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.

Poem

My sister in law, Alli, found this poem and posted it under one of the "comment" sections on our blog. I thought it was really sweet and I'd like to share it with you all.

A Boy or a Girl

At first you moved,
only a little.
I could always find you,
right in the middle.

As time went on,
you really started to grow.
It wasn't a whole lot,
in fact, it was rather slow.

Before I knew it,
you were all over the place.
It kind of feels like,
you are running a race.

People ask your dad and me,
if, you are a girl or a boy.
We sit and wonder at times too,
but not knowing brings us joy.

There are so many things,
I really want to know.
But, you are hidden inside,
so the answers don't show.

How much will you weigh?
How tall will you be?
What color is your hair?
Will you look just like me?

I hope and pray,
you feel like you belong.
I never want you to feel,
like you are alone.

Your Dad and I,
planned you from the start.
You, my dear child,
were made straight from our hearts.

In a few months from now,
I'll meet you, for the first time.
For you are the product,
of your Dad's love and mine.

There will be no one like you,
not any place in the world.
It really doesn't matter,
if you are a boy or a girl.

We are both so happy,
that you even exist.
The gender doesn't matter.
you'll be hard to resist.

I hope I make you proud,
that I am your mother everyday.
Because,you have filled my dreams,
in more ways, than words can say.

It won't be long before,
I can look you in the eyes.
I can feel the excitement growing,
I know I'm going to cry.

Don't worry my angel,
those tears will be of joy.
It won't matter to me,
if you are a girl or a boy.

21 Week Ultrasound Pics

Here are a couple pics. They really aren't the best pics, since the baby moved too much, but at least it's something!!!!

IT'S A....

Surprise still! Gotcha! The ultrasound tech was able to tell what sex it is though. Nice, that at one point, the baby had its hand on its "parts", which leads Jason to say it's a boy. HAHA! She said everything looks good. She took all the measurements that she needed and checked out everything. The baby was once again super active. I tried not to eat or drink anything this morning that would make it wild but guess that didn't work. It weighs 14 ounces and the heartbeat was 159 beats per minute. Oh, the other thing, it's breech right now. But obviously I have 4 months til I deliver so I'm sure that will change as it flips and somersaults all over in there. It's always so neat to see the baby. It really is a miracle how everything works!!!
We will post some pics later on. I don't know if they are that great becuz it was so active & it was hard to get a good pic!

21 weeks!

According to "What to expect when you're expecting", the baby is now 7 inches in length and 11 ounces in weight. It's about the size of a banana (the length).
The baby now swallows at least several ounces of amniotic fluid each day--not only for hydration & nutrition, but to practice swallowing & digesting. The taste of the amniotic fluid differs from day to day depending on what I've eaten. The taste buds are already developed so tastes won't be lost on the baby. Researchers have noted that babies who were exposed to certain tastes in utero via the amniotic fluid were more eager to eat food with that same taste after birth. Interesting. Guess I better start eating healthy. Healthy has kind of "went out the window" for me since I've gotten pregnant. I want our child to like different fruits and veggies and healthy items though so I'll work on it!
Stay tuned tomorrow! I have the big ultrasound!! (Not so big that we find out the sex though! I know some of you were hoping we'd change our mind!)

Nursery Furniture

Yesterday, Jason & I went to Baby Depot inside Burlington Coat Factory to order our baby furniture. We got a crib and a combo dresser/changing table. It's a darker color wood. The crib converts to a toddler bed and also a full size bed. I think we got our money's worth since we will be able to use it for awhile. I would post a pic of it but I couldn't find a pic online. We don't actually have the furniture yet, but it's not like we need it at this point anyway. We'll have to pick it up in the next few weeks.
On Saturday, Gretchen & I went to the "Festival of the Little Hills" along the riverfront in St Charles. We met her parents, nephew, and brother & sis in law down there. Her brother & Sis were playing in the community band that day. It was a really nice day although it did get a little hot in the afternoon cuz my shoulders got burned. Carson, her nephew, had a fun time in the "Kid's corner" making free visors. I think he made about 4 of them. Actually, Gretch & I had fun making the visors too. : ) The "kid's corner" was a great idea. They had a few different crafts for kids to participate in and it was all free! Good times.

