No Longer Waiting for Baby Blondie

Meal ideas?

2012-01-10T11:57:00.002-06:00

I need some meal ideas for K (now 9 months old). She loves to feed herself, although she will let me feed help her feed herself soup or applesauce type things.

Here what I have been giving her:
Breakfast: A slice of peach or steamed apple, applesauce, part of a no sugar fruit muffin made with whole wheat and oats.
Lunch: Sometimes I give her soup, a green bean or two, possibly some sweet potato, part the vegetable version of the muffin from breakfast.
Dinner: Similar to lunch, possibly with the addition of a meatball.

I need ideas that she can mostly feed to herself. She has only 1 tooth so I cook/steam her most of her foods including fruits and vegetables. She has had cheese and yogurt as well. TIA.

Longer Outside...9 Month Quick Post

2012-01-08T19:59:00.001-06:00

K is 9 months old today. I'll trying to do a longer post after her appointment. She isn't walking yet, but she is pulling up like crazy and cruising some. She has started "talking" a lot and says dada all the time. She very recently started eating significant amounts of solids at every meal and loves the vegetable/fruit (no sugar) muffins I've been making her. She has 1 tooth on the bottom and seems to be teething for the one next to it. She is really funny sometimes, but she's still pretty clingy to me even sometimes when it's just going to her dadda.

8 months on the 8th

2011-12-07T16:35:00.001-06:00

K turned 8 months today. She started crawling on her hands and knees a few weeks ago and that same week started getting into the sitting position on her own and pulling up. She started babbling yesterday and makes the "dada" sound. She seems to do things very suddenly without too much buildup most of the time. She is doing better about eating and generally eats a bit at each meal or at least 2 out of the 3 a day. She loves avocado, and she won't eat the other things if she see that I have avocado. She's averaging about 3 ounces of formula a day, and she is willing to take a bottle now when she's away from me. She's in a pretty clingy phase right now and wants me to be near as she crawls around. She hits herself into my desk if I'm trying to work while she's awake. She loves going to the baby storytime group at the library. She's very good at church and out in public in general. She really loves playing with her daddy.

I'm in a really busy mode right now and probably won't be posting much other than the monthly updates until at least her birthday (Easter) in April. I'm still reading; I just don't have time to comment. I'm pray for you all.

Cold help please!

2011-11-28T16:56:00.001-06:00

I need some suggestions for any natural cold remedies because I seem to be getting a cold and I don't want to get K sick if I can avoid it. I am breastfeeding so it needs to not adversely affect lactation. TIA!

Football Game and More

2011-11-20T20:21:00.001-06:00

We are continuing to do baby-ledsolids, and they are going relatively well. K definitely has anindependent streak and won't let us put food into her mouth. If shewant the food, whe will either pick it up herself or she will let youput it in her hand. She really likes avocado, apples, carrots andgreen beans. I think she likes peaches but is having issues with theslipperiness since I have gotten frozen and canned. I am continuingto steam her food until it is just tender. I peel carrots but leavethe skin on apples. She doesn't eat a whole lot, but she does liketo stuck on the carrot, apple and green bean. It's nice to be ableto sit her in her chair and she can feed herself while I eat my ownfood.

K had an appointment on Tuesday for hershots. She had gained about a pound and weighs 15 lb, 1 oz now. Sheis pulling up like crazy. She also started hands and knees crawling,which is really funny because she is so deliberate when she does it. She really likes the times when we are around other kids. She likesto see adults, but she doesn't want to be held even by hergrandparents, aunts and uncles. She gives us about 10 seconds, andthen she gets this look on her face and starts to scream, even we areright next to her.

K went to her first A&M game thisweekend as an outside baby (she went to 3 last year while I waspregnant with her).

She did really well. We got little pink earprotection ear muffs for her, and she wore them the whole game. Shespent some time in the Beco Gemini carrier, some just sitting on ourlaps and nurse and napped under the blanket. She's also gettingbetter about car rides and pretty much slept the whole trip to myILs', most of the way to A&M ady tnd back, and most of the wayhome.

We are ready to start trying for #2,but I'm not even cycling yet. I'm not going to wean her until she isat least a year because I'd rather not mess with more bottles andformula than necessary. I'd like to wait until she doesn't want todo it anymore. Hopefully as she starts to actually eat more solidsI'll start cycling, but right now I'm just back to waiting again. It's definitely easier than before I got pregnant with K, but waitingseems to be something that God thinks I need to do a lot.

Bow holder winner

2011-11-12T08:00:00.000-06:00

The winner is Little Joann! Send me an email at mrsblondies at gmail dot com, so you can tell me the color, theme, etc, and give me your address.

K is 7 months old

2011-11-08T07:44:00.001-06:00

K is 7 months old today. She wears 6-9 month clothes generally and is wearing medium size prefolds. She's probably about 15 pounds. She takes 4-7 ounces a day of formula and still nurses a lot. She has started to try solid food more regularly this past week. We are doing the baby led solids. She likes carrots and Granny Smith apples that I have steamed until tender but not mushy. She also eats oat bread with spread with pureed chicken or turkey and mashed peas.

She's is still scooting and not crawling on her hands and knees. She has figured out how to crawl over things and is starting to pull up on things a bit. She is super curious and loves to try to find things that we don't want her to get into. She recently figured out that she has a voice and has started to "talk". She makes little sounds, but not really constanant babble.

Check out the bowholder giveaway.

Bow Holder Giveaway

2011-11-04T15:15:00.000-05:00

I made this bow holder for K. I am going to give away a custom bow holder to be picked randomly from whoever comments on this post by the night of Friday, November 11, and I will try to announce the by Saturday, November 12. K's has a turtle since her room is turtle themed and a place to put headbands. The winner will get to choose the letter, a theme and the colors. Good luck!

Pictures of K

2011-11-02T14:51:00.001-05:00

I hadn't loaded pictures onto my computer in a while, and I finally got around to it. Here are some pictures of K from the past couple months.

K's first solids, avocado. She likes it.

"Reading" a book by now Pope Benedict XVI.

K in her Tigger outfit with Tigger, Pooh, and Piglet.

In her crocheted outfit getting ready to come home from the hospital.

Same outfit at 6 months.

Baby led solids. She doesn't always take a bite, but she definitely likes the bread when she's in the mood.

Halloween. My parents got her a drindl in Germany. My brother said she's St. Edith Stein as a baby since we couldn't come up with any other German saints.

Cloth diaper update (almost 7 months)

2011-10-29T16:24:00.000-05:00

My post on my plan for my cloth diaper stash.
My post on cloth diapering at 1 month where I talk about washing and other stuff.
My post on clothing diapering at 3 months.

K is almost 15 lbs.
Right now we are using:
3 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Medium (Red)
8 Flip One-Size Covers with Snaps
Snappi Size 1 Triple Pack
Baby washcloths (I have about 3 dozen I think) as wipes
2 Fuzzibunz One Size Diapers
4 Thirsties Stay-Dry Hemp Insert, Small
2 Fuzzibunz Hanging Diaper Bags
G Diaper Flushable Inserts (when we travel, etc.)
Planet Wise Wet Bag, Large

I've packed up what she's outgrown:
2 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Newborn (Orange)
6 Thirsties X-small Covers3 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Small (Yellow)

We don't use the wool cover anymore because the snaps came loose twice:1 Little Beetle Little-to-Big (One Size) Organic Wool Cover with Snaps

At this point, we've been almost exclusively cloth diapering for about 6 months. When she goes to the nursery during my bible study at church, she wears the Flip cover with a G diaper insert. We haven't had any clothing-affected blowouts despite some bad possibilities. The Flip covers have kept everything in. We even use the prefolds when traveling to my in-laws and grandparents, since we can wash there.

She is finally wearing the medium prefolds, which are supposed to fit until 25 pounds, so she may be wearing them until she is potty trained. I got 3 dozen because for a while with 2 dozen I was having to wash almost every day. She likes to wet after you take her diaper off and sometimes I was going through about a dozen a day. Thankfully, the number of diapers she is going through has slowed down, although she still likes to wet when her diaper is off.

I'm no longer using her Little wool cover because we had problems with the snaps coming loose from the cover. I would like to get the Babee Green wool cover in medium (which is supposed to fit 15-25 pounds) when we can afford to get 1 or 2. It is supposed to avoid the problem of the snaps getting loose and coming out.

Here are the things I would like if we are able to have another child:
2 or 3 Mommy's Touch Newborn Cover- for before the umbilical cord falls off, the Thirsties were a little too big for 6 pound, 6 ounce K when she was born and we ended up using disposables. They are like a newborn version of Flips that fold down for the umbilical cord stump.
1 dozen Green Mountain Prefolds Preemie size- to go with the Mommy's Touch Covers
2 Babee Green wool covers, small (fits 8-18 pounds)

Baby Led Solids

2011-10-24T19:40:00.002-05:00

K has been fighting me a lot on eating solids. Most days I'm lucky to get her to even take one bite (which is my goal). She does like to hold the spoon and put it in her own mouth when she eats. I have been making her food, steamed and then fork mashed. So far she has had:
-avocado (likes)
-banana (doesn't like)
-sweet potato (ok)
-chicken pureed with sweet potato (likes)
-yogurt (likes)
-apples (likes)
-peas (ok)
-oatmeal/oat bread (likes the bread)

I'm starting to doing baby-led solids (also known as baby-led weaning) like I had originally had plan instead since she is able to decide if she wants to eat. Spoon-feeding does not seem to be working for us. It's not that she doesn't like the flavors because she will eat occasionally. Today I put her different purees that I had already made on a piece of toast and she fed herself and loved it. I'm going to steam up some more apple and sweet potato, but I'm going to cut them into stick/wedges (long and somewhat) that she can hold and gum. I'm going to continue to do the chicken pureed and spread it on bread since she won't be able to chew chicken for a while. Next up food-wise: carrots, green beans and peaches. I'm going to steam her fruits and vegetables and occasionally mash them to spread on bread. I'm trying to figure out about freezing things after I steam them since I'm not going to be pureeing/mashing them.

Prayers for a friend, and some other things

2011-10-13T13:14:00.000-05:00

Most importantly, a friend of mine just had her third miscarriage. Please keep her and her husband in your prayers.

K had her 6 month appointment on Tuesday and she weighed 14 lbs, 2 oz, which is a gain of almost a pound in a month. She's 24 1/2 inches tall. Her percentiles are staying consistent so the doctor is fine. He was very impressed with her physical abilities (scooting, sitting). K is taking about 5-8 ounces of formula a day and I am continuing to support her in slowly weaning herself from the formula. I hope

We decided to wait a little while to move K to her own room, but we are moving her to her pack and play as soon as she falls asleep instead of letting her stay in the bed since it was preventing all of us from getting good sleep.

Tuesday was also my 31st birthday. We went out to dinner and had sushi. My sisters-in-law were in town this past weekend, and we went out on a date after K went to bed on Saturday night. It was great to just have some couple time.

Happy Half Birthday, my little K

2011-10-08T07:30:00.000-05:00

K turned 6 months today.

She is wearing some 3-6 month clothes and some 6-9 month clothes, but her new fall clothes will be 6-9 month size. She is still in the small prefolds, but we will probably be moving to the mediums pretty soon.

She can sit unassisted without using her hand whenever she feels like it. She usually gets bored with it but has been more willing to do it lately. She is still army-crawl/scooting everywhere like crazy and has been getting onto her hand and knees (or hands and feet) a lot more lately.

She is still mainly taking 30 minute catnaps, but she will occasionally take naps that are 1 hour or more.

She is also starting to spread out her eating more. She hasn't been particularly interested in actually eating the solids I offer her. She often only takes 1 or 2 bites, but we are going to persist and continue trying every day. She has tried avocado, banana, sweet potato and yogurt.

She has a pink zebra lovely that she sleeps with. She will be moving into her room to sleep on Sunday, after her aunts leave from visiting this weekend.

Stressed

2011-10-07T10:34:00.002-05:00

Can't go into details but could use some prayers for peace and healing. K is fine and I'll be posting about her half-birthday tomorrow. I'll try to put up some pictures and/or video.

Focus

2011-09-27T10:17:00.000-05:00

I am going to be focusing more on K on this blog and try to not to vent about non-motherhood related family stuff. I need to protect my family's privacy in these matters better than I have been.

K actually took a 1.5 hour nap yesterday morning. I fed her avocado just before she went down so we'll see if that continues again or if it was just a pleasant fluke. She didn't sleep well that night so that may have been why she took a longer nap today also. We started banana today (not a huge hit, but we'll try again tomorrow) and then probably sweet potatoes next. I haven't decided what to do follow that. I started to offering solids twice a day yesterday.

K is getting even closer to crawling and is getting higher up on her arms and even lifting up on her legs a little.

