Ribs? Who needs ribs?

Apparently my son is not thrilled with my ribcage, or at least not with how confining my ribcage seems to him. As a result, it's expanding, and let me just add...ouch. Why is this never mentioned along with the stretch marks, etc. that are supposed to show up in the last month? I was pretty happy with my ribcage being the size it had always been, but apparently it's all part of the process. Fortunately, I have a husband who will take pity on my and rub my ribs. What a good husband! 10 more weeks, and then I get to have my body all to myself and meet the little boy who keeps kicking me at 3AM. 10 weeks and counting!

The nursery

As I'm putting together the baby book, I thought it might be nice to include a picture of the nursery. For those of you who aren't around to see it here is a picture. I think it turned out pretty well. I'm sure we'll find some finishing touches as we go along, but this is what we have so far.

Baby Book

I've decided to make my baby a baby book instead of buying one. I figure that this way I can add more photos and tell the story of him without buying a book with a lot of irrelevant sections. If you have suggestion on things to add, by all means let me know. I think it will be a work in progres for a while now. Right now I have finished the pages on what family said when they found out about him, and the ultrasound, and his first kicks, and we're working on his name page, but I think we need to pick a name before we can finish that one.

Registry update

I'm feeling really good about getting everything prepared for the baby. I think this is called the nesting phase. I've updated the registry info, and I'll keep this posting updated here also. I'm only registered on Amazon.com now. I don't really care if things come specifically from Amazon.com. It's just a list of ideas, and brands that looked promising, so here is my master list.

door alarms - we really need these - (registered for on amazon.com)
Contoured Changing pad covers (light blue)(1-2) (target sells a 2 pack by amy coe)
4 - 6 Avent brand nipples
fischer price "rock-a-stack" It's the pyramid of colored rings
Toddler harness

Washington Fantasy Faire

I went with my brother to the Gig Harbor Renaissance Fantasy Faire this last weekend. Since none of my usual garb fit, I had to improvise. I look at this as the baby's first costume. The name tag reads, "Hello, My name is: Sir Not Appearing in This Film." We had a great time and I definitely remembered to sunblock my tummy. Boy, that takes a lot of sunblock!

A song from Marissa

My friend Marissa has thoughtfully written a song to commemorate my transition into the world of the not-so-tiny woman.

The Germans have thoughtfully invented a word (schandenfreuede) for rejoicing at a friends tribulations. I believe that this is a song in the true spirit of the word.

Chorus
O schadenfruede schandenfreuede
I have a friend that's knocked up

She cannot find a shirt that fits
I get to call her "Tissue Tits"

She can't look down and see the floor
She can't go topless anymore

From the skillet into the fire
How do you wash an underwire?

It's a Boy!

We did the ultrasound today. The baby gave his daddy and I a thumbs up, waved at us, sucked his thumb, pointed at Gene, and of course kicked mommy a lot. All 4 chambers of the heart are beating away. The brain is developing nicely, and 10 fingers and 10 toes are all wiggling away. Also, my son has absolutely no modesty, leaving no doubt that I'll neet to go buy some blue booties. Here is a photo of the tiniest DeClark. He has just stopped sucking his thumb and you can still see his little fist held near his chin.

Kick Daddy!

I felt almost nothing until the last couple of weeks, and then the baby has been moving around more in the last week or so. It's finally starting to get to the point where a few of the kicks are enough to feel from the outside. And what does my little baby want to do with it's new strength? Kick Daddy! This evening Gene got to feel his first kicks. I was about to give up and go to bed when the baby decided to make his or her little presence really known. There's just something about feeling it that makes it so much more real. Next step...the ultrasound. We go in Friday. I hope the baby isn't shy!

Quad Screen

Apparently having a baby requires that you give blood samples constantly. I can't say it's my favorite part of the job, but it's not so bad. This most recent test was the quad screen which appears to test for down's syndrome and neural tube defects. The lab inexplicably took about twice as many days as they said they would, but after I called to complain they helpfully told me that the test came back negative for neural tube problems and down's, so that's a relief!

Olive on a toothpick

This is how one of Gene's coworkers described thin pregnant women: "Like an olive on a toothpick." It does seem that if you're thin you spend the first 3-4 months saying, "No, Really, I am pregnant!" and then within about 3 days it's suddenly so obvious that complete strangers keep coming up and asking when you're due. For me, that 3 day period was this week. I had a client suddenly notice, another client eyeing my tummy, a waitress asking if I'm pregnant, and a cashier asking when I'm due. I even had someone at church say, "When I look at you from the side, I see something that I didn't see before..." Apparently he missed my announcement to the church on Mother's day. Now, to be fair, I do feel huge, but I've felt that way for months now. Apparently I've finally reached the olive on a toothpick stage and people can tell. And now this olive and toothpick are off to the hardware store for a new fan and a new blade to repair the lawnmower...Olive/Toothpick Woman, Away!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Thump!

