38 weeks and counting down

So, I'm at 38 weeks and 3 days to be exact. I'm still on bedrest and have a cold. I've taken no pics for this week because I've been totally exhausted.

I had a trip to L & D on Saturday and had the pleasure of being kept overnight for observation. On Saturday, the bottom number of my blood pressure was consistently over 100 so I did as instructed and called in. They put me on Labetalol and it has come down nicely. On Monday, my ob was concerned because he thought I had escalated to pre-eclampsia due to having protein in my urine. Thankfully, the next day there was none. That has put me on more restrictive bed rest this week though. I'm staying upstairs, where the bathroom is, and only going down for food.

While in the office on Tuesday, one of the kids in the OB office sneezed in his elbow. I had already started to feel like I was getting the sniffles but it came on in full force Tuesday night. Also, we had company on Sunday that could've transmitted it to me. Yesterday I was feeling ok, but went to the pediatrician orientation and suddenly felt worse. Today I woke up and had a lot of pressure on the left side of my face. So today I took Sudafed and Tylenol and I'm feeling much better.

Speaking of the pediatrician orientation, that was a bust. This practice came highly recommended and is associated with CHOP which is a plus to me. The first thing they said that I didn't like was that if you don't adhere to the immunization schedule they will ask you to leave the practice. They are pro-vaccines (their words). I would like a doc that is flexible to having a discussion and if I'm concerned we can do an adjusted schedule or none at all. There's too much discussion around vaccines that I won't simply just say, go ahead and stick my kid!

The second thing I noticed is that the evening hours are for emergent cases only. Well visits are 8 - 4:30 M-F only. That's not very flexible. Kim didn't like the fact that they have 25,000 patients with no intentions to limit the number. Now there are 10 docs and some nurse practictioners but that overwhelmed her. So, now we are back to the drawing board. I've gotten some good recommendations to check out thus far.

The bane of my existence right now is that my dresser isn't here and the baby could be here next week. My aunt told me not to worry and it's no big deal but still. Hopefully it has come in tonight and tomorrow I can schedule delivery. There's quite a few things we still don't have such as a pack n play, crib mattress, crib bedding, changing pad (but w/o the dresser there's nothing to put it on), breast pump, diapers, bottles and other little things I'm probably not even thinking about.

I must say though, we are so very blessed. We had the Keller Williams shower, Living Water (church) shower and Kim was surprised this week with another one from her co-workers at St. Chris. We have plenty of clothes for this little one that's for sure!

I'm also very happy that her room is done. My sister did such an excellent job. Once the dresser comes, I'll take more photos and post them.

Well, here's a couple of photos and here's a link to our baby website which also links to our registries: http://kimandkimberly.ourbabychannel.com/

36 weeks

37 weeks

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First baby Shower and updated photos

dWell we had our very first baby shower Friday and we had a fabulous time!!! Our KW Family (work) threw us a great party. It was so touching to see how people care for us and our new addition. We received a car seat, baby spa, highchair, two infant seats, clothing, nutcracker, books, stuffed animal, gift cards and a rubber ducky! Today, we exchanged the car seat for the one we registered for. The person that bought it said the store told her that the one she got was the one we registered for. It was absolutely no problem, I'm just thankful that we received it.

We started to put some things in the closet already. We went to Babies R Us today to do the exchange and they were having a sale on clothes for $4.99 each! We even found a coat for the baby to come home in for $14.99. The one we registered for was $52 so this was a great savings. They are also having a 20% off sale on furniture and other items. Tomorrow, we're going back to order the dresser. Once it's here, I'll feel more comfortable having Kim clean all the clothes so I can put them away somewhere. Also, the recliner we want is on clearance for about $80 less than when we first saw it. My only concern is that by the time we are ready to get it, they won't have it available anymore because it may have been discontinued. So, I guess we'll see!

Tomorrow, my sister is coming to put the finishing touches on the nursery. I'm so ready to get all the paint stuff out and set the room up.

