Some pictures of the belly:
Monday, November 30, 2009
You know your baby is a mover and a shaker when...
Dr. Butt comments on his movement being frequent, challenging and amusing. This little guy gave her and her magic wand a run for her money! He was sleeping until the nurse started the ultrasound and, almost immediately, his heart rate went up and he started thrashing around, kicking the wand off, making getting the shots that the doctor needed difficult (and getting any decent pictures of him impossible) and just being a right nuisance. *lol* Great ultrasound though - fluid looks great, baby is measuring between the 50th and 70th percentile and weighs in at a whopping 3 1/2lbs. His position made for some fun Skeletor type shots - by which I mean straight on to his face, so you can see his eye and nose sockets and his mouth moving. We caught a few glimpses of him practice breathing, where he'd open his mouth to take in some fluid and his chest would inflate and deflate as though he were really using his lungs. All in all, a very cool visit. My last ultrasound will be December 22nd - nice little Christmas present :)
Some pictures of the belly:
Some pictures of the belly:
Thursday, November 26, 2009
My absolute favourite part of pregnancy!
is definitely the movement. This little guy does not stop moving and I do not have nearly as much fluid with this one as I did with Isabel, so I feel every little movement. It is simply the most remarkable, bizarre, heartwarming feeling I can think of. It is amazing and a little...no...a lot strange to think there is a human being in there, but I am at the point that there is no questioning it either. There are sharp movements and subtle movements; there are large and even uncomfortable movements and small twitchy movements. Hiccups are quite entertaining - those rhythmic little pops in my belly.
I wonder often about people who don't realise they are pregnant until they are giving birth and other such stories. On top of the obvious question - how did they explain the extra weight/growth, I find myself asking another question - how on earth did they explain the writhing, thrashing, jabbing and gentle rolling that was going on in their abdomens? I would love to speak to one of these women who has had multiple pregnancies, having been aware of at least one of them prior to the 3rd trimester, and ask her.
Anyway, in the way of news, I just keep getting bigger. I am nearly entirely recovered from the fall two weekends ago. My back is still achy, but I think that is a combination of the fall and my ever-changing center of gravity. I am feeling good overall - fatigue is the biggest symptom right now. I am hungry quite regularly and find myself really craving carbs. Unfortunately, heartburn is keeping me from eating as often as I would like and many of my favourite foods induce some of the worst heartburn. Peanut butter is pretty much unbearable, as it results in a two day Tums-a-thon. :( This too shall pass though.
I get to see the Newbie again tomorrow with Dr. Butt. This is when I will truly breathe a sigh of relief with regard to our tumble. Right now, I can still imagine brain damage and all sorts of terrible things, but with her magic wand, Dr. Butt can alleviate all of those concerns. I will post pictures of the belly and the baby tomorrow.
I wonder often about people who don't realise they are pregnant until they are giving birth and other such stories. On top of the obvious question - how did they explain the extra weight/growth, I find myself asking another question - how on earth did they explain the writhing, thrashing, jabbing and gentle rolling that was going on in their abdomens? I would love to speak to one of these women who has had multiple pregnancies, having been aware of at least one of them prior to the 3rd trimester, and ask her.
Anyway, in the way of news, I just keep getting bigger. I am nearly entirely recovered from the fall two weekends ago. My back is still achy, but I think that is a combination of the fall and my ever-changing center of gravity. I am feeling good overall - fatigue is the biggest symptom right now. I am hungry quite regularly and find myself really craving carbs. Unfortunately, heartburn is keeping me from eating as often as I would like and many of my favourite foods induce some of the worst heartburn. Peanut butter is pretty much unbearable, as it results in a two day Tums-a-thon. :( This too shall pass though.
I get to see the Newbie again tomorrow with Dr. Butt. This is when I will truly breathe a sigh of relief with regard to our tumble. Right now, I can still imagine brain damage and all sorts of terrible things, but with her magic wand, Dr. Butt can alleviate all of those concerns. I will post pictures of the belly and the baby tomorrow.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Oi! The guilt!
