wordless wednesday-because i have NO photos from may,,,,

three years ago!

Three years ago, this precious little bundle came into my life. He made me a mom and taught me how to love like I never knew possible. 

In one years time, he made me laugh and cry at things I never did before. And to appreciate all the things I took for granted. 

Two years later he was a charmer and a huge fan of life. He liked to say 'no'. He loved to be cuddled and he loved to explore. 

Today, on his 3rd birthday, not much has changed. He still teaches me things that are important and he makes me look at the little things in life. He is becoming more independent and it's hard for this mommy to let go and let him be a big boy, but I know he will still come back to me when he needs me. 

To my Bug, I love you! Happy 3rd Birthday. 

she's one

due to a few events that have happened in the past few weeks, i'm finally getting around to posting about baby girl's first birthday.

it was held on her birthday, saturday, february 11th in albia. since that is where most of the relatives live, i thought it would be a perfect location to get everyone important to such an important celebration. all the greats were able to make it, along with the grandparents, most aunts/uncles and cousins.

i planned since before she was born about this day, and a month and a half before her birthday, i completely changed the theme, due to my stress about traveling to have a party.
things were relatively simple. purple and pinks. cupcake themed. everything little boy's first birthday was, but for a girl...with more frill.

it was after naptime and lunchtime, so i just did little sweet treats and appetizers. it seemed to go well. there wasn't much left and i made sure to have enough.
present time was typical with a one year old. love the tissue paper and wrapping paper. throw it on the ground. nice gift, next! i was obviously more interested than she was.

cake time was a hoot. there was a cherry on the big cupcake cake and she went after it, just like her brother did at his first birthday party. she wanted to grab the flame, so i helped with blowing out the candle.

she loved her birthday cupcake. she grabbed at the frosting first and made sure that was gone before she attempted the actual cupcake. little handfuls and she was content.

tired and spoiled little girl at the end of the party.

overall success!

better than the last...again

***so i had this scheduled to post yesterday and forgot to add the stats...my bad. well, and the new iphone i got after her appointment was the real distraction. oops!

today we took brynlee to the doctor for her one year check-up. she got a good report from the doctor.

her stats: height:  29 in.

              weight: 21 lbs. 14 oz.

              head:   42 cm.

last year on this day, we took brynlee to the doctor also. only thing, we got terrible news. we found out that brynlee's bili-rubin count was too high and that she was being admitted to the hospital to hang out under 'the lights.'

what a difference a year makes. 

happy birthday baby girl!

Just 12 short months ago

I made my big debut

So now I'd like to celebrate

My first birthday with you.

some things need to be retired

calling in baby gear patrol 

 to get rid of the darn pooh swing

that his sister doesn't like.
*don't be fooled, she lasts about three minutes before she's screaming. maybe because its pooh, maybe because its way outta style, who knows. i think it will be making an appearance at our next garage sale. hopefully somebody likes pooh more than this household.

what blog?

apparently i've been slacking....again. i really don't have a reason to be absent. here's a little update from the past few weeks:
*Camryn's surgery went well. The surgeon was quite pleased with how everything went and got ALL of the tumor. Last week she finished up  her last round of chemo. Now they just wait for the stem cell transplant and then her radiation treatments after that. Hopefully she is completed with treatment by June-ish.

*We made our first road trip with Brynlee, down to Adam's Dad's. It went well, granted, it was a little less than 2 hours so we didn't really have to plan for any stops. The GG McD's got to meet the latest great grandchild and I'm pretty sure they love her to pieces.

*We've had the flu bug hit our house. Little boy woke us up one morning at 5a.m. with a nasty treat for momma. He got  over it and a few days later the daddy in our house had it. Luckily, the lovely ladies have avoided it. Lysol and bleach have been my friends lately.

*Two weeks ago, we made a quick road-trip to Chicago. Adam had to make a delivery for work and it was going to be fast, so the kids and I rode along. It was a nice get-a-way and a nice trip to see how traveling with two will go in the future.

