Catch Up!!

Ok, so as all of you know, Delaney was born on August 15, 2012 at 8:45AM at 7.7lbs and 21 inches long :)  She is healthy and happy :) I had a very easy and quick delivery at Rex Hospital, only had to be mild labor for about 6 hours and only pushed for 30 minutes before she arrived! 

I plan on keeping up with this blog with posts and pictures as Miss Delaney grows so that family and friends will be able to see pictures & hear our stories! 

We have decided that we prefer no pictures of Delaney to be posted on FB due to the amount of 'unknowns' who have FB pages and could copy the photos, this is more secure site for family and friends & we hope that you respect our wishes as well. 

Enjoy!! 

3 More Weeks!!!

First off.... sorry for the no updates!! Life has been hectic! So here we go!

Baby Delaney Update:

Apparently she is MUCH like her mommy and very impatient! I went into pre-term labor on 7/6/12.  I had been having mild contractions the day before that were fairly consistent and so on the 6th I called my doctor just to see what they thought it was - either real contractions or Braxton Hicks contractions.  When i got there, she checked my cervix and waaalaaaa i was 2.5cm dilated and about 70% effaced.  She sent me directly over to Labor & Delivery and had them give me 2 IV bags of saline to hydrate like crazy, a shot of Turb. to make my cervix unresponsive to the contractions (prevent dilation), and 1 or 2 shots of a steroid that would help Delaney's lungs develop faster in case she decided to hurry into the world! Luckily, the shot helped and my contractions went from every 2-3 minutes to about every 5-7 minutes but no change to my cervix.  So they let me go home :) I returned the following day (7/7/12) to get the other steroid shot and they monitored once again and i was still having contractions about every 7 minutes so they said i was to be on bed rest for 3 weeks - until i was 36 weeks along in my pregnancy which is considered full term (although you should allow baby to FULLY develop for 40 weeks before delivery).  So I've been home, mostly on my butt since July 6..... 

A few days ago, July 25, 2012, i went to my normal doctors appointment and she checked my cervix and i had progressed to a full 3cm dilated and 80% effaced.  I told her that I have been having stronger contractions, but no real pain yet.  She said the baby was healthy, everything was fine but that she would not be surprised if i went into labor in the next couple of days! Yay! She's been a OB for 30 years and said that from her past experience with patients, and looking at my progress so far, she thinks in the next few days i will go into labor and that my labor will be pretty short.  (Yay for that!!!) She said since my cervix has progressed this far already she thinks as soon as my water breaks that it will be no time for her to take her first breath of fresh air :) That's really exciting and I can't wait!
Nursery News:
We are almost all finished with the nursery! We still have some work to do and to add a few things here and there, but for the most part, its all done! Now we just need the baby to be in there!!
Baby Shower Update:
The baby shower was wonderful!! So many people showed up and I really had a great time! Thank you to Amanda and all the moms for helping out! Delaney is blessed to be born into a group of family and friends with so much love for her already!!

Next appointment is on August 7, 2012 - let's hope for a baby before then!! 

10 More Weeks !!

I can't believe we are at the 10 week countdown already! Provided we actually go the whole 10 weeks! Some people say normally with your first, you go early, and some say normally with your first you go late. I've also heard that when you are petite like me you normally go a week or two early.... we will see! As long as she is healthy I'm ok with that!!

Nursery News!!

Jason's friend came and painted the room & the trim & it looks great! I am so happy about not having to paint that room (again) myself! The furniture got delivered the day after the painting was completed which was nice! HOWEVER..... the excitement soon dulled when I opened up the box with the tall 4-drawer dresser & it looked as though someone was learning how to drive a fork-lift for the first time and plowed into this dresser over and over again.  So they are bringing me another one and taking the broken one with them... but not until July 12! Thats okay, the crib is beautiful and the other dresser is perfect for a changing table height & to store all her little outfits in that dont go in her almost-full closet!! The bedding looks amazing - so chic! I'm sort of jealous! Next is to finish the paintings i've been working on for her room & get those hung up along with some picture frames and a few other things :) We also have to go look for a chair to put in her room too. Things are coming along!!

