She's Here!!!!

We are so proud and excited to announce that our sweet Alivia Miyoko made her appearance today, July 11, 2009 at 2:22 pm. She weighs 6 lbs 12 oz, measures 21 inches long and is absolutely perfect.

So how did it go, you may ask.............
We checked into Bergan Mercy Hospital at 7 pm on Thursday June 9th to have our amnio since we were only at 37 weeks. The amnio needed to come back with a number of 55 or higher. The amnio was really simple and quick. Our number came back about 1.5 hours later - it was 54. NO joke we were 1 number less than the cut off. Dr. K decided to go ahead with our plan because he knew it would be a slower process giving her lungs time to mature to 55 or higher. We started with part one of our induction at around 10:30 pm and part two at 2:30 am on Friday morning. Well to make part of the story short, part one worked exactly as it should and part two (pitocin) didn't do anything but make my contractions strong and erratic. I finally gave in at about 4 am and again at 7 for the pain. At around noon on Friday Dr. K decided to stop this round and start over. So we started over at around 2:30 pm. Again we seemed to do well with the first part but not so well with the pitocin. I just wasn't progressing at all. I had been at 1 cm dilated for all of the first round and 1.5 cm dilated for the first 6 hours of the second. At about 1 am this morning I was about to throw in the towel and go home. We weren't progressing and I was starting to wonder if we should just give it a couple more days and see what happens. So after I was examined and hadn't changed once again I decided it was time to really give it over and pray about what we should do. I spent the next 15-20 minutes deep in prayer asking for guidance, acceptance, and understanding on how we should proceed. I was really considering packing up and heading home and then my water spontaneously broke. Prayers were answered. We were going to progress regardless of what we were electively doing. My prayers were also answered in that I was able to get my epidural at that point (Thank goodness!!!) Things started to pick up and progress from there. I was finally able to comfortably sleep and get some much needed rest. Starting at 6 am I was dilated to 3-4 cm and continued to progress at about 1 cm per hour. We labored down for a bit and once we were told to push it went really quick. I hate to admit how quick but because our induction was so long I don't feel as bad. We pushed through 3 contractions for about 4 minutes and our baby girl made her appearance!! I couldn't believe how beautiful she was from the first moment we laid our eyes on her. What an amazing experience it was to go thorough the birth of our miracle baby!! It was so surreal to go from feeling her movements to putting a face and body to her name. Some moments it is hard to believe that we are parents!! This was such a long time coming but Alivia was well worth the wait. It had to be her, she had to be our first.

So without further explanation or me babbling about how amazing she is, I present to you our first born, Alivia Miyoko Ahern.............
More pictures to come later but we had to share these to start!!

An update before she comes!!

Things have been pretty interesting since the last post. We had to adjust my medication a couple of times until we found the right dose with minimal side effects. They were able to slow down the contractions but not stop them. So I started to work less hours in the office and more hours at home. That actually end up being more productive at times because I would work later than I would at the office. Last week we went to our weekly appointment and made a plan for what would happen after I stopped taking the medication. Dr K. knows me so well that I didn't even have to ask about a plan but instead he had one already in mind. The plan was to come off the medication at 36 weeks (last Thursday) and then let the contractions start their process. He also decided that we would schedule an amnio at 37 weeks to see if her lungs were developed. If the amnio number comes back 55 or higher we would induce. I have been going to the doctor's office twice a week for NST (Non-Stress Test) to monitor me and Alivia for activity and contractions while I was on the meds and having contractions. Thursday (36 weeks) I went in for my second weekly appointment having taking my last dose of medication early that morning and my contractions were already at 5 minutes apart with mild mini contractions halfway in between. SO we decided to stay on the meds for a few more days. There was a chance we could progress a little quicker than we expected. I had more reasons to continue the meds than to stop before the end of the weekend. Most importantly I wanted Livi to get as close to 37 weeks as possible. We did a few last minute "to-do's" that needed to be done and a few that we wanted to do. I worked lots of extra hours Thursday, Friday and Saturday to meet a deadline, Tom and I had date night on Friday night, we went to Beaver Lake with Tom's family on the 4th, watched the fireworks at Boy's Town that night, and finished up a few odds and ends on Sunday. We are scheduled to check into the hospital Thursday night for the amnio and induction. I have hesitated slightly to post that because typically 37 weeks is early for an induction however we are not asking for this, it is because of how our pregnancy has gone up until this point. Dr. K. feels that because of the contractions that I have been having since 24 weeks, the fact that Livi is measuring 1.5-2 weeks ahead, and the physical discomfort I have had because of the contractions, her position and her size, this is the way we should proceed. I have had a lot of mixed emotions about this in that I am so very excited to meet our little miracle but I also want what is in her best interest in staying where she is as long as she/I can. Since I went off the meds the contractions picked up at 8 minutes apart and progressed to 5 minutes apart last night but they have plateaued there since. I have an appointment tomorrow to see if I have progressed any further and to monitor the contractions. I am hoping that the contractions are doing something but know that we are on God's time and she will come when he has her arrival planned. My mom is currently in Firth with Beth and Randy waiting until we call or Wednesday to come to Omaha. We are all excited and ready to meet Miss Alivia Miyoko. SO...............the next post will more than likely be about her arrival!!! Stay tuned!!

