And...first trip to Labor & Delivery

So Friday, we made our first trip to Labor & Delivery. But let me back up a little.

For the past week, I've been freaking out blood pressure again. On my monitor, it was up in the 130/80 range. Not crazy high, but too high for my liking. No big deal, I had an appointment Friday where I was going to discuss it with the doctor.

Then Thursday afternoon I got a phone call from the doctor's office. I failed my one hour glucose test. I honestly did NOT expect this. I get that I've always had the world's slowest metabolism, but I always associated gestational diabetes with gaining tons of weight. I'm not exactly packing it on with gaining about 5 pounds so far. So I have to do the three hour test. I know, I know...the false positive rate for the 1 hour is ridiculous. But breakdown number one came when I got that call and just felt so defeated. Here I was dealing with potential GD and blood pressure issues...can my body just not handle pregnancy at all?

And then, I started googling. Now, I've googled literally thousands of different pregnancy related things. And for the record, once it made me feel better. The other 999 times it has sent me into a sheer panic. So this is exactly what I should be doing, right?

Turns out gestational diabetes can cause pre-eclampsia to progress faster. Cue major meltdown. And to make it worse, the clinic can't get me in to get my 3 hour test done until the TWENTY-FIFTH. That is a week and a half away! I was convinced my self-diagnosed pre-eclampsia levels would be horrid by then.

So I go to my appointment Friday. I really, really love my doctor. He "gets" me. Blood pressure is still a bit elevated (140/80 or 90, depending on which reading you believe). Not really high for an office reading, actually. But I went over my concerns with him and he did such an awesome job of listening, but telling me that he is confident that all my googling is in vain once again. The high blood pressure he thinks may be just a spike as blood volume continues to adjust, and with no other pre-eclampsia signs, I DO NOT have it right now. And GD? Well, it is basically 50/50 that I have it, and he's confident that even if I do it can be easily controlled via diet. And those two things ONLY play into each other when GD is insulin-dependent.

I was feeling much better. But then he asked if I would still freak out about all of this during the week. Um, yes. Freaking out is what I do. So he told me to go to triage, get monitored, run some initial bloodwork, and that should put my mind at ease.

So off to the hospital we went. Except we really had no idea where we were going. Yup, total newbies right here. So once we figured out we were supposed to be in Labor & Delivery Triage and not just general Triage, things went smoothly. We were put in a room and I was hooked up to the monitors. Baby E was NOT happy at all about the monitors. She was kicking them like a crazy woman. My abdomen is so sore today because of her antics. Loved the nurses we had there, they were so nice and knowledgeable. My blood pressure was not great when we got there 140/90 but dropped dramatically shortly afterwards (like 100/60...whoa). They ran some bloodwork and everything looks great. Liver and kidneys still functioning within normal levels. Phew! One less thing to worry about.

No wonder my blood pressure is doing WAY better today. And other than the instructions to take it easy until my next appointment on Friday, I'm good to go.

Hopefully I won't have to be back to L&D for a couple months, but overall not a bad first visit.

28 weeks

So this week, in baby stuff...well, not much happened. We were away all weekend for a competition, so baby stuff got put on the backburner. I did learn some seriously important stuff for dealing with competition days while pregnant though. I did great on keeping hydrated and resting when I could but I totally stunk at eating. So I felt like crap most of the time. So for Nationals, I will have an eating plan that I will stick to whether I feel like it or not.

Speaking of eating, Monday was ROUGH. Competition hangover is always bad, but competition hangover 27.5 weeks pregnant is terrible! Headache, no appetite, got sick, etc. My blood pressure had been slightly elevated all weekend, so I called the nurse, as those signs were concerning. Luckily, getting sick seemed to be a one-time thing and the headache migrated to one side confirming what I had suspected: my sinuses are acting up.

I also got the the pleasure of doing the glucose screening test yesterday. I was really worried I was not going to be able to keep that stuff down. Luckily, it wasn't too bad. It just tasted like sweet fruit punch, and I took the advice that I read online and chugged water like a madwoman afterwards to get the taste out of my mouth. Worked like a charm. E did not like it one bit, though, as it gave her hiccups. I was not prepared for how terrible I felt afterwards. Yuck! I felt like I had downed about 5 energy drinks in a row. It took getting 2 full meals in me before I felt human again.