New Paint, New Furniture :)

New crib & new dresser/changing table.

New crib with new mattress & new bedding!

New bedding :)

And in other news....

Things are really picking up with Holland Mechanical! Everything is really coming together well.  Jason has been working really hard on picking up some new customers (Panera Bread) and I've been working really hard to try and ensure that our books are looking good before the end of the year (ewww tax time!).

Shower News!!

Shower invitations have been sent out :) I can't wait! Thank you Amanda & Jo for getting things ready for this! I'm very excited to have everyone there helping Jason & I get ready for little Miss Laney Bug!

Mommy to be at 30 Weeks Pregnant:

• Mommy to be is very sleepy! I feel like i could sleep all day, but when i try, i get restless and get up!
• The book says my excuse for being clumsy is due to the weight of my pregnancy belly which throws my center of gravity off.... yeah ok.... i'll go with that!
• Heartburrrrrrrrn. This baby better have tons of hair lol

Laney Bug to be at 30 Weeks Growing:

• Almost 16 inches long now & almost 3 pounds!
• Her eyesight is improving, but even after she is born, her eyes will stay closed for most of the day to continue developing! (Interesting fact.... when babies are born, the first few days, their eyesight is 20/400! They can only make out images a few inches from their face! ....side note... this doesnt mean breathe in baby laney bugs face lol they are very suseptable to catching colds that little!)
• She kicks and punches and does other jazzercize moves in my belly....... but only from about 930pm - 3am.... that will be nice after she is born - a nightowl already... hmmm... wonder where she got that from.....

Only 12 More Weeks!!

Since we are getting so close, I thought a change in the title would be good :) Now we can just count down the remainder weeks!! Since they first said August 9, and then changed it to August 22, maybe we should say "Only 10-12 more weeks :)!!" Wishful thinking right? Doctors said as long as we make it until close to 36 weeks - then all will be fine :) That is when baby Delaney can breathe well enough to skip out on all the crazy machines that help little ones breathe better :)
Also - update on the glucose testing.... i passed :) No more worries there! They will retest my iron levels to make sure the supplement I'm taking is helping with that on my 35 week visit. 
Next appointment is on June 11 and we VERY excited about this one! We will be having the 3D/4D ultra sound done so we can see what our little bug looks like! We will be sure to post photos after the appointment!

Nursery News:

Ummm...... I walked in there this past weekend..... :) I can't really do much until Jason's friend paints & the furniture comes in, but i promise - after that i will have a better update!

Other News:

Normal summer semesters at my school at 10 weeks long (compared to the normal 16 week long courses i take in regular semesters).... pregnancy brain took over my thought process as I registered for school this semester....... i registered for the "mini-summer semester" which is a full 16 week course that is finished in 5 weeks... oops. So that is where all my time will be spent! However, I did just get an A on the first test! Go me!

Mommy-to-be at 28 weeks pregnant:

• Belly is growing :) Last appointment I was up 14.5 pounds which is still pretty great! The doctor said I should now be gaining a pound every week until delivery which will hopefully put me right on track to be at about 30 pounds total :)
• I will start to feel less kicks as the baby grows and runs out of room in my belly! That may be a welcoming feeling as she is constantly awake at exactly 9:45PM kicking and squirming.... which just happens to be the same time I'm trying to sleep :)
• The book says i should avoid stress.... hmmm.... work, other job, school, home, yikes.

