Freak Out Moment ...

22 Weeks, 6 Days ...

So, had a small freak out moment last night ... it was when I was laying in bed, feeling Baby Liby move, around 11:00 last night. This time, however, instead of feeling baby move in just one area -- which is how it has been in the past -- I felt baby moving all over my stomach. I felt the Baby moving up high, down low and in between ... it was crazy! While I was very excited -- even waking Tim up to tell him -- this got me thinking about how big Baby Liby is right now (not that I know specifics, (s)he just feels big), and how big Tim was when he was born (something huge like 10 pounds) and, well, sleep was hard to find after I went down that path ... breathe, Katie, just breathe ... :)

My self-talk to get out of this train of thought is something along the line of, "millions of woman have done this successfully, you can, too, Katie ..." sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't. There are just so many unknowns. I know that labors can be different per child, but I think that as we look to have more children, there will be much less anxiety since I will have gone through one labor already, and I can have some idea of what to expect. There is just no explaining to a person who has never gone through it. I have heard all sorts of stories, but until I am there, it won't be real to me.

We ordered our nursery furniture last weekend. A picture of
the crib is posted. We are getting white since the trim in the nursery room will be painted white. We ordered the crib, a 6-drawer dresser and a nightstand. We probably won't get them until September, but they are ordered ... which means that one thing can be checked off of the list ... whew! :)

By way of a masterusery project update, Tim has been working on reconstructing the windows -- this will allow us to easily open and close them, and he is replacing the glass in them. This project, like all others, is a tedious one. We haven't moved far on getting the wall put back in because he had to have some special steel braces created ... no lie, I am continually amazed at my husband, and how smart he is!

That is all for now. Hope you all are doing well.

Love,
Katie

"I Felt the Baby Move ... I Think ..." and Other Random Thoughts

21 weeks, 5 days and counting ...

So, Baby Liby is moving with more intensity, now ... which is very calming for me (Katie). The only bummer is that Tim hadn't been able to feel baby move ... up until Tuesday night ... he thinks. :) He felt something, but then he said that he didn't know if it was my breathing that he felt.

Actually, in his sleepiness right before we went to bed on Wednesday, he was able to feel the baby move a couple of times, but it was very light. It is so strange how you can feel the baby move inside of you, but by the time it reaches the outside of your stomach, it is hardly noticable. We sat in bed again last night with his hand on my tummy and he was able to feel something light again. I am pretty sure it is our baby moving around because when he noticed something, I felt baby move inside (and I was trying to hold my breath to take that out of the equation ... not easily done since I have been pregnant). :)

I can't wait for him to be able to feel baby move more often ... it will be so fun!! The other day he asked me what it felt like when the baby moves inside. It is so hard to answer that because it truly feels unlike anything I have ever experienced. Even here, in an element of writing, I still cannot quite put the words to it. I do have to say that men really miss out on it though ... it is one of the neatest things I have ever felt. I just love when I am sitting there and baby just starts moving all around ... it feels so ... peaceful.

Those of you who know my passions know that I have a passion for football (yes, even the Detroit Lions are my team of choice, I am still able to have a passion for the sport -- hard to believe most seasons). I would LOVE to have a son that plays football. Well, I am beginning to wonder if I have a punter in the works. The other night, Tim and I were talking on the phone, I was laying on the couch, and all of the sudden, Baby Liby took a whack at my bladder. Up until this point, I really didn't have to go to the bathroom. After his/her fifth kick, I had to promptly get off of the phone and go to the bathroom -- that was the strangest thing! I was there, talking to Tim about nothing in particular, and then I can't get a word out edgewise between the kicks. It was soooo funny! We couldn't help but laugh all about it. I do hope that baby does not make a habit of this, though. It could have been much worse if my bladder was full! :)

Our dear friends, Jason and Kelly Haak just had their first baby a month ago ... a son. He is so adorable! It was surreal observing Kel in labor and then holding the tiny newborn, thinking the whole time that in a few short months, Tim and I would be holding our son/daughter. In my past observations of friends in preganancy/labor.early parenthood, we have been so far from having a baby that I could really seperate that in my mind -- not so the case, recently. Holding him was a real moment of "yikes!" and "wow!" all at the same time.

In some moments, I cannot wait for that day to arrive. In other moments, when I think of all the things we need to get done, how running to the store will not be a simple venture any longer, the late night feedings, etc., I am very pleased to have 19 - 21 weeks until baby comes (I work under the assumption that Baby Liby may arrive up to two weeks late, so I won't be as disappointed if my due date comes and goes before baby comes!).

Well, I guess that is all for now. Sorry that I haven't "blogged" in a bit ... my goal is at least weekly, but I slacked in the past few weeks. Since it seems that my tummy has grown exponentially larger the past few days, I will take an updated picture this weekend and upload, so watch for that!

