Ultrasound Pics

Cute Balloons from my MIL!

Here are the three u/s pics we got this time. Everything seemed healthy at the u/s.  It was so neat to spend a full 30 minutes looking at her. I am just so fascinated at how everything works and develops! Her BPM was 148 and was averaging measurements for 20 weeks 4 days (it was exactly 20 wks on u/s day).

Thank you, God for your amazing gift! I don't ever want to take her for granted...

It's A...

Alright, I am sorry for those of you waiting with bated breath, but we just had to tell everyone in the family first. We just happened to run across my hubby's mom when we went to lunch today after the ultrasound. So we got to tell her in person first. It was so much fun to see her reaction and we missed that with all the other announcements pertaining to this pregnancy. It was always a phone call or text...being the nature of infertility, if you choose to, everyone knows when and where and what time the next news will be. =) So we decided with some ideas from them that we should plan a family party and bake a cake the color of the baby gender and cover it in chocolate icing. Then we had all my family and the in-laws over to their house. We then cut the cake (with lots of pictures being taken of course.) That way everyone found out at once when the cake inside was strawberry flavored or pink because it is a GIRL! Yay! Then we enjoyed the yummy treat, and my MIL brought out pink balloons. =)

I am so excited because I think everyone woman dreams of having a girl. =) I am sorry if this post is a little incoherent because I am very tired from a long day of excitement. I literally have been talking my husband's ears off today...he is a little disappointed (though happy anyway) that he did not get his boy that every man dreams of... but hey there is always next time with the 3 snowflakes we have left waiting for us. =)

Oh and the Facebook tally with family and friends and blog votes as of last night was 15 boy and 10 girl guesses. Everyone was leaning toward boy, especially my family knowing the the donor father has 3 previous boys already. It was so much fun making a game out of the big news!

I will have to post the ultrasound picture proof tomorrow, I am too tired tonight. But now we have a NEDC string of girls for the September transfer month...we shall see soon what the remaining few are... =)

Good night and sweet dreams, baby girl. <3

Gender Guesses?

I sooo can't wait until Friday to find out the gender of our baby...hopefully.  If anyone would like to guess whether boy or girl--I will calculate up the guess between here, facebook, and family and see what we come up with. =)




Also, I wanted to admit I am still getting used to this "I am actually pregnant and preparing for MY baby thing".  I was in the store yesterday looking at baby things when the mother of one of my high school friends walked up.  She also goes to church with my parents.  My first reaction was embarrassment of standing there looking at baby things.  I have not had the right to be in that section of the store before, unless I was shopping for a baby shower, so I would avoid it in order to avoid the reminder of my lack of a child.  She congratulated me on the news she had heard, and we chatted a bit.  It was nice.  But for some reason the whole time I kept thinking..."you caught me, I am so embarrassed".  Then when she left, I felt the need to leave that section quickly, but had to stop myself and realize how silly I was and that I had a right to be in that section buying baby items.  For goodness sake, Friday is technically the halfway point in my pregnancy.  Granted, most other moments I find myself loving being pregnant especially now that the belly is growing and I can feel the baby every now and then.  I just waver between grieving the life change, to excitement at what is to come, to fear of the unknown, to anticipation of new experiences.  I love the moments when I am filled with an overwhelming love for this baby instead of the detachment from before...I am thankful that my walled-up, infertile heart is starting to allow the bonding to begin.  Now if I could just get over the mental block that I am a mother now and have the right to prepare for my baby. =)

Beautiful New Blog

Check out the beautiful new design for my blog done by Christie at Bushel & a Peck Designs.  I am so grateful for the complimentary design I won.  It was such a surprise since I was just nominating Ashley for a new design. She won and then the nominator also got one!  Go check out her nifty new look also. 

It was such a joy to work with Christie and she does awesome work!  She has such a knack for seeing things go together...but she will also work with you until you love it (within reason of course).  Being pregnant or just plain ole picky, I think I wasn't the easiest to please, but we found a design I love! 

I just love the tree with the hearts showing that the family tree is grown by love not genetics.  Of course my title doesn't fit much, but I don't care... I didn't want anything too wintery.  Now I am ready to post my new u/s pics next week on my pretty new blog. =)

Thanks so much Christie! 

