Starting the 26th Week

I'm updating you guys on how the baby is developing this week and including a picture of Catherine and I at an Arbonne event from this weekend (the belly is poking out and my face is getting REALLY full).


Here is what's going on with the little one:
Your Baby's Development This Week
There are many interesting developments going on with the baby right now. The tiniest blood vessels, capillaries, are developing under the baby's skin and turning the color of the baby from a transparent to a pinkish appearance. The baby's nostrils begin to open and the buds for the baby's permanent teeth form.
Other changes that are happening:
The baby will develop a very strong grip this month.
Nails are continuing to grow from the nail bed and will cover the nail as well.
Blood vessels are forming in the lungs.
Baby's Size (head to rump) this week: About 8.75 inches
Weight: Approximately 1.5 lbs
Your baby this week is about the size of a household telephone.

Nursery Pics...Stage 1

I thought I would send the pics of the nursery now that it's starting to come together. Joe and his dad put the crib together last night. Here it is along with some of the patterns for the room and bedding.

Enjoy!!

More Pictures

Here is a picture from dinner tonight and a couple of the belly shot at 23 weeks and 5 days!!

Pictures

Here is the picture of Tiff kissing the belly, along with some other recent pics:
















Check out the difference in just 5 days!!
Here is one from Jan. 9th












And here Ella is on the 14th!!

Beginning of the 6th Month

It seems to be going so quickly now, and yet not quick enough!! We have received so many wonderful gifts already from Ella's friends (Jaiden Keeter and Emily Couch have shared the clothes and items that they have grown out of!!). It's so great to have friends to help out already. We reorganized the closet in her room and hung up all of her new clothes, including a CUTE Polo jumper from the Poages. We have some of the room accessories and furniture will be arriving shortly and we will send you updates as the room gets underway.

I attached a picture from last night's celebration of Sarah Stewarts birthday...Mrs. Tiffany (newly married) gave Miss. Ella a little kiss!! Can you believe how big that belly is and we still have 114 days till she's due!

Some of you have asked and work for me is going really well. I haven't been taking any temporary jobs since the Christmas holidays and have been concentrating on my business with Arbonne. It's doing so well with the help and support of my team and we are looking to have our free company white Mercedes-Benz by the time Ella gets here!! If you know anyone who wants to stay home with their kids, or just stay home and work...pass them my info!!

Here are what the websites say are going on with our little angel:

What’s Happening with Your Baby?
Rapid eye movements are beginning! The eyes open and shut frequently, and his eyebrows and eyelashes are present. This eleven-inch wonder is moving a great deal these days. Take a bath and watch your belly roll! (We CAN see the belly roll, and kick, and move...that's the most amazing thing so far...even as I write this she is moving around and bumping and kicking!!)

How your baby's growing: Your baby's growing steadily, gaining about a quarter of a pound since last week, when she was just over a pound. (Ella was already a pound at the last appointment...so she's on the "heavy" side) Since she's almost a foot long (and she was already a foot long last time, so she might be tall!!), that makes a pretty lean figure, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon put on more baby fat. Your baby's skin is thin, translucent, and wrinkled, her brain is growing rapidly, and her taste buds are developing. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" and cells that produce surfactant, a substance that helps the air sacs inflate easily.

How your life's changing: The top of your uterus is now an inch or so above your belly button, which means it's about the size of a soccer ball.

(side note: it FEELS a LOT bigger than a soccer ball!!)

Check out my sister's blog (on her and Mike's preganacy) by copying and pasting: www.mswitschorke.blogspot.com

Pink or Blue??

Well...as some of you know we were finding out the gender of Baby Mitchell today...and we have...IT'S A GIRL!!

Her name is Elizabeth "Ella" Hope Mitchell. So far she is 1 lb and 10 inches...so we'll work on putting some weight on her (I'm working VERY hard on that!!).

Everything looks perfect...here are some pictures for you.

Love you all and thank you for your prayers and support!!

Joe, Andrea, and Ella :)

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20 weeks and counting...

Here's what's going on right now...

How your baby's growing: Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. She's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom, and about 10 inches from head to heel. (For the first 20 weeks, we use measurements taken from the top of the baby's head to her bottom — known as the "crown to rump" measurement. After that, we use measurements from head to toe. This is because a baby's legs are curled up against her torso during the first half of pregnancy and are very hard to measure.)

Christmas in Florida

I just thought I would send a picture from our week with The Mitchell's over Christmas.

Guess who else is having a baby...

