Yay quilts!

I'm starting to love my mailman. Well, the USPS in general, I suppose as my mailman is prone to delivering mail to the wrong addresses all over the neighborhood. Yesterday we received an awesome quilt from our friend Kim's mom (thanks Kim and Mrs. Wachter!) I can't wait to wrap the Murloc up in this. If only the baby could come in such an easy way....

Coolest Sister Ever

My awesome sister-in-law Nicole made this murloc for the murloc. How cool is that?? This is quite possibly the niftiest stuffed animal a child has ever gotten. Thanks Nicole!!

Long Time....

Here's a pic of my belly from about 2 weeks ago. J took some more last night and I'll try to get them up soon. I'm a bit pointier than I was in this pick, but there's not a huge change.

I'm sorry I haven't written in forever. After returning from France, J and I headed to Seattle for a friend's wedding and then spent a couple of days kicking it in Olympia with J's sister and her boyfriend. We had an awesome time and it was a nice, relaxing mini-vacation.

Since then, I've been fighting two impulses: nesting and laziness. Unfortunately, laziness keeps winning, but the nesting urge is beginning to kick in enough that it may well win the battle. Also, I'm becoming less mobile by the day, so I know that there are things that I need to get done before I get too huge to do them.

As of today, I'm 30 weeks along! It's hard to believe that there are only 10 weeks to go, or 6 to 8 if I'm lucky. :) I'm totally happy with an early arrival, just so we're all clear. So far, the pregnancy hasn't been bad at all, though my back is starting to hurt more and more and I could do with a fewer kicks to the ribs and punches to the bladder! I'm still sleeping well and have a reasonable amount of energy and I get to eat like a pig. What's not to like about this?

J has taken to singing and talking to the murloc and he likes to put his head on my belly and listen to her heartbeat. It was pretty cool the first time he put his head on me and then got a look of wonder on his face. The murloc, on the other hand, isn't a huge fan of it and likes to kick him in the jaw whenever possible. Did I mention that she's an active one? The doctors have me doing a kick count every day, where I time how long it takes to feel the murloc kick, punch, roll, etc ten times. She has yet to take more than about 8 minutes and she has been known to get to 10 in under a minute. As I write this, my stomach looks like it has been possessed by aliens as she twists and turns.

It's alive!!

The murloc has taken advantage of her new size, muscle tone, and the extra room to get her kicks in for the past week or so. She's been bouncing, turning and kicking like crazy, which has been both a little uncomfortable and a lot of fun. It turns out that she is not a fan of turbulance as she did her best to remover herself from my belly when we hit a good patch of it on the flight over. I thought she was just going to crawl her way out of my belly button!

In the evening of our first full day here, an asshole on a scooter cruised by me and stole my purse off my shoulder, dragging me partway down the street with it. I'm a bit battered and bruised and I'm down a passport, wallet, camera and a few other goodies, but all in all, I'm fine. I was a bit worried about the murloc, but as I had managed to turn and land on my hip and elbow, she didn't get much more than a serious jolt of adrenaline. If anything, she's been moving even more since then!

My mom and I are staying in a little village in Southern France and just enjoying the area. I hear the wine is good, but I haven't had more than a couple of sips since we got here. We are close to the Pyrenees and there is some excellent hiking and kayaking to be done here and I'm determined to return sometime so I can take full advantage of it. For the most part, we have been touring castles, eating yummy food, driving around the area, and just generally having a relaxing break. It's not the most exciting trip ever (theft aside) but it has been very relaxing and a lot of fun.

We are heading to Paris on Thursday, where I'm sure my mom will be investing in several new outfits for her favorite grandchild. It does pay to be first sometimes!

School's Out, Baby's Healthy, Life is Good

I had my 23 week exam today and it looks like everything continues to go well. The baby's heartbeat is strong and she's kicking up a storm these days. Last Sunday was our anniversary and it was also the first day that J and I could see the baby moving. It looks like I have an alien in me trying to get out. Creepy, but kind of cool at the same time.

At almost 6 months along, I have gained a whopping 1 pound. According to the doctor, babies are parasites and they will take whatever they need from my body, so just keep eating as much as I want and we're good to go. I have to admit that I'm a fan of this! As long as I don't lose weight, everyone is happy.

Monday was my last day of work and, while I was sad to say goodbye to the kids, I'm really ready for a break! It was a crazy run at the end there, trying to get kids to graduation. I'm so proud of all of the hard work they did though, so it was all worth it. Now I get to sleep for a few days and then ramp up for a friend's wedding festivities and my impending trip to France.

Ah, France. How I can't wait to see thee! We fly out on Monday and are heading to Marseille. We'll spend a couple of days there and they we head to a little town in the Pyrenees for a week before heading up to Paris. It's looking to be a lovely vacation and, with my new Kindle in hand, one full of relaxing reading. Too bad it won't be with a glass of wine in hand. I am bummed about having to stay away from the awesome cheese and wine that will be available, but I'm sure that all things in moderation should be fine.... :)

I realized that I don't have any recent belly pics, but we'll try to take some at the wedding this weekend.

Week 18 Ultrasound

Creepy yet oddly compelling baby pics!

From Week 18

"Mom! Quit looking at me! I'm naked!"

Bouncing Baby, Hold the Pink

We had our ultrasound today and, after much deliberation, decided to find out the gender.  We're having a girl!  A girl who has a really big mouth....  She apparently takes after her father.  :)

J will be posting ultrasounds pics in a little while, but they aren't as clear as the old ones, so I'm not sure how much you'll actually be able to see.  The murloc was sleepy and yawning and not moving around as much as she was last time, but all her fingers and toes and heart and kidneys and everything were there and working.  It really is amazing to be able to see all of that.

With the latest news of a healthy growing baby, it looks like it's time to book a flight to France!  Hold on to your gender-neutral-or-at-least-not-too-pink-finery, Paris.  I'm coming to see you!