Bump to Birth: 9 Months

It's hard to believe that this will be my last pregnancy update prior to our little man's arrival. Time has flown! I know they say that pregnant women never say that, but seriously, where has the time gone?

Size:  Honeydew Melon

Gender: Beautiful Baby Boy

Name: Loved and ready to be announced at his birth!

Symptoms: sinus pressure, fatigued, strained muscles, lots of low pressure, nausea, back pain, contractions

Emotions: excited, anxious, slightly overwhelmed

Doctor’s Visit: 

May 22nd-BP was excellent and the baby performed beautifully.

May 26th- Eye appointment: one of my goals upon hitting 30 this year was to take intentionally better care of myself. I have not had an eye checkup since maybe high school (embarrassing). After my eye exam, it was determined that I have a very slight astigmatism in my left eye. It's so minor at this time that she said any type of corrective lens would be too aggressive. I'll have it reassessed at my next appointment.

June 5th- My BP was slightly elevated. The baby performed very well on the NST and had a beautiful heart rate of 130.

June 12th- Ultrasound: The high risk doctor checked the current position of my placenta and PRAISE JESUS it has moved more than enough! I am no longer at such a high risk for hemorrhaging or C-section. This was music to my ears. He is weighing in at approximately 6lbs 2oz and has detectable hair on his head. He's measuring in the 50% percentile and at this rate, will probably weigh close to what his sister did. His heart rate was 134.

June 12th- Yes, I had two appointments in one day. My OB appointment was not nearly as fun. They performed the Strep B test and I'll get the results back soon. My BP was elevated again. Because of continued concerns regarding my BP, my doctor mentioned induction. This is not surprising based on my numbers. I am very confident that they will make the right decision. They are a practice that are adamantly against induction unless it is medically necessary. I'll be discussing this  more with the doctor at my next visit. If this happens, we'll definitely be having this baby in the next 2-3 weeks. I was also on the NST for over an hour because he was being lazy. Not cool. I'm sipping some orange juice before my next visit. Good news...I've only gained 17lbs with no weight gain in the last week!

Movement: He moves regularly. His movement primarily consists of him pushing out and down...and the down can be quite uncomfortable. I've been having contractions on and off as well...a lot is going on.

Cravings: pizza, donuts (until last week), chili dogs and fruit

Aversions:  Mexican food and donuts

According to Big Sister: She gets so excited with every piece of baby gear we pull out. She has laid claim on the car seat for Bella and has attempted to get in his swing and bouncer. She's learning that these things are for the baby. She has been super helpful with sorting baby clothes and seems to be grasping that change is coming.

Practicing being a big sister

Memories:

 

-Movie Night with the girls. I got together with two of my gal pals for a night of movie watching. We enjoyed watching The Fault in Our Stars and Divergent.

 

-My mother-in-law and husband painted the nursery. (I hope to post on the transformation soon.)

 

-I had to endure a horrible sleep study...fortunately my results were normal.

 

-I was treated to a sweet baby shower to celebrate our little boy.

Our Shower Cake

 

-I've been trying to soak up some extra time with G. We've been playing outside a lot.

Park time

Lots o' Bubbles

 

Sunshine Sweetie

-I took G out for her first movie theater experience. We watched Home. It's an adorable movie and she did great!

 

-We've got G's bag and the baby's bag packed for go time. Our bag is almost together.

 

-I had a date day with my hubby...it was wonderful!

 

-I put together a Big Sister bag for G from the baby for when she comes to the hospital.

 

-I scheduled a prenatal massage for the 16th.

 

-Our maternity pictures are scheduled for the 18th.

 

There is still a lot to do. I have maternity sub plans to complete, a house to finish cleaning and a nursery to put back together. Not to mention the car seat needs to be installed asap. I can't wait to meet our sweet miracle!

 

Bump to Birth Back Posts

 

 

 

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Bump to Birth: 8 Months

I'm a couple days behind getting this up since I turned 32 weeks on Sunday. We've had a lot go on in the pregnancy world as of late, which just reminds me that we are that much closer to meeting our sweet little miracle.

Size:  Jicama

Gender: Sweet Baby Boy

Name: Picked and ready to be announced at his birth!