Yep, my little sister Sara and her husband Michael are due in July!! You can read here about all that's going on with their pregnancy (www.mswitschorke.com)...and make sure and say extra prayers for my parents as they have 2 daughters on crazy hormones!!

Love to you all,
Andrea

PS...This picture is from a banquet that my dad's prison ministry had for Christmas fund raising (my dad helps with the ministry, he wasn't actually IN prison)

17 weeks and 1 day

Well, we are in our 18th week...so we are officially 4 1/2 months along. I have pictures of my belly, but I'll reserve those for people who would like to see them (so email me if you want them forwarded to you).

I went to the doctor today and everything seems to be going well. My blood pressure is still good and I've gained 6 lbs. Seems like a lot, but that's 6 in the last 17 weeks, so if I stay on track then we will be at our target weight by the time the little one comes. It's weird to be ALLOWED to gain weight! Did blood work today to make sure that the baby is healthy and doesn't show any mental problems...hopefully we will get those results soon so we can breath a sigh of relief on that test.

Still waiting till January 3rd for the gender test...can't wait to announce to the world a name!! I update this site pretty often without sending an update out to everyone, so feel free to read on to other entries you might have missed. I probably won't send an update to everyone till after we test for gender, so feel free to log on every once in a while for weekly updates.

From BabyCenter.com
How your baby's growing: Head to bottom, your baby is approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato) and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing her arms and legs — movements that you'll likely start noticing more and more. Her blood vessels are visible through her thin skin and her ears are now in position and stand out from her head. Myelin (a protective covering) is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and Fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If your baby is a boy, his genitals are noticeable, though he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

Love you all,
Andrea and Joe Mitchell

16th Week Updates

Well, we will find out if it's a little boy or a little girl on January 3rd at 9am...5 weeks, I can hardly wait!!

How your baby's growing: At 4 1/2 inches long (head to bottom) and 3 1/2 ounces, your baby is about the size of an avocado. In the next three weeks, she'll go through a tremendous growth spurt, though, doubling her weight and adding inches to her length. Her lower limbs are much more developed now. Her head is more erect than it has been, and her eyes have moved toward the front of her head. Your baby's ears are close to their final position, too. Some of her more advanced body systems are working, including her circulatory system and urinary tract. Her heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, circulating her total blood volume through her body many times. (By the end of your pregnancy, this will increase to about 190 quarts.) The patterning of her scalp has begun, though her hair isn't recognizable yet. Although closed, her eyes are moving (slowly), and she's even started growing toenails.

Current Counter:

15th Week Update!!

According to BabyCenter.com:

How your baby's growing: At around 4 inches long, crown to rump, your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 ounces. He's busy inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, which will help develop the air sacs in his lungs. His legs are growing longer than his arms now, and he can move all his joints and limbs. That means his hands are more functional, too. Sweat glands are appearing, and although his eyelids are fused shut, he can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, he's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but his taste buds are beginning to form. And if you have an ultrasound, you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or girl!

Doctor Appointment

Well, I asked and he said I should have a perfectly normal pregnancy from now on. He said everything looks (and sounds) wonderful and as far as he can tell we're, well, perfect.

We heard the heartbeat and even listened to my blood rush to the baby...crazy how many sounds go on in there. Also, I got the "go ahead" to exercise and get a massage (as many as I want!!). We are signing up for childbirth classes here in the next 2 weeks and can't wait. Hopefully our friends Maggie and Mark will be able to attend at the same time so we can make fun our ourselves!!! They are due 3 days before us at the same hospital with the same doctors office...thank God for friends!!

We go back in 3 weeks for something called an AFP (I'll figure out what it is and let you know) and we bring the doc (Dr. Oliver) a list of pediatricians that we would like to try and are on our insurance.

1 month from our next appointment, January 7th (my dad's birthday and our Aunt Carol's birthday) we will get to do the sonogram that will, hopefully, tell us the gender. Many of you have asked and although Joe isn't real sure he wants to find out, we are finding out!!

Well, that's it for now. Can't see me writing much else till the next appointment, but you never know.

Congrats to our good friends Russ and Becky on their recent engagement...all kinds of fun stuff going on!!!

Love and God bless you all,
The Mitchells

Correction to First Baby Gift

Well, I have a slight correction. The t-shirt was our first gift via the mail, however, Joe's mother left us a surprise on our bathroom counter when they came in last weekend so that was technically our first gift regarding the baby...here's a picture of the soap with little babies in it.

