Ultrasound

Last week we went down to Des Moines for an ultrasound to do some prenatal screening. It was great to see our little guy again, he was opening and closing his mouth; "breathing" in the amniotic fluid that is surrounding him.

He also seems to be growing like crazy! Based on the measurements the ultrasound tech took, it seems our boy is now 2 pounds, 3 ounces! He's huge! And he measured just over 14 inches long! Here's a 3D picture of him with his face smushed up against the side of Trish's uterus.



The last picture is one of the best 3D pictures we've had so far. It clearly shows that he's going to have Trish's nose, and maybe Andy's lips. We'll see though! The blob in front of his face is the umbilical cord.

WEEK 26

The network of nerves in our babies ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both Andy and Trish's voice as we chat with each other. He's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he's born and takes that first gulp of air. And he's continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures fourteen inches from head to heel. His testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum - a trip that will take two to three days.
(Information gathered from www.babycenter.com)

Based on the weight and length of our baby, babycenter says he's the size of an English Hothouse Cucumber. What the heck is that?!?!?! That doesn't even sound good. So here's Andy's comparison....At 14 inches long and 1 2/3 lbs, our baby is the size of a trophy crappie!!!

It was exciting this morning because as I was sitting on the couch before work, Trish came up to say goodbye and I put my mouth to her stomach and told the baby goodbye and he gave a big old kick! So we know he hears our voices! We also saw on our last ultrasound those little breathing movements as our baby boy was opening and closing his mouth. The ultrasound tech told us that was very good to see this early in the pregnancy. It's something that they look for later in the 3rd trimester, but to see it this early is a great sign. We have 1 more week to go until the 3rd trimester!!!! It's soooo exciting!!!

I didn't have any good pictures for this post, and I hate to make posts without pictures....so here's a close-up of one of the baby's acquarium crappies. His name is Don and he hangs out on the left side of the tank.

Mission Impossible

On Tuesday, Trish took the day off and it was one of Andy's normal days off work. So we decided to set up our baby registry's. It took us back to the days when we were registering for our wedding. Also, Andy got to "shoot" stuff all day! Here's a couple action shots.......

Here's one of Andy as he snuck up on the crib sheet set and accessories he'd been stalking all day.


And moments later Trish put down some fitted crib sheets from point blank range.


We hunted all day at Target and Babys r Us. We shot up about 75 items to outfit our baby when he enters the world. So if you happen to get a baby shower invite in the mail, feel free to buy our baby boy whatever you want off his lists! And if you see something cool that his daddy might look good in (ex: camouflage clothes or a new bow), feel free to pick that stuff up too even though it's not on the registry.

We'd also like to give a huge THANK YOU to Liz and Stacey for all their advice and help on what to register for! Thanks girls!

We ended the mission by grilling and devouring some amazing cheeseburgers with the Carson's. Joel showed us a few dance moves and how he likes to stay cool in his sweet pool. It was a great day!

Weekend with the Leshers

Trish's mom & dad visited this past weekend & we had a blast! We went fishing at Don Williams during the day on Saturday before Andy had to go to work. Lon and Trish each caught a nice crappie to go along with numerous small blue gills.


As soon as we got home, those crappies went right into the baby's fish tank!

It took those 2 crappies less than two days to eat every last one of my goldfish minnows that were the original inhabitants of the tank. Looks like we'll have to go to the bait shop soon to keep them growing!

We also got some practice with some infant diapers we had on hand too.

Poor Rudy!

The Grump

ULTRASOUND

We went into the hospital this morning for a scheduled ultrasound. Here's a short video of the baby moving around. You can really see the heart beating perfectly and watch at the end when he picks his nose and gives a "salute" to all his fans!


We found out that our baby boy has grown almost 1 pound since our last ultrasound and he's a whopping 1 pound and 13 ounces!



We established one other fact today from the 3D ultrasound that Andy has been saying all along.....the baby definitely has Grandpa Lon's nose!

Ancestor of the Week

So I've decided to start a weekly feature on the blog in addition to the weekly updates on our pregnancy. As the weekly pregnancy update is a look forward to a new life, this ancestor feature will be a look back, paying tribute to those that got us here in the first place. I've joined ancestry.com and have found some incredible information. I'll start with the Bartlett side, but Trish's side is just as extensive and will be included in later weeks. Enjoy.

Lyman Bartlett


Lyman was born on January 27, 1826 in Strongville, Ohio which was in Cuyahoga County. He was the son of Seth and Rebecca Bartlett. He spent his early life in his native county on a farm, and also worked at the carpenter trade. In May, 1854, he came to Iowa and settled on the farm that the Bartlett's now own, paying $2.25 per acre for it. His farm consists of 166 acres of fine improved land. Lyman fought in the Civil War, enlisting in company D, 24th Iowa, August 6, 1862; was taken prisoner at Cedar Creek, Virginia, October 19, 1864, and held a prisoner until the following March. When he was released as a prisoner of war, he returned to his farm in Iowa and built the house that Andy grew up in. He was married, October 23, 1849, to Francis A. E. Clark, a native of Massachusetts. They have four children: William, Lyman S., Edwin and Frank S.

Pictured below is Lyman on the right with his son, Lyman, Jr.

Lyman was Andy's great, great, great Grandfather. He passed away on August 29, 1899 near Solon, Iowa. He was 73 years old. God rest his soul.