Here are a few shots from the ultrasound we had before the gender reveal…

We we absolutely LOVE about the second photo (other than the solidly developing spine and brain) is how baby boy is sleeping. See how his knees are under him with his butt up in the air? This is EXACTLY how Tara slept as a baby! We’re trying to find some photos of it in her mom’s collection. Tara’s dad nicknamed her “pumpkin” because of how she curled up in her crib like this, with her thumb in her mouth. And guess what … he’s a thumbsucker too *smile* Just like mommy!

If you all could please keep Tara in your prayers – she has been experiencing severe back pain for the past few months that has consistently gotten worse. She can’t sleep through the night without waking up 3-4x a night, holding her breath in pain. Sitting or walking for any length of time also causes her to be in a lot of pain. And with all this pain comes exhaustion. With the pairing of exhaustion and pain, it seems her “attacks” have returned with a vengeance, as all of it is stressing her body. Our Primary Physician (who specializes in sports medicine as well) was concerned by this, so Tara went in for an exam. He found that her pelvis it tilted in one direction, and her “hypermobile joints” (a condition she’s treated for regularly) are being particularly stressed by the “growth” the pregnancy has brought on. He sent her back to physical therapy (3rd time in the past year). Tara met with the Physical Therapist this morning and he is extremely concerned about her overall condition. The stress on the back is extensive, as she already has a weak back and pregnancy causes ligaments to relax. He also noted some neuropathy (nerve damage) on the left side. She begins therapy next week, starting at 2x a week and possibly going up to 4 as they investigate the damage and pain more. Prayers for healing and knowledge for the therapist in how to proceed are GREATLY appreciated – pregnancy makes anytime of physical therapy very difficult and we have to proceed with a lot of caution.

<3 Tara and Oliver

My parents were in town for the holiday, so we wanted to let them “meet” their latest grandchild today via ultrasound (since we’d never really had a first one but for a quick picture at 7weeks). And boy did we get a show! “Squishy” was flipping, hiding, waving and even got the hiccups. I can’t lie, in between giggling at the images up on the screen, I was so emotional. It’s really happening, it is REALLY our turn to welcome our own little one into the world. We have waited, cried, prayed and had our hearts broken so many times. The same bible verse kept running through my mind…

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. – 1 Samuel 1:27 (NIV)

Here are the pictures and video of our blessing. You can click the images to see/save a larger version!

Video coming soon …

Praying you have a wonderful 4th of July celebrating! We have so much to celebrate this year …

<3 Tara (& Oliver)

Today we went to see my OBGYN for the first time. The first thing she said when she walked through the door was “WOW! What a surprise!!!!” She was the one who had referred us out when she couldn’t help us anymore. And boy was she surprised to find out prayer, and not infertility treatments, had gotten us to this day. A quick check showed that yes indeed, there was a baby! This was also verified by the 4th pregnancy test I had taken this morning… I didn’t want to waste anyones time if it all wasn’t real!

Since there wasn’t an ultrasound tech on duty yet that morning, my doctor did the first quick ultrasound herself.

We lovingly refer to him or her as “Squishy”. And we can’t stop staring at this image!!!

<3 Tara (& Oliver)