27 Weeks and 26 Years Old

Welcome to the third trimester! HOW IN THE WORLD DID I GET HERE SO FAST?!?!

I can't believe I only have 3 months left, the 3 busiest months of the year, too!  I'm feeling pretty great, though.  Today is day 5 of no zofran! I'm not entirely sure I wont take it today, because I've had 2 or 3 times where I felt like I needed to.  But I made some scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese to get some protein in.  Hopefully that will help.  

I had my appointment last week.  I had a bunch of questions I wanted to ask but my doctor was too into talking about  the awesome deal he had getting tickets to the NASCAR race this coming weekend.  And all the stuff he has planned with his family.  I'm bringing a piece of paper with my questions on it next time so he can see I have something to talk to him about.  

It took 20 minutes to check into my appointment because the office switched computer systems.  But I'm really thankful for it! I can now check my medical records online, along with lab results, and wellness info.  The first thing I did when I had it all set up was look into Tanner's labor and delivery.  I've always wondered what their reasoning was for my inability to give birth vaginally.  And I found my answer!  They had written down, "Pyrexia" and "DTA & POP". I know what pyrexia means.  I spiked a bad fever and probably had some sort of infection starting.  I had to do a little more research on the "DTA & POP".  It means Deep Transverse Arrest and Posterior Occipitoposterior Position".  Basically Tanner's head was not engaged correctly.  It was completely sideways.  There was a chance I could have a a special forceps used to deliver him but the likely hood of it working was very slim.  I would have ended up with a c-section anyway, even if I didn't spike a fever.  

I needed to do more research on my his head was that way.  Was it because my pelvis was too small?  THANKFULLY, no!  It was because my doctor insisted on breaking my water at a fingertip dilated.  Way too early.  So Tanner wasn't in a good position when my water broke, and his head engaged poorly.  I'm so happy I have this information.  If I am lucky enough to go into labor before my 41 week deadline there will be a lot of things done differently.  I'm planning on writing a birth plan so if I'm not mentally able to express my wishes during labor, Nick will be able to let them know.  

Anyway, back to my doctor's appointment.  Everything is doing great.  My doctor didn't tell me what the heartrate was, too busy talking. ( I even asked the lady at the desk to look at my paperwork when I was leaving so she could tell me, and he didn't write it down!) 

My blood pressure is great, as well! Still much better than this pregnant with Tanner.  It was 122/43.  I've only gained 5 pounds as well.  I'm pretty certain I was already up 25+ pounds.  I was also swelling a LOT more then, too.  I have a little pitting edema on my ankles by the end of the day but it's just nothing compared to what I dealt with last time.  And I'm so thankful!

Tomorrow I turn 26.  I may or may not have had to calculate it in my head to be sure.  It really freaks me out thinking I only have 4 years left in my twenties.  I don't even want to think about it anymore. Yikes!

Okay, time to play with the toddler! :)

Happy Half Birthday!

Tanner is 6 months old! It is so bittersweet! He isn't that little squishy newborn anymore, but he is growing into this amazing little man.  He has the best personality and is always smiling.  He is so interested in everything!  I just love watching him grow and learn.

He is 16lbs 12oz (38th percentile), and 25 inches long (7th percentile).  He is going to be a short little guy, just like his momma!  He took his shots like a pro, momma on the other hand, did not. :)

I still can't believe how big he is getting!  I love him to pieces! 

(He is napping in the pack n play for the first time in the bedroom.  So if I can continue this I will be blogging more! And the next blog will be our favorite things months 3-6.)

Chins!

He loves to grab the camera now.

This is the flirt face

O-Ballllll!!!!

On the move

Pout face

It's been a long week!

A lot has happened since I posted last.  Tanner had his appointment on Monday the 9th.  He is still my little peanut, but he has done so well.  He is 13.6lbs and 24 inches.  He was in the 8th and 9th percentiles for height and weight, and now he is in the 21st and 29th.  His head circumference was 16.5 inches, which is the 44th percentile.  


He did so well during his shots.  And I did better than I thought I would do as well.  (His daddy held him the last time).  The first two shots in his one leg barely phased him, but the one in his right leg made him cry pretty hard.  He immediately stopped once I snatched him up in my arms.  

