Placeholder

This is just an article we're going to read together later. As a family. Me, Cletus, and Pappa.

I love family bonding time.

http://jezebel.com/5824553/breastfeeding-isnt-all-its-nipple+cracked-up-to-be

Punch? Riled up? Getting my goat?

Now, the Future-Dad has alluded to a few things he's said or could say to rile me up. He takes joy in this. I pull a face, and sometimes poke him in the ribs. All's fair... I think of fitting punishments for incurring my wrath - like browsing at Baby Gap. (Which we did today! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA) I certainly wouldn't punch him. We love to laugh.

He's been pretty open to some of my baby/child-rearing ideas and others we are doing to discuss further.

We picked out a really cute frame for a 12 week sonogram picture (image?) at a chi-chi baby boutique. The caption says 'Coming Soon'.

Of course he responds 'To a Womb Near You!'

See what I mean?!

Gone Swimmin'

Baby-Mama here. Went to a water aerobics type of class tonight. It was a lot of fun and a bit of a work out. My continuous glucose sensor did not survive an hour submerged in the pool. Bummer. (It's only rated for 30 minutes underwater, but others have reported swimming for longer with okay results.)

I want nachos right now. From Muchas Gracias. The Carnitas Nachos. They make them with fresh chips and shredded pork, refried beans, and cheese, and sour cream and salsa and guac. Want some. Badly. But I think I'll pass. Too much food and too late at night. Maybe another time.

Not much to report...

My belly was never a small belly. It tends to roundness, and is usually full of good food. I walk, sporadically, but I've been trying to do more walking and less sitting. Between school, work, and my love of the internet - I do a lot of sitting. Looking into prenatal aquatics, which makes me nervous. Not about wearing a bathing suit; that's no problem. It's what to do about my insulin pump and glucose sensor! Can't submerge expensive medical equipment willy-nilly.

Now my belly is popping out in a new way. Remember the scene in Pulp Fiction when the gal says that pot bellies are sexy? I'm going to go with that. Maybe it's a stretch, but yeah, I'll go with it.

I haven't felt any movements (no kicks or hiccups) but I do feel twinges now and then. It lets me know that things are moving and shifting, making room for the growing babe. Very much looking forward to the next appointment and ultrasound.

Nothing to see here, now move along....

Hmmm...it's been awhile since I've been the poster to these blogs.  I've been letting Baby Mama do the last few updates (That's her new nickname.  She must be okay with it because no junk punches or cat butt faces).  It's not too say I became bored with sharing my thoughts.  One can say I have ADD with life and things to do.  Hope my baby doesn't get this trait because it'll be a pain to keep his/her attention on stuff.

Baby-wise, it's been an uneventful 2nd trimester so far.  The little sucker is still growing.  The wife's belly is now noticeable.  We're starting to collect more hardware (we're now at 2 strollers, a breast pump and have been offered diaper pails and a swing).  Haven't even started on the baby room.  My broken sleep pattern is still in good form (thank you dogs for training me well).  We've been talking about some "parenting" decisions and brought up good topics; circumcision, baptism, kid discipline.  **One thing to note, be careful when one "pokes the preggo".  I've pushed Baby Mama's buttons a bit....and while we laugh early on, down the road might not be fun and games.  Last thing I want is a junk kick or a black eye cause I said something dumb**

Things are great and I am very thankful for that.  It's also the wife's birthday this 16th.  If you are reading this, say Happy Birthday to her.  Finally, question for you readers;  sex of the baby, boy or girl?  Or would you even want to know.  We want to find out and we're going to in a few weeks. 

Check Up

Another post from future-Mom -

We had a check up with the perinatologist yesterday. Heard baby's heartbeat, which is at ~150 beats/min. We love to hear it, and would have happily listened for much longer than the nurse needed. The size/position of my uterus is just fine, because I'm 'short-waisted'. It'll go up further, and then out.

The nurse took a little blood for genetic testing and checking my thyroid function. Stung a bit, but no bruise. I'm very impressed with this clinic overall. The nurses are pros, my doctor gives me the right amount of information and trusts me to manage my diabetes with the help of my CDE (Certified Diabetes Educator).

It's been a rough couple of weeks, and we're balancing taking care of ourselves and helping out our family as much as we can. "Cletus" the Fetus had better be resilient and keep up - he's got me and that cool guy for parents. We gotta roll with the punches and keep on going. Cletus is an inspiration as well as being along for the ride. Keep on growing, baby!

Wraps

So many puns are possible! It's a wrap! Wrapping it up! Whomp there it is, wrap your babby in a wrap!

I've been looking at baby-wearing. We have a hand me down Ergo carrier, that looks pretty handy. I've also been checking out the Moby Wrap and Mei Tai. Leaning toward the Moby, since it looks like it can handle little ones.

Future-Dad is a little concerned when I get crunchy, but I think baby wearing would be really nice. Hold the baby close to our skin, and have both hands free. I mean, you need one hand for a remote, and one for a drink - am I right!?

Next on the list - looking up cloth diaper options. We were both cloth diapered, at least part of the time. I think some of the products available now (vs a service, which I'd like to avoid) seem really convenient and approachable.

Edited to add: Oh yes! Check up tomorrow. Time for bed. Will post later. No new images, though. I was loving the frequent ultrasounds and I don't think the next one is for a another month!

Favorite Things

Future-poppa and I are pretty good at treating ourselves. I'm sipping on an awesome Diet Cherry Limeaid from Sonic. Just found them, and they are fantastic. He's enjoying a Diet Dr. Pepper w/chocolate syrup. Said it tastes 'just like a melted tootsie roll'. Heh! In person, it's much more appetizing than that sounds. At least they are tasty drinks and not ice cream.

Oh ice cream, how I love you.

Here are a few more of my favorite things*:

Greek yogurt. It's rich-tasting, and yummy. Full of protein and doesn't play havoc with my blood sugar. I think I love it more than plain yogurt now.

My water bottle. I've had a hard time remembering to drink enough water lately. If I keep my stainless steel water bottle around, I keep it filled and feel much better. Which keeps my soda habit in check.

Leading up to - diet lemon-lime soda. Diet 7up has replaced my diet coke habit. My research tells me that a little bit of caffeine isn't the end of the world, but I've stopped drinking so much of it. Now it's just if I need something to keep my eyes open. An iced decaf or small diet coke work nicely.

Summer fruits. I love Hood River strawberries, cherries, raspberries - so good. I don't know if we get figs around here, but those would be great too. I'm also a sucker for mangoes, fuji apples, blueberries.

Sleep. I took a glorious 3 hour nap today. Still haven't manged to get into an early bedtime routine, but I love my sleep. Babby needs it!

Hand-me-down maternity clothes. My sister saved all of her old stuff for me and gave it to me many months ago. I am so thankful, even though when I received the space bags I wondered 'Where am I going to put all of this stuff!?' Now I actually have clothes to wear to work. They are cute and comfortable (what can I say - sis has good taste).

Aside: I was much snarky-ier 11 years ago when Sis was pregnant with her first, and mailed her a few pairs of jeans with elastic waistbands. They made me laugh and laugh. She was on a tight budget, since her then-husband was in fresh in the Army. I know she appreciated them but didn't appreciate my amusement. I am CONVERTED. They are awesome. How could I have been so foolish? I'm glad she's gracious and wise. She knew my time would come.

I think my uterus is getting bold and moving up North. I thought it was well below my belly button and now I feel it's either just below or right at my belly button. Cletus the fetus needs a little more room, I think. Onward and upward kiddo!

*In no way, shape, or form a comprehensive list. Fetus-Dad is absolutely my #1 favorite.