Simon: One Month

On Simon's due date he turns one month old - October 20

Trying out this format, might need to add different categories as we go along...

Weight:  Simon was 7lbs 14oz at his doctor's appointment last Wednesday.  At his cardiologist appointment he weighed 8lbs 3oz

Height:  At his doctor appointment he was 20.5 inches

Medical Issues:  Oh Simon, already had so many medical issues in his little one month of life.  The good news is none of these issues are long standing ones and all have been resolved.  I've talked about how he was in the NICU and finally was eating well enough to come home.  One day we went into the NICU and our angel nurse, Cindy, had simply changed the nipple in his bottle from newborn to size one and that seemed to be the magic equation since he's been eating and not looking back.

Simon had his first pediatrician appointment last week at 3 weeks... which isn't normally a weekly appointment, but we were instructed to go a few days after he got discharged from the NICU.  As a side note I really stressed about how to pick a pedi, like how do you do it when you don't care that much (that sounds bad, but I'm not a picky person so it's not like I had very specific needs or wants) I ended up deciding somewhere close to us was important and went with that.  I looked at pedi websites and ended up picking the one we did.  It was really nice when I was at the hospital and the NICU and the staff there saying how good this office was and how much they liked that doctor. The doctor visited Simon in the hospital quite often so he totally knew all about Simon when we went to the office which was really nice.  The doctor said this is the first time he's had a patient with an atrial flutter and the first time he's ever entered his medication into a chart.  He said he could only pick a tablet form instead of the liquid that Simon is on. He told me that we should continue to have the medication made at Mercy instead of a local pharmacy since it's normally in tablet form and we wouldn't want them messing up making it special for him.  While this might make some people nervous, really I think it just makes Simon special... he had this really weird condition that makes him unique.  I guess it's easier to say that since I know this isn't a lifelong issue and it's under control.

Simon sees the cardiologist today. Everything is looking good.  Simon had to get another EKG - which takes longer to get set up than it actually takes to run it.  They have to stick all these sensors on him and with his squirmy body sometimes it's hard to keep all the sensors stuck at the same time and long enough to get a good reading.  Eventually it all worked.  Simon is looking good and the plan is to keep him on the medication for roughly 6 months when we will go back to the cardiologist.  The idea is that we won't change the dosage but he will get bigger so he'll basically wean himself off the medication.

I want to give Simon mad props regarding taking his medication, Flecainide.  We have to give it to him twice a day.  They showed us in the hospital by squirting it in the side of his mouth while he sucks on a paci.  This has worked out beyond perfect.  He sucks it down each time and hasn't spit it back out (don't jinx me by putting this out on the interwebs).  It must not taste bad because it's not a problem at all!

I hope that Simon's medical issues are squished into his first month of life and it's smooth sailing from here on out.

Sleep:  We decided that since Simon was already sleeping in a crib in the NICU we would continue that.  I'll say we've done ok with that and he does sleep in his crib sometimes, but I've been bad in the last week with him sleeping in rock n play and me sleeping on the couch.  But getting out of bed to put the paci back in his mouth only to walk back to our bedroom and just get back into bed before he starts crying again and I have to get back up wears on you a bit.  I'm going to try to be better this in the next weeks.  We were keeping him on the same eating schedule he was on in the NICU, but I started to let him tell me when he's hungry - especially overnight.  Sunday night he gave me a four hour stretch of sleep - amazing.  He sleeps pretty much during the day as well. although I'm noticing he's waking up more.

Clothes/Diapers (Sizes):  I've been putting him in newborn diapers, although at the end of his stay in the NICU they were putting him in size 1.  I had packages of NB and wanted to use them... I think we have one package left to go through.  The same goes for clothes.  I try to put him in newborn things since let's do it while we can, but we put him in three month stuff too.  The footed newborn jammies feel like his legs are all scrunched up so I guess maybe he's long?  Around the house we normally have him in onesies (either long or short sleeve) and wear the footed stuff when we go out.  I dress him in gowns typically at night and he sleeps in a swaddle or a Halo sleep sack.

