Category: Updates about Sylvia

Nov. 17: She’s getting so big!  I’ve definitely got a belly.  My winter coat is starting to strain, and it won’t be long until I’m switching over to Bryan’s jackets.  The little one actually woke me up the other night with her activity, and she’s made me gasp out loud when she gives an unexpected kick.  My 28 week appointment is next Tuesday.  Gluclose testing time!

28 week update
By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She’s also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

27 week update
This week your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14.4 inches long with his legs extended. He can now open and close his eyes, and he sleeps and wakes at regular intervals. He may suck his fingers, and although his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with assistance — if he were to be born prematurely. Chalk up any rhythmic movement you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and isn’t bothersome to him, so enjoy the tickle. With more brain tissue developing, your baby’s brain is very active now. Wonder what he’s thinking?

Nov. 3: I can’t believe that the little one is putting on weight so quickly.  According to BabyCenter, she’s added a half pound in the last few wees, now weighing in at about a pound and two thirds.  I’m reaching the end of the lovely second trimester, and all is calm and easy.  My belly is starting to poke out more, causing me to grunt a big while bending over to pick things up off the floor, but I’m still nearly completely comfortable.  While I raked the lawn yesterday, the little one- either excited or unhappy with my activity-was dancing up a storm.  She’s generally pretty quiet, but when she has one of her active cycles, holy cow!  It’s starting to take my breath away!  What a glorious time of year this is for me and my belly:)

BabyCenter.com 26 week update

How your baby’s growing:

Your baby now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches (an English hothouse cucumber), from head to heel. The nerve pathways in her ears are developing, which means her response to sounds is growing more consistent. Her lungs are developing now, too, as she continues to take small breaths of amniotic fluid — good practice for when she’s born and takes that first breath of air.

Oct. 28: The little baby is getting bigger and stronger.  She’s moving around less frequently, but more strongly.  Sometimes she’ll shift or kick or turn, and I’ll gasp in surprise or slight shock.  Last week I got a wonderful delivery from the UPS man with some additional new clothes for the little one.  Oh, they are SO CUTE!  I plan to take more pictures soon.
This week I’ve started to notice that my stomach capacity is decreasing.  I think that as the baby continues to move north that I’m often running out of room part-way through my plate.  In general, though, I’m still in a really comfortable part of pregnancy.  I love my sweet belly!

BabyCenter.com week 25 update

How your baby’s growing:
Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. His weight — a pound and a half — isn’t much more than an average rutabaga, but he’s beginning to exchange his long, lean look for some baby fat. As he does, his wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and he’ll start to look more and more like a newborn. His hair is probably recognizable now (in color and texture), although both may change after he’s born.

Oct. 24: I really like being pregnant.  And this is such a sweet little person whom I’m carrying around.  I’m completely smitten with her.
A couple weeks ago I had my first appointment with my new midwife. When Bryan changed jobs, our insurance changed, so now I will be seeing the UW Midwives.  I’m really excited to be working with midwives.  I’ve heard only good things from the people I know who have had the pleasure of having their assistance.
My next appointment isn’t until 28 weeks.  I normally would be going every four weeks, but I’m supposed to have the fabulous glucose test at 28 weeks, and my midwife said that for a normal second pregnancy she doesn’t feel like it’s really necessary to see patients every four weeks.  So there will be a six-week gap between this set of appointments.  My next appointment and glucose test (to check for diabetes) is scheduled for November 19.

BabyCenter.com Week 24  Update

Your baby’s growing steadily, gaining about a quarter of a pound since last week, when she was just over a pound. Since she’s almost a foot long, that makes a pretty lean figure, but her body is filling out proportionally and she’ll soon put on more baby fat. Your baby’s skin is thin, translucent, and wrinkled, her brain is growing rapidly, and her taste buds are developing. Her lungs are developing “branches” of
the respiratory “tree” and cells that produce surfactant, a substance that helps the air sacs inflate easily.

Oct. 18: This is such a lovely time in pregnancy.  I think I’d be happy being this pregnant as a general state of being in life.  I can feel the little one rolling and kicking and moving around, but the motions are generally soft and fluttery.  She’s feeling less like a pingpong ball in her movements this week.  Her movements seems to be slowing down a little.  Maybe she’s finding that she’s running out of room.  Hard to believe that she’s over a pound now:)
My belly has rounded out in the last week or two.  I no longer fit into any of my pre-pregnancy pants, and especially now that I’m wearing maternity shirts, I’ve had several people on the street comment on my pregnancy.  It’s a surprising time to have my pregnancy go from a secret I tell people to a fact that anyone I meet can know.
Sleep has been good these days, and I haven’t been particularly tired during the day.  Plus I can still usually eat big meals, which I enjoy.  I’ve gained about 10 pounds since July, but I lost around 8 pounds in May and June (early pregnancy loss of appetite), so while I’m feeling bigger, I’m not yet feeling heavy.  But that’s coming!
I bought the cutest little shoes at a wonderful store in St. Paul called Peapod.  They make me so very happy.  That’s the news for now!

