Halfway There

Today I am 20 weeks pregnant!

And I really can't complain. I am still down 19 pounds and feeling much better these days. Very little sickness remaining and my sleep is getting better again too. It's nice to know that I'm on the downhill side of things now, working towards June when we can meet our little girl.

We're all excited to have another girl in the family after a 6-year stretch without one on my side and a 4-year stretch on Bryan's side. Something tells me she's going to have way more clothes than she can ever wear :)

We found out...

We went back this morning for another ultrasound, and again the baby's legs were crossed. But finally she decided to let us know who she is :) We're excited to finally know and be able to start planning. We'll probably go in a few weeks again to be sure since ultrasounds aren't always 100% accurate.

Please continue to pray that this little girl continues to grow and be healthy.

Mystery

Yes, it's a mystery still as to what this little one inside of me is. After 45 minutes of a very patient ultrasound tech trying to coerce our child to open it's legs, the baby refused. I walked, I used the restroom, I turned on my sides, we shook the tummy, did everything we thought of... and yet no response. We walked away wondering if this baby is stubborn, lazy, or just modest.

Nice thing is, our ultrasound tech was super friendly and said that she'd be working again tomorrow at the hospital and we are welcome to come by and she'd try again between her appointments. So pray that we get to know tomorrow. I am so anxious to know :)

We'll keep you updated!

18 Weeks

It's hard to believe that I am 18 weeks pregnant today. I'm almost halfway there!

I went to my check-up yesterday and all looked well. I only gained 1 pound in the last 4 weeks. So since I'd lost 20 already, I'm still down 19 :) Not too shabby in my opinion.

I got to see the little one on a quick ultrasound to check the heartbeat and movement, but we go to the hospital next Friday, the 23rd for the in-depth ultrasound where we should hopefully find out the sex of the baby. We're getting anxious to know. I love being able to call a baby by it's name and shop, decorate, and plan in advance. So far, almost everybody seems to think this baby is a girl... but I'm not sold on it. I think a boy. (Or maybe it's my way of not getting my hopes up for a girl).

I keep going back and forth on the idea of a boy and the idea of a girl. I have so much stuff from Evan and my other nephews that we wouldn't have much to buy. Whereas, we haven't had a girl on my side of the family in almost 6 years and the last girl on Bryan's side will be 4 at the end of March... so I kind of think this family is due for another girl. Especially my side that's had 5 boys in the last 4 years.

So we'll see :) Anybody have any guesses???

Family Pictures

We took family pictures with Bryan's family since it was the first time in 3 years that we had all been together. It is nice to have a special momento of our times together this December.

Christmas

Christmas morning we woke up, opened stockings, and ate a delicious breakfast as a family. We then headed upstairs to open gifts. Some of the big hits were Evan's new Leapster and a very special scrapbook that Nana made for Papa. The book highlighted Papa's years as a track star in high school and college. It was a touching gift.






After we shared the first part of the day with the Reichs, we drove back to Kingsburg to make some stuffing and cheesy potatoes to take to my sister's house for our family's Christmas dinner. We shared a delicious turkey/ham dinner before again opening gifts with the Ransom clan.

It was a very busy day, but so wonderful to share it with our WHOLE family.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve was a bit busy this year. We returned from Disneyland on the 23rd, staying in Bakersfield at David and Ginger's house with the rest of the gang (14 in all). The 24th was filled with kid crafts, some relaxation, meal prep, and then Christmas Eve service at church. We returned for dinner and then the kids all opened their new pajamas and ornaments, a tradition in the Reich family.

Disneyland

We spent 4 whole days at Disneyland with Bryan's family, and it was a blast. Evan loved everything about Disneyland from the Matterhorn to the characters. He wasn't afraid of anything and kept saying, "I want to ride rides". He still talks about the things he saw and did there. I think one of the cutest things he came home doing was singing "Yo ho, Yo ho, a pirate's life for me". I have hundreds of pictures but I'll spare you all of that boredom and just showcase a few :)

The Best Surprise

My wonderful hubby surprised me yesterday with tickets to see Celtic Thunder in concert last night. I've really enjoyed their music since last year and didn't think much about going last night until Bryan called in the afternoon to make sure my schedule was cleared. We had fabulous floor seats and it was just amazing. For those of you who are unsure of who they are, here's a video link. They are five of the most talented Irish/Scottish men ranging in age from 16-40. It was the most relaxing and beautiful concert I have ever been too. Thanks Baby!

