Happy Holidays from the Andersons

Here's me barefoot and pregnant in the nursery. Trust me...it was easier this way. The room looks way better now. It's also much more purplely now that it's dry.

Here's David's touch.

We got 8 inches last Thursday.

Vader wasn't too keen on snow.

Happy Holidays from the Andersons. 24 weeks down...16 to go.

Yesterday's Doctor's Appointment

Everything is going just fine. David and I were both feeling a little under the weather yesterday but we feel much better today. The heartbeat is much easier for the doctor to find now. The doctor and I were both giggling because baby girl moved in the middle of listening to the heartbeat. The last few days she's been doing all sorts of acrobatics in there. David has finished the wardrobe and installed the new light fixture and did all sorts of cleaning and reorganizing. I finished going through the rest of the bathroom and kitchen cubboards so now we have some room for baby stuff. We'll have to take pictures to show everyone how the nursery is progressing.

Nursery Update

The walls and trim have been painted...very 'purplelicious' indeed. It's like a light lavender color. David even put up some moulding so the room looks more finished. We laughed about whomever built that room because it's entirely not square. Each wall has a slightly different measurement. We hadn't really noticed before. We made the trip to Ikea and got the wardrobe and other shelving units. The wardrobe is almost finished, David just needs to assemble and install the doors to it. I've already hung my clothes back up, which is really nice. But all the drawers for baby stuff are installed so that part is good to go. We got a new light fixture too so the baby doesn't have to stare at a bare light bulb. I'm just starting to pull materials together to make some curtains for the nursery over the coming holidays. The baby certainly has been growing a lot. Each day I feel a little bit bigger. Turning over while sleeping has started to become a challenge. It would probably be really funny to watch me scoot myself out of bed. My appetite has grown as well. Last week I had a craving for olives. Mmmmm....olives. :)

More baby registries

I've added some more things from the Baby Earth website to the registry list, mainly because they have the mini crib bedding that we would need. They have a lot of other cool stuff too.

Baby Stuff

We've started our baby registry at Target. We'll keep adding to it as we decide on what items to get. There's a good possibility we'll need to register at another store as well to fill in the blanks. I'll let you know when we do. Please keep in mind that there are a lot of Jennifer and David Anderson's when you look at the registries (multiples even in Washington state). The due date, April 13, 2009, seems to be what sets us apart. It's looking like the baby shower will be Sat. Feb. 28th, I'll send baby shower invitations later.

Post Thanksgiving Update

Wow, it's been awhile since I've posted. Sorry everyone, things have been busy. My last doctor's appointment was on Nov. 20th and everything is fine. The baby and me are in the 50th percentile, totally average...which is kind of cool because that means whatever I look up in baby information books is where I am almost exactly (most people are are a little under or over and some are way over average). My regular doctor will be back from her maternity leave by my next appointment. David and I have been working on cleaning out all the nooks and crannies of the house. He's cleaned out our gutters and we did as much raking of leaves as our green bin will hold. Now we're cleaning out the bathroom and kitchen cubboards and getting rid of stuff we don't need so we can make room for baby stuff. We're starting to look at colors, borders, fabric and furniture for the nursery. I'm hoping that the bulk of the work on the nursery will be done by the end of the month, like the painting and setting up the wardrobe. We'll probably register soon and we're also starting to think seriously about baby names. David and I went to Grandma Linda and Uncle Mike's house down in Wasco, CA over Thanksgiving, I think I handled the road trip pretty well. David's not a crazy driver so motion sickness was pretty much non-existent. While we were there however, I noticed for the first time how much shallower my belly button is these days. It's more like a pucker than a belly button. I can feel the baby more often now, especially after I eat. Once in a while I feel whoozy because of it, kind of like that riding in a elevator sensation but it goes away quickly. Last Friday night I felt the first honest to goodness kick. The kid's already stronger than me. :)

And the Ladies have it

It's a girl!!! I would ask everyone to take it easy on the pink until the baby is born just in case it's a boy. Doctor's are never a 100% on anything. Yeaaaa, baby girl! Now we got to think of a name and we'll probably register soon so stay tuned.