Until then here is my last bullet list.......
Cravings.........Watermelon, Water, Popsicles, salad
Aversions............I think I am over aversions
How I feel...........round as a ball
How I look.............
What I love............knowing that we will meet our sweet little girl in the matter of days!!Interesting fact.............the car seat and our bags are packed and in the car!!
What I love............knowing that we will meet our sweet little girl in the matter of days!!
Interesting fact.............the car seat and our bags are in the car!!
Next Appointment.........July 7, 2009 at 36 weeks 5 days

Showers, Tears, and Lots Cheers!!

The last few days have been quite a whirl wind of emotions and outcomes. We entered into week 33 this week and with that came a few unexpected and expected things. I had been having quite a few uncomfortable contractions than I had in the past but I had attributed some of them to the fact that I had been a little more active and Alivia is a little bit bigger making the contractions more noticeable. I had a pretty tough night on Wednesday night so I decided to work from home on Thursday and call the doctor. The doctor's office asked that I come in an be monitored and examined to make sure that I wasn't going into pre-term labor. After spending about 2.5 hours at the doctor's office I walked away waiting for the results from the same test that they ran during weeks 24 and 25 and a prescription to stop the contractions. I had wanted to stay away from any meds but they will help ensure that I don't go into labor early and Alivia stays safely where she belongs for the time being. I will stay on these meds until 36 weeks at which time we leave it up to Alivia. We would love to make it to 38 weeks but Alivia could safely arrive anytime after 36 weeks. Later that evening I got a call back from the Dr. K telling me that the test was still negative!! This was definitely an answer to my prayers. If it had come back positive I would have spent 48 hours in the hospital to stop labor. I still end up spending Friday in the hospital but it was because I was scheduled to go in for an Iron Infusion to help increase my iron level. It was a most interesting day. The infusion was supposed to be a 4 hour process but my veins decided to be a little difficult so I was there for almost 7. All in all I am glad to be done with this last Thursday and Friday and that Alivia is still right where she belongs. Luckily I started the weekend off with a Fabulous baby shower!!
My sister-in-law Jamie, and three of my good friends Sarah, Shannon, and Alice hosted an amazing shower for me and Baby Livi!! I always knew that we had great friends and family but it was so overwhelmingly apparent during the shower. The hosts thought it would be fun to start filing Alivia's piggy bank but not with lots of money but with hopes and dreams for her. So each guest was given a quarter and asked to introduce themselves and express a wish for Livi. This was such an amazing thing to hear. There were a lot of laughter, tears and fun. Everything that was said continued to remind me how amazing life was and is for us!! We have been blessed with amazing family and friends that have walked with us on a journey full of challenges, good and hard times, happy and sad times. Each of them played a key roll along the way and for that I can not be more grateful!! I can only pray and wish that Alivia be blessed with the same. She is already so spoiled by our friends and family and I can't wait to see who she becomes and the friends she will develop.
Here are some pictures from the shower!!

