Spring Break and 23 week checkup!

Okay here I am trying to roll two posts into one, because I can never find the time to sit down and just write!

As many of you know Phillip is in school full-time, so the only time he could really get away was Spring Break. We decided to go to Disney World!!! Our last vacation as a family of two (unless I can talk Phillip into going to the beach before Titus comes :). We figured it would be a while before the boy is old enough to go to Disney and actually enjoy it so we had an adult trip and it was a blast! However, it was very exhausting for me. As if it's not just an exhausting place to begin with, Spring Break and being pregnant made it 10x more exhausting. But I didn't let it hold me back. We left the hotel before 8am and wouldn't get back most of the time until 10pm or later. We literally tried to squeeze in as much as we could!

Phillip felt the baby move for the first time on vacation and I had tons of Braxton Hicks contractions, but thats another story for another day. But here are a few pictures from the trip:

Sleepy head! 

I'm a bug! 

On a mission to get in line for Butterbeer! 

Look at those sleepy eyes! 

Minnie. 

We had to pull out the poncho's the first day at Epcot! It rained all day!! 

Lady and the Tramp 

A squirrel finding something interesting in Bell's wig. hahah

A big silverback coming right to us! 

this is the day we got rained on! Yuck!

I had a doctor appointment the week we got back (23 weeks). The good news was that the baby was doing fine, growing healthy, and I am still on track with my weight gain (even though we ate out every meal for a week, woot-woot!!). Titus' heartbeat was 144. The not so good news is, its kinda too early for me to be having so many braxton hicks contractions. So I've been having to keep an eye on them and keep them down with rest and lots of water. At my next visit I will officially be in my 3RD TRIMESTER!! Crazy how time flies, huh? We are working on our registries and our classes for childbirth start this week, along with all the other "first-time parent" classes we signed up for! 

Until next time, 

-Nikki

Two in one night, I'm on a roll

So earlier tonight I was going through all of our "stuff" to see how much of what we have and not. I just have to say that we are so blessed with a loving and giving family!! The only thing in this picture we have purchased is the crib and mattress. We've gotten a bouncer, pack-n-play, 2 carrier/backpacks, blanket, bottles, bibs, bible, passies, bath stuff, binky/lovies, a cute crochet hat (from Pop), 20 pairs of socks, atleast 8 sleepers (some footed, some gown type), a little spa suit with slippers, hat, towel, and robe; more bath towels, probably atleast 15-20 onesies, a monkey suit, and a plethora of other cute outfits. Not pictured we have more hats, onesies, and outfits, and a highchair. We also got a few girl outfits and blankets from the FEW people that actually thought we were having a girl. 

Can you tell we are ready for you to be here?!
(Grana (My mom) is going a little happy with the shopping, I don't think you will ever have to wear the same outfit twice, HA!)

We plan on getting our registry up and going soon, I've had a couple people ask me to go ahead and do one so they can start buying gifts. And we accept any and all hand-me-downs and pieces of advice! We have signed up for every single class available to us, because we are trying to get as much information as possible! We want to be prepared when Titus gets here!! Breastfeeding, infant cpr/safety, tour of the baby suites (River Oaks, where we will deliver and recover), nutrition, a 4-week class of childbirth and childcare, car seat safety and I think that's it. But who gives you information on which carseat/stroller/breastpump/bottles/etc, etc, etc. to buy. YIKES! We might be in trouble! 

Anywho, for a little fun, here's a survey I found on the internet:

How far along? 20 weeks, 2 days

Total weight gain/loss: Lost 6 in the beginning but gained everybit back plus 1 pound.

Maternity clothes? most of the time but some of my low cut jeans still fit, yoga pants, and a couple tshirts. But I've definately been shopping in the maternity department!! 

Stretch marks? a few from my growth spurt when I was younger, but none from the baby, HA!

Sleep: To hear my mom tell it I've been sleeping 12 hours a night since I came home from the hospital. Which is pretty true, I love my sleep. Always have. And I will surely miss it for the next 18 years so I'm getting plenty now :)

Best moment this week: We hit the 20 week mark. And I've felt the baby "really" move.

