motherhood.

[and yes, that is our little 2 week old spud holding her own head up.... what the heck, she has a strong neck]

Motherhood is a trip. It's nothing like I expected....as a matter of fact if you take any thoughts, notions, or expectations I had in the previous posts on my blog about what parenthood would be like I was wrong. Like I thought I wanted to do natural childbirth- WRONG. I thought I would keep all of the plastic crap/ devices out of our house- WRONG. Anything that will keep our little cora happy we have- swings, bouncy chairs, plastic bottles- not my beautiful glass bottles that have too high of a flow creating painful gas. I thought we could resume life, go camping this maternity leave- WRONG.... and that was just plain silliness. I thought I had a tough time sleeping during pregnancy- WRONG.

Oh, motherhood. I know so much more now.

After Cora turned about one month life got a bit better for us. Not to say life was bad in the first month.... it was just uber challenging, sleep deprived, and borderline...what the hell did we just do? We loved our life of just matt and I and the dogs.... we loved pregnancy.... we did not expect what was to come- even though we thought we were as ready as anyone could be. So I had to recover from child birth, adapt to our new life with a newborn, but also kind of mourn our old life. This was the new us... and it will get fantastic again.

Now, however, Cora has more happy hours than sad ones.... she is smiling, little laughs, she loves bath time, she notices our facial expressions, her awake time is increasing and with less crying.... we are getting the hang of parenting, we are understanding our daughter and feeling less incompetent, the google-ing late at night for terms like " fussy baby, sleep solutions, crying, gas, reflux...etc..." has decreased. We can see our life coming back...not just yet, but it will....and it will be a brand new incredible life we've never experienced before.

I was also wrong on a few more things... I thought I could handle leaving the house after she was born... I was wrong... I crave to be near her, to smell her, to stare at her little tiny body for hours on end. I can't stand to be away even now writing this post. Our sweet little girl needs to be held every second of the day.... but I love that time more than anything. I'd rather be holding her than eating, sleeping, shopping... anything. I love her more than I knew I would. I feel like a mom already...and I love it. I had no idea how strong this love would be and so quickly.

I hardly have time to reflect on what a journey this has been already. It's not like the endless hours during pregnancy that I had to reflect and process being pregnant...blog endlessly...and just sit and think. No, I don't have time to do all of that now.... but it's ok. I feel like the emotions I have are huge and may take me over if I tried to process what just happened in our life. Motherhood. Parenthood. Crazy huge amazing deal.

[week 39]

Yikes... I made it to week 39?! I thought for sure I was going to deliver early. Guess not! This little spud has some brain growth to do, I suppose.

It has been hard to just let my body do its thing. I have these irrational thoughts that maybe if I run up and down the stairs 10 times (who am I kidding, waddle slowly), bend over to do laundry 2 times and eat 5 fork-fulls of spicy chinese food I will send myself into labor. Like it's a silly math equation...one of those long frustrating word problems. Well, it's not. She will come when she is ready OR...I will be induced around week 41.

So we have been doing last minute projects, just trying to get ready. Each time I have an hour or so of painful contractions...I rack my brain trying to think...if this is it, what do we for sure need to get done before we drive into the hospital? So then it prompts us to finish up some lingering to-dos, because it wasn't it.

However, we have matt's family in town.... and my parents come this upcoming weekend...and my sister the week after... and matt's sisters in May. I can't wait for this little party to get started, a cora-welcome-to-the-world party. We are o-so ready.

[week 38]

Little spud is 38 weeks along! This week we had a few fun things happen to us...

I had a phenomenal hot stone massage. Oh my, I can't believe I have missed out on this method for so long. I go to an aveda salon/spa... and the hot stones are heavenly. I would recommend it! I left the table feeling... well....not pregnant. It was relaxing and very therapeutic.

I had my first nurse interview. This is something I had been dreading. Not only is it nerve wrecking for a real career type interview...but I am HUGE. Yeah, not my first choice, but it happened and it was fantastic. I don't know that I got the job, but it was a great interview and I feel less nervous now about subsequent ones. How many people interview for a job 38 weeks pregnant? Ha. Well, we did. I even felt okay about my interview outfit... big deal, seeing how I have been living in yoga pants and scrubs for the past 9 months.

This week may be my last prego picture? Not sure... but I will miss them. So I am relishing in the now. Which is probably why you are all inundated by my almost daily posts. I feel like I have so very much to get in before she arrives. So...blog posts galore.

