31 Week Bumpage

31 weeks and a few days...or exactly 7 months!

Sorry on the delay on these. The temps have been awesome here, but the accompanying gray skies have made for poor picture-taking conditions.

stork parking and feminist Mormons

Oh, so it's official . . . we finally used our first "stork parking" spot, or parking reserved for expectant mothers. While at Babies'R'Us yesterday, I was finally convinced to pull into the pregnancy parking space right up front. There are only 2 stores we know about that have these spaces: every Babies'R'Us store we have ever been to, and the Schnucks grocery store on The Hill (why there, I'm not sure . . . and we did try parking in their "stork parking," but someone else had beat us to the punch).

In doing some serious research on "stork parking" (you know, grueling time spent in the dusty stacks of the instantaneous Google search), I found out that these spaces--unlike handicapped parking--are not enforceable by the police. So, I guess that means that you all can park there too . . . if you're willing to face the wrath of a pregnant woman who latches on to your bumper as you pull away and won't let go until you arrive several hours later at home, at which time she kicks your *bleep*. And don't even try to take a "stork spot" from us (in fact, while recently at Schnucks, the car in the "stork" space seemed a bit suspect, so it got some rude glares from both of us).

Finally, my in-depth Google research brought me (as always) to a very interesting perspective on the whole "stork parking" issue--and, here, I didn't even realize it was an "issue." But that was before I read the response from the Feminist Mormon Housewives Association, where pregnancy parking is a "pet peeve." But you know what, the feminist Mormons make more sense than this dude from the Jewish World Review. My favorite line of his is: "if a woman is so very pregnant that she needs to park as close as possible to the shopping mall, maybe she shouldn't be driving a car or going to the shopping mall at all. Maybe she should be off her feet, staying at home and resting."

If you're getting more interested in this "issue," feel free to continue reading here, at the blog State of the Qusan, who has links and comments on the issue.

31 Weeks

Hmm, me thinks we've reached a new level in this pregnancy when babycenter.com uses multiple fruit to visualize the baby. It's like I'm juggling four oranges constantly...in my belly. We're now in the single digits on our baby day countdown, with less than 10 weeks to go. Not so long ago, I can remember how excited we were to get to week 10, towards the end of that anxiety-filled first trimester. And now...was I ever that small?

This week we began our birthing class, otherwise known as prep for the "Short Stranger Welcome Home Party." It was only somewhat useful, since this week was mostly introductory. I did learn one important thing: the Short Stranger is SUPER EXCITED about his arrival! I don't think I've ever felt him move so much in one two-hour sitting. I almost starting giggling during our practice breathing because he wouldn't stop wiggling underneath my shirt. All I have to say is, slow down cowboy! You still have a lot of time left.

All of this commotion is the topic of this week's babycenter.com post:

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

jumping on the Ovid bandwagon?

For some reason, I've been hearing a lot about Ovid and some Metamorphoses thing recently here in St. Louis -- I don't know, but something about some marathon, celebrity readers, etc. etc. So I figured, why not jump on the bandwagon and absorb Ovid into the Short Stranger's future. So here's a puppet theatre product I found that brings Ovid to kids: Puppet Plays for Children from Ovid's Metamorphoses.

When we undoubtedly attend the Pulitzer's happenin' this weekend, maybe the "pumpkin baby" will enjoy Ovid more than Black Eyed Peas -- to the delight of my boss and many other Greek mythology nerds (ha ha). However, I can guarantee that our baby will be seriously afraid of the freaky horror-film-like puppets included with this Greek myths play set (I know I am).

the magical combo

Apparently, we found out this evening that the magical combo to get Short Stranger moving around is a little OJ and a classic track from the Black Eyed Peas ("Boom Boom Pow" encore, anyone?). It's nice to know that our child can maintain a good taste in music for more than a couple months ; )

30 Week Bump

Lake of the Ozarks edition.

30 Weeks

And here we are, at 30 weeks, or 3/4 (or more) through pregnancy. This week is a big one not only for these momentous markers, but because alas, we have reached the end of summer. Next week marks the beginning of the fall semester for this doctoral student, who will be spending the rest of her pregnancy as a teaching assistant in a History of American Photography class, with a crop of eager students. I will no doubt have many adventures to report from this pregnancy-scholar balancing act (and even more once the Short Stranger arrives!). Among these: a comprehensive exam that I am taking in two weeks, at 32 1/2 weeks. Thereafter, I am to sure to post on the blog more often, since the preparations have been taking up much of my time. Incidentally, right now my biggest concern about the exam is that I will have to take too many trips to the bathroom.

