June 7, 2005 (Part II) - We had our latest doctor appointment this afternoon. It was great! Chantal is still at dilated to 3cm, and Baby Flynn continues to do well (good heartbeat, good movement, etc.), 4 days past the due date. However, the further past the due date we go, the greater the chance of complications arising. So, we are going to continue to hope and pray that Baby Flynn checks out of its all-inclusive resort willingly and makes its arrival into the world VERY SOON. At the same time, we will be making arrangements for an eviction notice for Baby Flynn: tomorrow we will make arrangements with the hospital for scheduling a day next week (probably next Tues. or Wed., depending on what is available) for Chantal to be induced. She feels very comfortable and at peace with this. It is a long enough amount of time to continue to give Baby plenty of opportunity to come on its own, and it will be a long enough amount of time past the due date (roughly 1 1/2 weeks) that we do not feel like we are rushing into anything. Please pray for continued patience and peace for the birth process, and maybe even that contractions and active labor would start soon!

June 7, 2005 - BabyWatch 2005 update: Baby Flynn is still happy at home in the womb. Our next appointment is at 4:30pm today and we will post a new update (with pictures) this evening. Please keep Baby Flynn in your prayers!

June 5, 2005 - As of 10:05am, no Baby Flynn yet. Momma and Baby are fine, and we are off to worship. Looks like we are learning patience and flexibility!

June 2, 2005 - We had our last appointment on Tuesday and everything remains well with both Momma and Baby. Chantal is dilated to 3 cm, which our doctor says is just about as far as she can go without moving into active labor. And the big plus: since the latent phase of labor is 0-4 cm, Chantal is 75% of the way there with no contractions! Wow! We remain on the schedule of Baby Flynn, which I imagine is wonderful training. As you can see from the countdown, the day is nearly here (02:34:00 remaining as I write)! But we still wait patiently until God decides that its time for Baby to come! We covet your prayers for a wonderful delivery here in the next few minutes, hours, or days (but not weeks anymore!).

May 24, 2005 - Our visit to the doctor today revealed that Baby Flynn is doing great and that Chantal is dilated 2 centimeters and is 80% effaced. The doctor used the words "the baby could come at any time now" during our visit, so we do not have any plans to travel anywhere this Memorial Day weekend. In fact, there is a very good chance Baby Flynn could arrive on Memorial Day weekend (said with apologies to my family who may have a foreshortened Havasu weekend). However, our doctor says the time of arrival is ultimately up to the baby and that Baby Flynn will come when s/he decides to come. We are ready to receive Baby Flynn into our lives and home (pictures coming soon!) and now eagerly await his/her arrival!

May 17, 2005 - We see our doctor every week now and everything with Baby Flynn continues to look wonderful. At our checkup earlier today, the doctor told us that Chantal is dilated 1 centimeter and 50% effaced. If all progresses well, Chantal will be dilated to 3 centimeters or so by our next visit and the arrival of Baby Flynn will be very, very soon! We remain excited and continue to prepare for the long-awaited arrival. I apologize for not keeping things as up to date on this site. Life has been busy, busy, busy the past few weeks. But with this slowdown and the imminent arrival of Baby Flynn, I should have more time for updates!

April 26, 2005 - We visited our doctor today for another checkup and everything looks great. Baby Flynn has a regular heartbeat of 144bpm and is growing right on track. As Baby Flynn grows s/he becomes more and more present. We feel distinct body parts that we think we can identify from time to time and get little wresting matches pretty regularly. We know the movements will slow as Baby Flynn runs out of room, but for now it is great fun. The moment of arrival draws near and we grow more excited each day to meet this little gift from God! I will upload more pictures in the next few days...Saturday at the latest.

April 8, 2005 - Last week Chantal and I were blessed with a wonderful shower given by our family at the University Church of Christ. Suffice it to say that Baby Flynn will be well clothed, have plenty of things to play with and to read, and has many of the essential trappings of the 21st century baby. We were blessed to have our mothers and my grandmother present at the shower. They have all given the baby so much already and they gave us more gifts! Amazing! A special THANK YOU to everyone involved in the planning of the shower and who attended. Your love blessed us and will overflow to Baby Flynn. See the MORE section under Other Pictures to see more shots from the shower last Sunday.

