20 Weeks!

This week marks 20 weeks! We went on Sunday afternoon and registered at Babies-R-Us. It was so fun, I shed some tears on the way there. Just another sweet milestone that I had a hard time ever imagining I would get to. I used to go to Babies-R-Us to buy everyone else gifts for their babies, it was surreal to be registering for things for our baby. Al and I had fun scanning, scanning, scanning. I am sure there are things we missed, but geez... that store is huge and can be overwhelming! It was fun to imagine everything in Jeremiah's nursery, but eye opening to realize our house is about to be taken over! ha ha ha
 

I am feeling great and still love pregnancy. I am feeling him move more and more. Often when I am sitting at my desk I feel him thumping away. At night when I lay down I can feel him moving and stretching. I can't wait for him to be felt on the outside as well. Al's hand is often resting on my belly just in case a thump can be felt. 

I have found that I can't do nearly as much in a day without totally wiping myself out. So if we have plans in the evening, I need to make sure I have nap/rest time in there somewhere.  Tums are my BFF right now. I don't leave home without them. 

It's a boy!

Yesterday afternoon we went for our 'big' ultrasound and 19 week appointment. All is perfect in the belly! We have a beautiful son growing strong and healthy. I don't think I had thought of it as having a son until just now. Hmmm, weird. I am having a son. That sounds very grown up! 

Thank you for all your prayers over the last few years, the last few months and the last 18 weeks. So many people joined with us in praying for Jeremiah by name and 'blessed are they who believed, there is fulfillment of that which was spoken'. This pregnancy has been such a sweet time, but yesterday seeing Jeremiah and having God's word confirmed for the world was incredible. 

Here are his second pictures. He has grown a bit since his last pictures as a little peanut. He was moving the entire time giving the technician a rough time measuring him and getting all his stats. Dr. Presley gave us an A+ and said this pregnancy couldn't be more perfect if we wanted it to be. I am right on with everything with all the normal pregnancy symptoms. Some not so fun, but worth it! ha ha ha

1st pic is his cute little foot which was moving and kicking the entire time 

2nd pic is his alien view

3rd its a boy! 

4th his beautiful profile

18 Weeks!

I am 18 weeks and love being pregnant! I never know what to do with my hands in these pictures. Tatum really wanted to be in the picture too. 

Bella & Gideon's visit to Nashville

Last week my oldest brother Josh and his wife Diana came to Nashville with the kiddos. It was a fun visit. They stayed at Opry where Josh was attending a conference for work so we went out there a couple times and they came out to the house for dinner and fun a couple times. The highlight of the visit was when Uncle BoomBoom (Al) was able to take Gideon to the Averitt truck yard where he got to ride in a big truck, watch BoomBoom hook and unhook a trailer, honk the horn and meet some real truck drivers. He even got his own Averitt hat. I don't have the pictures from that adventure yet. Here are some other pictures from our visit. Bella is holding baby Lars Sloat. Gideon and Bella playing at the Monkey's Tree House in Nashville. 

Fun gifts from our Dad

Have you ever had those moments when you want something, but you write it off as not necessity or not possible? A couple weeks ago Al and I stopped in at Blue Coast Burrito, our favorite after church lunch spot and I saw a woman with a really cute diaper bag. I loved the print. I leaned in for a closer look at saw the brand name. I thought, "Um, yeah, nevermind". I of course had to tell Jeannie about it, which led me to the company's website where I discovered the print, my print, the diaper bag that was the end all be all of bags and it had my name all over it. Only problem was, it also had that designers name on it. Oh well. I put it out of my head without much more thought and moved on. There are lots of diaper bags in this world and I would find one I liked. 

Well, yesterday Al and I were on our way to Opryland Hotel to meet my oldest brother and his kids who are in town for a convention this week. (more about their visit later) We had some time to kill so we pulled off the highway and stopped in at TJ Maxx. We walked in and they had a cute baby display set up so we stopped and looked then Al went his own direction. I walked around the back of the display and there laying on the shelf was my bag. I literally just stared at it thinking it had to be my imagination and it was a similar print purse or something like that. I picked it up and turned it over and there was the familar name. Now, the real test... how much was it? The bag I loved at $162 was at TJ Maxx, in my hands, for $59. Still more than most diaper bags I had seen, but none were so me. I asked Al and after some discussion he said I should get it, then in the car he confessed that he wouldn't say no to me on something that my heavenly Father had set aside for me. 

For years I have been buying baby clothes and toys, but there was something about buying a diaper bag that made this pregnancy seem that much more real. I know its silly, but I have dreamed of the day I could buy a bag for myself. What a blessing to get the very bag I wanted at a third of the price. It was a sweet reminder that my Dad in heaven cares about the little things we care about. 

