I wrote most of this back in May, and am finally getting a chance to edit and post!
Life finally seems to have slowed down a little bit since our littlest babe made her grand entrance. She is almost two months old, so I figured I needed to get this written down somewhere before I completely forget all of the little details of Macy's birth day.
On Monday, March 28th, I went back to my doctor for another cervical check. I was feeling pretty defeated at that point, still not having gone into labor. I had pretty much resigned myself to having a c-section on April fools' day (of all days). However, my doctor felt like I had progressed a lot since my appointment the previous week, and agreed to go ahead and schedule what I'm calling a gentle induction on Thursday morning, the 31st. He said he'd start me on a very low dose of Pitocin and then break my water. I can't begin to describe the feeling of relief I felt leaving there, knowing that I was going to at least have a chance to push this little baby out rather than having her cut out of me and facing that recovery again, this time with a 3 year old. I left the doctor and went for a labor inducing massage at Barefoot RNR in Madeira. The massage didn't work, but it felt absolutely incredible and the ladies who work there were fantastic. I hadn't felt that relaxed in a long, long time.
By Wednesday I still hadn't gone into labor on my own, so we knew Thursday was going to be the day. As we did with Sam, it was kind of a weird feeling knowing that Wednesday night was our last night before our world was completely changed. Sam and I had a mommy/Sam day on Wednesday. I dropped her off at preschool and then picked her up and took her to Chipotle for lunch. When we got home I painted her nails and then we went to the Dari Bar for a special treat before her afternoon nap. It was a wonderful day with my first baby, and I'll never ever forget it. That night we laid low at home and snuggled and played with Sam. I remember feeling pretty weepy when I put her to bed on Wednesday night, knowing it was her last night as our only baby.
Thursday morning we woke up early. We had to be at the hospital at 7:30 so we got ourselves completely ready (yes, I showered and put makeup on) before we woke Sam up to say goodbye. She is just the sweetest thing. She definitely knew something was up, and just kept telling us over and over again that she loves us. We got lots of hugs and said good bye. About 2 minutes after we pulled out of the driveway, my dad called because Sam was having a meltdown that she didn't get to say goodbye, even though she said it at least 400 times before we left. Three year olds...
We got to the hospital right on time and hauled all of our stuff up into the room. We remembered as I was changing into my hospital gown that we hadn't taken one last belly pic, so I quickly put my tank top back on and had Jake snap a quick picture. It's pretty dark and terrible, but we took it! I don't know what my final weight gain ended up being, but it was at least 40 pounds. Needless to say, as I write this I still have a lot of work to do. Anyway the nurse got my IV hooked up and started the Pitocin right around 9am. One of the nurses that was monitoring my contractions said she thought I probably would have been in to the hospital on my own in the next 24 hours since my contractions were pretty much instantly 4 minutes apart when the Pitocin started. That made me feel a little bit of relief that hopefully the Pitocin would just help move things along they would have anyway, rather than trying to do it all on its own.
My doctor came in and broke my water around 11am. He stood there like a sneaky mofo holding that crochet hook they like to call a medical tool. I could tell he was kind of trying to hide it behind his leg because he didn't want me to freak out. Now that I've experienced that special kind of hell, I know why he was trying to hide it. #OUCH I felt like a champ through my contractions for a few hours but at a certain point they just seemed to pick up to a level that I can't even begin to describe. Most of my pain was in my hips and my lower pelvic area, so the "birthing ball" was basically useless. I was arching my back in bed to get through them to try to take the pressure off of my pelvic/hip area. I think it was about 2pm when I finally told the nurse I couldn't take it anymore and wanted my epidural. I was really hoping to hold out to 5 or 6cm before I got it, but I was only at 3cm and basically felt like I was going to die. The anesthesiologist that came in was a total jokester. I was in horrible agonizing pain, but he got it done really quickly and without any additional pain from placing it. As soon as he was done he said "I can't hang a picture on a wall but look at what I do for a living." I'm really glad you said that after you stuck a huge needle in my back, bro. It took about 10 minutes for the drugs to kick in and after that I felt like a brand new woman. I honestly do not have the SLIGHTEST CLUE how anyone could possibly bear those contractions for any period of time without drugs. If I had to endure that for the 5.5 more hours that I was in labor, I am pretty sure I would have died and Macy would have been left without a mother. So kudos to all you weirdos that give birth without drugs, I am in pure disbelief of the level of your pain tolerance. I spent most of my afternoon just chilling in the hospital bed watching Friends, wishing I could eat something, and trying to sleep a little bit.
Around 5 or 6pm, doc came back in and checked me again and I was at about 4 or 5cm (it's been almost two months, I'm having a hard time remembering the details). At that point I was getting pretty discouraged (and really FLIPPING HUNGRY). He said he really expected me to make "my move" in the next hour or so, and if I didn't, we'd have to talk about "options". Read: surgery. So he went to get dinner and came back a little while later to check again. Much to my surprise and excitement, I was at 8cm. Even though this news was super exciting, doc said Macy was facing up. Since babies are supposed to come out face down, he had to go into the whole "we may have to use forceps or a vacuum if she doesn't flip, it's just going to be harder on you" blah blah blah spiel. The last ditch effort to get her to flip over was putting me kind of on my right side, kind of on my belly, with my left leg in a stirrup and a peanut shaped medical ball in between my legs. They called it the flying nun. The nurse had said the longer I could stay in that position, the better chance she had of flipping. Doc had said he'd be back in 45 minutes so I braced myself to be in that bizarre position for a while. Jake turned on the hospital playlist I had made and came over to my side of the bed and we had a little emotional moment together.
At one point I was feeling like I really needed to push, and my contractions were starting to feel a little more intense and painful, even with the epidural, so I pushed my little button and got another small little dose to help ease the pain. When Doc finally came back over an hour later, miss Macy had gone right ahead and flipped herself over and it was time for me to push.
I honestly had been terrified of the whole process of laboring and giving birth, but at this point I was just so excited that I was actually getting to experience a vaginal birth, that I was ready and raring to go. I pushed for about 25 minutes. The last push before she came out, Doc said I may have to hold off because they thought the cord was around her neck, but it turned out it was just her single umbilical artery compressing because it was so small. She came out red and gunky and screaming at the top of her lungs.
**A little side note - when Sam was born, we wheeled into the OR and they had Sister Hazel playing on the speaker. At our wedding, our first Dance was In the Moment by Sister Hazel. The anesthesiologist tried to find our wedding song on the CD they were using, but he couldn't find it. We still thought it was pretty cool that of all the music they could have been listening to when she was born, they chose Sister Hazel. Well, fast forward 3 years later and Macy literally came out of my body while our wedding song was playing on the playlist I had made. I didn't even notice it, but Jake looked at me and said "Do you hear what song is playing?" Oh my heart...
Jake said one of the first things I said after she came out was "Jake, I'm not pregnant anymore". I had the post-birth shakes pretty bad again, and I remember even shaking pretty bad when I was pushing her out. After what I would say were some of the most emotionally and physically difficult months of my life, I can't begin to describe my relief and joy when I finally got to hold my sweet, healthy little baby for the first time. And unlike when Sam was born, they put her right on my chest when she came out. I'm guessing she's going to be a little spitfire just like her sister, because within minutes she had peed on me.
Even though my recovery was a lot easier this time around, I have to say that I had two pretty wonderful birth experiences. In a weird way, I am actually glad I got to experience both a c-section and a vaginal birth. I felt nervous both times, but I also felt very much at ease and at peace with my doctor and the nurses there. I am so blessed and grateful to have two beautiful, healthy babies. My heart could not be more full.
