32 Weeks (and what an eventful one it was!)

Hang on folks, this is going to be a long one! I'm at the 32 week mark, which is just so hard to believe. (Actually, I'm more than halfway through the 32nd week, but the craziness of the week has kept me from blogging sooner.) This week has been packed with activities and milestones, but just so my Mom doesn't get antsy, here's the weekly belly picture!

32 weeks, 4 days

This week, our kiddo has been super active. All of the pregnancy books and websites say that by now, I should be able to tell the difference between distinct periods of Sprout's wakefulness and sleep. Well, if Tuesday is any indication, this child doesn't sleep much at all. He (or she) was in constant motion on Tuesday. From the time I woke up until the time I went to bed, there was constant kicking, punching, rolling, and squirming going on. I don't know what Sprout was trying to accomplish, but in honor of the little stinker's behavior that day, I had to put on this shirt: This is David's kickball league shirt from a couple of years ago. I thought it was very appropriate for the occasion...except there's only ONE superkicker in there!

Last Saturday afternoon was my first baby shower, given by my Aunt Paula and my sister, Allison. It was so much fun, and they did a beautiful job with the decorations (even though Paula had a minor meltdown about the cake, which had some pink icing on it). Lots of friends and family came to the shower, and it was so good to see everyone. We got so many nice things for Sprout, and I'm just overwhelmed with the generosity and love that everyone has shown us already. Here are a few pictures:

Me with the cake and the [gasp!] pink icing! I think it's adorable, and still gender-neutral.

One of our cousins, Gin, made this adorable sweater and bonnet set for Sprout. The buttons on the sweater are tiny bunnies! I thought I would die from the cuteness right there on the spot!

You might remember back a few months ago when I mentioned that I was thinking about doing a presentation at the Kentucky Mental Health Counselor's Association conference on how to support women through the experience of miscarriage, stillbirth, and infant loss. I just felt like after my loss people didn't know what to say or how to act around me. Many people said (and did) some very hurtful things, but I know that they didn't mean to be hurtful...they just didn't realize that what they were saying/doing would hurt so much. I knew that people would appreciate information on how best to support women through these life-changing events, but it's not really that easy to find the information.

Well...I did it! Sunday afternoon I traveled to Somerset because Monday morning I was scheduled to give my presentation. Surprisingly, I wasn't nervous about giving the presentation...I was more worried about hooking my laptop up to the projector so that the PowerPoint would work. (And after some technical difficulties, it finally did!). I had about 25 attendees, many of them familiar faces (either former instructors or coworkers). I was afraid that I might get choked up during the presentation, but I didn't. And you know what? I felt so at ease the whole time I was giving the presentation. I have to teach quite a bit for my job, but it seems like no matter how well I know the lecture material, I'm never quite comfortable enough to teach without notes. But on Monday, I didn't have anything. No notes, just the PowerPoint that hit the highlights of the presentation...and I felt really good about the information I gave. I gave them practical information about how to support women through the experience, some more detailed ideas about what therapists can do in sessions, and tons of online resources (since the people attending the conference were from all over the state). I'm by no means an authority on the subject, but I feel like from my experience, talking with other women, and some research, I gave worthwhile information to that group of people.

My presentation's description in the big program guide.

In fact, one gentleman came up to me after the presentation and said, "You know, I'm a hospital chaplain (at a small-town hospital), and nobody tells us how to deal with these situations. We don't know what to say or do, and we don't know what kinds of resources are available. This will help us so much." When he said that, I could have cried. I just think about the number of women whose experience might be changed because this man now has some information and resources. After my loss, I can remember telling David that I had to find a way to make something good come from something so horrible. Through this presentation, I think I've made a little bit of headway toward that goal. Now I'm just hoping that God will show me other ways I can make a difference.

