Baby Quilt Gift

Well I'm having a tearful afternoon!  Good tears though! :)   I went to get the mail a little bit ago, and there were two packages.  One was the baby book, Precious Little One, and Michael Card's Come To The Cradle CD I had ordered.  I was excited about both of those items.  We got Michael Card's Sleep Sound In Jesus CD as a gift when Annah was born, and we absolutely love it.  We honestly still play it almost every day.  So, I am anxious to listen to the new one.  I opened the baby book and looked through it.  I was pretty apprehensive about buying one online without seeing it, and still nervous when I opened it.  It looks like a regular hardback book, not a 3-ring binder type like most baby books.  But, I read through it, and was crying in seconds.  I love it!  It has scripture and nice pictures all throughout it.  I'm very happy with it--especially for as little as I paid.

     

The second package I got in the mail today was one I wasn't expecting.  It was an absolutely beautiful quilt for Baby L from my cousin Wendy and her family.  Wendy designed and made it herself, and my aunt did the quilting on it.  It's so gorgeous!!  It is also the first gift--and what a special one!--that Baby L has received.  So nice!

Thank you to the Lowry Family for this beautiful animal quilt for Baby Lopshire!

It is the first gift we have received for Baby L, and is so special because it was made by Wendy.  It's just gorgeous!  I love it!

"All things bright and beautiful ~ 

All creatures great and small ~ 

All things wise and wonderful ~ 

The Lord God made them all!"

the back

Belly

  

THREE WEEKS TO GO!  Holy cow!  Oh my gosh!  Wow!   I can't believe it.  

This pregnancy really has gone by very quickly.  I am so looking forward to meeting this little baby.  At the same time, I am sad that the pregnancy is coming to an end.  I really do enjoy being pregnant.  Of course there are discomforts and pains, but knowing that they're because a baby is growing inside me makes them much less. 

     

Maybe that is the same reasoning behind why I prefer to deliver without pain relief.  It's not that I enjoy pain, but being able to feel every moment of the baby's arrival is somehow comforting.  I remember pain so bad I was almost delusional during my first delivery, but I also remember that I couldn't recall exactly what the worst felt like by the next afternoon. 

     

Last time I was pregnant my mom kept begging me to have Jeremy take a picture of me, and I absolutely did not want to do it.  I gained over 50 pounds, and did not exactly like how I looked.  Therefore, there are very few pictures (that I know of) of me pregnant the first time.  And, of course, now I wish I had more--or at least one good one.  

     

I had Jeremy take a couple shots of me and my big ol' belly a few minutes ago, and here they are:

 

 Now, why I had him do this while I'm wearing a horizontally striped shirt, I'm not sure.  I guess it doesn't really matter; I look big in anything--'cause I am!  

Toddler & Preschool Choir

~ "Only a Boy Named David" 

~ "The Wise Man & The Foolish Man" 

~ "Fishers of Men"

(L to R): Javon, Annah, Chandler, Coby, Adam, Jordan, Ethan

Annah, Chandler, Coby, Adam

Ethan, Libby, Madeira, Kali

Annah, Chandler, Coby, Adam

Annah & Jordan

Happy 2nd Birthday, Emma!

Happy 2nd Birthday Emma!

the bunny cake, the birthday girl, and her beau

 Annah mowwing on some cake

 Jillian getting ready to walk

Getting Ready

     I had a huge craving for a Big Mac today.  So, Jeremy, being the good, caring husband he is, obliged and took us to McDonald's.  I scarfed down a Big Mac, super size fries (all of them, plus some of Jeremy's), plus drank the entire super size diet Coke!  I know how totally bad that was for the baby, and for me, but man was it good!  Mmmm!  I was huuuunnnggg-ry!

     

Afterwards we went to the store.  We got a soft Rabbit (from Winnie the Pooh) and a book for the baby, and almost bought a carseat.  (We decided we needed to some price comparisons before we get that though.)  

     

On the way home in the car I had some fairly painful contractions, but I'm sure they were caused by a combination of all of the caffeine from the pop and the fact that I had to "pee like a racehorse," as Jeremy would say.

     

I think I am driving Jeremy a little bit nuts with my indecisiveness on a boy name.  We now have 5 we are considering.  We did talk about it a lot today, but still haven't really decided.  He is going back and forth in his opinion too though.

     

I've definitely been having a lot more Braxton-Hicks contractions the past few days.  I didn't have many at all last month, but they're back now.   The ones I was having today (when my bladder was so full) were more like regular contractions.  I hope I will not be confused by whether or not they're real contractions when I actually go into labor.  Hopefully my water will break again, like it did last time.  I know, I know...It probably won't be like last time. And that's okay.

     

We are now registered at Target (at the store & online), Babies 'R' Us (in-store & online), and Baby Center (online only).  And, I believe the Babies 'R' Us registry is also at Kids 'R' Us and Toys 'R' Us, I think.  I still need to actually go to the stores and check on the registries and add a couple more things, but I doubt many people will actually be looking at them.  It is our second child, so we don't need all that much.   People were SO giving the first time, there isn't too much we don't already have, thankfully.

Appointment News

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"Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward." 
   ~ Psalm 127:3
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My appointment with the doctor this morning went well.  I only gained 1/2 pound in the past 2 weeks, so I was amazed at that.  Dr. did the Beta Strep test, even though I will automatically be given antibiotics intravenously during labor because I tested positive for it when I was pregnant with Annah.  I didn't realize it was something that could come and go.

