Hey baby, I see you!!

There is nothing quite like the miracle of seeing your baby on the screen for the first time. We saw Baby Hayhurst at 8 weeks, which was the neatest thing ever. Even though he/she was just a "blob" at that point, it was a blob with a beating heart that we could see, and then hear just 4 short weeks later. I continue to be dumbfounded by the little miracle that is happening inside of me, and it just becomes more and more surreal every time we see another glimpse of God's little creation.

We had the unique opportunity to visit StorkVision, a boutique sonogram office in Fort Worth. I had never heard about it, but a friend at work recommended it, and there was a deal on Living Social for half price, so we thought, "what do we have to lose here?" It was a chance to see our baby a few weeks earlier than the Doctor's office sonogram was scheduled. What was so cool is that they have a large enough room with couches etc, so it was a perfect opportunity to invite our parents to come and witness the little miracle with us. And...hopefully be there for the gender reveal if our little peanut was cooperating!! We were so ecstatic that all five of the first-time grandparents-to-be were able to be in attendance, it wouldn't have been the same without all of them.

All of these images were taken on July 13, 2012. Baby Hayhurst was 16 weeks and  3 days.

Side Profile

Baby Hands

Long legs, like momma!

She was cooperating...it's a GIRL!!

In addition to the standard 2-D black and white images, we also got to see a 3-D glimpse of our little angel. Baby doesn't have any body fat at this point, and skin is very transparent, so it's a little early to get a good 3D read (they say to come back around 28 weeks or so to get a better view). However, we could see some really cool gestures:

Thumbs up, Mom! All is well down here!!

Just hanging out! Resting with my arms behind my head! (Grammy says Daddy used to do this when he was a baby)

Sucking my left thumb while covering up my eye with my right hand.

OK, enough of the paparazzi already!

And here are some pictures of us and our parents during the experience.

Anxious, nervous, excited...all of the above!!

Proud mom and dad

Papa and CiCi looking on

Nana and Gramps watching in amazement

Grammy came prepared with a little boy gift and a little girl gift. We're seeing PINK!!

This was truly an amazing experience, especially since we were able to share it with our parents. I would highly recommend doing this to any of my friends. There just aren't words to describe it!

Love,
Candace & Trevor

Bump Ahead

Well, I've been a little delinquent in my posting. Blame it on the travel schedule and the end-of-day exhaustion, but found a little motivation today so thought I would catch everyone up on the growing bump!

My last post left off in sunny California, and since then I have been to Milan (Italy) and New York a couple times, so I have some new images to share. First stop, Milano!

This first picture was taken July 1st, which would have made me 14 weeks and 5 days. This was taken outside the restaurant we went to for dinner, where I dined on some amazing pizza. Several people ask me if I have had any food cravings yet. The first was surely Italian food, but after this trip to Milan, I was over that real quickly.  ;)

14 weeks, 5 days: On a street in Milan, Italy

 The next evening, several of us buyers that were still in Milan went to dinner together on our last night. Afterwards, we grabbed some gelato and decided to walk to the famous Duomo, definitely the most popular attraction in Milan, and one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen!

14 weeks, 6 days: Duomo Cathedral, Milan, Italy.

I went to New York from July 16-20, but due to the insane schedule I was keeping, there wasn't a great opportunity to grab a photo op in front of something famous, but I made up for it on the second trip, which I just returned from.

In my August trip (Aug 6-9), I hit a very important pregnancy milestone...20 weeks, also known as halfway there!! I can definitely say that on this trip, it was obvious I was pregnant. My vendors were not afraid to ask, and I had several subway patrons hop up and offer their seat to me. It was nice for a change to look pregnant and not just like I had too much to eat for lunch.  ;)

My first photo op found me at Bryant Park Grill. I had gone to lunch with a vendor, who is also pregnant (she is four weeks further along than me), so we had so much to chat about. After lunch, she grabbed a few images of me outside the restaurant to commemorate me hitting 20 weeks. Here is my favorite picture:

20 weeks. Bryant Park Grill, New York City.

The next day, I was walking from one appointment to the next, not really paying attention to where I was. All of a sudden I looked up and realized I was standing right in front of the Flatiron Building, a pretty famous landmark in NYC. I saw some tourists taking their own photos, so I asked one to snap a quick photo of me in front of the building. It's not the best picture ever, but hey, beggars can't be choosers.

20 weeks, 1 day. Flatiron Building, New York City.

At my next appointment, which was in the Penthouse of the Setai Hotel on 5th Avenue, there were spectacular panoramic views of the city. These images aren't the best, but hey, it's me pregnant in front of famous landmarks, which was the point!

20 weeks, 1 day. Chrysler Building in the background. Taken from the Penthouse of the Setai Hotel in NYC.

20 weeks, 1 day. In front of the Empire State Building. Taken from the Penthouse of the Setai Hotel in NYC.

That's all for now! Next stop is Las Vegas in a little over a week. Then it's home for awhile (which will be NICE.)

Love,
Candace