Monday, July 18, 2016
Monday, March 21, 2016
Thirty-Eight Point Five
How Far Along: 38.5 weeks
Size of Peanut: Too big to still be hanging out in my uterus!
Total Weight Gain: I think it's best if I just stop weighing myself at this point. Ain't nobody got time to be worrying about how I weigh almost as much as my husband who has chosen the most beautiful and poetic time in my life to go right ahead and lose 21 pounds. He's cute ;)
Maternity Clothes: Thank goodness gracious for elastic. My belly is so big I think I am starting to look like Rachel Greene on Friends right before she delivers Emma and the bottom of her belly hangs out from all of her tank tops. Also cute ;)
Size of Peanut: Too big to still be hanging out in my uterus!
Total Weight Gain: I think it's best if I just stop weighing myself at this point. Ain't nobody got time to be worrying about how I weigh almost as much as my husband who has chosen the most beautiful and poetic time in my life to go right ahead and lose 21 pounds. He's cute ;)
Maternity Clothes: Thank goodness gracious for elastic. My belly is so big I think I am starting to look like Rachel Greene on Friends right before she delivers Emma and the bottom of her belly hangs out from all of her tank tops. Also cute ;)
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Thirty-Six
How Far Along: 36 weeks - this was my goal when we found out at 32 weeks that I was at risk of pre-term labor - so YAY YAY YAY!!
Size of Peanut: Honeydew melon - AKA taking up my entire midsection
Total Weight Gain: I haven't really gained any weight since last week. My weight seems to be just fluctuating daily. Everything I read says that's pretty normal. I have like no room left in my belly to really overindulge in food so it makes sense. After a breakfast of two eggs and toast I basically feel like I want to vomit and lay on the couch in sloth mode for 2 hours. So if we can stick right at around 32 pounds, which will be right about the weight I was when I delivered Sam, I will feel that there is hope for me to not feel like a whale for too long after I deliver this munchkin. Because right now, I feel like a whale.
Maternity Clothes: Just really, thank you Jesus that I can wear leggings and baggy shirts at my home computer for work every day. I would absolutely NOT be down with putting on a real bra and real pants for work right now. It's hard enough to make myself presentable to leave the house for any reason. I've reached that point where I don't feel like I look remotely decent in anything, and I'd rather just lay around in sweats and be comfortable. My hospital bag is packed with nursing tanks, my lone pair of pajama pants that will still go up over my ass, and a few really baggy shirts. I will be SO excited to have access to some non-maternity clothes again. I can almost taste it!
Size of Peanut: Honeydew melon - AKA taking up my entire midsection
Total Weight Gain: I haven't really gained any weight since last week. My weight seems to be just fluctuating daily. Everything I read says that's pretty normal. I have like no room left in my belly to really overindulge in food so it makes sense. After a breakfast of two eggs and toast I basically feel like I want to vomit and lay on the couch in sloth mode for 2 hours. So if we can stick right at around 32 pounds, which will be right about the weight I was when I delivered Sam, I will feel that there is hope for me to not feel like a whale for too long after I deliver this munchkin. Because right now, I feel like a whale.
Maternity Clothes: Just really, thank you Jesus that I can wear leggings and baggy shirts at my home computer for work every day. I would absolutely NOT be down with putting on a real bra and real pants for work right now. It's hard enough to make myself presentable to leave the house for any reason. I've reached that point where I don't feel like I look remotely decent in anything, and I'd rather just lay around in sweats and be comfortable. My hospital bag is packed with nursing tanks, my lone pair of pajama pants that will still go up over my ass, and a few really baggy shirts. I will be SO excited to have access to some non-maternity clothes again. I can almost taste it!
Thursday, February 25, 2016
Thirty-Five
How Far Along: 35 weeks - just 2 more weeks until we are full term!
Size of Peanut: A coconut - no wonder I can't breathe and I pee every 5 minutes...
Total Weight Gain: I am up to about 32 pounds now. After several weeks of no gain, I think my body finally changed all of its muscle to fat, and now I'm just adding more fat and poundage to myself. We'll just pretend all of those pounds are amniotic fluid and Macy's weight. I think I'm going to go with that. Losing baby weight is going to be so much fun!
Maternity Clothes: Most of the tops I've been wearing my entire pregnancy were not actual maternity tops, just loose fitting tops. They are no longer loose fitting, and basically look ridiculous on me now. Good thing I'm spending most of my time at home and nobody but Jake, Sam and my parents have to look at me on a regular basis.
Exercise: I really really miss exercising. I guess this is a good thing? Typically when I stop exercising it's because I've decided that eating cookies and watching TV is more exciting than going to the gym. Then I usually fall into a lazy routine where I don't do anything for several months and it's next to impossible for me to get back into a routine where exercise is part of my life again. Maybe this time feels different because I was told I wasn't allowed to exercise, and it wasn't something I decided on my own. I am so looking forward to being able to go for a long walk or a long run, or take a barre class again. The only bad thing is, I know how badly it's going to MAJORLY SUCK the first time. Yikes - but bring it on.
Sleep: We finally decided on a mattress. We tried a topper for the Helix and I was still not a fan, so we're sticking with the mattress we got at mattress firm. I'm sleeping as well as can be expected at this point in my pregnancy, so I'm just biding my time until Macy gets here and I can actually sleep comfortably again - INTERRUPTED - but comfortably.
Best Moment(s) this week: Let me just start by saying that bed rest SUCKS. It SUCKS SO BAD. Especially with a three year old who doesn't understand "Mommy needs to sit" and "Mommy can't hold you". Laying around is fun for about 13 and a half minutes until it gets really old and boring and you want to get up and move. That being said, I went to the doctor on Monday and got a good report. I'm still only 1cm dilated, and he said she's still sitting head down, really low. He also said I can start to move around a little more since we've made it to 35 weeks. If I start to feel the contractions acting up while I'm up moving around, then just sit back down and kick my feet up. I actually cleaned our room and helped put away dishes for the first time in 3 weeks and it's truly sad how amazing that felt. My doctor also said that he really has a good feeling about me being able to do this VBAC, so that made me feel really good too. I am just really hoping to go into labor on my own sometime after 36 weeks and push this baby out without a whole lot of intervention. Is that too much to ask?
Movement: Macy's favorite activity time is right around 10:30pm. You know, right when I'm trying to fall asleep every night. It's really super awesome. I remember Sam was active from like 3-4am so I'm not sure what's worse. Of course neither of my babies decided that 3-4pm was a super fun time to be active every day. The good news is, she moves a lot, which is always reassuring.
Food Cravings: I sound like a broken record - give me all of the cookies!!!!!!!!!!!
Symptoms: I texted one of my besties this week and said that I had forgotten how much I truly despise the end of pregnancy. There is really nothing appealing about it at all, except for the anticipation of meeting your new baby. I am unbelievably uncomfortable, I use a roll of toilet paper every day, I can't breathe, my back is killing me, my boobs are out of control, I still have that shooting pain/rash/freak weird thing going on under my left boob, and my feet are starting to not fit in my shoes. All I want is abottle glass of wine and an empty bladder.
What I Miss: Wine and an empty bladder, obviously. I also really miss being able to lay on my back for more than 15 seconds without feeling like I'm going to pass out. I also miss laying on my stomach, but mostly my back.
What I am Looking Forward to: Generally just not being pregnant anymore. I think I have reached the point where I can't really look forward to much because I feel like at any minute I could go into labor. I'm really more than anything just looking forward to meeting this sweet little babe.