*Last Thursday, Adam took the day off to attend the St. Patrick's Day Parade with the kids and myself. A friend and her crew joined as well. The weather was nice and the place was packed. We thought we had a great spot right at the beginning of the route, but right at the start, everyone crowded into the street and we could not see a thing. I wasn't about to take my littles where all the crazies were, so we enjoyed the big trucks we could see and little boy liked 'dancing' to the music.

*Saturday night we went to a baptism class for B. It was three hours of wasted time, but we have to do it. Yesterday was our first day back at our church since little lady was born. Hopefully we can continue making this a part of our Sunday morning routine.

*I've been thinking about little boy's birthday. Less than a month and I'm not very motivated. I have plans, but nothing set in stone. I should probably get in gear and send out invitations...maybe by the end of the week they'll be out.

Room 586

When we were discharged from the hospital, we were told to return two days later so Brynlee could get her bilirubin level checked again (nothing surprising, we had to do it with Fletcher too). We arrived and were taken to the room where the nurse lady Val, checked B's weight and bilirubin level. She didn't really say anything to us after she did it, just looked at charts and hmmm'd...which didn't seem very positive. Val finally questioned whether she was born quickly, and we responded with a yes. She then went on to say that Brynlee's level was reading high, 16.7, and the quick delivery and bruising could be a reason for a high number. She was going to call the pediatrician to see what she wanted to do...usually a blood draw is the next step to get a more accurate read. So, off the phone Val got and then she told us that Dr. Halbur wanted us to go down to get blood work done and then to head over to her office because she would give us the results and she wanted to see Brynlee. Before we left, Val informed us that there were likely one of two things that would happen, 1. we would be sent home with a bili-blanket or 2. we would be admitted to the hospital...neither of which I was happy to hear and both put me into a crazy frame of mind.

After we left Val, we headed back down to the first floor and went into the lab office. We checked in and were greeted by some very nice ladies. We were called back and phlebotomist Haylee, told us what she was going to do, reassured us that B didn't look very yellow, joined in a little small talk, did the draw, wished us luck that all was okay and then sent us on our way to see the pediatrician. I was becoming a bit more hysterical, as time was getting closer to an answer from the pediatrician. We got to the office, checked in and went to sit in the well-baby waiting area. Thank goodness there were no other people around, because I wasn't handling the situation very well.  Adam did bring up, what if we are admitted and I just shut him up with "I don't want to talk about it." Dr. Halbur herself, called us back. She had a look on her face that I've never seen before. We got in the room, the door not even shut yet, and she told us that Brynlee's bilirubin level was actually 20.2 and that we would be admitted to the hospital on the pediatric floor. There was no hiding the tears. She told us that it was the best place for her and that she would be in an incubator with special blue lights that helps the body with the break-up of the red blood cells. She also told us that most babies go home after a day, and rarely are needed to stay for two.

I tried to pick myself off the floor and regain my composure, but I was going to the hospital...with my four day old baby. Mind you that it was lunch time and the hallways from the clinic to the hospital were hoppin'. There were tons of people and I could feel everyone looking at me, with my red face and bloodshot eyes. The nurse that walked us to the 5th floor was kind of a moron. I didn't really care for her and the fact that she was trying to talk to us about random crap and not realizing that we had thoughts going through our heads about our baby being admitted. Anyway, we got to the floor and nurse Kari took us to the playroom while they got room 586 ready for Brynlee. She came down and got us when things were ready and then explained what she was doing, what the wires were for and explained how the lights worked. She told us that the longer B was under the lights, the quicker her level would go down. That she could get out to nurse or if she was really angry and needed to be soothed-hard words to hear about your baby that you just want to hold and cuddle.