33 1/2 weeks

The Hosts and Mama-to-be

Shannon Hite, Sarah Freeland, Me, Alice Spence, Jamie Splonskowski
My Niece Ayla Rose dressed Fancy for Bean Bean and Alivia's Party

Grandma Sue sharing her wish for Alivia

three generations of Wilsons

four generations of Gegzna/Aherns

the girls of Leo A Daly

Sand in the City

This weekend was the 5th annual Sand in the City Competition benefitting the Nebraska Children's Home Society. This is a sand sculpting contest to raise awareness of NCHS's programs, which include adoption services and education, unplanned pregnancy services, medically fragile foster care and child care, while raising funds to support their efforts. Corporate teams work with professional sand sculptors from throughout the nation and local architects to build incredible sand sculptures, using more than 350 tons of sand! I agreed to volunteer again this year as one of the local architects. It was a little different this year in that I was 8 months pregnant playing in the sand. I was definitely restricted as to what I could and couldn't do but it was still extremely rewarding. I asked Adam Andrews to team up with me this year as additional help to balance out where I wasn't able to participate. We were paired with a new team from ConAgra. They were awesome to work with and extremely motivated. We had a great time and our cherry on top was that Adam and I were awarded the "Most Valuable Designer" award. This is an amazing honor because we were considered the most valuable by the judges and master sculptors out of a total of 17 teams. Last I had heard the event had raised approximately $90,000 and had over 10,000 people walk through. Here are pictures of the event!!

the "Most Valuable Designers"

Me and Adam Andrews

For more information visit their site. www.sandinthecityomaha.com

My countdown has begun.........

We have entered into the third trimester and started to count down the weeks and days until we meet our beautiful little princess. We are just past 32 weeks and since the last week update I have entered into the uncomfortable stage. I am still having contractions, they still are not consistent but they are starting to be a more painful. I am feeling larger by the day and have become increasingly short of breath making it somewhat difficult to do about anything that exerts much energy. We had our regular two week appointment which was really informative in how we proceed from here. I have instructions about the number and severity of contractions I can have before I have to go in to be monitored. If (or when) the contractions do start to put me in labor Dr. K will let me go any time after 35 weeks and medicate up until that point. (Yikes that is less that 3 weeks away!!) If the contractions continue to be unchanging then we may talk about induction at one of the next couple appointments. The chance of induction is also due to the fact that I am or Livi is measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule. At 30 weeks she was right on schedule and at 32 weeks she is measuring at 34 weeks. She went on a major growth spurt. If she remains ahead of schedule at 34 weeks we will have an ultrasound to determine if there is a reason she is measuring big. Although we would love to see a little glimpse, I don't like that we would be doing this to determine if there are any issues. We pray that she is still healthy and just growing fast!!

After the appointment I walked away in a slight bit of a panic. We have a couple of important loose ends to tie up such as choosing a pediatrician. It has been on my list but I wasn't super concerned when I thought we had 8 weeks. Now that Dr K has stated that there is a chance that it could be less I figured we had better get cracking, not to mention at our first Prepared Child Birth Class this week the question of whether or not we had one was one of the first the instructor asked. We now have 3 appointments scheduled with pediatricians recommended by friends. The first class was pretty basic but still informative non the less. Our next one is a Saturday all day class that we will go over the details of our big day!!

We have also started to do a few odds and ends around the house to prepare. My mom came into town this weekend and we are organized the kitchen cabinets to make room for bottles and other baby things. One of the next things I have planned is to get a bag packed. I am sure that it will change over the course of the next few weeks but if for some reason Alivia decides to grace us with her presence sooner than she is scheduled Tom won't have to guess what to bring or figure out what I will want. I know........I do have time but then again I have been ahead on almost everything else so why not this as well.

So this is where we stand at 32 weeks 4days and I will leave you with this........

Cravings.........Crushed Ice, Red Beets (so weird), potato oles, Coke, watermelon

Aversions............can't think of too many things

How I feel...........Large and In Charge, full of anticipation for Livi to be here!!

How I look.............

What I love............seeing her move all the time and my long natural nails (most of you know I don't usually have long natural nails)

Interesting fact.............4 of our family members have Holiday birthdays....Livi could be a 4th of July baby, making it 5

Something fun.........We have a couple of baby shower coming up in the next few weeks!!

Next Appointment.........June 16, 2009 at 34 weeks

Who will she be……..

I read a number of blogs each day that range from people I know really well to those that have the most inspirational stories and journeys. Earlier this week one of the blogger I follow posted about the upcoming arrival of their son. She got me thinking and soon I was asking myself many of the same questions.
I start thinking……
Who will she look like? Will she have a lot of hair? Will her eyes show her heritage? Will she love the girly things or be a tom boy? Will she love to sleep as much as her mama or will she only sleep the amount she needs? Will she be artistic or will she be all about books? Will she want to be a doctor or teacher, a scientists or a lawyer, a missionary or a politician, a firefighter or a veterinarian, an architect or a landscape designer? It will be some time before we find out some of those things but I do know that she is a child of God and will be raised knowing His love. He knows her more than we do. He knows every piece of her and everything that she will feel and experience. We have the honor to be her parents and I thank God each and every day for the opportunity. I just can't wait to see what God has planned for Alivia and our family!!

