24 week update

I can't believe 2nd trimester has flown by so quickly. I'm 24 weeks this week (24 weeks, 3 days today).

Back at the beginning of this pregnancy (~21 weeks ago), I thought this point seemed *so* far away. The point where I'd be done with appointments every four weeks, and be going every two. The point where I was getting ready to take my GD test. The point where our furniture would be delivered, or where we'd decide on names. The point where I'd finally be showing so the world wouldn't think I had just eaten too much. The point that we're almost done with childbirth classes. You know, the I'm-a-crazy-planner-so-technically-all-the-pre-baby-necessities-are-taken-care-of point.

Yet here we are. Crazy!

We had our 24-week midwife visit this week, and I'm measuring right on track. Fundal height is 24cm, which is right where it should be. I'm up 19 pounds (oops), but the midwives think it's on track, even if I gain another pound every week until the end. Baby's heart rate seems to stay between 135 and 145 every time it's checked, and s/he is moving around like a kickboxer throughout the day. My next appointment at 28 weeks will include my GD test and the start of every-other-week appointments (until 36 weeks).

I'm feeling great. Very little swelling (even with 95+ degree days), no constipation, less heartburn than I've ever had in my adult life...really I have no complaints right now. Of course, you could probably guess that my sleep is interrupted with frequent pee breaks, but when I'm not up to pee, I'm sleeping. I started acupuncture again this week, and my acupuncturist wants to see me again in 8-12 weeks, depending on how I'm feeling. At that point, we'll come up with an induction plan for once I'm full-term. In the meantime, she prescribed massages every 3-4 weeks, and chiropractic appointments to make sure everything's aligned (and stays that way).

Baby's furniture is being delivered tomorrow morning. I can't wait! We already have the co-sleeper and crib, and tomorrow our glider and dresser arrive. We've narrowed down our names list to two girl options and one boy option. Since we both think we're having a boy, we made sure we LOVE our boy name. We love both of our girl names, so we're keeping all three close to our chests so we can recycle the names for the next baby.

I think that's it for now! I hope I'll get the nursery a little closer to being finished in time for my next post so you all can see pictures!

I've Been MIA--Updates Galore!

I have to apologize for being MIA over the past few weeks. Work has been nuts, and I've been running around nonstop trying to get stuff done at home too (in between work travel and personal travel). It's been overwhelming at times. So I'll get you updated, and now that I have a new laptop, I'll be updating you far more often :)

Baby is doing great! I'm 16 weeks, 5 days today. We had our 15 week appointment two weeks ago, and talked about nutrition (I'm doing well but need to eat more veggies), the midwife answered some questions we had, and then we got to hear the heartbeat again (150's). Our anatomy scan is scheduled for April 20, at 8am. We're still team green, but are looking very forward to seeing Magnolia Bud v2.0 again. Especially because it may be our last ultrasound until we meet him or her in September if everything continues to go well. I am starting to get concerned that the ultrasound will show a shorter cervical length than we'd like, because my LEEP was still less than a year ago. But there's nothing we can do about it between now and the ultrasound, so I'm trying not to think about it and not to worry.

We've been thinking about working on our registries, so after our 15 week appointment, we went to the birth center's store and tried on some baby carriers. We both loved the Moby, and even Mr. Magnolia Bud was able to get it tied properly after one try. We also loved the Ergo, and think those two will work well for our family. We're going to be spending some serious time working on the registry this week and next week.

Around the house, Mr. MB has started painting the baby's room. We chose Sherwin Williams 6764, Swimming, as the wall color, and are leaving the trim and ceiling white. The first coat is done, and Mr. MB will finish the second coat later this week when I'm out of town. He's also going to be painting our bathroom and the guest room while I'm out of town--so all we'll have left before MB2.0 gets here is our room, the hallway, MB2.0's bathroom, and our fourth bedroom. Haha, now that it's in writing, it sure seems like a lot!

