This past Monday was our big anatomy ultrasound for the baby. Everything was great, and baby was on the move as usual. We did confirm (for a 3rd time now) that she is definitely a she! We saw lots of great shots of the baby, although she never let us get a good profile picture of her face, because she kept it buried most of the time behind her hands or tucked towards her chest. Most importantly, her growth and development looked perfectly normal. At this point in the pregnancy (just over 21 weeks), baby is about 10 1/2 inches long! No more measuring the entire body length on an ultrasound, because she's too big! Now they just have to measure particular body parts (the leg bone, head and belly) to estimate the size and corresponding gestational age.
I started working again full time this week, covering a friend's maternity leave in 2nd grade. After being accustomed to teaching kindergarteners and mothering a 2-year-old, it's been amazing to see what 2nd graders can do...on their own! We have been saying prayers of thanksgiving every day that Finley has done really well with this change so far, and hasn't been acting out more than normal. Since I'm only a sub, I'm not required to go to any meetings after school and can leave in time to get home near the end of Finley's nap to have the rest of the afternoon and evening with him. Thank goodness, because Nate's been busy going to lots of end-of-year dinners and parties and has been a bit MIA the past few days. But now, (happy sigh), it's the weekend and we can catch up on more family time and family naps! This morning, we kicked off the weekend with a hike since the weather is lovely.
Nate and I are a bit tired from all the busy-ness. Speaking just for myself, it's hard being pregnant and working all day, then coming home to a second shift of parenting and cooking dinner, while also doing a little of my own school work and then trying to find the energy to maintain personal hygiene (i.e. shower) before collapsing in bed. But, it's only for another week and a half, so I'm sure we'll all make it and will be very glad to have the extra money to put towards our hospital bills when baby is born!
Just another little tidbit about Finley to end the post: Last night, when I was feeding him dinner and Nate wasn't home yet, Finley blurted out one of his longest sentences so far-- "Daddy come home then go outside again." Wow, 7 words in a row!
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Over half-way there!
This Friday, we were officially half-way to meeting our little girl and becoming a family of four! Although the time on bed rest admittedly went somewhat slowly, the rest of this pregnancy is zooming by. This little girl is kicking up a storm in my belly, which is one of my absolute favorite parts of pregnancy. (I'll be honest, I missed it a bit once Finley was born!) At 20 weeks, baby is measuring around 10 inches long from head to heel, which would explain why I can really feel her moving these days, and why people are starting to notice I'm pregnant. We tried to take a 20-week photo on Friday, but Finley had his own plans to throw a fit at the same time, so we ended up with a not-so-great photo of me with screaming Finley. I will include it here just because Finley's expression is hilarious; Nate really captured the moment.
We got the best surprise in the mail today-- our first baby girl gift, sent from Aunt Jessica and Uncle Brett! They sent a super cute Boppy cover and newborn outfit, which we were so excited to receive! Aunt Jessica and Uncle Brett have great taste, don't they?! Looking at that tiny onesie, I could hardly believe Finley was ever that small, or that we're going to get to hold another little baby like that before we know it. Yay!
What else is going on? Finley is going through another screaming phase-- I think this makes three of these phases in the past year and a half. But at least based on the past two times, I know it should be temporary. Funny enough, he even lets out occasional squeals/screams in his sleep right now. Despite the tantrums, Finley brings such joy to our lives. I love how he gets excited about the littlest everyday things, like the sound of my parents' dog barking on Skype, or being allowed to help flush the toilet. It definitely gives me a new (and better) perspective on life.
Nate is busy reading report cards these days, and I'm preparing to substitute teach starting next week to cover a friend's maternity leave for the rest of the school year. Let's hope Finley adjusts well to that big change! We are all getting anxious to return to the States, but still have one more month to wait....
We attempted another photo the next day and had a bit more success, so I guess this will be the official 20-week photo:
We got the best surprise in the mail today-- our first baby girl gift, sent from Aunt Jessica and Uncle Brett! They sent a super cute Boppy cover and newborn outfit, which we were so excited to receive! Aunt Jessica and Uncle Brett have great taste, don't they?! Looking at that tiny onesie, I could hardly believe Finley was ever that small, or that we're going to get to hold another little baby like that before we know it. Yay!
What else is going on? Finley is going through another screaming phase-- I think this makes three of these phases in the past year and a half. But at least based on the past two times, I know it should be temporary. Funny enough, he even lets out occasional squeals/screams in his sleep right now. Despite the tantrums, Finley brings such joy to our lives. I love how he gets excited about the littlest everyday things, like the sound of my parents' dog barking on Skype, or being allowed to help flush the toilet. It definitely gives me a new (and better) perspective on life.
Nate is busy reading report cards these days, and I'm preparing to substitute teach starting next week to cover a friend's maternity leave for the rest of the school year. Let's hope Finley adjusts well to that big change! We are all getting anxious to return to the States, but still have one more month to wait....
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Baby Names
So we've decided to name our little lady.... Ha, yeah right! I'm not telling you! (Actually, we're not even sure yet, though there is a very strong contender!) What I do know is that Social Security recently announced the top baby names of 2011, and we're purposefully trying to avoid those, just because we like to be slightly different than the masses. Here's Social Security's 2011 Top 10 list for girls, in case you're as interested as I am:
1. Sophia
2. Isabella
3. Emma
4. Olivia
5. Ava
6. Emily
7. Abigail
8. Madison
9. Mia
10. Chloe
I like the name Sophie, but it's just too close to Sophia so I vetoed it. And Nate likes Isabelle or Isabella, but once again, it got vetoed because it's just too darn popular. So we've come up with a totally different option that is in no way weird, just not extremely popular. And I'm getting pretty stinkin' excited about it! Not sure at what point we'll decide for sure, but we do plan to keep it all top secret until the birth. These will likely be the only clues you ever get until D-Day. :)
So what's going on with Finley's name these days? It's really not popular in the States (#511), but it is one of the higher ranked boy names in the UK at #35. The name Finn is becoming a more popular boy name in the US recently at #304, though that's still also quite low on the list.
Nate and I have only met one other little boy named Finley so far, and that was a family who also goes to the lake in MI, oddly enough. Even as educators who meet tons of kids, Nate and I have only met that one other Finley-- ever! Let's be honest, former students and their demeanors do factor into the baby naming process because of the associations with which we are left. That makes baby naming even more complicated, and is another reason we avoid the Top 10.
19 weeks tomorrow...almost half-way there!!
1. Sophia
2. Isabella
3. Emma
4. Olivia
5. Ava
6. Emily
7. Abigail
8. Madison
9. Mia
10. Chloe
I like the name Sophie, but it's just too close to Sophia so I vetoed it. And Nate likes Isabelle or Isabella, but once again, it got vetoed because it's just too darn popular. So we've come up with a totally different option that is in no way weird, just not extremely popular. And I'm getting pretty stinkin' excited about it! Not sure at what point we'll decide for sure, but we do plan to keep it all top secret until the birth. These will likely be the only clues you ever get until D-Day. :)
So what's going on with Finley's name these days? It's really not popular in the States (#511), but it is one of the higher ranked boy names in the UK at #35. The name Finn is becoming a more popular boy name in the US recently at #304, though that's still also quite low on the list.
Nate and I have only met one other little boy named Finley so far, and that was a family who also goes to the lake in MI, oddly enough. Even as educators who meet tons of kids, Nate and I have only met that one other Finley-- ever! Let's be honest, former students and their demeanors do factor into the baby naming process because of the associations with which we are left. That makes baby naming even more complicated, and is another reason we avoid the Top 10.
19 weeks tomorrow...almost half-way there!!
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Happy Mother's Day
Happy Mother's Day!
Finley and I would like to wish our wonderful mother/wife a very Happy Mother's Day. This incredibly developed and well maintained blog is indicative of the hard working, organized, talented and loving person Finley and I are blessed to spend our lives with everyday. It is only fitting that we pay tribute to her on this site.
Amanda,
Thank you for all you do to take care of us, to love us, and to nurture us. We give thanks for you everyday!
Love Always,
Nate and Finley
18 Weeks
18 Weeks and ready to go to the HKIS Dinner and Dance!
Finley wanted to get in on the photo action, too. Here he is doing his favorite activity: building towers with Legos and Megablocks.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Dance Party
During dinner last night we had on some music, and Finley desperately wanted to get out of his high chair and dance. So here's a cute little video of our dance party. Finley shows off a variety of original dance moves during the video...enjoy! Click here.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
This Busy Week
This week has been exhausting. I'm trying to finish up all my final projects and papers for the 3 (yes, 3!) classes I've been taking this semester, the last of which is due in a couple of days. I'm so close, but my brain is so fried! After this last project I'm working on, I will only have one more class to take to get my masters. That one will go from next week until mid-August, so I'll be completely finished before our baby girl makes her entrance into the world.
Nate hasn't exactly had much free time on his hands this week either, but at least he didn't have to work on Saturday! It's seemed like he has had a lot of Saturday working to do this spring, and I'll be honest that it doesn't exactly thrill me, particularly since he doesn't even get paid extra to do it. But I guess that's the life of a salaried administrator.
