Waitin' on Abby: Week 32

By now, Abby weighs almost four pounds and is probably about 17 inches long. Of the pound a week that Christina is gaining, about half goes directly to Abby, which means she could double in weight between now and the time she's born! She now has fully formed toenails, fingernails and real hair on her head (or at least some peach fuzz) and her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she fattens up in preparation for life outside the womb. She's getting more and more cramped as she continues her third trimester growth spurt, but she's still fairly active--make that very active--with her kicks and punches. And somehow, she's still finding room to roll around and stretch out in there!

While there's a lot of gaining going on in the Fisher household (Christina's packed on 20 pounds and nine inches since the start of this pregnancy!) we've taken a loss in a few areas as well. Among the things that have disappeared from Christina's life over the last 8 months:

• her waistline
• her ability to rise from a sitting position gracefully
  
• her ability to tie her own shoes

It's certainly getting to be an adventure as we adjust to all the changes, but the excitement continues to build as we're only 8 weeks away from meeting our little girl! We'll start childbirth classes in a week or so, where apparently they'll teach us how to huff and puff our way through labor and delivery, among other things.

We've said it time and time again, but it really is phenomenal how quickly time is passing with this pregnancy. This year has flown by so far, and we're trying to treasure every moment with each other before the two of us become the three of us! We're so excited to meet this daughter that God has chosen to bring into our lives, and look forward to her finally getting to experience all the love and support that we've been feeling from family and friends throughout this pregnancy. Please pray that we would stay organized in making all the final preparations for Abby's arrival and that we would continue to seek God and His strength as we prepare to welcome her into our family.

Waiting anxiously,
Justin, Christina & Abby :)

Two of a kind...

How cute are we? I finally got to see my cousin Julia at my grandmother's 75th birthday party, and I know I'm biased, but I think we make two very cute pregnant ladies.

Julia's little boy Charlie is due in late September, just a month after Abby's scheduled to arrive. Our family's growing...and so are we!

Waitin' on Abby: Week 31

Wow! Abby's measuring at about 16 inches long right now (head to toe) and weighs a little over three pounds. She's getting geared up for a major growth spurt! Her weight should more than double in the next 9 weeks before she's born. She's able to turn her head from side to side and her arms, legs and body are starting to plump out as more fat accumulates under her skin. Abby's moving a lot more, and a lot more frequently every day now--a reminder that she's active and healthy. Her kicks, punches and somersaults sometimes seem like they never end, and she comes down with a case of hiccups at least once a day now.

We've got a feisty little girl on our hands! She's very particular about any pressure that is placed on Christina's abdomen, usually responding with a kick or rolling away when anyone tries to press in and feel her. She's especially finicky about elbows, and can be counted on to kick back--and hard--if one is rested on Christina's belly. Her awake-when-we're asleep/sleeping-when-we're-awake cycle has changed dramatically in the last week or so. Now she just seems to be awake and active all the time!

Abby continues to primarily make her home on Christina's right side, and seems at times to be trying to scoot up into Christina's right lung. Our little girl is definitely getting cramped in there, and all that stretching and moving around she does helps us get a pretty good idea of just how little space there is for her in Christina's middle. Her little legs seem to be going straight up most of the time, and her kicks are pretty easy to see and feel just below Christina's sternum.

Please continue to pray that all this activity will continue--it's a great reminder that Abby's doing well and growing stronger every day. We can't believe how time has flown, and we know these last 9 weeks will pass in the blink of an eye! Thanks for praying with us for Christina's health and Abby's development--we couldn't do this without you and your prayers!

Waiting anxiously,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Waitin' on Abby: Week 30

Abby's growing like crazy as we enter into the last 10 weeks of the pregnancy! She's more than 15 1/2 inches long now and weighs almost 3 pounds. It's hard to believe her weight will more than double in the next two and a half months as she puts on more fat and prepares for life outside the womb! Her eyesight, though not sharp yet, is continuing to develop, and she should be able to distinguish light from outside Christina's belly. Her sight will continue to develop after she's born, though she'll start with about 20/400 vision, meaning she can only distinguish objects that are very close to her face.

On Sunday, the girls from Christina's Bible study threw her a fabulous baby shower. (That's mom-to-be with all the lovely hostesses pictured above.) Christina had a blast watching her church friends guess how many squares of toilet paper it would take to wrap around her pregnant belly (nine, at this point), and has enjoyed reading through all the words of wisdom the guests left her with and sorting through all of the adorable little outfits they got for Abby!

At Christina's doctor's appointment this morning we learned that Abby is head down at this point, and should stay that way for the remainder of the pregnancy. She is, as we suspected, mostly hanging out on the right side of Christina's body--her spine can be felt along the right of Christina's belly and her little rump is planted firmly under Christina's right lung. This means most of her kicks can be felt on the left side, and that's where we've been able to feel little feet and knees the most. The doctor also told us that everything still looks great for both mom and baby. Praise God for these ongoing good reports!

