New Year's Eve = Big News

I'm going in tonight to start being induced!!!!

My peri appt was this morning and to no surprise my bp was 152/108. I was 1cm dilated and 80% effaced. I was sent for another NST. They found 1+ protein in my urine and decided it was time to get this baby out!

I'm going back at 7 pm tonight and they will put cervidel (sp?) on my cervix to get it dilated even more. Then tomorrow, if I don't start labor on my own, they'll start me on pitocin. We're hoping for a speedy delivery (obviously) which would give us a New Year's Day Baby!!!! My brother's bday is today so we'll have this holiday surrounded. And plus, New Year's Day is sweetie pie Katie's (of The Happy Hours) birthday and I'm sure she wouldn't mind sharing it with EJ :)

So send me all the quick-delivery vibes you can spare!!!

In case you're wondering how I'm doing...I'm excited, happy, nervous, scared, nauseous, etc. all rolled up into one.

I just hope it doesn't hurt too much (LMAO)!

I'm too impatient for this.

My NST started out as the others...blood pressure 160/106 and protein in my urine. I had the blood draw, new IV put in, lying on my left side, yada yada yada. After two hours my blood pressure was normal and my blood work all came back ok. So they sent me home and back on strict bed rest. My next peri appt is Wed (New Year's Eve) and I'm hoping to get some answers from her. I am losing my mind and getting very stressed and I need her to put my mind at ease that my high bp isn't harming EJ in anyway.

Oh, and before I left L&D, the nurse said to take it easy to avoid any seizures with my blood pressures spiking high so much...um, way to freak out a hugely pregnant lady!!! LOL.

So now I'm off to bed. Well, at least until I have to pee again in 40 minutes :)

But please leave your comments and let me know what is going on in the outside world!!

Laughing out loud

I love your comments about the penis-shaped hat! So, for fear that Kristin would kidnap EJ, I promise you all I will not let him wear such a thing! Although, the "willie warmer" sounds great. LOL.

Lisa, bed rest is getting a bit boring, but it could be worse. I could be stuck in the hospital on bed rest. The worst part is having to stay on my left side. After a while, my leg gets numb and I want to roll over. Being on my back makes my bp go up, so it makes me nauseous. And being on my right just isn't the best place to be. So, I whine a little to Ed about it, but overall I'm doing ok. I am just so anxious to get EJ out here.

I have another NST today and I'll let you all know how it goes. I would love to hear the nurse say the magic word "INDUCTION"!!!

More on the hat situation

Some of you who read Newt's and Katie's blogs may have seen a bit of conversation about an "I have a penis hat". Well, I told Ed about said hat and this was his reply...

"Hell, I'd let him wear a hat in the SHAPE of a penis!"

You could just feel the testosterone oozing out of him while he said that. LOL.

Send off the fireworks

I am...

FULL TERM!!!!!!!!!!!



Ok, back to the couch for more bed rest.

"Strict" Bed Rest

My NST was yesterday and we did not pass with flying colors. Well, I didn't, but EJ did. His heart rate and movements were great! I, on the other hand, was a disaster. My first blood pressure reading was 163/106. Seriously. The nurse almost admitted me immediately. She rolled me to my left side and it went down to 142/103...improving slightly. Then it settled around 136/94...at least the bottom was under 100 at this point. And I had trace protein in my urine, so the dr was called. She ordered all the blood work necessary.

In the meantime, I was given apple juice and told to try to relax. My bp ended up going all the way down to 118/67. AMAZING! I was there for two hours in total and I was a nervous wreck the whole time they were going to admit me for hospital bed rest. In the end my blood work came back great so I was sent home with the orders of "strict bed rest".

And that means no Christmas for me. Ed and I will just stay at home and watch the "Christmas Story" marathon. I'm pretty bummed as this is my favorite day of the year, but I have to do what is best for me and my little nugget.

Christmas Eve Ed will run over to my parents' house and pack up some dinner for us and I think he's going to make Christmas dinner for the two of us. I can only imagine what the kitchen will look like when he's done. He's one of those "chefs" that has to dirty every single pot and pan while making a meal and the floor is never able to remain clean. It someone always gets sticky. LOL. But I love him for trying so hard. I guess a nice quiet Christmas would be good. I can only imagine how crazy next Christmas will be with EJ and my new niece around.

And at least I don't have to share my Christmas cookies with anyone :)

I have an appt with my peri tomorrow (Christmas Eve) and I have a ton of questions for her. Hopefully she has the right answers for me.

L&D, Take 5 = Bed Rest for Me

TMI Warning

I woke up Saturday morning feeling perfectly fine. I put bread in the toaster and went to the bathroom. Yikes. I was bleeding A LOT. It was bright red and very new blood. I was almost frozen with fear. I cleaned up the best I could and went to tell Ed. I could barely get the words out of my mouth...we have to go to the hospital now...bright red blood...lots of it.

I called the on-call OB to let them know we were coming and she sounded a bit alarmed by my description. As soon as we got to L&D I was hooked up for an NST, and EJ's heart sounded great. Big exhale. Then the dr. did an interal - holy hell why does that hurt so much?? Actually, it's not really "pain", it's more "pressure". But still, VERY uncomfy. She got a concerned look on her face and had the nurse squat down to see too. Nothing more pleasant than two people staring up your girlie parts with quizzical looks on their faces. She said the blood was not coming from my uterus, thank goodness, but it was from the surface of my cervix. And it was pouring out. She had giant q-tip looking things and she was soaking up the blood with like three of them at a time. She had the nurse get some magical clotting solution. It looks like gross brown mustard, but it worked in a heartbeat.

I stayed hooked up for about three more hours and EJ was doing excellent so we decided he was staying put for the time being. My blood pressure was through the roof, but my blood work came back ok, so another signal that he could stay in there for now. I've been ordered to be on bed rest until further notice. I have another NST today so my fingers are crossed he's still doing well and my blood pressure can chill out a bit. I'll have to ask at what point they decide to induce/do a c-section if my blood pressure gets too crazy. I can't imagine having high blood pressure during labor is anything desirable. LOL.

Needless to say, I'm a nervous wreck.

I <3 Mr. Sandman

I have been having a terrible time sleeping at night. Heartburn pesters me all night and it never really seems to go away totally. I try to sleep sitting up, but inevitably, my body slides down to try and get comfy. After the past week of waking every 40-60 minutes at night, all night long, I knew I had to try something different.

So I slept on the couch.

And I slept all night.

I didn't even get up to pee!!!!!

Can you believe that, Internet world???

I slept SOLID from 11:30pm to 6:30am.

And the only thing that woke me up was the stupid light that is on a timer. Lesson learned...I will unplug that darn light tonight! I feel so refreshed it's amazing. Jimmy did keep me company, so with the two of us and all of my pillows and blankets there was no room for rolling around. I woke up in the exact position I fell asleep. Now that's being a sound sleeper :) I've got so much energy today I don't know what I'll do with myself. Oooohhh...I know...I'll bake some Christmas cookies :)

Weekend Recap

Early last week my godmother passed away. She was one of my Mom's oldest and dearest friends and we called them family (she was "aunt", he was "uncle" and their kids were "cousins"). She was only 59. She and my Mom always felt a silly connection as they shared the same birthday and wedding anniversary (same days and years). She suffered from COPD for a few years and yet continued to smoke a pack of cigarettes daily. Her doctor said that was her death sentence. She was also on pain medicine for a recent back surgery and her body just couldn't handle all the stress and her organs started to shut down the day before Thanksgiving. She had been in a coma since then until she passed peacefully in her sleep last Monday night. The funeral was Saturday morning and it was very difficult. She has four grandchildren (and one more on the way) and they're old enough to know what's going on so it is always so hard to see children so upset. She was one of those people whose sense of humor was very sarcastic, but I found her hilarious and I will miss her greatly. I'm so sad she won't get to meet EJ. She'd said countless prayers over the past three years for us and she was so excited that things were going so well this time. Hopefully she'll be smiling down on us when EJ makes his grand entrance :)

In lighter news...Ed and I hosted his family's Christmas party this Saturday afternoon. There were about 35 adults and 15 kids so we had a pretty packed house. My Dad came dressed as Santa and the kids just about lost their minds with excitement. I can't wait for those Christmases with EJ!! The food was great and everyone was in the Holiday Spirit so I'd like to say the party was a success...thanks in huge part to Ed for all of his cleaning and decorating to get the house ready. The house looked amazing with Christmas touches everywhere. I love a home all decorated for the holidays!

