17 weeks and the size of an onion

I'm 17 weeks.. as of Saturday 11.27.10. I'm feeling a-ok. I'm actually seeing a chiropractor tomorrow at 4:45 p.m. after work! Hopefully, she'll re-align me or give me some advice about my back aches. I fear if I don't work on the problem now it'll just get worse as I gain more weight these upcoming 23 weeks.

About Georgie:

• Georgie is the size of an onion!
• Georgie's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it.
• His/her umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes feature one-of-a-kind prints!
• 5.1 inches long (nearly)
• 5.9 ounces weight (nearly)

Here are some bump pix of me:

Me at 17 weeks.. decorations are up in the Nash house

Me and my 2nd son, Bert! We wrapped some presents on Saturday night!

I had to work overtime at work this weekend, 9-5:00 on Saturday & Sunday! I really wanted to relax, unwind, clean up the house, and decorate, go shopping, and wrap all presents.. however, due to a 12.11.11 deadline at work, we all got asked to work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I was not missing Friday as I had shopping plans, dog grooming appointment, dr. appointment, and Reid Thanksgiving.. there was no way I could work on the day I took off.  So I worked on Saturday & Sunday but here's the good news... I made $300/day extra. So Dave & I decided I should work and we'll use that $600 towards our babymoon! :) :)

Saturday night, when I got back from work I wrapped about 1/2 the Christmas presents before we went to John/Monica's for poker night and hanging out with friends. Dave and I went to On the Border.. yum yum! I was craving Mexican! :) Then we went over to hang out with friends at 8:30ish.... I stayed up as late as I could until midnight. It was good to see some out-of-town friends Dan and Julie. :) Dave ended up sleeping over at John's house as he wanted to stay out late with the guys. I had to wake up early for work so I went home. 

As for my Sunday plans... I worked 9-5 at work. Dave had to work at Outback tonight from 5-close. So I didn't see Dave today. However my plans... they consisted of watching the Wizard of Oz on TBS while working on my Christmas project for Dave's aunts/uncles/ and family! I also worked on the blog! I also uploaded pix from our busy Thanksgiving weekend to my Macbook, passport, and Facebook :) :) Afterall, we live in a technology age, right?

I got loads of cute messages on Facebook when I broke out the news this past Thursday, that Dave and I were expecting Georgie!  :) It was nice to read the loveeee. hehe. 

OK.. time to walk the dogs and go to bed! Working 7 days in a row is going to be hard, I feel. 

Thanksgiving 2010 at 16 weeks and quad-test results

so the news broke this past holiday weekend! Dave & I told his extended family at Thanksgiving that we were pregnant. It really was quite cute, funny, and overall, such a great memory! We decided to have Dave's father and Dave's brother take pictures of a 'group shot' at Thanksgiving. Dave's father would say.. "1, 2, 3... say cheese" then take a picture! Then, Dave's brother would do the same but say "1, 2, 3.. say... Kathy's pregnant!" and then we had our SLR camera on action setting so we got tons of action shots of the moment! haha. It was clever and cute!

Everyone was really happy to hear of the good news and Thanksgiving was very special. Dave & I enjoyed the hugs, love, and well wishes for our new bundle of joy! :) We told them we were 16 weeks pregnant and our delivery date was May 7th of next year.. just in time for Mother's Day! Everyone is really excited for us! They said .. "it's about time we have some little ones around here... it's been since 1999". Claire is the youngest in the family at 11. Thanksgiving was really special.

Here our some pictures from our Thanksgiving day at Brian/Lynn Hamilton's house.

