Friday, November 25, 2011

2 months old... what?!

I feel like I have a pattern... Not blogging as much with a newborn around the house. Definitely different this time around as well... I have even less time to blog! Not to mention that I feel bad for not being able to post pictures either. I so desperately need a new laptop!!! :-(

Kaelyn is officially 2 months old now. My, where has the time gone? She's starting to get on a schedule. Usually wakes up around 6:30-7. Likes to stay awake for 30 min and then goes back to sleep for 2 hours. Awake for an hour, back down for 2. She cluster feeds from 5ish-7ish. So basically she's attached to my hip or boobs that whole time. Of course, right during dinner. Then she's down for the night. Waking every 4 hours to nurse.

Speaking of nursing. Definitely having more difficulty this time around. Kaelyn is an "indecisive nurser". She thinks she wants to nurse, my milk lets down, she decides she didn't really want to nurse and leaves it at that. Or she decides that she really wanted the other side instead and will nurse that side dry. Well, that's been a little problem for me. It first started off as a clogged duct. I woke up one morning and my left breast was a little sore. Thought nothing of it. Autumn likes to jump on us sometimes and I figured she might have hurt me more than I thought she did. The next day, however, I started getting really achy, chills, almost like I was getting the flu. I got suspicious of mastitis (an infection from a clogged duct in the breast), so I called my mom and asked the symptoms. The only one I didn't have was a high fever, but everything else fit. So I was told to pump, pump, and pump! Warm compress on my sore breast and make sure it was empty all the time. Kaelyn evened helped (which was a shock: most babies don't like the infected breast because the milk might taste funny). She was really good at nursing only that side and emptying it out pretty well. I still pumped, only less than 1/4 oz came out. It wasn't enough to store and I didn't want to throw it away... So I gave it to our cats. Who LOVED it!!! :-) It's now their special treat if I don't have enough to store. They now come flying from wherever they are if they hear my pump turn on. Haha! Anyways. The clogged duct cleared up and I prevented mastitis from even coming.

The next week came and I again, woke up with a sore breast. I knew what to do this time so I started right away. However, by 12pm that same day it hit me. I was on the couch the rest of the day. High fever (102.8), achy, chills, pounding headache and just all over weak. I have never felt so sick in my life!. It is absolutely amazing how something so small can affect me so much! I then went on a 10 day antibiotic to help clear it up. Jordan came home early from work to help out. He was amazing.

The day after my 10 day antibiotic period I started getting a sore breast and fever again. It didn't get as high (99.9), but still starting to feel the symptoms of mastitis again. So I called my Dr. and she thinks that the first round of antibiotics didn't kill off the infection completely. So she prescribed another 7 day antibiotic instead. This one, honestly, was annoying. LOL. I had to take it every 6 hours on an empty stomach. 1 hour before eating or 2-3 hours after eating. So it was hard to try and coordinate meals around the antibiotics. I am happy to say that I am done with those and mastitis free! Now only if Kaelyn will cooperate with nursing more often ;-)

I'm not sure what it is with Kaelyn and nursing. She's super picky on her position and which side. Sometimes I can get her to nurse normally (across my body). Other times I have to lay on the couch or bed with her. Again, this is so different for me. Autumn was a "nurse one side, burp; nurse the otherside, burp and done". End of discussion. Oh well. I'm still thankful that Kaelyn wants to keep nursing and I hope she wants to continue as long as Autumn did.

Kaelyn is starting to coo on a regular basis. She loves talking to her daddy. She imitates him so well! I love watching those 2 together. She smiles all the time. Recognizes so many people already (my family and parents) and is just in general an overall happy baby. She loves watching Autumn play. She's still sleeping in our room at night. I ordered a video baby monitor for her room that I'm not super impressed with. So it's in our room (that way she can nap upstairs) but then I don't have to worry about not hearing her at night. She's a quiet sleeper. Autumn wasn't (she was in her own room by 5 weeks). Eventually she'll make it into her own room. But for now, I don't mind having her in our room.

Well, this was quite the update about Kaelyn. I fall in love more and more everyday with this little girl. Watching her personality come alive and noticing how different my 2 amazing girls are. I plan on updating about Autumn tomorrow. Maybe pictures even? :-)

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Family of 4!

It's definitely hard to sit down and have time to blog these days. Any mother who has 2 or more children know exactly what I mean ;-) I'm absolutely loving being a mother of 2 now. It is a lot harder, but I am blessed with 2 amazing girls who definitely keep me on my toes! A recap of the past couple of weeks...

We took Kaelyn in a last week for her 2 week check-up. I was completely shocked by her weight. My mom and I were guessing what we thought she would be at... Definitely not 8lbs 1oz!!! Such a big girl :-) She also grew an inch from the previous week. She is not 21 1/4" long. She is going to be SO tall!!! She's still growing like a weed. Her double chin has probably tripled since she was born (hehe). My mom and I looked her over while giving her the first bath at home. We've determined that the reason why her tummy looked so small in the ultrasound is because it's so LONG! She's got such a long torso. So right now she doesn't have a buddha belly... She has a very wide (sideways) belly and a super skinny waist. Very different than what Autumn was. I also learned yesterday that I can't have broccoli when nursing. Ugh, yesterday was awful. I was in tears almost all day. Kaelyn was super gassy, very uncomfortable and woke herself up screaming during her naps. So she didn't sleep much during the day and just wanted to cuddle. But then she would get uncomfortable and didn't want to cuddle anymore. Like I said, it was a long day... Thankfully she got it out of her system during the day and slept great at night! Next week she'll be a month old... I can't believe how fast time has gone already. I can't wait to find out how much she weighs now!!