Sam Tidbits: She just continues to melt my heart with her little sweetness. One morning this week she woke up when I walked into her room and the first thing she said was "I love you Mommy". She has started saying it unprompted on a fairly regular basis now, and I'm positive there is nothing sweeter in the world.
We have been trying to work on her Ls that sound like Ws, her lazy Rs, and her THs that sound like Fs. She is kind of getting the hang of it, saying "I la-la-la-love you". It's pretty cute. I am not really concerned that these things won't just kind of fizzle out and fix themselves as she grows, but I also think we have reached a point where we need to at least try to get her to say things correctly. I do want to get all of her cute misspoken words on video before she fixes them though!
I think she is really starting to understand that there is going to be a new baby soon. She asked me one day this week if Macy was coming out today. She seems pretty excited and she usually wants to give Macy a kiss (kiss my belly) when she gives me a kiss good morning or good-bye too.
I feel almost the exact same emotions I felt when I was at this point in my pregnancy with Sam. I was so ready to be done being pregnant, and so SO excited to meet our little girl, but also kind of sad. I was sad that our little family of 2 that we had learned how to make function so well, was not going to exist anymore. I feel the same way now. I am so SO excited to meet this little girl too, and to be a mom to not one, but TWO beautiful girls (how lucky am I?), but I'm also nervous and scared and anxious about such a big change. Parenting is hard and we have our challenges, but life is pretty cushy right now. Sam can do a lot of things on her own and we have our little routines that work. We know we have a solid hour or two of alone time every night when she goes to bed. We generally get to sleep the amount of hours we would prefer to sleep, and I haven't changed a diaper in almost a year! My how things are about to change! Just typing it all out is making me even more anxious. But regardless of the angst and the change and the nerves, I really truly can't wait to meet her, and to see Sam be a sister. My heart may explode just thinking about it.
Size of Peanut: A coconut - no wonder I can't breathe and I pee every 5 minutes...
Total Weight Gain: I am up to about 32 pounds now. After several weeks of no gain, I think my body finally changed all of its muscle to fat, and now I'm just adding more fat and poundage to myself. We'll just pretend all of those pounds are amniotic fluid and Macy's weight. I think I'm going to go with that. Losing baby weight is going to be so much fun!
Maternity Clothes: Most of the tops I've been wearing my entire pregnancy were not actual maternity tops, just loose fitting tops. They are no longer loose fitting, and basically look ridiculous on me now. Good thing I'm spending most of my time at home and nobody but Jake, Sam and my parents have to look at me on a regular basis.
Exercise: I really really miss exercising. I guess this is a good thing? Typically when I stop exercising it's because I've decided that eating cookies and watching TV is more exciting than going to the gym. Then I usually fall into a lazy routine where I don't do anything for several months and it's next to impossible for me to get back into a routine where exercise is part of my life again. Maybe this time feels different because I was told I wasn't allowed to exercise, and it wasn't something I decided on my own. I am so looking forward to being able to go for a long walk or a long run, or take a barre class again. The only bad thing is, I know how badly it's going to MAJORLY SUCK the first time. Yikes - but bring it on.
Sleep: We finally decided on a mattress. We tried a topper for the Helix and I was still not a fan, so we're sticking with the mattress we got at mattress firm. I'm sleeping as well as can be expected at this point in my pregnancy, so I'm just biding my time until Macy gets here and I can actually sleep comfortably again - INTERRUPTED - but comfortably.
Best Moment(s) this week: Let me just start by saying that bed rest SUCKS. It SUCKS SO BAD. Especially with a three year old who doesn't understand "Mommy needs to sit" and "Mommy can't hold you". Laying around is fun for about 13 and a half minutes until it gets really old and boring and you want to get up and move. That being said, I went to the doctor on Monday and got a good report. I'm still only 1cm dilated, and he said she's still sitting head down, really low. He also said I can start to move around a little more since we've made it to 35 weeks. If I start to feel the contractions acting up while I'm up moving around, then just sit back down and kick my feet up. I actually cleaned our room and helped put away dishes for the first time in 3 weeks and it's truly sad how amazing that felt. My doctor also said that he really has a good feeling about me being able to do this VBAC, so that made me feel really good too. I am just really hoping to go into labor on my own sometime after 36 weeks and push this baby out without a whole lot of intervention. Is that too much to ask?
Movement: Macy's favorite activity time is right around 10:30pm. You know, right when I'm trying to fall asleep every night. It's really super awesome. I remember Sam was active from like 3-4am so I'm not sure what's worse. Of course neither of my babies decided that 3-4pm was a super fun time to be active every day. The good news is, she moves a lot, which is always reassuring.
Food Cravings: I sound like a broken record - give me all of the cookies!!!!!!!!!!!
Symptoms: I texted one of my besties this week and said that I had forgotten how much I truly despise the end of pregnancy. There is really nothing appealing about it at all, except for the anticipation of meeting your new baby. I am unbelievably uncomfortable, I use a roll of toilet paper every day, I can't breathe, my back is killing me, my boobs are out of control, I still have that shooting pain/rash/freak weird thing going on under my left boob, and my feet are starting to not fit in my shoes. All I want is a
What I Miss: Wine and an empty bladder, obviously. I also really miss being able to lay on my back for more than 15 seconds without feeling like I'm going to pass out. I also miss laying on my stomach, but mostly my back.
What I am Looking Forward to: Generally just not being pregnant anymore. I think I have reached the point where I can't really look forward to much because I feel like at any minute I could go into labor. I'm really more than anything just looking forward to meeting this sweet little babe.
Sam Tidbits: She just continues to melt my heart with her little sweetness. One morning this week she woke up when I walked into her room and the first thing she said was "I love you Mommy". She has started saying it unprompted on a fairly regular basis now, and I'm positive there is nothing sweeter in the world.
We have been trying to work on her Ls that sound like Ws, her lazy Rs, and her THs that sound like Fs. She is kind of getting the hang of it, saying "I la-la-la-love you". It's pretty cute. I am not really concerned that these things won't just kind of fizzle out and fix themselves as she grows, but I also think we have reached a point where we need to at least try to get her to say things correctly. I do want to get all of her cute misspoken words on video before she fixes them though!
I think she is really starting to understand that there is going to be a new baby soon. She asked me one day this week if Macy was coming out today. She seems pretty excited and she usually wants to give Macy a kiss (kiss my belly) when she gives me a kiss good morning or good-bye too.
I feel almost the exact same emotions I felt when I was at this point in my pregnancy with Sam. I was so ready to be done being pregnant, and so SO excited to meet our little girl, but also kind of sad. I was sad that our little family of 2 that we had learned how to make function so well, was not going to exist anymore. I feel the same way now. I am so SO excited to meet this little girl too, and to be a mom to not one, but TWO beautiful girls (how lucky am I?), but I'm also nervous and scared and anxious about such a big change. Parenting is hard and we have our challenges, but life is pretty cushy right now. Sam can do a lot of things on her own and we have our little routines that work. We know we have a solid hour or two of alone time every night when she goes to bed. We generally get to sleep the amount of hours we would prefer to sleep, and I haven't changed a diaper in almost a year! My how things are about to change! Just typing it all out is making me even more anxious. But regardless of the angst and the change and the nerves, I really truly can't wait to meet her, and to see Sam be a sister. My heart may explode just thinking about it.
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Thirty-Four
How Far Along: 34 weeks - still cooking - wooo!! This was a big milestone goal for us, so now we are shooting for a March birthday. Just 2 more weeks!
