Week 38 - ONE WEEK TO GO!!!!!

Oh my goodness my sweet little baby girl....this is probably the last post before we SEE you...HOLD you...MEET you!  I am so stinkin' excited and that's an understatement!


First things first - I went to my last OB appointment today (and had an AFI and NST - you looked great on both of those - fluid was up even to a 12.7 - and the tech thought you were a lot lower in there too!).  The OB told me I was all scheduled for next week - November 30th - at 7:30am!  That's our time!  We check in and get the ball rolling from there.  I am so happy that we have a morning slot too...it'd be waaay too painful to wait until any later!


We have a few things left to get done before you get here - but honestly - it isn't that much.  I feel like I did back in high school or college when I had a major test to prepare for.  And I did all I could for it, and the night before the test I felt like I should be studying more, but I knew everything I thought I should...and that almost made me more nervous because I felt like I forgot something major and didn't prepare right in the end for it!  I feel like that now with you - I have prepared for you intensely all along the way - and all the stuff around the house is in good shape too (I even have several frozen meals ready to go in the freezer!).  So...what's left?  Did I forget something?  I don't think so, and even so, I am still pretty nervous for all of this to happen.  I am sure this is normal....the little tiny amazing thing that I have been waiting for FOREVER (it seems) is finally coming and scheduled to come, at that, and I am nervous?  I truly can't wait and am nervous all at the same time little girlie!


Thanksgiving is this week - and usually I am all about thinking about food and family - but to be honest - I haven't thought much about anything at all but you.  You are overriding everything this week!  Plus, we don't have your Sisters this Thanksgiving, so your Daddy and I are on our own really.  Without much to do on a major holiday, we thought it'd be great if you just came along and we could celebrate in the hospital with you?  What do you think?  =)


This is a week all about "lasts".  Will this be the last time I get to the grocery store before Avery is here?  Will I fill up my car with gas another time before Avery comes?  This will be my last weekend to walk and exercise for a long time before you are here!  It may sound crazy, but I really do think about all of this now!  Your Sisters are dying to meet you too.  Kyndall has made it clear that I need some really good contractions (bigger and badder than the ones I always have) to get things rolling soon or she's going to go crazy.  =)  Megan still loves to feel you rolling in my belly.  I love how excited they are.  They already love you so much too!


Speaking of your Sisters, we put up the Christmas tree tonight!  Another "last"...the last time we will put a tree up for Christmas without you with us!  Here are some pictures....

 The start of the tree - we got this tree from Pa and Mimi and it's HUGE - 8 foot!

 Whew!  All the branches are on!

 The girls decorating

And your Daddy finishing it off with the star!

Putting up the Nativity set too

Our new Christmas stockings - handmade by Renie - an old family friend.  They are so cool!

Here's the final product - how good does it look in our living room?!  There's even a couple wrapped gifts under the tree already - from your Daddy to me!

The other half of the family room/dining room with the stockings and Nativity set - we are not only ready for you, but ready for Christmas too!

Drum roll please!  Here it is Avery Jo...The FINAL piece to our countdown! In honor of ONE week until we see you, here is the #1 best thing about you!  (And your Daddy and I both came up with this one together!)

You are the unifying piece to our family.  You will be the ONLY person in our family that "shares blood" with each of the other members.  No one else can say that.  You have a little of each of us in you - how cool is that?  Me...I just share you.  Your Daddy shares you and your Sisters.  Your Sisters share each other and you and your Daddy.  But you, my darling, you have a little of us all in you!  We love that thought.  You are the piece that molds us officially into ONE.  You combine us ALL together!  And for that reason, we cannot wait to meet you and love on you!  We can't wait to see what you look like - WHO you look like!  We can't wait to know your little mannerisms and if that was more like me, your Daddy, Kyndall, Megan....I'm sure we will all be fighting over who you most resemble in cuteness!  Whomever that is, the bottom line is is that you will have a little of all of us represented in your personality, skin, face, hair/eye color, genetics and temperament!  


