21 Weeks!

Happy Monday!  We are 21 weeks along and things are still going great!!  We had a big moment last night in the Petersen house........Brian felt the baby kicking!!!!!!  That is something we have both been looking forward to for months now!  I could tell that the kicking had gotten stronger (after all, it is a boy...haha!) and thought maybe it could be felt from the outside.  When I put my hand down on my lower belly, sure enough, I could feel it!  So Brian got to feel the baby kick about 10 times!  It was a great end to our weekend :)  I'm pretty sure that made his night, and mine!  The baby was extremely active from about 8:00 - 11:00 last night, moving around every couple seconds!  I also kept waking up and changing positions in my sleep and he would be kicking then too!  I hope this is not foreshadowing his most active times of the day once he is born!  We may be in for some really sleepless nights!!  Also, we have registered at Target and Baby's R Us.  Please feel free to view what we registered for and let me know if we have missed anything.  We did it in a hurry and so I'm sure we forgot some vital items!  Thanks!

Baby Facts:
The baby is now the size of a large banana.  Not sure how he went from a cantaloupe to a banana, but that's what I've been told.  Average weight is roughly 12.7 ounces and length is 10.5 inches.

My older sister, Alison, and her husband, Todd, just had their baby girl on Saturday afternoon.  They named her Peyton Meryl VanOtterloo.  She was 8 lb 8 oz and 21 inches long.  She has had a few complications since birth.  Peyton swallowed some of the meconium (baby excrement that consists of swallowed amniotic fluid, digested materials, and dead cells).  It is a tar-like substance, and it coated her stomach and lungs.  She was immediately taken to the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) for treatment.  She also had jaundice.  Neither Alison nor Todd were able to hold Peyton for over 24 hours!!  The latest I have heard from Alison today is that the jaundice is better today and she does not need to be in the lighted beds anymore.  Her blood still contains an elevated amount of WBC's, so she either has an infection or is about to fight an infection.  They have to keep her in the hospital for another week!  Please keep Peyton, Alison, and Todd in your thoughts and prayers as they get through this hard time!!

Have a wonderful week!!
The Petersens