Today is the Day

Well today is the day we've been waiting for since we found out about this little baby at the end of January. For the past 9 months October 5th has been on my mind and now it is finally here. But where's the baby?? Apparently our date and the baby's date did not match up. Surprise, surprise!! :)

Things are definitely happening though. Since yesterday I've been having contractions that are about 8 minutes apart and I have definitely been feeling them! I'm 3.5cm dilated and 75% effaced as of Monday and my doctor was actually thinking this baby would have arrived by now due to this. I guess he or she has other plans! Tomorrow morning at 6:30a we'll head to the hospital and give this baby a little extra help. It's so unbelievably surreal to know that we'll know who this baby is so soon! Boy or Girl, it's been on our minds non-stop (especially lately) and soon the great mystery will be revealed!! Not to mention we just can't wait to cuddle this little baby and touch those little feet - other than feeling them push against my belly!!

Just a Few More Days...

Until we get to meet this little person one way or another! We had a doctor's appointment yesterday and things are definitely progressing. I'm currently 2cm dilated and 50% effaced. Though that doesn't necessarily mean much. The baby could come tonight or he/she could wait it out for another week. At this point after talking with our doctor we've decided to wait for the rest of the week and if by next Wednesday (6 days!!) this baby hasn't arrived we will be evicting him or her. So we have a back up induction date scheduled for October 6th. One way or another this baby is coming out in the next week!! We could not be more anxious and excited to see who this little baby is!

Continuing the Countdown

Wow! A lot has happened this month; I'm not even sure where to begin....

A major highlight of the month for us was most definitely our baby shower. This baby is so ridiculously loved already!! It truly is amazing and we feel so incredibly fortunate. We got so much great stuff for baby J and it certainly helped ease some of our anxiety, as we now feel much more prepared thanks to all the wonderful gifts we received. I also got a big surprise this week at work when my amazing coworkers threw me a little surprise "shower". They all bought the baby their favorite childhood book and I am so excited for the memories that will be made reading these books with our baby. All we can say to everyone is THANK YOU, even though those two words do not even scratch the surface of the gratitude we feel.

On another note, we've been on a bit of a roller coaster these last couple weeks when it comes to this little one's arrival date. Due to a change of insurance at Peter's company we have been put in a unique situation. We found out about three weeks ago that Peter's company was changing insurance providers as of Oct 1st which complicated things a bit for us because it means if the baby were to arrive prior to Oct 1st we would deliver at one hospital and after the 1st we would be at a different hospital. Sort of a messy situation for a few reasons that I won't bore anyone with. The result of this was that after speaking with our doctor we thought it might be best to have the baby arrive prior to the 1st as the baby is pretty much ready to go, measuring big, and not to mention I've been having lots of contractions. Therefore we scheduled an induction for Sept 28th (6 days from now!!). However, after finding out more about our new insurance coverage and just discussing everything together in the last couple days we've come to the tentative conclusion that we'd rather not be induced unless it's medically necessary and would prefer to wait for this baby to come on his or her own choosing. I was definitely excited to be meeting this little one so soon and so it's taking some time for me to adjust to the fact that it probably won't be on the 28th now, but I feel good about our decision and know that no matter what it won't be too much longer.

Well that pretty much sums up life lately for us! Now it's just a waiting game...this baby could join us any day!

September...

September is here! This could be the month our baby is born.....though if he or she decides to hold off until that first week of October that's just fine with me too, as my to-do list is never-ending at this point! Either way we can't wait to meet this little one. Can't believe how close we're getting.... :)

The Gender Question

As I'm sure any expectant mom has experienced, I couldn't even make a guess at how many times I have been asked what the gender of this baby is. It happens daily. Sometimes more than once. After asking when I'm due, it's the next question out of a person's mouth. And I do it too. I always ask someone I meet who's pregnant what the baby is. I'm just as guilty.

I don't actually think there's anything wrong at all with this question. However, we don't know the gender of our baby and each time I'm asked it's a constant reminder of that. While we chose to let this be a surprise and we're 100% glad we made that decision, I am definitely starting to get more and more curious about who this little baby is, especially as his or her arrival gets closer. You might think I have some sort of "mother's intuition" about what the baby is. False. I have no clue and usually change my mind daily. Sometimes I feel fairly certain it's a boy and at other times I feel the same way about it being a girl. Peter has leaned towards girl the entire time, but now even he is getting less and less certain. And lets be honest, it's a total guessing game anyways!

The one thing I do love about not knowing is listening to the responses of others when I tell them we decided to be surprised and didn't find out. Some people look at me like I'm crazy. Other people (often those who have done the same thing) are extremely excited for us. But everyone has a guess. And that's what I love; hearing the predictions of others and particularly their reasoning for why they say boy or girl. I'm carrying pretty high so I hear girl A LOT. However, my doctor has already told me the way you carry the baby has absolutely nothing to do with the gender. It has to do with your body type. But I never tell people this who guess girl for this reason. It's more fun to just listen to them.

All in all, I've very much enjoyed listening to the predictions of others. It has only added to our own excitement about meeting this little unknown person. Any other predictions out there.... :)

Update

Well it's official, I am in the third and FINAL trimester of pregnancy!! It's starting to feel like this baby is really getting close to joining us (and at other moments it still feels so far away). I had a great appointment with my doctor on Wednesday and everything continues to look good for Baby J and me. I couldn't feel more blessed. This weekend we're planning to put the crib together and work some on the nursery. It's so funny how even prior to our little one being here his or her presence is so felt and in so many ways we are already parents. Just something I've been thinking about lately....