I'm partied out man...again

This is what happens when you're pregnant and spend your Sunday at a friend's birthday party, eat a bunch of food there and go home and eat a full-fat fast food meal. :) It was fantastic. Note my babysitter over my left shoulder.

All is quiet right now

We don't have a doctor's appointment for about two weeks. I still am pretty sleepy all the time. I'm trying not to nap at all because I won't sleep at all at night if I do. An hour nap isn't worth that. I'm amazed at people who can sleep whenever and wherever they want (actually a little jealous). Everyone once in a while I need to eat a preggie drop if I get nauseous. I'm really surprised at how great and quickly those work. I have to keep the toilet seat up when I'm taking my fish oil and vitamins now, just in case my gag reflex gets the better of me. It has a couple of times. I think it's because I have gag reflex even when I'm not pregnant. I'm usually fine taking pills, it's if I have to eat something I don't like (and I'm pretty picky). So I should stop writing about that or I'll throw up. I haven't felt any real movement yet. Sometimes it feels like something is pinching me on the inside so it makes me suspect that's where the baby is hanging out.

Little Nieces

Here are my little nieces, Jillian age 5 and Annabelle just born. All are helpless against the power of cuteness. :)

15 Weeks Prego

My tummy is officially my furthest point north. Man my feet look small. By the way, my sister Angie had her baby Annabelle on Oct. 21st, 6 lbs 13 oz.

Yesterday's Doctor's Appointment

The doctor's appointment went fine. Everything is looking like it's coming along normally. I got through all the poking and prodding. David and I both got to hear the heart beat. We both got our flu shots. The technician got the blood draw on the first shot so that makes me happy. We even had time to go to Ikea and check out shelving/storage/wardrobe options. They have some cute stuff.

It was bound to happen...

I threw up a little bit the other night for the first time during the pregnancy. It wasn't bad, I was taking my vitamins which I've been having some difficulty with. Although I shouldn't think about it too hard right now or I'll start gagging at the thought of swallowing pills. I also get grossed out if my oatmeal is too runny, must be a texture thing. I also think I'm getting into the "always too hot" phase. That makes it a little harder to sleep. I'm also noticing how much more difficult it is to carry the laundry basket around. I guess it's because I'm front loaded now, the physics just isn't the same.

2nd Trimester......Hooray!

Today marks 14 weeks. All in all...it hasn't been too bad. There's been a little less energy, sleep and food choices with a dash of queeziness. David helps with everything and is an excellent cook. :) I've got my maternity clothes so I'm as comfortable as I'm going to be and I'm starting to show a little bit.

P.S. My youngest sister Angie is due with her second child tomorrow. So everybody will her into labor.

More New Stuff

It's been pretty cold the last couple days so I just bought a new maternity peacoat. I think it's something I could wear while I'm un-pregnant as well. I bought some more pants too so I'm not always in a panic to get the laundry done. Since I'm not queezy or crampy like I used to be, I'm noticing my sleep problems more. I sleep every other night, I just can't get comfortable and I'm an insomniac on top of that. Every one I've talked to says it just part of being pregnant. It might be just finding the right combination and number of pillows.

Time in the Nursery

Well, I've been able to clean out the nursery room a little more. I'm almost to the point where I need to find a new place in the house for Rosie (our tarantula) to live. David has been taking care of mostly everything else, the cooking, the dishes, the bathroom, the garbage, even the catbox, since I've been so exhausted. It hasn't been too bad though, I never kept the house white glove clean anyways. Not much point when we're going to have kids that write all over the walls in permanent marker or do impromptu science experiments when were not looking. The day the kid gives him/herself a haircut will be awesome. David also has been great about making/getting me food if I need to eat (which is much of time sudden and immediate). I think I'm starting to feel better in general, I still get the sneak attack headaches out of the blue, but I think the queeziness and the tiredness are tapering off. David's asked if he should be doing something on the nursery, but there's not much he can do there yet since it's all my junk that's in there, so it's pretty much something I have to do myself. So that's been an ongoing project for me for the last month as I'm able. David makes sure I don't overdo it though, he tells me I need to rest if I've been at a while. We're both starting to baby talk at my tummy now. We're still brainstorming for baby names but nowhere close to deciding.