The Meaning of Snowflake

This is a beautiful poem that my sister-in-law received on the front of one of her Christmas cards.  She gave it to me knowing how much I love snowflakes. ;0)  I think I will frame the beautiful card and put it in the baby room. =)

The Meaning of Snowflake

Every new snowflake comes to the earth

as a picture of our Saviour's birth,

because they are sent from up above

and remind us of God's care and love.

Each one is so intricate and small

because Christ sees the details of us all,

and just as two are never the same

the Lord knows and calls us each by name.

 

Snowflakes gently cover the world in white

and hide what's unlovely from our sight,

showing us how He covers our sin

and gives us His grace when we come to Him.

So may every snowflake bring Christ to mind

and in ever bit of white may you find

a reason to celebrate anew

and a reminder of His love for you.

~Holly Gerth~

Complete Anticipation

Tomorrow find me 18 weeks along and feeling great!  My current symptom of annoyance is heartburn in the evenings.  It started the beginning of December and comes and goes different days.  My only thought is, if I have this already what am I going to do when I am big pregnant and there is definitely no room for my stomach. =)  No complaints though...I am super grateful to go through every annoyance connected with this pregnancy. =)  The hungry "dry heaves" only lasted for a few weeks, or I have learned to eat right away when I get hungry.  I am not sure which.

It is funny to me how my center of gravity has already started changing, and I find myself off balance quite often.  Being a pretty active girl, I have to watch how quickly I move now.  I have currently gained a net of 6 pounds.  Right on track for healthy weight gain.  Although I had to check a few times thinking I was gaining too fast!  I was 134 when they transferred the snowflakes, then I lost 4 pounds in the 2ww period...possibly from the constant hunger combined with a more sendentary schedule (muscle loss).  Now I am up to 140 pounds...the most I have weighed in my life.  So 10 pounds gross weight gain?  But anyway we are just going by pre-transfer weight.  I am trying to walk and do my pre-natal yoga often to stay fit for labor and keep the aches and pains away due to weak muscles.  I am also paying attention to my diet and eating as much of a well-rounded non-processed diet as I can. 

I am reading a book my mom gave me for Christmas called Origins: How the Nine Months Before Birth Shape the Rest of Our Lives by Annie Murphy Paul.  It is such a fascinating book...being medically minded I just eat up this kind of stuff.  It pretty much just compiles all the studies, theories, and findings about the shaping of life during the 9 months of pregnancy but written in an easy read.  They are finding more and more everyday how much everything we do, eat, think, expose ourselves to during pregnancy affects the baby and how it will handle life physically and mentally.  Puts alot of responsibility on us pregnant mothers, but also confirms everything we feel subconsciously all along.  We are naturally very protective and paranoid for a reason.  The complexities of life and epigenetics are so fascinating.  We have an amazing God...you can't look at anything medically and not give Him the reverance He deserves.

On December 28th (16 1/2 weeks), I officially believe I felt the baby move.  I think I felt it before that but was not sure.  I notice it a lot while I am eating--so I am bent in half and still and baby likes to eat I guess. =)  To me it feels more like rumblings or hunger pains without the hunger.  Maybe like moving gas, but it continues and does not pass quickly.  I have been feeling it more and more lately...it is so surreal to think there is something alive and moving inside of me.

The last couple midwife appointments have found the baby's heartbeat at 150 bpm.  And my uterus is measuring right on schedule so far.  Our big 20 week u/s is January 21, and I am beyond excited to see the baby again.  Us infertility patients get used to seeing or checking on our baby at 3 week intervals for a while so this 2 month wait has been a long one.  I think I am most excited to find out the gender of the baby...hopefully he/she will cooperate.  I think we will not have another u/s later if everything looks healthy, so...baby, no modesty that day please. =)

I also received two pictures from our donors of the twins at 9 months (they are 2 years old now).  Man, those boys are some cuties!!!  I love looking at them and imagining what our little one will look like.  One has wavy blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and slim.  The other has straight dark brown hair, dark blue eyes, and plumper.  I love communicating with our donors...I don't think I would want it any other way. =)

Alright, well my energy is back in full swing...so I am off to finish cleaning house and doing laundry...