7 Quick Takes

2011-09-23T21:19:00.000-05:00

I don't have the energy to get the button from Jen at Conversion Diary who hosts 7 Quick Takes.
1. K and I went to visit family in Austin for about 5 days last week. She had a hard time until her daddy came out Sunday.
2. D learned that K really likes the Colts. She sat (no hands) and watch them and didn't cry. It's completely random since we live nowhere near there.
3. K is so close to crawling (despite the fact she's not even 6 months old yet). She scoots across the room and no longer shoved her head down while doing it.
4. K started on solid foods on Tuesday. This week is avocado. She seems to like it, although she's not taking much (which I know is totally normal). Next week is bananas, and then we are doing sweet potato.
5. K is still taking about 8 ounce of formula a day. Hopefully as she takes more solids, we will be able to reduce the formula and just do solid and nursing. We are still supplementing at the breast.
6. I'm struggling with how much time I'm spending by myself with K. I don't need time away from her. I just need help in the evening so I can eat dinner and get ready for bed without her in arms. I need D home more night when he's not working.
7. My mom bought me a Beco Gemini carrier and I'm loving it.

5 month appointment and pictures

2011-09-13T21:02:00.002-05:00

K had her 5 month appointment today and she's 13 pounds, 4 ounces (25 percentile) and 24 inches tall (15 percentile). She only gained 5 ounces in the past 2 weeks, but she gained about 2 pounds in the past month so we aren't too worried. She's been a bit cranky the last few days, and we think she's in the early stages of teething.

We are probably going to start solids pretty soon. She went back up to about 8 ounces of formula, which was slightly disappointing.

Sitting pretty.

In the sling with Momma.

Do you see the theme?

K is 5 months

2011-09-08T19:20:00.000-05:00

K turned 5 months today. I won't know her weight until her appointment next Tuesday, but it should be 13 pounds, something ounces. K is continuing to wean herself off the formula and is taking 5-6 ounces a day now. She's still in her size small prefold diapers (hopefully for a little bit longer) but she moved up on the rise on her flips. She's still in her 3-6 month clothes, and we probably have a while before we need to move up.

She's moves like crazy and generally won't stay still long enough to practice sitting, although she can balance with one hand and grab stuff. She's not crawling yet, but she does move by scooting (shoving her head down, sticking her bottom in the air, and usually falling to the side) and rolling both ways. She become very interested in toys (and things she shouldn't play with), and she has a zebra lovey. We've been taking lots of walks in the M.aya Wra.p (especially at nap time) now that it's under 100. It's actually pretty pleasant most days, weatherwise.

She's still not napping great, but she is occasionally sleeping longer than 30 minutes. She seems to be teething, but we'll see on that. She is quite social and loves her daddy so much.

Tired

2011-09-03T10:16:00.000-05:00

I'm so tired right now. Yesterday was extra bad on the nap front. K took one good nap in the morning but then I had a terrible time getting her to sleep and ended up having to drive her around for 1.5 hours last night. I was hoping to hang out with D and a couple friends but K was hysterical. D has been working a lot (like he has had not had a full day off since a week ago Monday) and he's working today and has to go out to mow my parents' lot on Sunday. He does have Monday off. Since he's working so much, he goes to hang out with his friend on Thursday and Friday evenings, which I understand, but I've pretty much been dealing with K by myself all day and I'm not really getting a break.

She's only occasionally napping longer than 30 minutes and won't go to bed until between 9:30 and 10:30 (and lately it's been 10:30). Once she's down for the night, I still have stuff to do to get ready for the morning as well as getting a bit done for my class so I'm not in bed for another hour usually. Then she's nursing off and on from 4 or 5 until she gets up, so I'll not sleeping great during that time. Yesterday and today, she seems extra fussy and is even having a few spurts of hysterical crying so it's been extra rough. She doesn't seem sick and doesn't have a fever or anything. Being tired and frustrated is really starting to wear me down and I've had a couple crying spells myself.

I'm not getting anywhere near as much done for my class as I want to, and I need to get it done so D can not have to work quite as much. I'm feeling resentful that I'm not getting it done and that when she freaks out when we are out, I have to leave and D can stay. I feel lonely. It's really frustrating because I don't know what to do.

Balance *Updated

2011-08-29T21:08:00.001-05:00

D and K, with me in the background.

Update: She weighs 12 lbs, 15 oz so she gained 1 lb, 9 oz in 3 weeks or just over 8 oz a week. I'm so happy!

I'm having a hard time right now finding balance right now. I just feel very stressed out right now. K has gone from taking about 16 ounces of formula a day to about 10 or so this past week. I'd love to think that it's because she's getting more from me, but due to all the feeding drama we've had, I don't know. She's pretty happy most of the time, especially compared to when she was younger before we started supplementing, but I just don't really have any confidence in the area of feeding anymore. We are doing a weigh-in tomorrow so I'll know if she has gained well enough or not. If not, I don't really know what we can do, as D has told me since I'm constantly offering and she just doesn't seem to want anymore. I'll update with tomorrow's weight. I'm still mainly supplementing at the breast, but she will take bottles now so she may take 1-2 ounces a day that way when she's too riled up to latch.

I'm having a hard time balancing my class, K's needs, housework, playing and interacting with K, and spending time with D. K getting fed and diaper changes is obviously my priority, but I feel like everything else is not getting done as it should. D works a lot so I try to make sure that the three of us spend time together when he's not. I feel like I should be playing more with her than I do, but then I get behind on my other responsibilities. Please pray that I can keep it together and figure out how to best balance everything.

A Day in the Life of the Blondies

2011-08-27T08:04:00.000-05:00

Here what today was like. D is working a lot this weekend so it's going to be a long day. It probably seems like I'm feeding her a lot, but she only takes small amounts at a time and therefore eats more frequently.
5:30 am (later than it used to be, we'll see if this sticks)- K stirs and I bring her to bed to nurse
6:05 am- D's alarm goes off, D gets up to shower and get ready
6:30 am- D tells me goodbye, gets his lunch and water and leaves for work since he needs to be there by 7am, K is nursing on and off but mostly sleeping somewhat restlessly, I go back to sleep for a little while
7:45 am- I wake up, take my morning pills, get her formula and everything else sorted out for feeding, and I got to turn on my computer
8:00 am- K is stirring, but I already have the shower on so I jump in for a quick shower
8:15 am- K is up for the day. I get dressed, change K's diaper (twice since she decides to poop right as I put on the new one) and put on her daytime clothes (she picks which of two outfits to wear), I grab a granola bar to eat to get me until at least her first nap
8:30 am - I throw in a load of laundry while K rolls around the pack & play
8:35 am - we go sit on the couch in our library/office roomso she can feed, I nurse her and supplement at the breast, I check email, etc.
8:50 am- another diaper change, I try to feed K again, but she doesn't want to eat anymore, so I put her in her chair so I can get the meatball mix made for tonight's dinner
9:30 am- meatballs mix is made and onions are cut up for spaghetti sauce, I'd like to do the garlic but K is starting to fuss so I take her back in the library, she sits on my lap while I do some stuff on the computer, then I start to feed her again
10:10 am- K falls asleep on the boppy on my lap, I work on my class while she naps, she briefly wakes to nurse/pacify on my breasts
10:45 am- K wakes because she can't roll over on my lap, I change her diaper, she desperately needed a diaper change since it was completely sopping wet.
11:00 am- I try to feed K again, she's not really interested, so I take her with me to the kitchen and get my lunch of pasta salad ready, I eat while she plays on her activity mat
11:30 am- K is done with playing on her mat so I pick her up to feed her again
11:45 am- K falls asleep on the boppy on my lap again, so I start to work on my class again. Again K nurse, gets some supplement and pacifies herself during the nap. I'm fine with this since it gives me the ability to work on my class instead of spending the time getting her into the pack and play gingerly and then have to get up when she wakes after only 20-40 minutes.
12:45 pm- K is up again, so it's time for another diaper change. She spits up down my back so I have to clean that up.
1:00 pm- I fold and put away laundry while K plays in the pack and play. I take K in her room and put away her clothes and eat some cereal, while she plays with her stuffed turtles on her quilt.
1:20 pm- K eats again
1:30 pm- K plays while sitting on my lap. Time for another diaper change and then we get ready to go to the store to pick up a few things.
2:00 pm- We go to buy a belt since mine broke, then we go to the grocery store. I change K's diaper in the parking lot after shopping, feed her then change her again.
3:45 pm- K falls asleep on the ride home, so I get her and the groceries out of the car. She sleeps in her car seat while I work on dinner.
4:20 pm- K is up. I put the food in the oven and get ready to feed her. I give her another diaper change.
4:45 pm- K sits in her chair while I pull out the meatballs and get the water going for noodles. She gets fussy so I try to feed her, but she isn't in the mood. I carry her around for a while, and I get dishes put in the dishwasher. I put her back in her chair so I can dump the water and eat my dinner.
5:30 pm- Back in the library, K feeds for a few minutes.
5:40 pm- Time for another diaper change. I get the diaper wash going while K is in the pack and play.
5:50 pm- I put K on the activity mat to play for a little while. She should be getting sleepy, but her afternoon sleep wasn't great since I took her out for 2 hours and she didn't sleep until we were almost home, so she's probably a little overtired and fighting it.
6:10 pm- I feed K, she's almost asleep but D calls right then and my phone is in my pocket. Nap fail.
6:20 pm- Another diaper change, and I go ahead and give her a bath. As I'm getting the water ready, she pees on the towel I have under her, but thankfully it was just there for that exact reason. She has a happy bath time, gets clean and plays with her turtleduck. I put on her pjs.
6:50 pm- I feed her again, and she falls asleep on the boppy on my lap.
8:20 pm- She wakes up, eats a little bit.
8:30 pm- I put her chair while I clean the kitchen a little bit and start the dishwasher.
8:40 pm- I change her diaper, add the detergent to the diaper wash, plays on her quilt, and eats again for a very short time.
9:10 pm- D calls to say he's on his way home and I get his dinner warmed up.
9:30 pm- D gets home and eats. We watch a bit of Doctor Who on DVD. I try to feed K some more, but she's not interested so I go change her diaper.
10:40 pm- K finally falls asleep (she's not usually up that late but she been on the past few days, plus she was excited that her daddy was home), I get some things cleaned up and ready for the morning
11:15 pm- I go to bed

Traveling

2011-08-21T20:20:00.000-05:00

This weekend was pretty rough because K didn't sleep well since she was overstimulated due to traveling, so I had a hysterical baby who wouldn't eat or nap. We had to drive her all around the neighborhoods in our hometown to get her to nap. D is actually driving her around right now since she was basically hysterical when we got home from church this evening since it, of course, went long when she was already tired. I feel like a terrible mother when her naps get so messed up and she gets hysterical. I'm very tired; I went to bed after midnight both days this weekend since one night I had to walk her around my IL's neighborhood at 11pm (thankfully they live in a very safe area) and the other I stayed up after K went to sleep to watch a show with D since I hadn't really got to spend much time with him. I'm stressed out about getting my online class done so that I can hopefully get a job soon (working from home), but I've got a while left. I probably won't be commenting much for a while although I'll might have time to read. Need some prayers that I can handle all the stress.

Prayers for a Blogger

2011-08-18T08:52:00.000-05:00

Amazing Life asked me to pass along a prayer request for Maria at Living in Lewis Land, who lost her husband tragically this weekend. The funeral is today at 11 am central time. Please pray for their family, especially Maria and their 3-year-old daughter Gianna.

K's 4 month appointment, pictures and video

2011-08-11T10:59:00.001-05:00

K had her 4-month appointment Tuesday. She weighed 11 pounds, 6 ounces (up 5 ounces this week and almost a pound in the last two weeks) and she's 23 inches tall. Her pediatrician said that she has a good amount and ratio of fat and muscle, so she's probably just going to be small (big surprise :). We are staying at the current amount of supplement and she'll do a weigh-in in two weeks. I was hoping that she'd be able to lessen the supplement, but we'll have to wait on that I guess.

The doctor was really impressed with her motor skills and she's definitely advanced on her physical development, according to him. She did a tripod sit for him, and he was pretty amazed at how well she held herself up.

Here are some video and pictures of her skills

Just being smiley in her pjs.

Practicing sitting in her pack-n-play.

Sitting in Dadda's chair.

Video of K scooting

Video of K sitting

K is 4 months

2011-08-08T08:23:00.076-05:00

K turned 4 months today. She can roll both ways, although she prefers rolling onto her tummy from her back. She can move a couple of feet by rolling. She will also move a couple feet by scooting her legs. She also likes to make noises with her mouth, and she is practicing new sounds every day. She loves to smile at her daddy and does a smile then looks coyly away. She giggles and is very funny.

She's definitely adorable and we get comments about how cute she is wherever we go. She's also super alert and loves to smile at people when we are out and about. She's definitely getting more interested in playing with things. She plays more with her rattle toys, and she tries to eat her diaper cover during diaper changes (don't worry, we don't let her actually put it in her mouth). She plays with my shirt and the tubes while I feed her.

She's been having some napping issues lately. She has a very small window in which to get her down for a nap, and if something messes that up she tends to get herself crazy overtired and hysterical. She's been having poor timing on dirty diapers and tending to have one right about the time she's in the nap window. When I do get her down for a good nap, she'll sleep about 2 hours, although she'll usually wake up and fuss but go back to sleep on her own. Nights have always been better for her sleep, and she does give a 5-6 hour stretch most nights. She goes to bed at 10 or a little after most and sleeps until 7 or 8 (with a few nursings in there), although after 6 it's kind of fitful sleep. She nurses before sleeping and then usually at 3 or 4 and then 6 off and on until she's up for the day. I have no desire for her to nurse any less, so I'm willing to put up with interrupted sleep.

