15 weeks

I have started going by "regular" weeks on the 40 week schedule. It was getting some people confused about how far along I am.



I have not been posting lately. The bad weather came through and then my internet went haywire, so I am using Travis' pc to post.



A look at baby: Your baby weighs about 1.75 ounces and is about 4 to 4.5 inches in length. His or her heart is growing strong and, even though it is little, it is pumping between 20 and 25 quarts of blood every 24 hours. By the time you are ready to deliver, your baby's heart will be circulating up to 300 quarts of blood every 24 hours. Many fetuses develop their future hairline pattern this week, although it can take quite a bit longer for some babies' hairline or hair to fully develop. (Thanks to http://www.parentingweekly.com/)



Me: I am feeling more heartburn and tiredness. I almost retch at the thought of vitamins. Lately I have an aversion to chicken. Just can't stand it in any form. The baby is moving in more regular patterns. More wake and sleep, kicking about 10 minutes after I eat. I am beginning to wonder if I miscounted, but I am absolutely sure on LMP.

I am showing more and can't hide it except under a huge baggy t-shirt.

14 week image of baby

I wanted to include a few pictures since I have not kept up with pictures here lately. These images are from the web since I have not had an ultrasound. I don't plan on having one unless it is medically necessary.

This is a baby at 14 weeks (12 weeks gestation). This is what Junior looks like right now This picture shows what this size baby would look like compared to an adult's hand.

Today I felt the baby jumping around. It feels like I have an octopus on caffeine in there. Or at least quadruplets.

I have been working on a baby sweater. I misread the pattern and knitted it with needles that are too small. Instead of a 0-6 month sweater, I ended up with a preemie sweater. This is fine since my babies are small at birth, but they will grow out of it fast.

I am thinking of buttons to put on it, but have not thought of the exact kind, but will take suggestions. I was thinking of making some out of wood or bamboo, we have plenty here. But that requires some tools I do not have yet. Maybe I will buy some buttons from the retailer here and be done with it. Or I could crochet some buttons if I can find my errant crochet hook.

Each of our children has been small at birth:

Trevin 5 lb. 13 oz.
Trinton 6 lb. 10 oz.
Taleah 3 lb. 0 oz.
Taya 4 lb. 14 oz.
Trajun 5 lb. 9 oz.

Thinking about February

On a suggestion from my sister, I am looking at buying a kiddie pool for labor and possibly delivery. I can buy one here in Dominica, which I will end up doing, but I am also looking into an inflatable pool to pad me from the hard concrete it will be on.

I found a good chair that I like to sit in and will be comfortable even then. I think it is an adirondack style.

Taleah is playing "fort" under my bed. They think that since the cat fits under there, they will too.

Trinton in his "fork".

Taleah and Trajun are playing well today. They have been packing around the mini backpacks like they are taking a hike.

This morning we heard the heartbeat of the baby. A little train is residing in my belly. I am glad we bought the doppler for home use. It is a FaceLake Pocket Fetal Doppler. We bought it on Amazon.com.

We tried once before but the baby kept moving everywhere and we could not get a good reading. This morning we heard a steady chug, chug, chug at 140 beats per minute. This means a healthy baby.

I have been having nasty heartburn. That is one of the many pregnancy things I can do without. But I do love the end result!

Today is another Thursday...

12 weeks gestation (14 weeks) today. I continue to find clothing in my wardrobe that does not fit. I don't want to bring out the bigger clothing yet because I just have a little bump, but my skirts and pants are too snug. One lady I knew wore her pants below her belly, but I have too much extra padding from other pregnancies. It would look like cake top, as opposed to muffin top. Some women's bellies are beautiful pregnant, mine is better left under clothing.


How the baby's growing:This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

Move on over...

Lately I have noticed that my baby belly is growing fast. I know baby is not very big, but with the water and all the protection around the baby, it is fast feeling like a not-so-soft softball in my belly. I read that all my organs are moving over to make room for the baby belly. I had forgotten what early pregnancy is like. Funny since this is far from my first pregnancy. It has been over three years since I was at this stage in a pregnancy.
I am having nasty tasting regurge. Not exactly heartburn, but then again I don't eat very acidic foods. Well, not all the time. I do love my chocolate though!

A very important box came in the mail yesterday! My mom sent a flat rate box that contained "What to Expect When You're Expecting", "Emergency Childbirth", a BP cuff for Travis, a baby Doppler for me, and CHOCOLATE!!! Oh yeah, and Ziplocs--extremely important here, and equally as expensive. One box of gallon size Ziplocs in the store costs about $20 US!

