Thursday, July 30, 2009

17 and 18 Weeks (Blessings #32)

The picture above is of Chip with our nephew, Nathan, at a fish hatchery in Sitka, Alaska. Chip is so patient with kids - seeing him with Nathan just shows what an incredible Daddy he will be. It melts my heart and makes me so thankful to God for the incredible husband I have. He is truly amazing and I am beyond blessed to be married to him. I am so excited for our baby to get here in December - I can picture the evenings and days to come. The jellybean asleep with Chip on the couch, playing with the dogs, playing in the yard, just enjoying life as a family.

:::

The last two weeks of pregnancy have been so great! Chip encouraged me to get a membership at Massage Envy for a monthly prenatal massage and I had that last week and goodness - it was amazing!! My morning sickness has gotten better - I am only friends with the toilet a few times a week now. I still have to get up at night to go to the bathroom, but we got a window unit for our upstairs (for some reason - our upstairs is 10 degrees hotter than downstairs, even with the AC set at 72) and it has helped me sleep about five hours before I have to get up. I think my body is preparing me for when the jellybean gets here. :) We had a doctor's appointmnet this past Monday and everything is great! I still only feel fluttering sometimes, but I know I will start to feel the jellybean more in the weeks to come. The heartbeat was strong and I don't have to do back for another month (my placenta previa is not acting up). YEA!

We started registering (for non gender specific stuff) at Babies R Us and Target. I did buy a stroller today that I found on MamaBargains.com and I think it will be perfect! It is an Easy Walker SKY (in brown) and i got it for over 60% off!! It will work until the baby is 70 pounds and we got the carrycot so it will work when the baby is tiny too.

In other exciting news, we found a house to rent. We weighed buying a house versus renting and decided renting would be best for now. When we move in a few weeks, I will post pictures. It has stained glass windows, a huge porch, a deck with seating (think fraternity house style deck), a yard, jacuzzi tub, an enormous kitchen and hardwood floors. It has tons of charm and I am so excited! It is in a great area and we are down the road from some friends. It's perfect for us - more room for guests and room for our jellybean, girls and us. My sweet Mom is coming to help us pack - I miss her and can't wait for her to get here. I'm not allowed to move stuff still so she is a huge lifesaver (plus she is OCD about organizing like me so I totally trust her).

:::

I babysat for two of our friends Tuesday night. They have a three year old and a 15 month old. We had a blast - we made baseball cookies, played with cars and dinosaurs and cuddled. When we were sitting in the kitchen watching the cookies "have a party in the oven," the three year old (who is the sweetest little boy) decided to talk to the jellybean through my belly button. He told the jellybean all about baseball and dinosaurs. It was about the most precious thing ever! It melted my heart and made me think about when our jellybean is three and (if things go like we hope) talks to the next baby through my belly button. Seeing how sweet and gentle the little boy was with his little sister just made me think about our future kids and how they will be with each other. It's a pretty awesome thought! The couple I babysat for are just so nice and Godly - I think we will grow to be awesome friends and that they will be great mentors for us.

In a week, we find out the sex! YEA!! I can't wait...

:::

Blessings
  1. Supportive husband
  2. Amazing family
  3. Awesome coworkers
  4. Finding a house
  5. Our jellybean

Friday, July 17, 2009

16 Weeks (Blessings #31)

Time is going by so fast and yet so slow...I can't believe that we are already 16 weeks. I am almost five months pregnant - our jellybean will be here in 24 (or less) weeks. WOW!



This past week has been interesting with the symptoms I've had. I broke my face. Yes - you read that right. Actually, I broke a bunch of blood vessels in my face due to being violently ill after taking my prenatal one night. I went to work thinking I had a rash and a couple of my coworkers "diagnosed" me and saved me a trip to the doctor. Luckily, it's getting less red. So - if you get violently sick and break out in red freckles - rest assured it is most likely broken blood vessels and not a weird rash...



We also had another doctor's appointment this week and heard jellybean's heartbeat again. What a wonderful sound! We go back in two weeks and then (if everything looks good), I could get off pelvic rest after the anatomy ultrasound on August 7th. YIPPEE!!



In other news, my sweet best friend, aunt and sister in law are throwing us a shower in Texas in September. It touches my heart and is so sweet of them! My lifegroup is also throwing me a shower the Monday after (so I will have a long weekend stay) - I can't wait to see these sweet ladies again and show them the growing belly! Our precious miracle has been so prayed for and is already a very loved & blessed baby! I plan to start registering at Target and Babies R Us soon - at least for the basic stuff, I will register for the sex specific stuff once the anatomy ultrasound confirms the boy bits we have seen so far.

We are also looking for a rent house with a backyard for the girls. We weighed buying versus renting, but since we are not sure how long we will be here and with the housing market being so much more expensive here, we opted to rent. We will see how it goes and have faith that God will lead us to where we need to be.

Life is good here and we feel so very lucky. I am adjusting to living in the Northeast and am so thankful that I can be pregnant in Pennsylvania summer weather and not be suffering like some of my sweet friends in the Texas sweltering heat!! Texas had had record highs and we have been blessed here with some lower than normal temps. Seriously - Texas had a high 97 today and our high was in the low 80's and it's already in the low 70's at 7 o'clock at night. Texas friends - come visit!

Blessings
  1. PA weather in the summer
  2. More energy
  3. Being able to feel little flutters of our jellybean in my tummy
  4. Amazing friends & family
  5. Our awesome God

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

15 Weeks (Blessings #30)

Wow - I can't believe it. We're fifteen weeks pregnant and the jellybean is the size of a naval orange/apple/tomato - depending on what book/blog you read. I have felt flutters and can tell (I think) were the jellybean is when I am lying down. I am excited to start feeling more movement soon and especially excited for when Chip will be able to feel our baby. He can tell where the jellybean is too by pressing on my abdomen. Our baby - wow! Our baby is growing and is perfect!

We go back to the doctor on Monday to hear the heartbeat again. We scheduled the anatomy ultrasound and it will be on August 7th. At that appointment I will be a bit over 19 weeks and we will be better able to see jellybeans parts - although we are both pretty certain from our previous ultrasounds that our jellybean is a boy. We are thrilled either way - if it turns out the jellybean is a girl we will be just as happy.

It's really starting to truly sink in - there is a baby growing inside me who will be here in five months. My belly is more baby belly than beer gut looking. We've made it - over three years of trying, the doctor visits, the treatments, the scares and nervousness and prayers upon prayers. It has all been worth it because it has led to this baby - this baby that we are supposed to have - the one that God has intended to be our first child. WOW!

:::

Chip and I both had to work for a PR event this past Saturday. The event was amazing and we got to watch fireworks from the top of a submarine. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity for which we are grateful. As a result of working Saturday, I get to work a half day tomorrow. YEA! I am taking the chance to treat myself. I am getting my hair done, running some errands and getting some new undergarments as I have outgrown mine. I am looking forward to it and so grateful that Chip wants me to take time for myself. Keep your fingers crossed that the hair turns out good.

Blessings:
  1. Meeting new friends
  2. Fireworks - so magical
  3. Incredible husband
  4. Healthy baby
  5. Being able to be pregnant and carry our child