[week 37]

I'm 37 weeks (ie. full term)! Feels like I've been pregnant for ever. You know, 10 months is a long time to wait for something. At our last OB appointment the midwife said...okay...we'll see you at your appointment next week if you haven't had your baby yet. Um. CRAZY! Matt and I are collecting our last minute questions and birth plan for next week's appointment. Matt has been awesome and has gone to all of the OB appointments with me...it has been fun and so surreal that it will be over soon.

Pregnancy is a trip....right?! I don't even remember looking like this 12 week photo anymore.
Oh, spud.

...so without further ado here is spud's progression from week 12 to 37 weeks.
Music is M.Ward's-Never Had Nobody Like You.



Want to see spud's first movie?!
[a spud movie]

Want to see my weekly posts about pregnancy and my thoughts/symptoms?!
[weeks]

[week 36]

Well....time sure does fly. Yikes. 36 weeks! In the past two weeks I have tried to relax...but it has been busy!

My parents came out to visit and we pulled off some incredible projects. It was awesome to see my parents, and how blown away they were with their daughter being super pregnant. My dad brought out the finished spud box (that's what my dad calls the co-sleeper for our room) ... much more on that later. My mom and I made fitted sheets for the crib and spud box. The roller-curtains were installed in the spud room. Matt and my dad brewed a cora-red ale. Oh, and my mom and I loved the indulgent mani/pedi. It was a blast.

My wonderful girlfriends out here in Idaho threw me a build-a-library baby shower that was perfect. Matt and I haven't been to babys r us... or toys r us... or any r-us, it's not really us. We don't have a registry... we are doing a little more minimal approach of having a child, but we did really want kid books. So we are starting to grow a little spud library, and it's fantastic.

So, I take that back, we kind of have a registry. I made a wish list on amazon for our families to look at. It's super simple and great that it pulls from anything on the internet...like etsy or ikea. We didn't expect to get too many things from our wish list, but it was a great way for us to budget for all of the items we thought we wanted/ needed with an evolving list. Turns out our families rock, and we have been so fortunate to have been gifted most of our wish list items.

....And how am I feeling being 36 weeks and HUGE?!

I feel good and extremely exhausted with everything. My pelvis feels as though it could rip into two pieces at any moment. I think Cora has dropped a little, for walking is a HUGE feat. But these are good things, all progressing in the right downward trend. She is head-down, which is encouraging too, her little 5 pound self just flops her little bottom side to side in my belly 24-7. The kicking and punching seems to be inwards and targeted at my organs. And at the end of this week spud will be full term!! Yay Spud!

[week 34]

I made it. I made it through my final preceptorship/clinical without having a spud born! Hell yeah. That is a picture of my 34-week-pregnant-body exhausted, but we did it. This is the day I was looking forward to all semester.

And... my parents are coming to visit next week, which will be fantastic. Instead of having my clinical to go to I can just relish in being pregnant with them. We get to do a few spud-room projects, my mom and I can get a pedicure while my dad and matt make a spud-brew-batch to drink when Cora is born. It will be grand.

And... spring is in the air. We are starting to get a few warm days (ie. 50-60 degrees) and birds are chirping like crazy. It's fabulous. I just love it when those first little leaves start to pop on the trees. Soon. Soon Spud will be here. This spring time will be extra fantastic.

[week 33]

Ahhh... week 33.  This week (actually right this second) matt and I are in a lamaze class. Lets all hope I am gaining the courage to do this naturally. As you all may know I have been on a Labor and Delivery Unit doing my last clinical rotation as a nursing student. Let me tell you this has been unbelievable and eye opening. I have been doing two night shifts a week, and I feel like a real nurse... it's phenomenal.

