Week 32

By now, Abby weighs almost four pounds and is probably about 17 inches long. Of the pound a week that Christina is gaining, about half goes directly to Abby, which means she could double in weight between now and the time she's born! She now has fully formed toenails, fingernails and real hair on her head (or at least some peach fuzz) and her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she fattens up in preparation for life outside the womb. She's getting more and more cramped as she continues her third trimester growth spurt, but she's still fairly active--make that very active--with her kicks and punches. And somehow, she's still finding room to roll around and stretch out in there!

While there's a lot of gaining going on in the Fisher household (Christina's packed on 20 pounds and nine inches since the start of this pregnancy!) we've taken a loss in a few areas as well. Among the things that have disappeared from Christina's life over the last 8 months:

• her waistline
• her ability to rise from a sitting position gracefully
  
• her ability to tie her own shoes

It's certainly getting to be an adventure as we adjust to all the changes, but the excitement continues to build as we're only 8 weeks away from meeting our little girl! We'll start childbirth classes in a week or so, where apparently they'll teach us how to huff and puff our way through labor and delivery, among other things.

We've said it time and time again, but it really is phenomenal how quickly time is passing with this pregnancy. This year has flown by so far, and we're trying to treasure every moment with each other before the two of us become the three of us! We're so excited to meet this daughter that God has chosen to bring into our lives, and look forward to her finally getting to experience all the love and support that we've been feeling from family and friends throughout this pregnancy. Please pray that we would stay organized in making all the final preparations for Abby's arrival and that we would continue to seek God and His strength as we prepare to welcome her into our family.

Waiting anxiously,
Justin, Christina & Abby :)

Week 31

Wow! Abby's measuring at about 16 inches long right now (head to toe) and weighs a little over three pounds. She's getting geared up for a major growth spurt! Her weight should more than double in the next 9 weeks before she's born. She's able to turn her head from side to side and her arms, legs and body are starting to plump out as more fat accumulates under her skin. Abby's moving a lot more, and a lot more frequently every day now--a reminder that she's active and healthy. Her kicks, punches and somersaults sometimes seem like they never end, and she comes down with a case of hiccups at least once a day now.

We've got a feisty little girl on our hands! She's very particular about any pressure that is placed on Christina's abdomen, usually responding with a kick or rolling away when anyone tries to press in and feel her. She's especially finicky about elbows, and can be counted on to kick back--and hard--if one is rested on Christina's belly. Her awake-when-we're asleep/sleeping-when-we're-awake cycle has changed dramatically in the last week or so. Now she just seems to be awake and active all the time!

Abby continues to primarily make her home on Christina's right side, and seems at times to be trying to scoot up into Christina's right lung. Our little girl is definitely getting cramped in there, and all that stretching and moving around she does helps us get a pretty good idea of just how little space there is for her in Christina's middle. Her little legs seem to be going straight up most of the time, and her kicks are pretty easy to see and feel just below Christina's sternum.

Please continue to pray that all this activity will continue--it's a great reminder that Abby's doing well and growing stronger every day. We can't believe how time has flown, and we know these last 9 weeks will pass in the blink of an eye! Thanks for praying with us for Christina's health and Abby's development--we couldn't do this without you and your prayers!

Waiting anxiously,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Week 30

Abby's growing like crazy as we enter into the last 10 weeks of the pregnancy! She's more than 15 1/2 inches long now and weighs almost 3 pounds. It's hard to believe her weight will more than double in the next two and a half months as she puts on more fat and prepares for life outside the womb! Her eyesight, though not sharp yet, is continuing to develop, and she should be able to distinguish light from outside Christina's belly. Her sight will continue to develop after she's born, though she'll start with about 20/400 vision, meaning she can only distinguish objects that are very close to her face.

On Sunday, the girls from Christina's Bible study threw her a fabulous baby shower. (That's mom-to-be with all the lovely hostesses pictured above.) Christina had a blast watching her church friends guess how many squares of toilet paper it would take to wrap around her pregnant belly (nine, at this point), and has enjoyed reading through all the words of wisdom the guests left her with and sorting through all of the adorable little outfits they got for Abby!

At Christina's doctor's appointment this morning we learned that Abby is head down at this point, and should stay that way for the remainder of the pregnancy. She is, as we suspected, mostly hanging out on the right side of Christina's body--her spine can be felt along the right of Christina's belly and her little rump is planted firmly under Christina's right lung. This means most of her kicks can be felt on the left side, and that's where we've been able to feel little feet and knees the most. The doctor also told us that everything still looks great for both mom and baby. Praise God for these ongoing good reports!

Christina found out this week that what feels like Abby stretching out her living quarters is actually probably Braxton Hicks contractions--her uterus, in essence, is practicing for the real thing by flexing its muscles in preparation for labor. Thankfully, these infrequent practice contractions have been painless up to this point, though they certainly are uncomfortable and bizarre!

We are growing more excited by the day about the arrival of the newest Fisher, and have loved getting to know her by talking to her and feeling her little movements inside the womb. This pregnancy has truly been a blessing from the start, and we couldn't be happier about how smoothly everything has gone. We know that God is sovereign over every aspect of our lives, and the life of our new little baby, and it has been a privilege to get to pray for her as we wait for her to get here! Thank you to all of you who have been praying for our daughter and our family during this miraculous time in our lives. God is certainly listening and answering, and we are in awe of the blessings that have been showered on us throughout this pregnancy. Thanks for coming alongside us and being part of Abby's prayer team!

By grace alone,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)

Week 29

Abby's grown to about 2 1/2 pounds this week and is over 15 inches long, head to heel. Her muscles and her lungs continue to mature and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. Sometime around this week, her brain will begin to develop its characteristic grooves--it's been smooth up to this point. As we've entered the third trimester, her bones are starting to harden, so calcium aplenty is a must for mom's diet.

Our little girl has gotten so much more active in just the last week! We've learned she likes her space--her strong kicks and punches let us know when she doesn't like people pressing in on Christina's belly or when a meal Christina's just eaten is expanding her stomach into Abby's territory. She's also doing things her way and on her timetable right now. She's consistently awake when Christina's resting and unresponsive when we're trying to show someone how active she (usually) is.

Christina has really begun to "pop" in the past few days, boasting an inch in gain since this time last week. As Abby grows, the available space in Christina's midsection is shrinking and she's finding it harder to eat large portions and is instead eating small portions much more often. We've found that Abby favors settling in on Christina's right side, making her pregnant belly a little lopsided. Trying to move her over usually only results in increasing the pressure on Christina's bladder, so we've decided to let our little girl hang out where she is.

After a restful week at the beach, we're ready to get back into the swing of things and countdown to the end of the summer and the arrival of our baby girl. Please pray that these last 11 weeks would go as smoothly as the first 29, that mother and baby would remain healthy and that we would continue to rely on God as we prepare our hearts and our homes for this little blessing.

In the home stretch,
Justin, Christina and Abby :)