Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

Week 27!  I just cannot believe it!  Only 13 more weeks to go!  This week, you weigh almost 2 pounds (like a a head cauliflower) and are about 14 1/2 inches long with your legs extended. You are sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing your beautiful eyes, and perhaps even sucking your fingers (I hope I did not pass my thumb sucking trait down to you!). With more brain tissue developing, your brain is very active now. While your lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if you were to be born now.  The tiny rhythmic movements I have been feeling is sweet little baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother you or me!

You did the neatest acrobatic act the other night.  Your Dad and I were getting ready for bed and I felt you rolling around.  Rolling around feels much different than your hiccups or your kicking/punching.  I paused because I could see you moving.  All of a sudden a tiny bump about the size of a tangerine appeared at the top of my tummy.  It must have been your hiney!  Your Dad was able to feel it too!  It was super cute!  I can feel you growing at times and can tell you are bigger as my ribs are now getting tiny love pats from you.

Your nursery is looking more and more like a nursery!  We picked up a love-me-down glider from our neighbors, Mr. Dave and Ms. Shannon, who very generously would not let us accept this as anything more than a gift.  Doesn't it look perfect in your bay window?

I was able to find some darling fabric for your curtains that your Grandma will make.  I had to special order the fabric since there was not enough in one store in the tri-state area!  This way we know the dye lots will match.  The color pink is perfect with your wall color and will be something you will be able to have for a long time.

My cravings have been great for your growth and development.  The other night for dinner this is what I was craving, so this is what me and you had for dinner.  Fruit is still my top choice and fresh veggies are a close second!

Growing right a long!  I have a REAL pregnancy bump and I couldn't be more happy or proud to have it than I am now.  I love every second of being pregnant, including the kidney stones and still having morning sickness here and there.  I really, truly and honestly can say I love every minute of being pregnant with you.  It makes me a little teary thinking about it!  I love growing together!  Just think,  this is the first of many journeys that we will go on together, growing along the way to continue to become better people.  Exciting!

You will be here so soon and we are thrilled about this.  Patiently awaiting your healthy arrival.

With all my love,

Mom

Just An Oil Change Away

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

26 weeks is here upon us!  It is so hard to believe you are 99 days away from your due date!  Double digits baby!  So what's new with you... The network of nerves in your ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. You may now be able to hear both my voice and your Dad's as we chat with each other. Actually, we know you can hear us.  You must have a great sense of hearing!  You move around when I sing at church and move when your Dad talks to you.  Speaking of moving around, the other night you were bouncing all over the place.  I was able to push down on my tummy and you were pushing and rolling around in response!  It was really neat to watch. You are inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of your lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when you are born and take that first gulp of air. You are also continuing to put on that much loved baby fat. You now weigh about a pound and two-thirds and measure 14 inches from head to heel.  This is about the size of an English Hothouse Cucumber. 

This brother of yours was laying with his arms on either side of my stomach and his head on my belly the other night.  You were kicking around in response.  I have a feeling he knows you are in there!

This brother is ready to meet you too :).

We have been working hard to prepare the house for you when you arrive.  Some very sweet friends, Ms. Misty, Ms. Anne, Ms. Tyson and Ms. Shannon have all shared some very nice items with you (to include Pooh Bear mentioned in the last post).  Among the items has been an abundance of clothes!  Girlfriend!  You are set!  I washed, folded and organized the adorable clothes by age.  We can't wait to see you in them!  Your Dad was helping me fold them and could not believe how tiny they were!  We are very thankful for our incredibly generous friends.

This weekend your Dad finished painting your room while I organized closets.  He did a great job and was extra careful to make sure it looked perfect for his baby girl.  It really does look great and will look even better once we have everything decorated and in place.

All he had left was the trim, but he is finishing that up as I type this!

How the time is flying by.  We got the oil changed in my car the other day.  I happened to look at the date for my next oil change.  It turns out the next oil change is just a little bit before you are due to arrive.  That really put things into perspective. 

Oil changes come around so quickly which means you will be here so quickly!  It gives me chills to think about that day! We love you very much, our little Fall pumpkin baby!  See you in 99-ish days.

With all my love,

Mom

Rolling Stones

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

25 weeks down, 15 more to go.  How did that happen?!? Head to heels, you now measure about 13 1/2 inches and you weigh a pound and a half which isn't much more than an average rutabaga.  You are beginning to exchange your long, lean look for some baby fat.  Oh baby fat!  I just love baby rolls! Your wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and you will start to look more and more like a newborn. If you aren't a bald little baby, you are also growing more hair.  If we could see it, we would now be able to discern its color and texture.  Things are moving right along!

We have done a little more in your nursery.  I picked up a couple of paintings at Hobby Lobby and your Dad began to paint the walls for you.  The wooden squares you see at the bottom of this picture are samples that we brought home to compare to your nursery so we can pick colors and designs for some picture frames we will be hanging over your crib.

The 3-D flowers for the wall I picked up on sale at Carolina Pottery.  The white streak you see at the bottom is your name in letters that I made.  Your adorable name is still top secret information!!  Everything is coming together very nicely for your room.

