There's very little doubt

IT'S A BOY!!!

I had my ultrasound this morning. The technician got a nice little shot of his private area and asked what I thought. I asked, "Is it a boy?!?!" She said, "Yes, there's very little doubt." So we're very excited to meet our little boy. Andy was sure it was a boy so he's not surprised at all. I think I just assumed it would be a girl but this is a good surprise. I do have to go in for another ultrasound in a month. They weren't able to get a good look at the four chambers of his heart. They had me roll around on the table to try to get him to move but he was in a comfy position! So we'll go back in a month and they'll try to take another look at his heart. You can be praying about that! He weighs 12 ounces - the size of a pop can. :) It was so amazing to see him. Keep us in your prayers and check back here for updates... I'll try to post the ultrasound photos soon.

Week 21

What does a baby dream about as she drifts lazily in the womb? We may never know, but beginning with this week a baby's sleep begins to settle into identifiable patterns. You might be able to tell when Baby is sleeping if you notice that her movements slow down dramatically at certain times of the day. Some experts believe that your eating and sleeping habits, along with how much light and noise there is in your environment, all combine to help Baby synchronize her internal clock.
Here are some other developmental highlights that occur this week:
* At this point, Baby's brain will be growing very quickly, especially the structure deep in the center of the brain responsible for producing brain cells. This structure will disappear shortly before birth.
* During this week, Baby's general growth pattern will slow down. However, different organs will continue to mature, Baby's heart will get stronger and her legs will reach the correct proportions. (verybestbaby.com)

By the way, the ultrasound is tomorrow morning at 8 am! I'll be back shortly thereafter to announce the gender of our baby! Wah-hoo! Just for the record, Andy believes it is a boy and I have no idea! :) But just for fun I'll guess that it's a girl. We'll see...

Nesting

Nesting is hitting me hard core. I've done 8 loads of laundry in the past two days. That's partly due to the fact that laundry hasn't been a priority for me the past couple months and I've let some things sit for a long time. But I'm also feeling driven to get things done! I went through our closets and took two large bags of stuff to Goodwill. And my to-do list keeps getting longer. We had originally decided to move Lily to the downstairs bedroom so we painted it pink to match her new bedding set. But I had really been dragging my feet and I just wasn't looking forward to moving her to the basement. And recently it hit me, why don't Andy and I move to the basement??? Why didn't I think of this before?!?! Lily can stay upstairs and the baby can be next door to her. I think it's a brilliant plan. However, now we have to re-paint the downstairs bedroom and my husband is not thrilled about it! We bought paint on Sunday but who knows when we'll actually get to it? We also have to paint Lily's room upstairs to match her new bedding and we'll most likely be painting the baby's room too! Should be interesting... There's lots to do. I'll keep you posted. No pun intended.

One thing that should delay any progress is that my husband is home sick today. It's been coming on for a couple days and last night he had a fever. He did go to work this morning to get things going but was home by about 8:30 and has been sleeping most of the time since. Since we've been married I can probably count on one hand the number of times he has missed work for being sick. He is just never sick. I am praying hard that Lily and I stay healthy. I feel very much NOT up to being sick myself after the past couple months, or taking care of a sick child. Nobody sleeps well when she's sick. So we're staying put and staying warm. It is COLD today. Dangerous wind chills. And some of the schools in Minnesota had a late start this morning because of the cold. It's a good day for soup...

Week 20

The 20th week is an important time for Baby's sensory development, as nerve cells serving each of the senses (taste, smell, hearing, seeing, and touch) are now developing into their specialized area of Baby's brain. As these existing nerve cells get bigger and make more complex connections with each other, the brain's production of additional nerve cells will slow.

Believe it or not, you're halfway there on the journey toward holding your new baby! Your little one now weighs about nine to 12 ounces and has grown to about six to eight inches in length. She's come a long way since her first days as a microscopic collection of cells, but has a lot more growing to do—remember, the average newborn is 18 to 21 inches long and weighs six to nine pounds at birth.