The tables :)

The festive centerpiece

everyone! Stanleys, Browns, Hamiltons, and Nash's

after the news....

more celebrating

Emily & Claire holding their cats Chloe and Lola

Dave, me, Brandon, Linda & Ted

soon-to-be-Grandpa Ted

On Black Friday, I woke up bright and early and went to Joann Fabrics at 6:00 a.m. to pick up new scissors for fabric/quilts, a bigger mat for quilting/measurement/cutting, and 2 new rulers/measurement pieces to cut out fat-quarters and pieces for quilting! I then went back to bed.. :) I woke up and dropped off Bert & Ernie to Sudzy Puppy and went to my 10:50 a.m. 16 week appointment. At my doctor appointment, I got weighed and heard the heart beat. Unfortunately Georgie was HYPERACTIVE this day so they couldn't really measure his/her heartbeat. If the nurse had to guess/count it was 155 bpm. I was feeling fine and right on track with weight gain. The Dr., not Dr. Pete Weeks, but Dr. Kagan I think was his name... was really normal. Not super nice but not super grumpy. He was just getting through the day I think.. being the day after Thanksgiving. LOL. He went over my quad-test results. Everything came back NORMAL and looked good to go. I scheduled my 2 December appointments. 1 with a doctor and 1 with an ultrasound technician. :) So we're all set for the 20 week appointment. We'll confirm the gender again... and get new pictures of Georgie to post! :) :)

I picked up Bert & Ernie from Sudzy Puppy... check them out.. all groomed up!

Ernie looking handsome

Bert (middle yawn) & Ernie all cleaned up!

Bert chewing on a bone! :)

Later that Friday, Dave & I and the dogs packed up and headed up north to my parents house in Rolling Meadows. We met up with Jerry, Stacy & little 14 week Mason. Dinner was yummy... and we watched a little football too. We were all very tired and just relaxed and caught up. Here are some pictures from the Reid Thanksgiving (part deux).

my brother Jerry & lil Mason

Me & my Ernie 11. 26.10

Jerry & Charlie, his dog

Chewy playing tug-a-war with Ernie

Chewy & Ernie

Mason in his bumbo!

Bert & Chewy

Stacy & Mason... he's getting sleepy

Me, Ernie, and Dave in a turkey coma

dinner time for Mason at 6:45!

Mason having his formula

Mason is on a rice cereal now!! look at that face.. what a mess! <3 it!

close up of my Chewy.. my first dog ever. he's almost 9 years old!

my dad, Neil!

We hope you had a great Thanksgiving!!! We have a lot to be thankful for!

it's a... it's a...

SECRET!

I'm 16 weeks now and Georgie's the size of large peach. I'm feeling a-ok. I really should not complain. The only thing going on is my back pain.. I'm having a lot of it lately compared to never having back pain in the past. SO I'm thinking it's due to my weight gain and growing belly. We'll see. I'm thinking of seeing a chiropractor soon.... if insurance will pay. :)

On Saturday at 10:45 a.m. we went to Baby's First Images in Naperville for the sneak peak.  Dave was very excited to find out. I was feeling good and kind of just had a lot on my mind.

Dave 11-20-10

Kathy 11-20-10

Me.. all goo'ed up and ready to go.

We couldn't take any pictures of the ultrasound tv. We didn't spend the $15 for the DVD image cd as I knew we'd be getting more pictures of Georgie in 4 weeks at the 20 week appointment. Those will be equally as cute as Saturday's. :) 

So we got to see the baby's on the screen a lot. I still HAVE NO CLUE WHAT I'M LOOKING AT when I'm watching the tv. I look at the tv and I feel like Rachel Green, from that episode of Friends, when the doctor points out the baby and Ross sees it but Rachel doesn't. Dave COULD EASILY see Georgie's head, legs, and body. I on the other hand couldn't really see the baby. There were certain parts during our session that I could see Georgie but other parts I couldn't see. Oh well.

Dave & I found out the sex of the baby. I wasn't going to find out but ultimately, curiosity killed the cat. So I was excited to find out and Dave was so happy to a.) see the baby and b.) finally feel like he can start envisioning the future with Georgie. For me, when I was sitting there the whole thing was very surreal. I was really happy to be at peace with whether it was a boy or girl. I always wanted a girl... I love doing girl's hair, painting nails, and talking! So naturally... a girl would satisfy all that. Right? :) :) I also know I would really want a boy.. because a.) my nephew, Mason and our son would be 9 months apart.. and b.) Dave always wanted a boy to bond with... so I know seeing Dave and a son would be an endearing sight :)

So I'm at peace and am SOO happy about our future. Today I went shopping for fabric for Georgie's 1st quilt. :) It'll be really really cute. 50 x76 lap sized. I decided to go with a bright bright quilt. There are adorable, whimsical fabrics in both girl colors and boy colors... but I ultimately envisioned a quilt I could lay on the floor and the baby could really let his/her imagination go crazy. So I picked 10 fabrics of bright bold colors.. and the backing of the quilt.. I tried to find like a road map type of a quilt. So the baby could learn the colors, shapes, animals, and common toys like dolls/teddy bears/ trucks/ animals/ trains/ planes/ cars.. etc.  I found this really cute bright blue fabric with all sorts of baby toys on it :) It'll turn out cute.

