Baby Holguin - 30 Weeks

Only 10 more weeks to go! It sounds like a long time but to us it's nothing compared to how many weeks we've come so far. Just when I think my belly can't or isn't growing any bigger, we take these pictures and we both say "WHOA!". In addition to growing, the baby has transitioned from quick little kicks to big, drawn out rolls. Sometimes I can feel an arm or a leg drag across my whole tummy. Sometimes it tickles, sometimes it hurts but every time it's an amazing feeling that I can't really describe. Right now, as I type, I can actually see him moving around under my shirt - it's cray cray!
We've got a lot of things going on this next month and are trying to stay organized to keep up with everything. We start a 4-week birthing class with Providence in about two weeks and we have a maternity photo shoot coming up. Since the little guy is due at the end of April, we will start some serious preparation at the beginning of the month just in case he comes early. Thanks to my amazing, awesome, wonderful and generous friends and family, we had two beautiful baby showers and have almost all the things we need to welcome our baby home. The diaper bag is packed. The crib is setup and made. His stuffed animals are waiting for him and all we need to do is wait.

What we've learned: Our baby is about 4 lbs and over 16 inches long. All of his vital organs are completely formed and ready for use except for his lungs which are still very delicate and need a couple more weeks to develop. From here on out, he will gain about a half a pound a week. Which means I will probably gain 5 pounds a week and turn into a giant beached whale.

Cravings: Nothing super crazy. I have subdued the never ending thoughts of donut holes and have cut back on buying more than two cartons of OJ at a time. My only problem is eating too much sugar throughout the day - a little candy here, a cupcake there, a delicious buttery cinnamon roll from Great Harvest as my afternoon snack. Ya that's a tough one.

Daddy duty: Thanks to the thoughtfulness of friends and family, our baby library has grown and Andrew is still reading to baby H almost nightly. Our new favorites are the Spanish books that Aunt Kina got us! Andrew has also been a champ at cleaning the house and doing the dishes. I like to call him my bang maid - anyone seen It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia??

My crazy dreams: They continue to be ridiculous and completely unrelated to baby stuff. I think if I even tried to explain them all, you would be lost but lets give it a go. WARNING: UNCENSORED MATERIAL. I dreamt recently that my friend Mary and her boyfriend Jeff owned a really popular bar in town. In real life, Jeff is a great looking guy but in my dream he was basically a meth addict - sores on his face, sunken cheeks, skinny - and I kept thinking why is Mary still with him?? Gross! Mary was the badass bartender who didn't take anybody's shit and had the utmost respect from all the patrons. So I'm at their bar and they start a game with all the patrons that involves a piece of cardboard with various cutout holes of different sizes. The men have to try to fit their ding dongs through one of the holes and pee through it. If they make it, they get a free drink! Woo hoo. So I proceed to watch these men drop their drawers and take delight in this stupid game. Then they try to convince me to play it! I have to scream and yell that I'm pregnant and there is no way I am peeing through a gross cardboard hole, plus I can't even drink. So ya. Thats it.

Nursery updates: We got a beautiful crib from my mom and an antique rocking chair from my grandma that are the best parts of the nursery so far. I made him a burlap banner that I will post a DIY about later. The dresser drawers are full of baby onesies, pants, shoes and socks and all his blankets are ready for some cuddle time. It's just a matter of organization at this point but it's coming together.

Doc updates: We had an ultrasound about a week ago to check my amniotic fluid levels because they were high at the 20 week appointment. The results came back as normal however my cervix measured a little shorter than it should be at this point in my pregnancy. Ultimately the cervix shortens completely in order to prepare you for delivery but it usually doesn't start this early. It's nothing too alarming but I need to be aware of any contractions and go back for another ultrasound in a couple weeks. It could also mean that he will come earlier than 4/26 - which I am secretly hoping for - but no earlier than 37 week, please and thank you.

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Baby Holguin - 26 Weeks

We have officially transitioned into the third and final trimester. PHEW! And phew in the sense that we've made it this far and we've got nothing but positivism ahead of us. My pregnancy has been excellent and pretty worry free. Braxton-Hicks settled in a couple weeks back and I didn't realize what they were at the time - I just imagined the baby's little butt sticking out as far as it could get while his head dug into my back - but nope, just my uterus hardening up and practicing for the delivery day. My back started to ache recently but I've since had a prenatal massage, which was amazing and the pain subsided slightly. Otherwise I've been getting to the gym about twice a week to stretch and strengthen my back, hips and leg muscles.

My plan is to deliver this little guy au naturel - no drugs, no intervention, just as God intended. A lot of people say I'm crazy but you know what I say? I'm just going to do what women have been doing for thousands of years. Just because Western culture is spoiled with the option to have a painfree delivery doesn't mean that it's right for me or my child. But all debates aside, here is the latest baby update!

