It's A.......

So we had our 18 week anatomy ultrasound and the baby is absolutely perfect. Everything that is supposed to be there is there! Thank God Again!!! So this is another side picture of the baby. The head is to the left and the body goes off to the right. I think that is the cord that is above the abdomen. Again the little had is by the face.

The next picture is another side view with the arm in the air! You can't see the sillouhette of the face as much, but the bones in the arm are very prominent. Ultrasounds are amazing!

The next one is a dead giveaway of what it is........At first the baby wouldn't cooperate, due to having it's legs crossed. I was ok with that. I had already prayed and said if it didn't cooperate, it was just god telling me I needed it to be a surprise ( since I wasn't 100% about finding out). A little while late, the technician goes..oh there it is, plain as day. IT'S A BOY!!!! I figured it was going to be a boy, because he is so rambunctuous (is that how you spell it???)

I saved the best for last. They can do 3D/4D ultrasound now, where it actually shows extreme detail of the baby. It was absolutely amazing. The only downfall is, if it isn't caught at the right angle, it looks like a big blob/alien. Well, the baby had his hands over his face for a good bit of the 3D/4D part. You can see him move his hands all over his face, like he was scratching it or something ( or like I told Dean hiding his face like his daddy used to do for pictures). Anywho, he finally cooperated and we got a good shot. I have to agree with my last comment, I think he has my nose!

God is absolutely awesome and we are so thankful!! We can't wait to meet our son and begin our new journey as parents! Now that we know what he is, we can procede with preparing for his arrival. I can't wait to go shopping!! Actually, Dean and I already did last night. I wanted to get a little something to remind us of this special day. We bought a blue blanket that says "thank heaven for little boys". We haven't really talked about names yet, but we'll be sure to keep you posted when we decide.

I want to thank everyone for their prayers and support. Unfortunately what I do at work doesn't help with my nerves and our previous pregnancy can wear on me at times. But I guess I wouldn't be a good mom if I didn't worry about my child. All I can do is remember that this is my pregnancy, not my patients. Also, I'm keeping my faith, God will deliver! We just ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers!

Until next time...

With love,

Dean and Nicole

It Has Finally Happened!!

Well, I fianally had to break down and buy some maternity pants. Yep, the stomach is growing and regular cloths aren't fitting. From what I understand, I should be pretty thankful that I was almost 18 weeks by the time I had to start wearing them...none the less, I am wearing them. I went to target, and found a pair of shorts and a pair of capris. They are actually cute and comfy (maternity clothes cute and comfy, who knew). I'm hoping I will get a good bit of wear out of them, fingers crossed. I did buy these bella bands when I was in florida, they are ok. They are supposed to help keep preprego jeans up, so you can unbutton them. So, I bought a white and a black one...figuring they will go with anything. The white one seemed to work out ok, but the black one..not so much. We went to church last sunday (nothing fit) four outfits later, I had to use the bella band. After church, we went to lunch with the family and I honestly thought it was cutting off my circulation. I was soooo uncomfortable. I'll give it another try, everything and everybody deserves a second chance!!

As soom as I figure it out, I will upload the pictures of the growing belly. It is growing and the baby is kicking!! Who knows, I may have a gymnast in me....when I was looking back at the posts, the FIRST kick was on the opening day of the olympics :).

I may post before then, but be sure to check out the blog at the end of the week if you want to know what we are having!

Until next time...

All our love,

Nicole and Dean

I Think that was a KICK!!!

So, I woke up last night at 330 to go to the bathroom and couldn't go back to sleep..not again :( I worked 3 days in a row and I think that puts me on a night schedule. I guess I will have to seperate my days. Anyways, I got up and made a bagel and got on the computer for a few hours. About 600, I decided to try to go back to sleep. I got into bed and I was lying on my left side, but more on my stomach. Well, I kept feeling these weird sensations in my stomach. I thought I had felt the same things the other night, but I didn't think anything of it, for a couple of reasons. 1~ You can feel movement beginning at 16 weeks, but my doctor told me I probably wouldn't feel anything until around 20 weeks, because it's my first pregnancy. 2~ I've been feeling so many weird sensations with growing, gas and whatever else is going on in there, that I thought it was in my head. Well, I was falling asleep and I couldn't get comfy, so I turned to my back and placed my hand on my stomach in the same area I felt the sensation ( not sure why, I was convinced it was in my head). A few minutes later I swear I felt a kick. It was at 614 in the morning, and quite frankly, it scared the crap out of me :). It was really weird. I didn't feel much after that, but I also went to sleep. When Dean was leaving for work, I couldn't wait to tell him! It's starting to become so real for both of us. I think at this point, the kicks are so subtle that I will really have to lie still and focus on my stomach. I'll keep you guys posted!!
Until next time...
With love,
Nicole and Dean

I'm Getting Good at This!!