Dr visit

I had my monthly Dr visit yesterday. Nothing too exciting happens at these appts. They weigh me, check my blood pressure, & check my urine. She also measures my stomach. Also heard the heart beat on the doppler. It was 140 beats per minute yesterday. Then she just asks if I have questions. Thatz about it. She said everything is looking good though. YAY!!!!
I've been feeling the baby move quite a bit now. I can sometimes even feel it if I put my hand on my belly. I had Jason put his hand on my belly the other day, but of course it wouldn't move then. It seems to really go crazy if I drink some soda. I better not drink anything sugary before the ultrasound next week. I laughed yesterday becuz my dr was going over my file and she said the ultrasound tech wrote at the last ultrasound that we had a very active baby!! : )

Half way point!!!

I can hardly believe it. I'm 20 weeks today. Only 20 weeks to go. The time has actually went by pretty fast. Wonder if the next 20 weeks will go by quickly?! I hope it doesn't go by too fast, I don't feel prepared yet!
According to "What to expect when you're expecting" for this week, the baby weighs about 10 ounces and has a height, crown to rump, of about 6 1/2 inches. It's the size of a small cantaloupe ( I think it's funny how they compare babies to fruit.) This is usually around the time that parents are able to find out the sex of their baby. But not for us!!
I've had a bad headache for the past 2 days. Tylenol doesn't work for me so I just have to deal with them. Stupid hormones! But luckily, it is gone today. Nice that I almost passed out in my bathroom this morning though. I started having a bit of trouble breathing, then I started getting really hot and started seeing spots. I thought to myself "I better go sit down" before I fall and hit my head or something and Jason finds me on the bathroom floor. I feel fine now though. It was probably from taking a hot shower.

It's a start!

I started cleaning out the guest room over the weekend. For those of you that don't know, that will be the baby's room. It is also a disaster. I throw all our papers and pretty much everything else in there. So it's kind of a chore to go through all that stuff. Jason bought a ceiling fan and installed that in there. It looks really nice and will help keep the room cool.
My sisters, Cory and Kirstie, came over yesterday. We had a good time at our neighborhood pool. They ate dinner with me and Jason and then we watched a movie. It was nice to spend time with them. Kirstie starts her Senior year of high school on Tuesday. WOW, I feel old! Seems like they hardly get any summer break anymore.

The Name Game

Jason & I decided to look through the baby name book we have last night. On a side note, Gretchen gave us this book when she found out I was pregnant. She just HAD to highlight her own name in the book and write next to it "Pretty much the coolest name ever". She also crossed out that "Gretchen" is of German heritage and just had to write "Irish" in its place. She likes to pretend she's Irish, but we all know the truth! : )
So anyway, back to us looking for names. Jason & I are having a very hard time agreeing on names. We like a couple girl names and maybe 1 boy name. But he does not like any of the names I like. He did tell me he likes the name "Hototo". So we might go with that for a boy. I am SO kidding. We were cracking up at that name though. This is so hard because how do you name your kid something they will have forever??? So we might have an unknown Orf on our hands. Maybe we should just wait til it's born and see what that baby actually looks like. Maybe we'll get inspired then.

Top baby names for 2007

Every year the Social Security Administration releases the most popular American baby names. Some of you may have seen this already since it was released in May, but I think it's interesting to see what names are all the rage. Some of these names are cute, but I don't think we'll be naming our son or daughter any of these. Here is the top ten for boys & girls.


BOYS

1. Jacob

2. Michael

3. Ethan

4. Joshua

5. Daniel

6. Christopher

7. Anthony

8. William

9. Matthew

10. Andrew

GIRLS

1. Emily

2. Isabella

3. Emma

4. Ava

5. Madison

6. Sophie

7. Olivia

8. Abigail

9. Hannah

10. Elizabeth

19 weeks!!!

