8 months

8 months pregnant! My belly is huge! I looked in the mirror and discovered a long stretch mark on my belly. That is new and something that I can attribute to just you. I'm afraid of having a wrinkly belly, but I"ll just take it as proof that you are getting big in there. You are probably the best kicker so far. Your kicks feel like jolts and I enjoy watching my whole belly shift and teepee from your movements. Your are a very busy baby as I feel you moving almost constantly. I also feel as if I can feel you hiccup pretty often as well. At least once a day. They feel like short jerky movements that happen like 10 times in a row. When you press a knee or foot out and I touch there, you seem to press and hold it there pretty firmly.

We had some scares and I thought that you would be delivered early, but that fear is no longer since I am about 3 weeks away from you being full term. Yay!

I'm a little anxious because I'm afraid of the labor pains. I am a little bit of a wimp when it comes to pain, but I'm hoping that when it happens it happens quickly. However you stay in there and cook a little longer and we will see you soon little one.

31 weeks

(Oct 7) I was really excited during this ultrasound, because the tech switched on the 3D monitor to try and capture a better picture of your face. We thought the image was so sweet, because we were amazed at the details in your face and hands. The big black blotch is where the placenta was. She erased it so that we could see your face clearly. You are laying head down and at one point had your foot right next to your face. We have seen some pretty amazing things on the ultrasounds. We seen you open your mouth and yawn and then it seemed as if you got a taste of something you liked because you kept on licking out your tongue and taking big gulps. We have seen you look right at us on the monitor with your eyes open.
We were assured that you are growing and looking good. That's makes me so happy.

7 1/2 months

I took this picture at 30 weeks. I had an ultrasound done the week before and you weighed in at 2lb. 11oz. I always want to know how you were laying and you were head down with your butt up and your legs clear across the belly. It was a really cool ultrasound in that we got to see you yawning and then opening your mouth repeatedly and licking your tongue out. The ultrasound tech said she felt like you had yawned and then got a taste of something that you thought was good and it had you coming back for more. It must be all the pancakes I eat every morning. It if had to say I ate one thing consistently it would be pancakes! At this point you're probably swimming around in syrup. You still kick and hit like crazy and at this point it's pretty cool to see you move my whole belly. You also have been poking different body parts for me to feel and try to decide what I am feeling.

I had to go to the hospital last week as well. I was contracting every 2-3 minutes which scared me to death. Although, it's not really new, I still expected this pregnancy to be different because everything had been going pretty smoothly so far. It did make me start to take things way more seriously, so I am off work and home on bedrest until you come. I am also trying my best to take it easy and not do much. That does get me out of chores around the house, while Dad picks up the slack :0)!

The biggest thing I have noticed this month is that the maternity shirts I brought, don't really fit me anymore. The end of the shirt doesn't quite make it entirely over my belly. I have a little bit of belly peeking out at the end of the shirt in the front. It was literally I could wear the shirts one week and I couldn't wear the shirts this week. I looked in the mirror and check it out, but I guess it's hard to see when you see yourself daily. I have gained 27lbs so far, which was a little concerning for me because that's how much I had gained by the end of pregnancy with Cailin. But seeing this is the time for you to pack on the pounds, I guess I can count on me packing on the pounds as well!

You have 9 more weeks (at the point of this post) to cook but 6 more weeks and you will be alright to make your arrival. So feel free to wait a little more than 6 weeks but don't go the full 9. We can't wait to meet you!

6 months

Your kicks are getting stronger and stronger and it seems you are on the move constantly. We still don't know whether you are a boy or a girl, but I think that you will be a girl. We are not even close to picking a name for you. I have gained 24 pounds so far and can no longer fit most of my clothes. The official countdown has begun as we can't wait to meet you.

21 weeks

The biggest thing I have noticed is that my pre-pregnancy pants are starting to feel a little tight. My blue jeans feel as if the life is being squeezed out of me. I don't worry though, I just pack them in the "never to be seen again bin" until I am confident that they fit again.

I feel more and more kicks that are getting stronger and stronger. Your heart rate is about 160. Which according to old wise tails suggest you are a girl. However my belly looks a little low to me which suggest that you are a boy. I have no idea:)!

