An (Almost) 20 Week Update

I wanted to post a quick update. I feel like my belly just “popped” the other day and I’m looking more pregnant now. I came home from work last night and TJ told me the shirt I was wearing made me look really pregnant. I had been thinking the same thing all day. After we went shopping for dinner I came home and put on a tank top, at which point TJ said, “It wasn’t the shirt, you just look pregnant!!”. And I had to agree with him. It was as if overnight my little baby pooch became a not-so-little baby pooch.

Please see exhibit A, taken this morning before work. A self portrait of me and the girl:

TJ and I are going to a nice dinner tonight that benefits Housing Hope, so I wore one of my maternity dresses today. The way it’s cut makes me look more pregnant than I am, but then I held my belly in the picture and realized, holy crap, I really look that pregnant!!

I spent Mother’s Day with my awesome momma and sister, and we went a little wild. This little girl? She is going to have a kick ass wardrobe thanks to a few people who have shopping problems. We went to the mall and each spent a decent amount time and cash at The Pumpkin Patch (I love, love, love that place!!). When I got home I started to pull each item out of the bag to show TJ. I noticed he was losing interested so I pulled the remaining clothes out of the bag and his eyes went wide and he asked, “Have I already seen these?!?!?!” Hahaha, uhm, no! A girl needs cute clothes!

Before I go I have to brag on my husband really quick. Those of you who know him probably know he’s a pretty quiet, unemotional, even keeled kind of guy. He loves me a whole hell of a lot, but he isn’t the “romantic” type. It always throws me for a loop when he does something sentimental. I woke up on Mother’s Day morning and he bought me the BEST card. But it wasn’t the card that made me cry, it was what he wrote in the card, “I can’t wait to meet our beautiful daughter.” As I read it I lost it. He is going to be the best dad, and I can’t wait for both of us to meet her!

We're Having. . .

Edit: Now with pictures below!



A baby. Ha. Gotcha.

Our appointment this morning went very, very well. And yes, we found out what we are having (more on that later. . .). I couldn't remember if I had scheduled our appointment for 7:00 or 7:15, so we decided to show up at 7:00 just in case. Plus, I was more than a little anxious. As we were walking into the hospital we ran into TJ's mom, since she works there. We told her we'd let her know as soon as we knew, and then we head up the escalators to check in at radiology.

I checked in and found out my appointment was really 7:30. . .so we were reaaaaally early. Luckily I brought my Ipod touch for TJ and I had games on my phone to play with as well. So we waited until 7:30 and an ultrasound tech name Lisa brought us back to the first room. Lisa was very friendly, she explained everything we were seeing on the screen and that it all looked great. The baby was not being cooperative though, Lisa needed a profile shot of the baby's head and couldn't get the right angle. She tired for a while to get it, and then asked me to get up, walk around and empty my bladder to see if that helped.

Like I said last week I'm starting to feel movements. Most of the time it feels like I'm going down a roller coaster and I've lost my stomach. I think I feel that way when the baby is rolling around. Just as I was about to lay back down I had the roller coaster feeling and so I was pretty sure we'd get a good shot. I was right, baby was laying the right way and Lisa was able to get all of the measurements she needed to get.

After Lisa had checked all that needed to be check she said, "Well, wasn't there something else that you guys wanted to see??" And we laughed. She started to move the wand around so we could get a good shot of everything. Right when she zoomed in I had a feeling of what she was going to say, but I just waited. She got a good angle and took a still frame shot for us and then typed on the screen. . .







THINK PINK!

So, TJ and I are elated to announce that come this fall we are expecting a baby GIRL!!! And I am happy to announce that I was right, since I like to be right. ;) The best part about it though is that from what Lisa could tell she seems very, very healthy! TJ was pretty shocked since he was certain the baby was going to be a boy. He said he knew as soon as she was looking around though that there weren't any boy parts, and so did I.

We sent a text or called our family as soon as we left the room, and then went upstairs to his mom's office to show her the pictures. Lisa was wonderful and printed out 3 3D pictures, 4 regular ultrasound pictures, and a "money shot" picture (that says THINK PINK!) for us. I think that it is actually a lot more photos than most people get, so thank you Lisa!!!! I handed Ann the pictures and told her the last picture told her what we were having, she asked if she'd be able to tell and I said yes. When she got to it she started to cry, then I started to cry and I'm pretty sure TJ did too. I called my mom and I'm pretty certain she cried too and I can't wait to show her the pictures on Mother's Day!

So, over all today has been a GREAT day! We're having a GIRL! Woo-hoo!! Once I get home I'll load the pictures on the computer and post them here for the world to see.

Dear October: can't you come any faster?????

18 Week Update

Hello blog friends! I am a blogger fail, and apologize to the people who have complained ::cough::Mom and TJ::cough:: about my lack of posting. It's fair to say that all is great in the McG household though. You know, no news is good news??? Yep, that's us.