Mommy-guilt comes to the surface readily these days. I am not sure if it is directly as a result of our fall or just the emotions of pregnancy in general, but either way, it is like a stab to the heart when it hits.
Dave is sick - it is finally his turn. As a result, I dropped Isabel off at daycare this morning. I knew that drop-off has always been easy; she loves her daycare provider and her playmates. I knew this. However, what I encountered when I got there brought tears to my eyes.
When we walked in the door, the other little girl was already there and was standing at the door, waiting for Isabel. When Isabel walked in, they were both grinning from ear to ear. I knelt down to help Isabel get her coat and boots off, but before I could, she walked right over to the other little girl, took hold of her hands and they gave each other the cheesiest grins, while they both squealed. They hugged one another and Isabel said "Hi!" to her over and over again. This was honestly, the sweetest show of affection I have ever seen.
Izzy came back to me to get undressed, but was off again immediately - they chattered to one another for the remaining couple of minutes I was there. Not even a backward glance or "bye mama", which is fine with me.
What is bothering me, you ask? I will be taking Isabel out of daycare during my maternity leave in order to cut costs. I know this is best for our family, but this made me really wonder if it is best for Isabel. She is such a social little being. She talks about her daycare friends all weekend long, sometimes pretending they are at home playing with her. I feel awful that she won't see them much, if at all, during the year I am off and possibly not again since we won't necessarily get our daycare spot back. What's more, how am I going to provide her with an environment in which she will thrive socially the way she does there, especially with a needy little Newbie at home too. I had thought about all of this before, but it didn't seem like it was a major issue. She loves us and I try to play with her and have fun with her whenever I possibly can. This shed a lot of light on just how much she gets from being in daycare though. I am really sad and am feeling a lot of guilt about taking that away from her :(
Dave is sick - it is finally his turn. As a result, I dropped Isabel off at daycare this morning. I knew that drop-off has always been easy; she loves her daycare provider and her playmates. I knew this. However, what I encountered when I got there brought tears to my eyes.
When we walked in the door, the other little girl was already there and was standing at the door, waiting for Isabel. When Isabel walked in, they were both grinning from ear to ear. I knelt down to help Isabel get her coat and boots off, but before I could, she walked right over to the other little girl, took hold of her hands and they gave each other the cheesiest grins, while they both squealed. They hugged one another and Isabel said "Hi!" to her over and over again. This was honestly, the sweetest show of affection I have ever seen.
Izzy came back to me to get undressed, but was off again immediately - they chattered to one another for the remaining couple of minutes I was there. Not even a backward glance or "bye mama", which is fine with me.
What is bothering me, you ask? I will be taking Isabel out of daycare during my maternity leave in order to cut costs. I know this is best for our family, but this made me really wonder if it is best for Isabel. She is such a social little being. She talks about her daycare friends all weekend long, sometimes pretending they are at home playing with her. I feel awful that she won't see them much, if at all, during the year I am off and possibly not again since we won't necessarily get our daycare spot back. What's more, how am I going to provide her with an environment in which she will thrive socially the way she does there, especially with a needy little Newbie at home too. I had thought about all of this before, but it didn't seem like it was a major issue. She loves us and I try to play with her and have fun with her whenever I possibly can. This shed a lot of light on just how much she gets from being in daycare though. I am really sad and am feeling a lot of guilt about taking that away from her :(
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Something to be thankful for...
I passed my Gestational Diabetes test. PRAISE BE TO JESUS! Seriously though, someone with a sweet tooth the size of mine couldn't survive on a diabetes diet.
In other news, I am feeling better day by day. I went in to work on Tuesday, but couldn't make it past 11:30am. I was so stiff and sore that I cried the whole way home :( I made sure to get some rest and had a nice warm bath in my whirlpool tub that afternoon and was feeling much better for it by late evening. Yesterday, I made it through the entire day with some hobbling and regular use of my hot pack. Today, I was walking almost normally and my pillow was enough to position myself comfortably. The improvement feels good.
