lindsay.kay » Uncategorized

orange + purple

lindsk — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:15:00 +0000

week 24 – grapefruit

2/12/2012

10.5 inches. 12.7 oz.

i went in for my 6 month appointment this week. 6 months! i remember being 6 weeks just after we found out that you decided to stick. the idea of you felt so fragile and i didn’t want to hope too much. 18 week later and everything is different. after seeing a healthy you on the ultrasound at 20 weeks i began to relax and become excited. since then i am dreaming up your bedroom, wondering about who you will be, andreas and i have began to have some parenting discussions, all of a sudden it feels real. you sounded great with a heartbeat of 154 bpm and julie measured my belly for the first time. i am measuring 27 weeks when i was a few days shy of 25 weeks. she wasn’t concerned so i am trying not to be. maybe you will be just a big chunky baby. i asked andreas’ mom if he was a big baby and she said no, just a little long. so little mr. bean what will you be?

week 25 – eggplant

2/19/2012

13.6-14.8 inches. 1.5-2.2 lbs.

this is the first week that i dreaded purchasing the fruit. eggplants are a beautiful fruits, with a tender deep purple flesh. if my garden had the space i would grow them, but alas the eggplants scare me. i have no desire to cook with it and no desire to taste it either. eggplant parmesan? really? blek. admit that i am a little closed off regarding eggplants.

regardless of my feeling about eggplants that is what you are this week. and did you notice that you finally over 1 pound! yeah! even though i am thinking you are closer to the 2 pound mark since you measured a little large last week. unfortunately, this week began the fitful pregnancy sleep. i wake up every couple of hours with an achy back and lot of lower pressure. i am someone who dearly loves and needs their 8 hours sleep so this has made for a long week. but maybe with a little more swimming and yoga that will help with the aches.

our annual pilgrimage

lindsk — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 16:02:10 +0000

so it seems that it has become tradition in the braathen house to make an annual pilgrimage to ikea. i will admit that this is mostly my doing, but about this time every year i get an itch to go. and so andreas obliges and makes the trek with me (actually is a virtual part of the trip since he can drive the saturn and i cannot). this year turned out to be less fruitful than expected. the ikea in minneapolis is renovating and only has 20% of their inventory in stock. i walked through the bottom floor with my jaw dropped for the first 15 minutes – i kept asking “where is everything??”. thank goodness they had all the big pieces that we came for or else i would have been livid! in all we walked away with thirteen chairs and a few other items. as we were driving home i was so disgruntled that i declared we would not be coming back next year! which is probably a good thing because trekking 7 hours one way with a 9 month old might not be as all rosy and peaches. so i am grateful that we had one last ikea get-away before mr. bean is born.

a fruit smootie

lindsk — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 15:42:48 +0000

week 21 – banana

1/22/2012

10.5 inches. 12.7 oz.

we still cannot believe that you are boy bean!

now everyone is asking about us names. we have known your name for at least the past four years. your papa mentioned it to me a long time ago and since then it stuck. i thought we might look over some boy names but it just didn’t seem right to call you anything else. but shh…we are telling anyone

on saturday morning andreas had the chance to feel you move. i woke up on my back and felt this thump thump thump on my belly. your flutters have become fainter lately and i’m noticing more “kicks” or bubbles. i grabbed his hand and put it on my belly for him to feel. he said he felt something. i love that he can feel you move.

week 22 – papaya

( that is one huge papaya! i didn’t think to measure it when at the store. i’m guessing you a tad bit smaller than that)

1/29/2012

10.5 inches. 12.7 oz.

my belly is growing and i have finally broken down and purchased some clothes that “fit”. definitely starting to feel pregnant.

students at work are asking to touch my belly. of course i let them but it still is kinda weird in a good way.

your kicks are becoming more and more pronounced – now it really does feel like i have an alien living in my belly. this week you are able to hear our voice so i have started to rub my bell and talk to you. i am edging towards that crazy pregnant lady…:)

week 23 – pomegranate

(okay, not a pomegranate. those suckers are hard to find, but we are back to the appropriate size of fruit this week :)

