Dexter has been sleeping in his crib, turned toddler bed. We will be needing the crib in a few months, so we thought it would be a good time for him to move up to a twin-sized bed. So, for his Christmas, we got a nice bed with all the trimmings - mattress, waterproof pad, sheets, cover, pillows and a guard rail. I'm a firm believer in the "buy it nice or buy it twice" philosophy. His bed completes his bedroom set and was designed by a local guy who used to design for Potterybarn before he struck out on his own. It's a simple, classic modern with a splash of orange that I really love. It should last him until his teen years and beyond. My favorite part is that I can now crawl into his bed in the morning instead of the other way around. Reading books are way more fun when I can sit right next to him. His favorite part is jumping on his bed since he now has an unhindered view of himself in his mirror jumping up and down. Surprisingly, the change hasn't affected his sleeping at all. In fact, I think he's probably sleeping better.
We set up the crib in our bedroom. Dexter helped me as much as he could to convert the toddler bed back to a crib suitable for a newborn. He told Squee, "Look Squee! It's my baby sister's crib!" He's excited to have a sister. I hope it continues to be that way. I think he's going to make a great big brother, but he's so attached to me. If I so much as say "ow", he asks me if I'm okay. He's very sensitive to how I feel, which is why he regressed so much when I had morning sickness. He's always concerned if I say something about not feeling well. He'll even ask if I need to see a doctor. I hope he's okay with sharing his mom, but I'm not expecting anything less than a rough few months of transition time filled with tantrums and jealousy.
His "jumping class" ended this week. Usually, for a grand finale, they hook up a small green tandem swing to a rope system that is pretty high. The first time I saw video our nanny took of him in the swing made me pretty nervous. He loves the green swing and talk about it all session long. This is Dexter's third session. We took a break from work to go watch him in the swing. We got there just after they'd hoisted him and his friend P. He was so excited that we were there. Along with the excitement of swinging, I thought he was gonna explode. He was so cute, waving at us and all. They swing them around for a couple minutes. When it was over, Dexter did his trademark run and jump on mom. Pretty soon he's just gonna bounce off my belly!
As of Saturday, I will be 24 weeks pregnant. It's taken a while for me to get excited this time because Dexter fills most of my time. I've started feeling her kick and move around a lot lately, so that makes it feel more real as well. We've started making a list of names we like and buying some baby girl clothes. I started sorting out the newborn clothes we had and am trying to salvage as much as possible. Luckily, I wasn't a huge fan of baby blue, so there's a lot of green and brown that will work for her as well. Unfortunately, for our bank account, I am finding that baby girl clothes are about 100 times cuter and more stylish than baby boys' clothes. This problem will probably last until she leaves the nest.
I've gained a lot of weight which sucks. I lost it all last time, so I can do it again. My hormones have me eating constantly and I have no sense of when I've eaten enough. I feel good though. No more sickness, just a little more tired than usual. I can't hardly walk anywhere, especially up hills, without losing my breath. I don't remember it being as bad last time. I've had a lot more nosebleeds this time too. I'm hoping my ankles don't swell as bad they did last time, but they are starting to swell. My belly is getting fairly noticeable as a pregnant belly and not a belly that comes from my voracious appetite. My mom will get to see me looking pregnant this time instead of just in the throes of morning sickness.
We are heading to Kansas for the holidays. I'm excited to get away from work for a bit, relax and be with my family. I'm hoping Dex will get to play in some snow and our travels are safe and smooth. That's all I ask for Santa.
