A Wondeful Christmas Time

This is one of our favorite times of year.  We love being with family with our cozy homes all decorated, eating good food, giving gifts, and most of all, celebrating the real Reason for this Season! 

Christmas Eve was much busier for us this year than normal.  Usually we have a pretty relaxed day, then attend Christmas Eve service with the family, and drive through American River Canyon to see the luminaries and Christmas lights, then off to bed.  This year started with coffee and bagels and a time for us to just hang out. Afterward, Shani whisked off to visit one of her best friends who was in the hospital after having a baby girl on Christmas Eve morning (congrats Pilorin's). Then we headed to Kim and Josh's for a delicious meal with John's family (John's parents got in from Colorado late morning) and the Buhs' (Josh's family). We left the afternoon party for Valley Springs Church for service with John's family followed by Bayside for service with Shani's family. We enjoyed a crisp and clear drive through the luminaries and lights and wearily drove home to wrap presents (yes we waited until the last minute...again), and finally off to bed.

We woke up early Christmas morning to open presents to get ready.  Yes a pet peeve of John's.  He likes doing the gift giving first thing in the morning, in pajamas and messy hair.  Shani on the other hand likes showering, getting ready, eating breakfast, then opening presents (used to be different when she was a kid, but now older she wants "cute" pictures).  So we compromised.  We opened each others presents at our house in pajamas, then got ready and headed over to Shani's family to eat breakfast and do our slow normal Christmas morning routine.  We hung out at the Kelley's for the morning, then enjoyed the Mac side for the afternoon, then back to the Kelley's for the evening.  After the long day we got home and talked about how generous our families are and how we received some really fun things.  Although it's a little crazy going back and forth between places, we are truly blessed to be able to spend time with both our families during Christmas!

31 weeks (7 months)

 

30 Week Appointment

We had our 30 week appointment this week.  Shani's belly is measuring 29 cm, her blood pressure is 110/72, and the little guy's heart rate is 144 bpm.  Everything continues to look good and healthy.  It was time to have her iron level checked and it was as expected.  Our midwives recommended that Shani could take an iron supplement, but that it wasn't totally necessary.  They seemed aware (not concerned) that Shani's Braxton-Hicks were quite strong.  They asked about her water intake (low hydration is a common cause) but she drinks plenty.  Our midwives feel the uterus is just working hard to grow and will be ready to work when the time comes.  John thinks her stomach looks like a football when it contracts, which Shani isn't happy about.  She doesn't want anything football related for our kids; John just smiles.  While palpating Shani's tummy, the midwives think our little guy is indeed "little."  They guess he'll be about a 7 lb baby.  Shani was happy with that, so let's hope he ends up around that size. 

The midwives asked if we could believe we're already at this point.  We looked at each other and had mixed feelings.  Part of us feels like after trying for a while to get pregnant, a few issues in the 1st trimester, and how badly we wanted a baby, that it's surreal that we are this far along.  There is another part of us that feels like 10 weeks is a long way to go.  However, we are happy with where we are and hope that the next 10 weeks go by quickly.  We are also excited for this time to spend together as we know we won't have this time alone again (and we are okay with that) :-)

We were in LA this past weekend for Shani's sister-in-law's graduation from nursing school.  It was a nice trip to catch up with both family and friends.  Although the weather was nice (high 82) it sure didn't feel like December.  Being down there we realized how much we don't miss it.  We do miss being near Shani's Grandma and Uncle, our great friends the Hills, and our old church, but other than that we couldn't be happier being out of LA and up in Sac.

The next time we post will probably be after Christmas.  Yes, it's only a little over a week away.  We hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas enjoying this time of our Savior's birth!

28 Weeks

We entered the 3rd trimester!  It's crazy to think we'll have another one in our house in just 3 months.  At the same time we feel like it's still far away.

People often ask what we'll be naming our son and we have no idea. Just like before, we feel like we have a lot of time.  However, we are constantly reminded by people that "it's not that far away" and "it'll be here before you know it."  I guess we'll see.  We will be going in with a few names but we don't plan on having a named completely determined beforehand.  We feel like we'll know once we see him.  Shani says she'd go a week to figure out the "right" name, but John says only two days.  So two it is!

