Ain't Misbehavin' 2 - Electric Boogaloo

So Heather, the baby, and myself went back to the doctor for our reprise of the 18 week sonogram.  And wouldn't you know it, Baby Thiel was once again in no mood to be photographed.  The technician spent at least 45 minutes pushing and poking Heather's stomach in order to get all of the necessary measurements. Heather had to roll from her back to one side then to the other so that we could get all of the required images.  Eventually, reinforcements had to be called in to get that last crucial heart image.  A second technician was called in to try her hand at poking my wife in the belly with the ultrasound wand.   But all seemed to be well, the baby weighs (according to the magic ultrasound device) 1 pound and 2 ounces. And it seems to be on pace at this point in it's development.   However, when all the dust had settled and the doctor had the opportunity to review the results, there are a few more images that she would like to see.  So there will be an upcoming third try for our little growing bundle to pose for the camera.  Stay tuned.

K

With a squeeze of ... orange?

Arguably, Baby Thiel's birth will be the beginning of a brand new adventure, but making decisions about baby supplies and baby room decor is an adventure in itself ... what a roller coaster!

We are starting to make furniture decisions. First, we found that locating furniture 1) in our price range, 2) suiting our style and 3) appearing to be made of wood but surpassing the strength of cardboard is a particular challenge with respect to furniture sold for use by infants and children. Arg. But - we finally decided on a new bassinet/crib/bed combo (which according to my Mom, "looks like a bed an architect's baby would sleep in").

Also, we plan to repurpose some of the furniture that already lives in our house. So .... we will be doing some painting in the near future - we're leaving the walls in the baby room pale yellow but plan to paint two bookshelves and a dresser bright white for the baby's room. We are still working on a rocker - hopefully, Kyle's Dad, Russ, will be able to convert one of our chairs into a rocker ... he's mulling that over now.

What did Kyle's Mom, Rae, and I do this past weekend while the guys labored away? Why, we shopped, of course! We investigated the crib, finding a very helpful sales lady who owns the same style crib we selected (and whose mother-in-law also made bedding, etc. for her nursery). Then we drove around the mulberry bush to find several fabric stores. Rae was a trooper in the face of my resolute stance against 'baby fabrics' and pastels. We found several good options and ended up with these great happy fabrics that don't scream baby but are still very youthful.



Another very exciting thing about this fabric is that it coordinates with this piece Kyle and I picked up last fall at the Marimekko store in New York. It was intended for use as a hanging in our room, but we both think it will make a great addition to Baby Thiel's decor!



- H

Preparation

We're implementing subtle changes to our home which will make it more friendly for us and the baby.

Last Wednesday, roofers fixed the infiltration point where the pitch roof meets the flat roof. We hope that this change will mend the pesky drip that develops in the future baby room and on the second floor landing during hard rainstorms.

Also, Kyle's parents were in town this weekend, and the guys made great headway on more projects. On Saturday they installed a new garage door opener; now we can press a magic button and the garage opens, without one of us manually lifting the door! Sunday afternoon, the guys installed a new storm door on the third floor. This may sound mundane, but it is very, very exciting for us.

Our house project list may never end (ah, the joys of owning a home), but it is fun to see a few things crossed off!

-H

Half-way There!

This week we have completed 20 weeks of our pregnancy which means, given the sages contemplate only (only!) 40 weeks of pregnancy, that we are half-way through this pregnancy. Woo Hoo!

- H

Glamour Shots

it's official, our baby is on the internets. these are the first photos of our little one.



sonogram #1 - december 2, 2008

as we have said before we have been told (by medical professionals) that the first image is indeed of the baby, and, if you squint, i think you can start to make out something baby-esque. perhaps that is just wishful thinking on this father's part.



sonogram #2 - january 13, 2009

now we are looking a lot more baby-like. i think he has my belly!



sonogram #3 - february 2, 2009

this is our latest trip to the magic baby see'n machine (see also heather's post - Ain't Misbehavin'). our little one was not as cooperative as she was supposed to be during this visit so we are scheduled for another in a few weeks. this appointment was to be the one where lots of measurements were to be taken, however the baby was not informed of her obligation to pose for the camera she remained facing heather's spine for the entire 45 minute session. we got a few good looks at her back, heart, and brain, but little else. (she was turning away just as this image was shot, so its a bit blurry.)

K

Don't Poke the Baby!

We are near the time when Baby Thiel's movements should start to be recognizable to me.

So, I periodically concentrate on the new feelings in my belly to try and discern whether it is baby movement or other new pregnancy feelings. Last week I confessed to Kyle that sometimes when I feel something that *might* be the baby, I mush on my belly to see if the feeling will replicate. In my head, duplication of a feeling will confirm whether it is or is not a baby movement.

Clearly, Kyle said ... "Don't poke the baby! In 9 months, it will not be socially acceptable to poke the baby, and we should not do it now." How can you argue with that, really?

However, Saturday evening we had guests over, and I took 10 minutes mid-afternoon to pause before our prep began. I felt a little internal kick that I just knew was Baby Thiel making himself or herself known, so I mushed on my belly to see if the feeling would replicate itself - and it DID!

When I told Kyle, he shook his head, and turned away - trying to conceal what I KNOW was a grin.

- H

Problems with pronouns

So, now that we have decided to not discover the gender of our baby we are stuck with a pronoun dilemma.  So as we move forward with this forum please do not assume that an errant "he" or "she" means we know anything about little baby Thiel's bits and pieces.  We have both determined that "it" just doesn't fit - so we are stuck with the pronoun problem. Any suggestions?

K

Ain't Misbehavin'

We have decided not to discover the baby's gender ... Kyle has compared it to peeking at your Christmas gifts early.  To which I said, "Do you PEEK at Christmas gifts?!?!?"  For that and a few other reasons, we're going with the surprise.

We went last week for our "20 week" ultrasound - even though last week was our 18 week mark.

We were in the sonogram/ultrasound (not sure if those words actually equate and right now I'm too lazy to look it up) room for what felt like an hour but may have been less ... regardless, Baby Thiel was NOT in the mood to be photographed.  The little one curled resolutely, facing toward my spine and refusing to budge - but for the errant hand wave that really appeared to be telling us to BUZZ OFF!

The tech measured the heart and the brain but wasn't able to get much else of use for their records.  As such, we will have another photography session at our 22 week appointment later this month.  Here's to Baby Thiel deciding the behave then!

Otherwise, our appointments have been largely routine. The nurse practitioner we generally see is happy with the baby's progress and that works for us just fine.

- H