Diet:  We tried to do the nursing thing, but every time I tried he'd give a couple of sucks and then give up... so I guess that makes me an exclusive pumper.  So far that's been going well and I've been able to keep up with his feedings (giving him fresh milk) and still have some left over to freeze.  When he left the NICU he was getting around 60ml (2ozs) and now he's up to close to 3oz.  He normally finishes all his bottles and is eating about 8 times a day.

Baby Gear Love:  For this month, the rock n play for sure as he's in that a lot!  We also like the paci and sometimes he uses the Wubbanub pretty effectively.  The Born Free bottles have been working for us (I forgot his Dr. Browns bottle at the hospital grr, luckily he'll use the bottles we have).  The swaddles/sleep sacks are great. 

Milestones/Firsts:  First first trip out was to visit his grandma Charlotte and he does pretty well in the car.  His head control is getting a lot better too.  His first doctor's appointment.

Likes:  His paci, eating (finally!), laying on his chest on us, sleeping, the vibration of the rock n play.

Dislikes:  Being naked, diaper changes, being hungry, hiccups

Things I Don't Want to Forget:  Simon can sleep - I wouldn't call our house a quiet one with the bird and the dogs barking, but he sleeps right through it - does not phase him.  The dogs really want to be close to him, although we've slowly been integrating them.  The dogs don't like when he cries and they seem concerned.  At the end of the month we've had them both out at the same time under heavy supervision.  Quina will look at him, but that's about the most interest she has and the cats could not care less about him (such a cat thing).  We end up changing his outfit at least once a day, but sometimes more.  It's funny to hear him fart.  When he cries it's so dramatic (wah wah wah wah waaaaaaaaahhhhhh) and I mostly just laugh.  His hands and feet seem so big for a small baby.

Simon: 2 week update

I figured it might be about time to jot down some of the things that have been going on the past couple of weeks.  Simon is still in the NICU.  It's feeling tough and sad at times.  I know that it's important to bring home a healthy baby that can manage on his own, but leaving him there day-after-day is getting tougher and tougher.  It doesn't help that we keep having these expectations, not that anyone has said for sure, but with the comments nurses give us we've set our own expectations of when it he'll come home.  When those expectations aren't met it just makes us sad and frustrated.  We are eager to have him home and at the last unmet expectation I'm really trying not to have anymore until they say he can come home tomorrow or whatever... it's really hard though.


Anyway... I should tell this in story form, but that seems daunting so instead I'm going to go with bullets just to hopefully get most of the information out there.  The last post left off with his birth, so going to try to start there.