Along the same lines, no we haven't started the baby's room yet.  It currently is John's work space and with how busy he is, it will be that way for a little while longer.  Maybe by Christmas we'll have it cleared out??  Okay, wishful thinking, but we know it will be done before our little guy arrives... we think.  Don't think for a second that it hasn't been on our minds or that Shani hasn't made a few comments :-) 

We picked up our Christmas tree yesterday.  It's the tallest one we've had...or probably will ever have.  From now on it will be a pesticide-free tree (yep, one more year of chemicals) and the ones we've seen haven't been all that tall.  That's okay, we are happy as long as we have the wonderful tree smell (the pesticides don't make them smell good...right?)  John has had to do most of the work with the tree.  Even squatting down to put the tree stand on (something easy) is getting harder for Shani to do.  John also wasn't happy with Shani when she was standing on a chair on the tile to put up the lights.  She swears her balance is still okay, but John wasn't liking it.  Thankfully no crashes and the lights are up!  We still have all the ornaments to put on and other Christmas decorations to hang, but the house is starting to look more and more Christmas cozy.  The way we like it, our favorite time of year!

28 weeks

Very Thankful

We were fortunate enough to spend Thanksgiving this year at one of our favorite places, San Luis Obispo.  Any excuse to come to this area and we are there.  Shani's family decided to join us this time as it's a good meeting place between Sac and the rest of her family in LA.  We were definitely on board with this decision!  We had such a wonderful time.  We were able to meet up with good friends for lunch, take walks on the beach with Mochi, hang out with family, eat delicious food, shop, and relax!  It's amazing how quickly 4 days can go.  The weather was absolutely beautiful for us- every day in the 60s, clear skies, beautiful sunsets, no rain or wind, just perfect.  We couldn't have asked for a better time...maybe just longer :-)  


Every year we have so much to be thankful for and this year is no exception.  We are healthy, our family is doing well, we are surrounded by great family and friends, we both love our jobs, we are officially living in the same home, and we have a baby on the way!  We couldn't ask for better--we have already been blessed with so much.  We know that we have been blessed and we are thankful for all of the support we have received. Our prayers go out to those that are having a more difficult year and we hope to be able to support you as well.  

 

For those of you who are new to the blog...

No Shani is not smuggling a Turkey on the beach!
(27 weeks)

26 Week Appointment

This week we had our 26 week appointment.  Things continue to look really good.  Shani's belly is measuring 26cm (right on with the week we are) and baby's heart-rate was 144 bpm.  We got to hear his little heart beating with the fetoscope again.  The midwives were a little surprised that we've been able to hear with the stethoscope because of how small he still is.  We are going with the fact that he's already got a good heart (as opposed to him being big).  The baby is still head down and we hope he stays that way.  They are pretty certain he will, but said we'll have a better idea at our next appointment.  He's already presenting in the optimal position for birth (Left Occiput Anterior), although it's likely he'll keep flip-flopping around.  The midwives contribute a lot of his good positioning due to the fact that Shani's job has her up and active, not sitting for long periods of time.  We are just happy that things are continuing to look good and healthy!

24 weeks

We are now into our 24th week. Finding out we are having a boy gave Shani the opportunity (and permission) to do some shopping.  Although that hasn't stopped her in the past, she is definitely looking for some cute boys clothes.  Since John had wanted to find out the gender, Shani said this gives her free range to buy boy's stuff.  John just smiles, shakes his head, and hopes she doesn't come home with too much!  

A few patients of Shani's have started asking, "Is there anything NEW going on in your life?"  In other words, "Are you pregnant or just gaining weight?"  Shani is excited that her stomach is looking more like a "pregnant belly" than a "lack-of-exercise-and-eating-ice-cream-belly."  She is holding very low, so depending on what she wears, it can be hard to tell she's prego.  It's more obvious more of the time though, which she is happy about.     

The other exciting moment this week came when John was able to hear baby's heartbeat while laying his head on Shani's belly. We had to count beats because Shani didn't believe him! The little guy is growing up! (baby that is...John is grown :)

24 weeks

Surprise!

We had our first ultrasound on Saturday.  Shani has always been uneasy with ultrasounds based on research regarding heat production and cell destruction so we have forgone ultrasounds up until this point.  We  compromised to have one, but under the condition it would be later in our pregnancy (23 weeks), quick, and we wouldn't find out what we were having.  Our midwives referred us to a great place and they joined us for our ultrasound.  It was very quick (4 minutes!) and the tech knew exactly what he was doing.  As soon as he put the soundhead on it was right on the baby's profile.  The first comment from one of our midwives was "look at the nose."  We saw the head, spine, ribs, heart beating, etc.  For the most part Shani wasn't watching and John's eyes didn't leave the screen.  Don't we balance each other perfectly?!  Everything looked great as far as they could tell and that was great to hear.  Shani was concerned about the placenta position, but it was high and out of the way, so no concerns there.  When we finished they said they'd be out with the DVD of the ultrasound in a couple minutes. Shani said not to bother because she didn't want to see it again, but John on the otherhand, wanted it (can you say foreshadowing?).  Yes, we ended up getting it.