This past week has been an extremely difficult one for my family as we lost my grandma on Monday morning, July 12th, after an extremely long and hard fought battle with cancer. She was the most incredible woman and there really are no words that I could use to do justice to how much she meant to our family. That being the case I'll just share a story from her last week with us. A memory that will most definitely remain one of my fondest for the rest of my life. When we discovered that her time with us had become limited Peter and I talked and decided it was important for us that she know the gender of her first great grandchild, even though no one else does. I happen to have the most amazing doctor and she was kind enough to do an extra ultrasound for me last week just to check the gender. She then took some pictures of our little one and wrote the gender on those and sealed them in an envelope, just for my grandma. We took that to her last Wednesday and everyone in the family stood and watched as she opened it and got a glimpse at who this little baby is. It was such a wonderful moment for all of us. I shouldn't fail to mention that she's one tough cookie. My aunts and mom spent the rest of the week trying to get it out of her, but she held strong, refusing to tell anyone. It was her secret and still is.

Here's a picture Peter took of right when she found out who Baby J is.

25 Weeks Down.....15 to Go

Yesterday I had another great doctor's appointment. Was able to hear the little one's heartbeat (always my favorite part) and check in with my doctor. Everything looked great and baby is developing right along as should be, already weighing in at 1.5 to as much as 2lbs! At my next appointment, at 28 weeks (the beginning of the third trimester) we will schedule out the rest of the appointments all the way up until our due date, which seems crazy! Just goes to show how close we are getting to meeting this little guy or gal.

I think it's beginning to set in for both of us how quickly the next three months (yes only three more months!) are going to fly by. In the last week or so baby prep work has kicked into a higher gear. Two weeks ago we bought a chair for the nursery. Last weekend I picked out the fabric for Baby J's bedding, which we are having made. My parents also graciously bought a crib for us and it should be arriving any day now (Thanks Papa and Nana!). While there is still a TON to do I am now beginning to be able to envision what our baby's room is going to look like when all is said and done and I couldn't be more excited! So much work, but all so worth it :)

On this weekends agenda is registering...which I'm sure will be quite the adventure!!

Our Little Ninja

Last night baby kicked and kicked and kicked some more! It was so fun for Peter and me to just sit and feel our baby move all around. We definitely have a night owl on our hands, which could make for an interesting first few months after baby is born!!

21 Weeks!

This past Monday we were able to see our beautiful baby for the second time and it was amazing!! We had an anatomy ultrasound that lasted about 45 minutes and during that time we were able to see the inside and outside of this new little life, including baby's heart and brain!! It was as surreal and amazing an experience as I've ever had in my life.

The baby seemed to be feeling quite rebellious that day! The ultrasound technician had to work hard for every view she wanted of our little bean (we're still trying to decide on an appropriate nickname for the baby until he or she is born). The baby had it's little legs all curled up and intertwined, which made it quite difficult for the tech to check the gender. We had decided we didn't want to know what the baby was and it seemed like the baby didn't want anyone to know either! My mom was with us and she did her best to try and see but definitely couldn't tell (good job baby!). Overall, Baby J checked out to be quite healthy and is developing well, already weighing nearly a pound at 14 ounces currently!

For the past couple weeks I've been feeling the baby kick and squirm around. It's such an incredible feeling and I can't wait for Peter to be able to feel it too.

For now we're enjoying this time and beginning to think about all that we have to do in the next 18.5 weeks. I'm sure it will go by quickly!

17 Weeks and Counting!

This week the baby is a little onion! Growing faster by the minute, as evidenced by my expanding tummy. I'm finally starting to feel like I might actually look pregnant on occasion to people other than Peter and myself!

We had our third doctor's appointment yesterday and it went extremely well!! As the doctor was listening to the heartbeat the little one was moving all around, she was practically having to chase the baby from one side of my stomach to the other. She even commented on what a little mover we already have! I don't think I'll ever stop being in awe of hearing our baby's heartbeat. It is the constant reminder of this living being growing inside of me. There are no words to describe the feeling.

We got a great report from the doctor and our next appointment, scheduled for May 24th is the big 20 week ultrasound! However, for us it will actually fall on 21 weeks. We can't wait to see our little one again! We've decided, to the bewilderment of many, to not find out the sex of the baby at this appointment. We've both come to the conclusion that there are so few genuine surprises left in life and this is one that we'd like to enjoy and whenever it is that this little baby enters the world is when we will know who he/she is. It's not easy waiting (especially for me!) but ultimately I think for us it will be worth it in the end.

Peter's convinced - as of yesterday that the baby is a girl. He decided that in the elevator on our way to our appointment. I'm leaning towards boy. We'd love to hear any other predictions that are out there as well!

Our Little Lemon!

We couldn't be more thrilled to be entering this phase of life. We are so excited to meet our little one this fall and feel so incredibly blessed! Baby J is due Oct 5th and it's safe to say that I can't wait for October to get here!!

At 14 weeks pregnant baby is about the size of a lemon and is beginning to do all sorts of fun things, including thumb sucking! I'm so happy to have reached the second trimester for a number of reasons, including leaving the morning sickness behind! Currently we're just enjoying this time and looking forward to all that is to come. We've had two doctor's appointments so far and both could not have gone better. So far it seems like baby is developing wonderfully and we couldn't be more grateful for this!

Here's the first picture of Baby J, taken back when he/she was just 9 weeks old :)

Joining the Blogging World

Welcome to Our Blog! We are so excited for you to follow along with us on this new and exciting journey of growing our family!