And more things I love...

I tried to capture some thoughts the other day on what I love and dislike about being pregnant. Well, at the end of the day, I really have no dislikes. I think anyone who knows me well, understands that my complaints are mostly *tongue in cheek*. I don't really know who came up with that phrase, but I think it applies. If not "I'm Sorry" (total Friends reference).

I keep thinking of other things that I love. Things that I don't ever want to forget. Things I don't think I would forget, but for Danny's sake, I wanted to make sure I captured them.

I love when Dave leaves notes, if I'm still sleeping, and he leaves for a run, and he writes "I love you both and I'll see you soon". I love you BOTH. This just melts me. He did that this past weekend, and I was so mad at myself later when I cleared off the counter and threw it out. It was out of habit to do, to throw out a post-it-note. I'm saving those notes from now on.

I loved when last week, the baby was super active, and David was exhausted from being outside all day in the heat for our neighborhood garage sale. He put his hand on my belly to feel the movement, and a few minutes later, he fell asleep. I looked over, and my cutie pie was out cold, but his hand was so relaxed and just resting on my belly. I loved that.

I love when Danny is active, and when David puts his hand on my belly only to have the baby stop moving. Dave is convinced the baby stops because of him. Sometimes I think this really frustrates him. I keep telling him that this is a sign of things to come. That he has the magic touch. The calming hands. And that the baby is on his best behavior for Dad. All hell lets loose when he's with me. I think Dave should take 12-weeks of paternity leave to hang out with me :)

Finally, I love when I'm leaving the house, and saying good-bye to Dave and saying "We'll see you in a bit". We. I have this constant companion with me all of the time. I get a lot of "becareful's", and "call me's" and all of those little signs of love from Dave when I head out the door, even when it's just down the street.

Last summer, when we were going through some difficult doctor appointments, and I was home for the day trying to gather my thoughts and schedule more appointments, David had gone to work. Perfect reflection of our personalities. I make lists to manage stress, David enjoys work. His note that he left me, which I still have...said he would be home in a moments notice if "we" needed him. And that he loved us both.

When I was pregnant with Angela, I used to say the same things when I'd run errands, "we'll be back in a little bit". It just became a habit. After our loss and before our second pregnancy, I would catch myself almost saying it but would stop myself. I guess I could have kept saying it all along. Whether I'm pregnant or not, there will always be a "we" to me because I have her with me all of the time.

Those little comments, written words, and gentle moments just add more icing to my big pregnancy cake.

What I Love & STRONGLY Dislike About Being Pregnant

What I LOVE:

1. Feeling him move all of the time
2. When David can feel him move
3. When we both see him moving from the outside
4. That I have felt great *so far*
5. That it's summer and I can wear sandals, skirts and tank tops
6. That my belly is finally big enough where I look pregnant and not puffy
7. When people tell me how awesome having kids is
8. When I wake up in the middle of the night to pee 3-times and think funny thoughts like "could I get struck by lightning sitting this close to the window?", or "I should tell Dave I left the laptop by the bay window and it got all wet", or even better, that thinking my bladder is the size of Niagara Falls!
9. Having my buddy with me 24x7
10. Loving being pregnant, but being so excited to meet him (in due time of course!)

What I STRONGLY Dislike:

1. When people treat me as though I'm handicapped. I'm quite capable of knowing when enough is enough, or something is too heavy, etc. But people seriously drive me nuts when they're always telling me to "take it easy". I know these comments are said as terms of endearment and signs of love...but KNOCK IT OFF!
2. When people respond to me being due in September with "Oh, you're going to be pregnant all summer...that sucks". Really? Why? I get that the heat could be uncomfortable, but A.) you don't work at Progressive. They keep that place as cold as casinos in Las Vegas. To the point that I hesitate putting my turtlenecks away in the summer and always have a cardigan on hand, and B.) You must not know that David is a human furnace and turns the air conditioning on whenever it is mildly humid or might hit the high 70's. You think I'm kidding? I'm not. Heat is not an issue. I love heat. I love the summer. Bring it on!
3. When people tell me, as though we jumped into pregnancy completely blind, that "having a baby will rock your world" or "turn it upside down" or "you just have no idea how much it will change your life" or "you will be exhausted"...etc...etc. Really? You've got to be kidding me! You mean after being a babysitter for ump-teen years and having 10 nieces and nephews, I had no idea that there might be sleepless nights, temper tantrums, and other physically and emotionally draining moments. Thank you SO MUCH for the heads up. You are such a genius.
4. When people ask if it's my first. I can't really dislike anyone for that. It's an innocent question. It just makes me feel awkward no matter which way I answer it.

