16 weeks - Definitely a boy!

We had our gender confirmation sonogram this afternoon and are definitely expecting a baby boy! As I've been calling the baby "he" for four weeks, this is excellent news (though we do have a sono picture of a little wee wee gracing our refrigerator now). Everything else at the appointment looked great even though we didn't get a good peek at Baby Boy's face- he was very intent on keeping his arms crossed over his head.

More good news- I (Amy) am off of the Zofran pump and feeling pretty good! This is HUGE for me and such an answer to prayer. I still have a few rough moments and days every now and then, but nothing even close to what I was experiencing. I didn't feel this good until 6 or 7 months with Gwendoline, so I believe the pump and other medications really helped me get ahead this time. I'm still on all the oral meds and credit the drug Reglan, combined with Zofran, for turning things around and really changing my life. Mommas-to-be, if you're struggling like I was, talk to your doctor about adding Reglan. It isn't often prescribed (Zofran seems to be the go-to and only choice for some reason), but it has helped me immensely. And it has no ill effects on the baby, of course. 

Our next appointment is in four weeks for the 20 week anatomy scan. It should be fun to help count fingers and toes on our little guy!

It's a ...

What are little BOYS made of?
Snips and snails and puppy dog tails,
That's what little BOYS are made of!

We found out today that we're adding a little boy to our family! We are so excited! We'll have a great little pair. Gwendoline will take up for her little brother until he gets big enough, then he can protect her (along with her daddy) from any boys that may come calling. We are overjoyed to welcome our little man this fall!

My sonogram today also revealed nothing abnormal and everything looks great. Smooth sailing thus far! The little one is measuring almost a week ahead, but my doctor said that's normal for boys since they're usually genetically bigger than girls. We get bloodwork results back in a week to confirm the sonogram results that everything is normal.

We celebrated a very fun and festive family Easter this weekend!

He may look like an alien now, but we know he's
going to be a handsome guy. :)

Adventures in HG

Anyone who is familiar with me over the last couple of years knows that when pregnancy is detected, my body instantly starts trying to kill me. I was diagnosed with HG (Hyperemesis Gravidarum) in my pregnancy with Gwendoline, and it has been an issue in this pregnancy as well. Basically, HG is severe and constant morning sickness on steroids, which makes day-to-day living and caring for oneself (nevermind anyone else) nearly impossible. Especially with a very active and assertive toddler running rampant!

Since we already knew that I would be more prone to HG this time around, my doctor and I were proactive early on. I started on oral Zofran almost immediately. Then at the first signs of severe dehydration, I was switched to a Zofran pump. It delivers liquid Zofran to me under the skin around the clock and helps control vomiting. The upside: Less vomiting! The downside: I have to wear a fanny pack with my pump in it 24/7 (holla to the 80s!) and also have to change my site once a day, which involves stabbing myself with a needle. It's a small needle, but it still doesn't feel great. The pump helped a little bit, but the big change came when my doctor added three additional anti-nausea oral drugs on top of it. I have been almost fully functional all week (Week 11/12), praise God! Equally praiseworthy is that none of the drugs or interactions thereof pose a risk to the baby or to me. It seems like a lot (and it is), but it's all been proven to be safe and, at this point, is vitally necessary to keep me out of the hospital and at home being a mommy.

I hope that we are on an upswing as the first trimester winds down and hormones start evening out a little. If you think of our family during prayer time, we'd love to be on your list!

At-home IV fluids and Zofran pump

Rocking the fanny pack (i.e., I am a robot) 

Egg-cellent news at 18 months

We have egg-cellent news! Gwendoline's blood work came back negative for egg allergy, showing that she has outgrown her egg allergy! As a final precaution, the allergist would like to do one final straight egg challenge in his office, where Gwendoline is slowly fed scrambled egg and observed over a period of several hours. However, we haven't decided if we're going to go through this formality or not, for a couple reason. First, it was pretty miserable to spend four hours in a small exam room six months ago for the baked egg challenge. I can only imagine it that would be even more difficult now that Gwendoline is older and that much more active. Second, egg is a new food to her at this point. She is a picky eater as it is, so I feel fairly confident that she's not going to eat large amounts of scrambled eggs on cue in a doctor's office. We'll think about it for a few more days, but right now we're leaning toward slowly introducing egg at home over a period of a few days, rather than subjecting everyone- doctors, nurses, and parents included- to a day of misery. Of course we wouldn't do this if her blood work showed even a slight trace of egg allergy.

Gwendoline also has some new stats from her 18 month well check:
Weight: 22 pounds, 7 ounces (48th percentile)
Height: 33 inches (84th percentile)
Negative for anemia
Development: A+

We were excited to learn that she didn't need any shots at her last appointment and has a full six months off until her 2 year appointment and next round of vaccinations!

A beautiful early spring day at the Dallas Arboretum

Feeding birds at the Dallas Zoo (first zoo experience)

Another Kry-Baby on the way!

