It is real... we have a baby girl on the way!

Hello Loved Family and Friends- We have so much news to share these days that I have decided to take a stab at the world of blogging... again. Family and close friends have always been such an important part of my life and I want to be sure that I continue to keep in touch with everyone. Most of our posts will probably be from the Mindy perspective, but we may see the occasional thought contribution from soon-to-be Daddy Jeremy.

As most of your probably know Jeremy and I are expecting our first baby and our ultra sound confirmed this week that baby is a girl! Neither of us was really wanting one or the other so this was wonderful news, all though I will admit I thought baby was a boy. I have found it thrilling and tangible to be able to replace "baby", "bebe" and "it" with the correct pronoun of "SHE". In addition to the news of gender we also found out that everything is progressing normal and on schedule. Baby girl is in the 57th percentile and pretty active right now. She kept her legs crossed for most of the ultra-sound (already the proper girl & just like her mom!). We were also able to see her yawn, take a couple of breaths (babies only do this sporatically right now) and move her hand in and out of her mouth. All of this came as a huge relief to me because I have been such a nervous mother-to-be. I am determined to go forward with all optimism and enjoy the rest of this experience!

Speaking of enjoying the experience, thank goodness for the second trimester! As insane and unrealistic as it was, I really did not think the first trimester would ever end. I won't rehash the details, but if there are any expecting moms in the first trimester reading this that would like to have reassurance - Let's have lunch! (If you can stomach it.) I have had about 90% of all pregnancy symptoms in the exact order they are predicted to arrive. I can't tell you how many times I was sharing/whining to Jeremy about my woes only to open a book or the internet and exclaim, "oh my gosh, that's me!". Fortunately, with the passage into the second trimester I feel like a new person!

Yesterday was the begining of week 19 and I can't believe we are almost at the half way mark. (40 weeks does not = 9 months)

Thank you so much to all the people in my life that have supported me to this point. Especially my wonderful husband Jeremy for all his sacrifices and forethought. He has done a wonderful job of putting aside the idea of rationality. My mother for all her positive encouragement, even if it was scoffed. My dad for his quirky and to the point humor of it all. Amber and Amilyn for just being there to listen. Crystal, Josalyn, Isabella, Micayla, Jenn and Ashley for all the wonderful (experienced) advise that they have shared.