16 Week Checkup

Dearest Baby-
What a beautiful morning! I woke up this morning feeling excited about you and how well my doctor's appointment went yesterday afternoon. Here are some stats from the visit:
Weight= +1.2 pounds (But I had lost 2 pounds, so I am not sure if that's considering gaining 3.2 pounds or just 1.2 pounds total. Either way is fine with me and still well within a healthy range at this point in the pregnancy)
Blood Pressure= 100/70 (Which was excellent since my last few visits measured slightly on the high side and I was a little concerned that it might be creeping up)
Heart Rate= 152 beats per minute (Perfectly average for your age)
Other than those few little measurements, the doctor took some blood/urine to send off for testing and asked me how I was feeling. I told me that we were excellent and then we were on our way home! The next appointments are the mid-pregnancy anatomy scan and another monthly checkup in June. So far, so good......
I love you very much!
Love, Mom
PS- Please start kicking me soon so I can feel you moving. I am really looking forward to that happening in the next couple weeks. It's going to be great!

Glider

Dear Muchkin,
Your Daddy just ordered a glider for your nursery which should arrive in 4-6 weeks. This chair is a gift to us from your Great-Grandma Wickham. Thanks Grandma! During our family visit this past weekend, we talked a lot about you and our preparation for your arrival. We just need a few pieces of furniture to make the nursery complete and this was one of them. We are so grateful for this nice surprise gift! We shopped around a bit and sat in quite a few chairs before settling on this one from Costco:

It's very comfortable, sturdy, and affordable. Practical enough for your Dad and stylish enough for your Mom. Also, your Grandma and Grandpa Wilkin loaded us up with a great big gift bag full of goodies for you to take home with us. There were tons of cute clothes, bibs, bottles, wipes, a blanket, shampoo, and some diapers. It was like having a little mini baby shower! I have already washed and folded all the clothes to be put away once we get a dresser. You are so lucky to Grandparents who are going to spoil you! This afternoon I have a checkup with Doctor Davis, so I will write tomorrow and let you know how it went.
I love you,
Mom

16 Weeks

Dear Muchkin,

Today I am 16 weeks pregnant. We are 4/9 of the way through our pregnancy journey together. That's pretty close to half-way done! This month you have grown a lot and it's pretty obvious that I am with child. I love feeling the bump grow and not being able to see my feet in the shower. Your Daddy makes fun of me because I am always touching or rubbing my belly. I can't feel you moving quite yet, but it shouldn't be long now. Everything I have read says that I should begin to feel movement within the next couple weeks. I am psyched for that! I am no longer allowed to sleep on my back anymore, which is taking some getting used to. But most nights, I am still tired enough to fall asleep on my side without a problem. This month has been pretty uneventful (pregnancy-wise) other than getting some "things" ready for your arrival. We have purchased a few baby items, signed up for all our baby classes, picked out a nursery theme, researched a possible pediatrician, talked through child care vs. stay at home possibilities, and committed to the idea of cloth diapering (Props to Emily for helping me out on a lot of things things). So I am feeling a little more "in control" of the situation. At least, we have some what of a plan of action in place. Although I am very aware that most of it will go out the window once you arrive! Here's what your Mama looks like at four months pregnant:

This weekend, your Grandpa & Grandma Wilkin and Uncle Ross will be in town visiting your Great-Grandma, so it should be a fun family weekend get together. I am sure they will be shocked to see all the changes in me since the last time we saw each other! I will write again next week after the weekend and my next doctor's appointment.

I love you with all my heart,

Mom

Baby Deals

Dearest Babe-

We finally got all of your "new" stuff cleaned up, put together, and your crib mattress arrived from Costco. Right now everything is just randomly thrown in the your room, but Grandma Lumsden and I have already narrowed down a plan to make your nursery look oh-so-adorable! You are very lucky to have such a crafty, creative, and talented Grandma. I have no doubt that everyone will be thrilled with the outcome of your nursery sometime this summer. Here's a sneak peek at our baby bargains:
Crib:

Stroller:

Car Seat and Bases:

Changing Table:

Aren't they great?

Love, Mom

Baby Buys

Dear Munchkin,
Last week we made our first official baby purchases. I really wanted to take some pictures before I wrote about them, but we just didn't have time this weekend to get it all together. Hopefully we can work on that this week, so you I can post of pictures of all your "new" stuff. We bought: a crib, changing table, stroller, car seat, and two bases for the car seat. All for the low low price of $200 dollars! We certainly don't need all these items right now, but in the end, we couldn't pass up such a great bargain. Plus we ordered a crib mattress from Costco that only ended costing us $30. (That's after we bought new tires and a gift certificate was applied!). Your Daddy's company sends out an email announcement where people post items that they want to either buy or sell. Kinda like an online garage sale of sorts. Last week, there were tons of baby items for sale and we managed to score these items. All of them are gently used, but in great shape. Our priority is that you are safe and comfortable. These items fit the bill perfectly without strangling our budget. I will try to get some pictures posted soon when everything gets cleaned up and put together.
I love you,
Mom
PS- I had the best Mother's Day ever just thinking about you and how happy I am to be your Mom.

Scared

Dear Munchkin,
Sometimes you will feel scared. Sometimes you might feel alone. Sometimes you will worry about things you can't control. Sometimes you might wonder why you or someone you love is feeling hurt. And that could make you feel sad. This morning your Uncle Geoff had heart surgery. Not to worry, everything turned out just fine and he is in the hospital recovering as I type. But all day, your Daddy and I felt scared, worried, nervous, and helpless. These are all feelings that you will have when you love someone and they are hurting. I want you to understand that it is OK to have these feelings and sometimes we all feel that way. Life is not always a bed of roses. But in the end, you will be surrounded by a family that loves you and will support each other during hard times. That's what families do, we lean on each other during the rough times and do our best until things seem a better.
I love you,
Mom

2nd Ultrasound

Dearest Babe-
Yesterday, I fell in love with you all over again. Your Daddy and I got another glimpse of you and you have changed so much already. I know it is hard to tell from the ultrasound pictures, but you look like a real baby now. We saw your head, tiny body, your arm, and even a small hand. You moved around quite a bit for us and your heartbeat is going strong at 169 beats per minute. At one point, you even looked like you were hitting yourself in the head with your little hand. I imagine you were shaking your fist at us for disrupting your sleep with all of the poking and prodding. The ultrasound technician took all kinds of measurements and pictures which told Doctor Davis that everything looked good. The blood work came back with great results and that definitely put our minds at ease. I am trying not to worry to much about things I can't control, but my desire for you to be healthy and safe sometimes gets the better of me! You will soon learn that I am a bit of a worrywart, but I assure you it's only because I love you so much. We chatted briefly with Doctor Davis after the ultrasound and set up our next couple appointments. At the end of this month, I have a 16 week checkup which will be quick and easy. Just some more blood work and a few questions. Then on June 13th, we have our big ultrasound which makes sure all of your anatomy is developing the way it should. That ultrasound will be exciting, because you will be a lot easier to see and so much bigger! I can't believe that in June, my pregnancy will be half-way over. As excited as I am to meet you, I still feel selfish because I don't want to share you with the rest of the world yet! Here are some more pictures from yesterday's photo shoot:

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Alleged Profile

Big Brain



Cutie Pie

Love, Mom

PS- Yesterday you hit the big time when we were mentioned on Emily's blog!