What a Big Boy

Well this certainly has been an interesting week for Griffin's development! Allow me to share the ups and downs....

He is now so big that I feel him move constantly, even the slow movements of him sleeping. And especially the raucous movements of him turning over, doing somersaults, and practicing his ninja-like moves.

He is now so big that my organs are smooshed into the upper half of my body, apparently into a very tiny place where my intestines, stomach, and esophagus co-mingle for awhile. Well don't get so cozy, guys, you are moving back to your original places once Griffin stops taking up so much room.

He is now so big I can feel his adorable little hiccups. They feel like those first "gentle taps" I talked about, but they are rhythmic!

He is now so big that sleeping is an obstacle. I can't seem to stay off my back, but that is exactly what I naturally do once I fall asleep (you are not supposed to sleep on your back in late pregnancy). Not to mention that it was an epic failure moving our pups off the bed, or even to the end of it. I have never in my life not looked forward to sleeping; this last month has changed my entire "sleep perspective". I hate it.

And we are now 11 weeks (give or take) from meeting our beloved Griffin! Not far at all!

The Third Trimester Has Now Begun

What a beautiful morning. I woke up to thunder and lightning, and the sound of rain beating hard on the roof. I LOVE this. Curling up under covers during a morning storm is a great treat.

But I couldn't curl up for too long so I cuddled my little boys for a little bit longer, then got up to get ready for my last ultrasound.

So many thoughts....is everything going to be okay, maybe they will find a problem, maybe Griffin is actually a girl (!), oh my GOD, what if that happened! I drove over, got called in, and the ultrasound began.....

And there was my little boy.

PERFECTION is the only word to describe him.

Round head, long legs, bony knees, little toe bones, even a butt. Griffin has some seriously LOOOOONG legs, looks like he is taking after the men in this family. It was amazing how much more detail there was to see at this point in the pregnancy. After measuring a bunch of boring things like kidneys and the stomach (c'mon, I mean, I want to know he is healthy of course, but I really don't care tooooo much about his kidneys!), she finally got around to his face. At this point in the pregnancy, Griffin looks like what Griffin will look like, just smaller. And from what I could tell, he is very cute. She shifted the ultrasound-wand-thing, and goes, "Oh look! See his chubby cheeks?!" Sure enough, there were his chubby cheeks. Cheeks that will be kissed over and over again. But safe from prying hands and lips for now (and Auntie Steffie, who will be such an Elmyra).

Then the most amazing thing happened. He leaned his head back, opened his mouth wide, and yawned! Griffin was sitting there, hanging out, doing normal things inside me like yawning! I couldn't believe it, so sweet. There is a picture of it on the left there, but it actually looks creepy because you can see all of his teeth. The live moment was lovely, though. Just lovely.

So Griffin and I are in good shape for the third trimester with no concerns at this point. Now, they have made me a little bit crazier.......BECAUSE I CAN'T WAIT TO SQUEEZE MY LITTLE CHUBSTER!!

Farewell Second Trimester, It's Been Nice Knowing Ya

Well, we are officially at the end of our second trimester. I have had a wonderful experience with this trimester and am not necessarily interested in moving forward into the third :). I was active, not nauseous, felt great, not tired. Now those things are slowly creeping back into my life along with that final, impending, third trimester.

Griffin and I had our 27 week check-up today, and we are both doing great! Griffin had a bpm of 145, my blood pressure is perfect, and my weight gain is very good. We have an ultrasound on Monday to make sure that everything is looking right for delivery down the line. Oh my goodness, part of me is so nervous that they will do the ultrasound and say, "Errr...Griffin actually is not a...boy." Most likely won't happen, but it still freaks me out a little!

My most recent development has been sausage hands and toes. If someone came over to my house in the evenings, they would probably catch me watching Law and Order SVU with my swollen feet in a bowl of ice water. :)