Her Birth Story

I better write this down now or I will forget parts and have to make things up.

September 18th 2:30 AM I woke up having contractions. I glanced at my clock and tried to keep track of the time as I fell back asleep between them. The contractions were about 15 minutes apart, but regular and getting gradually stronger. I woke up Jim and told him that I had no idea if this was it or not, but I wanted my computer so I could go on a contraction timer website and time them. I sat on a yoga ball, laid my head on my bed and hit the space bar every time I had a contraction for the next 2 hours.

I called my mom at about 4 AM and asked her to get on the road so she could be here if I needed to leave in the next couple of hours. I thought she might be getting here a little ahead of time, but she said call "anytime" so I took her up on it. (It takes her about 2 hours to drive from her house to mine) Between contractions I checked email, posted on twitter and updated my facebook status.

At about 8:30 AM my mom left to walk Madeline to school and we got in the car and headed to the hospital. My contractions were about 6 minutes apart at this point and getting stronger and stronger. As we pulled into the emergency room, there was a huge tent and men in yellow hazmat suits running around with all kinds of other people standing around watching them. I could just imagine what kind of chemical spill or other freak accident I was getting ready to walk into. But as I was registering the lady called around to make sure it was just a drill and it was.

So I headed up to labor and delivery and they put me in a triage room to monitor my contractions. They watched me for about 30 minutes and a doctor came in to examine me. He said I was still only 2cm and about 60% effaced. But he still thought I was in labor so he kept me on the monitor and said he'd check to see if I progressed in a little while. When he came back he said that he would check me but unless I had progressed or if I wanted something for pain I could go home. I said "sign me up for some pitocin and an epidural" and let's just get on with it. I explained that I had never progressed without pitocin for either of my other pregnancies. He checked me and low and behold I had actually progressed to 3cm and 80% effaced. I was being admitted to the hospital at that point, pitocin or no poticin.

The nurse told me that there were no other room available yet, but they were releasing 5 other patients that morning and soon I would get a room. My midwife came in to see me as soon as she got on duty and that was around 12:00. She said she was going to change into scrubs and she would be back. The nurse who ordered my epidural came to tell me there were 3 epidurals ahead of me, including one c-section. So she offered me a narcotic to hold me over. I turned it down due to my last experience with narcotics, during Madeline's delivery, being so awful to come down from. But about an hour later I gave in and took just enough to take the edge off between contractions. At that point the contractions were what Jim refers to as "off the charts" on the monitor and I was pretty much crawling up the side of the bed every 4 minutes.

Around 3pm the anaesthesiologist came into my room to give me the epidural. The narcotic had worn off and I was screaming my way through each contraction. I was still in the small triage room and I was beginning to wonder if I would make it into a delivery room before the big show. But I didn't really care because my biggest fear, that I would be too far along before I could get my epidural, was about to be taken care of.

About 15 minutes after I got the epidural I was rolled on my side and I said I thought I felt a trickle. My midwife checked me and found that my water was broken. I was about 7cm and fully effaced. During this whole time the baby had a pretty low base line heartbeat. It was averaging about 120. But she would regularly dip down to 100 or even lower and they would come rushing in and move her around and roll me from side to side. My midwife had pretty much been camped out in my room with us just watching the monitor. It was really nice to have her all to myself. She was very reassuring and supportive. I was her only patient that afternoon and her care for me was absolutely flawless.

Around 4pm I was wheeled down to my new room which was a LDRP (labor, delivery, recovery and postpartum) room. It was a nice, big, comfortable room where we would be able to stay until we checked out. We spent the next half hour just talking and keeping an eye on the baby's heartbeat which was regularly dropping a little too low. I actually felt pretty fantastic at this point. My pain was nearly gone, although since one side was more numb than the other, I could still feel the pressure from the contractions. I was totally fine with that since I knew I would need to at least have a little feeling to push out the baby.

Around 4:30 my midwife examined me and I was 9cm and the baby was as low as she was going to get before I started pushing. She and the nurse stepped out of the room to give Jim and I couple minutes to ourselves and said she would be watching the monitors from the nurses station. Not even five minutes later she and the nurse came rushing in and said that the baby was dipping too low and we needed to go ahead and start pushing now.

