Shower #2 - 9/25/10 - Just the Family...

Even with just our family (mother-in-law, mother, cousins, aunts, great-aunts, and Nana!) we had quite a crowd.Olivia is going to be SET! Enjoy the pics!

Week 33: This Week You are The Size of...

...a pineapple! This week Olivia weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and herskeleton is hardening. The bones in her skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for her to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as her brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Shower #1 - 9/19/10 - WOMBATS

Anyone who knows Ali well, knows that she is a lifelong member of the WOMBATS--an acronym for the seven friends who survived grade school (for some), middle school, high school and college together. Though they have ebbed and flowed, they have remained the very best of friends. WOMBAT stands for:

Woody-Shauna Lee Woodruff (now Winzeler)
Oil-Lorenzo's Oil-Faith Berrier
MEK-Mary Ellen Killgore (now Wiggins)
Bennis-Elaine Bennis-Lainie Giacchino (now Reagan)
Al-Ali
Tiff-Tiffany Thornberry (now McWhorter)
Subs-(feet) Cortney Barnett (now Nelms)

With three of the wombats pregnant (Lainie, Ali and Tiffany), the remaining four decided to throw a "joint" shower this past weekend. It was a marvelous (if a bit crazy) time--but it was a wonderful "reunion" for us Wombat Moms and a chance to see all the sweet babies (aka-Junior Wombats) that have already arrived--and I wanted to post a few pictures for Olivia to someday know how very, very important our female friends are. Thank you, Wombats!!

Week 32: This Week You are The Size of...

...a jicama?! I'm sorry to admit that this is yet another fruit/veggie that I've never heard of.

Olivia is weighing in at 3.75 pounds and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in the uterus. Apparently Ali is gaining about a pound a week (...oh yeah, she's overjoyed!) and roughly half of that goes right to the baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb.

She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth. About 55 days until the due date!

Week 31: This Week You are The Size of...

...4 Naval Oranges! An interesting comparison, I think!

The baby measures over 16 inches long, weighs about 3.3 pounds, and is heading into a growth spurt. She can turn her head from side to side, and her arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath her skin.

She's moving a lot, too, so sleeping may be difficult because of her kicks and somersaults. All this moving is a sign that baby is active and healthy.

3D - Ultra Sound Picture....Hello, Olivia!

The 3D ultrasound that we did on September 9th was very interesting. We have a video to show Olivia someday, but here's a snap of her---she looks like she's smiling (at least Honi Gram thinks so)!

Week 30: This Week You are The Size of...

...a head of cabbage! Olivia is about 15.7 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in the uterus.

Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)