We got to see our baby!

Today was the gender ultrasound! We were able to go in at 16 weeks and have the ultrasound tech check and see if it was a boy or a girl....!!! We were able to see that it is in fact a baby girl. :)

We are thrilled. It was so awesome to be able to see her cute little face! She is a feisty one too. The doctor tried to take her heart beat before the ultra sound and at first we could not hear anything then we hear this thud and the doctor starts laughing and says, "yes your baby just kicked my microphone!" She did it one more time too before the doctor could finally get her heart beat. Her heart beat is great and right where it should be.
We went in for the ultra sound and we saw her right away. She started moving all around waving her arms and kicking her legs. The ultra sound tech was laughing. At first we could not see between her legs becuase she was sitting crossed legged. Then we started poking at her and she finally squirmed around enough that they tech was able to see that she is indeed a she and in no way a he.

I am so excited to meet her. I feel like just from seeing her today I was able to bond with her in such a great way that I have not been able to do so yet. I am so happy. I feel like this is so much more real!
She is really there in my tummy swimming around and growing! I feel so grateful to my Heavenly Father. What a joyous and wonderful blessing this is.

Anyways here are the ultra sound pictures....

Here are the Baby's little legs! 

And here is our sweet baby Girl's face! Look at her cute little eye! It kinda looks like she is smiling too :)

So as you can see we are pretty happy!
Next month we get our 20 week ultra sound and we will gets lots of fun pictures of all her cute little body parts and find out lots more information about her. And at twenty weeks I will be halfway done with pregnancy... which is pretty cool!

Anyways hope you all love these cute pictures as much as we do!
:)

Keep on keeping on!

Look at this happy face!

     So its been a few weeks since my last update. I was doing well after my IV and then I got sick again so I went in for another IV. I have not thrown up since then so I am hoping things are looking better. My doctor said the the goal is to keep me doing IVs till I don't throw up anymore. So far so good. I still have some pretty awful bouts of feeling nauseated and dizzy. But I am keeping up on medicine and keeping food down so I am hoping the worst is over... for now!
     I have had a few awesome days. I usually get sick at some point but I have had more energy and I have had an appetite. I have sure missed food. I have even worn make up! Its been nice.

Valentines day dinner!

Valentines day was super nice. I made a fun pasta dinner for Eric and I the night before and it was pretty tasty if I do say so myself. We celebrated on monday becuase Eric had a class tuesday night. So on Valentines day I came home after work feeling very exhausted and a little depressed to be spending the evening alone. When I walked in I found my darling husband waiting at the bottom of the stairs in a suit! He said his class had been cancelled and he was taking me to eat a nice dinner! So we went to texas roadhouse and I ate more food than I have since Christmas! It was so sweet and exactly what I needed. It is so nice to have such a kind husband who is aware of what I need and how I feel. I am grateful to him everyday!

Another exciting thing that has happened since my last update was that we got to see my best friend's baby be blessed and given a name. It was a really special and sweet experience. Her baby is positively adorable and so sweet. She has such an amazing family that it was so wonderful to see them. I always feel so welcomed and happy when I am around them. They are those type of people who just always make you feel important and safe.
It is so great being able to see my friend and her baby. Rachel and I have been friends since about seventh grade. We had a few years where we didn't talk much, mostly cause we had different friends but we were always friendly. We started to hang out more our senior year in high school. After that we both moved to provo for school and we became super close. Rachel helped me out through some of my hardest trials and she was always there cheering me on and encouraging me to trust in the Lord. She is one of the most amazing people I have the privilege of knowing. She is always pointing out the positive and helping you to see the best in yourself. Plus she is so dang hilarious. I am so happy she is a mommy. She is great at it. And she is so full of love. Her child is so blessed to have such a great example to follow after.

Eric and I had the privilege of going to Saint George this weekend to spend sometime with Eric's Uncle Chad and Aunt Jen. We love going down to visit when we have the time and since this is Eric's last free weekend till May we decided we should take advantage. I was so happy to see the sunshine. I even laid out in it and got some sun while Eric went golfing. I had been craving sunshine for a while now so it was nice to be able to enjoy and relax and let our cares go away for three days. It was an awesome trip and it was so nice to be with Eric's family. They are so much fun and so welcoming. I feel like I have always been a part of the family. Its so awesome.

