Merry Christmas

We had a great Christmas, all my family was together and we had a wonderful time. I can't believe how fast it came and went though. We had brunch at my parents house with my family and then made our way to Ron's parents. I think I was able to gain a little weight from all the food we ate :) Ron and I woke up and opened our stockings, Kodah had one too. She loved it! It was her first Christmas and our first Christmas at our house, it was pretty cool :) Here is a slideshow of our Merry Christmas.

31 Weeks

Merry Christmas Everyone! I can't believe how fast this Christmas has come, I feel totally unprepared! Life has been very busy, spending time with family, working and of course shopping for the holidays. I am really looking forward to Christmas, my whole family is home and I couldn't ask for anything more!

Here I am at 31 weeks in front of our Christmas tree, it is our first Christmas in our new house and we are loving it.
I had another follow up high risk doctors appointment yesterday, we had another ultrasound and he is weighing at around 3.5 lbs. So, he is still a little small in the 30th percentile. Also, I have only gained a pound in the last month and the baby has gained a pound. So really I have not gained any weight, so the doctor told me that I need to start gaining a half a pound a week. So, I can eat all I want for Christmas dinners and not feel guilty :) I have another follow up appointment with the high risk doctors on January 19. Starting next week, my regular doctor is scheduling me to come in 2 times a week for stress tests until the end of the pregnancy. So, as you can see life is not slowing down for sure!

So, we bought our new vehicle just in the nick of time, the weather here has been horrible. We have gotten so much snow in the last week it has been unbelievable. Our poor little Honda civic would have gotten us no where, thank goodness for 4 wheel drive. While most of us are hating the snow Kodah is loving it. Ron has been plowing our driveway and making a hill of snow for her that gets higher and higher everyday.

She is queen of her little mountain, she sits up there all the time and just looks out over the neighborhood. She knows everything that is going on! It seems like we can't even keep her inside, she wants to be out all the time. This is her on our deck, the snow is past her waist.Here is whats going on with the baby this week.

Week 31: This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds try carrying 4 naval oranges, and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

Welcome Home Justin! 30 weeks!

Justin is home!!! Yay! Justin has finished his tour in Iraq and came home on Friday to Grand Rapids! There was a coming home ceremony at Reslife Church where 300 soldiers came home from an 11 month leave to Iraq. Praise the Lord, every guy who left came home safely. It is such a blessing to have Justin home and Brian will be home soon too, what a great Christmas it will be :) Here are a few pictures from the Ceremony.

Julie and I waiting for Justin to arrive, with our sweet sign :) Not anything special but Justin saw us right away.

Justin and his good friend Josh who he met through the Army, he and him family came over to our house after the ceremony to celebrate!

Here I am at 30 weeks at Rachel's baby shower. She is 2 weeks farther along than I am.

I have not been feeling the greatest, first I have had a cold for the last 6 weeks and now I have started to feel naucious again. Back to crackers and water again for me, not fun:( Hopefully this passes soon, I am really sick of being sick :)

Other news, Ron and I finally bought another vehicle. We have been a one car family for about a month and a half. We sold Ron's trusty Grand Prix in order to purchase a more family friendly car. Last night we bought an '06 GMC Envoy. We love it!! Neither of us have ever had a small SUV before so it was very exciting to finally be able to have one. Now the baby, Kodah Ron and I will able be able to fit in one car with the baby stuff.

Here is what is going on with the baby.

Week 30: Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and he weighs almost 3 pounds like a head of cabbage. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds him, but that volume will decrease as he gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. His eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after he's born, he'll keep his eyes closed for a good part of the day. When he does open them, he'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means he can only make out objects a few inches from his face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

28 weeks

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, I hope everyone had a great day! I have so much to be thankful for this year, my amazing husband, our home, our jobs, our families, our dog :) and of course a little boy on the way. God has really blessed Ron and I a lot and we want to give him all the glory.

So, I am officially in the 3rd trimester!! Yay! I can't believe it, I feel like time is flying by. Our little boy will be here before you know it. Here I am at 28 weeks.

