30 weeks!

here we are at 30 weeks ... finally starting to feel a little top heavy!

Say Cheese!

I met Ryan over 3 years ago as he would shoot so many of Geneva National's weddings. I think he shoots even more weddings at the Grand Geneva so I get to work with him all the time! He is so talented and owns his own photography company - Ideal Impressions - and he offered to shoot some maternity pictures for us! We only spent about 45 minutes in his studio last night and they are already edited and up on his website! http://idealimpressions.smugmug.com/gallery/15158085_uJ2Zy#1133664267_MLmjU is the link to all pictures ~ enjoy! Our next shoot with Ryan is March 28th ... with baby!! :)

28 weeks~

today we are 28 weeks which means we are officially in the 3rd trimester! 12 weeks until baby time! baby seems to be growing bigger every day!

strollin'

thanks to nick's mom, step dad and brothers, we are the proud owners of a stroller & car seat! we love what we picked out - it's so cute! we couldn't wait until march to test out the stroller on baby, so we needed a fill-in to help us out .... :)

27 weeks

it's time for the weekly belly photo ... here we are at 27 weeks! i think the old saying is true that the camera adds 10 pounds! :)

happy girl!

yesterday i had a good doctor appointment. baby was happy and had a heart beat of 161 - the highest it's been! i now have doctor appointments every 2 weeks instead of every month ... i thought it was a little early for that, but apparently every doctor is different. 92 days to go and lots to do! next step is the nursery which will be painted january 3rd and decorated as soon as the paint dries!

26 weeks

here is my belly at 26 weeks .... it seriously has grown SO much since the last photo 2 weeks ago!!

Double Digits!

I have an app on my phone that helps me keep track of doctor appointments and keeps a calendar of how far along I am and what baby and my body is up to. I checked it today and was shocked that we are now into DOUBLE DIGITS - 99 days to go! The pregnancy has seemed to go by very slowly until this point, but I have a feeling the next 99 days are going to fly! Better get that nursery ready! :)

Eggplant Month!

Today we are 25 weeks and the bump.com is telling me it's the month of the eggplant! They said if you put your ear up to my belly, you might be able to hear her heartbeat (no stethoscope required). Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving baby a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting the immune system ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink -- perfect for batting those freshly grown lashes.

Happy Thanksgiving (1 day early!) Nick will be at work all day and I will be heading to Palatine to spend the day with the Lucas side. We have finally decided on a name and it actually incorporates my Nonnie who we lost in January, so I am excited to share the name with Bupa tomorrow!

24 weeks

here is baby at 24 weeks ... i meant to take a better picture this week but never got around to it, so i guess my worked-all-day-make up-all-off look will have to do for this week! :) baby has been very active this week ... it's fun to finally be able to feel her!

Bump!

We've been really bad at taking belly pictures, but here is me at 23 weeks! Nick put the crib together this week so you can see that in the background! I feel like I am finally looking pregnant! :)

Papaya Month!

Weeks 22 - 24 is papaya month! Baby is measuring about 12 inches long as is finally one pound! Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. Rapid eye movement and dreaming begins, so we hope she is having sweet, sweet dreams!

New Photos

Sorry for the delay ... here are the latest ultrasound pictures from 11/1 when we discovered our baby was a little girl!

Seeing PINK!

if you have not heard yet, we are having a little girl! I went to the doctor on Monday for a blood pressure check and my doctor was able to sneak me in for an ultrasound! Nick was in Lake Tahoe for work, but I couldn't resist Dr. Shah's offer to find out right then and there! The ultrasound techs found it right away - "it's a girl!" I asked if they were 100% sure and they said they are never sure until birth! They did say that girl parts will look like 3 lines and boy parts will look like a turtle head ... there were 3 distinct white lines so they did not even hesitate! Nick and I both secretly (OK, not so secretly!) wanted a girl so we are over the moon! I seriously smiled for hours - I couldn't stop! I don't have a good relationship with our scanner but I will get the ultrasound pictures up tomorrow along with a 22 week bump picture!

Happy Halloween! Love Wednesday, Pugsley & Cousin It

Parents in Training!

Our good friends Ashlee & Matt welcomed baby Ella Marie into the world on Wednesday, October 27th and we had the pleasure of going to visit them on Thursday night. It was the first time I had ever seen Nick hold a newborn and it was the cutest thing! I got to hold Ella for almost 30 minutes and I was in love! She was so tiny and such a sweet little baby! Nick got in the car and said that he couldn't wait until March to meet ours! We plan to babysit for Ella whenever we can, so we can start practicing for ours! Congrats Ashlee & Matt!!

20 week bump!

here's baby at 20 weeks!

Half Way to Go!

We are officially 1/2 way through our pregnancy! Only 20 more weeks until we meet our little one! This week is (despite what my belly really looks like!) CANTALOUPE week!

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now (ours is actually measuring 11 ounces in the 52nd percentile). He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.) He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system.

interesting day

it was an interesting day to say the least! today was our 20 week anatomy scan. we had lots of good news and a couple pieces of not-so-good news. the unexpected news is that we weren't able to see the sex of our baby! when we got to the "money shot", the umbilical cord was perfectly in the way. after attempting to get the baby to move, we did see the three lines, generally seen with girl babies, so the tech guessed girl. we didn't see any boy parts at all, but she said to hold off on decorating the nursery!

the good news...
* baby is perfectly healthy! we got to see close ups of the heart (even got to see the 4 tiny chambers!), bladder, arms, legs, head, toes, you name it. baby is about 11 ounces and is measuring in the 52 percentile for size. nick got to hear the heart beat for the first time which was 156 - the highest it's been.

the bad news...
* like usual my blood pressure was a bit higher today than my doctor likes to see (seems to only happen when i'm at the doctor!) so tomorrow i will have to complete another 24 urine analysis, followed by blood work wednesday morning. this means one more day off work for this girl. dr. shah is basically just checking if we need to up the dosage of my blood pressure medicine, which has been working great so far!
* the ultrasound tech also noticed that my placenta looked a little low. it's literally a tiny bit lower than they like to see so they will also start to monitor that as well. they did say it's pretty common at this stage in the game and that it usually moves up as my uterus grows and baby gets bigger. dr. shah is going to check it again in 3 weeks with another ultrasound that will also check for gender again. hopefully the umbilical cord will be nowhere in sight at that time!

so all in all, baby is happy and healthy and that is what matters most... and while we will not start to shop for pink just yet, we'll anxiously await 3 weeks to try this all again! :)

Hello Mango!

we're 19 weeks so it's mango week! I have started to feel sensations of baby - mostly feels like he/she is blowing bubbles in my stomach. We're anxious to feel a kick, but Nick is gone for work until Friday and he doesn't want to miss a thing!

THIS WEEK ...Baby's sensory development is exploding! His/Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that they may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.

Baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom. Arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of the body now. Kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

welcome to my crib

we made our first big baby purchase today - we ordered our crib & changing table/dresser! way, way back (26 years ago!) my grandma purchased my crib, so my mom wanted to carry on the tradition of buying a crib for her grandchild as well. i've been snooping around online and haven't found much i liked until yesterday my mom brought me a jc penney catalog and i found a set that i loved! nick liked it better in "espresso", i liked it in "white"... so we ended up ordering it in white (women always get the final say right?!) the furniture is called "Bella" by Savanna so I thought all of my twilight friends would appreciate that! we finally decided on the room for the baby - the gray room for those who have been in our house! - so we are finally starting to get a good idea of what we want to do with the room!

it's growing!

let me start this post by saying, i really don't think i look like this in person! i was just saying at work today that i thought baby disappeared because i literally had no belly all day. i took this photo on a full stomach, so i'm assuming it's more "food tummy" than "baby tummy". we are 18 weeks today and we only have 12 more days until we find out if we're having a football player or cheerleader!

18 weeks!

The fetus has become amazingly mobile (at least compared to mommy!), passing the hours yawning, hiccuping, rolling, twisting, kicking, punching, sucking and swallowing. And, baby's finally big enough that mommy will soon be able to feel those movements. *we haven't felt anything just yet, but we're hoping soon! nick will be gone a few nights next week for work, so hopefully baby will wait until he gets home to start playing!!*

get in my belly!

my belly is finally starting to show early signs of a bump! we are going to start tracking each week's growth through pictures. here's our first one at 17 weeks. not much to show for it just yet, but we know it's only going to get bigger!

Onions!

We are 17 weeks today, which makes it "Onion Week" ... probably my least favorite food, but I'll take it!

