Nolan Reed: What's in a Name?

For Jason and I, deciding on a name when we found out we were pregnant could have went one of two ways.  Before we knew the gender, we had discussed numerous hours worth of name exchanging... but only for girls!  We had known for years what our baby boy's name would be if we were ever blessed to be pregnant with a little man.  Yet, before we knew that a little dude was in our future, it was a never-ending battle of conversations like this over girls' names:

Me: I really like {insert name here}.  What do you think?
Jason:  No way.  It sounds like a stripper.  Our daughter cannot have a stripper name.
....same conversation for every.single.name I brought up.  Needless to say, apparently I only think of stripper names.

There were a few names we did come close to agreeing on, such as Layla, Avery, and Harper.  There were two that I really fell in love with, but couldn't quite convince Jason to love them just as much.  Maybe the next go-around of being pregnant, I'll try again (which is why I'm keeping them private for now )!  :)  

Boys' names, on the other hand, was a completely different story!  Jason grew up with a love of baseball.  He started playing when he was seven, and continued all the way through his freshman year of high school in Maryland.  He got injured and had surgery on his shoulder (he was a pitcher), and never continued playing through high school once he moved to Henderson.  Being an avid baseball fan, he grew up with Nolan Ryan as one of his favorite players.  When Jason and I first started talking about having kids and what we would name them (years, years, yeaaaars ago) he mentioned he always wanted a son named Nolan.  I instantly agreed that it was an amazing name, and so made the easy decision and early love of the name Nolan!  As for the middle name, I we randomly thought of Reed one night within the last year while watching T.V.  We put it together with Nolan and it flowed perfectly, and again, we both instantly loved both names and made our decision so easy!

Nolan Reed has always been our top choice.  It is strong and masculine, as well as professional, yet youthful, all of which we wanted in a name for a boy.  It is a well known name (#88 for 2012), but not a super popular one chosen for the time, so I'm hoping he will be one of the few Nolan's in his age group.   Nolan means noble and famous, and I've also seen "champion" listed under some descriptions, as well.  I can picture him to be smart, athletic, calm, confident and mature as he grows up, and we both feel this name is so fitting to our baby we've yet to even meet!  We've never thought of alternatives, so hopefully this baby comes out looking like a Nolan... otherwise we're back to square one!  

Nursery Furniture!

This weekend, our nursery furniture came in!  We ordered a complete 3-piece set from JCPenney.com.  We had looked around at furniture in person, and couldn't seem to find anything we absolutely loved.  At Babies R' Us, the furniture was great quality, but nothing screamed out at me and it was SO expensive!  Once I started looking around online, I found this set on JCPenney's website that I fell in love with (mostly the crib).  And once I realized the price for 3 pieces at JCPenney was the same, if not cheaper than 2 pieces at Babies R' Us, I knew that our choice would be easy.  Even though we hadn't seen the furniture in person, I felt comfortable through reading reviews that others had posted, that we would most likely be satisfied with our purchase.  And if we weren't, their return policy was supposed to be great, so we felt good about our decision.

On Saturday afternoon, the furniture was delivered and we began unpacking to set it all up!  

Harley was even excited to help and we all couldn't wait to get building!  Luckily, building only meant putting the crib together.  The dressers came pre-assembled which made life easy!

Once Jason put the whole thing together (with the help of me holding tools, sorting pieces, and being the designated "leveler", our furniture was put together and complete!  We arranged it a couple ways in the room, and will probably rearrange it a couple more times before we decide where we want everything for good!  

All of Harley's hard work supervising had him exhausted, so he passed out while we took some more pictures of the crib and my growing belly!

Our only casualty was one corner of a dresser than came a little dinged from delivery.  We called JCPenney and they were extremely helpful in making the exchange easy, so next week they will bring out a new one and switch it for the damaged dresser.  Now I'm looking forward to decorating this nursery in all things boy, boy boy!  I've had a couple themes in mind, but it looks like I'm leaning towards a vintage baseball theme.  I'll keep the progress updated!  

