Six months already?

My mom requested a current picture and it's about time I update this blog anyway, so here's a long update for you. This pregnancy is going by super fast! I guess that is because I am extremely busy with working full-time and doing photography "on the side" (I have to put that in quotations because it is so much more work than that sentence would lead you to believe). That's good in that our little guy will be here before we know it but it's bad because we are not quite ready for his arrival and I feel like I will blink and we will suddenly be at the hospital, and he will be on his way. There is so much to do before he comes!

1. Things are so unsettled with our house right now. We're not sure when we're moving, but we think it will be soon...maybe even before Christmas (we are just waiting for a closing date from the bank, which is taking forever). Therefore, I can't get his room ready. As a result, everything we have for him so far is either in my office, our loft, or the garage. It feels very unorganized, which I don't like. Hopefully we will know about our house soon. Even though it's a pain to move, I'd rather do it now than when I'm even bigger and I'm in grad school (which starts in January) - or even harder, once he's already here.

2. I want our house to be clean and organized before he comes, which it currently is not (due to getting ready for the aforementioned move and the craziness of life).

3. The name dilemma. Seriously, we can't think of any names that we both like. Wendel has these two names that he has loved since high school. He even told me about them when we were dating, but I honestly thought he was joking. I kind of hoped we would have a girl first for no other reason than to put off dealing with this whole name thing. Wendel's name choices are Bolt or Moose. No joke. I want to respect his opinion and settle on a compromise somehow but he doesn't like them as middle names or nicknames, only as first names. So we haven't seriously talked about names yet. I bring some up that I like but he says it's too soon to really talk about names (which gives me hope that he will talk about names other than the two above when the time comes close). I am sure we will decide on a name that we both love and that he will call our son Bolt or Moose throughout his life (which is fine) but for now we have no idea what that name will be. (For those who know Wendel, you know he loves to tease. I think he is teasing me and holding out on these names as long as he possibly can but will eventually come around to a compromise...I hope?)

I feel like in the past few weeks my stomach has grown a lot - a huge growth spurt. For quite a while I could wear the same pairs of pants to work, and now they won't even zip up, let alone button. I finally had to break down and buy maternity work pants from Kohls on Saturday (it kills me to pay retail rather than second-hand for this kind of stuff, but I guess you have to do what you have to do). They are so much more comfortable! I wore a pair of the pants last night to shoot a wedding reception we worked at and it was like heaven compared to the pants I used to wear. Yay for maternity pants! Also, people I have never met before tell me congratulations or smile at me and look at my stomach - no more of this "I was wondering but wasn't going to say anything." I guess it's good that they recognize that I'm pregnant and not just overweight, right?

Here is what is going on inside, making my stomach so huge: "He is about eight and a half inches long and one and a half pounds, gaining steadily at a rate of six ounces per week. Much of that weight comes from accumulating baby fat, as well as from growing organs, bones, and muscle. By now, that fabulous face is almost fully formed, complete with eyelashes, eyebrows, and hair. Is your baby a brunette, a blond, or a redhead? Actually, right now his locks are white since there's no pigment yet." (http://www.whattoexpect.com) I think it's so interesting that his hair is white right now.

I like seeing what fruit or vegetable www.babycenter.com compares him to at each stage of his development. At 24 weeks, "Your baby has caught up with an ear of corn in size and gained about 1/4 pound since last week. (Length: almost a foot.)"


Also, my hormones are making me have mood swings, and I really hate them. I am really emotional and grumpy lately. Make it stop!


And, I have to share Kitty's new favorite spot in our house: this extra baby bouncer we have. The one on the left that Kitty is in is one we bought for $5 on Craigslist. It is more girlish than boyish but we figured our baby wouldn't be able tell so who cares? Then we found the one on the right (that Squeak is in) for $10 and decided to get it because it looks boyish and also has the hanging toys. The cats love them! The blue one is off-limits (right after Squeak got out of it) but Kitty has made that other one his own. He is in it all the time. It's pretty funny. I've thought about turning on the vibrator to see what he thinks of it but that would be mean because then he would always be scared of it and he loves it so much right now.

Okay, that was a huge update! It will probably take me a few more weeks to post again with how busy I am but I'll do my best.

21 weeks

I meant to post last week when I hit my half-way mark but it didn't happen so here is a picture of me at 21 weeks. I am feeling good and things are going well so far. I went to the doctor the other day (and had to wait an hour to see my doctor...she is a busy lady. But luckily no drama with the staff this time). She said this baby is still really active (as she listened to his heartbeat). That makes me a little nervous that he is going to hit the ground running and be going non-stop all the time. I guess that is the nature of a lot of little boys. :)

Last week Wendel felt the baby kick for the first time. I've been feeling him from the inside but could finally feel him from the outside and luckily Wendel was right by me at the time so he got to feel the kick as well. He thought it was pretty cool. It was kind of a bonding thing for us.

My mom and sister came to visit last weekend, which was really fun. My mom came bearing some cute little onesies. This baby is going to be prepared. We went and looked at a bunch of cute baby things at Target and I got an idea of how much things cost...then this weekend I bought a bunch of stuff on Craigslist for really cheap. I got a pack n play for $35 and it is in excellent condition. I love it. It has the bassinet, changing table, etc. We also got a high chair, swing, boppy pillow, baby gym and bath - all of that for $100 (which includes the price of the pack n play, which is good considering that the pack n play I saw at Target was $109). It's all in really good condition. We're happy with it. I love getting good deals and recycling by using gently used items rather than buying new (in most cases - sometimes there are exceptions, of course).

According to www.whattoexpect.com, "How big is your baby? About the size of a large banana — and speaking of bananas, if you eat one this week, there's a good chance your baby will get a taste, too. That's because he swallows a bit of amniotic fluid each day (for nutrition, hydration, and to practice digesting), so he eats whatever's on your menu." I guess I should be careful about my sugar intake. I made the mistake of buying chocolate covered peanut butter granola bars (because I was craving chocolate and didn't want to outright eat a candy bar) and I cannot get enough of them. They are heaven to me. Must not buy anymore...

That is my update. Half way through - so far, so good.