THE NURSERY!!!

Well, it's been a LONG time since our last post and in this case, no news has been good news. Every time Rachel has been back to the doctor, everything has appeared to be going great! Grady Lee is head down and should stay that way until the delivery! Since there have been no major developments, we haven't posted any entries. As of tonight, the next big step is done...THE NURSERY!!!

And one more preggy picture for the record books...




Thanks for the continued thoughts and prayers for an easy, safe delivery, a healthy, happy baby and wise parents! Seven weeks and counting!!!

"But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." -Joshua 24:15

First Baby Shower

We had our first shower yesterday! Rachel's co-workers threw us a shower and were extremely generous. We're thrilled with what we were given and are sure it will be put to good use. Thanks to all those at Battlefield Primary who showed up!

The Prayer of a Father-to-Be

I've struggled with whether or not to post this entry. We all deal with situations differently and handle weighty events in different ways. What most of you don't know about me is that I write. My brain gets so full of thoughts, memories and connections that I have to put them on paper to find resolution. The following prayer was written on March 3rd while I was on my lunch break at work. I was reflecting on the magnitude of the gift of a child. I didn't intend for anyone else to read it...ever. A couple of weeks later, I felt compelled to read it to Rachel.
When we found out that our little peanut was going to be a boy, a new round of thoughts crowded my mind. I will be this little boy's example. He'll learn what it means to be a man from me. I will be responsible for teaching this little boy the importance of living as a faithful Christian man. All of these thoughts lead me back to this prayer, written almost two months ago, but somehow almost more true today than it was then. I share this for only one reason; if you read this blog, I assume that you have some relationship with Rachel and I. I ask you to hold me accountable as a father. My unborn son deserves a strong, Godly father. With that said, I know there will be times that I will need to be reminded of the way I felt when I wrote this:

“God I stand before you here, unworthy, yet honored;
Your will dictates that now is the time for one of your children to start their journey here on earth. A child, precious to you and essential in your master plan, who needs mentors to aid in development and demonstrate the love that you have so freely given us. This world operates at your command and spins at your pleasure. You have the opportunity to choose anyone as an example for this child. So many are so much more qualified than I; financially, physically and mentally I am dwarfed by thousands, nay, millions. You have the opportunity to choose anyone, and you are choosing me? I am so imperfect, and yet you choose me? I am so insignificant, and yet you still choose me? This can only be explained in one way; the child which my wife now carries is not our own. If it were ours, we would have no chance. We are both so imperfect and fail daily in our struggle to live as your Son lived. No, the child that my wife now carries is Your own. You have plans for our child that we cannot fathom. Help us to remember through the years the magnitude of this gift. Why you saw fit to put this child under our care for a time, I do not know. What I do know though, is that your will is perfect. Potter, please mold me into a father. Teach me how to love this child as you do and grant me wisdom to lead our family. Words fail me, as humbled so drastically understates the condition of my heart today. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Please hold my hand and lead me as I hold the hand of our child and lead. I am overwhelmed by your love yet again!"

And again today, I am overwhelmed!

15 "But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."
-Joshua 24:15

BREAKING NEWS!

We are officially going to be the proud parents of a baby boy!

Rachel and I went to the doctor this afternoon for the big visit! We were promptly directed back to the ultrasound room that we have been waiting so long to visit. As Rachel handled some pre-ultrasound business, the ultrasound technician asked if we knew what the baby was going to be and if we wanted her to try to find out. OF COURSE I told her that we wanted to know if she could get a good shot. She fired up the machine and started sliding it around Rachel's belly. We saw the baby almost immediately and what seemed like less than a minute in, we were informed with certainty that we will be having a little baby BOY! She showed us on the screen and we all concurred, it's going to be a boy (for modesty's sake, no pictures of this will be shared). Our little guy was more active in there than I could have ever imagined (in large part due to the Diet Dr. Pepper Rach drank to increase our chances of catching a glimpse). He kept spinning around and flipping back and forth! Despite his best efforts, the technician moved on to measure our little boy's head, leg bone, arm bone, and spine. She noted the four chambers of his heart and two little kidneys and a bladder. She took pictures of his feet and hands and showed us the blood flow around the umbilical cord. "Everything looks perfect and right on time for September 12th", responded the ultrasound tech. Rachel and I both smiled and took a deep breath, proud to hear about our healthy little boy and realizing that the time is growing closer every day!

After the doctor's visit, we went to Baby's R Us. We had a 20% coupon and were ready to buy the crib! To make a long story short, Baby's R Us didn't have it, but Toys R Us did. We drove to Toys R Us and bought our little boys bed!

We then went to the mall and bought our little man his first outfits from the parents!