I'll be done with it mid- December. I'm in a 3 part quilting class right now to learn 'french braid, stained glass' quilts. :) Pix to come....

Here are some pix of the bump.

Profile pic

Me & Georgie. 4 months.

Ernie & Me & Georgie 4 months

Ernie is giving me kisses... I had to include :)

My first son, Ernie. :)

15 weeks and baby sex update

Georgie's the size of an apple!

This weekend we went to the Iowa vs. Northwestern game...sadly, Iowa lost. Sadly, it rained and was windy! It was overall not the best first Iowa game for me or Georgie so we won't dwell on it.

We did see some friends and caught up so that was nice. Dave & I hadn't seen most of these friends since Alexis' wedding in July 2009 so it had been like 16 months since then. Ha! Alexis' friend Kristen was pregnant... and now has 6 month old triplets since then. So lots of news and changes to catch up on!

Kristen & Alexis

 In other important sports new, we went to mom  & dad's house and University of Arkansas won! We also watched the Blackhawks game that went to an overtime shoot out and they lost 4-3! Oh well! Saturday was a sporty Saturday!

View from our seats behind the end zone

me & Dave.. keeping dry with hefy bags on our benches and ponchos on!

Linda & Ted Nash

Me & my in-laws

trying to get back in the game!

Sunday, Georgie and I went to Chevy's for some mexican food with Meg! Then, we went shopping with Meg to Target. I bought Emalee some Christmas presents: 2 sets of flashcards, a Princess Tiana sticker book, and a 'are you ready for Kindergarden book?' It'll be a nice Christmas gift! I also went to Kohl's and hit up some sales.... I finished shopping for Ted, Linda, my mom, an dmy dad! :) 5 done... just Brandon, Dave, and the dogs! I finished a very crafty present awhile ago for Mason so his shopping is over, as well :)

Baby update:
Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds. Finally, if you have an ultrasound this week, you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or a girl! (Don't be too disappointed if it remains a mystery, though. Nailing down your baby's sex depends on the clarity of the picture and on your baby's position. He or she may be modestly curled up or turned in such a way as to "hide the goods.")

Me update:
Some things I've noticed is last week in church, I had some very-minor nose bleeds. I read that there is an increased blood flow to your mucous membranes.  This condition is so common, there's even a name for it: "rhinitis of pregnancy." Some pregnant women also suffer nosebleeds as a result of increased blood volume and blood vessel expansion in the nose. So we'll see if it progresses!  I also noticed, not to get too graphic, but I noticed some colostrum developing already late last week. I talked to my friend Leah about it and she was like 'wow.. already?' and my other gf, Lauren said 'welcome to motherhood, it's completely normal'! :) haha!

Baby sex update:
We cancelled our 11/11/10 appointment! It was a long story... basically we were told that the girl who would be performing our test was not 'as experienced' as 2 other ultrasound technicians with 'early gender check' aka 15 weeks. So we cancelled that appointment and found a place closer... no longer in Oak Park but in Naperville. This place doesn't take 15 week patients. So I'm going 11/20/10 to the doctor and then Dave will find out the sex of the baby. If I had to place bets, it's a boy. Then again, Dave had a dream about 2 weeks ago that it was a girl! So who knows what that means. In an earlier blog, I posted about the 'chinese baby chart' predicting it was a girl based on my age and month of conception. :) We'll see..

Georgie's been to:

1. Atlantis Bahamas
2. Chicago
3. Iowa
4. Evanston

Upcoming for Georgie:

1. Chicago for Magnificent Mile Festival of Lights
2. Orlando, FL for NYE in Epcot and seeing the Busby family

14 wks, 5 days today! and tomorrow's sneak peek appointment!