She's still doing about 14 oz of formula a day, and we are still supplementing at the breast. We are using the tube placed directly into a bottle, and she controls the flow. She gained 10 ounces last week and hopefully if her gain is good tomorrow, we can talk about very slowly (like reducing 2-3 ounces a week) weaning her off of the supplement. I'd love to have her off formula if possible and I'm hoping that we can get my supply to cover her needs. If not, we'll be starting solids right at 6 months and I hope that after that point we can be doing just breastmilk and solids.

I definitely will do some things differently if we are able to have another child. I'll be doing weight checks every week or two starting at two weeks until we are confident about weight gain. I won't be doing the crazy traveling that we did; no traveling out of the city until at least 2 months old. Anyone who wants to see us can come to us. I'll also start pumping earlier and try to have a stockpile if I can.

I feel like I'm finally getting this being a mother to K down, even though there are definitely challenging times each day. Also, I feel like D and I are getting on the same page about things and working better as a parent team most of the time. Don't get me wrong, when she's gotten overtired and is hysterical, I still get pretty stressed, but it's not as soul-crushing to me.

Quick Weight Update

2011-08-02T21:51:00.000-05:00

K gained 10 ounces this past week! She's now 11 lbs, 1 oz. She has her 4 month appointment next week and we'll probably be re-evaluating the supplement level then.

The Weight Gain Saga continues...

2011-07-26T18:20:00.000-05:00

She only gained 2-3 oz in the last week. She was between 10 lbs, 4 and 5 oz at the last weigh in. This week she's only 10 lbs, 7 oz. The pediatrician wants us to go back up on formula about 4 oz or so (to about 14 oz a day). I'm guessing at this point that she won't be off the formula before we start solids at 6 months.

She's also not napping well lately. She's just catnapping 15-30 minutes. She had been doing well about transferring. She'd fall asleep while eating and I could put her in her pack-and-play, and she'd sleep about 2 hours. The past four or five days, she's been waking as I put her down or after maybe 5-10 minutes. It's hard for me to get her to sleep without using the breast, although D can in the evening many times. She usually gets really worked up if I let It's also challenging since she eats every two hours or so when she's awake, there is not much time when she's not eating to get her to sleep.

Here's a video of her rolling over.

Need some prayers

2011-07-23T08:50:00.000-05:00

I'm dealing with a situation right now that could use some prayers. K is fine but I can't really get into details beyond that.

Formula weaning and K pics

2011-07-20T18:49:00.001-05:00

K gained about 4-5 ounces this week, which isn't terrible but it's not great either. We are going to stick with 10 ounces of formula/supplement a day for the next week. We'll see how her gain is next week on whether we continue to wean from the supplement, we stay where we're at with supplementing , or we go back up on the supplement. She has about 3 more weeks until she's 4 months old.

K now rolls over almost immediately as soon as we put her on her back.

K, D and me on Independence Day.

K's pouty face.

K's baptism, June 5.

D and K on Father's Day.

D, K, and me on the beach in Hawaii after my brother's wedding.

K turned 3 months :) and 4th Anniversary

2011-07-14T13:19:00.000-05:00

Here's a link to the post from our second anniversary with pictures.

K turned 3 months on Friday. She is now finally 10 lbs as of Tuesday (1/2 lb gain this week), and just moved into her small prefolds and her Flip covers. I started her in her 3-6 month clothing yesterday, because she finally is outgrowing the 0-3 month clothing (especially with her cloth diapers).

She started rolling over about a week ago from her back to her tummy. She is more content most of the time now after we've been supplementing. She's getting better about sleeping. We can put her in her pack-and-play if she has fallen asleep or she has even fallen asleep in there on her own a couple times. She smiles at us and coos.

We are starting to wean off the supplement/formula. We're planning on reducing 2-3 ounces every 2-3 days and I'm doing 10 ounces of formula a day this week and the rest breast milk that I have saved in my freezer. I got a new Pump-in-Style pump, but I'm still trying to find a comfortable shield/flange. The 24mm that came with the pump was too big (TMI) on my nipple and the 21 mm fits the nipple better but still doesn't have a good seal and is uncomfortable. I ordered the Pumpin' Pal shields which are a completely different shape, and hopefully they will work better.

D and I are probably going to dinner tonight for our anniversary and most likely taking K with us. I'm glad we'll actually be able to spend at least some of this anniversary together; D was traveling for our first anniversary and we both worked late last year. Our second may have been the only one so far we spent together.

I need to post pictures of K soon.

Cloth Diapering Update (3 months old)

2011-07-08T18:04:00.001-05:00

My post on my plan for my cloth diaper stash.
My post on cloth diapering at 1 month where I talk about washing and other stuff.

So far we've been using:
2 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Newborn (Orange)
6 Thirsties X-small Covers
Snappi Size 1 Triple Pack
Baby washcloths (I have about 2 dozen I think) as wipes
6 Flip One-Size Covers with Snaps
2 Fuzzibunz One Size Diapers
1 Little Beetle Little-to-Big (One Size) Organic Wool Cover with Snaps
4 Thirsties Stay-Dry Hemp Insert, Small
2 Fuzzibunz Hanging Diaper Bags
G Diaper Flushable Inserts (when we travel)
Planet Wise Wet Bag, Large

I also have but haven't yet used:
2 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Small (Yellow)

K will be 3 months tomorrow and is no quite 10 pounds, so she is a small baby. She still fits into the newborn size GM prefolds and Thirsties X-small covers. She's getting close to outgrowing the newborn prefolds, but not quite and the smalls are still pretty big so will need to be folded.

We've now used the Flip covers both with the G diaper liners and with the prefolds. They are working well and we've had almost no leaks, so I feel good about using them as our main cover once she outgrows the newborn prefolds soon. I've even used the Flip cover by itself as a swim diaper, and it successfully kept breastmilk poop in.

At night, we use the wool cover and the hemp insert with a prefold. K has been a very heavy wetter since we started supplementing and we definitely need the extra absorbency of the hemp insert and the breathability of the wool cover. The wool cover we have is a one size adjustable with snaps and we've been using it since about 6 weeks or so. It hopefully will fit until she's pottytrained.

We've also used the Fuzzibunz diapers. They seem to work well and we haven't had any leaks. I use them mainly as backup diapers for if she gets the cover dirty while we are out or if I get behind on laundry. We'll also use them for when we have a babysitter, which will be a week from Sunday, for the first time.

K got a pretty bad diaper rash after starting formula, so we've been using rash cream on her with a muslin liner (just cut strip from a yard I got at the fabric store). For minor rashes, we use a mix of Burt's Bees Baby Bee Diaper Ointment and California Baby Calming Diaper Rash Cream. For more serious rashes, we add in Boudreaux's Butt Paste.

Here's what I have in her diaper bag:
a change of clothes (at least a onesie)
wipes (I use the Ta.rget brand lanolin ones)
two prefolds (I don't generally bring a extra cover)
a Fuzzibunz pocket diaper
a couple G diaper liners
a couple disposable diapers
a travel changing pad (I highly recommend one; we have this one)
a wet bag for keeping the wet/dirty diapers in (I only have one Planet wise, so I also use a Munchkin ones too)
a couple burp cloths
my nursing cover

We use cloth almost exclusively even when we are out, unless we are traveling somewhere where we won't have access to a washer and dryer for a few days. Even then, we use the diaper covers (either Thirsties or Flip) with the G diaper liners. I do keep a couple disposables in case of emergencies.

There are a couple things I would like, would like more of, or want to try for baby #2:
BumGenius 4.0- I'd like one or two just to try them
another Little Beetle One Size Wool Cover with Snaps-I only have one wool cover and we use it every night unless it gets dirty and I have to wash it, then I have to use a different cover like the Flip
Mommy's Touch Newborn Cover- I'd like one or two for if we are blessed with baby #2+, for before the umbilical cord falls off, the Thirsties were a little too big for 6 pound, 6 ounce K when she was born and we ended up using disposables

18 ounces

2011-07-05T17:08:00.000-05:00

K gained 18 ounces this past week. The pediatrician wants her on 20 ounces of formula one more week and then we start weaning her off. We are still supplementing at the breast and I'll hopefully get my new pump by Friday or Saturday. Any advice on transitioning back to just breast milk would be appreciated, and I'm going to talk to my lactation consultant about it.

Supplementing at the breast

2011-07-01T12:48:00.000-05:00

K won't take a bottle. In some ways, this is good since I am ending up supplementing her at the breast so she is getting breast milk in addition to the formula and hopefully stimulating my breasts to produce more. She also nurses at night without the supplementer.

What we are currently using is a gerryrigged version of an SNS (supplemental feeding system). It's a feeding tube (5 French) attached to a 12 ml syringe. I make up two 9 oz bottles of formula each night and put them in the fridge. I then pour an ounce or two at a time into a smaller bottle (K is very inconsistent about how much she takes at a feeding) and draw it into the syringe. The tubes are tape on each breast basically right at the nipple. K latches on and I make sure the tube is in her mouth. I push the syringe based on how quickly she is swallowing. It's a bit messy and cumbersome, but it gets nourishment into her and hopefully avoids reducing my milk supply any further. I may consider getting a manufactured SNS after we see how long we might need this.

If anyone has been able to wean off formula back to just breastmilk, I need some ideas for talking to my doctor once we can get her weight gain where he wants it. I am pumping, but feeding is so timing-consuming I don't get to pump much and I haven't gotten my new pump yet. Right now I'm getting about 3 oz a day if I'm lucky. I am considering donated breastmilk.

Formula sucks

2011-06-28T17:27:00.000-05:00

K will be on formula for the next week. She gained 3 oz in the past week, and her pediatrician wanted about 7 oz. I'll be giving the formula through an supplemental nursing system (SNS) at the breast and pumping like crazy. She's supposed to get 20 oz. of formula a day and I can nurse at night. I just want whatever needs to happen for her to be able to go back to exclusive breastfeeding as soon as possible and her to grow in a healthy way.

I don't want to deal with stinky formula poops and I hate mixing bottles. I may be having to give her formula, but I don't have to like it.

Frustration

2011-06-28T10:35:00.000-05:00

First, please pray that K will have gained the 1/2 pound or so that her doctor wants. Her appointment is at 1:30 CDT today, 6/28. I have been supplementing her with 5 or so ounces of pumped breast milk per day. I've also heard her swallow more.

Second, I'm getting really frustrated with the lack of support that I'm getting from my family. My mom, MIL and D haven't said anything about all the effort that I'm putting into pumping. People have suggested formula even though I have been able to pump enough milk so far. My mom and MIL did both breastfeed, but they aren't experts and have said a couple things that aren't accurate.

K does seem to be a bit happier (as long as she's gotten enough sleep), so I hope that that's a sign that the gain will be good too.

Weight gain issues

2011-06-22T17:24:00.000-05:00

K is still having weight gain issues. I took her to get a weight check at the pediatricians office and she had lost an ounce in a week when she should have gained about 6-7 ounces. I'd been feeding her constantly, and had pumped a little bit but not given it to her. The pediatrician said that I needed to supplement her 1/2 to 1 ounce 5-6 times a day (so at least 3-4 ounces a day). He gave me formula, but I don't want to give her formula unless I can't make the milk. I called and talked to my Lactation Consultant and then to Sew to dealt with the same issues. Sew's pep talk has given me the confidence to supplement with just expressed breast milk, even though it requires a lot of time and effort.

I'm basically feeding her, giving her the supplemental breast milk and then pumping and then repeating, unless she's asleep or won't nurse. I do get some breaks, but my day is mostly feeding or pumping or washing the pumping stuff. Most of th

I was so upset about her lack of weight gain. Especially since she's exclusively breastfed, it makes me feel like a failure as a mother. It seems like my body doesn't do things like it's supposed to. The years, surgeries and medications that it took to get pregnant, the bleeding that I had during pregnancy, and now breastfeeding issues. I'm just ready for something to work right.

Please pray that we can get her weight gain on the right track and I can keep from getting too overwhelmed. It's very stressful and tiring right now.

K is 2 months old, and breastfeeding issues * Updated with thyroid numbers

2011-06-16T17:29:00.001-05:00

*Update: Here are my thyroid numbers from local ob: T4 7.6, TSH 2.73, T3Free 3.1. They said these are normal, but I want to get you lovely ladies opinion. Thanks.

K turned 2 months old last Wednesday. She had her two month appointment on Tuesday. In general she looks great, but she isn't gaining enough weight. She was born 6 lbs., 6 oz. and has only gained about 2 lb; she weighs 8 lbs., 4 oz. Because she isn't gaining well and she's exclusively breastfed, I met with a lactation consultant yesterday. She said that K's high palate and slightly misaligned jaw and tongue might be causing some latch issues and discomfort that causes her to stop feeding prematurely. She also said that I should have her pediatrician check her for torticollis, which is a twisting of the neck due to overly tight muscles that causes the head to tilt to one side, since she always tilts her head to the left.

When the LC weighed her before and after feeding, she only took in about half the amount that she needs. I feel terrible that I didn't realize that there was a problem, but I didn't know that she wasn't gaining enough and she has plenty of wet and dirty diapers. The fact that she's not getting enough likely explains why she's so upset all the time. In some ways it's good that there is a problem because it can be fixed hopefully.

