Trashboat

Obviously, this post contains graphic commentary on childbirth, breastfeeding, and other bodily functions. :)

( Fiona's Birthday )

Everything is still going great. I've gained 14 pounds, my blood pressure is good, and no signs of preeclampsia. Whoooooooo!

He checked my cervix and not much going on down there. LOL Boy, is it not fun having your cervix checked. I've been all crampy and contractiony ever since.

In the last week and a half, I suddenly feel terribly uncomfortable. I cannot breathe. I have indigestion and possibly heartburn (it's hard to say as I have never had heartburn before, and this isn't so much a burny sensation as a feeling that I have a constant burp in my throat and am so full, if that makes any sense). I am as exhausted as I was in the first trimester. I have slowed waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down. I am a waddler. LOL I don't remember any of this from being pregnant with Emma. I think Ems was a much smaller baby, though, and as I was on bedrest at this point in that pregnancy, I guess I didn't really have much opportunity for waddling.

I can wear my swimsuit from last summer! I am so stoked. I am about to hit the pool and stay in it until Fiona is born. My enormous belly will brown in the sunlight. It will be glorious.

The nursery is so close, so close--just piddly shit left to get ready really (a shelf to put up, art to hang on the walls. No biggie.). I feel this overwhelming urge to GET THE ROOM PERFECTLY READY OMG! and then I go in there and just kinda stand around all indecisively. LOL

Next appt in two weeks.

I went to the doctor again this Tuesday and saw my actual doctor instead of the nurse practitioner. My next appointment is in three weeks, and I'm super pleased. I felt like the NP was being a bit hyper-vigilant by having me come in so often, and I'm glad he eased up the schedule of my visits.

My blood pressure was fine with no protein in my urine. Whoooo!

Every other time I've been to the doctor it's been in the morning and I haven't eaten. This doctor's visit was directly after I went to the lab to do the one hour glucose test and I had just eaten a pretty big lunch because I was starving. So I feel like my weight is a bit off this visit because of that LOL but according to their measurements, I've gained 13 lbs at this point which is still really great.

We got another bookshelf and I was able to clean out some things from the closet in Fiona's room. The last major hurdle in there is to get the closet functional, and that will happen when Mom and Dad come to visit in April.

Fiona is super active. She's pretty much constantly kicking and squirming and rolling around. It feels deeply weird and sometimes horrible. LOL I don't remember Ems being this active, but that was roughly a million years ago, so who knows? At least she doesn't do it at night; she doesn't keep me awake with her movement, so that's a good thing.

Other than that, nothing much else to report. :)

I hear that Prince William and Kate are also having a girl. They better keep their mitts off Fiona; a British colleague tells me it's a very posh name by English standards, and what could be be posher than Princess Fiona? LOL

We are going to Ikea tomorrow to get the first round of furniture. I am so excited. My friend J has already made her trip to get two cribs for her impending twins. I went over today to see them put together; they're much lower to the ground than the cribs they used to make (probably because the formerly-ubiquitous drop side is now illegal), but I think I actually like that. You don't have to awkwardly reach over with a railing pressing into your boobs when you lift the baby out, and when the baby is ready for a toddler bed, you just take the side completely off, and it's a fancy little toddler daybed. The only downside is that you cannot store anything under the crib. I find that a bit annoying but not a deal-breaker. I will get some photos up once we make progress on putting the furniture together. I'll post some of Emma's room as well. We moved some furniture from the guest room into Emma's room and took down the nursery border that's been in there since we moved in. It looks really nice.

I am so excited about getting ready for the baby. Josh has been so good about indulging all my little projects: let's clean out from under the beds! let's move this furniture! Even though we're not making a true nursery, I'm thrilled to be turning Fiona's room into a room with grown-up furniture. LOL

J also had a really bad experience with trying to breastfeed, but I think she's decided to try exclusively pumping as well. I think we'll be able to help and support each other, which is really crucial with breastfeeding. I could just strangle every medical professional who dealt with me during my pregnancy and the aftermath who gave me no help or advice with breastfeeding. It's so clear in retrospect exactly what went wrong on the first go-round, and the problems I had were so easily avoidable. I'm going to order Exclusively Pumping on Amazon and continue doing research, and I think I will be able to successfully feed Fiona breast milk (hopefully until it's time to wean her). It's not so much all the quasi-divine properties associated with breast milk that interest me (after all, Emma only got breast milk for five weeks, and she is pretty much the smartest, most awesomest kid of ever IMHO); it's more that breast milk is freeeeeeeeeeeeeee and formula is expensive, and if I can, I want to feed Fiona free food! LOL If I give it an honest go, and I can't breastfeed, I'm not going to beat myself up about it though. I know that feeding babies formula doesn't make them stupid or sick, and I will wash my hands instantly of any guilt, anxiety, or regret.