I read about saving some stuff from now and putting it into a time capsule. I think I will do this for this baby, but also for the other children. I want then to have good memories of living in the Caribbean. We have enough bad ones--Trajun's seizures, hospital stays, nasty sores, the heat, the bugs, kidney stones, tonsillitis, being away from our friends and family, the list goes on...

To end on a good note: friends of ours are coming down for mid February to early March to see us after or during the time the baby is born. I will be so happy to have them. Our children get along well and we share many of the same interests. It will be fun!

Planning Baby's Wardrobe

I have searched for a list and have finally found one that gives what I need for a newborn. I guess I have to go neutral since I am going to "be surprised" like with our other children.

Here is my modified list of what I will be gathering for baby, and what mode of gathering I will use:

Any of the items without patterns I am searching for patterns or ideas.

Sewing
4-6 long-sleeved gowns
4-6 footed sleepers
4-6 lap shoulder tees (pattern from Martha Stewart kimono shirt)
4-6 onsies (pattern here)
4-6 pants
4-6 bibs
3-4 receiving blankets
3-4 hooded towel
Diaper stacker (pattern here)
Diaper bag (pattern here)
Baby quilt (pattern here)
Lap quilt (pattern here)
Changing pad (pattern here)


Knitting and Crocheting
2-4 pairs no-seam booties from Pickin' and Throwin' (pattern here)
1 sweater set with extra caps (boy's cardigan & cap pattern from FamilyCircle's easyCrochet Fall 2006 issue) Replaced with pattern I found on the web for button front knit sweater.

Buy
Socks

Does anyone have a yearning to sew or knit for a baby? I would love help!

Update 8/12

I decided to change a little bit on my wardrobe for baby.
I am using a pattern I found on the web for knitting a sweater set since I am much better at knitting than crocheting.
I know there could be a huge debate on which is easier, but I prefer knitting as it creates a looser, softer fabric. Crocheting is great for a denser, stiffer fabric. Maybe it is because I don't have the right size hook, or maybe my tension is too tight, but crocheting is not working for the baby sweater. I started the one from easyCrochet and had to pull it out because I did not like it.

Besides, my baby and my friend's baby will not need a heavier sweater. Both babies will be in the Caribbean and then the US for summer, not to mention that they both will outgrow these sweaters before they reach cold weather.

11 weeks gestation (13 weeks)

This past Thursday was another week counted toward my due date.

Here is some info on baby:
Week 13 marks a milestone for your baby-to-be. Developmentally speaking she's no longer an embryo, but a fetus. She's looking—and acting—more and more like a baby every day. She appears to be resting because her eyelids have formed and are fused together, but her arms and legs move and twitch (although you probably can't feel it … yet). She can suck her thumb, too.
Your baby is about the size of a lime! She's growing heavier at around .5 to .7 ounces and is getting longer at about three inches long (crown to rump).

And me: I am feeling much better now. I still have a hard time chopping and cooking garlic (expect cooking in a soup). I am able to chop onions now. I have less nausea except when I smell Roseau and have winding bus rides, especially one after another!
I crave Mexican and Chinese food always. Last Sunday we had a chicken soup with bean thread noodles (you know, the clear Chinese thin noodles, saiphoon) and then taco salad. Today we had nachos. Tomorrow I plan bean burritos. Hopefully I can find a good recipe for homemade enchilada sauce and then I can make enchiladas.
I have been making my own sauces and seasonings since it is hard or impossible to buy certain ones here. The food that most locals cook is basic and very bland. They use salt to make up for lack of seasonings.
The seasonings they have here don't always make it into their cooking. Fresh seasonings I enjoy here are: thyme, parsley, seasoning peppers, chives (pronounced sive), green onion, yellow onion, garlic, seasoning celery (not as big as the US variety), and bay leaf. Every recipe I make, i add extra seasonings.

Movement

This morning I woke with a terrible headache and stomachache. Then I ran to the bathroom. Everything that I have eaten has flown through me. Trajun is also not feeling well.

I had a dream about peeing my pants in bed, so I got up to go to the bathroom. Then there was one where I was at an amusement park with my birth family as a child, but the weird twist was that I had children of my own! I can't make sense of some of the things I dream.

Last night we had taco salad! Yum, so glad we could afford the chips! I will make it more often, but with homemade tortillas instead. But, boy was that yummy!

I can feel my uterus now, very definite. Like a hard balloon on my bladder. And it will only get bigger. I feel it move around- not the baby itself, because it is still too little- but the whole uterus.