This was right after a short nap after shots.

Tuesday I signed the lease for the larger house on base.  It will be our home, because we know we will be there at least 3+ years.  It was hard living in a house knowing you're going to move soon.  You just can't make it homey.  The movers came at 1pm and took 6 hours to load up their truck and move one street over and unload the truck.  And this is when Nick and I packed EVERYTHING up in boxes and had it all out in the garage already.  Al the furniture was moved into the living room as well.  I have no idea why it took them so long to do that.  Crazy, but at least it's done.  I definitely wouldn't have been able to do it all with Tanner needing my attention as well.  

Roses outside of our new house.

I spent the next couple days cleaning the old house to make sure it passed inspection on Friday.  Luckily it did, and I left for Texas at 2pm. Really bad weather was headed into Oklahoma at the time and I really wanted to miss it.  I drive through OKC during rush hour, in torrential downpour of rain, with the sky as dark as night.  I was so anxious, and felt so sick.  Come to find out I drove through one of the cities minutes before they had a tornado.  My saving grace was Tanner.  He slept through it all.  He was actually only awake maybe an hour of the entire 9 hour drive.  He did stop for dinner (Nick drove up from San Antonio to meet us half way-I was afraid of stopping in the middle of the night to feed Tanner alone).  He was an angel!

Dinner at Cracker Barrel

We got to San Antonio at 1:45 in the morning.  Tanner fell asleep at 3.  I'm so proud of him!


It's been a great week so far! I love being in a large city.  Mostly because there is Target. HAHA!

2 Months

Little man is 2 months old today and 9 weeks old tomorrow!  How does this happen so fast? Seriously.  How?


He had his 2 month appointment this morning.  Of course he had a huge poopy diaper and a completely soaked pee diaper before we left the house.  I know it probably doesn't mean much, but every ounce counts with this guy!  We ended up weighing 9lb 7oz and was 21.75 inches long.  Both are in the 9th percentile.  Dr. M was not concerned because he is proportionate, and eating/pooping/peeing just fine.  His head is in the 29th percentile, though.  Big brain=smarty...right? :)


She checked his head (made sure there were no flat spots), checked his hips, ears, eyes, and gums.  Everything looks great.  She was surprised how he likes to stand up and actually bears a little weight.  She asked us about tummy time and if he has rolled over yet.  I told her he has a few times but we don't know if it was a fluke or not.  She picked him up and put him on his belly and he raised his head just fine and then tried to roll over.  He was so cute.


He was in such a great mood this morning, which made it much worse.  I knew once he got his shots he would be so sad and sore.  I made Nick take him back to get his shots.  3 shots and an oral vaccine.  I could hear him scream from the waiting room.  It just broke my heart to pieces.  He's been really sleepy since.


He did stay up long enough to enjoy Baby Time at the library today.  He sat and watched the big kids dance and read books.  I think he will really like it once he gets a little bigger!


Since this post is pretty long I will post a few pictures from my phone.  Can you tell I love my little sleeping baby?

Nick got his training dates today.  We're going to San Antonio next month until July.  Luckily my friend's husband has training there around the same time too! Her little guy is 3 months older than Tanner.  I can't wait to be in a city where we can do things with the kids!


And since Nick has his dates set...we can buy plane tickets to go home...THIS MONTH!  Nick and I haven't been home in almost 2 years!  I'm so excited! (Not too excited to try to figure out how to travel with a 2 month old on a plane...).


Baby's awake...gotta go!

Long time no post

So it's been a while since I've updated.  Lots of things have happened.  I'll do a quick update on some of those things and I will try to update a little more since I'm starting to get use to having a little one on my own without family here to help.


First, Tanner has yet to get back to his birth weight and he will be 3 weeks old tomorrow.  He was 7lbs 9.8oz at birth and at his 1 week appointment he was down to 6lb 13oz.  we went back 5 days later and he was up to 7lb 4oz.  So we set an appointment to go back today and he is only 7lb 8oz.  I could have sworn he was gaining.  He has filled out and he seems heavier.  He's eating every 2-3 hours during the day and every 3-4 hours at night.  He eats for 30+ minutes a session and has ton of wet and dirty diapers.