If I could choose - I would give you your Daddy's passion and love for people and things you believe in.  There is no one else on this earth that has more love and fire in his heart than your Daddy. And his ability to learn and grow, especially in God.  I truly hope you get that from him.  And also, his amazing green eyes of course!  I would give you your Sister, Kyndall's ability to reason things out.  I would love for you to have her maturity of the heart and always be able to have that great perspective on life, especially in tough situations.  From Megan, I would give you her gentle, joyful nature.  I would love for you to always be a kid at heart, just like your big sister.  And then, at the same time, grow up to be an amazingly, mature woman...but always have a little naivety about you.   From both girls, I pray for your heart to be God's, just like theirs is.  Your Sisters amaze me with their love for the Lord and how they are so ready and willing to stand up for what they believe in at their age (they get that from their/your Daddy!).  And if you could have their Hispanic skin, that'd be amazing too!  From me...I'd give you my balance.  Your Mimi always told me growing up that this was one of my best qualities and I have realized what that means as I get older.  Just to be the balance in any situation and think logically...whether it's easy, tense, tough, etc. situations...to be able to see things from all points of views.  And if you could have my "good sleeper" trait as well....I'd love that!  =)


You see baby girl, you are The Marin melting pot!  You get to be a part of each of us.  A role that no one else in this family has.  And that's a big job, but I have a feeling you will be more than great in this role.  And one more thing, if you could NOT have the "stubborn" trait that seems to run rampant in this family and we all possess...that would be best for all of us!  =) 


We are ready sweet girl...I know that God has this all under His wings.  I am nervous, but letting God have all of that instead.  I am going to enjoy this last week with you in my belly and all the kicking and turning.   I have seriously LOVED being pregnant with you.  God was so good to me and gave me a great pregnancy with you - even though I had to deal with all the diabetes stuff - He really have me a great nine months with you.  He knows what He is doing!  He loves you already, baby girl....and I know without a doubt that His love is already tucked away in that heart of yours.  I can't wait to see what God created in you!

FULL TERM!!!!!!!!! 37 Weeks and TWO To GO!

BABY GIRL!!!!!  This week is BIIIIIIG.  HUUUUGE.  You are full term now!  Something I didn't know before I got pregnant was that a baby's due date is 40 weeks (yes, I think we all knew that)...but being "full term" can be anywhere from 37 - 42 weeks.  So...it's not an exact time to be "term", it's a five-week range.  And thank goodness I get the luxury of NOT testing the back end of that five-week range - you go to 39-ish at the most and no waiting around for us!

I don't have too much to post right now (although, watch how long this post ends up being - I bet it'll be longer than I think it'll be right now - I have a tendency to be a little wordy!).  I will be sharing a BUNCH of information after our Thursday's doctor's appointment.  From my understanding, you will get all figured out that day.  So, we will first have another (final?) growth scan and see how big little Miss Linebacker has become in the last four weeks.  After they know this, I meet with my OB and we set up a PLAN.  That's right....we get to have a plan on Thursday as to how all of this goes down!  Your somehow-now-a-Type-A-personality-but-used-to-be-Type-B Mama has been waiting for this so it makes her very happy!  I don't know QUITE what to expect with this visit, but from my understanding, a lot of the when's and how's will be set in stone on Thursday...but I am fully bracing myself if all isn't figured out that day too.  All that to say - I will have some good information to share after that happens on Thursday morning.

What has happened this week?  For us, your Sisters, Daddy and I had our last weekend as a family of four.  And for some reason the realization of that was a little sad to me.  I know it's just the whole thought of it all changing and saying goodbye to the old and hello to the new - which all of us are COMPLETELY looking forward to.  It's just the "end of an era" kind of thing.  We just had an awesome weekend, though.  It was one of those where nothing spectacular was planned, no big deals happened, we just really enjoyed each other and had such a good weekend together.  Your Sister, Kyndall had a cross country banquet that we all went to...and she won an award!  It was called the LionHeart Award.  She got this because even though she was only able to run a couple of the first races before she was sidelined with her stress fracture, she was still a part of the heart of the team - going to practices, doing what she could, and just being a part and adding to the family feel of the team.  I think the coach said that typically, runners that are hurt easily just slip away, but Kyndall stayed an integral part of the "family" even with being hurt.  Needless to say, we were soooo proud of her!  What a cool surprise to get in front of the entire team and their families!

