WHAT A BUSY AND EXCITING WEEK!

It was wonderful getting to share the sex of the baby with friends and family last weekend. What an exciting time! Thank you for all your love and support. All three of us truly appreciate it! We're still trying to figure out a name for our sweet boy. Wish it was an easy decision.
Hopefully, you've been able to see the ultrasound pics either on facebook or email. Wish I could post them on here.

I've completed my first full week at the new job. It's a new practice, but she's already VERY busy. It's SO different than the NICU and the hospital. It's exciting to learn new stuff though, just frusterating because I want to know everything already. Especially the computer systems and new lingo....guess it will just take some time though.

It was wonderful having Jon home for one day before he was off again. We spent the day looking at strollers and baby stuff Saturday. I had done most of the research before we got there, so it didn't take too long. Jon was a great sport trying out different strollers, car seats, etc. We are so amazed how much such a little person needs! But I'm really excited about all the selections! We've decided to do the nursery in chocolate brown, aqua and white from Restoration Hardware Baby and Child. It's so precious!! I can't wait to be in the house and getting the nursery together. (well, the nursery as well as the rest of the house.)
I can tell the baby's growing a lot right now. During the week Jon was gone, he came home and quickly noticed how much my belly had grown in the short time. His kicks are getting harder too, which always seems to crack us up. Jon has nick named him "kicker" already.
I've been feeling good, just VERY weepy all the time. It's a bit embarrassing actually. And I've continued to have the round ligament pain (at least that's what the Dr. said it was.) I've heard women talk about this before, but had no idea how much it hurt. It's all worth it though!! We are cherishing every second of this pregnancy and I LOVE having my sweet baby boy with me all the time as he grows stronger every day!

It's a BOY!!

Jon has been a busy boy traveling all over the place. The only week day we were going to have together was this Friday, so I called my doctor and asked if I could reschedule the 18 week ultrasound. I was able to get in, which we were both thrilled about!!
The ultrasound tech was SO nice and explained that she would check the placenta, baby's measurements and the gender last. As soon as she started the ultrasound it was aimed directly between his legs. We immediately knew it was a boy! I of course was crying at the sight of our precious boy and Jon was jumping for joy to have a son! The tech said it was the cutest reaction she'd ever seen! The whole experience was so special...without a doubt one of the best moments in my entire life. Just to see our baby actively moving around, seeing his face, and sharing that with my amazing husband! It took almost 2 hours for them to get all they needed. He didn't want his head measured, so we were trying everything to get him in the right position.

Jon and I were thinking it would be a boy, but knew we'd be thrilled either way! I was thinking it was a boy because the day I found out we were pregnant I was having my quiet time and was led to biblical stories of women who had a hard time conceiving and God gave them sons.

"When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy." Luke 1:57.
-Elizabeth gave birth to the apostle John the Baptist.

"So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, "Because I asked the Lord for him." 1 Samuel 1:20
-Hannah gave birth to Samuel the prophet.

"Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son.." Genesis 30:22,23
-Rachel gave birth to Joseph.

"Then God said, 'Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him." Genesis 17:19
-Sarah gave birth to Isaac who continued the covenant line.

We are so thankful that he appears healthy!!! His heartbeat was 153 and everything measured appropriately. The AFP test did not indicate any chromosome problems either. The only thing that had us concerned was that the baby has choroid plexus cysts (CPC) in the head. According to the doctor it's very common and usually goes away by about wk 26. Only 1% will stay and lead to chromosome abnormalities. They may have me come back for another ultrasound after 26 wks. Please say a prayer that the CPC goes away and the baby continues to stay healthy!
I'm sorry I don't have ultrasound pics to post. Our scanner is in storage and the kinkos scanner only scans from photoshop, which the blog won't allow me to post. Will try to get that figured out so everyone can see his precious profile, hands, feet, etc. He's beautiful already!!!

Robin's New Job

A week ago I got a phone call from a dermatologist Dr. office who was looking for an RN. They got my resume from another doctor's office I had applied with at least a month ago. I said I'd come in to interview. First I met with the office manager and then they called me for a second interview with the Dr. She was very nice and I liked everyone in the office. I knew they were interviewing other people also and since I'm pregnant and had to already request some days off I honestly didn't think I'd get the job. But I did, so I feel very blessed that God brought this opportunity my way. The staffing agency I did some work for was ideal, but they simply don't have as much work available as I need. I start work Monday morning!!
The doctor just moved here and is renting space while building an office nearby. The location is great...it will only be about 10 min from our house. I'm excited to learn something entirely different than neonates. Hope things go well Monday!

