08/5/11

It’s got your nose…

Sean and I don’t really like the 3D/4D images you can get these days with your ultrasound. We definitely prefer the 2D images that don’t try to make more of the images available. Plus, it’s a little traumatic when the algorithm can’t extrapolate what a particular feature and it just leaves a weird gap or dimple in the image. It also messes with the whole surprise thing.

We’ve found that not knowing the gender has made visualizing the baby post partum more difficult. We live in such a gendered world that it’s hard to conceptualize this bundle without a gender. Also, I’ve got no mother’s intuition about what we’re having so it’s a big guessing game for me.

Here’s a 3D shot though because it is still pretty neat. Although you know I couldn’t take it too seriously…

Baby in belly.

What's that you've got in there?

 

 

08/5/11

It’s 3:30 am; do you know where your sanity is?

If you know me at all you know I don’t do, regular or predictable. Sean likes to call it AJ + 30, others know to take any estimations of arrival time from me with a grain of salt. It’s cute, right? Funny thing is, pregnancy has awakened in me a regularity and predictability I never thought possible. These allergies are amazing in their predictability and regularity. Once the second trimester started, I reliably awoke at 3:30 am to empty the bladder and have a nice little allergy attack. As the sneezing and drainage would take about 45 minutes to an hour to calm down again, you can imagine I didn’t get the best night’s sleep.

They can be versatile though. I started getting frustrated from the sleep interruption but didn’t know how to improve my situation. Benadryl only lasts 4 hours (and let’s not pretend that it actually would stop my reactions) and Zyrtec made me feel like my heart was racing (and guilty for taking it while pregnant). So I decided 3:30 am was the wrong time to wake up and I somehow willed my system to wait until 4:30 am to relieve my bladder and have an allergy attack. And crazy enough, it worked. That way I was just waking up an hour earlier instead of losing two hours of sleep.

And you thought this post was going to be about night time feedings and baby stuff.

Oh don’t worry; I’m sure that’s coming. I can’t wait to find out if the stuff they say about “just wait till after delivery, it will go away”. I’ve got a few things on the list I hope make a quick exit.

The fun stuff I’ve experienced:

  • Uncontrollable allergies
  • Full body itching
  • Hair and scalp dryness
  • Decrease in vision
  • Consistent hip pain
  • And… well that’s about it.

I can’t tell you how lucky I’ve felt during this pregnancy. I’ve got some close pals who have been having a really tough time of it with difficulty conceiving, miscarriages, morning sickness, severe food aversions, sleepless nights, forced bed rest, fatigue, and emotional upset. I’ve had a few days of fatigue sure, and you can’t pretend these allergies are a picnic, but they aren’t an unknown or unexpected considering my lack of pharmaceutical interventions. The hip pain I brought on myself with a bit of hardheadedness when it comes to exercise. Now the change in my vision was a bit of a surprise, but hey, I got a new pair of glasses out of it J.

All in all, Sean and I have been incredibly blessed and are thankful for the relatively smooth ride so far.

08/5/11

Summer Fun and Ice Cream

I was really keen on making ice cream and waffle cones for a work picnic and did just that until the wee hours of the morning. Here’s a sample.

I know you want some. Too bad I broke the ice cream maker with that batch of goodness. But it was well received and well worth it. I enjoyed a little bit of it before it was all gobbled up at the group picnic.

07/30/11

Things Are Starting to Come Together

As AJ and I head into the 9th month of the pregnancy I thought it was time I chimed in. I am happy to say, much to a lot pf people’s disbelief, we do not know the gender of the baby. As we continue putting the nursery together we both commented about how this baby is already spolied. I thought I would put a picture up of the crib with the menagerie of Winnie the Pooh friends the baby will have. I’ll post other pictures once we get the nursery back together. Today has been all about hanging the curtains and valence.

07/26/11

I wish I was a baller…

I think this is the first time I realized that pregnant women near term really do look like they are smuggling basketballs in their shirts. Seriously, what is that thing at my waist?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just kidding, I totally know what that is… Baby Beard!

 

07/22/11

Week 33 coming to an end…

I’m pretty worn out this week, world. I’ve never, in my entire life, gone home sick from work 2 days in one week. Never. I’ve never taken this much time off for illness. And it isn’t directly pregnancy related as far as I’m concerned. I have a pretty weak immune system it turns out, especially when it comes to histamine response. I have struggled with allergies all my post pubescent life, and frankly I was not prepared for how my body would respond to pregnancy. I have to admit I’ve been thinking I was superhuman and I thought I would be cool for the last haul. I’m not giving up, but I sure am tired of being so whiny!

Fun stuff: I’ve got a really active bundle of joy. Week before last we had a fantastic time in Houston. Sure it was hot, it was humid, and frankly, it was hot and humid. But man I sure did miss me some sun and there was plenty of it in Htown. Our families sure know how to take care of us when we’re in town.

Powerful thoughts: We also got to see many great friends and it made me incredibly happy. Community and relationships are so very important for a growing family and you don’t realize how much they matter till you leave them all behind.

06/26/11

Oh, the places you’ll grow…

That’s the sentiment I had as I looked back at profile shots over the course of bambino #1’s gestation. In fact I would say I can even tell a growth spurt between 18-22 weeks. Craziness. Here’s a little progression from weeks 13-30.

I need to work on looking happier in these photos… J

04/16/11

Baby, oh baby…

This new saga in the Beard household is small, but MIGHTY!

We’re flippin’ excited and can’t wait (and are scared to death at the same time) to welcome Seajay* in September this year (or August if this baby takes after its father).

Me at 20 Weeks

Me at 20 weeks LMP. 

*All names have been changed to protect the innocent.

08/26/10

A Short and Sweet Summer in the Pacific NW

We weren’t lucky enough this year to experience much of the summer in the pacific northweast due to all the travel for ultimate, grad school, and work between the two of us. Oh yeah and summer lasted only about 2 months.

It was easy to miss.

Luckily, we got some of the most AMAZING weather when Sean’s parents came to visit us for his birthday. And we got be the biggest tourists imaginable thanks to their curiosity and kindness during their visit.

Itinierary:

  • Future of Flight – Everett, WA
  • Mt Rainier – Rainier National Park
  • Space Needle – Seattle, WA
  • Queen of Seattle – Lake Union, Seattle, WA

We weren’t allowed to take photos at the Future of Flight due to the IP nature of what we see but it was a perfect NW weather day to be inside and enjoy the tour of the production line for several Boeing fleets. There were also expositions about the first airlines and how they operated as well the

Mt. Rainier and in the foreground, one of my favorite plants, the corn lily.

 

Funny, I grew up needing hurricane evactuation routes… up here you need volcano evac routes.

Lake Union – Seattle, Wa. We could see Rainier amidst the sailboat masts along the lake. This view was from the Queen of Seattle, a classic steamboat tour.

A view of the Space Needle on our walk to the Space Center Park.