23 Week Update from Babycenter.com

Your baby is more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound. His skin is red and wrinkled. Blood vessels in his lungs are developing to prepare him for breathing. He can swallow, but he normally won’t pass his first stool (called meconium) until after birth. Loud noises heard often in utero — such as your dog barking or the roar of a vacuum cleaner — probably won’t faze your baby when he hears them outside the womb.

Oct. 7: Time keeps going by.  I haven’t been on the computer much in the last week, and when I logged on this evening, I was shocked to see that I’ve reached the 22 week mark.  The illustration for this week is a little weird looking.  I know that the baby has very little fat, but this one looks a whole lot like ET:)
I had some fun recently looking at the posts that I had done during my pregnancy with Andrew.  They’re available at the very start of my blog or right here.  So far, this pregnancy has been really, really easy.  I’m feeling the baby moving a lot of the time, and I’m feeling very loving toward her.  I love anticipating that the little person who is growing inside of me could grow to become one of my favorite people in the whole wide world.  Pictures of the ultrasound and some exciting new baby clothes are in the gallery.

Here’s the 22 week update from BabyCenter.com

How your baby’s growing:

Your baby now looks like a miniature newborn, checking in at 10.9 inches and almost 1 pound. Her skin will continue to appear wrinkled until she gains enough weight to fill it out, and the fine hair (lanugo) that covers her head and body is now visible. Her lips are becoming more distinct, and the first signs of teeth are appearing as buds beneath her gum line. Her eyes are developed, though the iris (the colored part of the eye) still lacks pigment. Eyelids and eyebrows are in place, and her pancreas, essential for hormone production, is developing steadily.

Sept. 30: This sweet little baby is really moving around in my belly!  I spent the weekend up in Northfield and St. Paul, and in the evenings while Maretta and I were watching movies, she could feel the little bumps coming from my tummy.
I think that this is the most calm and lovely part of a pregnancy.  I can feel the sweet little baby, I’m feeling pregnant and growing but still small enough to be comfortable almost all the time.  It’s not hard to do anything yet.  The sweet little baby bumps aren’t uncomfortable, my pelvis isn’t splitting…these are all really good things.  I’d like it if this month could last a while.  On the other hand, I want to meet our new little person, so let’s keep the show on the road!

Update from BabyCenter.com – Week 21

How your baby’s growing:

Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is
approximately 10 1/2 inches long. His eyebrows and eyelids are fully developed. And you can certainly feel him move. He’s oblivious to your schedule, though, so don’t be surprised if he starts working out just when you’re settling down for the night.

Sept. 25:  I’m just back at a computer after my fun and heartwarming ultrasound appointment.  The little one was bopping around inside.  Very active and looking all complete and healthy.  The ultrasound lady got a good look, and she said that we’re having a girl.  Yay!  I’m so giddy and excited.  Going out for French fries and a malt now!
~Althea

Sept. 25: Today is the day of my 20 week ultrasound, and I just can’t wait to get a glimpse of the little wanderer inside.  I asked Andrew last night if he thought that the teeny tiny baby would be a sister or a brother.  He said sister.  Then I asked if a sister was a girl or a boy.  He said a boy.  I told him a sister is a girl and a brother is a boy asked again which he thought our baby would be.  He said sister.  So that’s Andrew’s guess.
I think Bryan has no guess about gender, and I’ve been quietly thinking girl from nearly the beginning.  I’ve spent the last week trying to get my head around the idea of, “what if it is a boy?”  I’d be pretty surprised!  But I’d be delighted either way.  I kind of see myself as the mom of a boy.  I like the idea of boys and brothers.  When I first found out I was pregnant, I was hoping for a boy.  But then I started to get a girl sense, and at this point, like I said, I’d be really surprised if it was a boy.
So exciting!  I’ll post an update as soon as I find out!

Sept. 22: I feel like my belly is doing some major growth this week.  Objectively, I don’t think I look any different, but it’s somewhat uncomfortable down there.  I’m still feeling the little one kick…little blip-y feelings.  The other night, it was actually making it kind of hard for me to fall asleep.  Such a sweet and wonderful feeling.
My ultrasound is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 25.  Hopefully we’ll find out the gender at that point.  I just can’t wait to see the little munchkin…getting a sneak peak is such a treat!

From BabyCenter.com 20 week update

How your baby’s growing:

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She’s also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, and about 10 inches from head to heel.
(For the first 20 weeks, we use measurements taken from the top of the baby’s head to her bottom — known as the “crown to rump” measurement.
After that, we use measurements from head to toe. This is because a baby’s legs are curled up against her torso during the first half of pregnancy and are very hard to measure.)

A greasy white substance called vernix caseosa coats her entire body to protect her skin during its long submersion in amniotic fluid. (This slick coating also eases the journey down the birth canal.)

Your baby is swallowing more, which is good practice for her digestive system. She’s also producing meconium, a black, sticky substance that’s the result of cell loss, digestive secretion, and swallowed amniotic fluid. This meconium will accumulate in her bowels, and you’ll see it in her first messy diaper (although a few babies pass it in utero or during delivery).