Here's a pic of me at 34 & 35 weeks:

34 wks

35 wks

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The nursery is almost done!

Well the nursery is almost done! First, Kim ripped up the carpets and started testing paint colors:

Then cousin Dawn came in and painted. The room is sage green and lavendar:

Then we had the floor done and a ceiling fan installed. My sister Kirsten then started on the mural:

Cousin Dawn is doing the wood trim as we speak and the mural will be done Sunday. We are so very excited! Tonight, our co-workers are giving us a shower. This will be our first one! We already had a highchair delivered the other day from a group of co-workers that was on our registry and we absolutely love. Things are really coming together.

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I almost forgot!

Last week at our 32 week ultrasound, we found out that the baby's head is down. The doctor and nurse said that the baby will likely stay that way until delivery. So I've been giving the baby pep talks to stay that way and that it won't be much longer. They also turned on the 3D imaging and we got this pic. Look at her chubby cheeks!!!

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Today is my Birthday!!!!

Well, yes today is the greatest day on earth! I came into the world at approximately 9:27am on this day 34 years ago. I've been thinking a lot in the past week about how this is the last birthday to myself. I will now be sharing my birthdays with not only my wife, but also with my child. I'll be putting her needs first instead of worrying about what I'll be doing to party. I am so thankful to God for another year of life and for the creation of new life. The baby said Happy Birthday to me nice and early this morning when I felt her movement. I am so very thankful and not at all sad about ending this era in my life and starting another. I also know that partying will not be a foreign word, vacations will still happen without children and I will still be me. I will actually be an even better me.

Today, to celebrate I am at home having hardwood floors installed in the baby's room. Last week, we started really working on the room. A friend and fellow realtor lent me the materials needed to patch the walls and ceiling in the room so it could be ready for paint. We ended up doing it ourselves and did a pretty good job. I enjoy doing handyman type of stuff so I did most of it. Then our cousin came in and painted the ceiling and walls all by herself. She wanted to do the room alone so as not to clash with anyone else and she did an absolutely excellent job!!! Today, the hardwoods go in and the ceiling fan goes up. Tomorrow, the crib arrives and is assembled in the room. Sometime this week, our cousin will come back and paint the woodwork. We'll still need to set up the closet with an organizer and put some shelves up. My sister is doing a mural on the walls too.

So, my goal was to have the room done by November. It will be 85% done by November 1st and I'm so happy. I've had a few people tell me they didn't think I'd go to my guess date and I had a dream that I had the baby early. I will feel so much better to know the room is done in case she gets here early.

Kim brought up the carry on bag so we can begin to pack it for the hospital. So we'll be really ready for anything!

Well, here's pics of the last two weeks:



31 wks



32 wks

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Nesting time!

Well, it's nesting time. Last Saturday I went into the back room and boxed up everything else that needed to be so that it can be moved out. I told Kim I was done and things could get moved. It was girls night out for a friend of mine who is getting married at the end of the month, so I went out and left Kim at home. Towards the end of dinner, I got a text with a pic that showed the room was cleard out! I was blown away because there was furniture, a bed and heavy boxes that needed to be moved and she did it by herself!

She also went ahead and took up the carpet. After doing so, she thought the hardwood floors looked thin and wasn't sure we should get them refinished. So, we had the guy come who was going to do it and he confirmed that if he re-sanded them they would get too thin and would creak as we walked on it. So we asked how much to install new floors and it was three times as much as we anticipated. NOT!!!

Luckily, we already went to home depot and scouted out the fold and lock hardwood and it was only $200 more than what we were gonna pay for the re-sanding. So I'm thinking we will either do that or carpet. Either way I'm ready to decide and get it done! We also had a friend come over that's going to help us repair the drywall damage we have. She even volunteered to build us a window seat and gave us some other ideas. She's not available to help for another couple of weeks but we are sure happy that she is willing!!!

