my pregnancy this week

hello jennifer! Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

mango-a-go-go in chicago

Brandon and I packed up our little Mango and flew to Chicago to visit Uncle Chris, Aunt Nikki and Cousin Reece! We all had a wonderful time, with many fun dinners out and a trip to the Chicago Children's Museum. Brandon and I even changed a few "poopies" and you know what? It wasn't so bad!! I think we might be ready for this after all.

At the Children's Museum...

We also got to visit Chris's office, which is on the top floor of the tallest building in Oak Brook, Illinois. I am so proud of my little brother and his advertising career. He works really hard and travels a lot, but I know he loves it. He is living his dream! Did I mention he is a champion pumpkin-carver?

Reece is such a good, sweet and funny little girl. She is saying so many words now, which we loved. We carved "punkies", looked out the window for the "guys" (cutting the grass) and the "byes" (airplanes). By Sunday afternoon, she had called Brandon "Gunkle" twice and she might've called me "Danny" (for "Auntie") so we'll take it! We also danced to Reece's favorite song "Disturbia" by Rihanna!

off to chicago!

Just finishing up our day of work before we are off for two days for a long weekend in Chicago with Chris, Nikki and Reece! The weather is not supposed to be great, but we will be happy just getting to hang out with them. We haven't seen Reece (or Nikki) since Memorial Day and we can't wait to see how much she's grown & changed. Hopefully, she'll be saying "Aunt Jen" and "Uncle Brandon" by the time we leave...or something close to it!

We are also planning on watching Reece all day Friday while Chris & Nikki are at work. We think it will be good and much-needed practice. Wish us luck! Hopefully it doesn't turn out like this...

my pregnancy this week

hello jennifer! Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

baby has furniture!

After 2 weeks of waiting, I finally called Babies R Us to see if our furniture was in. They responded that it had been in, but they were having a hard time getting in touch with us...which I really don't understand because our home phone number was right on my order. In any event, we had my parents meet us at Babies R Us in Bethel Park to facilitate the pick-up and lifting. Brandon and I borrowed the Star van and met them out there. By 8:00 (and after some Beto's pizza, thanks to my folks), the two dressers were in place! The only thing that needs to be assembled is the crib, thank goodness. And it all looks great so far! It's starting to feel "real" now that we have a place for Baby Davis to sleep. :) I'd post pictures, but our home computer is experiencing "technical difficulties". Hopefully it will all get fixed tonight by Brandon's IT friend, Greg.

wedding bells

Yesterday, we attended the beautiful wedding of our co-workers and friends, Carrie Lynn and Dan. It was Spaghetti Squash's first wedding and we all had a lovely time. Here are a few photos of the wedding, which was 2 years in the making!

Congrats, Mr. & Mrs. Theiss!

dr. t. visit

Ended up seeing Dr. Tataneni yesterday for the first time unexpectedly to have something checked out. It turned out to be nothing (new Mom anxiety perhaps), and I was really glad to have met her. She is Indian and a little bit silly. She said that we needed to try to have the baby on Valentine's Day (4 days before our due date)...but she said she'd deny it if anyone asked her. She suggested jumping jacks on the 10th. Thank goodness I knew she was joking. She also said that I was "all belly" and didn't look like I gained weight anywhere else...maybe she was joking about that, too? Baby's heartbeat was 150 (still great) and my blood pressure was low, as usual. That's all for now! Going to get Brandon to post next time. xoxo

my pregnancy this week

hello jennifer! At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

happy anniversary to us!

We celebrated our third anniversary with a lovely dinner and dessert at Palomino downtown. Afterward, we walked over to where we were married, the opulent Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel, and enjoyed reminiscing as we walked all around and took some photos. Here are a few!

friends of baby davis

Saturday night, we got together at the Clarks' house in Castle Shannon to hang out with Jodie, Kevin, Morgan, Melanie, Jason & Quinn. The 3-year old girls have been friends since they were babies, and it's always adorable to see them together. Here are a few pictures of them making cookies. Too cute! Ask Jodie about the newborn she also had to watch...she was so quiet, it was like she wasn't even there! :)

When Quinn was asked if our baby was a boy or a girl, she said "girl" and suggested that we name her Carrie. When Melanie asked what we should name the baby if it's a boy, she said "Larry". Three-year olds crack me up...

my pregnancy this week

Hello, jennifer! Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well. (TMI???)

20-week check-up

Just got back from seeing Dr. DeLo (pictured above) and everything is looking great! Heartbeat was 153 (very normal) and I am "growing" right on track. (11 pounds worth of growing to be exact, but who's counting?) I had a lot of questions this time, and her answers calmed my worries. Brandon was with me, as always, and we both are hoping that she is our "on-call" doctor when I deliver...she's so nice! Sorry I don't have any other photos to post today.

They also ordered my glucose testing for gestational diabetes, which I will do in 6-8 weeks. (I hear that's fun...) and I will also get my Rhogam shot at that point since my blood type is O- and Brandon is A+. So many things to think about for our little Banana!

cousins-to-be

John William Garrubba (4), Carly Grace Garrubba (15 mos.) & Reece Ella Recker (17 mos.) are all excited to be cousins for the first time! John even has some name suggestions for our little one...

updated bump

Here is a look at my bump at 20 weeks! Getting bigger...

my pregnancy this week

I get these email updates every Wednesday from BabyCenter.com and we think they're quite informative! And, when they tell us what size fruit or vegetable (or shrimp?!) the baby is comparable to, we end up calling the baby that name for the whole week. This week it's Bananarama!

Hello, jennifer! You're at the halfway mark — congratulations! Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (The way your baby is measured changes now.) He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (although some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

"a very cooperative baby"

Today was our 20-week ultrasound and that's exactly what our technician, Becky, said about our little one! She was able to find and measure every little inch (except the parts we didn't want to see) and everything was absolutely perfect! We got to see everything from baby's brain, ears, eye sockets, a beautiful close-up of nose and lips, upper arms, lower arms (little tibias and fibulas), heart (156 beats this time), stomach, kidneys, complete spine, upper legs, lower legs and little feet. Baby was in perfect position to see everything! And all of baby's little parts are measuring exactly to baby's size and age.

We are so grateful that we went to the Magee satellite office in Greentree. It was so convenient: no drive to Oakland, no waiting (last time was 90 minutes...ugh) and we were the only people there! Becky spent over 30 minutes with us and we wish that we could go back every week!! What a truly wonderful day. :)

shower accessories

My baby shower brunch is scheduled for Saturday, January 3rd at 11am. We are scheduling it right after the holidays so that my brother Chris, his wife Nikki and their daughter Reece (as well as a few other out-of-town relatives) will be able to be there. It will be held at Calabria's, which is a South Hills staple for showers, luncheons and such. We will be having your usual brunch-y food: French toast, bacon, some kind of potato. All delicious! Maybe even some mimosas....well, not for me. :( I found these adorable decorations online and absolutely love the colors -- lime green & black...go figure. My dress for the shower even matches them! (Yes, I have that already, too.)