Today is a happy day. For two reasons:
1. I woke up this morning to my little acrobat doing cartwheels off the sides of my belly. Since I could feel the bumps and kicks with my hands, I reached over and put T's hand on my belly. I didn't want to disturb the process so I didn't tell him why. I just put his hand there and hoped for the best. And then baby kicked - hard! So for the first time, T felt the baby move. =)
2. We went for a checkup today and found out our baby's sex! My father-in-law is adamant that he does NOT know so I can't post it here. But if you're really curious, feel free to email me and I'll tell you. Just don't tell my father-in-law. =D
And a bonus happiness today was that I got to buy lunch for a random guy who had only eaten a couple crackers all day. Happiness is meant to be shared, I think.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Celebrating a Half-Baked Bun
I meant to post this a few days ago but I haven't had a chance to sit at a computer until today (which may be a good thing!). Anyway, lots to update today.
Last Thursday marked 20 weeks, the midway point of this pregnancy! We celebrated by hanging out with my father-in-law who treated us to a buffet lunch aboard the ferry on the way back from Victoria. Excellent food with a window seat by an ever-changing water view.
On Monday, I had my routine mid-term ultrasound to make sure the baby's growing at the proper rate etc. We were hoping we could find out the sex of the baby but the technician was not allowed to tell us. He did react quite a bit to our baby doing somersaults though. It would have been funnier if I wasn't concentrating so hard on not peeing my pants. Sigh. We're hoping the doctor will tell us the sex this coming Monday.
Here are a couple pics from the ultrasound.
Profile of the face.
A perfect little leg and foot!
This afternoon, for the first time ever, I actually saw the baby move from the outside of my belly. I don't know if he/she was kicking, punching or hiccuping. But the baby's definitely letting me know he/she is there. Maybe we have a little athlete, martial artist or dancer?
And since we're at the halfway mark, here's a recent photo of me and my emerging baby bump: 20 weeks.
In other news from the encouraging category, the ban on chicken is officially over. Hooray.
Last Thursday marked 20 weeks, the midway point of this pregnancy! We celebrated by hanging out with my father-in-law who treated us to a buffet lunch aboard the ferry on the way back from Victoria. Excellent food with a window seat by an ever-changing water view.
On Monday, I had my routine mid-term ultrasound to make sure the baby's growing at the proper rate etc. We were hoping we could find out the sex of the baby but the technician was not allowed to tell us. He did react quite a bit to our baby doing somersaults though. It would have been funnier if I wasn't concentrating so hard on not peeing my pants. Sigh. We're hoping the doctor will tell us the sex this coming Monday.
Here are a couple pics from the ultrasound.
Profile of the face.
A perfect little leg and foot!
This afternoon, for the first time ever, I actually saw the baby move from the outside of my belly. I don't know if he/she was kicking, punching or hiccuping. But the baby's definitely letting me know he/she is there. Maybe we have a little athlete, martial artist or dancer?
And since we're at the halfway mark, here's a recent photo of me and my emerging baby bump: 20 weeks.
In other news from the encouraging category, the ban on chicken is officially over. Hooray.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Online generation
Even before I became pregnant, I had been thinking about this new generation that will be growing up with their lives broadcast to the world via social networking, youtube and blogs. On one hand, it's a positive thing to be able to use the internet to keep family and friends up to date about how our families are doing and what the little ones are up to. On the other hand though, I wonder what kind of a psychological impact all this publicity will have on these children who grow up with their photos and videos posted for the world to see (and in some cases, comment on).
I wonder if, in our enthusiasm to show off how cute or talented our kids are, we inadvertently communicate to them that their value comes from how much viewership they generate or how many comments they can elicit. I wonder, too, if growing up under the eye of the world will contribute to bigger egos or greater insecurities for these children. I mean, the generation before us might be lucky to have a few precious, faded, black and white photos of themselves before their adulthood. And I personally have one or two photo albums plus a couple VHS casette tapes of my growing up years. But for these kids growing up now, their whole lives will be digitally documented and widely accessible.
