EXPECTINGDADDY.COM

Weeks 25-37 Continued .... the baby

expectingdaddy — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 23:32:47 GMT

A lot has happened since week 24. At that point my wife was still very small, everyone didn't even know she was pregnant. Now, she is pregnant for sure but people can't believe that she is almost due. She is due in 2 1/2 weeks and she looks like some females due half way through their pregnancy. I'm not sure exactly way this is, maybe it's genetics as her mother never gained much weight either and is still small today. Maybe, it's the fact that she was very active during most of her pregnancy and ate well. Or maybe it's because it's her first pregnancy. What ever the reason, I don't really care. I think she looks spectacular and is still sexy in my eyes.

We see movements consistently throughout the day, my wife is still more fascinated than myself. I enjoy watching it for a few minutes and then I become a little bored. I think she is more interested because she can feel it at the same time. When the baby moves her entire stomach area moves, we still cant make out any body parts.

We've had four ultra sounds now, the reason for the third was because the doctor couldn't tell if the baby had turned or if it was breech. The baby ended up being breech and is slightly below average weight, which means more appointments need to be done. The doctor says that it is not anything to worry about. He just wants to monitor movements since it's so close to the end.

With this news my wife struggled a bit just because she had a pregnancy planned that involved a natural birth with limited drugs, hopefully late, and speedy recovery. Now we are looking at having the opposite in each of these categories. It's obviously not the worst thing that could happen and therefore we are happy, however slightly frustrated because everything was going so well. A couple positive that comes out of this is that we will know exactly when the baby will be born because my wife will need to have a cesarian section and she wont need to go through hours of labor. So maybe this is a blessing.

At the same time a friend of ours who was due near the end of Aug was admitted to the hospital because she was having contractions. She stayed for two days and everything is great now but her due date has been moved up considerably as she can go anytime. But I know my wife and her and they will probably go within a day of each other.

Tonight we had our hospital tour. In my opinion it was a complete waste of time, yes we saw where to go and heard what would be going on, but really I think I could have read the signs and I'm not going to know what is going on anyway. I think my wife felt better after the tour though, so I guess it was worth it.

In the next week or so we have a few other appointments my wife has another ultrasound, a non-stress test, and weekly check up to monitor the size and position of the baby.

Weeks 25-37 - A lot has happened

expectingdaddy — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 23:25:48 GMT

Sorry for not updating this in some time, I've been busy renovating our house, finishing up school for the year and of course and most importantly I have been lazy.

What has occurred in the past 12 weeks

1. The baby's room is now complete, and it looks amazing. My wife's cousin, a buddy and I worked on ripping up the carpet on our second floor and putting down Laminate flooring. The guys did a terrific job and I basically watched, made lunches, ordered lunches and cleaned up.

My wife's good friend came over and painted a mural on the wall, it's a Dr. Seuss theme. While she was painting the mural I was totally hesitant thinking that it wasn't going to look good. I must have underestimated her talents because it turned out looking sensational.

2. We've continued our concert ways as we've seen NKOTBSB, Bedouin Soundclash and a TFC game together. I was also lucky enough to see Soundgarden and another TFC game. You gotta keep up with those outings cause they are things that make you happy.

3. We also decided to redo our entire upstairs flooring along with painting the master bedroom. All the rooms now have laminate flooring with carpet in the hall and on the stairs. Don't worry we hired someone to put down the new carpet on the stairs and it should be done on Wednesday. I would never try this as I'm useless. My wife decided to go with a semi dark purple/pink colour on our wall that supports our bed and a white/pink colour on the other walls. It actually turned out pretty well. We've been sleeping in our guest room as the fumes leave. I just need to paint the new baseboards and we can move back it.

4. Speaking of sleeping, my wife in the last two weeks as reemerged as the creature, as she continually goes to to washroom all night, makes noises that humans shouldn't make and now when she turns it feels like the entire room is moving around me. She isn't getting much sleep lately with all that is going on but honestly I think I'm getting even less as I'm afraid to shut my eyes because I don't know what will wake me up.

5. Baby showers, my wife and I first had a coed shower put on by her friends. I was honestly against the while coed thing. But it all turned out great and went very well. Our friends are also having a baby around the same time so the shower was for both babies. The turn out was terrific and I can't believe how generous people are, it's crazy. I also cant believe how impressive baby toys and things are, it's amazing.

My wife also had a shower with our families and friends, I didn't have to go though, which although I enjoyed the coed one I was pleased with. Again it was a success as our mothers and my wife's sister put on a great shower. Again, people were very generous and it was a great day. From the pictures and what I've heard the ladies played games and ate. I guess that would be a pretty good day.

