39 Weeks

This week's belly shot was taken at the end of the day, just as I was about to go to bed! I had a bit of a scare earlier when I realized in late afternoon that I hadn't really noticed the baby moving all day. She almost always responds if I rub or push my belly or if Pedro talks directly to her, but she didn't budge after numerous (and increasingly frantic) attempts. So we rushed over to the community clinic to get someone to check out the baby's heartbeat and my vitals just to make sure everything was fine. Of course, as soon as a doctor put the cold jelly to my navel, the baby started moving. That sense of terror and helplessness that proceeded the visit was terrible, though. I cannot say enough how thankful I am that I can just walk into the clinic and get seen right away without having to mess around with insurance paperwork or other bureaucratic concerns. It's hard to believe that almost ten months of pregnancy have passed and we're about to have a baby. I'm including a photo of the positive pregnancy test that I took all the way back on June 26th, 2007 - the very first of many exciting surprises for us!

38 Weeks

After Pedro's company "holiday" party

37 Weeks

We just got back from walking the dogs and it was incredibly windy! I don't think the belly looks much bigger though, but the baby inside sure feels bigger each day.

36 Weeks - 9 Months!

Bueno, ya pasaron nueve meses del embarazo! Ya que el embarazo dura, en realidad, 10 meses (40 semanas), todavía tengo cuatro semanas mas. Mi amiga Katherine me va a organizar un baby shower la semana que viene, y estoy soñando de la comida que ella va a preparar – como ves, soy toda barriga.

Well, nine months of pregnancy are gone! Since pregnancy is actually 10 months (40 weeks), I still have about four more weeks to go if all goes according to plan. My friend Kat is throwing me a baby shower next weekend and I’m dreaming of the food she’s going to make – as you can see, I’m all belly.

35 Weeks

Before seeing Shakespeare play (Merry Wives of Windsor)
with a friend last night

Bueno, ya llegó la semana numero 35 del embarazo y me siento como un bloque de madera - completamente solida, gruesa, y pesada. Yo camino un poquito mas lento cada día que salgo con los perros - pero por lo menos todavía puedo ejercitarme. Esta mañana me desperté y me levanté a las cuatro y media de la madrugada - no podía dormir ni conseguir un citio comodo en la cama - así que en vez de tratar de dormir me entretuvé mirando el website de eBay. Tenemos una cena formal de la compañía de Pedro en el 2 de Febrero - solamente dos semanas antes de la fecha del parto. Hay que comprar un vestido lindo (y grande) que cubra toda mi barriga enorme - solamente por una ocasión! Es increíble pensar que vamos a ser papa y mama en cuestión de semanas!!!
It took me forever to make the above Spanish translation, but I did it! I'll try to keep up with it.

I'm 35 weeks pregnant now and I feel like a big block of wood - totally solid, thick, and heavy. Each day I left the house to heft my weight around the neighborhood on dog walks I go a bit slower - but at least I can still get myself some exercise. This morning I woke up at 4:30a.m. - I couldn't sleep or find any comfortable position so I just got up - and surfed eBay. I have to find a formal dress for Pedro's company party on February 2nd, which is only two weeks prior to my due date! So after finding nothing fitting in my closet, I have to find a nice (and big) dress that covers my big belly - and just for one time!

It's incredible to think that we're going to be parents in only a matter of weeks!

34 weeks

33 Weeks

We finally got around to getting a photo during daylight hours - the days are so short here in winter that by the time we remember to take the weekly photo, we're stuck with poor indoor lighting. It's not warm here, despite my wearing a short-sleeved shirt - it's cold and it's windy!

Christmas has already come and gone! We spent a quiet Christmas at home - just Pedro, me, the dogs, and the little baby in my belly - and it was very nice. I cooked all kinds of Puerto Rican holiday food along with some apple pie for dessert. Now we have a New Year's Eve party to go to in only two days and I'm a little worried about finding a fancy dress that I can actually fit into.

My neighbors are down in Cornwall (southern England) and they've left me to take care of their four Bantam chickens while they're gone. Walking out to the chicken coop every morning to take care of their chickens amidst sprawling English farmland is so wonderful that it reminds me of how much I can't wait to show little Isabella the beauty of the outdoors (and so much more).

Eight months down!

32 weeks!