Monday night (after the whirlwind trip to Somerset), we had our fifth Empowered Birth class, and this one was the best, by far. Monday's topic was medical interventions, and I would have gladly paid the $150 just for that class alone...that's how informative it was. When I got pregnant (both times), I entertained the idea of an unmedicated birth, but just wasn't sure if I have the fortitude to do it. That's probably the biggest reason why I wanted to take these classes...I wanted to know everything in order to make an informed decision. And now (especially after Monday night), I'm going to go for it. Please understand that I don't fault any woman who gets an epidural or any other type of pain medication. I just don't think that's what I want to do, after what I know now. I was so glad to get an email from my cousin Lindsey, who recently had an unmedicated birth with her daughter, Hazel. She gave me lots of encouragement and support about this decision, and I'm feeling really good about it. I know that there will probably be a point at which I feel like I can't do it, but this is something I really want to do. (And this is where I think my stubbornness will be an asset!) If any of you readers had an unmedicated birth and want to give encouragement, please leave me a comment. (And, not to be hateful, but if you had a bad birth experience, please don't leave me your horror story.)

On Tuesday, David and I went to an open house at a pediatrician's office in LaGrange. A good friend recommended this group to us, and I'm so glad we visited. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was impressed. They've got 8 doctors in the practice, and three are in the office on any given day. On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, they're open from 8am - 9pm. They have Saturday hours. They're 10 minutes from our house. I really liked the doctor, and all of the staff seemed very nice. I think we've found our pediatrician! (And what a relief that is, to have one more thing to mark off the list.)

And to end the world's longest blog post, the thing that I've been waiting over a year for! Last Spring, David and I bought a weeping cherry tree to plant in front of our house as a sort of memorial to our first baby. We didn't have the opportunity to get an ultrasound image of him/her, and I never felt him/her move, so there's just been this void...there was no tangible evidence that that child existed. I couldn't stand that, so we decided on this tree. When we got it, the blooms had already fallen off, and all that was left were the leaves. Then, we had such a drought that I was terrified that the tree wouldn't survive. But all of my fears were pushed aside this week, because it bloomed! And it's absolutely beautiful. I love seeing that tree outside my kitchen window, because it's a symbol of that little life that so quickly changed ours.

Isn't it beautiful? The necklace was given to me last Mother's Day by my sweet husband. The front has a heart on it that says "love," and it says "sweet little one" on the back. It's seriously one of my most prized possessions.

So...another busy week is in the books! Next week is shaping up to be a busy one, too. Two classes, a date night, and a night of teaching. Whew!

31 Weeks

It's time for another weekly update, and just for Mom, here's the weekly belly picture! This is 31 weeks, 3 days: Well, it's been another eventful week. We went back to the doctor on Monday morning for another checkup. Somehow I'd only gained a little over a pound in a month. I'm not sure how that happened, since I've pretty much been eating like a horse for the last month. I did get some crummy news, though. Nothing bad about Sprout...just an inconvenience for me, really. About a month ago, I took the 3-hour glucose tolerance test and passed. But on Monday, Dr. Basham told me that at my last two appointments, there was sugar in my urine, so she said that it's obvious that my body isn't processing sugar like it should. So...she said that even though I'm "not technically a gestational diabetic" I need to put the kibosh on the sugar for the duration of the pregnancy. It's been tough to adjust to, because I really have a sweet tooth. Before I got pregnant, I used Splenda a lot to keep my calorie count down. Once we started trying to get pregnant again, I quit using artificial sweeteners completely. That means I was using sugar, and probably more than I should. (I know that some artificial sweeteners are supposed to be okay during pregnancy, but I'm just really cautious about it.) So now, I've pretty much cut sweets out of the diet completely. That even means that I don't have my morning cup of decaf coffee anymore...because I just can't drink it black. Oh well...it's no big deal. If it'll keep Sprout healthy (and prevent him/her from getting too big!) I'll lay off the sugar for 9 more weeks. It'll be good for me.

Empowered Birth was great on Monday night. We talked about delivering the baby and the placenta, and it was such good information. Angela, our instructor, used to be an elementary school teacher, and I bet she was awesome at it. She does a wonderful job of using a wide variety of teaching methods to get her point across. Who would have thought that a balloon and some contact paper would perfectly illustrate how a woman's body expels the placenta?! We practiced various pushing positions, which I think will be super-helpful...if David and I can remember any of them when the time comes. I'll have to remember to put our binder in the hospital bag! I'm really looking forward to next week's class, because we'll be talking about medical interventions and how to be an advocate for yourself. She's already given us some good tips for communicating with medical professionals so that they'll see you as a rational person instead of an overprotective parent. I think we'll also be talking about writing a birth plan, which is something I've been giving a lot of thought to. I know that births don't usually go according to a plan, but I certainly plan to give the medical staff some guidelines for what we'd prefer in terms of our baby's birth.

