Week 18

This week I had an abbreviated appointment with my doctor. It wasn't supposed to be, but midway through (a question, no less) he got paged and he ran out so fast he practically flew saying, "Sorry, but I gotta go deliver a baby!!!" Just another sign that we picked the right doctor. I hope we are just as lucky to find such a dedicated pediatrician. Anyway, before he left he did an ultrasound and I was able to watch Mr. Zachary wiggle and then I saw and heard his perfect heart beat. We got the results from the AFP blood test and it came back normal which means there is no indication of any abnormalities in little Zachary. Just another reassurance our little baby is just perfect! The doctor also told me that my placenta had moved so that it is no longer completely blocking my cervix, it's only partially blocking it. This was great news! This means it's likely to keep moving and lower the risk of more bleeding and, more importantly, this lowers the likeliness of the dreaded bedrest. I have only regained two of the fifteen pounds that I lost during the first trimester and he said that is fine. He sent me for some blood work to see how my thyroid is doing. I was really happy to get the main things done before he had to leave, it was only the Q & A portion that was skipped.

Well, here's what Zachary has been up to this past week (from BabyCenter.com).

How your baby's growing:Head to bottom, your baby is approximately 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 likely start noticing more and more. His blood vessels are visible through her thin skin and his ears are now in position and stand out from his head. Myelin (a protective covering) 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 your baby is a boy, his genitals are noticeable, though he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

Hope everyone has a great weekend and a happy New Year! Love to all!

Photos of Zachary

As promised, here are a bunch of ultrasound pictures of Zachary.

<--- From Dec. 21st (his face)

From Dec. 21st. (his face) --->

<--- From December 21st (he's facing us and his left hand is up in between his abdomen and his face)

From Dec. 2nd (profile with his leg up) --->

<---From Dec. 2nd (his profile with his leg up)

From Dec. 2nd (here's part of his hand) --->

We hope you enjoy these as much as we do! Love to all!

Kim, Stephen & Zachary

Our Perfect Son

Ahh, the sigh of relief and the ecstasy of the joy in learning that our son is perfect! He is developing exactly as he should be, his head is perfect, his face is too, he doesn't have a cleft lip or cleft palate, his heart is good, spine is good, his body is good, hands, legs, and everything! They couldn't see his heart really well, just enough to see the four chambers, but not the ventricles or anything because he was hiding behind some scar tissue of mine from previous surgeries. Apparently you can't see through scar tissue with an ultrasound. Hmmm...you learn something new every day! The doctor isn't worried about his heart, but we will repeat the ultrasound in four weeks, just to look at his heart again. Oh bother...another ultrasound, what a hardship. Hehe!

Anyway, we are on cloud nine. He was moving around during the ultrasound and of course, turned to face the ultrasound wand so we have more pictures of his face. He's just amazing!

Today is the last day of Week 17 and the fourth month. Here's what Baby Z's been doing this week (from BabyCenter.com)...

Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and he's around 5 inches long. The umbilical cord, his lifeline to the placenta, is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby can move his joints, and his skeleton — until now, rubbery cartilage — is starting to harden into bone. Some of it will remain cartilage for years after he's born. A newborn's skeleton has 300 parts (a combination of bone and cartilage). As your child grows, some of these parts harden and fuse together. By the time your baby reaches adulthood, he'll have just 206 bones.

Love to all and remember we are thinking about all of you and want you to be safe, healthy and happy!

Love,
Kim, Stephen & Zachary

P.S. We have new pictures of Zachary from today's ultrasound and will try to post them later this weekend.

All decked out...

Due to popular demand (and against my better judgment), here's a picture of what I currently look like, all decked out in maternity clothes. I have to admit, I did my best to suck in my tummy because it's second nature to do that in photos! (Whoops!!) Anyway, it's a current picture, it was taken today. (Photo credit goes to Mandi).

Hope everyone is having a great week! Love to all!

My belly is wiggiling inside!

This morning I wanted eggs. This is odd because I haven't wanted eggs since August, before I got pregnant, but anyway...that's not the story. So Stephen and I bundled up and went to Denny's. I had two cups of hot chocolate and some eggs and french toast that had those comstock cherries on top. I think I might have O.D.'d on the sugar a little bit because when we got home, my belly felt funny. Not a morning sickness kind of funny, but like it was wiggling. I was kind of puzzled at first (okay, I know that sounds weird), but then I realized exactly what it was! Little Zachary was enjoying his sugar high! I have felt little Zachary move a little bit before and it kind of felt like bubbles in my tummy. This was something completely different. It was just so amazing and I just wanted to share.


As promised, here's a picture of Zachary taken when we went to the doctor on Thursday.

Edited...

and unedited...

Isn't he just so cute!! Look at that belly! We want to tickle him already! We can hardly wait to meet him!!

Love to all!

