Spiel ein Spiel mit mir (Play a game with me)...

So let's play a game - a numbers game to be precise. A couple of days ago I was raving on about boom generations and wanting to know precisely how many kids are born these days and if my kid is in a boom generation. Well I finally got around to looking it up.

According to the US Center for Disease Control there are 11,783 babies born each day in the US. Taking this time the number of days in the year (11,783*365) equals 4,300,795 kids per year. The baby boomers are categorized by a number figure (rough estimate) of 76 million births which took place between 1946 and 1964 or 18 years. The next generation should have ran from 1964-1982 (Xers) and the next 1982-2000 (Yers or Millenials). So our kids are in the 2000-2018 generation (do they have a name yet? No probably not and it's irrelevant to my actual line of thought...) So as I was saying: If we take our amount of kids being born currently per year and take it times 18 years (approx. a generation) - we get 77,414,310. I'd say our little kids are booming...

Along the same vein - the UK National Statistics Office states there are 216,000 babies born every day world wide. Using the same equation - this amounts to 78,840,000 babies per year. A whole US generation is born each year world wide. So if we look at a "world-wide generation" we're talking about: 1,419,120,000 or 1.5 Billion people.

It is generally recognized in 1955 there were 2.8 Billion people on the planet, which increased (nearly-doubled) to 5 Billion in the mid-1980s and is expected to reach 9.4 Billion by 2050 (http://geography.about.com/od/obtainpopulationdata/a/worldpopulation.htm)

Why am I ranting on about this? Well, I guess because it's taken from the beginning of time until 1955 to get to 2.8 Billion people. And if we reach projected numbers the 1955 figure will have trippled in just 95 years. It's really crazy and scary...

It almost makes me feel guilty for bringing even one child into this world. What chances is my child going to have to have the kind of lifestyle I had growing up or even somewhat close? Will Bob be able to afford university? Will Bob be able to find a job and will there even be enough food available to feed all the worlds' mouths even if Bob does have a job and earns the money to pay for the food? Will there be clean water to drink and places to live (housing one can actually afford)?

I'm not recommending we just let people die or that we sterlize people after so many kids but we do have to find a solution. Otherwise, we are birthing children and signing them up for abject poverty from the go. My parents only had me and I wonder if I won't do the same. Perhaps I will just have Bob and be happy with that. Or maybe I will consider to adopt a child so Bob can have siblings but we won't contribute to overpopulation. It's a lot to think about...

So now that I've dropped that bomb - something lighter: Bob (and all babies) are born with 300 bones, some of which will fuse together through-out his/her life. By adulthood, the body possesses 206 total bones. Of these bones, some are only cartelage in the early years - for example kneecaps. They will not show up on X-Rays in toddlers, becoming visible only at the age of 3-5 years old when the cartelage has ossified into actual bone. Cool stuff...

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

Baby Names, Fingerprints and Carbs oh my...

There's a lot going on in Bob's world this week and mine too. I have strangely enough become interested in baby names over the last few days. It's only just recently hit - perhaps because I stumbled accidentally across this really cool website: http://nameberry.com/. I never knew naming a baby could be so tough: first off, you have to find something that sounds good with Kaulmann (both alone and with the middle name). If you also factor in all of Bob's grandparents (as we don't find out the sex until the 22nd of March) and their possible namesakes from prior generations (in the form of middle names) that's already a good start but it's not enough. Then you also look at the number of syllables, the initials (to make sure they don't spell out something like D.I.C.K or C.O.C.K - Germans tend to do double first or double middle names), possible nick names or cruel jokes the kids could make out of the name (let's face it kids can be cruel) as well as cultural influences of America and Europe (but more specifically Germany) to make sure your name is Kosher anywhere the kid could reasonably end up spending good chunks of time. But wait, like a good infomercial, there's more: you also have to keep an eye out that the name respects/honors both influencing cultures but is equally pronouncable in both. Then you top the cake with this icing: we also want something unique (but not celebrity freak unique), which honors tradition and family but yet is still cutting / edgy / catching and relevant without being the naming fad of the moment...

phhheeeeewwwwwww do we have our work cut out for us!!! We're open to suggestions definitely but ask please not to be offended if we ultimately don't choose yours...