Symptoms: tired, cramping, sinus pressure, Braxton hicks contractions, headaches, tingling in my face (which according to my doctor has most likely been caused by the amount of pressure I've been having from my sinuses), peeing A Lot more often, a lot of low bearing pressure (and as I'm typing this I have experienced several sporadic contractions today, most of them being small but noticeable...but one good one that took me out of my chair today.)

Emotions: eager to make progress, excited about all of the things we have coming up, overwhelmed, anxious, excited

Doctor’s Visit: 

 May 8th-my BP was slightly elevated, urinalysis (came back negative for proteins and glucose), require a screening for sleep apnea

May 15th-Ultrasound to check placenta...it has moved 2cm! This is good and lowers my risk of hemorrhaging a great deal but it will be up to my doctor as to whether or not this is sufficient to forgo a C-section.  The baby was measuring right on and weighing in at about 4lbs (50% percentile).        

May 19th- preliminary sleep screening...recently there have been a couple cases in the area where people have died after not coming back from anesthesia. It was apparently discovered that they were at a higher risk for sleep apnea. I had no idea what this was and/or what it had to do with me delivering a baby until this appointment. There is a rating scale that my practice now uses to determine if you are at a higher risk for sleep apnea. I have just enough (and I mean barely) to put me on the low end of the higher risk end. Should I need to be put under for an emergency C-section or any other procedure, they want to ensure that they are providing the best care based on possible conditions. The NP that I spoke with said that if I had anything it all, it would be very benign. She did not appear worried and ensured me that if there was any diagnosis, no matter how mild, I would be well cared for should anesthesia be necessary. While the thought is a little terrifying, I trust my doctors and I am scheduled for my sleep study on May 31st.

*Super pleased that I've only gained 13lbs so far!

Movement: He may be little but he packs a punch. He has his more active times of day, especially at G's bedtime. Story time is always interesting. He is directly pressed up against my bladder and with his almost constant downward pressure these days, I'm always feeling the urge to go.

Cravings: pizza, breakfast foods, hamburgers with pickles and ketchup, chicken finger wraps

Aversions:  mayo and Mexican food

According to Big Sister: She may be coming around...she picks up some of his things as we're going through them and lovingly holds them saying "Baby ****'s" She loves to rock her babies and she likes to tell people that Mommy has a baby in her belly. We may just be okay.

Memories:

-Celebrated G's 2nd Birthday!

-Made a nice little chunk of change at a local consignment sale...well worth the effort.

-G's 2 year check up went really well.

-We found out two of our dearest friends will be expecting in December!

-We had a our baby shower at work.

-We celebrated Mother's Day (the last one as a Mommy of 1 (I really count both babes but for dramatic purposes...)

Bump to Birth Back Posts  

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Bump to Birth: 7 Months

We're on the home stretch and we still have so much to do! Time is going so quickly this time around.

Size:  Eggplant 


Gender: Blue is our color


Name: It will be a surprise!


Symptoms: sinus pressure,  increase in carpal tunnel issues, vivid dreams, tire easily, sensitive gums, toothache, round ligament pain, back pain


Emotions: Excited and anxious.  We have not begun on the nursery transformation and the fact that time is dwindling is weighing on me. I feel like so many things have been put on hold and they are outside of our control. This is a definite time of refinement and character building.


Doctor’s Visit: 

March 27th- Baby boy had a great heartbeat and my blood pressure looked good.

April 6th - We had another ultrasound to get the remaining measurements.  The baby looked wonderful and they could get what they needed. My placenta has not moved in the past 4 weeks so I'll have another ultrasound on May 15th.

April 14th- I was having some really strange back pains since the night before. They reminded me of the contractions I had with our daughter.  My doctor had me come in and based on my sympptoms, I was sent to Labor and Delivery.  I was monitored there for 3 hours. Everything checked out ok.

April 16th- Dentist appointment for a cleaning. I have to return after the baby to have 1 major cavity filled and then he'll take care of four others that are borderline. This kid is zapping my teeth of calcium and minerals!            

Movement: He's pretty active these days, and quite powerful. 

Cravings: eggs, donuts, cereal, pizza and BBQ pork rinds

Aversions:  primarily smells and Mexican food

According to Big Sister: She's still not "wanting" a baby at the house but she loves to acknowledge that there is one in mommy's tummy. 