28 Weeks Pregnant before work :)

28 Weeks Pregnant :) Still is pre-pregnancy gym clothes :)

Delaney-to-be at 28 weeks growing:

• Weighs about 2.5 pounds and is almost 15 inches long!
• She can blink her eyes now!
• She is starting to move into birthing position with her head down and feet in my ribs (can't wait....).
• Baby can actually start dreaming now :)

**** Other news I forgot about :) Baby Showe invites are going out this week :) yay! I'm really excited! June 30 is our shower & we are registered at Babies R Us and at Target! I'm sure I've forgotten a million things on the registries that I'll probably need, but seeing as how this is our first baby, I wasn't sure what to really put on there! Hopefully I did ok :) Hope to see you there! ****

27 Weeks Down, 13 More To Go!!

Helllloooooo THIRD TRIMESTER!!

That's exciting news right?! In the home stretch! Today is May 22, so that means her due date is exactly 3 months from today.  I think she will be here in the first week or so of August, but we will see!! So here is an update on the Glucose Testing I had done on 5/15..... I took the first test, the 1 hour test, and received a call the following day saying that my blood/sugar levels were elevated & I failed the test.  Great. That meant that I had to return the next morning (5/17) for the 3 hour glucose test....... no eating after 9pm the night before the test, only small amounts of water, and did i mention no breakfast!? I got to the doc's office at 830am, gave blood, drank a bigger/nastier sugar drink, gave blood at 950am, again at 1050am, again at 1150am, and was finally released around 1230pm.  Needless to say, i went through a drive thru for immediate food & then home for a nap! Now it's 5/22 and i still have no idea if i passed or failed :( No call from the doc yet.  I will probably call them again this afternoon to see if they've received them or not.  Next appointment is 5/28 & i will be making our appointment for our 3D/4D ultrasound while I'm there :) EXCITING!! We will get to see what her little face looks like!

Nursery News:

Well, there was not too much progress made in the past week on her nursery.  I have worked a little more on some paintings, but they are still far from being complete & started a new one (pics below).  Hopefully the nursery will be painted by next week... the furniture will be here then!

I also started making a few other small things for her closet - my OCD organizing has transferred not only from the rest of the house but now into her room too, poor girl!

Mommy entering her 3rd trimester:

• Not to much else.... not a lot you can do when you have to go to the restroom every 5 minutes :) lol!! Now would be a terrible time for a road trip!
• Only up 12 pounds from pre-pregnancy weight - let's hope we can keep it below the 30 pound mark! Just 3 more months left :)

Delaney entering the home stretch:

• She is staying about the same size around 14 inches long & about 2 pounds.
• She is beginning to have lots of brain activity.
• She has the hiccups a lot... just like mommy has always had them :)
• IF something were to happen & she decided now was a good time to come into the world, her chances of living a normal life have increased TONS.  With the help of the NICU unit, she would more than likely be A-OK :) That makes Mommy & Daddy feel MUCH better.

Happy Mother's Day 2012

This is just a little side note from the normal entries to let you all know that my husband surprised me on Mother's Day morning :) He woke me up with a gift from Miss Delaney.  Here is my card & my first Mother's Day present! Love him :)

D for Delaney & green is the color of her birthstone :)

Jason's got jokes lol

26 Weeks Down, 14 To Go!

We are one week away from being in the 3rd Trimester! I can't wait! We are so close!

Delaney & I had our glucose test yesterday (5/15) to ensure that we don't have gestational diabetes.  The test consisted of me downing a bottle of "drink" as it was labeled which tasted like a flat, over-sugared bottle of Sunkist or maybe like a children's orange flavored cough syrup....yuck. I was given a generous (not!) 5 minutes to drink that bottle and then we waited for an hour and had several tubes of blood drawn to test our blood sugar & several other normal tests that are completed at this time in the pregnancy.  I'm sure all is fine, but we wont know for a couple days. 

Nursery News

 I received a call from JCP about the nursery furniture! Seems as though it wont be here until after Delaney arrives..... just kidding :) Jason fell for that too!! They said that the back order date of July 12 was actually canceled due to the shipment arriving early :) Miss Delaney's furniture will be here the last week of May!! So excited! Hopefully, the nursery will be painted by then and we can start putting things away! Here are some of the "before" pictures of the baby's room (excuse the stuff in there, I'm still attempting to clean it out!).

I also started painting a few things for Miss Delaney's room - be nice... i just started these & they are no where near being finished :)

Holland Mechanical News

Jason got a new customer yesterday :) Cantina South - it's a new restaurant downtown and they are all ours! Exciting! He also met with a couple other people so hopefully we will see some calls coming in from them shortly!

And in Other News

I have started 2012 Summer Semester at school & I'm taking another Sociology course.  After this one I only have 4 more to go and then it's graduation time :) After graduation time.... well, then it's more school time! But I'm getting there, sllllllooooowwwwllllyyyy but surely! Persistence is key right? 

Mommy at 26 weeks pregnant:

• I get no sleep - already.
• Lots of Braxton Hicks contractions... normal...
• Out of breath frequently - the doc says that's due to increased blood flow & the baby pushing my lungs & diaphragm up higher and smushing them (yes, smushing was the technical term used :))
• And just to share... my uterus is approximately the size of a basketball.... ouch.

Delaney Bug (Mommy's "De Lady Bug"):

• She is about 14 inches long-ish and weighs about 2 pounds
• She is soaking in mommy's antibodies that will prepare her for life out here so she won't get sick :)
• She has started to take breaths in there... of amniotic fluid that is :) Just practicing to be able to breathe once she is here.

25 Weeks Down, 15 Weeks To Go!!!

This seems to be the longest count down ever :) I am super ready for her to be here! Only 15 more weeks.... 105 more days..... 2,520 hours!! (Told you I was ready!)

Nursery News
I spent all weekend cleaning out all of our storage areas in the house/barn & organized the house so that we could get manage to get everything OUT of the nursery that didn't belong there. It's VERY close to be completely cleaned out and ready for paint & furniture! We went to Lowe's on Saturday morning & picked out the paint color for the walls & the 2 accent colors I will use to paint things that will be going in the room.  I called about the furniture that is on back order & was promised that it would arrive NO LATER than 7/12/2012.  I surely hope so! That's cutting it awfully close! Miss Delaney has a closet full of clothes already thanks to Amanda, Denna, Jo Mama, Emily, Jason, and of course ME :) This girl has more clothes than I do I think! (I still have her beat on shoes!!!)

And In Other News...... 
Jason and I are doing well, but we are VERY busy! We are trying to get things 150% organized with Holland Mechanical before the baby comes & we are very close to making that happen! We are in the process of setting up payroll, all of our taxes are done & filed, I am re-organizing the job folders & business folders in our office  - we are on a roll!!

Still on my To-Do list for the house/business: gather quotes for health insurance for HMI, finish Delaney's art for her room, re-do my little art/painting area in the home office, & finish the cabinets & tile work in the kitchen :) Almost there :)
New to the Blog:
The countdown until maternity leave :) 68 more days!

Mommy a 25 weeks pregnant:

• Glucose Screening Test (GTS) (May 15, 2012) ewwy ewwy ick ick. This is where you go & drink a big honking glass of orange drink with WAY too much sugar in, then sit in the waiting room for an hour, then have your blood taken & hope for the best because IF YOU FAIL... you come back for a 3 hour GTS....wonderful.
• My hair is going through a "slow growth" stage due to hormones... which is great for me... it means i don't have to shave my legs as much and I'm not shedding like a crazy person every time i brush my hair :)
• I am being brave & putting this up here.... but I'm up 10 lbs as of this morning! Not to bad :) And thanks to my maternal side of the family (Grammie & Mommy!!!) I have had the lucky gene of no stretch marks thus far (let's pray this continues!).
• Besides me feet being swollen & me being sleepy - I still feel great. I've had no morning sickness or any other negative side effect from being pregnant for the whole 25 weeks! Go me & Laney Bug!



