Surprise Baby Shower!!!!

So, have I ever mentioned that I have the best group of volleyball players ever?!?! In case some of you don't know, I am an athletic trainer at a high school. Well, last week I get a phone call from the head volleyball coach saying that one of her players was hurt during work-out during class and I needed to come over there and get her on the Gator - so I hop on the Gator and head to the gym. When I get there all the girls are in the locker room because the coach was "upset" with them for messing around and getting someone hurt. Mind you, the volleyball nets were set up and there were balls left out on the floor (very good staging on their part)!!

Well, I go into the locker room to check on the girl that was hurt and low and behold - they surprised me with a baby shower!!! Both the varsity and JV teams were in there, and there was streamers and balloons everywhere! They are so sweet! Evidently they had been planning this for like 2 weeks and it was called operation B-squared (Baby Brighton or Brighton Bernard)! I totally felt special and appreciated, which doesn't happen often in my profession. My first baby shower was awesome!! Here are some pics from that day - too bad I didn't have a heads up so I could fix my hair or put on make-up!

The volleyball girls and Coach Green!

The volleyball girls (with Coach Green not in the picture)

Opening gifts - wow, baby blankets are sooooo soft!

Our "Happy Giraffe" bouncer!!!

Such cute onesies!!

Really, her little feet are going to be this small?!?!?

Actually seeing her name in print for the first time - it looks pretty good! :)

Cards from some of the girls

The yummy cake that one of my players made! It was 3 level - strawberry on top, chocolate in the middle, and vanilla on the bottom! She even decorated it herself! See the B 2 on top?? So cute!

Nursery Bedding!

So, we are having our bedding custom made by a place called "Cowgirls and Lace" here in Dripping Springs. It won't be ready until the start of December, but I figured I could post the fabric samples and try to explain what it will look like! She is going to be a cowgirl princess with her room being pink and brown!

This is the front of the bumper:Each side looks like it is in 3 pieces. In the middle will be the brown cow-hide and on each side will be the pink checkered print. Seperating the pieces will be the ribbon you see, and the trim along the entire thing is the pink/brown rope at the top.

The inside of the bumper will look like this:

The reverse side of the pink checkered fabric will be the brown minky dot, and the reverse side of the brown cow-hide will be the pink fuzzy fabric. The same ribbon will seperate the panels and the trim around the top is the same.

The dust ruffle will look like this:

It will be the pink checkered fabric with the polka-dot trim about 3 inches from the bottom. The skirt will be tailored with the "v-folds" in the front and on the sides.

And finally, the ties on the bumper will look like this:

The ribbon is 2-sided so you will be able to see both the pink and brown!

We have also ordered a brown rocker/recliner that should be in around the same time! Hopefully we will start working on the nursery soon with painting and everything. But for now, our attention is focused on un-packing the rest of the house! Hope you enjoy!!!!

24 Weeks! V-Day!!

So this morning we had our 24 week appointment! No ultrasound this time, so I was kind of bummed about that, but everything went well! My belly is growing right on schedule, and I actually gained weight this last month! Just 3 lbs, but I have a feeling there will be plenty more to come! I also turned in my glucose numbers, and they were very happy with them! Looks like insulin is going to be a long ways off!! Yay!!! I was able to hear Brighton's heart rate on the doppler, and she was about 148-152 bmp - perfect! I wish I could have seen her pretty little face!
We have our 28 week appointment scheduled for Nov. 10th, and we will get to see her again then! They are going to do another growth scan so we can see how big she is measuring and all that good stuff! Also at the next appointment I will have to get the Rhogam shot since I am A- blood type. Then from 28 weeks on we will have appointments every 2 weeks! Agh! It is going to be here before you know it!
Today is also a big day because we have reached our "V-Day"! If your baby happens to be born at 24 weeks or later, it has greater than 50% chance of survival...hence, viability day! Granted we want that little girl to cook as long as possible, but passing all the small milestones are exciting! I feel great, she is moving like crazy, and Jeffrey is able to feel her as well - so weird! Anyway, below is the pregnancy update for 24 weeks!!
Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

21 Weeks!!!! Over 1/2 way done!!!!

It is hard to believe that we are on the down-hill side of the pregnancy! I have a feeling the due date will get here before I know it! Anyway, I have been feeling great! Brighton is moving around quite a bit (such a weird feeling), so it is nice to know she is doing okay! Jeffrey thought he felt her the other night, but it still might be too early for that.

This weekend we did a lot of baby stuff too! I went to the fabric store and picked out all the bedding stuff for Miss Brighton, but I am waiting to place the order until Oct. 2nd (the sale starts then)! It is going to be so cute! I will be sure to post pictures once we start working on her room! Then Jeffrey and I went and registered for some baby stuff at Babies 'R Us. That was an overwhelming experience! I left the store with a headache! :) But, it was fun and we are happy with our choices!

Here is the weekly update on the baby, although we think she is a little bigger than this already!!

Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well.

20 Week Appt Went Great!

Well, yesterday we had our 20 week "big" appointment, and everything looks great! It is confirmed that we are having a GIRL!!!! She looked good and healthy, with all organs working and in their proper place! We actually were able to see her swallowing too! Right now she weighs about 12oz, and is in the 63% for femur length and head size! Hopefully she is going to get some of her daddy's height!

She was in the breech position, which is totally normal at this stage, and her bottom was pushed as far down as she could possibly go! It was amazing to see how flexible and active she is! I have been able to feel her moving for about 2 weeks now, but the feelings are definetly getting stronger! It is only a matter of time before Jeff can feel her too!

I am doing well also. Blood sugars are under control with the diet, so no mention of insulin yet! And, I am still down 1 lb from my pre-pregnancy weight! The doctor said that is totally normal for gestational diabetes mothers, and that I might gain very little weight overall.

So, that is the update. Our little girl, Brighton Jane, is doing great!!!

17 week update!

Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.

I have been such a slacker!!!

Okay, I am sooo sorry that I haven't updated the blog in a while. Towards the end of my 1st trimester I usually picked napping over being on the computer, and now things have been really busy with sports and school starting! So, I will try to go through everything pretty fast!
We had our 16 week appointment on August 17th and everything looked really good! The best news, is that is looks like we are having a GIRL!!!!! She was very active (I had to drink a glucose drink before the exam) so it was hard for the nurse to get a clear shot. But, we had 2 good views and we are about 80% sure she is a girl! We will confirm the gender at the 20 week appointment on September 14th! The nurse made the comment that she had really long legs, which my goodness, look at her daddy! Time to start saving for those club volleyball teams! We might have the next volleyball star on our hands!
So, back to the glucose drink. My doctor wanted to check for gestational diabetes pretty early due to my family history. Monday I did the 1 hour glucose test to see if additional testing was needed. Needless to say, I failed the 1 hour test and had to do the 3 hour test the following day. Tuesday morning I got to drink that yummy drink again (kind of tasted like orange fanta) and have my blood sugar checked every hour. Well, I failed that test too! :( Here were my levels in case you are interested: Fasting was 87 and it should be less than 95, 1 hour was 202 and it should be less than 180, 2 hour was 172 and it should be less than 155, and finally 3 hour was 72 and it should be less than 140. I thought 2 out of 4 wasn't bad...guess I was wrong! I have to meet with a diabetic counselor tomorrow (8/25) to see what changes to my diet I need to make, etc. Hopefully it won't come to the insulin injections, but I will do whatever is best for the baby!
Well, that is about it. I will post the 17 week update just in case anyone is interested! Have a great week!!