Baby Bailey

Baby Bailey is a little machine! S/he was moving the entire time we were in for the ultrasound, which was about 20 minutes. I totally cried the whole time. I think I realize this time how MUCH I will love that little baby. I knew I would love Natalie... but I don't think you have any idea what the extent of that love will be until they are here. AND... my love for her grows every day! So I know what's in store with this one... and s/he was so just perfect! It appeared that s/he has Natalie's nose (one of my favorite features!). We saw the two lobes of the brain, the heart and the bladder... all things that make you think, "Hmmm, there really IS a baby in my belly!" Oh and the heart rate was in the 170s. Here is a pic of Butterbean. See the legs to the left? The little thing above Butterbean's head is his/her hand. I am SO excited though. I've just known a lot of people who have gone through rough pregnancies lately, and although I'm only 12 weeks and I still have a LOT of time left, it's just so encouraging to see my sweet baby moving all around on the ultrasound!

Missed the game!

I'm so bummed out. Yesterday, we had Red Sox tickets for the evening game vs. Minnesota. They played an afternoon game because the game the evening before was rained out. Yesterday's afternoon game was called after 7 innings (Sox won!) due to rain. The forecast called for a 90% chance of rain in the evening too. Since Maureen, our daycare provider, was nice enough to take Natalie for the night, and we were CONFIDENT that the game would be postponed to Thursday (today), we decided not to go to the game because we didn't want to have to ask Maureen to watch Natalie two nights in a row (even though I'm sure she would have). Of course, the game went on... not quite as scheduled, since it started at 7:55 (rather than 7:05), but they got the whole game in and the Sox won. So we totally missed the game. And I was asleep by 8:30 pm.

On a more positive note, I have my 12 week ultrasound and appointment to see Baby Butterbean Bailey tomorrow, and it's going to be in the 80s here this weekend!

This pic speaks for itself

My daughter, the Harley riding baby girl. She took her cousin Seth's new Harley out for a spin a couple of weekends ago when we were in Plymouth to celebrate Seth's birthday. Okay, she didn't really RIDE the Harley (so don't get mad that she doesn't have a helmet on!), but she did look cute posing for some photo opps in the bright sunshine!

I'm SO ready for the second trimester!

I'm sorry I've been a bad blogger. If you've ever been pregnant (and if you haven't, you'll just have to take my word on this), then you know how hard the first trimester can be. I am utterly exhausted. Pile on top of that the usual things to do... take care of Natalie, go to work every day, do laundry, pick up around the house... (thankfully I don't cook!) and I can barely function by 8 pm. Thankfully, Todd has been picking up the slack. He will never know how much it means to me. He cooks dinner, cleans up, gives Natalie a bath and we both try to put her to bed. I try to pitch in where I can, but even excessive standing (as in, longer than 1 minute!) makes me feel the need to sit down because I'm so tired. This is one of my least favorite things about pregnancy. I work a full time job, so it's not like I can take a nap at my desk in the afternoon! I just have to suck it up (as my friend Kare Bear would say!) and plow through. The good news is, I'm 11 weeks today. Only a few more weeks and I should start feeling more energetic again. (Really, I just want enough to get on the floor and play toys with Natalie for longer than 5 minutes!)

Exhaustion

It's hard work making a baby. The process of supporting the new life inside you taxes every system in your body. The ensuing fatigue is often particularly strong during the first trimester, when you're building the placenta that feeds and nourishes your baby until birth. Also, the additional hormones circulating during pregnancy -- particularly progesterone -- can make you feel sleepy and less energetic. Your metabolism is also affected. Many women have low blood pressure while pregnant because their blood is circulating through two systems -- mom's and the baby's -- and that can cause fatigue.

Someone is going to be a big sister!

What? Does Natalie's shirt say what I think it says? Yes it does! Natalie is going to be a big sister in November. She is very excited. If you ask her where the baby is, she points to my belly. Of course, sometimes she points to daddy's belly too! She also occasionally says, "Poor baby!" I have to tell her that the baby is very happy, warm and safe in mommy's belly. We had an ultrasound a couple of weeks ago and everything looked great. I would post pics... but really, it just looks like a blob. (Sorry kid!). Next appointment: 4/24. We get another ultrasound too! Hopefully this time we'll be able to see some arms and legs, and it might actually resemble a baby and not a butterbean. We won't learn the gender until about 18-20 weeks, but we'll keep you posted!!!