26 weeks

We're at 26 weeks! Less than 100 days left until our Sooy Baby gets here - yay! and yikes!

Here's what our boy is up to this week:

-His heart and other major organs are continuing to mature and grow. The addition of tiny capillaries in the lungs are contributing to his lung development.

-He should measure about 9.5 inches from crown to rump or 14 inches from head to heel, which is about the size of an English hothouse cucumber (what a random produce selection this week, I know). He's still looking pretty lean even though he's been packing on ounce after ounce of baby fat.

-Up until now, his eyes have been sealed shut, but they should start to open soon. And then the baby can busy himself by practicing blinking and squinting.

And what have Thom John and I been doing to get ready for the Sooy Baby? We've toured a few daycare centers, painted the nursery, put together the crib, and signed up for a slew of baby-related classes offered by the hospital. Next on the list is to find a pediatrician. Also, I can't eat enough grapefruit.

Here's a belly picture taken Friday at 26 weeks 1 day. I know it doesn't really look it, but I feel like the baby's grown about 3 feet this week. He's definitely stretching out and getting comfy in his little apartment.

C-c-c-old!

You'd think that someone who doesn't wear clothes would not want to be outside on a 12-degree day. Not our PepperDog. He seems to draw energy from cold weather, so yesterday I bundled up like the little brother in A Christmas Story and took Pepper for an extra-long walk. I was rewarded by Pepper spending the day sleeping on the kitchen floor, only getting up to follow the sun. Hope it's warmer where you are!

P.S. - 25 week belly shot

And here's the 25 week belly pic, a little blurry, but you get the idea:

25 weeks and MORE ultrasound pictures!

We're at 25 weeks and it's a cold one out there! Here's what the Sooy Baby is up to:

-The baby should be about 14 inches long from head to heels and weigh about 1-1/2 lbs (like a rutabega). I was told on Tuesday that he's weighing in close to 2 lbs, so it looks like we're both getting a tad chubbers - good for him but not-so-good for me.

-Capillaries are forming under his skin and in his lungs, getting them ready for his first breaths!

-Speaking of breathing, the little guy's nostrils are starting to open and the Sooy Baby can concentrate on practicing breathing through his nose.

-His hands are fully developed and supposedly he's spending his awake time groping around and getting a feel for his surroundings.


Alrighty, here are some more ultrasound pictures taken this week:


His little face, kind of Skeletor-like, I know, but he's our Skeletor:His little foot:
He spent a couple of minutes trying to get his fist to his mouth:

And then the cheeky little monkey spent another couple of minutes in this position - he would not budge! At least we got to double-check what's below the belt:

I thought I was over it.

My obsession with peppermint, that is. Apparently not, though - considering the amount of peppermint bark I just inhaled and how badly my legs are itching to take me back to the break room for more. It's not even 10:00 a.m. for Pete's sake!

23 and 24 week update

We hit 23 weeks on January 1 and 24 weeks on the 8th. Here's what the Sooy Baby's been up to:

-The baby is putting on weight like a champ and should double his week 23 weight before week 27.
-His skin is still very thin and it's hanging loosely from his frame, getting ready for the weight he's going to put on.
-Our boy is about 8-1/2 inches in week 24, the size of a standard letter and my uterus is the size of a soccer ball. Sweet!
-The baby's ears should be working fine by now - he can hear me breathe, my heart beat, my tummy gurgle and can hear pretty much everything going on outside, including Thom John's voice, which he'll be able to recognize when he's born!

Here's a photo taken at 23 weeks 1 day:

And here's a photo taken at 24 weeks 1 day:

Finally.

Here are ultrasound pictures from our appointment on December 17th: Uh-oh Pepper, I think someone's decided that he's going to be #1 boy around here:
Our boy showing off the goods:

And here are ultrasound pictures from our appointment on January 5th:
And presenting... the Sooy Baby in 3D!!!

We're Baaaack!

We're back from vacation! We had a good time seeing the sights and learning a lot about Egypt and its history. Photos and updates to come.

I assume the Sooy Baby had a good time - he punched, kicked and hiccuped his way through 8 flights, 2 felucca rides and 1 camel ride, along with pretty much every other part of the whole trip.

Ho Ho Ho

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

xoxo

Nora & Thom John

Plotter Dog

Well, it was a good idea - just not really fully thought-out.