We also had a hospital class this week...this one was led by a pediatrician and talked about newborn procedures, etc. It was really informative, too. We're going to an open house next Tuesday to meet with a group of pediatricians in LaGrange to see if that's where we'll be taking Sprout. This practice comes highly recommended, and it's really conveniently located, so I'm hoping that David and I both like them.

I've put the second coat of paint on Sprout's quote, and it's looking really good (especially if you're not too close to it). I'm debating on whether or not I can get by without putting a third coat on. Hopefully so.

Tomorrow is my first shower, and I'm super-excited. My aunt and sister are giving this shower, which will be friends and my side of the family. I have no idea how many people will be there, but it will be nice to see everyone. I've honestly been overwhelmed by the amount of love that people have already shown to little Sprout! It feels so good to know that so many people love our baby already. The poor kid will be so stinkin' spoiled that David and I won't be able to do anything with him or her! :)

In other news, I think we've FINALLY decided on names! Whew. What a relief. That's been stressing me out...but part of me thinks that there still might be a change if he/she doesn't "look" like the name we've picked. We'll just have to see!

We're Making Progress!

In my last weekly update, I panicked a little bit about all the stuff we still have left to do to get ready for Sprout's arrival at the beginning of June. I think it was a good panic though, because it really got me in gear. I had quite the productive weekend! I got the quote transferred to the wall, and painted the first coat on it. David hung the curtains, too, so now it's really starting to look like a finished room. There are still a few things to do, but I'm feeling much better. This is a shot of me painting the quote on the wall. I considered buying it in vinyl and applying it to the wall, but I knew that it would be much cheaper to paint it. The vinyl transfer was about $40, but I think I've probably got about 50 cents in the painted version (about 25 cents for the transparency, and about 25 cents for the paint). I just printed the quote onto a transparency, then used an overhead projector to project it onto the wall. Then, I outlined the words with pencil, then painted it with the same paint as the trim color in the room. The paintin is a pretty tedious process, because the words are so small, and the print font has a serif. It took about 2 hours and 45 minutes to get the words painted in on Saturday afternoon.

And this is what it looks like right now. It looks pretty good in the picture, but in real life, it definitely needs another coat. You can still see the wall color through the paint, and the edges are a little fuzzy. Hopefully it'll look more crisp after a second coat.

And here's a shot of one side of the room so far! I wasn't very happy with the curtains at first, but they're growing on me. They look a little bit too yellow in real life, but here, they look really nice.

And there's the other side of the room with the changing table and glider. Please excuse the stuff stacked on the changing table, and the gift bags in the corner. We're still working on storage solutions. We still need to put the curtains on the french doors, hang some shelves on the wall, and put some shelves in the closet. I think it's a doable list for the next few weeks!

30 Weeks

30 weeks! This is another one of those milestones that seems like a big deal. It means that if Sprout doesn't come early, he or she will be here in 10 weeks! That's 2 1/2 months! It's just still so hard to believe that we'll have a baby here before long!

And here's the weekly belly shot. This was taken on Wednesday, when I was 30 weeks and 3 days. I don't look great in it...mostly due to the fact that I'd taken a walk on my lunchbreak and was very windblown and hot! This is the shirt I wore in my 27 week update...I wanted to see how much difference there was in belly size. I don't think there's a lot of difference, though. I had to put the two pictures side-by-side to be able to tell the difference, and it's not all that noticeable. You can tell that the shirt is stretched a little tighter this week, though. :) I have felt a lot bigger this week, that's for sure. And on Sunday morning at church, Mom said she thought my belly had gotten a lot bigger from the previous week. I guess there's definitely been some growth, but I think it mostly has to do with what I'm wearing. I was told by a stranger on Wednesday (when this picture was taken) that I looked really small...so I don't know! I just know that it's getting harder and harder to get up off the floor, and I'm less comfortable sitting on the couch or laying in bed!

