30-10

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

We are getting VERY close to the kick off of the 2012 Football Season which is a time of year for your Dad where every weekend is like Christmas.  Your week ratio this week reminds me of a football score: 30-10... 30 weeks down, 10 to go!

These pictures below were taken in 2008 at the USC stadium. Your Dad was selected for the Punt, Pass and Kick contest. We have it all on video and will have to show it to you one day, and tell you the hilarious stories that surrounded this moment!

We were able to bring friends and family on the field with us, so naturally, your Dad wanted his Dad, your Papa to be there to experience this once in a lifetime moment!

Funny I took a picture of the 10 yard line, and here I am writing you this football score type of post with 10 weeks left to go.

Pre-filming your Dad for the big screen.

 On the big screen!

And it's good!  He made the kick, so we HAD to pause for a picture to capture the moment!

You are about 15.7 inches long now, and weigh almost 3 pounds like a head of cabbage. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds you, but that volume will decrease as you get bigger and take up more room. Your eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen.  Even after you are born, you'll keep your eyes closed for a good part of the day. When you do open them, you'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means you can only make out objects a few inches from your face.  I guess we can look forward to lots of nose to nose Eskimo kisses when you first get here!  Oh, I just cannot wait!

Your Dad was able to assemble your crib with a few moments of comedy mixed in.  Once we had the crib together and the bed made, it really made us realize how close we are to holding you in our arms.  There are no words to describe our joy.

Working hard! (The screw driver you see on the floor is my very first screw driver.  Your Grandpa bought it for me when I was in college.  A girl needs a few tools to get by!)

Isn't your bed beautiful!

Your special ordered curtain fabric came in the other day.  I was able to find some fun material for the tie backs.  It will be something else to see the finished product hanging from your bay window!

In other news, we went to an all day baby class at the hospital on Saturday.  It was a class called Your Special Delivery and it taught us all about labor and delivery, the different types and options for delivery and what happens after you get here.  We also learned about different comfort measures during the process and got to tour the facility.  It was a great day!  Your Dad was so proud when the instructor told us about the important role Dad's have in taking pictures, carrying the baby too and from the nursery and being with you during those first few moments where they take your foot prints and measure you.  I honestly can say, I don't think I have ever seen him that proud.  During the breathing exercises, you were kicking up a storm!  I still never tire of feeling your movements.  We are very fortunate to have a baby that moves as much as you do.  I feel you a good portion of the day, and your Dad gets to feel you pretty much once a day.  Some Dads only feel their baby move a handful of times.  We are so grateful for every tiny movement you make.

I head to my 30 week appointment tomorrow!  I will be sure to tell you all about it.  Only 70 more days until your due date.  Only around 70 more days until we will finally meet and we will get to hold you in our arms.  This is so real, and so wonderful.  We love you.

With all my love,

Mom

Dream a Little Dream of Me

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

You now weigh about 2 1/2 pounds like a butternut squash, and are a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. Your muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and your head is growing bigger to make room for your developing brain. To meet your increasing nutritional demands, I will need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because your bones are soaking up lots of calcium, I will be sure to find another good sources of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice. This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited into your hardening skeleton each day.  Good thing I love cheese and orange juice!

  

Last weekend, your Dad and I headed to Atlanta for the weekend to celebrate our sixth wedding anniversary and to have one more get away before your arrival here in under 80 days.  It is hard to believe it has been six years since this day!

We have certainly had our ups and downs like any other couple, but we love each other through it all and are stronger from every experience.  We wouldn't have it any other way than to be married to each other and to have your as our daughter.  We pray that your marriage will be full of love, commitment, trust and utmost respect.  Never settle for anything or anyone less who will not give you these things and more.  You deserve nothing less!

(What a handsome man your Daddy is!)

We picked Atlanta as our last little get away because it is the city I grew up in and still know quite a few people down there.  We also know our way around the city.  These two things combined gave us comfort in the event there was some situation we needed to attend to immediately with you.

We had a lot of fun!  We started our trip with attending a Braves game.  It is going to be so much fun taking you to Turner field to watch some games and teach you how to chop!

Friday nights at Turner Field, Publix sponsors fireworks!  We stayed to watch the colorful display.  I am not really sure what you thought about the fireworks.  You either really liked them, or did not like them at all because you were squirming around every where as the fireworks boomed in the sky.  It was making me laugh!

 The next day we ate at one of my favorite restaurants, The Cheesecake Factory. We had this amazing Snickers Cheesecake for dessert. Yummy! I hope one day your Grandma will make you a homemade cheesecake. She is quite the cheesecake baker!

We visited the Atlanta Aquarium while we were down there. We wanted the weekend to be low-key with indoor activities to make sure we didn't put too much stress on you. There are lots of beautiful fish at the aquarium and a great dolphin show. When you get a little bigger we will have to take you there. 

 We had dinner at a local Atlanta favorite called Pittypat's Porch. They serve traditional Southern food with a Gone With the Wind Flare. It was delicious!

