My belly has been moving for a few weeks now...maybe two weeks or so? The kids both felt and saw movement and DH is crazy about my belly. I WISH he'd back off sometimes but he can't keep his fingers off me.
help007, when I hear about Maurice Sendak's passing I immediately thought of his last interview with Terry Gross. It was incredibly moving even without being pregnant--if that's anything to judge by, I don't think the recap show is a silly reason to cry! (I'll have to get the podcast- thanks for the heads-up.)
AFM, Count me in on the heartburn. Ugh. On a brighter note, lots of movement these days at pretty regular intervals, but with the anterior placenta I'm not going to hold my breath for exterior movement anytime soon. It'll be nice, though, for hubby to eventually be able to feel it. The past few nights I keep busting out laughing because for some reason the little girl's 9:30 show is particularly tickly.. he won't get the tickles, but at least he'll be in on it.
Not a lot else going on.. we got a new washer and dryer over the weekend, delivered and installed today, and I'm more excited about that than I should be. The old set was really old and horribly inefficient, and I shudder to think of trying to get those clunkers to keep up with the laundry demands come September.
Count me in on the heartburn. Ugh, it's awful. It seems my belly popped again over night last night. It's crazy! Baby is super active - mostly when I'm trying to sleep - then he uses my bladder as a trampoline. But DH can see him bouncing around in there from across the room. So cool.
I am crazy emotional right now and hating my job. I counted 62 more working days until I'm on maternity leave for a year. Somehow, that makes it bearable.
My BFF is also throwing me a baby shower. Thank god... my last baby was nearly 7 years ago and I did not plan on having another so got rid of all the baby stuff. Although, I'm secretly happy I get to buy all new things. I'm in much better financial shape now than I was 7 years ago so it's a lot less stressful, too.
Is it September yet?
Both. And, I guess it depends on how the previous birth(s) went too. My labor with dd4 was fabulous, but when it came time to pushing, I was terrified. With dd3, I went from feeling slightly uncomfortable with contractions to birthing her SO FAST -- like 15 minutes. It was all so fast that it was nearly terrifying and I really think I didn't work through that enough (dd4 was born in maybe one push? Two at most)... and when it came time to pushing with dd4, I held back because I was scared.
So... with this, I'm not sure. DDs 1, 2, & 3 were all induced (though with dd3, I didn't have any drugs/pain meds or anything else medicalized) and all born in hospitals. DD4 was a homebirth (though not in my home). With this baby #5, I'll be in my own home. And I guess I have no clue what to anticipate (will that lengthen or shorten labor? will I be so much more relaxed that things will go well? will I look around and see stuff still to do so I'll stall myself?). My biggest boon from past births comes from dd4, with her my body went into labor naturally on its own. I KNOW my body knows what to do. I love that. (but, then a negative could be from having a loss prior to this pregnancy... will that instill fear? will it bring some healing? some peace?).
Good questions to ponder on for sure!!
Oh, and I had a midwife appointment today. Things looked good. Heart rate for this baby #5 is at 140 (boy? girl? ... probably one or the other ;) ). I'm kind of excited that my next appointment will get to be in my own home (instead of driving 90 miles there and 90 miles back)! A friend of mine (the only other person in town seeing a midwife that I know of... and seeing the same one as me!) is due in June, so the midwife figured she'd just do my appointment here while she was down here :) Works for me! Saves on gas!
Oh, and it will be a few weeks or so before this gets here (you never know how long it will take with zulily), but this is the dress I got for dh's ordination to be a deacon on August 21st!
I'm excited! It's not black (which I tend to go for all the time) and will hopefully be cool in the raging heat of August!
Ha... I think the baby likes it too. Lots of swift kicks! All still quite low, usually above my pubic bone.
CB: Congrats on your babyboy. sorry no help with the kidney issue. I'm sure it turns out just something minor. Good luck with your VBAC..wishing you all the best.
