Category: Nora

As Ready As We Can Be…

We often get the question, “Are you ready?”

We have been blessed with many babies in our lives. Jesse’s brother has a son and daughter, my brother has a son, many of our friends have babies, and some of our friends have many children.

In the past few months we moved our office downstairs. We painted the nursery. We set up the crib. Jesse’s mom made curtains. Friends and family have generously lavished us with gifts.

Still the question remains, “Are you ready?” The honest answer is probably not, but ready or not Lil’ Sprout will soon be on the way.

From our Annual Second Grade Hobby Lobby trip
My sister-in-law, Alaina, helped us paint the fun dots on the wall.
A librarian can’t just have a bookshelf…I needed a book wall.

    Third Trimester…

    Today marks the 39 week point in my pregnancy. I have days when I feel great…I have days when I don’t feel so great. I can say with confidence that my baby will be born this month.

    The school year has started well. My nesting has extended to finishing a book room project at school before beginning my maternity leave (it is almost done…). This past week we hired a long term substitute to fill my position through the end of this school year. She will begin when the baby is born and continue until June.

    Last month Jesse and I bought a mini-van, did many loads of baby laundry, and cleaned out our garage. Still on the list is cleaning out the kitchen cupboards. We will see if Lil’ Sprout lets us do that project.

    We both find ourselves waffling between extreme excitement and emotional about the way our life is changing and whether we are ready. We continue to be thankful for a normal pregnancy and a healthy baby.

    Hopefully, I will post a nursery tour later this week.

      The Second Trimester

      Here are Bump photos from Week 17 through Week 27.

      Some commonly asked questions:

      When is your due date?

      October 12

      Is it a boy or a girl?

      It is a…surprise! We didn’t find out at our Week 20 ultrasound. The wives’ tales say boy. What do you think?

      Are you feeling movement?

      Yes. The light kicks from Week 23 have turned into strong kicks and rolls and bony elbows and knees in Week 27.

      Do you have names picked out?

      Not yet. We have a short list, but we are keeping this a secret also. I know…we are no fun.

      Will you go back to school in the fall?

      Yes! My first day for this school year is August 20.

      How is the nursery coming along?

      Sadly, it is still an office. We are still working on selling some pieces of furniture and beginning to paint. We do have a crib, dresser, and car seat. Lil’ Sprout can now come home with us…

      Are you excited?

      YES!!! Only one trimester left. Let the countdown begin…

        There’s A Name For This…

        This past week we had our 20-week ultrasound. We did not find out if Lil’ Sprout is a boy or girl. The next day I had a mini-meltdown about all the baby things we need to do. Right now we don’t have a nursery. We haven’t picked out names. We haven’t bought anything for the baby. We haven’t registered. You get the idea.

        Jesse kindly agreed to start cleaning out our office this weekend to begin making room for the baby. We decided the first step was to move everything out of the closet. This required emptying our other closets to decide what to keep and what to get rid of.

        The Office Mess
        The Red Bedroom Mess
        The Guest Room Mess
        “Extra” Things

        About halfway through the project, we sat down for a break. I said to Jesse, “You know, there is a name for this.” Jesse replied, “Nesting, right? Except I feel like I am doing all the nesting.”

        At the end of the day, Lil’ Sprout has a closet!

          The Bump Has Arrived

          I have had some friends requesting pictures of my baby bump. I always enjoyed seeing other people’s baby bumps, so I decided to oblige.

          Some things you may be wondering. I began wearing maternity pants (mostly for comfort) at Week 14. I have been morning “sick” twice. Some of my cravings have been grapefruit, deviled eggs, chicken fingers, and potatoes (potato chips, mashed potatoes, etc.). I’m not feeling any movement yet, but I feel like I have “popped” at Week 16.

            Things in Life That Change You

            Jesse and I are SO excited about the birth of our first child. The way God creates life is amazing. The way God created the life inside of me is a miracle.

            We were infertile. I never blogged about it. I may never have talked to you about it, but Jesse and I heard a lot of bad news before we heard the incredible news that we were expecting. After a year of trying to have a baby, I visited my OB/GYN. We took tests and had procedures done only to find that I have a blocked fallopian tube on my right side. This was scary because it very rarely happens for no reason. My OB/GYN referred us to an infertility specialist. A few months later I began having constant pain in my stomach. It was diagnosed as an ovarian cyst on my left ovary (the side where the egg needed to come from!). Six weeks later I had laproscopic surgery to remove the cyst. During surgery they found Stage III endometriosis and cleaned up as much as they could. At this point, statistics were not in our favor. After surgery we began treatment with the infertility specialist only to find that the left ovary was unresponsive. At the recommendation of our doctor, we began investigating In-Vitro Fertilization (a very costly and invasive procedure). In the meantime, my left ovary produced ONE egg follicle. It was the ONE egg follicle that God used to create our baby.

            Infertility rocked our world. It was something we thought would never happen to us. We always wanted to have children and often argued about how many we wanted to have. Infertility changed us, yet in the midst of it we had to believe that God loved us if we never had our own children. We had to believe that if we never conceived it would be His perfect plan for us. Did we doubt? Yes! Did we pray? Yes! In the end, God provided a miracle baby, and we will be forever grateful.

            10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord) by Matt Redman

            The sun comes up, it’s a new day dawning
            It’s time to sing Your song again
            Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
            Let me be singing when the evening comes

            Bless the Lord, O my soul
            O my soul
            Worship His holy name
            Sing like never before
            O my soul
            I’ll worship Your holy name