Belly at night

Here's a few pictures of my Belly last night! Think it grew a bit??

Visitors!

My sister and Baby C are coming to visit next week! I have a count down in my head, yes, I'm that excited. I haven't seen Chiara since she was three weeks old and can't wait to get my hands on her! She's a little munchkin! My sister has offered to help with getting some baby stuff done, which I'm thankful for. It will be nice to have them here visiting!!

In the mean time, Austin and I are trying to get the rooms organized and set up the crib so Chiara has a place to sleep.

The need to clean

I've had a list of "spring" cleaning items I've wanted to get done for some time now. My goal was to have them all accomplished by the time my sister and Baby C arrived the beginning of Nov. And, hopefully, if all goes well, and I say with the little motivation I have today, I'll be done by tomorrow. It's those little things, cleaning off fans, washing windows, dusting base boards...that I hate to do, but know NEED to be done. I'd rather do it now while I can still bend over than worry about it a week or two before the baby arrives.

Up close and personal

I forgot to add this beautiful unclose picture of my belly...sorry it's so blurry!

Almost 27 weeks (6 1/2 months!)

Here are some much awaited, at least I think you want to see, the belly! I seem to think it grows on a daily basis, and so do my clothes. I swear I was way bigger last night and then this morning small again. Maybe I'll start taking an AM and PM pic, so just prove my point.

Anyway, Enjoy.

Hopefully, with feeling a little better, I'll be able to start posting more pictures!

Sick of being sick...

Monday night I started to feel like my throat was bothering me. Sure enough, by the time I went to bed Monday night it was hurting! Over the last three days I’ve been battling it with tea, cough drops and lots of rest. It isn’t like me to sit still very long, and to be honest, I’m having a hard time not doing stuff. But I know the more I rest the sooner I’ll be over this thing. It has since moved out of my throat and into my head. I can’t decide which is better. Either way, I’ll be happy when it’s over. Being sick while pregnant isn’t that enjoyable.

Big Kicks

It’s obvious that Baby Stutz is getting stronger, mainly from his/her kicks. This week they have been so strong, that he/she has moved my hand off my belly with the force (Baby Stutz kicks now as I write this! Maybe his/her way of being a part of the blog?!)

Bigger Belly

The belly is growing; of course, I would hope it would be. I’m now 26 ½ weeks, so almost 6 ½ months! The time is really going by fast. I’m trying to cherish the last two weeks of the 2nd Trimester before we jump into the 3rd. Maybe people have told me the 3rd Trimester is when you’re most uncomfortable, which I’m hoping to combat with walking, exercise and plenty of sleep. I haven’t posted pictures this week because I haven’t been feeling well, but I promise to soon!

Birthing Class

Austin and I had our first Birthing class last Saturday. Our doula is also giving us private, in home, classes, which is so nice. I’m excited to get to know her more personally and for her to know us more. During the class we went over a lot of the terms used during labor and all of the interventions. It was empowering to learn of our options and how to advocate for our birthing plan. She is coming out again tomorrow and Saturday. This weekend we’re focusing on massage, yes please, I’ll take it!

Check up

We had our monthly "family circle" appointment yesterday. My blood pressure, weight and urine all looked good and the baby's heart beat was great, ranging between 149-155. I didn't realize, although now that I know it makes complete sense, that when the baby is moving around and kicking his/her heart rate appears higher than when he/she is at rest. We got to see that in action, when the heart rate would jump to 155 at the exact time I felt the baby moving around. Very exciting.

The class it self is interesting. It's nice to be able to share this experience with a bunch of other families that are due around the same time. It offers support, encouragement and ideas we wouldn't normally think of.

We start our natural child birthing classes this Saturday. I'm looking forward to seeing the tools and techniques she has for us to learn. It should be an interesting morning!

Off to bed, I could have gone to sleep when I got home at 7pm, but I managed to hold off until now.

Out the door...

So I thought I had this who theory on when the baby moved, WRONG! That "schedule" I posted a week or so ago, has completely been thrown out the window. The baby seems to have times when he/she is really busy for days and then days of little movements! Either way, I cherish the moments the baby moves. Guess it goes to show, baby's don't have schedules or when you think you have a schedule for them, BAM....it changes!

Dress clothes

I finally decided to take a picture of the growing belly with some dress clothes, rather than the more comfortable shorts and t-shirt (although, I must say, I would rather be in the comfy clothes!!). Anyway, here's a few pictures from this morning. Belly week 24

Belly and Frozen Yogurt...what a team!

Friday night and I'm just about to head out to pick up some pumpkin frozen yogurt!! YUM!! I decided to dress in all comfy warm clothes, even though it's currently 78 outside. There is something about a weekend night sitting on the couch, fro yo in hand, that just seems right. Can't wait to be able to do this with Baby Stutz.

A few Belly shots, pre fro yo!

