Veins

This isn't nearly as exciting as her room, but since I'm trying to chronicle the entire pregnancy experience, here's what my leg looks like:

Fortunately, I don't think it's gotten any worse over the past few weeks. This is really the only major pregnany symptom I've had so far. I've been very lucky!

Wanna see her room?!

Little Miss Tolman's room is coming along nicely, if I do say so myself! Ad had a day off last week and he accomplished A LOT in that one day. The painting is finished, the chair rail is up, and the crib is fully assembled! Mom and I (well, Mom mostly) even managed to get the curtains made this weekend. Wahoo! The next steps are the changing table, dressers, and rocking chair. It's starting to come together!

Here's what it looks like so far:

Progression

11 weeks

14 weeks

16 weeks

18 weeks

20 weeks, 4 days

23 weeks, 6 days

27 weeks, 3 days

And still growing...

I can't even imagine how big I'll be in 13 more weeks!

Funny things people say

Maddie (age 4): Are you going to have a baby?
Me: yep
Maddie: Is that why your tummy is soooo big?
Me: yep, I guess it is

Random acquaintance passing by: Whoa, you have a baby in there!

Adam (first thing he says after completing a tour of the hospital): You know what I'm excited about?
Me: What? (thinking he'll say seeing his daughter for the first time, or something sweet like that)
Adam: The hospital food!
Me: ... *silence* ...

Daddy's Girl

We stopped by Babies R Us after our doctor's appointment on Wednesday and Dad went a little crazy:

Since the shoes are so girly we had to pick a onesie to offset them a little. Please don't tell her we got it from the boy's section. :)

Update

We had a doctor's appointment yesterday and things are still looking great. Baby girl's heartbeat sounds just like it should. My weight gain is around 14 lbs, blood pressure was 132/62 mmHg (a little higher than usual, but not too concerning yet), and I had my glucose tolerance test. We'll find out the results of it (a standard test done at 25-28 weeks to check for gestational diabetes) by Monday or so. The doctor also measured my belly, but didn't explain too much about that. She took a look at my legs (I've been having some trouble with varicose veins) and did say that if it progresses too far she may have to take me out of work. :( Ack! I don't know what I would do if that happened! So at this point, I'm going to do everything in my power to prevent that. That means daily exercise, sexy support stockings, and extra sitting time at work. We discussed her practices on inducing labor and said she doesn't let anyone go more than 1 week past their due date. That means we can expect this baby to be born not too much later than August 27th or 28th! We have another appointment in 3 weeks and then begin our every two week appointments! I can't believe we're already to that stage!

In other pregnancy news:
* People have started noticing my belly more and more. I think everyday I get the timid, "Are you expecting?" or "Are you pregnant?" questions at least once or twice. I was sure in a town this size everybody already knew but it seems each day there's a new person who finds out.
* My cravings for processed meats seem to have slowed down. The current obsession is ice cream. I've eaten more Blizzards in the past several weeks than in all my life combined. They're fantastic! I received a giftcard to Dairy Queen as my Mother's Day gift from my husband. I couldn't have asked for a better gift! I was ecstatic!
* Yesterday was the first time I spilled food on my belly. I guess it really is officially sticking out now. Adam thought it was the funniest thing he had ever seen. (I'm sure you can imagine how funny I thought it was.)
* Baby girl keeps kicking like crazy. I feel her throughout the day and occasionally can see a little nudge under my skin.

I think that's most of the highlights for now! Be back soon!

Moving right along

I can't believe it's already May 1st! We're already nearing the end of the 2nd trimester. I can hardly believe it! As the months begin to fly by like weeks, I'm feeling the "nesting" kicking in. Our house is starting to look more and more like a welcome home for a baby:

Tolman Baby's crib is virtually complete:

She has bedding:

She has clothes:

And diapers:

Her curtain fabric has been purchased:

And paint picked out:

She even has a little chair:

Mom and Dad have just a few more short months to get it all put together just so.  So if you don't hear from us for awhile, don't worry. We're just preparing for Little Miss Tolman's arrival. We're pretty excited!

Meanwhile, the little one is doing her part by growing like crazy:

The belly at 23 weeks 6 days (about 5.5 months)