Brand New

More beautiful signs of spring! Despite the rainy weather there was something to smile about on my daily walk around the pond. Brand new baby geese! These little puff balls are only about 24 hours old. I did not see them the day before so they are just freshly hatched. People may find geese annoying but I find them intriguing.

If only human parents would take a few tips from these feathered friends. Mom and dad stick together and parent together. They protect their children from any potential harm, they keep them warm and safe, and they set an example for their children to learn and live by. I find it absolutely beautiful.

In One Week's Time

Last week was week 33. It seemed like overnight my belly doubled in size and that The Bean had a growth spurt. I mean I definitely felt pregnant in the previous weeks but last week I really felt pregnant - one of those oh so that's what everyone is talking about moments. I am grateful that up until now I haven't struggled every time I had to bend to pick something up, wasn't having issues putting on my shoes, didn't have to take a moment to concentrate when I was trying to get up from my seat, etc. We are into week 34 now. Six more weeks to go if The Bean decides to stay in there the whole time (please do little one, you need to stay brewing!). Here are Week 32 and Week 33 pictures.

Signs of Spring

Spring shows what God can do with a drab and dirty world

Spring is a time for new beginnings, for new birth, for life. Spring is surely bringing lots of that to our family this year! A few signs that spring is sprung here in the buckeye state.

According to Old Wives Tales...

I am having a girl because the heartbeat is consistently above 140.

I am having a boy because I am carrying low (supposedly, this one is debatable since I have no torso to begin - this one may therefore be flawed).

I am having a girl because I am craving sweet things like fruit and orange juice. Oh and sweet tea. Can't get enough sweet tea.

I am having a boy because I am eating a lot of salty and sour things like my beloved salt n vinegar chips and sweet tarts.

I am having a girl because I prefer to sleep on my right side.

I am having a boy because I am wanting a lot of cheese. And meat (but only red meat).

I am having a girl because the Mayan's predicted that if the mother's age at conception and the year of conception are both even or odd numbers that the baby is female.

I am having a boy because the Chinese prediction chart tells me so.

I am having a girl because another Chinese prediction chart tells me so.

I am having a boy because my belly looks like a basketball (although my dad said it looks like I swallowed a watermelon whole and a watermelon shaped belly means girl...)

I am having a girl because I have had terrible skin issues since becoming pregnant and apparently girls steal a mother's beauty.

I am having a boy because I picked up a key on the table from the widest end.

I am having a girl because my face has gotten fuller (isn't that just because I am swelling and retaining water everywhere?).

I am having a boy because my legs have gotten bigger (again, pretty sure it's the obnoxious amount of swelling that's going on from being on my feet all day).

I am having a girl because I had bad morning sickness.

I am having a boy because I am clumsy during pregnancy (maybe that's because I no longer have the same center of gravity?)

I am having a girl because I won't eat the ends of the loaf of bread (didn't do that before hand though...)

Ok so given all of that information, what do you think? Conflicted much?

Touring the Hospital

We started taking classes at the maternity center two weeks ago. The maternity pavilion at St. Ann's Hospital is absolutely fantastic. I really like the maternity center at the hospital because the moment you enter the labor and delivery floor you would never know you're in a hospital. It's a very modern maternity unit and is pretty much everything a woman would hope for in a labor and delivery ward. The labor/delivery/recovery room itself is deceiving. It doesn't look like a hospital room. Everything is hidden away in armorers and cabinets - even the baby bed and warmer folds out from an armorer! Most of the monitoring equipment is hidden in the wall, covered by a framed picture on the wall that slides upward. Pretty neat stuff!

The rooms themselves are huge. You could seriously host a decent sized party in one of them. They are equipped with every type of chair you would possibly want (rockers, gliders, etc.) and each room has a very large shower that you can labor in. Birthing balls are available in all the rooms (which they even suggest using in the shower). PLUS there are rooms that have tubs for hydrotherapy, I definitely am going to request one of the hydrotherapy rooms! Laboring in the tub sounds ideal to me. I am so comforted by being in the water, whether it be a tub, shower, pool, etc. I love the water. I am really hoping that hydrotherapy will work for me through the natural labor process that I have selected for myself. I am also so grateful that my husband is 100% with me on my decision to labor naturally with no medication. I could not imagine going through this whole process without a loving and caring support like he is. He may be a lot more squeamish about things than I am but overall we are a pretty swell team.

This Week's To Do List

Every week we get an email from babycenter.com. This is our 31st week and according to the information they sent The Bean is measuring somewhere around 16 inches long and is nearing the 4lb mark (they suggest hefting around 4 navel oranges to compare). They also informed me (warned me) that we are headed towards a growth spurt. The information also says that the baby is "probably" moving around more now. Probably is an understatement. This is one active baby! The Bean could be renamed to Jumping Bean. People tell me that you can feel a baby move when you lay or sit still for a while - well there is no need to sit still or lay down here! I can feel movement all day long. Lots of the movement is definitely stretching and moving around but then there are times when it feels like The Bean just completely has a few minutes of complete freak out mode. I am just waiting for one of my students to notice while I am teaching. I am sure that will result in no productivity for the rest of the class period.

We will see if The Bean is as active on the outside of the womb as on the inside. I have heard it can go either way. I for example was quiet in the womb but a colic high needs infant outside. My brother on the other hand was very active until he was born. Then he sort of became a happy blob baby, content with eating and sleeping with little fussing. I guess he was a gift to my mom after her experiences with me!

I have had moments lately of wondering if we are getting enough things done before the baby comes. I don't mean things like decorating the nursery or anything. I mean more along the lines of having things arranged like a pediatrician and such. Now that I've started to go through my list, I feel much more accomplished.

Things we've been able to cross off the list:
* Starting bi-weekly prenatal visits (weekly visits coming soon!)
* Signed up for (and started) childbirth classes
* Toured the hospital (the labor/delivery/recovery room is AWESOME)
* Decided on a natural, drug free labor (decided on this a while ago)
* Decided to use a tub to labor in as long as there is a tub room available at the hospital
* Signed up for a breastfeeding class
*Chose a pediatrician for the baby
* Working on adding to our cloth diaper newborn stash

Then this week's email came. Our task for the week: Begin assembling a bag for the hospital. WHAT? Yeah that makes it a lot more real. Not any of this other stuff but that. Packing a bag. Being ready to head out the door at any moment. That's when it hits you. At least that's when it hit me. We are so close.

First Baby Shower

We headed up to Connecticut this past week for a wonderful baby shower hosted by my mother-in-law. We were overwhelmed with the generosity of all the friends and family that attended and got us such wonderful gifts for The Bean. More than anything, it was wonderful to see our little nieces who we hadn't seen in over a year - they were the best helpers ever at the shower.


Now that we have all sorts of wonderful baby items in our house, it's making everything much more real. Today when I got home from work I was pleasantly surprised to see the crib our mother-in-law purchased for us at our doorstep! Part of me wants to drop everything I need to do today and start assembling it. Of course the room is still a work in progress and isn't ready for the crib to be put up yet but just having it in our house gives me all sorts of excited feelings.