 Kyndall with her CC friends at the banquet

All the kids and families at the banquet

Then, on Sunday, we decorated for Christmas already - yes, I know, it's not even Thanksgiving yet!  But, you are coming just around the corner, silly, so we had to get a head start.  Especially with your Sister, Megan loving holidays and decorating like she does.  She was in Christmas Heaven!  We don't have the tree up yet (next week?) and no outside lights either (Daddy and Megan can do that even when you are with us)...but I have to say - the inside of our house is beginning to look a lot like Christmas!  Your Daddy and I even have 95% of the Christmas shopping done!  We are good, aren't we?  He's such a good Daddy - he really helped me get everything this year - which is much appreciated when you are verging on being nine months prego!  We just need to wrap stuff...maybe this weekend?

Your Dad and Sister, Megan getting into the Christmas spirit at the movie theater!

Alright...here's your update this week...probably a little boring!

Like I said above - huge news this week: I am carrying a full-term baby - YOU! If I were to go into labor today, all systems would be a go. Woohoo! But, even though I can't wait for my little bambino to quite literally rear your head, I still keep in mind that you benefit from every day in the oven.

Your growth slows down dramatically this week, which is great news for my birth canal. Your bones are still soft and pliable and will solidify after you are born. More great news for my birth canal!

So if you are all cooked and ready to go, what the heck are you still doing in there?! You are busy practicing for "life on the outside," working on your breathing (you still get the hiccups 2-4 times a day!), sucking, sleeping, gazing and peeing abilities. The only thing you can't practice yet is your ability to scream at the top of your lungs when you're hungry—but you'll do plenty of that in a few weeks.

At this point babies vary in size, but the average length is around 20 inches and most babies weigh approximately 6.5 or so pounds.


You are still moving like a champ in there.  This past weekend you were REALLY active - like - it-kind-of-hurt active!  And then the next couple of days you will chill out a bit and still move, but not karate chop movements or throwing yourself against my uterine wall kind of movements.  And then, after a couple days of rest, you'll be back at playing ping pong with your body in my womb again!


Your Mommy has swollen feet, of course.  That's old news by now...and yes, they are still here.  My belly button is more officially "popped" now.  It definitely shows through the shirts.  Everyone says it's cute, but I'm not so sure.  =)  And I still have contractions pretty regularly.  Sometimes as much as six per hour.  They are definitely getting stronger too.  It's crazy how the belly just tightens right up into a ball!  One additional thing that just hit in the last day or two is some indigestion/acid reflux.  It hurts!  So strange that I haven't felt this at all up until now, but again...for a Mama that hasn't had many symptoms of being prego at all (except for the massive belly!), I can't complain!  The end is in sight, so I can deal with this!


And  speaking of massive belly - here's some belly pics at week 37.  I put week 33 next to it to compare.  I don't think I look all that much bigger - and you have moved down a bit too.

 Week 33 - high and out there!

Week 37 - a little lower and still out there!

Oh...we meet with two pediatricians this week.  I'll let you know how that goes too later.  Both are open house events where we will just go and talk with them and see how we like them.  That will be one of the final pieces to be nailed down before you get here!


See - I told you this would still be long!  Oh well...that's your Mommy!  Okay, to wrap this all up - here's the countdown for the week.  In honor of TWO weeks left, here are the top TWO things that I never knew about pregnancy until I actually went through it myself!

2.  I never knew that contractions feel like menstrual cramps.  I know they will get worse and worse...so it won't be as "easy" as normal period cramps were before...but that general feeling is the same at least to start with.  I think I expected contractions to be sharper pains - and definitely didn't expect my whole belly to tighten up into a ball!


1. That you would move SO MUCH and I would feel it all!  I had absolutely no idea it would be so feel-able!  Or even view-able!  I know that maybe you are more of a mover and a shaker than some, so that might be some of it...but still...I will never forget the feel of you waking up in the morning and stretching out in my tummy.  Or, when you push back with your butt up in the air.  Or, when you are a crazy baby and bouncing off the walls!  I love them all - and will miss them even when you are in my arms!


Alright baby girl...your Mama is out!  We can't wait to know more on Thursday - we'll keep you in the loop.  Love you!

Wow! You Will Be Born This Month! 35 Weeks and 4 To Go!!!!!

It is November 1st, so that means it is YOUR month baby girl!  Don't know exactly if that will be November 30th yet (or sooner, or if the inducing is stubborn, then maybe December 1-2)...but this is the last month for sure!  In two weeks at our 37 week appointment, we will be a little more certain!

