20 weeks!

Technically I am twenty weeks and two days, but Baby D is measuring at 20 weeks on the dot! Today was our big ultrasound. Our technician was adorable and has been doing her job for 15 years. Each  time we go to the doctor it is calming for me. I know that God has such an awesome plan in store, so everything I have to do I just feel His presence. It's pretty neat. While our technician was going over all of the basics, and talking to us about each step she was taking, it was just so calming.

So to the report! The head and everything they check ( I honestly can't tell you) looks perfect. The heart was beating at a beautiful 147 beats per minute. As usual, I started laughing uncontrollably when we heard the heart beating away. There's just something so joyful about hearing it and seeing it.  The spine was beautiful, bright, and perfect. I take pride in that spine because it was the most difficult time during the whole pregnancy. (... And by difficult I mean I just slept the whole day away!) Baby D has two hands and two feet. The stomach, kidneys, and all of those parts looked perfect. We are right on track for a December 29th baby! We met another met doctor and she was lovely. I have to see all 5 women in the practice before I have the baby. I think I've seen 4. Who can remember that far?! I have loved each one so far though. 

Jessi went with us and kept her eyes open when we closed ours during the gender part. She and Valerie have a huge secret to keep! We aren't really anxious about knowing. The 24th will be here before we know it. 

Goals for the month? Change my insurance card. I haven't done it. It's such a hassle, but everyone in the office keeps calling it Baby Krueger... I feel bad for Jeremy. He worked hard for years to get me to take his last name! 

Here is Jessi with the photos that have the gender and our DVD of the ultrasound. 

And I am not a fan of showing ultrasound pictures at all, but I know our family wants to see this kind of stuff. There are like 20 more. I just like this one best because of the little face. 

Anyways, I hope you have enjoyed your 20 week update! I'll post again soon!! 

Wooaahh, we're halfway there. Wooaah, livin on a prayer.

That's right. This is the halfway mark. 20 weeks to go. (Which means 19.5 weeks until Christmas... Just thought I'd remind you!) This week we have our gender appointment. We won't know until the 24th. What's a couple of extra weeks of waiting, right? 

I have had 3 dreams about what we are having. Two dreams that it was a girl and one dream that it was twin boys. The first dream was my favorite. When I went to the doctor they said I could invite anyone I wanted to the gender appointment. I guess my brain knew that if that was really an open invitation there's no telling who would show up. In my dream everyone I can possibly think of was there. When they said it was a girl streamers and confetti fell from the ceiling. I woke up laughing! 

I don't know how old Jeremy is in this picture, but isn't he cute? 

Here I am at a little over a year. I can only hope that our child gets Jeremy's perfect eyebrows... 

Two this week?!

It's exciting, isn't it? I finally sat down to write about our lives in the lovely country town of Elgin. Jeremy has been busy with summer school and I, again, have been pretty much sleeping and growing a baby all summer long. Having my energy back is great!

I thought I'd share how I told Jeremy that we were expecting a baby. It's a really funny story, although I didn't think it was funny at the time. I knew I was pregnant almost immediately, but I waited until it was official on the pregnancy test. I took one at work on a Wednesday. I could barely see the line that was supposed to show up and confirm my suspisions. I woke up early on Thursday, took a test, saw it was positive, hugged Jeremy goodbye for the day, and got ready for work. I literally laughed all morning. It's apparently how I handle life little blessings these days. I laugh uncontrollably.

A few weeks prior to this day, I went to a painting pottery place with some friends. (This is important, I promise.) I knew we would eventually start trying to have a baby, so I painted a coffee mug that was light blue with James 1:17 on it. "Every good and perfect gift is from above." On the inside of the mug, on the bottom, I wrote DAD!

I planned a whole baby meal: Baby back ribs, baby carrotts, baby zucchini, and baby corn. Then I served an ice cream dessert in mugs. We even sat at the dinner table. I thought for sure that he'd notice something was up. Jeremy was very busy and his mind was preoccupied during dinner. He blew through his dinner and ate his ice cream like someone was going to steal his mug. He put his plate and his mug in the sink and went back to school work. I called him back and asked if he seriously didn't catch on to what was going on. I grabbed the coffee mug and put it in his face. He probably read it aloud 3 times before it clicked. Then he asked me what that meant. My obvious response? "I'm having your baby." Awkward, Party of 1!

I'm not going to lie. I expected a different response. I expected crying, or laughing, or excitement, or anything other than a confused look. He walked away and I went for a run to not be upset anymore. I knew I was being unreasonable. He had no idea that I had been planning something all day long and that his life was about to change.

Looking back, we laugh at how absolutely clueless he was. He was so preoccupied with school that he didn't even stop to look at what was actually in front of him. And that's the story of how Jeremy found out he was going to be a dad.

Woah. About time, right?

I know. I haven't posted much at all. Nothing really. Sorry! I spent most of the summer sleeping and growing a baby. I think that deserves a break, right? I thought since I will be half way through this pregnancy this Sunday that I would post about it! I am sure one day I will forget, so this will be nice to have. Here are some frequently asked questions I get:

When am I due? December 29th. And yes, it'll be either a Christmas baby or New Years baby. I don't feel bad that our child won't get to have a school birthday party or will have to celebrate around a holiday. Jeremy's birthday is December 20th. He get his own birthday party separate from Christmas. I am confident that the birthday issue won't be a huge issue. It'll be great!

Were we planning to have a baby? Yes and No. We spent about 3 month praying about when was the right time. After a lot of prayer there finally came a day where we agreed with each other. It was affirmation from God that this was the next step for us. We weren't expecting to get pregnant right when we started trying (that's the no). It was a huge shock for us.

How have I been feeling? I feel great. I have only had 4 days of morning sickness and I pretty much spent all of June and July sleeping. Other than that this whole experience has been great.

Have I had any weird cravings? Right after I found out, until about 10 weeks,  I really wanted hamburgers. I really like the taste of tart things: salt and vinegar, mustard, etc. I have also wanted Macaroni and Cheese. I am thankful to not have any food aversions.... We love food!

Are you going to find out what you're having? Funny story! I have never wanted to find out what I am having. I married a man who is a planner. It's really been the only thing we have disagreed on. Jeremy has been such a gracious husband during all of this and he asked for one thing: to find out what we were having. Naturally we are having a gender reveal party. Jeremy's sister and my sister are going to be the only ones to know until WE find out in front of everyone at the party. I'm looking forward to seeing my reaction caught on camera.

I think that covers the big 5! My favorite thing about pregnancy so far? The horror stories. Other mothers or soon to be mothers have asked me about my pregnancy. It's a natural conversation for people who have experienced pregnancy, labor, etc. When I say I have had a wonderfully easy pregnancy I get a lot of remarks like "Oh, well it's coming." or "I hate you." or "What? That's not fair!". I take it in stride. It actually makes me laugh. I realize how incredibly blessed I have been. I think The Lord knows that I just need my strength and sanity to do my big girl job... :)

Here is the latest photo from last Friday, 2 days shy of 19 weeks: