Back from a slight hiatus... 26w2d

Sorry for pulling a little "disappearing act" since my last post... but we had a family Wedding in Georgia, which we turned into a little, much needed, vacation. Here are my updates :)


How far along: 26 weeks 2 days (3 days as of Tuesday, but as of now it's late Monday night for me). On the verge of the 3rd trimester :) :) :)

Total weight change: Same as last time... will have an update after my next Dr. appointment on the 7th of August, since that's the only place I'm getting weighed. 

Maternity clothes: I don't own too much maternity clothes, but none of my "regular" clothes fit anymore, so you can pretty much say I'm in "maternity" clothes. Dresses, leggings, stretch pants, etc... Comfy :)

Stretch Marks: I'm turning into a Zebra "/

Movement: He is moving a lot lately! Mr. DBud FINALLY felt him move last Wednesday at the hotel in Orlando on the way home. His face was priceless :) Today, he moved a lot as well. He's getting stronger, and his movements are becoming much more obvious. 

Sleep: Thankfully, I'm still on Summer break, so I am getting sleep... I hope to be able to stay rested when I go back to work in a few weeks... we'll see how that goes.

Best Moment This Past Week: I've had a few good moments lately... we had a great vacation, which was very well deserved, but when we got back, it's been all "baby". We started working on the nursery (more seriously) and got things much more organized. We finally decided on the furniture (Bonavita Metro collection  crib, dresser/changer and nightstand), and finished working on our registry (for the most part). But best of all was Mr. DBud feeling our son move :) That was totally amazing. I honestly almost cried. 

Most Difficult Moment This Past Week: The week before my trip, on the 10th, I needed to go into my Dr.'s office to have my glucose tolerance test. People talked to me about the glucola you have to drink, and mentioned different things, but I was ok with all of it. The morning came, and I headed over to take care of business. The nurse gave me the orange glucola which I chugged like a champ, and sent me into the waiting room for the dreaded 1 hour wait. Well, within minutes of sitting out there, I started feeling weird. Then, weird turned to outright bad, and I swear... I almost passed out right then and there! It was the WORST feeling ever. I got so worried, and texted my Husband. I honestly thought I was going to black out. Thankfully, before I went in for the blood draw, I felt fine... but then, she couldn't find my vein (first time EVER!). She finally did the draw, and then told me that if I failed, I would get a call by Friday or the following Monday. NO CALL! Woohoo!!!! I'm so happy, because I totally thought that due to my reaction, I had miserably failed. Thank GOD everything is going well :)

Belly Button In or Out: Still in, but definitely not as deep as before. So strange! I wonder how much longer it'll stay this way ;)

Cravings/Aversions: I craved candy the other day... which is weird, cause I never do. Other than that, nothing really... still loving those McDonald's cheeseburgers, though. 

Symptoms: MAJOR heartburn. Holy cow!!!!! Slight swelling in hands (can't wear engagement ring anymore, only wedding band) and swelling of the feet which comes and goes depending on what type of day I had and whether or not I've had a chance to raise my feet or not. 


Baby Shower plans are currently underway, so that is also keeping us quite busy... it's amazing how time starts to fly by after week 20! I can't wait to meet our little man in October!!!!! 


Also, one of my best friends just announced her pregnancy this past week :) I couldn't be happier for both of them!! This makes the journey that much more exciting... and more so now that I just found out ANOTHER friend is pregnant :) BABIES EVERYWHERE!!! WOOHOO!!!!!!


Until next time :)

20 down, 20 to go

A sigh of relief...I have reached the 1/2 way point! My next milestone will be 24 weeks when the pregnancy is "viable." Kind of a cold term when talking about whether or not your would survive outside the womb.

Everything is going well. No nausea, heartburn, swelling. I have noticed that my wedding rings are getting a little snug from the weight gain though...I have ceased looking at the scale. My eating habits aren't unruly but in an office full of women, there's always something to snack on. And we've all been under a lot of stress with this new computer system. But I'm trying to incorporate more fruits and yogurt to help balance out the snacking. I'll be taking a belly picture this week so I'll try to post one. Maybe a before (10weeks is as close a one as I have) and an "after."

I'm feeling LO moving a lot more lately and my mom got to feel him move for the first time this past Saturday. She was so cute! =o) Mr. CB hasn't felt him move yet but then again we haven't been able to see each other much lately. He's off next week so hopefully he will get the opportunity. We plan to start discussing nursery plans too! My doctor's office is closed for Good Friday so my mom and I are going to work on my baby registry. I feel like I've waited so long for this and it's kind of surreal to finally get to be able to do these things. Surreal but absolutely wonderful!