In other news, between last week's post and this post, I turned 30! Yikes! I am a planner by nature...I love to plan things out to the most minute detail. For the longest time, I've had my life planned out. I was going to get married at age 23, have a baby by 25 or 26, and probably be done with having kids by age 30. Of course, my plan didn't exactly work out. David and I got married when we were 25, so I revised my plan...I decided we'd have our first baby by the time I was 29. Well...that didn't work out either. (I seem to have a hard time forgetting that things have to happen in His time, not mine!) So here I am, at age 30, expecting our first baby. I'll be completely honest and say that I've had more than one meltdown about being an "old mom". I've never wanted to be an "old mom" and I'm trying to embrace the fact that when my baby is 10, I'll be 40; when he/she is 20, I'll be 50; when he/she is 30, I'll be 60, etc. I have decided, though, that I guess I am quite a bit wiser than I was at 25 or 26...and certainly not as naive, so that will surely work out to my benefit raising this little one!

We had our third Empowered Birth class this Monday night, and I'm really enjoying the classes. I think they've definitely been well worth the money spent. This week, we talked about the progression of labor, how to know what stage of labor you're in, how to cope with pain during each stage, positions for laboring, comfort measures during labor, and the procedures to expect in the hospital upon check-in. It was very informative! We really thought David was going to have his burning question answered this week ("When do I take you to the hospital?!"), but I don't think it was answered to his satisfaction. Angela's answer was this, in a nutshell: "Well, that's pretty much up to you all. My advice is to labor at home for as long as possible. If you get there too early, you're much more likely to end up with a c-section. But if you're still at home, and she's saying, 'I'm done with this...I can't do it anymore!' then you should probably have already gotten to the hospital." Nope...not the answer David was looking for! :)

We've got plans to have maternity pictures taken this weekend by Kristin Sexton. I'm looking forward to not only having the pictures done, but also the opportunity to spend some time with Kristin and her husband, Benson. They're wonderful people, and it's always a pleasure to see them!

Sprout's been pretty busy this week. Right now, he's rolling and tumbling in my belly. I think he enjoyed the Mexican food and DQ blizzard I had tonight! I can tell that he/she is getting bigger. There are times when I can feel little body parts through my belly. I can never tell if it's a head, elbow, knee, foot, hand, or rear end, but I love to feel it! It's incredible to know that there's really just a bit of skin, fat, and muscle separating us...and that in a few months, there'll be nothing to separate us! I wonder a lot about what he/she looks like. I've mentioned several times that I'm convinced Sprout's a boy. I love to picture him. I'm hoping he has a full head of dark hair, and his daddy's olive skin. But in the end, it doesn't matter. Sprout might be a bald, pale, little girl, and I'll love her just the same!

Tonight I had dinner with two good friends, and we had a great time! They've both got two kiddos each, so they've been giving me lots of good advice and encouragement about this whole motherhood thing. Except tonight when Leslie reminded me just how close we are to Sprout's due date...that thought honestly made me a little queasy! I can't wait for Sprout to be here, but at this moment, we're just not ready. At least we're not ready physically...we've got to get it in gear around here. There are curtains to hang, quotes to paint on the wall, shelves to build in the closet, and organizing to be done. Ack! But Leslie and Carrie reassured me that it'll get done, and if it's not, it's really no big deal.

We have our next doctor's appointment on Monday morning, and I hope Dr. Basham is ready for lots of questions. At almost 31 weeks, I've decided that this is really happening, so it's time to get some questions answered!

29 Weeks

Thankfully, this week has been much less eventful than last week! I don't think I have enough stamina for another super-busy week. My semester at work is winding down (at least my responsibilities with teaching, anyway), so that helps a lot. It's also a relief to know that I won't really have that many responsibilities at the beginning of the summer semester, either...since I'll be on maternity leave for the majority of that one! I'm ready for some time to relax before Sprout gets here!
Here's the latest belly picture...this was taken at 29 weeks, 3 days. I don't really feel like my belly is getting that much bigger from week to week, but it must be, because my belly button is sticking out more and more!