{hanging out in her bed}

So, at about 2pm, we were as comfortable as you can be in a hospital room. At 4:30pm they came to draw blood again. "Snooki" (the girl had the poof and the night nurse and I referred to her as this) came in and pricked a heel. It was terrible hearing my baby scream and I couldn't even comfort her...anyway, the blood clotted so another girl came up a bit later and had to prick the other heel. Dr. Halbur came in shorly after 5:30pm and told us that it had dropped a little, 19.6. My parents came to visit and to return my son. I missed him A LOT, more than I thought I would.  We went to the cafeteria and had supper and then they left and Adam and Fletcher went home for the evening. The following morning, labs came in again and did a draw at 6:30, this time it was at 16.1 (usually go home with levels between 12-14). Adam and Fletcher came and we had breakfast together. We tried to contain a little boy, but being stuck in a hospital room with cords and buttons and machines is not a good combination. They left around noon to head home for naps and then would be back around 3:00pm when they would do another blood draw and hopefully let us go home. The results were still higher than they should be, 15.4, but the pediatrician was going to let us go home with a bili-blanket...a similar thing to the lights, but it just goes around her belly. At 5:30pm, we were saying GOODBYE to room 586!!!

 {brother loved reaching in and touching her}

{daddy getting ready to change a diaper}

The bili-blanket was a pain in the ass to deal with. There was a long hose that connected the blanket to the box that ran the unit. Moving her from pack n' play to nurse to change a diaper, back to her bassinet in the pack n' play was difficult to get used to. She slept in the pack n' play in the living room and I slept by her in the rocking chair...she actually slept on my chest for a few hours at night...I felt like I needed to make up for lost cuddles. Thursday morning we needed to head back to the hospital for another blood draw to see if we had to continue the bili-blanket therapy or if we could return it. We did the draw, ran some errands in Ames and waited for the phone call  from the pediatrician's office. The nurse called and said that the level had gone up a bit to16.4 (we were told  that it would most likely go up) and that we needed to continue with the bili-blanket and that Dr. Halbur wanted another blood draw done on Friday morning and then she wanted to see us.
                                     

{brynlee and the bili-blanket}

Friday morning, we made the trek back to the hospital for Brynlee's seventh heel prick. I was getting used to the process. At this point, I had my favorite heel prickers and there were a few I didn't care for. After the prick, we walked to the pediatricians office where baby girl was weighed (7lbs3oz). Dr. Halbur came in, checked her over and told us that her bilirubin level had dropped to 14.7 and that we could return the bili-blanket, but she still wanted us to come back on Monday for another blood draw to make sure that it continued to drop. At this point, bilirubin and jaundice were two words I had become very familiar with and didn't really care to hear. They had taken over my life and invaded my time with my new baby. I just wanted to look at her and not worry about anything, like if she looked more yellow today, or if she wasn't eating  well, or if she seemed more sleepy than normal, or if she was having dark poops which meant the bilirubin was coming out. With fingers crossed, we went into Monday's blood draw with hopes it would be the end...

Birth Story...every little detail

The morning of Friday, February 11th, I woke up not feeling right. I did my normal morning routine and greeted daycare baby around 8am. Fletcher was up watching cartoons, so Trev and I went in the living room, sat down and watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse with my boy. An hour had passed, and the feeling wasn't going away. I thought maybe I was having contractions, but the feeling wasn't anything like when I had Fletcher, so I got up and walked around the house for a bit, thinking it would go away. I finally got the boys breakfast around 9:30, and as I was standing in the kitchen, I felt a little trickle. Wasn't sure if this feeling was my water breaking or what, so I called my dad to come up and sit with Fletcher in case I would have to leave and I called Adam to tell him he should probably come home. I phoned the doctor's office and the nurse wasn't very helpful...telling me that if it was my water breaking, I would feel a gush. She told me to give it an hour and to call back and let them know the status at that time. As I waited, I noticed that when I was sitting, there was no leakage, but when I would stand or walk, I was leaking fluid.

I called back to the doctor and talked to the not so helpful nurse. She told me that "luckily there had been a few cancellations and she was able to get me in." Anyway, we had an appointment for 2:45 to get checked by the doctor. I downed a can of pineapple (I've heard that it helps thin the cervix...any help at this point would be great.) In the meantime, Adam and I walked to the post office (to try and make things progress, if this was the real deal). We got back home, made sure we had everything we would need in case we were sent to the hospital, and we left to head to Best Buy to look at external hard drives...apparently a baby will get my hubs seriously thinking about purchasing one.

