catching up...

let's get all caught up, shall we?

it was late june that we got our 18 week ultrasound. wiggly is still living up to his/her name. every time the ultrasound 'thingy' got a good picture and position, wiggly would squirm in an annoyed manner. as with our last ultrasound, watching the baby squirm around made me quite pleased, and i encouraged the technitian to continue. we got to confirm through the picture that wiggly has two well formed and strong arms, legs, little fingers and toes, and quite the spine (as you can see in the body picture). his/her little heart was pumping quite adequately as we looked at the screen. the cutest part of the whole experience for me is when the craig and i first got to see the ultrasound. wiggly was curled up with its little arms up by its head. the position was very much like i fall asleep, and i thought that quite nice. although my logical brain knows that i am pregnant, it amazes me every time we see the baby moving around, and how much it grows from visit to visit. seeing wiggly in there makes things all the more real.

exactly one week after the ultrasound we had our doctor's visit. it was a usual checkup, as well as an opportunity to get the results of an earlier blood test, and the offical results of the ultrasound. we asked not to be informed of the baby's sex since we're still determined to be surprised. as we had hoped, all the test results came back excellently. the doctor informed us that good "normal" results for the tests for the genetic testing were a 1 in 100 chance the baby could have a problem. our results came back 1 in 10,000 which was very reassuring. the doctor informed us that we could take those odds to vegas and make millions. the ultrasound showed that wiggly is growing at a healthy and expected rate, and everything looks great. i was also given the green light to travel overseas (if we can ever get a trip scheduled). that was another weight off of our shoulders as we were putting things on hold until we found out, in addition, part of my job is travel. finally we got to hear wiggly's heart beat. it was a strong 145, and the good range is 120 - 160, so wiggly once again was in the perfect range.

my belly seems to be expanding rather quickly. it is still odd to think that a month ago i could fit into my pre-pregnant clothes. they were a bit uncomfortable, but i could button everything and walk around without giving anyone a clue we were expecting. now, i don't even try to button up my jeans. they fit everywhere but the baby belly, so i've still been getting good use out of my clothes by wearing long shirts over the rubber banded waist bands. i am efficient, but certainly not high fashion. i have enjoyed a few more shopping trips, and craig has come along to one or two. he always has positive things to say to me when i ask the inevitable 'do i look fat in this?' i have been looking for dresses more than anything else as they are comfortable, look nice for work, and i won't grow out of them anytime soon. and, as learned from my mother, i always look to the sales racks first. at this point, i can't bring myself to pay so much money for a shirt i won't wear for more than a few months. (however, i reserve the right to change that opinion at any time, especially the bigger i get.)

we are slowly figuring out the baby registry. the frustrating part of the registry is once we figure out a color pattern we like, we soon realize that the furniture and accessories in that pattern are limited. at this point we'd rather not have things look like a rainbow threw up all over the house, so we keep going back to the drawing board to find a new pattern that fits our style, as well as looks wiggly friendly. (i'm aware this is a lofty goal, however as an idealistic pregnant woman, i ask that you humor me.) we did manage to pick out the stroller/pram and car seat combination that we both like, and that drives well. we had quite a good time in the store taking the strollers off the display shelf and driving them up and down the aisles, closing them, opening them, putting the car seat in and out... all the while the poor sales people just stood back watching and asking 'do you need any help?'. our next goal is to find a crib that we both like, and that isn't insanely expensive. wish us luck.

past all that, the pregnancy has been going well for me. while i still sleep as often as possible, i am no longer as exhausted as i have previously felt. my morning sickness is gone, and i am getting accustomed to the new belly i am carrying aorund. we've gone back to the gym and i've really been enjoying the exercise, although i get shocked at how quickly i tire out. i have felt some definite baby movements in the last few weeks, but unfortunately they aren't noticible from the outside yet. (the doctor says craig will have to wait for those until around 28 weeks.) i am still a fan of fruit, so much so, that the majority of our shopping trip this past week consisted of fruit. my recent favorite is cherries, the more sour, the better.

we've been enjoying all the comments people have been leaving, as well as your emails. if i haven't gotten back to you yet, don't be insulted. things have just gotten a bit away from me as of late. i'll get back to you soon though! thank you for all your positivity and support. only 5 months to go!