A few things I have learned from fellow pregnant ladies aka-my laboring patients-

• birthing is tough. there is no way around it. baby must come out.
• an epidural looks like a dream, I was hoping this wouldn't be the case...but come on. Its crazy to think you elect to have a baby naturally... all of the pain. Women are amazing.
• knowing how to read fetal monitoring/contractions will freak the hell of me when I deliver. 
• I now know too much to be clueless 
• when baby doesn't line up perfectly it makes delivering about 500 times worse, as though that even possible.
• screaming women have every right to be in pain...they are giving birth to a child. Nothing compares. 
• C-sections look like an easier route, but just don't look behind the blue curtain. It's a massive abdominal surgery that you're awake for. It's no wonder these ladies are sore afterwards.
• Vacuum assisted babies are sometimes a necessary means to an end. All the goofy swelling goes down within 24 hours and they have infant beanies for a reason.
• some women are so pleasant during contractions to their husbands, it's unbelievable... I just hope I am one of them.
• IVs, fetal monitoring, oxygen- they all have a purpose when shit hits the fan.
• A 9 pound baby is HUGE...actually quite a difference from a 6 pounder. I was 11 pounds when I was born, and I believe my sister was too... al' natural. HOLY COW. Go mom.
• A baby being born is phenomenal. Period. Taking its first breath of fresh air... welcomed into the world. I love it. I'm hooked. I can't wait for my turn.

My walk away message from my clinical so far-

I want a healthy baby. That's my birthing plan. Whatever is necessary I will trust my midwife/nurse/OB/anesthetist to do what they feel is safe. 

[week 32]

I'm 8 months pregnant!!! 32 weeks, just incredible. So this past week with my pregnancy I have had a few adjustments...

• I said goodbye to my ankles... and hello lovely cankles! 
• Edema is slowly but surely consuming me. Some days it's worse than others, something about eating tortilla chips and mexican food makes me swell?! Weird. I'll have to do more research on that one.
• I no longer wear my wedding rings. I used to have 3 bands that I absolutely loved wearing, but now I just wear one of them. It's simple, sweet, and fits a TON better. I don't feel like I have sausage fingers as much.
• Contractions are coming and going randomly. I have braxton hicks I believe. They are uncomfortable, not painful... but primarily a what-the-heck, I have a TON to get done before spud comes. I sure hope she waits, for the both of our good. 
• Sleeping is tricky.
• Bending over is near impossible. If something falls on the ground, it no longer exists in my world. 
• Energy level is plummeting... thanks to matt helping life still goes on though.

[week 31]

[My big belly is winning now... yay!!]

So I completely missed the 29 and 30 week picture... not too shocking considering our lives right now. But today I am 31 weeks... 31!! Unbelievable. I know, I can't always say each week is unbelievable but it truly feels that way. I keep looking at my huge profile when I walk by mirrors... holy cow (literally) this is me pregnant. I had been wondering what I would look like pregnant... would I show or just look huge? would my belly be high or low? would I enjoy pregnancy or be miserable with overwhelming symptoms? would our first be a boy or girl? So now I know some answers to a handful of questions... about 500,000 remaining.

[from babycenter.... cute little scrunched-up spud doing tons of summersaults]

At 31 weeks in-utero spud is potentially...

• 3.3 lbs!!... spud grows a 1/2 a pound a week now
• 16 inches long
• she is packing on the fat now, just like me!
• spud's brain is getting wrinkly with smart little meninges... tons of brain development
• spud is making her own blood cells in her bone marrow now...I feel like she's already growing up and moving on... my bone marrow is old news

[week 28]

[colby yawning at this whole weekly picture business]

So now that people can tell I am pregnant they ask how far along I am. I realized that the rest of the world does not live in weeks as I do. Perhaps I am alone in the world of "week-counting" just me....the newborns... and the occasional dieter. People do not know that 28 weeks is a HUGE deal. Heck even 8 weeks was a GIGANTIC deal. But that it is out of 40 weeks total... which is 10 months. Very confusing. I am even confusing myself right now. So now I do the math in my head real quick to give the general public a normal answer... 7 months! I'm 7 months pregnant!! Sweet.

Other big news:

My belly button is getting adorable. It's flattening! It even looks like a little frowney face. I always wanted a flat belly button. Who knew it would take 30+ pounds to do so. I also *hope* it turns to an outtie. Wouldn't that be fun?

Yup. That's all the news folks.

[week 27]

Hello 3rd trimester!!

This is pure craziness, right?! I thought so. I'm 2/3 completed with pregnancy, and it's unreal. I feel great, even though I just crossed over the 200 lb mark at my OB appointment today. Yikes.

We will see if I passed the 1hr glucose tolerance test. I almost passed out, but I think that's because I am used to eating/drinking every hour or so.  I'm such a weenie. But the glucola drink was fine to ingest FYI... like orange cough syrup, then you wait the hour to have your blood drawn. Matt also had his routine blood work done this morning too. And for the record, he is a bigger weenie than I. But I get poked, he gets poked... it was only fair.