Size of Peanut: We went to the doctor on Monday and had an ultrasound just to check on Macy's size and fluid levels. She is measuring a little bit small, but actually close to 50th percentile in weight - about 5 pounds! Her head is a little bit small, but still within normal range. This is all good news for my chances of a VBAC, which is really good at this point. So yay!
Total Weight Gain: I have only gained 2 pounds in the last 3 weeks, so I'm not really sure exactly what my total weight gain is at this point. If I use my arbitrary approximate weight from my old scale at my old house, I've gained about 28 pounds. I've been a little concerned at my lack of weight gain, but knowing now that Macy is a decent size pretty much just confirms that I haven't been gaining weight because all of the muscles I had worked so hard to maintain have completely turned to mush at this point. I probably couldn't do a push up if my life depended on it, and I get winded walking up the stairs. It's going to be a long road back to any sort of physical fitness. Oh well!
Maternity Clothes: I am officially working from home until I deliver, per doctor's orders, so I shouldn't really need to worry about any clothes getting too small from here on out. I will be lounging around in leggings, Jake's sweats, and oversize sweaters and super stretchy tops. My boobs are officially busting out of my already laughably huge bras, and that's only going to get worse. Cheers to looking like a slob for a solid 3 or 4 months! #mommyproblems
Size of Peanut: We went to the doctor on Monday and had an ultrasound just to check on Macy's size and fluid levels. She is measuring a little bit small, but actually close to 50th percentile in weight - about 5 pounds! Her head is a little bit small, but still within normal range. This is all good news for my chances of a VBAC, which is really good at this point. So yay!
Total Weight Gain: I have only gained 2 pounds in the last 3 weeks, so I'm not really sure exactly what my total weight gain is at this point. If I use my arbitrary approximate weight from my old scale at my old house, I've gained about 28 pounds. I've been a little concerned at my lack of weight gain, but knowing now that Macy is a decent size pretty much just confirms that I haven't been gaining weight because all of the muscles I had worked so hard to maintain have completely turned to mush at this point. I probably couldn't do a push up if my life depended on it, and I get winded walking up the stairs. It's going to be a long road back to any sort of physical fitness. Oh well!
Maternity Clothes: I am officially working from home until I deliver, per doctor's orders, so I shouldn't really need to worry about any clothes getting too small from here on out. I will be lounging around in leggings, Jake's sweats, and oversize sweaters and super stretchy tops. My boobs are officially busting out of my already laughably huge bras, and that's only going to get worse. Cheers to looking like a slob for a solid 3 or 4 months! #mommyproblems
Monday, February 15, 2016
Thirty-Three
How Far Along: 33 weeks (who ever thought I'd be throwing a party for STILL being pregnant?)
Size of Peanut: Okay - I'm done with this. What in God's name is a Durian fruit? Can "they" seriously not come up with something better than that? Baby is big and she's taking up all of my lung space - that's the size of peanut.
Total Weight Gain: I have gained about a half a pound in a matter of 2.5 weeks. So who really knows what in the heck is going on. As far as I'm concerned, I weigh less than I did when I delivered Sam. That's my gauge at this point, so I'm happy until I exceed that number.
Maternity Clothes: I don't think I've purchased anything else recently, and my clothes still fit. I was just thinking the other day about the last couple weeks of my pregnancy with Sam and how my work pants were TOO small but I kept wearing them anyway. And I worked full time then, so I would literally wear the same pants 5 days in a row without washing them so they would be nice and stretched and comfy by Friday. Then Monday they'd be clean and tight again and I'd be real unhappy camper. Haha. Good thing leggings and long shirts are more in style this time around. Elastic pants for the win!
Exercise: I didn't think it was possible for me to miss exercising as much as I do. I can say with 100% certainty now that the reason I was feeling so good a few weeks ago was because I was staying so active. My back is officially killing me and I feel like a big glob of goo. Perhaps the reason I have hardly gained any weight the last few weeks is because all of the muscle tone I had maintained has turned into donuts and ice cream?
Sleep: I think I have officially reached the point where I've accepted the fact that sleep is going to be a rare occurrence for me for the next 5-6 months. I have virtually no chance of getting a good night's sleep between now and delivery, and less than 0% chance of getting a good night's sleep once Macy is born. Since Sam was a fantastic sleeper, I am fully prepared for Macy to sleep terribly and cause Jake and me all kinds of sleeping grief. So...cheers to being a night owl until 2017!
Best Moment(s) this week: We finally met with our builder and the site supervisor to talk about our house! They were hoping to start bringing dirt to the lot this week to build up the valley that our house is going to sit on, but it snowed, so who knows if that's going to happen. The good news is, things are in motion now. And don't worry, I hate 2.5 donuts at our meeting after I had a full breakfast before I left my house!
Additionally, at this point, every day that I wake up and I'm still pregnant is the best moment of my week. I honestly never thought I'd be thinking that, but I wake up every day and thank the big man upstairs for keeping this baby cooking one more day. One more day in my belly means less time in the NICU and less chance of health problems down the road. So...cheers to being pregnant and miserable!
Movement: I think she has shifted slightly in my belly. Just last week I was feeling her kick me in the bottom part of the right side of my rib cage. I would legitimately put my hand right under my ribs and move her feet out from under my ribs because it was so uncomfortable. She seems to have straightened herself out and is now just kicking me and squirming in the center of my belly. I wish I had been taking better weekly pictures so I could see if there's any difference in the way my belly looks. Oh well - second child problems.
Food Cravings: I celebrated Fat Tuesday this week just like a pregnant lady should - with loads and loads of calories. I blame Macy - I need to fatten her up in case she really does come out early :)
Symptoms: My back is hurting a lot like it did during my pregnancy with Sam. I'm unsure if this is possibly back labor, or if it's our new mattress (highly possible), or if it's because my abdominal muscles, hamstrings, and glutes have gone to mush the last 10 days from not exercising. Regardless, it hurts and is super uncomfortable. I'm also breaking out all over my face like a 13 year old, which is super fun. I'm tired as F. My hips have started aching really badly, kind of just like a dull ache all day long. It feels like I need to stretch, but stretching doesn't help. My contractions have calmed down a lot since I have been on the prescription and taking it easy, but I still feel an enormous amount of pressure in my lower pelvis and I have a lot of cramping going on sporadically throughout the day. At my doctor's appointment he felt her head and said "wow she's sitting really low, do you feel a lot of pressure?" Yes, doc, I sure do. I pee every 5 minutes and worry every time I sneeze that she's just going to fall right on out (I have been holding the bottom of my belly every time I sneeze as if I'm going to be able to hold her in and keep her from falling out - ha). Pregnancy is so glamorous.
What I Miss: Weeks 12-19 of my pregnancy - before we knew about the SUA and before I was in pre-term labor. Yeah, I miss only worrying a little bit, rather than worrying a whole heck of a lot. I also miss sleeping.
And I miss my Callie girl, so, so much.
What I am Looking Forward to: It's kind of hard to look forward to stuff when you're really not supposed to be doing much of anything. As much as I want her to stay put in my uterus for as long as possible, I am really really looking forward to meeting this little bit and knowing that she is healthy and okay. I am a control freak and all of the unknowns are just plain killing me.
