Another Appointment
Tuesday, November 21, 2006

We went to see the midwife today. Everything looks good! I'm measuring right on schedule and we got to hear the heartbeat again, which was 144. Woohoo! We tried to hear it with the fetoscope first, but then we gave up and used the Doppler again. I think I'm addicted to hearing our little sprout's heart pumping. DH got a really clear recording of it this time, so as soon as he converts it to an mp3, I'll definitely be posting a link to it. I'm at 19w2d.

I have to admit, we are both becoming a little impatient about wanting to find out the sex of the baby. I really want to hold out, though. I guess it helps that we don't have an ultrasound scheduled or anything.....so our temptation is easily ignored, for now.

Hearing the baby's heartbeat is so amazing to me. I probably had the goofiest grin on my face.

Well, I have registered for a bunch of baby gear at Target, Wal-Mart, and Babies'R'Us. I was thinking that it's a little early, me only being 5 months pregnant and all, but my family baby shower is in January and I suppose that's not too far away. I'd love it if I could register at stores that sell cloth diapers and slings and more natural baby items....but I know my family, and they are not big on-line shoppers. I bet I probably don't need half of the stuff I put on my registries, but I I'll be able to take things back if I want to. It WILL be very handy to have things like Lasinoh, a breast pump (nothin' fancy), a carseat (I already have the infant one, so I registered for the next step up), a stroller, and some other random things. Any of you mommas wanna suggest things to add to my registry? I also picked a bunch of Onesies (although I don't know exactly how they fit with CD's), some sippy cups, socks, gender neutral sleepers, nipples for the bottles my sis gave me (if I ever have to pump and use them for any reason), baby wash/shampoo, hhhmmmm.....there's a bunch more, but I'd be here forever if I listed it all.

***Edit***
I felt the baby move from the outside for the first time today! (Wednesday) It was pretty amazing. I've been feeling little movements for a while now, but every time I put my hand where I felt the movement, the little bugger stops and then I wonder if it's just my imagination.

This morning at about 5:30, I got up to pee and when I laid back down, I could feel a lot going on down there. I put my hand right below my belly button and pressed down a little so I could feel the top of my uterus. Just a few seconds later, I felt a strong kick or punch. There's no blaming it on muscle twitches or gas when your hand feels a definite jab! Maybe 5 seconds later, I felt it again, but slightly to the right. I love it! Some days, it's easy to forget that there's a person riding around in my belly....I'm sure it'll get harder to forget as the little one starts keeping me awake with kicks to the ribs and punches to the bladder....but for now, I am eating up every little bump and thump. It feels like our baby is saying "Hi, Mommy!"

Ooh yes, and another little note about baby gear. I am torn as to which carseat to register for. I would REALLY like to have the Britax Marathon, but I feel a little guilty about putting a $269 item on our gift registry. Besides, maybe no one will get us a car seat if I'm asking for one that is so expensive. But I can't deny all the wonderful reviews. Any thoughts? Suggestions? Is there a carseat that you absolutely love and swear by? I particularly like the fact that it lasts from birth to a whopping 65 lbs....so, I guess I'd like a convertible carseat that is comparable. My other thought was that if no one gets us the Britax, we could buy it ourselves....and maybe use any money that is left over if we have to return things. I dunno.

Labels: baby gear, midwife, pregnancy milestones, prenatal appointment

posted by Unkempt Mommy @ 7:25 PM,

5 Comments:

At Wed Nov 22, 10:16:00 AM CST, Anonymous said...: Onesies with cd's = cute!
But if you use longies or woolly covers you're proud of, you've got to wrap the onesie around the tushie of the cover which kind of defeats the loveliness of it... (the onesie can't go inside the cover, obviously)

Also, if onesies or snap-under t-shirts are TIGHT, like on the getting-small side, they might squish too close to the diaper around the thighs and get a little wicked-onto. We have had to remove entire undershirts from beneath outfits because of this after a particularly long nap with a particularly snug onesie...

Back to lurking!

J in Toronto
At Wed Nov 22, 03:25:00 PM CST, Danielle said...: I'll second the onsies wicking around the legs. I'm thinkin' you definitely need a Boppy. Your back will be killing you and supporting baby with your arms is so tough on those muscles, so the boppy sits on your thighs, baby sits on boppy and you just kinda craddle baby so they don't fall off. I love mine! Plus it doubles for when baby is sitting up or even laying around you recline them in it.

I'm so excited for you to feel your little wombling! What a wonder! I can't beleive you are already almost 20 weeks, it seems like yesterday I found your blog and you weren't even pregnant yet, just talkin' about your hoopty car!

There is more stuff I think you should registar for, but not much. I'll give you the list later on.
At Wed Nov 22, 04:57:00 PM CST, Anonymous said...: Ooooh, congrats for being kicked! I LOVED that feeling. I used to lay awake and play hand hockey with my little ones because nighttime was their favorite time to play with me. Dh never minded my waking him to whenever they were particularly active since that time goes by so quickly.

On to baby gear: Register for hte Britax if you think it will fit into your car. Someone might have read all the reviews and might feel like you NEED it!! You never know. IF you are planning on using baby wipes, I suggest a wipe warmer. Actually, I used cloth ones for over a year and still used a wipe warmer. I thought it was the silliest un-registered for gift that I got, but OH MY GOODNESS, was it wonderful for that tiny baby tushie! I would put a few pre-moistened wipes in before bed and they'd be warm when we needed to change in the middle of the night.

We didn't find out either time what we were having, and we had ultrasounds since I was high risk both times. There is nothing better than being in that delivery room and hearing, "IT'S A GIRL!" and "IT'S A BOY!" I was blessed to be able to hear both once. It TICKED everyone off because they wanted to buy me pink or blue, but I loved my yellow and green layettes. I was able to use them for both of my babies!

Enjoy every kick!!

~Shawna Lee
http://shooflypieandgrits.blogspirit.com
At Wed Nov 22, 08:41:00 PM CST, Wendy @ WMF said...: I'm so excited for you that you got to feel a kick!
I would suggest registering for the Avent Isis breast pump. It's manual,
comfortable, and easy to use. It will come in especially handy if you happen to get engorged.
I always liked those long baby gowns that extend past the baby's feet and are elastic at the bottom. They make for easier middle of the night diaper changes. Plus they are a little baggy so you don't have to worry about the cd bulge.
At Thu Nov 23, 10:06:00 PM CST, Anonymous said...: Oh, ditto Wendy on the Avent. I tried two electric pumps and the only one that ever worked for me was the Isis. Of course, my little man would never take a bottle, but I ended up getting enough to go away for ONE NIGHT when he was 13 months old for my 5 year anniversary and he took it from a cup!!

~Shawna Lee