This week marked yet another regular trip to the doctor's office, where I found out that I did indeed pass my glucose test. I also learned, to my delight, that I have great numbers for my iron count! So much so that the doctor asked me if I was taking supplements (I'm not). I felt especially vindicated as a pregnant vegetarian--at least once a month an acquaintance feels compelled to ask me just how I get enough iron and protein.

This week, the Short Stranger is officially a cabbage patch kid--and now has the eyesight of a legally blind person. Babycenter.com has this to say:

Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from his face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

What the ???

Please, someone tell me what the heck is up with this website. I found this linked on DaddyTypes, and can't figure out what the angle is on this one. It seems perhaps a complete joke, or perhaps the humor isn't coming across quite right for me (or it's totally serious). Thoughts? Comments?

Website: LET'S PANIC ABOUT BABIES!

Through this site, I did learn that 45% of pregnant women's partners are "emotionally stunted jocks" and another 21% are either "total jerks" or "clinically insane." Now it all makes sense. I also learned about some things that will nauseate Bryna during the third trimester, such as "Elves" and "Zombies." Now you have to visit this site, right?

Vacation from Painting/Nesting

I type this post while gazing out onto the Lake of the Ozarks (Missouri's version of Ocean City, Maryland, but without the ocean, the city . . . or the Maryland). However, it's still pleasant here, and very relaxing. Just rewards for spending 6 hours painting our bedroom Wednesday evening (but it's done!!! yay!).

I wanted to also post a quick sneak peek at the nursery project. Here ya go:
Finally, a gigantic shout out to Chris and Imran for their fabulous work so far in planning what will be our final baby shower here in St. Louis. Sweet invitations!

painting, painting, painting

Yep, that's the rule of the day: painting. This past weekend, I finished all the painting in the nursery-to-be, especially completely re-doing the closet (which I don't think had EVER been painted in its 103 years of existence -- there was so much bare plaster and wood). Pics to come soon.
And as if painting the nursery wasn't enough, I (maybe stupidly) have decided to repaint our bedroom tonight. WHY DO I THINK UP SUCH THINGS!?!? Well, I guess if we're ever going to do this, it's got to be now. Besides, nesting doesn't only mean getting the infrastructure ready for the Short Stranger; it also means allowing ourselves to primp up our part of the nest (even though that doesn't really fit the bird metaphor, since they don't sleep or live in their nests . . . but we do!). With the bedroom being painted, we'll need to stay with my parents for a night, then we're off to the Lake of the Ozarks to continue letting the paint fumes dissipate. Staying with the parents . . . not sure; but the Lake should be nice and relaxing.

We're approaching 30 weeks (73 days to go, or less), which is crazy. Are we really ready? I suppose you can never really be ready for something life-changing like this. We start our first birthing class next week, so I think that will help us be ready for the non-nesting-related part of having Short Stranger arrive. More updates to come (if I survive painting tonight).

29 Week Bump

Okay, 29 plus 1 day.

29 Weeks

Everybody take out a tape measure and mark off 15 inches. Now lay this across your abdomen. This is why there are times when I can feel little jolts along my ribs and my groin at once! Even with my rounded belly, I have trouble believing that something so long has room to hang out in there. But he still has about 5 or so inches to go in the next 11 weeks.

This week marked the passage of a very important day for us--our last wedding anniversary as a twosome, on August 12! We were just out of undergrad and were fairly young when we tied the knot in our little college town of Kirksville, but the decision was one of the best of our lives. We've had 9 YEARS of adventures together, some challenging, many exciting. And now we have years of memories to share with the Short Stranger.

Being the awesome husband that he is, Mike gave me the perfect pregancy gift this time around--an afternoon at the spa that included a prenatal massage! Pure heaven--something I recommend to anyone out there who's suffering their way through the third trimester.

This week on babycenter.com, I get a dietary lecture:

Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

So I'm off to the farmer's market to find some of those Vitamin C and iron-rich foods!

Dogs' Intelligence On Par With 2-year-old Human

Hmmmm . . . interesting report out from the University of British Columbia about canine development and intelligence. I'm not sure what scares me more -- comparing a 2-year-old child to a dog, or thinking about how smart dogs must be. I mean, 2-year-olds can be pretty amazing, and they can also be quite terrors. Do dogs really have this potential to reak havoc, throw tantrums, etc.? If so, I'd rather researchers quickly find out that 2-year-old babies actually are much more like cats (lazy, sit around a lot, eat, sleep, poop, eat, sleep, poop, etc. etc. . . . oh wait, I guess that's more like newborns).

and now for something really scary...

