Sunday, December 23, 2012

Papaya baby!

22 weeks! Not much to update but I did weigh myself this morning and I'm up 7.5 kg, which I think it's just fine for me and also better than the first time around.

Plenty of movements, even visible from the outside if you are looking at the right time! Phoenix seems to be more active now than Oliver was, or maybe it's my placenta which is high and so less obstructing? In any case, I have not listen to the heartbeat in a while, the fact that it felt to me so much slower than Oliver's was really giving me anxiety and when I talked to a friend of mine who's a midwife, she of course gave out to me a good bit.... she said literally "would you throw away that darn thing? Do you feel movements? Are they becoming stronger? So that's all you need to worry about!" And I listened.

My belly is not particularly big, at least in comparison with other cyber moms, but thankfully the papaya baby is just growing right so this time I won't be worried about the "you look so small!" comments! And you should see my sister...yes I never mentioned this I think, but she is also pregnant, an oops pregnancy totally unplanned and with precautions always taken... yes one of those...what can I tell you, we are the opposite of one another in many aspects, add fertility to the list! She is 28 weeks now and while at the beginning she was really torned about this baby she is now totally in love with the little girls she is carrying. I'll be an aunt! And Oliver will have a cousin about his age (and Phoenix too of course, still finding it a bit difficult to believe we will have two children soon), we will have to do our best to meet up more so that they can get to know each others.

I have finished all my exam marking on friday, really delighted as I had a ton this time around, I can now enjoy the holidays!! I've decided on our Christmas menu, no turkey and ham in our household....I wouldn't even know how to begin to prepare such a meal, just as well I don't particularly like it! We will go for a more Italian tradition, though not my home town as I won't find all I need. But that's ok! Mike's American cousin last summer said that they had invented their own tradition for Christmas and truly love it. So we will give it a go too!

I will check in again I'm sure, but just in case you only happen to stop by and read this post, I wish you a very happy Christmas and a peaceful 2013.

(I can't even begin to imagine how heartbreaking this Christmas is going to be for those families in CT, I couldn't watch any of the news and only read titles on the online papers...we have to enjoy every minute of what we have, hold our loved one close, life can change in a second.)

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Merry xmas Fran!! Enjoy your italian christmas feast! We generally dont do the turkey/ham thing here either as it's the middle of summer and stiffling hot so those big hearty meals arent so appealing. Enjoy your special time with your family
x

Valery said...


Curious now: what is Italian tradition for christmas? Panettone? or is that an Easter thing?

Adele said...

Fran, happy Christmas...and your Italian feast sounds wonderful. I really like the idea of inventing traditions as you go. Nothing wrong with that.

Very nice news on the cousin front:)

Anonymous said...

Ohhh, I'd love to hear about your Christmas feast. My paternal grandmother was Swiss/Italian and she always had a Christmas dinner with baked pasta, turkey, and either broccoli or fennel salads. Of course, she made lots of cookies.

I'm glad that Phoenix is doing well. And I'm happy that your family has been so blessed with babies! It is nice to have cousins who are close in age.

I miss you and your dear family. I do hope that we can see each other soon. McRuger and I have been talking about me doing a solo trip (with Cadet) at some point in the not so distant future. Big hugs to you guys!!! Happy Christmas!

erika said...

I am glad to hear you feel more and stronger movements. Exciting news on your growing family. I hope you will find more opportunities to visit Italy to spend time. We enjoy our visits and bonding so much!
Merry Christmas to you, too!
Much love, Erika

Mina said...

Movement is wonderful. Good thing you gave up the doppler.
Merry Christmas to you too! Please do tell about your Italian feast. :-))

Anonymous said...

Happy 22 weeks! I'm always so happy to read your updates and glad to hear that you and your papaya are doing well! I've learned that you cannot compare pregnancies OR children. Everyone of them are so different. I'm sure Phoenix is perfect!

Have a wonderful Christmas. I am giving the ham a go (my first one, really). Egads.

Yes, the Newtown, CT tragedy is raw in my heart too. I cannot read much about it without crying. They published photos of the 20 children and my heart went to mush looking at those darling, innocent faces. God bless the children.

Alex said...

22 weeks!!! How wonderful, I'm so happy for you that things are going so well in this pregnancy!!! Merry Christmas, my dear! I hope it's wonderful for you and your family!

Life Happens said...

I hope you had a fabulous christmas!

Anonymous said...

What wonderful pictures! Italy sounds lovely! I am so glad that everything is working well with Phoenix....I can't wait to meet the little one (someday!!).

Big hugs!