So this week I believe I've started to feel Herme moving around. From the way s/he kicked around like a frog during the ultrasound Aunt Donna did I have a feeling that I'm going to be kept awake at night with movement. I'm feeling things every once in a while just below my belly button, barely to the right of the center of my tummy. It's pretty cool, and I can't wait until TJ can feel it from the outside too.

Since I last posted I had my regular 16 week check up and everything is good with baby. I did the quad screen (a blood test which tests for the heightened possibility of Down syndrome, Spina Bifida, etc.), and the results came back negative. So by blood tests, which obviously aren't 100%, I'm at a very low risk. Woo-hoo!! Annnnd, I scheduled the anatomy scan! At 7:00 next Friday the 7th (a week from today, EEEKKK!!) we will know if Herme is a He or a She!!!

You may have noticed a new poll to the right (-----> up top!), you have until mid-day next Friday to cast your votes and decide if you think Herme is a boy or a girl! A little background to help with your decision; I am positive it is a girl and TJ is positive it is a boy with mixed results from people we know. The heartbeat has been steadily around 160 beats a minute. I didn't have any morning sickness. All of the Chinese gender charts say it's a girl. The only thing I've really been craving consistently is cucumbers (yum!!). Good luck! :)

On the naming of the human front we have pretty much settled the score. If you remember we decided on our boy name pretty early on, but were struggling with what to name Herme if it turns out Herme is a girl. So, drum roll please, if we are having a girl her name will be (and we are 98% sure on this): Madeline Rey! We'll pronounce it Mad-a-lynn, and I'm still toying with the idea of an alternate spelling of the name so she isn't called Mad-a-line (but it's not a big deal). And again, if Herme is a boy his name will be Porter James. The middle names are my middle name (Rey) and TJ's middle name (James). Madeline isn't a name with family meaning, but Porter is TJ's dad's last name.

So, there you have it! An update! I hope you (momandtj) are happy now. ;) Don't forget to vote if you believe we're having a boy or a girl! And now, I leave you with some recent photos. The first two I took this morning before heading out to work, and the last was a few weeks ago at the Tulip Festival (with Aunt Alicia). As you might see by the last photo Herme is starting to get in the way when I bend over.

Introducing. . .Herme!

It is amazing how a baby can grow so quickly. Just a few short weeks ago Herme was just a blob on the screen. It's hard to believe that was only 6 weeks ago! Today though, Herme is looking like a real little person (hold your horses, picture to follow my ramblings).

Today was my day off of work, so I decided to drive over to Bremerton and see my Grandma and one of my aunts for a little while. My Aunt Donna is an ultrasound technician, she did the ultrasounds on my mom when my mom was pregnant with me (and Alicia). A while ago she told me that any time I wanted to come over during the week she would do an ultrasound for me and we'd video tape it. Who says no to an offer like that? Not this girl!

So, like I was saying, today I spent the morning and afternoon in Bremerton. My mom, Grandma and I all went to Aunt Donna's work, she whipped out her wand and did her magic. I was amazed at two things, one: Herme looks like a baby and not a blob anymore! Two: S/he is a mover and a shaker! S/he looked like a little frog kicking his/her legs around and rolling around. It was amazing. No, amazing doesn't even begin to describe how it felt.

While my mom and I were sitting in the car waiting to get on the ferry home she and I were talking about how I feel so relieved. Not that I'm complaining, but I've had almost no symptoms. I felt like I was going to go into the hospital in October and they'd tell me I wasn't really pregnant. I also worried that maybe there was something wrong. Today all of those fears have been lifted. Herme is measuring ahead at about 14 weeks 2 days, which would put my due date September 29th. I'm still sticking with October 3rd for consistency, lol, and because I'm stubborn. Herme's heartbeat was still a steady 162bpm. We saw the heart and the bladder (full, Aunt Donna said that means the kidneys are working, which is very good).

So now, we get to the good stuff. Aunt Donna printed out four different pictures for us. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! I can't wait to go over and see her again for more! :)

Letters to Herme - Vol. 2

3/18/2010
Baby Herme,

Today is a big day. Today there are only 199 days left until, in theory, you are supposed to arrive. I have passed the 200 mark in the long wait to meeting you. Like I said though, this is all in theory. I suppose you will more than likely arrive fashionably late, just like your mama who cannot get where she needs to be on time. Ever. This morning while I was rushing to work I said to you in the car, “Herme, you need to be better about being on time to things!”. Take a page out of your dad’s book, getting places early is the way to go. Unless you’d rather show up like a tornado because you are rushing due to lack of time.

You are starting to become more and more real to me. I got to hear your heartbeat for the first time on Monday, and let me tell you little baby, I cried. Like a baby. At the doctor’s office. Awkward! Your dad had to work so he missed it, but I can’t wait for him to hear you as well. Your little heart was beating away at about 160 beats per minute, which is pretty darn fast.