AFM: I got a major headache this morning. I never get a headache or if I do it's not that bad, I take half a pill and that's it. Today though...oy...it came out of nowhere, within a few minutes my head was pounding and I had to drive my kids, my brother and SIL and me back home. When we got home I took a pill, laid on the couch and cried...it hurt so bad. The bridge of my nose felt like I had a nail sticking in it. Totally weird. I started to google pre-eclempsia (since my blood pressure is usually elevated but I never had issues with pree before) and of course google shows worst case scenareos. I went outside in hopes to be distracted by the kids playing and DD asked if I could fix her goggles. My head hurt so bad I couldn't even figure out what the heck I was doing. It was scary. So I called my MIL and she came over to check my blood pressure but it was fine..actually, almost a little too low at 108/63, hmmm. DH wants me to go get checked out and I told him that I will keep 'an eye on it'. If I do get another episode like that I will definitely go but with a one time occurance I guess I shouldn't be too worried? My next appointment isn't until May 21. Anyway..I did start to feel better as noon came around, made lunch and took a nap with the kids. My head still hurt a tiny bit but it was manageable, nothing like I had in the morning. I can totally live without any kind of headache/migrane and I feel for those who get it regularly.
Hi ladies!
Not too much going on here - just super busy and exhausted. I wanted today to be really low-key and relaxed and DD had different ideas and is making it a stressful day. And I've already had to make one run to the store and we're headed to a farm for some strawberry flats in a bit.
AFM: I'm feeling, I dunno - blah. I'm still wondering if placenta is anterior because movement is so light and so infrequent. I'm pretty small, considering it's my 3rd and my sizes last times. I'm also back to feeling a little stressed about this unplanned #3. We have zero desire to find out the sex for those purposes alone, but I'm starting to wonder if I should more for bonding reasons. Name, etc. Up til now it's been "baby" or "it". Sigh....just feeling torn about it. We *know* this is our last, so as much as I want that surprise, the overwhelming fear and concern I have about a 3rd is consuming to the point of being worried about postpartum depression. I had it really bad with my DS (for over 2 years.....until I was pregnant with my DD an then finally got some real help for it).
Anyway....feel like I'm rambling. Hope everyone is having a great day!
One of my friends just told me she has mono. I eat lunch with her about once a week. Last time I did have a bite off her her plate. I'm freaking out a little bit. I'll mention it to my Dr. on Monday when I go.
I Have to go do bloodwork for my diabetes tomorrow. I know I haven't been as good lately. . . stupid strawberry pop tart cravings!! I have NEVER, even as a kid liked the fruit flavored pop tarts. I did eat the chocolate ones occasionally, but never the fruit - yuck. Now they're like the best things on earth. ugh. I keep telling myself I can't buy any more. This has got to be the worst craving ever, lol!
Oh, Crystal- Can I ask which Dr. you are seeing? When I first found out I was pg the Dr. said I could probably VBAC, but we'd "cross that bridge" later. We haven't talked about it lately, but if she wants me to see MFM for that, I probably need to get that rolling. I'm already seeing him because I'm diabetic and he knows I want to VBAC, but I really hadn't made up my mind at the first OB appt. I was still in shock and just so worried about managing the diabetes at that point. I really hadn't researched it much, we really didn't plan to have any more kids. My dh is on testosterone replacement and that usually messes with a guy's sperm count enough that getting pregnant isn't an issue. However, we were blessed with another and it's turning out to be more of a blessing than I thought, it's made me really buckle down and take care of my health. I was doing better with my diabetes and losing weight, but nowhere near where I should be. Needless to say the weightloss is stalled, but by the time the baby is born, my eating right should be almost second nature - besides the strawberry pop tarts, lol. Anyway, enough rambling. IF anything wish me luch talking with my Dr. on Monday.
Hi everyone - I have been a little blah too. i think a lot of it is 4 days in a row of rain! I need sunshine - BAD! I had an awful headache yesterday too! I think it was needing t be hydrated. I have also had heartburn the past 4 nights and finally gave in and had tums last night I went to see my homeopth today. she gave me a remedy for my heartburn and made me feel better overall. My midwife had suggested doing a session of EMDR before this birth just to release any "trauma" from DD's birth. I was on the fence about it. I mean, when I think about my DD's birth I wish that I had the intuition to just stay home and not turn it all medically and go in an ambulance and deliver with three men I had never met instead of my husband. But, that is exactly why I am doing a homebirth this time. I am not stressed about the birth, I am exctied! Anyways, my homeopath totally agreed with me on no EMDR. She also agreed with my that the extra tissue on one of baby's heart valves is likely nothing to worry about. I have been a little worried that this baby could be a bad sleeper like my DD and my homeopath reminded me that I have resources now to support me from the beginning versus with DD I got help when she was about 9 months or a year. Anyways, overall good visit. I weighed myself today and I have gained 10 lbs, so that is good, more than I had at this point with DD. DH and I have been sort of at each others throats lately, hopefully it will get better soon. Hope some of you are enoying some sunshine for me!
