Look Ma, No Head!

I would love to post a picture of my glowing, smiling face...but I really can't. As a teacher, I would be mortified (and maybe even reprimanded?) if any of my students ever found out that I wrote a blog that routinely referenced my hoo-ha. But, I always love seeing belly pics of all of you, so I thought I had to contribute.

Without futher ado, here is my belly:

It's just a little belly, but it's there. You can hardly tell it exists when I wear full skirts or flowy shirts. Put on a tank top and it's all over, though. Even still...I think I notice it much more than anyone else. No one has asked to touch it yet. Or just reached out and touched it. When that happens, I will know that I have truly arrived in Pretnant-town.

I Have My Moments

At work (school), I have my moments of calm, effectiveness, and (dare I say) occasional brilliance. And lately, my classes have been going really well. Things are all coming together in my fourth (yes, it has really taken that long) year of teaching middle school. Classes are running smoothly, the kids are actually writing when asked to...it's good.

But in the last week, I have had my moments.

There was the moment yesterday when the computer lab went haywire in the middle of my kids' quiz, and I went stomping down the hall, ranting about how it's "rediculous" and "shameful" that our computer lab is so woefully inadequate. Then there was the moment on Tuesday when the kids started pouring into my room after lunch a whole 6 minutes too early...and I used very large hand gestures while...ahem...suggesting to the cafeteria monitors that they call the kids back.

My mind is playing tricks on me. Tricks called "crazy." Can I blame this on pregnancy? Or am I just getting weirder as I get older / more comfortable at work? Please discuss.

I Took a Picture

My mom has been begging me, my dad asked last week, and my step-mom mentioned it this morning: Am I getting a baby bump?

I just have this fear, a superstition, really, that if I buy a pair of maternity pants, or say "I'm pregnant!" to too many people, or take a belly picture, or even open the boxes of baby paraphenalia stuffed in the back of the shed...

...I won't say it. You know what I'm feeling. I tell myself, "Just get to week 8 and you can buy a baby book." Then, "At week 12, I'll take a belly picture." And yet I don't do those things.

Little by little, I do. I took 'What to Expect...' out of the box in the shed. I took a picture and sent is just to my parents. I told one more person at work. I keep looking at my ultra-sound pictures, rubbing my belly, and looking things up on the internet...like what kind of cake I want at my shower. Little things...intangible things...things not touched by my superstition. Every week I become more confident, more excited, and more determined. For you and because of you, little baby, I am happier every day.

Best Day of My Life!

Can you tell that it was a good appointment? I was prepared to see a baby with a head today (as opposed to the lima bean from last time), but nothing could have prepared me for this...

In the first picture, you can't see his/her head, but it's a great "sitting on his butt" shot. That's an arm reaching up toward the top of the picture. In picture two, s/he lying on his/her back, butt in the air, and little hands showing up as armless (I promise they are there) spots it the darkness.

Our baby was jumping and kicking and playing with his/her hands. I thought we would be able to just see it move an arm slowly, but this was incredible! Little Tater Tot was so active! I can't seem to get Billy Madison out of my head, "He's gonna be a soccer player, yes he is!" (Lame, I know, but hilarious.) At one point, s/he even did a complete 360 and turned all the way around. It looked like a litte marionette on strings.

Whew. What a day. The best day. Ever.

Guess...What...I'm...Doing...Right...Now

Kegel exercises! I was totally doing them all through our staff meeting after school today.

I think that's enough to leave you with this evening. Wish me luck at our 12.5-week appointment tomorrow! Let's hear it for a heartbeat...

Nothin' Like Being Shamed by a 13-year old...

I teach middle school, in case you couldn't tell by my plethora of posts during the summer days...(now they will be less frequent).

Today, one of my past students came in to visit with me. We were chatting away and suddenly, she says, "You know, we were just talking in cross-country about you. We were like, 'why doesn't Mrs. S have any kids?'" She looked at me expectantly.

Gulp. So, I gave her the old "120 of you teenagers at a time is enough for me!" routine and that seemed to satisfy her. She did give me the benefit of the doubt, though, because she said that she defended my (childless) honor by saying that I'd have kids when I was ready. If only she knew I was ready three years ago...

I know that this is a silly reason (just one of about 1,001) for wanting to have kids of my own, but here it is: I want my students to be happy for me. I just know that they will love to come down from the HS when they watch their younger siblings' sports games and see my little baby. Is it weird to want to show off your offspring to other offspring?

Is Anyone Looking?

Ever since I didn't go to the coach's meeting three weeks ago (I usually coach 1-2 sports a year and am the head coach for at least one), everyone has been looking at me suspiciously. Dang it! I may have already blown my cover. They all know something is up. I keep denying it, but they keep eyeballing me.

It's okay. New Nurse (as opposed to my beloved old Nurse at my RE's office) said that I can have a heartbeat check at my next appointment (still not sure if that means an u/s - I suck at asking questions on the spot, but that sounded good enough). So, as long as everything is okay, I should be letting the cat out of the proverbial bag pretty soon here. Good thing...because none of my pants fit very well. I know that it still could be bloating, but it seems a little unlikely. Even in the early morning, before I get up, there's a definite rise in my mid-section when I lie down. Grow, baby, grow!

A few more weeks and then everyone can throw me a party. Oh yes, they will rejoice. I expect balloons. And cake. And then an even bigger baby shower later. Yeah...