31 Weeks

Here is a photo of Pedro setting up the new nursery furniture. He and his friend Ben hauled everything over from Kiddicare, then Pedro put everything back together. I was so proud! It looks really nice. As soon as I get things more organized in there, I'll post a photo of the completed project.

And here is your weekly belly shot.

30 weeks

29 weeks - Third Trimester!!!

We didn't get a chance to get a photo for my 28th week and my official entrance into the third trimester. If I go to full term, I still have another 11 weeks - but technically, the baby is ready to go after 37 weeks!

We went to a jazz concert (Koop) at the Jazz Cafe in London yesterday and the baby got another taste of great music (since hearing the opera Aida in Verona this summer). I'll try to write more and post a couple more pics later in the week.

Trip to Greece at 27 Weeks

There's no special belly shot for this week because when I hit 27 weeks we were on our way back from Athens. We spent three wonderful days there, ate lots of cheese and savory foods, and had excellent baklava. It seemed like the perfect time of year to travel there - no crowds and temperate weather. The Greek people we met were always extra nice to us after seeing my protruding belly - people gave up their seats, smiled a lot, and I even got two good luck gifts from a couple of shop owners (including one to ward off the evil eye)! Now that we're back, I have a couple of appointments to monitor my low platelet count - hopefully all has normalized - I feel great. I am beginning to slow down a bit more though, and I had to take a lot of rest stops while we were walking around Athens.

In other news, this coming Thursday is also not only Thanksgiving but our 7th wedding anniversary!!!

26 Weeks, more classes

We had our last parentcraft class on Thursday at the hospital - I thought it was better than last time, but three hours of the evening does get to be a bit long. We got a tour of the hospital and got to see the facilities for delivery, which were pretty nice. Next week begin the classes just for pregnant mothers-to-be at the smaller, local clinic. I'll get a chance to meet other women who are as far along as I am, which will be really nice. Other than that, the belly doesn't seem like it's getting a whole lot bigger these last few weeks, though the belly button threatens to pop out at any moment.

25 Weeks

24 Weeks

Well, I've got six full months of pregnancy under my belt, so to speak. Things are going really well, I feel good, I have high energy, and I've been trying to do a little bit of pregnancy yoga to ease my constant leg cramps (as well as eating tons of bananas).

One thing that I've been really preoccupied about is the issue of diapers. Pedro and I both agreed that we are willing to try using cloth diapers, so I've been doing lots of research into the easiest ways of going about it. For those of you who have used cloth diapers - what brands, if any, do you recommend?

Ya pasaron seis meses del embarazo. Todo esta bien, me siento bien, tengo mucha energía, y habia tratado de hacer un poquito de yoga para aliviar los dolores de las piernas (y como muchas bananas). Una cosa que me preocupa es la cuestión de pañales de tela. Pedro y yo estamos de acuerdo que queremos usar pañales de tela, y he hacido unas investigaciónes en las maneras mas fáciles en hacerlo – pero hay tantas opciónes…. ¿Hay alguien que nos pueda recomendar una marca distinta?

18 weeks

I had another appointment with the midwife today and everything looks fine. My uterus is now past my belly button. I wore this shirt to my first appointment at 6 weeks and haven't worn it since, so it really surprised me to see how much I've grown when I put it on this morning.

In just three more weeks we find out if it's a boy or a girl. I dreamed that I did an ultrasound on myself and it was a boy :) We'll see!

--

Tuve una cita con la comadrona hoy y todo se ve muy bien. El utero ya sobrepasa el umbligo. Yo
use esta camisa en la primera cita (6 semanas) y no la use desde entonces hasta hoy. Me dio una sorpresa a ver cuanto ha crecido la barriga cuando me vesti esta manana.

Solamente en tres semanas mas, averiguaremos cual es el sexo del bebe.

London - Lentil likes Thai food!

17 Weeks to the Day

Pedro made me get out of bed for this :).
It always surprises me when I see my belly in a photo.

13 weeks

La barriga no es muy distinta a la de la semana pasada - un poquito mas redonda en frente, pero estos pantalones casi no me sirven ahora.




My belly doesn't look very different this week - it just seems like the weight is spreading out more. These pants - two sizes bigger than my norm, almost don't fit me anymore though.

12 Weeks

I've put on 4.4 pounds so far, but it seems like so much more!