Sorry, I couldn't resist. That picture of the "hand pillows" that Bryna posted was really freaky, esp. when the website advertising the product says "leave a piece of yourself with your baby" . . . like they are REAL hands or something. Just freaky!

But I can't let that top out this freaky post. Here is the strangest work of art I think I've seen: A Giant Baby. This is by artist Ron Mueck, who apparently never received any formal training in art, but worked developing lifelike props -- and now, miraculously, it's ART. Of course. (sorry for the snarkiness). With the exception of the large male figure in the Hirshhorn collection, I am not a fan of this guy's work at all (the piece seen below, "A Girl," included).

The Weird, Wacky, and Wild in Baby Products

First, there's "baby bangs hairband,"
for the baby who has everything, except hair.

Then there's the "baby keeper basic,"
for moms on the go that need to "go."

And then there's the down right creepy "zaky" pillow:

28 Week Bump

Shortly before going out with friends to a fabulous dinner for the father-to-be's birthday.
Happy belated birthday, Mike!

28 Weeks

At 28 weeks, we now have a cabbage patch kid--er, at least a "chinese cabbage" patch kid, since the Short Stranger now weigh approximately as much as one of these delectable vegetables. Since Mike has politely informed me that I've "grown since the baby shower last weekend," I don't really doubt that our little pumpkin baby is indeed this size.

This week I had the first of my 2-week doctor's appointments, where all went well. The main event this time around was the infamous glucose test for gestational diabetes, which all prego ladies have to take somewhere around the end of their second trimester. Although I've heard some horror stories about the sweet liquid that we have to drink for the test, I didn't think it was too bad. My only problem was that the drink was not exactly my favorite flavor--fruit punch. Ah, and I never appreciate having my blood drawn.

What I didn't know, though, was that they'd time me when I drank the liquid. "You have five minutes, here's the timer: go!" I felt a little like I was at a frat party and people were chanting, "chug." And I am proud to say that I finished the little 10 oz. bottle in less than 3 minutes! Needless to say, since I haven't heard from the doctor's office since my appointment on Wednesday, I'm fairly sure I passed the test.

As for the Short Stranger himself, here's what babycenter.com has to say:

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Baby Shower Silliness

As Mike noted in his post about our first shower, any Campbell get together includes what Mike calls "Campbell-ing," which includes lots and lots of picture taking - a tradition I plan to continue in the Campbell-Murawski household once the Short Stranger arrives.

This time, my cousin Beth and I had a chance to model our dueling pregnant bellies. We're 10 weeks apart; I'm 27 weeks, and she's a svelte 37 weeks (with her third boy), looking fabulous and not at all ready to pop. We tried to be serious for our pictures, but needless to say, silliness ensued:

From the side:

And in a pose requested by my brother William:

the 1st shower: Mike's thoughts

Couple quick thoughts on the first baby shower in Iowa this weekend:

1) It was a great time! We got some great, useful things for little guy, and got to see pretty much the entire Campbell clan (plus surrogates) -- except Bob and Lindsey (doh!). There were, of course, lots of family pictures, lots of barbecued meat, and lots of Campbell-ing (I'm not quite sure what that is, but it happens when the Campbells get together, that's for sure. Usually it involves singing Christmas carols and taking pictures of people's butts, but these seem to have mostly slipped by during this August get-together).
2) Still a large reluctance for Campbell men to participate in a baby shower (the realm of women, right?). Big shout out to Will-i-am Campbell, and Grandpa-to-be John, for both breaking the barrier and joining us to open gifts with the ladies. And Wil's card to me even brought to light another gender stereotype, because he COULD NOT find a baby shower card addressed to a man/dad (so he made a note of that on a non-gender-specific card) -- another travesty easy to let slide, but very interesting to notice. Thanks for being aware of these issues, Wil!

3) While Bryna and I are so thrilled to be getting such nice things from family and friends, we're still learning so much about what we are going to need to prepare for the arrival of the pumpkin baby. We made plenty of faces while opening gifts that probably looked something like "oh, thanks, this is GREAT . . . wait, what do we do with it?" Yet I'm positive Grandpa-to-be John made this face many more times than we did.
4) Even for someone who has been to Iowa in the summer countless times, I still think that Iowa is beautiful. The weather was amazing for this trip, and the light was really nice as we all finished our dinner, watched the kids (mostly Scott and Joel) play wiffle-ball homerun derby, and took family pictures.

Overall, excellent first shower! Thanks Campbell clan and Iowa!

You Asked, We Deliver

At the request of some of our friends who read this blog, we have decided to post baby bump pics for the third and final trimester--to go along with the weekly progress reports.

So without further ado, I give you the Short Stranger bump at 27 weeks: