sugar and spice and everything nice!

We found out today that we're having a girl! I have had a feeling it was girl, but of course, I couldn't be certain until there was a photo to prove it. It was amazing to see our little one on the ultrasound. She was "good" for the camera. The tech said she was still and peaceful enough to get the photos she needed quickly despite my attempts to make her active by drinking a bunch of cold water and apple juice right before the ultrasound! The tech actually told me that sugary drinks are a bad idea because sometimes the baby will get so hopped up on sugar (and in some cases, caffeine), that they aren't calm enough to get the medical pictures they need to take! I just didn't want them to tell me that the baby was asleep with his or her legs crossed, therefore making the gender difficult or impossible to determine. The sugary juice was kicking in by the time the tech had turned the monitor around for us to see her though. She began to kick and move around for us quite a bit! The tech got at least two good looks at the area which showed that she's a girl. She showed us after she got all the photos she needed. Before that, she had already taken a photo to prove it. She was very confident that we've got a little girl on our hands!

My weight had jumped a bit. I was up 5.6 pounds since my last appointment, which was almost 5 weeks ago. That's 11.2 pounds total. I was a little shocked to see those numbers, which reflect more than a pound a week since my last visit, but I think at the time I thought I had gained 7 pounds. I was relieved later on when I realized it was closer to 5 or 6! I do need to lay off the sweets I've been enjoying lately! Christmas was going to be my excuse, but my doctor didn't give me a hard time. He said he thought my weight was fine- not too far off track. The baby's heart rate was 135, which is the lowest I've ever heard them say. They said it was still within normal range. The nurse that checked said she might just be a little sleepy or they may have been picking up both our heart rates. They were training someone new on how to use the Doppler, so we got some extra time listening to that sweet sound! My blood pressure was 100/62, which I think is close to what's it's been the last couple of times. The doctor said everything with the baby looked very healthy! The blood work for the genetic screening I did at my last visit came back negative, so as far as we know, she's a healthy girl! Praise the Lord!

Chris and I have a lot of work ahead of us! First, we need to choose a name for this little girl!

Profile

Face. Yeah. We had a hard time seeing it too.

GIRL!!! The only inappropriate photo of my child you'll ever get to see.

Foot

22 week baby bump!

20 weeks down, 20 more to go

I guess this baby is about halfway done baking now. I can't believe I am already 20 weeks! This pregnancy has flown by and dragged on all at the same time. I am so very excited that we're going to be parents in less than five months now. That just seems crazy to me!

The part that is dragging by is all the waiting. I guess if you aren't waiting for one thing, you're waiting for something else. I know at the end, I'll just be waiting to hold the baby in my arms safe and sound. Right now I am waiting for this mid-pregnancy ultrasound. It's scheduled in two more weeks. I am excited to see what he or she is looking like and hear about how he or she is doing in there. I am praying for a good report. I am hoping everything with the baby is healthy and developing normally.

I know the Lord is in control, and I shouldn't worry. I think I've been better about not worrying about everything so much. It helps that I can feel the baby moving around now, but I still find myself worrying sometimes. I know, I know...it doesn't do any good to worry. I have had about a million people tell me that in my life. I know that anxiety is a sin that I've struggled with for years, but I am doing my best to surrender that to the Lord. He knows the plan already, and I don't need to worry about it.

I am also oh so excited to learn the gender! Just two more weeks, and we should be able to find out if we are having a son or daughter. Let's hope he or she cooperates for the camera! We're trying to save money by not scheduling a non-medical ultrasound. If we had wanted to pay for that we could have found out the gender five weeks ago! If they can't tell during my medical ultrasound, I will be very tempted to go pay for one!

Keep praying for us! We've got a lot of preparations to make for this little one!

Don't look at my chapped, red face. I've been blowing my nose all week trying to shake a nasty cold!