Week 28 Update

Interesting Facts:
Your unborn baby's survival rate outside the womb increases as each week passes. If he didn't open his eyes last week, chances are he'll take his first peek this week. Your baby-to-be's skeleton and muscles are maturing quickly. This week he can turn his head from side to side. Most of the lanugo has disappeared at this point and your baby may have a full head of hair by now.

How Big Is Baby?
Your Baby weighs in at around two pounds, seven ounces and stretches to 10 inches (crown to rump).

How We Feel:
This week Stacy has an obstetrician appointment (she's now going every two weeks) and tomorrow we have another ultrasound to look forward too. I can't believe we are in the final trimester; Stacy and I were talking this weekend about how long it took for her to get to the 12 week mark and now she only has 12 weeks left.

Stacy will be moving out soon and we'll be sad to see her go, I've really enjoyed being such a huge part of the entire pregnancy and for that I'm grateful, I don't think many other adoptive mum's get such a hands on experience with their babies pregnancy. On the other hand, she's moving out just in time for the nursery furniture to arrive and it will be really nice to be able to move all of the baby stuff we've been collecting out of our kitchen and in to the baby's room where it belongs.

Lately I've been finding myself more and more preoccupied with thoughts of the little guy. I went to a baby shower last week and got to hold a friends little sweet pea for ages, it really made me yearn for this baby to hurry up and arrive so we can all meet him. Everyone has been giving me advice and talking about the adoption more now, I think as it gets closer and closer more and more people are realizing that it's real and truly happening.

I'm starting to build a relationship with Stacy's Mum which is great because she is one of the babies grandma's and I want her, and all of Stacy's family, to be as much of a part of the baby's life as they would like to be. I know they've had a very hard time with the decision Stacy has made, understandably so, and I'm hoping they trust that Dustin and I want this baby to be loved by everyone who wants to love him and that Stacy's family is as important to us in this journey as our families are.

I think that's it for this week, I'll be posting ultrasound photos tomorrow.

♥

FINALLY

I felt the little guy kick...three times!

♥

26 Week Update

Interesting Facts!

This week your baby-to-be opens his eyes for the first time. He'll open and shut his eyes as he gets used to his new ability. Your little one is still on the small side. His body may look fully formed on the outside, but inside there's fine-tuning taking place, including his lungs and his brain. Your unborn baby still has some growing to do!

How Big Is Baby?

This week your baby's weight hovers around two pounds and her length reaches about nine inches (crown to rump).

How We Feel:

It's all starting to hit us now, with less than 100 days to go until our little guy arrives I'm starting to get that nervous excited feeling; every thought in my brain seems to be related to baby.

We got a lot accomplished this week including picking up the stroller/car seat and the playpen from Babies R Us. While we were there they made us register by enticing us with coupons and free stuff, we aren't having a baby shower or anything so I was hesitant about registering but this girl loves her some coupons so I couldn't resist; I got 10% off and used my $5 off coupon on my purchases though so it was worth it. We also had to pick out a different bedding set because the one we wanted was being discontinued and had micro-suede on it which I didn't think would be very baby-drool friendly so we picked out a Jungle theme instead. Dustin likes it better anyway and I think it's super freakin cute so we're both happy. We also went to sears to look at baby furniture and finally settled on something we were both happy with esthetically (for me) and mechanically sound to satisfy Dustin; it's all ordered and set to come in around the middle of March.

Stacy had an Obstetrician appointment this morning and everything is great with her and baby so that's wonderful news. Today babies heart beat was 152 bpm and he was nice and active. She is now going to appointments every two weeks which is crazy because when she first started going, it seemed like ages until she would be going to bi-weekly appointments, and now it's here. We have another ultrasound appointment coming up in a couple of weeks so that is something to look forward to as well. Only a couple weeks to go before we are in the third trimester!

♥

24 Week Update

All About Baby

Your baby is filling out this week. Since he's still on the scrawny side, his skin wrinkles on his body, but he looks like a miniature version of what you'll see on delivery day. His face has formed, ears are in place, and eyes are complete (although his lids are still closed). He has eyelashes, fingernails, and may be growing hair, too. Rapid eye movements (REM) are beginning, too.

How Big Is Baby?

This week your baby weighs around one and one-half pounds and measures almost eight and one-half inches (crown to rump).

How We Feel:

Stacy has been away for the last two weeks, having what I hope is a great visit with her family back in Newfoundland. It's been quiet around our place and I'm looking forward to her coming home. I'm sure she's gotten bigger and I'm hoping to feel baby kick one of these days! I hadn't realized how much I've enjoyed going through the process with her, it's made me feel so much more involved in the pregnancy.

I must admit I'm a bit nervous of Stacy being away, or I guess nervous that she won't come back. I think it's very important for her to see her family and face that side of her life before making her final decision to give up the baby or not. I know that everyone here is supportive of her decision, and I know that of course, her mum and family back home are having a struggle with it. I want her to come back here and be sure of the decision she's making; I want her to have every opportunity to be influenced by both sides of the coin. I must admit that it's hard though, and I've been living with a lump in my throat and that dreadful feeling in the pit of my stomach for two weeks now; just hoping that she comes home and that she still wants us to raise the baby I've fallen so desperately in love with.