In development news: the baby book said earlier this week that during this week pads would begin to form on baby's fingertips and toes. It goes on to say that by tomorrow those pads will develop the characteristic swirls of finger and toe prints. Apparently these ridges or swirls are caused by the baby's movement of hands and feet in the amniotic fluid. This is the reason even identical twins have different fingerprints... Who knew? Cool huh!

Lastly, the baby book says my carbohydrate intake will need to increase over the last two trimesters. "Carbs provide your body with energy and can be found in sugars, starches and fiber." Anyone who knows me well knows what music this is to my ears. I am a definite carboholic. Look out potatos - here I come!!!

Speaking of potatos: that's about the size Bob is now - a large baked potato: loaded please!!!

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

17 Weeks and counting

Today is the 17 week mark and it's a Wednesday. That means it's picture day. So I'm going to have to talk my poor sick husband into prying himself away from his porcelain throne to take the photo of the week. Ok, I'm kidding - he is already feeling quite a bit better but I do still have to talk him into taking the picture for me.

I got to talk to a dear friend of mine Sharnell today. It was really great to chat with her and to hear her voice after such a long time of not hearing from each other. I can't even begin to express how much I am in love with Skype. I shudder to think of my life without it, especially living so far away from home.

I also got to chat with my friend Simone over FB and she is having a boy!!! YAY!!! She sent me the sono photo and there is no doubt Georgie is going to be a boy. So much excitement around me - seems like there are so many pregnant family and friends around. I don't know if it's really the case that so many women (even those I don't know) seem to be pregnant at the moment or simply that I am noticing it more because I am also pregnant and therefore more in-tune to it. I'm curious if it's my perception or if there really are a lot of kids getting ready to be born. I'd be interested to know the statistics for Bob's generation to see if this is going to be another baby-boom. I'll have to look it up and see what I can find out. I want to know if the statistics back up my perception of events...

As for Bob - all is well. I have been having some pelvic pains as things stretch and move around but that is pretty normal I think. Bob still seems to kick me a bit after I eat something. It must be the food giving him/her a little jolt of energy. The baby book says Bob will experience a week of rapid, whole-body growth. It also says existing structures are becoming larger / more well developed though no new structures are formed. That might be contributing to these pelvic aches also.

The baby book also says, "The chances are good that this week's growth spurt for your baby will also result in a growth spurt for you." Take a look at the photo and see for yourself. I'd say the baby book is spot on. :)

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

Bob is great, Daddy not so much...

I went for my check-up today. To my surprise we did another ultra-sound (though not one that looks at the organs and determines the sex - that comes in 4 weeks). Bob looks great - a few days bigger than the due date says he/she should be but all looks well and the heart was beating as it should have been. The doctor was pleased with what she saw and we were thankful to know all is ok with baby Bob.

I wish I could say Bob's daddy was doing so well. He appears to have some kind of stomach bug. He is almost never sick so I got the chance to pamper him and make up for all the times he pampered me. Hot tea, warm water bottle for his feet, ibuprofin for the achiness and fever and some sparkling water for the belly. I hope we get him well without him giving it to me. Getting sick while pregnant blows chunks (often literally) since you can't take any or hardly any meds for it.

