I'm back...

Well peeps, I'm back. I didn't want to come back, but why have a blog if you're not going to update it??!!? I just wasn't sure if anyone even checked it...so I let it go by the wayside. I also was annoyed that you have to upload photos in the opposite order. Oh well...I've decided it's worth it so that you all are updated with our life...mainly with Liam's new adventures!

Liam and I have been having fun at home together for the past 2 1/2 months. I debated whether or not I should go back to work and eventually decided to become a stay-at-home mommy. I actually didn't "debate" for too long about the decision. It was easy for me. I knew I wanted to stay at home from the minute I found out I was pregnant. But I knew it would be hard to leave my company. After 7 years at Huddleston & Co., my co-workers became like family. The Huddleston's treat their employees so well and are very loving and generous people. But those reasons don't match up to the blessed gift of raising your own child and being there for every milestone. I feel so grateful that Jay has offered me this gift and is willing to be the sole provider for our family! So yesterday I resigned. I am sad, but I am looking forward to the wonderful memories Liam and I will make together. Stay tuned...I will be better at posting through these wonderful memories.

Love,

Danielle

A Fun 4 Days!

Jay and I had a lot going on this past weekend. It was definitely a fun and exciting time for us.

Thursday was my 28-week appointment. At this appointment they do testing for gestational diabetes. I had to drink a really sweet drink and then they took my blood an hour later. The drink wasn't as bad as I thought...especially since I got to refrigerate it beforehand. A few days later, the results to my test came back normal!! Woohoo! Also, my belly is measuring normal and Liam has a strong heartbeat. We are thankful for such a positive doctor's appointment!

Side Note: My OBGYN, Dr. Beard, is about to go on maternity leave. She is not scheduled to come back to work until November 1st. My due date is November 9th. This is cutting it pretty close! So I look forward to meeting the new doctor next month. I read on her bio that she graduated from Texas A&M - WHOOP! - and is class of 2002. Wait a second...that's what class I am. Wow, this makes me a little nervous to have a doctor deliver Liam that is my same age...but hopefully all goes well if she is the one to deliver!

On Friday Jay and I went to our pediatrician's office to get to know him a little better. He is truly an amazing person. We enjoyed the office and our conversation with Dr. Pielop. I can't wait for him to meet Liam! Unfortunately, since he is located out in the Memorial City area, he won't be checking on Liam in the hospital after his birth (I deliver in the Medical Center), but he recommended a pediatrician that 'makes rounds' in that hospital for me to ask for when I deliver. That is comforting. Below is a picture of the office and one of Dr. Pielop. I also included his bio.

Blue Fish Pediatrics:

Dr. Pielop:

Dr. Pielop was born and raised here in Houston. He attended high school at Kinkaid and graduated from Duke in 1995, where he majored in Biology and Spanish. He graduated from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in 1999 and completed his pediatric residency training at Baylor College of Medicine-affiliated hospitals (including Ben Taub General Hospital and Texas Children’s Hospital) in 2002. In 2002, Dr. Pielop became board certified in pediatrics and became a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Pielop then worked in group practice from 2002-2004. In 2005, Dr. Pielop joined Dr. Jung to begin Blue Fish Pediatrics.

He married his wife Josie in December of 1996. They have two sons: Will, who was born in April of 2005 and Gus, who was born in December of 2007. Dr. Pielop attends Second Baptist Church and enjoys the outdoors, bird hunting, arrowhead collecting, saltwater fishing, and gardening.

Saturday Jay and I got to go to Memorial Hermann Medical Center and get a tour of the 5th floor where I will be delivering. It was very informational and made it all so real! I can't believe we'll be there in a little over 2 months! Wow! Our tour guide, Nurse Debbie was so sweet and gave us confidence in the staff. We got to spend some time in a delivery room and ask a lot of questions. I'm so glad we signed up for that! Then Jay took me on a date to Pappasitos...Yum! Thankfully I can still eat pretty much anything I want without getting heartburn. Bring on the chips and salsa!

Sunday we had scheduled a photo shoot with a girl I knew when I danced on Aggie Dance Team, Ashley. I think she did an excellent job! We decided to take pictures outside in the evening and the location we picked was our church - Second Baptist. That church has done wonders for our marriage and provided so many friends. We met there and got engaged there too. So needless to say, it was the perfect location for another milestone in our lives! Here are some pics!

If you would like more information about Ashley, visit her website: http://www.paintedpeacockphotography.com/

Oh and I almost forgot to brag on my husband! Jay has been working so hard on our guest bathroom because as soon as that is finished, we'll be able to paint Liam's room. He has tiled the shower and the floors. Below is a picture of his amazing work! He has also put up the chair rail and bead board, painted primer on the walls, and installed the shower head and nozzle. We are still deciding what color to paint the bathroom. Thank you Jay for your hard work!