• The day after he was born we were finally able to hold him for a bit.  Which was nice, although not nearly long enough.  He was still very hooked up, and they didn't want us to jostle him around too much.  Simon was on a breathing tube, a PIC line, monitors and CPAP machine.
• It took the cardiologist awhile to figure out the right kind of medicine to control his atrial flutter.  The medicines they would put him on would work for awhile, but then he'd jump back into the abnormal rhythm.  The finally landed on the drug flecainide.  At first they were trying to avoid using it because of the potential side effects.  Flecainide can help stop heart arrhythmia but it can also cause it.  The good news is Simon is responding really well to this drug and they are keeping him on it.  When he goes home Dan and I will have to continue to monitor his heart rate a few times a day via a stethoscope and possibly a monitor at times.  Simon will most likely be on this drug for 6 months (there's no magic amount of time for this). We will continue to give him it after he is able to come home.  They sent off Simon's blood to get his levels with this drug and they came back slightly low over the weekend.  The cardiologist previously said that if they came back low they wouldn't increase since he's responding well to the level he's on.  We will probably find out more today.
• Simon came off the breathing tube before I left the hospital which was great.  He was still on the CPAP machine for awhile.  He stayed on that and they slowly changed it over to a new CPAP machine and then to oxygen and lowered his levels from there.  He's now off all breathing help.
• His PIC line began irritating his leg so they removed it and added a normal IV.  At that point he was only on basically sugar water.  Eventually that came out too when he was getting enough food to sustain him.
• Last week they moved him to a step down unit.  This is a good thing, it's the same amount of care, but they move the babies that are more stable to his area.  He started in the Butterfly Pod and now he's in the Panda Pod.
• Last Thursday he got circumcised and did really well - it hasn't bothered him at all.  They've ordered a lot of tests that he'll need to get done before he can go home including that procedure.  Over the weekend he passed his hearing test which is also good.  He'll need to pass the car seat test.  He failed the first attempt... hopefully not the second time.
• That's where we are at... the eating issue.  This is the main thing keeping Simon in the hospital.  He needs to be able to eat his bottles and he just tires out and becomes uninterested in bottles.  They've been slowly increasing the amount of breast milk he's been getting.  The last update is he's up to 65ml which is about 2oz.  When we go in it seems like he's doing better each day... or we are hoping so anyway.  Dan and I have both tried to feed him with varying results.  Sometimes we are able to get him to take half a bottle, other times not much at all.  We just keep hoping it will just click with him.  The doctors and nurses have said this is totally a possibility but also trying not to get our hopes up - he will get it when he gets it.  What he doesn't finish in his bottle he gets fed via a tube (which is down his nose).  Sometimes they just give him the whole feeding via the tube.  I'd think he's taking about half of his feeding via bottle.
• Speaking of feeding him I have tried to nurse him once (he gave a couple of sucks before just hanging out).  I should probably try more but mostly I've been pumping.  I've been getting more than enough to keep up with his feedings but the pumping does rule my entire day.  I'm not sure how I'll go forward, but I'll keep pumping for the time being.  Maybe when he's home we'll work on nursing together.  I'm just not sure how I want to go about it.  A lot of it I just want him to eat so he can come home and not that anyone has said he'll get confused, I just don't want to add another element to this feeding thing.  We will see what happens.  He's getting food and so far it's all been from me and I know that's good for him.  The pumping isn't the most fun thing I've ever done but I'm starting to get into a good routine and understanding what works for me.  It's not a forever thing and that's what I keep telling myself.
• I've been doing pretty good with my recovery.  At the beginning of the weekend I was still feeling pretty sore, but over the weekend I've started to feel a lot better and less sore.  I haven't taken as much pain medication and I feel my stamina coming back.  I am still wearing the binder they gave me.

So that's a brief update of where we are at... Simon needs to eat so he can come home.  So please send out good vibes into the universe that he starts to eat real well and can come home and meet his animal family.  Also, so we can get into a routine at home and really start to feel like a little family.

Holding him for the first time

Dan getting his chance

Open eyes (just the CPAP machine and the little tube is the feeding tube)

No more breathing tubes!  He does love sucking his paci

First bottle feeding - you feed them turned to the side just in case they take on too much for them to swallow it will go into his cheek instead of the back of his throat

Dan trying a feeding

Life is rough - Simon also likes to put his hands by his face

A goofy picture I caught

Welcome Baby Boy!

Simon Charles Baker was born on September 20, 2015 at 10:27 in the morning via C-section four weeks early.  He weighed 6lbs 13oz and was 19.5 inches long.  That's the short story... the full story is a bit longer :).


It all started on Friday, September 18th.  I had a normal scheduled appointment with my doctor.  This appointment wasn't going to be anything fancy - just a 'normal' appointment (no ultrasound, no non-stress).  I was even going to go into work on my day off to work on my green belt project afterwards with my partner.  Everything seemed ok, until my doctor put the Doppler on my belly.  She caught the baby and his heartbeat was racing - like over 200bpm which is out of the normal range.  She was concerned and decided to do my non-stress test that day instead.  I sat down in the chair and could hear the heartbeat and it was racing.  I tried to will the baby to calm down, but wasn't happening.  The nurse came in and asked if I was nervous, and while I knew something wasn't quite right I wouldn't say I was sitting there totally nervous... I mean it was a comfy chair and at this point I didn't really realize how big of a deal this racing heart rate would turn out to be.


After sitting there for 10-15 minutes my doctor came in and said that she was going to send me to labor and delivery (her office is at St. Lukes, so it was just a walk over) for monitoring.  She told me that I needed to call Dan because worse case I would be having the baby that day... um WHAT?!? 


I tried to stay calm, I mean of course I wouldn't be having the baby that day, she was just being overly cautious.  A nurse walked me over to labor and delivery and straight to a room where I had to change into a hospital gown, get an IV (my first ever... and not the last 'first' of the weekend), and got the monitors hooked up to my belly.  Dan showed up pretty fast.