We made it to the doctor. I did the ole' pee in a cup and weight check. Was called back to a room and asked to strip down. Dr. Lines checked me with the swab thing...it tells whether the leakage is amniotic fluid or not...she said it could be, but it could also be the mucous lining had become more watery. She checked my cervix, at which I was 70% effaced and 4cm dilated...a little more than I had been on Wednesday at my appointment. As she was checking me, GUSH!!!!! She had hit my bag o water just right that I finally felt the gush the nurse had been talking about. She said that I probably had a high leak and that was why I only felt like I was leaking once in a while. So, anyway, we were headed to the hospital to have a baby.

I was quite capable of walking, but the nurse felt the need to push me over to the hospital in a wheelchair. It was kinda embarrassing. We made it to the 4th floor, checked in and Nurse Deanne walked us to room 483, my home for the next few days. She ran down the details of what was happening and what we needed to do. I changed into the ever so lovely hospital gown and got comfy on the bed. I tested positive for the group b strep, so I had to have an IV antibiotic which she hooked up...only after poking me twice. Dr. Lines came in about 5pm and asked about starting pitocin. She explained that it would make labor go quicker and the contractions more intense, or I could just wait for the contractions to start on their own and see what happened. I decided for a quicker labor, so I decided to go with the pitocin. The bag was hooked up and then I was allowed to sit, walk or bounce. I chose the birthing ball and bounced the pain of the contractions away until about 7:30, at which they were getting a bit unbearable. The next time Deanne came in to check on me, I asked her about the epidural. She told me that if I wanted it, she would call the anesthesiologist. About 8pm, Dr. Fears came in to do the epidural. It seemed like forever for him to accomplish what he was doing. After hearing Adam explain him doing the procedure, I really think he took more time than he needed to...especially coming from a woman in pain. He left the room shortly after 8:30 and I was feeling pretty good from whatever he did to put the needles in my back.

{dont mind the black eye, its from red-eye fixer}

Slowly the contractions were becoming more noticeable, and at this point I asked Deanne about the epidural medicine that still hadn't shown up yet. She kept telling me that it hadn't been called to the pharmacy yet, but she was checking on it. FINALLY, at 9:40, the bag o medicine showed up in my room and was hooked up by 9:45. Deanne checked me and said I was about ready to push. At 9:55, I was pushing...mind you that the meds HAD NOT KICKED IN YET AND I WAS FEELING EVERYTHING!!!!! Deanne called the doctor (Dr. Beer was going to deliver since my doc was not on call for the weekend). I remember hearing this, "Dr. Beer, we're going to need you...uh huh...yep...ok." I pushed through the next few contractions which hurt like hell. I had physically blocked everyone out and wasn't hearing anyones voice. I don't remember the doctor coming in the room and I don't remember them holding baby's head in while she suited up. I do remember feeling baby's head come out. I remember finally opening my eyes, looking at Adam and hearing him tell me to push one more time and she would be out, to which I gave one more push and my baby girl was born.

It hurt! It hurt REAL bad. They placed Brynlee on my chest. I didn't even look at her or touch her for what seemed to be forever, but I'm sure was about a minute. I was shaking so bad. My body was in the weirdest kind of pain. When I finally looked at my sweet baby, she was covered in vernix and she had a purple face. Everyone was reassuring me that everything was ok, that the purple face was from a quick delivery...she was born at 10:10...fifteen minutes and four pushes after I had begun. I got to hold her and love on her and inspect her. She was exactly what I was expecting, only with more hair than I thought. My sweet baby girl was here and I was in love, again.