10 Weeks

Well, today I headed back to the doctor for my 10-week check-up and everything was great. While waiting to be seen I got to visit with a dear friend and her week-old son, Adam, who were also in the office for an appointment. It was nice to meet him in person and chat with Ashley while we waited.

Once I saw the doctor, I got to see our little one on the ultrasound and see his/her little heart fluttering. It's so amazing how fast they grow and change, even on a fuzzy ultrasound photo. I wish I had the photo to share but my poor doc hit "delete" instead of "print" by accident. Hopefully I'll get one to share at my next appointment.

As of right now, I am right on schedule for the due date we had in mind, June 18th. The baby is growing perfectly and developing as he/she should. I am continuing to deal with morning sickness that lasts all day, and have little to no desire to eat most days. NOTHING sounds good, but I force myself to eat cereal, soup, and other comforting foods. The good news was that I lost another 5 lbs. in the last two weeks. That brings my total to 13 lbs. lost for the month. Not the best way to have to do it, but it's weight-loss! And I have been continuing to wake up at 5:40am, eat 3-4 saltines, and head off to the gym three days a week. I don't want to lose the good habits I have formed even though I don't feel well.

So in general, all is well and we're very excited. Our next appointment is December 17th, right before we head off to Disneyland for 5 nights and 4 days of Disney fun with all of Bryan's family. It should be a great trip and we're really looking forward to it. I'm sure we'll have plenty of pictures to share later!

At the Pump

Gas was only $1.99!!! I thought I'd never see it that low again in my lifetime :) What a great blessing it is during The Holidays to cut gas prices in half. I'm just sad to think about how long they will actually last. Lets all hope it's here to stay for a little while longer than we might all think.

Coming Next June...

A little brother or sister for Evan!!!

That's right! We're expecting again. I am actually 8 weeks and 4 days along at this point. We apologize to those of you who are bummed that you didn't know sooner, but rest assured that not many knew any earlier. With our last pregnancy ending in surgery for an ectopic, we have been much more cautious and on-edge thus far. Shortly after I found out I was pregnant, I was experiencing severe pain on my left side (the only side I have a fallopian tube on) and was concerned we were dealing with another ectopic. I have been closely monitored by my doctor for over a month now and on Friday we were finally able to see our little one growing right where he/she belongs.

Please pray with us that this little one continues to grow into a healthy baby that we can welcome into the world next June. As of right now, my due date is set around June 18, 2009. I am sorry for the lack of blog posts this past month, but I am daily sick from morning until night, so sitting at the computer is just not much fun for me. I will continue to keep you all updated.

2nd Annual "Friends At The Fair"

Exactly a year ago, today, I made a post about the good time that my friend, Katie, and I had at the Big Fresno Fair. Well, we've since decided to make it an annual event to see the Christian act in concert, eat corn dogs and cinnamon rolls, and just hang out together. Last night we saw Newsboys in concert. It was a blast. We made it to our seats about two minutes before the show started and enjoyed a 4th row view and up-close shots as the band walked right past us in the aisle twice. I think we're still picking confetti and Captain Crunch cereal out of our hair, clothes, purses, etc. (For those of you not familiar... they sing a song called "Breakfast" which mentions Captain Crunch in the chorus, thus people found it fitting to shower the audience in cereal, LOL) Here's a few photos.

Soccer Fan

This past weekend, we discovered that Evan is definitely a fan of soccer. We went to two soccer games on Saturday. One was for our niece, Sydney, and the second was for our niece, Mikayla. At the first game, Evan could hardly sit down, and hardly stay behind the sideline for that matter. He was yelling, clapping, cheering, cracking up every person within earshot... and it was hilarious. You'd think that he's grown up at sporting events or something :) Here's a few pics of Evan cheering and the girls strutting their stuff too! I'm looking forward to another Saturday of soccer with Evan and the girls!

Evan clapping for the team's goal


Sydney, #3


Sydney on the move


Mikayla running, in silver/black with red hair


Evan yelling at the game


Evan participating in "the tunnel" after Sydney's game


WAY TO GO GIRLS! We love you.

Five Years

Yep, five years ago today began the story of Bryan and I. We hung out that night, hit it off, and the rest is history! I love you, Bryan. Thanks for making my life perfect in every way possible. You still rock my world ;)

Bryan's REAL Birthday

The last post was what Bryan thought was his birthday celebration. On his real birthday, today, he got to go to church, lunch, and a movie with "the guys". All the while, "the girls" were rushing to get his birthday party set up. We had family and friends come to surprise Bryan and celebrate his birthday and getting his Masters Degree. It was such a great day.