And E is a rockstar. Really. I started kick counts this weekend, and she is just rocking them out. It hasn't taken her more than 6 minutes to get the requisite 10 kicks.I absolutely love that she is so wiggly. Definitely calms me down. Although I am not so happy to report that she has found my ribs, and thought it was a really fun game to wedge her foot in them on the car ride up to Lansing this weekend. Ouch! And Ryan got to feel hiccups yesterday morning, which was really cool for him.


How far along:  28 weeks! 84 days to go!
How big is baby: The size of Chinese cabbage. 14.8 inches and about 2.2lbs.
What I've done to prep for baby: Well, the fabric I ordered last week came in and I LOVE it. Oh, and I had a panic attack at 2am this morning about how unprepared we are. Seriously. Other than crib pieces leaned against a living room wall (still shaking my head that the crib wouldn't fit, in the box, in the back of the avaiator!) nothing in our house would even clue you in that we are having a baby. It is time to buckle down and start getting some stuff, I think. 
Sleep: I really appreciate the fact that sleep has been GREAT. Seriously GREAT. This is probably ust the calm before the storm, but still, I'll take it!
Best moment of the week: Last night Ryan made the funniest comment. We were talking about how unprepared we feel for all this, and he said "Yeah, we should probably read some books or something on all this!" Ugh, maybe. But it made me smile knowing it is all becoming real to him too!
Food cravings: So a new one this week, and I blame the nurse I talked to Monday. She suggested a more liquid diet while I wasn't feeling well. Now I cannot get enough Carnation Instant Breakfast. I have multiple glasses a day. Yeah. 
Symptoms: Feeling great for the most part. Of course I'm getting swelling when I am up and around, but that is to be expected in June!
Movement: For the first time this week she started poking back when poked. Love that!
What I’m looking forward to: Potentially picking out some paint colors for her room. Now that I have the fabric, I feel like I can really get that started! Oh, and having the weekend off! 
Next appt: Tomorrow. Not sure how it is going to go, since I have had slightly elevated blood pressure, and I think it might be time to start talking about meds. It is with my doctor though, so I feel a little better about that. 

Um, how did this happen? 27 weeks!

This entire pregnancy has really been about countdowns for me. I knew the entire 40 weeks would be such a hard hurdle to overcome emotionally that I needed to break it into smaller pieces. So I downloaded this countdown widget for my phone. It has since been set a number of different times for "milestones" that I considered successes. So I've seen it tick down to 0 before. Yet this morning when I woke up and it was at 0, it felt so, so, different.

Oh. My. Goodness. I am in the third trimester. I am just in utter disbelief. And overwhelmingly thankful that I have made it this far!

Now that being said, I got the opportunity this week to hang around with a number of ladies due a couple months before me. One thing I realized as they were talking about wanting those kiddos out is the fact that I have just wrapped my brain around the "I am pregnant" stage. And that I am not even KIND OF ready to mentally go to the fact that I will actually have a baby, God willing, in a couple months. And I am CERTAINLY NOT WILLING to think about the fact that she has to come out of me somehow. This, my friends, is what complete denial looks like.

I also got my first "Was it a surprise?" question this week. Not only is that pretty darn personal, I really struggle with that, because I don't know how to answer it honestly without giving the complete wrong impression. I think the best answer is yes, it was a surprise. But certainly not in the way that is most often interpreted. It was a complete surprise that it worked, and it was certainly an answer to many, many prayers. And I must think of a concise way to answer this question. Hmmmm...

Okay, on to the "normal" stuff:


How far along:  27 weeks!
How big is baby: The size of a head of cauliflower. 14.4 inches and about 2lbs.
What I've done to prep for baby: Got some stuff ordered for the nursery! I couldn't find any bedding "sets" I liked, but I found some awesome fabric I'm in LOVE with. My mother-in-law is like the sewing queen of the world, so I recruited her to make a crib skirt and curtains. Check out the fabrics:

I am so excited to get them. Then I can start picking paint colors!
I seriously have SO MUCH to do and get before she gets here. being in the 3rd Trimester now really is a wake up call. E is probably going to need more than the crib, 7 diapers, 3 bibs, and 4 outfits that she has. I see some serious shopping in my near future!
Sleep: I've actually slept better this week. Not really sure why that is...maybe because I feel like some of the exhaustion is back. Either way, I am very thankful to be sleeping more and having my hips feel better!
Best moment of the week: Last night, talking about Baby E with Black. They all want to be texted when I go into labor so that they can come to the hospital. When I pointed out that they would probably not let them all in, they came up with a plan that involved basket tosses and a camera. Love those kiddos, and it was really cool to see them all so excited about E. I definitely still feed off of others' excitement.
Food cravings: Last Friday I went to get my requisite icee to be told that they are running a promotion where icees are now only 74 cents. With tears of happiness in my eyes, I asked how long this would be going on, and was told it would be going on through August. I feel like I won the lottery.
Symptoms: I mentioned before the exhaustion is back a bit. And I have zero appetite. Other than that, I feel really good.
Movement: I'm shocked at how much stronger she's gotten just in a week. I'm not offically supposed to start kick counts until next week, but I had a scary stress out moment and did one this week. No problem, she passed with flying colors!
What I’m looking forward to: I'm looking forward to it starting to feel more and more "real." And checking things off my to-do list!
Next appt: I have to do the diabetes screening Monday or Tuesday. Fingers crossed I pass without any drama. Then I have a doctor's appointment on Friday. 

Just about hyperventilating here...

Oh. my. goodness. Today is my LAST DAY of the second trimester. That is completely unreal to me! I simply cannot wrap my brain around it. Three months from TODAY baby E is due. What???

It has been an insanely crazy week around here, so I'll save additional updates for tomorrow, but I am simply floored by both how fast and how slow this pregnancy is going. Guess I better start wrapping my brain around having a baby. Yikes.

26 weeks!

Okay, so everyone can come back out of the woodwork. I'm not all doom and gloom today like yesterday. But since I was kind of cryptic, here's what happened over the last 48 hours:

In short, being this far along for the first time is really, really hard. So many of the "red flag" symptoms can go either way. Such as, cramps can be a problem, or they can be totally normal. It is like that with just about everything. So, I had an appointment on Tuesday, and the doctor freaked me out regarding some cramping I had. On the way home the freakout commenced and only got worse that evening. And the next morning. So, I ended up going in again yesterday afternoon. Different doctor (and I LOVED her, so we are up to three in the practice that I love, two that I am indifferent on, and one which I am quite certain is the spawn of the devil...but that is a story for another time) ran some test and checked me out again with good results. Still waiting to confirm with the tests, but it looks like everything is completely normal and Baby E should stay cooking for a long time still.

Oh, and my blood pressure was perfect at this latest appointment. No wonder, I had my absolute favorite nurse. My next appointment is with my doctor, and I'm going to have to spill the beans that my blood pressure problems are likely due to the fact that in dealing with the nurses in some really crummy situations over the past 2 years, there are VERY few that I can be in the same room with without trying to use Jedi mind tricks to make their heads explode.

Okay, now on to the regular (fun!) stuff:


How far along:  26 weeks...98 days to go...wow!
How big is baby: The size of an english hothouse cucumber. What? Yeah, let's just go with approximately 14 inches and a little less than 2lbs.
What I miss: Although I would have loved a good margarita this weekend, there is really not a lot that I "miss." E has managed to ruin my obsession with Sashimi after the great Bang Bang shrimp debacle of March 2012, so I'm not even really missing that. I guess the closest thing would be regular clothes. With zippers. 
Sleep: No major changes here. Still not sleeping the best.
Best moment of the week: Spending the long weekend with my boys! We had no big plans so we just hung out most of the weekend and recovered from the craziness of the past couple weeks. It was awesome. In baby-related stuff, we started cleaning out Baby E's room. It is getting there, but considering that it was the "catch all" junk room, we've got a ways to go. It makes it feel real to finally get started. 
Food cravings: Still icees. Speedway has it where you buy 6, get the 7th free or something like that. We've gotten 2 free since last week. Whoops!
Symptoms: Cramping. And I'm starting to get leg cramps too. I had to get out of bed one night to stretch my calves. Ouch!
Movement: Yes. And she's about an inch away from being able to reach my ribs. I am scared. 
What I’m looking forward to: Making progress in the nursery. And breathing a sigh of relief when my test results come back clean (see, positivity!)
Next appt: Hopefully not until the 15th. Although I have to do the dreaded glucose test next week (ick!). If by chance the test results aren't good today, I'll be in this afternoon or tomorrow at the latest though. I've been to the office entirely too much this week, though, and I want to stay away for awhile!!!