I was still only 9cm but she was able to help open me with her hand to 10cm so I could push. I could feel her stretching me out and then I could feel the pressure from the baby. It only took 3 sets of 3 pushes and I reached down and helped pull Charlotte out. Her cord was wrapped around her neck one time, that was probably the cause of the slowing heartbeat. But she was just fine and was placed directly on my chest. Jim cut the cord and we wiped her off and rubbed her until we got some nice deep breaths and a couple of good squawking cries.

After we had about 15-20 minutes with her and my placenta had been delivered they took her for her measurements. I can't remember if I nursed her before the measurements but I know they gave her back quickly and I did get to nurse her before they did the longer exam.

We called my mom and Jim's mom and told them to get in the car and bring the girls over so everyone could meet Charlotte. Madeline and Amelia got to meet their sister before she was even 2 hours old.

Recovery has not been too hard on me. I didn't tear or need an episiotomy, so that is a huge help in the whole healing process. Breastfeeding has been a challenge, but is going slightly better than it did with Madeline or Amelia. I am still keeping at it, but she is getting more formula than breast milk at this point. But I talked to her pediatrician today and she said not to worry about it and to pat myself on the back for every time I make it through each breastfeeding. As much as I wanted it to work and as careful as I have been to try and keep myself from cracking, blistering and bleeding it isn't working so well. I have cracked, blistered and bled.

We had to take Charlotte in to the doctor today. When I bathed her this morning I found a sore in the top of her ankle right above her foot. It was in a crease and I am not sure if her dry skin just split or if she had a small scratch that got a little flared. Her doctor swabbed it and gave us some medicine to use on it. We go back on Thursday for her 1 week visit and a follow up on her sore. She is gaining her weight back. She was born at 7lbs 11oz and when we left the hospital she was 7lbs 6oz. Today she was up to 7lbs 13oz.

We all just adore this little girl. She is a champion cuddlier and she loves to nuzzle right in to your neck. Her tiny little face is just precious and her head is as soft as a feather. She is a keeper and I am totally in love.

In case you are wondering...

STILL. NO. BABY. (overcooked 2 days)

We did have to take a quick family trip to L&D this weekend due to a very small person who decided to totally freak out her mother and quit moving all afternoon. Upon arrival her heartbeat was a little slow and she wasn't active at all. A can of apple juice and 8 graham crackers later and she perked right up and we moved on with our day.

Next appointment is on Thursday (or 5 days overcooked) and hopefully I can talk my midwife in to inducing me soon, say Friday.

I'll keep you posted internets.

Ignoring her mother...

Despite my counting down the days and quietly begging little Charlotte to arrive a day or two early she has been ignoring her mother just as her sisters did. Tomorrow is her "due date" and I am not keeping my fingers crossed any longer.

As I left my appointment with my mid-wife yesterday and debated why oh why I always have decided to go with these laid back "it will happen when it is supposed to" mid-wives I remembered all the wonderful care they have given me over the past months. I know their approach is right even if in the end I have to be induced yet again. It isn't their fault that my body doesn't get it and loves to keep my babies under lock and key until the Pitocin drip begins.

This past Monday night I had contractions all night. They were irregular, strong and painful. For a moment I thought Tuesday could be birthing day. But as the last contraction hit at 5:30 am I knew that I would be in this for the long haul. Yesterday I found out that those contractions only progressed my body a 1/2 centimeter dilation and nothing at all in the effacement category.

So instead of holding this baby in my arms I will be cherishing another weekend of feeling her punch, roll and stretch around from the inside. Pretty soon those movements will be phantom and I will be counting her fingers and toes. Until then I will be thankful for the extra sleep and time to spend with Madeline and Amelia.

Check it off the list...