Ava's Mama: I've used EMDR for other things, but it sounds like a great idea. It certainly couldn't hurt. I was really quite amazed by how well the EMDR worked--especially since it's just a light or pen moving from side to side. But if you don't feel that there is any baggage left that is going to give you flash-backs or send you into a terrified state, then there's probably no need. :) The only times EMDR really helped was when I would remember a traumatic experience so vividly I would react as though it were happening again. The EMDR helped my brain to process it so that afterwards I felt as though it truly was a past event and I was no longer in danger.
judybean, the dress looks great :)
I'm glad to say that I'm really not dealing with heartburn yet - 21 weeks now. I had an awful time with it in both of my previous pregnancies, and I'm so not looking forward to it coming back.
AFM - We've had a horrid week. Sunday on the way home from church I suddenly had a very upset stomach, broke out into a cold sweat, and canceled our plans to go out for lunch. We had friends who were just getting over a stomach bug, so I assumed it was hitting me. I spent the afternoon in bed (and the bathroom), but by evening I was shockingly better, ate a tame but full dinner, bathed the kids, and went on our evening walk. I determined I must have just reacted to something I ate. Unfortunately at about 2am Monday, DD2 came in our room crying and threw up. DD1 started throwing up around 8am, and they both had awful nonstop diarrhea. DD1 got so bad with CONSTANT vomiting and diarrhea that we were really worried about dehydration. DH brought her to the urgent care clinic at about 10pm, where oral zophran fortunately solved the immediate issue, and she could finally hold down fluid. I was concerned about IV fluids, and wondering if they'd end up spending the night. She lost about 4 lbs that day 
. The next day DD2 was still throwing up, and both girls still had diarrhea. DH stayed home both Mon and Tuesday. Wednesday he went back to work. Still today the kids have very upset tummies, are eating a very very small diet of all BRATs type food, and have diarrhea, and keep thinking they're going to throw up 
DD2 keeps asking me "When will I be better?" Her sleep is very very restless, and she keeps crying in her sleep. It's just heartbreaking. I'm doing lots of probiotics, for both the girls as well as me and DH. I'm terrified DH is going to get it, and somewhat concerned that my turn was too mild and quick to count...
In more fun news, I think we've settled on a name for the baby - Vella Rose. And I think we've finally settled on bedroom arrangements too. We'll be setting up our guest room as "DD1's room" with her clothes and some books/toys in there, and putting baby things in the changing table and matching dresser in the bigger bedroom. This will allow DD1 to do afternoon quiet time in her room (even if she completely stops napping, she won't be keeping DD2 from napping), and her dresses to have space to hang (we've got a double rod dropped for DD2's clothes in their small shared closet, but the dresses keep getting longer and causing issues 
). It will give her some big kid space for toys with small parts and such. DD1 will continue to sleep in her top bunk in the room with DD2, which will allow DH to put them to bed together. DD2 will be able to do afternoon quiet time in her own bedroom alone. The kids really need to be in a room alone at rest time to get the down time and rest they need. But, the night time sleeping arrangement is working beautifully and I don't want to change it. Also, DH and I use the guest room for sex 
, and I really really don't want to lose that with a new baby in our bed, so at least we can use it at night, though we'll have to be more discreet about it 
. I think this arrangement will work best for all of us. Also, changing the guest room into DD1's room will leave us less likely to have the ILs expect to sleep here when they come visit, which really really doesn't work for my mental health. They get restless and like to "do things to help" like search our closets, laundry room, and garage for a broom at 5am to sweep the back porch 
So, at least I've come to peace with two of the big decisions I've been very ready to make and move forward with.
I just saw my tummy move! It's so weird! Like he was just punching away at that one spot 4 or 5 times!
MissE -- Headaches like that are misery. I would get some paralyzing headaches not super frequently, but far too often for comfort (like, they'd make me feel like throwing up -- except that I seriously NEVER throw up... I can count on two hands the only times in my life I've puked)... so I got a hazel wood necklace. I swear it had magical powers and when wearing it, I wouldn't get any headaches at all. (dd4 broke it recently and I haven't replaced it yet). It's also amazing at helping with heartburn/acid reflux! Just something to think about! I found mind was worth its weight in gold!
