Meet Tulip!

As most of you already know by now, Greg and I got some wonderful news back on Thursday, May 7th - we are expecting our second little Zabikow! Actually, to be completely truthful, I (only me) found out on May 7th via home test. Greg was traveling for work in Norway at the time, and he called me about 10 minutes after I took the test to just say hello. What timing! It was SO hard not telling him our good news, but this didn't feel like "over the phone" kind of news, you know? So, once he got home in the evening on May 8th, he was thrilled to hear that he was going to be a Daddy again! It sure made Mother's Day that weekend extra special!

At the time we learned the news, I was about 5 weeks pregnant, so here is the "it's official" photo. When pregnant with Ben, I was very good about taking a photo every 4 weeks to show how my tummy was growing. This photo was snapped close to 6 weeks, so already it appears that this baby is getting to have a reason for the "poor me second child" syndrome. :)

Also while pregnant with Ben, since we weren't going to find out the gender, we gave him a "baby name", so as not to have to refer to the baby as "it". We called him "Appleseed", because I remember reading that was how big the fetus was at the time. Well, we have decided not to find out the gender with this baby either, so his/her baby name is "Tulip". Seems logical for a baby conceived in Holland, right? It was either Tulip, Windmill, or Van Gogh... :) The story behind these wooden tulips below is funny. I have always thought that these are a bit silly really, why would you want to put a vaseful of wooden flowers in your home? Well, one day not long after hearing that Tulip was on his/her way, Greg came home with pink and blue tulips. OK, I guess they are pretty cute now... ;)

Early on, I was feeling ok - a little nauseous and exhausted. Is that from being pregnant or from chasing after an active 2 year old?? Either way, the absolute best thing about being a stay-at-home mommy right now is that I can take a nap when Ben naps. Never could do that at Experian (and get away with it). :) Here's another tummy photo, taken around 9 weeks on my 31st birthday. Nothing changing just yet...

In case you are wondering, the "pregnancy process" is a bit different in the Netherlands versus the States. First of all, when I saw our general doctor (Dr. Groot) at about 6 weeks and told her I thought I was pregnant, she says "ok". No urine test, initial bloodwork, or early ultrasound to confirm. Just, "yep, if you say you are, then you probably are". Especially since this is my second pregnancy. I was sent to a lab for blood work around week 9, and then to an ultrasound office at week 10 for an ultrasound. Nothing is done at the same place here, ugh. Once the bloodwork and ultrasound results were sent to Dr. Groot, and since all was well, I was referred to a midwife. In most cases, you would only see an ob/gyn if you have a medical need.

Speaking of ultrasound, our 10 week ultrasound on June 8th was great. Tulip was active with a strong heartbeat. Whew! Ben wasn't totally sure what was happening, but he thought it was pretty cool that the lady was putting goo on Mommy's tummy, and he liked watching the "TV". Tulip's estimated date of arrival is January 11th, 2010! That means I won't be giving birth in Holland, since we move back to the States on October 15th. A little bummed about that, as I've heard good things about the process. I would have strongly considered an 'at home' birth, which is much more common here than the U.S. But, don't get me wrong...I LOVE knowing that we have lots of family and friends to share in our joy and help us out once Tulip arrives!

The very next day, June 9th, was a day that Greg and I had been waiting for...Mom Z arrived for a visit to Amsterdam, and that meant that we could finally share the news with family and friends!! We thought we deserved to see at least one reaction to our news in person, so we were holding out for her arrival. It was worth it! She saw Ben's "Big Brother" t-shirt and says "really??". We spent the next few days calling family and close friends. It was so good to have loved ones know our exciting news and to be praying with us for a safe pregnancy and a healthy baby.

Around week 11, I started feeling heartburn in addition to the nausea and exhaustion. At that time, I also noticed the beginnings of a baby bump. Hee hee!! Cravings?? Grapefruit juice. Finally, around weeks 14/15, I was feeling much less nauseous and started regaining some energy. I had my first midwife appointment on July 14th with Lotte. She was awesome! She took my general medical history, pregnancy history, and was very impressed with my "no meds" birth with Ben. We listened to Tulip's heartbeat again, and she said that everything looked and sounded good so far. She was very clear to have me call if I needed anything at all - even if I was just feeling anxious and wanted to come hear the baby's heartbeat again. I thought that was really sweet - very "customer service" for a culture that is not always known for their customer service. I will see her again in early September after my 20 week ultrasound. In the meantime, here is a week 14 picture...2 pounds gained so far.

Hope you enjoyed "meeting" Tulip, and we feel so blessed to be expecting such a fabulous and precious gift after we return to the States from this grand adventure.