What we've learned: At our fetal anatomy ultrasound we found out our little man is "large" for his little fetus age. The first question the midwife asked when she walked in the room was, Andrew how tall are you?? The size of his abdomen and femur were in the 86th percentile which I suppose is bigger than average. Andrew's response? We've got a little hooper on our hands!! 
At 26 weeks, our baby is about 14 inches long and weighs 2 1/2 pounds. His eyelids are starting to open and his hearing is being fine tuned. He is also developing sleep cycles (hopefully like mom's) so when he doesn't kick for a couple hours, I can safely assume he is sleeping.

Cravings: Powdered donut holes from Fred Meyer. I can kill a box in one day.

Daddy duty: Andrew has started reading to the little guy now that we know he can hear him. We're hoping that he will start to recognize daddy's voice which will make it really nice for soothing once he is born. We picked up a couple books from a consignment shop and a friend also gave us a couple. My childhood favorite was and still is Winnie the Pooh.

My crazy dreams: I recently dreamt that an old friend's ex-boyfriend gave me a ride on his back through a hologram fantasy world. All I can say is that it's something that would appear in an acid trip movie. I felt awkward when I woke up.

Nursery updates: I painted some old frames a rusty red color which will host a printed photo and a pin board. I've also picked up a couple things here and there and the theme is leaning more toward pear green, rusty red and khaki. Maybe toss a little blue in there? This owl print I found is just too cute.

Doc updates: I did my glucose testing last week for gestational diabetes, even though I kicked myself for giving in to the hype. The glucose drink was actually kinda tasty, so right before my blood draw I thought, well maybe I've given myself diabetes with all this sugar I've been craving. After one unsuccessful blood draw and three successful blood draws, tests showed I was well below the looming numbers. In fact, I've decided that I must have low blood sugar, which explains my sugar cravings, so I must now allow myself to eat all the sugar I want. Hence, the donut holes - and I have one left in the kitchen....
We go back in February for another ultrasound to check the status of my somewhat slightly high could be due to anything amniotic fluid, but I'm not concerned. I'm just excited to see our little guy on the big screen again!!

 

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Baby Holguin - 22 Weeks

Mama knows best. I posted a couple weeks back about my nagging intuition and why I thought we were having a boy. Well, I was right! Our 20 week ultrasound proved it once and for all and it was very clear that a little boy is coming our way this April. Since then we have been thinking about names, nursery ideas, what he will look like, what he will be in to and most of all how excited we are to meet him.

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Baby Holguin - 18 weeks

Week 17 was SO uncomfortable. The only way to describe it would be to say that it felt like I had just experienced the craziest ab and oblique workout ever. Every muscle in my abdomen ached for 3 days straight. They hurt when I walked, twisted, stood up and basically made any move in general. The only good part was that I had a great excuse to sit on the couch and watch the entire Twilight saga and demand things from Andrew because, well I needed to "rest".

Little did I know that this period of stretching and aching was the foreshadow of what was to come - my belly!! It literally popped out during week 18. Baby Holguin was working hard to make room and the work definitely paid off.

What we've learned: Our baby is a little over 6 inches long. SIX inches! And that doesn't even include the little legs. Right now baby is growing about half an inch per week so by 20 weeks he or she will be about 7.5 inches long. The baby weighs 5 1/2 ounces now and the genitalia, whether boy or girl, is mostly formed.

Cravings: Orange juice. All day, every day. I drank almost a half gallon in one day, I just can't get enough!

Daddy duty: After week 16, I can't lay on my back because the weight of my abdomen on the uterus can cut off the blood flow to the baby. It's especially difficult at night because I love sleeping on my back. Andrew has taken on the duty of monitoring my sleeping positions and he'll wake me up to remind me to turn on my side. It's really great because I'm a deep sleeper so I won't wake up on my own.

My crazy dreams: I dreamed that I went in to labor and rushed to the hospital to have the baby. Somehow I fell asleep during labor and woke up with the baby already in my arms. The nurses were congratulating me but I keep thinking, how did I fall asleep?? I wanted to be awake for the birth!!  I was so upset in the dream that I almost didn't believe it was my baby because I hadn't witnessed anything. Everyone was oohing and aahing at the baby and saying how well I did but I kept saying, "I wasn't awake!! Why didn't anyone wake me up?"

Nursery updates: I finally cleaned out our second bedroom and made space for all the cute baby stuff we'll be getting. It's such a relief to get that part done and over with and know that we are at least somewhat prepared for whats to come.
If we have a boy, I'm leaning towards a pear green color scheme for the nursery with rustic reds and eggshell blues.

If it's a girl, I would like the nursery colors to be deep purples complimented by soft lilacs and cream. 

Doc updates: We had a 16 week ultrasound a couple weeks ago and it was so awesome so see our little baby moving around and going crazy in my belly. The weirdest part is that I can't feel a thing! The baby looked healthy and normal; it had two arms, two legs, a spinal cord, a stomach, a big ole head and a really strong heartbeat. The heart rate was at 144 bpm and it's so reassuring to know that everything is growing as normal.
We have our 20 week ultrasound on December 7th and hopefully at that point we will be able to find out the gender. We've been looking forward to this appointment for a number of weeks and we will be so excited to announce it to everyone. Pin It