Things are starting to come down to the wire now - especially in regards to how the diabetes will be managed through labor and all those surrounding details.  Lots of stuff to think about and figure out - wear my insulin pump or insulin drip,the  major decrease in insulin needs immediately after deliver, c-section or inducement...my list goes on.

Something interesting happened yesterday at our non-stress test (NST).  Well, first of all....you were being a lazy baby again.  I find it so humorous that you are a mover and a shaker all other times of the day and when I plop into that reclining char and strap the monitors to my belly at the doctor's office, you get lazy.  Anyway, you eventually flopped around for them so I could get the "okay" to go.  In fact, I think you were showing off a bit in the end....like, you were in there being lazy, listening to the nurse and I talk about it...and then she leaves the room and you go, okay, fine, you want movement?  How about this roll, and this kick, and I'll flop around like this?  Does that work?  Or, it could be the full glass of ice cold water I drank to wake you up.  =)

Anyway, so you passed, but your Mommy's uterus didn't.  Since it also monitors contractions, they ask me every time if I feel the contractions I'm having.  I do sometimes, but there were a few that were getting bigger than I've had before....so they put me in an exam room and had the doctor come in to check my cervix just to make sure nothing too much was happening in that arena since that is what contractions are designed to do - soften the cervix and get it ready to get you out of there!  One of my favorite docs came in and checked me out and said I was dilated to a 1.  Which, was actually good news.  Now, if she said 5, I'd probably be in the hospital right now, but they want to see some change in the cervix at this point, so she was happy that I had some change going on in there.  And that was that.  She sent me on my way.  And I was kind of happy she checked - it's nice to know my body is getting ready for your arrival!

Here's your update:

At about 20 inches and 5.5 - 6.5 pounds (but with about five more weeks to grow), most of your growth over the next month or so before we meet you will be in weight (with a gain of anywhere from one pound to several), not height (you have pretty much reached the in utero limit in that department).  Accordingly, fat continues to accumulate at a rapid pace these days. Back in the middle of this pregnancy, your weight was made up of only two percent fat; but at this point, that percentage has soared to closer to 15 percent (and will increase to 30 percent at term). Which means your once skinny arms and legs are now quite plump…and irresistibly, squeezably soft. 


Your Mommy has a few more minor issues these days.  My feet, of course, are swollen...and I think that is contributing to my heel (especially the left one) hurting.  It's the the bottom of my heel is swollen as well, so it hurts to walk on it in the morning (before I've gotten out of bed and stretched it out) and then at night after I've walked on it all day.  Also, just today, I've experienced this whole breathlessness thing that others have talked about for several weeks.  I have a stuffy nose too...so that adds to the breathing issue I'm sure.  My lungs are just getting squished by your little tootsies I think!  You really like to push up on my rib/lung area and it's like you grew another inch in length this week and so it just cramps everything up near my ribs.  And to top it all off...I'm just getting more and more tired.  Not just sleepy tired, but physically tired - especially by the end of the day.  My body is worn out.  Which is another reason why it'd be great if pregnancy was an eight-month process instead of nine.  =)


My blood sugars have been really good - almost scary good actually.  Makes me wonder if my placenta is functioning correctly.  I have talked to my wonder woman CDE, Val, about this...and she doesn't think there is anything wrong - she still sees slight trends up with my insulin needs - but at the same time, she told me to pay attention to this.  This is a concern, especially with diabetics, as our placentas may "wear out" a little sooner than most, for some reason.  So, if I do see my blood sugar dropping a lot, I need to call the doctor and make sure they know.  Worst case scenario is they would take you a little earlier than 39 weeks (okay by me!).  I also talked to her about how you are a bigger baby at this point - with the abdomen being a little bigger too.  She couldn't believe that since I had such "tight control" through all of this.  That was nice to hear. Just reiterated my thought that I have done so much on my end to care for you, so what's there to feel bad about if you are a little chubby.

Oh...and I hit a milestone about a week ago.  Your Daddy and I decided it was better safe than sorry to remove my wedding rings.  I got a good sturdy necklace, so they are now on a chain around my neck instead.  I was a little stubborn, not wanting to do this....but this is truly better than having to get them cut off in case there is too much swelling!