The LC recommended some exercises that might help release and realign her neck, tongue and jaw. She might also need to get some physical/occupational therapy or craniosacral therapy. She wants me to feed her even more on demand and change sides and positions more during feedings. Even though generally they say check other things first and don't assume hunger, right now the first thing I need to try is feeding her even when she just ate recently. She also recommended some foods to eat like oatmeal, flax seed, and eggs (there are more and I can post it later if anyone wants me to do so). I'm also taking an herb called Shatavari that is supposed to help with supply and getting my thyroid tested again (hasn't been done postpartum).

I'll post about how the Hawaii trip went in the next few days. She did well on the plane.

Advice and prayers needed

2011-06-08T09:41:00.000-05:00

Soon we'll be taking K, who is two months old today, to Hawaii for my brother's wedding. Thankfully it's a direct flight, but it's about 8 hours long. K likes to be moving and rarely sleeps more than 30-45 minutes except at night. She also likes to scream when she's tired or hungry. Even though she's flying as a lap child, they are supposed to have a bassinet that connects to the bulkhead by our seats and we'll be bringing her carseat in case there's room. I know I need to feed her on take off and landing. Any other advice? I really hope she doesn't scream and cry too much; I don't want the other paasengers to hate us.

So she's a bit high maintanence

2011-05-28T19:33:00.000-05:00

K is a super sweet, alert and smiley baby, when she's calm. The thing is that she's not calm all that much. First of all she eats every two hours or less. Second, she isn't very good at napping. She rarely naps for more than 30 minutes and that's usually in my arms or the Maya Wrap; when she naps much more than an hour she doesn't sleep well at night. She often gets very upset right going to sleep. I just watch Happiest Baby on the Block, and I'm hoping that will help.

She generally gets upset pretty quickly if I have to put her down in her swing or rocker while I shower,etc. I don't mind holding her most of the time; she's still so young. However, I wish she didn't get hysterical so quickly. Usually she will have at least one or two good 15-30 minute stretch of happy play time, which I use to let her play on her activity mat or do tummy time. I am thankful that she usually sleeps decently at night and rarely cries then, but she needs to be touching me to sleep.

She doesn't have colic or reflux; she just likes to be held and when she wants something she wants it now.

Fertile signs at 6 1/2 weeks?

2011-05-25T11:28:00.000-05:00

I haven't started full-on charting yet, but I think I'll need to now. K turned 6 weeks on Friday, and she's exclusively breastfed and eats every 2 hours or sooner except at night where she might go 4-5 hours. On Sunday I had some spotting and yesterday I had spotting mixed with 10KL.

We are going to start trying for #2 in not too long, but I'd like to get a bit of a break from spotting/bleeding. I had spotting/bleeding post-peak the cycle she was conceived, I had it off and on for weeks in the first and second trimester, I had bleeding during labor, and I had just stopped spotting/bleeding after birth around 4 weeks. We haven't resumed intercourse since her birth but we'll see how long that takes since she almost never sleeps that's not on or next to someone.

How cloth diapers are working for us so far

2011-05-15T17:30:00.000-05:00

We've been using the cloth diapers most of the time since her cord fell off at about 1 week old. Here's a link to the post where I talked about the plan for my cloth diaper stash.

So far we've been using:
2 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Newborn (Orange)
6 Thirsties X-small Covers
Snappi Size 1 Triple Pack
Baby washcloths (I have about 2 dozen I think) as wipes
2 Fuzzibunz Hanging Diaper Bags
G Diaper Flushable Inserts (when we travel)
Planet Wise Wet Bag, Large

I also have but haven't yet used:
6 Flip One-Size Covers with Snaps
2 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Small (Yellow)
2 Fuzzibunz One Size Diapers

She is still wearing the XS Thirsties cover as tight as it goes, so it'll be a while before we need to go to a bigger cover. The Flip covers right now don't seem snug enough on her legs. Hopefully as she gets bigger they'll fit, but if not I'll get the bigger sizes of the Thirsties. I love the Thirsties covers since the elastic around her thighs and back is snug. When she has worn disposable diapers, she tends to leak (necessitating a clothing change) whenever she has a dirty diaper. She hasn't had that happen that I can remember when she has a prefold that is snappied and her Thirsties cover. The cover rarely even gets dirty with the prefold.

When we went on our long (5 day) trip, we took her Thirsties covers and used the G diaper (small) liners. Since the G diaper liners aren't fitted, the cover still got dirty. However, we had much less need of clothing changes since the Thirsties covers kept it in. We'll definitely do the same thing again when we travel next.

I keep the washcloths that I use as wipes in an empty wipes container. I have a little travel bottle with a top that pulls up (like on a water bottle) that I put my wipes solution in and then I can squirt it on the washcloth. To make the wipes solution, I just use a couple drops of baby wash in water that I boil and then let cool.

I do diaper laundry every day or day and a half. I usually wash when I have about 6 prefolds left. I wash the washclothes and prefold together. First I do a cold rinse with no detergent. Then I do a hot wash cycle with detergent (making sure not to use too much) and an extra rinse. I dry the prefolds on regular. I usually wash the covers and the hanging pail with a load of light or dark laundry on cold or warm, and then I line/hang dry them.

She had a diaper rash for about 2 weeks, and some of that time we used the disposable, but I was able to use the prefolds by getting some muslin and cutting it into little strips which I folded in half and put over the area that had cream on it. I washed the strips separately from my prefolds and covers.

I'll post my thoughts on the Fuzzibunz and Flips when I use them.

Where for art thou, Prayer Buddy?

2011-05-14T10:48:00.000-05:00

I know I've been away for awhile, but life has been kind of busy around here. Between taking care of K, taking an online class, and traveling, I haven't had much time to post.

I still haven't heard from my Lenten prayer buddy, so I'm wondering who it was.

K is 5 weeks old as of yesterday. She's doing very well. I don't know her current weight since she has been back to the pediatrician since her 4 day visit and doesn't go back until 2 months. She's still a great breastfeeder. She generally gives us a good chunk of sleep (4+ hour block) at night and usually goes back to sleep for a couple more hours after her night nursing. She usually takes pretty short daytime naps and doesn't want to sleep long anywhere other than on someone. Thankfully I can get on the computer while she's eating or sleeping, especially if I put her in the Sleepy Wrap (it's like a Moby with slightly stretchier fabric). She still gets pretty mad and screams when she wants something. She'll sit in her swing and be calm sometimes and I put here in there so I can shower. D has been great when he's around. Since I'm not working, I generally do most of the night stuff so he can get enough sleep to be functional at work.

Here are some pictures of K and I'll try to post more and some video soon.

Family picture Easter 2011

Me holding K

Prayer Buddy

2011-04-26T10:02:00.000-05:00

This Lent I had the privilege of praying for one of the "gateway" Catholic Infertility bloggers, All You Who Hope. It was a honor to pray for her. I offered up my labor and my weekly Eucharist adoration for her and her beautiful family.

K's birth story

2011-04-16T18:15:00.001-05:00

I had been starting to get a bit anxious about when the baby would arrive after my ob appointment on Wednesday, April 6. I hadn't had any contractions or anything and my ob would be going out of town on Friday, April 15, which would be 40 weeks, 6 days. Also my dad was going to be in town for the weekend of April 9-10, but then he'd being going back to Qatar.

Friday, April 8 (which was 39 weeks, 6 days), I woke up at 2 am and went to the bathroom. (TMI warning) I was having my bloody show and when I went back to bed, my back was starting to bother me a lot. I couldn't fall back asleep because of my back and by 3 am, I was pretty sure I was in labor. Sometime around 3 or 4, I told Daniel that I was pretty sure that something was happening. I got up around 5:30 or so and my mom was up so I told her that I was pretty sure I was in labor. From the time that I started having contractions, they were never really more than about 5 minutes apart and were about 3 minutes apart almost my entire labor. I called the people that I nanny for about 6 and let them know that I was in labor and wouldn't be coming that day. Daniel headed into to work, but I ended up calling him after he'd only been there about 20 minutes and asked him to come home. I got in the bathtub for a while and that made me feel a bit better. Around 9, I got out of the tub and Daniel was timing my contractions, which were 3-4 minutes apart. We decided to go ahead and go to the hospital since the contractions were pretty close together, hoping that I was relatively far along.

We got to the hospital about 10 and I was only 4 cm dilated when they checked me. I was still having a lot of back pain (she was posterior), which I had the entire labor. They did the monitoring and then I got on the birth ball. During each contraction, I had either Daniel or the nurse apply pressure on my back. After a few hours, the nurse asked if I'd like to get in the tub, which made me feel a lot better. I told Daniel went I got in that it was glorious,. During every contraction, I would sway back and forth. I had been making slow but steady progress, but I stalled out at 7cm and the doctor broke my water in the hope that I would start progressing again. I wasn't drinking enough fluids so they gave me an IV at that time. I stalled again at 8 cm and my cervix was starting to swell, so I ended up having to get pitocin, which I worried would make the already intense contractions unbearable. I still chose not to get an epidural, although I did waver for a few minutes. They gave me the pitocin at about 6 pm, so I had been in labor for about 16 hours at that point. Before they gave me the pitocin, the baby was starting to have a higher heartrate and they wanted to get her out soon without having to give me a c-section. Also I was bleeding more than they like to see and that was worrying my doctor.

Thankfully, once they gave me the pitocin, it was only about 20 minutes before I was fully dilated to 10 cm and ready to start pushing. I pushed for about 10 minutes and then she was born at 6:42 pm. When she came out and they said it was a girl, I said “Come here, Kiara” and then they put her on my chest. I did end up tearing, but I'm not sure what degree it was. Once I was stitched up, Daniel went to go get my mom from the waiting room. She was on my chest for a while and then they took her to the warming table to do measurements. It was only a couple feet from me, but I wanted them to hurry up and give me back my baby.

We started working on getting her to latch within the first hour, but (TMI warning) it took a while for her to get the mechanics of my nipples down since they were on the small side. I ended up having to use a nipple shield for a while, but my milk came in on Monday night and she's now a champion breastfeeder. She likes to cluster feed in the evening and at night and she tends to sleep a lot during the day. The first few nights were rough, but now we know that most of the time she's hungry and I just feed her again and she goes to sleep. She definitely has a temper and when you aren't doing what she wants quickly enough, she screams like a velociraptor. She's really alert though when she's calm. She was able to meet all of her grandparents last weekend. We had her first appointment with the pediatrician on Tuesday, and she looked great and was only down about 4 oz from her birth weight.

Since she was so small when she was born, we ended up using disposable diapers (the newborn size not even the size 1 that they have at the hospital) for the past week. Her cord stump fell off yesterday, so I put her first cloth diaper on her today.

Baby Blondie Pics

2011-04-11T23:16:00.000-05:00

K dreaming, cute lips

D, K, and me getting ready to leave the hospital

K wearing her duck hat

No more waiting for baby blondie

2011-04-08T21:50:00.000-05:00

Very happy to welcome Kiara Grace S. the world today. Mother and Daughter are doing great. Baby was 6 pounds 6 ounces and 19 inches long. C. went into labor at 0200 worked all day long and the baby was born at 1842.

Still waiting

2011-04-07T06:57:00.000-05:00

39 weeks, 5 days, no contractions, 2 cm dilated and 75% effaced (same as last week). Will try to post more tonight.

Prayer Intentions and Coupons

2011-03-25T19:45:00.000-05:00

Since I'm almost 38 weeks (tomorrow), I figure I better ask for any prayer intentions that anyone wants me to pray for during Baby Blondie's birth. You can post them here or email me (link in my profile).

I have some coupons that I don't plan to use for diapers, wipes, formula, and bottles (not a huge amount but if someone else wants them there's no use in throwing them away). I also have the promo box of Sim.ilac formula that I was sent. If anyone is interested, email me and I can give you details.

Stop squishing me

2011-03-23T20:08:00.001-05:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. Last weekend was a crazy cleaning weekend to get the house ready for my mom's visit and the baby. My mom will be getting in from Qatar on Saturday and will be at our house through the whole month of April. Also, my keyboard is on the fritz so I can really only type on D's computer which he is on often when I would have time to post.

36 weeks u/s face pic 1- "Please stop squishing me!"

36 weeks u/s face pic 2

37 week u/s face pic 1

37 week u/s face pic 2

37 week u/s face pic 3

We've had the 36 week and 37 week appointment since I last posted and I'm currently at 37 weeks, 4 days so we have no more than 4 1/2 weeks left (to 42 weeks). Both appointments went well. I'm Group B Strep negative so I don't need antibiotics during the birth (which is extra good since I don't want to have an IV). I was about 1 cm dilated and slightly effaced at my 36 week appointment, and I was a looser 1 cm dilated and about 50% effaced at today's 37 week appointment. Everything is going pretty well, but I think both the baby and I are started to get uncomfortable. It's mainly my ribs and sharp elbows and knees trying to poke out of my skin. I'm not really too uncomfortable other than that and some reflux (not really heartburn, since it doesn't hurt). The baby looks pretty squished in the u/s pics (thus the title).