Mother's Day!! (better late than never!!)

Mother’s Day, was an amazing day!! How wonderful it feels to be blessed with the chance to be a Mom!! Over the last few weeks there have been little things that have really made the fact that we are going to be parent so much more real. Mother's Day was just another one of those awesome reminders.

Tom surprised me with flowers (both in a vase and for the yard) and a great card. For every occasion that Tom buys me cards he finds a great dog card. They are always so perfect in that they are so sweet but they also fit his personality making it even more special. I love the fact that he found a card for today that did not disappoint!! We met his family for Mother's Day brunch. I got a very sweet card and gift from my God-Daughter Ayla. She always spoils me for being her God-Mother.

Tom had to put a few hours of work in this weekend so I took that time to do a couple of things on my "Before Livi To-Do" list. I made a trip to Micheals and bought ribbon and flowers to make embellishments headbands. I stopped at Lowe's for flowers for the outdoor pots and bought a ceiling fan for her room as well. I also ventured to Nebraska Furniture Mart to get a video camera so that we can capture the many memories that she will make with us!! So as it comes to an end all I can say is.....my first Mother's Day was fabulous!!

Gratitude........

I do an online gratitude list with a group of women on a daily basis. It is an awesome way to always remember the big and little things that God blesses us with each day. It is often too easy to think about the things that are going wrong or things to complain about but amazingly life seems so much better when you think about things to be grateful for or for which we are blessed. I was thinking today about the many things that I could complain about and then I was reminded to go back to gratitude. I always thought that I would love being pregnant. Now don't get me wrong, I don't hate being pregnant but it is definitely different than what I expected. I imagine some of this has to do with the things that they don't tell you about pregnancy, as well as the fact that it was difficult to get here and the fact that we have had a few bumps since. I have found myself getting caught up in things to complain about over the last couple weeks ......the contractions, the weight gain (aka nothing fitting normal), swollen ankles, shortness of breath, aching ribs, aching body, etc. It is always about that time that I get a love tap from inside reminding me of our little miracle from God - Alivia Miyoko. I then am renewed with this overwhelming feeling of gratitude. In less than 90 day we will get to meet our beautiful daughter that we have been so graciously blessed. With this we are beyond blessed.
So in thinking about all of this I want to share my gratitude list with all of you.

Today, I thank God for..........
* a new day
* a thriving, healthy baby girl on the way
* baby kicks - no matter how much my ribs hurt
* the ability to be pregnant and carry Alivia
* the road that brought us to today
* the many challenges we have overcome
* a hard working, loving, dedicated, amazing husband
* a strong, healthy marriage
* the support of family and friends
* continuing to bless our lives each and every day
* my Faith and the strength it continues to build
* Your amazing Will and amazing Grace

"Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks:for this is the will of God."
1. Thessalonians 5.16-18

27 weeks and counting.........

We had our normal doctor's appointment today. This lovely appointment included the glucose test. I was a little nervous about the liquid that I had to drink prior to the appointment. I was told it would task like flat orange soda. I like orange soda so in that case I would be good but you never know with things like that if it will truly taste as they say or a really bad version of what they compare it to. Well it wasn't bad at all. I was really good about the other sugars I took in today in hopes that I would only have to do the 1-hour test and not the 3-hour test. I love when Livi is active. I actually catch myself laughing when she moves a lot because it looks as though there are many aliens moving around in my belly. So what do you get when you give a pregnant woman a cup of pure sugar..........many many aliens in the belly. Livi went haywire. She was all over the place and I couldn't help but laugh at how weird my belly looked. According to the doctor, she has moved up slightly since the last appointment, which I could have told him since my right rib has been taking a pretty good beating for the past week. He describes the kicks as taps of the toes but my ribs beg to differ. I am amazed at how much punch someone so small can pack. Her movements have gotten bigger as well. There have been occasions where she has completely stopped me in my tracks. They also hooked me up to the monitor again to see if the contractions had changed. We are doing much better there as well. Basically, I am experiencing irritable contractions, which he thinks are more likely Braxton Hicks. More than likely I will experience them for the rest of my pregnancy but they shouldn't cause any trouble. He also gave me the green light to play golf. Most of you know how much I love to play and the thought of not playing was really annoying. The only restriction is that I use a cart rather than walk. So overall the appointment was a great one!! Now we just have to wait to see if I passed the test. Keep your fingers crossed.

