4D Ultrasound

Yesterday, we went back to Before the Stork in Anaheim to get a 4D ultrasound. We were so excited and had been looking forward to our visit for a long time. This time, there weren't quite as many people that came with us. We were joined by my parents, Anita, Carrie, and Patrick. It was so nice that they were there with us. It was an amazing experience to see our healthy, beautiful baby girl. She kept opening and closing her eyes and mouth, putting her hand in front of her face, and many other funny things. We also got to see her kick me while she was kicking me. Best of all, she has chubby cheeks and hair, just like me when I was a baby. Enjoy this sneak peek...if she's this adorable now, imagine how cute she'll be when she comes out! :) Click on the link below to see all of the pictures:

http://s734.photobucket.com/albums/ww347/abcusc/?newest=1

*Getting Ready to Start*

*Checking her heartbeat*

*Awwww...look at those cheeks!*

*Her eye is open...she has big eyes!*

*She's so cute!*

*She's gotten so big since her last ultrasound*

*My mom, me, and Daniel*

*Proud Parents of Alexis*

New Bathroom & 30 Week Update

NEW BATHROOM

Since May, Daniel has been remodeling our master bathroom. Daniel wanted to surprise me, so I did not see the bathroom during the whole remodeling process. It is finally finished and I was AMAZED when I saw it. Dan the Man did an AWESOME job!!! It's absolutely beautiful and I am so proud of his hard work and good taste. Enjoy the pictures below.

*The very beginning- He gutted the whole wall and re-did the plumbing*

*Setting up the framework for the new wall*

*Starting the tiling- Daniel has never tiled anything before*

*Looking good...*

*Isn't it beautiful?*

*Daniel made these frames himself using the hardwood floorboards*

*There is an outlet inside the cabinet*

*Yup, that's a TV inside the right mirror, he used one-way mirrors for this*

*Isn't that cool?!?!?!*

*The new toilet, floor, baseboards, etc.*

30 WEEK UPDATE

I am now 30 weeks and still feeling great. However, last Saturday, Alexis gave me a major scare and didnt move for around 18 hours. Everything I did to get her to kick was unsuccessful. I was crying and scared that something was wrong with her. I almost went to the emergency room, but then she started to finally move. Even though every movement was very faint. I monitored her movements the rest of the day and they got stronger and stronger. I felt much better. Monday I went and did my 3 hour gestational diabetes test. It was miserable and they drew blood from the same vein on the same arm all 4 times. I felt very brave, especially since I used to cry every time I got a blood test. I'm a big girl now. I still got a sticker at the end of it though. :) Anita came with me again and it was so nice to have that support! The best news of all is that I PASSED!!! I don't have gestational diabetes! What a relief. The next day I had my doctor's appointment. There I presented our birth plan to my doctor, which he approved. Another big relief. They also put me on a monitor to make sure Alexis was ok. They monitored her heartbeat for about 20 minutes. Her heartbeat is fine...biggest relief of all. She even kicked the monitor on my belly several times. My next appointment is in 2 weeks. I will have appointments every two weeks until I am 36 weeks. After that I go in every week.

OUR GUESTS

Also, our good friends Carrie and Patrick are visiting us this week from South Carolina. I am so happy they are here. Since I had the lab test and dr appt on monday and tuesday, I just used 2 sick days and was able to sightsee with Carrie and Patrick for two days. We went to the Kodak Theater and saw all of the Hollywood tourist attractions around there. Then we went driving and looking at stars homes. We would follow some of the tour shuttles that went through the neighborhoods. It was funny. We also went to the Getty Museum and 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. We had a good time. Today, we are going to get a 4D ultrasound. We'll get to see what Alexis looks like! Sort of. :) I am so happy Carrie and Patrick will get to be a part of it.

*Patrick, Daniel, and Carrie at the Getty*

*Patrick, Me, and Carrie*

*The beautiful view from the Getty*

*Patrick enjoying the view*

*Silly Patrick*

*Me and my girl!*

END OF BRADLEY CLASSES

Lastly, we had our last Bradley class on Wednesday. I am very sad they are over. We really enjoyed them. Our instructor, Pauline, said we can come back for refresher courses in the last few weeks of my pregnancy. We learned a lot through the class and feel much better prepared for the birth of our child. Sorry for the super long blog!!!

Washington DC Trip & 28 Week Update

From July 2nd-July 7th, we visited Daniel's sister Lindsey, her husband Paul, and our new nephew Payson. They live in Virginia, just outside Washington D.C., where Paul works. We had a great time relaxing and visiting with them. Payson is adorable and I am so grateful we got a chance to spend some time with him. Living on separate coasts will be hard and we'll miss a lot of milestones. On this trip, we were there for Payson's first metro ride and first visit to downtown D.C. We had lunch with Paul at the Ronald Reagan building, saw the White House and Washington Monument. We also visited two Smithsonian museums, the Natural History and the American History museum. Paul was able to leave work early and come with us to the museums. We had a great time. Payson was such a good boy the whole trip. I also learned a lot from Lindsey's experience as a new first-time mom. It's been great having her as a resource. Alexis moved a lot during the trip and was very interactive. She moved for her Aunt Lindsey and mostly for her daddy. Daniel sang to my belly and she would kick. He would tap my belly and she kicked back. It is a real joy being pregnant and I am loving every single minute of it. She's so much fun already. Daniel and I bought some outfits for her and Lindsey bought her clothes as well. Alexis will look sooooooo cute in all of them.

Here's my 28 week update. I am in my third trimester, which means I will now start going to the doctors office every 2 weeks instead of 4. I did not pass my first gestational diabetes test, which really upset me. Anyone who knows me well knows that I HATE needles. I LOATHE, ABHOR, DETEST them. The gestational diabetes test involves two things I hate, needles and not eating. I had to fast from the night before, go early in the morning, get a blood test, then drink 50g of pure glucose, wait an hour, and then take another blood test. The whole experience was miserable. Thank goodness my best friend Anita was nice enough to come with me. Unfortunately, the lab results came back too high. That means I have to fast and take the second gestational diabetes test. This one lasts for 3-4 HOURS!!!! I am dreading this test. They say most women fail the first test and pass the second. I need all your prayers for this test. I think God is trying to get me to overcome my fear of needles. At my next doctor's appointment, Daniel and I will present our birth plan to our doctor. The birth plan is a document that expresses our wishes for the labor and delivery. It states certain things like that I do not want drugs offered to me during birth, that I would like to avoid an IV and constant monitoring as long as the baby and I are doing fine, that I do not want the baby separated from me at any point during my hospital stay, etc. Hopefully, my doctor will approve our birth plan or we'll be searching for a new doctor. Pray that he'll be ok with all of our wishes. Enjoy the pictures below of my belly and of our trip. Let me know what you think.

*My Belly at 28 Weeks*

*All of us in front of the Ronald Reagan Building where Paul works*

*In Front of the White House*

*The White House*

*Payson in the outfit we bought him*

*Payson sleeping and sticking out his middle finger*

*Payson laying on me*

*Aren't we cute?*

*Washington Monument*

*Lindsey's artistic photography*