Doctor's Appointment: Since I'm going to be seeing my doctor every week until I deliver, I might as well jot down everything we learn at our appointments. My cervix is still closed, and my water is not leaking, which is good. He again said that he doesn't think I will be going into labor before next week, but he also doesn't have a crystal ball, so he prepares us for worst case scenario, which I appreciate. With the SUA being at play too, he said this is all kind of a balancing act from here on out. I'm going to have an ultrasound next Monday to check on growth and fluid levels. Each week they will just have to assess her growth and what my body is doing as far as labor is concerned and make a decision from there. He said I will be on the medicine until 36.5 weeks at which point they will take me off the medicine and let my body take it from there. He recommended that I either stop working or work from home for the rest of my pregnancy since my contractions seem to pick up when I am moving around too much. The hustle and bustle of getting everything ready in the morning definitely sends my body into contraction overload. I'm hoping that I can work from home to finish it out.
Size of Peanut: Okay - I'm done with this. What in God's name is a Durian fruit? Can "they" seriously not come up with something better than that? Baby is big and she's taking up all of my lung space - that's the size of peanut.
Total Weight Gain: I have gained about a half a pound in a matter of 2.5 weeks. So who really knows what in the heck is going on. As far as I'm concerned, I weigh less than I did when I delivered Sam. That's my gauge at this point, so I'm happy until I exceed that number.
Maternity Clothes: I don't think I've purchased anything else recently, and my clothes still fit. I was just thinking the other day about the last couple weeks of my pregnancy with Sam and how my work pants were TOO small but I kept wearing them anyway. And I worked full time then, so I would literally wear the same pants 5 days in a row without washing them so they would be nice and stretched and comfy by Friday. Then Monday they'd be clean and tight again and I'd be real unhappy camper. Haha. Good thing leggings and long shirts are more in style this time around. Elastic pants for the win!
Exercise: I didn't think it was possible for me to miss exercising as much as I do. I can say with 100% certainty now that the reason I was feeling so good a few weeks ago was because I was staying so active. My back is officially killing me and I feel like a big glob of goo. Perhaps the reason I have hardly gained any weight the last few weeks is because all of the muscle tone I had maintained has turned into donuts and ice cream?
Sleep: I think I have officially reached the point where I've accepted the fact that sleep is going to be a rare occurrence for me for the next 5-6 months. I have virtually no chance of getting a good night's sleep between now and delivery, and less than 0% chance of getting a good night's sleep once Macy is born. Since Sam was a fantastic sleeper, I am fully prepared for Macy to sleep terribly and cause Jake and me all kinds of sleeping grief. So...cheers to being a night owl until 2017!
Best Moment(s) this week: We finally met with our builder and the site supervisor to talk about our house! They were hoping to start bringing dirt to the lot this week to build up the valley that our house is going to sit on, but it snowed, so who knows if that's going to happen. The good news is, things are in motion now. And don't worry, I hate 2.5 donuts at our meeting after I had a full breakfast before I left my house!
Additionally, at this point, every day that I wake up and I'm still pregnant is the best moment of my week. I honestly never thought I'd be thinking that, but I wake up every day and thank the big man upstairs for keeping this baby cooking one more day. One more day in my belly means less time in the NICU and less chance of health problems down the road. So...cheers to being pregnant and miserable!
Movement: I think she has shifted slightly in my belly. Just last week I was feeling her kick me in the bottom part of the right side of my rib cage. I would legitimately put my hand right under my ribs and move her feet out from under my ribs because it was so uncomfortable. She seems to have straightened herself out and is now just kicking me and squirming in the center of my belly. I wish I had been taking better weekly pictures so I could see if there's any difference in the way my belly looks. Oh well - second child problems.
Food Cravings: I celebrated Fat Tuesday this week just like a pregnant lady should - with loads and loads of calories. I blame Macy - I need to fatten her up in case she really does come out early :)
Symptoms: My back is hurting a lot like it did during my pregnancy with Sam. I'm unsure if this is possibly back labor, or if it's our new mattress (highly possible), or if it's because my abdominal muscles, hamstrings, and glutes have gone to mush the last 10 days from not exercising. Regardless, it hurts and is super uncomfortable. I'm also breaking out all over my face like a 13 year old, which is super fun. I'm tired as F. My hips have started aching really badly, kind of just like a dull ache all day long. It feels like I need to stretch, but stretching doesn't help. My contractions have calmed down a lot since I have been on the prescription and taking it easy, but I still feel an enormous amount of pressure in my lower pelvis and I have a lot of cramping going on sporadically throughout the day. At my doctor's appointment he felt her head and said "wow she's sitting really low, do you feel a lot of pressure?" Yes, doc, I sure do. I pee every 5 minutes and worry every time I sneeze that she's just going to fall right on out (I have been holding the bottom of my belly every time I sneeze as if I'm going to be able to hold her in and keep her from falling out - ha). Pregnancy is so glamorous.
What I Miss: Weeks 12-19 of my pregnancy - before we knew about the SUA and before I was in pre-term labor. Yeah, I miss only worrying a little bit, rather than worrying a whole heck of a lot. I also miss sleeping.
And I miss my Callie girl, so, so much.
What I am Looking Forward to: It's kind of hard to look forward to stuff when you're really not supposed to be doing much of anything. As much as I want her to stay put in my uterus for as long as possible, I am really really looking forward to meeting this little bit and knowing that she is healthy and okay. I am a control freak and all of the unknowns are just plain killing me.
Doctor's Appointment: Since I'm going to be seeing my doctor every week until I deliver, I might as well jot down everything we learn at our appointments. My cervix is still closed, and my water is not leaking, which is good. He again said that he doesn't think I will be going into labor before next week, but he also doesn't have a crystal ball, so he prepares us for worst case scenario, which I appreciate. With the SUA being at play too, he said this is all kind of a balancing act from here on out. I'm going to have an ultrasound next Monday to check on growth and fluid levels. Each week they will just have to assess her growth and what my body is doing as far as labor is concerned and make a decision from there. He said I will be on the medicine until 36.5 weeks at which point they will take me off the medicine and let my body take it from there. He recommended that I either stop working or work from home for the rest of my pregnancy since my contractions seem to pick up when I am moving around too much. The hustle and bustle of getting everything ready in the morning definitely sends my body into contraction overload. I'm hoping that I can work from home to finish it out.
Thursday, February 4, 2016
Thirty-Two
I have to admit that I usually spend several days throughout the week working on my post for the week. I find it easier to do it this way, rather than sitting down and spending a large chunk of time on one post for the week. Typically I spend some time on Monday, maybe a little more on Tuesday or Wednesday, and then I spend Thursday reading over everything, reflecting on my past week, and making sure there aren't any god-forsaken grammatical or spelling errors. This week I wrote a large chunk of this post on Monday, then we went to the doctor on Tuesday and things changed a lot. If something doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you, right?
I think I may have mentioned this in a post when we first found out I was pregnant - but life really is one big ironic a-hole sometimes, isn't it? Spend 8 months trying to get pregnant, and then 10 days later find out your dog is inevitably going to die? Spend 8 months whining and complaining about being pregnant, only to find out that you're at risk of delivering your baby early - like way too early.
Here I am again at this place where I don't have earth-shattering, life-changing, devastatingly horrible news, but I do have news that's just not what you want to hear. If it's true that God doesn't give you anything you can't handle, he must think Jake and I are Olympic triathletes, because I've had about enough not-so-great news trying to have another healthy baby to last me for the next few years.