Super Puppy...

Here is Indiana's Halloween costume this year. She's so precious! Thank you Carol. Your Grandog is loving being super puppy!

We're closing on our house Nov 10!

We just found out our closing date on No 10. Now we're trying to get the movers scheduled! It will be so nice to finally get settled here in Virginia. It still feels like we're just visitors, but I think having a home will help us adjust.
Here are some recent pics of the house. They really don't have much left to do! They were painting the door black when we went by and were going to paint the shutters next. Here are some recent pics.
The last two pictures are of the baby's room. It's directly across from our room and is smaller than the other bedrooms. However, it has 3 windows and not a lot of wall space. It will be hard to figure out where to put things. The back wall (without windows would be where the crib would go.) But I thought I'd get other opinions on this decision. Let me know what you guys think. If we need to we could move it to a back bedroom.

It still looks funny because the shutters aren't painted, but they will be black.


Kitchen - still waiting for the counter tops.


Family Room


Dining Room - can't wait to paint it red.


Weird...we have a basement...


Nursery??

16 WEEKS

Today was our 16 week Dr. appointment and things still look good! We met one of the other doctors in the practice. I'm not crazy about anyone in practice so far, but I have no idea what doctor I would switch to. We decided to just stick it out and pray that the doctors bedside manner doesn't reflect the performance medically.
The baby's heart beat today was between 140-145 when we listened by doppler. Jon was so excited because you could here it so well and even hear the baby moving around! It was so exciting...I couldn't stop smiling!!
They drew blood for the AFP test and said they would call around Monday if anything was abnormal. No news is good news! I've gained a total of 6 lbs so far (although it feels like a lot more) and my uterus measures appropriately. We also set the level II ultrasound for October 21st! They will do a thorough check of the baby and find out the sex too!! The Dr today said her guess was a boy based on my pregnancy symptoms, etc....but only God knows for sure right now :) We will be so happy either way. Just anxious to give this precious baby a name and start planning the nursery :)
Initially when we found out we were pregnant I had a couple of ovarian cysts - as always. They hadn't caused me any problems until recently - my right side has intermittent sharp pains. I'm just waiting for the darn thing to rupture or just go away! I've also had a decreased appetite the last couple weeks. I'm never very hungry, but make myself eat small amounts several times a day. As a result, I've been having drops in my blood sugar -which makes me VERY jittery, nauseated, and I feel like I'm going to pass out. If I drink some juice or something I start to feel much better. I'm really trying hard to make sure not to go more than 3 hours without eating something. I almost passed out in the grocery store the other day...very embarrassing moment. Luckily people were very nice and after my fogginess cleared up I was fine. It's so fascinating all the changes your body has to make to accommodate a growing baby and all the ways it affects women. Every time I think about it - even when I'm miserable it just amazes me! I feel so blessed to be a woman and able to have a child!!



WHAT'S GOING ON WITH OUR BABY AT 16 WEEKS?
-Fat begins to form underneath skin, providing your baby with insulation for the coming months.
- Both baby and placenta are now about the same size?
-Your little one has reached 4.57 inches (11.6cm) and approximately 3.53 ounces (100gm).
-Her heart is pumping as much as 6 gallons of blood a day and beats at a rate about double your heart rate.
-If you could take a peek inside, you would witness your child's reflexes in action! (Sucking, swallowing and blinking are now evident - and even hiccuping.)
-The baby has learned to breathe! This is apparent from the regular movements of his chest.

Mount Vernon

Earlier this week Jon and I went to Mount Vernon -the home of George Washington. We toured his elaborate home and a little of his 8,000 acre property. It brought about a whole new appreciation for America's first President!
Below are pictures from his BEAUTIFUL estate.





The view from the back of the house!


Tomb of George and Martha Washington

So Sleepy

So, last night was my first time working for home health. It went well, just difficult getting used to the paperwork and different atmosphere. The baby was such a little trooper! Just hope I don't get sick, because he did have a cold. I escaped it when Jon had it last week, so hopefully I'll escape it again. All that being said...I don't know how people work nights. By about 7am I was ready to fall over. I got home about 9am and slept for a few hours so I'll be able to sleep tonight. Guess it just takes time to adjust to the change in schedule. I think God is just preparing me for motherhood :) Hopefully the next assignment will be during the day though!