What else going on over here? We added a few more projects onto our list, as if our lives aren't busy enough. We are (well, primarily matt is) building a few tables at our house...one for the entertainment area and one little coffee table. I am stoked about the design. It's a little like the patio table we made here with the pipes and a little industrial with OSB (oriented strand board... you know the stuff. Most people think it's so ugly they use it as sub flooring in their homes... well I love it, we even have some art up in our house we made from it). Anyways... I can't wait to get started on the projects and show you all what we are up to.

Yay! 3rd trimester!!

[week 26]

Umm....yes, its week 26, but it's also snowing today! Finally...our first real snow this winter. Yay!! This weather almost makes up for the fact that school started up again this week for us. And this is the last week of my second trimester of pregnancy, craziness.

Other spud news... HUGE kicks and rolls and punches...and who knows what she is up to. My belly is constantly moving, you can even physically see the kicks. My shirt kind of just jumps here and there around my abdomen and takes on funny shapes when I'm sitting. It's beyond wonderful. Matt can feel each one now, we love it. Pure entertainment.

Ok, back to the snow. Time to run around with the dogs in the backyard (they'll do the running I'll do the watching). Hope you're all having a swell day!

P.S. I was looking back on my "week pictures".... How fun what 10 simple weeks can do. And almost hilarious. It's like I swallowed something rather large... like a balloon... a child... perhaps an enlarged version of the pumpkin I was holding? Oh, how I long to be tan again... just a touch of color without the skin cancer?! Soon enough I suppose. Focus on the glorious snow, silly Lindsey.

[week 25]

Oh, hello week 25. 

Things I have learned this week:

Not all orange juices should be treated equal. Some give horrendous indigestion, while others are simply heavenly. Costco brand- no good, while simply orange is just that...simple and wonderful.

Eating and drinking and lying down do not mix. Indigestion is not something to laugh about...it has snuck up on me this week, like a ninja. Then the fun foods like chocolate, pasta sauce, wasabi- they all do the reflux thang too. Tums has been my newest friend.

Sleeping through the night was something I took for granted. I now enjoy my little chunks of sleep between bathroom excursions and eating cereal.

Maternity jeans (capris) are incredible, you were all right.

Spud kicks make my mornings and nights. I usually wait for them to get out of bed in the morning or fall asleep at night. She is getting stronger by the week. I love it. I love her already.

A fresh haircut feels amazing... regardless of the face getting chub-i-fied.

The women in my life (family, friends, co-workers, fellow bloggers) are fantastic. They have been a great outlet to talk to about life changes big and small. Women just get each other...it's amazing. And to hear that you all are reading my blog just makes my heart smile. So thank you!!!

[week 24]

Life is going well over here in and out of utero-land. I had my last every-4-weeks prenatal appointment, from the next one on it's bumped up to every 2 weeks!.... because I'll be in my 3rd trimester!!! Next appointment I also do my 1 hour glucose tolerance test. Man, I want to pass that test. If I don't I suppose it's with good reason. I am measuring well according to my midwife, so all is peachy!

Can I just mention one little teeny tiny minuscule gripe?! People sometimes tell me I look like I have a small bump...not showing enough for the number of weeks that I am. I think they mean well, but I can't help but have a little fear pop up in my head...what if my babe isn't growing like she should?! Yikes. Should she be bigger? That is a possibility in pregnancy. Or should people just think twice about what they are telling a pregnant woman who is whacked out on hormones?! I think I look like a blimp... a bountiful child growing blimp. But perhaps that's just me!

[week 22]

22 weeks! Matt can feel the spud kicks a little more now which is wildly fascinating to us both. Emma (akita-malamute dog) even put her head on my belly the other day... do you think she knows I am growing a little human?! She must. Spud kicks are getting a little higher in my belly and I think she may be kicking my stomach too. It's a funny feeling. I also laugh right now when I have back pain at work... I laugh to myself... what a crazy thing this pregnancy is... back pain?! So painful and strange that our sweet little human is doing this to me. Oh, 22 wonderful weeks.

So lets talk about cravings for a second... because after all they are on my mind about every other second. seriously.

