Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now

31 weeks today! I have to say that the time has really flown so far. I can't believe that I'm at the point in my Pregnancy Day By Day book where 3/4 of the pages have been read and I'm using the back flap to save my page.

All signs point to this being a big baby. My pregnancy book said that the average weight for a baby at 31 weeks is 2.5 lbs. Well.... at Friday's ultrasound (I was 30 weeks, 3 days) this baby measured 3 lbs 10 oz! The radiologist said that it's not at a point where they are worried... she's just a big baby. The fact that the baby is big helps to counteract the "are you sure you're not having twins?" questions... a little bit.

The best ultrasound pictures this week were the close up 3-D pictures of her face. She looks JUST LIKE SHAUN. And when you tell Shaun that, he just glows. It makes me happy. You decide:



We left our ultrasound appointment on Friday and headed straight to the Garden State, where my parents were hosting a baby shower for us at their house in Egg Harbor Township. It was so much fun - especially to see a lot of people that we hadn't seen since our wedding. I really have a great family, and I'm extra lucky that my parents have a wonderful set of close friends that I have known all (or most) of my life who are like extra family to me. I love that my godparents and my confirmation sponsor are still so close. Any event at my parents' is always a fun mix of the Chebras, the Mah Jongg ladies and the Wynnewood friends... and it's great to add my closest friends (the ones who could be there, at least) to the mix. I love knowing that all of these people are going to be part of this baby's life. She's a lucky kid. We got some great things, too: so many sweet little  clothes (that I hope she's tiny enough to get use of!), lots of books and lots of practical things that baby needs. Her arrival definitely seems more real, now.... and now we need to get to work on making room for all of her things in our apartment.

A mover & a shaker

So I'm really going to miss feeling this baby move all the time in my belly. It's such a cool feeling. It's reassuring, sometimes it tickles... but most of all it makes me wonder what she's doing in there. It must be pretty boring. Is she saying hello to me?  Is she trying to dance along to music? I definitely notice that she always does a spin when I eat something cold - a future ice cream lover for sure.

At my last appointment, Dr. Harrison told me that based on measurements, the baby is likely to be closer to 9 lbs than to 8. That's a big baby. But he said that she's growing well so just keep doing what I'm doing.

Next ultrasound is Friday, then we hit the road down to NJ for our baby shower at my parents' house. And we're just about at 30 weeks officially. How the time has flown!

I must say that I like being pregnant. I feel good. I get a little more tired than usual, and I don't enjoy how difficult it is to paint my toenails or get up off the floor or climb stairs... but overall, I think pregnancy agrees with me.

If only we could agree on a name..... 

Chinese Cabbage

And we continue with baby - vegetable equivalancies which mean nothing to me. What the heck is a chinese cabbage? My dear friend Jeff googled a picture for me - he figures that the baby now looks like this:

At my last ultrasound they estimated her weight at 2 lbs, and according to today's email she is about 14 1/2 inches long. And boy oh boy is she a mover.

My mom & dad came up to visit this weekend with tons of baby stuff- including the dresser I used when I was a baby (and was subsequently used by my brother & sister). My sister passed along a lot of great stuff for us, too. It's starting to feel more real, especially now that the baby is kind of on a schedule and I can tell when she's awake and moving. (Note to baby: 3 a.m. is not a good time to be awake and moving.)

I haven't gone crazy shopping for this baby - mostly because I know that we'll be getting lots of hand-me-downs. In general I tend not to like baby clothes that say things like "Little Cutie," etc.... but I do like things that say things that mean something to me. I am trying to track down the little onesie they sold at Walt Disney World that says "You can't spell Princess without ESPN." I also found a onesie online that says "Mommy's Little Understudy" - perfect since she spent most of her gestational time in rehearsals/performances of Ragtime. But honestly? I know she will probably spit up/poop all over anything we put on her, so I'm not going to get too picky.

So I'm getting bigger, she is getting bigger & kicking the day away..... things are looking good so far. We're officially at 28 weeks - 12 to go!