We then spent just about all day yesterday napping and watching movies. I was exhausted and I'm still a bit tired today. I'll slowly get everything cleaned up but I don't want to overdue it. My body feels increasingly heavy and with sporadic contractions I'm trying to rest as much as I can to keep those contrax at bay.

Five more weeks to go...only 2 more till I'm full term...hang on little man!!!

Labor & Delivery, Take 4

I feel like the girl who cried wolf. I had my FOURTH trip to L&D Saturday night.

Since I'm on Lovenox, the OB's are pretty adamant about doing kick counts every day. I noticed on Saturday that EJ wasn't moving around much at all, nowhere near his 10 kicks during an hour. I would poke and shake him like I normally do, and he wouldn't react with his normal tap dance. So I called the on-call OB and he told me to get right to L&D...immediately. Ed was hunting two states away with his BIL so my Dad took me to the hospital. My Mom had to stay home since my niece and nephew were spending the night.

The nurse hooked me up to start my NST and we immediately heard EJ's heartbeat. PHEW. I stayed there for about 2.5 hours and had 2 contractions while I was there. I can't believe we're getting close enough that I'm having actual contrax!! This is just crazy!

We also heard tons of kicks, which I couldn't feel. The nurse felt my belly and we believe EJ is facing backwards so that makes it less likely for me to feel him kicking. That makes total sense. My blood pressure was through the roof and I had some protein in my urine. That's a sign of pre-eclampsia and I'll discuss it with my peri at my appt this Wed. My hands are really swollen and sore so it's making me a bit anxious that I'll have Pre-E. I'm so thankful to be 34 weeks already so I know if we had to deliver EJ early, there is a great chance he'll be healthy and strong. I pray that anyway.

Other than that, my blood work came back ok and they sent me home around 1 am. I was so exhausted and trying to stay calm to keep my blood pressure low. When Ed came home on Sunday I just cried with such relief that he was there and our baby was ok. It was a scary few hours at the hospital and while I was glad my Dad was there with me, I of course wanted my husband. I don't think Ed will be allowed to travel anymore until EJ arrives!

Tagged

Lisa has tagged me - I have never been tagged to list seven random thoughts about myself, so here goes:

Rules:1. Link to the person who tagged you.2. Share 7 random and/or weird facts about you.3. Tag 7 random people at the end, and include links to their blogs.

1) I'm 30 years old and love Christmas like a child.

2) My dog Jimmy is one of my best friends. He has an ability to make me laugh like no human could.

3) I love to shop. If I had enough money, I'd buy a new pair of shoes to match a new outfit for every day. And get a new purse too.

4) I love getting my hair done. There is something so relaxing about it.

5) I'm addicted to reality TV. If it's on Bravo, I watch it :)

6) I have a juvenile palette. I'd order off the kid's menu if it wasn't so embarrassing. LOL.

7) I love the snow, as long as I don't have to shovel it. I leave the shoveling for Ed.

Now I tag anyone who feels like doing this :)

33 Week Growth Scan

Since I'm on daily Lovenox injections, I get an extra ultrasound during the pregnancy they call a "growth scan". It is just to be sure our baby is getting the proper supply of goodies from the placenta and that no blood clots have formed there inhibiting his growth. Everything looked great today. EJ is now at 4 lbs, 6 oz. That is in the 36th percentile, which means he is a bit smaller than the average baby at this point, but I have always heard IVF babies have a lower birth weight. The doctor said he looks perfect, and everything else going on in my uterus is great (amniotic fluid, head down, etc). And EJ is on track to be about a 7.5 baby...my birth canal likes the sound of that. LOL!!

As always, it's so great to see him wiggling around on the screen. It's so amazing to see how big he is. Just a few months ago he was like the size of a peanut and his whole body fit on the screen. Now just his head fits, or his body, or his legs, not all at once.

We're getting so close to the end and yet I still can't believe we may have a healthy baby at the end of all of this. And as I type this I can feel EJ squirming inside me, something that I treasure every single time I feel him.

I can't wait to meet our little guy :)

Turkey Day weekend

We had quite a busy Thanksgiving weekend. We spent the holiday with my family and it was a great time. The food was excellent and everyone was in a great mood. My brother came down from RI and his wife is 21 weeks pregnant. He could not believe how huge my belly is. He hasn't seen me in about 3 months and he just kept touching it and going "Ree, you're HUGE, seriously huge! How do you fit that body anywhere". Gee thanks, Mike...once a big brother, always a big brother!!!

Friday was my baby shower for my side of the family. My Mom picked a great place to have it and the food and cake were fabulous! My family and friends were super-generous and they just couldn't give me enough hugs and say how excited they are to FINALLY meet our little guy. I'm not one to shy away from being the center of attention, so I enjoyed every minute of that day ;)



Then Saturday night we went to an engagement party for Ed's cousin. She and her fiance dated for like 8 years so everyone teases them about FINALLY getting engaged. Although, their wedding isn't for two more years. Apparently it will take her parents that long to save up and pay for the extravaganza they want.

Sunday I spent almost the whole day on the couch. I was so exhausted and dealing with terrible heartburn from the array of foods I splurged on for the three previous days. I have tons of leftover cake and I'm determined to eat it all before it goes stale...hee hee.

So it was a pretty great holiday weekend, but it has left me pretty tired...although not too tired to go shopping today and take part in some of the great deals going on. It's always a good shopping day when you come home with two pairs of shoes for the price of one!!!

Labor & Delivery, Take 3

Yesterday was pretty scary for me. And this post may be TMI for some of you.

I got out of bed around 8 am, went right to the bathroom and my pantyliner was full of blood. Red blood. Like the first day of a period. Cue my head swooning and me gasping in fear. I called Ed right away and since he left for work only ten minutes earlier, he turned right around to come home. I called my peri and they said to get right to the office. He did an internal and my cervix was closed - yeah!! He then did an u/s and EJ looked just fine. He's no longer breech - double yeah!! And his head was below my placenta so they ruled out placenta previa. Yeah again. Just to be on the safe side, I was sent to L&D for my third non-stress test to be sure I wasn't having contractions. The monitors showed I wasn't - phew - and EJ's heart rate and movement were great. Big exhale.

So I was sent home to be on 24 hours of bedrest and to go back for another check today. All is fine today (just passing some old, dark brown blood) and I'm on orders to just take it easy for the next few days until the bleeding stops completely.

So Ed will be making our contributions to Thanksgiving at my Mom's tomorrow. I'm sure he'll do a great job! And then my second shower is on Friday and I'll just sit and take it easy the best I can there. We have a family party Saturday night, but I'm sure I can find a comfy couch and camp out there during the party. And then Sunday I can get some real relaxing in and stay home on the couch all day.

My nerves handled things pretty well, and knowing that EJ could survive now if he was born this early is a huge relief. I just need a few more weeks to get everything in order, like washing his sheets, buying diapers, etc.

Hang on just a little while longer little fella!!!

To my lovlies...

This is for Katie and Patty. If I was to know you in real life, I think you would be best friends with my Mom and me. We seem so similar and you two are just too sweet to pass up :)

The other "ER"

For the better part of the past 3 years, the letters "ER" have meant the Egg Retrieval part of the IVF process. This weekend, I went to the other ER...the emergency room.

I woke up Saturday morning and my right arm was numb from my elbow to my finger tips. I figured I slept on it funny and would give it time to come back to normal. 2.5 hours later it was still numb so I called the on-call doctor. With my blood clotting disorder, I immediately feared that I had a clot in my right arm, and she thought the same thing. She ordered me to go right to the ER and they would do an u/s on my arm.

Hours of waiting later...

My neck and arm were all clear and they dx'd me with just having a pinch nerve of sorts. They said as long as it doesn't get worse, not to worry. All of my veins were clear and flowing properly. Still scary though as my fingers don't feel quite right yet. I go to see my peri this Wednesday so I'll chat it over with her. My next best guess would be carpel tunnel, which is apparently totally common during pregnancy.

As a side note, while I was in the ER, my blood pressure reached 201/93. Holy shit! I have never heard of bp being that high! They had me wait until it went back to a more normal 150/92 before they sent me home.

As a way to relax, Ed and I put up some Christmas decorations yesterday. We have VERY busy weekends for the next month and we're hosting his family Christmas party this year so we had to get a head start to be sure the house would be ready by then. Our tree is up and I just love it. Filling the house with Christmas is the happiest time of year for me :)

Where does it all come from??

I was up F-I-V-E times last night to go to the bathroom. Where in the world does all that pee come from? I certainly didn't have anything to drink from 2-4 am so why did I have to pee like a gallon??? LOL.