2/5/2012

10.5 inches. 12.7 oz

even though for the past three weeks your weight and size have remained the size i think you are on a growing spurt because i am so hungry in the evening. i’ve notice that when i eat you move around like crazy! i guess you like to eat too.

we have started to talk about your room and what it should look like. surprisingly, andreas who usually has an opinion about anything in the house and let me make most of the decision. we’ll see how long that will last.

we sat down and created our must finish house project list before you arrive. i’m starting to realize that we have less time than more time. ekkk!

strawberry or chocolate?

lindsk — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 05:02:58 +0000

how we shared with family and friends

mostly fruity and a little savory

lindsk — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 03:32:02 +0000

week 18 – sweet potato

1/1/2012

5.6 inches. 6.7 oz

i must have bought a sweet potato on steroids because that thing is huge!! i’m thinking if i cut it in half that would be about the right size. it doesn’t really matter since it will end up going into our compost bin. unfortunately, i have nothing really good to say about the sweet potato. it doesn’t get any love from me.

i was dreading coming home from dc because it was a nice distraction from the fact that we have to wait two more weeks to find out if you are a boy or a girl. two. more. weeks. i am not a very patient person. we are starting to play the guessing game and so far everyone thinks you are a boy, besides my mom (she thinks girl) and me (i’m undecided). how do people really know anyways?

perhaps my reward for being not-so-patient was that i felt you move for the first time on thursday evening. i was sitting on the couch reading for class when all of a sudden i realized there was this fluttering/tingling sensation in my lower abdomen. i sat and waited until i felt it again and then ran upstairs to tell A. sure enough you have been fluttering around like crazy ever since. i can feel it mostly when i am sitting or lying down. it’s the craziest thing because as i am having conversation with anyone and you are fluttering away inside. i smile but they have no clue why, it’s like our little secret. i love it.

week 19 – mango

1/8/2012

6 inches. 8.5 oz.

still waiting. i tried to convince A to go have a 3d ultrasound done so we could find out the sex sooner. he is not swayed so easily. boo. you are moving around a lot, but there does not seem to be any rhythm or pattern yet. i have tried to describe it A and the best example i can come up with is it’s like having a bee trapped inside a glass jar and he is buzzing around hitting the sides. i know it doesn’t make that much sense, but that is exactly how it feels. oh and we did attempt to eat the mango. peeling a mango is not an easy task and most of the fruit ended up on the cutting board, it did make for a delicious smoothie.

i mention to A the other day how thankful i have been for the past 19 weeks. not only because of our little bean but because it feels like we are back to who we were before all this infertility stuff. i am not sad anymore. i don’t cry every week. i am still sensitive. still when i see a pregnant woman or family there is a surge of jealous inside me. then i have to remind myself of where we are and this is happening less and less. we are laughing a lot more. things at home are relaxed. we don’t have on-going heavy conversations about our next steps, finances or dealing with our emotions. it’s such a good good thing.

week 20 – cantaloupe

1/15/2012

6.5 inches. 10.6 oz.

half way done!! that seems really hard to believe. the first trimester seemed to go so slowly, i guess because everything seemed so fragile and day-to-day. now i go about my day with an assurance you are there and healthy. this makes the worrying less and time pass quicker.

the best part of this week was thursday and the ultrasound. i was really nervous going in. i knew besides telling us if you were a boy or a girl, they would be looking at your brain, heart, and measurements. i always had it in my head that after twenty weeks, if everything looked okay, then it was time to breath easier. the tech looked at everything at everything and said you are a-okay! she even mentioned that my sack had reattached. andreas being the chatter box and curious sort was asking all sorts of questions, and very casually he said “so i guess the tail is gone.” i hope i didn’t roll my eyes at my husband (i am guessing that i did), but i thought of course the tail is gone! it’s been gone since week 6-7. the tech reaffirmed my eye rolling saying, “yes the tail is gone…but i do see another little tail”. that is right our little bean has a tail. i was shocked, and A just grinned so big and squeezed my feet. a boy. oh boy, oh boy.