I have had a lot of time to keep thinking of this new baby that is on its way. I keep coming to the conclusion that this life is about being all I can be and making Heavenly Father happy. I need to remember that its not always my will but his who I need to be concerned about. I know Heavenly Father wants me to have this baby and so even when it seems like an extremely challenging task, I know that I can do all things that the Lord wants me to do. I know that he has strengthened me and will continue to do so as I continue forward. This pregnancy thus far has definitely been a struggle and a trial but I know that I have something to learn from it all. I know that God is aware of me and that having a family and serving him should be my focus.
I know I am not perfect. I am far from it. But I will keep on trying my best and giving my all and at times I am sure its not quite enough. But I know that the Lord does not ever leave us to do it alone.


Monday we are getting an ultrasound. I am so excited to see my little baby. We hopefully will be able to find out the gender! The baby is the size of an Orange right now!!! And I am definitely starting to show. I went to get lunch today and the lunch lady asked me when I was due! I have a very short waist so I assumed this would happen. I have not gained very much weight only like 2-3 pounds if that. So its funny seeing my stomach already so big. But hey if my kid needs the room to be comfortable then so be it.

15 weeks pregnant! 

Eric and I on Valentines day. 

Thirteen weeks update complete with belly pictures!

      I created this blog and than it would seem that I forgot about it! It sat here with three (two and a half) posts for almost a month! How can I be so neglectful?!

Me at IV Therapy, looking excited!

     Truth is I have been pretty sick lately. This whole being pregnant thing is not as easy as it seems come ti find out. I have spent a few days on my couch throwing up all day! I even bursted a blood vessel in my eye doing so... and yes it is super creepy and extremely attractive.
     On wednesday I got the wonderful treat of spending two and half hours in the hospital getting what is called IV Therapy. It is where they pump two bags of liquid in your body so that you are not dehydrated. It takes a long time and it made me kind of tired. But I got to just lay in a bed and watch tv while I waited for the bags to drain. The nurses and the doctors were so nice to me, so it actually was a really pleasant experience. Except that the first nurse who tried to put the IV in my hand had a hard time getting hold of my vein so she had to poke me once in one hand and again in my other. She told me I was really dehydrated. I didn't even realize how much I needed fluids! I felt a lot better after the procedure. I have thrown up a bit since then but not to the extent that I was last week so that is great!
      So honestly there has not been a ton going on lately. Just me laying in bed and feeling pretty nasty. But I got a twelve week check up and heard the baby's heartbeat! Every thing is fine with baby Wahlstrom. Which makes me really relieved. I am ok being sick as long as my baby is ok. I have had to make some tough decisions with school lately. Its been tough becuase I have been trying to do everything I want to do and I have come to realize I need to do whats best for my body and my future baby right now. Being so sick has made me come down and evaluate what is the most important thing I am doing right now. I realize that is becoming mother. Heavenly Father wants me to be a mom and I know that needs to be my priority. I am not one to normally just take time for myself. I don't like to stop my plans or take a leave of absence. But seeing how sick I have been I realize that I need to trust Heavenly Father and do what is best for my body right now. This is a great path I am heading down and there will be good things along the way.
       In other news, Eric has been attending an MCAT prep course. He should be taking the test sometime after the semester is over. I am constantly impressed with how dedicated he is. He is such an example to me.
     Speaking of Eric, I have been thinking a lot this week about what I need to learn from being so sick during this pregnancy. I know that every trial or hard thing that comes our way is to help us learn and grow. I know I may not realize what that lesson is right away but I can start to try and see what I am learning. One big thing I have learned from these past few wonderful weeks is that I married the most perfect man for me ever. Not only is he my best friend but he is my support. He sat with me while I threw up all day sunday and just rubbed my back. He sat with me a few weeks ago while I cried becuase I felt so overwhelmed. He makes sonic drink runs all the time just so he can help me stay hydrated. He prays with me and reminds me of why I am here and what is most important in this life. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and father to my child.