And why can't they make Gaviscon taste better? It's right up there with the terrible consistency of Tums and I nearly gag on every dose. Why does it have to taste like liquid chalk with a minty aftertaste? It should be nice and smooth like milk, with a flavor of chocolate or strawberry or something else that is yummy.

And for my third "compliant"...
my friend who was baking the cake for my shower in 7 days canceled yesterday. My Mom didn't quite get a good explanation from her email, but we spent the entire afternoon driving around town looking for a baker who could do it on such short notice over the holiday weekend. We didn't find anyone so we're going back out today. Apparently the day after Thanksgiving is HUGE for weddings and all the bakers we found were already full of their quota for cakes that day. Hopefully we can find someone today who is available and makes good cakes. There isn't much worse than getting all excited for a slice of cake only to have it taste like cardboard. Or maybe I should jump on Newt's and Katie's bandwagons and just make dozens of cupcakes??!!!

Showered with Love

My first Baby Shower was yesterday and it was great. My SIL hosted it at her house for all of Ed's side of the family. And my Mom, brother's wife and my niece went too. It was nice to have them there. My SIL decorated the house in blue from top to bottom. It was so adorable. She made cute little favors and there were special little touches all over. The food was great and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. The family knows what kind of journey we've been on so they're all super excited to FINALLY have a shower for me.

We got so many great gifts. Most were off my registry, and then many people also added a cute little blue outfit, bib or hat. EJ is going to be a very well-dresses little lad :) Everyone was super generous. A few people are sending me their pictures so I'll be sure to post them as soon as I can.

Now I'm excited for the shower my Mom is throwing for my side of the family. It's the day after Thanksgiving so that will be a very fun weekend!

3D Ultrasound, Take 2

EJ is now totally transverse and is covering his face with his hands so today's 3D was a total bust. I'm so happy we got some good pictures last time so at least we have those. I'm not too bummed, I'm too busy being happy that he's growing strong. I just worry that this will mean a c-section in my future. No big deal really, I don't care if they need to take him out through my nose as long as he's healthy :) LOL.

But since his feet are dangling around inside my ute, we were able to get this cute picture of his little piggies...

Assvice

I'm sure there are dozens of times in our lives where we get "assvice" from people for any given situation. But why does it seem so more frequent when it deals with pregnancy and rearing children?

We went to a wedding on Saturday for one of Ed's cousins and the couple has an 8-month old. While the bride was making her rounds greeting everyone at their tables, she stopped for like 15 minutes to talk to us about what our lives will be like after our baby comes. And there was no candy-coating going on. She talked about sleep deprivation, the woes of breastfeeding, fighting with your spouse, teething, crying fits, vomiting, etc. I hate when people dwell on the negatives. I'd rather talk to someone like Ed's aunt whose son is 30 an only talks about the joys of motherhood. It's like the more distant someone is, the fonder the memories.

In happier news, I'm now 30 weeks!! Only 10 weeks to go. Time is seriously flying by. My symptoms seems to be pretty mild compared to some. I have terrible heartburn still. I stopped Tums (they made me way too constipated) and I moved to Zantac. I don't think it works as well, or as quickly, but at least I can go to the bathroom now. LOL. I still have a crazy sleeping pattern and I get up 2-3 times a night to pee. My backs aches every once in a while, but it's nothing too bad. And that's about it. Sometimes my belly feels really heavy, like he's rolled up in a ball at the bottom of my uterus, but after a while he'll stretch out again and everything feels fine. I am just so anxious to meet this little guy!!!!

Sibling news

My brother and SIL are expecting a baby in mid-April and they just found out yesterday afternoon that they're having a baby GIRL!! Yeah!! EJ will have a girl-cousin just 3 months younger than him.

And as silly as it sounds, I'm glad they'll be different genders. Then there is less likely an opportunity to compare them since most people say girls do things first...walk, talk, potty train, etc. I know, I know, I'm ridiculous. But still. LOL.

Aches and Pains

My body has been feeling so beat up lately. The front side of me hurts from the extra weight in my belly, and my back hurts from the over-compensation in my posture. I really need to start paying extra attention to how I sit and stand so I don't do my body more harm that good

For all of you ladies who have been pregnant...how do/did you sleep through the night? I toss and turn constantly and can never find a comfortable position. And just when my body is comfy, my heartburn flares up and I have to sit up until it goes away. Ed and Jimmy have taken up residence in our spare bedroom so I have the huge king bed all to myself, but I'm still so restless. First, I wake up around midnight to pee. Then, I usually wake up around 3 am too pee again and I'm so hungry I get a bowl of cereal. Then I'm wide awake and watch TV Land - Designing Women, Murphy Brown, etc. Then around 6 am I pee one more time and I'm ready to go back to sleep, but I try to get up by 7 am so that I don't sleep the day away and repeat my insomniac pattern.

I'm getting so anxious to meet EJ. My neighbor was due with her first on 11/18, but the little girl came early on 10/30. She is just precious. I held her for so long and I just can't imagine having to wait 11 more weeks for my little guy. I think her birth has made my anxiety a little worse this past week. Seeing such a tiny baby is making me crave holding my own. Then there are moments like this morning when I can feeling him kicking up a storm. I love having this all to myself and I know I'll be sad when I have to share him with the rest of the world. I'm enjoying every minute of this pregnancy (the good, the bad, and the ugly) and I pray to God that He blesses me with another child and I get to go through this again.

Bummer

My MIL called me Thursday night to say that my glider/ottoman arrived and she and my FIL would bring them over Friday night. YEAH! I was so excited. It was the last of the furniture that had to go into the nursery. Once we got the big pieces situated, I could figure out where to hang the pictures and stuff. So they came over last night around 6 pm and guess what. WRONG CHAIR. Figures, right?

I was so disappointed b/c I waited 6 weeks for it to arrive and I know I'll have to wait at least as long for its replacement. Ed and I went to BRU this morning to find out what we needed to do. It's a big chair that won't fit in the back of my car so I wanted to get exactly what we needed to do before we borrowed my Mom's car and lugged the thing all the way to the store. We're going to take it back tomorrow morning to return it and reorder the correct one. So, more waiting. And we all know how I feel about waiting. LOL.

3D Ultrasound, Take 1

I have been a bit MIA the past few days so I'll try to catch up on things here.

First off, I changed my blog template and it erased all of my widgets. I lost my blog roll so please post a comment with a link to your blog so I can get my list back. Thanks!!!

My Mom had foot surgery so I was at my parents' house daily taking care of her...making meals and just keeping her company while my Dad was at work. Mainly we watch girlie movies and eat junk food :)

I had my 3D ultrasound today. It was ok. EJ's hand was in front of his face most of the time so we didn't get many good pictures. The good thing is that they invited me back in two weeks to try again. YEAH! But for now, here are the pictures (sorry they're so big) they sent us home with. Hopefully I'll get better ones next time. Oh, and we confirmed it's still a boy ;)

Yumm-O

I know there are a few Il Divo fans on here, so I wanted to post that they're going to be on Oprah tomorrow!

I big-puffy-heart you!

A sweetheart through and through, Emily of What to Expect When You're NOT Expecting, has tagged me with the "I Heart Your Blog Award".



Now, the way this works, is I answer the following questions with single word responses, and pass the award on to 7 other bloggers:


1. Where is your cell phone? Desk
2. Where is your significant other? Work
3. Your hair color? Brown
4. Your mother? BFF
5. Your father? Rock
6. Your favorite thing? Dessert
7. Your dream last night? Vivid
8. Your dream/goal? Motherhood
9. The room you're in? Computer
10. Your hobby? Baking
11. Your fear? Miscarriage
12. Where do you want to be in six years? Here :)
13. Where were you last night? Couch
14. What you're not? Bored
15. One of your wish list items? Camcorder
16. Where you grew up? PA
17. The last thing you did? Peed
18. What are you wearing? Sweats
19. Your T.V.? On
20. Your pet? Jimmy
21. Your computer? HP
22. Your mood? Hungry
23. Missing someone? Yep
24. Your car? Sorento
25. Something you're not wearing? Shoes
26. Favorite store? Motherhood
27. Your Summer? HOT
28. Love someone? Many
29. Your favorite color? Blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? Today
31. Last time you cried? Weekend


Now, I'd like to pass this award to 7 bloggers whose posts I look forward to every day Just ignore me if you've already done this, or go right ahead and post new answers!