Autumn is, well, Autumn. Haha. She's her own person and wants to do everything herself. Even if it means throwing a tantrum (something I can't wait to work on once I get a book I ordered). She doesn't really care about Kaelyn. Could honestly go an entire day without even looking at her if she wanted to. She loves Dora and Deigo and honestly, we probably watch them a little too much right now. However, it's so hard with Kaelyn unpredictable schedule to actually do anything with Autumn right now. That'll change soon :-) Other than that, Autumn decided that she wanted to wake up earlier in the morning now. Anywhere from 6:30-7 instead of the normal 7:30-8. So that's quite a change for me. But Kaelyn's been also waking up at the same time so it's not horrible. Just harder to get things going with breakfast in the morning. Not like I can tell Kaelyn to wait a couple of minutes while I make Autumn toast... LOL

As far as I go... I feel great!!! I actually started doing hair 3 weeks earlier than expected. It's crazy how much better I feel this time around. I could pop out another baby if I wanted to ;-) With Autumn I was bed-ridden for 2 weeks and then barely moving around by the 6 week mark. This time around I was able to walk around and take a shower while in the hospital. We actually left a day early because I felt so great. I've even taken 3 walks already with the girls! I can't wait to start exercising because I wanna lose 30-40lbs before my best friend's wedding in April. I actually ordered a work-out system made by a mother for breastfeeding mothers. That way I won't have to worry about losing my milk supply while working out.

Jade could care less that we've added another baby to the house. We didn't really introduce Kaelyn to Jade like we did with Autumn. Jade just kind of looked at us like "oh, another one of those" and moved on. LOL. Our cats, however, are driving me crazy!!! They're so noisey and nosey. They get into everything and I even found Libby sleeping in Kaelyn's bassinet one morning, while Kaelyn was in there. Yeah, she went flying (Libby, not Kaelyn, hehe). The cats are always going into her room and stealing her socks. Getting hair on all of her swings and bouncy seats. Even try to climb on Kaelyn while I'm nursing her. Yeah, they're still kittens, but sometimes I want to throw them on the streets... UGH!

I wish I could post some pictures on here. I've taken some super cute ones over the past few weeks. However, my laptop absolutely will not turn on. And Jordan's laptop doesn't have a slot for the SD card... And I can't find my cord to my camera. So, I'm stuck only posting phone pictures on facebook for now :-( I hope I can post pics soon. It's crazy how much Kaelyn has grown!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Another beautiful beginning!

I've always loved reading these (and writing my own)... Birth stories. The miracle of life. Bringing another human being into this world. Absolutely amazing and truly a gift from God. No other way of explaining it. I'm also amazed and touched by how different my 2 experiences have been. I thought, for sure, that they would be somewhat similar. Since I was induced with Autumn and scheduled to be induced with Kaelyn. However, I learned very quickly that no 2 births, or pregnancies for that matter, are the same.

If you've been regularly following my blog, you've learned that Kaelyn was having some minor issues right around 35 weeks. My uterus starting measuring smaller than it was supposed to be, right around "2 weeks" smaller. My doctor's don't like to go any smaller than that and after 1 month of being that much smaller, they decided to have an ultrasound to make sure Kaelyn was growing. Everything looked normal in my first ultrasound until my Dr. looked at the numbers more closely. They realized that Kaelyn's tummy was measuring smaller than the rest of her body. So then my Dr. sent me to an OB specialist. I went to the OB specialist 3 times to monitor her growth, my placenta and the umbilical cord. He told me that the number one reason why her tummy wouldn't be growing is because of placenta failure. Every ultrasound looked great. Nothing wrong with the placenta and umbilical cord. She was growing, just not as quickly as hoped. However, she was growing. Towards the end of my pregnancy the OB specialist decided that it was best not to go past my due date. Because the risk of placenta failure is even higher and in my situation he didn't want anything to happen to Kaelyn. Totally fine by me.

I was scheduled for an induction on my due date (Thursday, Sept 22nd) at 8pm. I had to call the hospital at 6pm to confirm if they had a room ready for me. Just because I was "scheduled" did not mean that I was getting in right away. I understood that, but I was still hopeful. So I called... and they were busy. So I was asked to call back at 9pm. And I did. They will still busy. Apparently every woman in Grand Rapids went into labor that night. So they asked me to call back the next morning at 6am. Then at 8:30. Again at 11. And again at 1. Did I mention that I had to call back at 4? Things were starting to look up around that time. One woman actually delivered and another one was about to as well. So they told me to call back at 6. I did and they said they would be ready for me around 7:30-8ish :-D YAY!!! Finally. Only 24 hours after I was supposed to be in. It was definitely a rough 24 hours for Jordan and myself. We were on edge, anxious and a little grouchy that whole time. We couldn't really plan anything because we had only a 3 hour period of time in between each phone call. So after a tearful goodbye to Autumn, we were on our way to the hospital.

