Baby Blain is healthy and BIG!! (28 weeks)

I was smiling and the lady just missed it when she printed my picture. You can catch a glimpse of a smile here. :)

Look closely and you can see that my eye is open. The black dot in the center is my iris.

This picture was taken right before I put my hands in front of my face. I'm not so sure I like all of that poking around on my mommy's belly.

Here I am all snuggled in for a nice nap... which I do mostly during the day. I like to be awake at night, just like my daddy. Notice how chubby I am getting.

Notes from mom: Our 28 week ultrasound was today. The baby is absolutely perfect and beautiful. He weighs approximately 2lbs. & 15oz!!! Can we say big baby? The technician said "you have a chubby baby here." That was music to my ears. I love knowing that he is healthy. She also noted that he has some pretty significant hair on his little head. :)

I am making great progress. Bedrest works people!! The dr. still wants me to "do nothing" for the next month at least (those were his words). I am an old pro at doing nothing. I am just happy to know that things are moving in the right direction.

Merry Christmas...God is good and full of miracles.

And it shook when she laughed like a bowl full of jelly!!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Like the title of this posting? I saw my brother and his fiance this weekend and they loved to watch me laugh, because my entire belly shakes. It is really funny. Here are some pictures of my belly. I am almost 27 weeks and all is well.

This one is my favorite!! We are so excited about Phillip's tummy...heehee. Just fun to switch roles.

26 Weeks Tomorrow!

I had another Dr.'s appointment today and had to do the dreaded glucose tolerance test. YUCK!! Surprisingly, it wasn't that bad. I just felt like I was back in the beginning stages of pregnancy and NAUSEOUS!! After we left and grabbed a juicy hamburger, I was feeling much better. The doc says that everything is still going very well. My BIG belly is actually measuring right on track. Lots of people say that I look much bigger than 6 months pregnant. Dr. says they just aren't used to the new me. It is kinda funny to see my stick arms and legs (that have not gained an ounce) with this big jolly belly in the middle. Heehee! Blain is doing fantastic. His heartbeat sounded so strong this time. Dr. said it sounds stronger the bigger it gets. It was a thud, thud, thud; instead of whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. I can see and feel even the slightest movements. It is so neat to watch my belly move. I am loving every second of being pregnant. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and wish you a very MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Bedding!! Hooray!

I finally picked and ORDERED the bedding for Blain's room. Above is a picture of the bedding. However, the bumper will be blue with chocolate piping. He is going to have a white crib. I have yet to pick that out, because I would prefer to see it in person. (all of my shopping thus far has been done online.

Below is a picture of the moses basket and stand that will be in our room. Of course I am not putting my little boy in a bed of pink. So, if you scroll down you will see the moses basket for a boy. I can just see that precious baby sleeping and having sweet dreams in this little basket. There is just something so symbolic about putting Blain in a "Moses" basket. He and we have been on a long journey to meeting eachother... as Moses was to meet his loving mother. :)

Isn't it just precious!! The only thing that's missing is a sleeping bundle of joy.

Baby Blain at 22 Weeks!

As you can see, we saw our precious baby boy yesterday. He was unusually sleepy. Our little mover and shaker just did not want to perform. That's ok, he is still the most precious baby in the world. He is also a big boy. He weighs approx. 1 lb and 5 oz. He is in the 66 percentile for size!!! Oh boy! Everything looks great with his development. Phillip asked "is he still a boy?" When she looked at that area...Phillip said "yep, definitely a Boy!!! " :) We had a great visit. As far as my prognosis, the placenta has not moved. I am still on the same (if not a little more) restrictions. Dr. Chern says that home and rest are the right things for myself and baby Blaine. We will just do as instructed. Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers. Without God's grace, Blaine would not exist. Please keep praying for us. Love, Phillip, Amber, and Blaine

By the way, we did get a video of the ultrasound. It is in DVD format, and I can't get it to upload to the computer or to Youtube. I will try to film it w/ my video camera and see how it looks. Then upload it to the site.

My Girl is Pregnant!

I am so happy to share this experience with my girl Angela. She is so special to me, and I know she will be a fantastic Mommy. Please pray for her baby as well. We are both so excited to be 1st time moms. I love you Angie...pieces!