3 Happy Hours
Make it Grand
My Dear Gherkin
Quest for a Lifetime
The Next Nine Months
Tracy & Christopher (if you're not actually in labor now!!)
Wishing for my Miracle

Week 27

I had another peri appt this morning and all went well. I'm measuring right on track and EJ's heartbeat was great...which I knew b/c I listen to it daily :) I've been feeling tons of kicks all day, I'm guessing it was the hot chocolate and glazed donut that got him moving. LOL.

One week from today we're doing the 3D ultrasound!!

Ed's put EJ's crib together last night. I just love it. The Espresso color looks great against the paint color and the the lines are really nice. I'm so happy we chose that one. Now I'm just waiting for my glider to arrive and the nursery will be fully furnished.

Knock knock

Who's there?

Me...entering the third trimester!

I'm in a bit of disbelief here. I can't fathom that I have only 13 weeks to go. Time is seriously flying, just like everyone told me it would. Our nursery furniture arrived this weekend and we'll assemble the crib sometime this week. I will surely post pictures when it's all done. I love the color of the wood next to our blue walls. It's so fresh and clean looking. I hope EJ likes it as much.

I'm still dealing with wicked heartburn. It wakes me up in the middle of the night...on those rare occasions that I'm actually sleeping through the night. I now get up TWICE regularly to pee and of course my dog usually has to go out once I disturb his sleep. Ed has been sleeping in the spare room for quite some time. I don't know if I mentioned it before, but I have taken up snoring and he says I sound like a 400 lb man. I also burp like a drunken frat boy so add that to the snoring and I am one sexy lady.

But I LOVE being pregnant. There are many discomforts along the way, but I absolutely love it when I feel my little guy kick around in there. He's gotten into a good daily routine and I can count on him to move a lot at certain points in the day, and sleep through the rest. I've even seen my belly move a few times. That freaked me out the first time, but now I get excited to see it. I hope Ed can see it sometime soon. I feel bad that the baby is usually asleep when Ed is around, but give us three more months and Ed will be able to enjoy all of the kicks and screams EJ has to offer :)

Snow Baby

Many of you know that I called my frozen embryos my "snow babies". Well, I just found and ordered this onsie from www.cafepress.com. Hopefully in a few months I'll post a picture of EJ wearing it.

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

Happy 5th and Double Digits!

Today is my and Ed's fifth wedding anniversary! I can't believe it's been five years. It flew by in the blink of an eye.

We're going out to breakfast and then tonight we're going to see our favorite comedian, Craig Shoemaker. If any of you have the chance to see him, go for it! He's the funniest person I've ever seen. I've seen Ray Romano, Bill Cosby and George Carlin in person, and Craig is SO SO SO much funnier.

And EJ has only 99 days left from today!!! I can't believe we're down to double digits :)

Labor & Delivery, Takes 1 and 2

All day yesterday my belly was really hard. It was a lot like Braxton Hicks contractions, but it was constant all day long. Around 7pm Ed convinced me to call my dr. So I did and was told to head right over to Labor & Delivery. I was just expecting a bit advice to stay off my feet and maybe go to the office tomorrow. But I went right in for a Non-Stress Test (NST) to be sure I wasn't having contractions.

Everything checked out fine...no contractions, EJ's heart rate and movement was good, and my urine tested fine. So they sent me home. My dr said that if I still felt this way in the morning to go into the office.

And that's just what I did. I didn't sleep too well since my belly was so uncomfortable so I called my dr's office first thing this morning and they had me come in at 11 am. The appt went fine and they determined that my water had not broke, and my cervix was high, thick and closed. Yeah! I was then sent back to L&D for another NST. Better to be safe than sorry the nurse said. I was there for almost two hours and they concluded that all was well. Their best guess was that EJ had gotten himself into a comfy position and was just pressing on the front of my uterus making it very firm. In essence, his tush is sticking out and he's mooning the world. LOL.

I was told to just be a couch potato for the next few days and hopefully the little man will move around and get into a better position for me. Everyone in L&D was great and never made me feel silly for worrying over something so simple.

So now I'm exhausted from the stress and the lack of sleep and hopefully I can get a good nap in. This weekend is our fifth anniversary (hence the 101103 in my Nest name). We didn't have a ton planned, just dinners out and walking around the city a bit. But now we'll cut the walking around bit short and just enjoy hanging out with each other.

Oh, and as our tradition goes, we'll be watching our wedding video Saturday night which always ends up with us cracking up at our drunken-selves dancing at the end of our reception to "Paradise by the Dashboard Light". It really is quite hilarious!

More decorating

I had this little end table since I was in high school. It was just collecting dust so I thought I could use it in the nursery for a lamp/CD player. I painted it to match the wall color and then stenciled on a saying that is the color of the bubbles. It came out pretty cute, if I do say so myself!

Please pray

Stacy is having her little man Isaac today. Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

Here is her blog: http://www.sgirl79.blogspot.com/

The Nursery!

We spent all morning Saturday putting up this border, painting the trim and door...and I did my bubbles! They're not exactly how I wanted them to turn out, but they're not too bad. Kinda cute actually!

The pictures below are too small to see my handy work, but if you click on them they will enlarge for you to see it better.








The furniture still has a few weeks until it comes in, but the hard part is now done. I can't believe my house actually has a NURSERY in it. I have waited so long to say that :-)

Inspiration

Just to give Katie a little extra boost on getting that BFP, I nominate these guys to be on the first float in her parade :)

Newest PG symptom

I told my Mom last week that EJ better come out and be the most perfect baby. He better sleep well, eat well, be a happy baby, etc. I just feel like it's one thing after another with this pregnancy. For all of you ladies going through IF or multiple losses, and you think you may get a break for an easy pregnancy, I am NOT the poster child for that! LOL.

Most of you know that I had months of terrible m/s, with throwing up almost every day. Brushing my teeth is still a daily chore that I gag over, and once in a while still lose my breakfast. Then I went through a few weeks of a bout of terrible insomnia. Overlapping that was awful heartburn and constipation that lasted for weeks too. I've had terrible sciatica pain for a couple of weeks too...my left butt cheek is really sore most of the time. Then last week I got a yeast infection (oh joy!). Now that is finally gone and I have something to take its place...my leg keeps falling asleep in bed at night. When I sleep on my left side, I wake up with my left hip and leg feeling like pins and needles. As soon as I move it goes away, but it's still annoying to be woken up by it a few times a night (as they say it's best to sleep on the left side while pregnant).

And the most bizarre of it all...when Ed asks me if I'd do it all over again for another child; without any hesitation I say, "Of course!" with a happy smile on my face. It's all worth it.

Happy Viability Day to my Baby Boy!!

Many of you know what this days means, but to the others, I will explain.

Today is the day -- 24 weeks gestation -- that if (GOD FORBID!) I go into labor, the NICU will do everything in their power to save my child. Before this, most insurances wouldn't allow it.

::Exhale::

23w 3d appt update

Just wanted to post quickly that all was good at my peri appt this morning!! Thanks for the the support for the appt and about my Grandmom passing.

My Dad asked if I would do a reading at the funeral mass this Friday. Of course I said I'd do it, but I'm pretty certain I'll breakdown at the podium. I mean seriously, who would imagine a hormonal pregnant woman to keep her composure!?!? LOL.

Oh, and my blood pressure was back up this morning to 140/90. I guess that could be from the pregnancy, my Grandmother's passing, or even the Chinese food we had for dinner last night. I'll wait a few days and check it again at the pharmacy.

Sad family news

My Grandmother passed away this morning.

It was my Dad's mom and my last grandparent. I was hoping EJ would have been able to meet at least one of his great-grandparents, but all of Ed's are gone as well. She was 91 and very ready to go. She's been suffering from Alzheimer's for about a year and her mind and body were just deteriorating, so this is one of those times where you say death is a good thing and she won't suffer anymore. But I'm still very sad about it.

Isn't it ironic?

My next peri appt is tomorrow - 9/24/08.

9/24/07 was the date of m/c #2. I went in for my appt that day and my 8week baby didn't have a heartbeat. Based on growth, it probably stopped that morning or the day before. We were, of course, devastated.

What are the odds that this appt would fall on the same date? I guess they're the same odds that would make my final FET this year (5/1/08) fall on baby #2's EDD.

I don't know how to feel about this coincidence. But I do know I'm freaked out a bit that something will go wrong tomorrow.

Wallet update

I just got a call from a woman who lives about an hour away. She found my wallet on her front lawn this morning! She said it looks like everything is there...including my driver's license I just paid $30 to replace, but oh well.

I'll be happy to have it back in my hot little hands knowing that my information isn't floating out there somewhere.

So the only damage done was the $109 in cash, plus the $30 for my license. Everything else was just an irritating hassle, but luckily nobody was hurt.

Phew.

