Journal
Sign guestbook
Arthur's Mummy's Diary
Matthew's Belly Gallery
Nathan's Belly Gallery
Benjamin's Belly Gallery
My Fertility Friend Chart
2006-01-29 - 8.59pm��previous entry��next entry
21 weeks, 4 days - SCAN TOMORROW!!!!
Oh my goooooooossshhhh, my scan is TOMORROW!!!!!!!! And it's evening now and the scan is in the morning, so that's like NO time at all!!!! I am so excited I am practically climbing the walls! :)
Thank you all SO much for the many guestbook messages and notes about our girl's name choice!! I appreciate everyone's feedback so much! We are really happy because every single person has made positive comments and nobody thought there was a problem with the maternity lingerie thing (lots of you hadn't even heard of it, which is reassuring!), and I had the same feedback at the baby names forum online. Everybody loves the name :) I had a moment of "hmmm" about it today, but I asked Neil if he still felt sure about it and he said absolutely. He said he hadn't even given names a further thought since we decided! He is absolutely set on Emma Jane for a girl, or the boy's name we have had picked out for weeks now. So that made me feel reassured and completely happy about the name again! Yay! I also discovered, when reading my diary entries for Arthur's pregnancy, that our back-up name for a girl was Emma! I had completely forgotten that! So that was reassuring too! :)
I can't believe this is the last day of not knowing (presuming Sprout will cooperate) and that this is the last day we'll know our baby as Sprout. I will sort of miss that, it's such an end-of-an-era feeling about the pregnancy, but I had that same feeling last time and we had no trouble at all adjusting to calling him Arthur instead of Bean. Although actually I still call him Bean a LOT even now! Sometimes he is Arthur-Bean, or Arthur-B. But sometimes just Bean :)
Tomorrow we will know, tomorrow we will knoooow!!! Sooo excited :) And even if we don't, we get to see Sprout again, and in much more detail than before! I am so eager for that. I remember the close-up of Arthur's face when they were checking for a hare lip at his scan, how amazingly detailed it was, like 3D, and how clearly we could see what he looked like, and the details of his features. I can't WAIT to see that part of Sprout's scan, because this time we have already seen a combination of our genes in Arthur, and I'm so eager to find out if this baby looks anything like him. I am so hoping he/she will! I love it when siblings look really alike :)
So much is happening at the moment. I was just saying to Neil today that it suddenly feels like we are getting so much "decided upon" or sorted at this stage of the pregnancy. All at once. Like we got the names sorted, and tomorrow we hope to get the gender "sorted"! Those two things make such an enormous difference for us over how we imagine the baby and for me it really does affect how I bond with the baby. Not that I wouldn't bond with the baby if I didn't know the gender (I already am bonding a lot!), but to me it does make a big difference, to be able to bond with my little boy or little girl specifically, and get to know them by name even now. I am so excited about it!
Another thing we finally got sorted - today Neil, Arthur and I went into town and tried out a Jane Powertwin (the hoods aren't actually like the ones in the first picture any more, they are a new style and look nicer)! It was so busy in the baby equipment department! We had to put our names on a list and wait for a while for someone to help us. Anyway we really tried it out thoroughly. We put Arthur in the front seat and checked the different recline positions (he seems to really like the front seat, but doesn't think much of the back one!), and then the back seat the same. We put him in the front with a clip-on car seat on the back, we tried it with the hoods on and the hoods off, and then we had the lady show us how to fold it up and pop the wheels off (soooo simple, it's amazing!), and then I checked the weight of it by picking it up like I was going to toss it in the boot of the car. It wasn't as light as I had hoped, but still lighter than Arthur's current (too heavy) 3-wheeler. With the wheels it's way too heavy though! It folds up so compactly for a tandem 3-wheeler!! Especially with the wheels off. I can't remember what else we had her check for us. And then I pushed it around a bit (it pushes like a DREAM, seriously). And that was it. The Jane Powertwin is without a doubt, the double pushchair for our family. It's absolutely fantastic. I can't imagine a vehicle for two little persons that I would like better or find easier or comfier for them :) So YAY! That's the good news. The bad news is how much it costs, urgh. Obviously we had no intention of buying it at that shop, because I can get it cheaper online, even new. But it's still too expensive new online so I am going to get one from eBay. At least I have some time to watch and bid for a while to try and get the best deal. The only problem is that they are SO popular that they don't seem to lose much of their value when sold second-hand (good news for when we sell it!), so no matter how we play it, it is still going to be expensive. But it's definitely the one, so somehow we need to afford it, or find a way of doing so over the next few months. That is going to be pretty much our only major purchase for the new baby, as Arthur's things will do for everything else.
