A Belated Winter Wonderland

Everyone, attention everyone.... this is NOT a test---we have our first snow of the year!! Since it is February 19, I was starting to wonder if it was going to happen. Tim had the day off (woohoo) so we just spent the day relaxing, cuddling, and enjoying a little down time. And then late this afternoon, we looked out the window and saw a little bit of sleet bouncing off the ground and now we have at least 1.6 inches of snow on the ground.

I am anxiously awaiting to see if we will have a delay or (oh, please, oh, please, oh pleaaase) a cancellation with school tomorrow. Of course, I am sure we won't find out until tomorrow morning....

About two hours ago--now our patio is covered.

AHHHHH I JUST HEARD/READ THAT SCHOOL IS CLOSED TOMORROW! I squealed so loud, I may as well be five years old again. I love, love, love snow days. I am a teacher and I LOVE SNOW DAYS. They are the best little unexpected gift. Tim just took Jack (our dog) out in the snow and it is his first snow (at least since we have had him). The report? He loved it, too....but now he has laid himself down in front of the fire and hasn't budged in about 20 minutes. I guess he is like me--snow is pretty, but let's stay warm!

In other news, Tim's mom sent us the sweetest most unexpected package in the mail the other day.... they are officially baby's first clothes. She said that they are a little "boyish" but if it turns out to be a girl, we can fancy them up with bows and barrettes and other girly things.

Little BEAR feet hehehe

Tim and I will go on Tuesday to find out the results from the Down Syndrome Screening and to also check on little one's heart rate--- prayers that everything goes smoothly, please. 

There are a few things that no one told me about being pregnant.... the books and websites have since informed me, but people tend to leave these things out. For example:  bloody noses and nasal congestion. Every night I get so so so very stuffy and many mornings as soon as I wake up my nose starts bleeding. We have bought a humidifier and I've tried to keep my intake of water up in hopes of stopping this, but so far it hasn't done too much...Except make me have to wake up numerous times to go to the bathroom. Another thing? Raging hip and lower back pain. It has really amped up the past 2-3 days, but this morning I was so stiff and sore and achey I had to use my hands to push my body to roll over to the other side in bed. Tim has had the intense pleasure of hearing me complain about it all day.... bless him, he just listens and offers to make me a bath (and I am stubborn and refuse and refuse). And another thing.... getting out of breath when doing absolutely nothing. The other night I was on the phone with my sister-in-law and had to keep pausing to catch my breath. The next day I went to the park with Tim and was walking up a big hill and I was just as out of breath as I had been on the phone. It makes no sense to me, but apparently it is normal. Something about increased heart rate in me and how I use my oxygen differently....blah, blah I don't know it just makes me feel like a big fat fatty for the most part. It's pretty sad when you can't breath just because you threw in a load of laundry.

In closing, Saturday was officially (no matter what book or website you read) my first day of the SECOND TRIMESTER!! Everyone do a party dance, because I did. So far second trimester is going great.... Tim has been off work, I got to celebrate my friend Kellie's birthday with friends, it snowed, and school is cancelled tomorrow.  Awesome. And something so exciting to me? I woke up this morning actually wanting some Panda Express orange chicken. I have not wanted that since before I was pregnant, or anything like it. Let's hope this means I will enjoy food again very soon. It is the most curious sensation to not like your favorite foods... it's as if you have amnesia and everyone tries to tell you what your favorite stuff is, but you can't remember it. 

Want to know about baby this week? Read on... this was taken from babycenter.com. Come back soon to hear our doctor results! =]

How your baby's growing:

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.