Week 14 and 15

Dang!! I am so sorry for not posting the update of Baby Bean the last couple of weeks -- let me tell you, the last couple weeks have been so busy and very stressful. But of course, no excuse. Thanks to several of you who have been staying on top of me, here are the updates.

Week 14: Baby Bean is the size of a lemon!!

This week The Bean started sucking his/her thumb (so stinking cute to think about!! but already i'm worried that based on his/her parent's luck with braces, this is a habit that we will have to break ASAP to avoid a similar outcome, if possible, for the little guy!) and wiggling his/her toes. again, I repeat, so stinking cute!! In addition, The Bean's kidneys, liver, and spleen are continuing to develop. And, the baby grew hair for warmth is week! (this is not the type of hair that he/she will come out with. he/she will loose it while still in the womb).

As for me, during this week I can with out a doubt say that I am already falling head-over-heels in love with the life growing in my belly. I am actually getting really really excited (aliebit terrified) to by a mom.

As for weird things happening with me -- during week 14 my belly button was no longer centered (don't worry, as The Bean grew during week 15, the the button straightened out again). Also, my pants began to get very tight this week.

Week 15: Baby Bean is the size of a Orange!!

Can you believe how The Bean is growing!! This week The Bean is getting to be more porportionate: the legs are finally longer than the arms! way to go Bean -- keep them legs growing like Mama's!!! (but, be kind to her tummy when you are "readjusting"/trying out for the World Cup). Speaking of kicking (while I have not felt the baby kick yet) all 4 joints are working and he/she is supposedly wiggling and squirming away. I can't wait to feel that first little inner nudge. It's supposed to happen any week.

As for me, during week 15, the pants I was able to wear at all diminished to 2 pairs thus, I went shopping and bought a couple that were 2 sizes bigger! My belly isn't incredibly big, nor will it realyl affect my pants waist I think, but my hips have started opening up which is where the bigger pants have come in. It's difficult to find the right pair though b/c while my hips are wider, and I have a little belly, I'm still the skinny Anna which makes for difficult pant shopping.

In addition, Pablo and I went to our first birth class last night (we are doing the Bradley Method). I left feeling pretty overwhelmed, but very excited about all the prep-work we will do during this next 12-week class. In addition to information and prep about the birth and how Pablo will be my coach, I am also learning the stretches/exercises that will help my body prep for the whole ordeal, as well as how to practice relaxing different parts of my body. It's all veyr informative.

Pablo and I have begun to discus the Baby's room, which I could not be more excited about!! We are also talking about me not going back to work 6 weeks after the baby is born (which was the original plan) but rather me staying home with the baby -- something I never EVER thought we would talk about/consider, but the fact is, I'm already in love. I can't imagine leaving this tiny beautiful daughter/son of mine only 6 weeks after meeting him/her. Man! how things have changed in my heart in the last couple of months. Yes, it may be hormones, but I think God made women get those hormones for a definite reason.

Anyways, I will try to post more regularly. Hopefully the next couple of weeks will calm down significantly.

Ps. we find out the sex of the baby on Sept. 30th (that is if he/she is cooperative) :)

Love you all!!

Week 13

Well, we are on to week 13.
This week, Baby Bean is the size of a peach, and doing some amazing things!!

Baby Bean's own unique finger prints are now fully in place (unbelievable!!). Also, by this time the sex genitalia are fully formed and visible, but may still be difficult to see in a ultrasound. But, continuing with that vein of thought, if Baby Bean is a girl, she already has 2million eggs!! By the time she is born that number will decrease to 1million, and by the time she is 17 that number will decrease to about 200K, but that's still a lot of eggs if you ask me!

Also, during this 4th month, Baby Bean will triple in size and quadruple in weight!!! We are heading into the big growth spurts now.

Also, Baby Bean's vocal chords are fully formed. Which, led me to cry the other night when it occurred to me that when Baby Bean is born and cries for the first time, that might actually not be the first time he/she cries. I mean, he/she will more than likely cry while in my belly -- that thought breaks my heart. I'm doing the best I can to make sure that Baby Bean is safe, happy, and growing as healthy as possible -- I don't want him/her to cry, especially when I can't hear it to do anything about it. This thought totally broke my heart when it occurred to me. And, when I shared it to Pablo (not to put him in a bad light or anything), he being ultra-pragmatic and literal said, "Anna, crying requires air to move through the vocal chords, and right now the baby is no breathing air, but getting oxygen from the water in the womb"... My reaction to this was to spat back "while that is a total rational explanation, how the hell do you know?!"

Anyways, I have since accepted the fact that I'm doing the best that I can, and if Baby Bean is going to cry, then we will just have to deal with that when he/she comes out.

Hope you guys enjoy these updates!!

Also, i will soon be posting some updates that I have been checking off my list for the house (it is finally coming together little by little). So, stay tuned for those as well.

Official Annoucement

Hello Friends!

Well, most, if not all, of you have heard the big news, but we are now making it officially public news...

