18 Weeks!

As of tomorrow I will be 18 weeks along in this pregnancy. Whew! It has already been such a long road I can't believe we are barely half way there! But on the other hand, I still really can't believe I am pregnant again and far enough along to know we are having a GIRL! Weird how that works!

Yesterday we had a day of appointments. We saw my Dr. first and he found the heartbeat again immediately. He said it was nice and strong and around 140 beats a minute. He explained their ultrasound policies and let us know you don't leave the office without knowing if all is well....very nice to hear! Then we went next door to see our baby! I was very nervous about many things...would she still be a she? Would the baby be healthy with all parts in place? Would she be growing right? Thanks to God who calmed my fears!! Our baby is indeed 100% a girl!!! When I asked if she was sure, she said she was positive and had achieved text book proof! Very reassuring! She also said all of her organs look good. She is weighing about 6 oz which is right on target. And she has all her fingers and toes! YAY!!

As far as the babies personality, so far she seems to be a sweetie and pretty calm. At this stage we remember Tyler doing flips and other amazing acrobatics. This little one seems to have gentle movements. When the tech began to press down on my tummy, she immediately tried to get away from the pressure! She was also sucking her thumb which we have never seen with the boys. The more the tech probed her, the more she tried to get away until the tech said she had balled herself up into a corner...poor baby! She kept trying to search for her thumb again to be comforted. Hopefully she got it again when the poking stopped!

So now I need to continue to rely on God to get us through the rest of this pregnancy. As for my health, I have seen a big jump of improvement this past week. My general practitioner put me on a hefty dose of iron when I realized there had to be something more dragging me down. She said it would take about a week if it was going to work and THANK GOD I started noticing a difference at the week mark. I am now able to get around the house more, help with some of the chores and not be stuck in bed all day! I am still on Zofran and food is the enemy. I am praying for that to change sometime soon as well!

On another note, we were supposed to have gone to Colorado to meet baby Bella two weeks ago. It had been planned since I found out Susie was pregnant so I was crushed when the trip had to be delayed. At that point there was just no way I could have made the trip. Thankfully, the iron has kicked in and we are heading out this Friday! It will be interesting to come up with things to eat on the road! We will be packing a nice sized cooler! But all of us are in great anticipation of finally seeing that sweet baby and congratulating the lucky parent's in person! I'm sure I will return with many pictures to share!

Thanks again for all of the enthusiasm about our little girl...makes me one happy mama!

These pictures were not nearly as good as the first batch! But here are a few of our baby girl! =0)




This one was a lot of fun!! The tech said, "This is your 4th right?" and than said, "look she's holding up 4 fingers as if saying I'm #4!!" =0)


And one of our girl shots.


This past weekend at Hillary's baby shower!

It's a GIRL!!!!!!!

WOW!!! I never thought I would be able to say that! I have wanted to for so long and thought it would be a dream unanswered! With Jacob being our last, I thought I would always be left to wonder what our daughter would have looked like, what it would have been like to hear, "It's a Girl"! Well here's the story on how we finally heard those words!!

On Sunday night, very spur of the moment, we decided to make an appointment with a local Ultrasound office. We wanted the boys to be a part of the "finding out" process but didn't want to try and shove them into a small tech room at the Dr's office. The techs there are often so clinical and focused on measurements that finding out the sex is just thrown out there. We wanted it to be special for our family and not as stressful. So, the place I found had a 100" screen mounted on the wall, a huge room, and an extra TV screen as well as the computer monitor. There were soft couches for guests, and lot's of room for the boys to run around and look at all the screens. The tech immediately went "down south" and said she could tell right away but wanted to make sure before she told us. Then she smiled big and said, "You are having a baby GIRL!!!" as soon as those words left her mouth I burst into tears! Uncontrollable, tears! The boys heard her (and me repeating "A girl? It's a girl!?! through my sobs!)and screamed, jumped and ran around the room! Such an amazing moment! Throughout the 10 minute ultrasound the tech repeatedly checked, re-checked and checked again to make sure she was right. She printed us two girl shots out of the 10 photos. And we have a DVD of our time there! What an experience!

