Josiah Neal {33 Weeks}

We are at 33 weeks today!  My doctor told me at my appointment on Friday that Josiah was probably going to be a big baby.  We will be having another ultrasound in a couple of weeks so I guess we will find out for sure then.  This is just a little bit scary because my doctor said that he would recommend an induction around 38 weeks to avoid Josiah getting too big and having to do a c-section. This is definitely a concern for me since I want him to come naturally. 

I've started having a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions and even some swelling in my legs.  The swelling is from being on my feet so much at work.  I won't have to worry about that too much longer though.  We are leaving for Destin, Florida on July 4th and coming back on the 11th.  When we return, I will only have two more weeks of work left!

This morning at church, Jordan and I had to leave half way into the sermon because I started feeling like I was going to pass out. I feel much better now though. I just think it was a combination of my anemia, not eating enough breakfast and how hot it was in the sanctuary. 

As for Josiah, he is in the head-down postion and he shifts his little booty from my left side to my right side all day long and his little feet always find their way into my ribs.  Needless to say, things are getting just a little bit uncomfortable in there!

Josiah Neal {28 Weeks 5 Days}

We are in the third trimester now! Not too much longer to go! Today, my doctor gave me my glucose results from the screening I had on Tuesday and my sugar levels are perfectly normal! However, he said that I was extremely anemic, which wasn't much of a surprise to me because I struggled with anemia before this pregnancy as well.  So he prescribed an iron supplement for me to take twice a day. 

As far as the pregnancy goes, I've been experiencing the normal third trimester stuff like heart burn, leg cramps and back pain.  Besides that, everything is great!

Josiah is as active as ever.  I can feel him kicking and punching all day long off and on.  He even wakes me up during the night with his movements. 

This past month, I gained a total of 13 pounds.  I thought that this was ridiculous but my doctor was very pleased because he said I was making up for not gaining very much before.  So that puts my total weight gain at 29 pounds. 

Now that I am in the third trimester, I have to start seeing my doctor every two weeks.  At my next appointment, I will be receiving my Rhogam shot. 

Josiah Neal {24 Weeks and 4 Days}

I went to the doctor today and I am thrilled to say that everything is progressing as it should and without any complications.  I cannot believe that six months have flown by so fast! Jordan and I get more and more excited about meeting Josiah everyday. It's hard to believe that he is going to be here in just three months!

As far as the appointment goes, I have gained three pounds this past month which puts my total weight gain at 16 pounds.  The thing that we found most interesting is that Josiah is already measuring 24 cm long.  Our doctor said that this is above average in length for babies at 24 weeks.  So it looks like Josiah may end up with his daddy's long legs...That explains his feet always ending up in my left rib cage!

And boy, has he been super active lately. I absolutely love feeling him wiggle around and Jordan is constantly putting his hands on my tummy to feel the movements himself.  I even think that Josiah is becoming accustomed to Jordan's voice because he starts punching and kicking like there ain't no tomorrow when Jordan starts talking to him.  We are both enjoying this experience so much!

I also had a long conversation with Dr. Nguyen about having a natural child birth.  For the past couple of months, I have been doing a lot of research on having a natural birth with as little intervention as possible.  The main thing that I want to avoid is being given an epidural.  This means that I will have to endure a ot of pain, but there won't be any loss of sensation or alertness.  I would be completely awake and active during labor and the birth.  Plus, I would not be at risk for nerve damage from the epidural.  Also, many times when women are given an epidural, their labor slows down and stalls.  In reaction to this, Pitocin is given which intensifies and makes the contractions much more painful and longer.  This often causes the baby's heart rate to drop.  Sometimes, the drop is so low that the doctor will opt to do a c-section.  To me, this just seems like a downward rollercoaster of un-needed interventions.  With all that said, I am very happy that my doctor said that he would do whatever I wanted and that getting an epidural was completely my choice. We also discussed inducing labor.  I told him that I felt like you would come when you were ready and that I didn't want to be induced.  He said that he would only recommend an induction if I got to be 43 weeks without any progress or if another complication arose before then that required delivering Josiah early. 

