21 Weeks & The Name Game

I've officially been Instagrammed at 21 weeks

At 21 weeks we are in the thick of the name game!  We did have a girl name picked, but Nick's unsure if he likes the first name, and I'm unsure of it since it doesn't have any family connection (I'm big on family names). Another big requirement for us, is whatever the name ends up being, she will be called it...no nick names or shortened versions!  I also really love double names, but Nick is into "short and sweet."

The name in question is Caroline Reese (Reece).  Oh, do I love the name, Caroline!  I feel like she is Caroline to me already, but a name is a HUGE decision!

Nick's came up with his short list of names that he liked after doing an Internet search.  He jotted them on a sticky note when he was at work.

From his list, I really like Abigail, Kenzie (as a middle name), Grace, and Madison.

We've also been doing a little family research for girl names.  From Nick's side, there's Ellen (Nick's Grandmothers, Roberta Ellen and Winifred "Winnie" Marion), Katherine (Great Grandma was Katherine "Katie" Heidgerken), Sarah (Great Grandma was Sarah Ellen) and Marie (Great Grandma was Lucille Marie and Nick's sister's middle name).
From my side of the family there's Millie (Mildred "Millie" Louise was my mom's mom), Kathleen (Viola Kathleen was my dad's mom), Nora or Conway for a middle name (Great Grandmother was Hanorah Conway),  and Hayes for a boy (Great Grandmother Eva Ethal Hayes). I'm continuing to do research.
 
A couple other names I came across were Maybelle(Maybelle was my grandfather's sister's name) Maggie Grimsley (my dad's grandmother), Ottie Mae (my mom's grandmother) and Fehrn Ozella (Nick's mom's grandmother).

With all of that research and all of the above said, I like
-Mary Caroline (as a double name). The name, Mary, is on both sides of my family just not a grandmother (My mom's aunt, whom my initials are after, and my dad's sister and aunt)
-Caroline Conway
-Nora(h) Caroline (as a double name)
-Kathleen Kenzie
-Kathleen Marie
-Sarah Kathleen (as a double name)

More research to come...I also talked to my Dad tonight and had him hunting around my parent's house for a family history book that is no where to be found.  My Granny's side is very documented, but my Pop's side is not.  There were adoptions and three family/ last names associated with his side (very complicated).

At 21 weeks....
Mrs. Pregnant in the Lowcountry is having a daily headache, which stinks.  Other than that, things are good.  I go for a follow up with Dr. Villers on Thursday.

How big's baby girl?
From this week on we can measure baby from head to heel. It will now be around 10.51 inches (26.7cm ) and will weigh 12.70 ounces (360g).


How is your baby developing and growingBaby's digestive system is already functioning in a simple way. At this stage baby can swallow amniotic fluid, absorb much of the water in it and then pass the unabsorbed matter as far as the large bowel.
As mentioned above, baby is already swallowing fluids, it is believed that swallowing of amniotic fluid may actually help with growth, development and will condition the digestive system to function normally after birth. The amniotic fluid which surrounds baby, and baby is using to practice swallowing and digestion is actually replaced every 3-4 hours.
Over the first three days of this week baby's legs will reach their final proportions. You may notice that when baby is born that their arms and legs look "short". This is normal, and their proportions will begin to change when they move to start crawling and walking.
Baby's heart has continued to develop and is now beating strong enough that it could easily be heard with a stethoscope.

It's a.....

GIRL!

We are really excited to have a girl in our family.  She will be the first girl for both sides of the family.  I guess she will be the one "cheerleader" on the side lines, as she cheers on the whole "football team" of boys in the family.
Nick and my mom came to the ultrasound.  At first, she had her legs really close together and crossed at the ankles.  The ultrasound tech kept trying to "wake" her, but she was rather comfortable.  We were looking for confirmation that she was indeed a girl.  We were told at 14 weeks that they were 90% sure it was a girl (but not to paint the room yet).  I always thought I would enjoy knowing even a guess, but that guess created all these "what if's they are wrong" in my head.  I'm glad it's official!