         

without further ado...

i proudly introduce:

Brynlee Michelle

Born Friday, February 11, 2011 at 10:10pm

6 pounds 15.5 ounces 

19.5 inches

*sorry for such a delay in posting...it's been a bit hectic with everything she is doing to us. more details later. coming up: birth story, room 586, new babe in town, heel prick...again, life with two. 

still waiting

yesterday was the 37 week mark. yo is officially considered full-term and the size of swiss chard (whatever that is). we went to the doctor yesterday. 3.5cm and 70%...i consider that a big jump from my appointment on friday. she told me that we could have a baby in the next week and a half...my fingers are crossed. her words, "you shouldn't dottle because i think you'll go quick once you start having regular contractions. we don't want your husband to deliver the baby on the way to the hospital." she chuckled...i had a huge grin on my face (you know, from the thought of having a quick labor.) she did tell me that if she sees me next week and i'm dilated to 5cm, she would just send me to the hospital...i guess adam should go with me in case that happens.

adam read my blog posts from the last week and DID mention getting the external hard drive...still hasn't showed up yet, but his comment was positive. at least it's kinda on his mind. until it arrives in my house...no pictures on posts...sorry. blame him. and in the conversation we had about this hard drive, he did mention that he doesn't like to be blamed for things...but he's getting the blame on this because I KNOW i wouldn't get the right thing.

fletcher has been kinda mean lately. i don't really like it. i think he is FINALLY realizing the changes that are being made. there is another crib in his room...and it is ready for something...at this point he's just not sure what the something is. he's been not so nice to daycare baby too. he doesn't hold his bottle for him anymore and he's been sitting on him. poor yo baby, if he attempts to do that to her. pretty positive he's not going to like the outcome if it happens.

at this moment, i'm craving chinese food. generao tso's chicken to be more specific. mostly, this craving came from a list of foods that trigger labor...i googled it this morning...but i could really go for some of it right now, and some crab rangoons. i'm not having much luck finding the menu to the local restaurant and the phone book seems to be missing also. my search is on...once i'm done typing this. if i don't get this craving, i may have to settle for a taco salad...i just need a little spice right now.

no baby...yet!

we went to the doctor on friday. the longest wait ever for a friday appointment. when the nurse called me back, she informed me there were 4 babies born so far and that was the cause for the delay. i thought it would be rude to tell her that i didn't really care, so i just shook my head and said, "oh, wow!" back to my appointment: i got swabbed...and checked. the news: 2.5cm dilated and 50% effaced. i think this little lady is going to be here before her due date...fingers crossed. after the appointment, my wonderful husband was going to take us out for dinner...i kinda really wanted red lobster, but during the waiting, little boy became a crabass so we changed our plans...LJS instead. we went through the drive-thru and ordered. the person on the other end informed us they were out of fish...WHAT?!?!? apparently, with the weather earlier in the week, the truck wasn't able to make it. we left and went to KFC. not really what i wanted, but it did the job...kinda.

saturday i went to des moines for a little valentine's gift for myself. i had to pick up a bottle of perfume from my mary kay lady...while i was there, i deposited a few checks (mk lady just so happens to work at the bank). rather than just heading to 'the city' for those two things, i went to babies r us to trade in an OLD carseat that had been given to us. i purchased a new one for fletcher since he is getting a bit tall for the convertible he was in. have i ever mentioned to you that i love babies r us runs? well i do...just not on saturday mornings. seriously, every pregnant woman, her mother and baby daddy were there. not sure why i do that to myself. since i was in the area, i stopped by my sister's house to pick up the chair they were giving us for the kids' room. while i was there, i had to play with the babies and chat with camryn. she had just gotten out of the hospital on friday afternoon and she was acting pretty good. she wasn't too excited about taking her medicine, but when the wiggles came on, she was all about dancing. the kid seriously cracks me up...with all she's been through, i have no idea where she stores the energy. i came home, only to do a little more cleaning and organizing.

sunday was not very exciting. we sat around all day. a few loads of laundry were washed and dried...not so much folded and a few shelves were hung...with a few choice words from my husband. adam made some pre-game appetizers for the three of us. we ate, lounged and watched tv/the game. bed by 10 and an early monday morning...the end.

i go to the doctor again tomorrow. we'll see if anything has changed. maybe another mini-update on thursday.