Mommy's Laney Bug at 25 weeks growing:

• Delaney is about 13.5 inches long & about 1.5 lbs heavy :)
• Her hands are fully developed now & she can breathe through her nose :)
• Her vocal chords are just about done developing - good for the screaming I'm sure we will hear shortly... but that screaming will eventually turn into "mommy" and "daddy" and we can't wait for that!

24 Weeks Down, 16 More To Go!!

I will start this post off by saying I am totally sucking at the whole post once a week thing, but I will get better... just as soon as I figure out how to edit this blog from my ipad ;) I'm getting there though! Slowly but surely!

I can't believe we're only 3 weeks away from being in the THIRD TRIMESTER already! I can't wait though! Being pregnant has already been a crazy experience.  Some days I love it.... other days I'm wishing and praying that the next 16 weeks FLY by and she is welcomed into this world and OUT of my belly! Some days I feel like as long as she in my belly, she is protected..... other days I want her out of there and I want my body back to me (I don't share very well sometimes lol... must have missed that lesson in pre-school!). Either way, it's almost time, even if I eventually decide I don't want to let her out, she's coming in a couple months!

Jason & I have been busy getting the house ready for our new occupant.  Jason re-did her closet so now she has much more room (if she's anything like me....well.... or Jason for that matter - she will need all the room in her closet she can possibly get!).  I've got her closet organized & am finally starting to get things out of her room that don't belong there (oh.... where am i going to put all my stuff now!?).  Jason's friend is coming by to paint soon & then the decorating can begin! Everything except for her furniture that is :( It was, of course, on back order and wont be here until July 12!! So if my little Laney Bug decides to make her appearance earlier than August 22..... we will thank Aunt Amanda for the pack-n-play that she will be sleeping in until her furniture arrives :)

Delaney's Bedroom Door

Delaney's Bedroom Door

My Bug at 24 Weeks Growing:

• Baby is working hard on those lungs & putting on weight (that also means so is Mommy....).  Just during week 24, Delaney will gain 0.5 lbs!!
• She is about a foot long and weighs in at a big 1.3 pounds!! Which is about 16% of her final weight, still has a while to go!
• She has eyelashes, eyebrows, and hair now :)
• Her organs are fully formed and begin maturing now :)
• She also has REM sleep now which can be seen in ultrasounds.
• Her inner ear is fully developed which means she can tell if she's upside down or backwards now (let's hope her and Aunt Manda don't share vertigo now!)

My Life at 24 Weeks Pregnant:

• My hair is growing like crazy.... good for me... bad for my wallet... good for my hairdresser lol
• Delaney's old space where she could do jumping jacks and flips is now getting much too small for that as she is growing. Now its just feet and arms in my ribs for the next 16 weeks!
• My uterus is about the size of a soccer ball.... nice.....
• Jason got to see my belly move from Delaney kicking and punching her way around in there!
• Heartburn... It's with me every night from the time I get home until the time I.... well OK it never really goes away!
• I have to pay close attention to any changes that happen, any differences in pregnancy symptoms.... scares associated with preterm labor normally start within the 24th week of pregnancy. 

23 Weeks Side View

23 Weeks Front View

Exciting news for Week 24 of Pregnancy!!!!

*** This is considered the "week of viability"! This means that IF for some reason, Delaney had to be born today, that she will have SOME chance of surviving.  She would probably have to spend several months in the NICU and it would be very hard on her - and she would more than likely have long term problems associated with preterm delivery, BUT she could survive :) That's very reassuring!

21 Weeks Down, 19 More To Go !!!

Yay for being more than half way closer to the day we meet Miss Delaney !! We can't wait!! Everything is coming along just fine, baby is growing & mommy's belly is growing! Jason and I are starting to get things ready for Delaney's room.  She is going to have a more grown up room than we do, ha! I've included some photos of different things we are getting for her room at the bottom :) We will also be creating a baby registry soon & will share the details with everyone.  I know since most of my family is out of state and most of Jason's family is here in NC, its easier for some to know whats going on, but we wanted to go ahead and start the registry so that everyone would know what Delaney is stocked up on :)

Delaney at 21 Weeks Growing!

