Week 16 and all's well!

From now on, your baby may start to get the hiccups every once in a while, triggered by the involuntary movements of his diaphragm. (In adults this is followed by the closure of our vocal cords, which is what makes that familiar "hic" sound.) But because your baby's throat is filled with fluid instead of air, his fetal hiccups don't make a sound. By the sixth month, you'll actually be able to feel your baby's hiccups as they happen. They'll make your belly jump, which is so fun to see and feel!And your little guy -- now about 3 ounces and between 4 and 5 inches long -- is becoming quite expressive these days. His facial muscles are sophisticated enough for him to squint, frown, or smirk -- although these motions aren't actually linked to any internal emotions he's feeling. By the way, if you're having a girl, millions of eggs are forming in her ovaries this week -- your future grandchildren!
From now on, your baby may start to get the hiccups every once in a while, triggered by the involuntary movements of his diaphragm. (In adults this is followed by the closure of our vocal cords, which is what makes that familiar "hic" sound.) But because your baby's throat is filled with fluid instead of air, his fetal hiccups don't make a sound. By the sixth month, you'll actually be able to feel your baby's hiccups as they happen. They'll make your belly jump, which is so fun to see and feel!And your little guy -- now about 3 ounces and between 4 and 5 inches long -- is becoming quite expressive these days. His facial muscles are sophisticated enough for him to squint, frown, or smirk -- although these motions aren't actually linked to any internal emotions he's feeling. By the way, if you're having a girl, millions of eggs are forming in her ovaries this week -- your future grandchildren!

So, I can definitely feel the baby moving at least once a day now, which is really cool! I wish I could feel it on a more regular track, but still, movement is movement, and I should be happy with whatever I feel!

My mom took me shopping last night, and I got a ton of new tops, a pair of maternity capris, some other capris that are plus size, but just too big, and even some baby clothes hangers! My mom even bought some little socks (Oh my goodness, they are SOOO cute!) and some caps. I'm so excited to get more baby clothes!!!

Part of me really wants to find out if we're having a boy or a girl, so I think if we can find out at our next ultrasound, we will. I didn't want to for a long, long time, but I think it will be easier as far as buying clothes goes. So I guess we'll do it. :-)

Anyway, we've got a thunderstorm in the area so I'm going to run.

My Baby
Barely 4 inches long and less than 2 ounces, your baby's doing some pretty remarkable stuff for such a mini thing. For example, by the end of this week, she'll be able to form a fist with her teeny hands! Hair is also sprouting on her head now, as are the beginnings of two tiny eyebrows. These days, her body is covered by a layer of ultra-fine hair, called lanugo, which will help protect her delicate skin until birth.
Your baby's body is growing faster than her head now, balancing out the brain-heavy look she's had until this point. Her heart is hard at work pumping about 25 quarts of blood a day; when she's born, that number will increase to nearly 300 quarts a day. Her skeleton continues to take shape this week, with more bone building and muscle development every day.



On Wednesday, John and I went to the doctors, and we got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time! What a cool, cool thing! I kind of wanted to cry, but I didn't think that would be appropriate, especially since John was sitting on the other side of the room, so it was just me and my doctor. But still, it was awesome! I told a friend that hearing that little heartbeat was the best, because it gave me some reassurance that all was well with the baby still.



I learned how to knit mittens finally! I still have some issues with attaching the thumbs, but I'm hoping to get together with a friend who can help me with this. I made some out of a great Alpaca/Acrylic blend. Well, I've made one, I need to finish the second one still, but I can pump one out in about 3 hours, if I knit straight through. So that's good, because that means I can make a ton of them and sell them at the craft fair! Depending on the yarn I use, I can vary the sizes. I've figured out some small kids sizes, and I've gotten down the adult size, more or less. Some of it could use some tweaking with more or less rows, because the way the pattern is, it fits me just right, and I like my mittens a little roomy. I'm going to work on trying to pump out a few hats too, and we shall see how that works. There is one in the newest issue of KnitSimple that is supposed to take only a few hours. I think I'll give that one a go when I master the mitten!

