32 Weeks and Counting...Possibly Quickly

Monday marked 32 weeks along. So far this pregnancy has been pretty easy, though very different from Sam's. I have been experiencing the famous Braxton Hicks contractions since about 16 weeks along - something I never felt with Sam. There are other things too, but I won't go into all of it. Today, we had our check up to see how this little girl is coming along. We measured about 33 weeks along, which didn't hurt my feelings at all. Sam was 2 weeks early and the thought of going all the way to October is a little daunting to me. But, when the doctor did the exam to check on dilation - something we weren't yet expecting, he found that I am already dialated 1 cm. He talked with a couple other docs in the practice and they decided not to give me the steriod for her lung development, but to go ahead and move me to a weekly patient instead. So, from here on out, we will be going weekly and the docs will check for dilation progress every week. If thing continue to progress prematurely, they may decide to give me the steriods at a later time. Today, I was told to start taking it easy (something that I do not come by easily) but did not go as far as to put me on bed rest. So, that's where we are today. I will give another update next week. In the mean time, please join us is praying for our little one - that God continue to help her grow and develop, that I can stay pregnant until she is good and ready to join us, and that I don't go absolutely insane trying to "Take it easy" and entertain big sister everyday too.

To All You People Who Voted "Boy"...

Okay, so my printer is broken - I can't even get the thing to turn on! So I can't scan the ultrasound pictures. But they are very cute, and our little one in looking just perfect! The technician was able to tell us that the baby's heart looked great. We are on track for an early October delivery and we can't even wait to meet the newest Nixon. Baby is kicking me more and more and Jodie felt it for the first time the other night. Everytime I put Sam's hand there, Baby runs the other way and will not kick at her. I am sure that will change soon enough. So, I guess you want to know if it is a boy or a girl! Well, all you people who voted "Boy" were WRONG!!!!!!! The newest Nixon will be a little girl! We haven't decided on a name yet, so we are still calling her Baby at the moment. But, she is perfect, we are excited, and we are so in love! We'll keep you posted on her and post her pictures as soon as I get the printer thing figured out.

Ultrasound Re-do

Whoohoo - we get to try again! The docs said that they did want to go ahead and try to get a better view of the heart, so we are heading back in for another ultrasound on May 29. And beleive me, between now and then me and this little one will have a few heart-to-heart chats about cooperating with the camara this time. When I talked to the docs this morning, they also told me that our AFP Test (the one that tests for Spina Bifida) came back negative. Yeah! We chose not to do any of the other tests, but we just knoe that our little one is just perfect, so no worries. Stay tuned to see the results on May 29. It's not too late to cast your vote for boy or girl over on the right side of you screen.

No News!

Well, Jodie says "It's clearly a girl!" Whatever this baby is will remain a secret at least for another 3 or 4 weeks. He or she just would not cooperate! How about that? This child would not show us ANYTHING, not even enough to make an educated guess as to whether it is a boy or a girl. It's legs were crossed, and the "area" was behind a bone, so the ultrasound technician could not see a thing. She did say, though, that everything else looked great (Thank you God!) and that all the measurements were right on for an early October delivery. She is recommending another ultrasound because there was one view of the heart that she was not able to get, although I really think she is doing it for me. So, we will see what the doctors say and will keep you posted. Cross your fingers that we get to sneak back in there. But even if we don't, at least we know that our surprise is so far a healthy surprise!

Dr. Appt.

This morning we had our first of many 15 second doctor's appointments. While I look forward to all of them, they really seam a little pointless when you spend all that time waiting just to see the doc for 15 seconds. But, there is always that little reward that makes it all worth it. It is always nice to hear that all is well with our Baby-To-Be. She didn't tell me the bpm, but we did hear the little heartbeat and, again, it was beating away. And, again, it brought tears to my eyes. I am constantly amazed at the miracle of childbirth, and everyday I wonder how someone can go through all of this, or just simply be a witness to it, and still believe that there is no God! I just do not understand it. Jodie couldn't go with us this morning (bummer) but Sam was there and was also excited to hear her Baby Brother or Sister (although Sam usually says Baby Brother and Sister - we keep telling her that there is ONLY 1!). As we were leaving, we were able to schedule the most exciting appointment of all - the ultrasound!!!!! In just 4 weeks, we will be able to tell you if this little one is a girl or a boy (assuming that we decide to find out and can)! I can't wait! There are so many things that I want to do, but can't until we know if we will have another daughter or a precious little son. So, make your vote to the right of this, you only have 4 more weeks! Pics of the growing belly to follow soon.

Ultrasound Time!

We had our first ultrasound today. I was a little anxious leading up to this. Every night at bedtime, we read Sam's Bible to her. We have already read through it once, so now I usually just open it up and read whatever story I open to. The night that we found out we were pregnant I opened her Bible to the story of Isaac and Rebbecca asking God for a child and He gave them TWIN BOYS!!! Twins don't really run in our families, so I had no reason to believe that we are having twins other than reading that particular story on that particular night. But, all is well - there is only 1!!!

It was so neat getting to see this little one. We are almost 10 weeks along and it was amazing to see how human-like the baby looks already. We had an early ultrasound with Sam when I was about 6 weeks along. Wow, what a difference a few weeks makes in the life of a baby! We also got to hear, and see, its little heart beat. It was beating at a whopping 171 beats per minute! Some say that means it's going to be another girl! What do you think it is? Cast your vote in the poll to the right of your screen! Regardless, we are looking forward to meeting this little sometime in early October. Sam went with me to the appointment and was absolutely wonderful. I don't know why I was so surprised. So, take a look at our baby's first pictures:

The "Before" Picture

I can't believe that I am sharing this picture with you. I am so embarrassed that this is actually a pre-pregnancy (actually, I am about 7 weeks along) picture. Oh well, it is what it is. Stay tuned for more to watch baby (and me) grow.