I'm officially full-term as of this past Saturday, but I'm not really having any signs of the birth being soon (no Braxton Hicks or anything). I know that the baby could wait until 42 weeks to come (and it's only at that point that D and I will discuss induction without any imminent complications necessitating it) and that's Holy Saturday. I would prefer the baby to avoid the Triuduum, so that I can go to at least some of the Masses/services. I'll try to keep updated a bit better since we are getting close and D and I will have the computer at the hospital when the baby does come.

35 weeks

2011-03-05T13:10:00.001-06:00

I'm 35 weeks today. I've been a terrible blogger and commenter. Life has been a bit crazy.

34 weeks

34 weeks u/s face picture

Last weekend was my shower in Houston. My mom came over from Qatar so I got to see her and we even went shopping for things to get my dress made for my brother's wedding in June since I'll need a dress that I can nurse in. The shower was great. We got lots of great stuff and it was great to see people who I haven't seen in a while. My BIL was even in town for job interviews because they are moving back after my SIL graduates from her doctoral program. We are really looking forward to them living 4 hours away instead of 16. I'll post shower pictures once I get them.

I had an ob appointment on Thursday. The baby is looking fine but my belly is still measuring small (though I don't know by how much). The dr was considering doing another growth u/s but she looked again at the growth u/s from 2 weeks ago where the baby was measuring ahead and decided not to worry. They brought me back a little early for the appointment and I didn't know D was coming so he missed the whole thing. We were walking out to the elevators and he came in. I felt really stupid since he had drive from the other side of town and I had even switched the appointment so that he could come. No update on gender; they didn't check this time. We are pretty sure girl (and my mom went and bought girl clothes), but we aren't making guarantees until the baby is born. We know the name that we are going to use for a girl.

I'm doing pretty well and not too uncomfortable other than just rib pain (the child seems to be hiding under my ribs). The baby wiggles like crazy sometimes and my belly moves around. I have about 5 weeks left (give or take two); we are preregistered at the hospital, the room is mostly ready (we still need cloth diapers but D's work is doing a shower for us next week so we'll see where we are after that). I probably need to pack my hospital bag, but I'm not sure what I'm going to put in there and I feel like I'll need most of the stuff until I actually go to the hospital.

A friend of ours was in a motorcycle accident earlier this week. He's out of ICU, but does have some internal bleeding and will be having surgery the end of next week. Please keep him in your prayers.

33 weeks

2011-02-20T10:09:00.002-06:00

I haven't much recently and I haven't been doing much commenting, although I am reading. I just don't have much time with work and everything.

I'm 33 weeks as of yesterday. I'm doing pretty well, except for rib pain. Sometimes it feeling like Baby Blondie is trying to come out of my ribs, which as you can guess is not a particularly pleasant feeling. It's sometimes hard to find a comfortable position to sit or whatever in. Sitting in a car for long periods of time (anything longer than local drives) gets to be quite uncomfortable.

Last weekend, D worked on the nursery and got everything that we have so far organized and I've washed what we have so far clothes and towels-wise. We have the big shower in Houston next week so once everything is put up from that shower, I'll post some pictures.

I'm still not sure I have my head wrapped around Baby Blondie most likely being a girl. Part of it is how long we thought boy and we've also both imagined our first child as a boy even before I got pregnant. D was so happy that the baby was a boy and I feel like I've disappointed him (yes, I realize that there's nothing that I did to make it happen or can do it change it). I have little brothers, and I've mainly taken care of little boys as a nanny, so I really was excited about having a little boy first. We aren't planning to find out in future pregnancies because of this experience. It didn't help that the same appointment where we got the news that it could be a girl was the appointment where they were concerned about my fundal height being behind (everything is fine; the baby is actually measuring ahead). I think that the worry about the growth has tainted my feelings about the baby being a girl.

D and I went to a wedding yesterday for some local friends. It was a lot of fun and we danced a lot. Weddings are the only place were D (after a couple drinks) lets his guard down and is willing to dance.

My progesterone is finally back in Zone 3 so I get a break from shots (was doing double shots since it was Zone 1) until my next draw.

I can't believe the baby will be here in about 2 months.

Ob appt

2011-02-16T14:20:00.001-06:00

Quick update sent from email. My ob appt went well. Baby Blondie is
head down and measuring well. The head and thigh measured about a week
ahead and the tummy measured just under the dates. They estimate the
weight at 4 lb 11 oz although this could be off. The baby is looking
like a girl and this was the clearest view we've gotten.

More Crazy Body Stuff

2011-02-02T18:23:00.000-06:00

In addition to the stress/craziness that I posted about yesterday, I got a call from PPVI that my progesterone went back to Zone 1 (I wonder if there is any relation). Back to double shots and oral progesterone. I'm ready for my body to work right.

OB Appt

2011-02-01T20:35:00.000-06:00

I had my ob appt today at 30 weeks, 3 days. My fundal measurement is only 28 cm and I didn't gain any weight in the last two weeks, so my ob wants me to have a measurement ultrasound at my next appointment which is in 2 weeks. I'm trying not to worry too much about it; I called TCIE and she reassured me. Plus, the baby is traverse and that can make the measurement a little smaller than it could be otherwise The other thing that we found out at this appointment is that Baby Blondie may be a girl. The position for all the other ultrasounds up to now made it so that we couldn't really check since the 16 week appointment. I guess we'll be looking again at the next ultrasound in 2 weeks and see what the between the legs situation looks like. It's just kind of weird since we've been calling the baby he and by the boy's name we picked out for about 14 weeks now. We do have a girl's name picked out.

This week so far has been a bit stressful. I couldn't find my requisition for progesterone draw so I had to call PPVI (twice) to get it faxed over. I misplaced my Hypn.obabies book and spent a couple hours looking for it (D finally found it). I thought that I locked myself out of my house, but I had actually just forgotten which door I went out. Thankfully I've had the last few days off because I don't know if I could have dealt with everything and worked too. Oh, and my mother sent me a text about something completely unimportant at 5 am and it woke both D and I up.

Birth Preferences

2011-01-31T21:52:00.000-06:00

Here's the link for my birth preferences that I wrote up. I'm also going to post it in my sidebar

Slings/carriers, hospital tour, baby shower pictures

2011-01-26T15:55:00.000-06:00

I have a Moby and a Ergo on my registry, but I'm wondering if I should also get a ring sling. Since I'll still be nannying, I'll definitely be wearing the baby a lot, especially for breastfeeding. What carriers have you moms found best for breastfeeding? Any ring sling recommendations? Is it worthwhile to have all three carriers or if you had to pick two which would you go with?

We had our hospital tour this past weekend and it went pretty well. They seem pretty reasonable and I don't think we'll have any major issues having our wishes followed. I'm working on writing up my birth preferences and I'm going to take it to my next OB appointment on Tuesday and get her to sign off on them and send them to the hospital. I'll post it once I'm done.

I'm doing the Hyp.nobabies Home Study Course to prepare for the birth. I'm finishing up the readings for the fifth class, so I've got about a week before I start doing the maintenance portion. D has read everything, but we haven't really done any of the practice together, which we need to start pretty soon since he can come anytime between 7 1/2 and 12 1/2 weeks from now since I'll be 30 weeks (craziness!) on Saturday.

I'm feeling pretty good except a bit of reflux sometimes and a little bit of discomfort when he wedges himself into certain positions.

My dad got back to Qat.ar so my mom posted some of the pictures from the baby shower.

Me and the cake

The beautiful and yummy carrot cake

D and I holding some of the onesies we got

The carseat (which we got for Christmas from MIL) that coordinates with the argyle onesie

Family Baby Shower and a couple odds and ends * Updated

2011-01-17T10:48:00.001-06:00

Update: I went to see the ob and she checked me out and didn't see any reason for the pain other than he's got his back jammed way into my side.

Saturday was the family baby shower in Austin with my mom's family. It was great to see everyone especially my grandparents. In addition to my grandma, all of my aunts, two of my grown cousins, my future sister-in-law and D's best friend's wife were all there. There were three kids there (in addition to my in-utero one), my cousin's daughter who is two years old, D's best friend's daughter who is seven months old (and actually they are expecting #2, she's four weeks or so), and my youngest cousin who is five months old. We now have the pack and play (so he'll have somewhere to sleep), the bottles (just need the breast pump although we'll only be using them occasionally unless there's an issue), the stroller base (got the snap and go), the high chair/booster seat, one of the wool diaper covers, the bathtub, a bunch of washcloths and towels and a few receiving blankets. I don't have pictures yet since we didn't bring our camera, but I should hopefully see some soon and I'll post them when I do. I have another shower at the end of February that my MIL and mom are throwing.

I've been having some pain on my far right side for the last day or so. It's in an area where he's been kicked so I'm assuming it's probably just some body part wedged in, but I have a call in to the ob to see what she says. I'm 28 weeks and 2 days today and since Saturday, I've been getting quite uncomfortable. I had to get a new bra earlier this week (thankfully the last one lasted from 16 weeks to about 28 weeks).

Also, does anyone have suggestions for secular resources for NFP? I'm hoping to encourage my brother's fiancée to look into it after a talk we had this weekend, but they aren't religious at all so I want resources that focus on the medical/environmental side of the pill and how NFP works.

Zone 1...a pain in the...

2011-01-11T07:09:00.000-06:00

PPVI called today and my progesterone is down in Zone 1 after being in Zone 2 for a while (after starting off in Zone 4 at 4 weeks). I now have to take 200 mg PIO twice a week, and since I have 50 mg/ml through my mail order pharmacy since it was so much cheaper ($30 for 90 day supply vs $60 a bottle for the compounding pharmacy's 100 mg/ml) I have to do a shot in each hip. I also have to add 200 mg oral progesterone daily. Hopefully my levels will go back to at least Zone 2 quickly and I won't have to do this extra for too long. Anyone have any hints on how to lay for the shot? I feel uncomfortable laying on my stomach even with a pillow.

Little Dude update

2010-12-29T18:02:00.001-06:00

I had my ob appointment yesterday at 25 weeks, 3 days. Everything is going well. D was able to come to the appointment (even though it ran late...boo) and got to see Baby Blondie (who I have also been referring to as little dude when I don't call him by his name). The little boy I nanny for (different family now, they have one almost 3 year old) was with us so I was slightly distracted. The ob measured my fundal height and although I didn't actually ask for the number, it must have been in the expected range since she didn't say anything. The ob is also happy with my weight gain. Little Dude is currently frank breech (we have plenty of time for him to flip so I'm not worried), so we got some better pictures of his profile since the placenta didn't block it and he wasn't hide it with his hand this time. We also saw him swallow and stick out his tongue.

Sticking out his tongue

Profile and feet

Another profile and feet

Look at my feet, they're adorable

Merry Christmas and Prayer Buddy Reveal

2010-12-27T12:16:00.000-06:00

My prayer buddy was Shannon from A Friend of Gianna who is now private. I was praying for her and MM as they discern the future of their relationship. Shannon is such a sweet girl and it was a privilege to pray for her and to hear her voice during Sew's shower. I prayed for her at Mass and during my weekly adoration time.

D and I went to his parents' house for Christmas. We had a good time and got to relax a lot. We talked to my family on Skype since everyone was in different places and we also talked to his sister and her husband who couldn't come down for Christmas. Baby Blondie got quite few things for Christmas and he already has a shelf in the nursery and we haven't had the first shower yet. D's parents got us the carseat, so it's installed in our new car that we bought on Thursday night (silver 2009 Ac.cord...I'll post a picture later). I've have carseats in my car before with my work as a nanny, but last night I realized that I actually have our child's carseat in my car. D is driving the car today because I have the day off and I need to clean our my old car which he'll be driving. My sister-in-laws also got us onesies and other baby stuff for Christmas. My mom's relatives are throwing me a shower in about 3 weeks in Austin since my grandma can't really travel. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone since it's been a few months since I was out there.

I have an ob appointment tomorrow and D hopefully will be able to come. I'm doing pretty well other than my silly nosebleeds and what I think is round ligament pain or stretching of my scar tissue from my laparatomy. Baby Blondie has been moving around a lot (including as I type this) and kicked D in the face a couple times (he was laying his head on my tummy). I also can feel kicks going on the inside or to my cervix. My MIL seemed to be a bit worried that I hadn't gained enough weight but my ob hasn't said anything about it.

Quick Takes (Non-Friday edition)

2010-12-21T21:00:00.000-06:00

1. I'm having a terrible time with nosebleeds right now, especially since it's getting cooler and drier. My ears are also having issues too. I'm not sick really, so there's not much I can do. I have my humidifier, but I'm not sure how much it's helping.

2. I was at the grocery store today, and the cashier asked if I was pregnant. That's the first time that I have been asked if I was pregnant.

3. We are currently looking for a new (well, really a preowned) car. My current car is a 2001 Ci.vic with almost 180,000 miles and D has a 1999 F-150 with about 125,000 miles, so we are going to get something that has a lot less miles (but keep both of our current vehicles). I'm probably going to get an Ac.cord or a Ca.mry that's 2007 or 2008. D's not thrilled about getting a car note but we have a good down payment from my parents buying D's car for my little brother to drive back to school after his accident this summer.

