Merry Christmas and 18 week update!

This year we spent Christmas in Buda, Texas with Mom Stoner and Dave's brother, Michael. On Christmas Eve we attented church and then had a delicious Chinese dinner. On Christmas morning we opened presents and spent the day enjoying each other's company. We had a yummy turkey dinner compliments of Mom Stoner. We had a wonderful Christmas!

Baby Update: Baby Stoner weighs 7 ounces and is as long as a bell pepper (5 1/2 inches). The baby's blood vessels are visible through transparent skin, and the nerves are being covered by myelin (a protective sheath). The ears are now in their final position but stick out a bit (hopefully not like Dumbo!). The baby's genitalia is definitely recognizable now, so only 2 more weeks until we know our baby's gender!

Fun with Tristan!

Last night, we had some Christmas fun with our nephew, Tristan. Karyn and David (Tristan's mom and dad) took advantage of the evening to finish Christmas shopping for the kiddo. We built a fabulous gingerbread house, and then played a game of charades and acted out different animals. Oh, and of course Dave and Tristan spent some time playing the Wii.

Tristan is pretending to eat his gingerbread house.

We are all pretending to eat the gingerbread house!

Tristan and his Uncle Dave.

17 week update and belly picture

This week our baby's bones are changing from soft cartilage to bone and the baby can move all of his/her joints. Baby Stoner is 5 inches long, and weighs about 5 ounces. If you're wondering what 5 ounces feels like, pick up a turnip!

My belly has definitely popped out since we last took a picture. It's become even more noticeable just in the last week.

16 week update

This morning, I went to the doctor for my 16 week check-up. It was a quick appointment... I got weighed, had my blood pressure taken, and heard Baby Stoner's heartbeat again. The heartbeat is very strong; the doctor says about 150-160 beats per minute. It is such an amazing sound! My weight and blood pressure are right where they should be. I scheduled my 20 week appointment for January 9th, and we should be able to find out the gender of Baby Stoner ("if the baby cooperates," as Dr. Alexis puts it)!

This week, our precious baby is about 4 1/2 inches long and weighs about 3 1/2 ounces. This is about the size of an avocado! In the next few weeks, the baby should double in weight and add inches. So, I'm expecting a growth spurt! I have started wearing some maternity clothes, especially pants, and I anticipate they'll be a necessity in the next couple weeks. Next week, we'll post a new belly shot.

Annual Stoner/ Warner Graham Cracker House Extravaganza

Last night, our friends Matt and Lauren Warner came over for pizza and Christmas fun! Lauren and I started making graham cracker houses for the holidays when we were in college, and we've continued the tradition even now. Dave and Matt are good sports! We all came up with a back story for our houses so here goes (left to right): my house is a modern art museum from Venus, Dave's is the Parthenon decorated for the holidays, Matt's is Flipz Field, a football stadium, and Lauren has yet to give us the details of her house! We ate tons of candy as we built and took lots of silly pictures. This is a tradition we'd like to continue with our kids.

Lauren is about 26 weeks pregnant, and I am about 15 weeks pregnant. Our bellies are quite different! Looks like Baby Stoner has some more growing to do! Matt and Lauren are having a boy, and his name is Collin Andrew (they'll call him Cole for short). He is due March 10. We're excited that our babies will get to be playmates.


Dave and I are so excited about the coming year! We are truly blessed in our marriage and we are looking forward to sharing all the love we have with our baby.

15 weeks: The apple of our eyes

This week our baby is 4 inches long and weighs 2 1/2 ounces, about the size of an apple. Baby Stoner is able to move all of his/her limbs and is forming taste buds this week. We've had a feeling that Baby Stoner is a girl, but last night I had a dream that we're having a boy. Only 5 weeks until we know for sure! My next doctor's appointment is next Friday, and I should get to hear the heartbeat again.

14 week update (thanks to Baby Center)

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb. Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny feature form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb. In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a small gathering for Thanksgiving this year, but our blessings are still countless. Mom Stoner joined us for good food, good company, and good memories. I am thankful for so many things, especially my family. I have a husband I adore and in laws that are so kind and warm. I have parents that support me and love me unconditionally, and I have siblings that are bonded to me by the childhood memories we share. I have a baby growing in my belly that I already love more than I thought possible. I have a God that has rained blessings on me and all the people who love Him. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, and may you realize all that you have to be thankful for.

