Saturday, April 19, 2008
our baby: 22 weeks
Your baby now looks like a miniature newborn, checking in at 10.9 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound. Her skin will continue to appear wrinkled until she gains enough weight to fill it out, and the fine hair (lanugo) that covers her head and body is now visible. Her lips are becoming more distinct, and the first signs of teeth are appearing as buds beneath her gum line. Her eyes are developed, though the iris (the colored part of the eye) still lacks pigment. Eyelids and eyebrows are in place, and her pancreas, essential for hormone production, is developing steadily.
Friday, April 18, 2008
i feel the earth move
We woke up around 5:45 this morning to an earthquake! The epicenter was in West Salem, IL, and it measured 5.2 on the Richter Scale. Neither of us was sleeping soundly, and I heard this tapping noise, then the bed started to shake. I said to Kevin, "Are we having an earthquake?" expecting him to think I was crazy, and he said he thought so too. The tremors lasted for about a minute. I don't think there was any damage around here, but apparently there was some in Louisville, and I heard people felt it as far away as Milwaukee. Bizarre!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
our baby: 21 weeks
Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. Her eyebrows and eyelids are fully developed. And you can certainly feel her move. She's oblivious to your schedule, though, so don't be surprised if she starts working out just when you're settling down for the night.
Monday, April 14, 2008
nursery notes
I've had a chance to rest and I'm still pretty worn out, but I did want to let you know some of the highlights of our nursery makeover. This may turn into some product endorsements, because I found some pretty cool stuff.
I think I had already mentioned that we'd found a good zero VOC paint at Sherwin Williams, the color we chose was "Livable Green" and I would call it lovable green, because we love it! I did notice that there was not as much of a painty smell in the room and hardly any odor now. I was hoping to use two gallons for the room and closets, but ran out before I could get to the closets. So back to the paint store and I decided to get a different color for a fun surprise! I found a pink that matches the bedding and we love it too! Finally, thanks to a suggestion from Nonny (Sarah's Mom), I used the chocolate brown sample we bought as an accent color on the dormer wall, which really blends well with the green walls and the pink curtains.
For lighting, we knew we needed a ceiling fan for our second floor and I ended up having to get what I wanted in three parts. The first was a simple white, quality fan with smaller blades, which I found from Hunter. I don't like exposed light bulbs, so we had to find a covered light, which Hunter also carried. Next, we wanted to be able to dim the lights and adjust the fan speed using a dimmer switch and I found this really cool option from Lutron. It provides you with seven levels each for the fan and the light, which will be really nice for a baby that we don't want to wake up with bright lights or clanking chain pulls.
Again, I wanted to bring a little more fun for my little girlie and we thought that every little girl should have a chandelier. So we replaced the copper pendant light in the dormer alcove with a sparkly little light fixture from Ikea. Of course, we kept the original fixture, but this just seemed to be too perfect.
The crib came together pretty easily and it was exactly what we wanted. My favorite feature is the fact that all of the drop down gate hardware is internal, so you don't see any of the mechanisms.
Finally, I had to focus on the floor. Our hardwood upstairs has seen better days and so we had thought about getting carpet, but weren't too keen on the cost and didn't really think we'd love the look. I had thought about refinishing the floors, but knew that was too big a project to take on. So I went to Home Depot and found this product called Rejuvenate, which is a total "As Seen on TV" product, but it looked like what I was looking for so I took a gamble and bought a bottle. Seriously, this gamble has paid off! It is still not perfect, but holy cow does it look a thousand times better. Best of all, the process was super easy. I did miss a few spots along the edge, and that just proves how well it worked because there is a huge difference. So if you need to get your floors back in shape, give it a try!
We also bought a few different rugs, but I'm not sure if we've found the right one, so we'll keep looking. One of them has made its way over to our room and may just stay there.
Cross your fingers that Babies R Us calls to tell us our glider rocker is in. I'm so anxious to get everything "done." Sorry if I was a bit long-winded, but I was pretty excited about all of this stuff.
I think I had already mentioned that we'd found a good zero VOC paint at Sherwin Williams, the color we chose was "Livable Green" and I would call it lovable green, because we love it! I did notice that there was not as much of a painty smell in the room and hardly any odor now. I was hoping to use two gallons for the room and closets, but ran out before I could get to the closets. So back to the paint store and I decided to get a different color for a fun surprise! I found a pink that matches the bedding and we love it too! Finally, thanks to a suggestion from Nonny (Sarah's Mom), I used the chocolate brown sample we bought as an accent color on the dormer wall, which really blends well with the green walls and the pink curtains.
