It's (probably) a girl!!!

Our level-2 ultrasound yesterday was highly encouraging. 10 fingers, 10 toes, two eyes (free of cateracts, no less), strong heart pumping blood at 150 beats per minute, good growth, and according to the doctor, free from visible birth defects. That was great news, since the last time we met with a doctor we were given the news that it was a 1 in 41 chance that this child would have some sort of chromasomal defect, most likely Downs' Syndrome. After meeting yesterday, the doctor said that she saw no signs of Downs' or any other defect, and while that is not a gurantee it is encouraging. She said that our likelihood of problems now are at least 1 in 80 if not better.

Praise God for His faithfulness and in answering our prayer and the prayers of all who have been holding us up!

And I feel inclined to make mention of the fact that Sandra and I feel blessed with this child, regardless of her chromosomal condition or any other problem that may occur. If the Lord of Life blesses us with a child of Downs' Syndrome, we feel more concern for the difficulty that child will have throughout life, knowing that people are not always kind and that we will most likely not be available to protect her. But as far as blessings go, Downs' or not, we recognize God's grace on us and would love and cherish *any* child given us for earthly care.

So, having seen that this child is most likely a girl (the doc said she was about 95% sure) we move forward with naming her. Most likely, we will go with Jadyn, which means "God has heard."

He most certainly has, and most certainly has blessed us.