Uh....21 and 22 weeks and counting...

Well, weeks have come and gone without a post from me! I have been enjoying life and have been on the move (and so has Zoe), so I took a break for a bit! :)

The past couple of weeks have been great! I enjoyed a visit from my close friends Lauren and Cinda and had fun buying lots of clothes for Zoe to grow into in the future from a consignment sale called Rhea Lana. I love a good deal! We had a great time and I enjoyed all the advice and honest commentary about lots of gross and wonderful things that babies bring into your life! I can tell that their friendship and advice are going to be essential in the near future! I am glad I was not first! (poor Cinda!) We had a wonderful time, and I enjoyed spending the first weekend of knowing Zoe was a girl with my close friends! :)

The last day before spring break, my 2nd period class threw a baby shower for me! It was so adorable. I could not believe it! :) They had asked me if they could and I said yes, but the rest was a big surprise! I could not believe how special and how adorable of a shower they had for me. I am not sure I could have pulled that off at 14 or 15 years of age! :) It really made my day and meant a lot! Days like that Friday remind me that teaching is what I am called to do!

This week was spent with my family and sister in Pensacola, Florida where my sister lives. It was a wonderful spring break! Just what I needed! I love the beach and spending time with my family and sister! :) Kelly told us in person that she is having a little boy Grayson William Slack on the Saturday we arrived! I am so excited that Zoe will have a cousin her age to play with and be close to as she grows up! I had so much fun laying in the sun with Kelly, reading baby books out loud with her, comparing notes, and of course shopping (see Zoe's first baby doll (mermaid) I bought while I was there)! New mommies and outlet malls are a scary combination! Trust me that there is not a shortage of cute boy or girl clothes out there (well, maybe after we were finished)!

Kelly and I have compared our bellies....and the result is that they are about the same size! She is definitely carrying differently than I am, but I didn't feel like a whale around her which made me happy! We carried around our big bellies with pride on that beach! :) I really liked bumping bellies, but Kelly just thought I was a weirdo. I got to see her belly jump when Grayson got the hiccups, and she got to feel Zoe move around from the outside for the first time (sorry Geoff!). Kelly and I spent some serious time in the nursery planning zone. The laptop was our friend at night! Mom even took a picture of us there because we spent so much time looking there together. I think it was good we were on the computer because it keep my Dad off of it! :) We helped each other make decisions, and I really don't think I could have done it without her! :) She has an eye for design! :) (I have an eye for money management! Ha!) I really enjoyed the week of relaxation and celebrating my mom's birthday! Zoe and Grayson enjoyed their first visit together with many more hopefully in the future!

We returned home on Friday night, and I was so excited to see Geoff again! I missed him so much! I know Zoe missed her daddy too! She started moving around Saturday morning while we were still in bed and he got to feel her kick for the first time too! She is really growing and moving and I absolutely love it! I feel great and and I love all of the new stuff that is starting to happen. I love being pregnant! I am excited to put together the nursery just for her and to get ready for her arrival (see blogs later for more information on the nursery). I am truly blessed with a great family and friends to share this time with!

Krista at 20 weeks

20 weeks and counting...

Wow! I am half-way there! It has been a wonderful week! This week we went for our ultrasound, and it was an amazing experience. Words cannot express the series of emotions that I went through. I was upset that we had not seen our baby since 8 weeks, but I think that made the experience even more incredible. To go from a little pebble to a baby that looks just perfect was an amazing sight!

We are officially having a little girl! Her name will be Zoe Danielle Ryken (this name is not for sure yet but it is really close). Zoe means Life.....and I love that! I did not know that until recently. We have had this name picked out forever. We never picked out a baby boy name....I guess it wasn't meant to be! :) We both secretly wanted a little girl, so we are so thrilled! I think God knows best in these situations (I mean in all situations)!