Bump Watch: 20 Weeks

How far along? 20 weeks, 0 days

Total weight gain: Dr. Juarez said I gained another 4 pounds since the last appointment we had, which makes my total at 8 pounds so far!
Maternity clothes? I maaaaay have just splurged at Gap Maternity last weekend.  We went to the Miracle Mile shops and I had no idea the Gap had their own maternity section (the only one in Vegas, I might add).  So, I bought lots of fun things, including a maybe-too-expensive pair of maternity skinny jeans. but it was my birthday weekend, so I was allowed to splurge!  
Stretch marks? Nope!
Sleep:  Still great, although I've had a cold since Thursday so I've been up coughing, sniffling, and gulping water for my sore throat.  No fun!
Best moment this week: Our anatomy scan ultrasound that got us close up sneak peaks of our little man!
Miss Anything? Still deli sandwiches and hot dogs!
Movement: Yes!  Still no big kicks, but when I stayed home from work on Friday, I think baby boy was confused as to why I was laying around all day so he decided to move around more than I've ever felt!  Ever since then, though, it hasn't been as frequent.  I can't' wait for the day when I can say I'm sick of him kicking me.... I want that big sock in the ribs so bad!!
Food cravings: Back on pop tarts again!
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope!
Gender prediction: No more predicting... it's a boy!
Labor Signs: Nothing.
Symptoms: Braxton Hicks!  Or what I thought was Braxton Hicks.  Dr. Juarez said most likely uterine spasms, but during the previous weekend of shopping downtown for 3 hours, I was a bit dehydrated and felt my stomach and uterus cramp up and get rock hard, with a ball-like feeling inside.  It happened three times, and was most likely attributed to my dehydration.  Let's just say I've kept my water intake much higher since then!
Belly Button in or out? Actually starting to pop out!!  It's way too early for that!  The top portion of my belly button rolls out a tiny bit... I'm not ready for an outie!
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and finally starting to get really excited to prepare for this baby!
Looking forward to: Making our registry and getting the nursery together!  See the next blog post on our nursery furniture delivery!

Ultrasound #5

This week, we had our anatomy scan at 19 weeks and 3 days.  This was one thing I've been looking forward to for the last couple of months.  I feel extremely reassured, because early in this pregnancy I remember telling myself.... everything is going to be okay once we get to 18+ weeks and we get our anatomy scan to see how baby is growing!  Fortunately, I was right!

The anatomy scan was so, so amazing.  I almost felt more amazed with this ultrasound in 2D more so than our 3D/4D ultrasounds we've had in the past!  The ultrasound tech told us it would be a longer ultrasound than normal, and explained that she starts at the top of baby's head and works her way down to his toes, scanning everything from general anatomy to the very detail of inside each organ.  She also asked if we wanted to know the gender.  I explained we had already cheated and found out early at a 3D ultrasound, but wanted her to confirm that we are still having the same!

She began measuring my cervix length which was "nice and long" as well as my amniotic fluid around the baby.  She measured baby Kelton at 10 ounces and my progress exactly at 19 weeks, 3 days (the exact number of weeks I should be based on my LMP).  Originally, the early ultrasounds measured me a few days behind my LMP date.  But, because I knew exactly when we conceived, based on tracking my ovulation, I kept with my LMP date this whole time.  Turns out I was right on! 

We then went through all the pictures of baby Kelton, starting with his head and brain.  She showed us his heart, the four chambers of his heart, and even each valve opening and closing, pumping blood through his tiny body.  Aaaaamazing!  We saw his ribs and spine, which was the coolest thing to see, especially when he moved around.  She also showed us his stomach, his bladder, and other organs that were developed and growing.  He had all four arms and legs with fingers and toes.  We saw cute baby buns, and she waited patiently for him to spread his legs.  After a few minutes, he finally let us see and we confirmed that baby Kelton is DEFINITELY a boy!  

He moved around quite a bit during the exam, and showed us all how he is already taking after his mommy and daddy by being extremely stubborn!  The last part of the exam, she wanted to get a nice profile shot of baby's face.  He was not having it!  With his hands up by his face the whole time, covering himself and flipping back and forth, the tech tried everything from moving the probe to each possible angle of my belly and even wiggling my belly, shaking the hell out of the little guy!  After ten minutes of her trying to get his picture, she had to settle with just an okay profile shot.  Looks like this baby does not want us seeing what he looks like until he makes his appearance!

