A couple weeks late but I finally had the time, good weather, and help to get Augie's "two year" pictures done. He is a rather difficult subject to capture, but luckily his papa was there to help get a good smile. Besides, the wiggle worm shots really do describe his two-year-old self best. : )
Today I had my blood drawn to test for gestational diabetes and it was brought to my attention that I have gained 7 lbs each month for the past two months. Yowza. Maybe I will lay off the second dinners and late night pints of ice cream. Here is to will power!
Tomorrow is Augie's second birthday and I am just so bewildered. TWO? Really? AND I am going to have another little love to hug on soon? Life has been blessing after blessing, but it all seems to fly by. For his birthday we are taking him to see Monsters University in the park on Friday and bringing a pizza and cupcakes for our picnic.
Stats!
Weight Gain: 17lbs
Cravings: Grapefruit and fast food.
Sleep: Love it. .
Moods: Pretty good, albeit sometimes lazy/tired.
What I am looking forward to: Finding out out what Ignatius looks like!
Milestones: Making lists and preparing for the birth. Very excited, less scared.
I got to meet a new (almost) midwife this week (Terry), who will be finishing up and joining the ABC team soon. Very exciting stuff, especially since I liked her so much. She really helped me to take the last edge off of my birth fears while we were talking. Lately I have been getting into the head-space of "this is happening" and "you can do this", but there is obviously always fear of the unknown. She has three little girls and said each subsequent birth was a little easier, and went into a little detail about why, which just really made me feel strong. My belly seems to have gone through a growth spurt in the last week or two, which also makes everything feel more real.
These maternity pictures that Sarah kindly took lead me to the second topic: I had a birthday! Number 28 to be exact, and I spent it in College Station. We were there for my new Goddaughter/niece Rose's baptism, which was lovely. Saturday night after visiting with family I came back to Hannah's to put Augie to bed and they had a cheesecake, several gifts and even some balloons! Super fun time, and super great friends.
Today was sonogram day and we found out that we are the proud parents of a new baby boy! I can't tell you how thrilled I am to think of Augie and a brother, being rough and tumble play-mates for life. Here is the evidence:
It was kind of funny how the sonographer went on and on about how "obvious" his male parts were. "There is no mistaking that penis and those testicles!" Haha. Forrest may have looked a little proud.
She told me that I have a fundal placenta, which means it is attached way at the top. That explains how early I felt kicking and how frequently I still do!
This week I had another appointment, and Friday the 10th is my 16 week marker! Over the past few weeks I have noticed a steep drop in nausea, and have essentially none to speak of this week. Something curious and unlike my previous pregnancy took place though. Even though I was feeling better and able to eat plenty I still felt terribly exhausted. I could barely stand for very long and would get winded walking across a parking lot. I thought that maybe I was just out of shape, but I would also get rapid heart rate for no reason, sore muscles, and even really fitful, sleepless nights. Being the hypochondriac that I am, I assumed I was soon going to be diagnosed with a pregnancy induced myocardial issue. Well, apparently those are just symptoms of severe iron deficiency/anemia. Glad to know my solution lies in an Fe supplement and some orange juice (Vitamin C helps the body absorb Iron!). Carol said that it would likely just be a week or two before I noticed a big difference. Phew!
At this appointment I heard the heartbeat again, and got multiple questions answered about potentially doing a home birth. Before anyone gets into a tizzy, don't. The same medical/life-saving equipment that is at the birth center will be brought to my house by the midwife, and my house is equidistant to the hospital should I need a transfer. My reasons for doing this are copious, but basically it happened like this: I was lying in bed and thinking about how much floor-space was left in our bedroom since the crib was gone. Which led to the thought that it is the perfect space for a birthing tub. Which led to the thought that I hated getting into the car while I was in labor, and HATE-HATE-HATED strapping my newborn into a cold car-seat to come home. Why not cut out the middle man? I asked Forrest what he thought, got the go-ahead, and the rest is history.
Jim Gaffigan is HILARIOUS, and his take on home-birth is priceless. Do yourself a favor and watch. If you have no time at all to make your own day much better, skip to 1:30 for the stuff I am taking about. But seriously, take 7 minutes to laugh.
Stats!
Weight Gain:-2lbs
Cravings: This week I ate my weight in pesto. Sandwiches, pasta, mmm!!
Sleep: Freaky dreams and a lot of waking up, but hopefully that will be fixed soon.
Moods: Better every day.
What I am looking forward to: Feeling energetic and peaceful.
Lately I have been feeling little things that I could swear were tiny baby kicks, but I didn't want to believe it. I mean, I am only 13 weeks pregnant and last time I didn't feel them until about 18 weeks. Kind of crazy early. Last night, however, it became undeniable. I had an awful headache and was laying in bed trying to fall asleep when I felt the familiar little fluttering's. I excused it as digestion when all of a sudden I had a little "pow, pow!". I thought, "Aww, a little baby kick!" but it must have been a baby hand because a few seconds later I felt a much more swift "bam, bam!" on the other side of my belly. I got so happy that I forgot about my headache and fell asleep soundly with visions of my wee-baby sugar-plum dancing in my head.
Yesterday was my first appointment at the birth center and it was such a nice visit. Leslie was working, which was so much fun, and I got to hear the happy little heartbeat for the first time. Augie was a bit of a mess and kept trying to put toys on Leslie's desk and on me while I was stretched out on the table, but he was also cute so he got away with it. She drew my blood to make sure I am not suffering from any unknown ailments and that was that. I can't wait to go back next month and maybe not feel so ill then. I purposely made my next appointment around lunch time so that I can stop by Schlotzsky's on the way home. Always thinking ahead...
Weight Gain: -3lbs
Cravings: Not much. I am still quite nauseous.
Sleep: I sleep a TON. about 11 hours at night plus a nap. Same as Augie, who now has his crib in his own room!
Moods: Weepy or comatose.
What I am looking forward to: Not being ill and looking pregnant.
