Month 8

Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month.

Whoa Baby!

Here's Jacob at 28 weeks! What a difference from 17 weeks, huh?

7 Months and Counting!

Baby’s energy is surging, thanks to the formation of white fat deposits beneath the skin. (Have those kicks and jabs to the ribs tipped you off yet?) Baby is also settling into sleep and waking cycles, though -- as you’ve also probably noticed -- they don’t necessarily coincide with your own. Also this month, all five senses are finally functional, and the brain and nervous system are going through major developments.

Last Week of Second Tri!

After a month of having his eyelids sealed shut, your baby begins to open his eyes again this week. Your baby's eyes are almost completely developed. Your baby's eyes are blue in the womb and may change colors later in life. This is true for all races because the pupils do not have their final color until a few months after birth. However, some babies are born with darker or lighter shades of blue. Your growing baby will continue to put on layers of fat until he is born. He is still lean at this point of the pregnancy though. By the time your baby is born, he will assume the typical newborn's plumpness. Your baby's skin will still be wrinkled and red, but the fat continues to fill the skin out.

Finger and toe nails continue to grow.

Blood vessels start to develop in the lungs to prepare the baby for life outside the uterus.

Your baby's blood circulation is completely functional. The umbilical cord system continues to grow and thicken as blood travels with considerable force through the body to nurture the baby. The placenta is now almost equal in size to the baby.

Even though it is still way too soon for your baby to be born yet, the chance of survival without severe abnormalities is now 70% provided it is born in a hospital.

25 Weeks

How far along? 25 weeks
Maternity clothes? I can still pull of some old shirts
Sleep: Only for a few hours at a time, but I can still sleep on my side/belly.
Best moment this week: Lying in our pool
Movement: I feel him all day long :D
Food cravings: Oranges
Labor Signs: A lot of BH
Belly Button in or out? Half way out
What I miss: Being able to stand for long periods of time, esp. at night.
What I am looking forward to: Getting our glider stained
Weekly Wisdom: It's not going to get any easier from here
Milestones: Only one week left in the second trimester!

Lucky Me

Week 25

I can't believe we're already at 25 weeks!

Your little grower’s physical proportions are evening out at this point and most of their remaining development will largely be weight gain and lots and lots of nervous system development. The good news is: if your child is born premature now they’ll be more likely to survive without too much trauma as their lungs began to produce “surfactant” last week, which means their tiny respiratory system is getting stronger with each passing day. Yes, now’s a good time for a minor sigh of relief and a quick pat on the back. All that hard work and conscientious living is really getting your child prepared for a healthy delivery. Keep up the fabulous work mama! This week they’ll be scootching slowly out of the old breech position and start rotating (already!) into a better position for exit during their birth. Their head and feet are slowly rotating so that the head is pointed down towards the birth canal.

Drumroll

We've picked a name!

Jacob Thomas will be here by mid August!

I love this little guy.

24 weeks

Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving baby a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting the immune system ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink -- perfect for batting those freshly grown lashes.

Also, this week marked my V-Day. The point at which a pregnancy is now viable. At 24 weeks Baby B has a 36% of survival in the event he would be born now. It's a scary thought that a baby would be born at only 24 weeks (even though so many babies are each year) but it's a great milestone to reach knowing that from here on out, Baby B has a chance to be a healthy little guy.

So here's to V-Day, although Momma wants her little man to stay in his comfy home for at least another 13 weeks.

Banana Boy

Baby gulps down several ounces of amniotic fluid every day, both for hydration and nutrition and to practice swallowing and digesting. And, these days, those taste buds actually work! Studies show that after birth, babies are most interested in tastes they've already experienced through amniotic fluid. Meaning, think about what you want your future child to eat as you prepare your own lunch.

Big Ultrasound Pictures

We didn't get any great pictures of our little boy's face since he was upside down, and facing my back... but we did confirm that everything looked great. Saw the four chambers of his heart and measured his brain. Everything looked wonderful. I was a little suprised that the u/s tech didn't seem to be looking at each and every organ (or maybe she was) but the Dr. said everything looked fine, so that's good enough for me!

20 Weeks

How far along? 20 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: +12 lbs
Maternity clothes? Almost all maternity clothes
Stretch marks? No new ones
Sleep: Is exhausting
Best moment this week: Seeing the baby again today and knowing he's doing a-ok in there.
Movement: I feel him all day long :D
Food cravings: None
Gender: Still a boy!
Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? Can flat be an option?
What I miss: The ability to get things done around the house.
What I am looking forward to: Putting the dresser and bookshelf in the baby's room
Weekly Wisdom: People will touch your belly, even if you ask them not to.
Milestones: We're at the halfway point!!!