I think we're pretty much set for clothes and bottles for baby - the essentials, and now we need to start focusing on bigger things like furniture, bedding, strollers, nursery preparation and all of that fun stuff.

I think we're going to go with this bedding set:



And this stroller/car seat set:



The stroller set pictured here also has a matching playpen and high chair which I think I'm also going to order when I place my order for everything else. Babies R Us is having a great sale right now so I think it would be silly not to take advantage of it.

The last big change we're making is the purchase of a new vehicle. For the last five years I've been driving a Toyota Echo hatchback, which is great on gas, and a wonderful little car to drive; it is however, not a family vehicle especially when your family now involves a baby and a 75 lb dog. We have decided to upgrade to a brand new Hyundai Tucson. I think we're going to spoil ourselves and get the fully loaded version with Leather interior and POWER EVERYTHING!

Week 22 Update

Interesting Facts!:
Your baby's brain is growing daily. His senses are also starting develop. As he wiggles his fingers, he may touch his face or even suck his thumb. His lungs are becoming more mature, and he even goes through the motions of breathing. He can also swallow, although he won't have his first real meal until delivery day.

How Big Is Baby?

Your baby-to-be reaches about 7.6 inches in height (crown to rump) and weighs in at just over 12 ounces.

How We Feel:

I thought I would start updating bi-weekly but the scary thing is it seems to be going by just as fast as weekly updates did. Our little guy is going to be here before we know it. Stacy has starting feeling baby kick and I've been eagerly awaiting him to kick her hard enough for me to feel it too; though that hasn't happened yet. Sadly for me, Stacy is leaving this week to go home to Newfoundland to visit her family so it will be a few more weeks before I get to feel his little nudges myself.

Stacy has an OB appointment tomorrow and hopefully all will be well with the ultrasound results from a couple weeks ago, though the technician seemed to think everything looked great.

I can't believe we are in our sixth month, by the time Stacy gets back we'll be nearing the third trimester. It's hard to believe that only 4 months ago we were coasting through life pretending not having kids was okay and now with less than four months to go we are preparing to meet our little boy and we'll finally be able to begin the family we'd always dreamed of having.

♥

Week 20 Update

Interesting Facts!

By week 20, your baby-to-be is gearing up for the next phase in his development. His organs are getting into their proper places. His kidneys are now in position with their familiar bean shape. His testes have reached their position. His brain continues to form and grow. His teeth are beginning to appear, and he can swallow. If you haven't been able to feel him move, chances are you'll be feeling him move more and more over the coming weeks.

How Big Is Baby?

At the ultrasound yesterday the tech said baby is 15 cm long from crown to rump and What to Expect said he is about the size of a small cantaloupe. Baby's heartbeat is 147 bpm, which has gone down considerably since the first ultrasound.

How We Feel:

We've had a few milestones around here this past week: We had our 20 week ultrasound and we're very proud to say we're having a boy!! - and there was no denying it - he was even playing with his junk in the ultrasound. Dustin of course had to point out that it's a genetic thing that is ingrained in men's brains from birth so the ladies should get off their backs about it because you can't fight genetics. We are beyond excited and have been walking around on clouds for the last couple of days. Finding out we're having a boy has truly been the best Christmas gift I have ever had.

It was great having everyone at this ultrasound, including my Mum who I think was overwhelmed at seeing baby and being there to find out the sex. I'm also glad Mat and Dustin were able to make it, it really isn't the same looking at a picture vs seeing the baby moving around on the screen and I'm glad everyone got to experience it first hand.

Our second milestone is that Stacy also felt fluttering for the first time this week and she said it was pretty neat. I can't wait for the baby to start kicking so I can feel him too. Hopefully I won't annoy Stacy too much always wanting to feel her belly once it starts.

We are now in name negotiations - hee hee, everyone seems to like different names, but we've narrowed it down to two (for now): Dexter and Oliver and I think it's pretty much split down the middle as to who likes which. We of course won't make any final decisions until we see baby but so far those two are the main contenders.

Happy Christmas Everyone!

♥

Week 18 Update

Interesting Facts!

At week 18, your baby-to-be's senses are maturing. She's able to hear sounds within her own comfortable environment, such as the sound of mum's heart beating, as well as external sounds, such as your voice. She may become more active for certain sounds, and you'll feel her movements. At this point in her development she's still small enough that she has plenty of room to wiggle.

How Big Is Baby?

Your little one is about five ounces and five to six inches long (crown to rump).

How we feel:

I'm sure I've repeated myself over and over on the weekly updates but mostly we're dying of excitement for the next ultrasound - two weeks today. I'm crossing my fingers that A) Dustin will be home to come this time and B) We'll be able to find out the sex of the baby.

I've compiled a list of all the things we need for baby and I'm slowly collecting everything on the list. We've ordered some of the bigger items and they should arrive in the next couple of months; though I'm not sure where we will be putting them as Stacy is still staying in babies room until the end of February. It's going to start getting a little bit squishy in our little house as baby stuff starts arriving.

I've been thinking I might start updating every couple of weeks unless something major happens that I feel compelled to share - I'm beginning to feel like I'm repeating myself every week.

♥