I have my schedule for the fall, and I am so grateful to my supervisors for working with me and giving me basically the best schedule I could have asked for. I will be teaching two full-session online classes and two session two classes that start at midterm. The session two classes meet every day for an hour and fifteen minutes at 12:30 and 2:00. This means I won't have to put Fiona in daycare until October, and it also means that she won't have to go full days except on rare occasions, and I won't have to get up at ass o'clock in the morning to take her to daycare and then teach an 8:00. I don't know how my office hours will work for the first half of the semester; I know I will probably need to be available during late registration, and obviously to attend any committee meetings, etc., but I hope that I can conduct office hours exclusively online for the first half of the semester since I'll only be teaching online and then start keeping face to face office hours at midterm when the second session courses start. I am so happy that I don't have to take any maternity leave.

I had my 20 week visit on Monday. Everything was perfect. I've gained 2.5 lbs (one pound of which is Trashboat). My blood pressure was 136/73, so no signs of preeclampsia. Trashboat had no apparent physical defects or other problems, and she's measuring at a little more than 21 weeks, so she will probably be a big baby!

I'm a little astonished that I've only gained 2.5 lbs, but it's clearly not a problem as Trashboat's measurements are perfectly fine and she weighs just what she should.

The ultrasound was fascinating. That technology has really come a long way since I was pregnant with Emma. It was much easier for me to discern the image than it was ten years ago. The second the technician put the device on my belly, she said, "We have a girl!" as Trashboat was very considerately flashing us her lady bits. :) Trashboat was kicking her legs and waving her arms, and at one point, she looked like she was sucking her thumb.

I started being able to feel little flutters of movement around 18 weeks, maybe a little before, but watching her go to town on the ultrasound made it quite apparent just how much movement she's making that I don't feel. It seems that every day, though, I feel movement more frequently and strongly; I'm sure I'll be quite tired of that pretty quick like here.

My mood has kinda taken a hit recently. I've noticed that I've been irritable the past few days, and I'm not sure if that's because I spent the weekend staying up past my bedtime and going too long in between meals or a hormone surge or what. LOL

Basically, Trashboat progresses along in textbook health (as do I), and now all we have to do is agree on her name which is proving a little more difficult than I had anticipated, but we do have time to decide. :)

ETA: I put the ultrasound pictures in a private post because I just realized they have my full name splashed all across them. *headdesk* I'll see if I can edit that out.

I had my second doctor's appointment today. I've lost three pounds which is fantastic (and surprising LOL). I'm so glad I haven't gained weight yet; I know that I don't need to gain a substantial amount of weight to sustain this pregnancy, and most of the weight gain should come at the end, so score one for me!

My blood pressure was a little elevated, but I don't know if that's white coat syndrome or if it's really starting to elevate. *shrugs* The doc didn't seem worried.

I had a moment of panic when they fumbled around for awhile trying to find the baby's heartbeat, but eventually they found it over to the left side instead of in the middle, and the doctor said the heartbeat sounded just great.

I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop or someone to pull the rug out from under me, but other than exhaustion, headaches, breast tenderness, congestion, and trouble sleeping, I really don't have any pregnancy symptoms. I can easily forget that I am pregnant for long stretches at a time. Before this pregnancy, I never understood how people could be pregnant for months and just not know, but if being pregnant can be like this, I kinda get it. I mean, I could see somebody being stressed (headaches! exhaustion! trouble sleeping) and thinking they have some lingering cold and not even realizing they're pregnant. Of course, I still don't understand how you get to the point where the baby is moving around and not realize that Something is Different. LOL

But, I can't believe this has been this easy. It worries me. Naturally.

Doctor gave me the thumbs up on everything, so I'm just sitting tight until the next appointment which is for Jan. 2 at 15 weeks. I imagine that'll be a repeat of the same unless something changes between now and then. I did have them check my thyroid just because mom's crapped out in her early thirties after two pregnancies, and I have been cold. I NEVER EVER get cold. I am by nature a hot and sweaty individual, and pregnancy is by nature a hot and sweaty enterprise as the increased blood volume tends to make you warmer. But I have been cold ever since I got pregnant, like long pants with socks with a tank top and a long sleeved shirt and sometimes a robe and under a blanket kinda cold. IN SEPTEMBER, MIND YOU (which in the South is essentially July LOL). So, worth checking out.

I am very impressed with this practice. I did not wait more than ten minutes in the waiting room for either appointment; both started on time, and I was not left to languish in an examination room either time.

Emma and I had some good bonding time today. We went to Michael's and picked out crafts for her birthday party. I had the grand idea that if all of the birthday party is regimented activity time, nobody has any time to argue. So we are making cookies--sugar cookies with several different kinds of sprinkles and icing to be piped on, and I got little tins for the girls to take some home--and several different Christmas ornament craft things, and these little wooden boxes they can paint and bejewel. We're having a wii bowling tournament, and playing at least one board game and going to the Mexican restaurant for tacos, so that sounds like a full evening to me. It was good to hang out with her and focus on her; I definitely want her to understand that Trashboat is not supplanting her in our affections at all.