Other baby developments this week include:
* Under the protective vernix coating, Baby's skin will continue to develop into three layers: the dermis, epidermis and subcutaneous layers.
* Baby's nails and hair will continue to grow.
* Baby's heartbeat will be stronger now, and will beat about twice as fast as your heart. You can hear it this week through a stethoscope.
* Baby will take up more and more space in the uterus, and her continued growth will put more pressure on your lungs, stomach, bladder, and kidneys. (verybestbaby.com)

Compassion International

Andy and I started supporting a child through Compassion International more than a year ago and it's been such a cool experience. My first experience with Compassion was as a part of my church youth group. We sponsored a girl from Kenya named Ndunge Malalu. I sent lots of letters to her during those years and loved being a part of her life from halfway around the world. My friend April gave a presentation at our church about Compassion and so we decided to sponsor a child as a family. We chose Yulistika "Shinta" Ardanis from Indonesia. She was only 4 years old when we began sponsoring her and she'll be six in July. We've exchanged several letters with her and have received a couple photos of her. It is SO COOL to see how she's grown and changed! She's so precious! Her mom usually writes the letters for her since she's in school and learning how to write. It is such a privilege to pray for her and to communicate with her. I hope that our involvement with Compassion will make a lasting impression on Lily and this new baby as they grow up "with" Shinta. I hope they'll become compassionate people and learn to care about others they haven't met who live on the other side of the globe. I hope to get a photo of Shinta up soon. Check out Compassion's website and think about sponsoring a child. A small monthly donation makes a HUGE difference in one precious life! We have it automatically deducted from our bank account and we don't even have to think about that part. So easy. And so rewarding.

The Herzbergs

Our friends Joe and Cara Herzberg left the United States on January 18 for Senegal, West Africa. They're working under the ministry of Mission: Moving Mountains which is part of The Navigators. They have a blog for anybody interested in checking out what they're up to. Joe has been a big influence in Andy's life. He invited Andy to be in a Bible Study when they were living in Stearns Hall at SCSU and led my husband to Christ. He was also a groomsman in our wedding. Anyway, we're so thankful for the internet so that we can keep in touch with them and be updated quickly and regularly on their ministry in West Africa. The people there have a hard time with their names so they have new African names. They go by Yusefa and Sophia. :) Don't they look great in their new duds???

Week 19

Welcome to the fifth month of pregnancy! This week your baby is working on protecting her skin, as she develops a waxy substance called vernix caseosa, which will disappear at birth. Vernix is secreted by the glands in the skin this week, and protects the growing skin from getting chapped or wrinkled from floating in amniotic fluid.
During this time, you may feel Baby's first movements, called “quickening.” If you've already had one child, you'll probably feel those first flutterings about 2 weeks earlier than you did in your first pregnancy, mainly because you know what sensation to look for. This week, Baby will grow to about five or six inches, and will weigh about seven ounces by week's end.
Also this week, you can expect that:
* Buds that will later produce permanent teeth are now forming behind the baby teeth buds. (verybestbaby.com)

I Like Mike

Mike Huckabee is my favorite Presidential candidate at this point. Check out his website to see where he stands on the issues.

Week 18

By now, the bones of Baby's inner ear and the nerve endings from the brain have developed enough so that your baby can probably detect sounds clearly. Experts believe that one of the most comforting sounds she hears is Mom’s heartbeat. She may also hear your voice, your stomach rumbling, and the sound of blood moving through the umbilical cord to and from the placenta, which is now almost as big as she is.
And that's not all! Here's what else is happening to baby this week:
* She will begin to swallow, and may even feel thirsty sometimes. Some experts think thirst may trigger your baby to swallow. Since amniotic fluid is constantly being produced, Baby’s swallowing of excess fluid helps keeps it at a constant level.
* Baby's chest will continue to move up and down to mimic breathing, but she's not breathing air — just swallowing and inhaling amniotic fluid. This is a normal part of baby’s development—this intake of amniotic fluid will not harm her.
* If baby is a girl, the vagina, uterus, and Fallopian tubes will be in place by the end of the week. (Courtesy of verybestbaby.com)

Spring Fever Scrapbooking Extravaganza!

A Wonderful Weekend Workshop

Friday, March 7 from 6 pm to Midnight AND Saturday, March 8 from 9 am to 9 pm

Location: My Home

Registration Deadline: Monday, March 3rd

Details:

• Door Prizes
• Goodie Bags
• Lunch and Supper on Saturday are included in your registration fee
• Fun
• Fellowship
• Ideas
• Borrow tools you don't have
• Wi-Fi capability so bring your laptop and work on digital albums
• Place a preorder by March 3rd and receive 15% off your entire order! It will be waiting for you on your table at Spring Fever!
• Space is very limited so register soon!

What to Bring:

• All your cropping tools
• Photos
• A munchie to share
• A favorite CD to listen to
• Your laptop to work on digital albums

Visit my website to view the full product line and check back often for NEW products!