For lighting, we knew we needed a ceiling fan for our second floor and I ended up having to get what I wanted in three parts. The first was a simple white, quality fan with smaller blades, which I found from Hunter. I don't like exposed light bulbs, so we had to find a covered light, which Hunter also carried. Next, we wanted to be able to dim the lights and adjust the fan speed using a dimmer switch and I found this really cool option from Lutron. It provides you with seven levels each for the fan and the light, which will be really nice for a baby that we don't want to wake up with bright lights or clanking chain pulls.
Again, I wanted to bring a little more fun for my little girlie and we thought that every little girl should have a chandelier. So we replaced the copper pendant light in the dormer alcove with a sparkly little light fixture from Ikea. Of course, we kept the original fixture, but this just seemed to be too perfect.
The crib came together pretty easily and it was exactly what we wanted. My favorite feature is the fact that all of the drop down gate hardware is internal, so you don't see any of the mechanisms.
Finally, I had to focus on the floor. Our hardwood upstairs has seen better days and so we had thought about getting carpet, but weren't too keen on the cost and didn't really think we'd love the look. I had thought about refinishing the floors, but knew that was too big a project to take on. So I went to Home Depot and found this product called Rejuvenate, which is a total "As Seen on TV" product, but it looked like what I was looking for so I took a gamble and bought a bottle. Seriously, this gamble has paid off! It is still not perfect, but holy cow does it look a thousand times better. Best of all, the process was super easy. I did miss a few spots along the edge, and that just proves how well it worked because there is a huge difference. So if you need to get your floors back in shape, give it a try!
We also bought a few different rugs, but I'm not sure if we've found the right one, so we'll keep looking. One of them has made its way over to our room and may just stay there.
Cross your fingers that Babies R Us calls to tell us our glider rocker is in. I'm so anxious to get everything "done." Sorry if I was a bit long-winded, but I was pretty excited about all of this stuff.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
our nursery
Thursday, April 10, 2008
happy birthday casey
Casey Face is one year old today! Drop by his website and leave him a happy birthday message.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
introducing maddox parker
Matt and Amanda had a healthy baby boy yesterday afternoon! They named him Maddox Parker, and he rang in at 8 pounds, 7 ounces and 21 inches. Amanda (my new hero) had him naturally and is doing fine. We're planning to visit them at the hospital tonight, assuming they don't get discharged sooner than that. We were going to go visit them last night, but we were busy with our own doctor's appointment. All is well with baby Whitman and we'll have another appointment in 4 weeks.
Saturday, April 05, 2008
halfway there!
I'm 20 weeks pregnant today, exactly halfway to my due date! I actually had the first person who didn't know (or overhear) that I was expecting, ask if I was pregnant. The baby goes through a big growth spurt around this time, and I'm starting to show a lot more. It's weird and cool! This week, I thought I'd borrow an idea from my favorite pregnancy podcast, Pregtastic. Each week on the show, a panelist of pregnant ladies, all at different stages, share their pregnancy ups and downs from the week. I'm also posting the 20-week Baby Center update. Enjoy!
ups
• I'm feeling more energetic and motivated than I did in my first trimester, especially since the weather has gotten nicer. We've done some major purging and reorganizing in the past week. I'm most satisfied that we finally tackled the (literally) couple thousand old photos we were storing in the basement and organized them, pared them down and put them into albums. We've been meaning to do this for at least 2 years, and we realized it was really now or never. Next we need to work on the digital photos.
• I think I'm finally starting to feel the little one move. I'm not positive, but I've experienced some little poking sensations that don't feel like typical stomach rumblings. It's pretty cool, but I'm excited to know for sure.
• Kevin has cleared out the nursery and started working on some repairs in preparation to paint the room and build the crib. It feels like we're making real progress!
downs
• I've developed a "pregnancy rash" that apparently less than 1% of pregnant people get. It's harmless, but it's soooo itchy. It started on my stomach and has spread to my legs, arms, back and neck. And all I can do for it is use/take Benedryl. It's rather miserable, and from what I've read it often lasts until you deliver, although it can come and go.