A big deal happened this past weekend!  Your Sister (Kyndall) celebrate her 16th birthday!  It was early (her birthday and your birthday will be really close!), but we combined halloween with her celebration and had a bunch of her friends over for a costume party.  We just wanted to make sure she had something memorable for her 16th birthday since you would be arriving very close to it.  Your Daddy and I went all out with decorations and food.  In fact, if I have to be honest, I think I overdid it a bit.  My feet were really swollen and hurting after a couple days of prep for this event...but, in the end, it was all worth it.  She had so much fun - and so did her friends.  Megan got to have a few friends come too - and you will learn soon - she LOVES holidays (we are already singing Christmas music around here).  We don't usually decorate too much for halloween, but this year we did because of the party - so she was in heaven.  We had several games for the high schoolers to play - like bobbing for apples.  They all loved it actually (we weren't really sure how they would go over!).  The kids hung out mostly in the backyard, and even had a little fire going too.

And, on top of all of that, your Aunt Mac and Uncle James (okay, they may be your 5th cousin, three times removed or something) came for the day and night (James coaches football and had a game in Glendale).  They didn't get to dress up or come to the party since they had the game to go to...but we had several hours to catch up with them before the party and then after the party too.  They spent the night and left the next morning for the three hour trip back to southeast AZ.  So great to see them - can't wait for you to meet them!  Here are some pictures from the night.  Your Sisters were "Sleeping Beauty" and "Lady Gaga".  You even made the pictures.  Your Daddy and Mommy dressed up as rednecks...and got a lot of looks from the high school kids over here for the party.  =)

Kyndall and her friends Brooke and Charlotte

Megan and her good friend Tristin (Mad Hatter)

A look at our backyard - we had a fog machine and strobe lights!

Yep - there you are!  How redneck are we?

A couple of the funnier outfits the kids had on

Megan's friends

Kyndall - literally dove in to bob for apples and came up on the first try with the apple in her mouth!

Your redneck Daddy and your Sis - birthday cake time!

We did several jello molds of skeleton faces to put in the middle of the food plates - turned out pretty cool

This was the "donut on a string game".  The kids had to try to get a bite out of the swinging donut.

Your Sis, again, going for it!

Kids around the fire

End of the night - Kyndall opening gifts (and Megan organizing them on the side!)

And to close out this week - the countdown is still on!  Four weeks to go - so here are the top FOUR ways that I can get the swelling in my feet to go down!

4.  I don't - I just walk around with chubby sausage feet feeling like I have Jell-o nailed to the tops of them!

3.  Lay down - and if I can - on my left side (and play Bejeweled - hopefully I have kicked this habit by the time you are around!)

2.  Go for a good brisk 30-45 minute walk - works like a champ!

1.  Your Daddy giving me a nice foot massage!!!!!


I guess that's it for this week - I have an OB appointment (along with another NST, Fluid Check, etc.) on Thursday.  If anything big happens, I'll let you know!  In the meantime, keep moving around in there, I love feeling you and knowing that you are healthy!  Love you baby girl - we can't wait to meet you!

31 Weeks! 8 To Go!!!!!!

Hey there little one kicking me in the tummy....as you can see, I am a day late this week.  I have a good excuse though, promise!  Tuesdays are always busy days for me during the day, but your Daddy and I also had our first child birth class last night for THREE AND A HALF HOURS.  And, we have two more nights to go!

And get this, we left an hour and a half early to get to the hospital (yep, the one where you will be born!) because we wanted to grab something quick to eat, Phoenix rush hour traffic, etc.  This should normally be a 30 minute drive....BUT....it had been a day with crazy weather (storming and dumping rain one minute and a rainbow the next), so it figured we would run into some weather.  It's not all sunshine and pleasant days here in Phoenix (well, maybe 95% of the days, but the other 5% are weird and wacky!).