As I mentioned last week, I have been having a lot of cramping and pressure in my lower abdomen. I don't really remember this at all with Sam, so obviously I mentioned it to my doctor at my appointment on Tuesday. I guess my 32 week appointment was scheduled to include a vaginal exam anyway, but because of my symptoms (which I now know were most likely actual contractions) he decided that it would be good idea to do a fetal fibronectin test to test for pre-term labor. This tests for presence of the protein that holds your baby in place in your uterus. If the test is positive, it means that you are at a higher risk of going into labor soon (my doctor said "in the next 3 weeks"). The thing about this test is that there are false positives, meaning that it doesn't mean if you test positive you are definitely going into labor in the next few weeks, it just means your body is leaking fFn, and is a sign that your body may be getting ready to deliver. My test was positive. My doctor told me that he really doesn't think that I will go into labor within the next week. My cervix is "softer than it should be at 32 weeks" and I quote "he can see my mucus plug" (is there a grosser phrase in the English language?), but I'm not dilated at all.
The net of this is that I'm on a prescription to help stop the contractions. I've been on it since Tuesday and I can definitely tell that they have slowed down significantly. I've also been put on what I would call a modified bed rest. He told me I need to take it easy, stop exercising (wah), and lay off the household chores (darn!). If you know me at all, you know that sitting still is not exactly in my DNA (thanks Dad!). My genes + a 3 year old are probably going to make "taking it easy" a relatively difficult task. So thank goodness for parents as roommates right now - a super Poppy to play with Sam and a super GG to make dinner every night. If not for them, I don't really know how our house would be functioning right now!
After 8 months of trying to get pregnant with this little booger, a trimester of morning sickness, an umbilical cord abnormality, and possible pre-term labor, it seems like this little lady is going to be quite the handful. I guess the good news in all of this is that if I go into labor on my own a little bit early, she will probably be a little bit smaller than your run of the mill full term baby, so I'll probably be able to have a vaginal birth. If she comes early, we'll get to enjoy her for a little longer than we would if she comes late. And lastly, my sciatic pain will be gone sooner rather than later (I'm kidding but not). On the other hand, the bad news is the thought of her coming any time before 36 weeks scares the absolute crap out of me. I'd suffer through 1,000 weeks of pregnancy again if I could guarantee this little babe comes out healthy and not in need of extraordinary care.
So Macy, I know I said I was "over it", but if you could do mommy a favor and keep your cute little tushy put right here inside my uterus for at least another 3 or 4 weeks, that would be fantastic. I know you really want to meet your sister - she's pretty hilarious and cute - and I know you really want to meet Mommy and Daddy - we try really hard to be good parents - but if you stay put (and even if you don't), we promise to spoil you with more love than you can imagine, and also a whole lot of hair bows.
On to the original post...
How Far Along: 32 Weeks
Size of Peanut: Squash. Okay - so the weight estimate of this baby has not increased at all on thebump.com for like 4 weeks. Maybe Macy isn't that small after all?
Total Weight Gain: According to my scale at home, I have only gained a half a pound since January 24th. As much as I obviously don't want to gain any more weight at this point (specifically in my ass and thighs), I'm pretty sure NOT gaining any weight at this juncture is not a good thing for Macy. Although highly unlikely, hopefully my bottom half is shrinking while she continues to grow. That's the only logical explanation for this odd weight gain at this point, right?
Maternity Clothes: Most everything still fits at this point. My wardrobe is pretty pitiful. I wear the same things over and over again. I'm really ready to have my entire wardrobe back at my disposal.
Exercise: Still doing well in this department. Usually the hour I spend exercising and stretching is the most comfortable hour of my day. I can no longer lay on my back without feeling like I'm going to pass out after about 15 seconds, so I'm having to modify any exercise that would constitute me doing that. I'm really hoping to keep this up until the very end. A girl at my gym at work was at the gym 3 days before her due date this week, so here's hoping I can do the same thing!
HA! Well, I wrote this snippet on Monday and went to the doctor on Tuesday and got some new information, so I guess I jinxed myself.
*My thoughts on not being able to exercise: I know I sound like one of those douchey a-holes who is like "woo I love working out look at me posting on Facebook about it and checking in to some gym every 5 seconds and look how healthy I am. But here's the thing - I actually really do love working out. I love sweating. I love running. I love feeling like my arms and legs are going to give out. I love pushing it just a little bit harder. To say I am really sad about having to give that up for 3 or 4 months would be an understatement. It's a stress reliever for me. It's how I spend my lunch break at work. I really hope I don't turn into some endorphin-less jerk with no energy while I sit my happy ass on a couch for the next few months and do nothing!
Sleep: What a joke. We got our second "bed in a box" mattress about 3 weeks ago. Jake and I both absolutely hated it even more than the other one. It was SO firm and just plain not comfortable. Even though we ended up spending pretty significantly more than we planned on spending when we first bought the Leesa mattress 3 months ago, I think we finally found one at Mattress Firm that will do the trick. The mattress itself is SO THICK that I think we are going to need to change the frame that it's sitting on, at least for the remainder of my pregnancy and recovery after birth (it's like climbing Everest to get into my bed). Fingers crossed that we continue to like it going forward.
Movement: Macy babe continues to be super active throughout most of the day. I do feel her in the middle of the night sometimes. Although it's relatively irritating to be woken up in the middle of the night, chances are I am changing positions or getting up to pee anyway, so usually her movement at 3am just serves as a reminder that all is well and good in there and she's just stretching her little cramped self out.
Food Cravings: Still just allll the sugar, allll the time. On Tuesday I asked Jake to get me a hot fudge sundae from Frisch's, and those asshats were out of ice cream. How can you be OUT OF ICE CREAM? Instead he went to Graeter's and brought it home to me where I proceeded to eat half of the pint. Since I didn't get my hot fudge fix, I made him stop on his way home from running group (cruel, I know) and see if Frisch's had ice cream back in stock (fools). Lucky for me, they did. I wonder what kind of sweet treats I can stuff myself with for the rest of the week??
What I Miss: Only waking up to pee ONCE every night, rather than 2, 3, or 4 times. Lofty goals, right?
What I am Looking Forward to: We are finally, I repeat FINALLY, closing on our construction loan on Friday and having our final pre-construction meeting with the builder. I could not be more excited. I love my parents, and I'm so grateful that they have room for us to be there (and given my current circumstances, it could not be better timing), but I am looking forward to having my own space again! I really hope we break ground in the next few weeks. I'm also looking forward to showering my sister-in-law with love and gifts on Sunday at her bridal shower! She is going to be a beautiful bride, and she deserves all the happiness in the world!
Symptoms: Well...contractions, cramping, abdominal pressure. Oh, and back pain, sciatic pain, frequent urination, headaches, huge boobs, and sleeplessness.
Best Moment(s) this week: Tuesday was a rough night for us, trying to process and make sense of all the "what-ifs", and I was a little nervous about Wednesday being home with Sam and taking it easy. The one thing about Wednesday though, is that I get to pick Sam up from preschool. This is one thing I look forward to each week more than anything. Kelle Hampton said something in one of her posts the other day about preschool pick up that I could not say better myself. This week, picking my sweet girl up from preschool was one of my best moments, so I wanted to leave this right here for me to remember forever, because it's oh so very true.
Sam Tidbits:
Sam got a black eye this weekend. She is a trooper and doesn't really seem to care about it. No, I don't beat my child, she fell off a chair at the dinner table. And yes, I've told her 1,469,354 times to stop squirming in her chair while she eats. She's so beautiful, even with that nasty bruise.
I think I may have mentioned this in a post when we first found out I was pregnant - but life really is one big ironic a-hole sometimes, isn't it? Spend 8 months trying to get pregnant, and then 10 days later find out your dog is inevitably going to die? Spend 8 months whining and complaining about being pregnant, only to find out that you're at risk of delivering your baby early - like way too early.