Some notes from Week 27...........
Cravings.........Juice Stop or at least my homemade version of it, Raspberry Yogurt, Crushed Ice
Aversions............can't think of too many things
How I feel...........like a little round pregnant lady with sore ribs but filled with so much love for this amazing little girl, my daughter!!
Interesting fact.............we are within 90 days of meeting our little Miss Alivia Miyoko
Next Appointment.........May 19, 2009 at 30 weeks

Maternity Pics!!

I am so excited about this post. We signed up to take part in Kelly Highby's "Baby Plan". This is an awesome way to document our journey to Alivia's arrival and through her first year. We will have 4 sessions in about a year. We have chosen to take maternity pictures, newborn pictures, 6 month pictures, and one year pictures. We took the first set, the maternity pictures, when we were back in Sidney. I have been waiting for the email to come from Kelly, letting us know that our proofs were ready. Well, I got the email today!! Our proofs are online, on her blog, and on Facebook.

So since we are sharing I feel it somewhat necessary to put a warning on this post. I only feel it necessary because I know there are a few followers that they may think that maternity pictures are little different (including my mom).

YOU WILL SEE MY BARE PREGNANT BELLY!!

Here are the links -

This link is to Kelly's blog. It has a few of our photos and short story about our session that is quite humorous.
http://kellyhighby.typepad.com/kelly_highby_photography_/2009/04/and-baby-makes-three.html

This link is to her website. If you click on the "Client" tab using the password is sabrinaa you can view the entire collection. This link will work until May 5th at which time it will expire.
http://www.kellyhighbyphotography.com/

Hope you enjoy!! Kelly did such an amazing job I can't wait to see what she has in store for us when Livi arrives!!

Weekends in Review.......

I have to share a little fun time that we had over the last couple weekends. Two weekends ago we went to my home town to have maternity pictures taken and attend a shower in my/Livi’s honor. We borrowed my in-laws van so that 4 adults, one baby, and two dogs could travel 5 hours comfortably. Tom, the dogs, Beth, Randy, Ethan and I all made the trip back together. We all hadn’t been back since my mom’s 60th birthday party in October of 2006. It was fun to all be together again. The maternity pictures with Kelly Highby were so much fun, not exactly what Tom had in mind but we still had a great time. We made a short appearance at my mom’s school and then it was time for dinner at Dude’s. This is my absolute favorite steak house. It is a dive that has been there for as long as I can remember. It has the absolute best prime rib!! I/we over-indulged but it was well worth it. The shower on Saturday was fabulous. It was great to see many friends and family that I hadn’t seen in quite some time. We received many wonderful and generous gifts. Livi is already so very spoiled. We stayed in on Saturday night and set my mom’s new laptop and signed her up on Skype so that she can see her grandkids any time. For now this will work but we keep hinting that we would love for her to be around here (a battle that we are really loosing). All in all it was a wonderful weekend with my family.

Our First Baby Shower

Bath time with Ethan

This last weekend Tom and I had a super fun little house guest!! My niece Ayla spent Friday night and Saturday with us. We packed in a bunch of fun things to do. She is 2 1/2 and such a joy. Jamie dropped her off at my office on Friday and the fun began. We stopped at Target on the way home where she negotiated for two my little ponies and paint. Well the paint was planned. After target we went to dinner with Uncle Tommy, painted big pictures, went to Coldstone, took a bath, and watched Bolt all before bedtime. I was mistaken to think that since she went to bed a little later than normal that she would sleep in a little on Saturday but man was I wrong. 6 am I hear the cutest little voice say "Good Morning Bean Bean, I love you!". It was so sweet but 6 am Saturday, seriously. I think she is preparing us! I managed to get her to go back to sleep for a little while but we were up and moving by 8ish to continue with the rest of our plans. We prepared our "picnic", ran to Old Navy, came home for our indoor picnic (the weather didn't cooperate), took Uncle Tom and Uncle Grant Gatorade, and then we were off to the pool!! We swam for about an hour and then it was time to go home for nap time. All I have to say is "thank goodness for 10 minute breaks". If it wasn't for the break I don't know if I would have been able to get Ayla out of the pool. Again, all in all it was a great weekend!!

