Month 7

Weeks 26-30

November 22-December 26

The halfway point of the 7th month marks the beginning of the 3rd trimester. At the end of this month we have between 9 and 13 weeks left to go.

Month 7 was another very busy month for the Renegar family.  This month ecompassed both Thanksgiving and Christmas and saw us home in Virginia for two visits, attending several holiday parties, a few doctors appointments for well and sick checkups and doing some shopping and engaging in festivities of our own.

Baby
At the end of this month, Baby Girl will be up to 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 pounds (given the size of Big Brother, I'd say close to 3 1/2).  She's developed taste buds and is practicing swallowing (while tasting amniotic fluid) and breathing.  This effort to regulate both swallowing and breathing at the same time often leads to the hiccups.  Although kicks and turns and other movement are becoming stronger and more noticebale, Baby Girl is much more calm in the womb than her big brother.  Some days hiccups are the most activity we get.  Unless, of course Mommy eats something really yummy... Mandarin oranges and hot chocolate (not together) are really getting her going these days. I even got a strong elbow (or knee, or foot) that made me jump a little the other day.

Mommy
As month 7 comes to a close I have a hard time believing that we will have another little bundle in just a few short months.  It seems so far away and I feel like I have so much time to get things ready.  Then when I think about returning to school on January 7th (after a much needed Holiday Break) I realize that this little angel could be a real, live part of our family as soon as 7 or 8 weeks later.  Of course, given my family's tendency toward 10 month pregnancies, I probably have a few more weeks of wiggle room. Still, I know these last months will go quickly and I'm really looking forward to meeting this little one and embarking on the next leg of our family's journey.

Daddy and Big Brother
Daddy contiues to be very excited about a little girl being part of the family and Whit continues to be not so sure about, and not very aware of, the impending changes. He is adjusting to Mommy's growing belly well, to the point of not even noticing that there is a difference until bedtime when getting snuggly with Mommy has become more difficult, especially with Baby Sister asking for more room.

Check out what Big Brother Whit was doing during Month 7

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas

I can hardly believe Christmas is a short 5 days away. 

In part, this is because I still sit here, in Tennessee, in my classroom, with students buzzing around me (by the way, wearing t-shirts and no jackets due to the 65+ degree weather). 

At home, we have the tree up and all of the presents wrapped and gleaming beneath the lights.  Frosty the Snowman has been a staple part of our TV rotation and we've been listening to Christmas music regularly, but I'm still having trouble settling and finding that Christmas feeling.  I'm ready for snow and heavy jackets, or at least hats and mittens.

One of the wonderful things about having children is the ability to pass down traditions to them.  I'm looking forward to a Christmas Eve service in which Whit will be able to sing some of the songs (Go, Tell it on the Mountain is one he actually knows!) and reading stories before bed.  I'm also ready for Christmas cookies, plenty of busy time with family and friends and that ever-special Christmas morning experience, taken to a whole new level by watching the joy of children rather than experiencing it for yourself.

Still, we are trying to keep the true meaning of Christmas alive in our house.  Whit recognized Baby Jesus before Santa and I try to remind him, in spite of presents, that the celebration is truly about the amazing gift that was given to the human race.  It helps that Whit is wary of strangers and does not take kindly to the idea that some strange man is coming to his house even if he is planning to bring presents.  I know it will be a battle over the coming years to separate the fulfillment of material desires from the gift of a Savior, but perhaps by teaching him at such a young age it will become the basis for his understanding of the holiday as he gets older.

5 days and counting.... our last Christmas as a family of 3!