I want to thank you, though it has more to do with hormones, but thank you for not making me sick. I have been feeling healthy and happy this whole time. I admit that I’m a bit more sleepy than usual – and I’ll also admit my “usual” is actually a lot more than most people’s “usual”, but I love to sleep! Most days I don’t feel pregnant at all. Now if you could work on not giving mommy stretch marks I’ll buy you a pony or something really awesome some day.

I just wanted to say that we are still so excited to meet you. We can’t wait to find out of you are a girl or a boy. I can’t wait to feel you kicking away from the inside, and your dad can’t wait until you can kick him on the outside. What a surreal experience that is going to be. Until next time, keep on growing little one. We love you!

Love,

Your Mom

11 Weeks

This week from The Bump we have a lime:

Your fetus currently enjoys a 1:1 ratio between body and head, and has skin so transparent that blood vessels show right through it. But fingers and toes are no longer webbed, and hair follicles, tooth buds, and nail beds are forming -- setting up a significantly more attractive future.

I need to apologize. I have been seriously slacking on my blogger duties! Not a lot has happened in the past two weeks to blog about though. I didn’t take pictures yesterday or today, but, imagine me from week whatever (when did I post pictures last??), and that’s me. I haven’t gained any weight, I still fit in my pants, and I feel wonderful.

With all of the feeling great you are probably thinking I’m just making this up, right? But I’m not, I swear. I had my second doctor’s appointment today. No ultrasound picture to share this time, but I did get great news. The nurse had me unbutton my jeans and lay back to try and find the heartbeat. She warned me that it still might be too early to hear anything. I lay there, expecting to hear nothing. She found my heartbeat right away, and then a second later found the baby’s. Baby McG’s heartbeat was around 160 bpm. I cried, and then wished that TJ didn’t have to work so he could have heard it too.

According to the old wives tales it is a girl. Supposedly a heartbeat over 140 is a girl, and less is a boy. And, the Chinese Gender Chart also says girl. I have a girl feeling deep down. My mom however would tell you she is 150% sure that I am having a boy. Hopefully we'll find out in the next few months for sure!

Until next time!

9 Weeks

I just realized that I skipped my 8 week post, and am about to skip my 9 week post also. Whoops. Annnnd, the battery in my camera is dead, so no pictures this week. I know you are all bummed that you miss out on my bloat baby! ;)

This week from The Bump we have a green olive:

Your little embryo has now officially graduated to fetus-hood. Adding to the excitement, a Doppler ultrasound device might be able to pick up the beating heart. With basic physical structures in place and increasingly distinct facial features, baby is kind of starting to look like...well...a baby!

So I am feeling Tony the Tiger Grrrrr-eat! Except for being tired at night, I still sack out at 7 o’clock on the couch. And the bloat. Ohhhh, the bloat! I had someone tell me last week I’m getting fat. Yes, pick your jaw up off the ground, that is what they said. Maybe not in so many words, but really, you shouldn’t tell a hormonal, pregnant, ragey woman that she needs to look into buying clothes soon. And you also shouldn’t give her the once over after you say such a rude thing. And, just so you know, rude person who I shouldn’t even care about anyway, I have LOST a pound since getting pregnant thank you very much! And you are a rude asshole. Ah, I feel so much better!

Back to the bloat! I will admit that even if the scale says I weigh less, my belly has this round little poochy thing that it didn’t have before. My mom and sister went shopping this weekend, they called me while TJ and I were out playing putt-putt golf on Sunday to say they were “Crazy Grandma/Auntie shopping.” My eyes lit up and I told TJ I was going to head over to mom’s house after golf and see what they bought. I scored! They bought me really cute maternity tops and two dresses (and some awesome baby loot, including a cute Elmo terry cloth robe with matching slippers. I almost died from the cuteness). Thanks to my friend bloat I am wearing one of my new maternity tops today, and it is sooooo comfy. My poor husband will never see me in a cute/tight/sexy top again. Hello muumuus and oversized shirts! Where have you been all my life?

We talked names a bit more this weekend. We are still trying to nail down a girl’s name in which we both agree upon. So far on our list of OK names we have: Lydia, Poppy, Allegra, Piper and Maggie. If it’s a girl we’ll probably use my middle name, Rey. We haven’t fallen in love with any of the names though, so I’m not sure we are quite “there” yet should Herme be a girl. Naming a person is super hard! Take my name for instance, I was never just “Jen/Jennifer”. Why? Because I was always Jen/Jenny/Jennifer C. My name was #1 the year I was born, and 25 –almost 26 –years later it is still in the top 100 baby names in the US. I don’t want my kid to have a totally outrageous name like Motorcycle (see previous name post and TJ’s bad sense of humor), but I also don’t want Herme to have the same name as half the other kids in his or her class. Don’t get me wrong though, I love my name and wouldn’t change it for the world, but I just don’t want to use something so popular.

I am 9 weeks and 1 day today, there are 216 days left to go (if this child should decide to arrive "on time").