Things I Wish I'd Known

Several of these things are specific to being pregnant after a loss, but not all of them. These cover things through about Week 20 or so of the pregnancy. Maybe I'll do another one of these after delivery...



1) Getting pregnant after a loss is scary.

When I was TTC after my loss I had it in my head that getting pregnant again would magically make everything OK. It doesn't. Its scary to be pregnant again with a little one that you want so badly when you know so much about what can go wrong.


2) Spotting doesn't always mean miscarriage.

It can, in fact it did for me the first time around. This time though I spotted a lot (see chart) and he's still very much still around. I guess I'm pretty much a great example of the 50% chance they give you of a miscarriage when you're spotting. Spotting is terrifying though, especially when you've been down the road of it meaning the beginning of the end before.


3) Symptoms can come and go.

For a lot of ladies, the bulk of 1st Tri symptoms don't really start to kick in until around 6-7 weeks. For me, weeks 7-9 were the most worst. Its totally normal to feel nauseous or tired as anything one day and fine the next. The same has held true for my 2nd and 3rd Tri symptoms so far. Movement has come and gone. Swelling has come and gone.


4) Its common for 1st Tri symptoms to drop off around 10ish weeks.

My symptoms completely tanked around 9 weeks and were all but gone by 10 weeks. Turns out a ton of the ladies on Pregnant After A Loss (a board on The Bump) were experiencing the same thing. Pretty sure around that point is when the placenta takes over, making those annoying 1st Tri symptoms fade.


5) Not everyone gets morning sickness (or other 1st Tri symptoms) really bad and every pregnancy really is different.

I'd heard all these horror stories about morning sickness. None of them were true for me. To this day I've not puked when pregnant. I had nausea, sure, but only a handful of times was it to the point where I thought I might puke...and it was never in the morning. I was an evening nausea girl. I never had Super Smell with this pregnancy (did a little with the first one), just a sensitivity to a few odors. With my first pregnancy I was exhausted, this one just a few days here and there.


6) Make Mr. Metamucil your BFF.

Taking Metamucil (I'd recommend the clear and free kind that dissolves in just about anything) can really help you if you get backed up...something that is common in early pregnancy but that people don't often talk about. Other things like colace, fruit, drinking tons of water, etc can also help.


7) The days before ultrasounds are nervewrecking.

Having had my miscarriage confirmed via seeing my empty uterus on the big screen, I was terrified going in for ultrasounds early on. The worst, by far, was the one where I knew there should be a heartbeat but I had no tangible proof that the heart was in fact beating. I was scared beyond words walking into that appointment. Seeing that beautiful flicker was absolutely amazing, there just are no words. I've gotten better about ultrasounds now that I can feel him and he's passed his anatomy scan, but I still worry a little.


8) When you get news that your child might have something that will make his/her life more challenging...nothing else matters.

OK, I kind of knew that in theory going into pregnancy, but processing the news that our little one had a 1:10 chance for Down Syndrome (courtesy of the Quad Screening) was hands down the hardest moment thus far for this pregnancy. I just wanted our child to have the best chance at the best life possible...and hearing s/he might face extra challenges was hard. It did put things into perspective though and helped me realize that as disconnected as I'd felt from this pregnancy (emotionally protecting myself from another loss, I think) that I really did love the baby already.


9) The amnio wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

It was scary seeing the needle in the amniotic sac on the ultrasound screen, but the procedure itself didn't hurt as much as I thought it would. The worst part of the whole experience, by far, was waiting for the results. Given that I'll be of advanced maternal age for future pregnancies, thus increasing my risks for several things the amnio can check for, I'll likely get an amnio instead of the Quad Screening in future pregnancies. So many of the other tests they can do just give you odds of a problem or can't rule things out completely. With amnio they are checking the DNA and you get a definitive answer. Sometimes just knowing one way or the other what is going on is necessary...at least it was for me.


10) The first movements don't always feel like flutters.

For me it felt like a bug was crawling inside of me. Why everyone else gets butterflies and I got a giant beetle...I have no idea. I've heard other ladies describe the feeling they had as it being like a vibrating cell phone.


11) Its totally normal to only feel movement intermittently before the start of 3rd Tri.

Even if your little one has been predictable as anything with their movements, when they are still relatively tiny, sometimes they can get themselves into a position where you can't feel them. Sometimes their sleep/awake patterns can change as well. If you have any concerns, absolutely call your doctor or go into Labor & Delivery (I did)...just go in knowing that in most cases the baby is fine.