Movement: the quickening started around 16/17 weeks. I was almost 20 weeks when I was sure there was a baby in there, hahah! Since then he's been moving, ALOT!

Food cravings: fried chicken, cheeseburgers, fruit (grapes and citrusy fruits), lemonaide.

Gender: BOY (:

Labor Signs: None that I know of!

Belly Button in or out? innie.

Wedding rings on or off? still on, a little loose if I haven't had much sodium. The past couple of days that hasn't been the case though. :/

What I miss: sandwich meat (I never even really cared for sandwiches, but they were convenient), not having to pee 24/7, and a medium well steak. And I miss not having to worry about having a cup of coffee or a coke. I still have them, just less frequent. 

What I am looking forward to: short-term, Phillip being able to feel him move...long term, holding this baby in my arms!

Weekly Wisdom: Wisdom? I feel like I'm losing my brain most of the time! I do know that the baby is about as long as a carrot (head to rump).

Milestones: The 20 week mark means I'm halfway there, so that's a pretty big milestone I'd say :) 

Love, 

Nikki 

IT'S A BOY!!!

As most of you already know, Phillip and I are having a boy! We found out on February 23. This appointment was so exciting and nerve wrecking for us. I had been studying sonograms so I knew exactly what to look for gender wise. What I was mostly anxious about was the health of our baby. At this sonogram, the sonographer is looking for specific things on the baby (4 chambers of the heart, nasal bone, spina bifida, etc.) however she said everything with the baby appears to be normal as of now. BIG RELIEF!!!!

As for me, everything is healthy as well except for now my placenta is low. 90% of the time, the problem fixes itself, so I haven't been worried. Worst case scenario is having a c-section, which I'd prefer not to have but we will go with whatever is safest for the baby and me! She'll check it again in 8 weeks to make sure things are progressing. And I've gained 4 pounds this month...but its normal for the 2nd trimester.

At the sonogram, I wanted to spot the gender so I asked her not to tell me. I saw it right off the bat, two baby legs and a little twig. :) Phillip was wigging out in excitement, and the boy was flaunting his junk all over the place! We already had a feeling that it would be a boy, maternal/paternal instinct or just coincidence? Who knows?

Pointing to the little twig

little baby feet that I cannot wait to kiss!

Titus Hartley Lasseter at 10oz with a heart rate of 144.
He's looking straight at us with a little smile on his face. 

"He's translucent"--my adorable husband :)

 We had to keep this BIG SECRET for 3 days!! Our appointment was on Thursday and we had a gender reveal party with our family on Saturday! We had a "What's it gonna bee?" theme. We had cupcakes made with the center filling the color of the babies gender, blue!

Bee cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries, and a few gifts for baby!

Our family as they bit in to the cupcake, such a sweet moment to share with our whole family! 

BLUE! 

If you got through all of this then good for you! I know my facebook friends are probably tired of all my baby updates so I try to keep it minimal. It's soooo hard when you are this excited though. We have lots of family and friends that love hearing about him, so I'll try to keep you updated on here as often as possible. We've hit the 20 week mark so we are halfway there. I have to admit, I love being pregnant though. I know I will miss it  once it's gone but will have a sweet baby to hold to make up for it :) I've started feeling him around 16/17 weeks (Valentine's day-ish) but it was flutters that I actually thought were little twitches or hunger pangs. I now feel him everytime I get still and quite for a little bit, and the moves are way more noticeable that before. We haven't been able to feel him from the outside yet, so Phillip hasn't gotten to feel him move at all. Hopefully soon! 

We will be taking him on his first Disney trip next week! We will update you with pictures when we return!! :)

-Love always, 

The Lasseter's

Poll

...Just watch this baby come out a girl. Not that I would mind one bit, I'd absolutely love a girl and if I could pick, I would even pick a girl because I think that would be easier for me.

But everything is telling me it's a boy. I'm actually so certain that I haven't even been looking at girl stuff, only boy stuff. Maybe it's that I want a girl so bad that I don't want to get my hopes up.

