Pregnant woman gets punched

Saturday, October 27th

So, I haven't gone out since I've been pregnant because of risk of getting bumped into and whatnot. Not that I'm back in Colorado, I've really wanted to go country dancin' at this bar I used to go to with my mom and sister. It's a no smoking bar and people usually don't get that rowdy, but it isn't a good environment to be in pregnant.

We were able to get tickets to the "Shining Ball" at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park (tourist town just outside of the Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park). It was a big deal! I made the tickets so my husband and I could go, a trade. They were $85 each. People paying that much for a Halloween Party are serious!

For those of you who don't know, The Stanley Hotel is where Stephen King was staying when he got the idea about the book/movie The Shining. The hotel is very old (opened in 1909) and there are a lot of haunted stories about experiences there over the years. In May 2006, investigators with The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) investigated the hotel for the SciFi Channel program Ghost Hunters. TAPS returned to the hotel on October 31st, 2006 for a live, six hour follow-up investigation. The people on the show are plummers who use scientific equipment to debunk/disprove haunted claims. That may be the reason she show isn't more popular, because more often than not, the "hauntings" they investigate are leaky pipes or breezes from cracks in windows or doors. TAPS did catch the closet door open and close on it's own on a night vision camera, and the glass sitting on his nightstand broke and the pieces were inside the cup, not on the table. The Today Show filmed a piece for their Halloween show. Here's a small picture:



Anyway, we were having a good time. We went as a white trash couple. Preston put holes in an old shirt and dirtied himself up, he looked great! I'm 6 months (24 weeks Monday) along, but I'm not showing as much as I'd hoped, so I put a pillow under my shirt, wore slippers, used my make-up to give myself a black eye and wore too much red lipstick. We were both holding cigarettes and I was holding a beer bottle.

This lady came up to me when we were sitting by the fireplace and leaned in a little. I thought she was gonna tell me something. She made a fist and punched my stomach. It really hurt, like, she actually PUNCHED me. I looked at her and said, "I'm really pregnant!" and she didn't believe me. I was like, "No... I'm REALLY pregnant!"

She felt really stupid and apologized over and over, but it really hurt! I played it off in front of people (there were another couple sitting across from us), but when Preston and I went outside, I told him how hard of a hit it was. I thought I'd be fine, but I really didn't know because it IS my first pregnancy. We stayed about 15 minutes more, then decided to go to the ER to make sure.

I got right in (the luxuries of living in a small town) and the nurse put two... what looked like over-sized stethescopes on my belly. She couldn't find the heartbeat for about 30 minutes, but just because my baby wouldn't stop moving. She said that was a good sign. We finally got the heartbeat, between 120 and 190, depending on how much he was moving around. It was neat to be able to hear all the movement :)

Everything was fine and I was able to get out of there in less than two hours. Thank god! It just scared me. Who punches someone? At a party? An adult richie hoity toity party? She looked to be in her early 40's or late 30's. It was so weird. She wasn't even drunk. Some people!

Oooh baby !!!!!!!!!

My 23 week old baby: photo taken 12:37:20PM
Wednesday, October 24th, 2007





Baby's heart rate: 160 bpm
Unfortunately, we couldn't determine the sex, we couldn't see :(
The nurse (she was awesome!) said, "During this whole ultrasound, I haven't seen any little boy parts, but I cannot definitely see little girl parts."

23 weeks preggo

There are 117 days until your due date on February 17, 2008.
You are 163 days pregnant.
You are 5.3 months pregnant.
You are in your 6th month of pregnancy. (huh?)
Your 1st trimester: May 13, 2007 to August 11, 2007. (0 - 12 weeks)
Your 2nd trimester: August 12, 2007 to November 24, 2007. (13 - 27 weeks)
Your 3rd trimester: November 25, 2007 to February 17, 2008. (28 - 40 weeks)

This week your baby's length, from crown-to-rump, is approximately 8 inches! Your growing baby has finally reached one pound. Your baby is about the size of a small baby doll and looks very human. The baby's face and body look similar to that of a newborn at this time. Your uterus can be found about 1.5 inches above your navel. Your total weight gain should be approximately 15 pounds at this time.

