It's a...

GIRL!!!!!

Sofia & Sam have a little sister to watch over and we have another daughter on the way!!

We are very happy and excited but still cautious of course. I have lots of photos from the gender reveal party yet to download and will share how we told, soon! A few people/BLM's were waiting for this post so I thought I better at least say what we're having. :)

More to come!

Week 20

Wow, I'm more than half way through this pregnancy! Baby is active and kicking more each day, especially after a meal. Since we know I will be induced before 40 weeks I'm actually MORE than half way through! That is something!!

Today was our 20 week ultrasound appointment.  Thankfully, everything is very good! Baby measured at 12 oz (perfect) and all the major organs are accounted for and look normal. Placenta is posterior (towards my back) which might explain why I feel this baby kick more than I did with Sofia early on (placenta was anterior (front) with her which acted like a cushion). My cervix is long & closed- baby is not getting out yet! The amniotic fluid was good (not too much/too little) and MOST importantly- heart was beating away at 140 BPM. Yay!

Baby was very mobile on the ultrasound but cooperated nicely when it came time to take measurements, etc. We saw baby dance around, put his/her hands in front of his/her face, rest his/her hand on their forehead (was so funny- like baby was saying, enough already with the pictures! ha- wait until you are born baby!!!! don't you know who your momma is!!? ;)) The cutest pic is of him/her smiling.

We did get to see the gender and have a pic of that too, but that news will have to wait a bit longer- until after this weekend when we spill the beans to family at our football/gender reveal party!! It will be nice to share that news and not have to be so cautious about keeping it a secret. :) But anyone who know me knows- I can definitely keep a secret! So good luck to anyone who tries to take advantage of my pregnancy brain. That part is hard-wired!!

We discussed whether or not to have Dr. refer us to a perinatologist and in the end, we decided against it. Dr. left it up to us but when we took everything into consideration, the care we are getting (and will continue to receive) at his office will be just as thorough and attentive to ours and baby's needs. We're comfortable with this Dr. and he's allowing an ultrasound at every appointment from here on out.

So I go back in 4 weeks for the 'fun' glucose test where I get to drink the yucky orange drink and get another peek at baby.  After that I go again 4 weeks later (28 wks) for another routine appointment & ultrasound. The next appointment will be at 32 weeks and from that point on I'll go in every two weeks with ultrasounds and non-stress tests to monitor baby.

It will be up to us to decide if we want to do an amnio at 37 weeks (the soonest that they will do it) to test for baby's lung maturity. We would get the results back within hours that same day and would be induced the following day! 37 weeks puts us at the week of January 16th.

If we decide against the amnio, the soonest they will induce is 39 weeks. Hmm. Not sure how I feel about that. 39 is awfully close to 40. 40 is a number I am NOT comfortable with.

We discussed the risks and benefits of both options and will decide in the coming weeks/months.  One thing's for certain- assuming baby stays put & healthy until then, he/she will be born in January! (and not Feb. 6th, the due date)

So here are some amazing shots of our newest little one (minus the gender pic!).


2D profile pic of baby's face

From Our Rainbow

4D pic of baby's face, partial profile

From Our Rainbow

4D pic of baby's profile, hands & arms dancing around

From Our Rainbow

4D pic of baby's face with hand on head!

From Our Rainbow

My FAVORITE- 4D pic of baby SMILING!

From Our Rainbow

We ARE officially attached & are so looking forward to holding this living baby in our arms!

September 11, 2011

Where was I when the world stopped turning...on that September day?

Wow, ten years has flown by in an instant it seems.  Baby, assuming you continue to grow and are born healthy we will some day share stories with you about the awful day on 9/11/01.

Ten years ago we were newlyweds living in our first place together.  Your daddy was still taking college classes and I was driving to work when I heard something on the radio that didn't quite make sense to my ears. I flipped a few stations and the same thing was being said everywhere. The first plane hit the Twin Towers in New York City. I drove quickly to work and watched it all play out on the T.V. in our break room. It was all everyone talked about that day.

Daddy was sitting in class when the first plane crashed and his professor made a comment about the media probably just making a big deal out of something like they usually tend to do. Daddy (along with several others in class) decided to ditch class and see what was happening to our country. He listened on the radio as it all played out.  We emailed each other back & forth about what was going on and talked to family later that day.

I remember that evening having a feeling of shock and disbelief. We sat on the couch, glued to our T.V. watching them replay over & over again the awful sight of the towers and all the plane crashes. I remember the gut-wrenching feeling for all the family members who lost someone that day.  For months the country seemed to unite more than ever and the endless images of that horrific scene were on T.V., the paper, the internet.  It was difficult to look at but we couldn't look away.

Today, ten years later, nobody has forgotten all that was lost. Lives, innocence, security. It's a different place now, little one.  We watched some footage this weekend which brought back so many emotions. Daddy asked me to stop crying because he didn't want me to get upset at the risk of harming you. Listening to so many families discuss how this happened ten years ago but it still feels like yesterday.  I can relate because as the eleventh month anniversary since your sister went to heaven approaches it still feels like yesterday that I was holding her in my arms.

Some day when you're old enough, we'll show you everything about 9-11 so you don't forget either.

Hope

I've been following another BLM's journey of carrying a baby after losing her first and was so happy and relieved for her today to see her baby was born and is ALIVE! It gives me added hope that this will happen for us! It's something only fellow BLM's can understand- it doesn't seem quite possible after such a devastating loss. Here's a link to her blog for anyone interested in reading: http://angelarodman.blogspot.com/2011/09/bennett-william.html

Our baby is still kicking every now & then. It is becoming more frequent and stronger and I look forward to seeing him/her on the ultrasound again soon!

Sleepless Night

Last night I woke up around 2:00 AM with a sharp pain in my right side. It jolted me up & I yelled "Ouch" which woke up Tim. I told him I had a sharp pain and he told me to take some deep breaths & try to relax. I did that and tried to fall back asleep (the pain went away as quickly as it came) but it was so hard to sleep. I was filled with worry. Now that I'm almost halfway through this pregnancy I feel myself growing more & more attached. I can't put it into words but the feeling is so much stronger as this pregnancy progresses. The pain might have just been gas or round ligament pain but it still scared me until it stopped. I need sleep. I need to stop waking up every night around 3am like I have been recently. I need January to get here and for this baby to be born healthy!!!

18 weeks, 1 day

The past few days have been rough. As I type this I'm getting the tiniest little jabs in my belly from baby but it's very infrequent that I can feel movement yet. I've used my at home doppler the past three days in a row out of anxiety and fear. Last night I mentioned to Tim I hadn't felt baby move in awhile but he quickly tried to put my mind at ease, reminding me it's still very early (and most women don't start feeling movement until now-20wks). I just wanted one little kick for reassurance but baby wouldn't budge. I gently tapped my belly several times throughout the day, but nothing.

I went to bed but as I seem to be doing on a regular basis now, I woke up around 3:00 am. My mind was restless and the first thing I thought about was baby. Eventually I got up, grabbed the doppler and headed into another room so I wouldn't disturb Tim. It took longer than usual but I detected the heart beat. I was able to fall asleep shortly after that.

I'm very close to the half-way mark. Since I plan on being induced by 38 weeks I'm getting closer every day. I don't wish snow upon us but I sure can't wait for end of January to get here!!!