12) Registries: Baby Bargains, Lucie's List and a game plan

Walking into a Big Box baby store as a first time parent is overwhelming. I found doing some research beforehand really helped me calm down. I highly recommend the book Baby Bargains (2011), available on Amazon for about $11 (image credit: http://www.amazon.com/). They literally go through and rate every product by pretty much every manufacturer and outline things like features, recalls, etc. The book will more than pay for itself. Seriously. Another thing I found helpful was http://www.lucieslist.com/. This website outlines the bare minimum of what you really need for baby. I don't agree with all the recommendations for big ticket items (a personal preference thing), but the listings of how many of this, that and the other thing you really need was helpful.


When it comes time to actually register, do what you can online. When you go to the store (there will likely be things you'll want to see in person), keep in mind that you don't have to do it all in one day. We did strollers and car seats one week, cribs and pack n'plays the next...you get the idea. You can always tweak it online at home. Oh and another important tip-If you get tired, that's a GREAT time to try out the gliders. Just sayin'.

Happy V-Day to me and Baby BB!

Yay for 24 weeks! I am super excited to hit this milestone and baby has a chance to survive should I go into preterm labor (which I doubt). I've found that dividing the pregnancy up into milestones makes it easier for me and less stressful.

Mr. BB and I registered for our shower last weekend and that was a huge relief. We have older kids so a lot of our baby stuff had been given away or like our car seats, expired. We tested out all the new gear since we haven't had a baby in 5 years, all the stuff seemed so much different! I am excited to have registered and am hoping that our family and friends get us some of the stuff we need, just so we don't end up having to purchase everything. My mom is buying the crib and Mr. BB's mom and dad will give us money for what we don't get at the shower.

In addition to that the baby's room needs to be created. Mr. BB has to frame out the room and , you know BUILD it! I reminded him that we have 100ish days and that put his butt in gear.

I have been feeling pretty good, hungry all the time and tired a lot though. It seems like I have second tri exhaustion almost. I get to 1:00 and am ready for a nap!

We have 3 top names for Baby BB but I don't want to share yet. Two girl names and a boy name though and middle names too, yay! Things are coming together.

My 24 week appointment is tomorrow so I can do the weight update and all that tomorrow.

Small progress

23 weeks.  I can't believe it's late July already.  I'm already halfway through summer school, and my first shower (the big one) is  a month from tomorrow!  We've started registering, but we still have so much to do.  We haven't picked a stroller or car seat yet - kind of big deal items!  We did get our crib and changing table/dresser this weekend, and Mr. Teacher Bud repaired the dresser on Sunday (it was used), and set the crib up last night.  He has been steamrolling ahead the last few days.  Which is good, because I am hot, and dead tired. 

from http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4358809

The heat here has been crazy.  Weather.com says that we haven't seen such sustained hot humidity since 1995.  I remember that summer - it was my first summer away at overnight camp and I got heat exhaustion.  Thank goodness my townhouse and classroom both have air conditioning!  I am someone who is usually cold, so I do not tolerate heat well. 

23 week update!
Belly Measurement/Weight: I think I'm up a lb or 2!

Physical Progress: My boobs are getting bigger.  I have a maternity shirt that no longer fits.  I'm hoping I can put off new bras (for the 2nd time!) awhile longer.  They are expensive!

How I am feeling about my body: Alright. My hips are killing me, but I think that's pretty par for the course.  

Energy Level: Tired.  The heat and the getting up early are draining me. 

Baby Movement:More wiggles, but still nothing from the outside. 

Navigating the registry

Summer is over, V-Day has passed, and my shower invites went out last week. That means my registry is live for my friends and family to see, which wasn't an easy point to get to. Who ever thought shopping could be so confusing! I thought I'd share some of the things I learned along the way:

Strollers - Test drives are a must! I did a lot of internet research on which stroller I would want before I even set foot in a store. I wanted the baby to be able to face either direction, and I wanted a stroller that would hold an infant seat but still be the right buy after the 6 month mark. Ability to add a 2nd kid to the set in the future would be a plus. Other considerations included chassis weight, tire type, how compact it folded, and more. Enough to make your head spin!

My internet research had me focused on either the Baby Jogger City Select or the iCandy Apple. Both in the $500 range, and both meeting the above requirements. So my mom and I went to check out the City Select. At 5'4", I would've spent the rest of my pregnancy in the gym beefing up my biceps if I wanted to heft an infant seat (plus infant) into the frame of that thing. Not to mention the infant seat didn't even snap in, just kinda sat there, all weebly-wobbly. 