I had an appointment at the High Risk doctor last week, and it didn't go as great as what were were hoping. They did and ultrasound and it looks like he is a little small, he is in the 30th percentile for his weight. They said everything else looks to be fine, just that he is a little underweight. The doctor is concerned that I may be malnutritioned from my crohns, which means I am not getting all the nutrients out of the food I am eating and therefore the baby isn't getting it either. I have to get some blood work done and they are going to be watching us pretty closely. I am having appointments every 2 weeks now with my regular doctor and she will be working with the high risk doctor to make sure everything is okay. They are also concerned that I might go into preterm labor or the babies weight might be around 5.5 lbs both results of my crohns. So definitely keep us in your prayers, we want the little guy to stay in my belly as long as he can :) Other than that, everything is going great, I feel him kicking constantly and sometimes can even feel hiccups and his heartbeat. Ron and I are getting really excited, it is going to be a big change but a great one.

Here is whats going on with the baby this week.

Week 28: By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds like a Chinese cabbage and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Week 26

Here I am at 26 weeks, and ever growing. I feel really good, and anxious about meeting our little monkey! We had a doctors appointment yesterday and scheduled my c section. Okay, here it is.....Friday, February 13, 2009 at 7:30 AM!!! Ron and I are super excited, we were hoping it would be a Friday so that my brothers would be able to be there for the weekend since they are all over the world right now. My doctor asked me if I was sure I wanted to have him on Friday the 13th, I said of course I was born on Friday the 13th it can't be that bad. I then told this to my brother Brian and he quickly responded, "Not that bad, you didn't have to grow up with yourself!" Thanks Brian. My appointments are starting to be every two weeks now, rather than once a month. I also have a follow up high risk appointment next monday. My doctor says I am doing really good, and the baby is doing great too.

I am starting to get excited about the holidays, my brother Justin comes home in a couple weeks which is going to make for the perfect Christmas with the whole family together. I can't believe he is going to be home for good, I am so excited, I miss him a ton!!

We had our first snow last weekend, Kodah absolutely loved it. She was a little confused at first it was her first snow too, but quickly got over that and was running circles in the yard for 4 hours on Sunday.This is whats going on with the baby this week

Week 26:

The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches an English hothouse cucumber from head to heel. If you're having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.

Here is one last picture I had to add, I thought this was so cute :) Ron is going to be the best dad ever, and he is an amazing husband. I LOVE YOU BABE!!

Week 24

Wow, time is flying I can't believe I am 24 weeks already. Things have been going really well, and I am feeling great. Here is my 24 weeks picture!I went to the doctor last week, she said I seem to be doing really well. I am putting on enough weight, which was something they were worried about and the baby seems to be healthy. We discussed more of my plan for the pregnancy and we decided to do an elective ceserean because of the chance of my crohns spreading. We went throught alot of discussion and decided this would be best for me in the long run. So, that means our little guy will be here before February 14!!! It is nice to be able to plan my date, I am hoping to have him on a day close to the weekend, but we will see as the day gets nearer.

The nursery is coming along, we have most of the room painted. Here is Ron just starting with the first coat.

Here is the finalized dresser. I really like how it turned out. I think the dark brown will tone down the bright green we have going on the walls :)

Kodah and I did a little helping with painting, I did the trim and Kodah got in the way. My wonderful husband did most of the work though, he is the most amazing man in the world :) I don't know what I would do without him!

Here is Ron and I, we haven't taken a picture of the two of us in a while :) What a handsome man he is...

Here is whats going on with the baby this week

Week 24:Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long picture an ear of corn, he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Our baby pictures

I was looking through our wedding slideshow today and found these baby pictures of Ron and I. I can't stop thinking about what our little one is going to look like.