God is so good to us!

Love,
Katie

Ultrasound Complete ... 19 Weeks, 4 Days

So, we had the ultrasound today. Wow! Baby sure has gotten big!!!

Baby Stats:
Weight: 10 oz.
Heartbeat: 149 bpm during ultrasound; 160 bpm during exam
Estimated Length: 12 - 14 inches
Gender: We don't know! Baby didn't show us. :)



The video of some of the ultrasound is above. It is amazing that last time, we could see the entire baby in the ultrasound picture, now we could only see half of the baby. We saw the arms, feet, legs, head, spine, femur bone, face (Katie thinks baby might have Tim's cute nose). If you look to the left, you will see Baby Liby's heart beating steadily. Baby wasn't moving around too much ... maybe (s)he was sleeping through all of the excitement! (S)He did keep punching Katie, but she couldn't feel it. The ultrasound also confirmed that we are right on track at 19 weeks, 4 days ... almost half way through the pregnancy. That is mind-boggling!!

Katie will update the ultrasound photo later, but wanted to get the video up ASAP. You will also notice that we finally got the pictures of the Mastursery loaded so you can peruse those to see the progress on the room. There are even some before pictures. We also got a new belly picture. Although Katie feels much larger than week 15, she isn't when you do a direct comparison ... oh, her stomach is going to get soooo much bigger!!!

Thanks for checking back. Don't forget to vote! Also, feel free to leave comments -- we love to read what you have to say.

Love,

Tim & Katie

Ultrasound Tomorrow ... New Survey Today

So, we have our official ultrasound tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. We can not wait!!! It is going to be so great to see baby moving again ... that just makes it soooo real. We are going to bring our camera and record it, so look for an updated post tomorrow with the video -- how exciting!

Also, we put up a new survey today so be sure to vote, vote, vote (hey, we are just getting you ready for November). As far as the results for the last one, we aren't going to be finding out the gender of Baby Liby until he/she comes in October (unless Baby decides to surprise us by showing us tomorrow) -- which is the option the majority of you selected. We are probably going to be going crazy in the last month or so waiting to find out. The excitement is already building ...

We really don't care which of the genders the Lord blesses us with. Katie's main concern is that we have at least one of each at some point. Given that it is a strong desire of her heart, and something she prays for, she is confident that the Lord will bless us with both son(s) and daughter(s) at some point. (She is still also praying for twins someday, too! Wouldn't that be amazing?!)

Tim's brother (and wife and kids) came up this weekend and Micah helped Tim put in our new side door (we have had the door for 1.5 years, and haven't put it in until this weekend!). It looks fabulous!! They did a tremendous job. Again, we have pictures, but still are having troubles getting them all loaded.

We are so thankful for all of the offers of help we have gotten, and are sure that we will cash in on those offers before this is all said and done, so those of you who have offered ... be prepared! :) So, check back tomorrow to see Baby Liby in all of his/her glory!!

Until Tomorrow ...
Tim & Katie

Operation ... Extract Isabelle

Well, Monday night was going to be a night of great success -- a night that Tim would work in the bedrooms in preparation for our little bambino. And he got to ... sort-of. It all started out before he was home from work, actually. I was reading a book (the topic of which was maternity/baby/child-birth ... how shocking!) and I fell asleep. I woke up a bit later and thought that I heard something moving in the walls/ceiling above me -- the "job-site" as I have affectionatly termed the construction project. Now, you will all see, as soon as I get the pictures uploaded, that currently, there is no wall between the master bedroom and the nursery, and there is one hole where the wall used to be. A small hole, like smaller than an envelope. Much too small for something important to fit down, but large enough for whatever Tim was doing. Anyway, it sounded like something fell down in the hole. I heard rustling and dirt falling. In a pretty quick instant I thought, "hmmmm, I wonder where Isabelle is ..."

(For those of you who do not know, Isabelle is our darling little beast. She is a cat of contradiction. If we have people over, she will not come out to see them, but as soon as they leave, she appears from her hiding place (there are a few exceptions, Tim's mom, my parents, and a few close friends like Trevor, who happens to be allergic to cats -- Isabelle, for some reason, loves Trevor!) She hates the vacuum, power tools, the dust-buster and sometimes Tim. She runs away from the slightest noise, but is willing to go and poke around the job-site whenever she can sneak past the barrier that we have set up. She fetches, purrs and sometimes hisses -- mainly at Tim. She cuddles with you when you don't have time to cuddle, and runs from you when you want to cuddle. In short, she is hilarious, and we wouldn't trade her for the world!).