I'm 19 weeks today!! YAY!! According to What to expect when you're expecting, the baby is 6 inches long this week and about 8 ounces in weight. It's the size of a large mango and is now covered in a protective substance called vernix. The arms and legs are finally in proportion, neurons are now connected between the brain & muscles and cartilage throughout the body is turning to bone. All these combine to give the baby more control over limb movements.
AMAZING!!! Can't wait til the next ultrasound to see the baby again!

Old wives' tales concerning baby's gender

I thought it would be kinda fun to post some of these tales & tally up if I'm having a boy or a girl. Some of them are just crazy.
1- Boys are carried low, girls are carried high. (I can't say yet about this because I'm barely sporting a bump.)
2-Maternal grandma doesn't have any gray hair, it's a girl. (well, my mom does have some gray hair, SORRY MOM!, so boy would win on this).
3-If your feet are colder than they were before pregnancy, you are having a boy. (well, it's so dang hot here, I can't really tell. My feet usually are cold though overall, so I'll say boy for this one.)
4-If baby's dad isn't gaining weight along mom, it will be a girl. (Jason has lost weight, so I guess girl for this one.)
5-Morning sickness early in pregnancy, you are having a girl. (no morning sickness for me! So boy for this one.)
6-If you're looking good, must be a boy. Girls steal their mothers looks. (Hmm...you'd have to ask someone else this for me, I think I look the same. I'll stick with looking good. : ) So boy for this one too.)
7-If breasts grow dramatically, it's a girl. (Definitely will say girl for this one. I swear that is where all my weight is, in my chest!)
8-Craving sweets, it's a girl. Craving salty, it's a boy. (Overall, I think I've craved more salty foods, than sweet. Don't get me wrong, I still love the sweets though. So I'll say boy!)
9-Heart rate below 140 beats per minute, it's a boy. Heart rate above 140, it's a girl. (The heartbeat has always been above 140, so girl!)
10-Headaches during pregnancy, it's a boy (Yeah, I've had a lot of headaches, definitely boy for this one.)
11--Last one I have for you and the nuttiest one. WHO made this up?? When drinking from a mug, if you lift it by the handle, it's a boy. If you pick it up by the body of the mug, it's a girl. (Um... don't drink much from mugs, but when I do I pick it up by the handle, (so boy for this one too).
Well, overall tally shows...Drum roll please........a BOY!!!! Guess we'll find out in 5 months!!!

Baby Jordan

Jason's mom got the baby a really cute Jordan outfit. It's a little red hoodie and a pair of athletic pants that say "Jordan" on the butt. I think either a boy or a girl will be able to wear it. Jason loves Michael Jordan and has a bunch of Jordan t-shirts. I think it will be so cute to get a pic of the baby and Jason together in Jordan gear.
We saw "The Dark Knight" over the weekend. I really had no interest in seeing it, but surprisingly I liked it. It was a bit long, but overall really good! Heath Ledger was excellent in it. He pretty much stole the movie. He was funny yet freaky. Go see it, if you haven't already.

Flip Floppity Baby Orf

HI! I had a milestone yesterday! I think I might have felt the baby move! I'm not for sure though, I obviously don't know what it's suppose to feel like since I'm a first timer, but everyone says little flutters. I was sitting at my desk & it felt like something was doing flip flops in my belly. I thought it might be gas, but maybe it was Baby O!
Gretchen & I ventured into Babies R Us a couple nights ago. I think we pretty much checked out the entire store. That place is so overwhelming for me. I just keep thinking about all the things we need for the baby and there are so many different brands to choose from, I don't know what to pick! My pal, Nikki, is going to write me up a list of brands/items she liked for her son, Aidan, so that will help out a lot when we go register.
Overall, I'm still feeling pretty good. I've had some back pain the past couple days but really can't complain otherwise.
Have a good weekend!! Keep cool, it's gonna be a hot one in St Louis.