Week 19- A First Look at Our Baby

Wow, this has been an amazing week. Ryan and I were able to see baby Bretsch on Monday and it was the most incredible thing. I am thrilled to announce that we are having a boy! We were able to see the baby for the first time since my week 7 ultrasound and wow, what a difference.

Our appointment was set for 3:00 Monday afternoon, but due to a mistake at the doctor's office we almost had to reschedule. My doctor has two offices. I made the ultrasound appointment last week at the office on Bearss for the office on Bruce B Downs. When Ryan and I showed up Monday we were told that the sonogram tech hadn't worked on Monday afternoons at the Bruce B Downs office in months and that this mistake happened all the time. We were told to reschedule for next week. As you can imagine, Ryan and I were very much looking forward to this visit and were very upset, not so much because of the mistake, but because it apparently happened quite often and the doctor's office hadn't bothered to fix it in 4 months! This was a huge day for us!

Ryan told them that he expected them to find a way to keep our appointment. The doctor's office called the sonogram tech and she was able to set up an appointment for us down the road at an imaging center. It turned out that she had a friend that worked there, who also happened to be a friend of ours. She agreed to do the ultrasound for us. So, it actually worked out to our advantage because we were able to have a friend give us our first views of our baby.

We have some incredible pictures of the baby that I will post on here as soon as I can. They are just so cool to look at. It is always amazing to me how the ultrasound tech can tell you exactly what everything is- a leg, the kidneys, etc. It is so amazing to know that this little person is living inside of you. We were able to see him move around- wave his little arms, scratch his head, even stick his tongue out! (Ryan's comment at that was, "Yep, he's a Bretsch!")

Ryan also got to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. He really enjoyed that. Our friend told us that the baby looked great and even weighs 10 ounces. We can't wait to meet our little guy and get to see him up close!

Week 17- Some More Pictures to Share

I am officially seventeen weeks and 5 days along in my pregnancy. It is always amazing to me how quickly the time is flying by. I went to the doctor today for my monthly check-up. Everything looked great. I got to hear the baby's heartbeat, which is always my favorite part. The rate was 140 beats per minute which she said was good and strong.

Ryan and I are going back on Monday for my ultrasound. It will be the first time we've gotten to see the baby since the 7 week ultrasound. Plus, we'll get to find out if we're having a boy or a girl. I am so excited! I can't wait, but yet I can because I don't want this whole experience to fly by. I am really trying to savor every moment, good and bad, in case I never get this opportunity again. But it will be so awesome to really say "he" or "she". Plus it will be so incredible to see what the baby looks like. Please pray though that everything goes well and that the baby is healthy and everything looks perfect.

I have included a few more pictures of my belly to share. They may not be very exciting for all of you, but I have to say it is neat for Ryan and I to see the changes. The first picture is from week 15, the second from week 16 and the last from week 17. I have definitely noticed a change over the past couple of weeks and am not sure how much longer I can squeeze into my regular clothes.

Don't forget to add your vote to my poll. I'm curious to see what everyone thinks the baby will be. I will let you all know on Monday. Plus, I will post the latest pictures of the baby as soon as I can.