Viability

"Twenty-four weeks is usually considered the point of viability, meaning that if [one's] baby is born now, it has a chance for survival."

Yeah, I know it's just a chance, but it still amazes me that the little being inside of me could really live outside.

Every milestone is another step closer to those baby shoes.

Does this post make me look fat?

My lovely wife has been in a crisis of self-confidence lately.

I don't know if this is just her or if all pregnant ladies reach a point where they just feel somewhat blah about their appearance, even if they're excited about being pregnant.

I try to tell her all the time that she looks good, but she always asks me, "Do I look pregnant, or just fat?"

That question is kind of like asking a normal person "When you kill people, do you eat their liver or their brain first?"

Most men would rather run hurdles barefoot across a track strewn with shards of pointy broken glass that hear that question.

For the record, my wife looks pregnant and beautiful.

"May Your Spouse Be Bountiful"

We attended a friend's wedding this weekend. It has been a (very) long time since I have gone to a Catholic wedding (talking over a decade here). Throughout the service were references to being blessed with children. It made me cringe. But the one that really got to me was a prayer sung to the couple that included a line "May Your Spouse Be Bountiful." At first, I wondered if that one had been politically corrected with the introduction of spouse (as opposed to wife). And then, I started to ponder who else was being bothered by this phrase. I know, based on discussions with my friend the bride, that she has several infertile friends. Was anyone else in the church pondering their lack of bounty?

On a side note, I learned that the bride's sister miscarried the day of the wedding at 7 weeks. I wonder how much pain the words about being blessed with children brought her. And I pray that seeing all of the babies and small children and my pregnancy did not wound her even more.

Another reason to hate the pill

I wasn't on birth control pills very long but how I hated them (although I was obsessive-compulsive about taking them on time). But this study is another reason to count them as evil. Apparently, being on the pill can cause women to pick bad mates, even ones who are incompatible from a fertility perspective.

Since I wasn't on the pill until DH and I decided to get married, I can't say as they affected my decision-making, but I thought the study was interesting to ponder.

A Rose By Any Other Name

I have always known what I was going to name my daughter. That is, until there was a real possibility that I might have one. For reasons that I can't seem to fathom, I can't make myself settle on a name for a girl. DH is more than happy with some of the suggestions I have thrown out, but just when I start to think we have settled on one, I start to second-guessing.

Strangely enough, DH and I could never agree on a boy name before I was actually pregnant, but now I am totally sold on the boy name we have chosen.

I never realized before how huge the responsibility it is to pick a name for someone else to have for the rest of his or her life. I don't want to add to the inevitable years of therapy by saddling the child with a name that makes life more difficult.

Above average baby

Well, of course, our kid is above average, he or she is ours, after all. But it was confirmed that our child is indeed in the 66th percentile for gestational age. As my OB put it, someone's kid has to be bigger than the average. My OB (whom I am still trying to decide whether he is gay- he commented on the cuteness of my shoes today- do straight men do this?) said that all the measurements are good and all the parts are in place. I am having a nice, normal, boring pregnancy. Who'd a thunk it?

I have the glucose tolerance test next month concurrent with my appointment, so I will be pestering Dr. Google for ways to "beat" it.

After my appointment, I celebrated by going to buy baby's bedding set. You all will be happy to know that the majority won- moon and stars it is!

Big baby

Ultrasound went well. Baby appeared to have all its parts, was measuring ahead at 22w1d (I am 21w2d), and weighs a pound, which is a bit heavier than average for this gestational age. She didn't do a money shot but I was trying to watch when she was looking at the bladder and nether regions (DH looked away per the warning) and I have an idea. I could be wrong b/c there wasn't a clear look. Baby is in a funny position though- basically a V or a pike dive position- imagine holding your feet with your hands and that's pretty much what he or she is doing. Butt down, head and feet up. You can see it in the picture above. The left side of the picture is actually up on me. The baby is sitting wrapped right around my belly button.