Interruption

I posted before my that MIL and FIL said they'd buy us our glider for EJ's nursery. I picked my MIL up today and we were going to lunch and then Babies-R-Us to order the chair. We went to the new Panera Bread by her house. I LOVE that place and we don't have one by us so it was a total rare treat. We were there for about an hour eating and laughing and talking all about our baby plans. We got up to leave and I realized my purse had been unzipped. And my wallet was gone. Que the PG lady to start having a near-heart attack. I ran to the counter and asked for a manager and asked if they had surveillance cameras on the dining room to see if we could catch who did it. My MIL remembered a big guy sitting back to back with me and thinking he was kinda close, but then again the tables were pretty squished together.

The manager came out and said they had the guy on film. He walked in the front door at 12:36 (practically two steps behind us) and went right to the dining area, he never ordered any food. And in eight minutes he was out the door again. So he basically was there solely to commit that sort of crime. By the time we were done (about 45 minutes later) he was already almost an hours drive away and had charged about $900 worth of stuff to two of my credit cards, and was probably smiling over the $100 in cash in my wallet. Now I NEVER NEVER NEVER have more than like $10 cash on me but I knew we were going to BRU and I wanted to buy a few things. We have a monthly budget so I took out the cash I wanted to spend this month on "fun things".

So I quickly called my bank to cancel my debit card and called Ed to cancel our other credit cards. We were told we won't be responsible for the charges he did make, but now comes all the hassle stuff. I need to get a new driver's license. I need to get new grocery store super-saver cards. I need to get a new Blockbuster card. Etc. Etc. Etc.

And then there are the things I can't replace...my college ID, pictures, fortune from the Chinese dinner we had before my BFP that was a total "sign". And then all of those business cards you collect over time for the hairdresser, favorite manicure place, photographer I want to use for baby pictures, etc. And then are the things I'm not even remembering. I just hope there is nothing in there that this creep can use to harm my credit (or me personally). I've already put a fraud alert on my credit so hopefully no more financial damage can be done. But I just feel like I'm forgetting something and I'm going to be whacked with something huge in the near future.

And Ed has to work late tonight and my parents are on vacation so I just very desperately need a hug and to feel safe. Poor Jimmy is going to have to put up with me cuddling with him for the next few hours. LOL.

Why are there such assholes out there????? I know many of us are firm believers in karma so let's all gang up together and wish something just as irritating to happen to this guy. Maybe the $400 he spent at the drug store was for cigarettes and in a few years he'll come down with lung cancer? Can karma do that or is that just too mean???

Anyway...I ordered my glider and ottoman which will be here in 2-3 months and my MIL even bought me a diaper bag I was looking at (I think she felt really sorry for me). So those are two things that I was happy about today. And I think the milkshake I'm about to make will give me the "happy ending" that I need :)

Sigh.

A-hem.

Last night, Ed and I had sex for like only the third time this entire pregnancy (which is now 22 weeks!!!). We're both so afraid of something going wrong that we're just playing it safe.

As if it wasn't hard enough to just relax and enjoy it all, it's even harder when your baby starts to punch and kick. Just imagine as things are getting hot and heavy I feel a little TAP TAP TAP from inside my belly. It was as though EJ was saying "Hello??? What's going on out there??!!!". I felt like I was back in college and my roommate came knocking at the door while I was in with my boyfriend. LOL.

Needless to say, Ed "hurried up" and it was over almost as quickly as it began. I think I'll stick to milkshakes for my pleasure for the next 18 weeks :D

My advice...

If I could give one bit advice to anyone who is, or plans to become, pregnant...eat your fiber. Eat it by the truckload if you can.

Constipation blows big time.

This is my second major bout with it this pregnancy and it is worse than the first time. I feel terrible. My belly aches and I have an overwhelming sense of "fullness" in my abdomen. It's also making me extra-nauseous since the food I eat has nowhere to go. The most I have managed to expel are those little rabbit pellets and that just doesn't give much relief. I've taken stool softeners (which just make me crampy) and the next thing on my list is a laxative. I'll have to take it tonight since I don't have anywhere to go tomorrow and I'll never be far from my bathroom.

Oh joy.

Starting the nursery!

The fun is really starting to get rolling now...decorating the nursery. I've had so many nursery ideas swirling around in my head for 2.5 years now but it still feels like new to look at all the cute themes out there. And I have to say that I LOVE knowing what gender our baby is. It's just so much easier to go with a theme geared towards a gender-specific idea.

So here is what we picked out for E.J.'s nursery, it's called Bubbles...


Ed doesn't like the character-themed stuff and we're both into sailing and the ocean so this one is just perfect. I'd love to do the walls with the little bubbles, so stay tuned till next month to see if we pull it off :)

Our parents are great

Recently, my Mom told us that she and my Dad will buy us our crib and changer for the nursery!! And then this morning my MIL calls to say that she'd like to buy us our glider and ottoman. How wonderful is that!?!? We are so lucky to have such generous parents!

Work has officially begun on E.J's nursery. This weekend Ed took down the border in the room that will be our baby's room! The next step is to clear out all the furniture (which is a ton of stuff). We've picked out the bedding, so I think I'll buy the border that goes with it so we can match the paint to it and get started with the painting in a week or two.

I can't believe my home will actually have a nursery in it!!!!!!!

I've waited so long for this and I want to savor every minute of it.

To make a short story long...

Here is my full account of my BIG ultrasound yesterday (here you go Tracy!)...

Ed and I got to the fetal imaging place about 30 minutes before my appt and I was a ball of nerves. I really thought I was going to pass out. After 15 minutes we were called back...here we go!!!!

There were two u/s techs there; the regular Alba and the trainee Ruth. Ruth took her good old time, which I loved. She spent a lot of time looking at the heart and I was in awe watching it beat away. She then went to the head and we looked at every angle, even up our little Nugget's nose. Ed could barely make out what was on the screen so I tried to tell him everything that was up there but I kept getting side-tracked and would go silent and just watch in awe, "there is my little baby" kept running through my mind. I was in love. She looked at the parts of the brain, the eye orbits, nose, chin, jawline, palette, etc. Everything.

Then she moved down and checked out each arm and all the little fingers...we counted 10 :) She then got to the abdomen and asked if we wanted to know the gender. I almost blurted out "YES, THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE!!" but simply said "yes please". Well, she seemed to take HOURS to get to the "money shot". In the meantime she went over the diaphragm, liver, kidneys, bladder, stomach, etc. That was such a tease! Why ask if we want to know the gender and then move on to the bladder?!?!?!

She then skipped over the entire genital section and went for the feet. Once again, we counted 10 little piggies. She went up the legs...and the ankle bone's connected to the shin bone...and the shin bone's connected to the knee bone...and the knee bone's connected to the thigh bone...and the thigh bone's connected to the ---WAIT! I think I see something!!! Then, she moved to Nugget's backside. What a cute little tush!!

And then there it was in a freeze frame. A penis. We have a little boy! It took a while for Ed to register what he was looking at, but teared up as soon he realized he was going to have a son. It was such a wonderful moment for us. We've waited so long for this and I'm thrilled to be able to give him the boy he so badly wanted. And his name will carry on.

That was pretty much the end of it. I guess Ruth was saving the best for last. The dr. came in and verified the gender and sent us on our way. I went right to Target and bought loads of cute blue onesies. Ed is still on cloud nine, and is telling anyone who will stand still long enough to listen to him.

Next up...registering and starting our nursery!!

It's a .......

.


BOY!!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe we're having a baby boy!!! So much for my mother's intuition, but the Chinese gender chart was right.

Everything was perfect at the u/s and I'll post those details later. I just wanted to drop a quick line to add us to TEAM BLUE!!!

Poll Results

So, 31 of you think we're having a GIRL and 16 think we're having a BOY. Wow, that's a big swing to Team Pink. Just out of curiosity, why did you vote the way you did?

Only two more days until we find out who is right!!!

Katie and Patty...I know you voted opposite each other so I hope there is something good at stake for the winner :)

20 weeks!!

Ode to Bon Jovi...

Whooah, we're half way there
Livin on a prayer
Take my hand and well make it - I swear
Livin on a prayer

I CANNOT believe I have made it to 20 weeks...only 20 more to go!! My ticker says that my m/s has subsided. Well, that's just wrong. I still feel queasy quite a bit and gag over my toothbrush every day. I'm not throwing up as much, but still about 2 times a week.

Here is this week's belly pic. I'm getting quite large and my belly is fully in front of my boobs now. That's a huge feat as my "girls" seem to be getting bigger by the day also. LOL.


