10.31.2004

15 Weeks


I don't feel like i look more pregnant until i look at these pictures. I am hoping to start having more of a rounded belly than just a jelly belly, but i believe things are progressing. This week the baby is the size of an avocado! Posted by Hello

10.28.2004

Music Suggestions

A project i've been envisioning tackling before the baby comes, is compiling playlists of music that will come in handy for several baby-related activities. For example, soothing the baby with a bed-time ritual, middle of the night music, active time music, etc. I'm not looking for standard lullabys, or Raffi, but more along the lines of adult music that suits these needs.

I'd love to get everyone's suggestions for what they would put on baby playlists. Feel free to use the comments feature below to let me know what you think.

10.25.2004

Registry Info

It's a big news day today, what with two posts. It's still ridiculously early, but i couldn't hold off on setting up the registry any longer. In part i'll rationalize it by saying that we registered at Babies-R-Us, and they are located out in a part of the suburbs that are very far away and i don't like to frequent. I was out there over the weekend arranging delivery of my new office furniture from Ikea, so i decided to just hop on over to the Baby superstore and get things going. Once you have the registry set-up in the store you can edit, add and delete, on-line so i hope to not make many trips back out there.

Other than letting you know you can find the registry information by clicking on the "baby registry" link on the right hand side, i also have to let you know about the experience. I was led to believe that even the most organized would be waylaid by the overwhelming selection and the salespeople that convince you of ridiculous needs.

I know this is no predictor of successfull parenting, but i frankly have to say i did a great, fast job setting up the registry. I already knew what i wanted and what i didn't and the color-coded layout of the store made it really easy. I asked one question of a salesperson and they answered it and moved on. Really, it wasn't the nightmare it was made out to be.

I did have to laugh however at all the promotional materials they give you when you sign-up. My favorite was all the materials and coupons targeted at the grandparents. Obviously it's a lucrative market, but it seemed a little brash to agree to fork over our parents mailing information.

The other thing that caused me a chuckle was when they print out your list after you've scanned everything you want, the last page lets you know what items you missed. It has some language at the top of the page and when i first glanced at it, i just saw the words "know best what's right for your baby." Without reading it, i assumed it said something like "obviously you know what's right for your baby, but here are a few things you might think about adding to your registry." I was thinking how smooth they were in their marketing deparment.

However when i actually read the text it had a much more blunt message. Something to the effect of "Babies-R-Us knows what's best for your baby, so don't forget to register for these missing items."

So, we're registered and now i'm free to spend more time eating per my earlier message.

Baby active, gain more weight!

I had my 15 week Dr. appt today and all is well with the baby. The heartbeat was still a strong 160 bpm and the little guy was very active. We frequently heard static which Dr. P said was the baby moving around.

I actually lost a pound since my last appt, which isn't completely catastrophic because i have gained 7 pounds overall which is right on track. However, i'm moving in the wrong direction, so we had a humorous talk about ways to gain weight. I'm supposed to eat more cheese, work whole milk into my diet, and cook with butter! At the end of the conversation Dr. P asked what i usually drink. When i said water, she told me to supplement with juice and that i "would be fattened up in no time."

So Doctor's orders-- more calories and fat!

10.24.2004


Here i am at 14 weeks, with a new haircut, and trying to maintain good posture. *A note to my readers, i want you to know that i am wearing this outfit for picture comparison purposes only. Not only do i have more than this one outfit-- i wouldn't be caught dead outside the house this uncovered.* Posted by Hello

10.22.2004

Chemical Imbalance

JT and i are working with a financial planner to get things in order while the money's good and the baby's on the way. One of the things we're doing is considering life insurance.

As we were discussing the medical exam required before a final life insurance offer is made by the company, i enquired if being pregnant affected the status. Our planner assured me that they take the pregnancy into account when evaluating your medical status because essentially, "pregnancy is a chemical imbalance they can control for."

I loved this explanation. I think i'm going to think of the remaining months as being in a perpetually imbalanced state. I think it explains a lot.

10.21.2004


Here's a decent picture-- bit blurry since i took it with the autofocus feature. I'll have JT take a better one this weekend. Posted by Hello

10.19.2004

New Haircut--New Attitude

Recently i've been feeling a bit schlumpy. I've gained some weight and my normal clothes don't fit well, but i don't really look pregnant. The fact that i work at home and keep warm by wearing a polar fleece sack, doesn't help. All of this was starting to take a toll on my self-image. Today, a spunky short hair-cut helped boost my image and should come in handy when the baby is here. Before and After pictures coming soon.

10.16.2004


We wanted a cool rocker for our baby's room. I think we found just the thing and for quite a steal, on ebay nonetheless! Posted by Hello

13 Week Belly


Not sure if my belly is much bigger this week, but more importantly, at 13 weeks the baby is supposedly the size of a peach-- or even better, a jumbo shrimp. I can't wait to find out what 14 weeks holds. Posted by Hello

10.09.2004

12 Week Belly


The start of a decent belly. I'm told the baby is the size of a lime this week. Posted by Hello

Baseline Belly


This is the baseline 8 week belly against which all future pictures will be judged. Posted by Hello

10.08.2004


Here's the baby blob at 8 weeks. An 11-week doppler reading showed a strong heartbeat of 164 bpm. By the beginning of November we should have a 16-week ultrasound and perhaps a good estimate on the sex of the baby. Posted by Hello