In Which I Am a Sappy Sap

So the day after Valentine's Day, I felt the baby move for the first time. (I had felt things that I thought might be the baby, but then my stomach would growl and I would decide it was probably something else.) I was sitting on the bed in my old bedroom sorting through some things so that we can start painting in there sometime before my belly gets too big for me to reach the wall, and I felt several distinct pops that I'm calling baby kicks even though I suppose they could have been baby punches or jumping jacks.

Time out to say that it is weird to have a miniature person kicking your insides. But it is also pretty awesome.

Anyway, I was floating around on a baby high all evening, and that night when Eric went to bed, he asked where I'd felt the baby move. So I put his hand  on my stomach where I felt her kick, and I kid you not, she started to move just a couple of seconds after he put his hand there. Of course, Eric couldn't feel her yet (according to the Babycenter community, that probably will happen sometime between week 21 and week 23, but who knows?) but of course I was going, "OH! She can feel YOU! EEEEEE!!!!"

Yes. I also cried when I watched this video the day after we found out I was pregnant. I am a little ridiculous. But it still made me really happy, and I'm excited for Eric to actually get to feel her kick back.

What We're Having and Other Updates

Happy Valentine's Day all! I regret to inform you that I haven't had time to make a playlist this year, so you'll have to check the archives if you're in need. I'm sorry. However, to make up for it, I offer you a picture of the baby bump! (I'm 18 weeks now, but it took me a few days to get around to uploading it.)

Approximately 17 and a half weeks

Okay. I have been a blog slacker since the move (which went well), despite the fact that we've been eventful around these parts. The most important thing is that on Eric's birthday, Feb. 10th, we went to the doctor and had an ultrasound. And it's a GIRL BABY!!! (I would post pictures of the ultrasounds, but they didn't give me digital ones this time, they look fuzzy alien pictures unless I explain them to you anyway, and also Eric felt his first stab of fatherly protectiveness when the doctor started talking about the "hamburger shape" that represented the girl parts. He told me later that his first instinct was, "Hey! That's my DAUGHTER you're talking about!" Which made me love him deeply. Again.) We got to see her wiggling around and she actually looked like a baby with fingers and toes and a humanoid head this time (a big improvement over the kidney bean with a heart we saw at seven weeks) and I'm positive that she's already the most beautiful baby in the world. I'm also excited because we had much better girl names in mind than boy names, so naming the little darling will be exponentially less stressful. We'll have to work on boy names over the next few years in case we get one of those later. There's another ultrasound in about 3 weeks where they'll check out everything and make sure she's developing normally, and I think we'll get to see things a little more clearly then.

In any case, that set off a rampage of brainstorming about the nursery, so now I have a little more motivation to clean out my old room so we can start getting it ready. I already found a fabric that I LOVE and I'm trying to avoid buying it before I look around a little more, but I think it's a done deal. Baby girl is getting a blanket made out of that stuff, and it will probably inspire the nursery mural. I'll post a picture when I actually buy it.
It was hard to 1) find a place in the house with a blank wall and 2) explain to Eric that taking a picture from below is a bad idea for anyone, but especially for a pregnant lady who is self-conscious about her increased double-chin potential. But there you are.

In other news, both Eric and I celebrated our birthdays (inexpensively, since we're still in post-moving and early stages of the new business mode) and they were lovely. Eric is an excellent hint-taker where presents are concerned, and it was wonderful to be able to celebrate my birthday with my parents for the first time in a few years.

Last week, we went to Vegas for a Mustache Power job filming the Big O Tires franchise owner retreat. We were grateful that it went off without any hitches that were our fault (there are always a few technology emergencies, but there was nothing horrifying, and none of it was on our end). Highlights included the Elvis impersonator who came in during one of the breaks, a visit to my dear friend Melissa and her beautiful family, and free tickets to the Ka Cirque du Soleil show. It was a great trip (and I was a very wonderful camera woman, if I do say so myself).

In between all of that, we've been reconnecting with old friends (and we hope to see many more in the near future), enjoying being closer to family, and feeling a little overshadowed by the popularity of the hedgehog with my nieces and nephews. (Also, my husband is a rock star salesman. He is awesome at his job.)

May you all have a day filled with love and chocolate!