Week 14 email alert!

• My uterus' ability to expand (14 x in size, 20  in weight) is awe-inspiring; in practice, it kind of hurts. I agree! I have some aches and sharp pains hit my belly! Very few and far between so I should not complain.
• I'm still not showing!
• By now, my risk of miscarriage has gone way, way down! Makes me happy :)
• Baby is now the size of a lemon 3.4 Inches long. 1.5 oz in weight!
• 
• Our little fetus is busy with thumb sucking, toe wiggling, making urine, and breathing amniotic fluid as the liver, kidneys, and spleen continue to develop.
• Lanugo (thin, downy hair) is growing all over his/her body for warmth.
• My baby can now squint, frown, & grimace!
• His/her kidneys are producing urine, which he/she releases into the amniotic fluid around him/her-- a process he/she'll keep up until birth.
• His/her body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck.
• By the end of this week (11/13/10), his/her arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his/her body.
• His/her liver starts making bile this week-- a sign that it's doing its job right-- and his/her spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells.
•  I can't feel his/her tiny punches and kicks yet, but my little pugilist's hands and feet are more flexible and active.
• Now.. the decision of finding out the sex... is looming it's way!

According to www.babycenter.com

Benefits of finding out:• Many women say they feel a deeper bond with the baby once they know the sex and can picture a little boy or girl.
• You can prepare an older sibling for the arrival of a new little brother or sister.
• You can narrow down your list of baby names.
• You can pick out a gender-specific nursery theme or baby clothes, if you want to.

Benefits of waiting:
• You, your partner, and your family will have a delightful surprise on the day you give birth.
• Your desire to know whether your baby is a boy or a girl might motivate you during the toughest parts of labor.
• You'll be following in the tradition of your parents, your parents' parents, and so on.
• There will be no mistakes — what you see is what you get!

Tomorrow we'll be sure to bring the camera with us to Oak Park for the sneak peek! Dave is 100% going to find out. I'd still love to be surprised and wish I could convince him otherwise. One thing is for certain, Dave is sworn to secrecy about the baby's sex. He is not allowed to tell anyone. We will use "he" and "Georgie" to our friends/family in dialogue. That was the condition of finding out the sex of the baby. He had to know but no one else can know. I want there to be a surprise! I'm pretty sure I won't find out the sex of the baby. We are getting the sneak peek, and the DVD video of it! :) Hopefully the baby is not shy but I'm fully aware that at 14 weeks 6 days... there is a 50/50 chance of us finding out. We can always go back for free in a week or so! :) I'm fine with waiting! :) lol

My coworker Toni, her son Joe had their Dr appointment on week 20; 10/28/10 and the baby was shy! They went again to a non-doctor appointment, like what I'm doing, and found out Tuesday 11/2/10 that it was a girl! So I'm fully aware 'finding out' is a priviledge but not to expect a GIRL or BOY announcement.

Stay tuned... for pictures!

week 13.. baby's first visit to Iowa!

peach... check!
almost 3 inches long... check!
fingerprints... check!
formation of teeth and vocal chords... check!
2+ millions eggs in her ovaries (if she's a girl)... check!

I'm technically wrapping up the 1st trimester and going to the 2nd trimester! I feel a-ok and cannot complain!

This past weekend we went to Iowa and spent some time with friends and celebrating Megan & Mike's engagement party. Here are some pictures...

Mike, me, and Megan

Danielle, Alexis, and me

Me, Megan, and Annie

Watching the game at Joe's Place ... shot time. Dave, Alexis, Megan, and Adam

Dave thinking he's GQ. downtown Iowa City

I'm looking forward to this weekend. I will see some old LTF Friends on Friday night so I'll tell them I'm nearly 14 weeks pregnant there. And, on Saturday we'll be seeing my family at my parents house. It'll be nice telling my aunt, uncle, cousin and seeing Mason again! I'm sure he's really big. He's nearly 3 months old!! 

All in all... things are great here. I'm feeling 100%. :) Hopefully my 2nd trimester will be as easy as my 1st was! :)