(32 weeks) As I type...

(note I had been awake for literally 15 minutes and your papa took these right before my last day of work! Hence, the wrinkled skin on my belly!)

Also my belly button is coming out now...not just flush but out! :)
As I type you are wiggling and rolling!!!

We had a photo shoot last week and it was great. Your daddy said I look like a movie star and I know he is so handsome-so you will be one handsome kiddo!!! But who knows will you have blond hair blue eyes and olive skin and be tall, or will you have brown hair, brown eyes, olive skin and be petite like us?

So you are 32 weeks in utero and the doctor says you are measuring more like 34 weeks!!! Because you are so big...and you are very healthy she said...the heart beat is perfect-after you wiggle it picks up speed which tells us you are healthy-so says the doc. And I beam with pride!!!

You know people on the street always, and when I say always I mean ALWAYS say:

"Wow, you must be due any day!"
"Are you having twins" (every day I get this one especially when I tell them we really have two months to go!) :)

And something unexpected and special about pregancy is everyone always compliments me and comments at how good I look, and I bring it back to you and God: "Thank you baby and thank you God" I say! Really I am glad to have been blessed to be "carrying so nicely"- as people tell me.

So at 34 weeks in utero you are weighing approximately 4 1/2 lbs, and are so sweet.

I know where most of your little body parts are...your head is down..and let me tell you I can feel it at times when I walk right in my pelvis! Which is great because you are head down the perfect place for a great exit from my womb! And I know your little butt is on my left side a few inches down from my rib, and your back is on the left hand side of my tummy, and then your little feet are right right under my right rib. Now I just can't always tell where your little knees and hands are. But I do try and tickle your feet to see if you will wiggle, but I think it soothes you like a little massage!

You are moving a ton-and wake me up at night-which is sweet!

And I am feeling great-settled into this new body-which is bigger and heavier and well just different.

And this Friday was my last day of work and your daddy took a pic of me pouring him an americano misto and in the pic you can see how you are resting on the counter! I never realized my little belly was sitting right at the cafe counter every time I poured milk! Too cute!

So love bug...I still can't believe its you-a whole human growing every moment in my body! While I see the changes to my body and feel you its still hard to wrap my mind around that you are a whole human in there! I am so excited to meet you-remember bud anytime in January ok! :) Well God knows the perfect time for you to make your debut but really I am praying you dont have to share a birthday with Jesus!

xoxo

Momma

Week 28

We are actually now in the 29th week, but these are photos from your 28th week sweet pea!!!
See how big you are getting...or rather making mama!

linea nigra-it is a squiggly one, and notice belly button is FLAT! and quite nice-thanks doc, mom and dad-its like a little star.

Cuddle Pose

Papa's Creative Pose-what a photographer we have!

                                        
This week we enjoyed health-I was and still am feeling great! (the previous weeks I had bad cold sores that left me drinking all my food through a straw...that was not easy, but I thought of creative ways to make sure we got our calories-and in fact got some practice making baby food! Your dad took great care of us!!! He cooked and cleaned and was so kind)

This week on Thursday night you moved soo much right before bed I thought I could probably see your little body poking through my body...it was truly amazing! And I had a dream a few nights later that infact I did see your little foot poking out so far that I could see the outline of your tiny toes in my tummy, and I was showing everyone!)

This week has been great too...we have only 2 1/2 more weeks of work...hooray! You  have gotten a lot of attention there at Joes, infact my other coworkers have been a bit ignored! You are the highlight! But you still have yet to move for people other than your mama and papa...I say it's because you are your own person and you will not perform on command! :) (although you did kick your friendty anna a few weeks back) But who knows!

I know that when I think about meeting you tears well up in my eyes...its hard to wrap my mind around the reality that you are my very own human...my sweet little baby to love and care for. And your dads too!! He is so excited about you...he put together your stroller last night, and yes you aren't due for 10 more weeks!

Today we went to prenatal pilates, we are getting fit for the big day where you will come rocketing out! :) And we made a new friend there who ironically lives next door and whose husband works in the same building as Daddy.

Also we had our first weekend alone this past weekend-Daddy was away for work. And while I usually love being alone, now that you are growing inside me it was not that same. I missed him even more-the one other person in the world who shares the same passionate love for you...I love sharing that with him. You are knitting our hearts even closer together...amazing how God designed family!

-friends and fam I hope you enjoy my love letter.

Week 27

Sweet baby-

I want to write down so we always remember...you are a mover BIG time now! Its so cute, you even wake me up at night...your little body twirls and whirls all around inside my tummy! And sometimes you kick or move so hard to one side of my womb that I loose balance! You are so sweet...I love to feel you tapping me under my hand...and so does daddy...trust me he is your number one fan...well he and I are both your number one fans!

