week 23

melting hearts of the world unite.

Best Moment: As with many a Memorial weekends in the past, we spent the weekend with the Soderquist clan in Winthrop. The weekend was just what the doctor ordered- lots of catching up with the fam, sleep, and sunshine! It’s been long overdue for the 5 of us to get together and felt good to connect as a family again and share in the excitement of the newest addition to the Soderquist clan.  Little bee seemed to love it too, as I’m pretty sure h/s was dancing around all weekend.

Symptoms: Welcome back heart burn, hello Zantac. Why have I never heard of taking Zantac before? It wasn’t until our appointment last Thursday that our doctor recommended Zantac for heartburn and I’ll tell you what, that stuff is a miracle drug. A damn miracle drug. I’ve tried to stay pretty natural with meds and such, but if you’ve ever had heart burn, you know natural or not, you ain’t winning any awards for pushing through with it. None. So if it’s not harming the baby, mama is downing it!

Cravings/Aversions: Now that my craving for sundaes has been satisfied, I’m now onto the cupcake portion of this program. Funfetti and/or yellow cake w/ chocolate frosting is literally taking over my mind and logic.  Where’s Betty Crocker delivering me cupcakes when I need her? Get out of the kitchen and into my belly.

What I miss: Not feeling too deprived this week…imagine that.

What I can’t wait for: Evan to feel the baby kick. Lately I’ve been experiencing all of the fun and I can’t wait for the day (it should be soon!) for him to have his hand on my belly and feel our little babe kicking away.

Milestones:  Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking (yay Kirby!) or the roar of the vacuum cleaner (yay Hoover!) — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

week 22

Best Moment: We’re finally settled! It’s amazing what hanging a few pictures, a new rug and giving the place a good vacuum can do. Sunday night Evan and I were sitting on the couch, releasing a big sigh of relief that the place finally feels like home. Of course, I’m still waiting for the paint job and potential carpet replacement to feel completely settled, but for now, we’re in a great state.  Next stop, baby’s room.

Symptoms: Fatigue. Tired. Beat. Rundown. This week has been exhausting! Not quite first trimester exhausting, but nonetheless, mama’s been real tired this week. Sleeping is becoming less and less comfortable, which is my own personal idea of hell, so apparently I need to start packing in the pillows. We’ll see. Multiple pillows in bed, under the covers intimidates me. How is there room for them?! I’m sure next week I’ll be raving about the benefits of a pillow her, a pillow there…pillows everywhere! But for now…I’ll just keep trying to find the perfect position.

Cravings/Aversions: I finally caved into my sundae craving and all was well in the world. Berries have also made their way to the top of the list and I can’t get enough blackberries, strawberries and raspberries. Still trying to keep tomatoes, chocolate (aside from sundaes of course) and caffeine out of my life. My poor heart cannot handle any more burn.

What I miss: Sleeping comfortably. Of course, this is most likely nature’s brilliant way of preparing me for the many sleepless nights that lie ahead once the little bee arrives…but for the love, let me squeeze in all the good sleep I can now. Please.

What I can’t wait for: The nap that awaits me at the end of today.

Milestones:  At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His (finally…the male pronoun is used!) lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

week 21

I was browsing my phone the other day and realized I have batches of cuteness, via other people's children. Here are a few recent faves (moms- hopefully you don't mind my sharing your children with the world...or w/the 5 people who actually read this thing)

miss addy

lucy

cannot.even.handle (lu's piggies)



tink AND buddy (puppy and baby= cuteness over.load.)

Best Moment: Mother’s Day Kirkland getaway. I must proclaim how much I love my husband. Typically we don’t utilize the online space for declarations of love, but I feel it’s appropriate to make an exception with this one. I love, love, love my hubby! For my first Mother’s Day (and yes, it is considered my first…I have a child inside me…how much more maternal can one get?) Evan planned an overnighter getaway in Kirkland. We stayed at a beautiful hotel downtown, had a fabulous pre-dinner picnic, wonderful dinner and even better stroll around town enjoying some gelato. In the morning, he ran out and grabbed pastries before I even woke up and served me breakfast in bed. Who is this man and what have you done with my husband?! The weather was absolutely perfect and I couldn’t have asked for a better, much needed quality-time retreat with Evan. Coworkers joke that this was probably the best Mother’s Day I’ll ever have. And if that’s the case, thank God I’m documenting it now.