Little Jenny Pictures

Here are the little Jenny pictures. I'm the oldest of three girls (I also have 1 step sister and 4 step brothers, no shortage of aunts and uncles). Kelly is a little less than 3 years younger than me and Angie is 5 years younger than me. In the picture with the three of us in sailor dresses, I'm standing on a box so I "look" like the oldest. I was about 6 then and Kelly was already the same size as me, a lot of people thought we were twins. Blondes and brunettes run pretty strong on my side of the family.

Latest Developments

Well, I've now graduated to maternity clothes. It feels much better to not be strangled about the waist (I was down to the last notch on my belt). The pants feel a little too big but I think that's better than too small, I'll grow into them anyways. I feel less queezy than I had been but more tired. I still gag big time on my prenatals...that's so weird. David has been absolutely wonderful about doing the chores so I can rest when I need to. Hopefully the pregnancy exhaustion will ease up a bit so I can get some things done around the house...within reason of course. Here's the link to one of David's passions, the Board Game Geek website. http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/342757/page/1 He recently made the announcement to all his online buddies.

Some little David pictures

Here are some little David pictures, I'll post the little Jenny ones later since they take up a lot of room. There's a couple of Uncle Mike too. Now everyone can start theorizing about whom the baby will look like. There's a good shot we'll get a redhead.

Feelin' good and a bit tired

I'm starting to feel a little better, but I still get tired quickly. I'm really noticing that my clothes don't fit anymore so I'll be getting some new clothes by the end of the week. I found my baby book that my mom made for me and found some funny stuff. As an infant I stuck my tongue out a lot. Apparently when I was asked to do something I would say, "No thank you." She kept up with the book pretty well through age 4. I also found some of my baby blankets, clothes and bunny booties that she had given me as well. I've started cleaning out the room that will be the nursery and have a ways to go. It's a good start though and I have a bunch of stuff ready to donate.

Looks like the people are wanting a girl huh? :) We'll see...

Doctor's Appointment Update

I saw my doctor today and everything's going just fine. I got all my questions answered and got to hear the heartbeat. That was pretty cool. The heartrate is 175 for those who would hazard any old wives' tales type of a guess as to what the sex might be. The lab on-site did have to send me to a specialist to do my blood draw though. I have very deep veins and they didn't want to keep sticking me until they struck gold. My doctor is also pregnant and is due in two weeks so my next two appointments will be with her replacement, but that stuff should be fairly routine. She'll be back by the time anything of magnitude goes down.

Gotta go again...and again...and again

I'm really tired today and I'm not talking about pregnancy fatigue. I'm a really light sleeper and I'll wake up if I'm uncomfortable in any way, like if I'm too hot or too cold, if my 20-lb cat thinks it's funny to walk across me while I'm sleeping, or if I have to go to the bathroom. Now I have to go every 1-2 hours so I'm not sleeping too well with that going on. But everything I've read and from personal accounts it seems to be normal. Looks like the boy/girl poll is still neck and neck...neither side doesn't ever seem to get much of a lead. :)

Stockin' Up

I've been grazing a lot more lately, so we picked up extra munchies for me during this week's grocery trip. It's a lot better than going to the corner store in downtown Seattle that can be a little spendy. For the first time since I started working here I'm wishing there was a vending machine on my floor. I'm starting to notice my tummy poking out a little bit. I'm into my 10th week so the baby and the extra stuff is about the size of a grapefruit (with the tyke being the size of a prune) so that's a little bit of displacement. Most of my clothes still fit except for the yoga pants and the drawstring cargo pants. Those I have to keep constantly hike back up into place. I'm thinking I'll need to get some new threads in a couple weeks.

9 weeks 5 days

We're really excited to announce that we're going to be parents. It only took about a year of "letting it happen". I'm still in the morning sickness phase and David has been a tremendous help to me. My best friend Keri is also pregnant. Not only that but we're due the same week in April. How cool is that! They say best friends dress alike but this is a whole new level. Here's the photo from the ultrasound.