• About the size of a banana this week! Approximately 10.5 inches & about 12.7 ounces! 
• She is drinking amniotic fluid to stay hydrated and get her nutrition, this is also how she practices swallowing & digesting.
• Her taste buds are fully developed & working!! (And apparently she likes HOT wings... I ate some and she was doing cartwheels in my belly the rest of the day!)
• She already has a lifetime supply of eggs in her own womb - about 6 million of them! (She wont be using these until she is WAY older lol but they are already there!)
• She has eyebrows & eye lids now :)

Mommy at 21 Weeks Growing!!

• Heartburn.... heartburn.... heartburn.....
• Dry itchy skin!! I feel like its the dead of winter & your skin dries out... but no its just from being pregnant.  I should start buying stock in Johnson & Johnson lotions :)
• Knock on wood... no stretch marks as of yet :)
• So far, so good, only 7 pounds gained!
• Lots of left side back pain, I'm told this is normal and caused by ligaments stretching to accommodate baby.  Also because when you are pregnant, your back changes shape, the arch becomes more define so you don't topple frontwards with a big belly :) It's all for a great cause, but ouch :) She's already hurting me lol

21 Weeks :)

These are things we have already purchased for her room :) I will be taking photos of the before, during, and after decorating & turning the spare bedroom into her room.  Lots of photos to come :)

Matching Chest

4 in 1 Crib (changes to a Toddler bed, daybed, and full size headboard & foot board!)

Matching Dresser/Changing Table

Chandelier (we will paint it to match her bedding!)

Delaney's Crib Bedding (Diva!)

                                                                       





20 Weeks Down, 20 Weeks To Go!!

It's half time!!!!! We have made it half way through the pregnancy!! Yeah for us!!!!! That's very exciting and I'm very thankful! I never really realized all the changes that happen when you are pregnant as far as emotions, moods, body changes, thoughts, outlooks... We are ready to have her here with us!!

So with the half way marker here, I thought this would be a good time to start sharing pictures of Mommy throughout the first half of the pregnancy.  Granted, these are all taken with my phone and by me.... never turn out well... and normally in the morning when I'm trying to get ready so forgive the terrible photography :) Jason will be in charge of that from now on! I will try to include a weekly update from now until the end of the pregnancy and I will include a weekly belly picture :) Enjoy!!

Delaney Elizabeth at 20 weeks:

• She weighs about 10.5 ounces and is about 10 inches long from head to heel. About as big as a banana!
• She can swallow now and I might be able to start feeling her have the hiccups soon!
• She has established sleep patterns like a newborn now so once I can start to feel her moving around we will know if we have a night owl or an early bird!
• Most of her organs, etc. are all formed and in the correct places, now she will focus on "filling out" and gaining weight so that when she arrives she will be able to live healthy.

Courtney Elizabeth at 20 weeks:

• Knock on wood... no stretch marks yet :)
• Uterus is the size of a cantaloupe now.... yikes.
• It's NURSERY TIME! We are getting the nursery ready slowly but surely! I can't believe we only have about 4.5 months to get a whole room done!
• Baby shower planning has started also.... I know this is a little early but with everyone we have coming from others places in the USA we needed to get a date set early on!
• I think we have decided that June 30 or July 1 is our day :)

13 Weeks :)

15 Weeks :)

17 Weeks :)

19 Weeks :)

20 Weeks :) 

19 Weeks Down, 21 More To Go !!!

It's one week away from the half way mark of my pregnancy! I can't believe it went that fast! It seems like just a couple weeks ago Jason and I were announcing that we were expecting! I'm doing fine, still no sicknesses (with the exception of a sinus infection - the 10 feet of pollen outside is partially at fault for that one!) or mental breakdowns! Baby is doing good too!