The monitors were showing that baby's heart rate would be normal some of the time and then jump up to a high rate at times with no real warning.  The normal heart rate would be in the 130-150bpm and then would jump up to the high rate of 200-230bpm.  There was no real sense 'why' this was happening.  I tried to remain calm hoping that maybe my excitement was the reason the baby's heart rate was jumping (this was NOT the reason, but you do what you can)


They sent in the doctor that was on the floor to give me an ultrasound bedside.  He couldn't quite tell what was going on and since all the high-risk sonographer were at Mercy at a symposium they decided I needed to be transferred to Mercy.  Not to mention that if this heart rate issue was a really big deal we would already be at the best place for the baby since the Mercy NICU is big and highly rated.  So pretty quickly an ambulance showed up to transfer me to Mercy - my first ambulance ride ever.  The moved me over to the ambulance bed, wheeled me down to the ambulance and shuttled me over to Mercy... while being wheeled out the nurses were all saying they thought it would be a boy b/c only boys are this dramatic.


When we got there, my room was already ready, they wheeled me in there and I began the admitting process at Mercy.  Dan showed up pretty quickly after that (he drove over separately).  Pretty quickly they had me go see a pediatric cardiologist.  They wheel chaired me through the maze that is Mercy (the transporter wasn't even completely sure the best way to get me to that doctor's office) and I was soon getting a specialized ultrasound of baby's heart.  He watched the baby's heart in silence for what seemed like FOREVER!  Finally he told us that at first when he started the ultrasound the heart rate was in one of the normal spurts but then it did jump up to the high rhythm.


He said a lot of medical jargon (and he was Indian which doesn't help understand totally :))  But basically that baby had intermittent atrial flutter.  From what he could tell it hadn't been going on very long (there was no fluid built up around the heart and lungs) and that the baby was tolerating the change very well.  He said that there was no real way to treat the baby while inside me (some heart rhythm conditions they can give the mom medicine to treat the baby, however with this they would have to give me so much that the side effects for me would not be worth it).  He said that there could be a point in time where the baby wouldn't tolerate it well and then it would become a we must deliver NOW sort of thing.  He said that he would not be making the call whether this baby would be delivered ASAP but that the high risk doctor on the floor would.  Another thing is he didn't talk in detail how the baby would be treated after delivered but that this sort of problem is NOT a lifelong issue and once worked out that he wouldn't have a problem with it.  That they would treat with medicine but that if that didn't work the worse case is they would have to give the baby's heart a shock to get the heart back into rhythm.


They were going to wheel me back up to talk to the high risk doctor, but he ended up coming down to the pediatric cardiologist's office.  That doctor showed up down there and we started to talk about options.  Basically they said that I was in this weird middle spot - I was still considered early delivery at 35 weeks 4 days at that point but not that early and the baby's heart rate while it was an issue, wasn't an immediate issue.  They decided to monitor me overnight and make a call in the morning.


The high risk doctor actually wheeled me back up to my room and chatted along the way.  He told me that with this heart rate issue that we were most likely looking at a C-section since they couldn't monitor the safety of the baby during delivery with the heart rate jumping all over the place.


I got back to my room and knew that I at the very least wasn't having the baby that day and we'd wait until morning.  Dan went home to let the dogs out and grab some things for me and I finally called my family.  The day had moved so fast and not really knowing how it was going to end up I hadn't had a chance to call anyone yet.  Of course they were a bit shocked and all came to the hospital - my mom, sister, dad and Janet all came up.  It was just hard to believe and at this point it really did sound like that I wouldn't be leaving the hospital without delivering a baby.


I hung out with the family and was able to eat finally (they hadn't let me eat or drink since 9am just in case I had to deliver the baby).  This was really my first every hospital stay.  They kept me on monitors all night, which was difficult to sleep since they would come in and adjust them if my turning over would knock them off.  I wasn't allowed to eat or drink after midnight.  The nice part was during the day when I was up more they had me on the wireless monitors while at night they had me on the wired monitors so getting up to the bathroom was a bit more difficult with all those wires.  Also at one point that night I had TERRIBLE heartburn, luckily they were able to give me something for that to calm down.