Memories:

- Our friends found out that they are having a boy AND a girl!

-G visited the 2-3 ' s class at church.

-We had a date night out for Daddy's firefighter awards ceremony.

-Finished our registry.

-Celebrated Easter.

-Celebrated my 30th birthday.

-Enjoyed a vacation to TN.

-Celebrated G's 2nd birthday.

-Enjoyed a visit from my mom and best friend.

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Bump to Birth: 6 Months

I can't believe we're 6 months in!

Size:  Cantaloupe

Gender: It’s a boy!!!

Name: Much to the disappointment of many, we are keeping it a surprise, but we do have his whole name settled on.

Symptoms: achy teeth, sinus pressure, restless sleep, an increase in carpal tunnel pain, round ligament pain, fatigued, emotional, vivid dreams

Emotions: Very overwhelmed. My hubby has been gone ALOT lately and between the long work days and chasing a toddler in the evenings, I am exhausted.  You add to that work concerns, house matters and inadequate, restful sleep, I am an emotional, over sensitive mess. I've had a couple of good cries over the last couple of weeks. I am very excited, however about our upcoming ultrasound and our Spring Break vacation. I am trying to get pumped about redoing G's room but I'm struggling. Knowing that the two of them may have to share that room for the time that we are here presents some challenges. I'm trying to figure out a color palette and décor that will be gender friendly.

Doctor’s Visit: February 24th- I visited the dentist to have the achy teeth situation looked at. I was certain it was sinuses but of course, as luck would have it, I had a gigantic cavity in a wisdom tooth. This was not there at my last cleaning. Due to a number of unfortunate circumstances (and severe pain), I was sent to an oral surgeon two days later and had it removed. Once the pain from the surgery dissipated, I have been pain free since. (And did I mention the 24th was also my husband's birthday? What a crummy way to spend it.)

                         February 27th-measuring right on with a heart rate of 152bpm. I also had to complete an early glucose test (which I passed!)

                          March 11th-we got to see our super snuggly baby. His beautiful heart beat measured in at 154bpm. He would not uncurl to get adequate measurements so we'll have to return at the beginning of April. I am now being monitored for placenta previa. The specialist is very confident that the condition will resolve itself, but if not, a C-section will be scheduled to ensure that we avoid any serious complications.                     

Movement: lots of movement throughout the day

Cravings: cinnamon rolls, eggs (breakfast foods in general), McChicken sandwiches and chocolate donuts

Aversions:  lots of smells these days

According to Big Sister: G can often be found rocking her "baby" and giving her a bottle. While she is still very unhappy with us picking up other babies, she is making progress. Our friends came to visit the other weekend with their 5 month old and she tried to be helpful in caring for him (giving him his pacifier) and did not seem to mind when we were holding him.

Memories:

-I became an official surgical patient when I had my wisdom tooth cut out.

-Multiple snow days

-We celebrated my hubby's birthday with friends and family.

-Hubby felt the baby move for the first time.

-The Bartley's came over for dinner and some playtime.

-We enjoyed some beautiful Spring weather.
      

The Back Story// Months 1-3// Month 4 //Month 5

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Bump to Birth: 4 Months

Month 4



Size: Avocado

Symptoms: spotting, nausea, sore breasts, sinus pressure, achy teeth, tired, constipation, smell sensitivity, round ligament pain

Emotions: anxious about spotting, frustrated with my sinuses, looking forward to our next appointment, excited about making our anatomy scan appointment

Doctor's Visit: December 30th-great news from the ultrasound. We say the baby sucking it's thumb, kicking and punching. Heart rate @ 160
                        January 2nd-ultrasound due to more bleeding. The baby was well and there was no obvious reason for the bleeding.
                        January 8th-Level 2 ultrasound to check for cause of bleeding and to ensure the baby was okay. We saw the baby drinking the amniotic fluid, kicking and punching. Heart rate @ 165
                        Next appointment scheduled for January 30th.

Movement: Felt baby for the first time on January 2nd...sliding, little pops and thumps

Cravings: orange juice, McChicken sandwiches, eggs, French toast, iced coffee

Aversions: homemade macaroni and cheese and mayo

According to Big Sister: When she is asked where the baby is, she pats her own belly. She loves looking at the ultrasound pictures.