Our next exciting event will be on Saturday. It's not only the day of my first girly shower, but it is also Jay and I's 6th wedding anniversary. That will be special to celebrate both events in one day. Unfortunately we won't be going to dinner that night due to that day also being the first Texan's game of the season - Jay will be running the flags again!

Exciting times! We are blessed!

Love,

Danielle

The 9 Months Before Your Arrival

This is the title of my scrapbook that I have started for baby Liam. I wanted to have an order to all the pictures regarding our baby boy during the 9 months before he gets here. So far, I have included pictures from the ultra sounds, my belly growth (until now), and our “Surprise” party. I am saving room for our professional pregnancy photo session, the progress of Liam’s room, all of our showers (there are 6 – wow – we feel so blessed), and D-day. I wanted to get started now so that I can keep up and be able to just add pictures as the events come. I’m thinking there might not be much time after Liam gets here to do much scrapbooking! Here’s my progress so far…

Here is a photo of me and my friend, Elizabeth, at her baby shower. She is another one of my close friends having a baby around the same time as me. She was my 'big sis' on Texans when I made the squad in 2006. I might actually do a separate scrapbook page for all my friends that I have been blessed to be on this journey with.

That’s all for now. I’m really looking forward to next week…Thursday is my 28-week appointment, Friday we meet with Dr. Pielop, Liam’s pediatrician, for the first time, and Saturday we get to go on a tour of the hospital - Memorial Herman Medical Center. Can’t wait!!

Love,
Danielle

Our First Shower!

Hello! Jay and I just got back from our trip to Massachusetts. We had a wonderful time. We spent some time in the city for the first day (Thursday) and then headed out to Leominster for the rest of the time (until Monday) to spend some qt with Jay's family.

On Saturday we had our first baby shower hosted by the Wynne's at their home. It was so exciting! There were probably around 30 friends and family members that attended. We felt so blessed! The Wynne's and their best friends, the Fagerstroms, set up tents in Neal and Mary's huge back yard to hold all the chairs and the food. Neal cooked an amazing brisket to go along with the delicious side dishes from everyone. Neal even set up a horseshoe court near their beautiful fish pond, as well as a volleyball court. The girls, Christine and Rachel, put up 'Baby Boy' decorations in the tent and in the house. They had cute teddy bear favors to pass out and an adorable teddy bear cake. We felt so grateful for all the hard work that everyone put into making that day so special! Liam got some cute clothes and a few other items...but mainly we got gift cards so that we wouldn't have to travel with a bunch of stuff. Gift cards are so helpful! We are very thankful.

Here are some pictures of our trip.

Boston

The beautiful gardens near downtown.

Me (at 24 weeks) with the rose bushes.

Jay on Mr. Duck w/an ice cream cone!

The Wynne siblings on a cliff off the north shore of Massachusetts.

Shower decorations!

J & D at our first shower...and Liam too :)

Us and Jay's parents.

The cute teddy bear cake.

Opening gifts...oh ya, that is Liam's first bat - a Red Sox bat! GO SOX!

Some of Jay's college friends, Steven and Christine (Steven was in our wedding). They are sweet friends.

The whole family on Sunday evening playing mini-golf - it was so fun.

Love,
Danielle

20-Week Appointment

We had the big anatomy ultrasound appointment on June 21st which was really cool because we got to watch Liam for a longer period of time. He just seemed so happy and content in his little home. The technician started to name off the positive things she saw. She noticed he has all 3 chambers in his heart and his stomach and bladder were working well. He also has all his fingers and toes. When we looked closely to his face and mouth area (and actually saw his tongue), she ruled out cleft lip. Liam was opening and closing his hands which she said is a good sign he won't have Down Syndrome since they tend to keep their hands closed. He also had the hick-ups (that was cute to watch) which she said was good because it makes his lungs strong. So overall we were very happy. We just waited for the official good-health report. Then I received an email two days later stating: Your fetal ultrasound was normal. There were no visible abnormalities in the baby or placenta. Woohoo! Thank you Jesus.

I am doing pretty well. I had a small scare with my platelet level (platelets are what keep your blood clotting so that you can stop bleeding when needed). Since my Internal Medicine doctor, Dr. Williams, has taken care of me and my thyroid disease for 6 years now, I trust her to keep monitoring it. So when Dr. Beard (OBGYN) runs blood work on me, they will fax over my lab results to Dr. Williams' office. Right before my 20-week appointment, Dr. Williams’ nurse called me about the previous blood test and noticed that my platelet level was in the normal range, but low. So she requested I get a CBC (Complete Blood Count) done at my next appointment. I was a little worried about this since I have a major surgery coming up in November…I wanted to know for certain that my blood will be able to clot during childbirth. So Jay and I covered this in prayer. We recently got my results back and it turns out that my platelet level went back up! Woohoo! As of now, the uncertainties are gone!

