Wife: Baby Thumps

So it is my fault that we haven’t blogged in a while.  We have just been really busy lately, but we have agreed to turn over a new blogging leaf.  We started this so we could share this fun time with everyone, and I have definitely dropped the ball.  But from here on out, I vow to do better.

So last time, Chris revealed how we “cheated” to find out if we were having Susan or Charlie.  For those of you who know me at all, you know that I don’t do well with 1) surprises; 2) change; and 3) patience.  Everyone thinks it’s funny that I don’t handle change well – considering what is about to happen in our lives in about 4 months – but it’s true.  Since I got together with my better half, I have learned how to go with the flow much better.  So I feel better equipped to handle our little bundle when she gets here mostly because Chris will be here too!

Susan Louise Cook at 17 weeks!

 Anyway, so we cheated to find out that we were having Susan.  I use the pronoun “we” loosely, because I called Chris on a Friday afternoon and said that Prenatal Peek could see us the following Monday morning and talked him into it.  I really just could not stand to wait any longer.  And let’s face it, he was ready to know, so it’s not like I dragged him kicking and screaming.  He was pretty excited too.  So the ultrasound revealed that our little bundle did in fact have lady parts.  The day of that ultrasound, she was completely upside down, as though she was standing on her head.  It was amazing.  We also confirmed her lady parts a week later at the doctor's office.

Very impressed with her flexibility.  She did not get that from me!

 That was 3 weeks ago.  She has grown a lot in these last three weeks.  Or really, we have grown a lot.  I can no longer see my feet when I stand up straight and look down.  I have to bend at the hip to get a good look at them.  Also, bending down has become a little more difficult and kind of uncomfortable.  Try securing a basketball to your belly and do a little bending down.  It is kind of like that only my bump doesn’t move at all. 

Very early 3D shot.  That is her arm covering her face - she is telling us that she is tired of taking pictures.  Diva!

 As far as my weight gain goes, I have no idea how much weight I have gained.  Weight gain was my biggest fear with pregnancy.  That may sound horrible, but it is the truth.  I have always been conscious of my weight, so the thought of packing on the pounds made me super scared.  The first 8 weeks, when the hormones were getting going and it was still August, I got really bloated and swollen.  I also OBSESSED about my weight and what I was eating.  Finally, my mom and husband told me to chill out.  My mom suggested that I ask the doctor not to tell me my weight unless it became a health concern.  So I did.  When I go for my appointments, I weigh backwards and the nurse writes down my weight but doesn’t tell me what it is.  (They were not that surprised with my request, apparently a lot of pregnant women don’t want to know how much they weigh.)  I feel like my weight gain is on track, but I have no idea.  And not knowing has let me enjoy the pregnancy so much!

Susan has grown so much that yesterday, for the first time, I could feel her move when I put my hand on my belly.  It was absolutely the neatest thing ever.  I first thought I felt it when I was driving to work.  Before when I felt her, the movements felt like flutters or butterflies.  But yesterday, it felt like a thumping.  So I put my hand on my belly and felt just the slightest vibration.  Since I was in the car, I wasn’t sure that it was here that I was feeling.  But apparently, Susan was just getting started.  She was very active.  I definitely felt her later on, and one time, she moved so big that she moved my finger.  Now I just need her to wiggle some when I get home so her dad can feel her too!

Waving goodbye!

 I probably won’t post again until after Thanksgiving.  So I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday with friends and family.  We are flying to Mississippi for a quick visit with my extended family.  And we definitely have a lot to be thankful for.  I am thankful for Chris, Susan, my family, Oscar, my friends, our Sunday School students, our church and for my job.  We are truly blessed.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!