     

Dr. also did an exam to see if I'd started dilating yet, but I haven't.  She said the baby is still way up high, and I am measuring right on target now as far as the fundus.  That was comforting; and she didn't mention inducing either--yay!  She also said the baby is head down, which was a huge relief.   I remember her saying that 36 weeks is when it would be concerning if the baby wasn't head down.  Hopefully, it won't turn now.  I doubt it can move that much in there anyway at this point!

     

The heartrate was in the 160's today!  I guess we can't say the heartrate is an indicator of sex with this baby!  It's been all over the map!   Who knows what we're having?!  It's nice knowing that even the doctor and nurses don't know the sex of this baby.  When I was pregnant with Annah, I knew that my doctor had indicated it on my chart after the first ultrasound, and I was afraid someone would slip and tell me.  

     

Dr. W gave me an instruction sheet for what to do when I go into labor.  (It pretty much says the same thing we learned in our class.)  The main thing that's different from last time is that we're not supposed to call the doctor ourselves.  We just go to the hospital and they'll call her for us when it's time.  It makes sense to me.  Doc W said she lives close to both of the hospitals in town, and that she likes to try to deliver her own patients--even when she's not on call.  I thought that was cool.  She told me to pack my bags...I'm working on it!  

2nd Pregnancy Facts

Yesterday I read a great article in American Baby Magazine about pregnancy the second time around.  It talked about a lot of the common differences between first and second pregnancies.  It was interesting because I have experienced all of the things mentioned!  Some of the things I knew were common, but some I thought might be the difference between carrying a girl or boy.  

     

In particular, I didn't realize that the baby is carried lower the second time around because the abdominal muscles are stretched so much the first time that they're weaker and can't support a baby as well, so it drops lower in the abdomen.   (This was one of the main things making me think I'm having a boy.)  

     

The article also said that it can be more difficult to figure out when you are really in labor for the second baby.  I can see how this could happen for me, since this pregnancy I have had Braxton-Hicks contractions (which I'm told can be quite painful and feel very similar to real ones toward the end), when I didn't have them at all with Annah.

     

I keep reading (in multiple articles, books, etc.) that in the second pregnancy a lot of times the baby doesn't drop until you go into labor, and that labor and delivery almost always go faster than the first time.  I hope it doesn't go too fast...I want to make it to the hospital! 

Linea negra

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"Life is a flame that is always burning itself out, but it catches fire again every time a child is born." 
   ~ George Bernard Shaw
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I was taking a nice, relaxing bath this morning, and was watching my belly move and contort into all kinds of strange looking shapes.  It is SO COOL to see the baby moving in there!  I noticed that I do have a linea negra now.  I don't think it was there before.  In fact, I don't remember even noticing it in the past few days.  It's there now though!

     This afternoon I opened a bag of newborn size diapers that were leftover from Annah.  I cannot believe how teeny-tiny they are!!  I don't remember Annah being that small--and she was a big baby!   I'm trying to recall what it feels like to hold a newborn...

Feeling and Thinking

My ribs are being stretched and are hurting now.  I thought the baby was lying so low this time that my ribs weren't going to hurt, but it's happening.  The pain started in the night Friday night.

     

Last evening I had what I assume was another weird hormonal surge...  I started feeling depressed for absolutely no reason, and I just could not shake the feeling.  I tried sitting down and playing the piano, but I didn't feel like singing along.  I tried playing with Annah, but I couldn't focus my attention on her.  I tried cooking, which at least kept me occupied and thinking, but I just felt so depressed and I couldn't figure out why.  Jeremy came into the kitchen, and I asked him for a hug and just started crying on him.  He asked me what was wrong, but nothing was.  I just needed to cry I guess.  Strange!  I'm feeling fine now.     

Well, now we're undecided on a boy name again.  I have just been wondering about the one we'd chosen, and I don't think Jeremy was all that excited about it.  So, last night I asked him about another that I'd like really well at the beginning of the pregnancy, and he said it liked it better than our other "top 2."  But, I don't know what middle name we'd put with it, or exactly how we'd spell it.  Back around again we go, I guess...

Okay, I need some boy name suggestions!  (We're set on a girl name.)  Please visit our  Baby Discussion / Comment Board and help us out!!  Why are boy names so much harder?  Maybe because everyone I know has already used my favorites! ;)

36 Weeks!

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"Only a baby small
Dropt from the skies;
Small, but how dear to us
God knoweth best." 
   ~ Matthias Barr
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FOUR MORE WEEKS!  

Wow!!  I may not even have that long!  It's almost time to meet this baby!  

     

Here's what Baby Center has to say about where we are right now:

"Fetal Development: 36 Weeks      

Your baby is still putting on the pounds — about an ounce a day. She weighs between 5 and 6 pounds and is at least 18 inches long.  

You may begin to feel an increased pressure in your lower abdomen and notice that your baby is gradually dropping. This is called lightening or engagement and your lungs and stomach will finally get a chance to stretch out a little — breathing and eating should become easier. However, walking may become increasingly uncomfortable — some women say it feels as if the baby is going to fall out. Also, you may still feel as if you need to go to the bathroom all the time. 

     

The good news is that by the end of this week, your pregnancy will be full-term and you could give birth any day now. (Babies between 37 and 42 weeks are considered full-term — a baby born before 37 weeks is pre-term and after 42 is post-term.) 

At your weekly visit, your doctor or midwife may check to see if you've started dilating (when the cervix opens) and effacing (when the cervix thins), and what position the baby is in, which is a way of estimating how far the baby has dropped into the pelvis. Make note of it so that once you're in labor you can tell your nurse at the hospital." 

     

Actually, at our Labor & Delivery review class, we learned that most pediatricians consider 38 weeks to be full-term; it's the obstetricians who usually say 37 weeks is okay.