6. Last day of school for a year. My wife will be taking the school year off and at first was hesitant with this decision but as the year ended and the baby continued to grow she became excited about her time off. It may have also been influenced by the fact that like 6-9 of her friends are all pregnant or recent mothers and they will all be off together. Either way she is excited and I'm excited for her as it time she can bond with our child and clean the house, cook dinners and do laundry ( I'm joking)

7. My mission to be healthier has continued somewhat, I made it through April without having a drink but then I decided I had done it for long enough. Now, I'll have a couple of drinks, nothing major. I guess you could say I drink like a grown up now and not like a teenager/ university student. The hangovers are non-existent and I still get a slight buzz, it's all good. I've continued to play sports 3-4 times a week. My wife has slowly gotten away from her sports which kills her as she's super competitive and loves her sports. She did teach aerobics up to mid June but other than that she hasn't been as active as much as she'd like.

The other day she wanted to go walking, I thought this meant a nice gingerly walk by the lake. She had a different idea as she was dressed like she wanted to run a marathon. We went for our walk and I was walking at my normal slow pace and she was lagging behind, breathing heavily. I guess her body has changed a lot.

All the baby news will be on the next blog............

Week 24 - Billy Elliott

expectingdaddy — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 23:17:24 GMT

This week we saw the play Billy Elliott with my uncle. It was his Xmas gift from us and he was super excited to see it. Although I had no real recollection of the film and knew a bit about the plot I really didn't have high expectations. My wife on the other hand found out the day of the play that it is centered around a boy in a mainly manly oriented town wanting to dance.

The play has many kids and children under fifteen. I'm not sure if it's because I'm having a child soon that I look at the kids differently. I was totally amazed at how talented these kids were, I mean singing, dancing, acting and putting on an accent at the same time. I have a hard enough time, walking, talking and breathing properly. After watching the play I began to analyze in my mind what the kids must do on a daily basis and whether they had a childhood at all. I wondered how I would be as a parent if our child was gifted in some area, and if I would push my child to the extant that these kids are obviously pushed or would I want my child to have a somewhat regular childhood. It's a tough choice, are these kids truly happy? do they really love what they are doing or do their parents love it? I researched a bit about the actors and found that most come from ballet or dance families.

Well, I guess I have time to ponder what I'll do, or maybe it will entirely up to my wife. Either way the play was sensational, and I loved every minute of it, totally recommend it.

Baby Stuff:

1. Baby's head is still huge but is becoming more and more proportional (ours will never be proportional)

2. Baby's can yawn

3. Measures 28.9 cm (almost a ruler in length)

4. Baby's hearing is improving and sudden loud noises may result in the baby moving.

Week 22- 23- Baby kick, room may need to be changed, baby registry

expectingdaddy — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 01:52:00 GMT

The other night I finally felt the baby kick. We were laying in bed and my wife grabbed my hand and pressed it against her stomach. Immediately I felt a small kick and then another. It was crazy and amazing at the same time. My wife is showing more and more it seems by the day. Her small washboard tummy is no longer and she now shows a small baby sac. It's very cute on her and she looks great.

My wife has been terrific for her whole pregnancy so far. But the other day I become a little frustrated. During March Break we had a discussion about if the baby's room needed to be painted that it would be a great time to do it. She was sick and I was bored and had lots of time on my hands. We decided that we didn't need to paint anything as our theme and current colour of the room went together. Well, I guess things can change quickly because apparently she now wants it painted. Really? now that we're back at work and busy most weekends, she now wants it painted. Women are CRAZY.

My wife has started a baby registry with the help of her sister. A lot of her friends have been very generous with their old things but there are obviously still many things that we are in need of. I honestly know nothing about infants and therefore felt that this was a project that would be best completed without my help. My wife agreed (probably so she could register for whatever she wanted), but I dont mind at all.

Last weekend we had my cousins Jack n' Jill. We were on our way with my brother and his girlfriend when our car decided to stop moving. I pulled over and did what every manly man does and looked under the hood for the problem. Problem is I don't know anything about cars, so this was a waste of about 30 seconds. Luckily, a CAA truck drove past us and stopped at the lights, 100 metres behind us, so my brother could flag him down. By the way we were an hour away in the middle of nowhere. I mean there was basically nothing around us. The CAA guy was helpful and ended up driving our car all the way to Whitby, from Bolton, using my father in laws CAA number. My mother came and pick us up from a gas station after about an hour of driving around looking for us. We made it to the Jack n Jill will a couple of hours remaining, it was a good time. The night's uncomfortable feeling wasn't over as we now had to fit 6 people into a small car for an hour drive home. NOT very fun when your pregnant wife is leaning on your stomach the whole time, and her back was hurting from her position. But, it could have been worst and I thank my mom for coming to pick us up.

We found out it was the transmission and will cost, a pretty penny. Doesn't always go this way, as soon as you get your finances together and feel good moving forward, something comes and fucks you right over.

Baby Business:

1. Length 27 c.m - 28 c.m

2. Baby can be seen holding and playing with the umbilical cord (if it's a boy it won't be the last time he's alone playing with his cord)

3. As the baby grows, it presses against the mothers organs which can result in many interesting digestive system problems - like heart burn and gas (funny, I wonder if I'm pregnant?)