Growth Spurt

This Baby must be going through a growth spurt, because I’m exhausted and beyond hungry today. It seems that no matter what I eat I’m hungry in less than an hour. And I don’t mean, the “Oh, I think I could use a snack” time of hungry. Oh no, it’s more like, “if I don’t get food in my soon, I’m going to hit someone”. Ok, maybe that’s a little violent, but seriously, I’ve been so hungry today I can’t stay on top of it. My mission this weekend is to find more snacks to eat, a variety of foods to have in the house, on hand, so I can bring extra food with me to work!
Not only am I hungry, but my belly seems to have grown in the last day or two. Usually once month I get a sore/stretching feeling in the upper part of my stomach. I’m guessing it has to do with the child that is growing inside me!

Did I mention in the last posts that the Baby weighed 1.5lbs and that the Bunting was in the 53% for height/weight?! It’s amazing to me that they can already tell that, just from an ultra sound.
I continue to measure early, in fact 4 days earlier than my original due date. So that would put their prediction of the Baby’s arrival at Feb. 4th. I’ll continue to think the 8th, just in case he/she decides to be late!

Pictures of the belly to come….I should have taken a picture or two before I left for work, all dressed up. Instead, I’m sure it will be a picture of me in sweats!! YES, I love comfy clothes!!!

Baby Update

Thank you for all the phone calls, prayers and emails!! I didn't get a chance to update the blog after our ultrasound today. Basically, we were informed that the Kidney tube (going to the bladder) is still bigger than what they would like to see it as. But they are hopeful that the sizing with go down as the baby develops. We have another ultrasound at 32 weeks to see how the baby is doing and developing, which just gives us another peek at the little bunting. We did get to see a few 3D photos and videos of the baby, which were amazing. Enjoy the two pictures below...both are profiles of the baby's face! He/she really loves having his/her hands in his/her mouth!

More belly pictures and updates to come!

Bunting's profile...

We had another ultrasound today, to check the Baby's heart and his/her mouth. Both looked perfect. The heart's four chambers were easy to see and the mouth was fully formed. This was a much more in depths ultrasound than the one three weeks ago. My Midwife and ultrasound tech did say that the Baby's right kidney was double the "normal" size, so I'm going to see a specialist tomorrow for yet another ultrasound. I'm looking at it from the perspective of getting to see the little munchkin another time!! My Midwife did inform me that the Baby was producing urine and amniotic fluid and that was a good sign for the function of the kidneys. She seems to think it's just "filled" and will be empty by the time we go tomorrow. We'll have more answers after our EARLY (7:30am) ultrasound tomorrow!

Plus Austin wasn't able to come with me today, but will be able to tomorrow, so he'll be able to see the nugget again too!!

Austin's Mom came with me today!! It was so nice to have someone there to share in the experience..Thanks Heather for a wonderful morning, I had a great time!!

Below are the pictures from the ultrasound, both are profile shots! On the Baby has his/her hand in his/her mouth...so cute! Heather said he's (yes, she thinks, along with me and my mom that the baby is a boy!!) blowing kisses to his Grandma. Precious.

Two bare feet....

I loved this picture...Two little feet, together and kicking!!

5 years of Bliss...

This past weekend we celebrated 5 years of marriage!! Wow. I can't believe it's been five years already. When we were first married, people would ask us, "So, when are you going to have kids"? And our response was always, "in a few years". Well, two years lead to three, which turned into four and now five. We're so thankful we waited to start a family. We spent the last five years, figuring out married life, being selfish, taking trips, snowboarding for weekends on end and enjoying our time together. We wouldn't want it any other way. We're so blessed to have had the last five years together, just us. A year from now we'll be celebrating, not just another year of marriage, but our first year as parents as well. We're looking forward to the new chapter, the challenges and the simple joyful moments we know will come with the next year!

Enjoy a few of the pictures from our Anniversary weekend. Dinner was amazing, the flowers (a surprise) were beautiful and it was nice to just get away and relax for the weekend!

Bunting on the move

The baby has really started moving. I was a little nervous on Saturday when he/she didn't move very much, but by Sunday I knew everything was fine. Baby Stutz has started to move all the time, and not just little movements, but big flips and lots of kicks. On Sunday we started to realize if we watch my belly when the baby start kicking that you can actually see where he/she is doing the kicking. My stomach pushes out a big where the kick is!

I didn't realize how much I would come to love the baby's movement. I always found it strange when people would say " I miss him/her in my belly", but now I know exactly what they mean. It will be different not having the baby moving around.

I'm going to try and cherish the movements for the next four months.

22 weeks

Here are a few pictures from last night, when I really thought my belly was big. It does seems to grow throughout the day.

The bunting grows..

It seems to me like the belly is growing on a daily basis. I'm continually trying on shirts that were BIG before pregnancy and finding out that they fit one week and then next are way to tight! And so the belly grows..Enjoy a few of the pics from this weekend's belly!