wordless wednesday-not today

i'm not really slacking on the blog posts, it's just hard to come up with something when i don't have pictures to go with my writing typing.  you see, i have apparently loaded too many pictures onto my little ol' laptop and i've been told by my husband to not put anymore on here that it won't hold anymore. he has mentioned that he is going to get an external hard-drive to swap all my pics to, but that was over three weeks ago...i'm done holding my breath. hopefully he will have it by the time yo arrives because i'm pretty sure i will have to announce her arrival...and i'm also pretty sure it won't be as exciting for my whopping 7 followers if the announcement came without pictures. i'll be nagging at him until this task gets completed...until then, enjoy the cold weather that mother nature as graced us with.
doctor appointment on friday so maybe an update by sunday...maybe!

randomness

*today i was motivated to do some laundry. even without adam complaining that he didn't have any clean socks...i got up and did 3 loads. HUGE accomplishment for me.

*we have a yo baby appointment this afternoon. this week she is comparable to a cantaloupe. she has been kicking me in the right rib cage lately...i keep telling her i don't like it, but apparently, she thinks its funny and continues on...for hours!

*i'm officially 5 weeks from baby day and my husband has to go out of state for business next week...twice. lovely! just lovely!

*it's freezing and really cold outside. i'm not complaining because i've got a really warm, cuddly blanket to wrap around me. maybe i'll put in a movie, mix up some hot chocolate and kick my feet up...maybe.

*tmi, but...fletcher has gone number 2 on the potty twice this week. not because he's 'ready' to use the  potty, but because i can tell when he's trying to fill his pants and it's much easier to rush to the bathroom than it is to clean a mess from his cloth diapers. he kinda likes the whole run to the bathroom thing, but mostly he likes flushing the toilet and waving bye-bye to the poo.

*the bedroom furniture switch is complete. we still need to get the wall decor switched but i'm really not worried about that so much. i NEED to go through closets, but am not looking forward to it one bit.

*i really want to make a babies r us trip tomorrow to use some coupons on some stuff i don't really need. not sure if we're going to make it, but there's always wednesday when i'm daycare baby free...and it's not suppose to snow that day.

*i'm kinda addicted to watching days of our lives. there's a lot of baby drama going on and it all makes me appreciate the lack of drama in my life. i'm grateful for my husband and family that are there for me whenever i need them.

*it's nap time and the heating and cooling guys working next door are being extremely loud. i sure hope they get finished soon so i can take a little slumber in silence (while fletch and daycare baby are sleeping).

*cam has been out of the hospital since tuesday after recovering from pneumonia, croup and sinus infection. she is doing well...eating and playing and being a 4 year old. she goes back on monday for round 6 of chemo. she has been a brave little princess through all of this.

moving day!

we've been discussing the BIG move for a while now and after my last baby  appointment,  it has really been on my mind. since our three bedroom house only has two bedrooms upstairs and we're adding to the family, we needed a place to put another kid. since fletcher is still pretty young, i didn't even think of the idea of us or him moving downstairs when yo baby arrives. the only option: the kids will share a room. once we agreed on that (really, we didn't even have to think about it, it was just going to happen), i was planning how we would arrange the room with two cribs. its a nice size room, but the placement of windows and doors, really made it tough for me to actually 'like' any of the possible set-ups adam or i came up with. adam did some measuring of rooms and they are both actually the same size, give or take a few inches. we decided that we would switch bedrooms and that way my ideas would be more logical for setting up the kids' room and ours. so, with that all said, today is moving day. adam's dad came up to help move the furniture since i'm a bit useless these days. so far, so good. our living room looks like a furniture store, but i can already tell you that i'm liking how it's going to turn out. no pictures yet, but when we are finished, i will take some and have a continuation of today's post. here's to moving and dusting and sweeping and painting. i think this has officially made my nesting instincts come out...but my house needed it so its all good.

baby update

last friday we had one of our baby check-ups. you know, the 8 minute appointment that you wait 45 minutes for.  actually, this time it wasn't bad...we walked in and there were only two other women in the waiting room and while i was checking in, one of them was called back. lack of patients was great because we happened to make it a family outing and bring fletcher with us. he is a bit uncontrollable at times while we wait and i can often feel the glares when there are other people around.

