Coming soon...

• Pregnant pictures of the Momma! (that's me, Carissa)

• Obnoxiously detailed posts and pictures from our trip to Kansas City!

• Other tidbits about our lives right now

• 25 week update

23 weeks and feeling great!

This is the perfect time to go on vacation! I'm feeling amazing (meaning my body doesn't feel ginormous and nasty yet) and it's right before Drew's last semester of undergrad! We leave Tuesday morning for Kalin's (my sister's place in Cedar Hills, Utah), spend the night there, and fly out of Salt Lake at 6:30 am on Wednesday, the 17th! Kansas City, here we come! WOO-HOO!!!

Had a prenatal appointment today! Dr. says that Sophie is growing at a healthy pace. Her heart rate was 130 bpm (anywhere between 110-160 bpm is normal), and my belly was measured at around 24 weeks (they say it's give or take a centimeter/week). While measuring my "fundus" (the silly medical term for the uterus), the nurse found the top about 2 inches above my belly button! Yikes! This baby girl is growing so fast! No wonder I can feel her kicking behind my belly button so easily now...

Here's this week's little tid-bit of info about our baby girl:

"Your little womb hi-jacker is starting to kick their break-dance party up a notch now that her ears are registering sounds from the outside world!

The sound of a phone ringing (or that catchy ring tone), a thunder clap, or a car honking will actually jar their little ears enough to elicit a kick or violent bout of squirming.

More importantly, this means that their little ears are picking up the sounds of your voice and others around you.

So, if you've been yelling a lot (and really, who doesn't get cranky when they're pregnant?) it's time to reign that in and practice a little self restraint for the sake of your little eavesdropper, who is becoming more exquisitely sensitive to all of your behaviors every day.

The equation is simple: happy healthy mama = happy healthy baby.

Stress during pregnancy is quite literally BAD for your baby's developing brain. It's time to clean out the toxic relationships and situations in your life for your sake and your child's sake.

Take the time to center and be quiet - to reflect on the growing life inside of you and the future you will share together. Read up on infant development and attachment to start preparing yourself for the first time you meet your child." Baby Gaga

What wonderful insight! Farther down in the article (meant for Mom), it says I should drink plenty of water to keep the amniotic fluid clean and to keep my body from swelling more than necessary, and that I should, of course, be exercising. I love the simplicity of the information: no yelling, stay positive, drink lots of water, stay active. That's a tall order to fill... I'll try hard!

Singing songs to Sophie

More than half-way to seeing our baby girl!

"My baby girl has a future as a tight-rope-walker! Her inner ear has developed and they now have a sense of balance. Also, my foot-long, one-pound baby is really starting to look like an adorable oversized raisin. Not to worry - all those wrinkles are just extra skin in anticipation of that adorable baby chub she'll be piling on!" Baby Gaga

"Watch what you say -- baby is now able to hear outside noise from down in the womb. Studies show that baby finds gentle music and your own voice most soothing. Nipples are starting to sprout, and that little face is fully formed. And, baby's starting to settle into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop." TheBump.com

After reading about Sophie's ability to hear my voice better,  Drew and I have made an effort to sing songs that we learned when we were little: songs from the LDS Children's Songbook. It's been a wonderful way to keep a sweet spirit in our home and to help us remember that speaking soft, kind words is the best way to raise our children.

In all of the excitement of finalizing plans for Drew's last semester of school (and preparing for the LSAT in October) and preparing for the baby to come (more work than we realized!), we decided that we needed a little break. So we've FINALLY planned our trip to visit my mom and step-dad, the Case fam, and are flying out to Kansas City for a full week! It'll be wonderful to spend time with family, relax, and celebrate the wonders of pregnancy with my mom! :) Drew and I are getting very excited! We leave one week from today, and will be documenting as often as possible; I don't want to miss out on photo opportunities. We'll also be seeing my sister, Celeste, and her little family: husband, Aaron, and baby, Dane. We're thrilled to meet our nephew! Celeste has also been so sweet to scrounge for free stuff for our baby, so we'll be sent home with LOTS of fun stuff!

That's it for us right now. You'll get to see my getting-bigger preg belly in pictures from KC... when we get back, of course! Love ya!