Lilypie 1st Birthday Ticker

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

First Glimpse

Here they are -- the first glimpses of Baby Bickford! It was amazing to watch the technician as she maneuvered around to find all the different parts -- we clearly saw the spine and ribs, we watched the little heart beating, arms flailing, and legs kicking. Everything was normal. The placenta (which we thought was surprisingly large) is a good size and all the measurements are in good proportion. Everything seems as it should be. The baby is currently standing in a breeched position -- but that is not a problem as (s)he will somersault around quite a bit between now and b-day. We still don't know if the child is a boy or girl -- the technician was very careful not to reveal anything -- words or images (notice that the pictures stop short at the tummy).

In this first picture you can see a little raised fist. The head is to the left with a big potbelly on the right.
Here you have a clearer picture of the face with the forehead, eyes, nose, lips, and tucked chin. And of course you can't miss that little raised hand and elbow. The black space in the middle of the belly is the heart.

If it takes you a little while to decipher what you are looking at -- don't worry -- it took us some time, too!

Monday, October 8, 2007

The Return of the Monday Maternity Measuring Moment

39" -- That is the magic number tonight. It was way back on August 20 we last measured Eileen's tummy. It was holding steady at 38". An inch may not seem like a lot* -- but the little guy (or gal) is growing fast and kicking hard. Micah likes to (gently) lay his head on Eileen's tummy and talk to the baby so that (s)he will kick his head.

Stay tuned for first glimpses of Baby Bickford.

*Disclaimer: Our measuring technique is essentially flawed. We find the largest measurement and go with that as opposed to measuring the same point each time. All tummy measurements are intend for entertainment purposes only and may not reflect the actual growth of Eileen's circumference.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Over the Hill

We've made it 1/2 way -- 20 weeks pregnant and 20 to go! It only seems like yesterday that we found out that we were going to have a baby. God has been so gracious to us over these many weeks.

The past couple of weeks brought us the sad news of two infants who both died only days before they were due to be born -- one to friends of ours and another to the son and daughter-in-law of Pastor John Piper (Please click here to read his response to this sad experience).

It is so easy for us to forget that the birth of our child is not a certain thing. Everything is in the hands of our Almighty God who sustains all life and lovingly ordains all that comes to pass. We must not forget that his mercies are new every morning and his faithfulness to all generations.

As the weeks and months fly pass we must remember to give thanks to God for that tiny little heartbeat, those ever more frequent little kicks, and God's great goodness to us.

Tuesday morning we go for our ultrasound . . .