At Last!! Molly's Baptism Post!!

I just barely finished a post about Molly's Baptism that I started back in may. You can see it by clicking HERE. Or go find it...published "May 18th" because that's the day I started it.

CELEBRATION!!!

Tuesday night my family went out to dinner to celebrate that the baby is half-way done!! (Theoretically) ;) She'll be here in 20 WEEKS!! Hooray!!

Rob also took a 20 week pic of me while we were out.

It Looks Pretty Obvious Now....

I had another Dr. appointment a few weeks ago and they did a pretty extensive ultra-sound exam and then gave me a DVD with most of the pics on it. I was excited that I had the pics in digital format so that I could blog them really easily.....well, as I've learned, almost nothing is simple! The pics were in video format and I had a pretty tough time extracting them to save still frames as picture/jpg format (being as computer-clueless as I am). :-/ Last night I finally petitioned Rob's help and he was able to find a way to get it to work. (BTW doing print screen of a paused video on REAL Player and another video software didn't work, but Media Player did...go figure. At least SOMETHING worked!!) So here is ONE frame from the video....one frame earned by blood, sweat and tears. :) But it's an important one. The Dr. and the nurse both checked her out that day and confirmed what the "OBGYN" said at Fetal Studios in the mall.... IT'S A GIRL!!!

Warning: White skin alert!! You may want to grab sunglasses before viewing!!

As per Serin's request...here's a belly picture. I don't really have the cute pregnant look, just that I need to go on a diet...but that's how it was already, just exaggerated now. :-P

I'm Dreaming

A few days ago, Rob and I were naming things we hoped the baby receives from the other person. I mentioned that I hoped the baby had his blue eyes. (Who doesn't know that I'm crazy about his blue eyes? Well if you didn't...now you do.) That night I had a dream that I was asleep at a little table in a cafe. (When I'm really tired, it's hard for me to wake up, even in my dreams.) :P I was curled up on the chair when Molly approached me carrying a little baby in blue pajamas, with blue eyes. Despite being an infant she was a handful for Molly. She handed me the baby and said, "You had your baby, she was 7 lbs. and 7 oz." I was very confused and shocked in my dream because I couldn't figure out how she'd gotten so big already and how I'd missed the birth. :P

(I know....definitely a dream. I've always been pretty nervous about giving birth. So it must have been my subconscious doing a bit of wishful thinking.) :)

It's a GIRL!

We just couldn't wait until 20 weeks, or whatever week the doctor usually looks for the sex of the baby. So after I got some extra cash from a cleaning job this week we went and did an ultra sound at "Fetal Studio" at the mall.

I made an appointment, the earliest they had was 6 pm. So the kids and I grabbed some "fast food" and headed to Target so that they could spend their hard earned cash that was burning a hole in their pockets. At Target I found a book called The Baby Name Wizard and sat down on a glider in the baby section to browse it. I liked it so much that I spent the next hour reading it while my kids were browsing the toy section and finally decided to buy it. (It's much more than a baby name book).

We went to the park to kill some more time (while I continued to browse my baby name book) and then picked up Rob and headed to our exciting appointment. :D

The baby didn't want to cooperate at first and get into a convenient position but then she got the hiccups and started wiggling all over the place. We got a good look at several different angles and he told us he was sure it was a girl. For me though, I need more confirmation...just like with the prego test in the beginning. :) Rob feels the same way. So we'll see what the doctor says it is at 20 weeks. :)

I'll post the cute little pics we got as soon as I can get them scanned! :)

2 Babies?????

Almost 3 weeks (May 27th) after we found out we were pregnant I got a call from my lds adoption social worker asking if I had a few minutes to talk. I told her I did. Then she asked if Rob was around..."No, he's still working." She replied saying it was okay and that she just has a few questions. I say, "Okaaaay."

(BTW: we haven't told her that we're pregnant, and I'm not exactly sure what their policy is regarding our specific circumstances anyway...usually they say people GET an adopted baby, and THEN find out they're pregnant....I've always been a bit backwards.) :P

So, my thoughts when she said this:

A: she's found out through the grapevine that we're pregnant and calling to ask me straight up about it and let me know that we're being put on hold...

OR

B: there's a mom/baby in the picture and they're considering us...

Social Worker (SW) asks: 1. How do you feel about homeopathic doctors?

Me: All for them, I use them. (My witch doctor being one) ;)

SW: Okay. 2. What about home/birthing center births with a midwife.

Me: That's good too. (I personally am not comfortable enough to use one myself because of my health history, but my sister has used a midwife a few times and she's had some really neat, personal, unique experiences...I think it's really neat, so I felt okay saying I'm okay with it since we were referring to the birth-mom.) :P

SW: Okay. 3. Do you ever buy organic food.

Me: Yes.

SW: Good. 4. What about immunizations. I know what we require of you, but how do you personally feel about it?

Me: If it were up to me, I'd choose a delayed schedule or none at all.

SW: That's what I thought. Well, we have a birth-mom working with the SLC branch that has those requests and it's hard to find couples with these specific beliefs/preferences but we thought of you two. I'm going to call the other social worker tonight and tell her about you. This is exciting!! By the way, how are you doing?

Me: (Thinking....good....should I mention I'm pregnant?....No. Not yet.) Good!

SW: Great! I don't know if she'll want to meet you but we'll let you know.

I was beyond words when I got off the phone. I told Molly my dilemma since she was the only one around (Dilemma #1: do I tell now, do I wait? Originally we were going to wait until after the first trimester to tell them, just to make sure everything was going well. Dilemma #2: Do we take the baby if they want to give it to us even if we are pregnant??). Molly said, "Don't tell, just say "thanks" and take the baby." As if we could. :P

The birth-mom is due in August!!! What if we are the family for this little baby! Wow! What a way to do it!! 2 babies 5 months apart!