US picture of baby Mac

Afterward we headed to the baby store to look at car seats and cribs.  Shani had done her research on car seats and wanted John's help deciding color.  We then looked around at all the cribs.  There were so many to choose from.  We think we narrowed it down to a few different ones.  We'll still have to figure out the color and get it ordered.  John found a wooden train that he liked and decided he was going to buy it.  So after a couple hours there, we were ready to head home. 

Once we were home for a bit, Shani decided to watch the ultrasound DVD (this is why she didn't want to get it).  Shani noticed that there was a point when the US Tech scanned down towards the legs.  Although it was a quick flash, Shani thought she saw something.  She rewatched it and froze it for John to come see.  Yep, we were pretty sure she saw boy parts!  Shani was really upset that she watched it because she has always wanted the surprise of discovering the gender at birth.  She broke into tears with disappointment for ruining the surprise.  She however, couldn't pass up the joy in also knowing that we were having a little boy.  After some wonderful consoling from John, we decided to find out for sure if it was a boy so that we could be happy and embrace this wonderful news, instead of being sad for the rest of the pregnancy that the surprise was spoiled. We emailed the midwives for confirmation.  They said they were pretty sure and that nothing else is really in that area (the view we had is not the one commonly used for gender determination).  So there we have it, it's a boy.  Our midwife then wrote something sweet to help Shani with her disappointment from finding out early.  She reminded us that we had wanted to find out together, at home, and that is indeed what we did--just a little sooner than planned.  John on the other hand, could not be more excited!  He completely supported Shani in not wanting to find out the gender, but at the same time really wanted to know.  Now that we know, it all feels more real to John.  This could be one of the reasons it was meant to be that we found out when we did.  We later shared the news with our family that they should expect a nephew/grandson.  Everyone was overjoyed and excited about the news.  

So although our surprise came much earlier than we planned, God always has a way of making things work out how they should.  We will take this early surprise as a blessing and enjoy the next four months preparing for the birth of our son!   

The next chapter of our life...

On June 17th John discovered that he was going to be a Dad.  Shani had known for two days, but was waiting for John to come home from Napa to tell him in person.  She gave him "In My Nest" a birdy children's book and said that she was excited for the adventures our child will have with Daddy.  Not being out of the norm for Shani to buy baby stuff, John thanked her and didn't think anything of it.  Until Shani said, "Well...are you ready?"  John's reply--"Ready for what?" To which Shani answered with tears in her eyes, "To be a Dad."  This was exciting news for us as we had been trying for several months to get pregnant, lived apart for 2+ years, and celebrated 6 years of marriage.  There were definitely tears of joy!

Thankfully, the pregnancy has been easy on Shani.  She hasn't had morning sickness, crazy cravings (other than a sweet tooth), or anything else that prevented her from doing her normal activities.  Initially, there were some concerns, but with the help of acupuncture, herbs, chiropractic, and knowledgeable midwives we got through the 1st trimester smoothly. She even played soccer until 14 weeks pregnant!  She eventually had to give that up, but she stays active and goes to a pre-natal fit class and yoga class each week to help keep her butt in shape. She wants to work as long as she can (hopefully all the way until she delivers). 

Being a little on the non-conventional side, it's not a surprise to most people that we will be having a homebirth.  We are very excited about it and think it's what's best for us.  We have amazing midwives who helped us even before we were pregnant and we look forward to birthing with them.  We have decided not to find out whether we are having a boy or girl, we are just excited about having a baby! The baby's movements were noticeable to Shani around 19 weeks and within that week John was feeling the baby too.  We think that the baby is taking after us already...big feet! 

We just had our 22 week appointment which means we are more than half way through!  Momma Donna and Shani heard (John was in Arizona for the week) the heartbeat with a fetoscope (almost like a stethoscope) which was really amazing since our little one is not even one pound, yet we can hear the actual heartbeat.  Shani doesn't feel too comfortable with ultrasound and is happy that we no longer have to use the Doppler to hear the heartbeat.  The perks of having midwives! The babies heartbeat was 152 bpm and Shani is measuring 21 cm.  So far everything is looking good and healthy!

Now for the fun part.  We will try to keep everyone updated as much as possible with pictures.  So far they are pretty boring, but once the baby comes I'm sure they will be a lot more exciting. 

4 weeks                                                             8 weeks                                                              12 weeks

16 weeks                                               20 weeks

20 weeks- wedding in Yosemite