Here's the 24 week "belly shot"... Danny said I look like an "S". :)

We had a great visit at the doctor's office yesterday. We went ahead with the 2nd ultrasound and everything looks great with the baby! We basically got an anatomy scan to make sure all of the important parts are developing as they should. Since we know there shouldn't be any unpleasant surprises now, we might be able to go to St. Ann's to the labor & delivery floor where Mom works and maybe have a photo shoot of the baby. We're going to try to go on a night when they aren't as busy and see if we can get some more ultrasound pictures. I'd love to get a good profile shot! Since my last appointment a month ago, I've gained another 5 lbs. The baby is estimated to weigh a mere 1 lb., 7 oz. Crazy!

Here is a shot from the top of the head. At the top of the picture, you can see the 2 eye sockets with the nose in the middle:


This one is kind of creepy...if you turn your head to the left, the large black oval is where the brain is, with the two eyes below that:


Again, looking at the top of the head, you can see one of the hands near the face:

Here is a picture of one of the arms. You can see the 2 main arm bones and the index finger extended:

Here we're zoomed in on the heart as a cross-section picture. You can see the strong 4 chambers of the heart creating a 4-leaf clover look:

Here is the healthy spine!

You can kind of see the 2 feet:

And the legs are crossed! At the right are the thighs and at the left are the feet with the legs crossed at the ankles:

We finally registered for baby stuff at Babies "R" Us on Friday night. We were the only crazy people out shopping in the "blizzard." We originally thought the place was closed! It was really nice...it was like we had the whole entire store to ourselves! It was great when we had a question - we got some one-on-one help! It was overwhelming, but fun.

Yay! Danny and I finally ordered our baby's furniture! We're relieved to be able to cross one more thing off our our to-do list. The salesman had just sold the last set, so we had to order the 3 pieces we wanted. We also custom ordered this phenomenal glider/recliner...I never thought I'd get excited over something like this. Crazy. Everything will be a dark espresso color - we think it will look really good with the bedding we got; especially once we get some paint on the walls. It will be 8-10 weeks until it comes in...hopefully we get it early!

We are also one step closer to finalizing day-care stuff. Just have to talk to the director one last time about some questions we have. It would be very convenient and we'd get the most bang for our buck. Not to mention the best teacher to child ratio we were able to find. We're really excited. Next steps...registering at Babies R Us, 2nd ultrasound, finding a pediatrician, and prepping for baptism stuff!

20 weeks...halfway there & starting to "feel" pregnant!

I had a doctor's appointment last night. I've gained a whopping 9 lbs. since my first appointment and the baby's heart rate is about 144 bpm...still in the "girl range." :) Danny swears it's a girl...I have a hunch it's a boy. Can't wait to find out in May! Hopefully I'll have a 2nd ultrasound in February. Still working through insurance on that one.

Danny & I "saw" the baby kick tonight! So exciting, but very weird! Every once in a while, a part of my lower stomach would just poke out!