Kaylee in 2009

Happy New Year! We can't wait for 2010!!!

99 days to go!

Were down to double digits, 99 days to go! Time has really flown by. Thanks to grandma Janie, we were able to enjoy one more sonogram yesterday. She actually looks like a baby now! The first thing we saw was Kaylee sticking her tongue out at us! We saw her move and kick and squirm after a little motivation (or poking). She even tried to "bite" her umbilical when it floated past her face. The weirdest part was feeling her kick me while seeing it at the same time.

Kaylee weighs approximately 2 pounds and is about 13 inches! About the size of a really good lobster! Her head is huge! Her head is in the 90th percentile of development. So, she looks like daddy but has mommy's big head!

25 1/2 weeks

Merry Christmas!

bye-bye toes...

^25 weeks^

^12 weeks^

24 weeks, 5 days

How far along? 24 weeks, 5 days
Total weight gain: 3 pounds
Maternity clothes? Yes, and now I am sick of them.
Sleep: starting to get uncomfortable, apparently don't need as much as I used to
Cravings? anything sweet!
Best moment this week: Daddy REALLY felt Kaylee kick. I think he was faking it before
Movement: lots and lots
Gender: girl
Labor Signs: none
Belly Button in or out? In, but slowly disappearing :(
What I miss: margaritas
What I am looking forward to: Seeing our baby at our ultrasound this week!
Milestone: we reached the 24 week milestone
Next appointment: 3D ultrasound next Monday thanks to grandma!

24 weeks

V-Day!

Today is considered Vitality Day! This means that Kaylee now has the highest chance of survival if she were born this early. Of course each day that goes by helps increase her chances, but this is a great milestone for her.

From babyzone.com
Your baby is filling out this week. Part of your weight gain goes straight to helping her gain weight, too. Since she's still on the scrawny side, her skin wrinkles on her body, but she looks like a miniature version of what you'll see on delivery day. Her face has formed, ears are in place, and eyes are complete (although her lids are still closed). She has eyelashes, fingernails, and may be growing hair, too. Rapid eye movements (REM) are beginning, too.

As for me, I am feeling pretty good. I get backaches every once in awhile and my belly button is slowly flattening out, but other than that I feel great! We have our next OB appointment on Monday and then our last ultrasound the next Monday.

Kaylee at 23 weeks

Your baby has now reached the 1-pound mark and measures about 11 inches long. You may be smaller or larger than other people that are 23 weeks pregnant, but what is important is that you have steady growth and that you are taking care of yourself.

This week your baby’s nostrils will open (so of course, daddy wants to know if she can pick her nose now that she has nostrils and fingers!?!) and the enamel that will cover baby’s teeth is forming. Surfactant, which is a substance that helps the lungs expand after birth, has begun to develop and the air sacs inside the lungs are growing.

All the nerve cells are all in place now and will begin to join together to fully form a nervous system. Baby is moving around a lot now, and you’re probably feeling the full force of their movements. This daily movement helps them work out their developing muscles.

What a difference 8 weeks makes...

^week 14^

^week 22^

Nursery--in progress

Here's the latest on the nursery progress. Daddy finished painting and put together the shelves for the closet. We're almost done! Just need a baby to put in it!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our little one has been moving around like crazy lately. I now can feel her everyday and the most exciting part, daddy got to feel her last night! I could also see my belly moving when she was kicking!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Of course, we are thankful for the little bun we have in the oven. It was our last "just the two of us" Thanksgiving. We spent it with family and was complete with a "house lighting ceremony" and an impromptu Christmas carol. Then we had our own turkey day meal on Saturday because we needed the leftovers! We also put up our tree, decorated the house and are ready for Christmas. I have a feeling that next year, the holidays will be quite different!

Can't wait...

...to play dress up! I just got my baby legwarmers (aka baby legs) in the mail today and they are just so darn cute! So, of course, I had to put some outfits together. They were from my new favorite (and soon to be daddy's least favorite) website babysteals.com.


I also got my first "shower" gift today from a friend at work. It's the softest, cutest, little blanket that matches our nursery bedding. yay!

Yay Daddy!

12 vs. 20

^week 12^

^week 20^

Halfway point!

We have officially reached the halfway point of pregnancy. Time flies when you're getting huge! Hopefully that means this second half will go by even faster, because the hugeness is coming! Can you believe the baby is the size of a cantaloupe?!? A big cantaloupe at that! We are working our way through the produce aisle and getting kind of nervous about getting to the watermelons!

Kaylee's development:

* Baby is 6 1/2 - 7 inches long crown to rump, and weighs about 10 1/2 ounces.
* The baby can hear and recognize the mother's voice.
* The mother will probably start feeling the first fetal movements.
* The toenails and fingernails are growing.
* The growth of hair on the rest of the body has started.
* The skin is getting thicker.
* The heart can now be heard with a stethoscope.