We met again on Monday night for our Empowered Birth class. I'm really enjoying the class, and I think that it's definitely well worth the money spent. Angela does such a great job of presenting the material, and I know that I've learned a lot already, just in the last two weeks. I'm looking forward to future classes. This week, we talked about what happens (physically) during labor, and next week, I think we'll learn more about positions for labor. We didn't have another crunchy-granola relaxation session this week, and I know David was relieved about that!

On Monday and for most of Tuesday, I had tons of Braxton-Hicks contractions. It seemed like every single time I stood up/got up, I had one, and I had lots of random ones in between. On Tuesday morning, I pretty much felt like I was just having one looooooong contraction. They didn't hurt at all, but it there were a lot more than I'd ever experienced in that short of a time frame. I also hadn't been feeling Sprout move very much over those two days. And it didn't help that the previous week in our childbirth class we'd talked about signs of premature labor. So on Tuesday afternoon, I was "that crazy pregnant lady" and called the doctor's office. I spoke with a nurse who listened to me patiently and assured me that what I was telling her sounded very normal for a woman who is 29 weeks pregnant. She asked me to drink more water and to take it a little easy. She also told mIe that as long as I was feeling some kind of movement every hour, then things were probably okay, but that if I went an hour with no movement, to call them back. Luckily, after I had lunch, guzzled water, and stayed off my feet for awhile, things started to get back to normal. The rest of this week, Sprout has been his/her normal busy self, and I've had very few of those BH contractions. I guess it was just one of those things I'll have to get used to in these last months of pregnancy. But I don't feel badly for calling the doctor...I'd rather call and let them think I'm crazy, than not call and have something bad happen.

One of the best things about this week has been the fact that I'm sleeping so much better! I guess my body has finally adapted to side sleeping! It seems like now I'm only waking up once a night, if that. It's made such a difference in how I feel during the day!

The only other excitement we've had this week has been the addition of the glider to the nursery. It's really starting to come together now. I still need to get curtains, French door curtains, shelving, storage, and paint the quote over the crib, but it's feeling much more doable. I'll try to remember to take some pictures to post soon.

28 Weeks

Whew! It's been an exciting week to be a pregnant lady! First off, I'm now 28 weeks pregnant...and that means I'm in my third trimester. What?! How has this happened? I am really struggling to realize that in less than three months, we'll have a baby here. In this house. Living here. Relying on us for everything. Wow. I vascillate between being incredibly excited and incredibly terrified. I have no experience with babies. Pretty much zero. I'm hoping that the "maternal instinct" that everyone talks about is something real, because I need it. I've been reading the books, but there's just so much to remember and think about. My goodness...
Anyway, here's the pregnant belly picture of the week. David took it tonight after I got home from work...I'm 28 weeks, 4 days pregnant. Isn't this a cute little dress? Thanks to my stepsister, Michelle, I have a ton of maternity shirts/dresses. Her baby, Lia, was born a few weeks ago, so she sent over a huge bag of maternity clothes. Unfortunately, I can't get my leg into any of the pants (Michelle is tiny!), but the shirts and dresses fit nicely. I'm not sure I'll have to wear a shirt more than one time over the next 13 weeks!

Monday night, David and I went to our first of seven Empowered Birth classes. I've been looking forward to these classes since we signed up several months ago, but David hasn't been too excited about it. In the few days before the class met, he asked me no less than 12 times, "What do you think this is going to be like?" And each time, my reply was, "I have no idea. I've done this exactly as many times as you have." His main concern is finding out when we need to leave to go to the hospital! I think once Angela (our instructor) answers that question, he'll feel much better. Anyway, I really enjoyed the class. There were about 9 other couples there, and (most) everyone seems pretty nice and easy to get along with. I really like Angela, and I definitely think this will be money well spent. I would really like to experience natural childbirth, but I'm not sure I have it in me. I'm a real wuss. I've never had a broken bone, I've never had stitches...I don't know what real pain feels like. I'm interested in learning how to manage pain and how to be an advocate for myself while I'm at the hospital. As I've mentioned before, I'd like to avoid a c-section at all costs, so I feel like learning how to advocate for myself would be helpful to that end. David and I were both worried that the class would be a little too "crunchy granola" for our tastes, but it went really well...until the end. We had to do some relaxation exercises together, and it was just not our style. First of all, I was physically uncomfortable through the entire thing. My head hurt, my back hurt, my hips hurt like crazy...obviously I was doing something wrong. It wasn't relaxing at all. And David's massage? It felt more like he was petting our dog, Nestle, than massaging my legs. I couldn't help but crack up through the whole thing...we were probably a little disruptive to the other, more focused, students! I'm excited about our second class next Monday...and I have to remember that we've got homework to do!

