Doctor's Visit No. 3

Even though this was my third doctor's appt., it was my first appt. with my new doctor. After some thought and prayer, Austin and I decided that my last doctor wasn't the doctor for me, so we switched. I really enjoyed meeting my new doctor today and we really like her - I felt at peace with my decision. I'm told that after the many monthly, and sometimes weekly, visits that we will make to the doctor during this pregnancy, I will feel like I'm married to this person, so finding a doctor that suites me is a big deal. She called Austin and I into her office and we sat down and she spent quite a bit of time with us going over her pregnancy "philosophy" and taking the time to answer my many questions. I informed her I'm quite the "worry wart", and she assured me she would do everything to help me understand what I can be expecting and to call with any concerns I have. That was music to my ears! After our consultation we were able to hear the heartbeat and she told us some wonderful news...we will be able to find out the sex in about three and a half weeks (March 23rd). This thrilled Austin and I because my last doctor told me he couldn't tell us until 22 weeks! What a wonderful suprise to find out nearly a month sooner than I had anticiapted! The heartbeat was fast and strong and the best sound to an expectant mommy and daddy's ears. We are so blessed and continue to pray for a healthy baby. Thanks for all the prayers out there!

- Jennifer :0)

Baby, is that you?

I'm not for sure, but I think I felt baby Dub move today. After a very long day, I laid down for a nap. I was about to doze off, and I felt two little "spasms" right below my belly button. It's still hard to say if that's what it was or not, but I'm hoping. In my weekly emails about the baby's development, it says that he/she is kicking like crazy, but it will still be hard to feel it. It's so fun to imagine those teeny tiny legs kicking - the sweetest little legs, ever! Just another exciting moment in the life of a pregnant woman - what an adventure!

My Best Friend's Baby Shower

Last Saturday I had the pleasure of having a baby shower honoring Nicole and sweet baby, Audrey. I had so much fun planning and preparing for this shower. I even got brave and decided to make a diaper cake as the centerpiece for the table. It didn't quite turn out like the ones I saw on the internet, but I didn't think it was too bad for my first try. The hostessess and myself tried to make this as girly as possible and I think it was a success. Nicole and Audrey were "showered" with tons of wonderful gifts. These are some blessed girls, let me tell you! Nicole looked stunning and just glowing with happiness. It was so much fun watching her open her gifts and know that very soon, she is going to be a mom! It is so awesome that we get to have the opportunity to be pregnant at the same time (even though she is quite a bit further along than I am). Nicole and I were four years apart, but we were still very close and were raised together - almost like sisters. It's great to think that our kids will be almost the same age and will get the same opportunities as we did! It was such a fun day! I can't wait to meet this precious Angel that will be here in April! I love you both!

Doctor's Visit No. 2

Today was my second Dr.'s appt. We were able to hear the baby's heartbeat today - wow! It was the sweetest little sound I've ever heard! It's still hard to imagine there is a little person in there, but hearing the heartbeat just makes it all that more real. It was a wonderful visit, and we're just still praying for a healthy baby!

Month Three

JanuaryUgh...I can already tell I'm not going to be pleased with this "inbetween size" of my pregnancy. Not very flattering picutres, but I'm committed to monitoring the progress. In addition to the "lovely" picture, I decided to post how big the baby is at the time the picture was taken for my documentation and memories. :0) I'm basing this off of the weekly emails I receive from BabyCenter.com that give me a food item to compare the baby to it's size. I ended this month with the baby being the size of a fig.

Jennifer :0)

My Hero...

...guitar hero, that is! This is one of mine and Austin's favorite things to do. However, I think he enjoys it more than I, and really gets in touch with his inner-rock star. He's either super serious or he's got his rock face on. Here is some examples of both. It makes me smile...I love this guy. Can't wait to teach baby how to rock out like his/her daddy!

Telling My Class

I knew I didn't want to just mention that I was having a baby in our everyday casual conversation. I wanted to surprise my kids and have them figure it out. Since we have been working on sentence structure and identifying all the important components of a sentence, I came up with a quick, fun activity. I have four tables in my room where my kids sit for their seatwork. I wrote on four different sentence strips, "Mrs. Aldrich is having a baby!" I cut up each word individually, and at each table they had to work as a group to put the sentence together with their knowledge of sentence structure and doing their best to sound out their words. They did a GREAT job!! I told them they couldn't shout out what the sentence said until all of the tables had put the sentence back together and figured out what it said. They were so excited when they figured out the sentence and were nearly bursting with excitement to share the news. As soon as all the tables put the sentence strip back in order, I let them yell out the answer. They did a fantastic job of working together and sounding out their words...it was a proud teacher moment. It was awesome to share the news in a fun way with them, I wanted them to feel a part of it. Afterwards, they came to the carpet and I passed around the sonogram picture and told them they had to be very gentle. They did awesome with that, too. I have an amazing class, and I was so proud to share my fabulous news with them.