Pablo and I are very much, 100%, no kidding around, pregnant! We are 13 weeks along (we found out 2 months into it).

As many of you know about me, I have never been crazy, or even sold on the idea of having children. In fact, ironically, the 2 months while we were unknowingly pregnant Pablo and I fought more about if we would ever have children (me being on the "let's not" side) than our entire last 2 years of marriage. So, needless to say, these few weeks have been a time of MAJOR adjustment.

I will tell you though, things are going very very well. We are growing steadly more and more excited about the arrival of Baby Bean (due Feb. 22, and named "Baby Bean" because when we discovered that we were pregnant, the baby was the size of a kidney bean). We heard the heartbeat last week which shattered my world almost -- still cannot fathom that I am sustaining a life, it makes my life that much more vital to maintain! -- but hearing the heart beating so fast in my belly, that sound has kept me a bit anchored in the reality that yes we are pregnant, no I am not just putting on a ridiculous amount of weight in my mid-section, and yes, in 9 months, I'm pussing a watermelon out of my very tiny body...

But serisouly, I think the most miraculous thing about being pregnant (aside from being nearly impossible to comprehend on a day-to-day basis) is that I have started to fall very much in love with this tiny life inside me. My world is shifting. My dreams have not changed, but they will definitely be delayed, and oddly enough, I'm more than ok with that. These are miraculous things to be coming out of my mouth friends -- afterall, I'm very selfish (another thing this baby is already teaching me -- stupidly I have gotten frustrated at it being inside me simply because its presence means no sushi, something I am NOT fond of at all!!).

So, without any further ado, I would like to introduce you to the newest Otaola in the making, week by week as we both grow! (sorry, I only have the last couple weeks of photographs on my computer at work, which is where I am, so that is all you get at the moment).



Week 11: Baby Bean is the size of a strawaberry -- this week the arm and leg joints began to form and work

Week 12: Baby Bean is the size of a lime -- this week (end of the first trimester) the Bean began to move his/her limbs (i didn't feel it though), his skin began to respond to touch!, her intestines that were previously in the umbilical chord (who knew!) began to move into the abnominal cavity, his eyelids began to grow and fuse together, she is swollowing, and he is pancrious is beginning to secrete urine which is released into the amniotic fluid! Baby Bean has been hard at work!!!

This week is Week 13 -- stay tuned this weekend for the newest picture and developmental updates!!

Love you guys!

Electric Bill

The last couple of months our electric bill has been exorbidantly high and definitely was not helping our pocketbook at all. I started examining our bill because I didn't think we used significant more electricity in the last 2 months. Turns out that our bill was now being "estimated" not given an actual read. What normally is about $50-$70/month in the summer was $160 2 months ago and $120 last month. Anyways, I figured out how to read our meter myself and report the usage online... our bill is only $70 this month!

ridiculous! how much money are these compies making off of people who aren't paying any attention?!

Anyways, it may sound like a stupid thing to blog about, but that just made my day.

Best Sound Ever

After almost 9 days of not being able to speak to Pablo (he was on a wilderness adventure in the Boundary Waters in Minnesota with some Young Life kids), he just called!!!

I don't think I have ever been so elated to see his face pop up on my phone caller ID, or to hear his voice on the opposite end of the phone.

I have missed him so incredibly much this week -- it has definitely been a pretty difficult few days to get through.

But, now he is heading back to Chicago (should get here in the middle of the night) and later this week we are heading for a brief vacation to San Francisco for my 25th birthday -- I could not be happier right now!

If only the next 12-14 hours (the amount of time it will take him to get here) would be over already!!!

ummm....

my dog, paisley, had explosive diaherra last night....

enough said.

Kitchen Update

Well, things are finally starting to get rolling again at our house (we have had a few bumps, maybe more like massive-potholes-that-have-caused-flat-tires-and-then-the-AAA-truck-was late-type of problems), and things are looking up.

Over the week before Memorial Day, Pablo and I went and picked out the 2 slabs that would be used for our granite countertops, they were fabricated, and today they delivered them!!!!

While I have not been at home to inspect them myself, I am VERY pleased with the photos that Pablo emailed to me. Here are a couple:

(I absolutely LOVE my stove -- it has the 5th center burner it is fabulous!!)

Anyways, I think they look great. Originally I was scarred that they might not look the best with white cabinets, but once we paint the walls, I think they will look great!

Since the counters have bits of red in them, I am planning on painted our walls a dark green with white trim... I am going make my own backsplash out of wine corks, as well as my own drawer pulls out of champange corks... And several other ideas that will make this kitchen my masterpiece.... I AM SOOOOO EXCITED!!!

Next up on the renovation list: get all the electrical wired and all the MASSIVE wholes in every wall in every room finally patched so that we can actually unpack and I can finally begin to make this house a *beautiful* home!

Oh man, I'm excited to get home tonight and unpack my kitchen into the cabinets (who would have thought that that type of thing would make my week?!!)

Anyone up for painting sometime?