Michaela a little over 15 weeks

Hey everyone- here's a picture of me at 15 weeks. Today is the first day we've been able to take a breather and think about other things besides ministry. Its been an incredibly busy but good week at Northwestern and Loyola. I am thankful for the extra energy the second trimester has brought me!

In baby news, I actually had a dream last night that we had a girl. So I don't really know what that means. We've both had the feeling that baby is a boy... only 5 more weeks until we find out! Let us know what you think by voting in our poll on the right. :)

Books

In the midst of our crazy schedule this week, we managed to obtain several books which we are excited to start reading soon. On the recommendation of wonderful family and friends, here are some that we are currently reading (or will start soon) to prepare us for pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting:

• "What to Expect When You're Expecting" by Murkoff and Mazel - this is a classic pregnancy book that I've enjoyed because it takes me through each month and then breaks it down into weeks... it has a lot of information in it about everything that could possibly happen, so its good that Im not prone to worry about stuff like that.
• "Husband Coached Childbirth" by Bradley - even reading just the first few pages, I think this is a book that we will really enjoy.
  
• "On Becoming Baby Wise" by Ezzo and Buchnam - I haven't started this one, but Pete has and he seems to be enjoying it so far.

We have several other books that people have loaned us that we've been using- many thanks to those that have let us borrow their material. We welcome any other suggestions!

Week 15 baby growth update: Baby Avery is 4 1/2 inches long, 2 or 3 ounces, and about the size of a naval orange. Apparently he or she is moving a lot this week even though I can't feel it yet.

14 week appointment

This afternoon I had my second official prenatal appointment. It was pretty short. I found out my blood type is A+ and that everything looks real good on my labs and tests. Dr. Herndon told me that I'm growing at a good rate and that the baby's heartbeat sounds strong, steady, and healthy.

Tonight Pete and I start our whirlwind of New Student Week at NU!!

Week 14 Picture

Here I am towards the beginning of week 14. I feel pretty good, although I am definitely more emotional than usual lately. We're gearing up for some traveling starting tomorrow to St. Louis for Pete's Grandfather's funeral, and then coming back to Evanston for NU New Student Week starting Tuesday!

Fall Quarter! And some sad news as well...

On Tuesday, Pete and I attended our first staff get-together for the year. This week marks the start of our fall staff planning, followed by the chaos of New Student Week starting next Tuesday. It is a very exciting and busy time as God does amazing things on campus!

As baby gets bigger, my body is sometimes achy and I feel awkward a lot. I'm definitely in that weird phase where I won't look pregnant to someone who doesn't know I'm pregnant. But to someone who knows, you can see a definite pooch. :) Hopefully I will start to show a little more before ministry starts up in full swing. Baby is the size of a peach this week.

Its been a fun week so far with our staff team, although not without some sad news. On Sunday, Pete's grandfather died at age 84. We're really sad to lose him, but we believe he is with the Lord. His funeral is next Monday. Our little one will have to meet his or her great-grandfather in Heaven. We're looking forward to seeing Pete's family this weekend.

The Theme of the First Trimester: Fatigue

I took this photo this morning, right after Michaela finished spending some time with the Lord. Michaela has been exhausted most of the day for the last several weeks. She's done a lot of reading, watched the 5 hour A&E Pride and Prejudice not once, but twice in the last two weeks, and still managed to get a lot of work done in the meantime. She's managed to be a great wife and a great friend in spite of her tiredness. Also, I'm pretty sure our apartment is cleaner than it's been in a long time. And that not because of me. We'll see if the rumors are true that an energy boost will hit her in the next two weeks :).

The Avery Family at 12 Weeks

Pete, Michaela, and Baby Avery!

To answer a popular question again, we do not know if the baby is a boy or a girl yet. He or she is way to small to tell. We will find that out in about 8 weeks.

First Ultrasound Pictures!

Here are a couple of the ultrasound pictures they gave us at the doctor's office this morning! Currently the baby is breech (which she said doesn't mean anything right now since the baby is constantly moving) and measures 2 inches long. If you look closely you can see the outline of the baby's face on the top right. The head is on the right and the rump is on the left, and he or she is facing up. The doctor told us the placenta is forming on the bottom, near my back.

In the first picture, the heart beat is visible on the bottom. Today we got to hear the heartbeat, and see the baby's heart pumping on the ultrasound monitor. It was pretty fun. :)

We praise God for our healthy baby!