Last week, I mentioned that I'd failed my 1-hour glucose challenge test. That meant that on Tuesday morning, I had to report to the hospital for the 3-hour glucose tolerance test. I got to the hospital at 7:25am for my 7:30 appointment. They finally checked me in at 8:21. At 9:00, they took me to the lab for the first blood draw for a baseline reading. Then, the phlebotomist gave me a huge glass of the orange syrup and told me I had 5 minutes to drink it all. I swear, there had to be 12 ounces of the stuff there. I briefly considered chugging it, like I did the 5 ounces for the 1-hour test, but decided I couldn't do it. I took regular sips, while chatting to the phlebotomist. I don't think she was interested in small talk, because she just kept saying, "You have 3 minutes," then, "You have 2 minutes, " then, "You have 25 seconds." At the 25 second mark, I bet I still had a good 4 ounces left, and I did chug it. Then I'm pretty sure I turned green, and I wanted to throw up. She looked at me and said, "If you throw that up, you'll have to redo the whole test again on another day." So I managed to keep it down and settled into the waiting room. I had blood drawn from the same arm 3 more times that day (at one hour intervals) before they finally let me go at a little after noon. I was starving and I was so thirsty (I hadn't been allowed to eat or drink since 10pm the night before)! I wasn't a great experience, but I refuse to complain. I'd do anything to make sure Sprout is healthy and strong, so if drinking orange sludge and getting blood drawn is the worst there is, then I'm happy to do it. Anyway, today I found out that I passed the test, so I don't have gestational diabetes! What a relief!

Yesterday, I took the day off work and went to Louisville with my mom and my friend, Leslie to do our registry. It was a lot of fun, and it was seriously overwhelming. Leslie has two kiddos...Hannah is 4 and Noah just turned 1. She's a veteran mom, so I knew we'd need her help. If it weren't for her, Mom and I would still be standing in the middle of Babies 'R Us, staring glassy-eyed at the wall o' bottles! Leslie was a lifesaver, for sure. She took strollers down from displays and showed us how they folded, gave me her insights on what it's really like to get up at 2 am to feed a baby who's howling in the pack 'n play, and was just generally a wealth of knowledge. Mom kept saying, "We just didn't have all this stuff when you all were little! There were two kinds of bottles. I just had a little umbrella stroller. My breast pump was really just a 'milking machine'." It was a great experience to spend the day with them!

Tonight, the Practicum I class I'm teaching met for our monthly group supervision. And my students were up to something...I could tell. It turns out that they had planned a surprise shower for me...after I asked them not to! They brought tons of food, a super-cute cake, and they gave us several gifts. They really went over the top, but I hope they know that we certainly appreciate their thoughtfulness. They gave us lots of cute things (bibs, burp cloths, hats), and I think we'll be set on baby wipes for quite some time! It's so nice to know that Sprout is already so loved by so many people!

I hope next week isn't as eventful as this one, as much as I've enjoyed this week. I don't think this ol' pregnant lady could handle too much more in one week!

You Can't Make This Stuff Up...

Today, I learned that I failed my 1 hour glucose challenge test, which means that I have to do the 3 hour glucose tolerance test to determine whether or not I have gestational diabetes. I got this information just hours after I had entered a contest to win a case of Twinkies. With the way my luck goes, I'll have gestational diabetes and win the Twinkies. *sigh*