24 Weeks, February 18, 2007

The weeks just keep flying by - already 24 weeks! This past weekend we had Jered & Mandy Hanschen stop in on their move from Maryland to San Diego, CA. Mandy is due with her baby in August, and it was fun to compare pregnancy stories. On Friday, our dog, Ceasar, had his teeth cleaned (quite a process) and was a little tired from the anesthetic, but loves having canned dog food - the vet said that the teeth may be sore from cleaning, so we opted for soft food. Also, after Hanschen's left on Saturday, we painted the nursery and love how it turned out. I did wear a gas mask as you can see - just so the fumes wouldn't hurt the baby. I have Monday off for President's day, so I think I'll start on getting some sewing done for the room. This past week I started to realize all the things we need to get ready before June 10th! We've contacted a lawyer to draw up a will so that we have that in place, and I've also called a Pediatric office to take a tour and meet some of their Pediatricians. I didn't realize until one of my girlfriends told me that you have to have a Pediatrician picked out before your baby arrives so that they can come to the hospital to check the baby after delivery. Lots to prepare for, and I've been reading baby books to try to understand as much as I can about caring for this baby girl. John and I were talking Sunday morning about all of this, and yet in the midst of all the preparation, he reminded me that as important as it is to know how to calm a soothing baby, or get them on a schedule, the most important thing we can be doing for this little girl is praying for her to come to know Jesus at a young age, and to have a relationship with Him that is her own and not just her "parents' religion." John is such an encourager to me - I get busy with the planning and preparing, and yet when we look back at our childhoods, we see each of our mother's as an integral part of coming to know Christ as our Savior, and he pointed out that as a mother, I may very well be the one who leads her to a prayer of salvation and teach her about God. What an awesome responsibility! I love the verses in Deuteronomy 6:5-9, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These comandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates." Every aspect of our daily lives is a chance to see God at work and learn to live in a way that pleases Him.
This was all just a great reminder to me about getting some perspective on the fact that this child is not going to be a baby forever, and she's going to be a little person who needs to know that God loves her and wants a relationship with her. Hope you all have a great week - thanks for reading.

Babymoon - St. John, Feb. 3-9, 2007

We just got home this weekend from a week of relaxing in the warm sun in St. John, USVI. It was such a nice getaway. Our days consisted of waking up with a view of Cruz Bay outside our balcony, having breakfast on the stone patio watching the hummingbirds buzz around the flowers, and deciding which of the gorgeous beaches we would visit that day. We did some snorkeling, reading, hiking, shopping & exploring on the crazy roads in a yellow Jeep Wranger. John enjoyed doing a little off-road driving & shooting some amazing photography. I'm still feeling great & I definately see my belly growing from week to week. I'm now at 23 weeks and our little girl is now more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound. I still feel her moving regularly & John has been able to feel slight movement when he puts his hand on my belly. We're having a little trouble getting back into a schedule, or rather, we're just not ready to give up the slower pace of island time!

21 Weeks, January 28, 2007

We have now made it halfway + 1 week through this pregnancy! In the last week or so John has been commenting to me that he thinks he can now see more of a pregnant belly on me. Of course, I've felt like it's been there longer, but others have started noticing as well in the last week that I now have a bit more of a defined "baby bump." I still feel really great and have yet to experience any kind of cravings, however, I do occasionally wake up at 4 or 5am and find that I'm starving!! We think that we have narrowed down our choice of crib & other furnishings for the nursery - and this weekend we also picked out a color we both love for the walls - it's called Pale Apple by Laura Ashley and we found the sample at Lowes (just in case you wanted to know...I always love those kinds of details). I'm excited to get the room set up and ready and feel like I want to do as much now in the 2nd trimester as possible, because I feel so great. We have been reading up on all the things our baby is developing, and she now is beginning to hear, and can distinguish between my voice and others - wow, isn't this incredible?! Truly the handiwork of our Creator! We may not get to post next weekend, since John and I will be taking a Babymoon vacation to USVI, St. John. It's part of my 30th birthday present & one last big getaway before we settle in to the life and schedule of a newborn. I told John that we need to start posting a few pictures of him on this blog, too - so stay tuned and we'll update soon.

19 Weeks, January 14, 2007

This week I felt the baby for the first time! I wasn't sure if it was the baby at first, but there didn't seem to be anything else that would have had this same sensation. On Friday afternoon, I was sitting at my desk at work, and felt very subtle pokes just below my belly button - then again when I was laying down on Saturday and Sunday. Friends have assured me that this will only continue to become more pronounced as she grows and moves. I also did a little shopping this weekend to look at ideas for decorating the nursery. We've talked about painting the walls a green color and doing pink and green accents. I think we've picked a fabric we both really like, and I'm planning to sew the bed skirt, panel curtains and bumper pads. I've also been doing some reading - Baby bargains and The Happiest Baby on the Block. There's so much to learn and get ready for - thankfully God gives us several months!

It's a Girl!

We had an ultrasound to check everything on Monday, January 8th, 2007, and it was such an amazing experience! We could see our baby moving on the screen, and we heard the heartbeat again. It was one of those things I had always heard was so neat to see from friends who've had babies, but until it's your own body and that baby is yours, it's hard to imagine how exciting it is. We went to the appointment, and I inadvertantly wore a blue/green shirt - so John decided he should wear a pinkish colored dress shirt so that both boy and girl colors were represented. (He brought along a blue shirt to change into as well, depending on the news we received). We found out that our baby is a little girl and looks healthy! It was such fun to find out, and now we're beginning to envision this new life that God has entrusted to us, and praying for her before we even hold her in our arms.

18 Weeks, January 7, 2007

17 Weeks, December 31, 2006