4. Lungs are working now but not to full capacity

5. Baby's heart beat begins to decrease a bit

Week 20- 21 March Break, 2nd Ultrasound and Crazy Baby

expectingdaddy — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 01:42:00 GMT

We just finished our March Break; we decided to stay local and get a lot of things done around the house. We completely organized and cleaned out the baby's room. We have decided to get our friend Ann Marie to paint one wall with a page from Dr. Seuss' "Oh the places you'll go". I'm very excited to see what it will look like when the room is finished.

My wife was sick during the break, so it was good that we didn't go anywhere. She was stuffed up and weak. It was nice to just relax and go at a slow pace for her to get back to her healthy self. The only problem is I am now sick. That's right, my wonderful wife has made me sick, while back at work.

We had our second ultrasound this week. It was amazing being able to see all the facial features, the spine, fingers and toes. It's amazing what technology we have today and how it makes this whole process so exciting. I was fixated on trying to see or not see our baby's penis. At one point I thought that I didn't see anything where the penis would be and then two minutes I thought I saw a little worm. So, after examining the ultrasound screen for the five minutes I still have no clue if our baby has an extra limb or doesn't.

The only unfortunate thing is that our baby may be the next horror movie star. The pictures looked amazing until you reach the last one. However you look at the image it appears like we are having something that may not be human.

We went to the bank to start saving for the future and the next year, while my wife is off taking care of our little one. This is a great feeling because hopefully we will be ready for her maternity leave when it comes.

Baby Happenings:

1. Baby is swallowing more and more fluids

2. 24- 25.5 c.m in length

3. Chick baby's ovaries are in the pelvis

4. Fingernails are starting to grow

5. Boy baby's have no testes outside the body, they are still in the pelvis (it must be cold in there)

6. Bone marrow is now in all the baby's bones and are producing red blood cells

7. Baby's hands are always moving

Week 18 - 19 - Kicking, Daffy Duck, Spandex Jeans and a Pop

expectingdaddy — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 00:22:00 GMT

It's been a very busy couple of weeks. My wife, as her family calls it, has finally popped. Her belly finally makes her look either somewhat pregnant or that she has bad posture. Either way although she is small, she definitely looks pregnant to me.
My wife has been having some difficulty wearing her normal jeans as they are becoming very tight and are not fitting. So we decided to go shopping for maternity pants. Before this trip I thought maternity pants were basically very large ugly jeans; I had no idea what pregnant women had been hiding. I was amazed by this invention and astonished at how brilliant it was. I even wondered why some overweight people don't wear these pants on a regular basis. I mean you can't even see the elastic band that basically goes from vagina to just under the breasts. Crazy! Good job to the women who invented those pants.
A few weeks ago my wife felt a small kick, now she repeatedly feels these small knocks. She feels them while sitting on the couch, laying in bed and the other night it actually woke her. She tried having me feel the kicks and I had my hand waiting for on her stomach patiently. Patience isn't my strongest asset; 10 seconds later I got bored of waiting. Of course as soon as I removed my hand, it kicked. I'm sure I'll be able to feel the kicker soon.
My wife has been suffering from a cold the past few days, she has a stuffy nose, a small cough and a sore throat. She's been taking it pretty easy, just trying to get well. She isn't taking anything because it may harm the baby. I don't believe this at all and tell her to take the medicines she is allowed to but she refuses. She's having trouble sleeping because her nose is so stuffy and the other night while I was trying to sleep silently and calmly, I heard this high-squeaking noise coming from beside me. I realized this sound was actually coming out of my wife's nose and it sounded like Daffy Duck. I really hope she starts taking the drugs and gets well very soon.
New lingo... I never actually knew what dilated meant before watching an episode of Criminal Minds. It was a pretty gruesome episode so I'll just tell you that a woman had to tell how dilated another woman was by using her fingers. I was even more freaked out when my wife told me that's how doctors see how dilated a woman is.

Week 17 - Hired a full-time cook, baby's heart beat and David Gray

expectingdaddy — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 03:50:00 GMT

Unbeknownst to me, my wife has been thinking about hiring some kind of full time help in the kitchen. We are both pretty busy and she felt in order to limit her stress and increase her occasional nap time, some help would be beneficial. I also didn't know that she had been interviewing people over the past few weeks. She has now admitted she interviewed an Italian, Indian and Mexican. I was super amazed when I came home on Wednesday, that she had hired our help. I guess she had good reason to. I mean she did sleep in and went to the doctors that day and then coached a volleyball game (pretty tough). As result of this day, she was exhausted and needed a little rest. I just didn't know that I was the hired full-time kitchen help. I hadn't realized that I had been making most of the meals and on this particular day, woke up early, worked the entire day and coached after school. Between the two of us, I totally understand why it should have been me cooking. I'm not sure why she settled on a thirty year old, balding man, when I'm sure we could have had a nice young girl from Europe making our meals.

On a more positive note, my wife had scheduled a doctor's appointment this week. She made sure it didn't interfere with her volleyball coaching (rightfully so). She however forgot to ask when I was available to attend the appointment in the event that I may want to go. Hey, at least she made her high school volleyball game. Anyways, she saw her OBGYN. She heard our child's heartbeat, which is extremely exciting. I'm so happy that I was there to share in this moment. Everything seems to going well with the pregnancy according to the Doc.