I'm hoping to get the room done by the end of the month. My mother and grandmother in-law bought our crib the other day. It should be to us within 2 1/2 weeks. I was expecting it so soon and I wasn't expecting them to buy it the day we told them about it. We were at dinner for MIL's birthday and they wanted to go to Babies R Us afterwards to look at it and ended up buying it! Wow!!!!

Well here's the last two weeks' pics of my progress for you to enjoy! It looks like I really popped this week. At first I thought it was the shirt, but when I looked at my belly bare I realized it was the belly.




29 weeks



30 weeks

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Baby Makes 3 website

I almost forgot. Kim created a site for folks to go to and I wanted to post it here.

                                            http://kimandkimberly.ourbabychannel.com/

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What a day What a day

Last night I realized that I am actually less than 2 weeks away from being 7 months. Wow did that month go by quick. So it got me to thinking how quickly September has gone for me and how unprepared I am for baby girl. Soooooo this week we will be cleaning out the room for sure!

Yesterday was Kim's best friend's bridal shower. It was very nice. I had so many folks ask me my due date that I'm thinking of just saying mid December instead of the actual date. I really don't want to get close to that date and have people on my nerve about being due/overdue/ready to go etc. I don't really want to have to snap.

I also think it may be a good idea to have the first week at home to ourselves. This will allow us to get the hang of and settle into our family. At least a few days!

I haven't taken a 28 wk pic yet, but maybe tomorrow I'll post something. I've been taking it easier nwo that it's evident that I need to do so. One day during the work week I stay home and relax. I put my feet up, do a little cleaning and relax. Kim says she thinks I should be on bedrest but not me! I've got real estate to sell! I do believe I'll stop working as of Thanksgiving. I'll be 37 weeks by then.

Yesterday at the shower we received a couple of offers to help get the nursery together, one by someone who does some construction work. We are definitely going to take her and others up on their offer to help. My goal is to have the room done by the first week of November. I think we can make October that month, except of course my birthday weekend. Kim has said we are going to NYC to stay at a B&B I've been wanting to visit and see the Lion King (which I've never seen on Broadway) so I'm really looking forward to that.

Went to church today and enjoyed the spirit. Came home and became irritated with Kim because sometimes she truly waits until the last minute to do things and it irks my soul. I'm watching the Eagles game now (they're winning) and cooking rice, baked beans and turkey ham. That dinner started out being cabbage, sweet potatoes and turkey hame. I had ordered produce from church and saw the head of green and thought it would be good to make for dinner. When I went to the fridge, I found out it was lettuce. Then when I went to get the sweet potatoes I realized there was only one. I was literally laughing out loud at myself over that because I was looking forward to that dinner, but thank goodness for a pantry with other choices because I wasn't going out to get the right items.

Oh, one more thing. I started my hypnobabies course back up earlier this month and it's going pretty good. I'm doing one class every two weeks and am currently on class #2. I'm really excited and hope that I can keep up the practice so that I can have the fast, easy, comfortable birth that I know I can have!

I think I'll end up posting more often on here. Especially since I need to take it easy more.

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Third Trimester!!!! Woooo Hooooo!!!!!!!!

So, it's official! I'm in my third trimester and everything is going well. Below is a pic of me at 27 weeks. Early yesterday morning we went into L & D because I had cramping for several hours that had me confined to the bed. Luckily there was no issue and we were sent home after a few hours. They monitored the baby's heartbeat and me for contractions. They also did a swab test to see if there was a possibility that I could go into premature labor in the next week. It came back negative. Thank you Lord!

One good thing, we don't have to go to the L & D tour because we now know exactly how to get there! It was 4am and we had to get security to open the door. We also didn't have to pay for parking. By the time we left shortly before 8, there was still no parking attendant. So we saved a couple of duckets.

