Week 19

Well, now that we know what we're having, I guess we can't call her Ziggy anymore. Time to give this little one a name! Wondering what we're going to call her? Click below before you read on to find out:

As the summer draws to a close, we'll welcome the first baby girl Fisher in over 100 years into our family. Justin's was the third generation of all boys, so the responsibility of coming up with a name for our little girl is not one we took lightly.

"...and the name of his wife was Abigail.
And the woman was discerning and beautiful..." -- 1 Samuel 25:3

Abigail is from a Hebrew word meaning "a father's joy" or "my father rejoices." Our prayer for little Abby is that she will indeed be the joy and delight of her Heavenly Father, and that she would come to know Him and rejoice in Him as well.

Jean is Christina's middle name, a name choosen by her mother in honor of her grandmother (Abby's great-grandmother!), Helen Gean, whose mother (Abby's great-great-grandmother) chose the name for her three generations ago.

Abby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces now and measures 6 inches, head to bottom (about the length of a small zucchini). Her arms and legs are in the right proportion to each other and the rest of her little body now. As you could see in the video, her bones are hardening and her spine is well developed now. She may even be starting to sprout some hair on her head! This is a crucial time for her sensory development as specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision and touch are forming. And since we now know she's a little girl, we know that she has an astonishing six million eggs in her ovaries already that may be some of our grandchildren one day!

In addition to the joy of finding out what we're having, Christina has had a number of exciting moments this week when she's been able to feel the little flutters that indicate Abby's moving around inside of her. They're few and far between right now, but should become more frequent in the coming weeks. And it will only be a few more weeks until Justin will feel the little thumps as well.

Things continue to go well with Christina's health. The doctor said both mother and baby are doing very well, and everything looks great so far. Abby's heartbeat was strong when we got to hear it on Tuesday--about 140 beats a minute! Please continue to pray for our little girl's development and for us as we prepare to welcome this daughter God has blessed us with into our family.

Thinking pink,

Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Meet Baby Girl Fisher!

What a surprise we got this week! It wasn't supposed to happen until April, but on Tuesday we found out we're going to have a little girl! We can't wait to meet our precious daughter!

It's been over 100 years since there was a "Baby Girl Fisher." Now, after three generations of Fisher boys, we get to pick out a little girl name. How exciting!

And now, the answer to the question you've all been asking: whatever will her name be? Click below to find out...

Week 18

Ziggy's growth is slowing down this week, though her development is still charging forward. She's about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato) and weighs almost 7 ounces. Ziggy's busy flexing her arms and legs, movements that we should be noticing the in the next few weeks! Her blood vessels are still visible through her thin skin, and her ears have moved into their final position on the sides of her head. Whether Ziggy's a boy or girl is still a mystery to us, but all the reproductive organs are formed and in place already.

Maternity clothes have become a must now, and Christina is happy to report that there are a number of very fashionable options out there for her growing middle. (She's a little confused, however, as to why the makers of maternity pants and skirts don't seem to think that pregnant women need real pockets in their clothing.) Justin is having a ball watching this belly grow and both mom and dad are eagerly waiting until we'll be able to feel Ziggy moving.

We have been so blessed so far with the ease of this pregnancy. Each week as we countdown to Ziggy's arrival, we continue to be amazed at just how smoothly everything is going. Please continue to pray for for an easy, healthy pregnancy. Your prayers are being answered!

Christina will spend the morning of her 25th birthday at another doctor's appointment next week where we'll get to hear the baby's heartbeat again. Then it's just a few more days until we find out whether we should be stocking up on Matchbox cars or baby dolls!

Please pray that Christina will be able to eat well, and eat enough, to keep the two of them healthy and gain the right amount of weight over the next few months. She's on the low end of the weight-gain spectrum right now, which is not a cause for concern, but pray that she would know when and what to eat to help this baby continue to develop well.

Lovin' (the miracle of) life,

Justin, Christina and Ziggy :)

Week 17

Ziggy's in the middle of another growth spurt right now! He currently weighs about 5 ounces and is about 5 inches long--about the size of a large onion. (A pretty significant increase from the medium-sized avocado he was last week.) His sense of hearing is developing this week--time for Dad to start teaching him some electric guitar riffs! Ziggy can move his joints now, and his skeleton, which up until now has been just rubbery cartilage--has started to harden into actual bone.