So, on our drive down I-17, the clouds looked really funky.  Not the kind of weird clouds that your Mommy usually hates (because tornadoes FREAK ME OUT), but still freaky just the same - like a big ol' wall of white clouds - not puffy and pretty clouds, but almost block-shaped clouds (if that's possible?).  So, your Mommy told your Daddy that we should pull off the freeway while we still could (out of shear fear!) and grab something to eat now.  And we did...and right when we walked into Wendy's it started hailing.  I could handle that hail...marble-sized pellets, not too windy.  Then, the sheets of rain came with wind.  And then, the freight train came and was running somewhere above the roof of Wendy's.  The hail got a lot bigger and outside was completely a mess - you couldn't see a thing.  And did I mention the freight train sound?  Holy moly...that noise is something I never want to hear again.  I was so scared.  When I lived in Illinois, I had to worry about tornadoes all the time...but here in AZ?  Yeah, right!  Well, your Daddy and I both think there was something above that roof in the clouds similar to a tornado that was making that HORRIBLE noise.  And your Daddy didn't want to freak me out, I could tell...but his face gave it all away.  I just kept telling him to "hold my hand, hold my hand".  And then I prayed to God for protection and really thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown at the counter of Wendy's!  Generally, living in IL, I have been well-trained to go to the basement.  Well, first of all, no basements in AZ, and second of all, we were in a Wendy's.  I felt so helpless...and we were.  We were at the mercy of the weather, whatever it decided to do.  Thank goodness, we made it through just fine and even got some food after it passed.  The view outside was incredible, as all the hail almost looked like snow on the ground and then God even gave us a double rainbow when we were driving away.

 This is right after the worst of it went through - so it looks a lot calmer than it was!

All the white stuff is the hail

All that said and done...we went to get back on I-17, just to see a sign saying the road is now closed.  Oh boy.  So, all traffic had to exit (you can imagine how long that took at 5pm on a weekday!).  It took forever.  We then had to dodge streets filled will rivers of water and hope we wouldn't get stuck in the high water.  Phoenix has NO DRAINAGE systems (gutters in the curbs, etc.) for rain....because it's always sunshine and pleasant, right?  Wrong-o.  So, when it does rain, it usually dumps sheets of rain instead of fun, light sprinkly rain and the roads are a mess.  Needless to say, were a good 45 minutes late to our class.  Probably fine in the end though, because I didn't learn a whole bunch new last night.  We did get to see the typical birthing video that was extremely graphic and was probably supposed to freak you out, but it didn't bother me too much.  I think it bothered the dads in there more than the moms.  

Oh, and on the crazy drive down, the neighbors by your Pa and Mimi's rental house here in AZ called to say that they had noticed some broken windows and that the screens on the windows looked like there were rocks thrown threw them.  They said there was golf-ball sized hail up there.  They were going to go and check stuff out for sure for us and then cardboard up any windows that needed it.  Nice people.

They only kept us until 9pm and not 9:30pm, so that was nice...we got in the car to head back up I-17 and guess what?  Yep, still closed.  We found out later there were power lines that got uprooted and toppled over.  So, we took city streets home....well, tried to.  Many of these major city streets were closed due to flooding as well.  And, power was out all of the place, so there were no stoplights.  It was kind of creepy (especially in some of the parts of town we had to drive through!).  We eventually found our way back to our neck of the woods.  And were a little scared of what our house looked like since we are just three miles from Pa and Mimi's.  Lo and behold, God blessed us because we had no windows or screens broken.  Crazy how the weather works around here!

Let's see...other than our crazy night, the last week with you has been great.  Mommy's feet are still swollen, but that has become semi-normal for me now.  And you are your usual mover and shaker in there.  You gave me a huge blow last night in bed....I think that was the biggest one so far...it kind of hurt!  Oh, and you have definitely had the hiccups a lot lately.  On my lower left side of my tummy (which is where your head has been the last couple times at the ultrasounds), I feel the rhythmic bumps for a few minutes.  Yesterday you had them twice and today you have already had them once.  They say it's a healthy thing, showing you are developing correctly, but it makes me feel bad for you in there!  And you can tell you get a little annoyed with them because after a couple minutes of having them you start squirming around and kicking more.  

Here's more about you this week:

As far as growth goes, you are still on a roll, measuring an impressive 17 inches and weighing in at more than three pounds (probably more like 3.5). You will still gain at least three to five pounds, possibly more, before you we get to meet you.

Your brain is working overtime these days, developing faster than ever.   Connections between individual nerve cells are growing at a frenetic clip, and you can now perceive information from all five senses. Sure, you can't smell anything right now, but that's only because you are still submerged in amniotic fluid and need to be breathing air to get a whiff of anything. Lucky for me — and you — my smell will be one of the very first scents you breathe in, a scent that will hopefully quickly become your very favorite.

So what's little Avery Jo doing all day long? Making faces, hiccupping, swallowing, breathing, pedaling with little hands and feet along my uterine wall, and even sucking your thumb (didn't they forget sucking your feet too?). In fact, some babies suck their thumbs so vigorously while in the womb that they're born with a callus on their thumb (or toes!).