On Family day, we began to fix up our baby's room. All we did wasclean the mess and put up some wall sticker decorations of the alphabet and a height measuring picture. I personally think it looks amazing.

David Gray concert last night was good. He slowed it down and played a more intimate and acoustic set. During the encore he sped it up to his old way and increased the bass drum. During this time, my wife's stomach was vibrating as we were fifth row. Our child is definitely going to be a rocker. On a side note, if you ever go to a concert please don't do these things:
1. Yell out comments all the time that are uneducated
2. Yell out song requests
3. Eat a bag of chips during an acoustic show
4. Take more than a few pictures, you dont need that many
5. Video tape the performance - why dont you enjoy the show the first time, you aren't going to watch it again.

Baby things:
1. Sex organs are developing
2. Baby is bigger than the placenta
3. The women's uterus is large enough to give her a "belly"

Week 16 - Bon Jovi and I figured out what the creature is .....

expectingdaddy — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 17:48:00 GMT

This past week started off extremely well on Valentine's day with a Bon Jovi concert. They are ridiculously good in concert, as they are full energy for 2.5 hours. My wife had never seen them and enjoyed every minute of it. She didn't feel any "Devil horns" in her tummy this time, so I'm not sure if our little one enjoyed Jon Bon as much as he/she enjoyed Linkin Park. Maybe he/she will be a metal head. I guess that wouldn't be that bad with a name like Linkin.

The week started off well on another front as well; the creature wasn't making it's normal treks across the room. I'm not sure if the warmer weather affects the actions of the creature, maybe the creature hibernates during the warmer months? or maybe it is also tired of the late night awakenings. Either way I was happy with this new found sleep.

However, this didn't last long as the creature began making these awfully loud, low noises. I was very frightened for my safety as I now know that I'm definitely sleeping beside a hibernating Wilder beast. At least that's what I think it much be, I mean what other animal would make those kind of noises while sleeping.

Maybe I'll go hunting for some wilder beasts in the future?

My wife is having a doctors appointment next week where she should hear the baby's heart beat. This is very cool.

I continued my transformation with finally being able to put up a towel rack (on my third try). I know pretty pathetic, but honestly a year ago I would have gotten someone else to do it.

We began to do some small things to our future baby room, we put up the alphabet and a height measuring thing,

Baby happenings:
- an arch is beginning to shape in the feet
- fingers are separate and can move individually, they are still short and stubby (if they get my gene they will stay this way)
- The amniotic fluid is becoming more and more produced by the baby's urine because the baby's skin is becoming more waterproof (our baby is swimming in it's own pee!)

Week 15 - Linkin Park Concert and Facebook knows....

expectingdaddy — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 01:52:00 GMT

So for the past two weeks this creature has been appearing as many as four times a night waking me up. Now, what I didn't know was that this creature gets somewhat upset if you wake it up for any unknowing reason. The other night, after the creature had crept across the room and back and fallen asleep, my phone happened to get a text message (at 3:30 a.m). In a disarray, I touched the phone but didn't turn it off so five minutes later it went off again. This time, the creature arose with an angry snarl on her face and exclaimed to turn it off. So I did.
Fifteen minutes later, the creature arose again to make her trek across the room and when she began to fall asleep, the phone rang again, although this time the ringer was turned off but the vibrator wasn't. She asked for it to be turned off and again in somewhat of a sleep, since I dont get much these days I tried. Five minutes later, it vibrated again and the snarl returned. I rose in fear and tried desperately to completely ruin my phone before I was killed. I wasn't luckily and she was asleep about one minute later, while I was once again up for twenty minutes before I fell back to sleep.
Question: How come I can't wake the creature up, one night a few times (which were not totally my fault) but I can be awoken for the past few weeks?

Myself, my wife and Andy went to see Linkin Park on Tuesday. It was a terrific concert as they were high energy for the entire set rarely taking anytime to relax. My wife told me that she could feel her stomach vibrating during the concert and I replied that the baby was just showing it's devil horns. Hopefully s/he has some musical talent because neither of us do. She also mentioned that she liked how they spelled the name Linkin. Could this be a possible name? I would have no opposition.

My wife finally made the terrifying jump to post the news on facebook. It was received with some fifty sensational messages, many saying that they were more happy about the fact they could now talk about it. I guess this means I should do the same.

My wife read that during this time, if you put a light on your stomach that the baby will move away from the light. Last night, after a terrifc not so healthy fish and chips meal my wife felt something going on in her stomach. She later told me that she was feeling little knocks on it. Then as I was sitting on the oppposite couch, not really even noticing that she is pregnant, she asked for my phone. She lifted up her shirt and started to place the phone's light on her stomach. I wasn't sure what she was doing, I actually thought she was looking for stretch marks. Then, I noticed the expression of shear enjoyment and excitement on her face as she explained how she could feel something move. She doesn't know what it was and believes that it was the baby''s foot. Either way it was amazing to see her in such fascination with what was going on with her body. I have to confess I was a little jealous because as she's so excited, I'm not really feeling much because I can't feel what she's feeling. Either way, I am happy for her.