Baby's skeleton is hardening, changing from rubbery cartilage to bone, and fat is finally accumulating around it. The umbilical cord is getting thicker and stronger, and those little fingers and toes are now topped by one-of-a-kind prints. Baby now weighs 5 ounces (about as much as a turnip), and he's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. He/she can move their joints, and sweat glands are starting to develop.

My Mom is a Fox!

so i have been doing really good at not buying any baby related stuff yet ... i'm trying to hold off until we find out the gender, but my mom and i couldn't resist on this one! while at kohl's looking for some baby gifts for two of our neighbors, we stumbled upon this little outfit - with FOXXIE on it! it's not every day your dog's name and picture is embroidered onto a baby onesie so we had to get it! foxxie is already using it as a baby blanket - i think she is excited to get a brother/sister!

Whoosh, Whoosh, Whoosh!

had my 15 week appointment with baby today and all is well! dr. shah is very impressed that my blood pressure has been low and she doesn't want to see me for a whole month now! i've come a long way from my weekly visits! our next appointment will be the BIG ONE - the boy or girl appointment, so hopefully this little one cooperates on october 18th because mommy & daddy are dying to know! got to see him/her on ultrasound again today - very wiggly and really starting to look like a baby! heartbeat was 141 which the tech said leans more towards a boy than a girl. i asked her if we could peek today, but we couldn't see or find anything... what's waiting just 1 month month! i also heard the heartbeat for the first time today and it was awesome! i'll never forget the "whoosh whoosh whoosh!" here is our latest ultrasound picture ... nick is worried that he/she has a big nose! haha! guess we'll wait and see! happy friday to all of you!

I'm a lemon!

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.

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.

Pink or Blue?

We are still over a month away from finding out if our little one is a boy or girl, but being the planner that I am, I decided to check out all of the old wives tales and see what my symptoms are predicting me to have! I think it's a boy ... Nick is saying girl (just to go against me!), but only our 20 week ultrasound will tell us the truth and will prove the old wives tales below true or false!

Heart Rate test: Girl (supposedly a heart rate less than 140 means boy, more than 140 girl … baby has been a steady 153)

Cravings test: Boy (legend has it that if you crave sugar, you are having a girl and craving salt means a boy)

Morning Sickness test: Girl (they say lots of nausea & morning sickness lets you know it's a girl, feeling great with no nausea means boy)

Chinese Gender Chart: Boy (Legend states that the Chinese Gender Chart was buried in a royal tomb near Beijing over 700 years ago. It is said to be over 90% accurate. By cross referencing your age & month of conception on the chart, it points to either boy or girl).

Skin test: Girl (it has been said that carrying a girl can cause your skin to break out. This stems from an old wives' tale that your baby girl will "steal your beauty.")

Only time will tell! What do you think we're having????

I'm a peach!

There is a fun website www.thebump.com that tells you what "fruit" your baby is each week. Today I'm 13 weeks so the baby is a peach!

The fetus is forming teeth and vocal cords...savor this, their nonfunctional phase. Baby is approaching normal proportions, with his head now only one third the size of his body. And intestines are in the process of moving from the umbilical cord to baby's tummy -- much more convenient. Fingerprints have formed on the baby's tiny fingertips, and his/her veins and organs are clearly visible through their still-thin skin.

13 week appointment

so a couple of weeks ago i was diagnosed with high blood pressure. after some testing, my dr. (the FABULOUS dr. shah - thanks aunt julie for the recommendation!) put me on a low dose blood pressure medicine. i also have a machine at home to take my reading 4 times a day. i've never really had high blood pressure before, but often times women get it from pregnancy. today i went in for a check up and the blood pressure medicine has really brought it down! thank goodness the medicine is doing it's job! the good thing to come out of my weekly dr. visits is that i get to see baby every week too! dr. shah is amazing and now does an ultrasound every visit! today i am 12 weeks 5 days and baby is measuring at exactly 13 weeks. always moving around and he/she finally is starting to look like a baby!!

Here comes baby!!

Hi all! We are so excited to share with all of you that we are expecting a little one early next year! we found out on july 6th and have been impatiently waiting to tell you! the first trimester has felt like the longest three months of my life, and we can not wait until march 9th to meet the little one! i am offically 13 weeks on wednesday, so we have graduated from trimester #1! we are new to the blogging world, but we created this site to keep you updated on how baby johnson is doing and our journey through pregnancy and parenthood! feel free to check back often ~ we'd love to hear from you!