Update at 23 weeks!

I'm not the updater I used to be, but I always love to update when I have ultrasound pictures.

Here is an ultrasound from last Tuesday, at 22 weeks:


I love that profile! Everything is looking good and baby's gender stayed a secret.

Then there are these crazies keeping me busy:

at school on Valentines' Day:


At our playground:


At the libary:


At home:


And I just found this. Apparently Farrah loaded me up with stickers on my backside, then took a picture of it, all while I was cooking dinner.

so, yeah... I don't blog much anymore... haaa


Thankful for my little ones. Counting down the time until we meet baby Green #4!

Green Baby #4 - 18 weeks

I hit 18 weeks on Tuesday.
I had an ultrasound that day, the one with all the anatomy scans and stuff. We have decided not to find out the gender this time around! It took convincing (of myself and of Chris by me), but we made it past the ultrasound -- so now we'll be surprised at birth. I have a few little reasons for wanting to do this, but mostly - why not? I could totally LOVE being the mom of all girls or LOVE having a little boy! If it's a girl, we have things covered. If it's a boy, it will be mid summer in Georgia, and he won't need any clothes anyway! :)

I'm starting to feel little flutters when I lay down at night. I'm showing for sure. All is the same in this pregnancy, with a few added varicose veins (compression knee highs are my bff right now.) I'm enjoying being pregnant and I try to never take this little life inside of me for granted. The four of us couldn't be more excited about adding another person and personality to our family.

Here are some pictures.
A profile pic, one of the baby with it's fists up, and a third with the legs straight up (flexible like Farrah!)




I have no "feeling" as to what the gender is. I never do, though. But boy will it be fun to find out this time at birth!!!

This week & 3D Ultrasound

This has been a week full of Hallie and thinking about our journey. I pretty much always think about it, but this week it seemed to be all out front instead of the thoughts rolling around in the background of everything.

I met with a girl who just got news of her baby boy having severe partial Trisomy 13. She was so encouraging (Hi Kara!) and it was a reminder of how special it is to meet other moms going through this stuff. Two other girls I've "friended" and communicated with over the last couple of months had their babies. One too early. One at 37 weeks and they were able to spend 2 days with her. Then, I had the privilege to tell my story (to be shared later...). Thinking through my "story", writing it out, and then saying it all out loud was good. But I think it's all just heavy and I'm just now realizing that stress & grief just take energy out of you. I guess I knew this in theory. But I think now that some of my tiredness & soreness it is just the pure weight of everything.

We ended the week with a 3D/4D Ultrasound that Chris' dear co-worker gave us. It was truly a great gift. We were able to share this with our family. I know they are also going through their own journey along with us, so it was so special to have that to share with them. This was also the first time the girls came to an ultrasound. Bella could point out some body parts. Farrah wanted to be on the table with me. She wasn't sure what to think about the whole thing ;) We all were able to do breakfast together afterwards and it was a wonderful day.

Hallie is super flexible. She is back to being breech. (I think she's going back and forth judging from the huge movements I feel!) She likes to have both of her arms and legs in front of her face! It took a while, but we were finally able to get some pictures with just one hand up there. She would NOT move that one arm out of the way. The fluid levels were perfect for getting pictures -- but I think she just wants us to wait to see her all!! :) I even got up and danced and did jumping jacks.

Here's a few:

Flexi baby with all of her arms and legs in front of her face!

She's got a little sass' (haha - that's her middle finger!)

SWEET SWEET HANDS


Thanks for all of your prayers, each of you. Most days I still can't believe this is our situation. Hallie is moving and grooving in my tummy and I am loving it. I am ready to meet her. But not ready. I know God will get us through whatever is to come just like He's gotten us this far. But I'm definitely more anxious as we get closer.

Pregnancy Update - 31 weeks & ultrasound

Hallie!

Look at this sweet little foot :)

Baby is the size of: Hallie is measuring 2.5 lbs right now (per our ultrasound Monday). This is still about 2 weeks behind, which was about the same length of time as the last ultrasound. So that is good she's still keeping on her own curve. 

Symptoms: fatigue, varicose veins! Hallie, at every ultrasound, is all on my right side. Which explains why I've had such a hard time with the varicose veins this time. She's on my main vein that is on the right side...

Maternity clothes? Yep! 

Sleep: I love sleep and glad I'm sleeping well. Getting comfy is hard at first, but I fall asleep relatively fast. 

Fun moment(s) this past week: The girls' birthday party was a blast!! The weather was perfect and it was so great to see everyone. I just love my aunt's place - it's just the perfect party place and she is so so so generous in letting us always use it. 

Yesterday was fun. It was mine & Chris' 14 year dating anniversary! We had a Waffle House breakfast together, went to our 2 appts, then had lunch and yogurt together. Just he & I. My love tank was full!!!