a dusting

lindsk — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 04:56:46 +0000

our weather has been very bah-humbug this year

what you see is all the snow we’ve had

by this time last year: 4 snow days!

it’s been a balmy 50-60F

it makes me grumpy

and yes, our christmas tree and outdoor lights are still up

i am still waiting for winter to arrive

1514 webster

lindsk — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:54:43 +0000

is where amanda, theo, charlie and bean (their bean, a furry fellow, not my bean) live, and we went to visit them. i had forgotten how good it is to leave home for a little while. new sights to see. so many questions to ask. different shops, people, restaurants, houses, roads even the squirrels are different. we had such a relaxing time. basically our routine consisted of the following: sleep in, make breakfast, watch tv (they have cable and hgtv is so additive), shower, get out of the house, eat out (we ate at some fabulous restaurants) and back home. it was wonderful.

another reason to visit them is because they are the proud new home owner of a large, quaint, work-in-process row home. we oohed and aahed about the work that was completed, i took the first bath in their new bathroom, we talked paint colors, and dreamt up ideas for the backyard.being dc we did managed to sneak in a couple touristy attraction. the national smithsonian was a huge disappointment. ford’s theater and a christmas carol were a delight but the biggest hit of all? the national air and space museum by dulles airport. seriously, as we walked in andreas and theo began to drool. but i guess that is what a lockheed blackbird, space shuttle enterprise, and air france’s concorde can do to a man. next time, the botanical gardens are on our list.

orange. green. and white.

lindsk — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 02:36:21 +0000

week 15 – orange

12/18/2011

4 inches. 2.5 oz

my doppler arrived this week (best $90 spent in a long time) and we have been listening to your heart every night

i’m beginning to believe you are really in there

it was my last week of school for the year. thank goodness

last minute knitting is happening around the clock

the only craving i have had so far: berries! i can finish a pint of blueberries in 2 minutes flat

week 16 – avocado

12/25/2011

4.6 inches. 3.5 oz.

merry christmas little bean!

your papa purchased two little oneies for you. as i opened them i shed a tear. he is a keeper.

i’m beginning to notice my belly is a little bigger and my pants are a little tighter

your eyelashes and hair are filling in. will you be blonde or brown?

week 17 – onion

1/1/2012

5.1 inches. 5.9 oz.

your first plane ride to visit amanda and theo in DC

we dined on brick fire pizza, greek tapas, raclette and chocolate cake

i bought my first pair of maternity pants and it feels so much better!

amanda and my mom heard you on the doppler

just realized that i am not nearly as tired as i was a few weeks ago. hello, 2nd trimester!

merry christmas!

lindsk — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 21:20:51 +0000

we celebrated this wonderful days with old traditions: reading tommy og tigern on christmas morn’

remembering those who are near and far

a new traditions: the norwegian seven sorts of baked good. i only made it to three this year (cinnamon rolls did not make the photoshoot)

finally the anticipation of exchanging gifts is over!

santa

lindsk — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 21:08:29 +0000

mimi, my grandma, was a lover of santa. my fondest holiday memories include her house filled with a santa in every bedroom, living, and yes even the bathroom. i sure it drove pawpaw crazy and i cannot imagine the hours it took to set up everything just right. i inherited two of her santas – a porcelain figurine that she painted and this little door knob cover. he has hung on our bedroom door the past few years. every time i notice him, i remember her. i remember the christmases we celebrated at mimi and pawpaw’s house. i remember it being magical. and somedays part of me wants to desperately go back and visit, if only for a minute to refresh those memories. i thought about making a couple more santas this year but somehow it didn’t feel right. is it not about cherishing the past and creating new memories? and so santa will sit on our doorknob this year, whispering stories of the past and reminding me to move forward.