I notice he does the same when I use my fetal doppler at home.  I've gotten into the routine of listening for a few minutes right before bed, getting to bond a little bit with my nugget.  The last few weeks, every time I find his heartbeat, it lasts for a split second and off he goes, running away from the probe, making me chase him down again to find his heartbeat!  I think this little guy likes his privacy and his space... between my doppler use and the ultrasound exam, I got the feeling he just wants to be left alone!  

We found that he was in the breech position during the exam, with his head at my belly button and his feet right at my bladder.  It was amazing to me to know he was so high up already!  I had been feeling some weird sensations around my belly button within the last week.  I thought for a second it might have been him, but ruled it out thinking it was too early for him to be so high up.  Turns out, he must like that spot!  I've also noticed in the last few days before the ultrasound that I had been needing to pee more often than before.  His feet bouncing on my bladder probably have a lot to do with that!  

After taking what seemed like a million pictures, the tech gave us 4 to take home, all of which weren't even the greatest pictures from the whole exam, but oh well.  We got a profile shot (the best she could capture due to his stubbornness!) as well as our gender shot, and two of his face looking straight up (looking like a skull and a little creepy).  

The next day we were to follow up with Dr. Juarez so he could go over the ultrasound results with us.  I had been reading a lot in the weeks leading up to the ultrasound, and found that it was quite common to find "soft markers" during anatomy scans, which could either indicate problems, a higher chance of chromosomal defects, or simply no worry at all, that these problems fix themselves and baby is born completely healthy.  This had me a little anxious, and we did a lot of hoping and praying that baby would come back with no type of marker or abnormality.  Luckily, Dr. Juarez confirmed that he saw no type of abnormality through the whole ultrasound!  Hearing that we have a healthy, developed and growing-right-on-scheduled baby made me feel so much more at ease.  I know I still keep a small spot in my mind to expect the worse... and it feels as each week goes on, it gets smaller and smaller.  I can't wait for the moment that I have no fear of what to expect... although I think I may be one of those mom's who just won't stop worrying until I'm holding my little man in my arms!

Baby's Profile Pic!

Can't deny that it's definitely a boy!

Face / Skull view - facing up towards us

Another face view that creeps me out!

Seeing baby on the ultrasound this week made me feel a million times more attached to him.  I can't believe how much love I can already have for just a bean on a screen.  Although it's scary to let my guard down and to give all my love to something I haven't held, touched, or physically seen, I know that this little boy is going to change my whole world and I really cannot wait for January to get here!  We are so happy and so blessed that this pregnancy has been healthy and baby is growing exactly the way he should be.  

Bump Watch: 18 Weeks

How far along? 18 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain: Still up 3 pounds.
Maternity clothes? Yep, here and there.  I live in the shorts pictured.. workout clothes are comfy and stretchy!
Stretch marks? Nope!
Sleep:  Had my first night of bad sleep two nights ago... I was hoping it wasn't the start of a horrible pregnancy symptom, and luckily I was right!  The next night I slept like a baby again!
Best moment this week: Catching up on a phone date with my BFF & cousin, Chelsea... we talked all things baby and birth and it made me so excited and grateful to be able to share this special time with her!  We're so lucky our little ones will be 5 months apart!
Miss Anything? Deli sandwiches!  They just opened a Port of Subs down the street from my work and it instantly made me mad!
Movement: Still feeling "bubbles" and light flutters.  The more I feel it, the more confident I am that it's him!  It only happens when I'm lying extremely still or when I'm driving, so not very often!
Food cravings: No particular cravings, but always hungry! 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not much!
Gender prediction: No more predicting... it's a boy!
Labor Signs: Nope!
Symptoms: New ligament pain (I'm assuming) in my upper back right below my ribs.  I'm thinking it's just my ribs and muscles stretching and moving, but it's a constant aching like someone is punching me in the back!  I'm sure it's fine.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Mostly happy!
Looking forward to: More strong movement from the little guy!  I need some big kicks in my life soon! And it's my birthday this weekend!!  I'm sure we'll be eating out a lot and I always look forward to eating out at this stage! 