When morning came the high risk doctor came in to see me and told me that baby had done fairly well over night.  Baby was in the high rate less than 50% of the time and really did seem to be doing well.  They decided in the morning that it was better to keep baby cooking in my belly than deliver at this point, but I was still to be monitored all day.  I got to order breakfast and hung out most of the day.  It was pretty uneventful, however we could tell the baby seemed to jump to higher heart rate a little more often.  They did allow me to take a shower (which in hindsight was really good since I wouldn't be able to shower again for a few days).


An interesting thing to remember is my dad watching the baby's heart rate on the monitor, he just sat there and would stare at it watching what the number would be.  I mean like full on watching it.  It was really sweet.


The day lead into night and again I was monitored all night.  I was able to sleep a lot better this night, I guess b/c I was used to the room and routine.  They would come in and mess with the monitors at times, but overall I guess I felt more relaxed and was able to get more well rested.


Dan showed up to the hospital early on Sunday and then the doctor came in.  He said that the baby's heart rate overnight was in the high rate (flutter) quite a bit overnight and at one point neared a whole hour in that rate.  They actually called him overnight and he said that it could wait until morning.  He said that at this point we needed to have the baby.  Um... WHAT?  I texted my parents and told them, but told them it wasn't a rush.  Dan went out to the hallway for something and came back and said that the C-Section was scheduled for 10am... at this point it was 9am.  So it was happening fast and honestly I was really scared.  I started to cry because well it was all overwhelming, we weren't supposed to have a baby for another month, I had a month to prepare more this.  I mean I was about to have surgery, have all the things associated with that and have a baby.  Things happened real fast when anesthesia came in pretty quickly to start prepping me for the epidural.  I changed into a different gown (Dan got a gown of his own).  I went to the bathroom for the last time.


Then it was time to get the epidural.  I was really nervous about this, but they said I did real good (they probably deal with women in contractions that are hard to hold still).  Dan was right there with me as was the nurse keeping me calm.  It didn't hurt too bad - the first local hurt the most, but I hardly remember that now.  They laid me back and the nurse put in the catheter (the part I was nervous about and didn't feel a thing - go figure).  The anesthesiologist kept checking to make sure I was getting numb like I should.


All of a sudden it was time and we were headed to the OR.  It was happening so fast and while I was scared it was happening so fast I didn't really have a whole lot of time to process it.  They wheeled me out into the hall and I saw my dad and Janet.  I was able to say hi and probably looked totally scared as I whisked by to the elevators to take me to the delivery room.


Entering that OR room felt so surreal, I mean you see ORs on TV, but I've never been in one in real life.  Everything so bright and all these people all around.  I'm so happy Dan was there with me and held my hand through everything.  Dan and I don't hold hands often, but I really needed it to stay calm.  They got me all situated on the table with my arms out and laying there.  And then it all started. 


I could hear them cutting and snipping to get down to baby.  The anesthesiologist would keep me informed what was happening.  She told me there would start to be a lot of pressure as they would be shaking and pushing the baby out of me.  And boy was there, I could feel them pushing back and forth and my whole body was shaking.  Finally they told Dan to look as he was coming out.  They held him up and Dan got to announce to the OR that it was a boy!  I could see the excitement in his eyes, he was so happy.  We heard Simon grunting/crying (at the time I thought that was a good thing, because you want to hear the baby cry, I guess the grunting isn't really a great, thing, but he was getting air and alive and that's what matters).


Dan showed me some pictures on his phone while they worked on him.  I could see him through all the people working on him - getting the gunk out of his lungs and such.  They said that he was peeing all over the table :).  They weighed him and he was a big boy for being 4 weeks early at 6lbs 13oz (can you imagine what he'd be if he'd gone full term?).


Back to me they got all they needed out and then started stitching me up.  They got Simon all wrapped up and brought him over to me and I got to see him and give him some kisses.  It was all really surreal, like that's the baby that was in me.  Dan went with Simon down to the NICU while I had to get all put back together.  That part took the longest and toward the end I could like feel what they were doing even though it wasn't painful.  I started to get cold and she gave me some warm air.


It was weird b/c the doctor and resident were just chatting away about where the resident was going to live after he was done with his residency... like no big deal while we are stitching up this person.  The doctor told me they just had one more layer to go, and I asked how many layers there was.  She said not all doctors stitch up every layer, but she does and there were 5...


