Week 28 U/s & appointment

June 23:


Follow up appointment with my high risk OB. He has been on a mission trip to Haiti for about a month so I was glad that he had returned safely and he was glad to see me , “ his favorite patient” also. :0)

Our sweet Ethan is growing perfectly and seems to steal our hearts each time we see him nestled away in his bachelor pad. I just love him so much already. Its hard to imagine loving someone so much and yet have never touched them, heard them laugh/cry, or even looked them in the face. I think I’m gonna need another heart to contain all of this love as the one heart that I do have feels like it has exceeded its capacity already.

During the u/s Ethan was wiping his eyes, smiling, & even trying to suck his little toes. The u/s tech, Crystal just watched him for about a minute. He had his toes right at his lips and kept wiggling his mouth as of he were trying to reach the toes. It was so cute. We never actually saw him suck the toes but I am sure it goes on in the bachelor pad!

SEE!!!!!

He weighs 2.9 pounds and is growing perfectly. His cheeks are so BIG! Well, I guess he could have easily inherited those from EITHER of his parents. HAHA! I can’t wait to kiss ‘em.

His eyes were opened again for this u/s and from what I can see he has MY eyes ( and he's smiling in the pic below)! All of his other features resemble Chris, so I’ll take whatever I can get. It also looks like he has a dimple on his left side and chin. I have two dimples, so lets hope he gets those too. Now, the dimple in the chin is from his Daddy, no doubt. Madison also had that so I hope Ethan does too!

My cervix was almost 6 cm and thankfully, we will not have to monitor the cervix anymore unless there is reason to. Dr. G says, if something is going on at this stage I will feel it and that will be the indication to do an internal check! WHOOOO HOOO!

Sadly, Dr. G says that because everything is going so well, I really don’t need to see him anymore. WHAT??? But I love him! He said, “ I love seeing you” and you can come back whenever you want but I don’t HAVE to see you because medially you are fine. You can either make today’s visit your last or you can come back to see me in 4 weeks and look at the baby”. What do you think I chose….ummm, I’ll be back in 4 weeks to see our Baby Boy & our favorite doctor.


I don’t know how many of you know this but I lead a Pregnancy & Infant Loss support group in our area. I actually started leading this (along with another parent) when I pregnant with Madison last year. Dr. G asked how the support group was going and how I managed to lead the group. I honestly think the support group saved my life. I would have been happy just to attend and it still baffles me to think of how a hospital representative selected me to be one of the leaders of the group. I shared with Dr. G that I can’t really explain HOW I lead it but I certainly know why I lead it. I enjoy the opportunity to share with other grieving families, no matter how recent or historic the loss. Sharing our emotions, dreams, hopes, fears and even tears are vitally important to the healing process. Most grieving families just want to “TALK” and we provide that opportunity at the support group.


Dr. G said , “ I know this sounds wrong but you & your husband are such a blessing to other ppl because of what you’ve been through. I know its not fair and I certainly don’t understand it but it’s a wonderful ministry that you have and it has blessed me. If there is anything that I can do for the group financially or otherwise, just say the word. You can even meet here in my office if you ever need it”. If you ever wonder why I love Dr. G. so much its because he doesn’t just practice medicine he succeeds in relationships & touches hearts & lives every day with his passion & faith. KUDOS to Dr. G!

We also found out that Ethan will be making his arrival at 39 weeks rather than 40. Since this is a planned c-section, Dr. G doesn’t want to go past 40 weeks. So, Ethan should be here on or before Labor Day. That makes me happy and anxious all at the same time. That means we have 7 less day to complete my to-do list which consist of :

• Finding & enrolling in a daycare

• Purchasing a new vehicle ( Chris drives a truck & I drive a coupe….a new ride is a necessity)

• Complete the nursery

• Stock up on pampers

• Stock up on necessities for our house

• Plan a babymoon for Chris & I

• Maternity photos

• Clear out all of my clothes in the nursery closet

• Order thank you cards

• Take the breastfeeding class at the hospital

• Finalize details for Chris’ Black Tie Affair 40th birthday party

• And on and on and on!!!!! I NEED MORE TIME and some O2 for this hyperventilating!