Secret Valentine's at school has been very interesting. My secret friend has been super creative focusing on my wife and future child (I'm already third in people's thoughts). She has got us two baby outfits, a book for my wife to read and the most interesting of all a baby naming book. She got all my staff to look through the book and write a comment beside what they considered a funny, awkward or weird name. I broke out laughing at many of the possible names and the comments. My wife did as well when she saw the book.

I guess this busy week has made up for the preceding three boring weeks. We have Bon Jovi on Valentine's Day, which should be a great start to week 16.

Transformation - still active with my sports and asleep on Friday and Saturday night by midnight. Can you say pathetic.

Baby Things:
1. During this time, females are supposed to be "glowing", with improved skin and hair
2. The baby can supposedly hear our voices now - which means it must hear my wife a lot.

Week 14 - How come I'm losing sleep already?

expectingdaddy — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 01:39:00 GMT

No one mentioned to me that during week fourteen I'd be losing sleep. For the past few days, I've been woken up on several occasions with a black creature, trying secretly to walk through our bedroom. On almost all occasions, she forgets she has left her stuff on the floor and therefore steps on it, either making more noise or yelling in pain. Once across the room and in the washroom, she decides that it's best to turn the light on and then shut the door. Oh it's not over yet people!
She then opens the door to the washroom in order to shut off the light and then return to the bed in the exact same manner. When she returns after her voyage (what seems like 30 minutes) i politely ask if she's alright. To my astonishment the response is "Why, did I wake you?"
As I'm thinking to myself if this is a good time to actually go over what has transpired during the last thirty minutes, I hear deep breathing beside me. Are you kidding me? She has fallen right back asleep probably exhausted from the journey and I'm wide awake. Once I have finally fallen back to sleep myself the creature appears again.
Please tell me that this won't occur all the time.
This is all that is new, but it's making me a grumpier person, because I'm not sleeping. I guess she can't get mad at me for napping now.

Her belly is showing a bit more now, although she has not gained any weight.

We caught the UFC fight this weekend, seeing Silva with his super kick to Belfort's chin, it ended in a pretty late night. When we woke up on Sunday, my wife was feeling like she was hung over because of the late night.

I've been snowboarding, working out and playing baskeyball and soccer. I've been going to bed earlier and doing almost all the cooking- transformation is going well - Not to mention still no late nights or drinks.

Baby stuff:
1. Bones can be seen on an ultrasound
2. The baby almost doubles in size over the next 3 weeks.

Week 13 - Just starting to feel better

expectingdaddy — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 01:12:00 GMT

This week was more of the sick feeling, I actually went to soccer on Tuesday. But the game didn't last very long, I ran down the field twice and came off with my legs shaking all over. I got my breath back and went for a second shift and the same thing happened. I decided to give it one more go and this time when I came off I was light headed and dizzy, so I took off my cleats and went home.
I gave it another go on Thursday for basketball and was able to run up and down the court a little better. Well at least my legs weren't shaking and my head was stable.
My wife went to a staggette this weekend in a car with 2 other pregnant girls. I feel sorry for the car because it probably wasnt used to the extra weight.
My wife and one of her best friends are both pregnant and barely showing, but it's hiralious watching the two of them compare their little humps.
With my wife gone for Saturday evening, you would expect me to party it up and be out late. Well, either I'm getting very old or I've loss that touch because I went shopping for bathroom supplies including a new towel hanger and then visited my parents. I did go to the gym and watched my friends cover band play, but I was in bed by 1. Times have changed. Still trying to figure out if it's for the better.
Nothing exciting to mention about the pregnancy, wife is still feeling pretty good, her energy is somewhat back, she's barely showing and I'm currently becoming an old man

Baby stuff:
1. This is the start of the second trimester (that means I only have twomester left)
2. Fatigue is suppose to go away (not in our case)
3. Toes are seperate and all the same length (our child better have a big toe and not one of those large second toes)
4. The baby's head, especially forehead is enormous and if it stays this way it will definately look like me.

Week 12 - Sick week

expectingdaddy — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 01:08:00 GMT

Ths was a pretty boring week, I've been pretty sick and my wife has been tired. We both actually came home on Friday night after work and both our cars never moved until Monday morning for work. What's even worst is it's not like we went for a few walks, I left the house for 20 minutes to shovel the driveway and my wife didn't leave at all. I guess we needed the rest and people are telling us to store the rest now, well this weekend we were able to store a whole weeks worth.

Transformation-
Because of my sick week I haven't been very active, usually coming home and napping, eating then going to bed.

Baby stuff:
1. Baby measures 6.1 cm.