Not that I mind having a boy either. Phillip, I know, would be beyond thrilled. I just know that with a boy, I'd be lost as a goose! I don't have a bit of Tom-boy in me, and certainly don't look forward to playing in the dirt or with reptiles.

Even when talking about the baby, I refer to it as "him" not "her" or "it". I think it's because we have had a boy name picked out for a while now, or it's because of my symptoms are more geared towards having a boy (kinda). And it doesn't help that all of the old-wives tells are mostly saying that it will be a boy.

And then, I think that the baby is just tricking me, and that it will be a girl. Either way I will be so excited, I already love it so much.

It's just crazy how the motherly instinct works. I never thought I'd be the one ready to change my whole life around for a baby, or spending my free time reading review on products and product recalls or just looking around the baby section of target! Or that I could love someone that I've never even met. I haven't even felt it move yet and I already feel a connection. I even look forward to our alone time, just me and my baby-in-the-belly, or our cuddle time with daddy. How crazy is that?

I kinda got off on a rabbit trail with this post, so if your still with me, I'll give you some of my symptoms/craving/etc. and you can help me out with this gender confusion

Cravings:
Fried chicken
Cheeseburgers
Grapes
Boiled peanuts
Anything salty
Ice cream
Pickles
(none of these are usually craved together but I do have to put extra salt on everything, more than I normally do).

Aversions:
Shrimp
Crawfish
Any seafood really
Onions

- I have had barely any morning sickness, but very fatigued.

-people say I'm carrying pretty low

- the heartbeat at the last visit was 149, but it had been higher before.

- I feel like I'm losing weight everywhere else but finding it in the belly.

Let's take a poll:

What will baby Lasseter be?
	Boy
	Girl
pollcode.com free polls

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year (11 wk. checkup)

We're so sad to see Christmas go, as it's our favorite time of year, but are definitely looking forward to all that 2012 is bringing us. Bean got more Christmas gifts than we did, but we aren't complaining. The way things are going we aren't gonna have to buy anything for a while!!! From over two hundred dollars, to outfits, blankets, toys and toiletries. We are so thankful!!!
We kinda went all out this Christmas too, because from now on it won't just be about us.

This months visit was short and sweet. We went in, had my vitals checked (I lost 6 pounds since last month), they took lots of blood, and the doctor came in for just a few minutes. They didn't do an ultrasound but we got to hear Bean's heartbeat on the Doppler.
It was beating 166 bpm. In about 8 short weeks we will be able to give bean a name! We haven't quite decided if we will do a gender reveal party or not... Any thoughts?

As for me, I feel not so pregnant at all besides the bloating and excessive tiredness. I had a couple weeks of nausea, but hardly no sickness. I honestly feel like I've gained 10 pounds but I've lost 6. The doctor said it was normal though, so no complaining on my end.

Our resolutions this year:
- to be closer with God and pray more.
- to be the best parents we can be.
- to not forget the importance of our relationship, and to keep it strong.
- to live more frugally.
- to cook and stay at home more.



"the greatest gift you can give a child is parents that respect each other"
-anonymous

Bean's first doctor visit

Last week we had our first doctor visit for the baby! I measured 6 weeks 4 days which was spot on from what the doctor calculated frombmy LMP. The baby's heartbeat was 126 bpm. The u/s tech said that everything looked and sounded normal. They gave us a due date of July 21st. As of now, we are calling the baby Bean because that's what he/she looks like.


When Phillip and I heard the heartbeat and saw it fluttering on the u/s it became very real for us. We knew there was a bun in the oven but it wasn't until then did we feel like it was so real. Our emotions were all over the place, I had tears and Phillip had wide eyes like he was scared to death.

We went through our birthing plans with Dr. Moses and let her know early on that I will not be having any pain medicine, pitosin, or epidural (unless there is an emergency). I'm so glad that she asked about this right off and respects our decision. We just love her, she's so upbeat, positive, and helpful. We are so excited about this journey! We have an amazing family and friends that are so supportive and helpful.

I will be updating the blog a couple times a month, to keep everyone updated on our progress.
Leave us a comment!

Love, the Lasseter's (Phillip, Nikki, Dixie, and Bean)