Her heart rate was 154 bpm, and all of her measurements were average. She is already head down. At 20 weeks and 2 days, she weighed 13 oz. This scan measured her due date to by 8/24/12, so I guess she is a little ahead of schedule.  All anatomy was present and normal, which is a blessing.

Stats from the Anatomy Scan (Biometry)

Adominal Circumference: 60th percentile

Head Circumference: 60th percentile

Biparietal Diameter (Head): 81st percentile 

Femur Length: 40th percentile

Humerus: 78th percentile

OFD: 73rd percentile

TCD: 91st percentile

So, who do you think she looks like?  She certainly has Nick's chin just like Tillman does.

Let the name game begin!  What should we call her?

Easter 2012

After Sunrise Service on Easter Sunday

We spent Easter weekend in Lexington, SC with my family.  Nick enjoyed riding his bike while there, and the whole family enjoyed the egg hunts, Sunday service, Easter Breakfast and a family get together.

Tillman headed to the church egg hunt
 in his Chick Magnet shirt CiCi made!

Tillman LOVED the Easter Bunny!
Couldn't get enough of him!

I think it was because he was
giving out GOLDFISH!

Tillman eating grits in his Easter best
 that CiCi made him!

Group shot of 7 out of  10
(soon to be 11)
 Great Grand Children

Chaos!

 Tillman and his Peeps say 

"see you next time!"

(CiCi made this shirt too!)

19 Months

Happy Easter!

19 months was filled with Easter festivities (as soon as he got better from the yucky virus)!

Tillman went to 4 Easter Egg Hunts this year.  As they say, practice makes perfect, and that is certainly the case for hunting eggs...OR "footballs" as Tillman calls them (he's all boy!). The first hunt was at the church where he attends daycare; Tillman wanted nothing to do with picking up any eggs.  He was running around like a "Banchie" the entire time and picking up eggs and throwing them like a football (I think he's going to have a great passing arm). The daycare director asked Tillman if picking up eggs was too much like clean up time.  We walked away from that hunt "batting zero!"

The Egg Hunt was over to the left...
not interested & wouldn't hold the basket

The next week, Tillman had a hunt at daycare.  Unsure the results of that hunt, but based on his skills after that hunt, he must have found that hunting "footballs" was fun!  At the next two hunts, he found 6 eggs and then 9 eggs all by himself!  One thing that slows him down is that he has to pick all the pine straw out of the bucket before finding the next egg.  Only eggs in Tillman's bucket!

Tillman with his findings

This "football hunter's" 19 month stats:

Weight: holding steady around 23 lbs

Diapers size: Little Movers size 3 during the day and size 4 at night

Clothing size: 12-18 months (some 24 mo shirts)

Shoe size: 4.5 or 5

Food tricks: drinking from a small cup (without a lid) & learning to feed himself

Naps: 1 nap during the day around 11:30 and sleep until 1:30

Play (new things): puzzles, dancing to music, and giving hugs and kisses to all that ask!

Oh, and he also started GYMERCIZE!  The philosophy is building a child's confidence and self-esteem through a fitness geared program. The objectives of the class are gross-motor coordination (tumbling mats and tunnels) and developing eye-to-hand coordination through use of balls, hoops, and awareness games.
Tillman is learning how to tumble!  He put his head down the other day on the carpet and his behind straight up in the air.  He was all set up for the flip.  Nick helped him with his "follow through!"

20 Weeks

Easter Sunday 2012

The baby belly is growing!  When I saw this picture on Facebook, I was like "wow, look how big it is!"  A picture is worth a 1,000 words, as they say, and seeing me in this one, I was speechless!

I do feel like this week, I have started to grow a lot more in the belly.  This pregnancy, I feel, I'm carrying a whole lot higher.  The baby shelf seems to start up at my neck!  The kicks are starting to feel like flutters.  I feel the flutters way down low, and they are generally at night.  The placenta is in the front again for this pregnancy, so I likely won't feel any strong kicks.  As Nick says, "well, that's good because you like your sleep!"

Back to the picture...looking at it makes me wonder what it would be like to have 6 kids.  The one and only one I'm responsible for in the picture is unsupervised and running away behind me while I'm uploading a photo on my phone. Nick wants a whole house full of children, but seeing the circus, I'm unsure I'd be good at wrangling 6 kids!

