33 Weeks

As you may have guessed from the title of my blog post, I am now 33 weeks pregnant! Today I had a doctors appointment and had an opportunity to get another peak at Jude via ultrasound. He is growing well and has cute chubby cheeks. During this ultrasound he mostly kept his hands and feet away from him face which allowed for the tech to take some great photos of his precious face. I am always thankful for the opportunity to see him.

Jude is growing well and seems very healthy except for his CDH. He continues to be very active and is weighing in at around 5lbs and 4 oz!

My amniotic fluid level was at 26cm today: up from last time (24cm) but not nearly as high as it has been (30cm). Please continue to pray that it will remain at this level or go down. At this point, the biggest concern for Jude and for me is pre-term labor. Currently, it doesn't appear that we are at risk for this but it could change. Because of the high amniotic fluid levels preterm labor is a possibility but my body isn't showing any other signs of this occurring any time soon. I've not felt any contractions or even Braxton Hicks (practice contractions) in weeks. We are SO thankful for this! Thank you for lifting this concern up in prayer and please continue to.

My doctor also recommended resting even more than I have been and putting my feet up to try to keep Jude with me as long as possible. He'd really like for us to make it to 39 weeks to our scheduled c-section and he's really like for me to be in Charleston (and near MUSC) if we went into labor early. So, I'm trying my hardest to rest and take it easy to keep this sweet boy with me as long as possible.

We are also visiting the doctors twice a week now so life is getting a little crazy with our schedules and planning our upcoming move to Charleston. Please pray for us as we balance this change!

What we are thankful for:

• Our chubby little boy :)
• The many meals that so many of you have provided for our family. It means so much to me to be able to stay off my feet and enjoy my family at dinner time. I know Brian appreciates it too because he doesn't love to cook.
• The many ways that so many of you have found ways to meet our needs and requests. Just to name a few: a place to stay during our Charleston visit, a GPS, a lap top with a camera, a baby shower, contact with your family members in the Charleston area who will be checking in with us while we are there, a house to stay in while we are caring for Jude, financial gifts to help us shoulder the medical bills, baby items, fostering our dog Winnie while we are away, and so many more. We are blow away by the prayers, love and support that you have all given to our family. Thank you. Truly.

What you can pray for:

• I know that this is a reoccurring request, but we have become desperate for a home for our dog Saucy. We are just over 3 weeks away from our move to Charleston and we have no idea where Saucy will be. We know we can't leave him at our house when we leave and so we are worried that we may have to take him to the animal shelter. It breaks our hearts. So, please join us in praying for a foster family for Saucy. As I may have mentioned before, he would be the perfect companion for a single person or a couple with no children. Saucy is not really kid-friendly...he is not bad with kids, he just doesn't bother with them at all. He'd rather be left alone or loved on by an adult. He loves playing catch and is quite loyal. And he is happy to spend time outside or inside. If you or someone you know would be willing to foster Saucy while we are away please contact us at just.enough.for.the.journey@gmail.com We'd be happy to answer any questions about Saucy too. We'd just love for him to find a home while we are away.
• Please pray for Annabelle. We want Annabelle to feel loved on and stable during our time caring for Jude in Charleston. The plan is for her to spend some of her time with me and Brian in Charleston, with my mom in both Charleston and Florence and with my sister in Florence. She will be staying with all of us at different times based on how Jude is doing and what life looks like at that point. Will you all pray that she feels safe and comfortable despite her constantly changing environment? I am certain that she will have a blast with all of her cousins, her aunt and her Nana...but my heart also breaks because she will not always have her mommy and daddy. If you would, also pray for wisdom for Brian and I as we decide when and where she should be at different times during our tough journey.