i was called to pee in a cup rather quickly...this was a good sign. i did my biz and then walked out of the bathroom almost bumping into a nurse who was walking by. this got me thinking about whether they have ever been bumped and splattered...is that just wrong to think about? seriously though, in such a tiny hallway, they walk by those doors in such a hurry, not paying attention. would it be my fault if she wore my pee? i guess from this point on, i will be a bit more cautious opening the door and stepping out, because i work hard for the urine...it doesn't always come easily.

i returned to the waiting room and the other patient was gone, i was beginning to like this 3:45 on a friday schedule time (all of my future appts are scheduled for fridays at 3:45). i sat down, got comfortable, watched fletcher chomp on a sucker and nurse judy called us back. WOO HOO-less than 20 minute wait time!!! the part i dread every appointment proved to be the best part of the day...well almost. i hopped on the scale, stepping back a bit so my belly would fit and she moved the weights, only to notice that i DID NOT GAIN A SINGLE POUND since my last appointment (which was before christmas and new years). we got to the room and she did the bp/pulse thing and then we waited for dr. lines to come in.

enter dr. lines and her smiley self. she chatted it up for a few minutes and then measured the belly and listened to yo's heartbeat. everything was fine...she measured 33cm and i haven't a clue about the heartrate (she's not very good about telling me and sometimes i just don't ask).  she commented about no weight gain and as she was flipping through my chart, she said that i weighed the same when i first came in with both pregnancies AND that at this same appointment with fletcher, i weighed the same AND that from this point on (with fletcher) i only gained an additional 12lbs AND she guessed that with that info, yo would be about the same weight fletcher was (7lbs 9oz). so, my goal...to gain less than 12lbs. i only have 6-7 weeks left and hopefully i can keep it down and by the way i've been eating, i think its do-able.

after all the weight talk, we bring up the due date (march 2) and she mentions...out of nowhere..."you know, we can do things to make second timers not go passed their due date." well that was great news....not that i was complaining about getting her out, but i was game for knowing that we would be a family of 4 by or on march 2. and if that wasn't wonderful to hear, she says, " i won't induce you before week 39, but anytime after the 23rd, we can schedule." adam and i just looked at each other like, "wow, ok!" we still  need to talk about it and let her know at our next appointment in a week, but we could possibly know when we would have a baby...that is, if she doesn't decide to show up on her own before the day we may pick. that my friends, was the B.E.S.T. part of my day...

and then we left with giddy smiles on our faces and headed to sam's club.

wordless wednesday-a pineapple?

apparently, this is how much yo baby should weigh...roughly 4lbs...comparable to a pineapple. 

3 in 1

A little update on Yo.

Last Wednesday, I had my glucose test to check for gestational diabetes. I was very careful to not eat too much sweets throughout the day, until my 3pm appointment. I did the pee in the cup, wait an hour, see the doctor, get your blood drawn thing and was told that I would receive a phone call by 5pm if I needed to come back some time for the 3 hour test. After leaving, I kept checking my phone to see the time and to make sure I hadn't missed a call. So, at 5:10 and not having gotten "the call," I declared it time to celebrate...with lots of sugar.

On Friday, I had a little scare. I noticed some spotting around 11, along with a stomach ache I'd had since waking at 5:00, and no movement from Yo. I was a bit freaked. I told Adam. I called the doctor's office to let them know what was going on and a nurse was going to call back. I waited over an hour. At that point, I wasn't comfortable with what was going on, so I called again, just to be told that the nurse wasn't back from lunch yet, and she would get to me shortly. THANKS lady....within 10 minutes, I got a call and the nurse told me to come in and get checked out. I got to the doctor's office and was seen rather quickly. My doctor wasn't there, so I saw a different one. She asked me some questions, felt around, did the "check", and then wanted to monitor baby's heart rate and to make sure I wasn't having contractions. That was a relaxing 40 minutes of hearing/seeing the heart rate and FINALLY feeling movement from her. After the hour and a half appointment and a "take it easy", I was sent off with a follow-up on Tuesday with my doctor.