Week 11 - Ultrasound Time

expectingdaddy — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 01:53:00 GMT

This was a pretty exciting week as we were able to see the ultrasound. My wife had to drink 5 bottles of water prior to this event and therefore was fidgety the whole way there. Once at the office, my wife looked as if she was going to cry and was extremely uncomfortable. She didn't enjoy any of my jokes to try to lighten the mood.

She went into the room before me to get prepped and gooped up. The doctor let her get some of the water out of her system because she was in such pain. When I came in, she had the ultrasound goop on her belly and the picture of our baby was on the screen. At that moment it became real to me that we were having a baby. He or she was jumping around, moving her/his legs all over and we could see the heart beat. This was truly a great sight to see and we both now actually believe that this is happening.

The fetus which measured 4.5 cm is according to the technician right where it should be size wise and the heart is beating well.

Things happening:
1. Arms and legs are moving, the fetus is moving all over almost like it's an astronaut in a spaceship
2. Measures 6.1 cm

Week 10 - It's a Fetus

expectingdaddy — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 02:11:00 GMT

Back to work this week, it's always hard going back to work after a couple of weeks off. I'm feeling very tired and my wife is exhausted. On Friday, I left at 9:00 pm for my soccer game, as I left she told me that she would wait up for me to spend some time together (I laughed, as I knew there was no way). When I returned at 10:45, she was out cold on the couch. I showered and watched t.v. for almost an hour before she knew I was home. The time spent together was memorable.

My brother bought us a baby outfit for an 18 month old. It's a Maple Leafs outfit and it looks really good, I hope my wife takes care of it, because I'll lose it in the next 18 months.

My wife has developed a weird habit of gagging at different smells throughout the day. She doesn't throw up or anything but makes the disgusting throw up face, then holds her breath and walks away. It actually started when she walked by the washroom after I had used it and then ran back making that awful face- in this case I don't blame her.

Saturday night wasn't any different than Friday. We came home from my brother in law's (Andy's) bday dinner. He wasn't feeling well so he decided to change his night out to next weekend. Good thing because my wife has been feeling really tired. We arrived home at 8:00 and set up our new t.v. in our room. By 9:00 she was out cold for most of the night. Wait!!! she woke up at 10:30 and asked me to get "us" a snack. She was very happy with the nachos and cheese. I was extremely happy because I was able to watch the complete football game without any distractions.

My wife still seems tiny, even though she and her sister say they can see a difference. Honestly, I can't really see a difference. It could be because I always think she looks good or because I only see her in flannel pajama bottoms and a hoodie that she's been wearing all week. Good thing she doesn't want to make a baby this week!

Week 1 of transformation going pretty well. I was in bed pretty early both nights, didn't party whatsoever and exercised. Who is this guy?

Baby Things:
1. It's now considered a fetus
2. Movements are happening without the wife "really" knowing
3. Fetus = 5 cm

Week 9 - Flight to Newfoundland and New Years

expectingdaddy — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 02:52:00 GMT

My wife is a Newfie and therefore is basically related to all of the island. From the time we arrived until we left, her family graciously had us at all different places; for food, drinks, music and more food and drinks. Most people in her family that didn't know, now did for sure. All of them were happy for us, wishing us the best.

We had plenty of good laughs and enjoyed our time with my wife's second cousin who is about four month old. I haven't really held a baby that young including my second cousin. I decided to give it a go, I tried for about 10 seconds and then she started to cry. I shipped her back to her mother. I'm in for some kind of change I tell ya.

New Years was very different this year, my wife is usually up for a party just as much as I'm (sometimes even more). But, this year I had a DD, and I thought it went pretty well. The only problem is when you drink and act like someone who has drank, and your DD hasn't had a drop then they look at you in a completely different manner. I don't blame her for her thoughts, I wouldn't want to hang out with me completely sober either.

Before this night I knew it would be my last time drinking for a while (not that I drink over the top) so I drank like it was. The next morning, was very uneventful, as I basically did nothing. The only good thing was because she was up just as late, she felt somewhat "hungover" and therefore wasn't pissed off when I was on the couch for the entire day. Again, I believe I'm in for some changes, as I can't be up that late any more.

This is the start to my transformation, I now realize that I can't be up as late as I want and do whatever I want as there will always be consequences (but, I still have a few months)

Baby stuff:
1. Last week as an embryo
2. The baby's major organs are all in place
3. Wife's breast should grow, up to a cup size
4. He or she is now 3 cm in length

Christmas

expectingdaddy — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 02:41:00 GMT

Christmas Eve and Day were pretty wicked. Our families celebrated and gave us some very nice baby gifts. We received some journals for pre and after birth - I think these gifts were mostly for myself. We also received some cute baby clothes. It's very strange for me, to actually say cute baby clothes and enjoy getting these gifts. The funny thing is the baby isn't even here yet, and we're not at week 12, so a lot of people don't know.

We received some other books and videos, I'm sure they will all help at one time or another.

We've began to go over some possible baby names and whether we are going to find out the gender of our child. I want to know the gender, probably cause I always need to know things and hate to wait for surprises. My wife obviously doesn't. Hopefully, I win this battle, more than likely I won't. Any suggestions on how can get her to change her mind?