First Baby Item

Well, we officially received our first baby gift. I made Joe model it, even though he keeps trying it on!! This was a great gift from his Aunt Carol...and we just love it.

Thought you all might enjoy "Peanut's" first gift.

The Mitchells

Week 13, and starting 2nd Trimester

Well, we are officially in our 2nd Trimester...yep, 1/3 of the way done. Here is what's going on with the little one according to one of our websites:

How your baby's growing: Your belly may soon be big enough to announce to the world that you're expecting, but your baby is still tiny. In fact, he's only about 3 inches long crown to rump — roughly the size of a jumbo shrimp — and weighs just about an ounce. Despite the small proportions, there's a fully formed baby inside your womb now. Much more proportional than it was a few weeks ago, his head is now only about a third the size of his body. His tiny, unique fingerprints are already in place. His kidneys and urinary tract are functional, and he's starting to urinate out the amniotic fluid he's been swallowing. As you start your second trimester, most of your baby's critical development will be completed, and your odds of miscarriage will drop considerably.

I figure I'll spare you guys on what's going on with my body...since it gets kind of graphic!! I just thought I'd send out the update for those keeping up!! No belly on me yet, but there it a little bump where you can tell it's starting to poke out. Maternity pants have been a life-saver so I'm not having to unbutton my pants whenever I sit down.

Also, morning sickness has subsided so I'm back to doing Arbonne full-time and loving it. We are on track to have the free Mercedes by the time the little one gets here...not having a car payment will help so much!!

Andrea (and Joe)

Week 11

Well, we are in week 11 (1/4 of the pregnancy is over so far!!). I actually had to go out and buy pre-pregnancy pants last night to wear to my friend Kim's wedding shower today...kind of fun and yet crazy!! They are SO much more comfortable than the pants I've been wearing to work every day, so I'm happy (and you will be seeing a lot of these two new pairs of pants!!!!).

So, week 11, here is what they say we can expect this week:
How your baby's growing: Your fig-sized baby is now fully formed — measuring 1 1/2 inches long and weighing in at a quarter of an ounce. His skin is still transparent, allowing many of his blood vessels to show through. Some of his bones are beginning to harden, and tiny toothbuds are starting to appear under his gums. His fingers and toes have separated, and he may soon be able to open and close his fists. He's already busy kicking and stretching, and his tiny movements are so fluid they look like water ballet. These movements will increase as his body grows and becomes more developed and functional. As his diaphragm develops, your tiny tenant may also start to get the hiccups. Because he's still so small, though, you won't feel any of his workouts or intrauterine gulps until sometime between weeks 16 and 20.

I always think that is fun news. Also, I've attached a recent photo of the proud parents...for those of you who asked bc we don't get to see most of you all of the time. As I begin to "show" we'll send you pictures of that as well (as long as I don't show just that I'm gaining weight!).

Love you all,
The Mitchells

Picture Answer...

Yep, if you guessed that The Mitchell's are having a baby then you were correct!!!


We just got back from our 10 week appointment and everything is going wonderful. The doctor took me off of my meds for the insulin resistance and the progesterone for good...so now we are just watching thyroid, vitamins, and morning sickness!!! The baby moved around a TON during the sonogram today and we were both floored at how much bigger he/she is.

So, that's our BIG news. You can read below to the old posts to see the detailed information!! Oh, and our new "estimated" due date is May 15th, but it will probably just come when it wants to!!

Love you all,
Joe and Andrea

P.S. The top photo the baby is waving, the second is a picture of the skinny legs and feet, and the third makes it look like a teddy bear!!

Medical Stuff

For those of you wondering about our medical stuff...here is the update: I have to go in every Monday for blood work because my progesterone (a prego hormone for the first trimester) was really low. They had me on a supplement and now we are doing VERY well. I am still taking both the thyroid and the insulin resistance meds on a daily basis. One of the doctors concerns was that we needed the Metformin (insulin meds) to conceive, which puts me in a "high risk" group for now...also we conceived a week later than he originally thought which means the meds were the "way" my body got pregnant. If you have more questions maybe Isaac can help or for those of you that know a doctor ask them...that's all the info I really understand!! :) I do know that the progesterone probably caused my morning sickness to be worse, so now that we are off the supplement I can actually breathe throughout the day without a trash can nearby. My poor brother-in-law, Drew, his fiance Sandra and my friend Wendi got the rough end of my morning sickness while we were in Orlando...and I had to use the barf bag for the first time in my life...horrible way to fly!!