Nick seems to think they didn't weigh him right at the hospital because they said his length at birth was 20.5 inches but being measured twice at the clinic he measured shorter than that.  I don't know if that is the case, but I still figured he would be gaining more.  It is really frustrating because I am trying my hardest to feed him and everything seems just fine.  He doesn't complain like he's hungry or anything.  I've been told to start pumping and giving him a bottle after he nurses to see how much more he eats.  I'm not looking forward to being hooked up to the pump in between feedings.....


Also, a week after we got home from the hospital my incision opened up.  It started draining a ton of fluid.  For the first 2 days it was coming out like a little faucet.  And each day the hole got bigger and deeper.  It's been a week and a half and the drainage is slowing down.  I've been to the doctor 3 times to check it.  My doctor is not concerned.  I started antibiotics just in case, but he said it wasn't infected (I beg to differ).  I go back again on the 9th of January, which is also my 4 week postpartum visit.  I can't wait until this heals.  If it wasn't for the big hole in my abdomen I would be feeling great!  The rest of my incision is healing beautifully.  My doctor says some people just develop these seromas after surgery.


But some good news, I've lost almost 30lbs in 3 weeks.  I have ankles again and I can wear my wedding band!  I'm starting to recognize myself in the mirror again and I love it!


Tanner is starting to wake up so I am going to end this for now.  I still have some other things I want to blog about and I will try to get that done sometime this week.  Now here are some pictures of my little man!  These were taken back to back, Tanner makes lots of cute faces.

40 Week Doctor/L & D Visit

Today I had my 40 week doctor appointment scheduled.  I was feeling very worried/nervous before, mostly because I was afraid of no progress.  I also knew we would start talking about inductions today.  Well, the doctor came in and sure enough, no progress.  He tried to open my cervix and boy that did not feel pleasant.  He started talking about how I can't go into labor this weekend because he will be at the Saints/Lions football game.


We discussed Cytotec/Cervadil  again.  I told him I did a little more research on it and I felt better knowing he only uses the smallest does.  Sometimes Cytotec will bring on contractions and Pitocin may not be needed.  He also said it works faster.  But he said he would let me choose.  He mentioned if I'm dilating by Tuesday (my induction date) we won't even need to worry about it and just go straight to Pitocin.  So, I have an induction scheduled for 7:30 Tuesday morning, the 6th of December.


Now, about my trip to L & D.  My doctor said I could go have blood drawn to make sure I'm not on the verge of toxemia (my BP today was 138/78-much, much higher than my normal).  So I agreed.  I figured I would just go over and they would take my blood and that would be it.  But that wasn't the case, and I'm thankful.


I got there and had to pee in a cup.  Then I realized they would actually be monitoring me while I waited for the lab to come draw my blood and receive the results.  This was pretty big for me.  I've never been to the hospital as a patient.  I've never had to be on the other side of being a nurse.  It was so strange.


They hooked me up to the fetal heart rate monitor and contraction monitor and put the blood pressure cuff on every 15 minutes.  (The nurse said I had a stretch mark that looks like a heart...that was pretty cool...lol).  She asked me if I have had any contractions while she was hooking me up and I said no.  Once she was done she left the room.  And almost immediately a little hill appeared on the contraction monitor.

The contraction felt like I was tightening my abs mixed with Tanner moving.  I've been having contractions and not realizing what they actually were.  (They may have been happening because my doctor tried to open my cervix). Eight minutes later another hill appeared.  And eight minutes after that...Nick figured out they were every eight minutes lasting about a minute and a half.  In a way I was so happy.  I know these will probably taper off, but knowing my body is actually doing something is so nice!  It was neat because Nick could tell a contraction was about to start because Tanner's heart rate would pick up and then the little hill would start to appear on the monitor.  I wouldn't even feel anything yet.


The nurse came back into the room and gave me the little button to do kick counts.  Tanner was very active today, so I was constantly pushing the button.  He even kicked the heart rate monitor and made this LOUD noise.  My mom, Nick, and I couldn't stop laughing.


