Braxton Hicks

So I had Braxton Hicks contractions start today and they are so strange. Not really a nuisance and not painful at all. Just strange. Once they started they seemed to continue with full force for about two days. The timing was good though, we had an appointment with the midwife on Monday so I got to ask about them (having them at 25 weeks seemed early to me). I guess you have them almost the whole pregnancy, you just don't feel them until you are a bit bigger. When it comes to using the word CONTRACTION though, I found out that others do not react in the same, calm way. It only took about half a day, but I quickly realized that just saying the word CONTRACTION while touching your stomach quickly strikes a look of: insert one (fear, terror, horror) upon the faces of: insert one (husband, friends, co-workers). I don't have any photos, but man, do I wish I did! Co-workers almost dropped the shelf they were carrying, Andrew looking stunned and horrified...I'm laughing right now thinking about it! Okay, that is enough. Soon it will be showtime and the word contraction will not have me laughing at all...

Hiccups?

Today at work I was sitting at my computer and eating lunch. I kept feeling these little twitches, more like a small spasm on my left side. It wasn't a kick, it was very quick, but repetitive and it lasted for a few minutes. I realized it about a minute after it started....Cletus was having hiccups! It was pretty funny. He/she hasn't had any since then, but I've read that they'll pick up in frequency during the last trimester.

Red Box Walk

I'm not sure if many of you use Red Box. We like it a lot. It is cheap ($1 movie rentals per night), you can keep them longer if you want, there are always good movies and you don't have to deal with any people. Well, on a nice summer Sunday night Andy wanted to rent a movie. I was feeling like I had a burst of energy and thought, "Lets take the dog for a walk." We knew it was going to be a long walk, but I think I was kidding myself about how far this really would be. For those of you familiar with town we set off from our house and walked to the new Walgreens on JFK (corner of Dodge), by the Ground Round. It must have been two miles there and two miles back home and very hilly (this is Dubuque after all). After what seemed like two hours (we never timed it) we were back on our block and our neighbors pulled up in their car and made a comment about walking the dog. I told them where we had just walked to (in between gasps for air) and their jaws hit the ground. They were shocked - I was just relieved that I made it alive! I think the next time we attempt a walk this long I'll have a backup plan just in case!

Lara's baby shower

Opening the card (from me - dachshunds!), opening her gifts, Mel, Lara, and me, and a goofy belly shot. Maybe it's the shirt or the angle or something, but my belly has never looked as weird as it does in this photo!

Family Reunion

Photos include: some of the golfers the morning of reunion, Sarah & Grandma making mac and cheese for reunion, the secret to really good mac & cheese, Garners at reunion and Dad and Rory playing with bubbles. The weather was great, maybe a little warm for me, but we really had a nice weekend overall visiting with everyone and eating some great food. It is too bad that we can't all get together more often. I am so MAD I didn't get a group photo while we were all together! Why don't I think of these until it is too late?!?!

Shower in Indiana

Sarah and Maurene hosted a shower for me in Indiana at Grandma's the evening before family reunion. It was a lot of fun and really nice to see everyone. Here are some photos from the shower. The fourth one is Ryan and Rory checking out the bird aviary near the entrance of Grandma's building.

Oops!

Here is one from Megan's track meet that Kelly took back in May and one last month from John's b-day @ Tony Romas. Sorry for the delay!

21 week ultrasound

Our midwife typically orders the big ultrasound at 20 weeks. Since I was away doing field work, Cletus got another week to get good and ready for his/her close-up. We knew that the ultrasound was going to take a bit longer then the first, and we ended up getting to watch the baby dance around the screen for almost an hour! The tech said that as soon as she took the wand off of my stomach Cletus would flip around and be facing the complete side. Maybe he or she was just enjoying the juice/water/Sprite I had to guzzle pre-appointment to be able to get good photos!

Anyway, the brain/heart/stomach/kidneys all checked out fine, and the baby is still measuring right on schedule with a Dec. 15th due date, weighing in right now at 14 ounces with a heart rate of 148 beats/minute. The tech was very nice and she did have to resort to using the second type of ultrasound to be able to get the photos of the legs and placenta that she wanted. (She was calling the baby squiggly-wiggly!) We met with the midwife after the ultrasound and had a quick check-up. Blood pressure was 100/60, stomach size 22 cm, weight looked good, etc. We also got pre-registered for the birth suites at the hospital today as well as signed up for our lamaze, hypnobirthing, and breastfeeding classes. What a busy-baby day!

Oh, and for those who may ask....We told the tech and the midwife that we did NOT want to know if Cletus is a boy or a girl. The tech said that she could tell, but overall she did not spend much time looking around that area! And one final thing...the tech said "Look at those toes! On both feet the second toe is just as long if not longer then the big toe!" Andrew and I looked at each other, those are so not my feet, definitely his. We'll have to see who what Cletus got from each of us in December!

Taste of Dubuque

I made it back in time for everyone's favorite festival (okay, mine) - Taste of Dubuque! We headed down with Andy and Megan and ended up seeing a bunch of friends and co-workers down there. The weather was perfect and the food was plentiful. Clare was working at one of the beer tents and Andrew asked me to hand him his beer. I picked it up and turned around to hand it to him. He was nice enough to then snap a photo of me! (It's on his phone, but I don't think I'll be posting me 20 weeks pregnant with a large Blue Moon in hand on here.) Pictures above are the crowds and Meg watching the blooming onion man do his thing.