28 week Development

Week Twenty Eight: May recognize your voice


You are 28 weeks pregnant. (fetal age 26 weeks)

The fetus has its own regular intervals for sleeping and being awake.

The weight has increased to 1000 grams and is 37.5cm in length.

2.2 pounds weight and is 14.8 inches in length from head to heel.

The feet are just over 2 inches (5.5cm) long.

The hair on the head is now clearly visible.

The milk teeth have developed under the gums.

The eyes are starting to move in their sockets.

Brain waves show rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which means your baby may be dreaming. Eyelids are opening. Eye color may change within the first six months of life especially if your baby's eyes are blue or gray-blue at birth. Remember to talk to your baby often; reading stories, singing songs has been seen to slow the baby's heart rate. He or she can recognize your voice now and will often calm to it later after birth.


Your uterus will be about 3 inches (7cm) above your bellybutton. During this time of your pregnancy, your belly will grow about half an inch (1cm) each week. If you have been following a nutritious, balanced meal plan, your total weight gain is probably between 17 and 24 pounds (7.5 and 10.5 Kg).

Branches of lungs are quite developed now, so there is a good chance that baby would survive if born prematurely now. If your baby is born this week, the chances of survival is now at least 90 percent. However, some complications are still possible.

Father’s Day! June 20, 2010

What a wonderful day to celebrate! I was so excited to celebrate my husband. He really didn’t think to include himself in being honored. Leading up to Father’s Day, I asked him what he wanted although I already knew what he was getting. He said ( with a puzzled look on his face) “umm, nothing I’m not a Father”. My heart sank! “ I will be a father WHEN Ethan comes but that’s different”. I had to quickly & lovingly remind him that he IS a Father, even though we don’t parent our girls and he IS a father to Ethan although he is not in our arms yet. There was a look of agreement/acceptance on his face and I can tell that he was really thinking about the statement that I made. He still never said what he wanted for Father’s Day.

Let’s fast forward to the time for the gifts!!!

He wanted to do the gifts after church so that we wouldn’t be in a rush. I complied but I like to START the day with gifts.



He came in from church & changed into some cooler clothes and saw his gifts waiting for him in “his” reclining chair. His face lit up like a kid on Christmas Morning. “ what is this……TWO CARDS????” his asked. He opened the cards, one from me and the other from our children. The front of the card from the kids read, “ I love you Daddy” on the front. His eyes filled with tears ( but he dared not left one of them fall) as he slowly read the card. I included a note from the kids & signed each of their names & included 3 big hugs/kisses from the girls.

Chris kept saying, “ aww, this is priceless….are you trying to make me cry?” He then read my card and the response was pretty much the same. Somehow the cards seemed to touch the core of him more so than the one hour massage and the new Kirk Franklin book that he’s been wanting.


Afterwards, we meet my family for dinner to celebrate my youthful looking Dad and my husband. Dinner was great and I couldn’t have been a happier lady. I was seated between the two men in the entire world that I love the most!! xoxoxo

6 years of friendship & love.... :0)

I feel incredibly blessed & favored by God to have the friendship and covenant relationship of such awesome husband. Last Wednesday, June 9th marked our 6 year meeting anniversary. I purchased a Happy anniversary card for Chris and left it in his favorite chair. He started ripping into the card and hollering,” WHAT IS THIS” and looking perplexed at the same time. He slowly read & re-read the card and then he looked at his watch to confirm the date. He looked at me & I asked, “do you know what this is about”? He said, “ NOT A CLUE”. He followed my instructions to flip to the inside back page of the card for full details. His smile lit up the room. “wow….WOW…”he repeated.

We both reflected & reminisced on how fast 6 years had gone by. I told him how thankful I was that our paths had crossed and my life has changed forever because of 6.9.04.

There are a number of things in life that bring me joy. However, my greatest joy is loving Chris and being loved by him.