OK...
Diapers - check
Glass Bottles and Formula (just in case I go insane from breastfeeding like the past 2 times) - check
Baby clothes - washed and put away - check
Bassinet - put up and ready to go - check
Crib - scrubbed down, breathable bumper attached and clean sheets put on - check
Sara Bear Basket - well stocked with tiny clippers, rash cream, burp cloths, diapers, wipes and ear thermometer - check
The rest of my house - disaster

So while this weekend was extremely productive in getting ready for the baby the rest of my house erupted into a mess. Jim has been busy trying to wrap up his on-going project of cleaning out and organizing the basement and he also spent the better part of Sunday afternoon mowing the lawn and playing outside with the girls while I napped.

I have 26 days to go, give or take a few, and I feel like we are finally getting there.

Oh and if you haven't heard we have a name... Charlotte (well we are 98% sure, but if she comes out and looks like someone else I am leaving my options open). The middle name is still up in the air, but I have a couple picks that I am leaning toward. Any suggestions?

One month to go...

I went for an ultrasound today to check the little one's growth and we got some pretty great pictures of her little face. They said she weighs about 5lbs 8oz. She was measuring a little smaller this time and the ultrasound showed a 9-20 due date which is about a week behind my actual date of 9-13. Last time she was about a week bigger with a 9-6 due date, so I was a tad worried with the new date. But I talked to my mid-wife and she said that this ultrasound tech, who did my exam today, consistently measures babies a little on the small side. So now I feel better.
I now start going to the doctor every week now so I scheduled appointments for the next 3 Thursdays. I can't believe I am really this close. She will be here before I know it.

She's (not) upside down...

So yesterday this little chick decided to flip over. All day I felt her moving and pushing me in a different way then she normally does. Typically I can feel her little legs and feet moving around up at the top of my bump. Yesterday it felt like she was trying to split me open right in the middle of my belly. That skin doesn't quite "give" like the space she has at the top, of course that is also the space for my lungs so one gives and the other takes.
Anyway, for awhile now I could feel her having hiccups and they are always more pronounced down at the bottom of the bump. Last night she got the hiccups again and my feeling was confirmed, she was head up. This of course is not the direction she needs to be. I have 44 days left so I know she has plenty of time to flip back over. But I hope she does it soon, the larger she gets the more I am going to feel it.

All is well.

Well, we are sure entering the home stretch. As of today there are only 45 days until my due date. I will be completely surprised if she comes any earlier than that since Madeline was 7 days late and Amelia was 10 days late and I never actually went into labor at all for her (completely induced).
But as far as I can tell she is growing just fine. I will have an ultrasound in two weeks to check her growth. But she is really active and I feel very comfortable that all is well.
We have a lot to do around the house before she shows up. Hopefully the next few weekends will be very productive. And well, we still need to decide on a name.
But that is all I have to report for now, off to incubate.

Tiny update...

I passed my 3 hour glucose test, Yippee. I have a feeling I would have turned into quite a bear without any ice cream over the next 8 weeks. The girls went to the doctor with me today and got to hear the baby's heartbeat. Madeline got pretty excited and Amelia was more interested in coloring the picture she was working on.
I think this baby and Madeline have a special thing. Madeline can pretty much put her hand anywhere on my belly and the baby will move at anytime. Other people can try for 15 minutes, poking around, but the second Madeline brushes by me it is a kickfest.

29+ weeks - Not that I am counting.

OK, so I have been neglecting this blog a little. Here is a little story to pass the time.
I went to the doctor's office on Monday at 8am. I drank my Glucola (gag) 30 minutes before so 30 minutes into the appointment I could do my glucose test. I got there, signed in, and found out my appointment wasn't until Tuesday. Nice! The nurse took my blood for the glucose test and I went home. I went back to the doctor's office on Tuesday at 8am. There I found out I failed the glucose test. Now I have to go back to the doctor on Monday morning and stay for 3 hours while fasting and drinking 2x sweet Glucola and having my blood taken every hour. If I fail that, it is bye bye sugar for the next 10 weeks.
I have never failed the test before. I thought I was doing so good this time. I have only gained 13 pounds so far and that is way under what I gained the last two pregnancies. Oh well, I suppose if I have to cut out the sugar it will be better for my diet and over all weight gain anyway.
Oh and just in case I didn't feel like I had been to the doctor's office enough, I had to go back out there yesterday afternoon and take Madeline because she was covered in hives that were migrating all around her body. Her doctor gave her some souped up Benadryl which cleared up the hives and knocked her out for the rest of the day. But, she said the hives were viral and could show up again for up to a month. She and Amelia both came home from vacation with fevers and sniffles. I won't be shocked if Amelia gets the hives too.
Anyway, everything else with the pregnancy is going just fine. It is really hard to believe I only have about 10 weeks left. The Protonix has been a miracle. I had no idea you could feel this good in the third trimester. I have not had one smidge of heartburn since I have been on it. It is amazing how much easier it is to be pregnant when you feel good.
We still have no name for this little girl. I promise I am going to buckle down. We won't bring her home without a name, I promise.