Shower, Europe-Baby Moon, and reality hits! ;)

So I have a ton of pics from my super special and fabulous baby shower in California, where my sister, mom and best friend Barbie, blessed me with a day filled with friends and food and love love love!!!!

People came from all over Southern and Northern Cal and Bakersfield to share in the joy of this time in my life...to love on me and my baby BOY!!!

But those will have to come later....as they are just barely being downloaded now!!!!

So here is a pic from our time in Germany. One of the days, while Mike was at a conference, I went to Heidelberg- a small, beautiful historic University town along the Neckar river- and walked the cobble stone streets and went to a cafe where I ate and read and just relaxed! So here I am trying to get a pic of the baby and me together! And for some reason I love that the guy in the background is smiling on us! :)

There's so much more to share, of being pampered by friends, not one dish did I have to do in one week...to seeing Mike's cousins who also spoiled us-and who are super fun-(also now that I have my little baby boy I feel soo much more connected to Mike's family bc not only are they Mike's family and my in laws but my sweet son, who I am carrying in my womb, they are his family!) to meeting up with a friend, Ruth,  who I had met while working in Africa-she drove 2 hours just to see me!

Then there's Paris...lets just say I LOVE being with just my husband...and I love Paris...it's like New York, the fact that its urban and diverse, but its way more charming, and old...and there are so many West African's there and you know how I love Africa....and all the pastries-my poor baby was on a sugar high I am sure! Mike and I rented a little apartment in a cute neighborhood and throughly enjoyed our time just us...two wait three! :) It was an amazing baby moon...more pics to come!

Now reality is just kicking in...pregnancy was a dream until...my back started aching, my legs too, then my breathing started becoming awkward, and my gums so swollen it hurts to eat, and now I have canker sores covering the inside of my mouth, and its seems more come every few hours! And that has caused my lymph nodes to inflame which in turn has caused pain to run all along my jaw! Ahhh so if you read this pray that I can have a good attitude, it is really hard! But I want to have a good attitude especially for my husband and my baby-who by now can hear everything I say..ahh! :)

Week 21 (just about a month ago)

Week 21-

Thursday morning while daddy was praying over you with his hand on my belly you kicked him...your first "thump!"

Until then it was just little movements that felt like tiny bubbles popping in my belly but lately your are thumping me!

Then while we were at a Rosh Shashana service you thumped us-you enjoyed learning about your Jewish heritage! :)

And always when I am at the computer-and when you are moving I stop what I am doing and sometimes lay down and try and watch you-but sometimes you stop-its prob the laying down maybe that position is comfy for you and you just settle in and relax! :)

But I did see you thumping around a bit yesterday my skin moving up and down just a hair!

And today you kicked really high up in my torso-could you be way up there? ;)

Babies first concert!

We went to support our friend and my coworker Luke at his show in the village-Luke Folger look out for him very talented!

Well the baby really enjoyed it he was flipping and flipping - he loved the intense beats and rhythms of the music! Go baby Go!

Beach Baby!!

20 weeks!!!


They say he is the size of a banana-but the doctor told us this week he is actually two weeks advanced in size!! So he is way beyond banana now! ;)



Papa and Mama


Love...my two boys!


I like to hold my baby and move him around in there! :)




All belly! ;)

So we had an adventure at the beach last weekend...and adventure it was. We were excited to have one last beach day before fall comes-although it still feels like summer here-and were on the train headed to the sand and the waves when...the conductor kicked Mike and I off the train in the middle of NO WHERE, "Hey you and your girlfriend have to get off the train!"he growled. Why? Well I didn't know that they only accepted cash on the train unlike other railroad lines in NYC so I was 4 dollars short so instead of letting us pay when we got to our destination-which was the last stop, we were sent off in what felt like the middle of nowhere and no one was there, with the next train maybe coming in an hour.

What do you do when your pregnant and all you want to do is rest in the sun and tan your belly and swim and relax with your husband....you cry that's what you do.

We were told there were no more trains coming and some random bus could take us back into the city and we'd have to wait for an uncertain amount of time on a random sidewalk for it to come.

I cried and cried. Really.

Finally Mike-thank God-decided we should pray that God could redeem our day. May I add that we were already going on a late beach trip hoping to arrive by 2:45 so it was now the mid afternoon. So he prayed over us, I said I couldn't bc I was too worked up. And then woosh I train was on its way...and it passed us. "Dont give up hope," Mike said.
And then low and behold the next train to the beach arrived!!

And really God did redeem the day, yea we didnt make it to the beach till four but lets just say we didnt get home till ten-we swam and read and laughed and played and napped and ate! Fun Fun Fun.

So here is the evidence of our fun day!