Week 19

Week 18: Large tomato
Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.

Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.(babycenter.com)

Total weight gain/loss: At the fitness center I was still at 10lbs, so we are hoping Christmas didn't cause too much damage.

Maternity clothes? Yep...this week I am enjoying sweats as I am on break...and I found a pair of maternity pants I thought I had lost so it's been a good week!

Stretch Marks? We're going to go with no....

Sleep: Being on break I am staying up later, but also sleeping in later, so I think I'm still at about 10 hours of sleep each night. Definitely dreading back to work next week if for no other reason than I have to get up so stinkin early again.

Best moment this week: Definitely getting some movement now...and loving it! I'm really hoping this baby is a mover and shaker unlike Em was.

Movement: See above

Food Cravings/Aversions: Pretty much anything...I feel like since I'm home I'm eating all the time!

Gender: Lots of people are saying boy--we'll know more next month. Jan. 13th is the big day!

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: being able to pick up Em without it hurting

What I'm looking forward to:more movement and the u/s in 2 short weeks!

Weekly Wisdom: A clean house is a fabulous house....

Milestones:Definite movements!

Week 18

Week 18: Bell Pepper

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound. (babycenter.com)

Total weight gain/loss: Up 10lbs from pre-pregnancy which seems like a lot to me but dr. was ok with it. We'll see what it is after Christmas..yikes!!

Maternity clothes? Yep...this week I am enjoying sweats as I am on break :)

Stretch Marks? We're going to go with no....

Sleep: Being on break I am staying up later, but also sleeping in later, so I think I'm still at about 10 hours of sleep each night.

Best moment this week: I'm 99% positive I felt kicks/hits from baby on Sunday...of course haven't felt them that strongly since to confirm it.

Movement: See above

Food Cravings/Aversions: Nothing in particular...I have cooked twice this week which is an improvement from when I was working.

Gender: Lots of people are saying boy--we'll know more next month. Jan. 13th is the big day!

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: Nothing really this week.

What I'm looking forward to: Seeing family for Christmas

Weekly Wisdom: Rest is still a good thing, even when on break I seem to want to push too hard.

Milestones: Maybe baby's first movements??

Baby Belly pics

Here are my 1st baby belly pics of this pregnancy....hopefully look somewhat like baby belly and not ate too much chocolate belly. A huge shout out to our good friends Rob and Michelle for finding and sending us the t-shirt. As you should know (if not go back and read several posts back about our transfer) Baby Hilman was nicknamed Ninja very early on, and it has become pretty much standard that when referring to the baby we call him/her ninja. In fact on my gma's cross stitched ornament she sent for baby she even stitched Ninja on the back :) So when Michelle saw this shirt she immediately thought of us and had to get it! And we think it is perfect. Hopefully Chuck will indeed get the Ninja he has been hoping for!

Week 17

Week 17: Onion or Turnip (depending on the website)

Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.

Total weight gain/loss: I have a dr appt Monday so I'll have an exact number then.

Maternity clothes? Yep...will be parting with some of my nonmaternity clothes next week when Mar is here--she loves my pregnancies cause she inherits a lot of clothes!

Stretch Marks? We're going to go with no....

Sleep: I made it to 9 o'clock 3 times this week and 10 o'clock once! So hopefully getting better :)

Best moment this week: I had a dumb moment today. We had our school Christmas party and a parent came in and we were chatting and out of the blue she says "how far are you"? And I looked at her very perplexed and she said "You are pregnant aren't you?" to which it clicked what she was asking and made total sense. But for a short moment I really was clueless! I blame it on the late nights I've had all week!

Movement: I'm going with a slightly more definite maybe than last week. I've had some moments that I haven't had to poke and prod that I am pretty sure are baby, but not quite ready to say definitely yes eyt.

Food Cravings/Aversions: I seem to be enjoying food in general lately. Fruits and veggies are most appealing.

Gender: Lots of people are saying boy--we'll know more next month. Hopefully I will have a date after Monday's appt.

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: Oddly..being able to shovel the driveway. I know it's weird but this is a chore I normally enjoy, but am avoiding due to growing baby.

What I'm looking forward to: Christmas break!!!

Weekly Wisdom: Hmm......not sure on this one this week.

Milestones: Still a boring one more week closer to baby.

Stay tuned, there will be a belly pic coming later......in a special t-shirt bought just for Chuck!

Emily stories

Emily has had some good stories lately, so I figured I would put them here so we can remember them 15 years from now.
Driving home from preschool on Weds.
Mom-Emily we are on our way home now. Emily-No home, mommy, no home Mom-Where do you want to go Emily, if we don't go home?? Emily-The circus!

Also driving home on Weds.
Emily-Jumping on the slide! Mom-Did you jump on the slide today Emily? Emily-Sit in time out! Mom-Did you have to sit in time out for jumping Emily? End of conversation

On Friday I asked her preschool teacher about the time out story, and she said indeed, Emily did have a time out on Weds. for jumping off the slide with another girl. Not surprising as Emily jumps on and off everything in sight. She said Emily took the time out really well until the other girl started crying and then of course she had to cry as well. Silly girl.

And now an Emily video. This is her "reading" her David Goes to School book. She has memorized the book and recites it practically word for word. I have been trying for months to get in on video and finally succeeded in getting most of it.