Our Indoor Picnic

Follow Up.......better late than never

Following up from the last post, I called my doctor Friday the 10th to set my follow up appointment. They gave me strict instructions that I was to take it really easy until I got back in to meet with Dr. K. I was basically allowed to go to work and hang out at home. They didn't want me exercising, shopping, doing housework, walking the dogs, etc. I went to work Friday morning but worked from home in the afternoon and by Saturday afternoon I was stir crazy. I am not sure how women handle being on bed rest for long periods of time. I have a new found respect for my sister-in-law and the amount of time she was on bed rest with Ayla. My follow up appointment was Tuesday morning. They put me back on the monitor which showed that I was still having contractions however they were shorter and more sporadic. Dr. K re-ran the test that we had done the previous week to make sure there was no change and did an ultrasound (but no new pictures). The test once again came back negative and the ultrasound reinforced that there were no changes in my cervix however it did reveal the cause of my “irritation” contractions….Miss Livi has decided that she is ready to enter into this world. She is head down causing lots of pressure. Dr. K is hoping that as she gets bigger that she will have to move up so that she has more room but until then he suggested I do some yoga poses or stand on my head (JK - at least for the standing on my head). Then he proceeded to tell me that he was no longer restricting my activity but asking that I be aware of how I am feeling and not push it. So all in all good news!!

What contractions?????

So contractions........This weekend I thought I was starting to have Braxton Hicks contractions aka "practice contractions". They are nothing to be too concerned about and actually very common. They can begin as early as the second trimester, however they are most common in the third trimester. Monday I called the doctor's office and they told not to be concerned unless I was having 4 or more in an hour. Fast forward to Wednesday. I was a little more uncomfortable than I had been so I was walking a little slower and having to sit a little more often. At lunch I went to the mall for a couple of errands and get lunch. I found that the more I walked the more uncomfortable I became. Following the instructions of my doctor I made note of how often I was feeling the Braxton Hicks contractions. I went back to work and continued with my work day until about 4:15 at which time uncomfortable enough to call it a day. My belly was still pretty tight when I went to bed. I was hoping I would wake up today feeling much better. I did feel a little better this morning but still not completely ok so I called the doctor again early this afternoon to see if they had any recommendations as to how to relieve some of my discomfort. I was expecting things like - hydrate, take a warm bath, put your feet up, etc. Instead I was asked to come in to be monitored. So off to the doctor's office I went. I was a little concerned that they wanted me to come in and a little skeptical that they were going to see anything since the only time I felt them was when I was walking. I titled this post "What contractions?" because evidently I was having contractions about every 2-3 minutes but I wasn't feeling most of them. When the nurse said I was having them I could sometimes feel my belly becoming a little tighter but nothing that hurt. I always thought that contractions would hurt. These were just slightly uncomfortable. My doc is on vacation so his partner sent me to be admitted to Bergan Mercy Hospital (where I will be delivering just not anytime soon) for monitoring and tests. They hooked me up to another monitor and observed my contractions for about an hour at which time they had the resident OB do an exam and tests. The exam gave no indication that I was in pre-term labor which was a relief. There are pre-term contractions and pre-term labor contractions. If the contraction affect the cervix then they are considered pre-term labor contraction. My were not affecting the cervix meaning that there was no sign of pre-term labor just pre-term contractions. The test they did was also to indicate pre-term labor which would return positive if I was in fact in pre-term labor or negative if I wasn't. We are in the clear - the test came back negative so they sent me home!! I have to continue to be aware of the contractions and follow up with my doctor next week but at this point we are still planning to meet Miss Livi in July!!

I'm gonna be a dad!!

Tom here, for those of you who follow I am going to be a father of a beautiful little girl in the near future. This is quite a bit to digest when I really start to think about it but I do believe none of this will really become real until I hold Alivia for the first time. To be completely honest my life has not physically changed like Sabrina's has but mentally my mind will race on a daily basis in regards to the fact that Sabrina and I will soon be responsible for another human being. There are thoughts of excitement, fear, curiosity, worry and many more. Where on the other hand Sabrina is going through much more than I could even imagine. On any given day she will experience anything from nausea, cramps, sore_______ (depends on the day), heartburn, discomfort of ______ (depends on the day), shoes and rings that do fit one day and not the next and the list goes on. She is handling all these foreign feelings as well as anyone could. I feel for sorry for her but I know this is what we've wanted for a long time and we both know that this will be all well worth it once Alivia is brought into this world. Unlike Sabrina, I don't have any bizarre cravings to tell you all about but it is sort of strange to live with someone who may obsess over a pickle one day and want absolutely nothing to do with one the next day, I guess I try to go with the flow and take it all in. This is all I have for now, talk to you soon.