Let me back track a bit here a second. I started having my own contractions Wednesday before my due date. They weren't regular, but they were painful. Enough for me to notice and even breathe through some of them. I was still talking through them and they weren't consistent, not even for an hour, so I never called my Dr. to let them know. Thursday night I had my first bloody show. It was exciting for me because that meant my cervix was moving. So maybe they didn't have to ripen my cervix at all when I had to be induced. Friday morning my contractions went away. Disappointing. Friday evening they started back up again and I got my next bloody show. So again, hopeful.

Now we're in the hospital. Friday evening (the 23rd). Getting checked in, excited that Kaelyn's arriving soon. Anxious that I'm about to be induced, again. My nurse (who is absolutely amazing) checked to see if I was dilated. She noted that my cervix was a little high and she wasn't quite sure if she could reach it (she had short fingers). So she took the safe route and said that my cervix was closed. Very disappointing. After 2 bloody shows, you'd think that something was happening up there. After a while my Dr. comes in and checks herself. She was able to reach and said that I was already 4cm! NO WAY!!! I couldn't believe it. 2cm maybe, but not 4cm already! By myself. And the contractions weren't even that bad. I was super excited. That meant that we didn't have to ripen my cervix at all. Which meant that Kaelyn was coming that much sooner!

I was starting to contract on my own. They were getting a little more regular so they figured they would watch me for an hour and see what happens then. An hour later I was dilated to 5cm. Woo hoo! Keep 'em coming. My Dr. decided to break my water because my contractions were slowing down a bit. She figured this would speed things up for me. Which it did! Not only that, but they got THAT much stronger. The doctor also wanted to do an internal monitor on Kaelyn since it's easier to really calculate the contractions. And since she was already "down there" breaking my water, she figured to put it in as well. I already knew I was going to have an epidural if I was going to be induced. And since I stayed at 5cm for another hour, I went ahead and got the epidural knowing that pitocin was next.

This is where I finally broke down. Waiting for the epidural. I was on the edge of the bed, and I broke down in tears. At first I wasn't sure why. Jordan was great at comforting me and not pushing me for answers. But once I calmed down and thought about it, it hit me. The stress and anxiousness of the 24 hours before, the fact that I was about to get an epidural (I hate needles) and the realization that Kaelyn was coming, soon, just flooded right through me. It was so overwhelming. Now mix those emotions during a contraction, while getting an epidural that was WAY more painful than I remember (apparently it was hitting a nerve before the medicine went in) and ugh, I was a wreck. Jordan even had a hard time calming me down. As much as I love the epidural, that was definitely not what I remembered.

So now the waiting game. I got my epidural around 12:30am Saturday (24th). I figured another 6 hours before we got to meet Kaelyn. We we really hoping to have her before the shift change (at 7am) because again, our nurse was wonderful and she really wanted to be there for us.

Around 2am Kaelyn started having some difficulties. After almost every contraction, her heart rate would drop. Sometimes dangerously low. We did a lot of turning from side to side on my part. Trying to make things comfortable for her. Each time I turned it would work for a while. But eventually she fell back into that pattern again. My Dr. first suggested stopping pitocin all together. They wanted to give Kaelyn a break from the intense contractions. Not that it mattered to me, because I wasn't feeling them at this time ;-) However, shortly after that my Dr. decided to replace some of the fluids back into my uterus to make her environment more comfortable for her. This definitely made an improvement. However I did not end up getting much sleep at all. I was constantly looking at the monitor to see if Kaelyn's heart rate would drop. I was so nervous for her and even more nervous that I would have to have an emergency c-section to get her out (definitely wasn't part of my birth plan). However, my nurse reassured me that it's not a constant pattern and only if her heart rate didn't come up would they have to do an emergency c-section.

They actually ended up not giving me pitocin again after that. My uterus was contracting on its own at a very steady rate again. Around 3:45am I was checked to see how far dilated I was. 6cm and 100% effaced. I was now getting more excited that things were moving again, but what happens next was a complete shock to me...

Right around 4:05am I was again, watching the monitors and noticed that Kaelyn's heart rate dropped really really low. I tried turning to my side as much as possible. The next contraction it happened again, only with a lot of pressure down there for me. I didn't think twice about it. I was more concerned for Kaelyn. The nurse quickly came in and suggested checking to see how far dilated I was... 10cm... I couldn't believe it. Completely dilated and her head was in the +2 position. She asked me if I was feeling the urge to push and I told her that I was. So my nurse called the Dr's while I'm fighting with all my might not to push. Once they're starting to set things up they have me give a practice push. Next thing I know I hear my nurse yell "STOP!" and Kaelyn's head was already half way out. So now I have to wait again, for them to finish setting up while Kaelyn's head is chillin' there. This to me was insane. I told my nurse that my goal was to push Kaelyn out within an hour. Since I pushed for almost 3 with Autumn. I definitely did not expect to have her head halfway out with only one push. This was at 4:15am.