Here I am again at this place where I don't have earth-shattering, life-changing, devastatingly horrible news, but I do have news that's just not what you want to hear. If it's true that God doesn't give you anything you can't handle, he must think Jake and I are Olympic triathletes, because I've had about enough not-so-great news trying to have another healthy baby to last me for the next few years.
As I mentioned last week, I have been having a lot of cramping and pressure in my lower abdomen. I don't really remember this at all with Sam, so obviously I mentioned it to my doctor at my appointment on Tuesday. I guess my 32 week appointment was scheduled to include a vaginal exam anyway, but because of my symptoms (which I now know were most likely actual contractions) he decided that it would be good idea to do a fetal fibronectin test to test for pre-term labor. This tests for presence of the protein that holds your baby in place in your uterus. If the test is positive, it means that you are at a higher risk of going into labor soon (my doctor said "in the next 3 weeks"). The thing about this test is that there are false positives, meaning that it doesn't mean if you test positive you are definitely going into labor in the next few weeks, it just means your body is leaking fFn, and is a sign that your body may be getting ready to deliver. My test was positive. My doctor told me that he really doesn't think that I will go into labor within the next week. My cervix is "softer than it should be at 32 weeks" and I quote "he can see my mucus plug" (is there a grosser phrase in the English language?), but I'm not dilated at all.
The net of this is that I'm on a prescription to help stop the contractions. I've been on it since Tuesday and I can definitely tell that they have slowed down significantly. I've also been put on what I would call a modified bed rest. He told me I need to take it easy, stop exercising (wah), and lay off the household chores (darn!). If you know me at all, you know that sitting still is not exactly in my DNA (thanks Dad!). My genes + a 3 year old are probably going to make "taking it easy" a relatively difficult task. So thank goodness for parents as roommates right now - a super Poppy to play with Sam and a super GG to make dinner every night. If not for them, I don't really know how our house would be functioning right now!
After 8 months of trying to get pregnant with this little booger, a trimester of morning sickness, an umbilical cord abnormality, and possible pre-term labor, it seems like this little lady is going to be quite the handful. I guess the good news in all of this is that if I go into labor on my own a little bit early, she will probably be a little bit smaller than your run of the mill full term baby, so I'll probably be able to have a vaginal birth. If she comes early, we'll get to enjoy her for a little longer than we would if she comes late. And lastly, my sciatic pain will be gone sooner rather than later (I'm kidding but not). On the other hand, the bad news is the thought of her coming any time before 36 weeks scares the absolute crap out of me. I'd suffer through 1,000 weeks of pregnancy again if I could guarantee this little babe comes out healthy and not in need of extraordinary care.
So Macy, I know I said I was "over it", but if you could do mommy a favor and keep your cute little tushy put right here inside my uterus for at least another 3 or 4 weeks, that would be fantastic. I know you really want to meet your sister - she's pretty hilarious and cute - and I know you really want to meet Mommy and Daddy - we try really hard to be good parents - but if you stay put (and even if you don't), we promise to spoil you with more love than you can imagine, and also a whole lot of hair bows.
On to the original post...
How Far Along: 32 Weeks
Size of Peanut: Squash. Okay - so the weight estimate of this baby has not increased at all on thebump.com for like 4 weeks. Maybe Macy isn't that small after all?
Total Weight Gain: According to my scale at home, I have only gained a half a pound since January 24th. As much as I obviously don't want to gain any more weight at this point (specifically in my ass and thighs), I'm pretty sure NOT gaining any weight at this juncture is not a good thing for Macy. Although highly unlikely, hopefully my bottom half is shrinking while she continues to grow. That's the only logical explanation for this odd weight gain at this point, right?
Maternity Clothes: Most everything still fits at this point. My wardrobe is pretty pitiful. I wear the same things over and over again. I'm really ready to have my entire wardrobe back at my disposal.
Exercise: Still doing well in this department. Usually the hour I spend exercising and stretching is the most comfortable hour of my day. I can no longer lay on my back without feeling like I'm going to pass out after about 15 seconds, so I'm having to modify any exercise that would constitute me doing that. I'm really hoping to keep this up until the very end. A girl at my gym at work was at the gym 3 days before her due date this week, so here's hoping I can do the same thing!
HA! Well, I wrote this snippet on Monday and went to the doctor on Tuesday and got some new information, so I guess I jinxed myself.
*My thoughts on not being able to exercise: I know I sound like one of those douchey a-holes who is like "woo I love working out look at me posting on Facebook about it and checking in to some gym every 5 seconds and look how healthy I am. But here's the thing - I actually really do love working out. I love sweating. I love running. I love feeling like my arms and legs are going to give out. I love pushing it just a little bit harder. To say I am really sad about having to give that up for 3 or 4 months would be an understatement. It's a stress reliever for me. It's how I spend my lunch break at work. I really hope I don't turn into some endorphin-less jerk with no energy while I sit my happy ass on a couch for the next few months and do nothing!
Sleep: What a joke. We got our second "bed in a box" mattress about 3 weeks ago. Jake and I both absolutely hated it even more than the other one. It was SO firm and just plain not comfortable. Even though we ended up spending pretty significantly more than we planned on spending when we first bought the Leesa mattress 3 months ago, I think we finally found one at Mattress Firm that will do the trick. The mattress itself is SO THICK that I think we are going to need to change the frame that it's sitting on, at least for the remainder of my pregnancy and recovery after birth (it's like climbing Everest to get into my bed). Fingers crossed that we continue to like it going forward.
Movement: Macy babe continues to be super active throughout most of the day. I do feel her in the middle of the night sometimes. Although it's relatively irritating to be woken up in the middle of the night, chances are I am changing positions or getting up to pee anyway, so usually her movement at 3am just serves as a reminder that all is well and good in there and she's just stretching her little cramped self out.
Food Cravings: Still just allll the sugar, allll the time. On Tuesday I asked Jake to get me a hot fudge sundae from Frisch's, and those asshats were out of ice cream. How can you be OUT OF ICE CREAM? Instead he went to Graeter's and brought it home to me where I proceeded to eat half of the pint. Since I didn't get my hot fudge fix, I made him stop on his way home from running group (cruel, I know) and see if Frisch's had ice cream back in stock (fools). Lucky for me, they did. I wonder what kind of sweet treats I can stuff myself with for the rest of the week??
What I Miss: Only waking up to pee ONCE every night, rather than 2, 3, or 4 times. Lofty goals, right?
What I am Looking Forward to: We are finally, I repeat FINALLY, closing on our construction loan on Friday and having our final pre-construction meeting with the builder. I could not be more excited. I love my parents, and I'm so grateful that they have room for us to be there (and given my current circumstances, it could not be better timing), but I am looking forward to having my own space again! I really hope we break ground in the next few weeks. I'm also looking forward to showering my sister-in-law with love and gifts on Sunday at her bridal shower! She is going to be a beautiful bride, and she deserves all the happiness in the world!
Symptoms: Well...contractions, cramping, abdominal pressure. Oh, and back pain, sciatic pain, frequent urination, headaches, huge boobs, and sleeplessness.
Best Moment(s) this week: Tuesday was a rough night for us, trying to process and make sense of all the "what-ifs", and I was a little nervous about Wednesday being home with Sam and taking it easy. The one thing about Wednesday though, is that I get to pick Sam up from preschool. This is one thing I look forward to each week more than anything. Kelle Hampton said something in one of her posts the other day about preschool pick up that I could not say better myself. This week, picking my sweet girl up from preschool was one of my best moments, so I wanted to leave this right here for me to remember forever, because it's oh so very true.