Well I am officially 13 weeks along and according to my doctor that means I am out of my first trimester.
I figured I might as well start posting some pictures of my belly. This past month I have not gained any weight but my stomach is getting bigger. And compared to 13 weeks ago I have a belly! I also am starting to get that dark line that goes down from your belly button. Eric noticed it the other day and got so excited that I was getting a pregnancy line.

At four weeks right when i found out I was pregnant!

4 weeks! 

Me at 10 weeks!

13 weeks. I look about the same as 10 but my baby is bigger!!!

Right now my baby is three inches long and a little bigger than a lime. About the size (according to the babycenter.com) of a medium sized shrimp. My baby is moving all around and is going to start getting a lot bigger in the next few weeks.

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT TO COME... we are (hopefully) finding out the gender of our baby on FEBRUARY 27TH! We are going to have an ultra sound and my doctor is going to try and tell us. I am really excited!!! 

Anyways that is about all for now. Hope everyone is doing good :)

all of our love <3

     

little baby raptor

GGGRRRRAAAAACCKCKKCKCKCK!!!

Janelle and I have been talking for a long time about how much we love dinosaurs.  This love for the prehistoric has led us to the conclusion that our baby will be forever known as our little raptor.  One of our good friends has captured the moment beautifully in the following drawing.  Oh and Janelle is unhappy because she is sick and she is sick because she is giving birth to a raptor :)

The Oh-So-Wonderful HONEYMOON!

     I better start back tracking on things I meant to blog about and never did. Since Eric is still asleep and I don't start school for two more days, today is a great day to play catch up.

Eric and I very sleepy
getting ready to leave for HAWAII!
Notice our bride and groom hats :)

Julie and me waiting at the airport!
Both of us heading to different directions
in the world. :) 

     So right after the most amazing wedding I could have ever asked for Eric and I took off for Hawaii! Our plane left really early that morning and there was almost no one at the airport. Almost no one... While I was sitting at the gate with a sleeping husband next to me I realized that one gate over was one of my best friend's Julie. She had flown into San Diego for the wedding and was now leaving one gate away from ours on her way back to Canada. we snapped a picture and talked to each other before our flights took off!

 The plane ride was nice and smooth. We passed the time watching episodes of Castle and sleeping. The flight crew gave me a pretty necklace since it was our honeymoon! When we finally flew over Maui the view was so amazing. I tried to take a good picture but as you can see I got kind of a glare.

    Our Hotel was simply amazing! It was breath taking really. I felt like I was walking into a dream world!
 Everyone there was so nice and kept congratulating us on getting married. It was so fun! We especially liked the lays we kept getting. They were not only beautiful but they smelt amazing too.

As you can see from the pictures, the hotel opened up to the outside and so there were beautiful trees and flowers everywhere! Right outside the rooms was the pool which looked like it came right out of a magazine! and right behind the pool was the ocean! We were so overwhelmed by the beauty of everything.

There were penguins in the hotel too. We thought that was pretty fun. They were in this neat enclosure that we passed by on our way to the pool everyday. Eric loved to stop and make faces at them.    


The hotel staff told us that we still had about three hours to kill once we got there till our room would be ready. So we decided to take off and explore! There was a path right by the ocean that took us to an old whaler's village. It was an amazingly beautiful walk and we enjoyed the time being together.

Path way to Whaler's Village

 When we got to Whaler's village we saw a huge skeleton of a whale! That was pretty neat and it intrigued us so we ventured over to the museum where we learned about the history of the town. We learned all about how there used to be whaling all along Maui and we saw a lot of old captain logs and pictures. It was really interesting and Eric and I learned a lot.

View from our balcony in our room. 

At dinner :)

After touring around the town a bit more and browsing through all the fun shops we headed back to our hotel. We were so excited to see our room and the view from our balcony was simply breathtaking.


That night we walked on the path again back to Whaler's village. The path was so beautiful at night. It was lit perfectly by the moon and torches. We found a cute restaurant and ate a delicious meal. While we ate we listened to a live Hawaiian band play and there were even dancers. It was such a neat night!

View from bus stop
Yes, that is a golf course! 