The guy from the lab showed up and drew my blood.  He went ahead and drew extra, in case I went into labor within the next 3 days.  I felt really weird because he put the blood band on.  I know what this is from working at this hospital.  Its for blood transfusions.  That did freak me out a little bit.

It took maybe 20 minutes for the results to come back.  Just enough time to listen to Tanner's heart rate a little more and answer all the admission questions.  The results from the blood work were great! I am so relieved!  I feel much better about waiting until Tuesday to be induced.


I'm still having contractions.  I haven't really relaxed enough since we've been home to time them.  We're going to dinner soon so maybe during that I'll time them.  I would love to go into labor on my own and not have to deal with the induction, but it is what it is, and I'm happy knowing I will have a baby by next week.  Fingers crossed that these contractions pick up though!!!

38 Week Appointment

Well, still no progress.


My doctor even tried to open my cervix a little, (which was pretty uncomfortable) but it's just not ready.  He did say Tanner's head is even lower and how that's really good.


Heart rate was 144, still pretty normal for Tanner.


I had a few questions this appointment.  The first one was when does he start talking about inductions.  He said he will induce anyone who is 3 cm dilated and past 39 weeks.  But he wont really push it until 41 weeks (which would be December 7th for me).


I asked when I should go to the hospital.  He said if my water breaks, to go ahead and come in to get labor started to avoid infection.  If that happens for me, I will probably shower and eat before I go in, ha!  I was wondering if he followed the 5-1-1 rule or not. Contractions every 5 minutes, lasting for 1 minute, for 1 hour.  I told him I was thinking about trying to labor at home as much as I could.  He said that would be perfectly fine.  But with the last question I asked him I may not want to wait too long anymore...


That last question was about his stance on episotomies.  I have learned through reading online and through school that it's much better to tear naturally than have the doctor preform an episotomy (a surgical cut).  You can heal faster, and there are less complications in the future.  My doctor says he does not do them.  He said it has been years since he's done one.  And what he said next is the reason I think I'm changing my "birth plan".  He said he likes epidurals so much because the woman can stop pushing during a contraction so he can lift the babies head and avoid tearing.  I originally was worried about getting an epidural because a lot of the time you can't feel that need to push feeling and by pushing when your body isn't ready can cause tearing. But with the help from my doctor, I feel a lot better about it.  And also, after watching so many episodes of a baby story on TV and videos online, the women with epidurals seem so much more pleasant!  Don't get me wrong, I still want to feel what it is like, just so I know what natural labor is.


Like I mention in my last doctor appointment post, my doctor drives a brand new Boss 302.  So last week and this week my husband has worn a mustang shirt to my appointment, trying to get a conversation started about cars with my doctor.  Last week Nick was a little bummed out because my doctor was a little preoccupied with the medical student and he didn't look at Nick's shirt.  But today was different.  My doctor mentioned Nick's shirt and they got to talking.  It was pretty awkward, being I was still sitting on the table with a paper blanket covering me while my doctor and husband talk about cars and drag racing.  I learned a lot about the Boss, and about my doctor.  He drag races cars with friends who have sub 10 second mustangs.    We also learned about the features of the Boss and what it does and does not come with.  Other than being awkward, it was pretty cool.  Nick enjoyed it.


So I need to get use to the idea that I will most likely be pregnant for a a long time.  I need to stop being so anxious and enjoy it (as difficult as that is). I need to try to take my mind off of him.  I'm constantly thinking about him.  Tanner will come when he is ready.  Even though my doctor will be out of the state from Dec. 3-5 for a football game.


  Monday would be nice, Tanner.  Your Grandma will be here and your Daddy can take Monday-Wednesday off. Thursday and Friday he has off already for Thanksgiving and then there is the weekend!  Plus, you can join us for Thanksgiving dinner! Just sayin'...

37 Week Doctor Appointment

I will be 37 weeks tomorrow (yay full term!).  I had my appointment today.  I was a little nervous because I knew I would have my first internal check today and I didn't really know what to expect.  Luckily the weather was bad today so Nick was able to go with me.


My blood pressure was still good, much higher than my normal, but still good.  It was 127/72 ( My normal is 100-110/60).  I also still have trace protein in my urine, which is still not bad.