So, I think I mentioned before that we are doing Hypnobabies which teaches you how to have a natural birth by sending anesthesia to parts of your body to deal with any discomfort. Well, when we got to the L & D room, there was a tub and I didn't know they had them. The nurse said they hardly ever use them because they don't do natural birth too much there. She then began to talk about why and I decided to say we are doing natural. Later on, she was talking about forms to fill out and what to expect while I was there yesterday and started to talk about if I was induced and delivered, etc. I was like whoa whoa whoa, that would not be my choice. My choice would be to do whatever possible to NOT deliver at 27 weeks. It made me realize how much I need to talk to my doc and be on the same page and will have to stand my ground on how I visualize the birth to be. Now of course I know things happen and I need to keep an open mind, but don't make it up for me already!

I finished up the Babies R Us registry today while Kim started putting together our baby website via the bump. We did a wedding website and found it very useful since we could just drive folks there with questions. She's doing a great job! Tomorrow, I'm going to finish up the Target registry in case people actually want to start buying stuff. We have registered for quite a lot of things.

Today, I looked further into cloth diapering. Right now I'm leaning toward a hybrid system, gDiapers. I'm going to call a good friend of Kim's so that I can get some advice and opinions. I also researched and selected a breast pump.

I'm also quite excited that yesterday I bought some great bedding to update our bed to make it more comfortable and truly a king size bed. So, it's about time to take a shower and get in that bed and enjoy some time with Kim before dozing off to sleep.

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25 Week photo

I need to catch up on this blog. Here is a pic of me at 25 weeks:

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Summer is almost over!

Wow, it's been a month since I've posted anything. Well I've been working on my business and taking it easy. I've also been quite busy with church and just didn't have time or energy to post.  So, yes we know the sex of the baby but we are keeping it to ourselves for now. We enjoy having that piece of information all ot ourselves for now.

So, what's been going on you say? Well the baby is kicking more and more daily. Although today not so much. I received my at home dopplar so that we can hear the heartbeat whenever we want, especially if we're concerned about the level of movement. We've started to make some movement on getting the room toegether. We got rid of some furniture in one of the bedrooms and decided to give the baby the small room which was being used as the office. The larger bedroom will be a guest room/office. We've received some estimates on some drywall repair needed and hardwood floor sanding. We even got estimates on kitchen and bath remodelling, though they are not the priority right now.  We've also decided on a theme for the baby's room and Kim even ordered some paint samples to try out that look nice. She found a website that sells room stencils so that you can paint a theme that I'm 95% sure we'll go with. So that means I need to sell more houses!

We had our bi-weekly dr appt Tuesday and the Dr wants to monitor my blood pressure more saying it's close to gestational hypertension. Great. My bp was 128/86 and gh is 140/90. Since that bottom number is close to 90, I had to go get blood work done. But the most shocking news was that I gained 8lbs in 2 weeks!!!!!! Kim said, "Well you are pregnant" and that's true but that is a lot in 2 weeks for someone who has a small appetite to begin with. So, I'm going to watch what I eat more and eat every couple of hours. I'm not dieting just being more conscious of what I'm eating. Kim always says I'm not eating enough for the baby but I think that proves I am.

We go for a perinatal ultrasound next week and once we confirm the gender (again) we will consider telling everyone else.

Here are some pics that I've been taking documenting my journey:

20 wks                                                               21 wks

22 wks

23 wks

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Feeling the baby!

Well as of today I am 18wks, 5 days. Here's a pic of me from two days ago:

I have been feeling the baby move more and more in the last few days. At first it was a kick here and there. Now I can feel kicks and I felt a rolling of sorts a few days ago that was interesting. It's such a welcome event to feel that and know the baby is doing well. We go for our 20 week scan next Friday and I'm excited to hear that the baby is growing on target. The heartburn is still going strong. I need to go look for another over the counter medicine to help because the Tums aren't doing their job too well. Sometimes the heartburn wakes me up in the middle of the night if its bad enough.

Kim is being over protective, which I'm used to, but more than usual. It's sweet though so I'm not going to harp on it, yet. It's hot here, but I've been in the a/c all day. Boy do I wish we had central air, but I'll have to do with the window a/c for now. My rings are starting to be a little hard to put on and off so I left them off today. I'm guessing at this rate I won't be able to wear them by September or so.

