This past Wednesday, we went into our normal weekly Dr. appointment to check on Baby Brown’s progress. As normal, they checked my blood pressure. It was high…very high. The nurse changed the cuff and checked again and it was still just as high. She waited a few minutes and repeated the process, and had the same results. Then she checked for protein in my sample, and sure enough, I had proteins.

My Dr. came in, quickly ran through the details of Preeclampsia, and sent us straight over to the hospital. She said we needed to prepare ourselves for an induction or possible emergency C-section that afternoon if nothing changed. Not what we were expecting. Luckily, my blood pressure came way down when I laid down in L&D for a while and they sent me home on bedrest, coming back to the hospital twice a week to check on me and baby until I deliver.

I’m glad I didn’t have to go through the long induction and that hopefully I will still be able to experience going into labor on my own and delivering naturally…hopefully. As scary as it was, TJ was thoroughly disappointed that we didn’t get to meet her Wednesday and ended up having to wait!

Any day now….any day!!!!

Update: Weekly visits to the Dr. have commenced until her Birth Day! As of today, I am dilated 1 cm. so things are progressing and we’re moving in the right direction.  We can’t wait to see our little girl!

Here’s a sample of some pics the talented Uncle Dane took of us for our first “family” photo shoot!

Maybe it’s the wonderful pregnancy hormones. Maybe it’s grappling with the reality of our current situation.  It’s probably both, but I’ve got the blues. It has been really frustrating to apply to so many companies, and even to be strung along by one in particular for over 2 months with no answer still about a job for TJ when we both know we have a deadline to meet (Baby Brown’s arrival), and he is more than qualified for the positions he is applying for.

Last week, one of our pastors spoke about praying through something and sometimes not being able to have a cohesive thought to even speak to God,  yet He still understands. My prayers have been exactly that because of the sheer panic and disparity I feel like I have been in lately.

God hears something like this from me multiple times a day…

Baby.

Born.

Hospital.

Insurance.

Money.

Co-payments.

Necessity.

Scared.

How much longer?

Help.

When?

Diapers.

Food.

Want own home.

Discouraged.

Not us.

Nesting.

Baby crying, mom crying.

You’re in control.

Running out of time.

Poor TJ.

Not permanent…don’t worry. I’m worried.

Burnt out.

Clothes.

Trusting you.

Almost over?

I have no idea how much longer we will go without a job. I do know that for every job we apply for, there are an average of 500 people applying for the very same one. Only God can supply our needs. Only He can give us what is perfect for us in His time. It’s just difficult to hold on to the hope of His perfect timing when we don’t know the date it will all be over.

I pray it happens soon so we can bring our baby into the world without this big burden on our shoulders.

We put in our DVD to watch our little Baby Brown do her thing, and the DVD froze! We freaked out, called the store to see if they saved the stuff or not so we could get another copy made, and they didn’t! What they did do was bring us in for another 3D/4D to make another video of her so we could have a record. So, at 30 weeks, we got to see our little one in action again.

She still loved her hands in her face, loved to suck on her toes as much as possible, gave us some good smiles, and in good Grandma Shara fashion, stuck out her tongue multiple times (probably because she was mad at me for overdoing it the day before)!

We were amazed to see how much she grew in 2 weeks…bigger cheeks, more defined lips, etc. She’s so beautiful! Here’s some snapshots:

We had the chance to go to our 3D/4D ultrasound tonight (8/26) with the whole family in tow! The moment our little one flashed up on the screen in 4D, it hit TJ and I like a ton of bricks that we were looking at OUR baby! She made us laugh, made me cry, and made both of us that much more excited that we get to be her parents!

She loved to have her right hand in her face almost the whole time no matter what position I tried. She also likes her feet in her face! She yawned, opened her eyes, smiled, and sucked her thumb. Best of all, she struck some awesome model poses like a true girl!

It’s hard to believe that on Friday I will be 29 weeks along! We are so excited for our baby girl’s arrival!

She’s God’s creation and such a beautiful reminder of the miracle of life He forms!

This past Sunday the whole fam went to Corona del Mar for TJ’s baptism! The best part about it was Matt got to do the honors! It was a wonderful time to see TJ proclaim his faith in such a public way with about 80 other Calvary people!

21 week ultrasound

Time is certainly flying by! It feels like yesterday I was worrying about making it through the first trimester without having to hug the toilet all day long. Now, I am 6 months pregnant, 24 weeks, and it’s really beginning to sink in that I will be a mommy to this baby girl of mine in just a few more months. Every time TJ and I get into the car now, we look at the backseat, which is now sitting completely empty and untouched, and say out loud, “It won’t be long now.”

What’s baby doing now?

She’s beginning to be really predictable as far as movement goes. She usually wakes up first thing in the morning for some gymnastics in my belly. Then she’s quiet until about 3:00 in the afternoon when she starts in again for a half hour or so. Then she’s out again until 7-10ish. TJ finally felt her kick this past week and was so excited to finally feel her!

How’s mama doing?

I’m feeling big. Some days it’s hard to breathe, most days it’s difficult to sleep, and almost always my hips are killing me! Sleeping is sometimes more exhausting than being awake…I just feel like a flopping fish out of water trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in. I’m anticipating the last trimester to be a little more difficult than the rest of my pregnancy because I’m just so short and there’s really no room for her to go but out. I have to say that I can’t complain because thus far, this pregnancy has been completely without any complications, and I really haven’t experienced all that much morning sickness, etc.

How’s daddy doing?

TJ can’t wait for this baby girl to come! He’s been such a great hubby through this whole pregnancy in staying on top of my water, and feeding me all my crazy cravings without complaint! He’s also been handling the stress of the move back to California and the difficulty finding a job so well. He keeps reminding me that everything will be ok, that God is going to give us exactly what we need, and that he is the one who needs to stress providing for our new family, not me. My job is to make sure our baby girl grows well in there! I love TJ for being such a great leader.

Pray for…

-TJ to get his old job back with Liberty Mutual this week and that his old boss will gladly take him in again!

-We’ll find the perfect place to live close by family to raise our girl for the next couple of years.

-Baby girl will continue to grow well & I’ll stay healthy for the remainder of the pregnancy.

GIRL!

We were all shocked! Everyone, us included, thought for sure we would be having a boy.

We can’t wait to bring this little girl into the world!!!

Here’s a couple more picks of her from the appointment:

Baby,

Today Mommy and Daddy find out if you are a boy or a girl! We have been waiting and anticipating this Dr.’s appointment since the last time we got to see you at 8 weeks. We are having the Dr. write down if you are a boy or a girl in an envelope. After that, we will take the envelope to a party store and tell them to open the envelope after we leave and fill a big empty box with pink or blue balloons so tonight, we can open the box outside and find out with your entire family and extended family what you will be at your Sex Party.

We chose to reveal you with balloons also because today, 6 years ago, your Nana Shara went to heaven. We wanted balloons to go as far as they could in the sky so she could catch one! We know Nana Shara loves you already, and Mommy wants to be just like her with you when you come!

We cannot tell you how excited we are for your arrival. It’s really beginning to hit us that we will be your parents because you are really growing so fast…all you have to do is take one look at Mommy’s belly, and everyone knows you’re in there!

We love you baby!!!