The name thing is a different thing, we have some names we somewhat agree on and others that we aren't even close on. My wife keeps saying that maybe when the baby is born we'll look at him or her and we
will know because he or she looks like a ...................... I don't really believe in this. I mean how can a person look like a certain name? But whatever I'll entertain her with this idea for now.

Week 8 - Don't put it on Facebook or you're dead!!!!!! And what a Bitch of a doctor

expectingdaddy — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 15:31:00 GMT

I was allowed to send out another mass text messages to some other friends, again explaining to them to try not to tell anyone and to not put it on Facebook. My friends were happy and did as I asked.
My wife's family had a harder time keeping the NO FACEBOOK rule going, as two of them placed a comment on her wall. Luckily she was checking it every hour and was quick with the mouse to erase any evidence.
Apparently although the book says you shouldn't tell people until the 12th week, if you do tell people, you need to do it in a certain, deranged order that makes no sense to me. I'm still not sure who is allowed to know and who isn't. All I know is that I'm not putting anything on Facebook, until, I get the go ahead because I don't want to feel the wrath.

Horrible doctors appointment - my wife was told she needed to have a doctor's appointment in order to get a referral to an OB (not sure what it stands for, but do I really need to know?). I asked her if I needed to go (because I didn't want her to get mad if I didn't offer). It was somewhat of a great strategy to ask and then not go. It was great because I finished my Christmas shopping, took a nap, cleaned the house, worked out and watched t.v while she was there.

It was a bad decision because the doctor was a BITCH. I don't really totally understand what went down, but I do know that she was upset with this so called doctor. Apparently my wife was suppose to get a PAP test which the doctor said was mandatory. My wife then explained that she had some light spotting and that she thought a PAP test was not mandatory at this time.
Now, to my recollection, spotting was a term used when I was six years old playing hide and go seek. If you were it and saw someone, you would say "I spotted you, or it was easy spotting you". Or in my teens, when you needed someone to help you lift weights in the gym you needed someone to "spot" you. I don't understand how over the years its definition has changed to mean something totally different (boys ask your significant other if you don't know).
The female mind and body are crazy, as a male I know that if I saw blood spots coming out of my penis or butt while going to the washroom I would go get it checked right away. I would fear that something bad was happening and that I wouldn't be able to use my penis again. Females on the other hand take it like it's normal occurrence and run with it.
Anyways, after a discussion about the PAP and spotting (the doctor had difficulty communicating in English), the doctor began yelling at my wife and then left the room to ask another doctor's opinion. She came back probably a half hour later and decided not to the PAP test. Meaning she had no clue what she was doing or she too thought spotting was a reference to hide and seek.
My wife then needed blood work and was sent to another part of the office only to find out that this doctor didn't fill out the correct sheets and therefore couldn't get all the work done. I understand that people make mistakes, but you're a doctor, dont be an idiot. Ask the other doctor BEFORE seeing your patient or refresh your memory with the help of a textbook.
This ordeal took almost four hours of my wife's time, so she was obviously exhausted, frustrated, angry and fearful. Needless to say my wife was upset when she got home. I comforted her with a popsicle which seemed to help the whole situation. The best part of the whole evening was that I could do no wrong, the doctor was the ASSHOLE of the day.

What's going on:
1. During this week the baby can make tiny movement - the female can rarely feel this though - and I obviously can't so I still don't really think anything is happening
2. Sickness should be a the peak stage
3. The babies hands and feet are beginning to develop
4. Babies face is developing and it has a heart beat
5. The baby is now 18 mm
6. It resembles a rhino in my opinion as it's head is gigantic- not because mine is!

Week 7 - She has no appetite, I have plenty, still no sign of this text and I still can't tell anyone but she can?

expectingdaddy — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:18:00 GMT

This was a pretty eventful week. My wife was super busy at work and therefore came home late almost everyday. I was totally slacking this week and as a result was home very early. I made dinners for us, four nights in a row, chicken and rice, stir fry, fish and chips and shrimp salad. Each night, my wife took about three bites and then referred to this book again. The book apparently states that during this time females may not be interested in certain foods. I again took this in stride, however asking the important question in my head, "if you're not suppose to be interested in certain foods, why are you not interested in every food?" I'm telling ya, that book doesn't make sense to me. Good thing is I had lunch for the next four days that were delicious.

As a result of her not eating much, our evenings became her sleeping on the couch. Which wasn't that bad of a thing, because I was able to watch my sports without having to change the channels during the commercials. I also didn't need to watch Teen Mom.

One good thing has been that she hasn't had any morning sickness. She hasn't even felt like puking once.

Christmas party announcement -
My wife's family had a Christmas party and decided that this would be the best time to let people know (remember I'm still not allowed to tell anyone). I was okay with this simply because this made it clear that I had the green light to tell others. My mother in law broke the news to family members and friends (my in laws are Newfies, they have a huge family). It was nice as my parents were there to celebrate too (mom cried again).