A trip to the doctor (Week 16)

We had another doctor appointment today. Dr. Pinell tried to hear the heartbeat with the Doppler, but couldn't get a good reading, so (gosh darn it!) we just HAD to get another ultrasound. He's gotten noticeably bigger in the past two weeks! Sweet Zachary had turned around so his head was on the other side of me than where it was at our last appointment. We got to see and hear the heartbeat and watch him for a few moments. He was just so cute! He was kicking a little bit but mostly was playing with his hands. He turned his head towards the ultrasound wand and we got another full frontal face shot. Plus, Dr. Pinell also pointed out what was "not a leg." I also had some blood work done today. Our next appointment is next Friday when we get the "big" ultrasound. At that ultrasound the doctor will analysis little Zachary's anatomy and bone structure and make sure everything is as it should be. We get the results of today's blood work in two weeks.

In the meantime, here's what little Zachary is doing this week (from BabyCenter.com).


At 4 1/2 inches long (head to bottom) and 3 1/2 ounces, your baby is about the size of an avocado. In the next three weeks, he'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, doubling his weight and adding inches to his length. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his hair isn't recognizable yet. Although closed, his eyes are moving (slowly), and he's even started growing toenails. His fingernails and toenails will continue to grow, so don't be surprised if he needs them trimmed soon after birth.

We hope that life is treating all of you well and you are having a wonderful holiday season.

Love to all!

Kim, Stephen & Baby Z

P.S. We will really try to post some of the ultrasound pictures this weekend.

Week 15

Here's what little Zachary is doing this week (from BabyCenter.com)

Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). He's busy moving amniotic fluid through his nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in his lungs begin to develop. His legs are growing longer than his arms now, and he can move all of his joints and limbs. Although his eyelids are still fused shut, he can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, he's likely to move away from the beam.

Kim is doing better. Today is her first day back at work and off of bedrest (or "grounding" as she called it). She's taking it easy but is extremely glad to be back at work and enjoying talking to her friends.

Love to all and we'll try to post the pictures from last weekends ultrasound soon!

"That's a leg, that's a leg...and that's not a leg"

And with those sweet words we found out that we are having a baby boy!

It was a weekend full of ups and downs. We started out at Kim's office holiday party at Morton's Steak House (their prime rib rocks y'all!). We had a great time and Kim was good and spent the majority of the evening sitting and chatting with a couple of the attorneys she works with (and their spouses). We both had a great time.

Then we got home and Kim noticed she was bleeding. We called the doctor on call and she told us to go to the hospital. We were both stressing the whole 40 minute trip, but we got to Women's hospital and the treatment room (their version of an ER) was packed so there was no place for us. Finally someone was discharged and Kim got into a room and had her history taken and blood drawn. Then Dr. Farril came in and said the ultrasound tech was here and before she examined us, she wanted us to go see our baby and see what was going on. We were so scared that we were going to lose our baby.

The ultrasound tech, Jennifer, was really sweet, especially since she got called into work at 1:30 early Sunday morning and she rapidly did the ultrasound so we could see our baby. Stephen was able to be in the room and the first image we saw just made us tear up in relief...our baby was wiggling around, just like the previous ultrasound. Jennifer let us hear the heart beat and told us our baby seemed fine. Then she asked if we wanted to find out the sex of our baby. We were so excited!! Then she pointed out parts on the screen "that's a leg, that's a leg and that's not a leg." She said she was 95% sure it was a boy and that she'd go out and buy blue stuff if it was her. Whoo hoo! We started referring to little Baby B by his name from that point on...Zachary.

Anyway, it turns out that Kim has a common (but not normal) condition called Complete Placenta Previa. Leaving out the clinical terms, the condition is where the placenta is lower than it should be and that caused the bleeding. If we are very lucky, the placenta will move to where it is supposed to be in the next few weeks or months. Kim stayed in the hospital for a few days and is now home on bed rest for a day or two before CAREFULLY going back to work. She sees the doctor again on the 13th of December.

So, to make a long story short, Kim and our son Zachary are doing well and are getting some rest.

Our Beautiful Baby

We are having a....

A-ha! Gotcha! It's still too soon to tell, although our doctor did try to find out for us.

Seriously though, we went to the doctor this morning and got to see our baby. People, our baby is just as fidgety as Kim is! He/she was moving all over the place! The doctor showed us our baby's heart, it's toes, it's body and it's face. Here's a picture of our baby's face. The first one shows you where to look and the second one is the unlabeled picture.

And...

Isn't our baby just beautiful? (Ok, you can say it...right now it kind of looks like the alien babies you see in tabloids like the Weekly World News...we kind of think so too). But seriously, don't we have the best looking baby ever??

Also...some of you have told me that you are having trouble posting comments. When you click on comments, if you don't have a Google email account, make sure you click on the "anonymous" button and just include your name in the comment itself. Then you can make yourself heard, well, read actually.

Love to all!