And they all fall down...

Today I was just moving too fast. This whole week I have been thinking about 3 steps ahead of where I actually am. But today I could have made the next few weeks slow to a crawl. I was headed down the stairs after just running up them to check my email before I dashed out the door. I made it all the way down to the last step and down I went. I turned my ankle under my body and sat right down on it. It was a very very soft fall and the rest of my body didn't experience much of a jolt at all. I went all the way down to the floor like I was trying to sit just where I landed. The baby was in the middle of a kick-fest so I knew within seconds that she was just fine. I however, was in ripping pain. I told Amelia to grab the phone and she brought it to me. I had Jim totally freaked out since he, I am sure, heard "fall down" and "pain" all up my leg and could not see me. But slowly the pain centered itself on one muscle and I was able to stand up and walk and I knew I had just pulled something. Here is the thing, I do not have weak ankles, but due to all the relaxin coursing through my body, I need to remember I am not made of steel. So I am going to take this warning and slow down before I really do hurt myself. I think this little limp will serve as a good reminder.

In other news I go back on Monday for another ultrasound and a doctor's appointment. I'll post new pictures of her then.

A little indigestion...

And by a "little indigestion" I mean every day a couple times a day. Yeah, OK so that isn't really a little but I have had it worse. This time around the midwife said she would prescribe a acid blocker or something. For now I have just been taking Zantac 150 twice a day.
I go back to the doctor in 11 days. I will also have another ultrasound then. I feel like she must be growing just fine, because I sure am! She is also really active so I am going to take that as a good sign too.
We still have no name for this little bug. But feel free to post your ideas. There are 2 criteria as noted here....
1. It has to go well with Madeline and Amelia.
2. She has to be able to be introduced as "The President of the United States ------- ------"

Just in case!

21 weeks 2 days

Today we went for another ultrasound. She is still a "she" and she looked great. She still has the cysts in her brain, but hopefully in the next few weeks those will go away. We will be going for another ultrasound next month for growth assessment and to take another look at her brain.
Today we saw all of the following...
Opening and closing hands
4 chamber heart
nasal bone
cute little feet
oh and this...
Yes, she is folded in half. That is her knee touching her nose and her feet up behind her head. So I figure she might have a career someday doing this...

or maybe this...

She weighs exactly a pound right now and they said her growth measurements were a little larger than where my due date puts her, but that is a good thing. I have an appointment with my midwife on Friday. I'll find out then any additional details from the ultrasound that we might not have talked about today.

Tonight I have yoga so I am going to go practice standing on one foot and swaying like a tree.

A long week...

OK, so last Friday morning we had our ultrasound and saw that we were getting another baby girl. Just a couple hours later we got a call that one of our test had come back abnormal. We weren't able to get an appointment with genetics until today, so I have saved this news until we knew a little more.

First things first, we are pretty confident that everything is going to be just fine. Here are the details. Back at week 13/14 we had a First Trimester Maternal Serum Screening, the results came back with everything totally within the "normal" range. (This is a screening for Downs Syndrome and Trisomy 18). Then right before week 18 I had more blood drawn for what was supposed to be just an AFP screening. Well, the lab went ahead and tested me for Down Syndrome and Trisomy 18 (which is the standard triple test) again and this time it came back with a 1:28 chance of the baby having Trisomy 18. Today we met with the genetics specialist and learned a little more.