Movement: Oh my goodness! This week went to a whole new level!! I think I actually felt her flip from breech to head down last Tuesday. I was in the middle of drinking chocolate milk and had my head tilted back. All of a sudden, I felt like she was about to reach up out of me! It was crazy. I didn't think about the fact that it was probably her flipping until at the ultrasound we learned that she had moved to that position. Now, I get all kinds of kicks on my right side and under my ribs. She is strong! 

Food cravings: Halloween candy :) 

Gender & Name: Hallie 

Weight gained: no comment. It's my blog and I'll cry if I want to. ha! or not tell my weight... 

Belly Button in or out? Still an innie

What I am looking forward to: We've had a friend give us a 3D/4D ultrasound. I think we may do that next week! This will be very cool to share with the girls. 

Reflections on the past week: I feel like I could write forever on this one. Tears can come at a drop of a dime - out of no where - and then be gone again 10 min later. But overall, I have felt a huge feeling of just being loved, loved on, and grateful this week. I don't feel alone at all, although I have to go through this, I know that so many of you are going through in with us. You have no idea how much that means. I would love time and the ability to write more on all kinds of feelings I've had this week - I just don't know how to get it all out there! Words don't do my thoughts justice!

Prayer requests: We would love to meet Hallie. Would you pray for that specifically? 

Pregnancy Update - 23 weeks & ultrasound

Oh, sweet girl.


We had an ultrasound today. Crazy how 4 weeks between each ultrasound can seem like both forever ago & like I just had one simultaneously. I was soooo eager to get news on Hallie today. Growth wise, we felt like we'd be able to see so much more and learn more about her. As much as I would like a doctor to tell me the future, it's not going to happen. They can only give their best educated guesses. And that is what we want. The more we know, the more research we can do and the more we can be prepared. We met with a new doctor. The past 3 ultrasounds have been with the same specialist, but we wanted to try someone new within the group. No one reason, we just felt like we wanted to hear from someone else.

So the new doctor was an older gentleman, and it was a good experience. He was great about answering our questions and we felt pretty at ease with him. Hallie was mover again today :). Basically we could see the hole in the heart and her cleft palate a little better. Her other organs look good and so does the fluid around her. He said that at this point, he doesn't see a reason for "demise in-utero" in the near future. That in his opinion, and I am paraphrasing to make this as simple as possible, that Hallie could very well make it to birth, or get very close. Time will only tell as she grows- and hopefully the fluid around her and the placenta cooperates to keep her comfortable. It's not that he is saying, "yes! she will make it to birth!" but he is saying that Hallie is doing well and he doesn't see any reason right now that concerns him.

I'm not sure how much I have explained about Trisomy 13 in my posts, so I hope all of this makes sense. T13 effects every cell in the body. It's not the heart or the cleft palate or anything ONE thing that is the problem- it's her whole body that is affected. She is special - and has an extra 13th chromosome in every cell. So this creates problems everywhere - her ability to breathe, eat, etc. Right now, my placenta is her life source. The outside world is where the problem is. I wish I could keep her safe forever inside of me. Until we meet her, I will enjoy every kick and know this is our special time together. And just pray that we get to meet her.


Baby is the size of: a large mango (Hallie is specifically estimated to be measuring about 1.1 lbs and about 1.5 weeks behind in size, which is a normal characteristic of Trisomy 13.)

Symptoms: Sore feet after standing/walking all day. Other than than some minor things, I love pregnancy in general.

Maternity clothes? yes, although this week I was almost exclusively in a bathing suit getting my white belly a tan :)

Sleep: I love sleep. I love naps.

Fun moment(s) this past week: The whole week was fun at the beach! I really enjoyed our night of "crab hunting" with the girls. They had little nets and we all had our own flashlights. The girls had never seen so many stars!

Movement: Yes, more and more. It's funny how much a little "mango" can move!

Food cravings: I've been craving/drinking more water lately, which is good, finally.

Gender & Name: Hallie! We haven't talked about middle names yet.

Weight gained: I don't even want to know after that vacation.

Belly Button in or out? I think it's ever so slowly starting to flatten out.

What I am looking forward to: Chris' cousin Brad is getting married to a wonderful girl named Maggie this weekend. It already feels like she's been part of the family forever. Chris, Brian & Bella are part of the wedding party and we are so honored. The wedding & whole weekend should be a blast!

Reflections on the past week: Doing well this week. It's hard for me to say that because at the beginning of all of this, I didn't think I could make it all the way through this pregnancy (and especially joyfully!) I think going on 10+ weeks of knowing our news, and letting it sink in (as much as it can), I am getting to a place of being ok. I know I can't change anything. Like any big trial in life, this makes me appreciate the blessings I do have in life. My goodness, I have a great little family. I don't go without. I have more than I deserve. And I know, as hard as this IS and WILL be, that Hallie is a blessing, too. She's taught us more, stretched us more, and made us rely on God more than ever. And I have a feeling that we're not the only ones that will learn from her.

I'm not 100% doing awesome, I don't mean to act like nothing is the matter. I have my times. I still kinda want to go unnoticed and not as a pregnant girl that strangers want to rub her belly & ask "when are you due?" And I really hurt for people going through this same thing, too. I am still scared of the future. I am scared to meet her and fall in love, but I'm also scared not to meet her. But I keep reminding myself that God has carried us this far, and He'll be there during even worse times.


Thank you for praying for us. It's kinda overwhelming, really. I am just blown away by the people that are praying for us & for Hallie. It's so cool to see, you have no idea.

Our baby is 1 in 10,000

Hmmmmm...

Where to start? I've tried to write this a few times, but I like the way Chris wrote it to his team at work. So I tweaked it just a little...

As some of you may know, the week has been challenging. Last Thursday morning, I had an ultrasound which my sister and Chris were able to attend with me! Everything looked normal (to us) until the doctor came in later and told me that she was concerned about fluid/cyst on the back of the baby. I tried to collect myself and stay calm as I called Chris to come back to the hospital (they had left because we all thought things were fine and thought I just had my normal mtg with the doc afterwards).

We went to a specialist for an appt about an hour later (great that they get you in so fast with all these specialists!!) Basically we learned that our baby (14 weeks along) had some very serious markers for chromosomal abnormalities...like Down Syndrome or some others. Our baby's measurements were on the bad side of bad, and I went in for a procedure on Friday to do some more specific testing, with the results coming back on Monday sometime. After watching me go through this, Chris told me we were leaving in an hour to go to the beach...and we did. We headed down to Sandestin Friday afternoon, leaving the kids with his parents, and tried to keep our minds off of everything. That was a great move.

On our way home Monday afternoon, the doctor called to tell us our baby has Trisomy 13. This was devastating news, as Trisomy 13 is a somewhat rare diagnosis that means that if our baby makes it to childbirth, it will only live hours, days, weeks, or in rare cases...months. 1 in 10,000 live births are Trisomy 13. I can tell you on this side of things...the anxiety of not knowing is worse (or at least different) than knowing. Yesterday, we met with a genetic counselor (who knew they even existed?!?), and got even more information on things. It helped us prepare a lot. Where do we go from here? We just wait. We have a team of doctors watching our case closely, and making sure the baby and I are as comfortable as possible. The doctors have been incredible to us.

We have our fair share of tears, but I can honestly and confidently say...we're ok. A week in... and we're not GREAT and acting like nothing is the matter. But we know God has a plan to prosper our faith, no matter how tough this process is going to be on us. In a weird way, we're honored to experience this trial, as we know that we will grow deeper and stronger in our faith in God. It's also created an immense appreciation for our two little girls, Bella and Farrah. And each other.

We never really understood what the "roller coaster" of emotions was like...until now. We are learning that there is a lot we have never understood - and will have to go through during this life change. The multitude of things that "could" happen can absorb every thought. But, this moment in our lives is also a good reminder to look over and see the two beautiful girls we have, and know that our God is faithful, no matter what.

We are doing good, overall. But we would love to have your prayers. This is not something I would choose to go through (duh), but if we are going to go through it, we're giving it our all.

Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

38 week appt

I had my 38 week appt today, as well as an ultrasound.

We are still good to go on the induction date of Nov 19th! Yay! 9 days away....

Farrah is measuring about 7 lbs 7 oz according to the ultrasound (which was off by 7 oz with Bella) and everything looks perfect!

These pictures were not as great, but I wanted to add it anyhow. Both of her little feet are on my right side, which totally makes sense as that is where she likes to kick me ALL afternoon and evenings! (She is so still into late in the morning... maybe she'll be a good sleeper-inner) :)

Oh, and I asked, "She's still a girl, right??" :) Because I never had confirmed after that 20 week appt... and she is. :)

Farrah at 34 weeks

I had my 34 week appt and an ultrasound yesterday! Seems Miss Farrah is still measuring 2 weeks ahead (so about 36 weeks!) I may have as few as four weeks left... ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I am so ready and so not ready at the same time!! :)

Here are some stats on Farrah:
* She's already about 5 lbs 15 oz. That's like 6 lbs, people. (Bella was 8 lbs 2 oz)
* She has atleast a little bit of hair
* Looks like chubby cheeks and big lips (seriously, her lips were the first thing we noticed!!)
* She's perfect.

Yeah for big babies! I'll have an appt in 2 weeks where we'll measure again, then schedule an ultrasound for the following week. From there, we'll see how big she is and maybe schedule an induction (we just don't want her to be too big). They didn't actually change my due date yet (Nov 25th).

Exciting!!!!!!!!!

I have a couple of friends that just had babies within the last week, check them out if you want:

The Greenways
The Dickens

Love is growing here

Bella is going to be a great BIG SISTER!



I'm 10 weeks today, Due November 25th! We are so excited :)