Whoooa we're halfway there!

Well, halfway tomorrow. But, I am bombarded with work and such so I took my half way picture this afternoon. I can NOT believe everything is flying by as fast as it is. I've continued feeling little thumps from baby Weeks, but nothing that's as consistent as my worrying brain would like. I'm also excited to be sharing in my cousin's joy this Sunday at her baby shower - she's also having a boy and it's so cool that our kids will only be a few months apart!

The great movement game

Doctors will tell you to start feeling "flutters" of movement early in your second trimester. Many women describe these early movements like butterflies fluttering or even similar to gas bubbles. Obviously, this is a sign that baby is doing well and moving his way around the womb.

I haven't had such an easy time getting too feel baby Weeks. My cousin didn't feel her baby move until 23 weeks and I've spoken to many women who have had similar experiences, but, as you know, I am a worrier, so I wanted movement weeks ago. I've tried the laying on your left side after eating trick and have gotten something a time or two, but nothing truly distinctive. I have a rather strong pulse myself so end up just hearing the beat of my own heart instead of hearing any magical butterfly-like movements.

While driving, I've gotten a pang or two in the right "spots" but have been told that baby kicks don't really hurt so have chalked all that up to growing pains. But, last night I'm sure (well, like 85% sure) I finally felt it. At exactly 19 weeks during an epic church service I felt what was like a little tap on the lower part of my abdomen. Then, I felt it again, and then one more time. My face lit up with indescribable joy at the simple wonder of that moment. As to add more credence to my discovery I felt the same feeling relaxing at Easter today. I'm hoping this keeps up and completely solidifies my certainty, but either way, it was a magical holiday.

One thing down, 5 million to go

After many a trip to Babies-R-Us, I am happy to say our registry is COMPLETE! We've reviewed and previewed most everything on it and dragged baby-savvy friends with us to make sure we've gotten what we will both need and want.

Some of the items we're most excited about include our bedding set (Baby Lion King!), all of our big furniture item and all of the too cute for words accessories. I've already begun building baby boy Weeks a wardrobe (Babies-R-Us has had a BOGO free sale on their clearance clothes). Yesterday, I was able to get 6 items for $20! This is going to be one well dressed little boy!

Now, we're counting down to getting to the half-way mark, I'm 18w4d now, which means it's less than 2 weeks until the big 20-week marker! Excitement is definitely in the air!

Belly Progress

Now that we know baby boy Weeks is growing like a weed, I figured it was time for a check in on my outward progress! Here's me at 17w5d!

He's a mover and a shaker!

Today was the greatest of days, today we met our little baby boy for the first time. We were on pins and needles all morning getting ready for the big appointment. I followed the advice of all of the great ladies on the babycenter boards and started my morning with 2 chocolate frosted donuts, an orange juice, and had a bottle of ice cold water as a back up (thanks, Val :)). We were determined to make sure this baby was moving!

And boy was he. It took our awesome technician all of 30 seconds to determine that he was a he (no shy boy here). From then on, all I heard was the word perfect over and over again. Spine, perfect. Brain, perfect. Heart, perfect. Kidneys, 2, and perfect. Feet, perfect. Hands, perfect. We even got him to settle down long enough to get a few really cute pictures. Needless to say we're on cloud nine. In between my many meetings today, Jesse and I picked up the first outfits for baby Weeks as well as a few more items for the registry!

I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from family, friends and even friends I've lost touch with over the years. It takes a village to raise a child, and we sure do have one!

It's not to say I'm not still nervous, heck, I'm still 2 weeks away from the half way marker, but this day has calmed so many of our worse fears. And yes, we have a name in mind, and no, we're still not sure if we're sharing. We've told a couple people so far and have already gotten mixed reaction which is just not what we're looking for. We have thought this name through over and over again and don't want to second guess it when we finally agree! :)

And for your viewing pleasure tonight, baby Weeks:

Is it Thursday yet?

AHHHH I can not take it one more day!!! Insomnia is back in full force - dragging me through sleepless nights and scatter-brained days. I chalk this all up to our nervous anticipation of Thursday.

Most parents are excited to find out the "sex" - from the perspective of having a loss, this scan is MUCH more than that. People confuse this scan with a simple analysis of genitalia, but in reality, it is much, much more than that. During this appointment, the tech takes a careful look at every aspect of the unborn child. She looks at the brain, the spine, the bone structure, the chambers of the heart, the digestive system, then finally, the genitalia. Here, what is really important is that our baby is healthy and has no indicators of birth defects. For more info on the anatomy scan: http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/pregnancy-health/prenatal-testing/ultrasound-anatomy-two.aspx

We are of course looking forward to finding out the gender, that way we can hone in on our final name selection and register for gender-based items, but for now, we need your prayers. Pray that is baby is happy and healthy in there, waiting impatiently to meet us as we are waiting impatiently to meet him/her!

Registry Madness...

Another band-aid ripped off. After a fantastic day in Boston with Jesse Saturday, we stopped in Natick on the way home and hit up the Babies-R-Us. I honestly have never been so overwhelmed in my entire life. While everything looked cute - well more than cute - we had no idea what was actually well-made or well-suited for a small child.

We had made it our mission to get all of the "big" stuff out of the way. Our parents have been not so subtly hinting that they wanted to get an idea of what we were looking at for weeks now, so it was definitely time. Luckily as soon as we dived in, Jesse and I agreed on almost every front. We both favored a light-wood colored crib, both wanted a separate changing table, and furniture that our child will be able to use beyond infant hood.

After picking out furniture, we wandered into the world of strollers, high chairs, bouncy seats and swings. Again, completely overwhelmed. After comparing features, reviews via our iphones, and overall cuteness factors we were able to decide on these fronts as well. Wisely we picked out gender-neutral items as we want our children to come to be able to use all of these items as well.

Dizzy with baby items dancing in our heads, we decided to head out, feeling more than accomplished. Little did we know how far from our goal we actually were. The very nice lady at the registry counter literally scoffed at our goods - in her words "We were one-tenth of one chapter done". Sigh.

I returned to a more local store on Sunday and continued registering for everything that didn't have to be pink or blue and now feel like I've made much more of a dent. Speaking of all of this insanity - many thanks in advance to everyone who bestows their generosity upon us during this time. I mean, baby stuff is SO expensive. I had and idea that some things like the stroller and crib would cost a fortune, but $300 for a breast pump?!

Good thing baby Weeks will be worth every darn penny! :) In the meantime, feel free to check out what we picked out - BabiesRUs.com search either mine or Jesse's name!