Your baby may react to loud sounds. Baby can actually hear noises outside of the womb. Familiar voices, music, and sounds that baby becomes accustomed to during their development stages often are calming after birth. This is an important time for sensory development since nerve cells serving each of the senses; taste, smell, hearing, sight, and touch are now developing into their specialized area of the brain.

20 week OB appointment

We had our 20 week OB appointment today. The doc reviewed all the results from our ultrasound and she said everything looks fantastic! Clean bill of health for Kaylee thus far. I guess she is measuring big and my belly is measuring small. I have officially put on 2 pounds. Gaining weight is not one of those milestones I have looked forward to but it had to start sometime. I also found out I have an anterior placenta, which means the placenta is in between my belly button and the baby instead of behind the baby, so to speak. Anyways, that is the reason I have only felt movement a few times. There is essentially a pillow between the baby and my stomach and her kicks are not yet strong enough for me to feel. She sure is active though. We were able to hear her kick and roll over on the doppler monitor when we were listening to the heartbeat (I had know idea as to what I was listening to until the doc pointed it out).

At today's appointment we talked about birth plans, childbirth class and inductions. It was weird to discuss such things but the doc says we need to start thinking about what our plans are going to be. Not that I haven't been thinking about it, but it seemed so official coming from the doc. One thing we did learn is that our doctor will induce as soon as we miss our due date, so we won't have to wait too long. I'm pretty sure I would like to avoid the induction route but glad, if it comes down to it, I won't have to be waddling around uncomfortable and huge!

Halfway to my due date tomorrow!

just for fun...

Madame Zaritska, using her mystical powers, has the following prediction:

The day you deliver, outside will be windy. Your baby will arrive in the late night. After a labor lasting approximately 19 hours, your child, a girl, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 11 pounds, 13 ounces, and will be 22 inches long. This child will have dark blue eyes and a lot of red hair.

Oh, I hope this doesn't turn out to be accurate!!!

ultrasound video-anatomy scan

It's kind of long, but here is the video of our last ultrasound

Kaylee 19w3d xdi from Lisa Bergin on Vimeo.

19 weeks 3 days

Today we went for our 20 week anatomy scan. She is definitely still a SHE! All of her major organs were measured and checked for abnormalities. She got "normal" all the way down the line. Everything is looking good! We go to see the OB on Tuesday. Here's the latest pics, she still looks kind of freaky. She will plump up and look more baby-like for our next (and most likely last) ultrasound



How far along? 19 weeks, 3 days
Total weight gain: 0 pounds --everything I lost, I gained back so I am right back where I started
Maternity clothes? YES and loving them. I know there will come a day when I want to burn them all, but they are treating me right lately
Sleep: starting to get uncomfortable, still can't get enough of it
Cravings? almost everything--the appetite has returned
Best moment this week: Passing the anatomy scan with flying colors
Movement: sporadic
Gender: girl
Labor Signs: None.
Belly Button in or out? In.
What I miss: happy hour
What I am looking forward to: daddy being able to feel her kick
Milestone: we registered, chose nursery bedding and got on a waiting list for childcare all this week
Next appointment: Tuesday

We finally agreed on nursery bedding!

I think!
We reserve the right to change our minds though. :)

Penelope from Pottery Barn Kids

The childcare search...

Yes, it has already begun. While it is already depressing to think about childcare at this time, it is necessary and we are glad we started this early.

We spent our day off touring five different centers. It was nice that Matt was able to go and after we toured all the facilities he understood why I disliked some of the first few places so much. We found only one place that we liked and could actually see ourselves dropping our daughter off to every day.

So, we are officially on a waiting list. Yes, here we are, not even 5 months pregnant and already worried about what school we are going to get into!

Kaylee at 19 weeks

Almost halfway there!!!

Your baby girl is getting bigger every day. She now weighs about 10 1/2 ounces and is 6 1/2 inches in length.

Your baby girl practices breathing and in effect drinks and swallows amniotic fluid on a regular basis, processing it through her kidneys, into the bladder and voiding again into the amniotic fluid.

Your baby girl's teeth are established beneath the gums and permanent teeth are forming behind them.

Your baby's nervous system is busy this week, as she develops myelin, a fatty substance that coats her nerves. This insulates the nerves so that impulses flow smoothly to the brain. Speaking of brain, it is hard at work, with special areas forming to hold your baby's sense of taste, hearing, vision, and touch.

Today's the day...

I officially LOOK and FEEL pregnant

and definitely ate for two today!

Tried to register

Barely made it halfway through the store. So we gave up. There were just too many things. Even after all the advice from others, reviews online and other recommendations we still didn't know what the heck we were doing. We tried going off the "suggested" list but it just seemed like way too much stuff, do we really need all that nonsense?? We'll give it another go some other weekend.