We haven't quite decided on our sleeping arrangements (as in, the four of us) for after Sprout arrives, but I don't think any of our options will involve buying anything. If we decided to co-sleep with a bedside cot then we'd need to buy a bedside cot, but our bedroom is too small to fit our bed and a cot against it in any case - which is why we didn't do that with Arthur. We'll either have the baby in the bed with us like we did with Arthur, or try something different and have the baby in Arthur's Moses basket until he/she outgrows it, then maybe the Pack and Play for a little while (all right next to our bed) and then move the baby into the cotbed we bought for Arthur. We will either do it exactly the same, or completely differently. I don't know how to decide because I know my feelings at the time will make a huge difference, as in, my feelings when I am actually holding Sprout and contemplating whether to keep him/her next to my body overnight (which feels the most natural), or seperate myself from him/her, which feels like seperating myself from all my limbs for the night and I can't sleep or relax very well (as I recall when Arthur was a few days old and we contemplated having him sleep in the Moses basket one night - the feeling overwhelmed me and I had to have him skin-to-skin instead). Also it does depend somewhat on Sprout's nature when it comes to sleep, which we'll find out after he/she is born! So I don't know...
Anyway, so it feels great to have totally decided on a method of transport for our tiny people!
Arthur likes to see my tummy these days! I don't know what he thinks when he sees it, as I'm sure he's too young to know there's a baby in there - we do tell him frequently though! But he likes to pull my top up to reveal my tummy and then he does a little shy smile and pats and strokes it! He points at my tummy button and pokes it and makes expressions and vocal sounds as though the situation with my tummy button is extremely serious and important, hehe! It's so cute. But surely he can't understand it yet? He knows something is very different about me now though. He seems happy enough with the changes so far, even the lack of milk! I hope he is going to be okay with having a new baby around when Sprout is born. He is a very laid-back boy but you never know.
Talking of my tummy button (and perhaps why Arthur is acting so concerned about it!), it has gone completely flat now. I like it when it's flat! It's just so soft and smooth :) My tummy button never popped out when I was pregnant with Arthur. I have always had a strong innie, and since Arthur was born it went back to a pretty good innie (though not quite as strong). It's flat now because my womb has risen high enough so that it's completely behind my tummy button!
Sprout kicks me up high at the moment, and has done for a few days, so I know he/she has changed position lately. I still get a lot of thumps and bumps low down on my bladder and cervix, but I am starting to be able to tell that those are hands and a head bouncing when there's a strong kick, etc. There are definite FOOT kicks and swipes going on up near my tummy button! Sprout has even kicked me up to an inch above my tummy button now, and my womb isn't even quite that high, so I'm not sure how he/she managed that!
Two nights ago I was slumped (very bad!) in my chair at the computer and Sprout was kicking like crazy, so I lifted my top away from my tummy to put my hands there to feel Sprout. The kicks were sooooo strong and clear against my hands and my tummy just seemed to lurch and ripple about! So I looked, and for the first time this pregnancy I really saw MAJOR movement all over my tummy! It was the strangest feeling because it was like an instant flashback to my pregnancy with Arthur, such was the intensity of the memory of watching my tummy heave and ripple with his kicks. And that was the last time I saw my tummy look like that too, until last night. So it brought it all back. It was strange though, because it felt like Arthur was in there kicking, not a different baby, such was my association with the last pregnancy. But it was soooooo lovely!!! I really felt a surge of "connectedness" to Sprout and like my whole awareness of him/her had just gone up a notch somehow. Of course by the time I had got downstairs and laid down on the sofa for Neil to see/feel, Sprout had suddenly decided to take a break! Tsk ;) I hope Sprout behaves tomorrow at the scan! Arthur was not cooperative about moving and doing things when he needed to for the sonographer to take measurements, and we had to go and jump and eat chocolate and pee and all sorts, to try and get him moving!
Another thing I discovered that kicky evening, was that Sprout now plays Poke and Kick with me!!!! Yay! I was so looking forward to that stage of pregnancy and now here I am! I love when I can poke and Sprout will pause and then kick me right back where I poked. And then silence. And I poke again, and Sprout gives me a double kick in the same spot! I LOVED that with Arthur, so I was eager to experience it with Sprout.
Sprout is soooooo much more active these days. I get kicked a LOT, day and night. Though definitely more in the day. Or any time I am up and about, like if I am up until 2am for some crazy reason, then Sprout is too. Otherwise he/she is generally quieter at night. I hope that doesn't change!
Another new thing that I have noticed about Sprout recently is that he/she seems able to hear more than just my voice. I get a strong reaction sometimes when Arthur is right next to me and crying, or making very loud shouts or squeals. Quite a few times now, I have noticed Sprout make a definite reaction to Arthur's sounds. I love that soooo much! Sprout seems to particularly react to Arthur if he is crying.
Oooh I just got a kick/swipe sensation behind my tummy button! Hello Sprout! Mummy loves you! :)
I neeeed to check my weight and I keep forgetting. I have no idea what it is, and it has been a while since I checked so I feel like doing so again. I am just curious, not restless about being a certain weight or anything. I am interested in how my weight gain compares to last pregnancy. So far I have gained less consistently, but in the same pattern to last time. Well, only a lb or two less. At 21w3d last pregnancy I had gained 15lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight. But that made me think, I was counting from my pre-pregnancy weight last time, and not taking into account the fact that I lost 12lbs with the morning sickness and then regained all that PLUS the 54lbs I gained afterwards! This time I only lost about 4lbs during the morning sickness patch, and I have been counting my weight gain from that weight, not my pre-pregnancy weight. Hmmm. So that would make my gain so far a lot less than last time I think. I am guessing I probably weigh something like 9 stone 2lbs, thereabouts. Which would be 13lbs from how I was counting before, but about 10lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight. But I need to actually remember to weigh myself in the morning and find out!