Bump Watch: 17 Weeks

Disclaimer:  I may have skipped week 16... oops!  We got busy with Jason's birthday and other happenings, and by the time I was thinking about decorating the chalkboard, I was already 16 weeks and 5 days.. which we decided to just wait until 17 weeks to update!  

How far along? 17 weeks, 0 days

Total weight gain: Last I checked I was up 3 pounds.
Maternity clothes? Wearing the belly band alllll the time.  Can't live without it at this point!
Stretch marks? Still nothing so far. 
Sleep:  Always... love it still!  Finding it to be a little weird feeling laying on my tummy, I may have to invest in a pregnancy pillow soon!
Best moment this week: Getting a start on our baby items... we figured out which stroller, carseat and nursery furniture we want!  It's s step in the right direction!  
Miss Anything? Still missing hot dogs.  Boo.  
Movement: Sometimes I feel like I might be feeling him.  Other times, I think maybe I'm just really gassy.  I know they feel similar, so I'm waiting until I get the "confirmation feeling" that it is definitely him!  I think in a week or so, his kicks and movements will be stronger and I'll know for sure.  Right now, I think I'm feeling extremely light flutters because I'm so in tune with my body and he is still so small!
Food cravings: Nothing in particular, but I have recently been pigging out on Pop Tarts and cereal.  So unhealthy. 
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not too much anymore... my hunger is back in full force!
Gender prediction: No more predicting... it's a boy!
Labor Signs: Not even close!
Symptoms: Lots of round ligament pain, and possible movement flutters!  And hunger all.the.time.
Belly Button in or out? In
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy and some moments of worry, which is just bound to happen with my worry wart mentality!  All is well, though, as far as I know!
Looking forward to: Feeling the little man move in my belly!  Hopefully soon!!

July Happenings

This month definitely was a lot busier than June!  Although I was still exhausted, we did start doing a few more things and have a bit more outings for the month of July.  The weather was still horribly hot, so we tried to stay inside as much as possible!

The first weekend of July, we helped celebrate our friends, Whitney and Joe, get married in Zion!

We spent time with our friends throughout the month, enjoying dinners out and spending time at our houses just relaxing and having some drinks (extra water, for me!)  We spent one night playing dress up with the kiddos at the Luks' home, which made for some entertaining photos:

We had our gender ultrasound to find out that we are expecting a sweet baby boy!

I made fun gender reveals both for our friends and family to see, as well as one specially for my coworkers.

Jason finally took his REHS exam for work, which he has been studying like a mad man for the last few months.  He spent four hours taking the exam which was extremely challenging, but ended up passing with an 81%!  This is a great relief for him, as it helps with job security, and also allows for a step increase in position and pay once he hits his two year mark with the health district.  Woohoo!

We did lots of shopping with the excitement that a little boy is on the way for us!  Although we didn't go crazy with buying lots of blue (crossing my fingers that he's still a boy at our next ultrasound!), we did get a few cute things as well as some gifts from my mom, the Luks', some coworkers, as well as some hand-me-downs from a family friend!  This little guy is already so spoiled!  

We celebrated Jason's birthday by going out to dinner at Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak, and Stone Crab located in Caesar's Forum Shops.  Jason has been wanting to try this restaurant out for a while, so we finally splurged to celebrate him turning 27 and passing his exam for work!  The food was ahhhmazing!  I've always said my favorite meal in my whole life has been our dinner at our wedding (filet mignon), and the filet we had at Joe's was a very close second!  We pigged out on filet and crab, a seafood sampler of cod, calamari, scallops, and some yummy sides of mac and cheese and some mashed potatoes.  I would highly recommend this place if you're in the mood for some great steaks and seafood!

Happy Birthday, Jason!

Again, not too many pictures this month, but hopefully we'll keep up being more active and have even more to share in August!  ...Until then!