Turn Your Blog Into a Book

So I just wanted to share something I just came across tonight - a website called Blurb.  They can turn your blog into a book!  This is one of the reasons why I wanted to create a blog.  I don't think I'll have much time to create scrapbooks, so instead I am going to try to create a book every 6 months to a year.  That gives me a huge incentive to keep updating my blog!!

We Had Another Ultrasound Today

So at 22 weeks and 4 days, we had another ultrasound.  She is perfect - weighing in at 1 pound 2 ounces with a heart rate of 146.  

You might be asking yourself, "didn't they just have an ultrasound?".  And the answer is yes, about a month ago.  We worried some people because we were gone so long for our previous appointment, but we told everyone (other than the grandparents) that everything was fine and that we just had to wait awhile, but that was NOT the entire truth.  

The truth was that the doctor saw 2 cysts in our baby's head.  Once he verified, he started off saying "OK, now don't get overly worried yet, but . . . ".  It's just not something you want to hear.  So apparently having cysts can possibly indicate T18 aka Edward's disease.  It's a horrible disease that affects pretty much every organ in the baby's body and the baby is "lucky" to live from 1 week up to 6 months old (50% don't make it past the first week).  So once the cysts were spotted we were immediately ushered to the lab to have blood work done for a quad screen.  The doctor was not overly alarmed because our baby girl showed no other signs of having this disease (e.g. closed fists, thick neck).  

We received the results from the blood work about 2 weeks ago.  We found out that my chance of having a baby with T18 was 1 in 46,000, which is great!  People's whose results come back at 1 in 3,000 or less are high risk for T18, so we were ecstatic and relieved.  Our doctor wanted to do a follow-up exam today just to make sure she was still growing and developing at the proper rate, which was the case, and we found out that the cysts disappeared!!! =)  About 1 in 300 babies show cysts some time during the development process.  

Today our baby girl was extremely active again - opening/closing her hands, rubbing her face, kicking.  You can see ripples in some of her ultrasound pics (I'll try to post some more early next week)!  And that was the silver lining of all this drama ... we were able to have another sneak peak of our little bun in the oven!

I really wanted to share this story just to make people aware of T18 and to let those parents know who have a child with this disease that my thoughts and prayers are with you!

Nursery Furniture and Bedding

After much deliberation and research, we finally picked out and bought the furniture for our baby's nursery! So many choices, so many reviews, different finishes, etc, ect. We went out to Berg's today and fell in love with a set in an espresso finish, called "Urban". Also, we lucked out and bedding in the colors we wanted went on clearance ... 75% off (can't beat that)! Woo Hoo! Here's some pics, so you can start to visualize the room! At this moment, we think we are going to paint the walls light pink and I'm hoping to work with my friend, Lexi, who owns a company called Simply Said (http://simplysaidwalldecor.com/default.aspx), on a really cool black pattern for the wall the crib will be on! I'm also searching for a small chandelier to hang and am thinking about using floral kissing balls floating in the air. I think the room will be magical once it's finished and I can't wait to share the results with you all!

I wanted to share a couple of my ultrasound pictures with you. The first picture is of her head - you can see the outline of her head, where her brain, eyes, nose, and mouth are, and she has her arm up rubbing her face. The second picture is a more "fleshy" looking version of her face.

Also, for those you love details, I forgot to mention that our baby girl's heart rate was at 148 and she weighs in at a whopping 11 ounces!

We Don't Have to Call the Baby an "IT" Anymore!

It's official . . . we are having a little baby girl! We had to wait over an hour in the waiting room, but it was well worth the wait. Not only were we able to find out the sex, but we got to see her move around, rub her face, kick . . . she was having a grand old time showing off!

Let's Try This Out!

I know a bunch of people that are keeping these family blog sites and I really love to read them. . . So, I'm going to try this out. Not only will it be a great way for our friends and family to keep updated on our pregnancy, but when we do something crazy (like move to North Ridgeville), it won't be a huge surprise to everyone . . . plus, I'm hoping this will force me to take more pictures.

Today, we are officially 20 weeks pregnant! Half way through! Also, we will find out the sex of our baby today. Well, I should say hopefully find out the sex of the baby . . . that only happens if the baby feels like cooperating! =)

I would like to introduce our family as it is right now, though. As many of you know, we have three fur-babies - Zoey, Wallace, and Lola. Zoey and Wallace are 2.5 and 1.5 years old respectively, with Lola just turning 1 a couple of months ago. They can be quite the handful at times, but each passing day gets easier as everyone rises from puppyhood. We love them all to pieces . . . they are the best little pack anyone could ask for!