Several pushes later (even one where I rubbed her head, hehe) out came her head. Not to mention all of the fluid that they were giving to her came out too. It literally sprayed up the left side of my face, over my pillow and onto the wall. Like someone took an 8-10oz glass and threw it at me. Haha. Everyone in the room said that they've never seen that before. It definitely threw me off guard and I forgot that I had to push the rest of her body out...

4:36am. My world stops. No words in the world can describe this feeling. You think you don't have enough room in your heart for more love once you've had your first child. But somehow, there's a way. Kaelyn is now laying on my tummy, crying her sweet little cry and I just melt. Nothing else matters. She's here, she's crying, she's healthy and I love her. Jordan's and my world has changed. We couldn't be happier. Here we are seeing our second baby girl for the first time. We are in love.

She's not much different than Autumn. Doesn't cry much. Once she's placed on the table she stops crying and starts looking around. So sweet. She's a tiny 6lbs 7oz and 19.5 inches long. I'm honestly in shock. I couldn't believe that she was there within 15 minutes of me pushing. Not to mention that I was only dilated to 6cm less than an hour ago. It took me quite some time to actually grasp the idea that she was actually there. Even when I was holding her. It all happened so fast! We did our skin to skin time and she was rooting like crazy! Nursing came without a problem once again and she's growing wonderfully.

We were able to go home a day early. I felt absolutely wonderful (even though I did tear my cervix really bad and had a 1st degree tear as well), but I felt like I almost didn't give birth at all. Minus the numb butt from the hospital bed. Kaelyn was doing great as well and both my Dr. and the pediatrician on call was comfortable with us going home early.

Now we are here. Family of 4 and we couldn't be happier. Autumn is adjusting, as any 2 year old can. She gets mostly jealous at night when it's mommy and her time (bath time and bed time). But within a couple of weeks, I'm sure it won't even matter any more. I didn't get much pictures in the hospital. Because I left my camera at home. But enjoy (for now) a few of my favorite pictures from the day we came home.






Thursday, September 15, 2011

Side-by-Side

Had my 39 week check-up today. Along with one of my many, many non-stress tests. Kaelyn did amazing today. Moving right away and constantly. She wanted to get in and out, that's my girl :-) Met with one of my doctors (first time meeting her, she's new but I like her) and she mentioned that it's up to my OB specialist that I've been seeing to determine how far he wants me to go in this pregnancy. If she's not growing enough, then they'll induce me. If she is, then they might let me go as far as 42 weeks. UGH! I pray they don't let me go THAT long :-/ She also checked to see if I was dilated at all... NOPE!!! But I am "soft" and things could move. I was kind of disappointed. Ha. I was already dilated with Autumn at this point. But that usually doesn't mean anything. I'm also measuring even smaller than I have before. I'm measuring at 36 weeks right now. My other doctor's don't like patients to go above or below 2 cm and I'm 3 cm below. So it's a good thing I have an ultrasound tomorrow. As much as I want to have Kaelyn this weekend, I do pray that everything is okay in there.

So, I'm sure I will update you after my ultrasound tomorrow. For now, enjoy a side-by-side survey (Kaelyn's pregnancy is in bold and Autumn's pregnancy isn't) and also enjoy a side-by-side photo. Boy do I look HUGE with Autumn!!!



How far along?
39 weeks (39 weeks)
Total weight gain/loss: Ugh! I was doing so well. Now I've gained a total of 33 lbs... Blah :-( (You're gonna laugh... Gained 49 lbs (UGH) It's sad, I weigh more than my husband!!!)
Maternity clothes? Like there's anything else to wear... LOL (Definitely about to wear my Dad's clothes now (and he's a big guy).)
Stretch marks? Adding a few more on my sides this time... Oh, and my belly button too. Weird... (Oh yes :-) Starting to get a few on my sides.)
Sleep: It's interesting to read my sleep schedule that I had with Autumn because it's totally different now! I am SO glad we spent the extra money and got a tempurpedic bed!!! Now I usually go to the bathroom once within 10 minutes after climbing in bed. Then I wake up around 2:30-3ish and go again. Then I'm fine until the morning. Sigh, so much better than what I was doing with Autumn! (Sleep is over-rated. HA! Here's my schedule. In bed around 10pm. Get up and go to the bathroom every half hour until around midnight. Up around 2:30am to pee. Back to sleep til around 4:30/5ish to pee again. Up at 6am to make Jordan's lunch then FINALLY able to sleep til around 10:30am. SIGH!!!)
Best moment this week: That I didn't have to have 3 non-stress tests this week. WOO HOO!!! (That I'm dilated! WOO HOO!!!!)
Movement: Kaelyn is a moving machine still. She likes to push my uterus sides all around. Looks funny and Jordan thought it even looked painful (which it can be sometimes). (Autumn's finally maturing in there so her movements aren't so jerky anymore. I feel like she's in slow motion right now.)
Food cravings: Not really craving anything right now... Weird huh? (Pickles and ice cream (but not together))
Gender: Haha, again, still a girl! (Still a girl :-) Confirmed it in 3 ultra sounds!!!)
Labor Signs: Had a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions last week that I was hoping would progress into labor, but it stopped after a couple of days. Very disappointing :-( (A few contractions here and there, but nothing too serious.)
Belly Button in or out? OUTIE!!! (Definitely an outie!)
What I miss: Being able to move in general without being in pain. Oh, and I miss wearing my cute clothes! (Being able to get in and out of bed without being in so much pain!!!)
What I am looking forward to: Same thing, being able to hold Kaelyn and introduce her to Autumn!!! (Holding Autumn in my arms and giving her lots and lots of kisses!!!)
Weekly Wisdom: I guess I don't have any... Ha... lame... (Walking is your friend! I feel so much better since I've started walking again!)
Milestones: SO CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!! COME OUT KAELYN!!!!! (SO CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Realization of the week: It all comes down to what my OB specialist says at tomorrow's ultrasound. I could have Kaelyn this weekend or I could have her as far as 3 weeks from now. My regular doctors wouldn't mind letting me go to 42 weeks. Wow... :-( (Seriously will have Autumn in no longer than 2 weeks (my doctor won't let me go more than 7-10 days past my due date). AHHHHHHHHHHHH :-D)



