holy moly is registering for baby stuff crazy!!! i’ve never been given so many options before… “what kind of bottle system? what kind of pacifiers? would you like orthodontic pacifiers? how about a tempurpedic sleeper system to prevent SIDS?” i’m struggling with decision-making in the first place (which has never been a problem for me until the pregnancy) so registering was quite the challenge… paul not being a part of it, nor the comic relief since he would totally play with the toys, was difficult too. good thing i had mom with me, though she seemed to be just as overwhelmed.

so far we are registered at target and at babies r us. we had the greatest experience at babies r us once the woman gave us a map of the store and showed us how everything was layed out (it made things a teensy bit less stressful). my favorite part was testing out all the rocking chairs and gliders. i think we have a pretty good registry. we’re also going to take a look at pottery barn kids (i’m hoping things are marked down for the holidays since they’re expensive over there).

feeling great in atlanta!!! i’m really enjoying being pregnant and feeling really comfortable in my skin (which is expanding by the second). the little man is movin’ and a shakin’ constantly, which is fun and at times makes me literally laugh out loud with his tickles. yesterday i was on the phone with paul and i set the phone on my belly for a moment and the little man nudged it. it didn’t fall off my belly, but bounced up and down. i like feeling that i’m never alone. he certainly lets me know that he is with me (even in the middle of the night).

tuesday will be 23 weeks for us and mr. magoo should be around 11 inches long (if not longer given mine and paul’s genes). he can supposedly hear everything really well at this point, and i can kind of tell that… when we’re in church and the band starts playing he dances a little bit. i want january to get here quickly and pass even quicker so that paul can get home and start talking to his little man.

hope everyone has a great new year!!!

the little man is practicing his karate for japan already!!! he’s so active, kicking a lot and rolling around. the best part of it all is that now that i’m in atlanta, my family has been able to feel him too!!!! uncle b was the first one to feel him the other night, and now that the little man has established a pattern of waking up after i eat, my parent have been able to feel him kick. i know paul is hurting for his connection with the baby right now since he’s gone. they had bonded before he left… paul would talk to him and always had his hand on my belly… while he’s jealous that he’s missed feeling the first kick, he’s so glad that my brother has been able to step up and be there for me.

things in atlanta are good and COLD!!! tonight is supposed to get below freezing and we’re hoping for snow… just some flurries would be fun to see for christmas.

that’s all for now. 22 weeks on tuesday!!!

hi everyone! i am attaching a picture that i took of red over the weekend. one of my students cleaned out her toy closet and decided to give red a christmas gift. this stuffed dog is red’s “baby” and he is practicing for brotherhood… it’s hysterical. he takes his “baby” wherever he goes and absolutely LOVES bringing it to bed at night.

in other news…. i am 21 weeks and feeling GREAT!!! i had a wonderful doctor’s appointment today, and i couldn’t feel more blessed right now. our little man is rolling around constantly, making his presence known. it’s so fun to feel him moving around each day. he makes me laugh already with his little tickles and nudges. he is very healthy, all of my measurements are right where they should be… i couldn’t ask for much more (other than for paul to be home of course). my doctor is just perfect. i enjoy her so much, and feel so wonderful with every bit of encouragement that she offers me. i have started to question my doctor about birthing methods, epidurals, etc… and it seems as if with each question i ask, she gives me every single answer that i want to hear. what doctor does that?!?! she is a gem! i seriously want to ask her to be my best friend.

my last day of work is TOMORROW!!!! i’m thrilled. ok, so i’ll miss my students and super duper colleagues, but i’m really ready to enjoy a nice long break with my family and then really embrace “baby mode” when i return to jacksonville in january. this doctor’s appointment that i had today felt like the perfect little send-off for myself and the little man. we’re good, healthy, happy, and ready to head to atlanta!!!

enjoy the pic of red!!! next time i post, it’ll be from atlanta.

the babies are everywhere!!! and i can’t help myself from laughing hysterically at all of this that seems to be flooding my little world right now. both paul and i have pregnant cousins (each preggers with a boy), our dear dear friends out in washington state had a baby boy this week (see attached peanut picture), and our sweet surrogate niece (another friend’s little one) turned 2 years old on friday!!! (again, see attached picture) it’s craziness, i tell ya, pure craziness!!!