Here are a couple of fun ones of when were were older :)

Week 22

Sorry it has been so long since my last post, life has been crazy for the Henion house hold. So, I am officially 22 weeks and over half way!!! Yay, very exciting. I have been feeling pretty good, and trying to rest as much as possible. We had another ultrasound since my last blog. Our little monkey is doing great, he is growing perfectly and as you can see I am growing too :) I am having the hardest time finding maternity pants, my legs are too long and none of them fit right. So, I think I have come to the conclusion that I am going to make my own. I will let you know how it goes :) Here are a couple ultrasound photos from our last appt. Isn't he cute, I love his little nose :)

Our good friends Josh and Lauren got married last weekend, it was a beautiful day. Ron was in the wedding and we had a great time. Summer who photographed my wedding did their pictures and I had the privilege of helping her all day. It was so much fun!!

Here is the beautiful couple! Thanks for letting Ron and I be apart of your day, we love you guys and are so excited for you both!

Here is whats going on with the baby this week.

Week 22:

At 11 inches the length of a spaghetti squash and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

Dr Appointment

Ron and I went to my High risk doctors appointment yesterday. I had an ultrasound and then met with the specialist. Everything went really well! The doctor said I am right on track for everything. Also, our little guy is growing perfectly too! They did a lot of measurements and everything was normal for being 19 weeks. The doctor said as long as I wasn't having any flare ups with my crohns we should be able to do everything normally, which hopefully means no C section. I have another appointment with them in 8 weeks just to make sure we are doing good. I can continue to see my normal OB doctor and she is still going to keep an extra eye on me. I felt a lot better after yesterday's appointment, they are just trying to be cautious. Thanks for all your prayers, keep them coming!

Week 19

Here I am at 19 weeks. This was a fun week as far as the baby goes, I felt him kick for the first time!! It was the coolest thing. Thursday night I sat and relaxed all night, I had been feeling good all day and as I was sitting there watching t.v. I kept feeling butterflies in my stomach. After a while it clicked, it was the baby kicking. So now that I know what it is I feel the little guy kicking all the time. I love the feeling, it makes me feel good to know that he is moving around in there.

Ron and I have been pretty busy as usual, we had bachelorette and bachelor parties for our friends Josh and Lauren last weekend. I had a girls weekend, I hung out at my friend Sara's and Kodah came along to play with her dog Zoey. As you can see they hd a blast together. I had to video tape the two of them they were so funny. Thanks for a fun weekend Sara and Courtney!!We also had our niece Paiges 2nd birthday party. Here are a couple fun pictures from the weekend.

Me and the bride to be, isn't she beautiful. I can't wait for there big day!!

Paige turns 2!!!

This Saturday I went to watch my niece Morgan cheer, she was so cute and did great especially since it was so hot!!Here is whats going on with the baby this week

Week 19: Your baby's sensory development is exploding! His brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that he may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to him, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. His arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of his body now. His kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

18 weeks

I am 18 weeks and feeling great. I had a doctors appointment yesterday, and was told they changed my pregnancy status to High Risk. I have to go visit a high rick specialist in a couple of weeks to have them check everything out. I also am going to be getting ultrasounds every month, and stress tests twice a week after 32 weeks. My doctor is taking really good care of me and the baby, it is just a lot to take in. Our health is more important so I am going to be slowing down on some of my commitments.

Here is my picture at 18 weeks.This was Justin's last week being home, he left yesterday to go back to Iraq and he will be back by Christmas. It was so good to see him, we are so proud of Justin and can't wait for him to come home again soon. We had a open house for him on Monday, here are a few pictures from the night. It was really good to see family and old friends.

This is my oldest friend in the world Rachel, I have known her since the day she was born. She is pregnant with her second child and due in early February. We are both having boys!! Below is Rachel's first sone Austin, isn't he a cutie!!

Justin and our little cousins Mallory and Sammy, they love Justin. He went and spoke at their school the last day he was here, they were so proud!

Carly and I, she was my next door neighbor and best friend growing up.
This weekend, I am enjoying the weekend with some girl friends. I am so excited to relax and hang out with the girls. Keep praying for us, my health and the babies, and Ron's sanity :)