Picture Frame Help

2010-12-15T17:56:00.000-06:00

You know those picture frames that say Grandma, Grandpa, etc.? Does anyone have ideas on where to find them? I've finally decided to do those as the Christmas gift but don't know where to look.

Cloth Diaper Stash Plan * Updated

2010-12-03T15:02:00.006-06:00

I've been working on my registry (first shower is in about 1 1/2 months) and here's what I have for my planned cloth diaper stash:

General:

24-36 Baby washcloths to use as wipes
2 Fuzzibunz Hanging Diaper Bags (thanks to Lauren for letting me know about this)
Snappi Size 1 Triple Pack
Planet Wise Wet Bag, One Medium, One Large
Kissaluvs Diaper Potion Concentrate

For Newborn:

6 Thirsties X-small Covers
2-3 dozen Green Mountain Diaper Prefold Newborn (Orange)
Homemade liners made from old t-shirts or some cheap flannel or fleece (for early meconium poos)

For Older Infant:

For Nighttime:

For Short Travel/With a Babysitter, etc:

For Longer Travel (like my brother's wedding in Hawaii where we don't want to bring back a bunch of poopy or wet diapers and won't be able to wash really and don't have to deal with classic disposable diapers)

G Diaper Flushable Inserts or Grovia BioSoakers or Flip Disposable Inserts (to use with the Flip covers)

I'm planning on washing every 1 1/2 to 2 days. Do the numbers of everything (especially prefolds and covers) seem reasonable? Any other recommendations?

I did the registry on Amazon, but I've put quite a bit from Green Mountain Diapers and Cotton Babies since Amazon has a Universal Registry Button that allows you to add items to your registry from other websites.

"No Photos Please"

2010-12-01T10:20:00.000-06:00

I had my appointment yesterday at 21 weeks, 3 days as well as my glucose tolerance test. The glucose tolerance test drink was so disgusting; I hate fake orange flavor and I just barely finished in it the 5 minutes they allow you. I was a bit worried I'd vomit and have to redo it later. The good news is that I seem to have passed since my ob said they would call only if I didn't and they should have had the result by the afternoon (actually by lunch really). The appointment went well. Baby Blondie is looking good, but he was hiding his face behind his hand and the placenta so we didn't get a good profile shot (thus the "no photos please" title). He also was keeping his boy parts hidden so no confirmation today on that. My next appointment is on December 28 so I'll be 25 weeks, 3 days and D will hopefully make it to the appointment (he's going to try). I actually lost the u/s photos for a while yesterday (they blew out of my purse when I was leaving the building, but I went back after I realized they were gone and found them.\

My progesterone is 44.2 ng/dL (20 weeks, 2 days), which is at least a rise from the last draw but it's still Zone 2. I'm pretty sure I'll be on PIO until 36 weeks at this point. It's funny that my level at 20 weeks is barely 3 ng/dL high than at 4 weeks (with quite a few drops in between).

We have the baptism seminar at our church this evening, so hopefully D will be off work in time (he's tends to have to work late on Wednesdays). His baptism will be in Houston at the church where D and I got married on June 5 (so that my parents can be in the country...it's just before my brother's wedding) during one of the Masses. He'll either wear my little brother's baptism outfit or D's family's baptism gown (depending on how big he is...he may even wear both). I'll post pictures of each when I have them. We have decided on his godparents but haven't asked them yet.

Ready for soccer

2010-11-26T09:34:00.000-06:00

Baby Blondie is finally starting to do some real kicks in the last few days, and yesterday on Thanksgiving (20 weeks, 5 days) D finally was able to feel some kicks. Very thankful.

P.S. The 20 week picture is now in the slideshow.

Thankful Part 2

2010-11-25T10:37:00.000-06:00

I'm thankful for
-D- who is a wonderful provider and loves me even though I'm kind of crazy sometimes
-Baby Blondie- our little blessing from God (totally undeserved) and the fact that he's finally starting to really kick
-all the Catholic IF bloggers- the community has saved my sanity many times, it's amazing to have people who care about you even though you've never met
-my family, who love us very much even though we don't get to see them very often.

Whooooooooah...

2010-11-21T09:02:00.000-06:00

We're half way there.

I'm twenty weeks as of Saturday, so I'm officially halfway done with the pregnancy. I'm feeling pretty good in general, and I'm feeling the baby a little bit more (it's still kind of hard to notice, I think due to my anterior placenta). I still have occasional nausea and I really need to figure out the nosebleed thing (I keep having clots in my nose that make it feel stuffed up and then they bleed when I blow my nose...a very annoying cycle). I'm having some pains and discomfort in my abdomen and , but it's really mainly from me sitting weird.

I don't want anyone to take this the wrong way (I'm definitely not bragging or anything), but I still have not really gained much weight and I started out on the low side and lost a bit due to the nausea and vomiting in the first trimester. I'm able to eat more now, but it's disconcerting to me that I haven't gained more. The baby was growing well (even measuring ahead by almost a week at the 16 week ultrasound) but it's still hard for me not to be concerned. I know D is right that I shouldn't worry if Baby Blondie is growing fine.

Cloth Diapering Questions

2010-11-12T10:15:00.000-06:00

I need some recommendations on a couple of things regarding cloth diapering while I'm working on my registry.
1. If you are using prefolds, do you have a recommended brand/source?
2. I'm planning to use mainly prefolds (I have experience using them with the baby boy I nanny for, but they are using a diaper service), but I'm probably going to get a few funnibunz and/or BumGeniuses. How many of each (prefolds and then pocket/all in one) would you recommend (for a newborn size and then for the next size or two up)? How many covers for the prefolds?
3. What laundry detergent are you using?
4. What brand of wet bag and pail liner would you recommend?
5. What size pail do you use for the diapers?
6. Any other helpful hints?

Rib weirdness and registry

2010-11-11T11:18:00.000-06:00

I've been feeling a weird sensation up near my rib the last couple days. Baby Blondie's not up anywhere near my ribs yet since I'm 18 weeks, 4 days. I've been feeling him move a bit more, but I think that the anterior placenta is making it a lot harder to feel. D is really hoping to feel him move soon, but we'll see if he cooperates or not.

I'm generally feeling ok, but yesterday I think I started have some reflux and I was having a hard time eating. I still occasionally have to take nausea medication, but it's so much better than early on.

I started working on a list of what needs to get done before Baby Blondie gets here yesterday. I also wrote up a list of all the stuff to get and/or put on the registry. I've gotten a lot of the registry done but any suggestions on things that you loved or hated would be great. My main registry is Target with Amazon for the things that aren't available at Target. My first shower is in about 2 months (January 15), so I still have plenty of time.

My Patron Saint for 2011

2010-11-08T21:18:00.001-06:00

Where Angels Blog picked Hildegard of Bingen (a nun and mystic, who Pope Benedict recently spoke about during his General Audiences) for me, Rupert Mayer (a German priest who served the poor and resisted the Nazis) for D and Rose of Viterbo (a Third Order Franciscan who died at 18) for Baby Blondie.

U/S pics and more!

2010-11-03T10:38:00.000-05:00

My blood successfully made it to PPVI this time. I'm still in Zone 2, 41.3 ng/dL at 16 weeks, 2 days. That's right about where my level was at 4 weeks. It's odd that my progesterone is so much worse during pregnancy. I'm still unsure if what I'm feeling is really Baby Blondie moving around or if it's just gas or something.

Two shots of Baby Blondie at 16 weeks, 4 days

D and I were traveling to NY and NJ from Wednesday night to Monday night. We drove and it was really long, but I did fine other than not drinking enough water on the way up which caused a little spotting. I drank more water on the trip down and did fine. We visited his mom's relatives first in NY, and we had a good time although everyone was slightly too concerned about me (especially with the drive). I know they are just natural worriers and this is the first baby from the grandkids on that side. It was the only time we'll get to see any of his relative's during my pregnancy.

On the way down to NJ, D and I stopped to have dinner with TCIE in Bethlehem, PA. We had a great time and while D and I waited for TCIE since we got there early we walked along the main street and found a shop with rubber ducks. We got a turtle duck for Baby Blondie.

Turtle Duck

Me and TCIE (D was taking the picture)

We then went down to NJ for his cousin's wedding. All of his family was together and it was great to spend time with everyone. His cousin's wedding was outside and it was cool and overcast, so this Texas girl was glad to have a coat. The reception was a costume one since it was the day before Halloween. I got fairy wings to go with my dress and D wore the same Big Mac costume he always does. Since we said the baby is measuring big, some people kept saying they think he'll be early (even though this is still months away) but I said that I am going to assume he'll be late so that I don't have extra impatience if that happens.

D and I at the reception

I don't know if I mentioned that my mom and I went shopping for maternity clothes, but I love that I can finally wear jeans again (even though they go up to my bra with the panel). My dress for the wedding was maternity and so were my tights.

It's a...

2010-10-27T11:08:00.000-05:00

BOY! We have the name picked out, but we won't be sharing it with everyone until birth. His initials are SRS. He's looking really good, and measuring 17 weeks, 2 day (I'm 16 weeks, 4 days). His heartbeat is 160. D was able to come to the appointment, which was great. I'll post the alien face picture by next week some time.

Where to eat in Bethlehem, PA?

2010-10-26T14:29:00.001-05:00

Anyone know of a good and not too expensive place for dinner in Bethlehem, PA? TCIE and I are going to meet there for dinner on Friday and I need some suggestions.

My big u/s is tomorrow before lunch. I'll post about it at least briefly tomorrow, but I probably won't be able to post u/s pics until early next week.

On being pregnant after IF

2010-10-21T09:56:00.000-05:00

I know my posts have been pregnancy heavy and those who are still waiting might not want to read them. I hope that my posts don't hurt anyone. I've been quite limited in the amount of time I have to post and I haven't really talked about my feelings on being pregnancy after IF:

When I talk to someone who doesn't know about our IF struggles, I always try to mention that this pregnancy was not something that happened quickly, but that we struggled for a couple of years and had to have surgeries to get this point. I hope that I'm being a witness about the fact that IF is out there. I also mention Dr. H/PPVI/NaPro when appropriate.

I'm still dealing with occasional spotting and although it no longer causes me to completely breakdown (the first two times I broke down and was somewhat hysterical), I'm still very worried about Baby Blondie especially when I have the spotting. I had spotting that lasted over a couple hours while visiting family this past weekend and it completely ruined my ability to enjoy spending time with my family.

Since I haven't been able to feel Baby Blondie move yet, I still worry about having an u/s and not seeing a heartbeat (even though I've seen the heartbeat on u/s 4 times now). When the u/s starts, I almost assume no heartbeat until I hear it. I know that pregnancy, even in the second and third trimester, does not guarantee that you'll get to take home and raise a baby on earth. I watched a video on the October 15 Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day and it had a baby who died just after the 16 week u/s (I'll be 16 weeks on Saturday). Although I'm not constantly focused on the fact that my baby could not make it, I definitely have that worry in the back of my mind. I check the heartbeat with a Doppler on a regular basis. D even asked me last night about "whether SC (our nickname for the baby) was going to stay in there" meaning whether we could stop holding our breath about the likelihood of having a live baby. I doubt that he'd be quite as worried (and it's not a crazy high level of worry) about the possibility of loss if we hadn't dealt with IF.

In some ways, it doesn't seem real. I mean I've seen the baby a few time on u/s sound and my body is changing, but I kind of think that part of the reason that I have worries about not seeing the heartbeat is that it doesn't seem like this is real. I need to hear the heartbeat regularly and look at the bump to see that this isn't something that I'm imagining. Even with the horrible nausea, it at least meant that there was a good chance that everything was going ok.

I am thrilled that we having this blessing and I know that it's not because we deserved it, prayed more, or really anything that we did. I wish that there was something that I could do for those who are still waiting beyond just praying for you (which is important of course). You are always in my prayers.

Annoyed at USPS

2010-10-19T13:37:00.001-05:00

My blood seems to have gotten lost (well, my progesterone blood draw at least...the rest is safely inside my body). I sent it Tuesday and it should have been up at PPVI by Friday. Since it's now Tuesday again, I'm pretty sure that USPS lost it. I had to get it drawn on my birthday and that makes me extra annoyed that they lost it. I'm now waiting to hear if PPVI wants me to go on Thursday or if I should just wait until next Monday for my regular draw. It would be lovely if it would turn up (any prayers to St. Anthony would be appreciated), but my hopes aren't very high on that.

The good news is that my big u/s is in 8 days (next Wednesday, October 27) and we should officially find out boy or girl then.

30

2010-10-13T10:55:00.000-05:00

Monday was my 30th birthday. Although I never would have chosen to be 30 when our first child is born, I'm so blessed to be only 30 and not have to wait any longer for our little one. Three months ago, when we had our third anniversary, I never expected to actually be pregnant on my birthday.

I haven't really popped yet, but here are 6 weeks and 14 weeks to compare.

6 weeks

14 weeks

We got our first baby gift this weekend; a friend knitted a blanket in Aggie colors (maroon and white). I love it.

Cold, Progesterone, etc.

