Announcement!

IT'S A BOY!

Josiah Jacob Amlong

Here is his cute little face and hands.

He was sleepy and the ultrasound tech had difficulty waking him up! See his little beating heart?

This video has the evidence of Josiah's manhood :)

All of his head and body measurements and his heart rate were normal for his gestational age. That was the best news to me. I tend to worry between doctors appointments and dread them for fear they will find something bad.

To celebrate, we went to the mall to buy little Josiah something to wear home from the hospital. That sounds easy, but it was actually difficult. We ended up with more than one thing...go figure.

If you are wondering about the choice of names, read on.

Many of you are familiar with the story of Josiah from the Old Testament. These are our thoughts on the name and why we chose it:

Josiah became king of Judah at the young and impressionable age of 8. What is amazing about him is that after being raised in a world where belief in God was rare and idolatry, child sacrifice, and prostitution were rampant, he went against his entire culture and turned himself and his nation over to God. God must have found a great strength in Josiah’s character and was watching out for him. He saved him from the death and destruction of his the ways of his predecessors. God had revealed himself to Josiah and Josiah listened and followed wholeheartedly even with the pressures of a nation on him. He must have been faithful and trustworthy for God to choose to reveal himself to him and Josiah responded decisively. “He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or the left” (2 Kings 22:2). I hope that our son will develop this kind of strength of character that will allow him to follow Christ despite the world around him.

As for the middle name…Jacob…he is well known Bible character, not to mention Josiah’s daddy’s name! I’m so proud of Jacob (my husband), his character, and his love for God, so Josiah Jacob seemed to be a fitting name.

You can read about Josiah in 2 Kings 22-23 and 2 Chronicles 34-35.

Tip Of The Day

Sometimes I have such great conversations with clients while we work! Today I vaccinated a bunch of horses for a client who had a baby in early spring last year. I asked her how she managed to have such a flat stomach so soon and she proceded to pick up her shirt to show me all her flaws that remain.

Later she said March was the perfect time to have a baby because the weather is good enough that you dont have to clothe them for at least the first 10 months and, therefore, you have no laundry! I'm not sure I'll go for that, but it is a good money and time saving tip.

Oh! The things people say!

I figured some of you may enjoy hearing what some of my clients have said as they find out I'm pregnant. I haven't really told most of them simply because it doesn't usually come up naturally or in a professional way and I guess I think they'll figure it out soon enough. But, the other day I was treating a horse as the client told me how the horse and her dogs are her kids. She then asked me if I had any kids and I told her no, but that in March I would. She gave me a funny look, looked at my abdomen, looked back at me and says, "So you are adopting, then?" I told her no, that I really was pregnant. She couldn't believe it.

This week after I finished looking at a lame horse for one of our favorite clients (who always buys us goodies and chats with us), I told him I was pregnant. He asked when I was due and when I told him he said, "What are you having? Whatever it is, it sure is small!" Then he made the point that his mare is also due in March and she is much bigger! Later he called me back and said he'd build me "one of those things Jesus was put in" (aka, a manger) and put it in the barn for me. He said he would take care of both me and Cupcake (his mare). I thought that was thoughtful, but kindly declined!

Apparently, despite how I feel, I'm not nearly big enough!

First Concert

Last Thursday "Beanie" (as my mom likes to call our baby) or "Junior" (Jacob's favorite name) went to his first concert. We went to see Brad Paisley with Brian and Julie at the O'Connell center. Granted it is not the type of concert I'd want him/her (will find out soon) to go to for a LOOONG time, but it was fun. His opening acts left something to be desired, but his portion was good. There were times I was wanting to plug the baby's ears to protect from the noise which obviously wasn't feasible (especially since my fingers are still bigger than his whole head)! Regardless, we had a good time. Thanks, Brian and Julie, for the invite.


Only 2 weeks until we find out if it's a boy or girl, and therefore what to call "it". Stay Tuned!

13.5 weeks

JUST 5 WEEKS UNTIL WE FIND OUT

IF IT'S PINK OR BLUE!

We still have 6 months before our baby joins us and we already have a crib, a bassinet, 2 swings, 2 bouncy seats, a bath bed, and a saucer seat! I think we'll have enough for Grandma's house too!

13.5 weeks

We had another doctors appointment today. I have gained about 5 pounds in 4 weeks. Is it supposed to happen so quickly???

I have no new ultrasound pics to show, but we did get to hear our baby's heartbeat. It was about 150 beats per minute (normal). It was good to hear. It may seem strange, but with doctor's appointments being about every 4 weeks, by the 4th week, I tend to wonder if the whole thing is even real! Jacob thinks that my expanding waistline and lack of fitting clothes should be a hint, but I guess I think I should feel different.

Actually, yesterday I had my first moment of feeling different when I blacked out and became drenched in sweat and nauseous at work in front of my boss and technicians...oops. Unfortunately it was at work, but fortunately it wasn't in front of a client. Oh well, I'll take an episode or two any day over morning after morning of sickness (which I'm happy to say I never had).

13 Weeks