Wednesday, July 27, 2011

3Dimensional Babyness

It is with great relief and pride that I say... my baby performed well. Yep, Nooblet decided that mommy and daddy had earned a viewing on our second try at the 3D sonogram. Or maybe he was performing because he gram and aunt were there. Or because I bribed him with ice cream beforehand. I'm guessing it was that last one. The sonographer was so relieved she gave me a hug on the way out.

Either way, we got some great 3D shots, and I'm so pleased to have gotten such a wonderful view of our little man. It makes me even more excited at the idea of getting to see him for real - though we really do need these next couple months to get all ready for him, so for now I'm content to let him keep right on swimming in there.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Heartburn & Psychadelic Dreams


Heartburn Meds Illustration, originally uploaded by byvik ink.
I think that, for me, hands down the most difficult part of pregnancy so far has been the heartburn. It's an old friend (ha!) of mine since before I got knocked up, but before Nooblet was on board, I just took a daily pill and rarely had to struggle with it. Perfect! And then this little guy took up residence, and since then I've been popping Tums like they're going out of style. At least it counts as a calcium supplement, right?

I wake up at least as often at night to pop Tums or sit up and try to shake off the pain and/or excessive drooling as I do to go to the bathroom. Oh, yes, did I mention the drool? Because basically my stomach acid tries to drown me every night. I guess it's good I sleep on my side, but boy is it ever gross. Really, I'm not a fan of drool. I won't miss it. Why do people sleep on their side every single night if they aren't pregnant? Blech!

And then there's the dreams. Given how often I wake up, I don't get a lot of full, uninterrupted dreams anymore (which is why my dream blog has been left to rot during my pregnancy). Instead I get some pretty weird vignettes. I've had everything from smut to horror and everything in between. If only I had the energy in the half dozen times I'm up at night to want to be bothered with recording them somehow... but I'm not. Sorry. Afraid you'll just have to get knocked up yourself and see how trippy it is. Have fun!

[note: I'm not ACTUALLY condoning other people getting knocked up unless, y'know, they want to. Cuz it's HARD, y'all.]

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Motion in the Ocean


baby punch, originally uploaded by jeremy pettis.

It's changing. I'm finding it very strange to realize how much my little guy is already growing and changing and altering while he's floating around in there.

The furious kicks and punches that I was used to (and, actually, kinda liked) are giving way to more rolling and twisting. It's no less comforting to feel the motion, but it's a new phase. He's not even born and he's already graduating through stages of development. Milestones are passing. It's just a tiny little taste of all the strange new things that are to come as he learns and grows and flows through one phase and into another.

Hard as I'm going to try not to get weepy about every last little thing? I can already tell this is gonna be HARD.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Wait... me?


Crazy mama, originally uploaded by Fran Añón.

Understanding that I'm pregnant and will before long be popping out a baby comes and goes. I'm at a point where physically it's hard to ignore. I'm leaning toward the huge side of big, I've got a little swelling here and there, and Nooblet's a wiggly little bastard.

But that's an academic understanding in a way. That's me getting that Symptom A will lead to Cause B. It's the moments where I actually comprehend that I'm going to HAVE A BABY that are the "whoah" moments. Hubby and I are not only going to have a baby, we're going to be parents. In another thirteen or fourteen years, we'll have ourselves a moody teenager who will feel painfully misunderstood and want to borrow the car or whatever.

WHOAH.

I suppose it's even stranger because I'm me. I know me. Once upon a time, I never thought I'd ever want to have children, so the idea of how our whole lives are going to change now is both exciting and terrifying. We're both ready for the changes and looking forward to them, but that doesn't make it any less weird.

Anybody else periodically forget and remember that they are not only facing the birthing process but, even bigger, the parenting process?

Friday, July 1, 2011

Belly Fuzz


Pregnant Belly, originally uploaded by Kristal Images.

So far I think one of the funnier parts of pregnancy has been that my husband is weirded out by my belly fuzz. Let's not give the wrong idea - my belly isn't, like, covered with fur or anything. But it's got the same light coating of hair and whatnot that it always has. It's just a lot easier to see when it's all stretched out and sticking out in front of me as it is currently.

My poor husband finds it odd enough that he's mentioned shaving it off. Which, of course, I haven't done. I'm hard pressed to be bothered to shave my legs. My stomach? Hah! So rather than show any particular concern for his concerns, I confess that I find it sorta funny that he minds. Is that wrong? Any of you pregnant chicks out there shave your bellies? I'm not the queen of all grooming when it comes to hair (what? I was raised by a hippie!), so I will not pretend to be the Emily Post of pregnant body hair care and gladly defer to the masses. So, masses, what say you?