Jeannie, Trish, Gina and I had a great weekend in Atlanta! I will share more about that trip and the visit with Josh, Diana and the kids later this week. 

The most beautiful sound

Yesterday we had my 15 week appointment in which we heard the baby's heartbeat again. It was beautiful. I can honestly say that there is nothing like it. Dr. Presley said the heartbeat sounds like a cute baby. We agreed. :) 

I feel like I have turned a corner with the nausea. I still have moments, but it is nowhere near as bad as it was. Praise the Lord! It was fun while it lasted, but I am glad to be passed that stage. I have a little bit of a belly popping and my jeans don't fit without the help of my belly band. Those things are the best invention ever. Thanks, Angie! I just wear that over my regular jeans with the button undone. It is every woman's dream come true. So comfy when everything is getting tight. 

We welcomed a new member into our "family" of friends this last weekend. Lars Christian Sloat was born to our close friends, Chris and Carina. We can't wait for the play dates to start! This is a picture of the cute family.  

I'm back!

I haven't posted in ages, partly because I didn't want to say more than I planned and partly because I have been so busy and oh, so so tired. We are celebrating our second trimester! I am pregnant! I am 13 weeks and due August 4th, 2009. As you may remember I felt like God wanted me to run the Thanksgiving Day 5k as a physical sacrifice of my flesh unto His promise of Jeremiah. I hope that makes sense. If it doesn't, feel free to ask me about it. Anyway, as you have seen from the pictures I did run the 5k on Thanksgiving Day and it was awesome.

Here's the rest of the story... (warning: the following contains talk of monthly cycles :)) 

I told Al and I told myself that I was not going to fret over my "Aunt Flow" showing up in November. I knew it would be around the race date and around my family coming into town. The promise was God's and I wasn't going to worry about it. Well, start time came and I expected sweet Aunt Flow to show. Al and I determined that I wouldn't test until I was really truly late. Race day came... still nothing. I kept thinking that it was due to the running that my cycle was changing, etc. So I ran on Thursday and then began the true wondering what if I am, what if I'm not process. Each time I prayed for the Lord to guard my heart I thought of the verse He gave me ages ago, Luke 1:45 Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told from the Lord. 

My family was here for Thanksgiving so we stayed busy and played and had lots of fun. Al & I kept putting off testing knowing that we didn't want to be disappointed. So, Friday night we determined that I would take the dreaded test on Saturday morning. So I woke up went into the bathroom, tested and before I could get back to the room it read, PREGNANT. I just starred at it thinking I was seeing things. I took it to Al and he looked at it and grinned ear to ear. We rejoiced, laughed, cried and prayed. 

That morning we were supposed to be heading to downtown Franklin to run with the New Song running team. Mom, Dad, Al & I were riding together to meet everyone down there. We didn't say anything going, but thought it would be more fun to wait and make a big deal out of it. My sister, Becky and I ran together that morning and I took a break about a mile into it and told her I wanted to take it back a notch that day. She asked if I was sore from our run on Thanksgiving, I said no... I'm pregnant. :) She started jumping up and down and I had to make her chill so she didn't give it away. It was so fun to get to share this pregnancy with her in person and have her be the first to know this time. After the run we had breakfast at Meridee's and my mom was sharing with a friend of ours, Julie about our annual family trips that we call RFI, (Reynolds Family Invasion). She explained that we like to have shirts made up and number them with 1 of 15, 2 of 15, etc. depending on when you came into the family. So Al &  I looked at each other and he gave me the go ahead and I said, Yes, but next year we will have 16 of 16. Mom looked at me like I was nuts then it hit her what I meant. She jumped up in Meridee's and started dancing around and crying. It was a fun celebration. We kept the surprise a secret from Al's family until we could tell them in person at Christmas. We gave his mom and dad a framed ultrasound picture that said, 'Hi Meemaw & Papa'. It took them a few minutes (and Angela interpreting what the picture was) for them to catch on. Angela is so excited to be an aunt for the first time. We have told some close friends, but for the most part kept the baby a secret until we passed the first trimester. Not because we didn't trust this baby was safe, but because I couldn't handle other peoples doubt and pity with they would ask how far along we were. I was not allowing anyone else's fear to enter the picture. 

We are so blessed by our family and friends and how excited they all are for this baby. I know some of you have been praying for us for a long time, thank you for your faith with mine wasn't always strong.

We had an ultrasound at 7 weeks and saw a beautiful heartbeat within the cutest tiny peanut and then at 10 weeks we heard that beautiful heartbeat! This is a healthy baby with no problems and so far the pregnancy has been by the books. I have been gloriously sick and tired, but love every minute of it! God is good and we are giving Him all the glory in all of this. He who promised IS faithful!