ilovejeff -- I hope your driving works out for you! With dd4 I had a midwife in another state to the north (a 2.5-3 hour drive in good weather) and was juts hoping/praying it would all work out. I don't know if dd4 just knew she had to take some time getting here or what, but on a Friday night I had some bloody show and lost my plug, so we drove up there, spent the night, and dd4 was born Saturday afternoon! It was beautiful and perfect! Hopefully your baby will get the memo that there needs to be some time allowed for driving ;)
Flower of Bliss -- Oh, that sounds TERRIBLE :( I'm so sorry you've all had to deal with such horrid stomach/intestinal issues. That's terrible on its own, but in pregnancy it's just hell!! And I hate it when the little ones are sick... it's so hard to watch their sad, aching faces/bodies because you just want to take all the pain away... but all you can do is love them and get them back to health with some TLC. Hoping this is the worst you'll have to deal with and it will be smooth-sailing health-wise for you all now!!
ascher21 -- That's sooooo exciting! I haven't seen any yet, but the time I feel kicks the most is when I"m laying in bed and I've already turned the light off ;) Enjoy seeing those beautiful, joy-filled movements!
Today my mom took my four girls to see my grandparents in a town 1.5 hours to the south. Dh and I just went to lunch (alone! so exciting!) and then this afternoon I'm going to try to tackle my girls' clothing situation. *U.G.H.* It's completely out of control. My mom LOVES to get them new clothes (great, right?!) and it's super that I've really NEVER had to buy them clothes (I do still make them some sometimes), but it tends to get SUPER overwhelming because I do save hand-me-downs. But lately, since they've been going to see my grandparents nearly every Friday, my mom has been getting them a new outfit EVERY WEEK. (I swear, she is like an AWESOME shopper and finding The Best Deals on stuff all the time... she buys at the end of the season for the next year, scours clearance racks, loves zulily, etc). So today, I'm going through their stuff and saving enough of any given size to fit into one large rubbermaid container. If it doesn't fit, we don't keep it. Then I'm going to give all the rest away! (seriously... I could probably open up a kids' resale shopping specializing ONLY in girl clothing... and stay in business for a Very Long Time).
I really don't like them having so much STUFF for so many reasons: 1) Their laundry situation is also out of control. 2) The room that dd2, dd3, dd4 share is a DISASTER with clothing everywhere. 3) (this is the biggest one) They have NO value for the clothes they have. They have so many that it really doesn't matter if they take care of them, if they leave them on the floor and walk all over them, etc... because they're always getting more anyway :(
I'm really hoping to clear out this area of my life because it's just NUTS!
I'm also going to clean out our nasty pit-of-gross-heaps-of-messes Suburban!! It's our only vehicle and we've traveled a lot lately (and will do more this coming week) and it's sick. With all four kids gone, I can take out car seats and hopefully fill a dumpster or something. Ick.
judybean, i wonder if it's nesting - does that start this early? suddenly this week, everything looks dirty in my house. i've swept three times (well, once because it needed it, then four days later because my midwives were coming - and then were called to a birth and couldn't come anyway, then again today because i'm throwing a birthday party for hubby today. I find myself wanting to wash baseboards and cabinets! I'm starting to get a hankering to clean the fridge! i scrubbed my kitchen floor! (it's a very little kitchen).
Also, I don't know if any of you have found it, but do you all know about pregtastic.com? They have hundreds of podcasts on pregnancy and the time right after birth. Sometimes it's just general "how are you" discussion (like these weekly chats) between a number of pregnant women, and a lot of the time it's specific things with experts involved in the discussion (cosleeping, baby bunching, dunstan baby language, birthing classes, elimination communication). It's always a group discussion between women at different stages of their pregnancy and different perspectives (those planning c-sections, those planning homebirths, etc, etc) with no judgment passed, and it's great little 45 minute intros to things that I discover I want to research further (like EC, which now doesn't sound nearly as extreme and challenging as I thought it was). It's been crazy helpful for me as a first timer in this pregnancy thing, but a lot of the discussions involve 2nd and 3rd time moms who are still learning.
I do suppose some nesting is playing into things. For me, just knowing that I'm more than halfway through this journey (eek! 23 weeks tomorrow!) suddenly means things are more imminent and I feel like I need to take care of stuff NOW because it's only going to get worse and/or not get done after baby gets here!! Certain things like organizing all my girls' clothing is something that happens about once or twice a year (usually with the change of the seasons), so it's just that time now... and it doesn't matter how much I put it off -- it's always waiting for me!
and with that.. I'm officially off to clean out the Suburban. Oh joy! 
I'm so glad you mentioned the ear thing. This is my second pregnancy and with both I've had blocked/frequently popping ears but didn't know any other preggos that have that. It's not a big deal but I'm so glad that I'm not the only one!
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