I took Pepper to the kennel yesterday - not one of Pepper's favorite places as we've mentioned before. After I pulled into the kennel's parking, lot, I hopped out of the car and cautiously cracked opened the door to the back seat. I was afraid Pepper would try to make a break for it, so I was being careful, but the backseat was empty.


I opened the door a little more and he wasn't there. He wasn't on the floor of the car. He wasn't in the trunk, either. I admit I was panicked and puzzled for about a half second until I spotted a shiny, sniffling, black nose poking out from the space between the driver seat and driver door.

I found Pepper crouched down low in the driver's seat - apparently he was hiding? I guess the plan was for me to think he was gone and then I would drive home and he could live in the car for awhile. Unfortunately for Pepper, his nose and his loud sniffing gave him away.

I coaxed Pepper out of the car and we calmly went into the kennel, where the staff greeted "our escape artist" (their words, not mine!) with big smiles. The rest of the trip went without incident, besides a knocked-over box of Milk Bones, but Pepper is safe and sound at the kennel and we'll be back to get our boy before he knows it.

Week 22 Update!

Thursday means a new week for baby boy Sooy and here's what he's up to:

-Our boy's pancreas is maturing, so he is getting busy producing his very own hormones and his inner ear is fully formed. Hopefully he will have more balance and coordination than his mama currently does.

-His little fingers are becoming more dexterous and he's feeling out his surroundings inside his little apartment, which has definitely moved up higher in my belly. I no longer only feel him low down on my abdomen, but right behind my belly button, too. It's weird!

-The babe is looking like a little raisin, since his skin is becoming more and more shriveled, making room for the baby fat that will soon fill him out.

-The baby is settling into a sleep schedule, sleeping about 12-14 hours a day and loud noises can wake our little guy up. I think I found this out while walking to the train Tuesday night: an ambulance started up its siren right next to me and all of a sudden I thought I felt my insides churn and I thought I'd lose my afternoon snack.

-Our boy is weighing in at one pound (or so) and should measure about a foot long - picture a spaghetti squash.

-I got my first "when are you due?" from a complete stranger last night! She said I looked small - I wanted to give her a big smooch.

Christmas doings

Since Thom John and I will be traveling on Christmas and won't get to see my parents, we had them over for a Christmas lunch on Saturday. Luckily, there was a break in the snow and winter storms North Jersey had so that they could come down. I cooked up a big ol' ham to celebrate.

Saturday night, TJ and I went to a great holiday party thrown by Meg and Erin. As usual, they put on a delicious spread and were great hostesses.

Sunday, Thom John and Peter were set to head up to the city to watch some soccer and see some sights when I decided at the very last minute to join. It was a festive day, including lights, music, wintry precipitation and honey-roasted almonds. Yum.

*POP*

I totally missed out on Week 21, but here's what our baby boy is up to:

-The baby weighs about 1o oz. (actually he weighs 14 oz., thankyouverymuch!) and is between 7 and 10 inches long - about the size of a large banana or carrot!

-Our boy will keep growing rapidly over the next few weeks, but his nervous system and organs are all in place - just maturing.

-I may start to notice the baby's movements taking on more of a rhythmic cycle - and even notice some hiccups!

-His skin is red and wrinkly and getting ready to stretch to accomodate all the baby fat he'll build up.

-The baby is also developing rapid eye movement (REM) when he sleeps.

And here's a photo of me taken Monday morning (21 weeks 4 days) before work - I think it's pretty obvious that I've popped, but people at work are still giving me the sideways glance. It's pretty funny. Sorry I'm not smiling in the photo, but apparently smiling makes me move my hand, which makes the photo fuzzy.

How annoying...

Our scanner can't detect its own USB connection to the computer or some nonsense like that, so we're working on scanning and uploading the latest ultrasound pictures.

It's a...

BOY!!! An active, busy baby boy! The doc estimates he weighs about 14 ounces.

I'll post ultrasounds pictures tomorrow since the scanner is not cooperating tonight. Wah.

Face time!

Tonight's the big ultrasound! It's been over two months since we've seen the Sooy Baby, so I'm really excited.

Plus, we may get an answer to one of a long series or serious questions regarding this child: boy or girl? Red Sox or Yankees? Rutgers or Maryland, or more importantly - New Jersey or Maryland? Pepperoni or mushroom pizza? The list goes on. I'll be glad to get one of these things taken care of, provide the babe isn't too shy.













Thanks to my Uncle Dannie for using his computer skills to produce the dramatisations above. :-)