My Big U/S is on Thursday so I send me all the good vibes you can spare. I hope we have a healthy little Nugget in there. And I'd love to find out if it's a boy or girl. I want to start buying pink or blue stuff :)

And September 1, 2007 was my very first EDD from IUI #2 that was back in Dec. 2006. That seems like a lifetime ago...

A conversation with my niece

I spent the day yesterday with my Mom, my 8 y/o nephew and my almost-6 y/o niece. It was a great day. We went miniature golfing and got ice cream. They start school next week so they're getting all the summer fun in they can handle. I was talking to them about all the sports and activities they do...soccer, baseball, softball, cheerleading, gymnastics, etc. I asked my niece to show me her favorite thing to do in gymnastics. I used to do it too and we usually do her new tricks together as she learns them. She showed me her bridge (where you bend backwards and put your hands on the ground. She said it was my turn. And I had to tell her I couldn't do it this time. I said that with the baby in my belly, I couldn't bend my body back like that.

Holy big eyes of amazement.

She looked at my belly like "oh my gosh I GET IT! Aunt Maria is HAVING a baby". My SIL had told them both that I was having a baby and that it would come after Christmas. I think my nephew may have a clue as to how it all works, but my niece apparently didn't. I think I'm the first pregnant lady she's ever seen in person and until today she probably thought I was just getting fat. LOL. Maybe she thought I'd pick up our baby at the hospital or something. She just stared at my belly in total wonderment. I can't wait until she'll be able to feel it moving and kicking. That will just make her giggle.

It was such a cute moment and I wish I had a picture of her face. Priceless.

19 week appt

I had my regular peri appt yesterday and all was good. My blood pressure was an amazingly low 108/80. I was so relieved. The appt was pretty quick, they just listen to the heartbeat and send me on my way. My big u/s is a week away so that's what I'm really anxious for.

I've also gained 7 lbs. As far as I can tell that's pretty good. And now I don't feel bad about the daily milkshakes :)

Yesterday my Mom told me that as my shower gift my parents are buying us our nursery furniture. I wanted to cry. On top of everything else they give and do for us, and throwing me a shower in a few months at a very nice place, this gift is just amazing. I'll never be able to thank them enough for helping to pay for the FET cycle and now for being so generous to my baby that isn't even born yet. I think loads of hugs and kisses will be in store for Mom-Mom and Pop when this child comes!

19 weeks

We ended up spending a few hours Saturday morning organizing our closet. Not a fun weekend activity, but I'm glad it's done. We have so much extra room now I think we can fit all of our stuff into that one closet...thanks to the organizers and to Ed getting rid of dozens of items that he hasn't worn in years. Why must men save things with holes in them anyway???

In baby news, our nugget is the size of a mango - 6 inches long and 8.5 ounces. I still listen to the heartbeat every day, and my bump is ever-growing...



I still have some random days where I don't feel so great, and my sleeping schedule isn't perfect, but all in all I'm doing great :-)

I can't believe I'm 19 weeks pregnant. It feels like I'm playing make-believe or something. We have ten days left until our Big U/S so maybe if we can find out the sex of the baby and can start saying "him" or "her" it will make it feel more real. Will I really have a baby at the end of the next 21 weeks???? I pray I'm that lucky.

Argh.

Why can't husbands just do what they're told? I mean, seriously.

We have a walk-in closet in our bedroom and the layout is all messed up. There is so much wasted space. So today I took advantage of the Back to School sales at Target and got some nice closet organizers and baskets. When Ed got home from work I asked if he could help me assemble them tonight so I could get everything organized tomorrow. He said sure. I don't want to waste our weekend doing it and I want to do it while he's not home cause he'd just get in the way.

So it got to be past 9:00 and he finally agreed to start working on them. He opens the one box, see the screws and stuff and says it's too much to do tonight. He'll do it tomorrow. Then he goes to bed.

WTF?

No he di-int.

That just messes up my whole plan. I don't have a thing to do tomorrow so it was the perfect day to be locked up in our room getting this done.

Now I'm going to have to do it myself. And that's tough b/c some of the shelves are long and it doesn't seem like a one-person job. Wish me luck that I don't injure myself :)

Spreading the Baby Dust

My brother and SIL just found out they're having a baby! They have had three miscarriages in the past 18 months and today they saw a heartbeat (6w 1d). I'm praying this one sticks for them!!

18 week belly shot

Here is me in my cotton candy colored maternity shirt. It might be bright, but is in COMFY!!

I don't know if I posted this or not, but Ed said to me, "It finally looks like you're pregnant and not just eaten too many cupcakes." He's a funny guy :-/

It happened to me.

I have always heard mothers talk about it. They laugh about it. Cry about it. Complain about it. Share embarrassing stories about it. It's part of their pregnancy tales when mothers compare who had a worse experience with symptoms.

But I never thought it would happen to me. I though it was silly and a total exaggeration.

But tonight, it happened to me. And someday soon, it may happen to you...when you least expect it.

I peed my pants a little when I sneezed.

LMAO.

My first visit to BRU

I haven't been in Babies-R-Us in I don't know how long. My SIL took me there yesterday and I had butterflies walking in the door. I can't believe I'm actually going to that store to shop for MY baby. It's truly amazing to me.

We spent like two hours there just wandering around oohing and aahhing at all of the cuteness. Baby clothes are so soft and adorable and little girl clothes just make me melt. They have bibs with the cutest sayings and I'm really hoping we find out the gender at our Big U/S in three weeks. If it's a girl, I will buy them out of everything pink! I fell in love with nursery bedding sets and checked out the stroller and car seats and stuff. I was just thrilled to be there.

My SIL bought a few cute gender-neutral outfits for us and I bought a cute bib. I just couldn't go away empty-handed!

My SIL also told me about the cake her friend is going to make for my shower. It's so sweet (of course the name on top will be different...

Good news all around!

First off, thank you all for your support. You're such a wonderful group of ladies!!!

I called my peri's office this morning and they said to come in for peace of mind. They did a quickie u/s and Nugget was just where s/he should be and moving arond a lot. Perfect!!!!! My dr. did and internal exam and said my cervix was long and closed so the bleeding wasn't coming from my uterus, and there was no new blood. Awesome. There were no signs of where it was coming from so she said to just take it easy for the next 48 hours. Phew. Now I just need to relax. Wish I could have some wine to help. LOL.

And I also got a call about my sequential screening results. This was part two of the blood work and we got great news...risk of Downs is 1:10,000, risk of Trisomy 18 is 1:10,000, and risk of neural tube defect is 1:3,000. Excellent results!!!!

And lastly, I think I felt Nugget move!!!! I've heard it feels like popcorn or "quickening" and that is just what I felt. I know it could have been gas, but after the bad night I had, I'm going with it being my baby moving :D

Ah, today is SO SO SO much better than yesterday!!!!

17 weeks

And I'm spotting.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Of course I ran right for my doppler and could find Nugget's heartbeat right away. But I'm still freaking out. The spotting was brown, but I also have cramps and the spotting was fluctuating between light and heavy.

And things were going so well. Dammit.

I'm going to call my peri tomorrow just to get everything in my records. I'll tell them I found the heartbeat and hopefully they'll then tell me that means there is nothing to worry about.

How ironic...Nugget is the size of an onion now and just like an onion, my eyes are all teary today.

Keep your fingers crossed for us.

Surgery is scary.

Even for dogs. But Jimmy is doing fine :) He's still a bit groggy from the anesthesia and pain medicine, but he's eating well so that's a good sign. It's so funny to see my normally very energetic dog just want to sleep all the time. It's quite peaceful, but I miss my ornery puppy.

Kristin...you were right...he's already back to licking his butt so all must be good. LOL.

I've been having a lot of shooting pains in my stomach lately. I use my doppler almost every day so as long as I hear a heartbeat I try to stay calm. I know the pains are just from everything stretching and moving around inside me, but it still makes me nervous.

I have a new client for my dog walking business. A family has an 8-week old yellow Lab puppy and he's just adorable! His feet are too big for his body so he flops around alot, but man there is nothing like puppy breath. All you dog lovers know just what I mean :) Makes me want to get a little brother or sister for Jimmy.

Still in the dark.

First off, please keep say a quick prayer for my dog Jimmy. He's going in for surgery tomorrow and of course I'm very anxious. He will be put under general anesthesia and I'm hoping he doesn't have a bad time with it (Katie, reading about Wilson is making me very nervous!). I'll be without him all day tomorrow so I'll have to think of something to do to keep my mind occupied so I don't fret about him all day.