Big Brother Tillman's favorite word is still "baby."  He calls everything baby...including my belly!

How big's baby?
Baby's crown to rump measurement is now at 6.46 inches (16.4 cm) and your baby is now weighing approximately 10.58 ounces (300g).

How's baby developing and growing?The skin which is covering your baby's body now begins growing from two layers, the epidermis (surface layer) and the dermis (a deeper layer).
The vernix, which is a slimy sort of film which covers the baby's entire body to protect it's skin from the amniotic fluid, is still being produced. There is a good chance that you will see this white slimy substance when your baby is born.
Baby's movements should now be becoming stronger and stronger, as ossification continues and soft cartilage is turned into bone. As baby's arms and legs become harder and stronger the strength of baby's kicks will be more noticeable, but still not a solid contact.

Hand, Foot and Mouth

Virus...Disease...whatever you want to call it.  Tillman had it!  We got a call from the daycare that Tillman had a very high fever after waking from his nap.  His little cheeks were bright red.  I went and picked him up last Tuesday from daycare and toted him to the MUSC After Hours Care. We were the first patients to be seen, and we got a quick diagnosis.  The doctor saw the sores on his throat from the virus.  Fortunately, he didn't have any of the sores on his hands or feet (hints the name of the virus).  The doctor said it is highly contagious, and very easy to get.  Luckily I am past my first trimester, or this could have been an issue for Mrs. Pregnant in the Lowcountry as well.
Of course going to the doctor, we had a fear it was his ears again, but she said those looked great.  The thing that stinks about a virus is it just has to run it course.  We were able to give him Motrin, but that was it!  Tiny T didn't feel good at all, didn't eat much and slept a ton.
Nick and I juggled work schedules to figure out the week, as Tillman was out the rest of the week.  Nick stayed home on Wednesday and Tillman's PapPaw cared for him while Nick went to a lunch meeting.  I was home on Thursday, and we split Friday.  He was fever free by the end of Friday, which was good because he was scheduled for his 18 month shot!  Nick took Tillman to the doctor's again on Friday for the shot, so he was cleared for daycare with his shot record in hand!

19 weeks

Today marks 19 weeks.  We're getting ready for next week's ultrasound.  My mom is actually going to be in Charleston for another appointment, so she is going to stick around for the ultrasound to see our August Arrival.  Looking forward to catching a glimpse.  

At 19 weeks, I'm in full blown maternity clothes (and yes, I am wearing white paints before Easter, Emily Post), and busted out the maternity bathing suit this weekend.  It was Mrs. Pregnant in the Lowcountry's birthday, so we all went to the beach (Edisto) for the day.  You can kind of tell, I got just a little burnt on that trip!  

I'm unsure if big brother, Tillman, knows what is going on or not, but he has learned the word "baby."  He says it ALL the time.  He saw a baby at an Easter Egg Hunt this weekend, and now he is stuck on babies.  He points at the diaper box, books, pictures, etc and says "baby."

19 week update from the web

How big is your baby?
This week your baby measures 15.3cm (6.02 inches) and weighs in at around 240g (8.47 ounces).
Your baby's weight will increase more than 15 times between now and when you give birth.


Baby's development
If you are having a girl, then you will find that she already has primitive egg cells in her ovaries! Girls are born with all the eggs they will ever have in their life time already in their ovaries.
Over the next few days the vernix caseosa will begin to form over your baby's body. This is a creamy looking substance which forms as a protective layer over your baby's skin. This protects the developing glands and sensory cells, and is composed of dead skin cells, oils and lanugo.
Your baby will also start developing fat deposits around the neck, chest and crotch. This acts as an insulator and keeps your baby warm.
Your baby will be sleeping now much as a new born baby would, and would already be finding its 'favourite' position to sleep in. Most babies will sleep with their chin tucked into the chest, or with the head tilted backwards.
Other developments this week include: Formation of the eyebrows, fine scalp hair and if you are having a girl, then her uterus will complete formation this week.