We are starting to plan Delaney's room out, looking online, etc.  We've decided on what to do to the walls (I'll take pictures as soon as it's done!) and we've also decided that we do NOT want to do pink and frilly.  Our baby girl is going to have chic nursery :) I can't wait to start decorating and painting!!

All about Miss Delaney at 19 Weeks Growing!

• Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. 
• She weighs about 8.5 ounces and is about 6 inches long now :)
• Her hair is growing :) ..... hopefully we will have a baby with hair like mommy when she was born and not like daddy when he was born :)
•  

All about Mommy at 19 Weeks Pregnant!

• Ligaments are stretching around my back and lower abdomen so sometimes my back hurts :(
• I have to be more careful in the sun than normal due to extra estrogen - i will sunburn quick!
• I keep reading that I will become much more dizzy when I stand up or walk... great.... this should help my clumsiness - NOT.
• Knock on Wood... no stretch marks as of yet, but they say they are coming.  I also found out that those are hereditary... 'they' say if your mom has them, so will you.... and thankfully - she doesn't :) woohoo Mom!

Baby Holland is Baby Delaney Elizabeth!!

                         

18 Weeks Down, 22 More To Go!!

Jason & I had our 18 week appointment yesterday, 3/19/12, and we found out Baby Holland was a GIRL!!! We are VERY excited and can't wait to meet her! We also, as you can tell from the NEW blog design, have decided on her name: Miss Delaney Elizabeth Holland.

At our appointment, we also found out that she is perfectly healthy, 10 fingers, 10 toes, 2 arms, 2 legs, a healthy beating heart (140 bpm), and a very active brain :) Yay!!

Mommy & Daddy Holland are already in love and very proud of our little baby girl :) Below are some pictures from the ultra sound - some hands, toes, and legs are easy to see now!!

Delaney Elizabeth at 18 weeks growing:

• The doctor told us she weighs 7oz!!!
• She is learning how to yawn and hiccup which I might be able to feel soon! Can't wait!
• Her ears are fully developed now she can hear everything :)
• Her bones are starting to harden, you can see them in the photos below :)

Courtney Elizabeth at 18 weeks pregnant:

• My back is killing me most of the time, doctor said that its because my uterus is almost the size of a cantaloupe.... wow....
• I think I have felt baby move around a little bit, but it's so faint i'm not sure... i know for the rest of my life i'm going to wishing she would SIT STILL but for now, i want her to move around :)



Little knees & Lower Legs



Little Baby Foot

 

Waving at Daddy



Waving at Mommy



Baby Foot



Ribs & Spine

16 Weeks Down, 24 More To Go!!

OB Appointment #3 March 2, 2012

This appointment was very quick and not to detailed.  Same ole' same ole' routine (bathroom, weight, blood pressure) and then we listen to the baby's heartbeat, my favorite part! This time I actually remembered to record it!! Woo hoo!  Everything was normal, baby's heartbeat ranged from 136bpm to 150bpm.  I just drank a whole cherry lime-ade from Sonic, so baby was bouncing off the walls (haha! different type of walls but same concept!) and the Doctor was having a hard time following the baby around trying to listen but we did get a little bit of recorded!

 I was also questioned about my weight, apparently I should be gaining approximately 1 pound per week from now on until the end of the pregnancy but i havent gained anything in a few weeks.  I assured her I was not trying to lose weight and that I had just eaten a whole order of Sonic tater tots on the way to my appointment :) But my belly measured perfectly and the Doctor said i'm right where i should be!

So here is some more information on the baby and on mommy :)

Baby Holland at 16 Weeks:

• Weight is around 3-5 ounces now
• Baby is around 4-5 inches from the butt to the top of the head :)
• Baby can hear me and Daddy talking now (better watch the language! just kidding) !!
• Baby's back muscles are gaining lots of strength so now he/she can straighten out more.
• Baby can now smile, frown, and squint! (Must be frowning at Daddy's singing! haha!)
• Baby's eyelids are still sealed, but he/she can sense light and move his/her eyes all around.... better to roll at me later i'm sure!