In terms of baby gear, I told you a while back that we bought our co-sleeper, right? Mr. MB set it up in our room to see how it looks, and it's become a permanent sleeping place for one of our cats. Our room is huge--stretches across the entire front of our house, and it doesn't have much in it but our bed and nightstands--so the co-sleeper isn't in the way. Knowing that, we're just going to keep it up for now. We're borrowing a crib from our best friends, and Mr. MB set that up in the baby's room to make sure all the parts were there and get it cleaned.

We set a date for one of my showers--Mr. MB's family is throwing us one on July 31, when I'll be 33 weeks. My mother in law is so excited about anything baby--it's really cute. She's already called all of her friends to tell them to save the date, and she's going to be sending out invites at the end of next month. I don't think my mom is throwing us one anymore, which is fine with us--I'd much rather her put her effort into one great one for my sister, since she's only having one.

Otherwise, I'm feeling great. I have my energy back, the weather is great (70's-80's and sunny most days), my job is overwhelming but I'm doing fairly well at it, and I can eat again. I've started gaining weight (up 5lbs from pre-pregnancy), my nutrition is on track, and we've started reading childbirth books. Our birth classes (8-week series at the birth center) start May 2, and will be every Monday night from 7:30-10pm. We also signed up for a breastfeeding class at the birth center on September 1, and a Baby Care Basics class at the Women's Hospital near our house in July.

Hope you're all doing well! I'm loving reading about all of my fellow Buds' journeys.
Lots of love, Magnolia Bud

It's ALIVE!

I'm very happy to tell you all that todays ultrasound went well. Not only was there a heartbeat (cue my exhaling for the first time in weeks), but Baby Cactus Bud was wiggling all around too. It doesn't show in the picture very well, but at different points during the scan I could see all four limbs, the spine, even a hand that seemed to be going to the face. It was really surreal to see the image on the screen. I seriously could've watched it all day.

This is the third different doctor I've been to for this pregnancy, not counting the ER trip. Thankfully from now on (hopefully) I'll be going to the same building with the same 'team'. I'd like to try and get the same doctor if I can as I liked her, but I'd like to meet them all since I don't know who'll be delivering when the time comes. With the change in doctor came a change in my due date. Again. I'm now back to October 15th, the date that comes up if you go by my last menstrual period. October 15th is also exactly what the baby was measuring, 11w5d.

The bulk of the appointment was going over my history. I'm happy to say that not only did the doctor have a clue about my history, but the nurse that weighed me in did too. I was totally expecting to have to tell them about the miscarriage, it was nice to only have to add on how far along I was at the time.

After the history was done, they tried to do an annual exam. I had one at my civilian doctors in January...but they don't have access to the records. Whatever. The ultrasound was going to be vaginal anyways, so I knew I was already going to spot. If you *need* to do a pap, knock yourself out. I warned them that I think I have a sensitive cervix and that I was pretty sure it would bleed with that...but they wanted to try. Lets just say that the doctors reaction to how sensitive my cervix is involved the word "Wow". She ended up throwing in the towel on the pap smear (so much blood it would come back inconclusive from the lab) and gave me paperwork for my medical records to be sent to them. Ha! Told ya! I've now been officially diagnosed as having a 'very sensitive cervix'. As much as it sucks to know I'll be spotting pretty bad in the next day or so, I'm pretty happy that they came to the same conclusion I did about the spotting and that its nothing that will threaten the pregnancy. Unfortunately, she says I'm stuck with it for the duration of the pregnancy. Kind of a bummer, but I'll take it in a heartbeat if it means a baby in the end.

I asked the doctor how my heart-shaped uterus will play into things moving forward. She said that with anatomy like mine, the trick is usually getting pregnant. This surprised me as I seem to get pregnant pretty easily (50% of the months we tried), its staying pregnant that is more challenging for me. From what she said it didn't sound like she anticipates my having higher chances for early delivery or a c-section. Very good news.

She said all my bloodwork came back normal (at the first appointment they took A LOT of blood and a urine sample). I was sent for another blood draw today, this one to go with the NT scan which is next week.

I ended up having a job interview this afternoon, so my shopping spree for clothes that actually fit had to be put off till tomorrow. Looking forward to it more than I thought I would. I'll also likely be pulling the trigger on a home doppler soon too. I figure it will ease my worries in the month between doctor visits and will come in handy at the end of the pregnancy when the kid can't move much.

My next appointment is April 7th for the NT scan. The next regular appointment I have is May 9th. That will just be a doppler check and Q&A time.

Week 11 and 12 Update: The end is in sight! Of 1st Tri, that is

Oh dear. My internet was down all last week and part of the week before, which means I came back to miles of Bloomin' Babies updates and one, two, three new Buds! Welcome, ladies!

Life has been interesting in the Cherry Bud household. As I said before, I lost my job recently, but was able to find another, which I will be starting as soon as my fingerprint reports get back. Until then, unemployment benefits are helping to pick up the proverbial tab.

In baby news:

- Morning sickness is slowly going away, though I've been having inexplicable cravings for bologna sandwiches, which I had to get past the lunch meat detecting skills of Mr. CB, aka the "Things You Can't Eat While Pregnant" Nazi. I asked my doctor about lunch meat this week and was happy to have him tell Mr. CB and me that, as long as it's packaged, I can chow down.

- The crazy pregnancy dreams have begun in earnest. Poor Mr. CB is getting woken up pretty much every night with me saying things like "I don't want to marry anyone else" and "No one is coming to get us?"

- I have had my first and second belly rub, both from the same woman, who is really quite sweet on a normal basis. It's much more obnoxious and off-putting than I would have guessed, especially when I know that Puggle (Oh! We've named the baby Puggle temporarily.) is sitting a good bit lower down than my stomach, and what bump I have is mostly from the obscene amount of food I've been eating. Also, it's just weird to have people touch your stomach.

- We had our second appointment yesterday. The long and short of that is that, despite some minor cramping this weekend, my body is handling the pregnancy beautifully (YAY), and we have a baby who would rather you didn't poke shim (Yes, shim. It's Futurama reference. Don't worry about it) with a doppler, thank you very much. I should note, there is nothing, I repeat, nothing scarier than a nurse pressing a doppler to your womb while a look of consternation plays over her face and neither of you hears anything but static. S/he was moving around a LOT, but in the end, we cornered Puggle at the bottom of my uterus and got to hear a heartbeat at a healthy, if quite fast, 163 bpm.

- We are trying to decide on a natural childbirth method. We've heard good things about Bradley and Hypnobabies, so I suppose we'll have to see.

- I could not be happier that, as of next Monday, we are officially out of 1st Tri. I tested so early, so this trimester has seemed to just creep by, and I will be excited to find out if the rumors of no sickness and more energy are true or just an elaborate hoax to lull me into a sense of false security.

Until next time,

First Ultrasound, Birth Center Tour, and First Fluff Mail!

I have to apologize in advance, this is going to get long! So grab a snack...

This was a week of firsts for us at the Magnolia Bud house. We had our birth center tour, had our first ultrasound with this pregnancy, saw that baby's heartbeat for the first time, scheduled our first prenatal appointment, and received our first piece of fluff mail!

I'll start with the ultrasound, it's by far the most exciting! I was scheduled for our first ultrasound yesterday at 6w5d--both for dating and because of our prior loss. The ultrasound tech started with ovaries (normal, phew), and then scanned into the uterus. Right away we were able to see that there was something there.

In fact, there was a little Baby Magnolia Bud in there! S/he measures .78 cm, which correlates to 6w4d to 6w5d. His/her little heartbeat was strong at 145!!! As soon as the tech held the wand still for a second, we could see the little heart flicker on the screen. Mr. MB was speechless, and I teared up. I never thought something the size of a sweet pea could make me get teary...who knew!?

