Week 21 Happenings

Where did the last two weeks go?!? Its hard to imagine that I'm more than half way done with this pregnancy at this point. It seems like yesterday I was so excited about hitting the 20 week mark. The weeks are really starting to fly by. I'm told this stops at about 30 weeks, and the last 10 are a killer. Something to look forward to. :) Colt and I were in the car yesterday and a thought occurred to me. I have 18 weeks left until I hit the 40 week mark! When I think about it in terms of weeks, it doesn't seem like a lot, but when I remember that I have Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years still to get through, it starts to feel far away again. Anyway, we're getting excited!

Recently, the baby has decided that he's ready to let everyone in on our little secret. For the longest time, he would kick and kick at me, but as soon as someone would try to feel it, he would stay very still and hide. Colt had felt some small movements, and my mom felt a little nudge about a week or two ago, but definitely not on a consistent basis. This week, he has been practicing his Billy Blanks video, Tae Bo: In Utero. On Sunday night we met my grandparents at Village Inn for some dessert, and to celebrate my Grandpa Sal's birthday. As we were leaving, Grandma Dee asked if she could feel my belly and he decided she was "kick worthy"! Later that night, we went to my parents house to hang out for a little while before going home, and my dad, sister and mom got to feel him! Check, check, check. Now we need to get Brian Jr., Sharon and Buddy in on this action. Also, he seems to be nocturnal! This is great news, as Colt and I have been called vampires by more than one family member in reference to our sleep schedules. Typically we go to sleep between 3am and 5am, and wake up around 11am or 12pm. The baby seems to like our rock star lifestyle. He kicks hardest between the hours of 10pm and 5am. Its pretty cool, because you can see my belly move when he kicks now. Colt says it looks like a muscle spasm.

We got our first educational baby gift last Sunday night! Grandpa Sal & Grandma Dee bought the baby the, "Your Baby Can Read" program. If you've never seen the commercials for this product, I suggest you look it up on YouTube. Its AMAZING! When you open the box, you see a series of books, flashcards, and videos. Basically the idea is, you work with your baby each day using the books, flashcards and videos, teaching them different words. Even if they aren't old enough to speak, many times they come to an understanding of a word, even if they can't use it yet. On some of the YouTube videos, parents were working with their babies (some of whom looked like they were just starting to sit up on their own), and they would show them the word "nose", and the baby would point to their nose. So cool! I can't wait to start using it. He'll be the smartest whipper snapper in his class. :)

Did I mention in my last post that I had finished registering? I can't remember. Well, I did. I'm still debating whether or not to add a few items to the list though. I feel like I should mention something about the elusive Target Baby Registry bag. Its not a myth! I don't think I mentioned this, but I registered for my Target registry online. I knew that with our wedding registry, we got a bag of goodies with coupons, registering tips, and a checklist of the things we needed. I also knew they offered the same kind of thing for a baby registry, and more than anything else, I really wanted the list of what to register for. When I went to the counter to pick up the freebie bag at my local Target they explained that they were out of them. She said they go pretty fast after they arrive in store. A few days later I went to another Target in my area, and they said the same thing. They got about 200 bags in stock, and they were gone within a few hours! On my third try at yet another Target, they told me the same thing! I was getting curious. What could be in this bag? I was picturing a treasure trove of baby related splendors. Well I finally got one, after having to call another Target in my area, and have them put one on hold. Ridiculous! The worst part was, there wasn't even anything really outstanding inside! There were a few diaper samples, but I already knew what brand I wanted to go with. One cool thing was a gift card for $20 off Shutterfly birth announcements. I guess it was worth it for that.

Colt and I went to the beach yesterday (21 weeks, 6 days). Its kind of fun to watch people wondering if you're pregnant or just fat. I've gotten in the habit of touching my belly whenever I get one of these funny looks, as a kind of friendly clue.

Other than that, I have been busy with editing wedding pictures from the Dickey/Murphy wedding, as well as editing family pictures from my Ohio trip. I've been a busy girl. Colt and I are going to Vero Beach starting Sunday after church, and we'll be gone through Thursday afternoon. We are really looking forward to the vacation. My parents have a time share there, and they always have a great time when they go. When we get back, we're going to get serious about working on the nursery. I have some potential paint colors picked out, but we have to finalize a selection, as well as prime the bedroom! Ugh! I hate painting. On the bright side, I'm not supposed to paint since I'm pregnant! I'll probably make dinner (order pizza) for the painters. :)

My next ultrasound is on October 12th, so watch for more pictures! Thanks for reading!!!