Third trimester begins

I am at 28 weeks now which according to the book, is the beginning of the third trimester. For the baby, this stage is about fattening up and brain development.
This morning started with a dream about being hungry and actual hunger at 4:30 am. This is the first time that I had to eat something in the middle of the night. If this is a sign of how the next few months will be, it looks like I will be packing on some pounds! Look out, big mamma is coming through!

Upstaged by baby

With this holiday season came a reminder of the upcoming chapter in my life; parenthood. Many Christmas and birthday gifts I received were baby-related or baby-centric. I realize how much fun it is to buy gifts for little ones and I am happy for the excitement around my pregnancy, but baby isn't here yet. So I will take this opportunity to enjoy the last few months of ME-time. Soon, everything will be about the baby!

bye bye belly button

I am mourning the loss of my innie belly button, which is now flat. Flat is good for one reason, it doesn't show through my clothes. So my round, protruding belly isn't interrupted by a hole or a bump of a belly button. Soon, it will probably flip out and I will either need to figure out a way to cover it or proudly display it to the world.

Unusual names

Apparently, Minkz and I like unusual names, perhaps because of our own unusual names. We looked our names up on the Social Security Website and neither of our names are popular. We are not giving away what our name picks are, but we rejected a couple of girl names that we liked based on the fact that they are on the 2007 list of most popular baby names. We are thinking of giving an American first name and a Japanese middle name.

it's official

We gave our 30-day notice and signed a lease for the San Mateo townhouse. Now, we have to make our apartment available for showings. It looks like we will move on the 2nd. Any help moving would be greatly appreciated!
Also, I had my first appointment with the midwife today. I clarified the due date as 3/23, which means that my disability starts 2/23. Let the countdown begin!

the Bump dressed up

This was from Saturday when we went to the EA holiday party

moving

We decided on the San Mateo townhouse as the best choice for our family and we will probably be moving in early January. This was a difficult decision for both of us, because we love where we live. Minkz is having an especially difficult time accepting the idea of a new lifestyle, so please be supportive of him if you can.

Dear Baby in my belly,

You may have noticed that I have not been sleeping well lately. I will have to remember not to have any caffeine after noon. When I wake up in the middle of the night, I feel you move and I get excited, too. Also, your dad had a dream about football and grabbed my head in the middle of the night last night. Sorry, if we startled you. Let's hope to get a good night's sleep tonight.
Love,
Your mom

Prenatal Fitness

It's been a challenge to keep fit during pregnancy. My doc told me to do 30 minutes of exercise everyday to maintain strength and endurance for labor and for a faster recovery afterwards. Since I didn't exercise everyday before I was pregnant, it is hard to find the motivation and time for it now. I have been doing something active on most days. I either walk my parent's dog, go to the gym, or do one of my prenatal workout dvds. I found two that I like, Prenatal Fitness with Erin O'Brien and Yoga for your Pregnancy with Kristen Eykel Minkz and I access the library of books and dvds at DayOne by our house.

Punk Rock Baby

Minkz and I felt like very bad parents-to-be last night. We went to a punk rock show at Kimo's in San Francisco to support a friend's band, Jokes for Feelings. I know that extended periods of loud noise are not good for the baby, but I thought we could handle about an hour. Unfortunately, Jokes for Feelings was the last band playing, so we had to wait it out through two other bands. There was a quieter downstairs area to escape to, but the downstairs had another hazard for pregos, second hand smoke, wafting in from outside (and ex-con looking guys). During the band, Gutwrench, I felt the baby kicking a lot. Maybe it was dancing or maybe it was trying to run away from the noise. Sorry baby!
We did not stay for the whole show and felt relieved when we got out of there. At home, we immediately turned on some classical music and relaxed, hoping to off-set the effect of the punk rock.

home for baby

We finally started looking at rentals again. We saw a nice townhome in San Mateo, but it is right off of El Camino. Minkz is starting to consider what would best for the family (thanks to the movie The Groomsmen). I don't want to miss out on the fun part of setting up a space for the baby. Right now, we don't have anything for the baby besides a set of onesies and a couple of blankets. But, I imagine the baby will need a lot of stuff and we are growing out of our apartment. It will be sad to leave our Sacramento St. spot where we have been for four years now. Hopefully we will be able to find a new place to call home before the baby comes... wish us luck!

22 weeks

I am starting to feel the baby move more frequently now. Minkz was even able to feel it a couple of times. Also, I'm looking and feeling more pregnant. I have difficulty putting on and tying my shoes because my belly is in the way. I have gained about 10 lbs so far!

Midwife relief!

Minkz and I met Lin Lee, one of the midwives at El Camino, today for a consultation. She made me feel comfortable and addressed all of my concerns before I even expressed them. She, or one of the other two midwives (who we will meet), will be with us and help us during labor. It is clear that her philosophy of trusting the body in childbirth matches ours. I almost cried when I told her about our conversation with the ObGyn. I didn't realize how uneasy I was about it until I told someone that understood. So, we have decided to switch prenatal care and delivery to the midwives. Now, I feel like we are in good hands and there won't be any unnecessary interventions. As she put it (in her English accent), "we don't cut bottoms open".

Baby names

Dawn and I have been trying to figure out some names for the baby. We're trying to get a couple names for boy and girl so we aren't locked into just one name when the baby comes out. You know, we want to see the baby before giving it a name. It's been difficult trying to find names. You want them to be easy names, but at the same time, you want them to be unique. Have any suggestions?

Met with ObGyn

Minkz and I had an appointment with my ObGyn and asked questions about labor and delivery. She showed some hesitation when I mentioned "natural labor". She said that she wasn't sure what an "unnatural labor" was and asked if I would go "natural" for a c-section. Also, she rotates with four other ObGyns for delivery, so it seems like the chances that she will be the one to deliver my baby are low. She did assure us that the nurses are great and that we wouldn't be influenced to do anything that we didn't want to do...

ObGyn vs. Midwife

Some of you know that we have been researching the labor process. We watched a movie called, The Business of Being Born, which advocates for natural home birth. I also read a book called, Deliver This! that gives an overview of the methods of delivery. My gut feeling is to go unmedicated, but I have learned that this will take a lot of planning, preparation and strength (psychological and physical). Also, no matter what you plan, there can always be unexpected outcomes. I have already gotten a lot of comments from mothers that have gotten epidurals to 'give in and get the drugs'. It is interesting to me that women take sides on this issue for others, even though it is so personal. For me, the thought of Pitocin, epidural, other drugs, and C-section makes me more uncomfortable than many hours of painful labor. I want to experience the process, be empowered by it, and understand what my mother and grandmothers went through. I am going to discuss the potential of having an unmedicated labor with my ObGyn and we are meeting a midwife that delivers at El Camino hospital in a couple of weeks.

2nd Trimester Ultrasound

baby's profile with leg


baby's profile with arm

This ultrasound was done at 18 weeks to check the baby's anatomy. We told them that we didn't want to know the sex. It was amazing to me that they can tell that a little dot is the bladder, stomach, etc. They even counted fingers and toes.

my belly

Oct 1, 15 weeks


Oct 26, 18 weeks


Oct 26, 18 weeks


I'm still feeling shy about my baby bulge. Here is a photo from Oct. 1 and two from Oct. 26th. The Oct 26 photos are after eating a big bowl of pho. Almost 19 weeks now -we are basically halfway there already!

Second ultrasound

Here is Dawn at our second ultrasound. This was a real fun experience where we got to hear the baby's heartbeat (~160 bpm). It was also the first time we got to see the baby where it didn't look like a jelly bean. Amazing...