on another note but equally crazy…. something that not everyone seems to be experiencing along with me, is this idea of us moving to japan next year. JAPAN!!!! talk about insanity!!! paul and i have known for weeks now, but as i was constructing our letter that will go out with our christmas card, i found myself struck with the reality of it. i had to put on paper that we’re moving to japan, and it hit me. paul and i will be on the other side of the world literally with only each other, our 6 month old baby, and possibly our dog (depending on how long he is quaranteened). over the past few weeks that we’ve known about this move, i’ve started to think about the logistics of actually moving around the world…. we’ll have to get rid of our cars because the japanese drive on the left hand side of the road and their steering wheel is on our passenger side of the car…. red will be locked up for who knows how long until all of his vaccines are cleared…. i guess we’ll find housing once we’re over there…. we will have no family support, no friends, and be in what i imagine is one of the most foreign nations for americans to be in. i can’t even fudge knowing how to speak japanese…. if we were at least going to europe (like friends of our’s who just left for italy) then i could figure some of the language out…. but this is a complete and total barrier. i know, i know, i’m only listing out the negatives, but at this point in time, after having this news for about 4 weeks, the negative side is really all i see. our families have already been talking about investing in video cameras so that they can see the baby while we’re gone…. the little man will grow and change immensely over the amount of time that we’re in japan, and they’re going to miss so much of that.

maybe that’s why the world is showing me all of these babies and all of this family-fun now… so that i can soak it up while i can. it just seems like the vast majority of our friends and family members are close to extended family (or at least in the US) and everyone can share in the joy that a growing baby brings. we won’t have that. sure, japan can be an adventure…. yada yada yada… in all honesty, this baby is enough of an adventure for us. paul and i are trying to settle ourselves down, create our own family, invest in each other…. we don’t want an adventure on the other side of the world.

i guess what i’m saying is…. if you read this and feel like emailing me about the positives of a multicultural life experience and referring to this move as “an adventure,” save yourself the trouble. i’m not at that place yet. i’m still angry. however, if you read this, and feel like emailing me and just saying “this sucks,” by all means feel free! ~

so we’re starting week 20 tomorrow with the little man, and all is well. i felt him move for the first time today, which was really cool. in previous weeks, i would think i felt something but it went away so quickly that i didn’t think much of it. today though was a totally different story. i felt a distinct movement from about 1/2 way between my right hip and my belly button. it was almost like a tickle, but it moved from that point to a few inches closer to my belly button…. almost as though our little man were waving “hello” to everyone though my belly. it was really really cool. of course i have felt absolutely nothing since that moment, which is apparently normal, but it was really neat.

paul, as you all know, is gone…. AGAIN…. bleh!!! it’s hard. the dog is really mopey and i’m totally bummed out without him here. i can’t really figure out which is worse…. having him gone for 6 months (like last year) or having him gone for 3 months while i’m pregnant…. either way, it’s lousy. when i talked to paul on the phone today, he said that he was reading in his baby book that month 5 is really when the baby can start hearing you and recognizing the sound of your voice, which KILLS ME because he’s not hear to talk to his little man. grrr…. i’m really missing paul’s hand constantly on my belly. and of course i don’t realize how much i loved it until he’s gone, but his hand was always just sitting there on my belly. we would be watching tv and his hand would rest on my belly…. or falling asleep, his hand would be there…. and i’ve seen over the past few months just how much paul has been wanting to be connected to the baby, but now i’m really missing his connection to the baby as well.

all in all though, we’re doing just fine. the baby is healthy and wonderful and i can’t ask for anything more than that, right? i’m wrapping things up at school, midterms are next week, and looking forward to a looooooooong break in atlanta, while i prepare for our little man.

here’s a little blurb i found about what will be going on with mr. magoo over the next week. pretty cool stuff…. ps- i love the part about lowering the stress in one’s life. HA!!!!

Your baby is now half of his birth length, 10 inches (25 centimeters) that is. He is nowhere near halfway when it comes to his weight, though: he just weighs 11 ounces (320 grams) compared to the average full term birth weight of 7 1/2 pounds His growth will speed up from this point on, especially if you take it easy.
It’s normal that you don’t feel movement every day. Sometimes you feel him a few times a day and sometimes you feel nothing for several days. You can also feel him in different places in your abdomen. He still has enough room to swim to all of the different sides. And, your baby has to sleep, also… He often stays quiet when you’re busy and when you come home tired from work and plop down on the couch at night, your little one wakes up.
Healthy, normal, everyday stress can’t hurt the baby. However, some studies have shown than chronic and serious stress may lead to lower than average birthweight. When the mother is experiencing long term stress – whether from conflicts at work or home, job loss, death in the family, etc, the mother is constantly flooded with the stress hormone cortisol. It appears that the placenta can’t metabolize this abundant cortisol and the result is slightly reduced birth weight for the fetus. If you are facing serious stress, seek out ways to reduce it. If you can find counseling, share the work load, cut back your expenses, or exercise more, it may help to reduce your stress. Your health care provider may be able to help you by writing you actual orders to reduce the activity that causes you stress, (if that is applicable).