Final bit of miscellany: Trashboat is the size of a lime!

We told my parents about the baby last week, and we're telling Josh's parents tomorrow, so I'll post about the reveal (with pictures!) later this week.

I'll be 9 weeks on Monday, and while I am starting to feel a little queasier from time to time, my main physical symptom is exhaustion. Sunday morning, I woke up with a terrible cold that I still haven't quite kicked; I'm sure that's contributing to the fatigue (and the nausea; bleck). I went to bed at 9 on Thursday night (after dozing on the couch for an hour) and slept for fourteen hours in a row. And I was ready to go back to bed again at ten the next night. *headdesk*

My knee has stopped the uber!ache and is back to just the normal level of chronic pain I always experience, so that's awesome.

Weirdly, the pregnancy seems to have activated an occurrence of psoriasis. Ever since I was a teen, I've periodically had bouts of psoriasis; fortunately, it has always been confined to my scalp where no one can see and is very, very mild. I haven't had a case in years, but the pregnancy has seen fit to gift me with some. LOL I need to get some shampoo to treat it, but even untreated, it's not terribly bothersome.

Work life continues to be so stressful for both me and Josh that sometimes I think we must be a few taters short of a bushel to even consider adding an additional source of stress to our lives. LOL

Emma has been acting out a wee bit, precipitated I think by my parents' visit and their excitement over the new baby. Also because puberty looms over the horizon like a giant looming thing. We had a talk, though, where she basically admitted that she's feeling insecure, and I think if Josh and I continually reassure her and validate her place in our lives, the acting out will be minimal.

So, it's officially official. LOL

Test results indicate that as of 10-16, I am indeed pregnant, and my hCG level at that time was 387. Internet tells me this is within normal levels, possibly on the higher end. Whooooooooooo!

So, I took a pregnancy test today at lunch and got a faint second pink line. Because I am an impatient freak, I took a test yesterday, too, and got bupkis on that one, so I'm thinking this is the real deal and not a test error. I am pregnant, I tentatively squee! LOL I am going to take another test in the morning with my super-steeped-in-hCG pee and see if I can get more declarative results. :)

Pregnancy tests don't work until after implantation happens (which occurs 7-9 days after fertilization), so this makes perfect sense for my cycle. I ovulated on 9/30 and probably got pregnant anywhere from the wee hours of the morning on 10/01 to a more respectable time on 10/04.

In less exciting news, Josh and I started exercising again two days ago. I weigh 196 lbs. It took me exactly a year (April 2011-April 2012) to lose 16 lbs and only a little over 4 months to put it back on. And this was a year of pretty intense daily exercise (not a lot of diet modification, though, I will admit). I guess that somewhere in the back of my mind, a very foolish part of me has been thinking that one day I'll reach this goal weight and then I can just stop exercising or something. Maybe not stop entirely but certainly slack off. And now it's been made abundantly clear to me that in order to lose and keep off weight, exercise will have to be a daily part of my life . . . FOREVER! *cue dramatic music* /Lorraine totally missing the obvious *headdesk*

Things to do:

1. Go to daycare and pay confirmation fee; once I have my fall schedule, set a day for daycare to begin

2. Add a new dependent to our life insurance

3. Add new dependent to any documents for work/tax purposes

4. Add new dependent to wills

20. Better way to store my sheets and my table linens.

Already have:

1. Front/back baby carrier
2. Baby journal
3. 2816 wipes
4. one box + 132 newborn diapers; 224 size 1 diapers
5. safety kit containing thermometer and covers, aspirator, medicine dispenser, infant gum/toothbrush
6. three pacifiers
7. two pacifier holders
10. countless cloth bibs
11. 2 gowns and a sleep sack
12. silicone bib
13. diaper rash cream
14. baby wash, shampoo, etc.
15. mittens
16. diaper genie
17. mylicon drops, infant tylenol
18. four crib sheets
19. Boppy J
20. co-sleeper/bassinet J
21. bumbo seat and tray J
22. infant car seat with two bases and cover J
23. more clothes than one child can ever wear LOL J
24. bottle tray and brush J
25. one waterproof mattress pad J
26. breastpump and accoutrement J
27. breastfeeding cover J
28. play mat J
29. bottle brush
30. 50 milk storage bags
31. lansinoh cream
33. 3 bottles
34. noise machine
35. 3 nursing bras
36. nightlight
37. bathtub J
38. bouncer seat J
39. exasaucer J
40. car sunshade
41. stroller J

blankets
burp cloths

Need to purchase
Headboard (Hemnes full 179)
waterproof mattress covers
High Chair (http://www.diapers.com/p/fisher-price-mocha-butterfly-space-saver-high-chair-154484)
comb or brush
nail clippers
child view mirror
Breast pump (double; possibly on loan from hospital)
Bottles
baby monitor