We've kept the secret (poorly) for 12 weeks and are now over the moon to announce there is another Jeph & Amy original on the way! We are expecting Baby #2 this fall, in late October or early November (my official due date is November 2, but it will probably happen a few days before that). Gwendoline is very excited to be a big sister, though she doesn't really know what that means yet. She just gets very excited to see sonogram pictures and screams "BABY!" all the time. She's probably in for a rude awakening in six months.

We learned of our happy news on Saturday, February 22. Jeph was washing his car outside when I went to tell him that the little stick surprised me by turning positive. He didn't know I had taken a test, but as soon as I said, "Hey, honey..." his response was "You're pregnant!" I guess he could hear it in my voice. Things have been moving right along since then. The baby is measuring right on target and is looking great. We suffered another loss before this good news, so we're relieved and very pleased that things are heading in a positive direction. God is good to us!

(I've backdated this post to the day it all started, February 22, and will add a few more posts to fill in the gaps to our current 12 weeks.)

Happy New Year!

I'm not usually one for New Year Resolutions. However, our little family has decided to take one up in 2014. Actually, Jeph and I just discussed it this morning, which happens to be January 1, so we decided to make it an official Resolution with a capital R. Here it is: LESS PROCESSED FOOD. I realize that many people have been on the no processed food bandwagon for a while now, but it's a struggle in our house. Processed food is easier, faster, cheaper, and, in most cases, yummier since I (Amy) am far from what you might call a good cook. Or even a regular cook. The only exception has been with Gwendoline- I don't give her processed food, so why should Jeph and I be eating it?

Although this Resolution seems easy and attainable on the surface, I know it's actually going to be a challenge for us. So instead of just throwing the idea out there and then panicking in the produce aisle or when dinner time rolls around, I'm getting prepared. That means MEAL PLANNING. Although I am a planner and controller by nature, meal planning has always scared me. What if I don't want chili for dinner tonight!? What if I suddenly decide I want pork chops instead? But I suppose sacrifices have to be made, and if that means eating chili today and saving the pork chops for tomorrow, I guess I can power through and do it. There are worse problems to have.

For meal planning, I first looked into emeals, which looks awesome and is even endorsed by Dave Ramsey, so win-win. But you have to pay for it, and I don't want to pay for this kind of service because, you know, the Internet exists. (You also don't want to get me on my soap box about financial, no-debt, spend-less-money gurus who encourage you to pay money for their services or services they endorse.) So I did some more research and found TheBetterMom.com, which offers bi-weekly meal plans with recipes. These meals also seem to fit our familial appetite better than others I found online. Since I don't want to be tied to someone else's schedule of meals, I also appreciate the fact that TheBetterMom (along with TheNourishingHome.com) provides all the recipes up front along with a meal plan template for you to create your own weekly meal plan. So we're going with TheBetterMom's plan! Because who doesn't want to be a better mom and wife?

A wife of noble character who can find?
     She is worth far more than rubies.
Her husband has full confidence in her
     and lacks nothing of value.
She brings him good, not harm,
     all the days of her life. ...
She watches over the affairs of her household
     and does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children arise and call her blessed;
     her husband also, and he praises her.
-Proverbs 31:10-12; 31:27-28

What about you? Do you have any Resolutions for the new year?

The Gift of Gab

Well hello there! It's been quite a while since I updated the blog. Apparently as toddlers get older, nap time decreases so they stay awake for longer periods of time during the day. I don't know why this surprised me... Pair much shorter nap times with the fact that I work from home a few hours a couple days a week and you have a recipe for a neglected blog. (I also like to go to bed early!)

Gwendoline had her 15 month well visit earlier this week and she's doing great! Her new stats are as expected- middle of the pack for weight and still tall like her Daddy!
Weight: 21 lbs, 2 ozs (48th percentile)
Height: 31.5" (79th percentile)

The biggest change we've experienced lately is Gwendoline's verbal ability. Just in the last four weeks or so, her vocabulary seems to have exploded! Her little words are so sweet to us and it seems like she learns a new one every day. Since this blog is as much a virtual baby book for us as it as a periodic update for our family and friends, I've listed the words Gwendoline knows up to this point below:

Mama	eyes
Dada	bellybutton ("bellbee")
Riley	shoes ("shees" through gritted teeth)
Lola	fish
banana ("nana")	bird ("bee")
uh-oh	puppy
up	duck
bye	no (she definitely knows this one- tells me "no" all the time)

She has a real country twang for a few of the words: Mama is Mowma, eyes are iiiis, and bye is biii. It's pretty darn cute, especially when I hear "Mowma!" echoing through the house.

This year, we celebrated Thanksgiving in Arkansas at my Granny's house. A big chunk of my extended family was there and we had such a fun time with everyone! Playmates for Gwendoline were plentiful in her second- and third-cousins: Nolan, Natalie, Carson, William, and Katelyn. Not to mention Grandma and Papa Gary, Great Granny, and aunts and uncles galore. As always, the food was delicious and we ate way too much!

First Thanksgiving meal

We have so much to be thankful for!