Week 17 and 18 have been a blur, really. I'm sure that has something to do with the countdown for "Discover-Baby-A's-Gender-Day". We are just a tad bit excited.
For Week 17 and 18, we did several fun things:
- Ben painted the baby room. I'm not going to talk too much about this because I plan to do a bigger post about decorating the nursery later. But, I will say the color is better than I ever could have imagined.
- We were asked: Is the heartbeat fast or slow? Apparently, you can tell the sex of the baby if you can tell whether it is fast or slow. We have noticed. We just like to hear the heartbeat. I will say that I think these wives' tales are hilarious. I think this is the third or fourth one I've been told so far and I can't wait to see if they are all right or wrong!
- A mild case of acid reflux has set in. It isn't too bad, which I'm thankful for, but it is definitely enough to notice it.
- The tears. Oh, the tears. I cry about the most random stuff. I thought the waterworks were suppose to happen in the 1st trimester? I guess not. Either way, there is nothing like crying over Man vs. Food.
- The change in my body. Most days, I just feel like I'm all stomach. Other days, I notice my feet swelling, my fingers swelling and in general, I feel blah.
- The controversy. I've become acutely aware of the controversy surrounding: breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding, cloth diapers vs. disposable diapers, all-natural birth vs. epidurals, stay-at-home mom vs. working mom, finding out the baby's gender or not finding out, etc. As these subjects come up, I have been reminded over and over again that these decisions are intensely personal. And, that really there are no right and wrong decisions because they are so very personal and must work for the individual family. In thinking of the personal decisions, I have also become aware of how others can take your decision(s) as judgmental or criticize you for not selecting the "right" decision. This is has become one (large) way pregnancy has become extremely uncomfortable and at times, hurtful for me.
- Feeling Baby A move around. This is so fascinating to me. It is strange to feel life moving inside of me, but it is so fun too. Ben is able to feel it more and more, which has been extra fun. The only downside, is that quite OFTEN, Baby A starts to squirm around at 11pm. This is NOT GOOD NEWS. Sure, I'm doing the nursery in owls, but that was absolutely NOT an invitation for Baby A to become a night owl!
- Ben has been practicing how to properly hold a newborn baby. Thankfully, Miko is the perfect candidate to practice!! Ben is doing a great job, and I think he will have no problems at all when Baby A gets here.
- A special note for Baby A: It is really hard for us to believe you will be here in about 4.5 months. We are excited, but nervous too. While you will come to us as a tiny baby, the responsibility for you is huge. We don't take this lightly. Continue your little growing!
You and Ben are the parents,so it is up to y'all about all of those decisions. All those who criticize y'all can take a long walk off a short dock.
ReplyDeleteJust two things: Acid reflux, although I hate it as well, is supposed to mean that your baby will have hair! And I've read in a scientific study that it is not just an old wives tale, but it's actually true! And from my experience it is, I had a baby born with a lot of hair, but had a lot of heartburn to get there :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, it will only get worse as far as people's opinion's on what you should do with your baby. And the way I look at it is if you want to tell someone else how to raise their child, then you should have another baby :) So, to be honest, you can take all opinions graciously, but unless it's your dr. telling you something, you have every right to just ignore it. Trust me, people will make you feel like the scum of the earth for not doing some things with your child, but I mean really? Maybe people just feel better by hurting other people, but let the hurtful stuff go in one ear and out the other. I even had a man ask me why I wasn't breastfeeding, and I was like, really, you think I'm going to talk to you about that?
So all that to say, don't worry about other people. Just enjoy the fact that new life is coming from you! And he/she will be the most beautiful child you've ever seen, I can just about promise :) It's so exciting that you're finding out soon what the gender is!