On another note, we have the nursery all painted. Well, almost all of it. We (I say "we" like I have had anything to do with the painting) have to go back and neaten up some edges, but other than that, we are done! We moved all the stuff back into the room and it sure is getting full! We are now realizing how tiny her room is.

6 more days until our "big" ultrasound!

it seemingly appeared overnight...

^Week 12^

^Week 18^

Kaylee at 18 weeks

How your baby's growing:

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. Her blood vessels are visible through her thin skin, and her ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from her head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound. (source: babycenter.com)

First major purchase-check!

We found a super deal on a car seat/stroller travel system so we caved and bought it. It's the Graco Literider Travel System. It was on clearance at Target and was the very last one. We went last week to decide if we wanted this particular combo and they had a bunch on sale for $100. We didn't buy it then and went back to get it last night and they were sold out! We called another Target and they had one left. We raced over there to get it and found it out that it was only $80 on clearance. It was about $200 cheaper than the stroller we were considering. Score! Yes, I already asked Matt to install the car seat, am I getting ahead of myself? :) It's just so darn cute!


Thank goodness for little girls! Especially little girls that have outgrown their clothes! The hand me downs have begun and as other mothers are cleaning out their closets, ours is getting rather full! I have two families in my class that have daughters that were born last March and April and they have no use for all the little, adorable clothes that their babies have grown out of. And they are the perfect age, so all the clothes are the right season! woo hoo! We also were given a cute little rocking-vibrating-chair thing, a baby bjorn and an activity mat. I am coming to the realization of how much stuff comes along with baby! We better start cleaning out the garage to make some room for this new little addition and all that comes with her!

Oh, and one of my students brought me a present that he wrapped all by himself, (sponge bob paper with a lot of tape) and he proudly presented it to me "this is for your baby!" It was a box of crayons. I told him that my baby will draw him a picture as soon as she's big enough to hold the crayons and not eat them! So cute!!

Kaylee at 17 weeks

Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom (2 more inches if you count her legs). She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop. (source: babycenter.com)

Next appointment: November 17

thinkin' pink already!

Finally...

16 weeks & 3 daysThis is the latest picture of our baby girl!
Yes, we are going to have a daughter!! We went for a 4D scan today because neither one of us had the patience to wait. The tech said that it was absolutely, without a doubt a girl!
We also found out that SHE is 7.2 inches long from head to toe!

week 16 bump (if you can even call it that)

^week 12^

^week 16^

Here is one of my students drawings of what the baby looks like inside my tummy...

It's a boy...

...or maybe a girl. Your guess is apparently as good as anyone's these days! Two appointments today, one with reproductive endocrinologist (fertility specialist) and one with the OB. Three weeks ago, RE was SURE it was a boy. Now she says she thinks it's a girl due to the fact that she couldn't find any dangle today. OB predicted boy based on baby's heart rate. So we really know nothing more. We did get back our results from our 12 week screening and they said everything looks fabulous and we are low risk in all categories. So there is some good news, who really cares if it is a boy or a girl, as long as it's healthy anyways?? Oh and today was our last appointment with the RE!!! We did our first insemination on New Year's Eve/Day of 2009. That's 10 months of basically WEEKLY appointments. No more co-pays, no more blood draws, no more missing work, no more drugs!! =) also no more weekly pictures of baby =( Here is the last one for a month, but in a month we will get more 3D/4D shots! (unless we cave and go in early to find out the gender, which isn't out of the realm of possibilities)

So here is baby, the head is at the bottom of the pic.
The image is basically flipped so baby is essentially standing in my uterus! You can't see the legs though, they are out of the plane of view, just the head and the body and a little arm. Not a great pic, sorry! It's all you get until Nov. 14

Make a pregnancy ticker

baby at 16 weeks

This week, your baby is just beginning to accumulate some fat cells underneath her translucent skin. Your baby is about 4 ½ inches long and weighs about 3 ½ ounces, about the size of an avocado. She is beginning a huge growth spurt within the coming weeks in weight and height, so hold on!

Your baby’s heart is strengthening, and is now pumping about 6 gallons of blood per day. The heartbeats doubly as fast as yours, and it is furiously working to promote circulation and feed the organs for growth. The whorl pattern on her scalp, which will form her hair, has started to develop. If you were to watch your baby’s face, you would see that she has also developed some reflexes, including sucking, swallowing, and blinking her eyes. Her eyes have moved to the front of her head as well.