( pic from Chris' birthday in 2005)

I am SUCH a sappy girl when it comes to fairy tales, romance, & love stories. Of all the tales that I know, NONE can compare to this legacy of love that Chris & I experience everyday. I look forward to the day when we can share our journey of love with our children & grandchildren.

I hope that you love like you’ve never been hurt…

Love so deeply until you are compelled to love & give more of yourself

Never let love be routine but rather a discovery

Seek a love that compares to nothing that you’ve ever experienced

Don’t settle for anything less than a love that causes you to wake in the morning and keeps you from falling asleep at night!

New Pics

We had our bi-weekly follow up today. My OB is on a mission trip to Haiti so this was a quick visit but a still a great one.  Ethan totally cooperated today so here is the evidence.  I love the pic with his eyes open!!!! Can I just say that I love this lil guy so much! Gotta run...more updates later!

Sleeping Ethan

FAVORITE!!!!!Eyes open :0)

Week 23-24 update

I am so far behind with my updates! I often think that I will go home from work and write away but my couch & comfy blanket win. I love naps right now!


We have had an uneventful two weeks! Thank God!

Wanna recap?
Mother’s Day; Beautiful day but there are always people who really just don’t know what to say. More times than I could count, people ( who knew of our daughters) said, “ Happy Mother’s Day TO BE”. I just had to thank God for the grace to simply smile & say thank you. I really wanted to say, “TO BE”???, where have you been? I’ve BEEN a mother since 2007. This really made me question WHAT IS A MOTHER? Are you a mother only if you have living children? Certainly not! I came to the realization that everyone may not view me as a four, I’m JUST an expectant woman/mother. No matter the thoughts of others, I know that I am a mother and that’s all that matters. I said happy Mothers day to my friends who have ever had a + HPT, those who have had one or multiple losses, those with no living children, those with empty arms but full hearts and those with children. Those are the mothers that I recognized!

I had my gestational diabetes test last week . It wasn’t as bad as I thought, but nothing that I’d really WANT again The glucose drink was a tropical flavor, which made drinking it a little easier. I had my labs checked one hour post drinking and still felt fine. By mid afternoon, I just wanted to go home and “get rid” of that tropical junk by any means ( or end) necessary. :0) The office was to call me back ONLY if my lab work was abnormal….It’s been over week and no call!!! YAY

I had my 2 week follow up with Dr. G on Thursday. There was a different ultrasound tech that scanned us. She remembered me from an U/s with Madison. She is known for getting the sweetest 4D pictures…until that day! She was so chatty and wanted to know all about Ethan, my cerclage and everything. She was anxious to scan him, so much so that she opted to check my cervix last. Ethan was laying face down and had absolutely no intentions of looking at her. She tried everything that she knew to get him to roll over so that she could get a good shot of his face. He was awake but perfectly content with showing us his butt & his feet only. She managed to get a few side profile pics but you still can’t see much in those because his hands are in front of his face, cupped together as if he is praying that she’d leave him alone. :0) After 30 minutes of noncompliance, the tech finally surrendered and declared Ethan the winner of THIS round. He weighed 1.3 pounds as of Thursday and everything was perfect.

We were informed that Dr. G was off & we’d be seen by his partner. No one bothered to say that he was such a handsome OB!!! He was great and did a thorough review of my history and the ultrasound findings. He said, “ there are ppl with an average cervix of about 2.5-2.8, above average is about 3, and then there’s YOURS! Girl, your cervix measures 5.4, that’s like in HOLY MOLY range”. So, I take it that he was impressed. He was also curious as to why I went to Chicago for my cerclage when there are a few doctors that have experience with them. I told him of my research with Dr. Haney, his success rate, and years of practice. His numbers couldn’t compare…he does 2-3 a year & Dr. Haney may do 2-3 a day and has been for 25 years. He did proudly say that there has been a 100% success rate in the procedures. This makes me wonder why OB’s just don’t do the abdominal cerclages all the time rather than taking the risk of cervical failure with the vaginal.

