Pregnancy symptoms include sciatic pain (which goes away if I don't strain myself exercising, or if I do yoga), extreme exhaustion (but that has more to do with Gabby than Artoo--see below), frequent urination, and hunger. It's all I can do some days to get enough food in me.
We had Artoo's anatomy scan on July 2, and everything looked great. My OB was very happy with the scan and all of the pictures we managed to get. The first tri blood work also looked great, so we know that Artoo is as healthy as the (extensive) tests can indicate.
Here he is!! He's looking at my bladder in the one on the bottom.
He is also a mover and shaker. I've read that you feel more movement sooner in second (and more) pregnancies since the uterus is stretching earlier, so it could be attributed to that, but he definitely lets me know that he is in there. I get the most movement after I eat, before bed, and at wake-up, and they are all very clearly baby. Brian and Gabby both have been able to feel him from the outside (Gabby looked at me with big eyes when he kicked her one night and said "whoa!"--it was super cute). He's head down right now, and most of my movements are low, so I assume he's head-butting my bladder a ton. Even during the anatomy scan, the tech mentioned that he kept looking at my bladder. I wish he'd get a new obsession, but I guess there really isn't that much to look at in there!
Now to Gabby
This sums up the time we've had with Gabby. She got her very first black eye from a kid at daycare. It was an accident, but it looked terrible!
Gabby has been having a tough time lately. She hasn't been going down at bedtime easily at all (it often takes at least 1.5 hours to get her down instead of the 10 minutes it used to take), and has been waking up progressively earlier every day (we're now at 6:30--this from the kid who slept 12 hours straight for 2 years no problem). We thought she might be scared of the dark, but a nightlight seems to be doing no good. Now we suspect separation anxiety. She has had a lot of changes lately--baby brother coming, she moved to a new daycare room with new teachers, and I work 3 nights a week--and it seems to be expressing itself when we try to get her to bed. It's been really difficult--Brian actually stayed in her room from 10:30-3:00 one night (he did fall asleep on her floor at some point, so it probably wouldn't have been that long, but he shouldn't have to be there at all). And another morning she woke me up at 4:30. I brought her into bed with me, and she went back to sleep for a bit, but I sure didn't! As you can imagine, none of us are very happy about this. And we also have no idea what to do, except give her time to get over it. So this is why I'm completely exhausted; and what makes it worse is working until 9:20 Monday-Wednesday. I can nap during the day if I need to (I don't start until 2:00), but napping has always made me more tired, so I really hate doing it. Plus, it eats into my prep/grading time (not to mention chores--our house is a mess). I really have no idea what to do except wait for her anxiety to ease.
We have fun, too! This is from Father's Day
Here she is driving the train at Fairytale Town.
I assure you, she loved the zoo carousel, and asked to go again. Despite the fear on her face during this movie!
See, I told you she liked it!
I bought her a monkey, and she insisted on getting a picture with it! She calls the baby "monkey George" (her name for Curious George) and the mom "monkey George mommy"
We've been really busy over the past few weeks. We went to our friend Charlotte's birthday party, and had a great time. We actually got there as the party was winding down and stayed to have dinner for Chris's birthday. Brian went a bit picture crazy. You've been warned.
Kate floating along.
Gabby stealing some icing.
She's got nothing on icing-thief Phoebe, though!
Samantha and Charlotte swimming.
Gabby was hesitant to get into the water, but loved being splashed!
And she appreciated the noodle.
The birthday-sharing girls!
"Splashing!!!"
Phoebe showing no fear.
Gabby did eventually jump in to me.
And she had a great time.
So excited!
Going
in!
Floyd and Charlie floating along.
Gabby got tired of the pool and decided to take a drive.
The big boys had fun in the bounce house! First Chris...
then Lawrence took a turn!
They did have to stop when the kids wanted back in.
Gabby loved the bounce house!
See?
She also wanted a crack at the hoop.
Almost there!
Maybe just a little too little.
It was way more fun when the other kids came in!
The Lin/Frickeys in the pool!
No one show this picture to Justin's mom; poor Karen will never hear the end of it!
We also went to LA to visit Brian's family. We went with his mom to the Aquarium of the Pacific, and the next day joined his sister, brother-in-law, and their kids at the beach. We don't have many pictures from the aquarium, because Brian left his camera in Sacramento (on purpose), and cell phone cameras suck. We did have a really great time with everyone, though! Gabby was kind of meh on the aquarium, but she LOVED the beach! She and Brian had a great time playing in the waves and on the sand. We thought it would actually be the other way around (love the aquarium, be indifferent about the beach), but she really surprised us. I think it helped that cousins Audrey and Olivia were at the beach with us, and she was able to see them having fun. The 3 of them were a riot together, and when Audrey and Olivia stayed with us at grandma's that night it was so much fun. Gabby loves her big cousins!
On the plane ride to LA
A rare moment not in the water (and stealing my chair!). That was a shocker, after she hated the pool!
That's more like it!
With Uncle Joe, Audrey, and Olivia
Back at Grandma Romo's house. The older girls played Disney Princess Yahtzee. Gabby stole the pieces.
We didn't do anything fun for the 4th of July because we are still in the middle of prepping Gabby's new room. The room is completely cleared out now, and Brian spent the weekend of the 4th painting the walls a really light pink, and the ceiling white. He's going to work on getting the doors painted this weekend, and hopefully we can go and buy her furniture. We've decided to get her a trundle bed to grow into (sleepovers!), which also means that instead of recycling Brian's old dresser and nightstand, she's going to be getting brand new ones. That was Brian's decision, not mine! She seems really excited about moving over (although that may be another stress adding to her separation anxiety), and OK with giving baby brother her old bedroom, but we'll see how she reacts when everything is done and she really has to move!
We've also given away all of our baby girl clothes. We are definitely 2 and through (and would have been even if Artoo turned out to a be a girl), so we have no more use for girl clothes. Most of the baby clothes went to one of Brian's co-workers who is due in September, but the older girl clothes went to a different co-worker and to our friends Robbie and Judy for their little girls. I also set aside a box for a friend of mine who has a son born when Gabby was born, and is now having a little girl. She's going to send me a box of her son's baby clothes in return. I like this giving and receiving thing where we all help each other out! Plus, it's really nice to know that Gabby's old clothes are going to people I know and not just to the Salvation Army to be bought by a random person. I really wasn't sad at all to see them go to such good homes.
We have more busy times ahead, with a Yosemite trip (camping with a toddler--oh boy!), and a trip to St. Louis to see my family. After that, we should be done with traveling until (well) after Artoo is born!
Lots of movement! Mr. Artoo is definitely a kicker and roller. I did start feeling Gabby this early, but her movements were less consistent. It may just be that I know what I'm looking for now, but I have the feeling Artoo is going to give us a run for our money! I feel him when I'm lying on my back, or when I'm sitting and relaxing. He loves when I drink juice or eat something sugary (or maybe hates it--I can't read his mind). I haven't felt him while I've been up moving around, just when I've been quiet. So he's either asleep, or I'm so distracted that I don't realize he's moving in there. I have to say, it's weird not being completely anxious for the anatomy scan. With Gabby, we had no idea what we were having, so all of my posts are impatiently counting down to when we found out. Now we know he's a boy and is as healthy as can be, so there's no pressure! For the record, Artoo's anatomy scan is scheduled for July 2.
As you saw last week, there is absolutely no doubt that I am pregnant! I had the first person who didn't already know ask me this past weekend at a birthday party when I was due. It helps when I wear maternity clothes--they tend to accent the bump--but even in non-maternity clothes (which are becoming few and far between), it's still pretty obvious, particularly from the side.
I have to say, this second trimester in the summer thing kind of sucks. I'm really glad to not be in my third trimester right now, but with Gabby, I was in my first trimester during the summer, so I hardly noticed anything. Now I just can't take the heat at all! I do my best to stay hydrated when it's really hot, but it's hard to remember to drink water when you're chasing around a toddler!
Only symptoms have been some indigestion and the ever present sciatic pain. My hips sometimes feel like they are being pulled apart, and I've had several instances of lightening crotch (the name really says it all) and round ligament pain. The yoga and walking (overall just being active) either helps or hurts all of the pains, depending on the day and how much I push myself. The yoga does remind me to watch my posture, which does keep things more in alignment, so I'm glad to have those DVDs. I'm really tired, but Gabby has been getting up before 7:00, and I rarely get home before 9:30 from work, so I'm having long days.
Work is going well. I definitely made the right decision to drop lecture. The 4 hours of lab is plenty. I really enjoy both of the labs, and haven't found any students who make me want to rip my hair out yet (there's always 1 or 2 by this point)! I feel badly for the person who took over the lecture--it's her first semester teaching (she's only TA'ed before), and she's not only teaching my lecture, she's teaching another prof's lab class! That's a ton of work for your first time, especially during the summer! I helped her out by grading some papers for her yesterday. She's a sweet person, and I was happy to do it for her!
We're making progress on the room switch. Brian has the computer and desk moved over, so all that's really in there is the treadmill and a cat tree. Those should be cleared out this weekend, and then we can prepare to paint. We haven't made a final decision on color yet, but it will either be a light pink on all walls, or white on most walls with a dark pink accent wall. Brian found some Brave (Disney princess: Merida) sheets online for cheap, so we have sheets for her big girl bed, but no big girl bed! Gabby gets to use the dresser and nightstand that used to be in the guest room, and we may move her chair over. We're looking into art tables for her room, too, so she has a place to color in there. I think she's going to love it! Although I'm not sure we're ready to transition to a big girl bed!! She's gotten better about going to sleep, but I'm sure we'll have many nights of leading her back to bed several times before she finally gets the point.
