34 weeks

The doctor told me this week that at 34 weeks, if I were to have the baby early, he would have less than 5% chance of having complications. It's a kind of a relief even though I'm not expecting him to be early. Baby Wassmer is moving around a lot these days though I suspect he'll soon run out of room. I am starting to feel all the little discomforts of pregnancy. I have a hard time sleeping now, more than before, my back really does hurt and regions around my tummy make it hard for me to walk sometimes. I plan on pressing through and talking daily walks.
I also suffer from the horomonal changes that probably leave Tom thinking he married a bi-polar stranger who walks like she's pushing a wheel barrow infront of her that carries this belly. I'm already tired, so I can't imagine what the first few weeks are really going to feel like. Sometimes I wish I could pre-pump my milk, save it, then hand the bottle over to Tom the first night. Ha! I'm sure I'll actually want to be with my new baby boy in the middle of the night.
And even though I have anxious thoughts about labor and motherhood I still can't believe that he's only a few weeks away from joining our family. It is exciting. One comfort Tom and I have is knowing that the Lord has very specific plans for this little man. It was He who planned when the baby would come, not Tom and I. There's no feeling like knowing you're not in control than the feeling of being with child. There's not one thing I can do to make sure his heart beats or that his brain will work or that his spine is in the correct spot. All I do is harbor the baby, but the Lord has designed him, He knows how many hairs are on his head already and what his fingerprints are like. I do not. I can't. And I don't need too. Giving up control to God is so much more satisfying than trying to do it on my own, and reassuring. I only pray that I can remember that from day to day as I face the struggles of motherhood.
Tom and I are closer to chosing to a name. We have it narrowed down, but we are still letting the names marinate before settling on the one. I don't know when that will be, but I am hoping soon. Soon as in before July.

A 3d picture of Baby Wassmer

Tom and I went to have a 3d ultrasound done on May 7th as my Mother's Day present. I've wanted to have one of these since I knew I was pregnant. It turned out okay, but the ultrasound tech said I should come back for another round of photos because the baby was asleep and his face was right up against my placenta. So on May 14th we returned. He was still asleep, but some of the pictures came out much better. We surprised our mother's, aka grandmas, with a framed photo of this young lad. And if you're still wondering about names, so are we! We have it narrowed down to a couple of names that we like, but the ball is now in Tom's court. He knows my choices but he wants to make sure he's looked at all the options as well. Here are a few pics that came from the ultrasound. These ones are some of the best. The foot picture was included because the tech kept saying, "this baby has some big feet." If you didn't already know, Tom has size 13 feet and an even longer middle toe. To me it seems that he will look like his father and hopefully be tall, and yes, he will have his daddy's big feet. We also got a DVD of the action taking place, but we didn't have extra DVD's to burn it to for the gift for the new grandmas. The DVD is really cool because you can see all four chambers of his heart and watch it beat.

A Weekend of Fun

This weekend started off with a little celebration of my completion at San Joaquin Valley College. I received a letter in the mail on Friday that stated whether or not I passed my certification exam. Not only did I pass, but my score was a 96%! I was quite surprised, but very pleased. That evening I had my graduation ceremony where I received awards for a 4.0 GPA, Perfect Attendance and AMT Membership. With this being my 3rd graduation for me, I probably wasn't as "excited" as some of those there were, especially since it may be their only degree. It was still fun, however, and I got to enjoy one last goodbye with a few of my classmates.



Then on Saturday it was off to Monterey, CA to celebrate our 1st anniversary! Tom booked us a room that had a fire place in it. Good thing, Monterey isn't exactly known for being a warm area of the coast. It was cloudy, but it wasn't freezing. We spent Saturday exploring Carmel, CA, which is only 5 minutes south of Monterey. We walked the Ocean Ave shops and restaurants and ate dinner at Forge in the Forest. It is a nice restaurant surrounded by ivy and other trees and plants. We sat on the outdoor patio by the large fire pit and listened to live music as we ate fabulous yet affordable food! This place also allows dogs to dine with their owners, but we did not have Payton with us. She would've loved it. We finished the evening with a stroll to the beach and then back to the hotel to eat our anniversary cake. We had it specially made by the same lady that made our wedding cake last year. It was the same type of cake (chocolate and mint filling), and it was just as good as we remembered it! Tom gave me one calla-lilly (representing one year) and a ruby pendant necklace. The ruby is the birthstone for July which is when our baby boy is due. It's beautiful!

Sunday was spent walking throughout Monterey's Fisherman's Wharf and Cannery Row. We just did some sight-seeing and then left for home. It was a nice retreat and wonderful time of walking and relaxing, and a great one-year celebration.