Hello Everyone

Hello Everyone,

I'm so sorry to have been so absent. I've been trying to get so many things done before our little man (still no name) gets here, that posting has fallen to the wayside. I have a lot of unanswered e-mails I need to respond to. I have been keeping mental notes in my head though dating all the way back to the weekend of Aug. 25th, ouch.

OK, so I went over to Long Island for a friends bridal shower and while trying to get another friend to feel the baby move I realized his movements were getting much less vigorous then usual. I just figured that he was having one of his quiet days. He had this pattern of being incredibly active for a day or two and then being very still for a day. But it continued, so on Sept. 4th I went in for a nonstress test (they monitor the baby while you just lay there). Apparently I don't have a clue. The nurses said that he was very healthy for his age, which was nice to hear, and that he just had less room to move because he was just getting bigger. It was actually a really nice experience, I got to hear all the movements he was making that I couldn't really feel, which were a lot, and I got to hear his heart beat for about 40min. It was a very intimate experience. I got a little glimpse of his world.

Sept. 10th was the first time I got to feel an actual body part. I'm not sure which one, but it was something like a foot or a forearm. I started to feel a lot of pressure in my right side, when I put my hand over the spot I realized I could feel him through my skin. There was a long ridge like bump sticking out of my side, it was kind of weird. The way I feel him now (movement, body parts, etc.) is even more fun then it used to be. When he moves my stomach ripples and moves and jumps. It happens a lot during class and while I'm tutoring, I can only imaging how one of the student's would react if they saw it (I think if anyone was looking at my stomach it might creep them out). I can feel where he is a lot too now, I feel stretching when he leans or presses parts of his body into my stomach. My belly gets all deformed and I can see bumps and bulges where he is. I am very happy to report that I am still feeling really good, however I'm getting more and more comments on how big I am. Luckily I have Dan to tell me how great I look. There are several people who think that I'm not going to make it full term because I'm so big. Whatever, I'll make it. Like I have a say. I just want him to hang in there and get strong and healthy. OK, so here are the long awaited belly pictures.