Josiah Bump {22 Weeks}

Well, as Josiah gets bigger, so does the bump! Here's the bump at 22 weeks:

Gender Reveal {20 Weeks 2 Days}

It's a.............
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BOY!!!!!!!!!


What a fun and exciting appointment that was! We are 100% sure that this baby is a boy! There have been few times that I have seen Jordan as happy as he was today when we found out. : ) Neither one of us can stop smiling!

Our doctor also took a good hard look at our little man's heart, brain, spine, vitals and all his other organs.  Everything looked great and he said that our baby boy is very healthy.  God is so good!

We also came away from the appointment with some great sonogram pictures but they didn't scan to the computer very well.

I should also mention that this little guy is extremely active! I've been feeling him move for weeks now but Jordan finally felt his little kicks a couple of nights ago.  And during my ultrasound today, he was busting out all kind of moves!

We also found out that my placenta is attached on the inside of my belly instead of my back and this can sometimes keep pregnant women from feeling their baby's movements, but it doesn't seem to be stopping our little guy from letting us know that he's in there!

Jordan also got to hear our baby's heartbeat for the first time yesterday at 142 BPM.  He was blown away! We are truly in awe of our little man.

I also had a scare yesterday.  After my appointment, I went to work and was only there for one hour when I passed out.  My manager took me to the hospital and because of a bad sunburn that I received this weekend at one of Jordan's games, I was dehydrated and overheated.  So they hooked me up to an IV to get some electrolytes in me.  They had to stick me three times to find a vein because my hands, wrists and arms were so swollen from the burn.  Needless to say, I've gotta do a better job at at applying and reapplying sunscreen.

They also checked on our baby to make sure he was okay too and everything was.  We are naming him Josiah Neal. : )

Baby Blog {16 weeks 5 days}

My appointment went very well today!  One of the things we talked about was my weight gain because I have only gained 5 pounds so far and this past month I have only gained 1 pound. My doctor likes for his patients to gain a total of 10 pounds by 20 weeks, but if I can't gain 5 more by then, he would like for me to gain at least 2 more. 

Anyway, everything else is right on track.  Baby's heartbeat  sounded very healthy and my doctor didn't have to hunt it down either. 

We also talked about having to get a Rhogam shot when I am 28 weeks because my blood type is O negative.  I have to get this injection because if the baby's blood type is positive, my antibodies may attack the baby's blood cells, which could cause the baby to have severe anemia and jaundice.  The Rhogam injection will prevent this from happening.

Next week I have to go in for some blood work to check for neural tube defects.  This is called the AFP, or alphafetoprotein test and it is ran to check for holes in our baby's spine.  However, this test does not make a definite diagnosis and this test has resulted in many false positives.  This knowledge almost made me opt out of having it done since it is optional, but if something is wrong, it will be safer for me and the baby if the doctor is prepared. 

I am extremely excited to announce that we find out Monday, March 30th at 8:30 a.m. the gender of our baby!

Baby Blog {14 weeks 4 days}

I am so thankful that I am feeling better now that I have entered the second trimester.  I'm still not showing very much but I'm told that is normal with a first time pregnancy.  But now that the nausea has let up, my appetite has also increased and I suddenly have a huge craving for Chinese food.  I'm still craving fruit too, but I'm trying to add in more protein because we both need the iron, especially since I am anemic. 

The one major food aversion that I have is hamburger meat.  Even the smell of it cooking makes me sick!

Jordan has been so wonderful and he is such a huge help to me when I'm too tired to clean or cook dinner.  This morning he left for Cal Poly, California for a baseball tournament.  He'll be back in three days but it always seems like an eternity when he is gone.  He truly is my best friend and will make such a wonderful dad. 

I've really been focused on praying for this baby lately.  I pray mainly that the Lord would open our child's eyes to salvation at an early age and draw our child unto Himself.  But I've also been praying for our child's future spouse, should it be God's will that he/she marries.  I want this child to grow up knowing the importance of keeping his body, heart and mind pure.  I look at the world today and I am saddened by the impure, abusive and destructive relationships that I see...and the fact that babies are having babies just blows my mind but I'm not going to get off on that soap box right now... anyway, I have an appointment coming up on March 6th and will update then!