Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Drum Roll Please...

Well, I guess it's pretty obvious that I have already shirked my responsibilities on updating this blog. Shame on me! But with baby on the brain, there's not much room for anything else. Weeks 17-19 were absolutely great. We had our 4D ultrasound done during week 18. Luckily, we were able to plan ahead and invite our family: parents, siblings, grandparents, godparents, aunts, future cousins...we were about the size of a freaking Mardi Gras Crewe. As I laid in that oversized bed, my heart was pounding. It was pounding so loudly that I could hear it ringing in my ears. As the sonographer began trying to pull up a clear image, I was seeing spots. No, not "I'm about to faint" spots...spots of blue and pink. Which is it...which is it? And then...the announcement. Our beautiful baby is a beautiful baby girl. I was overwhelmed at the sight of her. She was the most beautiful thing that my husband and I had ever seen. And boy is she stubborn! She refused to move from her spot and loved hiding her face in her hands and, at times, hid her face with her feet. I actually had to stand up and jump around to get her to move from that spot. I was so relieved when the sonographer told us that everything looked great. Her heart rate was at a strong 153. The family had been guessing that we were having a girl all along and so this only confirmed what everyone thought. Visions of pink, our beautiful baby girl, and her running around in my clothes left me speechless. There she was...10 ounces and she had us wrapped around her finger already. My husband and I are set to decorate her room this weekend...a bedroom for our tiny darling, Elizabeth Rose.    

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Week 16: "Put on your big girl panties and enjoy the ride"

This week our little one is about the size of an avocado. A yummy, creamy, delicious avocado…okay cravings aside! Jason and I have been going crazy with curiosity about the gender of our baby. I, like every other excited mother out there, would love to indulge in buying that cute outfit at Walmart or the baby blankets on sale at Babies “R” Us. But I must resist the urge to spend half of our paycheck on gender specific items that may or may not suit our bundle of joy. In not wanting to throw caution to the wind, I come to the realization that I CAN buy those solid white Gerber shirts with the beyond adorable mittens attached. I CAN and I SHALL! As I walk triumphantly to the cash register, with my goodies, a huge grin and my “mother of the year” feeling, that’s when it hits me. Blame it on the hormones or the fact that I can no longer breathe out of my right nostril (thanks pregnancy rhinitis!), I am overcome by emotions. Inside of my newly rounded tummy, there is a little human being…a little person…growing more and more everyday. And my eyes begin to fill with tears at one single thought: I can’t protect my little one forever. At some point, our baby will have to go out into the world. We can’t make the right choices for them, but we can love them and provide them with the skills and teachings that they will need for growing up. I wipe away the tears and put on my cheesy grin. For I know that time will fly by and our baby will be grown before we know it. But we’re going to take advantage of every second of every minute of everyday to fill these fleeting years with silliness, life lessons, and unconditional love.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

My First Entry

First of all, let me just start by writing that I am super excited to be embarking on this
new adventure. My husband and I have been trying for a few months to get pregnant. Let
me tell you a little about our family. My name is Natalie. I have a wonderful husband
named Jason and two, very spoiled, boy cats named Oliver and Dodger. I am 25 years
old and I live in Cajun Country (Louisiana). I’m a college graduate with a major in
Psychology and a minor in English. I am 15 weeks pregnant for our first baby. I’m a full-
time working mom-to-be. And when I get home, I’m a homemaker. I cook for our family,
clean, do the laundry, I’m a wife, caretaker for our cats, and somehow find time to
shower…barely. I’m only 15 weeks in and it has already been a rollercoaster of nausea,
exhaustion, excitement, and piles of parenting books. I had no idea that pregnancy
came with so many decisions, other than pink or blue. I’m learning the benefits of
breastfeeding, trying to decide on cloth or store bought diapers, and attempting to learn
to sew clothes for our future little one. I would love for all of you lovely super women
out there to join me in my adventures of motherhood. I’ll leave you with my very own
quote to sum up my week. My husband was giving me decision after decision of possible
lunch destinations. Since, I am still suffering with a little nausea I was getting sicker the
more he mentioned food. Till finally, I just had to say, “If you make me think anymore,
I’m going to throw up.” This one statement made us both laugh like crazy. That was
definitely one for the funny section of the baby book.