2010-10-07T11:13:00.000-05:00

I caught a cold last week from the little boy I nanny for. I'm feeling mostly better, but I still have yucky congestion. Thankfully my netipot seems to be helping. The cold does seem to be aggravating the nausea and I'm having to take the medication. However, I haven't had any vomiting in over a week, so that's good. I'm able to eat much better in the last week or so. I've even made a weekly meal plan with breakfast, lunch, dinner, and two snacks. I'm still pretty fatigued, but I'm glad the nausea and eating are better.

I got my most recent progesterone level from 12 weeks, 2 days and it was only 26.6 ng/mL (zone 2), so I'm still on 100 mg PIO twice a week. It's frustrating to me that after having perfect (actually on the higher side) P+7 levels every time they were tested and a great P+15, my levels seem to be getting worse over time. I'm glad that my levels are being monitored, I just wish my body wasn't continuing to be annoying. I am still having spotting every once in a while; it seems to happen more if I don't drink enough water.

I haven't popped yet (I'm 13 weeks, 5 days), but I definitely can see the bump. I'll probably post a picture in the next few weeks once I do.

October is a really busy month, I'm busy and traveling every weekend this month. My 30th birthday is on Monday (the 11th). We are going to D's cousin's wedding the weekend of Halloween and her reception is a costume one. I have no idea what to wear (I'll be exactly 17 weeks), and I don't want to spend a lot of money. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Updates and finally 10 week u/s pic

2010-09-27T19:48:00.000-05:00

I've been reading the blogs, but I've been a terrible commenter due to lack of time, feeling tired and nauseous, and not really having much too say.

I had my ob appt today at 12 weeks, 2 days. Everything is looking good. The heartbeat is 169 bpm. The baby was stick its little bottom forward today so the pictures weren't that great. The doctor has a suspicion as to the sex of the baby, but it's too early to be sure. We hopefully will find out at my next appointment at 16 weeks, 4 days (October 27) which will be the big u/s with the u/s tech (the doctor does the u/s during the regular appointments). Hopefully D will be able to go to the appointment, but it's the morning before we leave in the evening for his cousin's wedding in NJ.

I finally got on some anti-nausea medication (generic Zofr.an) and I'm feeling so much better. I have nausea still without the medication, but the nausea on it is only if I don't eat frequently enough. I haven't had any vomiting since starting it and I was having quite a bit before starting. I can also eating a bit more variety and can open my fridge without gagging.

I still have a lot of fatigue and I'm trying to nap almost everyday (I nap when the little boys nap when I'm working if I can). I was off today, but I couldn't get a nap due to timing of stuff.

10 week ultrasound

10 Surprising (?) Things About Me

2010-09-16T12:07:00.000-05:00

Wheelbarrow Rider tagged me for the 10 random things meme.

1. I love to read historical fiction. It's probably my favorite genre, especially when combined with mysteries. I love the Ly.n Ha.milton archeological mysteries and I was sad to read that she passed away. Any suggestions on good historical fiction are always appreciated.
2. I graduated college in 3 1/2 years (just like TCIE). None of my brothers, sisters-in-law or husband graduated in 4 years even either. One of my brother graduated in 5 years, one in 3 1/2 years and the youngest will graduate in 3 years. My husband graduated in 4 1/2 years, one of his sisters graduated in 3 1/2 years and the other in 4 1/2 years.
3. I was in graduate school for 2 years for Developmental Psychology and studied language development. I really hate writing papers and it was not going to be a good fit for me.
4. I was a teacher for a little more than two years. I taught second grade, jr. high science and then 5 grade math/science. I really don't like the classroom management aspect. I love tutoring and and I'm really hoping to homeschool.
5. I make jewelry. I haven't done it in a while since the local bead store closed and I haven't had much money to do it either. I have a necklace and earrings to coordinate with most outfits that I own. I haven't bought a premade necklace or earring in years since I learned to make my own. I also make most of my mom's jewelry as well.
6. I generally where the same shoes everyday. Black sandals in the summer and black Sketchers once it's cooler.
7. I love science & history shows and many sci-fi series. I loved Quantum Leap, Sliders, and Stargate and we watch Warehouse 13 and Eureka.
8. I only were makeup for events, church, etc. I wore makeup everyday when I was teaching, but I don't wear it now that I'm nannying. I wear mascara a few times a year.
9. My family lived in England when I was really young. We moved there when I was 18 months old and moved back when I was almost 6 years old. I went to Kindergarten there and two of my brothers were born there. I travel to many place in Europe as a young child, but I can't really remember it.
10. I was about 15 feet from Pope John Paul II as he came into World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto.

(Baby) Likes to Move It, Move It

2010-09-15T18:49:00.000-05:00

I had an OB appointment today, 10 weeks, 4 days. It was really quick since I had the little boy I nanny for with me and he was awake, just blood pressure, weight, urine sample, and a quick ultrasound. I had some spotting Friday and Sunday, but Baby Blondie is still looking good. The heartbeat is 179 and I even got to see him or her moving which was really awesome. You can actually see that it's a person in there now. I could see the little arms and legs moving. I'll scan the picture in a bit later. The placenta is growing nicely and attached nice and high. If I have spotting, I'll go back in two weeks on September 30, otherwise it'll be four weeks.

For your viewing, King Julian from Madagascar singing "I Like to Move It, Move It". So funny.

Latest progesterone level (just a quick update)

2010-09-09T21:13:00.000-05:00

I'm still in Zone 3, the level was 34.7 ng/dL at 8 weeks 2 days. I'm still on 100 mg PIO twice a week. It's odd to me that I'm still lower than I was at P+7 and P+15.

I'm dealing with vomiting most days now (almost always in the evening) and I'm eating constantly so I don't know that there's anything I can do. I hope that I start feeling better in the the second trimester (about 2-3 weeks, I'll be 10 weeks Saturday). There is so little that I can eat (and some stuff makes me gag just to think about it). I'm also tired of losing my dinner; it's seems like such a waste when it's almost every night for the past 10 days or so. I'm thinking I need to offer this up for all of you still waiting.

That wasn't ideal

2010-09-04T22:22:00.000-05:00

I was at the baptism today for the little boy I nanny for and I started feeling really funny and a bit warm (and it's generally a bit cool in there). Well, I almost blacked out as I was walking out of the sanctuary. There were quite a few people around so they got me some water and crackers, and I got a ride home (D was working all day today). I really hope that was a one time thing. Other than that it was a great baptism, and they did a full immersion (he wasn't too happy about that).

A Spiritual Bouquet

2010-09-01T06:25:00.000-05:00

For all our Sisters in Christ who are in the midst of their journey with infertility, loss, and adoption...please know you have our continued support, love, and prayers!

The Turtle from Jenny

2010-08-31T19:34:00.000-05:00

Jenny from All Things was my Lent prayer buddy. She sent me a cute tiny turtle. I decide to take a picture of it on my stomach since it's about the size Baby Blondie is right now.

First Appointment with New OB

2010-08-31T11:13:00.002-05:00

I had my first appointment with my new ob yesterday afternoon at 8 weeks, 2 days. The appointment went well. I like the new doctor. I was able to get an u/s. It was abdominal so I couldn't see too much, but I heard the baby's heartbeat (176 bpm). She also look at the SCH (the bleed) and said that I might have some spotting off and on but it'll likely be done by 14-16 weeks. She actually does at least a quick u/s at every office visit. My next appointment will be on Sept. 15 (10 weeks, 4 days); I had this past one extra due to the SCH.

I also got my every two week blood draw done for sending to PPVI for progesterone. I tried to get it done before my appointment, but I had to leave after waiting 20 minutes and come back after the appointment. Since the post office was already closed and I was hungry, I told them I'd just pick it up this morning. I got over there (and I brought the little boy I nanny for) and someone had sent the blood up to one of the other hospitals in the system. Now I'm waiting for them to send the blood back down and then we've got to go back and pick it up and take it to the post office. I'm glad that they at least didn't run it; I would have been really angry since I had my PIO last night so I couldn't get the draw redone today. I'm pretty sure the post office will be super busy when we go now.

Not a Fluke and More about Bras

2010-08-27T22:41:00.000-05:00

I was hoping throwing up yesterday was just a fluke from gagging on my vitamins. Nope, I have true "morning" sickness. I threw up twice today and we were out at a restaurant, which was awesome. :( Actually I feel pretty good in the morning, but I feel terrible in the late afternoon and evening. I guess I was pretty lucky to make it to almost 8 weeks before actually throwing up, considering that I had nausea at 4 weeks, 2 days. I think I'll have to try Unisom & B6; maybe I can get D do buy some Unisom tomorrow.

Well, it’s not quite as supportive as I would like (although I’m going to take the strap in some and it should be better, but I did find a camisole at Target that I could actually fit into and it’s on the longer side so it should help cover my tummy once I start showing. It’s actually a low cut (well it looks a lot lower on me than the lady in the picture on the website) with a criss-cross and it’s not the tight sucking-in shelf bra. It’s definitely more comfortable than the underwire that was digging in to me yesterday. I didn't want to buy a nursing cami now and have it be too small once I'm actually nursing. I would like to get a least one actual bra soon, so if anyone knows of a store/brand/style to look at for wirefree bras that are relatively inexpensive, not full coverage (hopefully closer to a demi cut) and come in larger cup sizes (it'll need to be D or DD). I didn't see much when I went to Target yesterday, but I wasn't feeling up to searching every single rack.

Bras, Part 2

2010-08-26T20:54:00.000-05:00

I had to go buy a new "bra" (actually I bought two camisoles with built in bras). I had bought a new bra (#1) about 12 hours before finding out I was pregnant, which only was comfortable about 4 days. I bought a new bra (#2) about 3 weeks ago since bra #1 was uncomfortable. Well, today bra #2 has become uncomfortable and I think I'm going to have to get another new bra (#3 and I'm not even and I'm not even 8 weeks yet). The main issue I'm having with the current bra is the underwire being quite painful. I ended up get the camisoles since I'm not sure where to find a bra in my size (my current bra is 34 D and I'm not sure if I need to go up yet or not) that doesn't have underwire and isn't a full coverage bra. I hope I don't need to keep doing this every few weeks; that would be pretty ridiculous. Hopefully the camisoles will give me a bit of time before I need something new.

I'd been having a lot of gagging the past few days, and I gagged on my evening pills and ended up throwing up. I'm actually a bit surprised that it took me this long (7 weeks, 5 days). We'll see if it's a one time thing or a trend.

Be Careful What You Wish For

2010-08-23T18:36:00.000-05:00

I had one little spot on Saturday, but no more since then and I haven't had cramps at all. PPVI said to stay at 100 mg PIO twice a week since I'm still in Zone 3. I have an appointment with the new ob next Monday afternoon, but I don't know if I'll get an u/s or not then.

On Friday, when I was having the spotting, I was also less nauseated than I had been and the combination worried me (even after seeing Baby Blondie's lovely little heartbeat). I wanted I had the reassurance of the nausea, and of course it returned with a vengeance. I still haven't had any vomiting, which actually really surprises me since the nausea kicked in pretty early (4 weeks, 2 days) and I've felt pretty close quite a few times. The fatigue has been pretty rough the last few days too, and last night we stayed up late and I slept horribly.

Since my parents live out of the country and have a crazy spring/summer next year (Baby Blondie's birth in April, youngest brother's graduation in May and oldest of my brother's wedding in Hawaii in June), I've started thinking about and getting information regarding Baby Blondie's baptism. We are planning on getting Baby Blondie baptized in Houston at the parish where we met and got married since it'll be easier for more of my family to make it than if we did it here. I've already got the information on what we need to get from our local parish, the times for the Baptismal Prep seminar, etc. D and I haven't talked about godparents yet, but we need to do that pretty soon since they will live out of town and have to attend the Baptismal Prep at their local parish and have to get their Baptismal certificates and a letter from their current parish.

Red Spotting, please pray updated 2nd update

2010-08-20T11:47:00.002-05:00

I'm having red spotting. No cramping or anything. Please pray that Baby Blondie continues to be ok.

Update:
I have contacted my local ob and PPVI (both right after I saw the spotting) and I'm waiting for a call back. My progesterone was drawn Monday and I had my PIO injection last night.

Follow Update:
I got an u/s. The heartbeat is still looking good. I do have a subchorionic hematoma. PPVI said my progesterone is 28.4, which is still good, but it did drop from the 40 I had earlier. They are going to talk to the drs since I told them about the spotting/subchorionic hematoma and see if I need to go back up, but they may not be able to let me know until Monday.

It's official

2010-08-19T19:47:00.000-05:00

D posted on FB, so the pregnancy is now official.
Here's his status:
two surgeries: $6000
pills and vitamins: $1000
special diet: $500
Finally after three years getting double pink lines: Priceless
[Mrs. Blondie S] is pregnant and due in April so excited, my little tax break is on the way

He obviously used my real name though. So cute.

First OB appt.

2010-08-16T19:11:00.001-05:00

Baby Blondie's first picture

Baby Blondie's little heart is beating at 122 beats a minute and he/she is measuring at 6 weeks exactly (I'm 6 weeks, 2 days) although the baby was really close to my uterine wall which made it harder for the tech to measure. D was there for the u/s but not the rest of the appointment because he had to get back to work. I'm so glad D was able to be there even though it put him behind for the rest of the day. He took the u/s picture with him back to work, but brought it home so we could scan it. He's going to keep it on his wall at work. I haven't had any more spotting since Saturday. I had my progesterone draw for PPVI and I'll be getting my PIO injection this evening.