Frustrated

Full disclaimer: I hope I look back on this post in 3 months and thoroughly laugh at myself.

I had a full on ugly breakdown last night. For every normal person in this world, doctor appointnents make them feel better, right? Not me. They freak me the heck out.

After last night's hysteria, Ryan deserves a stinking medal. Seriously.

In good news, I'm in double digits. I can remember so clearly when I couldn't wait for that countdown to go under 200 days and now it is under 100. Wow!

25 Weeks

Okay, so here is my first "normal" update. And yes, I'm using a blog template here.


How far along:  25 weeks
How big is baby: The size of an eggplant, or roughly 13.6 inches and about 1.5lbs.
Maternity clothes: Of course. Or monster sized clothes. In the past week, I've started to get pretty consistent "stranger" comments...so I guess I'm officially over the "Fat? or Pregnant?" stage. 
Sleep: Sleep is not so much happening. My hips kill me, all the time. I can sleep for about 2 hours max. But not working is making this much better. Sleeping in and naps are saving me!
Best moment of the week: I have three of them. It has been a big week. 
Friday-we picked up our crib. Cue the freakout of "oh. my. goodness. I have a CRIB in my HOUSE."  In fact, I'm pretty sure I sent that exact text to like 3 people! And, this is officially the first thing we bought for baby E

Monday-we picked up the rest of the nursery furniture while we were in Detroit at Ikea. We got a dresser, bookshelf, chair and wall cabinet. And poor Ryan had to do his best Tetris game ever to fit it in the car.
Wednesday-the second thing we bought for the baby, some diapers, came. We plan to cloth diaper and there was a really good deal on some of the highest rated ones, so I bought seven. They came, and I just had to try them out. Hmmmm...wonder how I should do that...

I am going to be SO good at torturing baby E! I am getting so much practice!
Food aversions:  still can't stand peanut butter or barbeque sauce. But so little actually sounds good. I'm not one of those people that wants to eat everything in sight.
Food cravings: Icees. I just want icees. All the time. 
Symptoms: Still lots of cramps. And still lots of pressure/swelling in certain...ahem...areas. It is freaking me out, but I'm trying to remember that the doctor warned me that is would get worse.
Movement: Tons! It definitely looks like there is an alien in there sometimes! I love it though. I try to spend some time each day out on my swing with a bottle of cold water. I pull up my shirt and just watch the tummy go...
What I’m looking forward to: Getting started on the nursery, although I have LOTS of work to do!
Next appt: Tuesday! My blood pressure has been great taking it at home (112/64 this morning) so I am really hoping I don't freak out at this one!


In other news, I just have to say how overwhelmed I am by those who checked out my blog since I posted it last night. Your love and support means the world to me! I struggled for awhile with both what and how much info to release. I feel like this is a really good "happy medium" and that being authentic about the fact that we are thrilled, but the fear never goes away, is the way to go. Being the intensely private person I am, it is difficult, but I think that opening up a bit is probably one of the other things I am supposed to learn through all this. The stigma around IF and loss is ridiculous (that is a whole different post in itself), and although it certainly doesn't define me, it will forever be a part of who I am. I'm extremely blessed to have amazing role models through this all, who have gone through similar things and traversed them with such grace. 


Ryan read the blog last night too (Hi honey!) and got a little emotional. It is weird to look back at a quick synopsis of how we've really lived our last 5 months appointment to appointment and milestone to milestone. I am however glad that he isn't into blogging. I can just imagine him posting things like "Cue freakout? You were in hysterics for 4 hours..." or "You left out the fact that we have enough equipment at home to test for many major pregnancy complications" (this is true by the way. I've never claimed to NOT be neurotic). Yup, glad he'll be sticking to reading... ;)