@etst: Can we talk about preschool pick-up for a minute? It's one of my favorite moments of the day. No matter how quick that pick-up time comes, no matter how much I failed to get done before I have to leave, I roll up in that pick-up line, catch sight of them standing with their teacher waiting for me, and my heart flutters. Every. Damn. Time. The look on their faces when they see me. I park the car, open the door, run out to greet them and for one tiny second, I can't breathe. That hug. That "Mommy!". How lucky to experience that moment over and over and over.
Sam Tidbits:
Sam got a black eye this weekend. She is a trooper and doesn't really seem to care about it. No, I don't beat my child, she fell off a chair at the dinner table. And yes, I've told her 1,469,354 times to stop squirming in her chair while she eats. She's so beautiful, even with that nasty bruise.
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Thirty-One
How Far Along: 31 weeks (I'd love to jump up and yell "HALLELUJAH", but 9 weeks is a long-ass time). At least we are in single digit weeks left now!
Size of Peanut: So we're back to pineapple now? Either thebump.com is crazy, or I don't know how to read...
Total Weight Gain: I was about a pound heavier on my scale at home than I was at the doctor's office 2 weeks ago. Seeing as I have no idea what my weight ever was on that scale at home (other than my wedding day weight 8 years ago since I was still living at home then), I really have no clue what my weight gain was this week. However, now I have a baseline to keep this ass in check for the next 9 weeks.
Maternity Clothes: Not maternity clothes per se, but I went ahead and ordered a post-partum waist support band for after delivery. I wanted it to be here and not have to worry about it once Macy is born, so I figured I might as well go ahead and get it. Talk about overwhelming amounts of information - there are about 4,000 waist support bands to choose from to help with recovery after birth (and most especially c-sections). I used the one the hospital gave me after I had Sam, but based on everything I've read, it seems the ones you can purchase independently are more supportive and effective. The one from the hospital definitely helped me feel better in my midsection after I had Sam, but it gave me a rash on my stomach so I had to wear a tank under it every time I wore it, and it stretched out so much the first couple of weeks that I hardly felt like it did much after that. I'm hoping this one I ordered will help with support if I do have to have a c-section again. And even if I don't, I'm hoping it will help with posture/back support and getting my stomach and organs back in order after pushing this baby out!
I also bought some bigger underwear so I don't wake up in the morning with indentations from them being too small. It's okay to laugh - it's funny that my ass is so big I had to buy bigger panties :)
Size of Peanut: So we're back to pineapple now? Either thebump.com is crazy, or I don't know how to read...
Total Weight Gain: I was about a pound heavier on my scale at home than I was at the doctor's office 2 weeks ago. Seeing as I have no idea what my weight ever was on that scale at home (other than my wedding day weight 8 years ago since I was still living at home then), I really have no clue what my weight gain was this week. However, now I have a baseline to keep this ass in check for the next 9 weeks.
Maternity Clothes: Not maternity clothes per se, but I went ahead and ordered a post-partum waist support band for after delivery. I wanted it to be here and not have to worry about it once Macy is born, so I figured I might as well go ahead and get it. Talk about overwhelming amounts of information - there are about 4,000 waist support bands to choose from to help with recovery after birth (and most especially c-sections). I used the one the hospital gave me after I had Sam, but based on everything I've read, it seems the ones you can purchase independently are more supportive and effective. The one from the hospital definitely helped me feel better in my midsection after I had Sam, but it gave me a rash on my stomach so I had to wear a tank under it every time I wore it, and it stretched out so much the first couple of weeks that I hardly felt like it did much after that. I'm hoping this one I ordered will help with support if I do have to have a c-section again. And even if I don't, I'm hoping it will help with posture/back support and getting my stomach and organs back in order after pushing this baby out!
I also bought some bigger underwear so I don't wake up in the morning with indentations from them being too small. It's okay to laugh - it's funny that my ass is so big I had to buy bigger panties :)
Thursday, January 21, 2016
THIRTY
How Far Along: 30 weeks! Officially out of the 20s and into the 30s, which means less than 10 weeks of this garbage remains!
Size of Peanut: A cucumber. These fruits and vegetables are so bogus. I have never seen a cucumber bigger than a pineapple. If she has shrunk since last week, we have a serious problem on our hands.
Total Weight Gain: I think I may start weighing myself at home these last 2 months so I don't let things get completely out of control as I begin to get more and more uncomfortable and feel more and more like a heifer. Maybe I'll have an update next week.
Maternity Clothes: I believe that's two weeks in a row of no shopping. I think that probably warrants some kind of award. In other news - my ass has gotten so big that my underwear no longer fits properly. I have begun to get that tingling feeling you get when your clothes underwear cuts off your circulation and makes huge red indentations in your skin because it's too tight. Maybe new extra large skivvies should be next on my list of things to buy, HA!
Size of Peanut: A cucumber. These fruits and vegetables are so bogus. I have never seen a cucumber bigger than a pineapple. If she has shrunk since last week, we have a serious problem on our hands.
Total Weight Gain: I think I may start weighing myself at home these last 2 months so I don't let things get completely out of control as I begin to get more and more uncomfortable and feel more and more like a heifer. Maybe I'll have an update next week.
Maternity Clothes: I believe that's two weeks in a row of no shopping. I think that probably warrants some kind of award. In other news - my ass has gotten so big that my underwear no longer fits properly. I have begun to get that tingling feeling you get when your
to VBAC or not to VBAC?
I'm not really one of those people that buys into the whole natural child birth phenomenon that's going on right now. Yes, I do think sometimes there are medical interventions taken that probably aren't 100% necessary, but can you really blame doctors for doing so in this lawsuit happy society? I am all about give me the drugs to push this baby out so I don't have to actually feel how bad this hurts. I have nothing against those who decide to go au naturale at a hospital, or birth into a tub at their house (okay I lied - I actually do think that latter option is pretty weird), but it's just not my cup of tea.
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Twenty-Nine
How Far Along: Twenty-Nine Weeks
Size of Peanut: Acorn squash. At my ultrasound on Sunday the tech said Macy weighs about 2.5 pounds. According to thebump.com - average weight at this point is 2.5-3.8 pounds, so we have another little itty bitty teeny weeny baby on our hands again.
Total Weight Gain: I gained 6 pounds since my last appointment (not surprising considering birthday/birthday/Christmas/birthday/New Years). That puts me at 19 total. Considering I was up to a 26 pound gain at 29 weeks last time, I feel okay about that number. The number on the scale is a number I never, ever, EVER want to see again, but I think that at this pace I will probably gain a lot less than I did last time. I'll take any small wins I can get.
Maternity Clothes: I think I didn't buy anything this past week? Is that another win? I'll be right back, shopaholics anonymous is calling...
Size of Peanut: Acorn squash. At my ultrasound on Sunday the tech said Macy weighs about 2.5 pounds. According to thebump.com - average weight at this point is 2.5-3.8 pounds, so we have another little itty bitty teeny weeny baby on our hands again.
Total Weight Gain: I gained 6 pounds since my last appointment (not surprising considering birthday/birthday/Christmas/birthday/New Years). That puts me at 19 total. Considering I was up to a 26 pound gain at 29 weeks last time, I feel okay about that number. The number on the scale is a number I never, ever, EVER want to see again, but I think that at this pace I will probably gain a lot less than I did last time. I'll take any small wins I can get.
Maternity Clothes: I think I didn't buy anything this past week? Is that another win? I'll be right back, shopaholics anonymous is calling...
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Twenty-Eight
Picking up again after a Christmas hiatus...
How Far Along: Twenty Eight Weeks (THIRD TRIMESTER WOOT WOOT)
Size of Peanut: Eggplant...
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