Christina found out this week that what feels like Abby stretching out her living quarters is actually probably Braxton Hicks contractions--her uterus, in essence, is practicing for the real thing by flexing its muscles in preparation for labor. Thankfully, these infrequent practice contractions have been painless up to this point, though they certainly are uncomfortable and bizarre!

We are growing more excited by the day about the arrival of the newest Fisher, and have loved getting to know her by talking to her and feeling her little movements inside the womb. This pregnancy has truly been a blessing from the start, and we couldn't be happier about how smoothly everything has gone. We know that God is sovereign over every aspect of our lives, and the life of our new little baby, and it has been a privilege to get to pray for her as we wait for her to get here! Thank you to all of you who have been praying for our daughter and our family during this miraculous time in our lives. God is certainly listening and answering, and we are in awe of the blessings that have been showered on us throughout this pregnancy. Thanks for coming alongside us and being part of Abby's prayer team!

By grace alone,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Waitin' on Abby: Week 29

Abby's grown to about 2 1/2 pounds this week and is over 15 inches long, head to heel. Her muscles and her lungs continue to mature and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. Sometime around this week, her brain will begin to develop its characteristic grooves--it's been smooth up to this point. As we've entered the third trimester, her bones are starting to harden, so calcium aplenty is a must for mom's diet.

Our little girl has gotten so much more active in just the last week! We've learned she likes her space--her strong kicks and punches let us know when she doesn't like people pressing in on Christina's belly or when a meal Christina's just eaten is expanding her stomach into Abby's territory. She's also doing things her way and on her timetable right now. She's consistently awake when Christina's resting and unresponsive when we're trying to show someone how active she (usually) is.

Christina has really begun to "pop" in the past few days, boasting an inch in gain since this time last week. As Abby grows, the available space in Christina's midsection is shrinking and she's finding it harder to eat large portions and is instead eating small portions much more often. We've found that Abby favors settling in on Christina's right side, making her pregnant belly a little lopsided. Trying to move her over usually only results in increasing the pressure on Christina's bladder, so we've decided to let our little girl hang out where she is.

After a restful week at the beach, we're ready to get back into the swing of things and countdown to the end of the summer and the arrival of our baby girl. Please pray that these last 11 weeks would go as smoothly as the first 29, that mother and baby would remain healthy and that we would continue to rely on God as we prepare our hearts and our homes for this little blessing.

In the home stretch,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Waitin' on Abby: Week 28

This week, Abby weighs a little over two pounds and has grown in length to be almost 15 inches long from head to heel. She's sporting some eyelashes now and will turn her head toward a continuous bright light from outside the womb when her eyes are open. Her fat layers are beginning to form and she's preparing to pack on some major pounds as we enter the third trimester.

And speaking of third trimester...we're in the home stretch now with only three months left to go until we get to meet our precious baby girl. (Still can't believe how time has flown by...) We're told Christina's growth--which has been slow and gradual up to this point--will start to really pick up now. She's gained about 8 inches and 16 pounds since the start of this pregnancy and can look forward to gaining about 11 more pounds (and who knows how many inches!) in these last three months. Coincidentally, bending over is becoming more and more of a chore for Christina as Abby expands her territory in mom's belly. Although the additional surface area in her midsection comes in handy for taking notes and propping up her elbow when she's on the phone.

We feel like we're getting to know our daughter especially well as she is getting ever more active in the womb. Her sleep and wake cycles are very easy to distinguish, and most of her awake time is spent in what seems to be an effort to make more room for herself by kicking, punching and stretching as much as possible. Sometimes Christina wonders if Abby might just be all feet, hands and elbows. Then we see her little rump scooting around to the right of Christina's belly button and remember that there's actually a whole little person in there.

Justin has introduced Abby to some daddy-daughter play time, and we're very entertained (and amazed) at just how responsive she is to his voice and touches during the game we're affectionately calling "Thumps" (also commonly known as "Okay Abby, kick me!") For those of you who aren't familiar with Thumps, you'll need a pregnant belly, an active fetus, and one very creative dad to get started. The game goes a little like this: with his hand firmly on Christina's belly, Justin will press his fingers in gently and then tell Abby, "Kick daddy!" And amazingly, she does! Then we repeat the process until Abby gets bored and turns away or until the novelty of being kicked repeatedly wears off for Christina.

Justin started renovations on Abby's room this week, hanging chair rail and painting up a storm. Only a few more coats of paint to go before it's all ready to start moving stuff in. Next come curtains and crib assembly. But first, we're off to the beach where Christina's mom has promised to help her dig a hole in the sand for her belly so she can lay out on her stomach. Please pray for safe travels and that Christina will be able to tolerate the long hours sitting in the car without too much trouble.

Off to stick our toes in the sand,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)