I did decide to switch obs since my ob basically said if I want to do a natural birth I'd be better off switching to a different ob and even gave some recommendations. I made my appointment with the new ob and it'll be on September 15. I've got to call and see if they are going to do an u/s with the appointment (and try to convince them if they aren't planning to).

I'm feeling quite nauseous, but I still haven't had true morning sickness quite yet. Last night and this morning were pretty close though. I can't eat meat (or really talk much about it). I'm pretty tired and I have get up a lot during the night to pee. I don't really have any breast tenderness or anything. I'm feeling bloated, but I don't think that I've actually really changed any yet. I have still be having pressure mainly on my left side, but my corpus luteum is on my right ovary so I don't know what that's from. It's really funny that the baby so much smaller still than the corpus luteum but already has a heartbeat.

D would like me to let everyone know that he's awesome (and a goofball). D is awesome because he's in cleaning the kitchen and making my dinner while I sit on the couch and rest.

My brother took D's old car (D's now driving our truck and I still have my car) so he could drive back to school (here's Friday's post about the accident...he's fine). My parents are talking about basically transfering that car into their name and then D and I would get a new car (new to us at least) once my parents get the check and they'd help us with the down payment or whatever.

Prayer Buddy Reveal, Summer Edition

2010-08-15T10:36:00.000-05:00

During the Summer Edition of Prayer Buddies, I've been praying for a woman who has a beautiful little boy and is currently expecting her second child. She had some big things with regard to her family that she needed prayers for. She's very busy trying to finish her graduate work before her second blessing arrives. We have a lot in common with regards to our husbands and our prayers for them. I was praying for Wheelbarrow Rider. I offered my weekly adoration hour for you and your family as well as praying for you during Mass and whenever else I had prayer time. You'll continue to be in my prayers.

Brown

2010-08-14T12:06:00.000-05:00

It was just a tiny bit, but I had some very little brown spotting this morning and it freaked me out. I called and talked to one of Dr. H's fellows and they said just pelvic rest and plenty of water. I don't have any cramping. I really need it to get to Monday and our u/s quickly. I just need to know that Baby Blondie is ok. Baby Blondie and I (and D too) could use some prayers. It's probably nothing but it's still scary. I'm 6 weeks today.

Scary stuff (not pregnancy related)

2010-08-13T11:59:00.000-05:00

My youngest brother, who is ok, got into a car accident today (and he was at fault) and possibly totaled his car. I was driving behind him and saw the whole thing happen. It was really scary; I wasn't sure that he was going to be ok. I parked my car and ran over to check on him. The other driver was older and went to the hospital, but I don't think it was serious. Thankfully D came over from work and helped get everything sorted out. My brother is supposed to be leaving to drive up to school in Ohio on Sunday, but we don't know how he's getting back yet. My parents haven't gotten back to their house overseas yet from their trip to the states, so we haven't been able to talk to them. They hopefully will be back in the next couple hours. I'm very glad I wasn't in the car, or I'd be over at the hospital getting an u/s.

Updates, possible ob switch?

2010-08-11T10:29:00.002-05:00

I'm still having lots of nausea, but the actual morning sickness has not made a full appearance yet. I have to pretty much eat constantly to keep the nausea at bay and it generally returns pretty quickly after eating. I have a small bowl of snacks on my nightstand so that when I wake up to go to the bathroom during the night, I can eat something. Ginger seems to help a lot; I'm almost done with my second box of ginger chews. Meat in any form doesn't sound at all appetizing. I tried to have fish on Sunday, but I couldn't finish it. I'm having to pretty much go vegetarian with lots of beans, grains, and I'm eating spinach quite a bit. I had some weird pressure for most of Monday in the area of my ovaries, but it seems to have calmed down. I tend toward insomnia anyways, but I'm having even more trouble sleeping than usual.

My ob appointment is in 5 days, on Monday, but that seems so far away! I'll have an ultrasound, and hopefully we'll be able to see a heartbeat (I'll be 6 weeks, 2 days). I've got quite a few questions for my ob about how comfortable she is with minimal intervention during labor and delivery so we'll see if I'm going to stick with her, or switch to a different ob who would be more natural birth friendly (and I've got some leads on that). I have found out which hospital in the area is most natural birth friend, and she does have privileges there. Whether I switch obs or not, I have decided where I'll deliver. There aren't any midwives in my city and I don't want really want to drive 45 minutes for prenatal care or delivery, especially since I'll probably have the little boy I nanny at most of my appointments. I've contacted a couple of local doulas, but I'll have to see whether D is willing to spend the money.

I called to find out about our insurance coverage for maternity and I learned that for 2010, since we already met our deductible and out of pocket maximum for the year due to my surgery, all we really have to cover is copays, ultrasounds will be covered at 100%. For 2011, we will have to deal again with meeting the deductible, and then they will pay 80%.

When we were on the way home from our friends' daughter's baptism, D brought up how he is excited and ready to meet our little one, but he also wants to experience all of the excitement of going through the pregnancy. He can't wait until our ultrasound, and he's really ready to get out of the first trimester. He's a bit freaked out by the fact that the loss rate is higher in the first trimester. He has started reading the blog somewhat regularly, so if you have any reassurance that would be great.

D and I will be calling Baby Blondie SC until we have the gender ultrasound. SC comes from the boy's name and girl's name that we have picked out. We picked out names about 3 months after we started dating, so we've had them decided for a while. I probably won't share the name until after the birth.

5 weeks and wish list

2010-08-07T10:00:00.000-05:00

I'm 5 weeks today. No new symptoms yet, and I'm feeling pretty decent in general. I'm still currently able to keep the nausea at bay by constantly eating and I hope that will continue for at least a little while longer.

I have a bit of a "wish list" of things I would like to do with regard to labor and delivery and after birth:
-Cloth diapering: D and I have already talked about cloth diapering and he's good with it. I've been researching off and on for years. The little boy I nanny for is cloth diapered. I'm probably mainly going to go with prefolds and covers, but I'll get some pocket diapers for times when they are more convenient. Check out this cloth diapering series that I found through Shannon's link.
-Natural childbirth (no epidural/pain meds): I would really like to have a natural labor with no pain meds. I know my mom did it with at least 2 if not all 4 of her pregnancies. I haven't picked out what method, Bra.dley, Hy.pobirthing, etc., I'm most interested in. I have no problem with other people choosing to use epidurals, but I would really prefer to not have one. At my ob appointment, I'll definitely talk to her about how supportive she is of laboring without pain medications and under what situations she would recommend a c-section. I would also like to wait to have the cord cut until it stops pulsing so that the baby can get all the blood, etc., possible.
-Baby wearing- I love slings and carriers. I'm probably going to get a couple. Carrying around a child in a sling is much less tiring than using your arms. I've used slings a few times when nannying and I really loved it.
-Make my own baby food or baby led weaning- It's less expensive to make your own food and I like to cook our food mainly from scratch, so why not do the same for our baby?

I know it's pretty early, but I've been thinking about these things since we started trying three years ago. If anyone has any suggestions on any of these topics feel free to share.

Zone 4, Baby!

2010-08-05T18:04:00.001-05:00

PPVI called with my progesterone results this afternoon. My progesterone on Sunday, P+15, was 40.7, which is Zone 4, and my CRP was low, which is good, so no signs of infection. I'm down to 100 mg PIO twice a week instead of 200 mg, which is good since when the prescription from the mail order pharmacy comes I'll be using 50mg/ml instead of the nice 100 mg from the compounding pharmacy. Thankfully the copay is pretty decent, so I'm fine with that.

I did end up going to T.ar.get and buying a cheap bra since my old one was falling apart and the new one was uncomfortable after just 4 days. The nipple pain has officially kicked in, while I was trying bras and camis on. I also got a prenatal yoga video that I'm going to try to do. It's too hot to go on walks before about 8pm since it's over 100 pretty much all day and it doesn't get below 90 until after dark and the low is just under 80 (and that's at like 4 am) so I'll wait until the weather cools down some before doing walks.

I'm still only at the nausea stage, but even eating constantly isn't settling my stomach as well as earlier in the week. When I wake up in the night to go to the bathroom, I have to have a couple rice crackers when I get back in bed. I'm pretty sure true morning sickness isn't far off. I'm hoping to make it until at least Monday (5 weeks, 2 days) before it kicks in since we are going out of town for a baptism (D's best friend's baby) on Sunday. I really would prefer not to be sick on the 4 hour drive. I definitely will need to pack lots of snacks for the ride. The fatigue isn't too bad, but I'm pretty sure that tomorrow I'll be pretty tired since I'm getting my PIO tonight.

I'm still kind of following the endo diet since I feel better when I'm not eating gluten or dairy. I pretty much eat the endo diet at home and don't worry as much when we are traveling, etc. We'll have to see how it goes once morning sickness officially kicks in.

I'm about to have my pregnancy evaluation with TCIE!

What we did this cycle, and trying to keep it off FB * Edited

2010-08-04T10:06:00.003-05:00

Here are the meds and vitamins that I was on this cycle:
T3 22.5 mg twice daily
cortisol 5 mg four times daily
prenatal vitamin, plus additional vitamin C, E, folic acid and iron, daily
cod liver oil (830 mg) and flax oil (1000 mg) daily
vitamin B6 500 mg sustained release daily
Pain and Brain supplement for inflammation, 3 capsules twice daily
antibiotic for both me and my husband, this cycle CD 6-15
mucinex 600 mg twice a day from CD 10 until P+3

benadryl 1 capsule twice a day from P+5 to P+9 (Little Joann and TCIE mentioned this on the Catholic IF yahoo group I read)

I had two acupuncture treatments, one with ear points only P+3 and one with the full treatment P+6.

We used P-1 (and kind of used P-2...if you remember this post), but we didn't use Peak day or any of the count of 3.

I had bleeding (not just spotting) from P+4 to P+9.

We have told our families, who have told the extended family, but we are waiting until at least the u/s to share with anyone else. However, I've had to delete to posts from my wall on FB (thankfully I saw them quickly) from various family members congratulating us. I had to let them know that we appreciate the support, but we don't want it all over FB this early. One of my cousins sent me a private message on FB since she saw there weren't any posts about it, and I was so thankful that she thought to do that.

This is D's FB status currently: ‎572b*48=1104b. Can you guess what it means?

Beta #2, Bras and more

2010-08-03T15:06:00.002-05:00

I got my second beta drawn this morning, P+17, and it was 1104. That's almost double and the draws were less than 48 hours apart so I'm feeling good about it. The doubling time, according to this handy beta doubling calculator, was 43.22 hours, which is about what is expected. I also had them run the ob panel now so that I don't have to get any extra blood draws, since I've already had 3 blood draws in the last 10 days and I'm going to be getting blood draws every two weeks. Last night I got my first PIO shot. The mom that I nanny for taught D how to give the shot (I have been so lucky with my nanny jobs). D did really well, and it didn't hurt until later.

I'm feeling pretty good. I have to eat pretty much constantly, but it's keeping the nausea at bay. I did stand up too quickly earlier and I got dizzy. I feel a bit bloated too. I think the fatigue is starting to kick in too.

Like I mentioned in an earlier post, I had to buy a new bra on Saturday since I manage to leave mine at home. I'm concerned that this bra will not fit very long (I of course went and got an expensive VS bra since they actually carry my size). The bra was snug when I bought it and it's feeling even more now. About long was it before any of you ladies had to get a new bra and how many have you gone through? Any other bra advice?

D was reading some of my blog yesterday and was asking about various acronyms. He was also asking about betas and their doubling. He's be reading the book I got him and has learned quite a bit already.

Does anyone need a bottle (it's opened) of sustained release B6? I just bought a new bottle less than a week ago and I'm not going to be taking it for quite a while.

I'm going to post my meds, etc. I was on this cycle tomorrow.

I'm probably going to take a commenting break for a little while. I'm still reading, but really can't pull anything together to say. I'm still out here praying for all of you.

Updates from calls to doctors * Updated

2010-08-02T14:25:00.002-05:00

If you didn't see my previous post with the story of the BFP, my first ob appointment and u/s is two weeks from today, Monday, August 16. I'll be bring the little boy I nanny for to my appointment (I already checked with his mom). I got my local ob to order a beta for tomorrow, and the normal ob screen (I figured they'd be drawing blood then so I might as well the screen run then instead of waiting).

I also talked to PPVI. The nurse is checking on whether Dr. H wants us to do any more antibiotics and whether I should take the Pain and Brain supplement (I stopped after the positive test until I heard from him). They faxed the order so that I could send the bloodwork to them and that's been sent to Omaha. He did put me on PIO and I'll be picking that up from the compounding pharmacy soon. I'm not sure if I'll need to continue the supplementation since the local lab (I'm have it run both places) said the progesterone is greater than 40; we'll have to see what numbers PPVI gets and if they think I'm safer with supplementation.

I'm tired so I'm going to take a nap now.

Updated: Yes, I was on my first round of cyclical antibiotics this cycle. I have no problems doing PIO the whole pregnancy if necessary. I definitely want to do everything possible to keep this pregnancy safe.