Life right now couldn't be better!!!  The pregnancy is still going wonderful and we finally got started on the nursery.  It has been very exciting putting baby stuff together and really preparing for the life inside of me (every day seems more real)!  Here are a few pictures from the room- it's still a work in progress...

 
 

I will add more pictures as more is completed, but this is about it for now!

On Thursday I leave for my best friend's wedding and I can't wait, but I am slightly nervous- I'm flying and Ricas isn't going with me... I will miss him so much.  But hey, it's only the weekend... say a prayer for us as we travel!

New this week: Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source ofcalcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

7 months

Only 84 days left!!! I can't believe how fast this time has come around, it seems like only last month I was 7 weeks pregnant. I still feel great, and I'm really enjoying feeling Caileb move more and more. On Friday I had my last 4 week check up (we are now on the 2 week plan)- after taking what seemed like 4 quarts of blood all my testing came back normal- no anemia and no diabetes! So far I have gained right at 9 pounds... I hope this number continues to stay fairly low : )

New this week: By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

27 Weeks

New symptom of pregnancy: ELEPHANT FEET/ANKLES! (the exclamation point is only for the sarcasm of my excitement, not the real thing). When we arrived in Kentucky on Saturday my feet were still fairly normal looking... after an hour or so in Burlington they were beginning to swell... about midway through a game of Monopoly my feet were so swollen (Ricas described them as looking like I had pads on my feet and you should be able to hear them slap as I walk/ I say they looked as if I was the extra for Professor Klump in the Nutty Professor). Despite how much I try to prop my feet up, avoid sodium and do all the other things I've been told the swelling continues =(

On the lighter side of things, I feel great! We are going to order the crib and some other "big things" here in the next few days... all of this preparation is making it all the more real!
New this week: This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.

26 Weeks

This week has been really exciting because I am able to feel Caileb's move more and more (and a lot stronger). On Sunday night while watching the closing ceremony of the Olympics my husband was able to see Caileb's movements- although he still has not felt them... Caileb has a tendency to stop all movement when he knows that Ricas is around! Another piece of exciting news is that we are beginning the nursery! We got his comfort set in and will be getting the crib this weekend- I'm so super excited because this makes it even more real! I can't believe we are just about 90 days away from meeting our son- I know it's still months away, but when i think of 90 days it makes things so much closer.

Our good friends found out that they are expecting and she is 2 months pregnant. I'm so excited for them and the journey they are beginning. I'm hoping they have a boy, otherwise Caileb and Alex (Caileb's already friend) will be fighting over who gets to date Maddox.

At any rate, I'm so excited for all that God is preparing us for and the days to come!

New this Week: The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches (an English hothouse cucumber) from head to heel. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Today is my mom's birthday!

How your baby's growing

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

24 Weeks

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Today we had our regular 4 week appointment and Dr. Chesney says that Caileb is growing fine and so am I. To date I am still having a wonderful pregnancy- no sickness, food aversions, or serious problems. Lately the only problematic symptom that I've had is heartburn/indegestion- and it is HORRIBLE. There is no method to this madness, no food that makes it worse- I can eat the most bland food, drink water or simply breathe air and there it goes- a firey attack of my esophagus. Usually I can pop a few Tums and drink some milk and it subsides, but if it continues we will be making a doctor's appointment (this can't me natural)!

At any rate here's the update on how Caileb is growing: Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.