24-weeks!

Wow. The time is flying. I haven't made a post in almost two weeks. Or maybe in over two weeks? I don't know. I know I'm behind though.

We made it though. We have exceeded the 22weeks & 6day mark. And in pure Angela fashion, she did her best to show her loving spirit. Dave and I had gotten home from a weekend camping/hotel trip that day (our 22w6d mark this pregnancy), and we were laying on the couch watching a movie. Danny was moving all over the place, and I finally lifted my shirt a bit to see if I could actually "see" any of the action. And I did! Then Dave looked over, and he saw it too! That was the first time either of us saw him moving around. It's one thing to feel it, but another to see it. It was so cool and brought big smiles to our faces.

The first night of our psuedo camping trip, my 5-year old niece Jane made the sweetest and most honest statement. She is just so smart, and her memory always amazes me. We were walking down some dirt/wooden steps to the water from the campsite. My nephew Jack (9-yrs old) was like "Come on Aunt Susie, speed it up". I explained to him that I couldn't go too fast because I was afraid I would fall, and that I wasn't as worried about hurting myself as I was about hurting the monkey in my belly. He accepted my response, and kept trucking down the stairs. Janie just looked at me and said, "Yeah, because your other baby died, right?". I said "yes Janie, our last baby died". And that was it. She is just so matter of fact and so sweet, and her voice is that of an angel.

When I told Lori, at first she was mortified and apologized. I told her that I adore it. Janie has made comments on and off over the last "almost" year, and it melts my heart. Why? Because she remembers. And she's not aware that she might say something that others would gasp at. She says what's in her heart. She says what she thinks. And again, she remembers. That's a lot for someone that was only 4-years old last summer. She even named one of her webkins Angela last summer, because it had wings. I remember how excited Janie was to tell me this, and Lori just looked at me like she was sorry, and was it ok? For being so little, she gets it.

A few days later, she asked me when Danny would be here. She wasn't too happy to hear that he wouldn't be here until after she started Kindergarten in the fall, and to her, that is like FOREVER. Whenever I leave my nieces and nephews, they say bye to me, and bye to Danny. They are so excited to meet their cousin, and it makes me so happy.

My nephews Jack & Francis made Danny special mugs to put in his bedroom while we were camping. Jack painted "I love Dannie" and Francis made a Cleveland Indians themed one that even said "Shafer" on the back of the jersey. These gifts are just priceless to me.

In the last couple of weeks, we have wrapped up a few details. I am *almost* done with our baby registry. Wowzer, this took a long time. Fortunately, Lori, Tasha and Jodi have all given it the once over and made a few comments/suggestions. Thank goodness for that, because they pointed out some funny and dumb stuff that I was able to take off. Lori responded to one item with, "Seriously? Seriously?". Tasha responded to another with just "You're funny". What the heck do we know? Jodi was out of town, so her only response has been to questions about "do you have xyz, can we borrow?" Fortunately, between the three of them, everything we've asked for, at least one of them has for us to use.

We settled on the bedding too. It's called "Spot" by Banafish. Here is a link. I am not open to feedback on this, unless you like it of course. If you say anything negative, well then poo-poo on you because I'm not interested in your opinion.

As always, I'm feeling great, and have no physical complaints. I continue to be in awe of how amazing it is to have something so incredible growing inside me. I love love love it. I will say, that although I have physically felt fabulous, I think the hormones have gotten to me a bit. I wanted to punch someone on Monday at the baby bedding store just because she was annoying the piss out of me. That was the second time in a matter of days that I had wanted to stomp my feet on the ground and throw a fit like a two-year old. Fortunately, I was able to maintain composure. Other things have annoyed me to no end, but I'm trying to not go all crazy on people. I curse like a sailor in my head and hope the kid doesn't hear my thoughts :) That would not be a good thing.

I had so many other things I wanted to post, but I held off because they kind of sounded negative. Like wanting to punch the lady at the store. Or wanting to scream at the Home Depot employee because they didn't have the blind samples for us to look at so that we could order the damn blinds...and he said it like 10 times thinking that we weren't able to comprehend him. Mind you, I was already irritated with him because he stunk like an ashtray (gross). Not his fault about the blinds (ok, the smelly part is), but he still irritated me.

Here are some pictures and details of how the kid is growing.

23-Weeks

Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

24-Weeks

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.