Little Princess

You're a girl!!! When we went to Peek-a-Belly they told us they were about 80% sure you were, but invited us back for a follow-up appointment a couple weeks later just to double check. In between those two appointments we also had another regular check-up with the doctor. They couldn't find your heartbeat with the doppler because you were standing on your head again so we got ANOTHER ultrasound! We didn't complain... ;) We gave you a name so we have finally been able to stop calling you "baby" - Your name is Sophie Elise Blackwell.

Daddy wasn't able to go to the second Peek-a-Belly session with me - which, of course, is when you decided to do something really cute. You lifted your hand as if you were going for your eyes but you ran into your nose... You had this reaction of "WHAT... IS... THAT?!?!" and played with it for a good 30 seconds. Even the ultrasound tech was giggling at you. When you felt confident that your nose was probably supposed to be there you continued upwards to rub your eyes. You rubbed them sleepily before streeeeeeetching out and rolling back over to go to sleep. I know you're a real baby already, but it still always amazes me how human you act even now. You're the cutest thing ever!

You're 19 weeks old now... Almost halfway through "baking" in there! You're about 10 inches long and starting to make your presence more and more known. I swear someone gave you a flame-thrower because the heartburn you give me is pretty incredible. I have to be careful about eating spicy foods or even laying in certain ways or else I end up living on Tums the rest of the day. You're a night owl just like your Daddy and are starting to keep me up pretty late by squirming around so much I have trouble getting to sleep. You like to sleep in to make up for it though... You don't start bouncing the next day until around 10 in the morning. Silly girl...

You can hear now (although probably not very well yet) so we talk to you so you can get to know our voices. Sometimes I sing "You Are My Sunshine" to you and replace "sunshine" with "Sophie". Maybe if I sing it enough it'll be familiar when you come out and can help to calm you down when you cry. Or maybe it'll just make you cry harder since Mommy doesn't have a very good singing voice ;) Guess we'll see, huh? You are also starting to be able to smell which is absolutely amazing to me. Daddy and I went to Red Lobster for a date the other night and you started bouncing like crazy almost the second we walked in the door. What's even more strange about this is that I have always hated seafood. I can't stand the smell, texture, or anything else about it. You're definitely taking after your Daddy in food choices though because I wanted to smell the crab legs he ordered like they were flowers. I even had to eat some of them. What are you doing to me?! I held a cheese biscuit down to my tummy to see if you would get excited about that too, and sure enough, you did! I wasn't upset about having to eat those though...

Last night was an exciting night because I felt you move from the outside for the very first time. I was listening to your heart and your movements with the doppler and all of the sudden you kicked it away... Twice! It bounced up and surprised me so I stopped listening just in case you really, really didn't like it. I spent the next hour trying to feel you with my hand and could only feel very faint thumps that were few and far between. Daddy is really excited that you're getting big enough to feel from the outside because he's feeling a little left out in that area. I'm sure before long you'll start kicking him constantly and telling him "I love you" in Morse Code. You're such a smart baby I bet I could teach you how to do that even while you're still in there.

We've started working on setting up your nursery too. We want to go with a brown and pink polka dot theme and found the cutest bedding set for it! We used to have a ferret, Jack, who stayed in your room... But we gave him away to a very loving family so that he wouldn't have to stay in a cage once you're born. Now that he's gone we can start painting and setting things up. We bought your crib with some Christmas money and are still waiting for it to be delivered. I think your Daddy is more excited about decorating than I am - That may or may not have to do with the fact that I'm still completely exhausted all the time... I've been fighting a nasty cold/sinus infection for the past couple of weeks so that hasn't helped either. My fever got so high a couple of days that I was putting ice packs on myself to cool down and keep you safe. It's tough business being a baby bakery! Tough, but totally worth it :)

Your 20-week anatomy scan (verifying 10 fingers, 10 toes, etc.) is next Monday and we're really excited about it. Not only do we get to see you again (for an extended session) but I'm pretty sure we get to bring home a video of you too! So far we've only been able to show people your adorable pictures, so it'll be lots of fun to be able to let them see you moving around too. It's at 3 in the afternoon so I'll make sure I eat something sweet that morning (or smell some seafood) to get you all bouncy and ready for it. I know you'll do great! In the meantime, punch me really hard the next time you hear Daddy's voice so he can finally experience you the way I am :)

I love you always!