Memories:
-Seeing the baby move.

-Faintly hearing the heartbeat.

-Entertaining big sister's interest in potty training.

-Spending wonderful outdoor time as a family.

-Finding out our friends are expecting twins!!!

-Trying a new (to us) little restaurant, Southern Plenty. Everything was delish!

-Meeting up with some of our dearest friends for a quick catch up.

The Back Story//Months 1-3

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Bump to Birth: Months 1-3

*I know a lot of people document their pregnancy by weeks. I have chosen to document monthly. The symptoms, cravings, ect. may seem lengthy but these are things experienced throughout the duration of the specified month.


Month 1

When we knew...October 31, 2015

Size: Poppy seed

Symptoms: nausea, fatigue, restless sleep, smell sensitivity, decreased appetite, round ligament pain

Emotions: anxious about ultrasound, excited, nervous about sharing the news and when to do so

Doctor's Visit: Nurse visit scheduled for November 26th
                         First ultrasound scheduled for December 2nd

Movement: none

Cravings: none

Aversions: none

According to Big Sister: She does not like it when I hold other babies. This will be something we'll have to work on.

Memories:
-Sharing the news
-Our trip to Carter's Mountain with the Bartley Familiy

-The Fall Festival at church

Month 2

Size: Raspberry

Symptoms: nausea, fatigue, decreased appetite, round ligament pain, tender breasts, bloating

Emotions: anxious, nervous, excited about the holidays

Doctor's Visit: November 26th-review of history, 24 hour urine collection, blood work
                         First ultrasound scheduled for December 2nd

Movement: none

Cravings: cheese pizza, spaghetti, Dunkin Donut holes, grilled cheese with bacon

Aversions: raw carrots, the smell of pine, the smell of Slim Jims/jerky

According to Big Sister:  She will now occasionally point to or rub my tummy when asked where the baby is.

Memories:
-I had a wonderful meeting with my Infertility Bible Study group
-A visit with my dear friend Laura S.

-A visit from Becca (my former housemate)

-Celebrated Thanksgiving with the Galbreaths' and family

-Cried during Frozen and How to Train Your Dragon 2


Month 3

Size: Plum

Symptoms: achy teeth, very emotional, nausea, fatigue, vivid dreams, smell sensitivity, decreased appetite, round ligament pain, headaches, light bleeding/spotting

Emotions: excited about telling family and friends at Christmas, sad we had to miss the traditional Christmas parade, looking forward to having my mom come up to visit, afraid of what the bleeding may mean and what it could lead to, frustrated, sad about not being able to do anything for the week of Christmas because I was put on bed rest, elated to see the baby on the ultrasound for the first time

Doctor's Visit: December 2nd-saw baby for the first time

                        December 19th-ultrasound to check on the status of the baby and to try and determine a cause for the bleeding and spotting

                         Another ultrasound scheduled for December 30th because of bleeding

Movement: none

Cravings: iced coffee, kettle corn, cheese pizza

Aversions: raw carrots, chili

According to Big Sister: She likes to take her stethoscope and place it on my tummy. She'll then go "bum-bum" to mimic the heartbeat.

Memories:
-Receiving Christmas presents in the mail
-Jamberry Nails party with friends
-Pajama/gingerbread house party at the Bartley's house

-Celebrating Christmas with extended family

-Began wearing maternity pants thanks to baby bloat
-December 19th: I woke up at 4:30am not feeling normal. I went to the bathroom to discover that I was having some light bleeding. I was terrified. I woke up Clinton and we laid there together, prayed and cried in those early morning hours. I can't express the ache that was in my heart and the fear that was wrecking my soul. I called my doctor as soon as they opened and they got me in that day. An internal exam and an ultrasound were done. My cervix was closed and there was no obvious cause for the bleeding. They easily saw the baby and its heartbeat on the monitor. I was put on bed rest for the next two weeks (I was put on moderate bed rest thereafter until my appointment at the end of January). 
-Spending time with my mom

-Christmas 2014 with family
-Finding out that my cousin is due two weeks after me!
-Getting the news of two additional new babies due in the coming fall.

The Back Story

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