We still haven't felt any movement yet, but the daily changes in Christina's belly are a huge (no pun intended) source of entertainment. We've watched this bump move further and further up toward her belly button this week, but it's still hard to believe there's a whole little person growing in there! The forgetfulness that seems to be a common by-product of pregnancy has come upon Christina like the plague, so please be patient with her as she tries to remember things like what she was supposed to do next at work, who she was going to call when she picked up her phone, and why she stopped at the grocery store.

All in all, things are continuing to go very smoothly, for which we are very grateful. The moms at our church have been a tremendous asset as they've showered Christina with books, resources, advice and even clothes to help her through the pregnancy, delivery and beyond. Who knew there were so many books on babies out there?! We'll go back to the doctor for Ziggy and Christina's next check up in just over a week, and then it won't be too long after that we can finally start planning the baby's room once we find out what we're having in April! Thank you for continuing to pray for Christina's health and the health of our little one. Pray that God will continue to prepare us for the awesome responsibility of parenthood.

In awe of this growing miracle,

Justin, Christina and Ziggy :)

Week 16

With a gain of about a half an inch this week, Ziggy's now measuring 4 1/2 inches long and weighs just over 3 ounces--about the size of an avocado. She's preparing for a tremendous growth spurt in the next three weeks, and by the end of this month she will have doubled in weight and added many inches to her lenghth. Her eyes have moved to the front of her head and her ears are close to their final position. Her lower limbs, which have been about as long as her arms, are much longer and more developed now. Her more advanced body systems are working now, including her circulatory system. Ziggy's tiny heart pumps about 25 quarts of blood each day (by the end of the pregnancy, this will increase to about 190 quarts a day). Her eyes are moving, although still tightly closed, and she's able to detect light.

Justin's mom told us to start paying close attention this week--those little twinges in Christina's belly just might be Ziggy moving. We've done a lot of holding still and haven't been sure we've felt anything yet, but Christina's looking forward to being able to finally feel little Ziggy moving around inside of her soon!

We're counting down the days until we get to find out for sure whether we'll be be decking out the babies room in pink or blue. We go for another ultrasound on April 11 and should be able to find out what Ziggy is at last!

We continue to be blessed by the ease of this pregnancy so far! Thank you so much to all of you who are praying for a safe, healthy and easy nine months for Christina -- your prayers are certainly being answered! Aside from the craving for Starbucks' Java Chip ice cream (which isn't really different from Christina's pre-pregnancy cravings) and the growing bump on her belly, we don't really have much to talk about when people ask how the pregnancy is going. But no news is good news, and we continue to praise God for no morning sickness, minimal aches and pains, and the positive reports at each doctors' visit. Please continue to pray for healthy development for the baby and a healthy rest of the pregnancy for Christina as we near the halfway mark.

Lovin' this little miracle,

Justin, Christina and Ziggy :)

Week 15

Ziggy's gaining in weight and length this week to be about four inches long (crown to rump) and weighing about 2 1/2 ounces. The air sacs in his lungs are developing as he inhales and exhales the amniotic fluid he's floating in, and he's continuing to work out his joints and limbs by moving his arms and legs. Although his eyelids are fused shut at this point, his eyes are fully developed and can sense light. We're told if we shine a flashlight at Christina's belly, he's likely to move away from the beam (although Christina still isn't aware of any movements yet). Taste buds are forming this week--although there's nothing for him to taste yet!

Now that Ziggy's ears are formed, Justin's enjoying talking to him, telling him jokes and explaining how much we're looking forward to meeting him. Christina continues to do well healthwise and we're so thankful for how smoothly this pregnancy has gone so far.

Christina went for her latest prenatal visit this week and was able to hear Ziggy's heartbeat again--what a thrill! (If you want to know what it was like, go sit in front of your dishwasher next time it's running. That's exactly what listening to a baby's heartbeat through layers of belly and amniotic fluid sounds like.) As she and the doctor listened to the heartbeat (140 beats per minute--strong and healthy!) there was an occasional gurgling noise that indicated Ziggy's activity as he moves around in the womb. The doctor tells us that --just like his ultrasound showed--we've got an active baby that likes to move around. A lot! We're looking forward to finally being able to feel those little movements in a few more weeks.

And speaking of milestones, we've got our calendar marked for April 11. That's when we'll get to go back for our next ultrasound and find out if we're having a daughter or a son. No more waiting and wondering!

Please continue to pray that God would be daily preparing us to care for this little one and to point him to the only One who can love him perfectly.

By faith alone,

Justin, Christina and Ziggy :)