You might notice some Braxton-Hicks contractions around this time. These contractions are not regular and they should not be painful. Braxton-Hicks contractions prepare your body for the upcoming labor and they will get stronger as your pregnancy progresses. You might be able to feel the contractions if you put your hand on your abdomen and your baby can probably feel the uterus gripping and massaging her. It will not harm your baby, so there is no need for concern.

Fat is still being deposited at a rapid rate, but your baby still looks red and wrinkled. Skin is being produced at a higher rate than the fat is, so the skin hangs loosely. Your baby looks red because the skin is losing its transparency and pigment is beginning to form. You should be feeling your baby moving quite a bit throughout the day as she will kick and punch the uterus walls. Babies also run their hands along the umbilical cord and touch their body parts while they are in the womb. Your baby now can suck her thumb for real, where she was just sticking it in her mouth. Your baby will continue to swallow amniotic fluid and recycle it as urine. The liquids and sugars that the baby retracts from the fluid is a supplement to the nutrients that the placenta delivers. You might be able to feel small `jumps` inside of you when your baby gets the hiccups from swallowing fluid. The pancreas is developing and it will responsible for insulin production, to help break down sugars.

Oily fish in your diet could help boost your baby's health. (Women who eat oily fish while pregnant have children with better visual development, a major study at Bristol University suggests.)

As the baby continues to grow, it has less space to move around in the uterus. Bones, muscles and organs are growing steadily.

Your baby's lungs are in major growth mode this week, with blood vessels expanding and preparing to help her breathe after she's born. Although she's making breathing movements in the womb (so cute!), it's still just practice with amniotic fluid; your baby will get all of her oxygen delivered from the placenta until she's born. But here's why this lung development is so fabulous: If your child should happen to arrive early (though only 2 percent of babies in the U.S. are born before 32 weeks), her odds of surviving are significantly better now that her lungs are up and running. Of course, these and other important organs still have a long way to go to become fully developed, but most experts count weeks 23 and 24 as important, reassuring milestones when it comes to long-term healthy outcomes from preterm labor.

18 weeks and counting...

Thumb-sucking at 18 weeks....

By week 18 of your pregnancy, your baby's crown-to-rump length is 5 to 5.5 inches long. Your baby continues to develop fat layers and weighs about 5.25 ounces. Your baby will continue to grow and develop, but the rapid growth will slow down for a little while. You will be able to feel your uterus just below your bellybutton. If you put your fingers sideways to measure, you can feel your uterus about two finger-widths below your bellybutton. At this point of your pregnancy, your uterus is approximately the size of a cantaloupe. Although weight gain varies from woman to woman, your total weight gain at this point should be 10 to 13 pounds.

At this time if you had an ultrasound, heart abnormalities can be detected. If the ultrasound technician detects abnormalties, further ultrasound exams may be ordered to follow the baby's development. There is still space available in your uterus and your baby will be active for periods at a time. Your baby may sit cross legged or turn somersaults.

Around this time, your baby becomes more sensitive to the outside world and shows her presence through powerful kicks and prods. The bones through which sound is passed to the inner ear have hardened and the part of the brain that receives and processes nerve signals from the ears are developing. This means that your baby can hear now. Your baby will get used to familiar sounds, such as your heart beating, familiar voices, blood rushing through the umbilical cord and other daily routine sounds. Your baby will become startled if he hears a loud sound.

If you have a stethoscope at home, you can now hear the baby's heartbeat yourself.

113 days pregnant

Dates and numbers:
There are 167 days until your due date on February 17, 2008.
You are 113 days pregnant.
You are 3.7 months pregnant.
You are in your 4th month of pregnancy. (huh?)
Your 1st trimester: May 13, 2007 to August 11, 2007. (0 - 12 weeks)
Your 2nd trimester: August 12, 2007 to November 24, 2007. (13 - 27 weeks)
Your 3rd trimester: November 25, 2007 to February 17, 2008. (28 - 40 weeks)

At this point of your pregnancy, your baby is approximately 4.3 to 4.6 inches long and weighs 2.8 ounces. Not only is your baby growing, your uterus and placenta continue to grow to accomodate the growing baby inside of you! Just six weeks ago, your uterus weighed about 5 ounces. This week it now weighs 8.75 ounces! The amniotic fluid that surrounds the baby is increasing and there is about 7.5 ounces of fluid. You will easily be able to feel your uterus approximately three inches below your navel.