I told the nurse about my symptoms lately:  seeing spots daily, extremely swollen fingers at night, vertigo, pressure behind my eyes, and just feeling off.  She wrote everything down so my doctor would read it when he came in to check me.  I was able to find out that I am GBS negative, so that's a relief.  I don't have to worry about getting to the hospital early enough to get antibiotics before Tanner is born.


My doctor came in with a medical student.  She will be with him for the rest of November.  I don't mind because I know what it's like to be in school and have clinicals with real patients. But my doctor really worried me today. He told us that he just had a patient who's husband found her seizing.  Apparently she had toxemia, and a pretty bad case of it.  But she had normal blood pressure and no protein in her urine.  My doctor told me that sometimes only blood work can show toxemia.  He told me I could have blood drawn to check just in case.  I might do that next week if I still have that weird off feeling.  I agreed to do it today but I think my doctor forgot or was thinking about something else.  (I did tell him I was happy my BP was okay today).


He really freaked us out though.  Nick's worried about me possibly having a seizure and he would be out flying and not home with me.  I'm going to try to remember to carry my phone with me at all times when I'm alone, just in case.


The signs he told me to watch for are: seeing spots for hours at a time, a severe headache, and a bad pain in the top right part of my abdomen (where my liver is).  If I have any of these signs I'm supposed to go to the ER right away.


Anyway,  Tanner is doing good.  His heart rate was 140.  My cervix was closed but his head is very low.  I have a feeling Tanner will be a December baby, but I really hope I'm wrong!  I now have weekly appointments, so we'll see if there is any progress next Tuesday! (That is if I don't go into labor before then). :)


By the way, anyone who knows me or my family will get a kick out of this.  My doctor drives a BRAND new Boss 302 Mustang.  It's really nice!

35 week Doctor visit

My appointment went very well today!  My BP was great, no UTIs, and I've only gained 1 lb.  I was tested for Group B Strep (which is very common).  I could call tomorrow to find out the results, but it isn't really important to know at this point in time, so I'll just wait until my next appointment in 2 weeks.


I was able to talk to my doctor a little bit today, usually he's in a little bit of a rush with patients in labor.  I was really worried about them moving my due date since I'm pretty sure my "real" due date is the first one I was given, December 10th.  So I let him know that.  He got his measuring thing out and measured my belly.  And surprising, to me, I'm measuring right at 35 weeks.  So I guess November 30th it is!


I was happy to find out my doctor has a very low c-section rate.  But then he asked me how tall I am.  If you ask me, I'm 5'1"; but if you ask my husband, I'm 5'0". My doctor then said I look like I'm 5'0" to him.  He says there is a big difference in c-section chances for a woman who is 5'0" compared to 5'1".  Like a 5% better chance on having a c-section if you're only 5 feet tall.  A lot of it has to do with the way the woman is shaped.  But so far, he hasn't mentioned me needing anything special to give birth.


He did tell me not to go into labor on the weekends of the 11th or the 18th, because he will be out of town for a concert and a comedian show.  He said Thanksgiving would be great because he is on call. Hahaha! Thanksgiving would be great! Well, preferably the weekend after Thanksgiving.  My mom is coming into town on the 20th, and I want to decorate for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving.  lol


Tanner is still doing great! Heart rate was 138, and he is still very much head down.  He feels super low to me.  I'll have my first internal check at my next appointment in 2 weeks, so we'll see if there is any progress after that.


I think I'm going to go make some flannel washcloths now.  Nick is flying late so I don't have to worry about dinner or anything.  By the way, I have yet to receive an email saying my cloth diapers have shipped...It's been over a week........But who's counting.

Doctor's visit and clothes!

I had my 29 week appointment at 2pm today.  I worked last night and only slept a few hours so my doctor doctor's nurse was able to check out my swelling. It's still really bad.  This morning when I was getting ready to leave work my ankles were completely gone.  It was horrible.  But my blood pressure is still perfect.