Kim, Stephen & Baby B

T Minus Thirteen Hours (Week 14)

Yep folks, in thirteen hours Stephen and I get to see our baby. Basically we are talking about a quick date with a black and white ultrasound machine and the nicest OB/GYN on the planet. We can't wait!! Whoo hoo for technology! We'll report back tomorrow with the results.

In the meantime, here's the Week 14 update from BabyCenter.com...

"This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active."

Tomorrow the doctor will measure our baby and we'll have a better idea if our baby has the Baldwin growth gene or the Horn one ... we're rooting for the Baldwin growth gene and average height (well, length at this point). We'll keep you posted!

Oh and thanks for all the comments! Muah! Love to all!

Feedback...

Out of curiousity, is anyone reading this thing? I'm hormonal and I need feedback! Please leave us some comments, if you don't mind.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving in the country. Stephen's family outdid themselves on Thanksgiving and all weekend long Crystal slaved in the kitchen and cooked wonderful things for us! I weighed myself this morning and although I ate and ate and ate, I didn't gain a pound!

Last Saturday, I started the second trimester. Baby and I celebrated it together with a nice bout of morning sickness (after having four days off from being sick). We go to the doctor on Thursday and Stephen and I are looking forward to seeing our baby again and hearing his or her heartbeat. We have the best OB doctor in the world (our fertility doctor was great too!). We hope to be so lucky later on with Baby's pediatrician.

That's about all that's new. I'll post more about what's going on with me in Week 14 later this week.

Love to all and remember to comment!

Week 13

YEAY!! This is the last week of my first trimester! "They" say that the second trimester is the best of the three and I am definitely looking forward to it! Here's what BabyCenter.com has to say about what our baby's doing this week...

"Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce. As you start your second trimester, most of your baby's critical development will be completed and your odds of miscarriage drop considerably."

I do wish they would stop comparing the size of our baby to food, with the return of my appetite, it just makes me think about eating!

I had a dream the other night, I dreamed I was holding my son and feeding him. He was BEAUTIFUL! I wanted to go right back to sleep and see him some more. Only about 5 more weeks until we can find out if we are having a son or a daughter. We can't wait!!

Hope all of you have a Happy Thanksgiving. We're going to "the country" (a.k.a. rural central Texas) to see Stephen's family and share our good news!

Love and blessings to all!

Reading Material

We have read that babies in utero have the capability to hear. So, Stephen has started to read to our baby. Here's our baby's first book...


You can never go wrong with Dr. Seuss!

Week 12

Here's what BabyCenter.com says is going on in my belly this week...

"How your baby's growing:The most dramatic development this week: Reflexes. Your baby's fingers will soon begin to open and close, his toes will curl, his eye muscles will clench, and his mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if you prod your abdomen, your baby will squirm in response, although you won't be able to feel it. His intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into his abdominal cavity about now, and his kidneys will begin excreting urine into his bladder. Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in your baby's brain, synapses are forming furiously. His face looks unquestionably human: His eyes have moved from the sides to the front of his head, and his ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, your baby-to-be is just over two inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce."

I am so glad that my baby is starting to look human! One less thing for me to worry about, and trust me, that list of worries is getting rather long! And those of you who know me well, know that I have been "proding my abdomen" frequently to make my baby squirm. It's good for my baby to know just what kind of mommy I am going to be, right?

Make sure you catch the blog right underneath this one...it will keep you updated on what is really going on with me!

Love to all!

I have an appetite!!!

For the first time since I've been pregnant, I have an appetite (and so far, no morning/noon/night sickness!). Here's what I have eaten today, so far (please keep in mind that I am eating stuff that I think will stay down should said morning sickness reemerge!)

6:30 a.m.- a handful of Lays Potato Chips (in bed, no less) I told Stephen (when he started laughing at me) that he was lucky I didn't break out the ranch dip!
7:45 a.m.- 2 pieces of toast with margarine and seedless blackberry jelly
8:45 a.m.- 1 sausage biscuit (only ate two bites of the biscuit since I overcooked it in the microwave at work, so I just ate the sausage)
10:45 a.m.- Cup O' Noodles (chicken flavor)
11:17 a.m. - a handful of Fritos (thanks to my good buddy Melissa for always having chips around!)

It's almost lunch time and I am looking forward to my leftovers from our anniversary dinner!
If I keep this up, I am going to regain (today) the 15 pounds I have lost so far in the first trimester!

...to be continued

Week 11

Here's what's going on this week with my pregnancy (taken from BabyCenter.com)

Your baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed. Her/his hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden.She/he's already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won't feel your baby's acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.

This growing a baby from scratch is so cool!!!

Hi folks.

This is just a blog we created to share our lives with our family and friends. We'll try to be good about updating it weekly and sharing lots of pictures once our baby gets here in May. Thanks to Troy and Johnna for giving us this idea and keeping their site updated frequently!!

Love to all of you.