Just Me and the GIRLS!!!

My bestest friends from college came to see me on Saturday. It just happened to work out that they were all available and in town at the same time. God has a very special way of making things work out like that :) . They spent the afternoon at my house (since I can't go anywhere) and dragged me outside for a quick photo. It was so good to see them. They are such amazing women. Jen is getting married in Feb. She will make a beautiful beaming bride. Also, I love her "Suri" haircut. One of these girls, besides me, is pregnant. However, I haven't asked if I can share her news w/ the world. So, I am not revealing her identity. I can just say...she will make an amazing mommy to that baby! I am so excited to have a photographer friend. Rachel now owns her own photography business. She named it Lilac Hill Photography. She is amazing at her work. I can't wait to see them again. I do love my girls.

The baby is doing great. As you can see in the pictures, he is GROWING! He kicks and flips all the time. I love to feel him move. The other night, Phillip was curious if he could hear him. He put his ear to my belly, Blain kicked right where his ear was. It was so funny to see the look on Phillip's face.

We have another ultrasound tomorrow and are hoping for good news. We also can't wait to see our little guy. We love him so much.

Coming up on 20 weeks!!!

On Wednesday, I will be 20 weeks pregnant! Half way there! Blain is so active. He moves constantly, and boy does he kick!?!? I am so in love with him. Here are the much sought after belly pics. Enjoy! :)

Gender Reveal!

IT'S A BOY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
His name is Blain Thomas. We are so excited to be able to call him by name.
I have other news. I will be out of work until January. I have a condition called placenta previa. Basically, my placenta is partialy covering my cervix. This can be very dangerous, but I have a great doctor who is putting me on bedrest. Please pray for this condition to correct itself. The placenta can and hopefully will migrate away from the cervix. We will know more at around 30 weeks. Pray, pray, pray!! Love always Amber, Phillip and BLAIN!

It's A ......

Well, Its a ____________________! You fill in the blank. We found out the sex of the baby today. We want to know what you think it is. Take a look at the pictures and give it your best guess.

Love, Phillip and Amber

Last Visit with Doctor V !!

I went to see my reproductive endocrinologist for the last time today. It was bitter-sweet. I feel like I have graduated into "normal" pregnancy. :) Baby looks GREAT!!! Pictures aren't so good this time, because the ultrasound tech. was not there. Dr. V did the ultrasound, and I saw our little baby moving. It is such a miracle and a gift.
Thank you for your prayers and support,
Love Amber, Phillip, and Baby P.

13 WEEKS on Wed!!!

Dr.'s appointment went GREAT!! Baby is measuring perfect size and heart rate.

11 Weeks!!!!!

We had another Dr.'s appointment yesterday. As the sonographer began the ultrasound, we suddenly saw a foot pop into the picture. "The baby is moving!!!" I said. She focused the picture on our little one, and it was rockin' and rollin'! :) It looked so strong! We were in awe as we watched the new little addition to our family show-off for us. We decided that it had learned some of its moves from the Olympics (we have watched them religiously). I am so in love. Phillip and I just could not stop smiling. Come to find out, the Dr. said that the baby must have REALLY loved the lemon drop I ate on the way to the appointment. I will definitely be popping those on the way to ultrasounds!! :) We are very blessed and know that this baby is a gift from God. Thank you for you continued prayers...Love A, P, and B (baby)

Is That a Bump?!?!?

Well, I was nine weeks yesterday( Hooray). Every day is just one more blessing. We are really getting attached to this little one. We saw him/her on Monday. The heart rate was 170. Everybody said..."It's a girl." We just want a baby. Boy or Girl!! The baby is measuring right on track. As you can see in the pictures...I am starting to get a baby bump. One of my student's mom told me: "I thought you were pregnant, but I didn't want to say anything." That was a first for me. No one has told me that they suspected just by looking at my belly! I am sooooo excited about my bump. Grow baby grow!!!!!!!!!!! Love ...Phillip, Amber, and Baby

8 Weeks Today!!!!!

My pregnancy is going VERY well. That little one is in there growing stonger and stronger. I have been pretty nauseous off and on during the past week, and my sciatic nerve hurts!!! Other than that, I am doing great. Here is a picture of an eight week fetus.