I love the pictures of the baby. I stare at them on my computer at work....at the gym on my phone....and at home on the fridge. Hopefully you all have had a chance to look at them on Facebook. I am going to upload some of them here for the world to see! I loved the fact that she was moving all around. She sucked her thumb, rubbed her eyes, gave a us a big yawn, and even put up one of her fingers to tell us she was the one! :) The memory of that experience will not be forgotten by us. It was awesome. We have video for part of it, and we hope to share that as well soon!

They measured everything and looked her over from little head to little toes. Everything seems to be looking great, and we are grateful! Thanks be to God! I hope you will continue to pray as Zoe continues to grow and progress as she should! :) Thanks for all your prayers so far! This experience has strengthened my relationship with God, and has made me feel closer to Him. Zoe is giving me a new Life! :)

19 Weeks, the photo

As promised, here are Krista and baby at 19 weeks.

19 weeks and counting...

Wow! 19 weeks! It was a great week! I love feeling the movement of the baby! I absolutely love being pregnant. God has blessed me with a wonderful pregnancy so far! I feel so lucky! I even love my big belly! :)

This has been a pretty slow week. I really don't mind because I enjoy having time to cook dinner and workout to keep me and the baby healthy. Next week, will be busier but exciting. We find out Tuesday boy or girl and then my friends Cinda and Lauren are coming to town! :) They both have timed it perfectly, so we can go shopping knowing boy or girl! :) Hopefully Mini-Ryken will cooperate with us on Tuesday! I am looking forward to deciding what to do for the nursery and buying a couple of things for baby! :)

It is funny how people are for sure I am having a boy or for sure I am having a girl! I love to play along and then laugh a little. I have had probably exactly the same amount of girl and boy guesses! Ha! Someone asked me this week whether or not I "feel" like it is a boy or girl! I just laughed! I think that is funny! I must not be as in touch with my inner self!

We will for sure reveal boy or girl on Tuesday, but I am not sure about the name. It is taking longer for a decision to be made than I thought! :) So....we might have to wait! We might have to be mini-boy-ryken or mini-girl-ryken for awhile!

Our baby is supposed to be the size of a mango this week....but I don't think that is big enough. I think these must be some big mangoes from the Caribbean or something! :) It is funny though because I had a virgin Mango daiquiri last night at dinner with a friend! :)

Please pray for us this week! I am hoping for a healthy baby report and that everything has developed as it should. They will be looking at all the organs and measuring to make sure we are on track! :) I know that the Lord has blessed us with this baby boy or girl. I feel confident I will have what I am supposed to have. I am trusting in Him to help us through!

Oh by the way....Geoff said we will probably take some pictures this weekend of my belly! :)

Not quite 19 weeks....

We are not quite 19 weeks yet, but it happened today! I called Geoff at lunch today because I felt the baby move for the first time today!!! :) I was teaching my 2nd period, and I felt something strange....but I definitely knew what it was! It happened a couple more times today. I am getting so excited! One week from today we will know boy or girl....we will keep you posted!

18 weeks and counting....

18 weeks! We are almost to the half-way to the point! This week the size is compared to a sweet potato. I don't like sweet potatoes, and the only pictures on google images were ugly. So, I have put a picture of a sweet potato pie instead. :) The only consolation is that it is sweet! :)

This week has been a lot calmer compared to last week. I have been busy with school, but that is about it! I made it to the gym almost everyday this week which makes me very happy. I have noticed that the extra weight makes the cardio work so much harder. I don't know how the people on the biggest loser do it!

10 days until our ultrasound! We are definitely on countdown! I can't wait to find out girl or boy....hopefully he/she will cooperate that morning! We still don't have our names picked out yet, but we will definitely come to a decision this week. I still haven't felt any movement.....well at least I don't think I have. I have felt round ligament pain (or stretching pain as I call it) this week for sure though. I feel the pain one day and then the next day I look a lot bigger. The baby is the size of a 6 inch Subway sandwich this week, so it needed more room!

Well, I hope you will continue to pray for us during this exciting time for our family. We will keep you updated! :)