My bump is growing. It feels so heavy and achy at the moment, even crampy sometimes. But I know that's normal - it's only mild and I remember this happening in patches here and there last pregnancy, especially around a growth or activity spurt on the baby's part. I want to hold my bump if I am getting up from the sofa or going upstairs. It just feels like it wants support to ease the achy/heavy feeling. When I get up from lying down now, I have to roll on my side first and push up with my arms. I am like a beetle on its back these days if I try it from lying on my back!! It's absolutely impossible!
What other pregnancy news can I write about? I am super irritable this week/weekend. I don't know why. I am really tired but I guess it's more than that. I just feel like my mood/emotions are almost as palpable as a physical itch under my whole skin, it's horrible! I am trying so hard not to take it out on Arthur. Funnily enough, he seems to be pushing my buttons just that little bit more than usual at the moment, and it drives me crazy when I have zero patience!! Neil gets snapped at over the slightest things. Poor Neil!! He's so lovely too! I have been completely unreasonable and irrational with it at times, it's weird. Like Neil asked me one time, "Why are you being so snappy? You were fine this morning!" and I snapped back, "Um, HELLO, I'm pregnant!" It's crazy, at that moment I was literally fired up to throw an all-out tantrum and slam the door if he responded to that in any way other than, "Oh yes. Well, that's alright then!" Which of course he didn't do! But I didn't throw too big a tantrum in the end! I feel so foolish but it's almost uncontrollable, the snappiness and irritability. I have started warning Neil if I am feeling that way as soon as I notice it! I read in my diary that at this stage I was warning Neil about feeling irritable so he had a heads up! So I thought it was a good idea to do it again this time :) I hope the moodiness passes soon. I hate being moody and unreasonable with people I love.
I have been having a ton of Braxton Hicks lately. I am so dehydrated, and I'm sure that's why it is. I never drank enough while I have had this snotty cold (which is all but gone now), and then I continued not to drink enough afterwards. I am so bad with drinking enough!! It takes till my skin is dry and sore, my lips are cracking, my throat feels parched all the time, my pee all concentrated, and my womb contracting more than it really ought to be, for me to finally go, "Ohhh, okay, I'd better drink some water then!" *sigh* Which is exactly what has happened this time. It's hard to remember to drink water, and MUCH harder when Arthur is so active and I barely get to sit down or think let alone keep getting drinks and peeing!
Today is a little better, but I am still dry and thirsty all the time. Today I have been having BH contractions about 4-5 times an hour (ooh I am having one now!) and that's better than before. I remember I did have an awful lot with Arthur though, pretty much throughout, so I'm not worried about them. By the 3rd trimester they were strong and lasting quite a long time so at the time I would worry a bit, but this time I won't so much. I had only started feeling them around 20 weeks with Arthur though. This time I started feeling them at 11 weeks!!! One or two have felt painful today but they don't last very long so that's okay. I just need to DRINK MORE WATER!!!! Tsk! ;)
I am eating big portions at the moment. Food seems to just slip down and act as though I never ate it! A portion that would have me groaning before pregnancy will feel like it just fills the gap these days! Sometimes I eat twice as much as I would have pre-pregnancy. I am just hungry and it takes more food to make me feel like I've eaten enough. I am enjoying anything sweet most of all, but I still love my savouries!! I am really noticing (Neil too) that I find most of my savoury food very bland at the moment. It just seems to lack flavour and I wish it was seasoned with "something" - I never eat spicy or very seasoned food so I don't know what I'm wanting! But food just seems so flavourless. I want some good strong flavours!!! I don't THINK this is something I noticed last pregnancy, but I can't really remember.
Okay it's getting late and Neil has come upstairs to talk about who we are going to tell (re. Sprout's sex and name) after the scan, and who we will keep it a secret from till his/her birth! I love talking about things like this!!! I think we will tell family the sex and name, but tell nobody else. Or maybe like we did with Arthur, tell everyone the sex but only family get to know the name in advance. Anyway, we're about to discuss that.
I will update tomorrow after THE SCAN!!!!!!!!!!! Wheeeeeeeeeee!! I am so excited!! Please pray that everything will be normal and healthy, and send Sprout lots of "open leg vibes"!!! I can't wait till tomorrow! :D
Recent entries.....
Babies 7 and 8! :) - 2016-01-10
Babies 6 and 7! - 2013-02-17
Baby #5 !! - 2010-04-03
Nearly 3 months postpartum! - 2009-10-05
6 weeks old already! - 2009-08-25