March 26, 2005 - Friday marked 30 weeks! We are truly on the downhill run to Baby Flynns arrival! Baby Flynn gives us plenty of evidence of her/his continued growth and vigor - Chantal experiences at least one soccer match per day these days! Our next appointment is on Tuesday and we are excited to hear Baby Flynns heartbeat again and have assurance that all progresses well. We will continue to post new pictures here as we take them. Be sure to check out Baby Flynns first Songfest appearance!

March 11, 2005 - This has been another eventful week in the life of Baby Flynn! The checkup on Tuesday went very well. Baby continues to have a strong heartbeat and we found out has an affinity for kicking objects (Baby kicked the heartbeat microphone while the doctor was listening). Momma continues to do well and simply glows! As of today we are at 28 weeks! As you can tell the countdown time is getting smaller and smaller. The BIG day approaches soon, and we gladly run to meet it! More to come soon!

February 25, 2005 - The long awaited extended video footage of Baby Flynn from our 19 week ultrasound is now posted! Baby Flynn is regularly on the move now. Both of us feel the baby move regularly (Chantal, of course, far more than Carl). Our last doctor visit was for Chantal and not so much for the baby - the glucose tolerance test. No news is good news so far on her results. All else is going wonderfully! Check back for more picture updates soon!

February 12, 2005 - The appointment on Tuesday went great! Baby Flynn seems healthy and continues to have a good, strong heartbeat. No ultrasound pictures this time, but good assurances from the doctor that all seems well. The latest, greatest development is that Chantal distinctly felt the baby move beginning on Monday. She says that it does not feel like a soccer match, but like a mild thumping. Thump away Baby Flynn! This remains an amazing process day by day. We are living in awe of this creation and the Creator moment by moment!

February 7, 2005 - All seems well here at the 23 week mark. Our next doctor visit is on Tuesday morning and we are eager to hear the heartbeat again and have assurance that the baby is developing well. God holds this creature in His hands, but this baby has parents who - for good or ill - desire tangible assurance that all is well! More news when we know more!

January 22, 2005 - I just finished uploading the first video footage of Baby Flynn from the ultrasound. The first segment examines brain development so the focus is primarily on the head. The image is difficult to see, but if you know what you are looking at you will know what is going on. I apologize that I could not make the image larger. When you work with video file sizes shoot right through the roof! More video segments coming soon!

January 11, 2005 - Today was our second doctor visit with an ultrasound. Wow! What an amazing time. The technician - Patty - spent 20 to 30 minutes examining Baby Flynn. Baby Flynn is developing normally and is right on track for where s/he should be. The latest scans are below and I will add some video soon for a more live-action experience. Today was truly amazing - I am in awe and cannot wait for Baby Flynn to arrive! God is good.

January 8, 2005 - We made a trip to Babies R Us and Target during the past two weeks. Our friend Tara Morrow helped us navigate the myriad options at Babies R Us, and after such a wonderful introduction we tackled Target on our own! Both Baby Flynn and Momma seem to be progressing wonderfully. Our next appointment is soon so we should have more ultrasound pictures and possibly a short video. Thank you for joining us on this journey!

December 25, 2004 - Christmas day was fun! With all of the gifts we received you would think Baby Flynn was already here! But seriously, we are thankful for the excitement shared by family and friends alike. Just think, next Christmas will be celebrated with a bright-eyed six-month old who will not have a clue about what is happening with Santa Claus, presents and all of the other trappings of Christmas. We look forward to our next doctor visit and more pictures of Baby Flynn!

December 13, 2004 - We had our second checkup today and heard the baby's heartbeat for the very first time. What an amazing experience! Hearing the baby's heartbeat made a much deeper emotional connection than seeing the ultrasound just a few weeks ago. The doctor said that the heartbeat was strong and a very normal 152 beats per minute. Praise God!