Uncle Dane and Aunt Lorrie Came for a Visit

We had a wonderful visit from Uncle Dane and Aunt Lorrie. They drove up from Arizona to spend a few days touring around Pasadena and enjoying all our favorite food and drink spots. We watched the basketball tournament, discussed life, and talked about what the future holds for us all. It made us a little homesick and we were wishing that our parents, siblings, and Draker & Dru were here too but we were thankful for time with some of our favorite people. We also took them on a few walks like this picture below at the Rose Bowl and Uncle Dane fit right in with his cowboy hat. Later we went to Santa Monica Beach where they experienced some street performers doing some pretty crazy talents. We laughed, cried, and had a great time reconnecting.



They also gave us some gifts for the little one and I think Mommy Beck will be excited to see the baby will be sporting Eaton Rapids colors. If our baby is a girl all we will need are some pom poms and the baby will be on her way to becoming just like her. Lots to look forward to!

First Trimester

We had another doctors appointment this morning. At the appointment we were able to see our little one. The doctor kept calling the a baby, a he, which made Justin very excited. It is hard to put into words all the emotions we were feeling as we were gazing at the screen and seeing a person growing inside of Dawn. When the doctor first placed the ultrasound instrument on Dawn's belly, the baby woke up and started moving all around. We were amazed to see the baby moving around. We are continually thankful by how smooth everything has gone thus far. The doctor said everything looked great. The baby is a little smaller than Dawn's pointer finger, which is the normal size for the baby at this point in the pregnancy. Also, the babies heart continues to race at an astonishing rate of 159 beats per minute, which is normal, but is a contributing factor to why Dawn is tired often. The Beck genes carry a lot of energy. Therefore, we should expect nothing less than an extremely fast heartbeat.

The doctor took some pictures of our little munchkin, which we wanted to share with you.


This one shows the baby all curled up and back to sleep after being woken up by the doctor.


We can see little arms and legs forming in this picture


The doctor said this one shows the babies legs crossed, which made Dawn think the baby is a girl, but Justin was quick to remind her how often he crosses his legs. I guess we will have to wait and see!!!


The last picture is a close up of the babies head, which was a little scary for us, since the baby looks like an alien, but the doctor was quick to remind us that this is very normal. However, we had a good laugh at the picture.

Thanks for continuing to share in this process with us. We are so excited and can't wait to welcome baby Beck into the world. The first trimester is complete. One down and two to go.

Prayers for a Friend

We ask that you lift our friend, Rachel up in prayer as she learned on Thursday that she lost her baby. This is a devastating loss for us all as we have been going through this experience together. Rachel was a week ahead of us and it has been so special going through this process with her. She is also a co-worker of Dawn's that she sees everyday so this will be difficult for us both as we go forward with our pregnancy. She is a special person in our life and this experience has reminded me of a quote we saw in India that has been life-changing for us......

"LET OUR HEARTS BE BROKEN BY THE THINGS THAT BREAK THE HEART OF GOD."

We know that God is crying about this loss and ask you all to join in our cries as we pray for healing physically, emotionally, and spiritually for Rachel and her partner.

Another MD Appointment

Today we had a Doctor appointment to listen to the heartbeat of the baby. We were in tears as we heard the heartbeat for the first time. It was "Fast and Strong" according to the doctor, which is perfect at this stage. We were thrilled as we have been nervous about Dawn's recent stress level at work possibly effecting the baby's growth. The Doctor said that as long as Dawn continues to eat and sleep well, the baby shouldn't be too effected by the stress from work. This was good news for us!

Many of you have been asking about how Dawn is feeling. The first two months were a bit rough with nausea (whoever said this was morning sickness must have been a man because my "morning" sickness lasted all day long!). Things are better now and although Dawn is an even pickier eater now than before, she is keeping food down and the baby is getting necessary nutrients. The main setback is the exhaustion. Dawn could fall asleep each night at 8pm if Justin let her! Between work and the baby, there is little energy left to give although we are trying to do walks as much as possible. The Doctor told us her energy level will improve shortly in the 2nd trimester, which we are hopeful for but when the baby's heartbeat is 160-170, it makes sense that Dawn would have little energy.

We hope to post a picture of Dawn soon for all those who are asking to see if "she is showing." There is a small bump that is really not too noticeable by anyone other than her and it is mainly because her pants are getting tight! The picture will be up soon. Thanks to everyone for your continued prayers and support as we go through this new journey! We can feel the prayers and love!

We Are Having a Baby!

Justin and I are excited to announce that we are expecting! We first learned on January 21st and have had a difficult time keeping it a secret until now. It has involved many emotions and anxieties as we expected it might but we couldn't be more thrilled at God's timing in our lives and blessing of such a sweet gift. We often spend time talking about the miracle of pregnancy and how God has planned each little detail about growth. We often read what is going on each week and find ourselves in awe at the many little parts that already exist while the little one is only 12 weeks old. So amazing.


Here is our confirmation after visiting the doctor in January that they let me keep. The blood test showed the baby was 4 weeks old at this time. I felt like the "new mom" asking to keep the pregnancy tests but am thankful for the many little presents to remind me of how grateful we are and how special he/she is.




These are pictures from our 2nd ultrasound on February 14th where we watched the heartbeat for the first time. We were amazed at how such a small little "bean" could have such a fast, strong heartbeat. The heart was beating about 160 beats per minute, which is very healthy for this time of growth. We couldn't be happier!

Just so you are aware, we plan to use this blog as our main source of information about the baby and our lives during the pregnancy rather than face book.