I'm sitting here watching one of my new fav shows, Two and a Half Men. Today was a rough day in real estate. I'm hoping that all works out on my difficult transactions by the end of the week.

Ta Ta!

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Just Checking in

Well I'm sitting in my office and I really need to get to work but I wanted to post. It's been a good week for me. Last week we went to the doc and found out that the baby is lying transverse so he couldn't tell the sex of the baby. He also said it looked like I had a heart shaped uterus which concerned me some but I'm trusting in God that everything will be ok.

We've had a good couple of weeks in real estate. Last week we had 3 closings and I listed two homes. I also have one offer that I'm waiting to see if its accepted and two listings have gone under contract in the last two weeks. Today my goal is to find some more folks that need to sell their home so I can schedule some appointments for the next week.

The holiday weekend was good. We saw fireworks live and on tv. We went to a bbq and we enjoyed spending time together. I was so happy that we had the extra day on Monday off to get it together for the week.

Last week we also had a chance to visit a baby store in the area. They had the lightweight frame that we've been talking about to use as a stroller while the baby is an infant. It was only $80. They also had this convertible stroller that you can use from infancy to toddler but when they told me it was $1100 I quickly turned from that one. Kim said, "That's a mortgage payment!".

Well here's today's 17 week pic. I really should take another to face the same way as the previous one. I'm tired right now so let me get some work done while I can.

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Ultrasound

Wednesday we went for an ultrasound and saw a very active baby. The baby was kicking and hands were moving. I'm going to post a pic. We could see the lips, nose, eyes and in one picture a very clear right hand. We're so happy all is going so well!

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It's official, everyone knows now!

Ok, so yesterday I told sorors at the chapter bbq about the good news and today we told everyone at church. So, I decided to go ahead and post on facebook so that everyone knows. I'm so glad I don't have to hide it anymore and people can know that I'm not just getting fatter. Some of my clothes no longer fit and maternity clothes are the most comfortable right now even though I don't have much. Yesterday I wore a maternity dress I got from Target and today I wore a regular dress I got from there. I think dresses are going to be the way to go this summer for me. They're comfortable and flowy and breathable.

We took a trip to Rochester, VT a couple of weeks ago and boy was it a nice trip. We started off bumpy (literally) when we took the wrong road up the mountain at 9pm with the high beams on. There were rocks and tree limbs and ditches abound and I had no idea if my car was going to make it. We did finally get to the house, which sits up the mountain but I didn't sleep well through the night wondering how I was going to make it back down the mountain in to town for groceries. Well the owner of the house we stayed in had a good laugh with us when she told us that road has been closed down for decades and was an old farm road. Boy were we scared, so much so that when I looked over at Kim, she was taking a big gulp of water and turned on the a/c. We started singing, "We've come this far by faith" until we got to the house.

Otherwise, it was a lovely trip. We were able to really spend time together, relax, look at the beautiful scenery out the back door of the green mountains and just enjoy God's beauty. We went up on Wednesday and were supposed to leave Sunday but Friday night I had a breakdown of how dark it is at night and how quiet it is. I'm not used to being in that type of environment and my mind kept thinking that someone was going to come up there and do something violent to us and no one would ever hear. So, we decided to pack up and leave the next day which really worked out because Kim had homework to do anyway and needed all day Sunday to do it.

We ate at Liberty Hill Farm down the (correct) road and enjoyed our time with Beth & Bob (the owners). It's a dairy farm and the milk from their cows goes to Cabot to make cheese. We milked a cow, fed a calf, talked to the goats and met new people. On our final day, we went to Waterbury where we visited Ben & Jerrys and did a tour. We also went to the Cabot Cheese Annex where we tasted and bought cheese. Lastly we went to Cold Hollow Cider Mill. The kitchen in the home we stayed in was georgeous and I just loved cooking in it and on the viking range/oven. WOW. I need one of those!

We will definitely return there. That time was a milestone of sorts because it happened just when we entered our second trimester.

Our view from the back porch

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Jillian Michaels

So, I'm sitting her watching Jillian Michaels on "Losing It" and wow is she tough on the first day. A lot of folks really need that boot camp experience to get themselves together. I like her a lot.

So, I'm 12 weeks tomorrow and excited to get closer to that second trimester so I can wear some of my maternity clothes and let other people know what's going on. I'm definitely showing but I'm hiding it right now as much as I can.

Sunday, I was the beautiful wedding of my bestie Monique. She looked so georgeous and we had a ball at the reception. I am so very happy for her and her husband. They're leaving for Jamaica tonight and I'm sure they'll have a relaxing time. I'm a little concerned about the current druglord violence but because she's on a resort I'm sure they'll be fine.

At the wedding, I ate chilean sea bass stuffed with crab. It was good but I regret eating it now. There are so many conflicting accounts about sea bass. I see my Dr on Thursday and am really looking forward to having a conversation about that food choice. I'm feeling like I don't want to eat fish for at least another 2 weeks to counteract the possible effect of what I ate. I stressed so much about it on Monday that I made myself sick.

On a brighter note, I was able to have pancakes from Cracker Barrel yesterday and they were oh so good! I also got to get a couple of outfits from Target to hold me over until I can do a bigger shop later this month.

I almost forgot, I found out a very good friend is 16 wks pregnant right now. I am so excited for her and it made me get excited again. Not as exciting but Celine Dion is pregnant with twins and due around the same time.

Anywho, let me get back to this show. I'll try to check back in after the appointment later this week.

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Feeling Good Today!

So, yesterday was a crappy day in terms of how I felt. I woke up with a headache. I think it was from the way I wrapped my hair the night before. I was also quite nauseous even though I couldn't wait to wake up and have some Cinnamon Toast Crunch. So, I got up, got dressed took my pre-natals, did my daily injection and went downstairs to eat come cereal. I could only eat about 3 spoonfuls before the nausea came with a vengeance. So, Kim finished my bowl and we headed to the doctor's office with a trash bag in case I couldn't make it out the window during the 5 minute drive.

Once we got to Dr. Bailey's office I started to feel a bit better. We saw the baby on the sonogram and heard the heartbeat which was wonderful! Every time I see the baby it makes me feel reassured that he/she is going to be just fine. Thank God for my faith too.

Other things I found out at the Dr is that I've lost weight, about 6lbs since I was weighed at the hematologist's office last month. I can have some caffeine and splenda is ok, though I'll probably still stay away from both. Maybe an occasional tea, I'm not into coffee anyway. Shellfish is cool (I knew that) and I can have a turkey hoagie!!!! I've really been wanting one too. Kim told the Dr that I've been moody and he told her he already had to deal w/that at home so she needed to figure it out. LOL.

I also made sure I was cool to take the 8hr car ride to Vermont in a couple of weeks and he said it was indeed okay. He also recommended a great route so we are looking forward to going.

Two things Dr. Bailey did that I was really impressed about. When we were first taken to the exam room, he peeked in and said hello and said he was glad to see us back. The other thing was that he asked how often we wanted to come in because he understood that we may want to see him more often after the 2nd trimester loss last year. So, we're going back next week and the week after for a scan and then will go to every two weeks. I also talked to him about getting a dopplar and he recommended waiting until 14 wks to do so but understood. He also recommended I get a blood pressure cuff because my blood pressure was a bit high. He said I need to keep the bottom number under 90.

So, I'm watching my salt intake (as I have been anyway) and I have to make time to walk around the neighborhood for some exercise.

This weekend, I'm going to a bachelorette party and I'm looking forward to having a great time!

Tootles!

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Graduation Day!

Well, today I graduated from my fertility doc! I thought I would be there another 1 - 2 weeks but he said everything was looking good and I needed to see my ob within 2 weeks. My progesterone level is at 14.5, so I'm still concerned about that but I'm also still taking 200mg of Prometrium twice a day to make sure it stays elevated enough to hold the baby. In another 3 weeks, I'll be off of it and the placenta will take over.