Meanwhile, Finley and the "terrible two's" have collided in full force! And wow, it was right on schedule. It's been wild around here with all the tantrums, screaming, crying, and indecisiveness. Let me just give you an example of a typical conversation:
Me: Finley, would you like to play inside more or go outside?
Finley: Go outside.
Me: Okay, let's get your shoes.
Finley: No outside! No shoes!
Me: Okay, then we can keep playing inside with your Legos.
Finley: No inside! No Legos!
And so it goes on. Ah, 2-year-old life. Luckily, he also does a million adorable and amazing things everyday. A couple of my favorite words he is saying at the moment are basketball ("basket-da-da-ball") and Granddad ("Beandaddy"). He is also really interested in counting and the alphabet at the moment. He can count to 10 pretty well, and knows quite a bit of the Alphabet Song. One particularly hilarious Finley anecdote from this week was when we were on a bus in Stanley, waiting for the driver to close the door and go. Finley shouts out to the driver so everyone could hear, "Pungyao, close the door!" (Pungyao means friend in Cantonese.)
As for the baby, she's moving around everyday, which is a delight (and quite reassuring). A lot of people have asked if this pregnancy is different, particularly because of the gender. I don't know if gender really effects pregnancy symptoms, but it has been different. With Finley, I was so nauseous and exhausted non-stop for a couple of months, but then it was gone around 14 weeks. This time, I was slightly less exhausted and nauseous, but it still won't totally go away even at 17 weeks. With Finley I craved mangos, oranges, and grape juice, but this time it's been apples, toast with butter, cheese and crackers, and fruit-flavored desserts (like banoffee pie or raspberry gelato). I've definitely been sleeping much worse since the beginning of this pregnancy, but my back hasn't hurt quite as much as it did at this point with Finley. I think I'm losing my waist faster this time, which is a common belief about having girls. I'm very interested to see if my belly ends up looking different once I get big, because last time it was the stereotypical boy basketball belly. So the question is, did it look like that because that's how I carry babies, or because it was a boy? We'll find out soon!
I'll leave you with a little picture of Finley sleeping during nap. He still sleeps like when he was a baby. It's terribly cute.
Nate hasn't exactly had much free time on his hands this week either, but at least he didn't have to work on Saturday! It's seemed like he has had a lot of Saturday working to do this spring, and I'll be honest that it doesn't exactly thrill me, particularly since he doesn't even get paid extra to do it. But I guess that's the life of a salaried administrator.
Meanwhile, Finley and the "terrible two's" have collided in full force! And wow, it was right on schedule. It's been wild around here with all the tantrums, screaming, crying, and indecisiveness. Let me just give you an example of a typical conversation:
Me: Finley, would you like to play inside more or go outside?
Finley: Go outside.
Me: Okay, let's get your shoes.
Finley: No outside! No shoes!
Me: Okay, then we can keep playing inside with your Legos.
Finley: No inside! No Legos!
And so it goes on. Ah, 2-year-old life. Luckily, he also does a million adorable and amazing things everyday. A couple of my favorite words he is saying at the moment are basketball ("basket-da-da-ball") and Granddad ("Beandaddy"). He is also really interested in counting and the alphabet at the moment. He can count to 10 pretty well, and knows quite a bit of the Alphabet Song. One particularly hilarious Finley anecdote from this week was when we were on a bus in Stanley, waiting for the driver to close the door and go. Finley shouts out to the driver so everyone could hear, "Pungyao, close the door!" (Pungyao means friend in Cantonese.)
As for the baby, she's moving around everyday, which is a delight (and quite reassuring). A lot of people have asked if this pregnancy is different, particularly because of the gender. I don't know if gender really effects pregnancy symptoms, but it has been different. With Finley, I was so nauseous and exhausted non-stop for a couple of months, but then it was gone around 14 weeks. This time, I was slightly less exhausted and nauseous, but it still won't totally go away even at 17 weeks. With Finley I craved mangos, oranges, and grape juice, but this time it's been apples, toast with butter, cheese and crackers, and fruit-flavored desserts (like banoffee pie or raspberry gelato). I've definitely been sleeping much worse since the beginning of this pregnancy, but my back hasn't hurt quite as much as it did at this point with Finley. I think I'm losing my waist faster this time, which is a common belief about having girls. I'm very interested to see if my belly ends up looking different once I get big, because last time it was the stereotypical boy basketball belly. So the question is, did it look like that because that's how I carry babies, or because it was a boy? We'll find out soon!
I'll leave you with a little picture of Finley sleeping during nap. He still sleeps like when he was a baby. It's terribly cute.
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