The Growing Gant Family...

I had some requests for a back, side and front shot. People keep telling me "Melissa, from behind I'd never even know you were pregnant!" Well, I've been feeling it more lately (o: Yes, I know my belly isn't that big, but something about carrying a bowling ball in front...kinda makes the lower back ache quite a bit. I had my friend Beth take the pictures. I included another picture of me and three very close friends that was taken the same day as the belly shots. We were saying goodbye to Jenna as she, her husband and their 6 month old little girl Lexi get ready to move down to Southern CA for her hubbie's new job. I (I should say "we") will miss her.

I had another doctor's appointment today. This time I was really curious as to if my midwife would check me to see if I'd progressed at all. I had told Curtis over the weekend that I had just felt "different" lately...little sharp muscle twinges "down there", braxton hicks contractions that were felt a lot lower and definitely more frequent than before. Having never gone through all this before, it's always the "I wonder if this is it..." question. My midwife checked me and said I was already 2cm dialted and 80% effaced ! Of course, I could stay that way for weeks, but it's nice to know that things are progressing and that what I was feeling was actually by body making some changes. When I left the apt., I thought...it could be any day now. When I called mom and dad to tell them about the apt., dad made sure to let me know that I needed to hang on for a couple more weeks. He's right in the midst of his busy time at work with bee...

I went into my doctor's office today as planned for my next apt. only to find out that my midife had just left to deliver a baby at the hospital. Couldn't weigh in to see how I'm doing on bumping up the calories, but I was scheduled for an ultrasound at the hospital that we got to go to. It was definitely exciting seeing him so much bigger on the screen. The ultrasound tech showed us each body part (he's a boy for sure!) and then looked at my fluid levels and placenta. Of course she didn't say much, even with all the questions I asked, but she did reassure us that everything looked good. I was really curious as to how big she thought he was at this point. He's sitting head down with his hands clasping his feet all up by my left lung (of course that warrants a few kicks in the heart too!). She scrolled down to his face and started chuckling. You could see his nose all squished up against the side of my belly. She said "He just doesn't have a who...

I was once again blessed by the people I love at second baby shower. My friend Emily from CCC planned, preped and hosted an absolutely wonderful shower at her house in Canby. It gave me the chance to invite those friends from CCC as well as some family and friends from Eugene, Amity and even a friend from Portland that wasn't able to make it to my first shower. You'll see a picture of the cake. The running joke is still that Curtis' Uncle Dan named our son "Mister" and it's caught on with a lot of other people since we aren't telling anyone his name. I thought her congratulations on the cake was pretty cute. We played a game where everyone had to take yarn and try and guess how big around I was. Sister in law Michele one that one! She was exactly right on when I stretched the yarn around my belly! It was such a fun day. I thank Emily for planning and hosting it all for me and "Mister". She did such a great job!

I had another doctor's appointment today. This is will be my last 2 week appointment before I start seeing the midwives every week until I deliver. As always, they weigh me, make me pee in a cup, measure me and listen to his heartbeat (I always love that part!). I'm measuring fine and his heartbeat was resting in the 120's. The only concern my midwife had was that I hadn't gained any weight the past two weeks and my overall weight gain has only been 18 pounds throughout the pregnancy. I told her I was surprised, as I felt like I had gotten bigger! I explained how lately it had been difficult to eat, as a lot of the time nothing really sounds good. I feel like I am back in the first trimester (not so nauseous thankfully!) where I eat something because I know I should not because I feel hungry. Plus, my stomach size has definitely shrunk a bit as the belly's grown making eating a meal pretty difficult! She recommended small frequent meals with something like...

Multiple people have asked me about the uncomfortabilities of being pregnant. I figured it would make a good post... I can't say I've gotten very big. So far I've only gained 18 pounds and my belly hasn't popped out there a whole lot until really this past month. The pictures of my belly are finally starting to catch up with how I feel I look. It's crazy how fast this kid can grow now that he's got limited time left in the cooker! Along with the growing belly comes the unpleasant symptoms of pregnancy: -Of course those first 3 months weren't anything too exciting. I was overjoyed that I was pregnant (after waiting for quite some time) but could barely stand getting up in the morning. I remember getting in the shower before heading to work (when I was still working days) and just lying flat on the bottom of the tub with the shower water pelting me...I only felt good when I'd lay flat. -I haven't been able to sleep on my tummy for quite a few mon...

Figured it was time again for some new belly shots. Mom took the photos as Curtis held a lamp to shine some light on his prego wife and son (o: It's kinda funny because the front belly shot, you can kind of see that he likes the right side of my belly more. It's always seemed a little lopsided to me. Crazy to think I'm already in the 8th month. One of the last pics is of daddy Curtis diligently putting together a swing we got from some dear friends. He did a great job. We even tried it out with my friend Jenna's little girl Lexi. She seemed to really enjoy it!