V-day!

I'm 24 weeks along today! Huge milestone, because if for whatever reason I had the baby right now, the hospital would attempt to save it. I think I read somewhere that there's a 50-90% survival rate for babies born at 24 weeks. I DO NOT want to go into labor, obviously, but its crazy to think that a viable human life is inside of me right now.

In other news, 2 weeks ago I had gained 10 lbs total. At the visit today, that number climbed to 17. Apparently this is normal, but I also bought 4 boxes of girl scout cookies that have mostly been demolished in the last 3 days. We can blame it on the baby, though.

I also paid rent today, so I asked about painting the baby's room (provided that I paint it back). We get along great, so he was inferring that it would be fine, regardless of whether I painted it back or not. I'm thinking a light grey, but I want to plan it out well, so I don't change my mind 12 times. This is the color scheme I'm thinking of:

Next up on the to-do list for today is the Bordatella shot for Hercules, so that we can put them both in boarding when we go to Michigan, which is March 7-12! I can't imagine leaving them behind, but there's no where for them to go up there, and we're appreciating the fact that we can fly, now. The boarding place is called Animal House, and they'll have their own indoor/outdoor room for only $40 a night! http://www.ncanimalhouse.com, for anyone in the area that is looking for a place to board. The baby shower will be March 10th, tentatively. It's going to be a very small gathering, which is great, because I seriously hate all that attention. I can't wait to see my family, though, as it doesn't happen very often! Definitely the best part about showers.

Here's my 24 week picture:

Word Vomit

^ From the 20 week ultrasound

 

I'm 22 weeks along today! At times I feel like this is going by so slow, but when I think about only having 4 months to go, I have a mini heart attack. What have I been doing this whole time, ya know?
 
First, the cradle and the crib have been assembled, after many hours of trying to figure it out, 2 trips to Lowe's, and a decent amount of wood glue. We put Xena in the crib to make sure it would hold. It did. Hopefully our baby doesn't exceed 68 lbs.
 
Here's my dogs, because I love them:
 

 
Second, we've received many items that we don't have to worry about getting now, and almost all thanks goes to Simon's mom, Lori! Newborn sized clothing? Floor level swing? Diaper pail? Check, check, check. And that's not all, trust me.
 
My friend Amanda gave me a shit ton of books for the baby. They range anywhere from newborn books to the first books he'll read. The best find in the box was Go, Dog, Go! That was always my favorite book as a child. There's also a lot of Dr. Seuss, which I'm ecstatic over!
 
The Steffens' gave us one of those things you put the baby in, and it vibrates (help with the official name, please?), and also an adorable 5 pc onesie set. The most thoughtful part was that it was football themed for Simon (obvi), so they bought sizes that the baby will be in when he will be back from the deployment.
 
Next we need to start working on the nursery. I want to order the blue and brown elephants design at www.tempaperdesigns.com. It is removable wall paper, which is perfect for us, because we're renting, but I don't want to sacrifice style. Although adorable, do I really want to settle on elephants?! Ideally, it would be nautical themed. Give me some time to think about it.
 
Scratch that. I know 4 months seems far off, but in reality, Simon will only be home for like a total of a month before he leaves. Any help I need from him can't really wait.
 
We've decided on the name, and we'll be announcing it soon, probably. I don't think its a secret, anyways. Hint: whether it's a nautical themed nursery, or anything with animals, it would be a perfect fit with his first name. 
 
Here's a 22 week picture:

Gender Reveal

Simon went with me to the 20 wk ultrasound today. It was absolutely amazing. We got to see all of the body parts in detail (heart, bladder, kidneys, etc.), and he heard the heartbeat for the first time. The baby was moving around so much, so it took a while to get all of the pictures. We even got to see it yawn! The best part was finding out the gender, though.

Small Fry is ... :)

I was excited either way. I'd love the thought of having a little girl to put her in tutu's and dance lessons, and I love the idea of Simon having a boy, so he can teach him football. In the last week or so, I had actually changed my mind to want a boy as well. I felt like a boy would fit into the dynamic of our family well. However, we were pretty convinced we were having a girl.

Looks like those tutu's will have to wait. We'll be having a beautiful baby boy in May, and we couldn't be more thrilled!

Love always,
Kristin

20 weeks

Good news: I'm exactly 20 weeks pregnant today. It's awesome to know that I'm halfway through my pregnancy. I don't have the worries I used to have earlier on, but I did have a nightmare last night that I lost the baby. I was in the hospital, because I went into early labor. Because I wasn't at 24 weeks, they didn't try to save the baby. (Side note: V-day is January 31st!) It sort of freaked me out. I hate that.

More good news: Simon picked me up on my lunch hour, and we went to Lowe's to get the rest of the wood to make our crib work. The cradle was put together earlier this week, and the crib will be finished tonight. In other words: after all this tedious BS is finished, I'll be working on some awesome diy projects for the nursery! I'll be posting photos, how-to's, and probably some links to go along with it. We'll see. I've never done anything like that before.

Extra good news: We find out the sex of the baby in five days. Holy cow.

Below is a 20 weeks picture. I got fat, and I'm slowly learning how to deal with it. It's hard, but relieving to know that the baby is growing. :)

Love,
Kristin