Baby - it's Alive!

Hi baby,
Your current home is bigger than a melon and extends to my belly button now.  We're at 17 weeks (15 weeks of your life!). I weighed myself this morning - 124 lbs.  It amazes me how my weight can vary by 4-5 lbs over the course of the day and even how much water is lost overnight.  I sleep best in a cool room, however lately I make a cocoon for myself out of blankets and pillows because it is so cold outside - down to 9 degrees this morning and the ground is covered in white.  Over the last week I have spent a lot of time stilling myself and trying to see if I can feel you move.  I think I am finally starting to feel little movements - twitches here and there, or slow whole body movements as you shift into new positions.  In fact, you're moving now as I write - it's as if you can read my thoughts!  I love you more each day as you are formed and learn and grow!
Your big brother and sister are so happy and already trying to bond with you.  Derek comes close and tries to give you hugs and kisses. Elinor is so proud and tells everyone about your pending arrival.  Your Daddy and I want to be ready to give you the best start!

Baby - meeting your deliverers

Baby, sorry to shift you around so much. We found a great midwife who does prenatal care but does not do the delivery. This week I finally took the next step to look into transferring to a new provider. There are only a few midwives in the state who do home births. We went to an info meeting at Birth and Beyond and ended up setting up our first appointment in their new west hartford office for march. I am nervous as it's always tough to start over such an important relationship from scratch but it has to be done. My previous midwife moved into a community health facility in Bridgeport making the trek too inconvenient for us. I feel comfortable with the move, since the midwives at this new place are on the same page with regard to my desire to have a low key non intervention delivery. I hope you enjoy getting to know these lovely ladies while I am doing so. I am so excited to bring them along our storyline and on our team to bring you safely into this world. 23 1/2 weeks to go!

Quiet Christmas

This year we took a whole week off so we could visit folks in Rochester and Syracuse.  A friend of ours from church offered her home for us to stay in while we visited. The time was spent restfully, lots of friends, family, movies, and relaxing, also a fair bit of driving as we deposited Katie at her mom's for a few days and later picked her up.
Derek got a fever on Christmas day so we laid low for the next day as he recovered.  Took the kids sledding and Derek lost his nerve.  Elinor meanwhile went down the big hill several times bravely by herself.
We had time to visit with Aunt Nancy and my good friend Jackie.  The kids were enthralled by her wii and she lent them her Nintendo DS's which scored major points and kept the kids happy during all the down time over the next few days.
Sunday the kids and I worshiped in the church Mike and I got married in.  Spent the rest of the day chilling out at a friend's house.
Monday we visited with the extended family on my mom's side, played games and ate a lot of tasty food  The kids made their own pizzas.
Tuesday night we saw in the new year with Mike's family, all crowded into his dad's small (right-sized) house, it was a lot of fun.