{cravings by weeks}

weeks 5-11:

• eating all the time to maintain homeostasis in the gut
• biscuits, animal crackers, stoned wheat thins... anything bland
• potato chips
• nothing meat
• sour raspberry, sour lemon, peppermint
• orange juice and lemonade

weeks 11-18:

• pancakes, french toast, waffles... daily if I could have pulled it off
• fruit
• milk, helped with indigestion
• orange juice
• nothing chicken

weeks 18- now:

• sweets... cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls, cake, donuts, chocolate... you get the idea. EVERYTHING sweet. Currently thinking I must have a nutritional deficit/disorder because this is not natural nor cost efficient
• eggnog latte at starbucks (a tall...and just one, big bummer because I feel like I could live on them)
• orange juice
• bagels with cream cheese... actually just cream cheese on everything
• dubliner cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, havarti cheese, cream cheese, goat cheese, mozzarella cheese, mexican blend cheese... 
• and nothing chicken still

[week 21]

Yay! A brand new week! I've felt like I have been in limbo having two "20 weeks." It even feels like everyone pregnant at work is catching up to me and I, however, will be pregnant forever. So with this new 21 number it means things really are chugging along!

I officially feel huge. I know, I know I will be getting bigger but still... I feel as though I am bumping into things with my belly, falling off balance, and just adjusting to my growing size. It also never helps in the winter time to be turning pasty-white. These weeks I should be gaining about 1 pound a week...and I am! It's been really fun that patients at work and people in public are starting to ask if I am pregnant. I love it. I was worried that society these days wouldn't ask a big-bellied female, like myself, if she was pregnant... worried about being too PC. But, they are asking and I love it. I just hope the touching of the belly from strangers doesn't happen.

In case any of you other pregnant ladies are wondering... I was 170 lbs pre-pregnancy (according to my scale at home, I don't want to discuss the OB's scale) and I am realistically 6 feet tall. I say realistically because in most circumstances I would say 5'11... but I am really 5 feet 11.75 inches... which in this situation and all BMI situations I think I'd like to round up to 6'0 :) So, for the whole first trimester I only gained about 5 pounds...which was incredible, I thought. I was gaining right where I should be, and for not really throwing up, just feeling extremely nauseated I didn't over-eat. Now, it's a different story. I eat all the time. I was 180 lbs at 18 weeks...and today I am 184. 14 lbs for 21 weeks.... not bad! According to babycenter I should be gaining about 25-35 lbs this pregnancy. I don't really care about my weight, I just think it's a fun thing to monitor to see how spud is growing. And, my blood pressure is great and all else is healthy (besides the back pain)... pretty fantastic! Oh, but I do wear compression stockings (TED hose) at work to reduce the leg swelling, being on my feet for 12 hour shifts. They are amazing. I haven't had true swelling but I am noticing my sock lines & stitching becoming more apparent. Sexy, I know. I am wondering at what week my wedding ring may not fit.... soon?!

[week 20 again]

 Is little spud a ...girl? maybe a...boy? Projects are awaiting...

Week 20? Again?! Shut the front door. We just had week 20, right?! We agree, let me tell you. However, according to our last ultrasound and the 9 week ultrasound spud is measuring a little earlier. So our estimated due date is now April 20th 2012.

Now obviously I won't be having a baby, nicknamed spud, on 4/20. Nope, not gonna happen. "Spuuuuud" in stoner voice- no thanks. I'll hold it in for an extra day. Also, statistics are in our favor that only 10% of babes actually arrive on their due date. At first, according to my LMP spud's due date was 4/14, our 9 week ultrasound puts us at 4/20, and most recent ultrasound puts us at 4/24. My midwife is comfortable with a 4/20 due date. I asked her with this iffy 10 day period of due-date-ness ...when would she induce me? She said by April 27th we will have a baby in our arms. Yay!! How exciting is that?!  Super exciting, I'd say. If I'm induced that will change the natural birthing plan idea- but hey, whatever gets us a healthy babe, I'm all for.  So I'm due late April. Super fun.

Here are some spud-in-utero pics at 19ish weeks...I'd have to say that the impact of the ultrasound at 19 weeks was a little diminished by the fact that we saw spud looking about the same at week 15 (here). I wouldn't give back that spud movie for the world though. It was magical.

an adorable profile with a little hand above the mouth and leg curled up on the left
(the front-on-face picture freaked me out a bit, so I'm going to stick with a cute profile)

a cute little blurry foot

a big ol' hand and a nice lookin' humerus

And.... tomorrow I am posting spud's gender once I know our loved ones have received their gender reveal cards! Stay tuned!