So that appointment was Monday night. We hadn't told anyone we were going. I was able to call my mom right after and completely surprised her! It was the best to share our special news and hear her shriek...I had never heard her sound that happy and excited before. Sharing the news has been so much fun as those close to us know how very much this means to our family! And Zachary, who has begged me for a little girl since we told him I was pregnant, couldn't be happier! I had told him that Mommy couldn't decide if it was a girl or a boy and that was God's job. Today I was talking to him about how thankful we should be to God for answering our prayers and our hearts desire. He certainly knows what is best and His timing was perfect. Now this little girl has a family of five eagerly awaiting her arrival and whole bunch of family and friends eager to meet her as well!

And of course I wouldn't be me if I didn't immediately start to worry more! After not sleeping at all Monday night(way too excited), I had a tough Tuesday. I felt much sicker and worn down. Doubt started to creep in that maybe it wasn't really a girl (even though she really did check at least 6 times!). I worry that something will happen to the baby before she (SHE!!!) is born. I'm worried that I still feel so sick, it is hindering my eating and therefore gaining. I will be 17 weeks tomorrow and am actually still losing. That scares me! So if you get the chance, please pray for me I would really appreciate it! I have a Dr's appointment next week and our clinical ultrasound same day.

So, I am going to post pictures from our time on Monday. Our little girl was just hanging out and at one point turned and waved to us! So amazing on that big screen! She looked perfect with her sweet little fingers and toes! And if you experienced girl moms out there would like to reassure me on the girl shots...I would appreciate your input! I said the only way I could instantly tell was from the lack of boy parts hanging out that I'm used to seeing!

I'm so excited to share this with all of you!

It's a GIRL!!!




Sweet Girl!




Amazing 3d shots!






My favorite! She's just so complete! The umbilical cord is amazing!

A leave of absence

So I am dragging myself over to the computer to blog. It has been months since my last entry and it has been a very dreary few months.

Going back now to December. After arriving home from our trip to Colorado, I was still awaiting a certain "nuisance" to show up. Thinking the traveling and elevation was messing me up, I didn't think much of it...until "it" still didn't show up. Just to "toss that idea out" I quickly took a pregnancy test. I can't describe how FLOORED I was to see the two lines. I was never supposed to be pregnant again. My pregnancy with Jacob had endangered my life. I had given away my maternity clothes. All of my sweet baby boy clothes. Always wanting four children we had talked more and more about adoption. Picked up fliers from an agency. Looked at many different adoption web sites. And then there were two lines. The days to follow were a blur. I was terrified of what was to come. I knew I was a ticking time bomb but how bad would it be this time? So many people prayed earnestly that somehow this time would be different. That this time I could enjoy my pregnancy. But unfortunately, that was not to be the case.

At 6 weeks on the dot, I first threw up. I still tried to think positively, that maybe, just maybe it wouldn't be as bad. I had already visited the Dr. to obtain Zofran (a drug that is given to chemo therapy patients to reduce nausea and vomiting.) which had helped with Zachary but did nothing for me with Jacob. I began taking it. The weeks and months to follow have been terrible. The whole time spent in bed. New issues were added to this pregnancy with severe bloating and heartburn. No food, and I mean NO food, was appealing and I could hardly keep anything down. Today at 15 weeks along, I still struggle with being able to eat. I am trying to build my strength up by getting out of bed more but the side effects from the Zofran of fatigue and weakness, are not helping that battle. I tried going off the Zofran about a week ago and that turned out to be a very bad idea as the vomiting reared up violently and quickly. So upsetting to see that at 14 weeks the Hyperemesis was still going to strong! And in this time, I have not been able to enjoy the fact that I am having a baby! A new, sweet addition to our happy family. I'm trying to get there. I have moments of extreme excitement that quickly gets taken over by one fear or another. Or just by feeling so horrible. Or so completely worn out.

I'm not sure what to be striving for now as in the past, week 14 has been when I start feeling better. I'm thankful to be able to get out a bit more. I'm thankful that the Zofran has kept me hydrated enough to stay out of the hospital. But I am so desperate to feel like myself again! To like food! I tell Craig that as long as a donut still sound repulsive, I have a ways to go! So, here's to the day I eat a donut again and adore every bite!

*(and on a side note I am going to try and get myself to post more. I think it will be good for me and I have so much to share! So, hopefully more to come with cute pictures and happenings of the kiddos!)