Yay!! I am finally getting a better at posting these pictures. I know how to scan a picture and upload it, but I can't figure out how to upload them from my camera. I've taken a couple pictures of the growing belly. The size of the belly depends on what I ate that day :)! I can definitely tell my uterus is growing, it is almost to my belly button! So the first picture is amazing!!! It is a silhouette of the babies face towards the left of the picture with the body going towards the right. The little moon shape above the face is the hand..it was waving to me!! It's kinda hard to tell, but I think the baby has my nose :)!! Absolutely amazing.

The second picture is amazing also! This is a picture of the back. It may be a little harder to make out, since it is small. The round object on the right of the picture is the back of the head. The back goes off to the left and up. You can actually see the spine, which is so cool!

I hope you have enjoyed the current pictures and I can't wait to show you the next set. I have my 18 week ultrasound in two weeks from today. They do a full body and anatomy scan to make sure all the parts are there. We also have an option of finding out what the sex of the baby is. It's still up in the air what we are going to do, but I think we are leaning towards finding out. Actually, I'm leaning towards finding out...Dean doesn't really care. I don't know what to do, but I have two weeks to figure it out.

As far as what it is, we just want a healthy baby. About half of people think it's a boy and the other half think it's a girl. What's your guess???

Until next time...

With love,

Nicole and Dean

The Glorious Second Trimester

Thank God for second trimesters!! I thought I was never going to live through the first. All I wanted to do was sleep. Unfortunately, it didn't even matter if Dean was off...I wanted to sleep. Thank goodness he is laid back and understanding. Although, he was probably a little happy about not dealing with my grumpy and emotional self. Enough about the first trimester...I feel like a totally different person now. I have energy and I can sleep through the night!!! :) I am learning about a few new symptoms of pregnancy...indigestion. I'll take it any day over the fatigue. I've also been noticing foods that aren't settling well. Unfortunately for me that's not good..considering I'm already a picky eater.
So I am still learning how to put pictures in the blogs..I think I may have figured "a way" out. Although, it is probably the more difficult way. So the first picture I was able to put in was from my first ultrasound at 8 weeks. It doesn't look like much right there, but it is growing!!! I went to the doctor the other day and had another ultrasound. As soon as I figure out how I got this ultrasound up, I will upload the new ones.

Until next time...
With love,
Nicole and Dean

Due Date

So, as we have been getting phone calls, texts, and emails of congratulations, the biggest question is......WHAT IS THE DUE DATE?? Ok, so if you don't already know, pregnancy makes you really ditzy and forgetful!! Anywho, due date is JAN 19th, 2009. I would also like to take this time to thank everyone for all their prays and well wishes, I know we will need them. Well, it's time to go to bed, I have to work again tonight.
Until next time!
With love,
Nicole and Dean

It's true...we're having a BABY!!!

Life has been an emotional roller coaster for the last two months. We found out in the middle of may that I was pregnant. I couldn't have been more excited! At the same time, I was really nervous. The last thing Dean or I wanted was for this pregnancy to end the way the last one did. I put my faith in the lord and prayed everyday for him to nurture me and the baby. I made it past the much dreaded 8 week mark and am getting ready to start my second trimester/4th month!

Let me bring you up to date . I have a doctor that has been absolutely wonderful. We started with early blood tests and ultrasounds. We actually saw the baby and the heartbeat at 6 weeks. Then, I had a repeat ultrasound at 8 weeks and there was still a baby and a heartbeat. The best thing was, the baby was measuring exactly 8 weeks!! Now it was getting past the 12 week mark.

I had an appointment this friday (13weeks and 4 days) that I was pretty anxious about. Guess what???? We heard the heartbeat with the doppler, it was 150bpm!!! I felt like a ton of bricks had been removed from my shoulders.

Now, let me tell you about these "pregnancy symptoms". Nausea, bloated, EXCESSIVE urination, EXCESSIVE eating, emotional basketcase (like I needed any more emotional problems), and insomnia. Actually, there are a few more, but I will spare you the details :).

I have not slept at night in over two months, this probably has a lot to do with working night shift also. It's getting a little ridiculous, but I'm PREGNANT! God is awesome!

Blogging seems to be the new thing and I thought it would be a good way to keep everyone updated on the pregnancy, especially our family and friends far away. I'm still learning how to do all this blogging stuff. I think I have the posting part down, but I can't figure out how to put pictures on it. Don't worry, I will figure it out so you guys can watch me and the baby grow!
Until next time...
With love,
Nicole and Dean