Life with Liv, Lai, + Lera

Today our appointment was to see if my sac separation, also known as placental abruption that they had noticed last time was worse, better, or the same. We received an awesome report! The separation was completely healed! We were amazed at how much the baby has changed! He/She looks like a baby now. It was so cool to see the baby move it's head and right foot. The baby's heart beat was 176 and it looked very healthy. I've read that if the heart beat is 140 or above it could possibly be a girl. I have now gained 7 pounds!!!! Not good! I'm going to have to slow down on eating! We will have our next ultrasound in 4 weeks! We can't wait to see the changes our baby is making!

Our baby is making changes! He/She is about 3/4 inch in length. The baby has webbed fingers and toes that are poking out from its hands and feet. The face is beginning to take shape and the mouth and nostrils are starting to develop. The teeth have begun to develop under the gums. The eyes can now be seen as small hollows on each side of the head. It has started practicing moving, but I won't feel this movement until around 20 weeks.

Today we saw our baby! He/She was so small. Seeing the heartbeat was so neat. It was beating 124 beats per minute. After seeing the baby on the ultrasound, we have a new due date....December 2nd.....which puts me at 6 weeks and 4 days. I gained 4 pounds in 2 weeks....which is totally MY fault because I have given myself an excuse to eat more (and it has felt so good)! My doctor is very strict about weight and only wants me to gain 2 to 3 pounds each month. Oops! I'll do better now that I know my limit! My next ultrasound is April 25th. I can't wait to see our baby again!

Today was our first doctor's appointment! I left right after school and my friend Diana went with me to the doctor's office and sat with me until my parents got there. My mom, dad, and sister were supposed to leave early to be at my appointment by 3:40. However, on the way the Yukon begin acting funny so they had to turn around to go get my dad's truck. My mom was panicking because she didn't think they were going to make it on time. But, as always, they never fail me. As soon as I went into the room my family showed up! Thank goodness! So....I met Dr. Taylor for the first time today and I love him!! The facility is gorgeous, the receptionist was precious, the nurse is wonderful! Dr. Taylor said that everything looks and feels great. They think I am about 7.3 weeks, which makes the due date around Nov. 19th. I have my next appointment in 2 weeks. They are going to do an ultrasound to hopefully get a more accurate due date! 

It's such a girl thing to instantly think about all the shopping there is to be done. My mom has already bought me two baby books and a sweet blanket! Janet and I went out shopping at a few Baby boutiques! There are so many adorable outfits, shoes, hats.....etc. I found a really cool store, Tweed Baby Outfitters, that I am going to be visiting often! They have really unique diaper bags too! We also went by Janet's store to see all the baby furniture lines she has connections with. I found some awesome baby beds, storage units, changing stations, and the list goes on. I can't wait to begin designing the baby's room. Oh how much fun this is going to be!!!

We came to Nashville this morning to share our exciting news with Cody's family! We had a frame made for them that had "Baby Willoughby on it. As soon as they opened it, they immediately began crying, laughing, and celebrating! They are soooooo happy! 

Wow! We are going to be parents! We found out that we are pregnant on Wednesday, March 23rd! I couldn't tell my parents over the phone, so I immediately told Cody we were heading to Newbern. When I got home my Mom had just left to take my sister to my Nana's house. My dad was sitting at the kitchen table, so I went ahead and asked him if he was ready to be a grandaddy. He became very emotional (but tears of joy, of course). After celebrating he quickly got his game face on and told me that we had to go hide our car so that Mom wouldn't know that we were home. When Mom came home 20 minutes later, she walked into the living room to put her purse down and there we sat. She looked shocked, but then realized the news that we were about to tell her! She jumped up and down forrrreeeever! I then told my sister and the rest of my close family! My family is so excited! It's amazing the baby isn't even here yet and it has already brought us so much happiness!