THE TRAVELING GARDNERS

91 days until D day! Delivery day that is........... Planned c-section as of today is planned for November 12,2008! Today Baby Zach's heart rate was 150 beats per minute = perfect! Even though I was having contractions on the Dr's table, my cervix has not changed and Zach is in great shape. Zach has not dropped and continues to enjoy tummy time inside Momma's belly! Let's keep it that way Zach! He still continues to be in the breached position. No big deal for delivery since it will be a c-section. It just means an uncomfortable next few months. And to date, I have gained 7 pounds total and my blood pressure is staying in the good range at 120/80. Next week begins my third trimester!!!! Hello nesting, cleaning, and organizing....or more like nesting and hiring Molly Maids to come clean our house! The Benji and Zach have officially sucked me of all my energy! I spoke with Dan today on the phone. He is getting VERY anxious for baby Zach to join our little family. Ben a...

Saturday morning surprise from Grandma Reva and Grandpa Tom! We were still in our Saturday morning pj's when a package came to our front porch. SURPRISE from San Diego! Ben is super excited about his big boy football underwear! A little blurry - Ben in shock over his cool new football and dinosaur pj's ~ Zach got a super soft blanket and a cute little onsie. Benjamin got stocked up with winter velour PJ's and winter clothes. It's hard to believe but snowy weather is only a few months away. Grandma Reva made sure Ben is prepared for the winter weather! Thank you Grandma Reva and Grandpa Tom!! We LOVE Carter's outlet stores!!! Ben ran upstairs and got his dinoasaur toy to crawl towards his new dinosaur pj's. The most adorable little onsie. "What happens at Grandma's house, stays at Grandma's house". My heart melted a little ~ Ben picked up baby Zach's onsie and blanket and brought them to my belly. He lifted my shirt at the belly and t...

Actually 25 weeks along if you count what the ultrasound tech said the past 2 times. But, I am going by official due date on paperwork. But secretly, I think this little one will come closer to Halloween than Turkey Day...... Baby GaGa website As of right now the scheduled c-section will be November 14th. So we have a little less then 15 weeks until we see Daddy and Zachary!!!! Week 24: Breathe baby, breathe! Fetal development in pregnancy week 24: (fetus in sixth month) This is another big week for your magical growing baby! Just take a look at the checklist for this week: 1) ears: done; 2) fingernails: done; 3) (if you have a boy) testicles: taking their 3-4 day trip from the abdominal wall to the scrotum; and 4) lungs walls: secreting “surfactant”. What’s that? Well, surfactant is sort of what it sounds like: a surface-activated fat whose main purpose is to assist the your baby's little lungs during inflation (as in, filling with air, not getting more expensive). Just in case y...

For those of you that were completely convinced that the ultrasound tech got it wrong.........Zachary is definitely a boy! With the 18 week ultrasound we did not get an actual picture of the "proof". Well, the one bonus of having a high risk pregnancy is that we get lots of pictures of little one to come. Here is a 22 week ultrasound of the "proof". ;) And yes - everything looked great still! We saw all 4 heart chambers, lots of brain activity, and everything as it should be for a sweet healthy bundle to be. The only thing that was not good was that he is currently breached(upside down). But I am having a scheduled c-section anyways, so we are not too concerned about that. The tech still has him at 7 days ahead of schedule. But, they are not officially changing the due date. So the ultrasound paper says 21 wk 6 days. He was actually 22 wk 6 days according to the ultrasound tech. Yes, my sweet baby boy - your Mommy is already embarrassing you. Your manhood plastered...

I call this the full body alien shot. ;) Waving his hand to all of his fans ~ Dan and I are pretty sure that this little bundle growing in my tummy will be named..... Zachary! (Zach for short) Hebrew meaning of Zachary - "God has remembered" Showing one leg in the picture. He had pulled his other leg up to his head at picture time! Yoga time!

Besides the obvious, the ultrasound showed us that I am farther along than even thought before. New due date was told November 13th, but the official papers are keeping the due date of November 19th. Second piece of information that we found out, is some discoveries as to possibly why Benjamin had low blood platelets when born. They ran a blood test yesterday on me called a genotyping blood platelet test. Even though the baby is healthy and looking perfect, my pregnancy is considered high risk. Why? Because when Ben was born, his blood platelets were in the 40 range when they should have been in the 300's. And the reason was never discovered. The 3 Doctor's that I saw yesterday think that they might have figured out why. They say it is possible that my antibodies are zapping the baby's blood platelet's. And if the blood test confirms this, they will give me a blood platelet transfusion before the baby is born. This would hopefully make it so that the baby would not need...

Yes Dan....you beat me to it....you got to announce our little bundles anatomy. :) Well, as every wife will probably tell you, they want a little girl just like them. And the husband will say they want a boy just like them also. And don't get me wrong having a little Leah running around with black curls in her hair and freckles on her cheeks, would tinkle me pink. So pink in fact you would think someone threw up pepto bismol in her room! ;) And if a girl came as Dan as a father she would have him wrapped around his strong Army finger. But the minute that we found out it was a boy, my heart leaped, and I could hear Dan's excitement straight through the phone. It wasn't that I wanted a girl versus a boy. It was that everyone thought it was a girl. Dan, myself, Grandma Sue, little cousin Gavin......and especially Ben with repeating that a little girl is in mommy's tummy. So it was a surprise that we are having a second boy. But SO exciting!!!! I love that Ben will have a b...