Sunday, September 11, 2011

Happy (almost) Birthday Autumn!

I've always said that I would never do a character themed party... But if you've ever met Autumn, you'll know that her FAVORITE character is Dora! She would live, breathe and sleep Dora if she could. And since she's about to become a big sister (any day now), how could I not give her the party of her dreams?! :-) I decorated the house with a bunch of Dora stuff, Jordan filled up pink and orange balloons for her to play with and a friend of mine even made Autumn a Dora cake. It was amazing! Autumn had a BLAST!!! I got a video of her seeing the decorations for the first time. Priceless. I had to hold back the tears. I absolutely love my "almost" 2 year old to death and it was so great to have family over to celebrate her! So please enjoy some pictures from her special night!















Friday, August 19, 2011

Updates

I just realized that I haven't posted a single thing for the month of August. Where has it gone!? I've been so incredibly busy preparing for Kaelyn's arrival and doing hair appointments almost everyday of the week. It's been hard to sit down and have time for myself. Not to mention being able to coach and witness the birth of my amazing niece, Alliyah :-) What an experience!!!

A quick update about what's been going on in my pregnancy. Yesterday I had my 35 week checkup, along with an ultrasound. I've been measuring on the smaller side for the past month, so they wanted to make sure that everything's ok. When I left the doctor's office, I was under the impression that everything was normal fluid wise and growth wise. However, my doctor took the time to look over the ultrasound more thoroughly and found that Kaelyn's tummy was measuring a little on the smaller side. It wasn't dramatic, but enough to be noticeable to the doctors. And since I had low amniotic fluid with Autumn's pregnancy, she figured that I should have it checked out.

So I went to the specialist today. They were amazing. The technology they had was also amazing. I did enjoy watching them look over Kaelyn :-) Everything looks great. They were concerned that my placenta wasn't giving Kaelyn enough nutrients, but the blood flow was great. They were afraid of any growth abnormalities, but she looked amazing! Her tummy is still measuring a little low. They're not 100% sure why, but she looks great.

So where does that put me now? They want me to monitor her movements a little more closely. If she moves anything less than 5 movements in an hour, I'm supposed to call my doctor. Then they want me to have another ultrasound in 3 weeks to make sure that she's still growing. They're going to keep monitoring my placenta to make sure that Kaelyn's still getting enough nutrients to keep her growing.

On a side note. We did get a couple of face pictures of Kaelyn. I was so hopeful that she would look like me... Sigh. Haha. She totally looks like Jordan. That's ok though cuz he is good looking ;-) AND... SHE HAS HAIR!!! Haha. The doctor showed me that she has a lot of hair in the back of her head. I couldn't believe it!!! I can't wait to meet her now :-D

Here's another little side by side survey update between Autumn's pregnancy (in parentheses) and now Kaelyn's. It's been fun doing these, hehe :-)

