Busy Busy!

The past few weekends have been pretty hectic. We've gone to Arkansas over Easter weekend to see Shantel's brother, Shane. Shane has recently just had his second child, Sady. We went canoeing up in the mountains and had a wonderful time enjoying the scenery. The canoe ride was about 3 hours with a fast current and some good dips to overcome. We also did a little shopping and bought little Sady a Build-A-Bear lamb. Kaelyn, Shane first daughter has an imaginary friend "Maydell". The ironic thing is there is no one that they know named Maydell. Quite a name to make up for a 18month old! While we were playing a good game of Cranium, Kaylen was very helpful in cleaning up around the house. She had decided that some of the game pieces were trash. Shane spent about 20 minutes trying to find one of the game peices that got thrown away.

...Of course Nathaniel and I won the Cranium game!! What a pair we are!

This past weekend Nathaniel and Shantel enjoyed their 8 hour drive to Pensacola. Katie Ronan-Fox, who works with Nat had her wedding right near the coast, it was stunning. Wonderful food and appetizers. While driving Shantel got car sick :-( BLAH

We're looking forward to a weekend of nothing this upcoming week.

Week 9

Last week :
Shantel had her first visit to the OBGYN. He confirmed again that she's very pregnant. He suggested a exercise plan that consists of no more than 20 minutes, no sweating, and no rapid heart beats. She can start to horseback ride again after our next sonogram if everything checks out well. Dr. Sporn was very thorough in all his recommendations and and explained everything step by step. Shanny will be delivering at St. Joseph's Womens Hospital.

The fun stuff:
Shanny has been experiencing an increase in migraines, which was discussed with the doctor. He suggested waiting another week or two, to see if they go away as my hormones levels start to balance back out. If they persist, then she can take a prescription medication that is safe during the pregnancy. Shantel also is getting acne and is very irritable. YAY!!! PLUS acid reflux (she's loving life right now but appreciative of no morning sickness)


Sleeping is pretty much Shanny's best friend.

This week
Shantel will be going to their third ultrasound/sonogram. This will also be Nathaniels first real visit to doctor to see the sonogram in person. We should be able to see a little more than just an embryo and the baby should start looking more like a fetus. Once we hit the 12th week we are in a "green zone" which means we're in the clear of a possible miscarriage.

Nathaniel is very excited about the next doctors visit and seeing the sonogram. He is more anxious to see the sex of the baby- crossing his fingers for a boy. He's been juggling home improvement projects, baby planning, vacation planning, and putting up with Shanny's migraines. He soon will be taking on some judo classes as well.

We're also planning a two week trip to Italy . Tickets are really cheap at the moment- only $600 a person. Finally we get to take our honeymoon!!!

Names: Girl-Gabrielle Boy-Ebin
Fetal Development:

Cartilage and bones begin to form. The basic structure of the eye is well underway and the tongue begins to develop. The intestines start to move out of the umbilical cord and into the abdomen as the body grows and makes room. The fingers and thumb have appeared but are short and webbed.

Maternal Changes:

You're missing your second period this week. Your breasts may be fuller now than ever before and may feel very sensitive. Wearing a supportive bra can ease some of the tenderness. Your waistline may be growing and you may experience some heartburn and indigestion as your body adjusts to pregnancy hormones.

Thump Thump, Thump Thump

Week 7

This week has been quite an adventure. Nathaniel and I had a little scare on Wednesday evening so I went to the doctor immediately on Thursday. Everything turned out allright, the little linden sea urchin has a heart beat. On the sonogram the biggest part of the little Linden was it's heart beating. I immediately said, "aww our baby has a big ole' heart" :).

I'm so excited to meet the little one. I've been looking on-line for different themes we could use for when we decorate the baby room. We've decided to change the computer room into the baby room. This would allow me to work from home and be a mommy. Nathaniel & I like Jungle Book- which incorporates a bunch of wild animals. We have a long ways to go. I would like to find out othe sex of the baby before we did any shopping.

Work has been going well for Nat and I. We've been very thankful to have steady jobs. My job has been very supportive and told me that as soon as I break even I can work from home all the time. :) Which is be an awesome opportunity. So I need to jump on the bandwagon and make sure I hit those numbers.

Female Name: Sophia (i've changed my mind)
Male Name: Adrian

Nothing unusual

This weekend we worked on the house. We put in a new front door, new lighting fixture, and a pineapple doorbell. All of it ties together pretty well. We worked together, which was nice to see the finished project. It's times like these when a marriage couple can feel like a team. We ran into a few bumps and overcame them quickly.

Shantel was pretty tired most of the weekend. She took a nap, and when she woke up she felt like she could fall right back asleep. No morning sickness yet.

Shalon, Shantel's cousin came over this Sunday for dinner. She just had a baby boy, Keelan. It's nice to know some family is close by that can relate to our situation.

We're pregnant, It's a miracle!

We can't believe it!

After years of doctors appointments, tests, surgeries etc, we did not think it could happen. We had an HSG done, were they insert a liquid filled balloon to see if there is any blockage in the fallopian tubes.

The last visit to the doctor in February, we had looked at the X-rays and were told we had a slim chance of having children naturally. The HSG test showed that I have one blocked fallopian tube and the other was cystic. The actual HSG test does cause tubes to open up for a short period of time, increasing our chances.

On the fifth day of having a late period we decided to take a walk with Ceasar and Lolah to CVS. There we picked up the largest package of pregnancy tests. We had dinner together and then peed on the stick. As we watch the test we stared at each other in shock. We honestly couldn't believe it. We laughed hugged, kissed, and teared, and took another one. YES again!

What a miracle! We called and text all the family and friends to tell them the news.

So Shantel is hoping for a girl, named Tatiana. Nathaniel is hoping for a boy, named Brett.

According to my calculations I'm at week 5. So at the bottom of each post I'm going to copy/paste a clipping of the week by week pregnancy calander.

The developing embryo has three layers. In the top layer (ectoderm), the neural tube will form which will further develop into the nervous system (brain, spinal cord, skin and hair). In the middle layer (mesoderm), the heart and circulatory system, bones, muscles, kidneys and reproductive organs will develop - eventually. At this stage, however, the heart and primitive circulatory system will rapidly form. In fact, the circulatory system is the first organ system to function. In the inner layer (endoderm), a simple tube will develop into the intestines, liver, pancreas and bladder.