Today is Week 17 of the pregnancy! Countdown: *6 days until I get the "anatomy" ultrasound! Dan will be calling in on my cell phone at the appointment time! I will also be taking pictures and videotaping the whole ultrasound so Daddy does not miss one moment! Great Grandma Sue will be at the ultrasound, since she is flying in on Sunday! The next baby blog update will be announcing if it's a boy or girl ! Exciting!

Week 16 of pregnancy! 4th Month - 2nd trimester - 13 Days until we find out if the baby is a boy or girl! I am so excited to find out the "anatomy" of this little person growing inside of me. If by some miracle and she broke the 6th generation Gardner all boy pattern...... then she will be covered from head to toe in pink and ruffles. If it's a boy, Dan and I have lots of names already picked out that we like, and I know he would be the best buddy and trouble maker partner for Benjamin. 167 Days until due Date, but less than that for the scheduled c-section! Current feeling ~ Completely zapped of any and all energy. Strong desire to clean, disinfect, and organize. No appetite and continued morning sickness in AM. But ravishing hungry in the evening. No weight gain to date. Weight loss is at 5 pounds down. Baby is completely healthy. And momma is continuing to eat healthy to keep baby healthy. Benjamin rubs the belly every night and tells baby "night night." Dad...

I have reached the second trimester!!!! Today I had my second "real" OB appt. I am now 14 weeks along. The baby is doing great! The Dr found her(or his) heart beat with the monitor right away. It was nice and strong. I had great blood pressure at 122/66. I did lose 4 pounds since the last visit. But that was not surprising with the recent food poisoning. Just trying to not lose anymore. (The only time in my life I will say that!) The biggest news.............. I scheduled the ultrasound to find out if it's a boy or girl!!!! The week of June 15th(same week my Grandma Sue is coming to visit) I will know, and I will shout it from the mountain top!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For now - enjoy this 14 week update from www.parenting.com :) Your Baby Make a fist--that's how big your baby is now. At week 14, he(or she) weighs close to an ounce and measures between three and four inches from top to bottom. Like you, he(or she) can make a fist, too, with fingers that have a unique set of...

I guess our life staying busy is good for one thing. It is making Dan's deployment and this pregnancy fly by! The good news is the flu bug has just about left my body. I am still not fully recovered from losing all those fluids. But let me tell you we are now fully stocked up on jello, Gatorade, and saltine crackers!! So news is that I am doing good. :) Here is an baby update from a great little pregnancy site . Fetal Development in pregnancy week 12 Even though your little Einstein’s body is still growing quite rapidly 2 inches long right now, the overall super-speedy growth of their amazing brain continues to leave the head proportionately larger than the body— and is actually slightly more than one third of their total body mass! The head and neck are still straightening at this point as can be seen by their little chin lifting off of the chest. Your baby is also actively rehearsing “breathing” by using amniotic fluid to prepare the lungs for future air respiration. The big news...

WEEK 9 MONTH 3 The winding down of the first trimester is rolling right along. It's hard to believe but this Momma is already in the 3rd month of pregnancy! Exact info about Baby at the 9 th week - The tail at the bottom of your baby's spinal cord has shrunk and almost disappeared by this week. In contrast, your baby's head has been growing -- it's quite large compared with the rest of the body and it curves onto the chest. By this week, your baby measures about 0.6 to 0.7 inches (16 to 18 millimeters) from crown to rump and weighs around 0.1 ounces (3 grams). The tip of the nose has developed and can be seen in profile, and flaps of skin over the eyes have begun to shape into eyelids, which will become more noticeable in the next few weeks. The digestive system continues to develop. The anus is forming, and the intestines are growing longer. In addition, internal reproductive features, such as testes and ovaries, start to form this week. Your baby may make some first...

I guess I jinxed myself with the second to last post. I was bragging on how "easy" this pregnancy has been. Well, the good news is that I have yet to lose my lunch, breakfast, or any meal with this baby. The bad news is that I have been losing a lot of blood and having sharp pains in my belly. This was day 4 of those same symptoms, and I decided to head to a DR to make sure everything was okay. The great news is that I saw the baby's heartbeat for the first time and it was strong! And the cervix looks perfect. Also, I went to one of the best OB Women's health centers in the west. The Mary Birch Women and Baby center is amazing! Their staff was wonderful! I was treated by a perionatologist (Dr who deals with high risk pregnancies) who just "happened" to be on staff that day. I felt very reassured after leaving that I had received the best treatment possible. (Shauna - I thought of you the whole time) I realized how blessed I am to always have such great Dr...

I won't be able to see my toes in about 25 - 30 weeks......... Yah baby ready or not.........That's right folks, I am pregnant! Totally unexpected and totally excited. We tried our hardest to prevent this while Dan was deployed....but I guess it was meant to be. I am due December 8, 2008...unless that changes. The good news is Dan should be here for the birth. And then will shortly be back permanently from his deployment a few weeks later! And just a heads up - I am the fourth spouse now in Dan's unit to recently pop up pregnant. Must be something in that deployment water......