Also started prenatal yoga, which was a hit. I love me some yoga and this was just what the doc ordered. Apparently, I’ve been super tight. Because apparently, just walking doesn’t solve the world’s problems.

Symptoms: Symptoms? I ain’t got none. Aside from being a little more tired than usual, I feel great. The heartburn seems to have settled it’s fire breathing horses for a bit, or perhaps my elimination of tomatoes, chocolate and some caffeine has helped the situation, either way, I don’t want to rip my heart out like I did last week. So that’s good.

Cravings/Aversions: Cupcakes and ice cream. I’m a 5 year olds’ birthday. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I haven’t caved…well too much. Actually, that’s a lie. The cupcake part no, the ice cream part, yes. I’ve indulged, and it feels good. There. Guilty conscience, you can shut up now.

What I miss: Not feeling winded. They say that when you’re pregnant, you have like 50% more blood, which causes your body to work much harder to pump it all through you (or something to that medical effect) and they? Weren’t kidding. I find myself getting winded more and more and it’s rather quite embarrassing.  Sure I know I have a great reason, but no one wants to get winded going up one flight of stairs. Especially when I’ve spent my whole life trying to pretend that I’m totally in shape and fit.  This doesn’t support my case.

What I can’t wait for: Daycare hell to come to an end. Oh the joys of being a working mother, right? We have decided that I will go back to work after the baby is born (haha…we “decided.” As if we ever had a choice- thank you younger selves and your stellar financial decisions) which means that our little bee will need to be in some type of childcare. And this means? Competition, waiting lists, and an uncomfortable amount of money. Looks like we better start stocking up on Top Ramen now and that second car will come around the same time bee gets his/her first car. Oh and bee? Don’t worry about college, it’s overrated and a trade is fantastic. We totally support that.  If I sound bitter, it’s because I am.

Milestones: Baby's now the size of a pomegranate! Baby's digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion, and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And, if baby is a girl, her womb is now stocked up with her lifetime supply of six million eggs (the number will drop to around one million by birth).

week 20

omg...i'm pregnant!

Best Moment: This has been quite the week. Not only did we finally move into our new humble abode (cheers, cheers), but we saw little bee in full 20 week glory! Thankfully, h/s remained modest and kept h/h little legs closed nice and tight so mom, daddy and grandma couldn't sneak a peak. Naturally, I was obsessing over every little part "that's definitely a vagina....oh wait, no, that's totally a penis" and naturally, the sonographer (is that what they're called?) corrected that I was actually seeing things like heart chambers and the umbilical cord....

Baby Anatomy:1 Jamie: 0

5 little piggies

#1!

perfect profile

Evan and I are continually amazed each time we see our little babe, but what always gets us is the heartbeat. Seeing the little blip-blip of the heartbeat pulls at our heart strings. It's proof that this little creature we've created is alive and thriving. The feelings are just plain indesribable. And to top it all off, my mom came with us to this appointment which was so special. I know that when she was pregnant with Nick and I, my grandma took her to her appointments and I am so blessed to get to share the experience with her and my little baby. 

Symptoms: Heart.Burn. And boy does it buuuurrrnnnn. I know I mentioned this last week, but it seems to have increased ten fold this week. I'm staying away from the common culprits- caffeine, spicy/greasy food, and chocolate (for the most part) so this is obviously purely bee related. The books have warned me about it, and alas, tis my turn. 

Symptom may not be the most appropriate term, but the fabulous little flutters in my belly have increased and I'm loving it! It's so fun to see what the babe reacts to (so far bee loves passion tea- particularly iced, carrots and hummus, jimmy johns and ice cream) and when h/s is up and swinging. It makes me chuckle every time I feel the buzzing and I can't wait for the day when Evan can feel it for himself. 

Cravings/aversions: Ice cream. No further explanation. 

What I miss: Between the move and crazy days at work, I just need a glass of wine already!

What I can’t wait for: Starting prenatal yoga with my girl Sara who is a month behind me on the baby train. All aboard!

Milestones: Baby weighs about 10.2 ounces and measures about 6.5 inches (about the size of a banana). She's still got a lot of growing to do though. She's got working taste buds and is now gulping down several ounces of amniotic fluid each day.