All About Roo

"Roo" is our nickname for the newest addition to our family. With that introduction, I figured it was time for a little pregnancy update. :-)

I'll be 18 weeks on Thursday. Roo has been a very active little one for the past couple of weeks, kicking around much earlier (or at least so I've noticed) than Morenna. Matt and I are anxiously counting down the days until our ultrasound when we hopefully discover the gender. He's hoping for a boy. I'm not quite sure what I'm hoping for... other than a healthy baby. Perhaps another girl?

My reasoning for a girl is really twofold: 1) to prove that my morning sickness severity with Morenna was simply that of a first-timer; 2) Morenna will have a close-in-age sister... something I always wished I had.

At any rate, this pregnancy has been so different from my first, with all the quirky pains and growth coming in a much earlier time-frame. I heard you "pop" sooner with subsequent children... but I was in maternity clothes by week 9. A bit of a surprise to me.

Food and I aren't the best of friends, though I'm definitely past the queasy stage. My cravings (if you could call them that) have mainly consisted of fruit (peaches, especially), water, Greek salad (strange!) and the occasional pickle. My aversions have been quite the opposite of my pregnancy with Morenna and include beef and sugar... especially ice cream. :-( So sad. On a positive note, though, I'm back up to my pre-pregnancy weight as of last week.

I'm using a local midwifery practice this time around, and so far I love them. I do not love the insurance headache caused by my choice... or that we decided on an HMO policy when Matt switched jobs. That was a dumb idea.

Last visit, Roo chimed in with a strong little heart rate of 150. Ah, I could never grow tired of listening to that chugga-chugga-chugga sound.

Momma at 17 weeks

Water Baby

Morenna has been changing so much the last few weeks. All of the sudden it seems that we've started fast-forwarding her development; a fact that is both joyful and sad. Here are some of her latest achievements:

-- She goes up and down stairs by herself,
-- Sometimes informs me of a needed diaper change,
-- Has a larger assortment of acquired food tastes,
-- Can "chat" on the phone with her grandparents,
-- Walks/climbs/runs on her own,
-- Chatters all day long with favorite words inserted, including: "baby", "momma", "daddy", "buddy", "ba" (bath), "ball", "bye bye", "pees" (please), "boolah" (balloon), "milk-a", "juice", "ca-ca" (cracker), "more", "duck" and "hi" to anyone she sees.
-- Will point on command to nose, toes, ears, and belly button.
-- Loves to share the noises made by cows, sheep, cats, and polar bears (random, I know).
-- Giving kisses.

Spending time outside has been a favorite activity. So far we've played in the rocks behind our air conditioner, swam in the neighborhood baby pool, and ran around in the sprinkler.

Sweet baby kisses for Daddy.

Diggin' in the rocks.

Playin' in the pool with Daddy


Lovin' life!


Playing at Grandpa and Grandma's!


Baby pools and watering cans are nice, too.


Naked baby time with the sprinkler :-)


And when it rains... there is always Mommy and Daddy's jacuzzi!