Anyway, I am wondering where our little beast is. I head upstairs and glance at the bed -- the last place I saw her. Nope, not there. At this point, I heard a louder thump coming from the job-site and begin to think that this couldn't be good. As I top the stairs, I hear the most mournful and scared meow ever produced and I am thinking, "CRAP!" I head into the rooms, and start to look for her in her usual places. She, meanwhile, is meowing up a storm. And, frankly, it sounds like the meows are coming from in the walls or under the floor -- I couldn't exactly pinpoint it. I call Tim and tell him that I think Isabelle is in the walls or under the floor ... I couldn't tell. Needless to say, he didn't really believe me. Trust me, it was true. While I couldn't find her, her meows definitely said that she was in a bad place. I just couldn't figure our where ... yet.

So, Tim has been eyeing this tool for the past few years. It is a Ridgid Mini See-Snake. It is pretty cool. It has an optical lens on the end of it that allows you to look in walls, down pipes, basically, many places you couldn't see. And it is small enough to fit in tiny places. We were able to get one on a sweet sale at Home Depot a few months ago -- it has come in pretty handy. I assured Tim that Isabelle was indeed in the floor or wall because that is where her sound was coming from, and I started looking for the Snake to see if I could figure out where. At this point, though, I saw her ... sitting just below the smaller-than-an-envelope hole -- and Operation Extract Isabelle was fully under way. I have no idea how she even fit into the hole, but it was going to be pretty difficult getting her back out. After a few minutes (but it seemed like forever!) Tim got home.

Two hours later, after trying to lure her out with food, the laser pointer (she loves chasing that), trying to pull her out, sawing the hole bigger, squeezing the cat out, cuddling her, taking pictures of her once white, now smoke grey stomach and paws, giving her the second bath she has ever had (oh, she loved that), drying her off, brushing away the hair she was shedding profusely, and leaving her to lick away the night, Operation Extract Isabelle was completed -- successfully.

And Tim was able to work in the bedroom like we planned -- he just didn't get done what he had hoped to. Isabelle is happy, though -- and very soft. She is still trying to get back into the job-site. Now Tim has a baby gate up blocking her way. What a pain.

I guess the night was a success -- just not the kind of success we thought it would be.

That is all for now ...

Love,
Katie (& Tim & Isabelle)

P.S. I got an A+ on my final exam -- yeah!! AND, someone noticed that I was pregnant on their own for the first time last week 'cause I am showing pretty good now. That was fun!

Baby is Moving!!!

Boy, I can't wait to be done with this class! I am sitting here, trying to study so that I can finish my final exam tonight (it is a take-home exam) and I keep feeling flutters and movement in my belly. They are making it soooo hard to concentrate! My sister-in-law, Brandi, told me that she thinks that it kind-of "feels like you are being tickled from the inside" and I think that she is right. While it isn't that shy-away, jerky tickle that you might get when someone rubs your foot just right, the tickle from the baby makes me want to laugh out loud! Feeling the baby move warms me from the inside out. How amazing that there is life growing in me that I can feel?! With all of these flutters and movements, my mind is constantly being directed back towards the Creator of Life and the utter awe I have in the way that He created us women to actually be able to carry life inside of us. While I would (truly) love for Tim to experience pregnancy so that I can get a bit more sympathy (giggle!! Mainly in the first trimester when I was so nauseous and tired, I would say to him, "I wish you could be pregnant for just three days so you can understand!") I would not (so far) trade this experience for a million bucks! I thank God that He is allowing me an inside look/feel at/of the miracle of life.

Okay, maybe now that I have that down, I can focus a bit more on my exam ... maybe!

Wish me luck.

Katie

Week by Week

You know, the funny thing about pregnancy is the almost seemless transition you make from counting off time in months to counting off time in weeks. While I (Katie) have always thought this funny in the past, when you are waiting for those magical weeks to come around (i.e., after 12 - 13, you can be pretty sure you won't miscarry; 20 weeks = ultrasound!!; at 36 weeks, 40 can't come soon enough!) it just seems like the natural way to count. The only problem with counting in weeks (besides computing it to months for all of those people who ask, "Now how many months is that?") is that each week passes so quickly. It can truly be a stressor sometimes. All this to say, we are almost at week 17! Holy cats! While it is great to be progressing, we have so much to do in the house that I would love for the weeks to sllllllllloooooooooooowwwwwwwww down! :)

At this point, Baby Liby weighs approximatley 4.97 ounces and about 5 inches long. You can tell what gender the baby is at this point, too! Remeber to vote as to whether you think that we should find out that if baby is a boy or girl at our ultrasound. Also, I am feeling a ton more flutters and movement in my stomach, but nothing very firm yet ... oh my goodness, I can't wait to meet this baby!!

I am trying very hard to get photos of the progress of the nursery loaded to the site, but am having problems. I have a friend that I am going to ask about this, so hopefully in the next week, you can walk through the construction process with us.

That's all for now ...

Katie