Baby Girl Kuzda
Born 6/28 at 7:45pm
She’s a healthy 7lbs, 19.75 inches.
We are all tired, but doing great. More details to follow.
Party Like You’re About To Have A Baby!
We had our Portland baby shower this past Saturday and it was such a lovely party that I thought I would share it with all of you. Our dear friends Danielle and Alex Gillet hosted the event at their house and they did an amazing job with everything! The food was delicious, the decorations were fabulously unexpected, and the fact that we didn’t have to clean our own home and squeeze everyone in here was priceless! And thank goodness they took pictures too, because Zakk and I both forgot!
Last Days
Yesterday, I hit the 38-week milestone! Baby Girl was officially considered full term as of last Wednesday, when I was 37 weeks pregnant, which means she can arrive anytime now! Today is my last day at work! I know that’s a lot of exclamation points, but it really feels like we’re almost there and that is definitely deserving of exclamation points!!! I’m really looking forward to having a little time to take care of some more of the many items still on our baby prep list, as well as to go for long walks, do prenatal yoga, relax and enjoy my acupuncture treatments, and sleep (when possible – it’s definitely more challenging these days). Knowing me, I will stay quite busy until the little lady makes her appearance. But it will be great to be able to focus entirely on preparing for her arrival instead of splitting my time, energy, and waning brainpower between that and work obligations.
Last weekend, I enjoyed a wonderful dinner out with some of my pregnant friends on Friday night and then a yummy lunch after prenatal yoga. It has been so great to connect with other women who are going through the same phases of pregnancy and I really value the friendships we’ve created. It will be so much fun to watch our babies grow up together!
Morgan (due 7/1), Kristin, (due 7/3), Katie (due 7/2)
Morgan (due 7/1), Kristin (due 7/3), Sarah (due 7/28)
Happy Birthday, Zakk!
Today is Zakk’s 32nd birthday. And I think we’re both very glad our daughter is not trying to steal his thunder by making her debut appearance today. Here in Portland, it is appropriately cloudy and there was even a little bit of rain this morning. Just the way he likes it.
In typical Zakk fashion, he refused to smile for this photo I insisted on taking before he rode off to work this morning. I think he’s quite handsome, even if he is scowling at me.
I feel so very lucky to have you as my husband, my best friend, and my partner in this journey into parenthood. I hope you have a great birthday, love.
36 Weeks
Supposedly, Baby Girl is packing on the pounds at the rate of about an ounce a day at this point. She now weighs almost 6 pounds and is more than 18 1/2 inches long, about the length of a head of romaine lettuce (according to BabyCenter.com) By this time next week, she will be considered full-term, which is 37 to 42 weeks (babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term).
36 Weeks
She’s definitely in a head-down position and has been pushing up at the top of my belly with her bum and out on the left side of my belly with her tiny little feet for the last couple of weeks. I have been having Braxton-Hicks contractions (which is totally normal), am feeling tired and uncomfortable (at least partly due to the fact that sleep has become challenging), and generally move and think at a slower pace than I’m used to, but I am still enjoying her frequent, strong movements and the anticipation of meeting her.
I can’t believe how time flies and that we are only 28 days away from her due date!
Wedding Ring Redux
I stopped wearing my wedding ring a few of weeks ago because my fingers swell throughout the day and make it feel uncomfortable, which leads me to take it off, set it down somewhere or put it in a pocket, and then forget where I’ve left it. Not good. But I really dislike not having it on when I leave the house in the morning. I love my wedding ring and all that it symbolizes. I feel like there is a piece of me missing when I don’t have it on. So I knew I had to figure out a way to wear it, even if it isn’t on my finger. The obvious choice was to put in on a chain and wear it around my neck. And I did that for a few days. But it seemed incomplete. So I decided to put my skills as a jewelry artist to good use and make it feel more like an intentional necklace. I rummaged through my drawers of beautiful stones and picked out a white keishi pearl to represent Zakk, who was born in June, and a ruby droplet to represent our daughter, who is supposedly going to be born in July. These felt like the perfect choices, but I couldn’t decide how to attach them and get them to lay nicely when wearing the necklace. Then I found a rosette carved from rose quartz that fit perfectly into the center of the ring. And rose quartz is my birthstone. Opal, too. And I love opal. But I didn’t have any. So the rosette was meant to be. And here’s how it all came together.
I love wearing my wedding ring in it’s new and very meaningful setting.
A work in progress
We spent the weekend getting the baby’s room ready for her. I taped, Zakk painted, we shopped for furniture and curtains and such. It’s a work in progress and I’ll post pictures as soon as we pull it all together, but here’s a glimpse of the new look in progress.
Fabulous Florida
We had such a lovely time on our Florida vacation a couple of weeks ago. We played on the beach, relaxed in the Gulf of Mexico, shared laughs, meals, card games, and stories with family, and watched the sun drop into the water at sunset. It made me so happy to watch my family laugh and play together, especially watching Zakk play with Ben, Alex, Sam and Iris. He is going to be a great dad. And Sam, Ben, and Iris were all so sweet when we talked about the baby in my belly, giving her kisses and talking to her. It made my heart melt! I can’t wait to be back there next year with everyone, showing off our little girl. Until then, I’ll have to feed my need for the beach with this video of Ben and Nicole enjoying the waves, this video of the peaceful surf with the full moon setting over the Gulf, and these photos (which you can click on to make larger and then use the arrow keys to move forward and backward among them). Enjoy!
32 Weeks
Wow…32 weeks! It’s hard to believe we only have about 8 weeks left to go before our sweet baby girl arrives! She’s now up to about 3.75 pounds and about 16.7 inches long.
Her fingernails and toenails have grown in and she at least has some peach fuzz on her tiny little head.
I can tell she is taking up more space inside me because her movements are so much stronger and more noticeable in the past couple of weeks. I often look down and marvel at the undulating landscape that is my growing belly while she jabs, kicks, and somersaults in there. While some women find it strange or disturbing to see or feel so much action from the baby inside them, I absolutely LOVE it! I find myself involuntarily putting my hand to my belly when I feel her, looking down to see her movements, and becoming completely distracted by my fascination and love for her.
Zakk has been able to see her movements, too. He says it’s a little weird, but I think he likes it. Last Friday night, we played with her by shining a flashlight on my belly and she responded by pushing back at the light. Then we tried music. Apparently she likes to Rock the Casbah with The Clash and wanted to find out Who the amazing musicians David Byrne & St. Vincent are because she was rocking out to those songs. It was amazing to be able to interact with her and it made me fall even more in love with both my sweet baby girl and my loving husband.
Beach Please!
This was my relaxing morning view.
Morning Light on Bonita Beach
And this little guy was there.
Good Morning Ben!
And then this guy came along.
Mr. Crane
He was obviously unafraid of people and hung around for quite awhile.
