She Said WHAT?

So the other night, Theo and I were flipping through the channels and saw a program on discovery health about women who gave birth who never knew they were pregnant. Well as a former NICU nurse, this is definitely something I had seen before but these moms I dealt with were usually drug addicts and not all there. So I wanted to see what these women on the show were like. All of them looked fairly normal, not like drug addicts at all but I couldn't believe what they were saying.

The first girl was young when she gave birth at 30 weeks. She swore she only gained a few pounds and never knew she was pregnant. WHAT??? After having been pregnant twice now, how in the world could you not know you were pregant? Even if you had what you thought was a period every month or even periodically, how do you explain the swollen breasts, constant need to urinate, and the BABY moving around inside of you. And this chick was tiny. She only weighed 99 pounds before getting pregnant and was 110 pounds at delivery. They showed pictures of her two months before the baby was born and she didn't look really pregnant. But I still don't understand how you could feel your baby kicking and swimming around, which they do a lot by 30 weeks, and not think "Hmmmm, this is different. I wonder what I'm feeling". I mean sheesh!

Anyway, I was so appalled by these stories that I thought I'd share with you. Oh, and FYI, the second woman was a little overweight but had already have a couple of kids. How then do you not recognize being pregnant? Oh well, thankfully I am well aware of my baby growing inside of me. No surprise births for me! :)

Braxton Hicks already?

I really think I'm already having Braxton Hicks contractions. I remember being in Dallas the first time I had them with Carter. I had gone on a girlfriends weekend getaway and we were walking through the mall when I told my friend Kim "My belly keeps getting really tight". She told me I was probably having Braxton Hicks. I said, "No way, I'm only 26 weeks". I later found out that women have contractions from very early on but the uterus is not big enough to feel them early on. Well, I guess I got a big ol' womb because these contractions have been coming pretty frequently tonight. I also notice they are stronger when I have a full bladder. It's a little uncomfortable but NOTHING like the real contractions. I have never felt pain like that before. :) But fortunately, I was only in labor with Carter for 5 hours. Who knows, if this baby comes quicker, I may be having a home birth in the bath tub. Just kidding! I am not one of those kind of moms. I want my epidural and nurses to wait on me. But mostly, I want the drugs. Theo and I took lamaze classes the first time. I would have liked to tried a natural childbirth with Carter but once my water broke, the pain just wouldn't let up. Who knows, I may get brave and try it with this baby but I doubt it. I want to be comfortable. Anyone who knows me knows how much I value my comfort!

Week 21

I can't believe I'm over the halfway point. I feel hugely pregnant. I am already uncomfortable, can't breathe/move after large meals and am going to the bathroom every 30 minutes. But this is all so worth it because I know the outcome is our precious baby GIRL! I still can't get over the fact we're having a daughter. Theo is thinking of investing in a shotgun for her teenage years (Just kidding! Well, sort of)

Here is what is going on with little princess this week:
How your baby's growing:
Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well.

God is so good

As I'm sitting in church this morning and feeling baby girl move and swim around, I am reminded of just how good God is. I just weep everytime I think about how he has kept my babies safe. Both pregnancies I have gone through a trying time and had to wait on a single lab test to determine our child's outcome. Even if our daughter was going to be born with Down's syndrome, I still proclaim that God is good. He knows every moment of my children's lives and determined their course before the beginning of time. Even though I don't deserve his faithfulness, he still continues to poor out his blessings over me, and especially my children. I am no longer worried or anxious about our daughter's health. I have a peace that passes all understanding and it ONLY comes from my heavenly Father. Thank you Lord for being so good to me.

Psalm 139:13-14
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

In which I blog about clothes

I have an obsession. I have been dealing with it since Theo and I got married. I am addicted to baby girl clothes. If you look in Carter's closet, you'll see proof of that. I have been buying baby clothes since we got married. It is like I always knew I would have a daughter. Well, now that this face has been confirmed, the obsession has gotten worse. MUCH worse. Just ask my husband, who happens to be paying for this obsession. I wanted to show you some pictures of what baby girl has aquired over the past week. The pink and brown outfits/layette are from Aunt Meredith. The rest are dresses that I have found on sale over the past couple of days. She won't be able to wear them for a while but that's okay. Anyone who knows me knows I like to plan things ahead!








_____________________________________________________
I mentioned in an earlier post that my Aunt Laney has always made me some maternity clothes since she is quite the seamstress. This is one outfit. I don't know if you can tell by the picture but the belt around the blouse matches the pants! I wore it today and got some "That is so cute" comments! Thanks Aunt Laney!

Big Announcements and the roller coaster ride with it

So as you all know, we went in for our high risk ultrasound last Tuesday. The reason for the high risk US was because of Carter's heart defect. We also were able to find out little blue berry's gender and surprise....


IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!

I just started crying when the tech told us that. I guess I always assumed we'd have a daughter (as evidenced by all of my pink blog backgrounds and obsession with girl baby clothes)! But lately, I wasn't so sure. I came to the point where I truly felt I would be as excited with another boy and I would a girl. But I am thrilled to be having a daughter! I know how close I am to my mom and want that same relationship with my daughter. I would post the US pics but the tech did not really give us good ones and the pics we have don't do our precious daughter justice. At one point, we could see her hands and feet up by her mouth. She is quite the flexible one. She didn't get that from me.

We also had some other news during the ultrasound. Theo and I had decided not to share this with anyone until we knew the outcome of things. The doctor told us our daughter had a "bright spot" on her heart and something with her feet called "sandal gap deformity". I wasn't too worried about it honestly until he said those are markers for Down's syndrome. I won't go into all the details but I had chosen previously not to have the quad screen (the blood test that checks for risks of Down's and a couple of other things). So after this visit, I did go ahead and get the quad screen and praise God, it was normal. Let me tell you, I can't begin to tell you how hard this experience was for me and Theo. I prayed and cried like never before. But God is faithful and answers prayer. I would still proclaim this even if the outcome had been different. Needless to say, I was on a roller coaster last week. But I'm done riding for now and am so excited to meet our daughter in 20 more weeks! Now I'm off to surf the net for baby clothes!

Week 18

One more week until the ultrasound!! Can you tell I'm excited. Well little blueberry has grown into a bell pepper. He or she is really moving a lot! It's so neat to feel the baby. I'll be happy when daddy and Carter can feel baby move too. After having a really disturbing dream this weekend, I am praying harder than before for the health and well-being of this baby. I know this baby's life is in God's hand and He is forming all of his or her parts perfectly and in exact accordance to His will. Thank you Lord for that.

From womb news....check out In news from the womb, check out Baby Center.

How our baby's growing:
Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound (let's hope not!!)

This was my 18 week pregnant belly with Carter. A little smaller, huh?