Another great milestone this week is that your baby is breathing. Her tiny lungs are taking in oxygen-enriched amniotic fluid for practice until she can breathe air one day. Further development in her lungs will take place until she is ready to breathe on her own after she is born. As she swallows and breathes amniotic fluid, her urinary tract is beginning to function as well. (source: smartmomma.com)

Let the record show...

today may be the first time I felt the baby move! I'll know for sure as time passes and it happens more frequently and gets harder, BUT I really think I was feeling it today! It felt like bubbles popping and it was only on the side that the baby was on (it seems to like my left side)

Baby's first Halloween

and it was a ghost!

it was really for my school's fall festival. my students helped my make it and were excited that my baby had a costume. although, there was quite the heated debate as to whether I would would swallow it so the baby could wear it or just stick it on the outside. one little girl was very worried about my safety if I was going to swallow it. I told them maybe I should keep it on the outside so that everyone can see it. they all agreed.

...and the ghost is to scale. that is approximately how big the baby is!

Watching paint dry

literally & figuratively!

Yesterday Matt took three trips to home depot resulting in 6 paint samples and different color splotches all over the baby's room wall. I think we made a decision. We better get painting before we change our minds!

Time seemed to be flying for awhile, now it just seems to be standing still. I feel normal again, not much of a belly to speak of, two week hiatus from doctor's appointments, no more shots... the only thing that reminds me that I'm pregnant are the occasional hormonal freak outs and sciatic pain. I know, I know, enjoy this time before I'm getting kicked in the ribs and can't tie my shoes!

A little late but this is what's going on with baby in week 15...

Your baby is looking more like a baby every day. This week he is about 4 inches long crown to rump, and may weigh about 2 ½ ounces. The body is now growing faster now to catch up with the growth of his head. His legs have grown longer than his arms and he can move all of his limbs. Speaking of movement, this may be the week you feel him flutter about like a butterfly’s wings. Make no mistake that he is dancing around in there. You just may not yet feel it. Baby can kick, flail, twist, and turn.

His skin is still translucent. If you were to take a look inside your womb, you would see his blood vessels underneath his lanugo-covered skin. Lanugo is a downy-like hair that keeps your baby insulated and warm. He usually sheds this before birth or soon after.

His toenails and fingernails are beginning to grow, along with this eyebrows and head hair. Bones in his middle ear are beginning to harden, but his hearing has not yet fully developed. Sweat glands are begging to form, as well as taste buds. Although baby’s eyelids remain shut, he will move away from any bright lights shown directly at him. (source smartmomma.com)

Nursery--Under Construction...

We can officially say that we are working on the nursery because...it has furniture!!! We were given a crib and matching changing table from a good friend (well, technically her mother) and we were also given a family rocking chair; it finally looks like a baby room! We are ready to start fixing that nursery up! Matt is going to paint...soon. First we have to decide on colors though. We are apparently not very good at agreeing on baby decor! At least we managed to agree on names. We also bought a few blankets at Babies R Us to help us figure out a color scheme/theme/etc.

On a mommy note, I have been pregnant for over 100 and spent the last 75 of those giving myself a daily shot of progesterone oil. Until tonight!!! Today is my last shot!!! WOOHOO! I have been weaning myself off for the last two weeks and have not had any adverse reactions which means things are going well! If that continues we will have our last appointment with our fertility specialist on Tuesday. It's bittersweet--it's great because that means I can be a normal pregnant person, but it's a shame because we won't get to see the baby every week and I really like my doctor. I guess her job is done though and she did it well!

here comes the bump...

week12^


week 14^

Dinner is served!

yes, this was my dinner last night--an avocado, tomatoes, fritos and orange soda--and it was darn good!

14 weeks

This week, your baby has fully developed sex organs, although they will be difficult to see on your pregnancy ultrasound. In boys, the prostate gland is developing. In girls, the ovaries have formed and have moved down into the pelvis.

Your baby is 3 ½ inches long, crown to rump (head to butt) and weighs about 1 ½ ounces. Her skin is very translucent, although she is beginning to develop a downy, very fine hair called lanugo over her body for insulation. She will have this hair until she develops enough fat deposits to regulate her temperature, usually shortly before she’s born.

This week, your baby is strengthening her muscles by moving and kicking a little more. She is becoming more flexible and stronger every day. She is even practicing moving her facial muscles, as she frowns, grimaces, and squints.

Your baby is in the midst of an impressive growth spurt. Within the next month or two, she will triple in length and grow to reach the one-pound mark. (source: smartmomma.com)

13 weeks, 6 days

Here is our almost 14 weeker! Not the best of pics, but it's all we got this week. Up on the left you can see where the head is just out of the shot, then all the way down the spine and two little legs that are just about to push off of me! We got to see lots of cool movements, the chambers of the heart and the umbilical cord pumping blood to baby. We didn't get to see any confirmation about gender though. Baby was not cooperating. Baby stayed pretty much in a profile position and just wouldn't let us sneak a peek! We go back next Tuesday for what should be our last appointment with our fertility specialist, which also means, no more weekly pictures :( ! I only have three more shots to give myself and then I am done! So far all is well!