Knitting with a vengeance

Thats it! I'm back to knitting with a vengeance! I've been out of it for so long that I needed something to just throw me back into it, and a pair of lovely blue mittens has done the trick! I'm knitting them up with some yarn I'd gotten to use for a gift for my sister, but opted not to, because there is a slight amount of wool in it, and she is allergic to wool. So I'm turning them into some great mittens for my mom!
I've got a pair of socks for my mom in the works too, but I needed to take a break from them. The small yarn was just making me not want to finish! Good think I'm about 2/3 of the way through the second sock, because it's past the point of not worth it to finish the pair :-)It's good to be back into it. I was actually missing it, so I'm glad to be finding things that I can knit up quickly and enjoy doing in the process. I've got a few ideas for some quick scarves too, so I'm hoping I can get those done quickly also, after I finish up these.
I guess that's about it for now. I will post later with updates about the baby. All is well there thus far! I have a check up today at 3:30. I'm hoping to hear the heartbeat today!

They changed the webssite!!!

Aaahhh!!! Here I was getting ready to do an update of my baby's every growing body, and the website I get my information from totally revamped with no warning what-so-ever, and now I can't find the information!!! I guess I'm going to have to keep hunting around for it.

Anyway, I'm 14 weeks along now. I think I'm starting to be able to feel the baby, but I'm going to ask about it at my appointment on Wednesday. It kind of feels like these little butterfly movements in my lower tummy, just slightly above my pelvis. But sometimes I'm not sure if it's the baby or just something funny my stomach is doing. I tend to feel them right around the time that I eat, or drink something sweet, like juice.

Oh, phew! I found what I was looking for. Okay, here's the details:

My Baby
Welcome to your second trimester! This week, your baby's sex organs continue to grow more sophisticated. If you're having a girl, her ovaries are moving down into her pelvis. If it's a boy, his prostate forms this week. Your baby's thyroid, an important hormone-producing gland that regulates metabolism, starts working this week -- a crucial step for the rest of his development. Some other cool stuff to note: The roof of his tiny mouth is fully formed, and his constant sucking reflexes are helping to create full, cherubic cheeks. Right now, your baby is nearly 3 1/2 inches long and weighs about an ounce -- but in just two months' time, he'll double in length and reach the impressive weight of one whole pound!

Unfortunately, I didn't find any information on when I will start feeling the movement, but I think that the Pregnancy Bible (A.K.A. What to Expect While You're Expecting) said that I will start feeling it around now, and that it feels kind of like little butterfly movements. In fact, I am feeling it right now as I type this. I just drank some apple cider which definitely falls under the "sweet drink" category. I'm not sure though, because something I just read says 16 weeks, though sometimes "veteran moms" can feel it earlier. Maybe I'm just paying attention. Who knows.

Either way, I'll still ask my doctor on Wednesday.

New Blog Address, among other things

Well, as you can see, I now have a new blog address for this blog. I finally decided to change it because it made the most sense to do so. My logic was that after the baby comes, I won't be needing to refer to the baby as "Roo" anymore, since the baby will actually have a name by then!

Today I plan on spending a lot of the day getting my e-mail address book updated and other stuch stuff, so I'll be doing that today. If anyone has any new contact information I should have, please send it my way.

I also spent some time having to have all of my photos moved from Yahoo! Photos to Shutterfly, because Yahoo! Photos is shutting down. I opted to go with Shutterfly because I'll still have the option of being able to have photos sent to Target to get them picked up. Fortunately, Yahoo! and Shutterfly took care of all the hard work for me. Now I've just got to work on updating some of the albums.

Lets see, what else is new... Oh! We have been been graciously given TONS of baby hand-me-downs this week! Lots from Matt, Martha and the crew in Hancock, and some from Kate and Tim, some of our neighbors on our street, after not selling nearly as much as they thought they would at their yardsale yesterday! Our whole room is practially done now! It's amazing!

