20 Week Update

I'll give our 20 week update a day early. I'm off to Angel Fire, New Mexico tomorrow for a week - my last free week before I start school stuff again. Time is about to fly by. Next thing we know, it'll be December. We've got a big month ahead of us. I'm starting my first REAL year of teaching and Brian will begin his law classes. I think it's fair to say we're both a little nervous.

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of her head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, she's measured from head to toe.) She's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for her digestive system. She's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in her bowels, and you'll see it in her first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

Kaylynn has been a gymnast these past few days. She's moving all around, all the time. More so today, I think than ever. Perhaps it's because I've been sitting all day doing this GT training and she really wishes I'd move around so she'll be rocked to sleep. She kicked Brian good this morning, which made him smile. Hopefully it put him in a good mood before he left for work.

19 Week Update

Here's what babycenter.com has to say about Kaylynn this week:

Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, taking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom —about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

It baffles me that it says she's 6 inches from head to bottom. I'm not that big, so I'm wondering where she's hiding this 6 inches of baby. Good things - she doesn't have cystic fibrosis and and we're low risk for down's syndrome. I'm starting to feel her kick me from the outside, sadly Brian hasn't been able to witness it yet. He almost caught her this morning, but she must have known we wanted him to feel. He was talking to my belly saying "Kaylynn, kick mommy, kick her right in the uterus!" It was pretty funny.

We're Taking Donations

18 week update, ultrasound results, and another appointment...all in one week. Well first, we'll start out with the less interesting stuff - the 18 week update:

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he'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.

Well, we didn't have to worry about seeing any boy parts. We're having a girl! That's why we're taking donations. Brian's worried this is going to be expensive! Below are our latest photos of Kaylynn Noelle. We didn't get any pictures of her face because she was being stubborn and wouldn't turn over. She gets her stubborness from Brian and her love of sleep from me. :)

This is her whole self.

Here you see a little foot. Actually, a long foot from the looks of it.

This is the shot of proof. We are in fact having a little girl.

This is just a profile of her head.

On Wednesday we go back to the doc to get test results from this ultrasound and my blood work. Fingers crossed for a healthy baby!

Bigger Bump or Bigger Butt?

I was supposed to do these photos every couple weeks. Well, I'm a little slow. Here's one 4.5 weeks later, 2 days shy of 18 weeks.

I got two things out of this photo:

1. This shirt is not one that can be worn much longer. It's tight.

2. My butt is HUGE. Has it always been like that? Maybe it's the way I'm standing. Yeah, I'll just keep telling myself that.

Ponderings

Is it cruel to give your child the initials WWF?

Edited: WWF made the approved initial list compiled 26 years ago when Brian was baking in the oven. Sweet! I just need to get Brian on board. :)

Portland Recap

My biggest regret - forgetting to take my tree-hugger picture. :( We had a great time in Oregon/Washington this week. We'll eventually send out all our travel photos, but for now, enjoy this small photo recap.

Visiting Multnomah Falls, the 2nd largest fall (falls?) in the US. I'm assuming Niagra is numero uno.

Cool reflection lake at Mt. Hood

Enjoying 90 degree weather; wearing flip-flops - IN THE SNOW!!! How is it possible that the snow hasn't melted yet?

Enjoying Cannon Beach with The Podds & Tyrone the dog. Yes, I'm wearing clothes underneath the towel. We escaped the 90 degree weather of Portland only to stumble upon the 58 degree weather of the coast. Luckily, Brian agreed that I should get a sweatshirt to keep warm. I do have the best husband ever!

Scowling at the California wildfires and the winds that shifted overnight and caused our view of Crater Lake to be obstructed - in flip-flops. We drove 4.5 hours to see that. Don't worry, we'll be back!

Enjoying a very patriotic 4th of July in Seattle.

We had a great time visiting K&J! Hopefully we didn't overstay our welcome. Even so, it's always great to get back home. Zoe sure did miss us, as proven by her inability to leave our sides (she's laying right by me as I type).

17 Week Update from Seattle

Here we are, Sleepless in Seattle. Ok, not actually sleepless; I just had a good night's sleep and it's 10am, so can't say that I got up early. Here's what's going on with Little Frink this week (thanks babycenter.com):

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. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.

We fly home tonight at 12:35am, Portland time. That's 2:35am to the Texans. Talk about catching the red-eye.