Your Dad and I had quite the little adventure the other week that I have finally fully recovered from.  The day before the 4th of July holiday, I went to bed for what I hoped would be a pleasant nights rest.  I just was not able to get comfortable.  I would awaken every 30 minutes not feeling very well.  At first I thought it was Braxton Hicks, so I just drank some water and tried to rest.

The morning came, and I still was not feeling better.  I noticed my back started to hurt in a way I had never felt before.  Again, I just tried to drink some water and rest.  Eventually I contacted a nurse friend and my Doctor feeling something was just not right.  A couple of hours later, your Dad and I were rolling up to the maternity floor of the hospital where you will be born.  By this time, I was feeling like this....

...and this...

They quickly placed me in a room with a monitor on my tummy to hear your heart beating, and I looked just like this....

As the time in the hospital progressed, I began to feel like Joey in an episode of a sitcom I used to watch called Friends....

Oh my love, I had kidney stones!  This is very common in pregnancy, but boy did it ever hurt!  I will spare you the details of the event!  The stones finally passed which was a huge relief.  My new best friend these days is water to help prevent this from happening again.  This is a clip of the Friends episode which is a comical view of what kidney stones feel like... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLO5beZY4zc

The best part of kidney stones?  Getting to preview what it will be like when we wheel up to the hospital the day you decide to come and finding out first hand what a well oiled machine it is!  Also - we got to listen to your heart beat for over an hour.  We never get tired of that sound!  It is all worth it to finally be able to meet you.  This was just a tiny bump in the road.  We love you, everything you mean... and everything we have gone through to get to you...including a couple of kidney stones!

With all my love,

Mom

Prayers

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

We had the blessing of seeing you this week at our 24 week appointment.  What a beautiful visit! You are growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts you at just over a pound. Actually, Dr. Morton informed us at our visit that you weight one pound, four ounces, right on schedule!  You are almost a foot long, about the size of an ear of corn, which means you cut a pretty lean figure at this point.  Your body is filling out proportionally and you'll soon start to plump up. Your brain is also growing quickly now, and taste buds are continuing to develop. Your lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help your air sacs inflate once you are born. Your sweet skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

During our ultrasound, we were able to capture some pretty incredible pictures of you, my love.  You were moving all over the place which was so beautiful to watch.  We heard your heart beating which we never take for granted.  We saw your arms and legs moving, we watched you do flips, we SAW your heart beating and we saw you stretch your back out.

To me, this next picture blew my mind.  I know you are not praying in this picture, but it was such a powerful symbol to me.  It reminded me once again of what a beautiful miracle you are to our family.  It brought me back to the innocence of a little child and reminded me of the huge responsibility I have to raise you in a certain way; most importantly to love God, your family, your neighbors and of course animals.  The more I looked at this picture, the more emotional I became.  It reminded me of the most painful parts of the journey your Dad and I have gone through to get to this moment.  It moved my heart to remember how hard and long we have fought for your life, how many tears we cried... and we did not give up...no matter how tough the road before us was.  I was relieved that the journey to get to you is almost over and remembered the truth that lies in having faith the size of a mustard seed.  I truly believe this picture was a message sent down to your Daddy and me to remind us of God's faithfulness and grace for our lives.  I am forever grateful.



We got some great pictures of you!  Here is your darling hand.  Five fingers!

  This is a picture of you stretching out.

 Here is your sweet foot!  We counted five little baby toes!

We saw you smacking your mouth and sucking your thumb.  This is a picture of you trying to find your mouth with your thumb.

  This is another profile picture.

 ...and another...

 Here is a picture of your heart and at the bottom is an image of how strong your heart was beating.  We were in awe! 

The doctor said you look great.  Your heart is normal and so is your brain.  Unless something happens, this is the last time we will be able to see you before you are born.  It will be here before we know it, and we cannot wait for that day to be here.  Always remember to have faith of a mustard seed.  Your life will be blessed beyond measure if you do and keep pushing through those times you don't think you have any more to give.  We love you and thank God everyday for you, our little mustard seed!

With ALL my love,

Mom

Weddings, Babies and a Never Ending Cold!

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

23 weeks!  Here we are! Your sense of movement is well developed by now, and you can feel me dance!  I do go to a Zumba type dance class at the gym a couple of times a week, so by now you can I'm sure feel me jumping all over the place in that class!  Speaking of movements, you are quite the little jumping bean yourself!  You have gotten to the point where you kick, punch, head butt, whatever you are doing in there a lot.  I am trying to keep track of when you are most active.  They say you are beginning your wake and sleep cycles now, so I am wanting to prepare for what kind of schedule you may be on once you get here.  You don't ever wake me up at night like some babies do.  Speaking of movement, your Dad will talk to my tummy and we can see you kick, hit, headbutt my tummy in response.  It is pretty incredible to watch you move to the sound of his voice. 

Would you believe you are more than 11 inches long now?  That is the length of a piece of paper!.  You weigh just over a pound, about the size of a large mango.  Blood vessels in your lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing you for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as our dogs barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze you when you hears them outside the womb.  This must mean you are learning your Dad's voice they way you dance around when you hear his voice.

Sweet girl! Boy have I been sick! We went to the beach at the beginning of June. Your Aunt had what seemed to me like a cold with lots of sneezing, coughing and a raspy throat. She has bad allergies and just thought being in a new environment caused her allergies to flare up. Unfortunately for the two of us, and my lowered immune system, it turns out it was a terrible cold! We are now in the middle of July and I am still coughing...six weeks later :(. The coughing got so bad at one point that I was up all night for several nights coughing. I thought....hummm... I wonder if a humidifier would help? I asked one of our sweet neighbors who has three children if she had one I could borrow. She had an extra one that she gave to us! Pooh Bear saved the day and gave me some extra shut eye! I hope this coughing will stop sometime soon...

 

We decided on your nursery theme.  We picked the Coco Dots pattern from Pottery Barn Kids and plan to spice the room up with flowers and birds... shabby chic decor for our baby girl.  We hope this theme is something you will be able to have for a long time and will grow into as you grow up.  The color of the wall in this picture is also the same color we will be painting your walls.

We have also added a day bed in your nursery.  Like all parents, we know we will have some long nights where you will not be feeling well and we will need to be close by.  This is actually my day bed from when I was a little girl and the bedding and pillows are the ones that I used when I was in college.  I knew there was a reason I hung on to these things for all of these years!  The pink blanket on the end your Grandma made.  Bo is sitting at the end wondering how much longer he has to wait before he gets to meet you!

This past week, we headed to Atlanta for the wedding of a friend who I have known 99% of my life.  We went to church together, high school together and Auburn together.  It was such a nice celebration to be a part of and it was AMAZING to see my friends who have known me forever.  I hope and pray you will have forever friends like these gals (and guy).

This is Blake, my 99% of my life friend, and his beautiful new wife, Laura.

Meet Virginia.  She is a precious friend.  We had so much fun growing up.  There was never a dull moment when we were together.  Seeing her always warms my heart!

Virginia is having a baby 10 weeks before you arrive.  She does not know if she is having a son or a daughter (I am voting pink).  It is pretty special to have friends I have known all of my life to be pregnant with at the same time.  I hope one day you too will get to experience this, darling daughter!

These girls were always by  my side!  Marisa and Erika are sisters.  The four of us had a lot of really good and goofy times.  Memories I will always cherish.  Again, this too is my prayer for you.

Low and behold, the day of the wedding, a close friend from college gave birth to her first baby!  Jessica and Jonathan expanded their family by welcoming Jonathan Maverick Barton into the world.  The timing worked out perfectly where we were able to swing by the hospital for a moment to meet this tiny bundle and spend a few minutes with Jess and Jon.  My prayer for you is that you meet genuine friends in college that you will remain in touch with, and have the opportunity to celebrate the wonderful things life has to offer during and post college.

Me, Jess and baby Mav.

All together it was a whirlwind, beautiful week full of great memories.  I had a lot of time to reflect back on my life and pray specific things for you and your life that I hope will come to pass and only enrich your life more than either of us could have ever imagined.  I love you more every nanosecond my Sweet Magnolia!

With all my love,

Mom

Another Week "Squashed"

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

You are now the length of a spaghetti squash.  I have never eaten one of these vegetables, but I hear they are pretty tasty!  You are getting closer to weighing one pound.  You will start to rapidly gain weight here in the next few weeks.  It is hard to believe the second trimester is over halfway over!  You are beginning to look like a miniature newborn, but you are not quite ready to meet the world yet.  You still have a lot of developing left to do.  Your lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and you are even developing tiny tooth buds beneath your gums.  Your eyes have formed, but the irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment.

If we were able to look at you, we would be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers your body and deep wrinkles on your skin, which you will sport until you add a padding of fat to fill them in.  Your pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

So what else is new?  Father's Day!  We had a very special Father's Day this year!  One of the greatest things that happened this Father's Day is your Dad was ordained as an elder in our church.  (He is standing next to Ms. Misty in this picture).

He will serve his three year term as an Elder in our church.  He will be a leader and will be part of a select group of members of the church who will be responsible for making many important decisions for the growth of the church.  He was selected to serve by a Elder Nominating Committee, voted on by the church to serve and had to go through hours and hours of training before his ordination day!

Part of the ordination service includes all Elders in the church to come forward and lay hands on the Elders who have never been ordained.  It was a very special day because your Grandmother and Grandfather (my Mom and Dad) and your Dad's Uncle Roy were able to come forward and lay hands on your Daddy as he begins this very important journey in his faith for the church.

What made this day even more special was the secret we had. We knew you were a baby girl at this point and the only other people who knew were Ms. Misty and my parents. It was a fun little secret to have. I gave your Dad a pink tie for his first Father's Day. He wore it with much pride knowing you were with him on this special day!

Me and your Grandpa celebrating Father's Day.

Your Mom, Dad and Grandpa.

We shared the slide show this weekend with your grandparents to tell them you are a beautiful baby girl.  It was a wonderful surprise filled with many tears of joy!  We all cannot wait to see you!

With all my love,

Mom