Childbirth Techniques

I'm reaching the point where this pregnancy seems very real. We're signing up for breastfeeding and childbirth classes, but I know the childbirth class will only touch upon things. I'm trying to research the different childbirth and pain management techniques so I can study up.

Right now, I'm really just looking for information on the different techniques so I can figure out which one I think would be right for me. Once I decide on a technique, I need to find a book, CD, or DVD to learn about the methods and how to apply them. Adam wants a book for the labor partner as well so he can help me through. All I know is it's overwhelming.

I'm open to suggestions from anyone out there. What technique did you use? How did you prepare? Do you recommend a specific book/CD/DVD set?

Just a picture

No real exciting updates this week. I just owe you another picture.

22weeks:

Especially for Jon

Jon (my brother, for those who don't know) sent me a maternity shirt from Think Geek this week. I promised him I'd wear it soon, so I wore it to work on Friday.

It kind of hides the burgeoning belly, but it's still funny. In fact, I had an OB appointment, and the sonographer and OB both found it entertaining. This is a close-up of the actual shirt; the image is not loading.

Speaking of OB appointments, here are our latest pictures of Zyggie.

Typical side-view, with Zyggie's legs over his/her head:

Another foot shot:

And face-on:

Zyggie's face shot looks a little Day-of-the-Dead, but it's an improvement over the last time when it looked legitimately like a skull. Plus I'm technically due on Dia de los Muertos, so maybe it's fitting.

I think I'm starting to see more of a noticeable difference in my belly from last week's pictures. I'm getting mixed feedback from people, but I think people are generally guessing Zyggie is a boy based on old wives' tales, etc. What do you think?

And Sadie really wanted to make an appearance on the blog too. I think this is my favorite:

Pregnancy is weird

I've made a couple of discoveries this week, one expected, one startling. Let's just say I think I'm getting to the "interesting" part of pregnancy.

First, I noticed in pilates last night that my belly pooched out a bit more than it has in the past when I did my planks. Okay, no big deal. We all know how flab seems to hang down more than muscle. That's why we say it's jiggly; it moves. Except then we moved on to abdominal moves. I know it's probably not good to do full-on sit-ups or an ab work, so I tend to take it down about 4-5 notches. Instead of a full roll-up, I opted for a crunch. Well, I looked down and my stomach was nice and flat on the sides while the middle was pooched up and squishy. Creepy! I showed Adam before bed and he said it freaked him out. Needless to say, that didn't much help my body image when I'm struggling with getting "fat." (I know I'm not getting fat; I'm growing a baby.)

Today's more expected revelation is that when I'm standing up straight, I can no longer see my feet. I *think* they're still there.

That is all.

Rethinking My Footwear

So I came into this pregnancy thing fully accepting some limitations. For instance, I figured I wouldn't want to wear shoes with a heel of any kind. It never occurred to me though that shoes with ankle straps that buckle shut might be an issue. As my belly grows, my summer sandals all seem to have buckles. I guess I need to retire some shoes and buy more work-appropriate step-in shoes. Good thing I like shoe shopping!

Half-Baked!

I had to get up a little earlier today for Adam to take my picture because he has a doctor's appointment in addition to his usual cardiac rehab. I figured since I have a little extra time, I'll post on the blog on the actual day instead of waiting 3-5 days later. You're welcome.

Today marks a big day in my pregnancy - I'm halfway there! It's hard to believe in approximately 20 more weeks, we will be at the hospital with our new baby. It seems like just last week, I had a positive pregnancy test. I'm sure the rest of this time is just going to fly by. We'd better enjoy the peace and quiet while we can.

Here is what half-baked looks like (in the actual cooking sense, not the Dazed and Confused sense):

And just for fun, let's do a side-by-side comparison of an earlier picture and today:

There isn't a TON of difference, but you can see it. Anyway, I'm glad to be here. :) We love you, Zyggie!



Did we find out the sex??

We had our big ultrasound last Friday, June 8. It was the appointment where the tech measures all of the baby's anatomy to be sure things are growing normally and there is no indication of any birth defects. It's also typically when people find out the baby's sex. I know people have their own opinions on this matter, but we've decided to wait until around November 1 to learn Zyggie's sex.

Truth be told, I know I'll be excited no matter what the sex of the baby, but I'm afraid of being a little disappointed when I find out. And I don't want to feel any sadness. I figure if we wait until delivery, we will be so overcome with joy that there will be no possible way to feel anything but elation. It might be silly reasoning, but we're sticking with it.

At the ultrasound last week, Zyggie measured proportionately. The tech said the baby was measuring 18w1d; however, this is nothing to worry about. I guess babies have growth spurts and "stalls" (for lack of a better word). Importantly the measurements looked good and the baby was active.

Here is the baby's profile. Now, I don't know what Adam looked like as a tiny baby, but that profile looks very similar to the Kuster baby profile:

We also got an excellent shot of Zyggie's hand. What is interesting to note is how you can still see through the skin to the baby's bones. While we don't have a picture of it, we also got a view of Zyggie's face from the front. I know I should think it was cute, but it was rather creepy. It really looked like a skull with the same kind of definition as in this picture:

And finally, we got to see Zyggie rubbing his or her feet together. This was particularly adorable because Adam does this as he settles in to sleep:

My "bump" seems to have popped in the last week or two. I had the "where did this come from?" moment a week and a half ago when I looked in the mirror and realized how big my stomach is really getting. Even the chiropractor commented at my appointment today on how he doesn't normally notice changes in someone's appearance, but he could definitely see that my stomach had expanded rapidly. Apparently my alignment reflected rapid change as well.

Here I am on June 8, at 19 weeks:



I felt the baby kick!

Yesterday I sat very still for a while, and I felt the baby move.  It was very light and hardly noticeable, but it was one of the coolest things I have ever experienced.  I am sure I will get to feel more kicks and stronger kicks, but I was so excited I couldn’t even express it.  I can’t wait to meet you, little one

I'm tired

There's not too much to post this week. I'm tired and think I might be anemic now. It's a good thing I have an appointment on Friday.

Here is last week's picture. 18 weeks last Friday: