Monday, November 16, 2015

He's here!



Lincoln West is here! Only four days late, born on November 15. He weighs more than we expected (8 lbs, 4 oz) and has so much hair!

Holy cow, we have a baby!

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

40 Weeks

Well, it's almost the end of November 11, and no baby so far. I wasn't actually expecting him to arrive on his due date (I know that's not usually how it works), but I fully expected him to be born before it. But it's looking like we'll officially have a late baby. Each day I go back and forth thinking maybe this is the day. Yesterday totally felt like it might happen soon. Today, not so much. It's like being a time bomb- you never know when it'll happen!

I figure now's a good time to write down all the things I want to remember about my pregnancy. I was surprisingly not good at recording things as they happened. I've only got a couple entries written in his baby book about pre-birth activities; one about the baby shower, and one random entry about day to day stuff. But I know that while it's so fresh right now, years from now, when he and his (future) siblings ask me about this time, I'll probably have forgotten a lot of it. And especially if I have a daughter someday, I'll want to be able to pass on the info of what it was like for me with my first baby.

1) I had morning sickness... kind of. In the early stages I was starving all the time, especially in the morning. I went through about five snacks between breakfast and lunch each day. My students didn't know I was pregnant yet, and I thought for sure someone would point out that I was suddenly constantly munching on apples, cheese sticks, muffins, granola bars.... Then from about months 3-6, I suddenly had no appetite, and felt queasy around food overall. Lucky for me, this didn't manifest itself with throwing up, just sudden gagging. I couldn't look in the fridge or go to the grocery store. And for some reason bananas were just the worst to look at. I did end up throwing up once, completely randomly, after I had chili (my favorite food of all things!) for lunch one day.

2) All the weight I gained is in my belly. I actually lost a bit of weight at first, but my doctor said baby himself was always exactly on target for his weight so I didn't need to worry. And I made it up in the last few months anyway. But seriously, it's all out front. I could still wear my regular jeans at six months (though sitting in them was not fun) and my fitbit is actually looser around my wrist than before I was pregnant. I also haven't had any swelling in my feet or legs, which is awesome. But that doesn't mean I can still wear my cute boots; it's impossible to reach down and pull them on!

3) We got pregnant on the first attempt. Enough said. ;)

4) Baby T. has hiccups a lot. He likes to roll around and kick me in the ribs at night when I lay down. And speaking of laying down, that's just ridiculous. No matter how I lay, it hurts. You're supposed to sleep on your side during pregnancy, but man that makes your hips stiff. You're not supposed to sleep on your back, and you obviously can't sleep on your stomach. My nights are just rolling from one side to the other (which is quite the effort). And then there's the comical act of getting out of bed.

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Fall Baby

Way back 9 months ago, I pictured being pregnant in the fall very differently than how it's happened. My cute maternity wardrobe would consist of sweaters and leggings and boots, and I'd spend the last two months cuddled up in big blankets and sewing quilts for this babe. 

Instead, San Diego has refused to let summer go. The last two months have mostly been 90 degrees plus. My maternity wardrobe has been denim leggings, tank tops, and sandals. (Unless I'm at work; then it's been stretchy work pants, tank tops, and sandals.) I've mostly been kicking blankets off in the middle of the night (when I can get my legs to move), and the idea of pulling out my sewing machine in this heat has been laughable.

But today. Today fall finally arrived. And I think it might actually stay. I checked weather.com, and for the next 15 days the weather doesn't go higher than 79. 

Finally.

When I came home from work today, I cuddled right up on the couch with my big blanket. Chris came and sat with me while he set up the new Apple TV (he got it for his birthday) and played around with some apps. The cats interspersed themselves around us, and the sun slowly set outside the window, and gosh darn, it was just so cozy I can't stand it. This is what I wanted for my last months of being pregnant. At least I'll get it for my last weeks! (Or maybe even days, if Baby T will just get on board with coming a bit early.)



This is from a few weeks ago... I haven't been great at keeping up with the editing and stamping of these photos. We actually turn 39 weeks tomorrow! 

I think we might finally be ready. There are finishing touches we're putting on the baby room, but for the most part it's livable. We've got all the furniture in now, and the changing pad, and the dresser with all of baby's cute clothes. The armchair and ottoman are ready to go for those round-the-clock feedings, and the crib's all set up for when we actually attempt to move him into his own room for sleeping (he'll sleep in the pack and play near our bed for awhile). 

We're ready for you, little guy! Whenever you're good to go. :)