I didn't realize that when you make an announcement like this that everyone is then allowed to give you every single tip about child-rearing. My wife happily accepted the tips and later told me see was a little overwhelmed with all the information simply because we are only in week 7. I on the other hand simply told them I needed no tips as my wife had the "book."

There is one piece of information that I didn't know and it has to do with the actual birth. I was already not interested in seeing the birth from that end but after finding this out I'm definitely not going to. I never knew that some babies are to large to fit out of the opening and therefore a small cut needs to be made. Not going to lie but this kinda freaks me out.

In the body:
1. Female may feel tired and irritable because of the changes in hormones (my wife has actually been very good, especially since I can be very irritable most of the time)
2. Lower lip and jaw is forming
3. Eyes are wide apart and ears are beginning to form
4. Legs and arms can be seen
5. 13 mm in length
6. Kinda looks like a prehistoric dinosaur, not sure which one but I know it not the triceratops

Week 6 - Wife starts to lose appetite, I still got mine though

expectingdaddy — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 15:30:00 GMT

I am having trouble keeping this secret in and I have not been able to find this so called book that she states facts from all the time. She explains to me that on many occasions miscarriages happen in the first 12 weeks. I reply that I am a positive person and I don't think this way. I feel that everyone should know and if heaven for bid something terrible happens, then we would explain that as well.
I guess it is easier said than done when it is not your body that has to go through the changes and when you (male) have not really had to deal with a close friend or family member that has gone through the same thing.
We decide to tell a few friends, she calls all of them and gives each one the recommended amount of baby talk time (it's probably recommended in the book). I do what all guys do (I think), and send out a group text message.
Both ways worked out and all friends were excited for us (well at least they pretended to be). We tell them not to say anything because the book says so.

During this weekend, we had the Schleiffer family Madarin lunch. My family is small so we could all fit at one table and enjoyed a good meal. Even though my wife was barely eating, she was able to down two plates (maybe it's my cooking she doesn't like). My cousin recently got engaged so we wanted to tell everyone at the end of lunch so she could have the spotlight and talk about her wedding plans. We are very excited for her and her fiance.
We had made a short video taping around our house and at the end showing us, announcing we were having a baby. We gave the camcorder to the family to watch. I was taping on another camcorder hoping to get a good reaction. Problem - the sound was undetectable, so they all thought we were weirdoes for showing them a video of our house. Needless to say, we announced the news and were greeted with congratulations.

The craziness:
1. The baby now has 14 somites, which will eventually be the muscular system
2. The heart begins to develop
3. The embryo is really curled up - in my opinion it appears like we will be having an alien
4. The upper body usually appears before the lower body and therefore some of the upper limbs may form this week.
5. The embryo is developing at a rapid pace it now 4 mm.

Week 5 - haven't found the book, but we tell our parents anways

expectingdaddy — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 20:53:00 GMT

We decided to be somewhat creative in the ways we were going to tell our families.

My mother in law and brother in law -
While sitting at the kitchen table and discussing any same old bullshit my wife passed her mother a small gift. She opened it and looked at the Christmas ornament that was a snowman that said "Grandma". She looked up at my wife and then at me, I instantly turned away and stared at the T.V. (if sports were on I probably would have already been looking). Then, she jumps up crying with happiness and hugs the two of us. My brother in law not being able to see the ornament has no clue what has happened. We fill him in, he is also extremely happy.

My parents-
They are incredibly organized and always need a Christmas list way in advance, so I decided to make up a list for them. The list read as follows:

Blue-ray player
IPod
Clothes
T.V
Crib
Stroller
Shovel
New Postal Code
Banana

It didn't take long for my mom to figure it out, she yelled and hugged us both while crying. It took my father a few minutes and then did the same thing without the tears.

Father in law-
He had been on a business trip and therefore wasn't there when we told his wife. We had the same gift for him except saying "Grandpa". He came home exhausted and wanted nothing else but dinner. We told him we bought him a gift and give it to him. He looked at the tiny box and then threw it on the counter and continued to go towards his beloved dinner. My wife persisted and asked him to open the box and he did, he brought the ornament out of the box, dangling it with his fingers in front of his face saying "Isn't this lovely, exactly what I needed, thank you so much, I really, really, really needed this ornament" and placed in on the counter, giving us each a sarcastic hug and continued towards his dinner. At this point we are laughing and told him to look at the ornament again. He replied "it's lovely, I looked at it"
I then brought the ornament and placed it in front of his face, he realized that he missed the entire thing and feels silly. He hugged us again this time in excitement.

Brother, sister in law, another brother in law and cousin - we told each of these people in a boring way, either a phone call or a quick drop in. All of them were more than happy for us.

Our baby:
1. Cells are repeatedly dividing and multiplying becoming more and more specialized
2. A third layer develops on the back of the embryo which becomes the brain and spinal cord.
3. The embryo is now 2.5 mm. in length

During this time I still managed to show my immaturity with the help of 4 other teachers at my school. We made five Movember videos. Here's one of them http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3458lSKlnU . The others can be found by typing in schleef1 into youtube