Finally that was all done and they wheeled me to recovery.  I asked the nurse if my family could come in and my mom and dad came in to see me.  Dan had texted them that baby was born, but had forgotten to tell him if it was a boy or girl.  So I got to announce to them that it was a boy.  I was in recovery for 2 hours, although it didn't feel like two hours.  I got the shakes pretty bad (totally normal) and concentrated on how weird it was that I wasn't able to move my toes.  They cleaned me up.  Then it was down to my hospital room where I moved over to a real bed.  They got me all set up and had me on Pitocin to get my uterus to contract back down.  They had to push on my belly quite a bit to make sure... um, pretty painful... but hey I didn't have any real contractions I shouldn't complain too much huh?


Normally before you go to your room they take you by to see the baby for some bonding, however they were working on Simon still so I wasn't able to see him.  I hung out in my room until I was done with my bag of fluids and then around 8:30 I was finally able to go see him.  I didn't get to stay very long to see him very well since he was in a bed high up and standing wasn't working the best for me at that point... but he was here and he was healthy and safe and being taken care of by lots of professionals.


It was not how I pictured my birth experience and I'm still wrapping my head around it in a lot of ways.  I didn't really have a vision of the perfect experience and I hadn't had any real expectations for it, but it this wasn't the way I saw it or anything, but it this is how it happened.  I went to the doctor on Friday and never came back home.  We have a beautiful baby boy.  He's doing real well and will hopefully get to come home soon.  I've been on an emotional roller coaster about things.  I guess I'll try to recap his weeks too.


Hopefully I didn't forget anything important but I'll add it if I do.  It was a serious whirlwind of a weekend with information overload.  I think about how he was going back and forth in his heart rate that my doctor could have easily put the Doppler on me when he was in a normal rhythm and we never would have known about this flutter.  Of course I'm confident they would have found it at my next appointment on Wednesday with either the ultrasound or non-stress test, but we saved him days of being under that stress.

First meeting

All wired up

Hospital gowns are super flattering

Sweet baby boy and his Dad

35 weeks

How far along:  35 weeks; size of honeydew melon or a canary melon

 How I'm feeling:  I feel pregnant - but the weather is cooler so much more bearable

Sleep: I had a couple nights of not great sleep just feeling miserable at times (stupid heartburn all the time now) and rolling over and all that and then getting on thinking tangents.  But last night I slept great, so hopefully those couple of nights were just a fluke.

Worries/Fears:  Pretty sure giving birth will just be on here for the rest of time

Miss anything: not having a bump - it's fun sometimes but now it's just in the way and I'm ready for all that comes with not having it (bending, twisting, sleeping on stomach, not waddling, putting on pants or shoes... etc)

Movement:  A lot, but I will say sometimes I want the baby to move and the stinker won't... sounds about right huh?

Food cravings:  All the sweets and cheese fries

Food aversions: Nada

Other symptoms:  Heartburn and pelvic pain/soreness are my big ones, one I haven't mentioned in awhile, but is still happening is the bleeding gums gross.  I'll say that I feel cramps/Charlie horses coming in my legs, but luckily never gets that far, just on the verge all the time.  Although over the weekend I did finally get a full blown one that made me jump out of bed faster than I have in months.  But I'd say my two biggest complaints are heartburn and pelvic pain.

Maternity clothes, Stretch marks, Belly Button:  Belly button is popping out, I thought I found some stretch marks on my lower belly a couple of times now but I think they were either indentions from clothes or veins near the surface.  In regards to clothing I finally went and borrowed a t-shirt from Dan and loving how long it is - that will keep happening at night.  Also, putting on jeans, while I have done it, I'm not a fan and avoid if I can.

What I'm looking forward to: There are SO MANY things in the next few weeks I'm looking forward to... it's going to make the time FLY by.

Best moment of this week:  Well this past weekend was wonderful!  I was thrown an amazing baby shower by family and my friend Susan.  It was really so my personality (bright happy colors) with an alphabet theme.  Such amazing food and we were showered with such fantastic and thoughtful gifts.  I think the shower probably deserves it's own post so I'm not going to post too much about it but a couple of pics I saved to my phone.  It was really just perfect.

