Five Months

As of last week, I'm now five months along with Baby Claire!

I'm 23 weeks, and there's really not much to report! I'm not feeling or getting sick near so often (I think it's been two weeks since I last threw up) and I'm not so picky about what I eat now--the serious cravings are less common. I'm getting more to the "hungry" stage, where Baby is packing on weight and I'm finally gaining a little too (after losing weight during the queasy/pukey stage). I'm making sure to pack plenty for lunch and a few snacks when I head off to work, and my colleagues do a pretty good job of keeping me fed too :0)

Thanks to the cool iPad app I've been using, the Pampers "Hello Baby" app (I just looked for it in the App Store and now can't find it, so it might not be available anymore), I see that Claire is about 8 inches long and weighs around one pound. I should have done this each month, but for fun, here's what Claire looks like--real size--according to the app. (You tap the screen to toggle between a full-body view with information and the "life size" view.)

I'm not sure how that's possible, because I don't feel like I'm big enough yet to accommodate a baby that size and all my organs! I remember with Kate, though, the doctor told me I have a "deep pelvis," which can apparently hold Baby down in there without sticking out as much as she might otherwise. Claire's hanging out really low, too. Most of her early kicks were in an unmentionable region, and even now, she's clearly right under my waistband, not up in the belly that sticks out.

Anyway, fun times! I had an OB appointment yesterday, and it felt so anticlimactic (especially after waiting in the waiting room for an hour). I really had no questions, and there wasn't much to do this time besides check the heartbeat and the size of my uterus. Quad screen was last time (all good) and next time is the glucose test. It's funny how with the first, I had questions every time and wrote down everything--it's all "been there, done that" now. I haven't even opened What to Expect When You're Expecting once this time around!

Which reminds me of--and so I'll leave you with--this random movie quote. Can anyone (besides Matt) name that movie?

"I didn't read the baby books! What's gonna happen? How did anyone ever give birth without the baby books! That's right--the ancient Egyptians carved What to Expect When You're Expecting on the pyramid walls!"

Parenting Two

A couple weeks ago, I asked for advice on helping Kate adjust to having a sibling. Here, on Facebook, and via email, you all shared some great tips that I'll have to remember! The most insightful, I think, was making sure that I'm not holding the baby when Kate comes to see us at the hospital. To make sure she doesn't feel usurped, my lap should be free and ready to hold her right away.

Today I want to ask more about the practical side of parenting two kids.
What tips do you have for everyday life with two small kids?

I'm thinking of things like:
how to get everybody ready and out the door before work/school or church,
how to keep Kate in check (in parking lots, etc.) when my hands are full with an infant
what ways Kate can help out without being a danger to the baby
... and plenty of things I can't even think of right now.

I'm sure that, as with the first, you figure things out as you go until you can't even remember what life was like before, but I'd love to have a few tricks from the old pros in my pocket!

4th of July

You recall how my New Year's resolution was "only blog if I feel like it"? That was an effort to keep blogging from taking over my life and the pressure of getting five posts a week out from stressing me out. Lately, though, I've really been wanting to blog more, even contemplating starting up Project Life again, and yet either don't find the time (Kate's later bedtime and resistance to bedtime even then being a prime factor) or run into technical difficulties like my slow computer getting even more tempermental and almost-full memory refusing to upload more pictures. (I've been putting it off forever, but I really need to get a computer fix-it person to clean it up.) 

So, I hope to share new pics and old stories and all that once my computer is working better, but in the meantime, let me share one fun pic (sent to me by my MIL) from our Fun Fourth Festivities--also known as Jesstravaganza Triple-X, since it was my thirtieth birthday!

We had a birthday/housewarming cookout to celebrate, joined by a dozen or so family and friends. I think my favorite part was watching these two little sillies play together, and hearing their giggles all over the house. 

And, holy crap, I'm thirty!