Well that's about it for today. Here's a pic of Bob in his/her digs for your viewing pleasure:

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

The injustices of pregnancy and practice makes perfect

So let's start off with the injustices of pregnancy - like my sore ribs and back muscles. This is of course minor to the main injustice I bore tonight setting across the table from my darling husband at dinner. I love Feta cheese and unfortunately it is a major no-no on the pregnancy banned food list. My darling knows I love this cheese and because he also knows I can't have it - he for some reason decides to cut it up for his salad and let me watch him eat it. After a few nasty looks and a definite effort on my part to make him feel bad - he capitulated and said he wouldn't bring it home again during the pregnancy. I'm fine if he eats it - just not in front of me when I can't have it. That is just cruel. We're in this together and while he can't suffer all my injustices he should at least have to play along on the things in which he can empathetically suffer...

Moving on. Bob is learning all kinds of new skills (re: reflexes) like blinking eyes, sucking and swallowing. These are all the reflexes he or she will need when out of the womb so as they say here "Übung macht den Meister" or as we say "Practice makes perfect". Practice isn't all Bob is doing this month: growing is the other main thing on Bob's "To Do" list. During this month, Bob grow so much that he/she will reach half his/her length at birth. Wow!!! No wonder my ribs are hurting!

The Wonderpillow (the best 55 Euro I ever spent) and my two jealous guys

Yesterday, Andy and I braved the Ikea to plan out our new kitchen. Can I just say how much I totally love Ikea (even though it's not so easy to plan something like this and the place is always crowded). Ingvar Kamprad is a genius and a very rich one at that. So with printed out plans of the dream kitchen in hand - we had that task out of the way and went on to BabyOne for the next one. Can I say that BabyOne is rapidly becoming one of my favourite shops? Well it is...

I have had the thought rolling around in my head for quite a few weeks now to buy a whole-body pillow. Now that I can't sleep on my stomach (for obvious reasons) and am not allowed to sleep on my back (as my growing uterus blocks a major artery and can cut off the baby's oxygen - i.e. major not good) - I'm forced to sleep on my sides which is very, very uncomfortable. It's not like pre-pregnancy days because the belly is large and heavy and pulls on the hip and back muscles. Trust me, they were protesting quite loudly so it was high time to find a solution.

And here is the solution:

This was honestly the very best 55 Euro I have ever spent in my life. I actually made it through the night in restful sleep (minus the one time at 2:55 AM when I had to get up to pee). One word describes this newest acquirement of mine: bliss...

But wait, it gets better. The pillow is actually multi-function. In the picture it's in a horse-shoe shape. This is the position for back-support when you're setting upright. When you straighten it out it either becomes long (like a snake) or can be bent into a C shape. Then you have belly AND knee support as the pillow can rest under your belly and between your legs. It was really a double present for Bob and me (I used my b'day gift card to buy it) because it can double as a supportive pillow for breast-feeding or for the baby to lie between.

The only problem is fighting off my husband and my fuzzy baby (Dickens the cat). I told Andy if he wanted to use the "special pillow" then he had to be pregnant and offered him the chance for the next pregnancy. Somehow I suspect I'll still be the one with the cool pillow next time around. ;) I think truth be told, hubby and kitty cat are not only jealous of my pillow but the place it's found in my life - it certainly makes snuggling up next to me a lot more difficult. All I can say is for the next 5 months - c'est la vie. Sorry boys!!!

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

OMG, we've got a Fußballer (soccer player) in the making...

YEP - you guessed it, I felt the baby kick this week. At first, I thought perhaps gas bubbles but I always seem to feel it in the same spot (to the left and slightly down from the naval - using my orientation). It feels like a tickle or a light flutter. It's not a direct touch like being tapped on the shoulder but rather like a person reaches to tap you but is a bit to far away so their finger tips slide lightly down your skin. It also always seems to happen not too long after I eat something or when I'm setting still or lying still.

Here's is what baby Bob is looking like in his/her digs:

Here's the amazing things Bob can already do:

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.

source: http://www.i-am-pregnant.com/Pregnancy/calendar/week/16

After an adament battle, I got to see my first baby (who was 14 weeks at the time of miscarriage). That was truly an amazing experience and extremely fascinating (for a cerebral gal like me). To see these real life looking pictures and read all that Bob is capable of truly makes the human experience seem even more miraculous.

