My little purple blossoms

This beautiful, purple bush blossomed in our yard last month and I had to take advantage of it and take a few quick shots. They aren't the best but my little red head looks so cute next to purple, I couldn't resist. :)

2nd ultrasound

I had another ultrasound this last Tuesday morning. The question of the moment has been, "What are you having?!" Well, Steve now knows but I do not.

I originally decided to wait because we had the house on the market and we were unsure where we would end up so I couldn't start preparing for the baby, which I would immediately want to do once I found out the sex of the baby. But we took the house off the market about 3 weeks ago and we're both at peace about staying. I love our house and even though it was a tough, emotional 4 months while the house was for sale, we know the process wasn't a mistake and both Steve and I grew so much and it also strengthened our marriage and our communication as well. We've enjoyed living with less these last several months so we've decided to sell most of the stuff we've had in storage. I'm so excited!! But our stuff is at Steve's sister's house and their neighborhood isn't having a yard sale until the Fall so we'll have to wait. We also have a queen sized bed that we need to get rid of that's in the future baby's room so even though we aren't moving anymore, I still wouldn't be able to start on the baby room. Sooooo, I've decided to wait until October to find out what we're having. A couple of my friends are giving me a shower so I'll find out at the shower. Steve's going to drop me off, give me a gift that will let me know what we're having so he can be there when I find out, then he'll leave so the gals can enjoy the festivities. I can't wait!!

Some people think I'm crazy and a lot of my friends are beyond anxious to find out what the baby is but I know that the Lord is going to do a work in my heart through this process. My natural tendency is to over plan, organize, situate and fuss about things when I get excited about them. Since I can't buy clothes, go to yard and consignment sales, look online for things, I need to be at peace about deciding to wait. I'm hoping this process will grow me in patience. I really thought Steve would be readable and I'd be able to read his face so easy or he'd slip and say "He" or "She" accidentally. That could possibly still happen but so far he's doing great! I misread his non-emotion as not being excited about the baby the other day and he said he's trying to be neutral and not show any emotion so he doesn't slip anything out. :)

I am now 17 weeks, 5 days. The baby looked healthy and weighed in at 7 oz., 10.1 cm long. The heart beat was at 150. It was so fun to see the baby again, see its long arms and legs. And the nose, so cute! (you can see it in the 2nd picture) I do have a prayer request for our little one. I am scheduled to go in for another ultrasound on the 18th of August. The ultrasound tech said the baby was still a bit young and she couldn't get a good enough look at all of the chambers of the heart like she needs to. The Dr. said it's nothing to worry about and to be excited I'll get to see the baby again and get more pictures. She did mention that the heart was one of the last things to be formed. Please pray the baby's heart continues to grow and develop normally and the tech will see a full, strong, well developed heart in a couple weeks. The life of this sweet child is in the Lord's hands and we're trusting Him as he forms and grows the baby in my womb.

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