So we saw the baby this morning, wiggling a little bit as the nurse tried to get the heart rate. 154 bpm. Nice. We are so amazed how this one is growing from week to week. Today he is 22 mm in size, 9 over the last time last week this time. Kim is thinking that it's a boy this time around. I'm not sure what it is but I'm getting more anxious to actually find out. We talked about whether or not we're going to find out or not and we're not sure. I'm leaning more towards yes right now though. Maybe we'll find out and not tell anyone. I don't know, we'll see.

This morning when I put my pants on, they were a bit snug. Yesterday, my MIL said I was carrying high. I was like, I'm not showing yet that's from dinner. But this morning I did look like I could be, but maybe that's just pregnancy bloat. They say you show sooner if you were pregnant before. I'm not sure I was pregnant long enough last time for that to happen or not but the maternity pants are much more comfortable than the others I have in my closet and I've started to wear them.

So, I'm at the office. We need to get some more sales to do some repair work to the house and save for the baby. I have to make 12 calls today to get at least one appointment. Right now, I'm tired and putting off work for a bit. It's also cold.

Okay, I need to start to get in the work mindset so ta ta for now.

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It's time to say it

Sooooooo, I'm pregnant!!!!!

Since hardly anyone I know reads this and those who I knew that did haven't in eeons, I'm thinking I'm safe to say it. As you can see from my ticker below, I'm newly pregnant. Today we went to the doc and saw the baby's heart beating at 130bpm. I'm going through a range of emotions including happiness, fear, excitement, worry, etc. I also have some heartburn and am very tired. I don't feel like doing anything on most days and I'm pushing past that right now. We aren't letting the floodgates open to people until we're at least 13 weeks. I originally thought I'd wait until about 20 weeks after the scan, but I don't think I can hold it that long and will likely be showing by then. June 9th, we'll be 13 weeks but we'll also be in Vermont so maybe when we come back we'll spill the beans.

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Been Such a Long Time...

Well, the last time I posted to this blog, I was really excited about my pregnancy. I haven't posted here in a while because things went downhill since the last post.

On November 18th I saw my doctor and we heard and saw the heartbeat. The baby didn't move much but the Dr said he/she may have been sleep. That night, I got sick. I woke up out of my sleep choking and trying to catch my breath. I calmed down and eventuall went back to sleep.

On November 20th, I went for my 20 wk scan. We were so excited and the nurse came and started to take a look and there was silence. She kept looking and then said the worst words possible, "I don't see a heartbeat". I immediately started to cry, loudly and hard. I couldn't believe it. We just saw the heartbeat two days ago. The nurse called a Dr in who confirmed it. She said the baby was measuring small so it may have just stopped growing.

On November 25th, I had a D & E while unconscious. I was in pain that night and the next day, which happened to be Thanksgiving. The range of emotions I felt were vast. The support I received from family and friends felt monumental. The stories that women shared about their experiences with 2nd & 3rd trimester miscarriages soothed me some.

Well, I trusted in God and new that He is ALWAYS in control and we got through it. When I went for my follow-up I learned that we had a baby girl. I also learned that there were no chromosomal issues as my doctor thought. This left me feeling a bit empty not knowing exactly what happened. So, my doctor ordered blood tests on me to see if there was anything else that could be found.

Last Thursday, I found out that I have Prothrombin Factor 2 and I may have APS. This would explain it! This condition makes me more apt to clot. The doctor said it is likely that there were clots in my placenta that cut off nutrition to the baby causing it to stop growing. It may be odd to think this but Ifelt SOOOOOOOOO relieved. Now, I can pinpoint the problem instead of wondering what it could be. I have to see a hematologist to confirm bu my doctor said the next time I'm pregnant I will have to inject Lovenox daily to prevent any clotting. I've also read that I will likely take baby aspirin daily.

I'm in a really good place now and looking forward to seeing the hematologist and starting my way to my next pregnancy.

Thank you to everyone for your love and support through this difficult time!

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