• Although I'm very motivated to get a lot done right now, I'm reluctantly having to limit myself or I pay for it later. I've started having a lot of back and hip pain if I do too much physical work or even when I take a walk. Kevin's been great about encouraging me to relax, but it's hard to stop when you get into project mode!
20 weeks
Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, we use measurements taken from the top of the baby's head to her bottom — known as the "crown to rump" measurement. After that, we use measurements from head to toe. This is because a baby's legs are curled up against her torso during the first half of pregnancy and are very hard to measure.) A greasy white substance called vernix caseosa coats her entire body to protect her skin during its long submersion in amniotic fluid. (This slick coating also eases the journey down the birth canal.) Your baby is swallowing more, which is good practice for her digestive system. She's also producing meconium, a black, sticky substance that's the result of cell loss, digestive secretion, and swallowed amniotic fluid. This meconium will accumulate in her bowels, and you'll see it in her first messy diaper (although a few babies pass it in utero or during delivery).
ups
• I'm feeling more energetic and motivated than I did in my first trimester, especially since the weather has gotten nicer. We've done some major purging and reorganizing in the past week. I'm most satisfied that we finally tackled the (literally) couple thousand old photos we were storing in the basement and organized them, pared them down and put them into albums. We've been meaning to do this for at least 2 years, and we realized it was really now or never. Next we need to work on the digital photos.
• I think I'm finally starting to feel the little one move. I'm not positive, but I've experienced some little poking sensations that don't feel like typical stomach rumblings. It's pretty cool, but I'm excited to know for sure.
• Kevin has cleared out the nursery and started working on some repairs in preparation to paint the room and build the crib. It feels like we're making real progress!
downs
• I've developed a "pregnancy rash" that apparently less than 1% of pregnant people get. It's harmless, but it's soooo itchy. It started on my stomach and has spread to my legs, arms, back and neck. And all I can do for it is use/take Benedryl. It's rather miserable, and from what I've read it often lasts until you deliver, although it can come and go.
• Although I'm very motivated to get a lot done right now, I'm reluctantly having to limit myself or I pay for it later. I've started having a lot of back and hip pain if I do too much physical work or even when I take a walk. Kevin's been great about encouraging me to relax, but it's hard to stop when you get into project mode!
20 weeks
Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, we use measurements taken from the top of the baby's head to her bottom — known as the "crown to rump" measurement. After that, we use measurements from head to toe. This is because a baby's legs are curled up against her torso during the first half of pregnancy and are very hard to measure.) A greasy white substance called vernix caseosa coats her entire body to protect her skin during its long submersion in amniotic fluid. (This slick coating also eases the journey down the birth canal.) Your baby is swallowing more, which is good practice for her digestive system. She's also producing meconium, a black, sticky substance that's the result of cell loss, digestive secretion, and swallowed amniotic fluid. This meconium will accumulate in her bowels, and you'll see it in her first messy diaper (although a few babies pass it in utero or during delivery).
Monday, March 31, 2008
is this what my daughter will look like?
We have been able to determine what our daughter will look like in the future based on this ultrasound image taken recently:
Here's what she will look like a few weeks after she's born:
And here's how she'll look as a senior in high school:
As you can see, she is taking after her mother very early with the classic hand on the chin pose.
I'm so proud of my beautiful girls...
Here's what she will look like a few weeks after she's born:
And here's how she'll look as a senior in high school:
As you can see, she is taking after her mother very early with the classic hand on the chin pose.
I'm so proud of my beautiful girls...
two years later
Only our most dedicated readers will remember a post I made over two years ago about a customer at my former office who had an "injury" in the teller drive-thru.
Well, this morning I got a call from the manager that originally dealt with the situation and she received a summons to appear in court for the situation. This woman is actually pursuing legal action for several thousand dollars for "pain and suffering." I about fell out of my chair when I heard this and I thought some of you might enjoy hearing about it as well.
Here's a link to the original post: i always miss the good ones
Well, this morning I got a call from the manager that originally dealt with the situation and she received a summons to appear in court for the situation. This woman is actually pursuing legal action for several thousand dollars for "pain and suffering." I about fell out of my chair when I heard this and I thought some of you might enjoy hearing about it as well.
Here's a link to the original post: i always miss the good ones
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