How far along? 35 weeks & 1 day (35 weeks & 4 days)
Total weight gain/loss: Gained only 22 lbs so far, GO ME!!! :-) (+41 lbs (believe it or not))
Maternity clothes? I love that I can still fit in a lot of my maternity clothes still. I don't have to resort to oversized t-shirts all the time. (I'm all about the homemade capris and over-sized t-shirts!!!)
Stretch marks? My old ones are getting darker and only a couple of new ones, by my old belly button piercing. (Finally got some... Mostly hidden though... Underpart of my boobs and on my butt :-))
Sleep: I'm definitely sleeping better. Only waking up once in the middle of the night to pee. I am so glad we invested in a nicer bed! (Sleep is over-rated!!! LOL... Lack there of is definitely going on right now. Whether it's because of restless legs or constant bathrooms runs!)
Best moment this week: Wow, I can't believe I was about to type the same thing for this pregnancy. Why do my silly babies have to give me a scare at 35 weeks?!? So thankful that Kaelyn is ok and praying that the rest of the pregnancy goes just as smoothly. (After having a stressful day following a "routine appointment"... I'm very grateful that everything's ok :-))
Movement: Constantly, constantly moving. Hardly a break (unless I'm super active, of course). She moves a lot when she's sleeping too. She's gonna be a wild child, I know it! (Wish I could show you the big FOOT that's sticking out on top of my belly right now. HAHA. Yeah, she's way more active than a normal baby. Even the nurse during my non-stress test said she was a little hyper and that was on a slow day!!!)
Food cravings: I honestly haven't been super craving anything lately... Weird... (Pickles!!!)
Gender: Girl and with hair this time too!!! (Little girl (well, knowing us, she might be very LONG))
Labor Signs: None. Just the normal Braxton Hicks. (Few contractions, but I was dehydrated so it's all good now.)
Belly Button in or out? Innies are over-rated ;-) (Definitely an outie!!!)
What I miss: Having my house clean... Sigh... And being able to bend over without dying or being attacked by Kaelyn. (Sleeping on my belly, sleeping in general and being able to BREATHE!!!)
What I am looking forward to: Having Kaelyn's room done and organized! (Being able to hold our little girl in just over a month :-))
Weekly Wisdom: I'll say it again, DRINK WATER!!! (Water is your friend!!!)
Milestones: I'm so proud of myself for not gaining so much weight this time around. I can't believe I was already 40 lbs heavier with Autumn. No wonder I was so tired all the time! (Not sure if this is a good thing, but Autumn has definitely located my ribs and LOVES to rub her foot on them.........sigh........)
Realization of the week: UGH!!! I have SO MUCH STUFF TO DO and I'm due in 5 weeks!!!!!!! (I'm due in just over a month... 1 more birthing class and 2 baby showers to go!!!)

Monday, July 25, 2011

Swimming, swimming, in the swimming pool!

Like I've said before, it's been hot here in Michigan and I've been trying to find ways to keep Autumn entertained while inside. However, it's starting to not be so hot outside anymore. So we filled up Autumn's pool. I didn't want her hanging out in the sun (I didn't feel like putting sunscreen on her at the moment), although, being in the sun might have been a better idea. Poor girl was shivering so much and her lips turned purple. We had to force her out of the pool! Haha. She did enjoy herself thoroughly and especially since daddy was in the pool with her!!! I'm so glad I grabbed my camera because I sure did get some special moments between those two. Autumn's favorite part about the pool with daddy? Sliding down his legs like a slide. You'll see that in one of the pictures. She kept doing it over and over again. Definitely need to get her a slide soon.










Friday, July 22, 2011

Coloring

I've been trying to come up with creative ideas to keep Autumn entertained during the day (since it's been too hot outside). One thing that never gets old... coloring. Even I love to color! Now, I haven't been able to finish any page that I start because Autumn takes it over, but that's just the fun of it :-)

One thing that I've been enjoying when it comes to coloring is drawing shapes and having Autumn recognize them. She already knows triangles, circles, squares and even a hexagon (thanks to my mom, hehe). I started working on numbers, she knows what they are but doesn't know which is which yet. But just the fact that I even draw a number and she knows what it could be is awesome. Thinking about making some flash cards and working on letters with her as well.

I also found a book (not sure where I got it from) with 365 ways to keep your toddler busy (The Busy Book). Definitely going to be opening that up today!






Libby is starting to look better.

This is what Lou thinks about coloring.

Libby is curious with what Autumn's doing.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

The countdown begins...

Had my last "monthly" OB appointment today. Now I start going every 2 weeks until September. Ugh, that's just going to make these next couple of months fly by that much faster :-/ I feel so unprepared for Kaelyn's arrival. I know I have 9 weeks left (give or take) but it feels like there's not enough time. Sigh. I just wish I could snap my fingers and her room would be ready. That's all.

Today's appointment was definitely a little more exciting than other appointments. This is the first time that my uterus wasn't measuring like it's "supposed" to be. I was measuring at 29 inches (or weeks) when I'm actually 31. My doctor said that they usually like you to be within a couple of inches; but if that doesn't change by my next appointment, then she's going to order an ultra sound to make sure that everything's ok in there. Goodness :-P

My doctor also took a look over the rest of my charts just to see what else was in there and she noticed the notes about my Mitral Valve Prolapse (or MVP). For those of you who don't know what this is, feel free to check out this website to kind of get some background information on it. But basically this is important because I had to have antibiotics while I was in labor (just before delivery) and anytime I go to the dentist or surgery. Well, apparently my doctor's think that things have changed and that they don't require that anymore. And since it's been almost 10 years since my last appointment with the cardiologist, she figured that I should have it checked out and see what the recommendations are for the remainder of my pregnancy (and future ones). So now I have to go to the cardiologist in a couple of weeks. I know I still have MVP, I can feel it often. I'm just curious if they're gonna make me have antibiotics still or not...

Everything else is looking good. I got recommended to take Tums twice a day to help with my Restless Leg Syndrome (which is worse this pregnancy) and that doesn't bother me any because I have horrible heartburn as well. Oh the things we go through to have beautiful children :-) Enjoy my survery!