Sprinkles!!

The decorations were awesome too

Sunday was also nice as I hung out with my mom and sister.  We went to the Lindbergh High School Flea Market (I got these awesome cast iron deer hooks).  We also went by Old Navy where I got a couple of comfy tops to wear on maternity leave.  Then we stopped by Once Upon a Baby to see if there was any pack n plays for my mom... instead I got a bundleme for the carseat (same one I registered for that was $40, but only $10 at the store) and Mom got a boppy for her house.  Then we had lunch at Jason's Deli (that place is amazing).  I came home and napped for awhile on the couch (probably why I didn't sleep the greatest that night).  Overall the weekend went WAY too fast, but it was such a wonderful wonderful weekend.

Going to paint them some color

  The Bump:

I never really feel that big or when I look down it doesn't seem that big, but from the side... wow

34 Weeks

How far along:  34 weeks; size of cantaloupe or a pineapple

Appointment:  Almost forgot to write about this.  I had an appointment this week with an ultrasound.  Baby is growing really well so this cord issue isn't an issue at all.  Baby is up to the 79 percentile for size.  Doctor said if baby continues to gain a half a pound per week we are looking at an 8lb 5oz baby... cue the wide eyed emoji.  Baby is head down now (might explain that pelvic pain).  I was also able to get the sugar out of my urine this time, so they are happy about that.  I have one more 'regular' appointment and then it will be to every week with ultrasound and NST every other appointment.  We are getting close folks.

She took a ton of pictures

How I'm feeling:  More uncomfortable or pregnant all the time - hey same as last week, probably will be a trend.

Sleep: I have no real complaints in the sleep department, sure rolling over is an event and getting up to pee isn't fun, but I can fall asleep, I can stay asleep I'll take it

Worries/Fears:  Giving birth... and caring for a newborn... but moreso that whole birth thing...

Miss anything: not having a giant belly?  Bending and twisting, laying on my belly, everything just feeling like so much more work than it should be

Movement:  A lot, sometimes my whole belly shakes, it's pretty crazy

Food cravings:  All the sweets and cheese fries

Food aversions: Nada

Other symptoms:  Heartburn, pelvic pain, acne, exhaustion due to the heat (I'm hoping)

Maternity clothes, Stretch marks, Belly Button:  Belly button is popping out, but luckily not too much

What I'm looking forward to: Baby shower is Saturday; also looking forward to getting

Best moment of this week:  The long weekend for sure!  While most of my weekend was not doing much of anything, I did accomplish some stuff.. the biggest being starting to sort out my thoughts on how to best set up the nursery.  It took my mom and Lindsey and bouncing ideas off each other to get it done, but I like the direction we are headed.  Mom also brought over the curtains she made and the crib skirt.  It's going to be so fun watching this nursery come together... once I'm able to kick Dan's clothes out of that room once and for all I also worked on my cross-stitch a bunch.  We hung out with Caleb Saturday night and that was nice, although they were outside a lot and I just couldn't handle sitting in the heat... plus mosquitoes... ugh.

 The Bump:

Bad angle

33 Weeks

How far along:  33 weeks; weight of pineapple or honeydew melon

How I'm feeling:  More uncomfortable or pregnant all the time

Sleep: I do still sleep well, but there are times when I'm shifting, getting up to pee, or just laying there that my belly is uncomfortable.  I get those kind of pains (kind of reminds me of trapped gas) at night, and by morning I feel better and it's not keeping me from sleep so I can't really complain.

Worries/Fears:  Giving birth... I know a lot of women fear the pooping during delivery, that one doesn't phase me, the part that got me squirmy is knowing I get a catheter when you get an epidural... that really irks me for some reason... oh and plenty of other things that can/will happen during birth.

Miss anything: Sleeping on my belly and I'd say normal clothes... now it's all about covering this belly

Movement:  seems to be moving all the time.  I've been doing my kick counts (right before bed) and doesn't take long to feel the 10 kicks I should.  I can see them from the outside quite a bit, but haven't caught it one video.  I have been feeling more movement on my right side instead of my left.