A loud noise near me may cause you to jump (and I think I have noticed that before). You may move to the rhythm of music (how cool is that?  I'll pay attention to this now!). Studies with heart rates show that you may also prefer some types of music to others at this stage. Your eyes can now completely open and the irises are now responsive to light, dilating and contracting as needed.

In other words...you are such a little person now!  I didn't get to see you at the doc's appointment last week (pretty uneventful really - oh, my A1C was 6.0, up a little with all the stubborn insulin resistance kicking in, but still in a great place for you in there!).  But, I start having appointments weekly (sometimes maybe twice a week even) to measure your heart rate, movement, and general health....so, that will start next week and I think includes a growth ultrasound...so next week we get to see you again!

On the home front here, your Sister, Kyndall has been having ankle issues in cross country, so she went and got an x-ray the other day - she has a stress fracture!  She had shin splints since the summer, so this is just sometimes what happens with shin splints - they turn into this.  She has to wear an air cast for two weeks and her cross country season is pretty much over with this news.  Kind of sad, but we just want her to get better and heal.  I think she will be going out for track in the spring too, so you'll get to come along to her track meets then and watch her with us!  Megan is good too - she's just a busy little thing lately.  She is taking a cooking class after school each week, she is in student council and is in something called "Character Counts", which meets and does volunteer work every other week.  This week, she had cooking on Tuesday after school, she has a student council meeting today after school, and then "Character Counts" tomorrow after school - whew!  And she just said she thinks she wants to go out for basketball again, which starts in a few weeks.  Nothing like being born into a busy time!  =)  This means you'll get to see some of her basketball games too!  You'll already be one sporty little girl by the age of 6 months!  =)

Okay, to end this long blog today (sorry!), I'm going to continue with my countdown for the week - which is EIGHT today.  In honor of EIGHT weeks left until we get to meet you, here are EIGHT reasons why I have loved being pregnant with you!

8.  I have felt like a champ throughout the whole pregnancy - no morning sickness, food aversions - really not too much of anything but feeling normal!

7.  I like it when people rub my belly.

6.  I get special treatment and nice looks from strangers

5.  I just feel special  - like I (and you) were uniquely chosen for this job

4.  I like the anticipation of imagining what you will look like, laugh like, smile like....and then I get impatient!

3.  My belly - I just love it.

2.  Your kicks - I will miss them even when you are in my arms!

1.  The miracle of God's creation is right here happening within me - there is absolutely no denying that there is a God when something so intricate and incredible is being developed in my body.  It is truly an amazing thing and an entirely new face of God that I never knew of before because it can only be experienced with pregnancy.

I love you baby girl - can't wait for week 32!

27 Weeks! Third Trimester?

Holy moly little girl, have we been busy or what?  I feel like the last week or two have been absolute craziness!  All good stuff...but craziness just the same!  Hopefully you have been keeping up!  Lots to share this week!  Here's your update first:


Welcome to the third trimester baby girl...at least I think it is.  Everyone says something a little different as to when it starts, but it ranges from today to a week from now (and my doc's office says today!), so we'll celebrate today! Congratulations! We have made it 2/3 of the way through. You now appear much like you will look like at birth.  You weigh two pounds (or more) and are about 14 inches long. You have eyebrows and eyelashes and your hair is growing everyday (in fact there are so pictures of your hair below!). Your muscle tone is improving (I can FEEL that!) and your body is getting plumper.

Your brain continues its rapid growth. When I share music, conversation, and even books with you, you will start to recognize my voice and your Daddy's (and Sisters too!).


The retina at the back of your eyes is beginning to develop. Those beautiful eyes can open now (we saw your eyes open yesterday in a sonogram!), and you will notice and may turn your head if we shine a flashlight against my belly.

At 27 weeks, your length will have tripled or quadrupled from the 14 week mark (wow!). If you were born this week (don't do it, just a hypothetical!), the chances of survival is now at least 85 percent or greater. 


So, as far as I go, my feet are swelling more, especially at the end of the day....and I think I am getting a little more tired towards the evening too.  All to be expected.  I am still not eating much more, in fact, I feel like sometimes I have to force myself a little to eat, just because food doesn't really sound good.  Weird!