We wound up registering for the Uppa Baby Vista stroller. While it's in a little higher price point ($679), and comes with a bassinet that I don't think my December babe will get much use out of, it fits the bill and won the prize. It's light, folds easily, and is as simple as a snap-and-go when you're in the infant stage. 

Check out the Carlin Green color I went with:

Photo credit

Carriers - I originally registered for the Baby Bjorn carrier, because it looked the simplest and the guy in the store said it was the most popular. Then I started actually looking at moms and babies in my neighborhood, and realized that the Ergo was positively everywhere! A friend who's 2 months ahead of me registered for the Ergo, so I went back to the drawing board on my internet research. 

Found out that the Ergo will hold a bigger baby, while the Baby Bjorn maxes out around 15 lbs. And the game-changer for me was the weight distribution. The Baby Bjorn puts it all on your shoulders and upper back, which the Ergo distributes the baby onto your hips. As someone with upper back and neck problems, this cinched the deal for me, and the registry got changed at the last minute:

Photo Credit

There's more, but this post is getting long enough, and since I've vowed to start posting more regularly, I'll save my thoughts for later.

Next up: Crib and Glider shopping. Oh boy!

It's Me Again...

Yep, the BrainyBud without a brain in her head nowadays. I swear I have been so absent-minded that I'd lose my head if it wasn't attached!

This past weekend, we finally went and registered at Babies R Us and Walmart since Walmart is the only thing in town and Babies R Us is 45 minutes away (Target is too). It was nice not having to put an infant car seat, stroller or crib on the registry so most of it is under $30. Big things that we did register for include:

• Convertible Car Seat
• High Chair
• Pack n' Play
• Crib Bedding
• Monitor
• Born Free Bottle Starter Sets
• Large Boxes of Diapers

I didn't think that was too bad. We went Wednesday to look for a crib at the place I had already been. I thought for sure that Mr. BrainyBud would want a straight topped bed, but he went with this (still one of my top 3)

Bonavita Lifestyle Sheffield in rustic black

We got this convertible crib, the combo (not pictured), nightstand (not pictured), mattress and full size bed rails for $1,670 including delivery. I didn't think it was too bad, but I sure hope everything on our registries get bought because we'll still be paying this furniture off when the baby comes! ha!


Faith, Love and Baby Rumbles,
Mrs. BrainyBud

Surrounded

Surrounded is how I felt yesterday. Surrounded by reminders. Reminders that I am not pregnant.

Mr. Sassy Bud and I are close friends with another couple. They moved here about 4 years ago from Europe because he works for an automotive supplier with a company that has US locations in my area. We met this couple through mutual friends soon after they moved here, and it turned out they lived almost across the street from Mr. Sassy Bud and me. She is the only one of my friends I told about TTC. We wanted to have children close in age, and thought it would be fun to be pregnant together, but she wasn't quite ready to start TTC yet when we had our first conversation about it.

So, here we are, a year after I told her we were TTC. She stopped BCP in August, and got pregnant immediately. When her H told his employer last month that they were expecting, they got an unexpected response. They have to leave the U.S., soon. Of course I had planned on throwing her a baby shower, now it will just have to be much earlier than I had anticipated. The past week I've spent my free time searching for invitations, gathering addresses, addressing, planning, rushing.

Yesterday the four of us took a trip to Babies"R"Us to register for her shower. Aisles and aisles of baby products, baby clothes, pregnant women, and babies. I think I did a good job of showing her things I thought she would need, and wearing a smile throughout the day. I've become good at hiding my feelings throughout this process. In reality, I felt like I was suffocating. Why doesn't someone just give me a big glowing sign that says "Hi, my name is Sassy Bud, and my body doesn't work."

I did make it through the 2 hour BRU excursion. The good part was that I was able to spend time with some great friends that will be leaving soon. I also got to help pick out a lot of her registry items, and since I'm a shopaholic, that was exciting for me. She deserves to be pregnant, just like all women (with a few exceptions) and she will be an amazing mother. This is what I remind myself when I feel bitter.

After BRU we went to a maternity store to look for an outfit for her shower. I ended up just standing in a daze while she tried on outfits. I think the stress from the day finally hit me, and my body was not happy with me. I had extreme lower back pain, to the point where it was excruciating to even walk, along with a migrane. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in bed. It's amazing what stress can do to you physically.

I feel better today, thankfully. I have to focus on school, and that is very helpful in keeping my mind off of "other" things. In fact, this will probably be the most difficult semester I will have during my law school career, in terms of workload. Each week I have several hundred pages of reading, along with case briefs, analysis, charts, papers due, and research. It's a welcome distraction, and I am devoting myself fully to it.

If nothing else, it will keep me from staring at my chart every 5 minutes.