Half Way There

I can't believe we're half way there already! We had our "big" ultrasound today and Baby B is still a boy, Whew! All of his parts looks great, floating around upside down in there, AND he's measuring ahead of my original EDD still so August 15 is a better EDD. Although he could come any time between the first week of July (37 weeks) and last week of August (42 weeks).

I'm really starting to feel him kick and jab now everyday, which is fantastic. We're less than 4 weeks from our V-day, too. Woot!

19 weeks

How far along? 19 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Around 8 lbs...
Maternity clothes? Maternity pants and the same 'ol shirts
Stretch marks? No new ones
Sleep: Comes and goes
Best moment this week: Hearings the babe's HB
Movement: No change
Food cravings: Salty
Gender: It's a boy!
Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? Almost flat!
What I miss: Sleeping and running
What I am looking forward to: Our "big" u/s next week
Weekly Wisdom: Get your rest... willingly. Because your body is going to make you rest whether you like it or not.
Milestones: We've picked a name... I think.

Showers

Ugh. Honestly, the most stressful part of any celebration is a shower. My wedding shower was so stressful and I'm starting to dread my baby showers. Hub's family wants me to travel to their state so that they may throw me a shower. Novel idea but I only know a hand-full of people up there and I know it's going to be more than just the few I know. They are the kind of people who invite everyone they've ever known to anything they host.

Not to mention that Dh's aunt felt the liberty to make very clear only moments after I gushed "oh that's lovely for you to want to throw us a shower", "Well it's really not for you, it's more for us since we didn't get to give you anything for your wedding."
... umm actually you could have sent us something for our wedding but you, and most of my IL's didn't. Instead my MIL called and reamed me for an email he ex-husband wrote her about not forcing us to have flowers at our rehearsal dinner and that he'd like to help pay for part of it (from what I gathered...). All of this while she knew I was at my grandmother's funeral (I only answered since I thought she was calling to say she was sorry about the news... boy was I wrong) and then my parent's dis-invited her... 7 weeks before our wedding. Awesome. I re-invited her, via email, 4 weeks before our wedding and she thinks everything is all better. No, nothing is 'better' I did it so my husband wouldn't have to feel guilty for the rest of her life.

Anyway...

The thought of flying (which I'll have to do before 30w) is freaking me out a bit, and driving isn't an option since it's 9 hours away... on a good day... with no stops. I've also decided that if my husband can't go with me to the shower, that I would let them know I was bringing a female friend/sister/whoever to join me since there is no way I'm going alone.

DH mentioned that it would be 'worth it' since his family buys "expensive gifts" and doesn't "go off registries". Um, actually that's exactly what I don't want to happen. We aren't sharing the name, which we've mention already, although some people seem to ignore that and keep asking for the name "for monogramming purposes". So I can't imagine what people would want to get us since they can't monogram/engrave/emboss/whatever... whatever $100 silver rattle they buy. I don't expect gifts, but if someone would like to get us something, I would love for it to be something I'm actually going to use. I'm not the kind of person that will take out the crap people get us for holidays or pictures. I don't need 25 blankets with our last name on it, but I could really use a pack of wipes...

Countdown

I can't wait to see the babe again! It'll be such a relief to know he's growing and developing just like he should. Just 2 more weeks!

Stolen

How far along? 18 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Up 8 lbs
Maternity clothes? Maternity pants and the same 'ol shirts
Stretch marks? Little ones on my hips, may have more to do with the 15 pounds I gained after my wedding...
Sleep: Sucks more each night
Best moment this week: Feeling baby kick from the outside
Movement: He's more active at night, but nothing predictable, yet
Food cravings: Anything salty, which has lead to me being swollen for the last week
Gender: It's a boy!
Labor Signs: None
Belly Button in or out? It's off the muscle now, but still in
What I miss: Sleeping
What I am looking forward to: Week 24
Weekly Wisdom: Do not spring clean while pregnant, it will kick you in the ass in the morning
Milestones: We're 5 months now!

So sweet...

Hi son! You're now the size of my favorite side item. A sweet potato. I started hanging up your little clothes this week since you have so many now. Only 17 more days until we see you again!

Week 17

Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints.

In less than a month we're half way there. Well since "full term" is 37 weeks, we're only a week away! So crazy how fast, yet so slow this is going. I'm starting to really feel Baby B jab around in there.

I'm already starting to think about the nursery, even though my mother swears that Italians do not put up the nursery until the baby is home. Sounds like a lot of work with a baby if you ask me. But those were the days when your mother and mil would come spends weeks with you and clean your house and set up your nursery... I don't think so. I told my mother I wouldn't set up... the crib. My dad can do that while I'm in the hospital if it makes her feel better.