How far along? 31 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: Gained only 17 lbs so far. Woo hoo!
Maternity clothes? Is there anything else to wear? :-P
Stretch marks? Getting new ones... Around my previous belly button piercing... Now why did I get that again?!
Sleep: I'm definitely sleeping better this pregnancy (thanks to our tempurpedic bed), I am starting to wake up to use the bathroom more often though... Sigh.
Best moment this week: I always enjoy watching Kaelyn move. She's crazy in there!
Movement: Anytime I sit down, even for mere minutes, she's moving. Which is definitely reassuring to me. However, sometimes a little uncomfortable (tap dancing on my bladder).
Food cravings: Cool Ranch Doritos!
Gender: It's a girl!!!
Labor Signs: N/A
Belly Button in or out? Yup, it's an outie.
What I miss: Being able to fall asleep right away. My restless leg syndrome is worse this pregnancy :-(
What I am looking forward to: Finishing Kaelyn's room!!!
Weekly Wisdom: God is in control. I have to put my faith in this pregnancy in Him and trust that it's in His will.
Milestones: Reached the single digits for how many weeks are left in this pregnancy. Yikes!
Realization of the week: My next appointment is in August... I'm due in September... I NEED TO FINISH KAELYN'S ROOM!!!!!!! :-P

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Rain Rain, Go Away

I am so blessed to have a grandmother that lives close by. Or should I say that I moved close to my grandmother. Hehe. She's so incredibly helpful when it comes to watching Autumn. She absolutely enjoys having Autumn around and always tells Autumn to come back again soon (whenever we leave).

Today I had my grandma watch Autumn while I took our kitties to the vet (follow up appointment and first round of shots). After picking Autumn up from my grandma's she starting saying "chugga chugga, choo choo!" So I asked her if it was a train and she said "from Dora" Hehe. Autumn absolutely loves Dora :-) Then later at lunch time Autumn starting singing "eain rain, go away", then I would say "xome again some other day" and she shouted "YAY!". Haha. So I had to call my grandma to see what was going on at her house this morning... Apparently, the episode of Dora that Autumn watched was about trains and then Sesame Street was about a rain cloud inside the house. Haha, I love it. My grandma was shocked that Autumn was even paying attention and caught on to something like that. She's so smart.

It's been hot here in Michigan. I am so incredibly grateful for my handy husband who fixed our air conditioner last week. I would definitely be spending the week at my parent's if we didn't have air. However, Autumn was getting a little anxious and naughty being cooped up inside a lot lately. So after dinner we went outside to water the flowers. Autumn immediately found the large mound of dirt we have in our yard and started playing in it. Not a big deal, until she ran into the water I was using. Mud everywhere! She wasn't a fan (I have a girly girl on my hands here) and asked me to wash her off. We then spent the next half hour running around the yard and getting Autumn wet with the hose. She loved it! I wish I could have taken pictures. However, Jordan is in Pennsylvania for the week and I wasn't about to use my camera and the hose at the same time :-P So just imagine Autumn, diaper only, soaking wet and muddy while finding all the dirt spots she can and attempting to put it on mommy. (PS - Autumn passed out in bed at 7:30. Hasn't moved an inch since...)

One stage that I haven't been looking forward to is the "Terrible Twos". We officially have begun that stage in Autumn's life. There's been times where it's definitely entertaining to watch Autumn act the way she does. Mostly because it's how I act sometimes. Other times I just want to put an ad on craigslist for "Free Cranky Child" (totally kidding). It hits her the hardest when she's tired or when it involves the kitties. She just wants to love them, a little too much. She is getting better and I find that I'm telling her less and less to be careful around them. Expect... when she's tired. I pray that this stage doesn't last long, even though I do understand why they go through it. It's just been hard since Jordan won't be home til Friday evening or Saturday afternoon. I'm definitely grateful for a husband who is willing to help me out with Autumn in the evening and give me time to breathe. I am definitely not cut out to be a single mom :-)

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Are we crazy?

Yes, we probably are crazy! But that's what makes life interesting :-) Jordan and I agreed that we weren't going to get another dog. A difficult decision, but we're happy with it. What does that say about cats?

Jordan and I aren't HUGE cat fans, but we do like them (me more than Jordan). Jordan's grown up with cats and I had 1 that I had to give away (she didn't agree with my parent's dog when I moved back home). One of my best friends (Jen) ended up getting 2 kitties as "outdoor" cats to help with their snake problem (she lives in Myrtle Beach). Jordan and I have been following her kitty journey, somewhat interested, and intrigued. Jordan, however, was fascinated with their kitty "observation area" that Jen's husband, Cavan, ended up building for them (check out her blog here to see what Cavan built). Did that mean he asked for us to have kittens? No. He just liked what Cavan did to their house :-)

A couple of days later a friend of mine texted me and said that someone had dropped off a box of 4 kittens and was curious if I knew anybody that wanted one. I figured, why not ask Jordan, just see what he says. I was a little surprised by his response... He asked what they looked like... He then looked at the picture I was given and said "I like the one on the left." Haha. I told him 1) if we get a kitten, I absolutely cannot change the liter box (he agreed) and 2) if we get one kitten, we're getting two. So they have each other to play with. He again, agreed. He said that kittens/cats are easier to take care of than dogs and he didn't mind having his own.

