Its getting a little cramped in there!

I am now 33.5 weeks along in my pregnancy. I have started growing quite rapidly ... to the point where if someone doesn't see me for a few days they notice a difference in the size of my belly. While I have started growing rapidly, my weight gain has slowed down. I was gaining 2+ pounds a week for a little while --- I am assuming it was while James was going through his growth spurt --- but I am back to gaining just a pound or so per week. I believe my total weight gain is now around 26 pounds  :)   I will post a picture on Thursday.

So I don't know if James has just been more active lately or if I am just feeling it more because he is bigger and stronger. Watching my stomach move and be deformed at times can be a little freaky, but entertaining for sure. Though a lot of his movements are uncomfortable and sometimes painful where before they were barely noticeable or just a tickle. He spends a lot of time kicking or pushing against my ribs and also pushing on and punching my bladder. There is nothing like walking out of the bathroom only to feel like I need to go back in.

When he is at his most active, it seriously looks like he is trying to get out. If he continues to get stronger, I'm afraid he will push out through my skin just to get more space. Josh doesnt think that he will wait until April because my body will only allow for so much growing and James will get fed up of trying to fit in there. He will, after all, be full term in 2.5 weeks (36 weeks), so being born any time after that is fair game. And to be completely honest, I will be okay if he wants to come out a little before his due date because I am becoming tired of the continious discomfort (lower pelvis, ribs, upper back, lower back, hips etc etc etc). Our friend Heather thinks he will be here on March 17th because he is Irish after all, but our friend Shelly wants him to wait until his due date of April 16th because that's her birthday  :)   So we shall see.

If I had to pick a date, I would pick March 21st because that is my grandfather's birthday  <3   But as we know ... he will come out whenever he is ready to. I just really hope that it is on or before April 16th!

My favorite time of the year.

I love the Christmas season. For me Christmas is about quality family time. I look forward to it every year because my parents, Josh and I take a few days off work and Laura has a few weeks off school so those few days are the ultimate stress-free, just take time for each other, quality family time. Sadly it doesn't happen much more than once a year, so I cherish Christmas for that reason :)

I cannot believe that James will be here next Christmas. Not only will he be here, but he will be 8 months old already! There is nothing like Christmas morning through the eyes of a child ... but more than that, you're own child. I know that he wont quite understand the whole Santa thing and all, but at 8 months we can still get him some cool stuff, where as if he were younger, toys wouldn't really come into the equation until the following year.

The plan is to have Christmas at our apartment next year and have everyone come down (my parents and sister as well as Josh's mom and hopefully his sister too). It will be fun to decorate our own place and plan dinner in our own kitchen. I, myself, have never hosted Christmas or anything more than a BBQ ... so it will be a whole new experience. And I must be honest, it makes me feel quite grown up, not to mention excited  :)

One of the coolest James related things that happened this past weekend was that everyone finally got to feel and SEE him move  :)  One of the days he was very active almost all day long. I have also noticed the sensations are changing. They are no longer just kicks. I can feel him rolling and stretching. So the movements are slower and can sometimes move from end of my stomach to the other. It sometimes also feels like he is poking me. I love it! The only thing I could do without is the nub of a belly button hahaha. Or as Josh calls it, my nubbin ... its not attractive! Good thing it's not bathing suit season lol.

So over all it was a wonderful weekend, though it is always nice to be back home. Roll on 2012 ... I love even numbers AND it is the year my son will be born.



Dec 27, 2011 (24 weeks). --- My love and I at Dargans in Santa Barbara for my dad's birthday :)



A little knock from inside.

Today I am 17 weeks and 5 days pregnant. Yesterday I felt my little peanut kick for the first time. It was an amazing moment. I was driving home from work and felt 3 little pops. I was confused at first, wondering what it was. I thought, "Those were weird gas bubbles." Then I realized that they were very different and had to be my peanut. I was so excited and just smiled the rest of the way home. I couldn't wait to get home and tell Josh.

I had always wondered how I would know the difference between gas bubbles moving through my intestines, muscle spasms and baby kicks. But it is true what they say ... you just know. I immediately put my hand on my stomach and started rubbing it, saying out loud, "I feel you baby, I feel you ... you say hello anytime you want, momma feels you." It was pretty amazing.

For me it felt like three little popcorn popping. 'They' say that at first it feels like butterflies in your stomach or like little butterfly kisses ... but here is why I think I may have missed that part. When I don't get enough vitamin b-12, I get heart flutters. And because I have lowered a lot of my vitamins (except the prenatals and folic acid), I get heart flutters on a regular basis. They are not dangerous, they are just a part of my daily life now. But the heart flutters vary from being low by my diaphragm and high by my throat ... so I can see how I could have easily missed the early movements.

I know I say this with everything, but I cant wait until Josh can feel the movement too. I sometimes feel that it is unfair that I get to experience it all first ... I want him to experience just as much as me so that he can feel that 'first time' excitement with me. It will be a happy day when Josh can put his hand on my stomach and feel the little acrobat inside me  :)    Our little peanut, letting us know that he/she is growing and thriving  :)  Happy Days!