All our very best,

Mommy and Bob

To swim or not to swim, that is the question.

So today, my girlfriend Simone and I were discussing pregnancy swim suits over FB (she's back home in Malta and is going to need her suit sooner than I will). She found some really cute suits - for HER - of course, even pregnant she it tall, thin, tan and gorgeous. I am shuddering at the prospect of looking like a beached whale, albeit a fashionable one.

Of course, now I realize why they put really tall, skinny models into bathing suits in adverts rather than short and ever-widening real women: no "normal / average" woman would buy them when they saw what their cottage-cheese butt and thighs looked like in reality.

Ok so it's getting obvious I'm used to being pretty thin and have been most my life without any real efforts on my part. It's also obvious I'm already rapidly approaching (if I haven't reached already) the most I've ever weighed in my life and that is frankly somewhat scary. But I think I'm going to have to get ok with this new body because I'm afraid it's going to be around for a while... Besides, I live in Europe where people seem to like (or at least feel comfortable) letting it all hang out regardless of what "it all" looks like. I envy that kind of freedom and secureness of self and think perhaps that will be on the list of self-improvement items for 2011.

So, if I get brave enough to don a bathing suit this year what will I choose? I'm leaning towards a takini and hopefully some time in the sun so I get a little bit of a tan...

Here are the contenders in the prenancy Tankini department (the green one got vetoed by Andy, Sim):

And if I get really brave enough to let the belly hang out - this is the full bikini:

So, fill up the comments below. Let me know what you think about the above selections, let me know your thoughts on swim suits in pregnancy or tell me all about your own experiences. I'm eager to hear more opinions or tips on this topic.

All our love,

Mommy and Bob

Getting with it and other musings...

Ok, I just realized today it's been a whole week since I wrote anything. I know this since Wednesday is the "once a week photo op". I really need to "get with it" and make sure I'm more up to date on my postings.

Being that it's photo day - here is a 16 week picture of my ever growing belly:



So, to start out with, I thought it was humourous today to get a mail from Amazon (who now floods me with baby recommendations since I did a few searches on their website) about none other than the "Bob" Stroller. That's right folks - my kiddo isn't even here yet and he/she is already becoming a namesake. :)

Lastly, a fun bit of trivia: Klamath Indian women are supposedly to have told their slow to arrive babies to hurry up, lest they get bitten by the rattlesnake that was coming to bite them. Talk about starting off life with a serious complex...

All the very best,
Mommy and Bob

15 weeks down, 25 to go

Well we're 15 weeks at this point. I am amazed how quickly the belly grows when you get to this point. Once the belly "pops" it's all downhill for the stomach from there. And speaking of stomachs, my baby book points out some formerly held beliefs I happen to like. It says:

"In England in the 1600s pregnant women were expected to have unusual desires and cravings. The prevailing belief was that if a woman's desires were frustrated, their resulting anger could result in miscarriage. Thus, to prevent such problems, husbands were told by doctors to dote on their spouses."

Hey, considering the husband's responsibility in his wife's current condition, a little doting is in order. Since these beliefs are no longer the "order of the day" - I consider myself very lucky to have a doting and loving spouse. :)

So as I mentioned, here's week 15 and a picture to back it up. I don't really see much change since last week, but enjoy anyway.

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

Rubber baby buggy bumpers?

So what is the origin of this slang phrase? Well I wasn't sure either so I Googled it. There were so many different postulates that I'm still wondering if it is an innocent tongue twister or if it is really slang for a condom, contraceptive diaphram or possibly even boobs (as the urban dictionary suggests).

Even funnier though is during my search (I think it was answers.com) someone had posted the question inquiring about the meaning of the bumper sticker "wag more, bark less". Well the obvious choice would be a dog metaphor. Wag your tail = happy and bark = not happy, displaying a territorial show. But, the less obvious choice would be to look at other meanings of the word Wag: let's take the usual definition - a whitty amusing person who makes jokes. So they are in essence saying the same thing: be happy and joke around more and be less of such a cranky, complaining nag... Advice most pregnant ladies should probably heed lest we drive our poor husbands crazy. :)

But off the tangent and back to buggies. The origin of the tongue twister still aludes me about as much as the quest for the perfect buggy. We went shopping this weekend with the in-laws at BabyOne and had a gander at the offerings. My one requirement was pneumatic (read: filled with air) tires and good suspension (spoken like a true American tomboy). I also wanted the tripod (one wheel in front, two behind) and tried my level best to explain my logic of the triangle being the strongest geometrical form in the universe and therefore safer and more secure for the baby. Though Germans are extremely logical people - tradition bowled them over and in the end won. Four wheels it will be (or as it happens technically six).

This is what we ended up with: http://www.abc-design.de/en/products/prams/turbo-6s.html



Yes, this means my child will be capable of going off-roading straight out of the womb. Be still my heart. :)

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

My birthday, a new trimester and other musings

Yesterday was my birthday and the second day of the second trimester. So I figured, time to break free from the shackles of insecurity and change my toenail polish. In fact, I might even get brave next week and go do my highlights. At least I can say I had a totally chemical free first trimester. The toes are looking nice :)

Before:




After:

As the start of T2 unfolds - I can say I have officially popped. My belly is HUGE - ok maybe not compared with a woman in labor but I think for 14 weeks it's protruding quite nicely. Check out the picture and see for yourself...

All our very best,
Mommy & Bob

Groundhog Day

So today is Groundhog day - the official due date of my birth. Apparently I wasn't ready to come out and look for my shadow though as I was born one day later.

It seems the tradition goes as follows: a ground hog by the name of Punxsutawney Phil comes out of his little home and if he does NOT see his shadow winter will wrap up post haste but if he DOES see his shadow - well that means he crawls back into his burrow to sleep through the six more weeks of cold we'll be seeing.

It seems Mr. Phil has been alive and predicting since 1886 and in such time has predicted 98 extended winters and only 14 shortened ones - the last short one being in 1999. (http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_212346864.shtml)

Well at least for most of us pregnant mommas, the illustrious dute date is not like Groundhog Day where our little critters take a peek out in the world and decide whether they're ready to face it or if they'd rather crawl back in for six more weeks of hibernation!

Happy Groundhog Day. I hope Phil remains shadowless this year. In either case, I'm staying in and will try to locate a copy of Groundhog Day the movie which I'm pretty sure resides in our collection.

All our very best,
Mommy and Bob

Mommy also likes candy

Mommies also like candy: eye-candy that is. That is part of the reason why I am going to see the movie The Tourist with my girlfriend Simone today. Every now and then we Mommas need a break from this baby-making business just to enjoy a little time off to let our eyes feast upon the silver screened beauty who calls himself Johnny Depp. Oh be still my heart...

Whether the movie will be good or a flop remains to be seen but then it's rare for Depp to star in a flop - and even if/when he does - who cares? Go back to the prior paragraph if you should have doubts about my motives. ;)

So more on the movie later when I'm back. Until then you can occupy yourself by humming that really awesome song from the 60s (Strangeloves)/80s (Bow Wow Wow):

I know a guy who's tough but sweet
He's so fine, he can't be beat
He's got everything that I desire
Sets the summer sun on fire
I want candy, I want candy!

See you soon, happy humming...

UPDATE:
The movie was good, no not great, but interesting which was enough for me. The ending I totally didn't see coming (yes, unusual for me). After it was over and I rehashed it in my brain - I thought the ending kind of made (or had the potential to make) the rest of the plot shaky in believability. But hey - it was still VERY entertaining and then there was Mr. Depp.

I'd say he wasn't as engaging as in some of his other roles but he was VERY convincing as an American tourist. :) You'll see what I mean...

All our very best,
Mommy and Bob