We saw..............ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have to say that I have experienced more miracles this summer than I ever thought I would. The lady doing our ultrasound said "I will look first, and then I will turn the monitor and talk." I just prayed. It felt like eternity. She finally turned the monitor and said: "Well Amber, I see one gestational sac." Meaning...one baby. I looked and immediatly saw a flicker of light in the center. THE HEART!! It was our baby's heart!! I must admit that I had instant tears. The baby is measuring great. All looks well. Praise God!! We just love this baby!

This is what our baby(s) should look like now. I am six weeks tomorrow. Phillip and I give thanks for every day we are given with this pregnancy. I feel pretty good. My sciatic nerve is already being pinched. Doc says there is not much room for things to move around in there. That is gradually changing. I already had to buy a pair of maternity pants! Lucky me!! I am loving every minute. Keep praying for our little bundle(s) of joy. We will have our ultrasound in 6 days!!!!!!! We love you all.

Ultrasound Date Set!!!

Everything is still going very well. I feel great. Exhaustion sets in at about 4 pm. I secretly love pregnancy symptoms :) ...guess its no secret now. My jeans are already fitting a little tighter! I can't wait to have a big fat pregnant belly. My nurse called and we set a date for our very first O.B. Ultrasound!!! It will be on July 28th. That is only 10 days from tomorrow!!!!! That is the day we will see our baby or babies. People keep asking "how many do you think it is?" I go back-and-forth. One minute its one baby and the next, I'm convinced I am carrying twins. Whatever it is, we feel very blessed. I want to thank all of you for your encouraging prayers and comments. Keep them going. Love...

Life is GOOD!

I am now in my 5th week of pregnancy. Not a second passes that I am not amazed at the miracle we are experiencing. Our baby is growing! It will have a heartbeat within the week. Arm and leg buds are developing. It is truly a MIRACLE!!! I found this picture of what a 5 week fetus looks like.

We went to church today. Great message...as always!! Peter announced our good news (I got so many hugs and well wishes). Rhett, Amy, and Gracie gave us a card and gift for the baby's room. They are a precious family. After, we went to lunch with Pastor Pete and others. We feel so loved and welcomed by everyone there. Blessings are all around us. :) Life is good!!

More BIG news!!!

My brother, Adam, and his girlfriend called last night. He proposed to her. I am now going to have a 4th sister-in-law. I am so happy for them. He took her to St. Augustine, FL and got on one knee in front of a beautiful fountain. How sweet is that? I love that boy...man. :) Rachel is going to be a great new addition to our family. God is good...

Everything is going GREAT!

I went back to the dr. yesterday to have blood drawn (ahh the life of fertility treatments). They have to check every 2 days to see if my HCG levels increase. The nurse called yesterday and said "your levels are all excellent." Man, I have grown to love that word. Then she called back with more good news..."NO MORE INJECTIONS." My hiney is loving that!!!!
About Wednesday...
I can't begin to tell you how thankful we both are for the gift we have been given. They told us that morning that we could expect a phone call between 3 and 6pm. So, we tried very hard to waist as much time as we could. We drove around Nashville for a couple of hours, ate at the Belle Mead plantation, drove through some parks, etc. Then, we went home to wait...and wait...and wait. Finally, the phone rang at 5:28pm (I was on the computer trying to pass the time and Phillip was watching tv). I ran into the living room and we both stood there. "Hello".... "Amber, this is Anita...CONGRATULATIONS, you are pregnant! My face lit-up!!!!!!!! I instantly started to cry and looked at Phillip. I told him " I'm pregnant...there's a baby in there!!!!!!" He was elated, and we were both shaking. Then she told me that we would know in approx. 20 days if it is one or two babies. We both feel very blessed and thank God every day for this baby(s).

IM PREGNANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Glory to God. The Lord is faithful. I am PREGNANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Praise to Him. Thank you for your prayers. Keep them coming. I will update more later.

