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24 weeks November 16, 2004

The weeks fly by and each week I get a little rounder. If I looked like I swallowed a cantelope the last time I wrote here, I'm certain I look like I swallowed a large soccerball now. Random people are starting to notice I'm pregnant, perhaps because I can no longer zip my snowboarding jacket properly. Or maybe it's that I waddle just a little bit at the end of a long day.

The baby's kicks are stronger than ever, of course. Sometimes, I just sit and watch my tummy wiggle and wonder at all the activity going on inside of me. I try to guess if the little bulge is a foot, a knee, or an elbow, but I'm never sure. While I am sleeping, Jason will often put his hand on my tummy and feel the baby kick. He says he likes the one on one interaction he gets with our child then. It makes me feel so secure knowing that my husband has already begun to enjoy fatherhood.

We talk more seriously now about what it will be like to have a third person in our family. Jason's sister and brother are eight and sixteen years younger than Jason, so Jason really has some perspective into what it's like to have a baby in the home. I admit I'm a bit envious of that experience, but I also look forward to learning from him.

My now four-year-old cousin, Christian, is really the only baby I've ever been close to. Before Christian was born, there was a fairly long period of time where I just wasn't sure I wanted to have children. Seeing what a huge blessing Christian was to my Auntie Susie's and Uncle Frank's family really revealed to me the unique rewards that accompany parenthood.

A few of our friends and family members have given us the same prediction; "Your life is sure going to change." I'm not really sure how to take this. Nearly everyone follows that quote with some sort of expression like, "But I'm sure it will be worth it." Which is reassuring, yet still mystifying. Do people say this to us because they think we don't realize how much our life will change after our baby is born, or is it meant as a warning of sorts? Like a "brace for impact" sorta warning?

I guess the fact of the matter is, I really don't know what I've gotten myself into. I can anticipate many trials and many blessings, but there is no way for me to know for sure how I will adjust to being a mother. What I do know is, the Lord wouldn't have allowed this little life to be formed inside of me if He wasn't willing to provide me and my husband with all of the love, strength, and patience we're undoubtedly going to need. My hope is that parenthood does bring us to the end of ourselves, that it makes us depend ever more on Christ alone, and also that we have the priceless experience of raising a child in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We may not only gain a child, but a brother or sister in Christ.

I've been into the hospital with abdominal pain, had a doctor's appointment and a midwife appointment all since I last wrote.

Before the doctors appointment, I went and had a second ultrasound. While it was a relief to learn that the placental bleeding that had shown up on the last ultrasound was now gone, I was pretty disappointed with the ultrasound technician's attitude. She was in a terrible hurry for some reason and didn't do the complete ultrasound like she was supposed to. She took four quick pictures which are not comparable to the pictures we have from before, but I've uploaded them nevertheless. Click here to see the baby pics. Jason and I did get to see our baby wave to us during that ultrasound though. That was the highlight of the whole ordeal. Our baby put his little fist up by his face, then opened and closed it just like he was waving to us. Jason and I are already convinced our child is a genius. :-D

The doctor's appointment itself went alright. The abdominal pain that sent me to the hospital turned out to be either the result of kidney stones that were too small to show up on ultrasound, or the result of a twisted intestine. In any case, I'm feeling just fine now. My blood pressure, pulse, and fundal height were all pretty good. The results from the ultrasound weren't very informative. I had hoped to be able to ask what size the baby's head circumference was and how long our baby is, but none of that had been checked.

I was shocked when the doctor said I'd gained too much weight. I think perhaps she said that not realizing that I only see her once every two months, rather than every month like most of her prenatal patients. I've only gained twelve pounds over the past six months I've been pregnant, so I'm still eight pounds less than my pre-pregnancy weight. According to what I've read online, that is perfectly normal for weight gain. Still, I spent most of that evening crying because I thought I was fat, but a phone call from my mother quickly brightened my mood.

We've been getting to know our midwife, Becky, a little better. I'm getting pretty comfortable talking to her--she's got an easy-going personality that makes it difficult to be shy. She also includes Jason in all of our discussions which I'm sure will help him to feel more comfortable when I'm in labor. Becky will be coming over again next Tuesday. I'm afraid I'm going to have to tell her how bad I've been about taking my prenatal vitamins. For some reason, I just can't seem to persuade myself of the importance of taking so many vitamins.

Here is a Baby Picture of Jason. Maybe that will give you a better idea of what our baby will look like. I've still got to find one of me to put up. Hopefully I'll get that done in time for my next entry.

Jason and I went to St. Paul with Jason's mom, Sherry, and brother, Carter, earlier this month. We went down to visit Jason's grandpa who is in the hospital. Even though I wasn't looking forward to the four hour drive, I was glad we went. Jason's grandpa really wasn't doing so great and I think having us visit might have perked him up just a bit.

Also, the our trip to St. Paul was nice because, in talking to my mother-in-law, I realised just how much I can learn from her about parenting. At one point, we got to talking about spanking and about how it seems like the majority of parents now days either belong the group that strongly advocates spanking or they belong to the group that is seemingly oblivious to their childrens' poor behavior.

I don't believe that spanking is a very good form of discipline, but then again I don't think it is child abuse either. I told Sherry that I suspect that most alternative forms of discipline wouldn't work with a two-year-old because two-year-olds really can't be reasoned with. And she said that, when her children were at that age, the most important thing was to be consistent. She said even a two-year-old will catch on eventually if they know you're not going to give in. So now I wonder if consistency in parenting from day one can truly mean less conflict in the long run.

This has gotten to be quite the lengthy entry and I haven't even posted the Nursery Pictures yet. Well, there ya go. That is our baby's bedroom. We don't have any furniture in there yet but I'm planning to go shopping with Rachel so I can register for the baby shower soon. That should be lots of fun.

I really need to get this big, sleepy, pregnant body of mine to bed. Maybe tonight Jason will be willing to give me a back massage with the wonderful little massage thingy that Mom bought me at Bath & Body Works this week. Should be fun!

Links
15 wk Ultrasound
23 wk Ultrasound
Nursery Pic
Dad's Baby Pic

Baby Names
Isaac, Isaiah, Owen, James, Anna, or Lily