[week 20]

20 weeks! I am at least half way through, how unbelievable is that? And another HUGE milestone this past week...I felt spud kick! I felt it once on my night shift....but I wasn't convinced, I thought it might have been all in my sleepy head. Then the next day at work I felt it again. I almost, ok fine, I started to tear up. AMAZING. Seriously. Borderline nightmarish, but really great. I wish Matt could feel it right now, it's weird that I can't share this with him. Every time I sit still now I feel little kicks and punches. I just laugh or smile with each kick. Like I have some fantastic little inside joke only spud and I share.

Some pregnant women are just like...oh yeah... of course the baby kicks me. No big deal. So I thought I just needed to feel it, and go on with pregnancy. But let me tell you, it's a big deal. Our little spud is getting strong enough to kick me?! That's huge. That means things are going well in utero-land.

We are also having our ultrasound soon...so that's super exciting, something we've been waiting on for only 20 weeks. There are certain times in my life that I get goosebumps I am so excited and extra happy with life. That each time I walk by a mirror...I think to myself is this really possible to be so happy?! Does this time have to end?! Cloud 9 moments being a grown-up: the first month meeting matt, moving into the same house, being engaged (something about a ring on the finger from matt for forever- fantastic), being accepted into nursing school, our wedding, the first month of our positive pregnancy test, seeing a baby bump appear, and now feeling kicks. Big moments in life that I just want to savor every last little bit of excitement. It's hard to replicate those times-where nothing could rain on my parade or stomp on my sunshine. Just bliss. I have a feeling we are entering into a HUGE one in April. One I want to hold onto for forever. Right now my sister is starting at the beginning of her cloud 9's. I just want her to cherish every last second and I hope it's just as fantastic. Those "firsts" are hard to do-over, they are for keeps. So wring every last drop of happiness out of it...and relish it.

[week 19]

It's thanksgiving break for us... yes, we still have to work but we have this week off from school which is amazing. Lots of cleaning, raking, relaxing, and eating this week. It will be fantastic. Matt and I are doing an abbreviated thanksgiving meal on wednesday (we both work thursday) so that should be fun and easy. To make things even simpler, our turkey will be cooked in the crock-pot this year. I don't know if it will turn out the same, but it's worth a shot. Then I am making these little tasties... pecan pie bars! I am hoping they will taste like my dad's pecan pie, but without the extra work and calories (calories, who am I kidding?! I get to eat for two, right?!).

Here is the recipe from allrecipes.com (no not pinterest, crazy right?!) Oh and it serves 48, so be careful! I will be bringing most to my work potluck...well if they make it out of the house.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups light corn syrup
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 10x15 inch jellyroll pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and salt. Cut in 1 cup of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared pan, and press in firmly.
3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
4. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large bowl mix together the eggs, corn syrup, 1 1/2 cups sugar, 3 tablespoons butter, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the chopped pecans. Spread the filling evenly over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven.
5. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until set. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing into bars.

[week 18]

[I realized I can't take a picture in the afternoon/night with my camera yet, I haven't the DSLR skills. So note to self: take weekly photos earlier in the day or else they will turn out crappy. Thus, my late weekly photo :)]

Spud is now the length of a bell pepper... I don't know about you, but I find these vegetable/fruit comparisons rather tricky. Depending on the state I live in, the size of produce varies greatly. Have you ever seen an avocado in California?- HUGE! Idaho... not so much. This could be a whole month of growth difference in pregnancy world. Anyways. Spud is growing, I know this much.

A perk of my Labor & Delivery/ Post-Partum clinicals in nursing school is that I know where to find my fundus (top of the uterus)! You just lay flat... and depending on which week you are in, you can feel the top part of a hard ball (the uterus) in your belly by gently pressing down, just like at the prenatal appointments. It should be growing higher and higher with each couple of weeks. I can feel mine. It's right below my belly button, right where it should be. This is also a bit of a wonderment for me... how do I have a relatively big baby bump, when I know exactly where my uterus is... it's much lower. What the heck?! Fat? Water? Displaced organs? Regardless, I love it...whatever it may be.

[fundal height according to weeks, little polka dot above the "20" is the belly button]