Week 16

Week 16: Avacado

Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado: 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.


Total weight gain/loss: At the dr. last Friday I was up 1lb from my previous appt. so 8lbs total.

Maternity clothes? Still struggling with shirts, I've started wearing some maternity shirts because they are nice and long, some of my regular shirts (especially sweaters) are getting too short.

Stretch Marks? I'm just not even going to look....

Sleep: Well--we are at 16 weeks as of Thursday, and I slept 10 hours last night...so I'm not sure this is getting better yet, but I will continue to be hopeful.

Best moment this week: I came out the my grad class girls..who had actually figured it out--it was a very entertaining moment for sure.

Movement: Maybe--I've been "encouraging" it when I am laying down in bed..and I've felt something, but I'm not convinced enough yet to call it baby movement.

Food Cravings/Aversions: I've had a couple of nights this week where dinner wasn't exciting for me...but nothing major.

Gender: Lots of people are saying boy--we'll know more next month.

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: Time with Chuck at night when we hang out and I'm not sleeping

What I'm looking forward to: movement!

Weekly Wisdom: Enjoy every minute!

Milestones: 1 more week down.

Emily's latest "thing"

Emily has come up with a new "thing" that I'm not sure I'm entirely thrilled by, but not sure how to end. Ever since she has gotten her big girl bed, she has always played before going to bed. This has never been an issue, she plays for a little while then puts herself back to bed. Well just recently she has discovered that she is tall enough to turn the light back on after we leave. This seems to be leading to longer and longer playing time. A minor issue, but it seems as though 2 or 3 times of us turning the light off again and she gives in. Except for the last 2 nights. Monday night I stayed up later than usual (9:30..crazy/wild I know!) and as I was going to bed we peeked in on Em, her light was still on. She was in bed however, approaching sleep, STARK NAKED!!! As in no p.j.s, no diaper, nothing! So we put her jammies back on, much to her protest, put her back to bed and move on. Tuesday night, I fall asleep on the couch and it is after 10 when I go to bed, only to find Emily sound asleep STARK NAKED again! So apparently she likes sleeping in the nude, however it is winter time, and I am a cheapskate, and the heat drops down to 60 at night...definitely not warm enough to be sleeping in the nude! I suppose we will see what tonight brings!

Anticipation and Hope

This past Sunday was the 1st Sunday of Advent and our preacher preached about hope and the hope that comes with looking forward to Christmas. It brought back memories of 3 years ago (wow! Has it really been 3 years!?) when I was 36 weeks pregnant with Emily at Christmas time and the anticipation and hope Chuck and I were feeling. And now, 15 weeks pregnant, feeling that same anticipation and hope for Ninja. I wanted to repost this Advent devotional that Chuck wrote in 2007, because once again, it sums up our feelings so wonderfully!

I Think I Get It Now Chuck Hilman
�You will be with child and give birth to a
son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.
He will be great and will be called the Son of
the Most High. The Lord God will give him
the throne of his father David, and he will
reign over the house of Jacob forever; his
kingdom will never end.�
I think I finally get it now.
For hundreds of years the Jews looked
forward to the day their messiah would come
and restore their kingdom. They wrote about
their desire for him to come. They prayed
for his coming deliverance. The eagerly
expected him. I think I finally understand
their sense of anticipation.
As Sarah and I wait for our first child to
be born I am beginning to understand the
anticipation felt by the entire Jewish nation
(on a much smaller scale, of course). We
have spent the last six months preparing ourselves,
and our home, for our child�s arrival.
We have prayed for our child every day. We
have put together baby things, cleaned, and
prayed some more. Sarah has eaten and I
have taken that as a challenge to eat more
than her. I think I�m winning.
The level of excitement about Christmas
is a little higher this year because I know
what it�s like to anticipate the birth of a child.
I would like to remind everyone about
how exciting this Advent season really is.
There is a reason the whole world is not excited
about the birth of our child. He (or she)
is not the savior of the world! We are anticipating
the one who has saved us from our
sins and redeemed us from the curse of the
fall!
I pray that you would enter this Advent season
with a sense of excitement and eager anticipation.

Week 15

Week 15: Naval Orange

Continuing the march towards normal proportions, baby's legs now out measure the arms. And, finally, all four limbs have functional joints. Your fetus is squirming and wiggling like crazy down in the womb, though you probably still can't feel the movements.


Total weight gain/loss: According to the fitness center scale today I am actually down 3lbs from my appt. last Monday. I suppose that could be attributed to different scales??

Maternity clothes? Getting to the point where some of my shirts don't fit very well, but maternity shirts also don't fit well..very awkward, yucky in between stage.

Stretch Marks? None new that I have noticed.

Sleep: Definitely not getting enough! Pretty much tired all the time and going to bed earlier and earlier each night. Same...the dr. said it should get better by 16 weeks, so here's hoping!

Best moment this week: I've been really good and walked 4 miles at the fitness center so far...making me feel really good about myself :)

Movement: Still waiting...maybe this week??

Food Cravings/Aversions: None really

Gender: I don't have a clue.

Belly Button in or out? In.

What I miss: Clothes that fit nicely

What I'm looking forward to: movement!

Weekly Wisdom: Nothing deep and profound is coming to me right now....

Milestones: Another week closer to meeting ninja!