Sneak Peak

Had some fun during Chaia's nap a couple days ago...These are a sneak peak into some nursery ideas we're putting together. Plus this kid is stinkin' cute. :-)

Move Over Joey Chestnut

This week began with the marquee sporting event in the world on July 4. Yes it was the Annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest at Coney Island.



This guy, Joey Chestnut, took home his 5th hotdog eating title (the coveted Mustard Belt)by eating 62 hotdogs in 10 minutes. I know I know...It sounds impressive.

But let this be the official blogpost that enters Chaia Joy Thompson's hat into the ring of competitive eating. After doing her best Gandhi impersonation and doing a 36 hour hunger strike this past Sunday and Monday for world peace, she decided to get her eating game face on.

Think 62 hot dogs is a big deal? Try 8 breast feeds plus 10 ounces of breast milk from a bottle in 24 hours. Chaia 'Man-eater' Thompson, as she is known by the media, is starting to pound the food and is back to her birthweight.

It has been a challenging first week. From a birth that had Shaina in rough shape to the night that Chaia screamed all night until she was hoarse, to finding out that Chaia should be averaging 7-8 wet diapers a day and she had only had 1, to watching her get pricked, poked and prodded at the hospital to help her re-hydrate...we have been home for 2 days and everyone is on the mend.

Thank you for the prayers...keep them coming...And enjoy Chaia's Competitive Eating Theme Song.

Meet Chaia!

Got these pics a couple hours after Miss Chaia graced us with her presence.

Unto us...

Chaia Joy Thompson joined the mustard family July 1 at 12:43 a.m. She weighed in at 7 lbs 11 oz and 21 inches. We came in to the hospital June 29 at 4 p.m. and Shaina went at it this induction, labor and delivery thing in various forms for 33 hours.

Its about 3:30 and the Thompson clan is whooped. But, I wanted to explain the name. First, names in the Bible are done with thought and meaning. Shaina's name comes from the Hebrew word for 'beautiful'. Her middle name is 'Joy' so she is Beautiful Joy.

With that as a bit of context, we landed on Chaia for this little lady. Chaia is the Hebrew word for LIFE. By itself, it has a good deal of symbolism. Shaina and I had given up on having kids on our own and had initiated the adoption process. Then out of nowhere, a dead circumstance came to life. And I found out last Christmas that Chaia was on her way.

The message of Life in the Bible is also prominent, among these, John 10:10 I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

We did not however have a clear cut middle name picked out (I was rooting for Agnes...lol). This labor process was an emotional and physical roller coaster and I found myself reading the Scriptures to find hope and encouragement when I was upset with how Shaina was doing physically. I stumbled across this familiar verse in James 1:2

"Whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete and lack nothing."

In the midst of trials and testing...It's nothing but Joy. Chaia Joy...Life of Joy. There is no greater prayer for this little bean, than to have joy and contentment in all things.

So couple James 1:2 with the reality that Shaina, in the midst of preeclampsia, high stress and low predictability, crushed childbirthing after 33 hours of not eating and barely sleeping. She is joy and if that trait is genetic I pray that Chaia gets that from her mom.

Chaia Joy Thompson. Welcome to the Family.

Good Night...Pictures to come tomorrow hopefully. She is a cute lil nugget.

baby

Fetal Development This Week
Week 38 of Pregnancy: Preparing for Birth
Your little one isn't so little anymore — weighing in at close to seven pounds and hitting the height charts at the 21-inch mark (or less). Your baby's lungs and fetal digestive system continue to mature, too. All systems, almost go!
Only two more weeks (or plus two more, max) before your baby makes his or her appearance. And what an adorable appearance that will be! Your little one isn't so little anymore — weighing in at close to seven pounds and hitting the height charts at the 21-inch mark (or less).

As you prepare (best you can) for baby's ETA, he or she is also getting ready, big time. Vernix and lanugo continue to shed from your baby's body into the amniotic fluid. Your baby swallows that amniotic fluid (yum yum?) and some of it winds up in his or her intestines where it — along with other shed cells, bile, and other waste products (triple yum) — will turn into your baby's first bowel movement (meconium) and perhaps your first diaper change.

Your baby's lungs continue to mature as more and more surfactant is secreted (remember — it helps prevent the lungs from sticking to each other when your baby begins to breathe…definitely a good thing). At 38 weeks pregnant, all systems, almost go!

(There's a lot of gross stuff going on in the little creature. I am really excited though. Cannot believe that we are about to embark on this incredible journey of parenting. God help us. haha)

This Week in the Uterus.

Fetal Development This Week
Week 32 of Pregnancy: Fetal Position
This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position in preparation for birth (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!).
This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!). At 32 weeks pregnant, you're likely feeling tapping and squirming instead of your baby's signature rocking and rolling. That's because, while comfy, your baby is a bit tight for exercise space right now. Your baby has also probably settled into the head-down, bottoms-up position in your pelvis in prepartion for birth. That's because the fetus's head fits better at the bottom of your inverted, pear-shaped uterus. It also makes it easier during childbirth if your baby comes out head first. Fewer than five percent of babies prefer the bottom-down (or breech) position by full-term. Don't worry if your baby hasn't assumed the head-down position yet. There's still a good chance he or she will flip head-side-down before birth — even in the tight confines of your uterus.


