This is nuts! I feel her kicking and wriggling around all the time and it still requires a pinch (or 5) to fully grasp that there’s LIFE growing (and will eventually need to come out and meet us!). We had our check-up yesterday, got to listen to the heartbeat again, and got the OK for me to travel to see my sister and her family. With that being said, here are some highlights of the past couple weeks since we last spoke of Choo-Choo…
WORST:
*some pretty sharp hip and lower back pain, but I guess that’s a good sign, because it means she’s growing!
BEST
:
*Being outright told that I look
beautiful
by a friend of mine. A compliment with no strings attached, no comparison of size-just a simple, “
You and your belly are beautiful.
” Meant the world.
*The invention of lotion for itchy skin-like cool aloe vera on a really bad sunburn-feels so good!!
*Finding maternity pants that fit length-wise. Can I hear an AMEN!?! Which brings me to Answered Prayers….
Answered Prayers:
*provision of maternity clothes from friends who are done having children or those who grew out of the sizes they thought would fit. (Meaning, I can keep them rather than return them.)
*provision of a carrier and base to go with a simple travel stroller already given to us. (They match!!)
*provision of several toys and baby accessories that will carry us through most of baby’s first year developmentally. This will pass savings onto our registry as well-the simpler when we walk into that store, the better.
*we made it to 24 weeks-a milestone that if something were to happen, Choo-Choo would be viable outside the womb. I don’t take any week lightly, but getting past 23 weeks, personally knowing women who have lost children before this point due to various complications, I’m thrilled we’re here and solemnly bow my head in thanksgiving.
*protection from car accidents-there have crazily been some near misses with the icy weather and bad drivers (not Gerard, nor me). Thus far, we’ve come out unscathed. Praise HIM!
Speaking of provision: we recently attended our first Baby Class: Baby Finance 101.
As if those cartoons aren’t funny lookin’ enough……here’s the newest installment of bloopers….
Funnies:
*I’m making a lot of new words up. Newest one? “Imaginatize”.
Imaginatize the judge on the other side of the room, listening to your introduction…
(the student looked at me quizzically and kept playing…)
*I’m also stuttering a lot more because my lips are moving faster
than my brain.
*In my devotional time with God, I’m having to read paragraphs over and over and over again to comprehend what I’m reading. I used to be a whiz kid at reading comprehension on state testing-tis humbling.
*My bluntness has increased. Again, the lips are moving faster than my brain and my censor is malfunctioning a LOT. Whoops!
*I can SEE my stomach move when Choo-Choo kicks. Some consider it creepy or alien-ish. Gerard & I are in the “THIS IS AWESOME!” Camp.
*I’m laughing more freely, readily and loudly-whether it’s socially appropriate to do so or not. Again, my censor is MIA.
*Counting rhythms one day with a student-I didn’t make it to 3 counts per measure like the time signature indicated and thought every measure had a typo in it until I realized (a few minutes later) I was not including an eighth note rest in each of those 8 measures. I can’t count anymore!!
*Getting bossier by the day-poor Gerard, I’ve become a human GPS and will tell him when I’m “recalculating”.
*If Gerard has to tell me bad news or vice versa, we always end it with, “But we’re having a baby!!” And we’re better able to approach the challenge at hand because it helps us put things in perspective.