Gabby is such a cute little person now. Since I don't see her on M-W nights, I keep her home with me until around 9:00 and then take her to daycare in time for her second breakfast. She loves to go into our room, turn on the radio, and have a little dance party. Sometimes she'll put on her fairy wings and dance around. It is awesome. She's way into both Frozen and Brave, and will also watch Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. She still loves Yo Gabba Gabba, and won't go to sleep unless all 5 of the stuffed Gabbas we have are in bed with her. She likes to hold her Nubby and paci when she sleeps, but she hardly ever puts them in her mouth. She now needs a nightlight (the dinosaur one I put together when we were doing her nursery) to go to sleep, and definitely requires less sleep than before. We used to get 12 hours out of her at night with a 2.5 hour nap. Now, we get 11 hours at night and a 1.5 hour nap. I guess I should feel lucky that we get a nap at all (not to mention that those are 11 straight hours with no wake-up)! She has her share of terrible two moments (that make me wonder what the heck we're getting ourselves into by having another one), but she's really a very fun little girl, and I love her.
As you can see, I've definitely "popped" with this little guy! I went back and read when I was pregnant with Gabby, and I thought I had popped at this point, but the pictures from then show that I very clearly hadn't! It took until around Week 20 or so for strangers to really notice the belly with Gabby, but I was asked this morning if I was pregnant (it was one of the teachers at Gabby's daycare, so I didn't mind). Actually, way back in Week 13 at the end of my spring class, one of my students said she knew I was pregnant because of my cute little bump! I think she was just crazy, but now, as Brian said the other night, "It's starting to look like you have a baby in there!" It's all still wardrobe-dependent, of course, but more often than not, it looks like I do have a baby in there, and not that I've eaten too many cheeseburgers!
No really terrible symptoms, except that the sciatica is back with a vengeance. For those who don't know, your sciatic nerve runs from your spine down through your butt to your leg. When it gets pinched (as is happening right now with my ever-expanding uterus and growing baby), it causes a burning pain in your rear. I literally have a pain in my ass right now. It's all I can do some days to sit for long enough periods of time to get anything done. I remember this with Gabby too, and the only thing that really helps is regular exercise with yoga thrown in and sleeping with a pillow between my knees. I do have to be careful with the exercise--if I walk without stretching (before and after), the pain is 10x worse than if I hadn't walked at all! I usually try to walk on the treadmill and then do a yoga DVD afterwards. It makes for long workouts, but keeps me from being in too much pain. Fortunately, my summer schedule will allow me to keep up with this. The only other complaints I have are the round ligament pain (from the ligaments that hold my uterus in place stretching), which is a sharp kind of stabbing pain in my sides (right more than left), and the fact that baby boy is parked on my bladder right now.
We are working on moving Gabby into what is now our office and turning her room into Artoo's room. That means cleaning everything out of there, buying a new desk to fit in the guest room, picking out paint colors for there and Artoo's room, and eventually getting Gabby new furniture--including a big girl bed! Brian tried to talk me into keeping Gabby in her room and putting Artoo in the office, but the office is much bigger, and Gabby is going to need a bigger room before Artoo does! We'll deal with the jealousy over room size when the time comes. Brian just didn't want to have to paint 2 rooms. I don't win many arguments with him, but he let me have this one.
I start the summer semester next week, and I am so happy that I dropped the lecture! I'll have 2 hours of downtime between labs, and I'll actually get to eat dinner and rest a bit before dealing with students again. Plus only doing lab gives me both Thursday and Friday off every week! At least one of those days is going to be spent grading lab reports (2/week is a lot of grading), but on the other day I can keep Gabby home and have some fun with her! I'm not going to lie; it's been really nice not having to go to work for the past 3 weeks, but I do miss having something to do during the day. There's only so much laundry that needs to be done, and daytime TV is terrible!
Gabby is super cute with this baby. She loves to talk about the baby inside mommy, and she lifts up my shirt to see my belly. She gives my belly kisses sometimes, and talks about baby brother (or "baby brudder"). I know this love will change when the baby is here and taking up my attention! She's already started transferring her loyalty to daddy instead of me. Since birth, she's been all about mommy, but over the past few weeks, she's definitely started wanting daddy more. I was a little hurt at first, but then I realized how much more free time I'm going to have and I got over it. The only bad thing is that she now wants me to put her to bed. That's been fine this week, but starting next week, I have 8 weeks of not being home at bedtime Monday-Wednesday. It should be a very loud transition. Poor Brian.
I'm proud of myself for posting semi-regularly, but we'll see how well I keep this up when classes start again.
