Baby Shower in Dallas

On Saturday, June 9th, Heather, Vicki, and M's other two Aunts hosted a baby shower for Chase and I. It was so thrilling to be around our friends and family that live in and around Dallas. Heather was so kind as to have the entire thing at her new house. Everything was perfect...right down to the unbelievable grey and pink cake. We got so many items from our registry that are much needed. The overwhelming support and guidance from everyone is something that has continusly blown us away. I was a little late in sending out thank you cards but the next post will explain why. 

22 Weeks!

So this is what I look like at 22 weeks. I can still wear all of my tops but have resorted to wearing maternity pants and shorts. As you can tell, M is growing.

We have started getting her room ready. We hired a contractor to come in to do wainscoting, crown molding, and paint her room. Everything should be all finished by tomorrow. Next, we are going to started getting her furniture ordered. My goal is to have her room ready for her at least one month before she arrives.

On Mother's day, Chase and I went to take a tour of the Texas Children's Hospital- Pavilion for Women in the medical center. It is a brand new facility that just opened it's doors in March of this year. After the tour we were so impressed and excited to be delivering there. They are very focused on comfort, security, and keeping a family environment. The spacious rooms are incredible. All of the rooms are the same and include a wall of windows, 24 hour room service, and large flat screen TVs. One thing that they do differently from other hospitals, and something that I really value, is that M will never leave my our side the entire time we are at the hospital. From the time she is delivered to the time we leave, she will be with us in whatever room we are in. She will have her own area in our room that will have all the equipment she will need. We will have one nurse for both me and her while we are there, which cuts down on stress and lack of communication. I am very confident that this is going to be a great, low stress experience for Myself, Chase and M.

Latest Doctors Appointment

This last Wednesday, Chase and I had another doctors appointment. The doctor did a thirty minute ultrasound to take measurements of M's brain, skull, spine, etc. He also took the opportunity to take a look at her heart, blood flow and arteries. She is a very cooperative baby and was very active throughout the entire appointment. As of now, M is the length of a banana from the top of her head to her bottom.

The top picture is a side view of M with her hand to her mouth. The second picture is so amazing and we are lucky that the doctor caught it...it's of her yawning. We thought that was the coolest thing to see. And the last picture is a front view of her face and tummy.

After the appointment, Chase and I went to get massages. I had my first pre-natal massage and it was glorious! I even fell asleep...twice.

Mini Babymoon

This last weekend Chase and I went to Brenham for our mini Babymoon. It was hosted by Cameron and Sarah at Cameron's parents' ranch. We had the best time being with friends, riding around on the rangers, watching movies, sunning by the pool, and feeding the longhorns.

When we arrived on Friday evening, we all just hung out, talked, helped make dinner, and watched movies. On Saturday morning we all woke up to a delicious breakfast provided by Sarah. We went riding around on the rangers before heading to the pool. We spent the day sunning, grilling hot dogs and swimming before it was time to make dinner. Malori made a perfect dinner which included  my pregnancy craving of mashed potatoes. Sunday we went to feed the longhorns that are on the property. It was an experience, but they were gentle and even ate treats out of our hands. It was the first time that I have ever been that close to one. We spent some more time by the pool and shooting clays before packing up and heading home.

Thank you to everyone who made this weekend so special.

M Update

Ok, so for the last few days I have been feeling a lot of movement in my lower abdomen. At first I just thought that it was my stomach moving around, but today I became very sure of what has been really going on. I can feel M move! She is very active too, and it comes and goes though out the day and night. It is the strangest feeling and sometimes it catches me by surprise. I am still in amazement as to how fast she is growing. I am now 20 weeks as of today and have been wondering when I was going to start feeling her. This made my day and it was something that I wanted to share.

It's a Girl!!

It's a GIRL!!! We went to the doctor today and were so shocked when he told us we are having a girl. It took a little while to sink in but we are really excited and can now start getting ready. We have not picked the name for her yet...we are stuck on two.

She is waving to us in the first picture. It is a clear view of her little hand.

After the doctors appointment we went shopping for her first outfit. We got her a dress and a swimming suit that will fit her when next summer comes around. We even had Emmy try them on.

Thank you all for being so supportive and making this experience so special. So bring on the pink!

Third Doctors Appointment

Today was suppose to be the day that Chase and I found out the sex of our baby, however that did not happen. The baby decided to make use wait a little while longer. When the doctor went to do the ultrasound he found that the baby had crossed its legs and they were pushed into its private area...leaving no clear view. But again it was great to see the baby and how it has progressed. The top picture has a clear view of the baby's bent arm and elbow.

The good thing is that the baby has a healthy heart beat and is growing perfectly. We also got the results from our last visit when we did the genetic testing. The results showed that the baby's risk of having Down Syndrome and other genetic deformities is at the lowest of the low.

We are going back in two weeks for another ultrasounds and hopefully will get to find out the sex then. Fingers crossed.