This is an important week for testing and you will most likely ahve an AFP test done. This is a harmless blood test that is done to detect abnormalities such as Down's syndrome or spina bifida. This is a non-invasive test and it carries no risk to your developing baby. Most doctors will offer the test, but in most cases it is completely optional.

Your milk glands start production at this time and this causes some tenderness and swelling in early pregnancy. Your veins will become more visible because there is an increaed amount of blood flowing to the breasts.

Five and a half inches tall and only six ounces in weight. The child can grasp with his hands, kick, or even somersault.

At this time, your baby is holding her head erect. Because her muscles are developing, she can make some faces now. Your baby is able to squint, frown and open its mouth. There is enough calcium in the bones that they will show up on an x-ray. Your baby's fingernails are well formed now and the legs are longer than the arms. Because your baby is moving well now, you may begin to feel his movements! Some women say that the early movements feel like gas bubbles or a slight flutter. If you have not yet felt the baby move, don't worry. Fetal movements are usually felt between the 16th and 20th week of pregnancy.

You may feel your heart beating 'louder'. This is because there is a lot more blood in your body than normal. (about 20-25% more)

15 weeks Preggo

Your baby's crown-to-rump length is approximately 4 inches and she now weighs approximately 1.75 ounces. Your baby is close to the size of a softball and you can easily tell that you are pregnant now! If you wear maternity clothes or a swimming suit, other people will be able to tell that you are pregnant also. You can probably feel your uterus about three to four inches below your bellybutton.


Your baby, 25 weeks to go.....

If you do not yet have a due date, your doctor can easily determine an accurate due date based on the measurement of your baby's head. This is done by an ultrasound examination. Your doctor will be discussing upcoming tests and procedures with you around this time that are able to diagnose or confirm birth defects and other abnormalities.

Your baby is growing at an amazing rate and looking more like a human every day. Because your baby's skin is so thin, you are able to see blood vessels through the skin. Lanugo hair covers your baby's body, but it will be gone when your baby is born. The hair on the eyebrows and head continues to grow. Some babies are born with little or no hair and others have a head full of hair! If you have an ultrasound at this point, you might be able to see your baby sucking its thumb. Even though the eyes continue to move to the front of the face, they are still widely separated. Your baby's ears look like normal ears and continue to develop externally. The bones that have already formed continue to get harder and retain calcium. The baby is very mobile and flexible at this point. She can bend her arms at the elbows and wrists and she can also make a fist with her hands.

12 weeks pregnant

Your baby's crown-to-rump length is almost 2.5 inches and she now weighs between 8 and 14 grams! In just three weeks, your baby's size has more than doubled and begins to look alot more human. Even though you won't be able to feel your baby moving at this time, you can stimulate him and he will squint, open his mouth and move his fingers or toes.

By the end of this week, your uterus is too large to remain completely in your pelvis. You might be able to feel your uterus above your pubic bone. The uterus will continue to grow throughout your pregnancy and will return to its usual size within a few weeks after delivery. Before pregnancy, the uterus is almost solid and holds less than 0.3 ounces. During pregnancy, your uterus will become a thin-walled, muscular container that will hold the fetus, amniotic fluid and placenta. Before pregnancy, the uterus weighs approximately 2.5 ounces and when your baby is born, it will weigh almost 40 ounces!

Because most of the structures are already formed at this point, few will be formed after this time. The structures will continue to grow and develop throughout the remainder of your pregnancy. Your baby's skeletal system now has centers if bone formation in most of the bones. The digestive system is capable of making contractions that push food through the bowels and it is also able to absorb sugar. The pituitary gland beginning to make hormones. You will probably be able to hear your baby's heartbeat with a doppler at this time!

This week may be the first week that you begin to feel better! Morning sickness often tends to improve or diminsih at this time. You may begin to show slightly, especially if this is not your first pregnancy. You will feel more comfortable in loose clothing, such as maternity clothes. In addition to your tummy getting larger your breasts, hips, legs and sides may be getting bigger also.

Your baby develops reflexes and the skin is very sensitive.
The brain is fully formed, and the child can feel pain. the baby may even suck his thumb. The eyelids now cover the eyes, and will remain shut until the seventh month to protect the delicate optical nerve fibers.