Speaking of baby stuff...


At the end of this week, your baby officially enters the second trimester of development. Although only 3 inches from crown to rump and weighing just half an ounce, she looks, well, human! Her eyes have moved from the sides of her head to the front, and her ears are in their normal position. She's also got reflexes--if you prod her, she'll squirm (although you still won't feel it), and her hands and feet respond to stimuli by closing or clenching.

What else is new... I'm in the process of applying for a teaching job in Epping, a math and science job for 6th grade. Not my ideal, but it would get me certified for elementary ed., and then I could move on to something different. I'm still trying to figure out my ideal work situation for after the baby is here, but it seems that there will never be the "ideal" job, so I'll have to just be some what picky. I am going to go through todays paper and see what they have to offer in there.

John did not get the job at Spaulding High School that we were hoping for. But at least he is happy with his current job. He said today too that he wasn't entirely sure about working with high school kids anyway, so this may be the best thing for him right now. I'm kind of glad that he's not leaving, because at least we'll know that our insurance is secure while the baby is on the way. After we have the baby, THEN we can change insurances!

Alright, I guess that's enough for today... I need to get some muffins in the oven... gotta love those random cravings! At least the craving is for blueberry muffins!

Full photo album from Fireworks

Photobucket Album

Fireworks!

Last night, John, Kane and I trekked over to the Rochester Fairgrounds to see the firworks. Rather than pay to get in, we just pulled up a little chunk of grass next to some really nice people. Lots of people came and sat there, so it must have been alright. The show started about 1/2 an hour late, which was frustrating, because I was tired, but fortunately, it turned out to be a great display. Kane was enjoying spending some time with the young girls (probably in 4th or 5th grade) that were next to us. He liked them because they kept throwing him popcorn. Next year, we'll have to remember to bring some snacks. Kane did very well during the fireworks, he just hung out while they shot them off. We were far enough away that they weren't deafening, so I think that helped him.

Anyway, I thought I'd share some photos of the fireworks!

Now measuring between 2 and 3 inches from crown to rump, the fetus is busily doing his stretching and kicking exercises. All major organs are in place, and his brain, nerves, and muscles are starting to function. Although his gender was determined at conception, external genitalia won't fully develop for another couple of weeks. At that point, a sonogram may be able to show whether you're carrying a boy or a girl--if your baby will cooperate and face the camera!

So that is where we are now! Sorry I didn't get that up sooner! I can't believe I'm in my last week of the first trimester! I'll be glad to get that all over with though! I can definitely live without morning sickness! Don't let the name fool you - you can get that any time of day! Apparently, I learned yesterday, that the cramping in my legs that I've been getting is pretty normal too, so that made me feel better. I thought that something was wrong with me, so I'm glad to know its just from being pregnant. I'm anxious to have another ultrasound, but I won't have one for another 4 weeks at least, if not 6 weeks. The ultrasound makes it seem more real right now, where I'm showing a little bit (according to some), but I can't feel the baby moving yet. That is still a ways off.

Anyway, yesterday we had our cookout. Sadly, I forgot to take out the camera and get some pictures of everyone! But we had fantastic weather all day, and everyone said they had a lot of fun! We got to use our new grill like crazy, and that made me happy, despite not being the one to cook on it all day! We were even able to get some people up to play badminton, so that made it a lot of fun! John and I are already looking forward to next years cookout, when we've got a baby to show off!

Teaching summer school has been going pretty well. I've got one week under my belt. This week is a short week because of the holiday. A VERY short week, actually, only Monday and Tuesday, which is awesome! Tuesday night we're going to go see my parents, and Wednesday, John is slated to play in a parade in Laconia for the 4th of July. That night we'll either go to Dover or stay here in Rochester to see the fireworks. We'll have to find out the schedules. I am trying to get a meteorologist from channel 9 to come talk to my students, so we'll see if that works out!