Another praise - We found a pediatrician! It's so neat to see God's hand in this. I actually have a few friends that go to a practice in Memorial City. I looked them up on the internet and read all the doctors' bio's. All five of them wrote where they go to church and how they actively serve there. I was extremely impressed and called to make an appointment with one of the two male doctors (we prefer Liam to have a male pedi). It turns out that neither of the doctors are taking new patients. I was a little discouraged about where to go from here because I was so excited to find a Christian, male pediatrician. Well I asked my friend who takes her boy to Dr. Pielop (one of the male doctors) for his email to get a recommendation and she suggested I just leave a phone message for him. So I did and I asked him for a recommendation for another Christian, male pediatrician since he wasn't taking new patients. I also mentioned that I go to Second Baptist (I saw in his bio that he attends there as well) and that I know a few couples that have him as a pediatrician. Well surprisingly Dr. Pielop called me back and offered me to have my lil' boy come to him! I was so excited. I'm thankful God guided me to him and to leave a message. Jay and I have a meeting with him in August and I am confident we will love him.

Well here are a few pictures of Liam at 20 weeks and one of me with my friend Melissa...one of my many friends that are pregnant. I'm so grateful to have girls to go through this journey with!

Liam's profile:

Liam's leg:

Melissa and I at her baby shower. Our boys will be only 8 weeks apart!

Love, Danielle

Our prayers have been answered!

Hey friends and family! Jay and I decided to start a blog to keep you updated as we progress through this new journey as future parents. We know our lives will change dramatically, but it will be for the best!

Here’s our story: Jay and I married in August of 2004. Early in 2005 Jay started a new job that required him to travel 50% of the time, and I was given an opportunity to pursue my love for dance as a member of Team NRG (Houston Comets). For the next three years, Jay continued to travel a lot for work, and I ended up fulfilling a dream of mine by dancing for the Houston Texans Cheerleaders. Family was always in the back of our minds (more so for Jay). However, we both agreed that we wouldn’t start trying until Jay stopped traveling. In 2008, Jay decided to heavily pursue work that required no travelling, and I agreed to retire from dancing professionally, in hopes to start a family in 2009.

Jay had several great job opportunities leading into 2009, however, because of the struggling economy, all of them fell through. This was difficult for Jay, since he was really excited about not travelling and starting a family. Despite not finding the ideal job, Jay and I started trying for a family anyway.

Our goal for starting a family was to let it happen naturally. We didn’t want to get all scientific about it. However, after six months had gone by without getting the results we had hoped, we started talking to other couples for wisdom. Through these conversations, we ended up taking the advice of our friends and started using an ovulation kit (which helps a woman identify which days she is most fertile). Around this same time, Jay interviewed for a position within his company that required no travel. In November, Jay was given and accepted an offer for this position, in which he would start at the 2010 new-year.

Jay and I decided that we would give the ovulation kit six or so months before consulting a fertility specialist. During the first few months of using the kit I was a little confused. In January of 2010 I talked to my friend who had used the kit (and was successful), and she gave me some helpful insight.

Two more months passed. Then in March, as I counted the days, my monthly “friend” never came. So I decided on the morning of March 4th to take an over the counter pregnancy test. To my surprise, it came back positive. I remember running into the bedroom while Jay was still sleeping and telling him “Hun, wake up! I’m pregnant!” We were just so excited and praised God for this answered prayer! It was awesome! I called the doctor that morning and she advised I make an appointment two weeks later when I was 6 weeks so we could see and hear the heart beat.

On March 18th, Jay and I went to our appointment and saw our little baby for the first time on the ultrasound. He was just a size of a sweet pea. Praise God it had a healthy heartbeat!

After our 8-week appointment we decided to share the news with our immediate family. It was right around Easter so we sent everyone Easter cards saying “Happy Easter GRANDMA”…or “AUNT”…etc. Everyone was ecstatic – especially since this is the first grandbaby on both sides of our family. It wasn’t until after our 12-week appointment (when the risk for miscarriage is less than 1%) that we decided to tell our friends. But we couldn’t just tell them in any old conventional way. Since Jay’s big 30th birthday was approaching, we decided to use this as the stage for surprising everyone! Here is the video of that exciting night: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOMW7PfKoRA

We have since gone to the doctor for the 16-week appointment. This was exciting because not only did we find out the gender, but we got to see him move around inside for the first time. It was fun because he was very active! (Maybe it was because of the Sprite and candy I ate beforehand…or maybe it’s because it’s JAY’S BABY!) I loved watching that permanent smile on Jay's face. I feel so blessed to have him with me at every appointment. We are looking forward to seeing our baby boy again in a few weeks during our 20-week appointment on June 21st. During this appointment they will be doing a more detailed ultrasound that assesses the baby's anatomy in detail. Please pray with us for the health of our baby boy!

Well that's all for now. Thank you for all your prayers and support!

Love, Danielle

Liam at 12 weeks:

Me at 18 weeks: