Gearing up for Baby!

***I started writing this blog on January 27th, but had to abandon it due to a million reasons and probably a kid crying or needing something. It is now February 1st. As soon as I sat down to type this a kid started crying in their bed and I have a million things to do, so we'll see if this actually gets done....****

Today is January 27th. That means, in 2 months from today (8 and a half weeks, to be exact), we are having a baby!! I scheduled her c-section for March 27th. We are really hoping to make it all the way to that date. It would be neat because Luke's birthday is August 27th, Ella's is May 27th, and this baby would also be in the 27 club. I will not, however, be holding out as long as possible just to make it to that date. Once I am considered full term, if I go into labor at all, I'm headed for the hospital! Really looking to not repeat a birth like Ella's, although I know that it how God wanted her to be born! We've had an ultrasound this month to check the baby's weight and size. They estimated her to be at 3 lbs, 11 oz give or take 9 oz. At that weight she was in the 76th percentile for size. So, they guess she will be larger than average but not off the charts like big sister. I will have another ultrasound on February 17th to check her growth, so we'll see how she's doing then. I also get another bonus ultrasound next week, because my friend Selene is taking an OB imaging class and they need pregnant ladies to practice on! I love getting sneak peeks at her sweet little face (which looks an awful lot like big sister!)


Because I haven't documented much about this pregnancy, here are some little tidbits:

~She is an active little one! I love watching my big belly do the wave!

~Her name is (most likely) going to be Ivy Mae. I say most likely because Ella was going to be called Kate until about a week before she was born. Things can change, but that's the name we're calling her! Ivy is my great-great-grandma's name on my mom's side. Mae was Ivy's daughter's middle name (her first name was Myrtle...) I like Ivy because it is sweet and simple and pretty. I also like it because I don't know anyone named Ivy, and being a teacher and also around a lot of friends with kids it's hard to find an original name! Another thing that sold me on Ivy was last semester in Bible study, we were studying the verses from John 15:

The Vine and the Branches

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

I just loved the imagery with the vine and the branches, and that led me back to the name Ivy.

~I can't wait to see what she looks like. To stare at her face, to touch her baby soft skin, and to figure out who she looks like in each of her features! I also can't wait to see her with her big brother and sister. They are beyond excited to meet their new sister. I hope they understand that she can't play, or even react to things for awhile. Either way, I know they will be a huge help to me and good pals for each other during the postpartum time.

**As it is February 1st, I will start a new "habit" to include in my life today. Because I don't want to give up any of my treats just yet, I won't focus on a healthy eating habit. Instead, my new habit will be to rely on technology less. I don't think cutting it out altogether is realistic, but I could definitely spend less time on my phone, checking facebook, etc. It's crazy how addicting all this technology can be! I'll let you know next month how I did with this one...