Again, Jordan grew up with cats, but they were never really "his" cats. The cats always seemed to attach themselves to Jordan's mom and ended up hating him in the end. I'm hoping that it'll be a different situation here, since I'm not a "cat whisperer" like Jordan's mom is. Hehe.

So here we are. Our family of 4 quickly turned into a family of 6. We are thoroughly enjoying our little kitties. I took them to the vet to get a checkup and they're in relatively good shape (for being drop-offs). Just a little bacteria in their eyes that will go away with antibiotics and eye drops. A little deworming and back next week for their first shots. We're not 100% sure how old they are, but the vet and I agreed to go with 9 weeks.

Autumn is doing pretty well with the kitties. She's rough on them, poor things. We constantly have to remind her not to pick them up, throw them, kick them or sit on them. Haha. But she's learning and I have to remind her less and less as the days pass on. She sure loves her kitties though!

Jade is adjusting better than we thought. She was definitely super excited when we first introduced them. Lou (our male, tiger kitty) was afraid of Jade and would hiss at her. Now he doesn't mind Jade as much. Libby (our female, calico kitty) could care less. She's definitely our curious and rambunctious one of the two.

"Lou"

"Libby"




Autumn does not like the kitties on her chair
(which is fine by me).


PS ~ Jordan already has a "cat condo" plan in his head for around our window... Hehe :-)

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Washing and Brushing

I am absolutely loving this stage of Autumn's life right now. Yes, it can be a little difficult at times. She is starting to learn that she can push our patience if she wants to. However, just the fact that's she's constantly talking. Putting long sentences together. Understanding conversations between her and myself. It's amazing!

I started encouraging Autumn's independence and control. In the morning I'll ask her what she wants to eat for breakfast and give her 2 options. She usually repeats back both of them. However, I keep repeating them back until she gets really excited about one over the other. The look in her eyes when she actually gets what she "asked" for is amazing. Makes me smile :-) I also have her "pick our her clothes" as well. Same thing, give her a couple of options and she chooses out of those what she wants to wear. She even tries to put the clothes on herself. It's hilarious to watch. She usually ends up getting frustrated and I'll show her how in the end.

Speaking of frustration. It's amazing how you really have to watch what you say around Autumn. I'm really great at not swearing around her. I cut that out when I found out I was pregnant with her. No way I wanted her to learn those words (at an early age, she's gonna find out sooner or later). However, there is one phrase that she caught onto very quickly and it cracks me up... GOOD GRIEF!!! Hahaha. I noticed that about a week ago. She was trying to put on one of her shoes, it didn't work, so she threw her shoe down and said "good grief!" I had to walk away and laugh because it was just too cute coming out of her quiet little voice. So now she says it whenever something doesn't go her way.

Autumn has also become obsessed with washing her hands. Not that I don't mind. Just starting to get a little harder for me to hold Autumn up to the sink everything we need to wash them. I don't let her wash her hands everytime. Otherwise she'd never leave the sink. I even thought about getting her a step stool for our upstairs bathroom. Again, she would never leave the sink. However, her little potty turns into a step stool, so I turned it over for her one day and let her brush her teeth and wash her hands. Guess what? She didn't want to leave the sink. I had to pull her away, crying, or our water bill would be through the roof! She had fun and I enjoy taking some cute pictures.





Put some product in Autumn's hair to "enhance" her curl :-)

Quick Note

I just realized that I never updated about the dog situation at hand. After some much consideration, Jordan and I agreed to not bring another dog into our home. As much as we would had LOVED to bring Kitara (that was her name) into our house, just the thought of another dog to feed, to pick up poop after, to retrain, gave me a head ache.

In all honestly, we're spoiled by Jade. She sits outside nicely with us in the front yard when we're working on it. I can't tell you how many times people have walked by with their dogs and were in shock that Jade wouldn't even get up or chase them. I love that we are able to do that. Jade is EXCELLENT with Autumn. I don't have to worry about her biting or knocking Autumn over. She's careful around Autumn. Doesn't bite her hand if Autumn is waving food in front of her face. Doesn't growl at Autumn if she thinks it's funny to jump on Jade's back over and over again (poor Jade, lol). Also, bringing a newborn into our home this fall does not make me nervous, what-so-ever. Not to mention that Jade's on a diet and is losing weight, so that's less dog food that I have to feed her (plus I started her on a different dog food which she actually eats less of than the Iams I was feeding her before). Also, Jade and I have been taking regular walks almost every night to help her lose weight and keep me from getting fat. Ha! Not to mention the walks are beyond, beyond excellent for my Restless Leg Syndrome.

So, in conclusion, even though we wanted Kitara, so so badly, this just isn't the time for us. We're happy with Jade and after going through 3 other dogs (that didn't end well), we're just not up for another disappointment. And Jade definitely hasn't disappointed us :)