In the last week, Pa and Mimi flew back from Illinois with me on Friday and made it back to AZ safe and sound.  We went to Flagstaff on Saturday morning and cheered your Sister (Kyndall) on with her first cross country meet.  She did awesome!  Ran 3.1 miles (at 7000 ft. altitude!) in about 31 minutes.  She felt like she couldn't breath 2/3 of the way through and was a little disappointed...but, have I mentioned that she has never ran much before and it was at 7000 FEET????  Oh, and it was 3.1 miles for goodness sakes, so not feeling like you can't breath is probably written all over that mixture!  It was so much fun to watch her and cheer her on.  The next day was your other Sister's (Megan) 13th birthday party with six friends.  We played games, swam, opened gifts, cooked out, etc. and then they watched movies into the wee hours of the night.  Kyndall had a friend over too...so we had NINE teenage girls under this roof at once!  =)  They all had a blast and Pa and Mimi were here too...so that made it extra special for your Sister!  She had so much fun with all of her girlie friends!  


The next day (Monday), we got all the girls home to their parents and then went to a special ultrasound to see you!  The girls and Pa and Mimi were there, so we had about 30 minutes of just watching you move around in 3D.  A couple things stuck out about you this time.  1) You have some chubby cheeks...but boy are they cute!  2) We saw you yawn a million times and have a picture of it even too (below)!  3)  Your foot was up by your face almost the entire time and I think you were sucking on your toes (no lie!).  4)  We saw your eyes open up!  5) You have hair already!  We got a ton of pictures of you and even almost the entire time was recorded on a video!  I am hoping to get at least some of that on here to show, although I haven't gotten it downloaded quite yet.  There is an incredibly sweet picture of you yawning in it...oh and sucking on your foot too!  =)  You were a little tough to get good pictures of (well, with your foot and hand in front of your face the whole time and all!), so we had to move me around a lot.  I layed on my left side, drank cold water, pushed on my belly, went to the restroom....etc.  You were head down on my left side and my placenta was a bit in the way too.  We still got good shots, but you were a little stubborn!  =)


Things should be calming down some now for us.  I did get to start my women's Bible study group again this week, called Grow With Me.  I have done this the past two "semesters", so the summer was off and I have missed the ladies and the material that comes along with the ministry.  I get to know so many neat ladies that love the Lord...and at the same time my faith grows by leaps and bounds too!  Double bonus!  =)  And they all ask about you all the time and finally get to see you after not seeing a lot of them throughout the summer, a.k.a., my baby bump!  


I have a doctor's appointment on Thursday and get to have Pa and Mimi there too...so they get to see you again!  Maybe we'll get a couple more shots of you from that day too.  Val (CDE, pump guru) and I have been working with my blood sugars A LOT in the last three weeks...she has been super helpful to me and my insulin needs just keep going up, up, up!  And that's completely normal.  Just as we get it figured out for a few days and my numbers look good....things start to head upwards again and we make adjustments and do it all over again.  Less than three months of that left, though...and I get to hold you!  So, I think I can manage it all until then!  =)


Here's some pictures from Kyndall's meet, Megan's birthday party and your sonogram.  Love you baby girlie...you are so special and sweet...everyone loves you already so much!  And seeing your face yesterday only added to that love!  Can't wait to meet you!

And they are off!  What a view, eh?

Kyndall right before the finish!

Megan and her girlfriends playing a game

Another game - too funny!

Kyndall, your Dad, Pa and Mimi at the party while the girls played games

Your cute sister and her yummy cake!

Gift time!

The girls in the pool!

Your Mommy (and you!) with pickles and ice cream.  Megan got a "pickle" card for her birthday, and I HATE (loathe) pickles, so I thought this would be funny since I am pregnant and would never go near this craving usually!  =)

Sweet chubby cheeks!

Your arm and leg (coming from the left side of the picture)

Thumbsucker!

Wristsucker!

I think you are praying!  =)

The start of a yawn.....

....and there it is!

More chubby cheeks!

Fingers in your mouth...and your eyes are open a little too!

That's your foot headed to your mouth - your lips are all puckered up ready to go too!

The tech said that the shaggy chia-pet stuff on the picture is your hair - I think this shot is looking at the back of your head.  So...do you have a mullet already? =)

Another sweet profile picture

Sweet baby!

I think that is your foot under your chin - I'm not even kidding!  Your foot was up by your face for a lot of the time!