it's appointment day!

Baby appointment this afternoon! I look forward to these all month and can't wait!!

just keep swimming...just keep swimming...

It feels like Sprout has been doing a lot of that lately! We've heard that some people can start feeling the baby as early as 16 weeks but were kind of skeptical we'd feeling anything so soon. I'm at the middle of 16 weeks and the other night I was laying in bed reading and had my hand on my belly. I noticed one side felt a little harder than the other, as if something (or someone) was pushing against that spot. When Jen came in from her shower I told her to feel my belly. After being a little grossed out, she pushed on the spot then across my belly to feel the difference. She felt the harder spot and as she was pressing she felt something move. It was like a little flutter from one side to the other and she said "my baby is moving!" I will never forget the look on her face! It was a combination of shock and amazement and love and nervousness and utter happiness. I put my hand on the same spot and could feel it too. It was like little Sprout was swimming around in my belly! I've felt the same fluttery, swimming feeling the last few days at work. When I'm sitting at my desk typing and it's quiet in the office I feel the little flutter go from one side to the other. So amazing!

We have our next Sprout appointment tomorrow afternoon and neither of us can wait! We're hoping to have our 2nd trimester ultrasound but I have a feeling that will be next month. Can't wait to see and hear our little Sprout again!

feeling pretty...

My first maternity outfit! Well the skirt anyway. :) The belly is definitely there now and I'm starting to feel pregnant instead of just fat. I love watching the little one grow and am so excited for each day!

Good news!

At our first pre-natal visit, the Nurse Midwife had gone over a huge list of items and one was to think about whether we wanted to do any early genetic testing. We had discussed it even before we were pregnant and thought it might be something that we wanted to do. We wanted to know if we would be having a child with special needs so we could be prepared as possible and have the tools to help us be the best parents we could be. After talking a little more, Jen and I had decided that we wanted to do the sequential screening to determine whether or not the baby would have Downs Syndrome or Trisomy 18.

Last week we headed down to the medical office in Springfield and started off by meeting with a genetic counselor. She explained to us what they would be looking for, the types of tests that would be administered and what our testing options were. We decided on the sequential screening because it was non-invasive and neither of us wanted to take our chances with an amniocentesis if it wasn't necessary.

After our meeting, we headed in for an ultrasound where we got to see little Sprout and my very full bladder! After a couple of measurements, the sonographer had me go to the bathroom (thank goodness) and come back to finish the ultrasound. We saw finger buds, arms, legs, brain, eyes, chin, spine, belly...our baby. :) Afterwards the doctor came in and did a little more looking, again confirming everything looked good and we got an A+ for the day. Next up was the blood draw. I have to say, probably my least favorite part of the day! I survived and we were on our way back home.

And then the wait begins...we tried not to think about it. Just focused on work and home and all of the other things we needed to accomplish in the following days. Yesterday I got a call from the genetic counselor who said she had good news! Our blood test came back excellent. There is a 1/7000 chance of Down Syndrome and 1/10,000 chance of Trisomy 18! The counselor said those were very good numbers and we felt so relived! We love our child no matter what, special needs or not. Jen and I both have members of our family with special needs that are treasured and loved. We want whatever child we are intended to have. But are still very happy that things seem to be just fine.

The final step is a 2nd blood test closer to week 16 of pregnancy, which the counselor felt would be confirmation of the results we'd already received. We'll also need to do a 2nd trimester ultrasound,which we both love because it means we get to see Sprout again!

Thanks everyone for their love and support! We'll continue to keep you posted!

when you least expect it...

That's what we kept hearing when we were trying to get pregnant. Try not to think about it so much...things will happen when you relax and least expect it. That statement never felt true for us. How could we NOT think about it? It was something that required lots of thought and planning and timing and testing and and and...how could we relax, not think about it? Turns out we just needed something else to focus our attention on. When we started our parenting/adoption classes we were still trying but it became something that moved a little more to the back of our mind. We had decided to have more patience and just not put so much pressure on ourselves. When the test showed I was ovulating we were excited but we'd been there before. I'd ovulated before, we'd been inseminated before and we'd been disappointed before. We made an appointment for the insemination, let out little squeals of glee, and went back to focusing on our adoption/parenting classes.

The day came for insemination, there were more squeals of glee, nervousness, fingers crossed and we got to experience a really awesome moment together as a couple. It's obviously a very sterile, clinical environment when one is inseminated in the medical office setting. Not the most romantic place in the world. :) But our doctor (once she got past telling me how fat I was) let Jen push the button on the syringe, finished up and then let us have some time together. They ask that you stay lying down for 20 minutes. As the doctor left she said good luck with a smile, that she'd come check on me in 20 minutes and closed the door quietly. Jen, still holding my hand, smiled at me just as I let out a huge sigh and some tears to go with it. Everything I'd been holding in just came out. The nervousness, the frustration, the shock of being lectured for 15 minutes about my weight, the excitement, the love for my wife, our life. So many emotions...I just couldn't hold everything in. Jen wiped my tears, kissed me and kept a hold of my hand. We just sat there in the quiet, each of us hoping and praying it had worked, pushing all of our good energy towards the positive.

And it was in that moment that I knew it had. It felt different. I felt different. Maybe it was just extremely wishful thinking but I knew I was pregnant. Eventually the doctor came in, answered some questions, wished us good luck again, and we were on our way. We had a nice, relaxing lunch together and then went home to rest. Immediately my body felt different. Pains I hadn't felt before, bloating, really really tired. And then my nose went crazy and I could smell everything! I started to get queasy in the mornings. I was falling asleep every night after dinner. And still that feeling that I just knew. Even before a test was taken or I had any confirmation. I just knew.

January 31st...2 weeks to the day we'd been inseminated and the longest we were willing to wait to find out. I took a pregnancy in the morning and it didn't give any result. Dang thing was busted! So I brought another one with me to work and waited until the lunch hour (and when I had to pee again! haha!) Ever the ideal place to find out if you're pregnant or not but I worked with what I had. I sat there, under the glare of the flourescent light, when the word I'd been looking for popped up: pregnant. I twisted and turned the test, looking at the word, trying to find the best light, making sure there wasn't a "not" on the display screen. Nope, just pregnant. My suspicions had been confirmed and I was holding in those squeals of glee!

I ran back to my desk and emailed Jen right away to ask if she wanted to have lunch. She said "sure, what's going on?" and my response was "I just thought we could talk about how to decorate the nursery". She knew instantly and sent me a response that said "OH MY GOD!" I went to her building and met her at her moms office, who works in the same building. We got giant hugs and congratulations from her and went to lunch. We must have looked crazy...walking around with these goofy smiles on our face and shaking our heads in disbelief. :) Every once in a while those little squeals of glee would escape and we'd start laughing. We are going to be parents!

And now we're at week 14. We've gotten to see the baby at two different ultrasounds and hear the heart beat. Everything indicating that things are going great and the baby is growing well and is healthy. Our last ultra sound we got to see little Sprout wiggle and kick his or her feet and move their hands. At one point, annoyed that the tech was pushing on my belly, Sprout flipped around and showed us his/her back. Like "okay, I'm done. Stop pushing on me." Miracle is the only word I can think of to describe it. I layed there, Jen sitting next to me holding my hand, watching our son or daughter flip around and wiggle and move and live. Miracle.