Well, I didn't get an u/s at my appt today. My peri said as long as the heartbeat sounded good (which it did) there was no need for the u/s. So we have no idea what gender Nugget is. Bummer. I was pretty disappointed. But then I scheduled my Level II for 9/4 (a whole month away) and that is giving me something to look forward to. I"m sure the month will fly but from where I'm sitting now it seems like an eternity. The best part of the visit was finding that my blood pressure is down to 100/80....Woo-hoo!!!!

In other baby news...Ed and I went grocery shopping over the weekend and he spent most of the time laughing at me. Apparently I look quite funny when I bend down to get stuff from the bottom shelf. He just doesn't understand that my belly is getting big and firm so it won't squish when I bend over. I wasn't the most graceful sight I'm sure. And I also have started to waddle. I still gag when we get close to the meat department and I won't go within five feet of it. He just laughs as I turn green. I'm so glad to be so entertaining ;)

Ed is also quite thrilled that our baby is currently the size of a beer can (about 4.5 inches long). I have the size chart on our fridge that shows what fruit/veggie baby is the size of each week. He has crossed off this week's avocado and wrote "Bud can" in its place. He's also pretty entrigued with the fact that Nugget is peeing inside me. I swear he turns into a seven year old boy whenever pee/poop/farts are mentioned. Oh the things that make men laugh.

Anywho, I'm still puking every day but at least some of my nausea has subsided. Getting sick just jumps out at me randomly, and especially when I brush my teeth. I'm glad to be hungry again and I've actaully gained 3 lbs so far this pregnancy. I chalk that up to my sudden interest in ice cream again. I couldn't eat it for the first trimester, but suddently around 14 weeks I've needed a milkshake every night. That reminds me...I ate the last of our ice cream last nigh. DAMMIT!!!! I guess I'll be calling Ed to get me some one his way home from work :)

Is 16 weeks to early????

I have another peri appt tomorrow at which I'll be 16w 2d. Do you think that's too early to find out the gender? I read things online that say it's possible, but will I be that lucky? Depending on which Old Wive's Tale I listen to, they tell me boy or girl. There is no definitive answer. My own intuition is girl, but that may just because I'm dying to dress up a little girl in all those adorable clothes. LOL.

First and foremost we want a healthy baby. And in all honesty I don't have a preference of boy or girl. Ed would love a boy. It would be the fourth generation to have his name and he'd love to carry on his family tradition.

All of this anxiety could be moot if we go in tomorrow and we can't tell. But if the dr. can see, I'm going to have her write it down and put it in an envelope. That way Ed and I can open it together at home, both being surprised at the same time. My Mom is going with me and I'm sure she'll be examining the monitor, but she'll just have to keep her opinions to herself :)

Hopefully Nugget will be spread eagle and we'll get a good peep show!!!

Play if you wanna...

Answer with one word only:

1. Where is your cell phone? Off
2. Your significant other? Love
3. Your hair? Curly
4. Your mother? BFF
5. Your father? Rock
6. Your favorite thing? Dessert
7. Your dream last night? Sexy
8. Your favorite drink? Milkshake
9. Your dream/goal? Motherhood
10. The room you're in? soon-to-be-nursery
11. Your hobby? Dogs
12. Your fear? Miscarriage
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Vacation
14. What you're not? Forgetful
15. Muffins? Blueberry
16. One of your wish list items? Lottery
17. Where you grew up? Philadelphia
18. The last thing you did? Ate
19. What are you wearing? PJ's
20. Favorite Gadget? MP3
21. Your pet? Jimmy
22. Your computer? PC
23. Your mood? Anxious
24. Missing someone? Grandmom
25. Your car? Sorento
26. Something you are not wearing? Socks
27. Favorite Store? Outlets
28. Like someone? Nugget
29. Your favorite color? Blue
30. When is the last time you laughed? 8:00
31. Last time you cried? Yesterday

I won't actually tag anyone here, so feel free to do this if you want to ;-)

Busting Out

My boobs are getting to be ginormous. I have only two bras that can still contain them, all the others are like putting them into bondage. Of course, Ed is super excited and can barely keep his hands off them (which is a shame for me b/c they're kinda tender and sore). It's almost like I've had implants b/c when I lie on my back they don't budge. They stand firmly at attention. I guess I should be thrilled to have perky 16-year old boobs again :)

And that's odd because I never thought my boobs weren't "perky". But now that I see how they are now...we'll that's REALLY perky. LOL.

We have a family BBQ tomorrow and lately (well, for the past 7 weeks) they make me nervous. I just hope there are no foods that I have aversions to and that I don't get sick on the long car ride. The fun thing about family parties now is that everyone is very chatty and excited about our baby. It's so nice to have good vibes floating around me instead of people walking on eggshells after one of our miscarriages.

I tried to find baby's heartbeat this morning, and after 10 minutes without success I almost had a heart attack. Luckily Ed was still home and he found it in about two minutes. Needless to say, Nugget is grounded today for hiding from Mommy. I was thinking of witholding our daily ice cream but I thought that was a bigger punishment for me than for Nugget :D

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Stupid people irritate me

I ordered a new bottle of ultrasound gel to use with my doppler. I found a bottle for $5 on eBay and it had 2-day shipping. Yeah!

Well, it arrived in my mailbox yesterday. It was packaged in a yellow padded envelope, and as soon as I saw that I thought it couldn't be good. I brought my package inside, opened it, and instantly got fired up. Half of the bottle had been squeezed out into the packaging and the bottle itself was covered in gel.

Why would any intelligent person package a SQUEEZE bottle full of goo in an envelope?? Wouldn't a box of sorts be a better idea???

Needless to say, this eBay seller is getting an email from me. I don't really care about getting a new bottle (it was only $5 afterall) but I would like to suggest they change their packaging for future customers. And I can't imagine I'll be the first to complain about this!

Ok. Rant over :)

Is this really too much to ask?

I want to be able to eat a normal meal. I want to eat meat, fruits and veggies. I don't want to gag at the site/smell of of any particular food and I want to eat until I'm full. I want to be able to eat whatever is in my fridge or pantry and not search for the one thing that I will be able to keep down.

I want a great teethbrushing experience. I want to feel that I've cleaned every surface inside my mouth, without having to do it again because I threw-up midway through. I don't want to cover my bad breath with gum/mints.

I want to sleep through the night. I don't want to wake up at 2 am with a bladder that is ready to bust if I don't PEE RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE. And then I want to be able to go back to sleep and not have to get up at 3 am to have a bowl of cereal because I'm beyond famished because I could barely eat any dinner the night before.

This may very well be my one and only pregnancy and I want to be able to enjoy it to the fullest extent. I know I should be very grateful for being PG - and I AM - it's just that it's so exhausting not to be able to eat nutritious meals (and keep them down) or sleep well at night.

God, can we strike a deal? How about you take away my nausea/puking in exchange for something else. Stretch marks? Swollen feet? Acne? You name it. I'm getting worried that our Nugget isn't getting the nutrition s/he needs, so how about you help a girl out and let me eat a yummy steak dinner??? LOL.

15 weeks

I don't have much of an update on my end...still getting sick almost every day. I don't really feel as terrible as I did the past month, but I can't keep all of my meals down. I'm starting to see a real difference in my belly and I think I'll soon pass the looking "chubby" phase and move to the actually looking PG phase. LOL.

As for Nugget,

Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds. Finally, if you have an ultrasound this week, you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or a girl! (Don't be too disappointed if it remains a mystery, though. Nailing down your baby's sex depends on the clarity of the picture and on your baby's position. He or she may be modestly curled up or turned in such a way as to "hide the goods.")

My gift from Katie

As promised to Kristin, here is a picture of the Mother's Blessing Bracelet that Katie sent to me. It's even more beautiful in person! Thank you Katie, from the bottom of my heart!!!

You can find it at www.handmaid-jewelry.com.

Mother's Blessing Bracelet
This is the perfect bracelet for the new, expecting mothers, or even those involved in the ProLife movement!

We've combined the palest sapphire and alexandrite (color changes from lavender to pink to blue) crystals with large, unique lamp work beads. These are 12mm clear glass rounds with pink and green glass drizzled on top. They are hugged in pewter caps with tiny hearts.

The clasp is a pewter heart toggle. We have finished the bracelet with baby feet and a St. Gerard Majella medal, the patron saint of safe pregnancies and those women wishing to conceive.

Nugget's Heartbeat

This is my favorite sound on earth right now...

Dear Katie,

14 weeks

Today is Sunday and that means I've made it to another week.

In baby development news:

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb.

In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.

In Mommy-to-be news:
Just as I think I'm going to have a day without m/s, a nasty wave hits me and I'm bent over the toilet. I barely get any warning any more. I'm not nearly as tired as I was last month, but I'm not sleeping as well. I'm getting up at least once a night to pee and I just can't seem to get comfy in bed.

But the thing that gets me through is hearing our Nugget's heartbeat on the doppler...158 bpm last night :)

I have arrived.

To the second trimester that is :) It technically starts at 13w 3d and here I am! I can't believe it. It totally crept up on me. I'm officially one-third done this pregnancy. Phew. It's been a long 13 weeks.

I'm still dealing with morning sickness all day. I seem to peak in crumminess around 2 pm and then again around 6 pm. Once I get to 8 pm I'm fine. Usually. I just jinxed myself, didn't I? LOL.

In baby development news...

Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

When I read that part of my baby's eggs, it made me shutter. Thinking about my child's reproductive systems makes me pause and pray that my child will NEVER have to go through the horrible things I went through to have a child. It's so scary to think about. I still don't feel comfortable with the fact that everything is a-ok, but I'm trying to enjoy it all (aside from the m/s). It's an everyday occurrence that I take a minute and talk to my belly and tell my little Nugget that s/he better still be in there growing strong!

WARNING: TMI Ahead

The past two weeks have been crazy in my mid-section. You all know of my senstive gag-reflex and that I've been throwing up a lot, so my dr put me on Zofran. One of the side effects is constipation. I thought it couldn't be all that bad and surely it wouldn't be as bad as the puking. Well, it kind of just took the edge off my nausea, but only sometimes. I still threw up every other day or so. But I hadn't gone #2 in 12 days. I spoke to my nurse and she gave me a list of things to take all in one day:
Liquid enema
Glysterine suppositories
Milk of Magnesia (this was hard to swallow)
Senokot stool softeners

My belly was getting so hard and uncomfortable, coupled with my nausea it just made me miserable. I stopped the Zofran in hopes my constipation would go away so I'm now dealing with a ton of grossness in my stomach.

I took the round of drugs for the first time on Thursday with a very pitiful outcome. Same thing on Friday. I didn't do it Saturday b/c we had to go out that night and I didn't want to be away from home and have to use the bathroom. I did it again yesterday with another lackluster response. So I upped my dosage last night to the max for each medicine.

Oh my.

What a mistake.

I went to the bathroom 6 times in about 30 minutes. Needless to say I am totally cleared out at this point.

I know that was all very unpleasant but I wanted to post it so that others who go through this know you're not alone. There are quite a few girls on the Nest going through this and I wanted to post my experience so you can weigh the pros and cons when deciding if you want to start Zofran. Sorry to gross anyone out :D

NT Scan results...

Thank you so much for your well-wishes. We had a great NT scan. The measurement was 1.09mm...well below the threshold of 2.5mm. PHEW! Now I know that we still have to wait five days for the blood test results, but I'm glad that our NT scan didn't produce any alarming results.

**Update 7/14** The genetic counselor called me last night to say my risk for Downs is 1:750 and Trisomy 18 is 1:10,000

It took her a while to get the measurement since Nugget was so active (as usual). She actually pushed on my belly quite a bit to try to get the baby to move into the right positioning. I didn't mind...the more time to look at my baby the better. And the heartbeat was great at 154 bpm.

She spent a lot of time showing us each arm and leg, the head from all angles and the bum...couldn't tell the gender yet though. Still too early for that.

So this is very reassuring and will put my mind at ease for a bit longer.
Hope you all have a great weekend!

NT Scan tomorrow

For those of you who do not know, the NT scan is a 1st trimester screening u/s to check for the liklihood of Downs Syndrome, Trisomy and other chromosomal abnormalities. I think it's routine in high risk pregnancies.

The NT test uses ultrasound to measure the clear (translucent) space in the tissue at the back of your developing baby's neck. Babies with abnormalities tend to accumulate more fluid at the back of their neck during the first trimester, causing this clear space to be larger than average.

So if the measurment is above a certain amount of milimeteres, the risk is higher. Then, an amnio or CVS test can be performed to either confirm or disprove any abnormalities.

Needless to say this is one more thing I'm stressing over. I'm praying our Nugget has a normal scan. Please keep us in your thoughts tomorrow morning and I'll post the results in the afternoon sometime.

12w 2d peri appt

I met with one of my peri's today. Apparently I'll see a different one each time I go as they rotate who is in the office every week. This guy was really nice and I hope I get to see him more often. He took his time and answered all of my questions. He asked when I wanted to go back again and that I could go in as often as I liked. I told him I'm ok with two weeks and he said just to call if I need to come in sooner. FINALLY a dr who understands my anxiety of another m/c. So as of now I go back on 7/22. I think I can hold out till then since I have my trusty doppler :)

Everything was great with our Nugget. S/he was moving a bunch as usual. We have quite a little swimmer in there! Ed was finally able to go with me and he was so cute looking at the screen. At first he had no idea what he was looking at but then my dr. told him what was what and his face just lit up. I guess that is the only way it seems real to him. Well, aside from having to listen to me puke every day. LOL. Once I really start to grow a belly and he can feel the baby molve, it will help him feel more a part of it. But for now, he'll have to settle for pictures on the u/s screen.

Oh, and my blood pressure was down to 110/82. PHEW! It seems that me trying to cut out as much salt as possible may be working. Thank goodness b/c I REALLY miss french fries covered in bacon and cheese. MMMMMMM.

We spread the good news

We got to tell most of our extended family our great news this weekend. We didn't make a huge announcement (like the first time), instead we just told people one by one as we were chatting with them. It was nice to do it that way this time around. Of course everyone was thrilled and some aunts and cousins started to cry. It was great to deliver good news.

But of course there is always one bad apple to spoil the bunch. Ed's cousin and his wife have just decided to start TTC. They know most of the details of our journey. He thought it would be a breeze and always called her "Fertile Mertyl" because her sister has five kids and never had any problems. Well, it's been a few months for them and he's starting to freak out. I have a feeling he's thinking "OMG we're going to have to go through what Ed and Maria did" and is losing his mind over it. His wife was one of the ones that cried, she was VERY happy for us, but he didn't even say congratulations to us, he just started talking about his own issues. Whatever. Dickhead.

The rest of our weekend was good, although I had to miss out on going to fireworks Saturday night so I could stay home and puke. And we left my parents house a bit early yesterday to do the same.

It's all for a good cause...It's all for a good cause...It's all for a good cause. LOL.

Something to keep my mind of puking...

1. Who was your first prom date? My high school boyfriend.
2. Do you still talk to your first love? No.
3. What was your first alcoholic drink? Vodka and Lemonade. My brother's HOT friend made it for me at a party in high school. Both the drink and the guy were delicious!
4. What was your first job? I was a waitress at a Mexican restaurant.
5. What was your first car? A 2000 Jetta. Silver. Totally popular that year.
6. Who was the first person to text you today? My Mom.
7. Who is the first person you thought of this morning? My Nugget :)
8. Who was your first grade teacher? OMG I don't remember. My 2nd grade teacher was Mrs. Indrisano. She was from Boston and said my name funny.
9. Where did you go on your first ride on an airplane? Disney World when I was 6!!
10. Who was your first best friend, and are you still friends with him/her? Beth Engler. I haven't heard from her since we graduated the 8th grade.
11. What was your first sport played? T-ball.
12. Where was your first sleepover? My friend Michelle's house in kindergarten.
13. Who was the first person you talked to today? Ed.
14. Whose wedding were you in the first time? I was a BM in my cousin Lisa's wedding when I was 17. I got SMASHED drunk and tried to hide it from my parents. They knew, and just laughed at me.
15. What was the first thing you did this morning? Woke up to pee.
16. What was the first concert you ever went to? Tiffany. NKOTB opened for her.
17. What was your first tattoo or piercing? Ears pierced when I was 8. Got my only tattoo in March 2006 right before we started our TTC journey.
18. What was the first foreign country you went to? Costa Rica for our HM.
19. What was your first run-in with the law? In HS my boyfriend and I got caught by the cops in a local park.
20. When was your first detention? Freshmen year of HS, my Spanish teacher kept the whole class b/c we thought it would be funny to say everything with an "o" and the end instead of the real Spanish word...el book-o...el car-o...el phone-o...el pencil-o.
21. What was the first state you lived in? PA
22. Who was the first person to break your heart? Kirk Cameron.
23. Who was your first roommate? Freshmen year of college - Nicole. She was super boring.
24. Where did you go on your first limo ride? When I was six...to the airport on our way to Disney World!

Now You're It. Go.