In case you don't know anything about these tests, they are just screenings, the only test that would diagnose this for sure is an amniocentesis (which carries a small risk for miscarriage). After an abnormal test they look to your ultrasounds to see if the baby has any "markers" for the disorder. We only had one, the same kind of choroid plexus cysts in her brain that Amelia had. We also had some really positive signs that she is ok, like normal feet (not rocker bottom) and hands that open and close (they are not clenched).

Here's the thing, the first test, the "new" one that is supposed to be the more accurate screen, it came back with a 1:16000 risk for Trisomy 18. The second trimester test, the old standard, is the one that put us at a 1:28 risk. Hmmmm. I think I will just try and look at that 1:16000 and ignore the 1:28 until I have more of a reason to worry.

We have an ultrasound scheduled in a few days to follow up on the cysts and make sure that they disappear (just like Amelia's did). Then we will also follow up that ultrasound with additional ultrasounds to make sure she is growing on target, Trisomy 18 babies typically have delayed growth.

For now we are going to look at the big picture and not the small number.

We know... It's a ...

GIRL!
We are adding another sister to the house. I am so excited and so relaxed now.
Everything looked great. We saw all of her little moving parts. Her beautiful 4 chamber heart pumping away. Her tiny hands and feet were waving all around.
Both girls had switched there preference/guess to a boy this morning. So I was a little nervous to see their reactions. But Amelia who wanted it to be a girl all along was jumping up and down and Madeline didn't seem too disappointed either (although she did offer to reach up to Heaven and switch this baby with a boy). Now the guessing has switched to who's eyes she will have, matching brown with Mommy and Amelia or green like Daddy and Madeline. We are also having a hair color/style debate since one girl has straight and one has curly, but I am putting in my vote for brown hair this time.
Here are a couple pictures from the visit today...

Monday Night Yoga

So I signed up for this prenatal yoga class on Monday nights. Last night was my first class and it was WONDERFUL. The lady who teaches it has be a doula for 20 some years. She is actually "retired" so she said, but from all the information she gave us last night, I can say that she is still pretty active in sharing her knowledge.

It just felt so good to spend a little over an hour only thinking about the baby in my belly. I don't think I have ever realized how much of my day is spent multitasking. How very little of my time is ever spent just thinking about the baby without another thought in my head or without my body doing a task like making lunch or folding laundry.

I am going to use these Monday nights to not just stretch my body and center my mind but to specifically center it on this baby. We are going to spend just a little time all to ourselves.

*****Don't forget to vote for a boy or girl. We find out in just 3 days.*******

17 weeks and 5 days

OK, here is the shot you have all been waiting for...


Yes, I look about 28 weeks along, but no, I am just a mere 17+. I bought this really cute shirt that says "Sweet Pea 03 Third Baby." It is the shirt I am wearing in the picture. My plan was to wear this "One Size Fits All" teeshirt in all of the belly pictures as this pregnancy progresses. I'll be lucky if I can squeeze into it for the next 2 months.

I went to the doctor today. I got the results from the first trimester nuchal translucency, it came back within normal range. Yippee! And today I had blood drawn for the AFP multiple marker screening.

Next week is the appointment that I have been waiting for, my big ultrasound. Hopefully we will find out that the baby looks very healthy, and if we are super lucky, if we are expecting a boy or a girl.

The heartbeat today was in the 150s. So do you guys have any guesses? Boy or Girl? I am going put up a survey in the side column. You'll have 7 days to vote.

Not about me...

OK, this has nothing to do with me, but I came across this blog, Tales from Labor and Delivery and it is hilarious and unbelievable. I can't stop reading. Go. Read. Now.

New pictures...

This week I had the Nuchal Translucency, so I got to have another ultrasound and I got to see our little baby. It was so cute. At first the ultrasound tech said, "Did you see that little head jerk?" and we laughed, then about 20 seconds later it happened again and I said, "It looks like hiccups," then yes, every 20 seconds through the whole ultrasound the poor little thing had the hiccups. It was waving its little hands all around. She got some pretty good pictures...



Anyway, I opted for the newer first trimester screenings that are available for Down Syndrome, Trisomy 13 and 18. Because with Amelia I had a positive triple test during my second trimester and then we also had some additional markers, cysts in her brain (which ended up dissolving before she was born). But she was born as healthy as a horse so our positive was just a false positive. Since a newer and better test was available I thought we should try it and maybe have less of a chance for a false positive. We don't have the results back from the blood work yet, but the ultrasound looked good and my midwife said her nuchal translucency measurement looks good and she already has a nasal bone which is another good sign.

Today was my monthly visit with the midwife. Everything looks good. The baby's heartbeat was going a million miles an hour. I am measuring a little big. I am guessing that is why yesterday was my first official day in maternity pants.

My next midwife visit is on April 11th and my big ultrasound is on the 18th. I can't hardly wait to find out if this is a boy or a girl. I haven't even started thinking about names yet and I am just going to wait until I know what this little one is to start. It cuts out 50% of the work. I know it is risky to go to the hospital with just names from one sex, but I have never had a boys name picked out before so I guess I have just been awful trusting of my ultrasounds.

Only a 4 year old...

On Sunday at church I volunteer in a classroom for 4 year olds kids. This week a little girl named Celeste and I had the following conversation...

Celeste: Are you going to have a baby?
Me: Yes I am, did your mommy tell you that?
Celeste: No, your sweater doesn't fit on your tummy any more.
Me: (cracking up) Yes Celeste I guess you are right.

I didn't think I really looked pregnant yet. I mean I am only 13 weeks. But I guess with baby #3 things don't stay hidden very long. I have still been wearing my jeans and long sleeve T-shirts and I haven't really noticed much of a change. But I do wear my jeans under my "tummy" and my shirts are quite loose fitting. I guess switching it up and wearing a slightly fitted sweater was just the thing I needed to totally out myself as a pregnant momma.

I am guessing if a four year old will say it out loud, then other people are thinking the same thing too. Either that or they think, "Wow, Crystal sure is enjoying the girl scout cookies this year." (and I am)

12 weeks 3 days...

and all I do is sleep. I have been going to bed early or taking a nap everyday for the past month (if not longer). Last night Jim said this...
"For the record it is 7:58"
Yes, I went to bed before 8:00. When was the last time you did that?
When is this 1st trimester over again???

11 weeks plus 5 days

Well, I survived the flu. I took a minimal amount of medicine (because that totally freaked me out) and I drank a million tons of fluids. I actually felt like I had energy today and I even made to to the grocery store.
I am starting to feel a little plumper around the middle. I feel like the baby has moved up a little or I guess I am not sure if it is up but "off" my bladder is more accurate. I am guessing that I have about 2 weeks left before I start having clothing catastrophes.
Not to much new, I just wanted to post that I am still alive and well.

Surprise!

This is where I have been posting the past few weeks when I am not over at my other blog, My Family Gossip. We have told our friends and family and now we are out to the world. I will be adding a link to each of the blogs so you can bounce back and forth. So please check both places for exciting news.

First Trimester Hormones

I think my hormones are trying to kill me. I am a raving lunatic one minute and in tears the next. I am not going to be able to hold off much longer in telling people. I am just a mess. The life I am busy creating 24 hours a day is just sucking every last ounce of energy right out of me. I was really sick until about 16 weeks when I was pregnant with Amelia but I don't remember having this energy drain. Oh and the other thing, these tears are ridiculous. I have had to totally ignore anything emotional outside my house in fear I will just collapse. But inside my house, safely tucked into my office, watch out. I cry at the drop at of a pin. So you people who have been sending me all those sappy forwarded emails, thanks a lot.
Anyway, enough with the complaining. I am really thrilled to be pregnant but I will be a little more thrilled come second trimester when things even out a little.
I am 10+ weeks now. Here is the deal inside my belly...

Nine Weeks and 2 Days...

Today we went for our first ultrasound. The little bug measured perfect for 9 weeks plus 2 days. So the due date is set at September 13th. We saw little arm buds and a flickering heartbeat. It was a strong, fast and beautiful little flicker, it was the only thing I have been waiting to see since the day the test read positive.


This afternoon I got a call I have been waiting on for the past two years. Our dear friends Carrie and Matt are also pregnant. I was in tears with her news. This will be their first child and they are going to be awesome parents. She shared that she is 10 weeks along. They live only about 4 blocks away from us and we have been friends since college (although she has known Jim since childhood). She is an assistant principal so she will get to enjoy the summer of pregnancy off of work and hopefully we will get to spend a lot of time together enjoying our growing bellies.

We decided to call our moms tonight and share the news along with the ultrasound picture. We are still going to hold off telling the girls until we are ready to share the news with the world. I think we'll do that at around 12 weeks. The longer we wait to tell the girls the better since I know they are going to ask me everyday when this baby is coming.

What a joyful day.

8 weeks and counting...

This past Friday I went to my first doctor's appointment. I guess it was actually a mid-wife appointment, because there are going to be enough mid-wives in my group that I can go with just the MW if I want to, and I do. She also said that by September there should be a mid-wife on duty everyday in my hospital.

Anyway, it was pretty uneventful. I didn't even have an exam. She said that for insurance purposes, to get the ultrasound paid for, that they have to assume that we don't know the date I got pregnant. So, I am now scheduled for an ultrasound on Monday and that should give us a more accurate due date. Right now it is set at September 13th. I am betting that isn't going to change much.

Then after the ultrasound on Monday, I go back for a full exam next Friday. I'll be nearly 10 weeks then, so hopefully we'll get to hear the heartbeat. I guess we might get to see a little flicker of a heartbeat on Monday so that is exciting too.

Right now, I feel pretty exhausted. I am napping at any chance I get. I have not been sleeping well at night and I have been getting up to pee every few hours. UGH. Until today I hadn't noticed too much nausea. But today I woke up sick and I haven't felt quite right all day. I went to the store and bought a bunch of milk, bread and crackers. I couldn't even think about any meal planning. I was just trying to get the basics and get out of there.

Talking to my mom or Jim's mom has been hard. I am so close to slipping about my doctor appointments or napping so much. My brain feels fuzzy and I can't remember what I am saying. I guess it is no big deal if I slip, but after not telling anyone with either of the girls I am just superstitious this time. It really isn't that much longer now anyway. I just want to hear that nice strong heartbeat and know that we are past the high miscarriage risk before we all start celebrating.

Jim's mom called this week with the news that a close family member is pregnant. She said she is due in October. She has 2 boys who are very close to the same ages as my girls. So that will be really fun when we let her know that we will both be expecting again so close together.

I have not really noticed too much of a change physically yet. I can't really remember when I started showing with the girls. I already have a belly from late night snacking anyway so I guess it is a good cover for pregnancy. :) I have been wearing my larger size jeans just because I always have to pee when anything pushes on my belly. I am hoping to make it through to warmer weather before I have to buy any maternity clothes. I have some maternity jeans I can pull out if I need to. I am not sure about tops, I think those are mostly heavy sweaters, I can't really remember what I have.

Well, I'll update next after the ultrasound.

Switching it up a little (6 weeks)

So, here's the thing. I called to make my first doctor's appointment for my precious little pea and they said they could see me on Feb 20th. That would put me at like ten and a half weeks. That is just a little too long for my comfort. I even tried to call them back and talk to a nurse and she said, yes ten and a half weeks would be fine even though they like to see patients between eight and ten weeks. So to me this said, "We are too busy for you now and for the next 9 months you will have to work around our schedule." This is the same office I have gone to with the other two girls. I really like my mid-wives and doctors, but neither of my children were actually delivered by someone I knew, it was whoever was on call in the hospital (but my doctors and midwives did see me throughout my labor and stay in the hospital).

