24 Weeks!!!

According to "What to expect" for this week, baby weighs more than a pound & a 1/2 right now & has a crown to rump length of about 8 1/2 inches (standard letter size).
Wondering what & who the baby will look like?? If you had a baby cam, you'd almost be able to tell by now. The face (though still tiny) is almost fully formed. What's still missing from the picture is the fat that will be piled on under baby's skin. Until those fat deposits are made, that very tender skin is still very transparent, which means a close look would let you see clear through to all the organs, bones & blood vessels. Fortunately, that see-through look won't last much longer. Babies at this stage of fetal development are gaining about 6 ounces each week--with much of that gain coming from fat, in addition to growing organs, bones & muscle.
All kinds of sounds can be heard by the baby in the womb now: from air exhaling from my lungs, gastric gurgles produced by my stomach & intestines, my voice & Jason's (which baby will be able to recognize at birth) & even very loud sounds such as honking horns or barking dogs. NEAT!!!

We have a registry!!

Jason & I went to Babies R Us on Saturday to register for baby stuff. It didn't take as long as I thought it would. We finished in a little under 2 hrs. We went down every aisle with our scanner gun & lists & picked out what we wanted. (Thanks to Nikki for your very helpful list!!) Hopefully we got everything. If anyone has suggestions for what we might have missed, feel free to let us know. We had a minor disagreement over the diaper bag. I would have preferred something a bit more girly but Jason didn't want to carry something like that around if it was just him & the baby, so we settled on a black Columbia bag. It will prlly last longer anyway.
Also if you look at our registry, it has our Expected Arrival Date as 11/01/08. Obviously that is wrong becuz it's 12/31/08. When I filled out the paperwork at Babies R Us, it said "Event Date", so I thought that meant the date of the shower. I didn't know they meant the date baby is due. I didn't even know it meant that til we got home & I checked our registry online. Then I noticed they had our expected arrival date as 11/01/08. I've tried changing it but it won't work. They should have worded that better or maybe I'm just dumb. But anyway, we get a coupon for 10% off anything that is left on our registry & they mail that either 2 weeks before or 2 weeks after your due date. So maybe I'll just leave the 11/1/08 date in there and we'll get the coupon earlier!

Pregnancy Brain

So I went to my endocrinologist appt yesterday. I got on the elevator to go up to her office. I always forget what floor she is on (even though I've been there prlly 5 or 6 times), so I usually pick 2 floors & then when the doors open, I know if I'm on the correct floor. Well, yesterday the UPS dude gets on the elevator with me. He says "Are u going up?" I said, "Yes, but I forgot what floor I'm going to." He says, "Well, maybe I can help? What is your dr's name?" Well, I stood there for like 5 seconds trying to think of her name, finally I remembered her first name was Rachel & then finally remembered the 1st part of her last name cuz she's hyphenated. He said he didn't know her and went on his merry way. He prlly thought I was a total idiot. I hope he noticed I was pregnant. The bad part is I STILL couldn't think of the last part of my Dr's last name. I didn't remember til I saw it on her office door. Yikes. At least I remembered where the office was though, right? : ) NOTE TO SELF--LEARN WHAT FLOOR DR IS ON.

23 Weeks!

At 8 inches & slightly over 1 lb, the baby is the size & shape of a small doll. This week marks the beginning of some serious weight gain. Baby's weight in the next 4 weeks alone should double (& I'm sure mine will too!).
To this point, I've only heard the heartbeat through the doppler. But now you can hear it through a standard stethoscope.
Baby's skin is reddish in color now becuz of the developing blood vessels underneath (the skin is very thin still). It also hangs loosely from his or her little body at this point. That is becuz the skin grows faster than the fat develops during fetal growth. By the time it's born, it will be pleasantly plump & filled out.

A new 2nd cousin!

I'd like to congratulate my cousin, Heather. She gave birth to a son, Carsten James, on August 31st. He arrived at 11:35 a.m. He weighed 7 lbs, 4 ounces & measured 21 inches long. He's a cutie! My aunt said Heather & Carsten are doing exceptionally well. I can't wait to meet him in person! Congrats also to Grandpa Reiny and Grandma Shelle!!
As for me, last week I saw the baby kick on the outside of my stomach. I kept feeling kicking in the same place and I lifted up my shirt and my stomach moved. It's really neat! I also had my 1st dream that it was a girl. My other 2 dreams were that it was a boy. Hmm....maybe I'm starting to second guess that it is a boy after all. Still got 4 months to go til we know.

Interesting Baby Facts

*A baby is born every seven seconds.

*Babies are born with very poor vision but can recognize their mothers almost right away.

*Babies are always born with blue eyes, within a few moments of delivery their eye color can change.

*Babies are born with swimming abilities and can naturally hold their breath. However, they shortly lose this instinct.

*Newborns usually double their weight by six months.

*Playing classical music will increase a baby’s intelligence.

*Reading to your child at ANY age will increase their knowledge.

*Babies and toddlers are, pound for pound, stronger than oxen. This is especially true of their legs.

*Babies are born without kneecaps.

Happy 22 weeks!!

According to "What to expect when you're expecting" this week, the baby has broken the 1 lb mark and is 8 inches long. How heavy is that? Hold a 1 lb box of sugar the next time you're in the grocery store.
The baby is making more sense of the world as he/she develops the sense of touch. Its grip is quite developed by now and he/she may sometimes hold on tight to the umbilical cord. (Must get pretty boring in the womb! It needs something to entertain it.) The sense of sight is also getting more developed. It can now perceive light & dark much better than before (even with fused eyelids). Eyebrows & eyelashes are well formed now & even more hair is sprouting atop that head. Hair at this stage has no pigment though, so it's bright white.
I'm still feeling pretty good. Sometimes I've been having acid reflux at night, I've never had this before I got pregnant. It's not a good feeling. I also sometimes get a mild case of restless leg syndrome at night. My legs feel all tingly and I feel like I have to shake them to relieve it. But overall, can't complain compared to what some women go through.