I have taken pictures of the bruising at various stages, but no matter how hard we tried we could only get about half of the colouration captured on film. No amount of lighting changes, playing with camera settings or repositioning of subject could improve that.
In other news, I am feeling better day by day. I went in to work on Tuesday, but couldn't make it past 11:30am. I was so stiff and sore that I cried the whole way home :( I made sure to get some rest and had a nice warm bath in my whirlpool tub that afternoon and was feeling much better for it by late evening. Yesterday, I made it through the entire day with some hobbling and regular use of my hot pack. Today, I was walking almost normally and my pillow was enough to position myself comfortably. The improvement feels good.
I have taken pictures of the bruising at various stages, but no matter how hard we tried we could only get about half of the colouration captured on film. No amount of lighting changes, playing with camera settings or repositioning of subject could improve that.
Monday, November 16, 2009
The Good News from the Weekend
I was planning to blog about this yesterday, but I was somewhat side-tracked and didn't get a chance.
My mom and sister hosted a baby shower for me on Saturday. It was lovely - there were munchies and games and prizes and a beautiful, delicious cake. It seems that everyone else had a good time too, which is nice.
Everyone was very generous as well. The little guy got plenty of adorable clothes to keep him from freezing in the winter (because even the stuff we do have from Isabel's newborn days is all summer). There were cozy blankets and cute toys. There were practical things like nursing bras, wipes and washcloths. There was nifty gear like the My Brestfriend nursing pillow and an Indian style high chair (both pictured below).
All in all, we were very spoiled and are very thankful for having great family and friends - this little guy is lucky to be born into such a wonderful circle of people.
My mom and sister hosted a baby shower for me on Saturday. It was lovely - there were munchies and games and prizes and a beautiful, delicious cake. It seems that everyone else had a good time too, which is nice.
Everyone was very generous as well. The little guy got plenty of adorable clothes to keep him from freezing in the winter (because even the stuff we do have from Isabel's newborn days is all summer). There were cozy blankets and cute toys. There were practical things like nursing bras, wipes and washcloths. There was nifty gear like the My Brestfriend nursing pillow and an Indian style high chair (both pictured below).
All in all, we were very spoiled and are very thankful for having great family and friends - this little guy is lucky to be born into such a wonderful circle of people.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Never a Dull Moment
I fell down the entire flight of stairs between the floors in our house today. I was carrying/guiding Isabel at the time, so I also dragged her with me. We were starting down the stairs. I went to pick her up. I slipped. I started going down sideways and was rolling in the direction that would have resulted in me likely landing on Isabel, so I rolled myself (as best I could) in order to take the brunt on my butt/back and kept Isabel on top of me, but I was still traveling head first, so I had to really work to keep from incurring serious injury myself. I hit every single stair with my left hip/lower back and shoulder. By the time I got to the bottom, we were both freaking out.
Dave happened to be coming back in the house via the front door (right next to the stairs) and the look of horror on his face is inexplicable. Isabel was begging "mama ok?" through tears over and over again, while all I could do was call for help and let all of the worst what-ifs run through my head.
My Father-in-Law flew around the corner and there was absolute chaos for what seemed like forever. Then FIL called MIL to take Isabel while he crouched next to me and Dave ran to call 911. I told him not to and he hesitated briefly, but the decision was made when I didn't really know whether I could move or not.
I lay there absolutely losing my mind (crying things like "I can't believe I fell down the stairs"; "If we lose the baby we have to sell the house"; "I'm so sorry"). I started to shake and realised I was probably going into shock. Then I noticed that my pants were wet and I honestly didn't know if I'd wet my pants or my water had broken....needless to say, this didn't help my mental state.
Dave and FIL tried to isolate the animals (ILs' also brought their dog, so 2 dogs and 2 cats) by putting them all in the same room. Needless to say, a fight broke out and the ILs' dog incurred injury at Goliath's claw while Isabel screamed in horror at the sight of it all. Eventually, they just shoved animals in the nearest room with a door.
By the time the ambulance got there, I was relatively calm. They took my vitals blah blah blah and then loaded me in the ambulance.
When we got to the hospital, I was assessed on the outside. Things looked "ok", but the decision was made that I needed xrays because my tailbone was in rough shape at this point. They also checked for amniotic fluid and initial checks suggested that none was present. The x-ray girls were really good trying to cover the baby as best possible despite the fact that they were xraying the exact area the baby was.
After this, I was sent up to labour & delivery, where they checked the baby's heartbeat and ran a 2-hour monitor strip on him. I had a fetal fibronectin (again, checks for even trace amounts of amniotic fluid), checked for blood, checked cervix and all looked good. I was sent home after the strip was run because he moved around so much that there was no doubt that he is fine :)
I have strict instructions to go back in if there is any bleeding, any increase in fluids or anything even vaguely like a contraction. Right now, I am in a great deal of pain, but will try to manage it with Tylenol. I have a prescription for morphine, which I won't fill, unless the pain is absolutely unbearable. We will take pictures of the hot mess that is my back later. I have been told to take a few days off work, but I don't know that I have a choice in the matter anyway, since I can barely walk on my own right now.
Like I said, never a dull moment.
Dave happened to be coming back in the house via the front door (right next to the stairs) and the look of horror on his face is inexplicable. Isabel was begging "mama ok?" through tears over and over again, while all I could do was call for help and let all of the worst what-ifs run through my head.
My Father-in-Law flew around the corner and there was absolute chaos for what seemed like forever. Then FIL called MIL to take Isabel while he crouched next to me and Dave ran to call 911. I told him not to and he hesitated briefly, but the decision was made when I didn't really know whether I could move or not.
I lay there absolutely losing my mind (crying things like "I can't believe I fell down the stairs"; "If we lose the baby we have to sell the house"; "I'm so sorry"). I started to shake and realised I was probably going into shock. Then I noticed that my pants were wet and I honestly didn't know if I'd wet my pants or my water had broken....needless to say, this didn't help my mental state.
Dave and FIL tried to isolate the animals (ILs' also brought their dog, so 2 dogs and 2 cats) by putting them all in the same room. Needless to say, a fight broke out and the ILs' dog incurred injury at Goliath's claw while Isabel screamed in horror at the sight of it all. Eventually, they just shoved animals in the nearest room with a door.
By the time the ambulance got there, I was relatively calm. They took my vitals blah blah blah and then loaded me in the ambulance.
When we got to the hospital, I was assessed on the outside. Things looked "ok", but the decision was made that I needed xrays because my tailbone was in rough shape at this point. They also checked for amniotic fluid and initial checks suggested that none was present. The x-ray girls were really good trying to cover the baby as best possible despite the fact that they were xraying the exact area the baby was.
After this, I was sent up to labour & delivery, where they checked the baby's heartbeat and ran a 2-hour monitor strip on him. I had a fetal fibronectin (again, checks for even trace amounts of amniotic fluid), checked for blood, checked cervix and all looked good. I was sent home after the strip was run because he moved around so much that there was no doubt that he is fine :)
I have strict instructions to go back in if there is any bleeding, any increase in fluids or anything even vaguely like a contraction. Right now, I am in a great deal of pain, but will try to manage it with Tylenol. I have a prescription for morphine, which I won't fill, unless the pain is absolutely unbearable. We will take pictures of the hot mess that is my back later. I have been told to take a few days off work, but I don't know that I have a choice in the matter anyway, since I can barely walk on my own right now.
Like I said, never a dull moment.
Monday, November 9, 2009
This is Kermit the Frog of Sesame Street News...
coming to you live from the DECH where I wait impatiently for my bloodwork to be completed. The nurse checked my blood sugar count with the machine that diabetics use. Then I had to drink the vile orange concoction in 5 minutes or less. I am in the final 5 minutes of my one hour wait-thank heavens for my iPhone. Finally, they will draw off three vials of blood and I can go get something to eat. Fasting for over 13 hours is not fun.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Oh Brudder....
Isabel has started to acknowledge that there is a baby in my belly and that there is this entity called "brudder." I know she doesn't even come close to getting what it is about yet, but it is pretty cute.
When we were at Canadian Tire yesterday, we were looking at the Christmas ornaments and they had some really cute stuffed ones. I asked Isabel if she wanted to get one for the baby. She agreed enthusiastically and started scouring the shelves for an ornament for "brudder." We settled on a very cute bulb-shaped one with a mouse wearing a scarf sticking out if it. The colours are blue, brown and white and it is really quite cute. I will be writing on the bottom that it was bought by Isabel for her brudder and the date. Cheeseball might as well be my middle name.
When we were at Canadian Tire yesterday, we were looking at the Christmas ornaments and they had some really cute stuffed ones. I asked Isabel if she wanted to get one for the baby. She agreed enthusiastically and started scouring the shelves for an ornament for "brudder." We settled on a very cute bulb-shaped one with a mouse wearing a scarf sticking out if it. The colours are blue, brown and white and it is really quite cute. I will be writing on the bottom that it was bought by Isabel for her brudder and the date. Cheeseball might as well be my middle name.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Quality Time with Dr. Butt & the Newbie
The babe thrashed around the entire time I was there which meant lots of cute pics and lots of time needed to get the shots the doc wanted to get *laugh*
Sucking his hand *hearts* and you can see some brain structure here.
The best part was the surprise 3D ultrasound that I got! The doc needed to practice for a course she is taking soon and said I was an ideal candidate due to body size, high volume of fluid and positioning of baby. Who was I to say no?!?! :)
Sunday, November 1, 2009
The Name Game
I have finally roped Dave into talking names. It only took trapping him in the car on a dark and stormy drive back from Moncton to do it (he needed to stay awake somehow). We have similar types of names that we like (Dave described them as distinguished, uncommon, but not weird). This is a good start. I threw a few out there and he often turned up his nose, but there were a few that he liked or thought could be acceptable in the first round (that is a good sign).
I have gone through the name book twice now, just to make sure I didn't miss anything. I have a lengthy list of names that can be described as having potential. I didn't want to leave anything out, so I wrote down names that held even the remotest of interest for me. This still only resulted in about 20 names. I am going to list them below. Feel free to comment on them, but realise that, in the long run, we really don't care what you think :P ;) Honestly though, there are people who don't like Isabel's name and there are even more who dislike the fact that we call her Izzy, but we think it is fitting for her, so we ignore those people and carry on doing as we please. The same can be said for #2's name :)
Anyway, without further ado - the list:
Simon
Nigel
Tomas
Xavier
Myles
Max
Julian/Jude
Isaac
Greyson
Ewan
Dean
Carter
Spencer
Blake
Aiden
Eli
Caleb
Cole
Jeremy
James
Phoenix
Rhys
Some of those are slotted more as middle names than first and some are MUCH preferred to others, but they are all kind of rolling around in my head at this point. Keep in mind that Dave has only heard about half of them, so that list will get really short, really fast when he gets ahold of it - he is the king of veto when it comes to names, I've learned.
I have gone through the name book twice now, just to make sure I didn't miss anything. I have a lengthy list of names that can be described as having potential. I didn't want to leave anything out, so I wrote down names that held even the remotest of interest for me. This still only resulted in about 20 names. I am going to list them below. Feel free to comment on them, but realise that, in the long run, we really don't care what you think :P ;) Honestly though, there are people who don't like Isabel's name and there are even more who dislike the fact that we call her Izzy, but we think it is fitting for her, so we ignore those people and carry on doing as we please. The same can be said for #2's name :)
Anyway, without further ado - the list:
Simon
Nigel
Tomas
Xavier
Myles
Max
Julian/Jude
Isaac
Greyson
Ewan
Dean
Carter
Spencer
Blake
Aiden
Eli
Caleb
Cole
Jeremy
James
Phoenix
Rhys
Some of those are slotted more as middle names than first and some are MUCH preferred to others, but they are all kind of rolling around in my head at this point. Keep in mind that Dave has only heard about half of them, so that list will get really short, really fast when he gets ahold of it - he is the king of veto when it comes to names, I've learned.
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