I got to the doctor's office and was immediately called back.  It was a little strange.  There was no one in the waiting room.  Usually I have to wait a while.  Anyway, I got called back, got weighed (I hated seeing the number on the scale, but it's only 3+ lbs in a month).  I peed in a cup and got my blood pressure taken.  I found out I once again have a UTI.  I have absolutely no symptoms.  (My my doctor said he has seen a few people lately have resistance to the antibiotic I took last month, so he prescribed me something different.)  The nurse took me to a room and told me my doctor was "catching a baby" next door at the hospital. So I waited about 25 minutes in the room.  I completely understand and in a way it was nice to know that in a couple months, I could be that person in labor and my doctor would be there instead of at the clinic.  

When my doctor came back he did the usual and checked Tanner's heart rate.  Staying true to the old wive's tale his  heart rate was 135.  I asked my doctor about pushing and pulling at work and cramping.  He said I need to be careful because during pregnancy your ab muscles stretch so much and there is a weak spot where you can push/pull too much and get a hernia.  I also asked him if there is a way to tell the difference between braxton hicks contractions and baby positioning.  He said there is no way to know unless you're hooked up to the monitors.   He said if I have 4 in an hour, I'm probably pushing it activity wise and I need to lay down for a while.  If I have 6 or more, I need to go to the hospital and get hooked up to monitors.  I'm thinking last week at work I had three during the night.  So I know I need to take it slow.  They did tell me that I need to tell them if/when I need to stop work. 

I know next week is going to be so tough on me.  Working two nights on, two off, two on, two off, and then two on again.  I'm not looking forward to it at all, and apparently we are "short staffed" those days in the middle when I wanted to take off one day.  I don't know what I'm going to do.  I know so many women who work right up to the day they go into labor, but I honestly don't think I can do it.  

Once I got done with my appointment and was getting ready to walk out of the room, my doctor got another call because another patient was pushing and ready to deliver her baby.  He said he had 4 babies born yesterday and working on 3 today.  It made me more and more excited, and nervous at the same time.

When I got home I got a knock at the door.  It was the mailman delivering a package that I've been anxiously waiting for.  Two weekends ago Carter's and Osh Kosh Bigosh were having a 50% off everything online and in stores.  So Nick and I went shopping (online of course,  we have to drive an hour and a half to go shopping here in Oklahoma).  So I took a few pictures to show off here on my blog.  I love everything we ordered!

The box! Yay!

Nick really liked this hooded towel.  I have to agree.

And I absolutely love this little jacket! It's size 3 months, so I hope it will work out for this winter.  It's so soft, and I wish we had more!  The other colors were sold out.

We had to get a little something country for our little guy.  I'm planning on taking him to atwoods and getting some little cowboy boots and Carhartt overalls next year.  This shirt is 12 months so I hope it ends up working next year.

I absolutely love this blue jean jacket! It's 12 months and I hope it fits him next year!

Well, I'm probably going to go get some dinner put together.  I will be 29 weeks tomorrow, which is so exciting! I can't believe I'm almost 3/4 done!

Doctor update

Got back from the doctor today.  It was a pretty good appointment, nothing too much to report.  My blood pressure is still great, and I no longer have a UTI.  I did get a note from my doctor to give to my boss though.  I'm not going to work more than 2 nights in a row, because by the third night my swelling is out of control.  I've lost 4 lbs since my appointment last week...4 lbs since I last worked.  My doctor said he could put me on bed rest but I would get so sick of it and want to get up.  I'm hoping upping my water intake, one less 12 hour shift, and some compression stockings to wear during work will help my swelling.


I also had my glucose tolerance test.  The drink wasn't as bad as I was thinking it was going to be.  It was like a super sweet, flat orange soda.  I didn't care for it very much, but Tanner enjoyed it.  His heart rate was much faster today and he kept kicking the doppler when my doctor was listening to his heart rate.  I couldn't help but giggle each time.


My next appointment is in 4 weeks.  By that appointment I will be in the third trimester! :)

Long overdue post and 22 weeks?

I am a complete slacker! Not really, but I feel like one.  It's been a while since I've updated.  But I think I have pretty good excuses.  I worked all week long, then a friend of ours came into town and stayed with us for a few days.  Before he left, my parents visited! It was a fantastic week with them! When they had to leave, I had to go back to work.  But here I am finally updating.