At today's appointment, I waited FOREVER!!! Finally, after getting called back, I saw my doctor. Since she wasn't the one I saw on Friday, she asked me some questions regarding the pain I had and about the bleeding. She didn't really have much of an explanation for why it happened. She gave me a few possibilities, but, since the bleeding had stopped, the pain was gone and Yo's movement was back to normal...she told me to just monitor things and we would talk about it at my next appointment in 3 weeks. She did measure my belly (which is right on track) and listen to the heartbeat (150ish). It was a quick 10 minute meeting, considering the hour I waited to be seen.

Anyway, 3 baby appointments in 1 week were not how things were planned, but I'm glad that everything is ok. Fingers are crossed that nothing else pops up in the next few months and the remainder of this pregnancy is smooth sailing like it has been until last Friday. Also, today the nurse said I was 27 weeks and 1 day. According to those calculations, my due date has been moved up 3 days without me know. That doesn't really mean much because I'm sure Yo is going to take up residency as long as Dr. Lines will let her stay in there.

week 23

yo baby is at week 23 and continues to grow. statistics say she is weighing in at just over a pound and measuring about 11 inches (about the size of a large mango)...although she was measuring big at the ultrasound five weeks ago, i think she is bigger than the stats are saying.

i continue to feel good, with a few minor aches and pains in the belly if i move wrong...doc says its because my round ligaments are stretching and thickening due to my growing uterus...just what you wanted to know, right? the occasional poopy diaper gets to me, which causes the gag reflex to go into play and then an immediate rush to the bathroom in case i need to hurl. fletcher always thinks i'm playing and giggles uncontrollably when this happens...i, however, find NO humor in it.

my appetite is pretty much the same. i don't find myself eating tons or more times during the day. i have been enjoying the halloween candy that didn't go to little gobblins. i have been craving mexican in any form. we usually have tacos at least once a week, i've always wanted spicy food. this week i was craving sauerkraut.

yo baby's increasingly keen ears are preparing for her entry to the outside world. loud noises are becoming familiar now...so the sound of the vacuum (ya right) and screaming the word "NO" at her brother won't faze her when she hears them once out of the womb. she continues to wiggle inside. just recently she started 'kicking' hard enough for it to be seen from the outside. at night when adam and i are in bed, i put the remote on my belly and watch it teeter back and forth as she moves around, trying to make me more uncomfortable. she has become pretty predictable with her movements throughout the day...at least she doesn't keep me awake at night like her brother did.

my next appointment is the day before thanksgiving...good thing i get to weigh in before the big meal. it is the ever-so-fabulous glucose test that all pregnant women look forward to. i just can't wait to drink the thick, nasty, sugary shot and wait an hour to get blood drawn. until then, i'm sure i'll continue to have a few random cravings, be rushing to the bathroom to gag and attempt to get bedroom stuff situated.

challenge-day 29

hopes,dreams and plans for the next 365 days


where do i begin? i'm pretty sure i can come up with tons if i actually sat and thought about it for a few days, but this is what i can come up with for now...

• i hope for a mild winter
• i hope the upcoming holidays are enjoyable and worry-free
• i hope i have a rather calm and comfortable 18weeks left of this pregnancy
• i hope for an easy delivery
• i hope yo baby is a good baby
• i hope my family continues to stay healthy 
• i hope my niece does well with her cancer treatments that are starting monday
• i hope to get more organized with my housely duties
• i hope to gain a few more daycare kids 
• i hope fletcher finds his words soon
• i hope to get time to start scrapping again
• i dream that i will win the lottery
• i dream of future travels 
• i dream of having more time
• i dream of happily ever after
• i plan on getting rooms switched and organized before christmas
• i plan on finishing the kitchen paint job
• i plan on helping adam get the basement organized 
• i plan on visiting family and making memories
• i plan on enjoying my new bundle and having a family of four
• i plan on hanging out with friends and having fun