(Yes he'll be a Yankee fan. No, he doesn't have a choice!)

We are absolutely THRILLED!!!

"Sons are a heritage from the Lord,
children are a reward from Him,
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.
Blessed is the man
who's quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame,
when they contend with their enemy at the gate."
-Psalm 127:3-5
(I know it's a repeat verse, but there's not a better one for this entry!)

Barefoot and Pregnant! 20 weeks

Here's a quick entry to catch you up on the eve of the "big" Dr.'s appt. First off, here is the first belly picture approved by the mom-to-be at approx. 20 weeks:

Our preparations for the baby started in the most logical place as you would expect; buying a new camera and a new car! The camera is a 10 mega pixel upgrade from our previous model and should be a good one to capture all of the amazing (and terrifying) moments of parenthood!

The car might need some explanation. Rachel and I both had cars. Rachel's is an Acura CL 2.2 w/ approx. 190,00 miles and mine was a 1995 Mercury Grand Marquis (aka "The Beast") with approx 180,000 miles. Neither of which were ideal for carrying little ones around town and with the mileage, who knows how long they'd last. So, we decided to look for a nice SUV with plenty of room and good gas mileage. After a couple of months we found our 2006 Mitusbishi Endeavor!

Picture from JD Power & Assoc.

SO, that pretty much brings you up to speed. Tomorrow we are supposed to learn the gender of the baby. We are so excited! We will let you know as soon as we find something out! Please pray for us and check back tomorrow for the BIG NEWS (hopefully)!

Just for curiosity's sake, let us know what you think it's going to be!

"Sons are a heritage from the Lord,
children are a reward from Him,
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.
Blessed is the man
who's quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame,
when they contend with their enemy at the gate."
-Psalm 127:3-5

Just Push Play!

"Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God."
-Matthew 5:8

A Bit of a Scare...

Well, today was the much awaited second appointment. The information packet provided by the doctor's office, as well as the Pregnancy Week by Week book Rachel is reading said that this would be the visit where we would first hear our child's heartbeat. I've been looking forward to it for weeks! I even figured out how to upload audio to blog entries so that I could record the heartbeat and put it on here for the world to hear! That was the plan anyway...


We got to the doctor's office just before our scheduled appointment. There were some nerves this time, but not nearly as many as there were before the first visit. There haven't been any complications that we've seen so we haven't been too worried. After a few minutes we were called back and led to an exam room (strangely enough, the very same room as last month). As we waited on the Doctor to come back I got my voice recorder ready on my mp3 player to catch all of the excitement just like I'd played it out 100 times in my mind. The doctor came in and got right to work. She pulled out her microphone and prepped Rachel's belly. She fired up the mic and started moving it around on Rachel's stomach. There was lots of feedback...but there was no heartbeat. I quit fumbling with my mp3 player and started paying closer attention. After a few more seconds, the Doctor called for the ultrasound machine. She said the baby was probably just positioned so that the microphone couldn't pick up the heartbeat, but she wanted to make sure.


In came the ultrasound machine. The next ultrasound isn't scheduled until the 20th week when we're supposed to find out if it's a boy or a girl, so I started to get a little concerned, but I wasn't too worked up. The doctor again prepped Rachel's belly with the ultrasound gel and started moving the wand around. After what seemed like forever (but was more like a couple of minutes)...again,there was no baby. At this point, worried would be an understatement. The Doctor remained calm, but we could see the concern as she gazed at the fuzzy black and white nothingness on the screen. Rachel asked, "Is this normal?", to which the doc responded, "I'm not going to say anything until I know for sure". At that, my heart jumped directly into my throat. Fifteen minutes ago I was planning out how best to display the recorded heartbeat of my unborn child on our blog, and now I'm wondering how I need to respond for Rachel if we've lost our baby. At this point, afraid would be a severe understatement.


The doctor said she was going to try an internal ultrasound. We obviously agreed, both extremely anxious about the situation as it stood. The doctor started the ultrasound process and a few seconds later, my heart returned safely to it's intended location in my chest.




There on the very same screen which moments ago displayed fear in black and white fuzz, was our baby, kicked back, already hiding from Mom and Dad. The doctor explained that the baby was sitting just far enough back that the heart monitor and initial ultrasound couldn't reach it. She then said the words I so wanted to hear, "Everything looks good. I don't see anything at all here to be concerned about. It just looks like you've got a turkey on your hands."

SO, everything is as it should be (Praise God!!!) but the visit was much more eventful that either of us would have preferred. And to our Little One, DON'T EVER HIDE FROM YOUR PARENTS! You scared us half to death!

"You are my HIDING PLACE;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Selah
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will councel you and watch over you."
-Psalm 31:7-8