Eric and I in Lahaina

The next day we decided to go back to Whaler's Village and catch a bus into Lahaina. The bus ride was actually fun and the view was awesome as we rode along the highway right past the ocean.

When we got to Lahaina we were so excited! There was so much to see and we had all day. So we started walking through all the fun stores. We walked into a beautiful art shop and talked with the man behind the counter. He asked if it was our honeymoon and when we said yes he got so excited. He proceeded to tell us that he was an ex-pro surfer and loved to help honeymooners out when it was their first time in Maui. He printed out a map of Maui for us and wrote down great places to eat and beautiful things to see. His advice greatly helped us plan the next few days. That and we called Eric's Aunt Jan. She also gave us great advice and helped us figure out where to go.






We kept going on our exploration of Lahaina. We saw the beautiful old Bayan tree. We were impressed by how large it was!

      We also saw an old fort made out of coral! Well what was left of it anyways!
We had so much fun reading every sign we came to and learning all about Maui!
 We went on a walk by the harbor and saw a fisherman bringing in his catch of Mahi Mahi. I never knew what they looked like before and I realized why they call them the dolphin fish! The look just like little dolphins!

    We decided we needed to get food and our friend from the art shop told us the best place for burgers was a place called cool cats. Eric, always looking for a good burger was sold. So we headed up some stairs to a cute restaurant that looked out over the Banyan tree. We had a coupon for root bear floats and so we enjoyed our floats and burgers! We were not disappointed at all. Eric still claims to this day that it was the best burger he has ever had. I think I have to agree.

 We got on the bus and headed back to our hotel. We decided to walk back to our hotel a longer way which passed by the golf course. Eric enjoyed admiring the course and I loved the beautiful trees. And Eric loved the signs. He stopped and read everyone he found. He claimed it will be his new tradition.








We got to our hotel just in time to watch the sun set from our balcony!

Such a wonderful experience.




We arose the next day and ate breakfast at the hotel. Yes the place does open up to beautiful pond! There were swans the swan around on it and waterfalls all over. It looked like a fairy tale.
Eric fell in love with the pancakes.

After our delicious breakfast Eric and I went for a stroll along the beach! We hid our flip flops in a bush and ran along the soft sand beach barefoot. We chased the waves. Watched little crabs scurry around and climbed on old lava rocks!

 So we decided to rent a car so we could better explore Maui. We set off to explore the lavender fields on the side of Haleakala. The drive there was nothing short of beautiful. But the view from the mountain was simply amazing.

Lavender field on the side of Haleakala

 The Lavender field was divine. I was not sure what to expect when I got there but it became one of our favorite memories. We hiked along the pathways that led through the beautiful gardens.

 We enjoyed each other's company and the beautiful weather. When we were done relaxing in the garden and taking in the wonderful scent of Lavender we stopped and got a lavender scone and lavender lemonade. Which was heavenly!

Waiting for our dinner cruise. 

 Eric and I decided one night to take a dinner cruise out of Lahaina. It was so much fun! The cruise was put on through the Pacific Whale foundation and so all the money went to helping science and animal advocacy.

The food was amazing!  The salads had the best dressing I had ever tasted... it was a Maui Onion flavor. It was great.
They had on the menu specialty drinks that you could order for five dollars. Eric and I decided we would splurge and get some virgin pina coladas. When We asked the waiter for them he laughed when we said we did not drink alcohol. He decided to give them to us for free! Great perk!

The view was simply unbelievable.
As you can see here it was a beautiful day!
 We even saw a rainbow in the sky!

We were on the ocean as the sun started to set. It was a once in a life time type of moment.  It looked so beautiful that it almost did not seem real!

One of our favorite excusions was when we went snorkeling!

We went snorkeling at Molokini! Which was a sunken crater. It was absolutely beautiful.

We even got to see a little octopus which was Eric's favorite!

The view was beautiful but the boat was pretty rocky. Eric and I both got a little sick from the motion of the water!

At the end we even got to see some spinner dolphins. I tried to take pictures but they did not come out very well.













Our favorite day by far was our trip to HANA but that will have to be its own post!

As you can see we had such an amazing time in Maui. It was a wonderful experience and we are so grateful that we got to have such a wonderful time bonding together and building our relationship.