Mommy at 16 Weeks:

• Slowly putting on weight and a growing belly is my new excuse for shopping for maternity clothes!! I'm still too small for most maternity shirts, but I've grabbed a few pairs of pants to help me be more comfortable at work!
• Going to the gym, but i'm only allowed to do things that dont get my heart rate above 140... which means i can walk.... oh well! Better than nothing! Yoga and Pilates are fun too!

NT Scan & First Trimester Screening

So on 2/14/2012, we went to UNC Chapel Hill Women's Center at Rex Hospital and had our NT (Nuchal Translucency) Scan and our First Trimester Screening done.  This test screens for a few Trisomy diseases as well as Down Syndrome.  The measure the pocket of fluid on the back of the baby's neck and if it's under a certain measurement then you are considered less at risk to have a baby with one of those genetic diseases then if the measurement is higher.  After about 30 minutes of watching our little one, the doctor said that we are under the measurement and he doesn't expect any problems.  Of course, they will now run my blood work and put that together with the measurement that was taken and verify, but he said things looked really good so we aren't expecting any problems!

We did get to see our little one for a long time though! Baby was flipping all around, dancing, squirming everywhere.  It was really cool to see! Baby had the left arm up constantly at his/her face..... I'm pretty sure there was some thumb sucking going on there! I sure hope not, that's a terrible habit to start when you aren't even born yet lol! Jason was very excited to see the little one moving all around in there too! He said it is so much more real now that we've seen what actually looks like a baby in there. The last picture we saw looked like a little gummy bear or peanut as Jason says so seeing a video of the baby - that looks like a baby - was awesome! We also got to see/hear the heartbeat.  It was at 151 bpm which the tech said was pretty perfect! So basically - everything is perfect for the little one right now :)

Now for a little more updates on Baby Holland since today we are 13 WEEKS & GROWING :) !!

• First of all.... it's the last week of the 1st Trimester and I made it out with NO morning sickness! Woohoo! Thank you Baby Holland for not making me sick!
• Secondly.... we are 1/3 of the pregnancy down!! And the hardest one at that! So yay! Only 2/3 more to go!

About Baby Holland:

• ...Has vocal cords now and I'm sure we will wish differently once baby is here ;) Also has fingerprints now and teeth!!
• Baby is about 3 inches long (book says 2.9in. but our tech at the NT scan said 3 inches!) and weighs about .81 ounces.  Annnnd baby's head is now only 1/3 the size of the body, it used to be 1/2 head and 1/2 body!! Improvements! :)
• Baby's tummy is making room for all of his/her intestines too, right now most of them are still in the umbilical cord :)

About Mommy:

• Increased blood flow.... you don't say?! Yesterday at the First Trimester Screening, they did the finger poke thing where they take blood.  The nurse said, before sticking me in the finger, "the worst part will be me having to squeeze your finger hard to get the blood to come out..." Um what really happened was she poked my finger and before she even had time to get the cotton, there was blood everywhere.... so 'increased blood flow' is an understatement!
• Ever growing belly, every time i put a pair of pants of that i wore last week... they don't fit!! Annoying!! Oh well... an excuse for shopping right!? I can't wait until warmer weather when i can wear the cute little spring/summer dresses!! I'm glad the majority of my pregnancy will be in warmer weather, that way i don't have to wear constricting pants all the time!! (hint hint.. motherhood & pea in the pod are my fav stores :) just saying... lol!!)

Baby Holland sucking his/her thumb :)

Baby Holland's little nose, mouth, and chin!

Side face view

Baby Holland's side view of face :)

Baby Holland all stretched out!

Laying down with hand up!