Love,

Mommy

Pink or Blue?

We are finally in the second trimester! It felt like it would never get here, but here we are... I keep waiting for that famed second trimester burst of energy to show up but it's nowhere to be found. I'm still having trouble keeping my eyes open past 7:30 at night, but the good news is that at least the nausea is now almost completely gone! I feel sick about once a week or so, but I would rather deal with that than non-stop every single day. Still no appetite really aside from sweet things. Daddy cooks dinner and I try to eat it, but usually end up hunting down some Raisin Bran or something. At least you don't crave candy...

Last week was your first Thanksgiving! We went over to my parents' house and ate until we were in a turkey coma. I know you were in one because you sat still for about 5 minutes and let us listen to your heart. Your grandfather hooked the doppler up to the stereo system so we got to hear you thumping away practically in surround sound. It was very cool! You also made it very well known that you were tired of me wearing my regular pants and were ready for me to move into something a little more stretchy. You're the size of an apple now (of course everything surrounding/protecting you feels 3x that size) so it was definitely time. I started feeling what felt like a goldfish doing flips inside when I sat in a position that was least stretchy in my pants. I figured it was just all the yummy Thanksgiving food digesting at first, but then it started getting stronger and more constant each day.

I listened with the doppler a few days ago to try to confirm it was you moving around - and it was! I would find your heartbeat, then feel the "goldfish" while hearing a swooshing sound, then your heartbeat would be gone. I got so excited when I realized it really WAS you. You're starting to get big enough now that I can also sense where you are in my tummy. That makes it much easier to find you and I'm glad for it. I know soon I'll definitely be able to tell where you are since you'll probably be kicking me in the ribs. Your kicking and flailing around is very important though since it helps you develop your muscles, so kick anything you want! I would appreciate if you could avoid my bladder though. ;)

Daddy took me shopping over the weekend so we could get some new clothes that wouldn't squish you so much. They were much needed and you seem to be much happier now that you have room to swim around. I feel you sporadically through the day but almost always right after I finish eating. I guess the food gives you a burst of energy. I'll have to make sure I eat something light and drink some orange juice on Friday afternoon because we are scheduled for an ultrasound to find out if you're a little boy or a little girl! If you're napping and/or are feeling shy it may be a waste of time... Luckily they will let us come back for free if they're unsuccessful in finding out the first time. We need a shot of you from the underside with your legs wide open. Think you can pull that off for a few minutes for us? We would really love to stop calling you "it" and actually give you a name, so it would be great if you could!

People always say that you never fully appreciate/understand your parents until you have children of your own. I'm sure there's some major truth in that statement because I'm already feeling a lot more respect and love for my parents and you haven't even started crying yet. In addition to that I'm also feeling a lot more respect and love for God. Having you has given me a new perspective on how He loves each and every one of us. Christmas is coming up which is even more of a reminder of how much He loves us. He sent his other son, Jesus, to die so that we wouldn't have to be separated from Him. I can't even imagine willingly sending you into harms way no matter what the purpose. I shield my tummy every time the dog jumps up on the bed for crying out loud. It's almost unfathomable to think about the fact that He longs to be with us so much that He would suffer through such a sacrifice. We're going to teach you all about God as you grow up and I pray already that you never take Him for granted. He's your true Parent and Daddy and I hope you will see that and never think otherwise.

...and no, that's not a free pass for you to tell us, "You're not my parents!" and misbehave when you're a teenager ;)

I love you always!

Love,
Mommy