Since having our anatomy scan and finding out Tanner is measuring 2 weeks ahead I was wondering how I would do these updates.  I would get my update emails saying he should be 10.5 oz when two weeks prior he weighed 13-15 oz.  I had finally figured out I would just give a general update on how I was feeling and how Tanner is growing and moving.


I had my monthly appointment today and not only did the ultrasound results look great, he truly is measuring way ahead so tanner is now due on November 30th, not December 10th.  It was so neat to think I was 20 weeks pregnant...half way...and then find out I get to skip two whole weeks!  I am 22 weeks pregnant exactly today.  So now my update day is Wednesday, not Saturday.


I am feeling pretty good most days, just some slight nausea here and there.  I can't stand the fact that I have to eat every few hours or else I feel sick...the scale hates the fact as well.  I was so overwhelmed at what the scale said today. Let's just say it's a lot more than I planned.


I am having a lot of swelling already.  By my 2nd and 3rd day working my ankles no longer exist.  I am also worried I am going to have to remove my rings before too long.  I'm going to up my water intake and try to stay off my feet when I can (which is going to be hard because I can feel my nesting instinct wanting to start up).  My doctor doesn't seem worried at all about it, so that helps a little.


Tanner is moving around all day and night!  I absolutely love the feeling!  I'm starting to feel kicks higher and higher on my belly.  I'm also able to feel him from the outside more often now.  If Nick puts his cheek to my belly he gets kicked too. :)


I love shopping for Tanner!  We've gotten so much already, which will be a separate post, I promise! I can imagine what the nursery is going to look like, and I am so excited!


Well, sitting here thinking about eating often to keep myself from getting sick, and watching Food Network is making me hungry.  So I will post a couple bump pictures from this week and last week since I was a slacker.

This first picture is from last week.  We spent the day outside in the 100+ degree weather looking at the different planes our base has.  I was so hot and so thirsty by the time we got home.  I plopped down on the couch and couldn't move.

This next picture is today at 22 weeks. 

Oh, and by the way, Tanner is the size of a spaghetti squash! :)

The most beautiful sound ever!

Baby's heartbeat.  Simply amazing!  Baby's heart rate was 144.  So according to the old wives tale it's a boy.  My doctor said he is 50% sure it's a boy.  Ha ha ha.  I caught on to that joke.  He said most people don't get it.


Not only did I get to hear the heart beat and be reassured that everything is ok, my doctor said the chance of miscarriage drops 99.9% now.  I also got to feel where my uterus is.  It's almost to my belly button! I didn't realize it was that high already!


I also got to schedule my anatomy scan and lab draw.  It will be in 2 weeks! July 14th!  I will finally find out if this baby is a boy or a girl!  We already have names picked out so it will be such a nice feeling to be able to call baby by his or her name!


My parents will be here just a few days after that appointment! I am so incredibly excited for July!  I am so blessed!

What an amazing feeling!

I had my first doctor's appointment today.  After waiting 7 weeks.  Going in for the regular part of the doctor's visit was fine.  Did a few tests and asked some questions.  I got a bag of goodies, some magazines and lots of info.  After all that was complete we moved to the ultrasound room.


Laying there on the table with the lights dimmed and the ultrasound machine sitting right next to me felt so unreal! I kept telling Nick that it was just weird. When the doctor came in I told him this is the part where I'm nervous.  I told him I was scared that the baby wouldn't be there.  It just didn't feel real.  But he put that jelly on my belly (which is awesome by the way, it's heated!) and a little baby popped up on the screen! I kept giggling trying to keep myself from crying and because of that the picture kept getting messed up.  I finally started to calm down and enjoy looking at the picture. He snapped a picture and right after the baby flipped backwards on top of his/her head.  It was so neat to see! So active!


The doctor said everything was looking good and I measured right on track.  I am SO relieved!


My next appointment in June 20th, but I may have to change that once I get my work schedule.


Wow.

Baby's first picture.  The head is down at the bottom, hidden a little bit.  You can see the right leg really well.  This was the picture taken right before s/he flipped on it's head.

The head is still down on the bottom.  We were able to see the heart beating away and the umbilical cord pulsing.  The white dot in front of the head is the baby's arm.