The doctor came in and looked at all of our measurements, and gave us a new EDD--September 19. The doctor also told us that I'm now down to a less than 5% chance of miscarriage. We were both really relieved to hear that, but we're now also filled with more worry now that we're sure there's a healthy baby in there (what if we're the 5%? what if we should really be getting the FIRST testing done? what if I'm not getting enough nutrients because all I want to eat are rice cakes and apples? etc, etc, etc.). When I told Mr. Magnolia Bud that I was still worried (now about other things than whether Baby MB had a heartbeat), he said I should man up and get used to it--being a parent is full of worry, but it's also going to be a lot of fun. I married a very smart man, who's going to make a great dad!

Next up--the birth center tour. I've been going to a midwife practice for about two years for well-woman care, and there is a free-standing birth center associated with the midwife practice. It's the only one in the state, and it has an awesome reputation (even with the MFM doctors we've been seeing at local hospitals for ultrasounds). The tour is required before any patient can make their first prenatal visit, because they have a limited number of birth slots available for any given month. During the two-hour tour, we discussed what happens during prenatal appointments and a normal birth process, what happens if an emergency-type situation occurs, what happens during postpartum care--both at the birth center and at home, and the midwife giving the tour answered lots of questions from all of us. We finished with a tour of the birth suites. Once we left, we both knew that attending had solidified our plans to give birth there. Feels great to have a plan!

I was able to schedule our first prenatal appointment for February 25--I'll be 10w4d, and we'll hopefully be able to hear the heartbeat on the doppler then. Our plan is to tell our families that weekend if the appointment goes well.

Finally, we got our first fluff package this week! About two weeks ago, cottonbabies was having a great sale on bum genius 4.0 seconds, so I ordered some. (I thought I ordered 12, but my invoice only showed 9...which means I probably only ordered 9). They came this week, and we love them! Can't wait to use them when Baby Magnolia Bud arrives!!!

That's it for now, I think. I'm still feeling pretty cruddy every day, but the sea bands continue to cull the dizziness and some of the nausea. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Love, Magnolia Bud

Morning Sickness and Crying into my Cheerios

I have a theory.

I think morning sickness waits, and lulls you into a false sense of "Oh, I'm not going to be sick during my pregnancy! Huzzah!"

And then it hits you and you find yourself calling your husband at work and telling him that you're pretty sure the baby is starving to death because you can't eat anything and you're going to be the worst mother in history.

On the bright side, I just started the "morning sickness diet" given to me by my doctor, and so far, so good. It mostly involves eating saltines before you get out of bed and then immediately going to the kitchen and eating a bowl of oatmeal before your stomach realizes what's going on and rebels. It's working out pretty well.

Oh, quick story for you: Yesterday, I couldn't even enter the kitchen to get something to eat, because every time I would try, my stomach would veto the entire decision as soon as I walked past the sink. So I had to wake up my husband (who works evenings) and ask him to get me a bowl of cheerios. He did, and as soon as he handed it to me, I burst into tears. Big, sobby, hiccupy tears, for literally no reason. Poor Mr. CB just rubbed my back and looked befuddled.

In clinical news, I had my first consult last Friday. Nothing crazy to report. They mostly just drew blood and made sure I knew not to smoke crack or do Jager Bombs on New Years. They did, however, let me know that, because my LMP and my O date are so far apart, I get an ultrasound at my first real appointment so they can figure out how old the baby really is. It's not strictly "necessary", but any opportunity to see Baby CB should be taken advantage of, I think.

Despite all the craziness, I am so far beyond thrilled at this point. My pants have all stopped fitting, which tells me that Baby CB is growing just like he/she should, and all the pregnancy symptoms, as unpleasant as they may be, serve to remind me that I really am growing a little person. MY little person. It's mind boggling, but so wonderful.

Birth Center Tour & LEEP Followup

At our birth center, we are required to go on the official tour before we have our first OB appointment. Since they do first prenatal appointments between 10 and 12 weeks, they schedule birth center tours around 8 weeks. Ours is scheduled for October 27! I'm so excited, but also still very cautious. The center director was really helpful and warm, which is no different than anyone else who I've had contact with there--I am so happy we're going to be getting all of our prenatal care there.

The only thing that makes me not 100% excited for October 27 is that it's the same day I have my LEEP followup at the Women's Hospital oncology unit. That day marks six months since my LEEP, and they'll be doing my first pap since the LEEP to see if they removed all of the abnormal cells. I'm really nervous, since I've been having abnormal paps (due to high-risk HPV) for over 10 years--this is the first time it's been moderately or severely abnormal, so it was the first time I needed to treat it with anything more serious than a colposcopy.

Music to my ears!

We got to hear Baby Hopeful Bud's heart beat this morning for the first time. It was right at 160 bpm and was the most wonderful sound that I have ever heard. I smiled the whole time and Mr. Hopeful Bud stood there taking a recording smiling from ear to ear. Up until today I had been so jealous of so many other ladies getting ultra sounds on their first visits, but today all of those feelings just went away and I was in love! I heard my baby's heart beating and it just made it so real. My pregnancy symptoms have been so minimal that at times I was worried. Not any more. I got to hear my baby's heart beating today. (Did I mention that already? :) )

It's hard to believe that this is the last week in the first trimester. Baby HB is the size of a peach.

I'll report more after I come down off my cloud.
Take care and stay hopeful!
:) Hopeful Bud

A Flicker of Hope

Today was my first prenatal appointment, and I spent about 1.5 hours there. I first was weighed and it said that I weighed 145-146 lbs, which I'm not buying that I've gained 5 lbs because I had on a heavy sweater over my shirt and boots, so we'll say that was it. I then PIAC and sat down for 2 seconds when we were called back into a tiny little room. We answered about 5 minutes of questions about family history and had my blood pressure taken, it was great as usual. Then Nurse J brought in the large ultrasound machine and we watched as she got the va-ja-jay cam ready with goo and condom alike.

Then Dr. K came in and we talked a little about SEC football (he is a UTK fan, why I like my Dr is beyond this UGA gal's thoughts) and then we told him about the brown bleeding. I started having some medium-heavy brown spotting yesterday and today which is a concern so Dr. K put me on Prometrium to keep the bleeding down and hopefully secure the pregnancy. There IS a risk of miscarriage, and he wanted to take all precautions we can today. Dr. K is going to have them run a Progesterone test in with my bloodwork and if it above 20 (I think) then we should be okay, but he's putting me on the medicine anyway in case something happens between now and then. So I'm waiting on pins and needles to see if the bloodwork shows up good tomorrow. I then got undressed and waited for him and Nurse A to come back in to do the vaginal ultrasound. Mr. BrainyBud and I were very anxious to see if there was anything even in there after the days events, but sure enough, there was!

Meet Baby BrainyBud. Tiny at 6 weeks, but still in the ute! It took Dr. K what seemed like FOREVER to tell us that he saw a flicker of a heartbeat... A FLICKER!

We saw the flicker of a heartbeat but it was very small but gave me a glimmer of hope. We won't know for sure until the bloodwork though...speaking of bloodwork (YIKES!) I went to the lab and they asked me to sit in the chair, and I shook my head like a 2 year old and say "No!" I told them my ordeal with needles and they took me to a room where I could lay down. The lab tech was great about not showing me the needle and I even got the pediatric needle I asked for! Mr. BrainyBud was my rock, he kept eye contact with me, rubbed my head even when I was crying and said I felt like I was going to throw up! (I didn't) And like that it was done. I could NOT have done it without him. He said I was very brave, but I think it was all him.I just hope the results come back good tomorrow and that in 2 weeks the baby is good and healthy.

We also found out that the new EDD is June 20,2010, Father's Day. What a great present, no? What makes this even more special is that it will be 28 years to the day that Mr. BrainyBud was born, and it was a Father's Day that year too!

LOTS OF FAITH, love and baby flutters,
Mrs. BrainyBud