Chris & I registered over the weekend. That was fun but it wore me OUT! It seemed as though we walked up & down each isle registering for items that we’d possibly need. I looked at the registry online after we got home only to find that we had scanned 77 items. It felt like we had scanned 777 items! There was still so much that we missed,s o we’ll have to do several updates prior to our baby showers!

On Sunday, we arrived at the 24 week/6month mark!!! :0) This is also considered the age of viability. :0)  We're over 1/2 way thru this remarkable journey and Chris & I could NOT be any happier.

Here’s what going on at week 24.

Week Twenty Four: Practices breathing

You are 24 weeks pregnant. (fetal age 22 weeks)
• The child is now gaining around 3 ounces (90 grams) a week.
• Baby weighs about 1.3 pounds and is 12 inches long.
• Baby weighs about 600 grams and is 30cm (crown to heel) long.
• The eyelids can be seen very clearly.
• If born at this stage is officially considered viable, they may well be able to survive.
Your baby is producing surfactant. This is stuff that keeps the small air sacs in our lungs from collapsing. The unborn baby is covered with a fine, downy hair and the skin is protected by a waxy substance. Some of this substance may still be on the child's skin at birth at which time it will be quickly absorbed. The baby practices breathing by inhaling amniotic fluid into developing lungs.
Baby gains about 3 ounces this week. The weight is in muscle, bone mass and organs. The body begins to fill out with his appearance increasingly becoming more like a newborn. Taste buds begin to form. If mom drinks something strange or bitter, baby may be observed showing his or her distaste.
Little creases have appeared on his palms. The muscular coordination of the hands has improved as they sucks their thumb. Over the next week or so, the sweat glands will be forming in the skin. The lungs are developing branches of the respiratory tree and cells that produce surfactant, a substance that helps the air sacs inflate easily.

After this week your baby is officially considered viable. 36% of babies can survive premature birth at 24 weeks - However, serious complications are still possible.
Baby now weighs about 1.3 pound (600gm) and is around 12 inches (30cm) long.

21 week update:

We had our bi-weekly visit with Dr. G. today. My award winning cervix continues to make us extremely proud. Today’s cervical measurement was 5 cm…AWESOME! Thank GOD!

We only had a very quick scan of Ethan today. The Tech was only going to check his heartbeat until I asked how much he weighed. His heartbeat was 145 and he weighs 1 pound!!! Usually, we have some really good pics to show but that isn’t the case today. Ethan is head down & facing down with his lil butt arched to the left and his lil’ feet are right at my navel. I can’t imagine that being a comfortable position but if it works for him, it works for me. So, based on his awkward positioning we have a good shot of a foot!

Dr. G. wanted to know if I was ready to see him weekly and my answer was NO!!! Actually, I think I could handle moving the visits out to every 3 weeks but he said that he’d miss seeing us, so we’d just leave it at every 2 weeks!!! I heart him!!!! :0)

So….here’s some preggo info:

• What are my cravings?

   o Cabbage (my husband makes the B*E*S*T) and homemade coleslaw
   o Strawberry smoothies
   o Fresh Pineapple! YUM!

• What are Daddy’s cravings?
   o Frosted flakes & cheese toast ( yes, together)
   o It was an Ice cream float (vanilla bean ice cream & Pepsi) but that craving has ceased.

• How much weight have I gained?
   o 7 pounds ( I’m happy with that…I can still wear some of my regular pants)

• Symptoms/sickness?
   o Thankfully, absolutely NO sickness or even nausea!!!!
   o Heartburn for both Mommy & Daddy!
   o OILY FACE…OMG….I am shining like the STAR OF DAVID *****

• How much longer?
   o We’re 21w4d which means only 129 days until the due date!
   o 3rd trimester begins on Father’s Day, June 20th
   o I’m not in a rush…I want to enjoy each day …each moment of this wonderful pregnancy!


• Our thoughts?
   o I often daydream about Ethan. I have already hit the fast forward button in my mind and I picture the moment that Ethan cries to announce his arrival to the real world. I see the deep, warm grin on Chris’ face and feel the waterfall of tears that we’ll both release at the very sight of our love child.

   o Daddy’s thoughts:” I just think about him being HERE and arriving safely” …