Update: Rob emailed our case worker a while back because we NEVER heard anything after that surprising phone call. She told him that the birth-father had gotten involved and was trying to convince her to keep the baby, so she was unsure what she'd choose. Rob and I decided that we should start getting some of our baby stuff before August (esp. car seat) in case the birth mom decided at the last minute to give the baby to us!!! It would be a little crazy, but we'd be very happy to have another baby!!

Help!!! I think I have a parasite!

I had a snack at about 10:30 last night, I had some cottage cheese, thinking protein would be nice and sustaining, as well as a few dark chocolate chips and a little fruit. At 3:00 am I was awakened by a painfully ravenous tummy, crying out for food! After a few vain attempts to ignore it, I reluctantly headed to the kitchen to get a snack. This time it was apple slices and almond butter. I struggled to get back to sleep after this because my brain was ON, and I wasn't sure my insatiable little tummy was full, but eventually I dozed off. However, not 4 and a 1/2 hours later, before 7:30 am I was AGAIN no longer able to sleep and ignore my protesting stomach!!

This is very frustrating, for one, as all who know me well can attest, I used to be a champion "sleeper-inner", sometimes lasting till past 10:00 am!! It was lovely! ;) However, in the past month I've lost my beloved talent, as I'm no longer able to last past 8:00 am!! And secondly, I'm extra tired lately since my little parasite is also draining some of my energy, but between kids and tummy, it's hard to find time to sleep. :P

My Darling Baby

Look at the cute little baby I have growing inside me!! ;)

I went for my first ultrasound yesterday and they were excited to solve the mystery of how far along I am. I told them my best guess was 8 weeks. As soon as they found the baby in there, they told me it was much larger than 8 weeks. The system determined 9.5 weeks, with a due date of December 29th.

It was so fun to actually see "Himher" in there, with a little heart beat and wiggling like crazy. I balled of course...but hey, I'm allowed, right?! I'm pregnant. ;)

I read here about my baby's size and development, apparently it's about an inch long right now.

Molly's Baptism

Molly's baptism weekend was really a great experience for her. To start off the weekend, Grandma Carol and Grandpa Don arrived on Friday afternoon (May 1st). They came bearing gifts (that's what they do). ;) Ben got the usual Lego set plus a traditional 4th of July shirt and a handy little pen with his name embossed/printed on it. Ben enjoyed his gifts but it was Molly's weekend to shine so hers were extra special gifts!! Grandpa Don made Molly an amazing doll chest with a real lock and key (I think the lock was her favorite part). :) The chest was made out of cherry wood to match the hope chest that he made for her mom! I can't even count how many times she opened, closed, locked, then unlocked her chest that weekend! She loved it! Then she got a queen size quilt made by Grandma Carol. It's beautiful and a real keepsake too!! She made this one for Molly because Ben gets the one she made for Rachel shortly before she passed away. Molly also got a traditional 4th of July T-shirt (Grandma Carol gives them one every year) and a fun little pen like Ben's, only her name was embossed/printed on it.After visiting for a while and enjoying the gifts (and waiting for Rob to get off work) we went out to eat. We tried letting Molly pick the restaurant, but we wanted something nicer than Chick-fil-A. ;) We chose Johnny Corinos. The kids had a blast and Ben ate everything in sight (as usual). Molly ate her pizza, a few bites of other people's food, and definitely her dessert! ;) (Dessert's the best part).

Saturday morning at 10:00 was the baptism (May 2nd). I forgot my camera (which is ironic because I'm known in my family to be the one to ALWAYS have my camera.) :( So Grandma Carol and Grandpa Don came to the rescue by having TWO and took lots of pics for us! :)

Molly asked my dad to baptize her a few months before her baptism. I thought it was just a whim and that she'd change her mind when it was crunch time because she's such a daddy's girl. However, right until the end she remained firm in her decision and knew exactly how she wanted it to be. She wanted Grandpa Doug to baptize and Daddy to confirm. (I was asked by the stake to give a talk on baptism and was a nervous wreck until that part was over....me and public speaking are not friends.)

The service wasn't really personal, since it was the whole stake combined, (I think it was 6 kids...we had the biggest group and it wasn't even Molly's whole family!!) which was kind of a disappointment for Rob. But then we were able to have just our group for the actual baptism and confirmation. Molly wanted people to write their testimony for her while she dressed after her baptism. (The building was SUPER cold that day and Molly shivered the entire time, except in the font, she said that was nice and warm.) :) The confirmation was really neat and Molly felt that her Mom (Rachel) was proud of her and happy for her decision.

After the baptism we had a shindig at our house. It was pretty packed!! (We'd never tried such a gathering in our little house....it was declared adequate for the group, only just!)

(FYI: In the following picture, Grandpa Don and Molly are sitting on the hope chest Don made for her mom, and next to the doll chest he made for Molly, as well as the quilt that Carol made Molly. Also, Molly's pre/post baptism dress was provided by Grandma Paula. It's one of the silk dresses she had for "Somewhere In Time." After the party Grandma Carol and Grandpa Don went to their hotel for a nap. Daddy went with some of our BIL's and my sisters to watch the latest X-men movie and got out just in time to meet us at Mimi's Cafe where we had dinner with Grandpa Don, Grandma Carol, Grandpa Jan, Grandma Paula, Ben, Molly and I. Lots of fun. After that we visited with Grandma Carol and Grandpa Don a bit more and then had to say good-bye again because they had to head back early Sunday morning.