It's been a while.....catching up from Week 20

So I/we seem to have fallen behind on our weekly blogging. So here goes some catch-up!!

We have both been extremely busy with many different things. Tom is just about in full swing for the landscaping season. It appears that it will be a busy one. I have been busy with both work and my side business. In the Daly work world, we just sent out the drawings for bid for the hospital that I have been designing in Fairfax Missouri. As for DBS - I just finished some birthday invitations, a baby shower invite, thank you notes, and wedding invites for a wedding in June. I am so excited about the wedding I have been designing for because I have a hand in many different parts of the wedding as a whole. I have also been busy with odds and ends getting ready for Alivia to make her appearance. I know I have plenty of time but most of you know that I am very type A. I have been on a hunt for hot pink accents to add to the overall image that I have for the room. Livi's bedding came last week so her nursery has really taken shape. Her wardrobe is also starting to take shape. She is already spoiled by our family and friends. I have received some really fun little outfits. Not to mention a few things that I have purchased. Beth came down a couple weekends ago to hit up a kid's sale that happens at our church twice a year. I always seem to find great clothes that are new or barely worn for my niece and nephew. It was soooooo fun to shop for our little one this year instead. I also found some maternity clothes for me which was a true bonus. We are finished registering and excited to start getting things that we put on the registry. Now all I have to do is keep from purchasing things on our list myself. Here are a few pictures of the prep...........

There are still a few things that I am hoping to find to add to the nursery but overall here it is.

Just a few of the fun little outfits that Miss Livi will be wearing when she gets here!!

As for where we are in this pregnancy.......
We had our monthly doctor's appointment this week. It was just a quick one but it was also very informative. I am definitely feeling and looking more pregnant by the day. I have now moved to the obviously pregnant stage no matter what I wear which is a much better place to be than the questionable additional weight category. I am almost at the point that I can't wear any of my pre-pregnancy clothes (even t-shirts) so needless to say I have done some shopping. When they say you will need a new wardrobe they truly mean everything. So here I am at the beginning of 23 weeks........

Some notes from Week 20-23...........
Cravings.........Salad, sweets, food in general
Aversions............nothing much but everything is still giving me heartburn
How I feel...........I am starting to get a little uncomfortable at times but enjoying all to good stuff
Interesting fact.............We can now see Livi kick and move. It is such a awesome thing to see. I was in a meeting at work the first time I saw it. Needless to say I wasn't able to pay much attention to the happenings of the meeting while I was watching my Livi!!
Next Appointment.........May 1, 2009 at 27 weeks- 1 hour Glucose test and last monthly appointment. We will move to every two weeks at that point.

Let us introduce.......

This week has been so much fun finding out that we are having a healthy girl!! It was so amazing the change in reality knowing the sex. I love that we no longer have an "it" but now have a she or her. So now that we know we are having a girl we would like to introduce her as Alivia Miyoko Ahern. Alivia (aka Livi) means Peace and Miyoko (pronounced Me-Yo- Ko) means Beautiful Child. It is some what of a tradition in my mom's side of the family to have Japanese middle names so we decided to continue this idea so that Alivia will know that part of her heritage. We had gone back and forth with the idea of keeping her name a secret but ultimately decided that we wanted our friends and family to know.

Tom's sister and I made a trip to Babies-R-Us on Tuesday night to update our registry with some girly additions. One of my finds while updating our registry was the lamp to the bedding I had been considering for the nursery. Well - it was a win! It works well with the color scheme that the room is painted so I ordered the rest of the bedding through Target and it should be arriving in the beginning of April. This weekend I finished up our Target registry, found curtains that match the bedding and then had one of my creative ideas that I am super excited to share. I follow a blog of this woman that paints personalized canvases and thought "I can do that". After thinking through it a little further I thought I would design them on the computer and then print them on canvas rather than paint them in the interest in time. So last night while the boys watched the UFC fight I designed a couple canvases for the nursery. I printed them and stretched them today so that Tom and I could hang them tonight!

the lamp that matches the bedding

the canvas above the cribthe canvas on the opposite wallthe poem reads -
You are the poem we dreamed of writing. The masterpiece we longed to paint. You are the shining start we reached for in our ever hopeful quest for life fulfilled. You are our child. Now with all things we are blessed.