While your baby is still getting nourishment through the umbilical cord, it won't be long before you'll be bringing on the breast milk or formula (and soon after, the mashed carrots and peas). In anticipation of that momentous transition to mouth feeding, your baby's digestive system is all set and ready to go.

And because your baby is accumulating more fat, his or her skin is finally turning opaque (like yours), which means those see-through days are over. Though weeks away from D-day, your baby's looking more and more like a newborn.

And speaking of that big day, hope you're resting up for it — because your bambino certainly is. In preparation for that big first date with you, your baby is sleeping like a baby — with sleep cycles of 20 to 40 minutes long (which would also account for the decrease in movement you're likely feeling these days).

Can't Wait

This kind've stuff makes me stoked to be a dad!

We found out yesterday we're having a girl (allegedly!) The little pot was quite stubborn with her legs...apparently our pre birth talk about modesty and saving yourself for marriage is already paying dividends. We've had two different lab techs, both of whom said they are in the 80-90% certainty that its a girl. We'll go with it and save the receipts.

To be honest, I'm just thankful each time that there is a heartbeat. Nothing is guaranteed, and so each step of the way, we just want to experience the journey and Make Much of Him!

Baby is noticably kicking at this point.

We are narrowing in on names, but will not disclose the name until the baby comes! Batman and Tangled are still on the list!

It's Official!

We're Having a Cantaloupe!

You've got a heavyweight in your belly at 20 weeks pregnant (well, in baby terms, anyway). Your little champ weighs about ten ounces and has a height, crown to rump, of about six and a half inches. Think small cantaloupe (and probably as sweet too).

Is it a boy cantaloupe or a girl cantaloupe? You'll be able to find out your baby's gender via the ultrasound by this point. If you're carrying a girl fetus, her uterus is fully formed this week and her vaginal canal is starting its development (which means that in about twenty-five or thirty-some-odd years, she could be just where you're at, Grandma!). She also has primitive eggs in her tiny little ovaries now, seven million of them — though by the time she's born, that number will be down to two million (still more than she could ever hope to use). And interestingly, your baby girl will be born with all the eggs she'll ever have.

Have you got male? If your fetus is a boy, his testicles have begun their descent this week, though they're still located in the abdomen, waiting for the scrotum to finish growing so they'll have a place to drop into in a few weeks.

Though the external genitals in both male and female fetuses still have a way to grow, you should be able to find out the sex of your baby (if you want to) during an ultrasound exam.

Week 18

This week your baby is about five and a half inches long, crown to rump, and weighs about five ounces. And fetal development has reached the stage for you to start feeling those movements some time in the next few weeks — so get ready!
At 18 weeks pregnant, your baby is hitting the height chart at five and a half inches long (remember, that's crown to rump) and weighs about five ounces (the weight of that boneless chicken breast you're making for dinner).

And now for the skill of the week (drum roll please…): The art of the yawn has been mastered by your baby (someone's sleepy!). In fact, you might catch a glimpse of that adorable yawn if you're getting an ultrasound this month. You'll also catch a glimpse of all the fetal movement your baby's doing — twists, rolls, kicks, and punches. And would you believe your baby is finally big enough for you to start feeling those movements now (or anytime in the next few weeks). So get ready!

Something you won't see on the ultrasound, but you'll know is in working order, is your baby's nervous system, which is maturing rapidly at this time. Nerves, now covered with a substance called myelin (which speeds messages from nerve cell to nerve cell), are forming more complex connections. And those in the brain are further specializing into the ones that serve the senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing. Talking about hearing, your baby's is growing more acute, making your little one more conscious of sounds that come from inside your body (which means you could both be listening to each other hiccup — a skill that your baby has by now).

Life's a Peach!!!

Week 13 of Pregnancy: Fetal Growth Rates
Your fetus is now about three inches long, the size of a peach — and half of that length is head. By the time your baby is ready to make his or her entrance into the world, the head will be only one-fourth as large as the body.
Your fetus is about three inches long and the size of a peach at 13 weeks pregnant. But don't compare your fetus with the fetus next door. Starting about now, babies begin growing at different paces, some faster than others, some more slowly, though they all follow the same developmental path. Growing at a universally breakneck speed now is your baby's body as it tries to catch up to the head in terms of size. Though your baby's head is about half the size of its body now, by the time your baby is ready to make his or her entrance into the world, the head will be only one-fourth as large as the body.

Your baby's intestines are also in for some big changes right now. Up till this point, they've been growing in a cavity inside the umbilical cord; but now they're moving to their permanent (and more conveniently located) address, in your baby's abdomen. And to serve your growing baby's needs, the placenta is also growing. It weighs about an ounce now and will weigh one to two pounds at birth (something else you'll soon be able to blame your weight gain on!).

Also developing this week: your baby's vocal chords. Because sound can't travel through your uterus (your baby's current habitat), you won't be able to hear any sounds or cries just yet, but oh boy (or girl) — those vocal chords will get a good workout once that baby is born.

(Note...I don't have a uterus...Its the update Shaina gets weekly from What to Expect. I do think that the mammoth head size is indicative of a massive brain) :-)