This practice is about 5 minutes from my house, which makes it very convenient for monthly, bi-weekly, and weekly appointments. But I was not getting a good feeling. So today I called and made an appointment at another practice. The great news is that my favorite doctor and my favorite mid-wife also see patients at this location. The bad news is that I will have to drive across town to my appointments. I will deliver at the same hospital, which I like, and I already know that I like this practice because this is where I take the girls to the pediatrician.

I am feeling pretty tired right now. I am getting a little queasy but no major morning sickness to report yet. Actually most of my nausea is in the evenings after dinner.

Summertime!

So I have not said this on the blog yet, but I am SO excited that I am going to be pregnant in the summertime. Both of my girls were born in March, so I spent the largest part of my pregnancies with winter sweaters, sweatshirts, jeans and coats. I am thrilled that this time I will get to wear shorts, skirts and cute t-shirts. How fun!
I am sure that this post may come back to haunt me when I am 37 weeks along in August. But I am just excited to try something new this time.
Oh and what about the cute summer maternity dresses, yes I will be sporting those. I maybe wore 2 or 3 dresses total though the last two times. Something about maternity pantyhose just seemed ridiculous. I am so lucky that I work from home. I can't imagine how difficult it is to work outside the house and regularly get dressed professionally while you are pregnant. Man my hat goes off to you all that do it.
Ok, I have to go work on some arm exercises so that I have some guns to show off this summer.

PS - I have never had any kind of muscle in my arms in my whole life. I have a feeling that statement could come back to haunt me too.

Unbelievable.

I am totally in the "this is unbelievable" stage of finding out we are pregnant. We have been planning, trying, trying, and trying some more. One would think I would find this all business as usual. But honestly, I am as completely as excited as I was the day I found out I was pregnant with Madeline (and then Amelia).

Dare I say that I am the most unprepared this go around. I had yet to crack open the pregnancy handbooks until after that positive pee stick. Before Madeline I read everything I could get my hands on the six months before we started trying. Before Amelia I probably checked them out the month before we started trying. This time, I figured it would all come "natural." I mean, hey I did this twice already. Duh, I did this twice already, I should know how my brain shuts down as soon as a couple hormones start surging through my body.

I have already started talking to this little group of cells inside me. Yes, we have had a couple talks about the big sisters this little one will be loved by. I have held my belly and thought of the movements that will take place in a few months. Those rocks and rolls are the most amazing connection. They are with you day and night these flutters and then breathtaking jabs. Oh, how I miss that when the baby is born. I am really looking forward to those moments right now.

OK, off to incubate (as Jim has been telling me that is what I am busy doing right now).

Pregnant (week 4)

Tonight I took a home pregnancy test and guess what? It didn't say "NOT pregnant." I AM PREGNANT!!!!! After 7 months of trying we have had success. I am pretty much on cloud nine right now. Come September we are going to have a brand new little tiny baby. Oh my gosh. I am just in shock right now. I know this is what we have been trying for for since this summer and this sure is what we wanted to hear, but it is still just amazing to me that it has happened. It is not something that may or may not happen somewhere down the road. It is something that has already happened and in 36 weeks give or take a few days we are going to be a family of 5.

I have not stopped smiling since I walked out of the bathroom and handed Jim the test. I know he knew the answer before I handed it to him. I was practically skipping over to him.

Here is the other thing. This is just a secret that Jim and I share for the first 12 weeks. So we have 8 more weeks to keep this exciting news just to ourselves. So I have decided to keep this little blog from today until the big day in September. I can't wait to share the news with our families but until them I have to just keep posting here anytime I just can't contain myself any longer.

Did I know before I took the test? Nope. For the past six months I have thought I was pregnant every month. Yes, it was just wishful thinking. But this month, no I as much as I wanted it, I was thinking that we might be in this for the long haul and this month would be just like the others. Looking back I can see little things... like CRYING. Yes, I cried when I heard the college band play before my favorite football team played in their bowl game. I cried when Jim told me he wanted to to have a "sky burial" when he dies (don't ask). Yes, I have been pretty weepy lately. And guess what, this has happened before, crying like a crazy person before a positive pregnancy test. LOL, I guess I never learn.

Anyway, here we go. Baby, I can't wait to meet you.