Some notes from Week 19...........

Cravings.........Orange Juice, beets (very odd), salad

Aversions............not too much but everything seems to give me heartburn

How I feel...........so excited that we are having a girl and can't wait to meet her

Interesting fact.............The baby is moving non-stop and Tom and I have both been able to feel

Next Appointment.........March 31, 2009

Drumroll Please................

IT'S A GIRL!!!!


Our appointment went really well. All of her measurements are right on track. She currently weighs about 11 oz. and is in the 85 percentile. Because of her positioning she didn’t give us a very good profile view but we did get a straight on view of her face. We got to see her arms, legs, hands, and feet. Jimmy had to nudge her a little to get her to un-cross her legs which she did!! She is really active and constantly moving. It was great to see that what I was feeling was actually her moving. Last night Tom was able to feel a small movement as she kicked the heart Doppler. Such an amazing thing!! We are extremely thrilled that we are going to have a healthy baby Girl!! We are truly blessed. Now……to decide on her name!!

Week 17 to 18

This last week was a busy one with a bunch of different things. Last Thursday, Baby Bean and I met some of my girlfriends for dinner and a show. We had been planning this for months and were so excited when the day finally came. We had a awesome dinner at Vincenzo’s and then headed off to the Orpheum to see the Broadway production of Grease. Although there is never any comparison to Olivia Newton John or John Travolta, it was great!! We had an amazing time!! It was really fun to get together with my friends. And as an added bonus – I also saw a couple of really good high school friends that I hadn’t seen in a while. Friday night I was introduced to Tom’s co-workers at a little office get-together. It was great to finally put faces to names. We had great food from Boyd and Charlie’s, great conversations and a lot of laughs!! Saturday I spent a lot of the day designing and finishing up some really fun Super Hero birthday invitations. Saturday night Tom and I finally had our Valentine’s day dinner at Bella Vita and then settled in for a movie at home. Sunday I was a worship leader at church. We recently welcomed Gareth Robinson into our music ministry and are truly blessed with his talents. I have such an awesome time leading worship with him!! After church, I ran around for about 4 hours doing a lot of odds and ends. I made a quick stop at Baby Gap and Gap Maternity. I was lucky to get a lot of great hand me downs from a friend at work but I am still in need of a few key items to add to my wardrobe. Our Gap Maternity is at the back of Baby Gap – forcing me to walk through all of the adorable baby clothes. I did a good job of refraining however there are the cutest play on word organic onesies that I am definitely going to have to get. Monday was back to work but I was excited to be greeted by our basinet when I got home. It is perfect!! Exactly what we were wanting. It is really easy to put together and take apart for ease of travel. Fat Tuesday was a great day as well. We had a chili feast at work. I decided to bring corn chowder that my Mother-in-Law was so awesome to teach me how to make (aka make for me as I watched). I have to say that Baby Bean loves the chowder. I couldn’t get enough. Tuesday night topped off week 17 – the crib and changer came!! Tom and I spent last night putting them together. It is amazing how much more real this all seems (outside my growing belly) when there is baby furniture in the nursery. Now all we have to do is wait until next Tuesday to (hopefully) find out if Baby Bean is going to be a boy or a girl. Be sure to vote in our poll in the previous post.

Until then I leave you with a few new pics, a few sneak peeks and a few notes from the week.

17 weeks

18 weeks (today)

Bassinet
Assembly
Changer/Dresser

Crib

Cravings.........Minute Maid Pink Lemonade, grapes, salads, corn chowder, PB&J sandwiches
Aversions............not too much, however there have been a few times when I have ordered something that sounded amazing and then didn’t tickle my taste buds or the baby’s at all.
How I feel...........enjoying this stage in my pregnancy
Interesting fact.............The baby is moving non-stop, I can’t wait until Tom is able to feel them.
Photo Session…………….I scheduled to have Maternity pictures with Kelly Highby for when I am back in Sidney. We are going to do her baby plan which consists of 4 sessions. We are planning on doing maternity, newborn, 6 month, and 1 year photos with her. I’m so excited.
Next Appointment.........March 3, 2009 (Tom's birthday) - "hopefully" the big reveal