Food cravings:  All the sweets

Food aversions: Nada

Other symptoms:  Heartburn has been happening a lot more... I really should carry TUMs with me.  The pelvic pain I had a couple of weeks ago is back.  I've been trying to sleep better with a pillow between my legs which I hope is helping again. (I was doing this all along but it would become askew in the night, so trying to be better about wedging it in).  My face also broke out this week which makes me feel super attractive let me tell you.

Maternity clothes, Stretch marks, Belly Button:  No stretch marks, belly button seems to pop out a bit, shirts are becoming shorter

What I'm looking forward to: getting the nursery ready, finishing up my cross-stitch, shower is in a couple of weeks.

Best moment of this week:  Dan got some things done which was nice including getting the crib home and putting it together!

Of course they won't stay there

It was a pretty low key weekend.  Thursday I had a nice dinner with my mom and sister to catch up with her after being gone for so long.  Friday I worked.  After work came home and Dan made pulled pork.  We had some people over.  I hung in there as long as I could (10:45) until I was just worn out and ready to put my feet up.  Saturday I cross-stitched in the morning.  In the afternoon I went over to my aunt and uncle's house to celebrate my grandpa's 93rd birthday.  Afterwards I came back to the house and Dan was hanging out with Caleb, I chatted with them awhile and then watched TV (special on Hurricane Katrina... which happened 10 years ago!) and went to bed early.  Sunday we got breakfast, went by Home Depot and then I grocery shopped.  I spent the rest of the day cross-stitching, doing laundry and baking cookies.


The Bump:

Since I'm so far back you can't see the terrible zit under my nose - score

32 Weeks

How far along:  32 weeks; weight of a jicama or head of lettuce.  I'll say at the beginning I used to know how far along I was real fast but now the weeks seem to be blurring together and I know how much time I have left quicker than how far I've come along.


Appointment:  I had my first "normal" appointment this week without an ultrasound or anything extra... went so much faster... imagine that.  I have lost a pound since last appointment... how I'll never know, and I still do have sugar in my urine so she's pushing me to eat more protein so I'm trying... and will definitely eat some before my next appointment.  The baby's heartbeat was high today (and by high I mean higher than it's been, but still way within the 'normal' range) at 160 bpm.  I turned in my FMLA paperwork and mostly finished with all my other work-related paperwork for my leave and new baby just have to wait until closer to turn in, but it's ready to go!


How I'm feeling:  I feel more and more pregnant all the time but overall good.

Sleep: Still sleeping pretty well, rolling over is such an event.

Worries/Fears:  Giving birth... for sure... big one... but I will survive

Miss anything: Sleeping on my belly and bending over and twisting... also since I'm not drinking I get to drive everywhere... so I'm missing not being the DD or something?

Movement:  Oh yeah, some quite strong jabs and times and the random lots of movement at once.  I can see the movements on the outside at least once a day too.  Also, pretty sure the baby has had the hiccups a few times now.

Food cravings:  All the sweets

Food aversions: Nada

Other symptoms:  Heartburn has been happening, I've noticed acne (or at least bumpy skin) on my neck/back which I haven't had in quite awhile before this pregnancy.  I will feel leg cramps about to happen but with the trick of flexing my leg I've been able to avoid them turning into full blown Charlie horses... also RLS has been around... I wouldn't say some of this is symptoms from just this week, but I forget as I'm typing this up to mention some of this stuff... really in the end so far I think I've had a fairly easy pregnancy.

Maternity clothes, Stretch marks, Belly Button:  It's really amazing looking at my belly in the mirror, just crazy it's happening... I don't think it looks bad either.

What I'm looking forward to: Continuing to get things ready for baby... hopefully some major progress next weekend... need to get the crib home from the hospital though.

Best moment of this week:  It was a pretty low key week... Thursday night I had dinner with Lindsey at The Melting Pot, which was delicious.  We just had cheese, salad and chocolate and it was so so good.


Friday I had my doctor appointment then I mostly hung around the house.  Dan went to a concert so I had the night to myself, I cross-stitched, made myself a giant cookie and just relaxed.  Saturday was more hanging around the house.  That night we went over to Nick and Jenny's for bbq which was nice.  Sunday I went grocery shopping and cross-stitched more... see totally relaxing weekend.

I did not eat the whole thing... I ate about half

The Bump: