So it is official - I have gestational diabetes. It will make for an adjustment in what I eat and when I eat it - but it looks all manageable. It has been a bit of a scary ride and I would be lying if I said it hasn't been emotional and bit tough but we will get through it. The one thing that was exciting was that  we got to see the little bugger in an ultrasound and he is doing just find. 

He is currently a whopping 2 lbs, 9oz - therefore in the 60th percentile - so not too big (which is good news). All looks good

 with him and he was kicking up a storm while the ultrasound was going on. He clearly did not like being disturbed during naptime. 

They did the ultrasound a little differently this time - all of the ones they gave us are of the 3D variety - so they are a little hard to see, but once you adjust to how to look at these...it will be absolutely clear! 

So no more waiting...here he is: 

I LOVE this picture! A nice big smile (or so it seems), big eyes, and his cute little nose are relatively easy to spot! 

More looking happy and relaxed in there.

Bit of a profile shot - you can even spot a little ear! 

Another profile shot - and a definite ear. Right in front of his face are his two little feet and you can see his hand propping up his head. That is a big weight to carry. Notice the already chubby cheeks. I think that may come from my side :) 

Look at his LONG neck! 

That is all we have for now. We have another doctor's appointment this week where we get all of our pediatrician information and information about registering at the hospital. Then an appointment with the dietician next week to make sure my blood sugar levels are ok just with diet and exercise. And then soon we will have another ultrasound! I can't get enough of seeing him in there! 

Hope you enjoyed the pictures - less than 3 months now.

26 Weeks- or the Three Month Coundown

Ok..so admitedly it has been a while since we updated. It is a cross between nothing new to tell and the fact that, when not on the road to international locations, I can't keep my eyes open past 9pm anymore. Haven't quite decided yet if that is because I never sleep longer than 2 hours at night without having to wake up for shift positions or dash to the toilet...or just because overall I'm just plain old tired.



So here is the quick update to be followed by some belly pictures. My HUGE belly!



Everything is all good with Mr.Max (aka The little bugger which will inevitably evolve to Bug - I can see it now). He is kicking all the time now - hard enough for Nick to actually feel it and for anyone looking to see my stomach jump whenever he kicks nice and hard. Of course, he spends most of his time shamelessly kicking my bladder - so no one gets to enjoy that but me! It is easily one of the weirdest feelings ever.

On the not-so-fun side, I have to go in for my second gestational diabetes test as I was high on the first one. According to the doctor, about 40% of women fail that first time - but the idea that there may be something wrong never makes me feel good. Nick and I have often talked aobut he fact that almost everytime we have an appointment, I come back worried about some test result. Medical fear mongering. It is definitely stressful. I am never quite sure what I will have to worry about next - not that just having a baby and being a parent doesn't worry me enough. Hopefully the results will come in saying there is nothing wrong and we will move on from there. If not, it is off to the nutritionist for me. Admitedly, the worst part for me at the moment is the fasting. How can I not eat for 12 hours now. IT IS KILLING ME. I'm secretly now looking forward to the DISGUSTING orange soda I will get to drink tomorrow morning.

Other than that, Nick has been working really hard to get the apartment ready for Max. We had a run around town checking out everything on our registry and are getting ready to start putting in the orders. We actually have some space to put everything in now. Max has his very own dresser packed full of adorable clothing thanks to all the family making sure he well dressed (and if we haven't said it already - let me just say a huge thank you for everything everyone has sent/bought us! We can't wait to get him all dressed up. So many blog updates!)!

Pre-natal classes will start at the end of October where I get to hear all the joys of labor and the week after we will learn all about caring for a newborn and infant CPR. Yikes! So much to learn! It is still surreal to think we will have a baby in this apartment - our baby - in just a few months. Sometimes the reality of that sets in and other times it feels like at any point someone is going to jump out holding a camera and tell us we are on some twisted episode of candid camera. Of course, then my back aches and my feet swell and baby brain takes over and I forget everything I should remember and Max dances on my bladder and I quickly realize that he is indeed in there and growing fast!

I'm finally done with the travelling. Last weeks' trip was the last for me. The Virgin staff took exceptional care of me..bringing me bowls of fruit and bottles of water. But I have had enough plane rides to last me a lifetime and I'm ready to take it easy. Doctor's appointments are getting closer together too. 3 weeks until the next one...then I move to the every two week appointments. We have about 3 months to go until Max arrives. That is both an eternity and the shortest amount of time ever.

So that is pretty much the big update. Nothing really exciting other than the nesting beginning...lots of kicking.....and a huge belly. Ok....no more waiting...here they are....the belly photos (no comments on how big I am...as of yet the doctor has NOT told me to stop stuffing my face!)

:)

Here is photo number one - with lovely SF/Marin in the background.

Get ready - here is the belly - in all it's pale Canadian glory! I try to keep it covered so I don't blind people when the sun is out :)

I am a constant source of heat which makes me the most attractive pillow for our roomates. If I am lying down..sititng on the couch...anyhwere within reach..I am an automatic attraction. I am now better than lying in the sun. As long as they are near the oven I call the baby belly - they are happy. Max likes the purring I think. He kicks whenever one of them lies on my tummy and purrs.

And last, but most definitely not least - we received a lovely present from Nick's aunt - the delightful Eira - who drew us a piece of original art celebrating our engagement. We just wanted to post it here and send out a big thanks for that!

That's it for us! I promise I will update soon with news. As soon as he starts kicking hard enough for real movement to show - we may even take a video to share so you can all see the alien living in there!

Updates (21 Weeks) and Engagements

Lots of updates since the last time we put any news on here. On the baby front - all is well. The little bugger is happy and healthy and has finaly started kicking hard enough tha we both can feel it (although I get it a lot more - he seems to go quiet when Nick comes around. Already this kid won't perform to entertain us). We are at 21 weeks and all tests and last ultrasound results came in just great. So we are on track for our Xmas baby! 

Thought I'm sure everyone reading this knows, the big update is that Nick proposed. I have NO idea it was coming. None at all. A friend from work told me that she needed to talk to me and took me outside to my office courtyard. I looked up and saw some of my friends there but thought nothing of it. Even when I saw the man on the horse in a full suit

 of armor - it didn't click. It wasn't until I looked around at all the expectant faces of work and family friends that I clued into what was going on.  But let's be honest - a picture says 1000 words so here are the photos taken by our friend Paul (and...just in case you weren't sure - I said

 yes!)

Here is Nick's suit of armor before assembly:  

Nick makes a quick pre-proposal call: 

Jared, Nick's squire, prepares for his role in the show: 

The knight mount his trusty steed: 

The knight rides in to claim his bride: 

A good bride gets all teary..I, on the other hand, can't stop laughing: 

The proposal: 

The beautiful ring: 

And here are some photos of the aftermath, the hugs, and celebrations: 

The SEGA team joins us for the celebration: 

Videos

I'm testing out the video capabilities of this site...not sure how this will work or how interesting you guys will find this..but lets give it a try and see how it goes!

Enjoy!
Tali

The Big Reveal


A Face - I See A Face!

A Face...I See A Face Pt.2

A Little Moving and Shaking

18 Weeks and It's official...

we're having a boy! Woohooo.

Yesterday was the ultrasound where we saw all the working everything - heart, brain, kidneys, stomach, legs, hands, finger, feet...we saw it all. It was amazing. He is already 9 ounces and the ultrasound put us at 18 weeks 5 days, which is 5 days later when we though. The ultrasound also put us at a December 21 due date. I'm not entirely clear which one of the two is more accurate (my original due date or this one) but all I do know is that the baby is big and perfect :) He was super active in there. Completely different then the last time we had an ultrasound where he slept the whole time. This time he was moving and shaking and dancing and looking around. The technician had a great show and then when the doctor came in the baby sat straight up and wouldn't move - so the doctor couldn't see a thing. Fortunately he was able to check-out everything the technician prepared and said all looks happy and healthy! Woohoo!

In the meantime..I am feeling fine but exhausted. I'm off to Japan tomorrow. I need to get all the travel out of my system before I'm on a travel break!

WIthout further delay...here are the latest ultrasound images including a 3d version of the baby's face:

The little bugger was all bent in half by the end of the ultrasound - we are still trying to figure out where he gets his flexibility from:


A profile shot. You will see the umbilical cord right infront of his face - which is preparing you for the next picture I will put up:


This is the 3D picture of the baby. You can see his little face and the umilical cord hanging there just messing up the picture a tiny bit. So you have the ultrasound version from the side (above) and here is how he looks in 3D!


This one is areally hard to see, but this is his fact looking right at the camera:


Here are his two little feet:


You can see a pretty well defined arm in here - I love baby bone structure! :)


And finally - here is a little hand:


We will also put up some ultrasound videos. So stay tuned for another update! :)

17 Weeks - The Update

Well hello everyone!

Today we reached 17 weeks! Woohoo! Almost halfway there. I can't believe how time flies! We had a visit with the doctor today and all is well. I've gained a HUGE 9 pounds since I found out i was pregnant. I'm MASSIVE! We heard the little heartbeat- strong and fast. It was wonderful to hear.

All our genetic testing results came back really positive. We have nothing to be worried about. So good news all around this week.

According to the book - the little bugger weighs 5 ounces and is 5 inches long. I can't feel any moving yet....but I should in the next few weeks, although chances are I won't recognize it so quickly. So exciting and weird alll at the same time.

Other than that - no news. Next week we find out if it is a boy or a girl. SO exciting.

I thought it was about time to show off the growing baby belly...so here is the first picture of the tummy (note I'm spoting my fancy new maternity clothes. LOVE the elastic waistband jeans!)



Stay tuned for an update next week! The BIG update! Any bets on boy or girl??
:)

Update!

It is amazing how during pregnancy there is so much and so little happening at the same time. There is a baby who grows bigger and bigger every day - but there is generally not much to talk about. Even though I seem to have no problem talking baby any chance I get!

I spent a fantastic week last week visiting JW in Newburyport and Boston - both of which are places i can see settling down in and then headed to Montreal to visit with family and friends before the big JW/SG wedding (which was amazing). Over the course of that whirlwind week of fun I finally bought some little irresistibly cute baby clothes and my first maternity clothes. All I can say is this - I LOVE maternity pants. Elastic waistbands are where it is at people. I think the saying should be once you go elastic - you can never go back. It is weird to be really getting into this whole baby thing . I think there is a part of me that still holds back and feels like this isn't real and awaits each doctors appointment nervously - terrified I will find out something is wrong. I don't know if that ever gets easier My mom swears that the worry starts now and goes on for the rest of my life as a parent. Good times ahead for a neurotic crazy worrier like me! :)

Nick and I got some great news this week when we found out he tested negative for the Fanconi anemia. It makes me immensely happy to know we don't have to worry about that (not that I don't worry about anything else). Even though everyone was convinced there was nothing to worry about, knowing that everything was ok on that front - hearing it from the doctor - made me feel SO much more at ease.

I'm not feeling well today. Scratchy throat and nausea...not fun. I think I'm getting a cold but it is the last thing I wanted for the long weekend. Boo. Now I am cranky.

On the other front - Nick and I started a baby registry. So exciting! We did it on BabiesRUs for now, but I think we will have one on Target too because it seems things are cheaper there. We figured this was the easiest way to keep track of what we want and need. Take a look at it here and let me know what I'm missing (although I know there will be LOTS) - just click HERE and you should find it (*EDIT - I've also added an Amazon Baby Registry which has the same items...I just find it a little easier to maneuver. You can find that HERE). We didn't put the little things on...like the receiving blankets or the diapers or the onesies...we figure those are easy to run and pick up at Target - but just the bigger things we want to remember and get opinions on :) Any feedback is MUCH appreciated!

Ok...I am off to try not to throw up and to lie here feeling miserable and cranky!