I obviously don't have answers to these questions but I guess thinking them through is part of how I am preparing for parenthood. I don't want to cut myself or my family off from those who care for us, but I also want to be wise with what I decide to make public. Any thoughts?
On a pregnancy note: Thursday marked 19 weeks. And I think I have started to feel the baby move. I can't tell for sure yet, but I'm definitely feeling some faint flutters that are an entirely new sensation to me. I also had a dream this past week in which I was wrapping Vietnamese subs for take-out and the counter at the restaurant was just like a baby change station. I was trying to wrap the subs so they wouldn't leak. It was a very serious dream but as I think about it now, I can't help but laugh. Ha.
I wonder if, in our enthusiasm to show off how cute or talented our kids are, we inadvertently communicate to them that their value comes from how much viewership they generate or how many comments they can elicit. I wonder, too, if growing up under the eye of the world will contribute to bigger egos or greater insecurities for these children. I mean, the generation before us might be lucky to have a few precious, faded, black and white photos of themselves before their adulthood. And I personally have one or two photo albums plus a couple VHS casette tapes of my growing up years. But for these kids growing up now, their whole lives will be digitally documented and widely accessible.
I obviously don't have answers to these questions but I guess thinking them through is part of how I am preparing for parenthood. I don't want to cut myself or my family off from those who care for us, but I also want to be wise with what I decide to make public. Any thoughts?
On a pregnancy note: Thursday marked 19 weeks. And I think I have started to feel the baby move. I can't tell for sure yet, but I'm definitely feeling some faint flutters that are an entirely new sensation to me. I also had a dream this past week in which I was wrapping Vietnamese subs for take-out and the counter at the restaurant was just like a baby change station. I was trying to wrap the subs so they wouldn't leak. It was a very serious dream but as I think about it now, I can't help but laugh. Ha.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
18 weeks and counting
I find it hard to believe that I'm already at 18 weeks. That's almost the halfway mark of the entire pregnancy! This week has left me definitely feeling like I'm in my second trimester. I'm rarely nauseous (I can even brush my teeth with my regular toothpaste when I wake up), I'm constantly hungry/eating and my belly is becoming more pronounced. It's still not entirely obvious when I wear a sweater or jacket, but if I'm just in a t-shirt, you can tell it's there. And I suddenly have more energy to put into creative meals. I'm still sleeping about 10 or 11 hours a day (plus naps here and there). Overall, I'm just feeling better. For which I'm thankful!
I read an inspiring book this past week. It's called "Sacred Parenting" by Gary Thomas. Rather than a "how-to" book, it's a "why" kind of book. The author's premise is that parenting can be a powerful and effective way for us as parents to shape our character. From things like guilt and anger to celebrating life and keeping perspective, he explores how the various facets of parenting can be used by God in our maturation process. I have a feeling that I'll be revisiting this book again in the future when our kid(s) are a bit older.
A friend of mine recently said to me one of the things she found most fascinating about parenting was that her kids all turned out so unique. They were different from her, different from her husband and different from each other (they have 4 children in the family). I think that's something T and I most look forward to about parenting as well - that we get to discover who these little people are and be part of their process of discovering themselves. The prospect of that is absolutely fantastically exciting.
I read an inspiring book this past week. It's called "Sacred Parenting" by Gary Thomas. Rather than a "how-to" book, it's a "why" kind of book. The author's premise is that parenting can be a powerful and effective way for us as parents to shape our character. From things like guilt and anger to celebrating life and keeping perspective, he explores how the various facets of parenting can be used by God in our maturation process. I have a feeling that I'll be revisiting this book again in the future when our kid(s) are a bit older.
A friend of mine recently said to me one of the things she found most fascinating about parenting was that her kids all turned out so unique. They were different from her, different from her husband and different from each other (they have 4 children in the family). I think that's something T and I most look forward to about parenting as well - that we get to discover who these little people are and be part of their process of discovering themselves. The prospect of that is absolutely fantastically exciting.
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