32 Weeks

How your baby's growing: By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

Only 8 weeks to go! I can't believe how fast the time is going by. Seems like yesterday I was just 6 months along. I'm still feeling pretty good, just a little sore and sleepy. But that's to be expected. I need to go to bed earlier, but I just cannot get myself used to laying down at 9:00. I have to watch Grey's Anatomy on Thursday's and it doesn't go off until 10:00! Everyone tells me to sleep now because I won't be able to sleep that much when the baby arrives. I'm trying...it's just not happening yet. At least I get an extra hour this weekend because of daylight savings time.

I have sorted through all of the gifts we received from our showers. Wow! I don't need to buy any clothes for at least 3 months. :) We were overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends and family at both of our baby showers. We are truly blessed! We are currently trying to organize the nursery and put away everything. As soon as that is done, I promise to post pictures of the nursery!

We still haven't decided on a name. We have about 5 names we like, and of course each of our top picks is different. Maybe when we see her we will know what the right name is.

Baby Shower in NC

Several ladies at my church back in NC hosted a shower for me on Sunday, October 26th. It was so much fun to see everyone again and be able to visit with them, even if it was only for a short time. I have never seen so many gifts! Everyone was so generous and it made me feel so special. Our little baby girl is definitely loved by many already!

4-D Ultrasound

Ricky and I had a 4-D ultrasound done at Tiny Toes Imaging on Saturday while we were home visiting family. It was so neat! My mom, grandma, brother, and Ricky's mom joined us and we all were amazed and what we saw. She has the cutest little nose and really pretty lips. She was pretty active during the ultrasound, but she kept blocking her face with her hands and feet. Yes, her feet! She is definitely flexible! You can see her foot on the left side of some of the pictures.
In the picture below, her eyes and mouth are open and she is trying to suck her toe.
We also got to see a little bit of her personality because she stuck her middle finger up at us. As if to say, stop poking me!
We can't wait to meet this precious little girl!

Baby Shower in Myrtle Beach

This past Saturday my college friends came down and hosted a baby shower for me at my house. And I must say, they went above and beyond! It made me feel so honored to see all the personal touches they added to make the shower special for me. It was SO much fun! Not only did they make delicious food and decorate my house beautifully, we also go to catch up and enjoy a fun girls weekend! We stayed up late talking, watching movies, and of course, eating chocolate and ice cream! (Ricky stayed at a friend's house because there were too many women in the house for him!)
The shower was a blast. Numerous coworkers as well as friends came by and we had fun talking and playing games. I received cute outfits, blankets, socks, diapers, etc. and everyone got to see what a wonderful job Ricky did painting the nursery. My mom and mother-in-law were in town and I'm so glad they were there to share the day with me.


















Yummy cupcakes!

More Baby Shower pictures

More Baby Shower pictures

Start the Countdown!

30 Weeks

How your baby's growing:Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

I am officially 30 weeks as of tomorrow. Only 10 weeks to go! I'm counting down! It seems like the last 2 months have flown by. The baby is getting more active as the days go by. Sometimes it feels like she is doing somersaults. It's so neat to watch my belly as she moves around and kicks. It's just amazing that there is a little person inside there. Definitely a miracle and no other explanation for it other than it being God's creation. I can't wait to meet her!

I had a checkup this afternoon. My blood pressure was a little low, but that's normal for me. My weight was fine and my belly is measuring what it should. I go back in 3 weeks, then will continue to go every 2 weeks until the last month.

My first baby shower is this coming weekend and I'm so excited! Some of my college friends from Raleigh are headed to the beach to host the shower for me. A lot of coworkers and friends will be attending and I can't wait to see everyone. My mom, grandma, and mother-in-law will also be in town. I'm really looking forward to the shower and the time to visit with everyone.

Ricky painted our nursery over the weekend and it looks really cute. We did stripes on the bottom half of the wall in 2 shades of red and a very pale pink at the top with a white chair rail in the middle. I will post pictures once we have a few more decorations in the room.

We still haven't decided on a name but we have a few favorites. We are still open to suggestions! Feel free to email them to me at sblyons@sc.rr.com.

I don't like shots!

28 Weeks

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Our little baby girl is definitely getting more active. She is actually developing a routine of when she moves and when she is sleeping. I notice her moving when I work out in the mornings, then on my way to work. She is probably enjoying my breakfast...hope she likes cereal and bananas because that's all I tend to eat in the mornings! Then around 11 am and right after lunch she becomes active again. Her movements are getting stronger and you can definitely see them on the outside. Her kicks and pokes have been seen by Ricky along with some of my coworkers. It's one of the neatest feelings ever!

She moves again on the way home and usually after dinner. And, of course, she starts to move when I go to bed! I wish she understood bedtime a little better. Her movements aren't strong enough to keep me awake right now, but in another month she may start depriving me of sleep. I guess I better get used to that!

This week I had a doctor's appointment for my Rhogam shot. Here's a brief explanation. Because I have a negative blood type and Ricky has a positive blood type, we don't know what blood type the baby will have until she is born. If she were to have a positive blood type, my body would see that as foreign and produce antibodies that would begin attacking her blood cells. I got the Rhogam shot to prevent my body from producing those antibodies. My blood work that I had done on Monday revealed that I was negative for antibodies, meaning my body was not yet producing them. However, they give you the shot as a preventative measure. I will get another shot once the baby is born. Shots are no fun but at least it was quick!

As you can tell by my picture, I am starting to poke out just a little. Ha Ha...I'm poking out a lot now! I'm still gaining weight steadily and continuing to work out. I have cut back my intensity because I'm becoming more tired and sore as the weeks go by. Especially in my pelvic region. I read that my bones and cartilage are starting to soften and separate to make way for baby. No wonder I'm sore!

Ricky and I will be painting our nursery in the next week. I will post pictures soon...