Awaiting Wednesday

Hey everyone! I am so anxious about tomorrow. It is amazing that the day has ALMOST finally arrived. I wish I could say that I am feeling great and ready for some good news. However, I am in so much pain all day and night. My hips are swollen and hot and PAINFUL (from the progesterone injections)!!!! On a scale of 1-10, I would have to give the pain a rating of 10! Only the best for me ;) My spirits aren't great either, because I can't sleep at night. Most of you know how important my 9 hours of sleep are. Let's just say I have cut back to about 4 to 6 hours of restless sleep per night. And poor (amazing, wonderful, caring, loving, selfless) Phillip has been up and down helping me make it through the night. I have not had to lift a finger to do anything. He has been sleeping on the floor for a week now. He pulled the twin mattress off the guest bed and put it on the floor by our bed. Is he the best husband or what??? Anyway, I know that when they call us tomorrow with GREAT news...all of this will have been worth it. Just so you know...our appointment is at 9 am. Then we will have to wait for them to call us with the news. In the past, they have made all of their calls at around 5:30 pm. That's right, more waiting. :) Love and Prayers...

Counting down the days

Hey everyone! I am so sorry that I haven't updated lately. As most of you know, I have been on bed rest ALL WEEK! I made it, but I must say that it was torture. My hips hurt VERY bad...making it uncomfortable to lay down. I would have updated via a laptop computer, but we decided that it was best for me not to have access to the Internet. I would like to say that I have self-control, but I would have researched every pain, cramp, itch, etc... just trying to find out what they mean. I just have to make it to Wed. and take that test. Pray for me to be patient and to stay occupied. It's hard to be up to much, but I want to try to stay busy.
As far as the transfer, we put in 3 embryos!!! Two of them were blastocysts (very big and strong) and the 3rd was our little 8 cell embryo. We decided (after signing consent forms, lol) that we wanted everyone of those little babies. I looked at Phillip and said..."I really want triplets now!!" This is in part because our other embryos tuckered-out. Meaning...we would not have any frozen and this was our big chance. The moment of the transfer, I am going to keep private. However, I will tell you that it rated right up there with walking down the aisle at my wedding, or walking across the stage to get my diploma. It was one of those events in life that I will always cherish. I know that God was in that room with us. Keep praying for us and our babies. We love all of you very much.

Brylie is here!!!

Yipee!!! Natalie's baby was born tonight at approx. 10 pm. She is beautiful and... are you ready for this?... She's a redhead. That's right, she has strawberry blonde hair. How funny. She is perfect. Everyone was thrilled to meet her. Mom is fine. She had a wonderful labor and delivery. Big sister was a delight as well. I love them to death. :)

EMBRYOS!!!

Well, we officially have..................6 definite embryos!!!! I say definite because we have 2 maybe babies. Two of them look like they may divide, but they haven't yet. So the number is between 6 and 8. Isn't that just the way Phillip and I do things? We always have something waiting in the wings. However, what a great number!! Our prayers have truly been answered. We were both very concerned that we would have 18 or something. Then we would have the chance of having 18 children...doesn't sound very appealing. Six children would not be the end of the world. We are so fortunate. Thank you for your support and prayers.

Update

The egg retrieval was today. Everything went very smoothly (I guess). I was under anesthesia for the entire procedure. The dr. and embryologist retrieved 12 eggs. A very good number...one dozen! :) Once again, we are blessed! They will call tomorrow to tell us how many eggs fertilized. We will also be told when our transfer day is. It will either be Sat. or Mon. We hope for Mon. That means the embryos are stronger and more developed. I will update more when I am not on the verge of passing out. Love to all of you.

My Rock and My Building... ;)

I don't know what I would do without the best mom in the whole world. My mom has taken me to most of my dr.'s appointments. She has been my rock. When I feel crummy...I call her. When I am nervous... I call her. I love this woman and hope to be an amazing mommy just like her!!!

This is my Dr.'s office. He is located in one of the buildings at Centennial hospital. Isn't this a pretty building? I am so shallow. Heehee!

Best Friends

This is Natalie. She is my BFF. She has really been there for me the past 2 years. She will soon be welcoming daughter number 2, and I can't wait to share the experience with her. I also can't wait to give little Brylie some friends to play with. :)

GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!