Baby Explosion

We have had many family and friends bring new babies into this world in the last few months, and there will be many more in the next several months! The most recent birth was of Ella Lee Gilmore, daughter to our dear friends Stacey and Scott Gilmore. Ella was born on November 11. We had the joy of meeting her when she was only 4 days old. Baby and mamma are doing wonderful. Congratulations to the Gilmore's!

13 weeks: Who you callin' a shrimp?

I am officially in the 2nd trimester, and I have felt like a new person this week! I've had more energy and no nausea. I've even been trying to start exercising again. This week our baby is not compared to a fruit as in previous weeks, but is being compared to a medium shrimp in size... about 3 inches. Baby Stoner also now weighs a full ounce. To the right is a new belly shot. It can't be denied, my tummy is growing!

12 Week Check-Up

This morning we went in for our 12 week check-up, and got to hear the babies heartbeat! The doctor said it was between 150 and 160 beats per minute and that it was a strong, healthy heartbeat. This week, our baby is 2 inches long (about the size of a lime) and weighs half an ounce. The baby's reflexes are developing this week. We see the doctor again in 4 weeks, and we're 8 weeks away from finding out the gender of our precious baby. You can hear the heartbeat on the video below, so make sure to turn up your computer volume!

Dual Trip to the ER

Last night, I went to bed around 8 pm, and woke 1 hour later to stomach cramping and became violently sick to my stomach. I eventually fell back asleep and thought everything had passed. I woke up again about another hour later, and again had stomach cramping and became very sick to my stomach. At this time I found out Dave had been sick as well while I was sleeping. When I went out to the living room to tell him I was still sick, weak and dizzy, he said "we have food poisoning." Since I've been pregnant, I haven't done much cooking at home because I have tons of food aversions, but ironically, I had cooked dinner at home last night. We will never have grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup again! I became concerned about the baby, especially since I was so dizzy, so I called my doctor (it is now 12:45 am) and they recommended I go to the ER. Dave and I both checked in. I was given 2 bags of saline fluid through IV as well as 2 types of anti-nausea medications. Dave got 1 bag of saline fluid and 1 type of anti-nausea medication. We got home around 3:30 am and have been sleeping ever since. Fortunately, we are both okay. The baby is okay as far as we know, but I'm anxious for my 12 week check-up on Friday.

11 weeks and we have a fig!

This week, Baby Stoner is 1 1/2 inches long and the size of a fig or a large lime depending on the reference. At this point, our little one is almost fully formed! From now on, there should be rapid growth. It's possible we may even see my tummy start growing in the next few weeks. Weeks 7-10 were the most dificult for me in terms of nausea and exhaustion. It seems this week I've turned a corner and am feeling better, relatively. I have my next prenatal visit next Friday, and we are 9 weeks away from knowing the sex of our baby!

Happy Halloween!

Dave and I are missing out on Halloween festivities this year because I have a cold. But, I'll let you in on what our costumes were going to be... Our friend Becky, who has been staying with us for a few weeks now, was going to be Goldilocks, while Dave and I were going to be the 3 Bears. Who is the 3rd bear you ask? My tummy!! I was going to put a picture of a small bear over my tummy and label it, "Baby Bear." We would have all been pretty cute if it weren't for this cold! Since I can't post a picture of us and you are left to your imagination, I will post a picture of our nephew, Tristan. He is Ash the Pokeman Trainer this year. My sister, Karyn, sent me this picture of him sitting in his classroom this morning from her phone. He's such a cutie!

10 weeks and counting...

I have a couple different sources for tracking our baby's growth each week... both sources compare the size of our little one to food, mostly fruit. My pregnancy book says that this week the baby is the size of a small plum, and the Baby Center website says that this week, the baby is the size of a kumquat. I wasn't quite sure what a kumquat was, so I looked it up... here is a picture for those of you might be wondering too!

9 Week Belly Shot

So, we decided to monitor my growing belly by pictures. At the moment the baby hasn't had much of an impact on my waistline. According to my baby book, Baby Stoner is only the size of a grape this week!

Our Baby's First Picture

We had our 8 week doctor's visit today and got to see our baby for the first time. We were able to see the head and the limb buds as well as a strong heartbeat! Our baby's due date is May 28, 2009.


Here the baby looks like an alien! -Dave

Here the baby looks like a frog! - Dave

Baby Stoner is on the way!

Now that our family is going to grow, we want to be able to keep family and friends updated on all the happenings with the Stoners. We hope you enjoy seeing our pictures and reading our updates!