Thanks for praying!

Well, other than gaining a little too much weight in the last 2 weeks (but it could be due to swelling and the heat that is here and there already around here), the doctor said everything looks OK. Apparently I have been measuring small all along, but not enough to say anything about (a cm behind since wk 20). She was concerned last time because there was no measurable growth since the last appointment, meaning I was 3 cm small. But today, I am back to my "norm" of 1 cm small. She said there is no need for another ultrasound at this point. They will keep an eye on it though and will order another one if it happens again. She thinks (like a lot of others) that the baby must have been just lying in a different or weird position when I was measured last time.

We start Lamaze class tomorrow night. I am excited. Scott is a little anxious because he isn't really the partcipatory type. I'm sure it will be fine! One of the couples from our childbirth class will be in there with us so it will be nice to see familiar faces.

Our shower for (is that right? or is it by...) our friends here is this Saturday, I am really excited about that too. It is at our church and Sheena has invited people from church and the band so it should be a lot of fun. We are so blessed to have so many people that care for us and take care of us like family out here.

How can you not believe??

Everytime we go to our childbirth class, we have the same conversation on the way out to the car. "How can anyone not believe there is a Creator?" From the fact the baby "tells" the mother's body to start producing the hormones to begin contractions when it is ready to be born, to the purity and perfection of breast milk. How can anyone think that this is all random, by chance, or it has evolved over time? It just boggles my mind. Anyway, just a random thought I had today that I thought I would share!

A little prayer...

So just a quick update...

I went to the doctor on Tuesday afternoon. I was worried about my weight, I thought for sure I had gained a ton again. But that wasn't true! I lost a pound. The doctor didn't even mention it. But, almost as I was walking out the door, she mentioned that I was measuring a little small. (Meaning my uterus isn't quite as big as it should be for how far along I am.) She said that they will keep a close eye on it and if I haven't "caught up" by my next appointment (on the 30th), they will order another ultrasound to make sure the baby is developing properly and there is enough amniotic fluid. She said 95% of the time there is nothing wrong, but they just want to make sure. That last part made me feel a little better, but not to worry? Yeah, right!! I have been doing some reading on-line, talking with nurse friends and other doctors at other hospitals. They have all said that it is probably no big deal. That helps, but I still worry a little!! I am having a hard time turning this one over to God!! The heartbeat is still strong and easy to find and there is still a lot (a lot) of movement going on so I keep resting on that.

So, all that to say, please pray for us. For the baby, for my worry, for Scott. (He is basically force feeding me these days...making sure I am eating whenever I can!) He has been totally awesome throughout this whole thing (the entire pregnancy) and I couldn't do it without him!!

It's starting to come together...

Here are the pictures of the cradle that I promised. It is sitting at the foot of our bed where it will stay until the baby is too big for it. I think I mentioned before that Scott's dad, Dale, made it for his youngest, Jason. It rocks and can be made to stay stationary as well. It is a very cool heirloom!

There is a lot to go, but it is starting to come together. At times it is cool to see all of it out and ready to go, but then...

Scott is being so funny about the whole thing too...he has said at least once a day for the last couple of days..."I can't wait for this kid to get here, isn't it time yet? I am ready to be a dad, I wish it was here already!" He has changed so much, it is so cool to see!

We're going to be Parents!?!?!?

We just returned from our first childbirth class at the hospital. I never thought this would come. We registered so long ago and it is finally here! There are 3 other couples in the class with us. One couple that sat next to us is a youth pastor and his wife. They seem pretty cool. Maybe some new friends? We learned about the first stages of labor, when to go to the hospital and stuff like that. We also took a tour of the maternity ward, saw a labor room, a post-labor room and the nursery. There was a new little boy in there...he was soooo cute!! At the end, the teacher made the guys give us (the moms, she kept calling us...sounds so weird!) shoulder massages and hand massages. It was great!! (I'm not sure how Scott felt, but he did a good job!) I am the only one in the class that wants to try and have a natural childbirth...everyone else said they want an epidural as soon as possible. I felt kind of out of place. But, I'm not totally ruling it out...just want to try with no medication.

Scott's parents were down this weekend. We got some stuff ready and they bought us a few new things as well. They bought us our stroller/car seat. It is all put together (and safely stored down at Rob & Sheena's until we have more room) and pretty cool! I always swore I wouldn't be a trendy mom...but the stroller we fell in love with and works the best for us is an Eddie Bauer Edition! But it is a nice green color and very versatile (and made for longer babies, which we will probably have!). They also outfitted our cradle. We are using a cradle Dale made for their youngest (Jason) until the baby needs a crib. It is a beautiful handmade wood cradle that rocks...it is very cool. So now that is already at the foot of our bed and all made up and everything. Kinda weird to see it sitting there. Definitely making it seem more real! We also got rid of our HUGE computer desk in the back room (soon to be shared with the baby) and replaced it with a smaller unit that has doors to hide my mess and to have more room back there. We have also decided that we want as little furniture back there as possible, so we are going to combine as much as possible. With Rob's help, we designed a changing table that is a dresser/armoire as well. He is pricing it out for us now and I think we will have it made before school is out. I am really excited about having a piece of custom furniture for our baby, let alone one made by Rob. We have also decided that we are going to use the crib that has been in my family. Because we have the cradle to use for while the baby is very new and in our room, we can wait until mom comes to visit in August with the 5th wheel and bring it to us. We will keep the baby in our room as long as we can and then move it back to the back room in the crib with the other furniture (at least that is the plan!). I'll try to get a picture of the cradle on here as soon as I can. I can't access the blog from school so it may take a while with this wonderful dial up internet!

Well, that is probably enough for today...thanks for reading and I'll talk to you later!!