God is good! He continues to bless us with each dr.'s visit. My nurse called last night and said: "no more Lupron or Repronex injections." I was elated. This meant that my egg retrieval would be TOMORROW!!!!! She said that everything looks perfect and we are ready for our trigger shot ( this tells my ovaries to release the eggs in 40 hours). We are so excited. I could barely write her instructions, because my hand was shaking. We did our trigger shot last night at precisely 9 pm. The doctor goes in exactly 36 hours after the trigger shot to retrieve an egg from each follicle (29 in my case). He said that he would probably get 20 eggs from me. Not all of them will fertilize. Anyway...at 9 am tomorrow morning, Dr. Vasqueze will do my egg retrieval. Not long after that, the eggs will be fertilized and Phillip and I will have teeny-tiny embryos. I pray that God breathes the breath of life into those little guys. I told Phillip this morning...tomorrow the decision will be made of what color hair and eyes our children will have. So amazing. We truly are living a miracle. Your prayers are appreciated and WORKING. We love all of you and could not do this alone.


I want to give a special thanks to two amazing families. The Giles family and the Bryan family. Forrest and Gracie were students in my classroom this past year. Their families each gave me a care package this week. I got lots of goodies to keep me busy and make me feel loved during my bed rest (June 30th - July 4th). Thank you Gracie and Forrest (and parents). I love all of you dearly.

YUCK!!!!!!

I am sitting in my house on this beautiful summer day and I feel YUCKEEEE!! These hormones are brutal! I have been very nauseous, soar, and TIRED! Went to the dr. yesterday and he says all is going well. My follicles continue to grow. However, my estrogen level was a bit elevated. Thus, they had me reduce the amount of Repronex Phillip injects (into me...of course) at night. I am so thankful for your prayers and support. We are overwhelmed with the love we feel around us. Keep those prayers coming. After all, life is a God creation (the dr. is just helping out). :)


Thanks Jessica for your comment. It was so loving and sweet.

Another GREAT report!!!!

Went back to dr. today. My bestest friend Natalie took me. He did the ultrasound and said I am doing "GREAT"! Oh man, I am really getting excited now. The nurse called this afternoon and said that my estrogen levels are "excellent." Every report just gets better and better. I told Dr. V that I was worried about some stuff and he said the best thing to do is just "Give it to God." At that moment, I knew I was in great hands. I love God and know that my Dr. does, as well. I am so blessed. I can't stop saying that, but I am. Phillip and I both are. I have another appt. on Friday. I will update more then. Oh yeah, Dr. says I will know for sure on Monday if we are doing the egg retrieval on Wed. Pray, pray, pray. Our love and thanks...P and A
P.S. I love the comments that some of you are leaving. Please drop me a line if you have time. :)

Yesterday, I went for my long-awaited appointment to Dr. Vasquez. This appointment was to reveal how many follicles I have growing and how I am responding to the stimulation meds. My mom and I watched the ultrasonographer measure one follicle after another. I was sooooo anxious to know how many!?!?!?! After she silently measured the follicles, she said: "o.k. your nurse will call you this afternoon." That is when I said PLEASE give me some kind of idea how many. She then looked at the screen and said "ummm I think about .... 30." I felt as though a huge weight had been lifted. Phillip and I could now rest assured that he is doing those stinking injections right at night...and I am mixing the meds correctly. I was soooo excited. Mom and I just couldn't stop beaming. I went home and looked straight at my IVF books. We now have a 68% chance of success, as apposed to 50%. More follicles = better chances. The nurse did call and the official count was 29 follicles and my hormone levels are looking good. I have another apt. in the morning to check the progress of the follicles. If these side effects are any indication, this medicine is surely doing its job!!!!!!!! Good night & keep the prayers coming...THEY ARE WORKING!!

I went to dinner with my 3 best friends from high school on Friday night. It was so nice to see them and play catch-up. They are lovely women, and it is amazing how we have all grown up and gone in different directions. Yet, we remain close and pick right up where we left off. They are very supportive of our choice to start a family through the use of IVF. They all say they are praying for us. I am so blessed with loving friends and family.