Gene and I had our next baby appointment today. All is well so far, and we got to hear the heartbeat again, and a little more. The baby's tiny swish swish heartbeat is now a loud Whoosh! Whoosh! sound. Every now and then there would be a Thud! Apparently, that's the baby kicking around in there. Tiny baby is about 7-8 inches now, and growing like crazy. We did our quad screen blood test today. That's the one that checks for Down's syndrome and neural tube defects. We won't get the results for a few days. The ultrasound is in about a month now. Here's hoping the baby isn't shy.

Not showing indeed!

Gene took a picture of my tummy today. I might add that I am very very hot in the hot weather we've been having. I don't know how my grandma, who gave birth to my dad in August, ever managed the heat. Gene bought me creamsickles the other day, because I needed them for some reason. My grandma said that when she was pregnant she had an out of season craving for watermellon, which I have also been craving a lot. My grandfather drove all over town till he finally found the one place that had watermellon to take home to his pregnant wife. I may be the one carrying the baby, but never underestimate the importance of a truly good husband.

Vampires and Cheerleaders

What does this title have to do with pregnancy? Well, not much, except that it was the theme for my husband's 31st birthday party last week. Gene thought it would be tremendously funny if I went as a pregnant cheerleader. Two weeks earlier this costume fit, but by the time of the party it was a close call. This is a picture of me with my vampire husband, celebrating our last birthday party together with just the two of us. You'll note that I am most definitely showing at this point.

My expanding equator

I've had a few people say that they don't believe I'm big. I hereby offer proof that I am indeed big. And, if there were still any doubt, my husband will attest that his sweat pants and pajama bottoms keep being appropriated by his wife. Mine don't fit anymore. The nightie picture is 3.5 months (about 2 weeks ago), and I think the other picture is about 2 weeks before that.

The longest minute

Gene and I toured the birthing facility and had our second baby appointment. Everything went smoothly except for being told that I'm not gaining/eating enough and I need to eat at least every 2-3 hours. That is, it went smoothly until they checked for the heartbeat. I'll spare you the suspense and cut to the end of the story where they find a nice healthy baby heartbeat, but that was the longest minute of my life. It turns out that they baby is higher, and therefore bigger than they'd expect at this stage. All good news, but a very very long minute in the meantime. Apparently not getting enough building blocks isn't really a problem for the baby as much as it is for me. I guess the baby gets it one way or another, which is a tremendous relief.

Let every thing turn, turn, turn...

While I've been very fortunate not to have much in the way of morning sickness, I have discovered one complication that seems to run on daddy's side of the family...dizzy spells. I don't think mine are nearly as bad as my grandma's were, but thery're not a lot of fun either. Don't get me wrong, I'd take dizzy over nautious any day, but that's not much of a choice. So far they haven't been too bad, but i'm taking Grandma's advice and sitting down when they happen. I don't want to wake up at the bottom of the stairs!

Good Morning, Tiny Baby.

Every morning for the last 6 or so years, Gene kisses me good morning. Since he gets up first lately, i'm usually still half asleep. Lately, since we found out about our upcoming arrival, every morning Gene kisses me and says, " Good morning, Love." just like he always has, but now he kisses my tummy and says, " Good morning, tiny baby." It's just a little ting, but it helps to have this little reminder of how happy he is about this tiny baby.

Swish-Swish-Swish-Swish

Today Gene and I went in for our first real baby appointment. They said everything looks right for 10 weeks, which is where I'm at. After checking me all out they used a doppler device to listen for the heart beat. I've got no pictures for this entry, but just think "Swish-Swish-Swish-Swish" really fast, and that's pretty much it. I can't tell you what a relief it was to know that my baby's tiny little heart is beating away in there. Gene was beaming too.

Oh Happy Day!

I went to see my family and told them about the baby. Daddy said, "Aren't I a little young to be a grandpa?" but he was happy. Mom got so excited that I couldn't quite tell what exactly she said first, but it was definitely very happy about the baby. Grandma said, "Oh! Are you...Great!! That's just great!!!" Then mom and grandma got all excited and jumped around. My brother already knew, because he was up to visit me, but he was happy too. I really wish that my grandpa were still around to tell. He would have been really happy too, and then he would have made jokes about it. My grandpa was always a bit of a card. Overall I have to say that it was a very successful trip and it's a wonderful gift to have a supportive family.

The value of friends

The value of friends is immeasurable, and that goes double for friends who have already gone through something that you're now going through. Without this incredible boon, I would have no choice but to assume that I'm insane, and there is something very very odd about my pregnancy. Fortunately, from talking to my friends I have found out that, well, yes I may be insane and have an odd odd pregnancy, but that's exactly what happens during all pregnancies. Feeling anxious for no reason? Two weeks of food binge and then all food is disgusting? Things smell strange? Back hurts? Just ate an entire flat of pears by yourself? Sleeping more during the day than Dracula? No problem! Apparently that's just called being pregnant. So, a big thanks to Coco and Angie for forging through those confusing experiences ahead of me and giving me the reassurance that only someone saying, "Oh yea, it was orange pop and cheetoes for me." can bring.