I was exhausted at this point, so we headed back to the hotel and dipped in the pool for a minute, exchanged anniversary presents and enjoyed the view from our hotel room. It was a wonderful anniversary trip!

On our way home, we enjoyed a local Atlanta tradition for lunch, The Varsity.  Your dad and I both enjoyed this tasty food when we were growing up.

 My eyes were clearly bigger than my stomach.  I did not come close to finishing this plate.  We look forward to sharing The Varsity experience with you!

Now to tell you about the rest of the week....

Stars shining bright above you

Night breezes seem to whisper, "I love you"

Birds singing in the sycamore tree

Dream a little dream of me

I had the most beautiful dream of you on Saturday night.  I woke up with a smile on my face remembering this dream.  All my life, I have had very vivid dreams.  I also have experienced a handful of dreams that are very significant and leave me with the powerful warm feeling inside that it was more than just a dream - that it was a message.  This was one of those dreams.  Would you believe that I have literally been dreaming of you for 12 years, since I was 18?  The first dream I had of you my Grandmother came to me and told me that first, I would marry someone special when the time was right followed by specifically telling me that I would also have a child when the time was right and she would provide us with a name for that child.  (I cannot wait to tell you all about your name and how your Dad and I both knew the moment we spoke the name that "this is it - this name is specifically for our daughter").  As you know I have had three very distinct dreams since being pregnant with you that you are our daughter which turned out to be true.  Well, this dream Saturday night takes the cake!

...It was late at night and me and your Dad were sitting in your nursery.  The lights were low and I was holding you in my arms rocking you.  I saw your face and it was the most beautiful face I have ever seen.  I just stared at you with such overwhelming love and awe.  You didn't look so much like me or your Dad.  You just looked like you and did not look like any other baby I had ever seen.  I can still close my eyes and see the image of your face!  You had fair and soft skin, chubby pink cheeks, a round button nose, blue eyes, and lots of hair that was a color between my hair color and your Dad's, and there was lots of hair!  I just rocked you while your Dad and I quietly looked at your beautiful face.  This dream to me was reassurance that everything is going to be just fine for the rest of this pregnancy and instilled in me even more than I already know what a precious appointed gift you are to our family.  You were a part of the family before you were even created - before your Dad and I ever knew each other.  There is an incredible plan for your life, daughter, and I am over the moon excited to watch this plan unfold.

Onto another week of loving and dreaming of you and your beautiful face.

With all my love,

Mom

Bionic Pancreas

Dear Sweet Baby Kay,

I apologize for the delay this week!  I was waiting on some test results before I updated, and I just got them in the mail today!  We have a little celebrating to do.  We have made it to 28 weeks, the third and final trimester!  Only 12 more weeks until your beautiful long awaited due date arrives!  By this week, you weigh two and a quarter pounds, like a Chinese cabbage and measure 14.8 inches from the top of your head to your heels. You can blink your eyes, which now sport lashes.  I did a eye color predictor test online that factors in your parents eye colors, as well as the eye colors of your Grandparents and blood related Aunts and Uncles.  This fun little test said you will 100% have green eyes like me - we shall see (no pun intended).  You will most likely be born with blue, like a lot of babies are, and they will slowly change over time.  For a long time my eyes would change color depending on what I wore, which was pretty neat.  Your Dad has All American baby blue eyes which you can't ever go wrong with!  If you have my eye color or your Dad's we know they will be light and beautiful! With your eyesight developing, you may be able to see the light that filters in through my womb. You are also developing billions of neurons in your brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.  Here is a picture that shows us a good idea of what you look like now. 

I had my 28 week appointment with the doctor.  The big deal with this appointment is the pregnancy glucose screening test.  I fasted before my test and went to the doctor at 7:30am and had to drink a super sugary drink and then wait an hour.  

My blood was drawn at the end of the the hour to see how fast my pancreas processed the sugar. If my pancreas did not process the sugar fast enough, it put me at risk for gestational diabetes, which would mean I would need to take a three hour glucose test to rule out gestational diabetes. I got the results in the mail today. I looked up the normal range they are looking for which is around 130-140. My level came back at 95! This means my pancreas processes sugar super fast which is excellent!  Bionic pancreas, I will take it!

While I was waiting on my hour to pass, I met with one of the doctors in the practice who went over my vitals.  My blood pressure was great (102/76) and I have gained three pounds this month which puts me about 5 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight which is great.  You measured 28 weeks, which was a few days larger than the actual time frame (27 weeks, 4 days is where you were at this appointment) which means you are growing nicely!  The doctor said your heart beat was great and very strong.  Nothing to worry about!  I will now be on a two week schedule of doctor visits because we are getting so close to your due date!

Here is a picture comparison of how you have grown.  This first picture is at 17 weeks, and the second is 10 weeks later at 27 weeks.  It is just amazing to me.  Day to day I don't notice the growth, but over time you can really see how you have "popped"!

We are so grateful to have made it to the third trimester with you.  What a blessing to be here in the home stretch knowing how healthy you are.

With all my love,

Mom