36 weeks

YEA! We're in the homestretch now, in this last month of pregnancy! We're all thankful that James is home this week, and are enjoying his help with this mostly recliner-bound mama unable to do the normal errands and stuff.

Elijah seems permanently stuck on my right side, and though he's hovered there most of the pregnancy, he's become more stubborn these last days. Most of the day, he's curved over there, so snuggled down, with his bottom in the air, making my belly stick way out, so that it's noticeable to others. I look like I have some alien coming out of my belly! It would be funny if it wasn't so uncomfortable. I can usually gently rub on that area, and coax him to rearrange a little, but always goes back to the same spot. It really is funny to see.

Though Sunday was a busy day with church and then a live nativity that Abigail's preschool choir sang in, I enjoyed going to both services, just paid for it later. That afternoon, we timed several hours of contractions that were 3 minutes apart, and lasting a minute each. Then they gradually settled down before the nativity that night, spreading out and not as consistent. However, after an hour of standing there, on the way home I noticed they'd returned. They were regularly coming again, every 3 minutes, from around 7 pm until 10 pm when we finally decided to check in with the doctor. Dr. Mc was on call and we talked about everything. I wasn't too concerned it was actual labor, because they were not getting stronger, but before James went in to work at 11, he wanted to just touch base. Dr. Mc said he felt that I was o.k., that it was an encouraging sign that things might be progressing, but he thought we'd still have a little while to go. I agreed and James felt reassured, so he went on in for his last shift of the week. It was a tiring evening, but after drinking some extra water sometime after midnight, the contractions finally drifted away into nothing, thankfully. Monday was an easier day with very few contractions, just fatigue. So, though today there has been a little more activity, it's still been relatively calm and we're thankful. We're counting the days till Granddaddy returns. My Dad is in Oregon on business this week, so we keep joking that of course, this week is when Elijah will be born, because Granddaddy is across the country. Hopefully, we can have the whole family there though, when he makes his grand entrance.

"Wiggle, wiggle... nudge, nudge"

This is what we say a lot around here these days, in reference to our wiggly baby boy, and because of a sweet book that Autumn gave Isaac and Abigail. It's called My Special Something, and is the story of a little girl expecting her baby brother, and how she wonders who is in her mommy's tummy, with all the commotion going on - an alligator? a kangaroo? And as the mama gets bigger, a hippopotamus? I've warned our kids to NOT say that one to me, no matter what it looks like I'm carrying inside me. :-)

We may have a name decided upon, and hopefully can reveal it soon. Abigail has made her vote clear, and is typically trying to control things by already talking to baby E and calling him by her name of choice. It's funny. She keeps telling him how cute she just knows he'll be, and Isaac is asking questions about what he'll like to do and if he'll play with him or not. I love their curiosity and interest. It makes the anticipation even greater.

I'm thankfully feeling much better this week, with a great improvement in the pressure I'd been feeling. Tonight I got a maternity belt and it already feels great, supporting my back as this belly pokes out farther and farther. I'll go next week for a 22 week check-up and am eager to maybe get a little more info on where this placenta is. Please pray it's moving where it's supposed to be!

Halfway There! (maybe)

This week was the 20 week mark. YEA! We're very happy to have gone through this first half of the standard pregnancy length so well. Though I know that nothing is guaranteed, we're praying that this baby boy hangs in there for approximately the same amount of time from this point forward. He is still super wiggly, and at times, I'm pretty uncomfortable, because of his position. At this point with Abigail, I felt her some, but nothing like with our boy. He's noticeable, literally, every hour of the day. I'm assuming that has something to do with the placenta being where it is, and at times feel concerned about the pressure and movement, but so far, think things are going all right. Ow! There was a swift kick to my bladder....

At this point, our little fellow is about 9-10 inches long, about half the length he'll probably be at birth. We also learned these fascinating facts we've been sharing with Isaac and Abigail:

• The baby can hear and recognize his mama's voice. We encourage the big kids to talk to him often so maybe he'll learn their voices too. He may even may startle in reaction to loud sounds. Familiar voices, music, and sounds that baby becomes accustomed to during his development stages often are calming after birth.
• The toenails and fingernails are growing.
• The growth of hair (lanugo) on the rest of the body has started.
• The skin is getting thicker.
• His heart can now be heard with a stethoscope. Actually, James can hear it sometimes by just leaning on my belly and listening carefully, depending on the baby's position!
• Immunities are being transferred from me to our baby now. These immune cells will protect him from viruses I've already had for up to six months after birth!
• The nerve cells for taste, smell, hearing, seeing, and touch are now developing in specialized areas of the brain. Production slows down as existing nerve cells grow larger and make more complex connections.

What a miracle life is, and we're constantly amazed at how we've been blessed with another little life growing inside me. Thank you Lord!

19 weeks

We're so happy to have a busy baby boy! He's wiggling and rolling and doing who knows what else inside me, because even James and the kids can feel him by putting their hands on my "mountain" of a belly (according to Abigail). :-) That comment didn't hurt my feelings, since I have still gained less than 10 pounds, but I agree with her, it is quite noticeable now.

We were happy to meet our new cousin yesterday, baby Emerson. She decided to enter the world pretty early, and is still in the hospital, but is really doing well overall. Seeing her was so exciting, and amazing - such tiny perfection. Isaac and Abigail were really impressed at how cute she was, and how very small. To try to explain to them that Isaac was about half her size when he was born really went over their heads. That is just hard for me to even imagine. He was 3 months old when we met him, and he was still only 4 pounds, 10 oz., so she's over a pound larger than he was...what a miracle life is.

We're still contemplating names, and are settled on an E name, but no specific one for certain yet - for those of you who are anxious to hear. We'll tell you soon hopefully. Someone, not naming anyone in particular, is having a hard time deciding between a few.

Our little boy is the size of a large mango. That makes me giggle for some reason. My uterus, however, is about the size of a cantaloupe. Don't you love these crazy facts? Blame it on email updates from various websites.

16 week newsflash

I'm 90% sure I've been feeling a "quickening" this week, on several different occasions. It's so amazing to feel this tiny little person wiggling around in me, fluttering here and there. When I got our doppler out last night, I put the probe on my belly before I even turned it on. When I hit the power button, immediately, we could hear that fast little chugging sound! James spun around with his eyes wide, and said, "How did you know right where to put it?! You have never found it that quickly!" I said I knew right where the baby was, because I had felt him or her moving right there off and on during the day. What a blessing!