I like lots of names but your Dad is extra picky. So far I think we have narrowed down a boy name to Christian and we are on the fence about Caci for a girl. I think Caci and Cailin sound too much alike, so I just don't know.

We can't wait to meet you!

19 weeks

This week was a very scary week. It started off with having an ultrasound and seeing you kick and move all around. You weigh about 10 ounces. In the ultrasound I tried to convince Jerry that we should go ahead and find out whether you are a boy or girl. His response was "It's our early Christmas gift!" During the ultrasound for the brief second the ultrasound showed between your legs, this time I thought I saw boy parts. Although it was just a glimps for a nanosecond, so I can't be sure. So this week we all think you are a boy. Okay, now the scary part. I started having contractions. They were not painful, but were lasting 30-40 seconds and happening every 15-20 minutes. We all headed straight to the E.R. were I was infact having contractions but they were infrequent and were not doing any damage. My cervix remains long and closed, but it was enough of a scare that I am now at home on bedrest.

17weeks, 3days

I feel baby C-C move. Yeah, I've decided to give you a nickname because it works out better that way. If I say "he" or "she" then people assume I know whether you are a boy or girl. Anyway over the last couple of days, I have been feeling these little pings inside my belly, particularly when I have to go to the bathroom. It feels like someone is flicking my insides. As I sit still, I can feel that they are definite jabs! I am really excited I can feel you move.

I went shopping the other day for Ariel, but found a really cute outfit to bring you home in. Actually it was two outfits, because I had to get a pink one, in case you were a girl and a blue one in case you happen to be a boy. I am super excited to feel you move and I can't believe that the first half of this pregnancy is almost over! I can't wait to meet you!

Love, Mom

16 weeks 2 days

June 24- This is my month four belly. I went to the doctor today and according to the charts on the wall, I thought I looked closer to six months. We listened to your heart beat and you sound stronger than ever. In fact we got to hear a couple swishes, signaling that you were on the move. I still don't feel you moving yet, but I can't wait for the zips that you feel initially or for that very first kick.

We also went and had an ultrasound to make sure you were developing good. Everything looked great. It was amazing to see little arms and legs kicking. I get weekly emails that tell about fetal growth, and this weeks email said you were the size of a Kit Kat bar and weighed a whopping 4-5 ounces. So it is pretty amazing that I am able to see arms and legs when you are so small. The ultrasound tech asked if I would like to know your sex and of course I said "no". She told me to look away from the screen when she was looking between your legs and I did but Ariel set up in her chair and paid close attention. After, Ariel seems to think you are a girl as well. I guess only time will tell.

No ultrasound pictures from today because the printer was broken on the machine she was using.

13weeks 3days

June 8 I had an ultrasound done. It was called a fetal fibronectin (not sure of name or spelling). It was a test for Down Syndrome and Spina Bifida and other birth defects. The window for testing was really strict and I missed the first appointment. So by this appointment you were much too long, but I was unofficially assured by the ultrasound tech that you looked just fine. You are 87cm long (from crown to rump) and your heart rate is 162. We are still sticking with the plan of not finding out whether you are a boy or girl until you are born. However the entire time I was watching the ultrasound, I kept thinking that you are a girl. Of course I thought Ariel was a boy up until the day she was born. I even had to take purchases back because I thought I was being neutral. When in fact, I was buying slightly more masculine baby clothes, but in neutral colors. Cailin I thought was a boy. All the way up until the ultrasound, when I found out she was a girl :). So so far, I am O for 2.

The doctor says that so far everything looks good. We can't wait to meet you!

And here you are waving an arm around.

11 weeks, 0 days

Today I went to the doctor for a check up and got to hear your heartbeat for the first time. It was so amazing. The doctor says that you sound strong and healthy. I hope that is truly the case. It was exciting and I guess today made it truly real. I have another human being growing inside of me! We also reached another decision concerning you. We have agreed that we would not find out whether you are a boy or girl until your birthday in December. So far, I feel ok and excited about that decision. However I can't make any promises about later or even the day of your ultrasound. I was sort of ok not finding out with Ariel, but by the end I could hardly wait. I definitely wanted to know with Cailin and now with you I feel I can wait until the big day and be totally surprised.