see it beating, it was reassuring none the less when she put that doppler to my tummy and found you right away!

The doctor showed us your NT Scan results, and I was (we were) so happy to learn that you are as healthy as we have hoped! She showed us where your risk was without the scan, and just how far down your risk was after we learned your NT measurements and checked Mommy's blood! You now have less than a 1 in 10,000 chance for Downs or Trisomy 13 or 18. We are so happy, Poppy.. really, over the moon! Those results are just what we have been praying for!!

The best part of the day, though, was getting to schedule our anatomy scan. Me and Daddy are so eager to know more about you (mainly whether you're a Landon or an Emmaline!!), so we can't wait until April 2nd when we get to see you again!  I hope you decide to wake up for us that day, and wiggle around enough for the tech to get some great pictures of you! Do us that favor, okay baby, and cooperate for just that hour! :) 

In other pregnancy news, Mommy is back up to her pre-PG weight, which is great! I lost 18 pounds during that few weeks when I thought you must hate me, Poppy.. but luckily you've changed your mind since then and now allow me to eat! 

Daddy was sad to miss this appointment, even though it was pretty anticlimactic compared to the last few. But he can't wait til April 2nd - he's already requested the afternoon off to spend it with you!

Hope you're cozy in there sweet Poppy, and developing well!

We love you very, very much. 

Can't wait to see you again, sweet baby.

Kisses from Mommy! (and Daddy, too!)

Interesting...

I have an OB appt later this morning, so this may be a 2-post-day. Brace yourselves. 

I keep seeing these "birth horoscopes" floating around the boards, so I finally answered the questions myself to see what mine would say...

Here it is folks... 

"The day you deliver, outside will be foggy. Your baby will arrive in the mid morning. After a labor lasting approximately 25 hours, your child, a boy, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 9 pounds, 14 ounces, and will be 18-1/2 inches long. This child will have medium amber eyes and a lot of auburn hair. "

WOW. 

Um, 25 hours of labor? My SIL delivered her first baby in 3 hours, start to finish, water breaking to delivery.. 3 hours. According to this horoscope, I won't be so lucky.

A boy? YAY! (Note: I would have the same reaction to see "a girl".. but I have had a feeling its a boy, so thats fun to see!)

9 pounds 14 ounces... sweet mother of pearl, thats a big baby. My niece was 9lbs11oz, and I know my mom delivered 4 rather large babies.. so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. And lets not forget, Poppy has already proven to be an over-achiever. 

Amber eyes.. very possible. Auburn hair.. very possible.

Guess we'll see in about 6 months just how accurate this online clairvoyant was/is.