June Mamas May 2-May 8 - Page 5

[irishgreengables]

Kim-- I am so sorry the doctor said that -- it is awful.

When interviewing peds for our first 2, I had been planning on nursing since our son was only 4 months old when we started the process (he came home at 22 months old). One ped said that she doesn't even recommend that "real" parents (her word) nurse past 4 months, so she certainly wouldn't recommend it for me. She also went on and on about how internationally adopted kids do really well adjusting "except those black kids. Those black kids are always behind." That is an exact quote.

Went to Ob today. Growth spurt. Though I have gained only 1 lb. these past 2 weeks, belly grew 4.5 cm. -- no wonder I was hurting so much!!!!

Peace,

[Greaseball]

I don't get these doctors who want our business and then think they can be rude to us. If I wanted, say, a maid, and she was rude to me and blamed me for things and criticized my parenting, I would hire someone else!

I think peds should stick to childrens' health and not think they should have a say in parenting choices. I had a WIC lady tell me that nursing at night was a "bad habit." What does she know; she's a nutritionist! And obviously not a very good one. My parenting decisions shouldn't mean anything to her.

I had my appt today and they assured me, the iodine was to clean their own hands and any equipment they might use! They also tried this thing to get the OP baby to turn, where they wrapped me in a sheet and shook me around. It was fun, but the baby just did a complete 360 turn and went back to where it was! Still, I wish someone could have seen it. Definitely not one's idea of a prenatal appointment!

[ksjhwkr]

Thank you all for your support and ideas of how to get this stupid doc!! I like a pox on him, thanks curlygirl! I am going to write him a letter and let him know that his actions and words are NOT acceptable. I will also find all the information I can about co-sleeping and it's saftey and include that. My old Ped said that she would be more than happy to talk to whoever we choose to be our Ped here, but I don't want to waste her time with that stupid doc. Know what I mean? I am praying that tomorrow when I go meet with this other doc, he will be lots better.
I have to agree, all this dog talk is making me ill...but I'm not surprised. Jeremy's folks have a cat who will cough up hair balls all over the place, then the dog will eat them. GROSS!!! :Puke
Well, I went to the midwife this morning, and...drumroll please....baby is HEAD DOWN still!!! I was thinking that s/he turned breech because of some vicious kicks and things I was getting on my cervix. But, baby is head down!!! My urine looked great, no sugar, my blood pressure was wonderful and I haven't gained any weight. That last part is FINE WITH ME!! I've already gained 30 lbs, so this is just great. I am measuring 41 weeks though. She did a vaginal exam (to be 100% sure that it was a head she was feeling) and said that she isn't surprised now that I am measuring so far ahead...baby is WAY high up there. Now that I know that s/he is head down, baby can drop anytime! That will make my breathing and heartburn LOTS better!!! But, I'm not counting on it anytime soon!!! Anyway, all is good in pregnancy land!!!!!
On another note...my poor sweet hubby...he's sick. Jeremy lived in Ecuador for 2 years, and hasn't been sick other than a cold since he's been back in the States. Well, after bragging about how he hasn't thrown up in 4 years and how he has an iron stomach (blah, blah, blah) karma caught up with him and he is sick!! I feel bad for him, but it is a little humerous. I think it's something he ate though...he doesnt have a fever. It's probably chicken he didn't cook enough. I keep telling him that he doesn't cook it enough...I put mine in the microwave to cook it more when he grills it. He's sick and I'm not. Poor baby!

[3girlsmommy]

WOW! The reality just really hit me that soon I will have this baby. LOL! I just recieved a preadmission phone call from the hospital where I will be birthing to go over all the preadmission stuff. I have less then 7 weeks until my guess date and it still seems so far away and I'm really enjoying my pregnancy so I guess it kind of surprises me that I will soon be a mommy of 3!

The sad thing is I remember being 7 weeks pregnant and thinking June was REALLY far away and now it's lurking right around the corner!

[eilonwy]

Kim, .

I felt super crappy yesterday, and I know that it's because I'm anemic but there's really nothing I can do about it. I can't afford Floradix and iron tablets make me so constipated I can't think straight. I'm already constipated, God knows I don't need help there! : (T: How do we get the old "rolleyes" smiley back? I don't like the new one at all! )

A coworker of Mike's had a yard sale last weekend and brought all the stuff he didn't sell to work for people to take for free. I went through all the kids clothing and ended up with two big boxes full of stuff! None of it was small enough for Eli, to say nothing of NewBean, but a lot of it will fit my nephew and is going to him on Saturday. It is definately to my advantage to choose clothing for him as I'm going to be seeing all of it again in a year or two. :LOL Anyway, Mike's coworker has a girl and a boy, both of whom are skinny, so he had lots of little girl's slim stuff, sizes 4-6X. One of my nieces is also a slim, but she needs an 8 for the length. The other is a 6X/7 and there's nothing slim about her. :LOL She's a tank! Still, I took all the nice jeans; some of them are unisex and will fit my nephew and Eli later, and the others were just too cute to pass up! I'll find something to do with them, even if it turns out that NewBean is not a skinny-mini like her brother is.

So I had fun and got a lot of clothing, but still nothing girly for NewBean. There must be something I'm forgetting to do, karma-wise...

Eli is very tired right now, but he's playing with his favorite truck (the one he's named "Chevrolet") and he will not give it up. I have a feeling that if I went to the bedroom to lie down, Eli would come flying in and just pass out. He had a very long day today! We went to a LLL meeting this morning, where he got overstimulated and was in quite a hurry to leave as soon as I stood up.. He went running for the door, "Open, open! I go!" and as soon as we were in the hallway he was totally zen. We got into the car and his relief was palpable.. all those toddlers were just too much for him! He did very well through the meeting (except when he fell and cut his lip open and when a woman who'd left her infant in his carseat on the floor yelled at him "DON'T TOUCH THE BABY!!!" as he got close to the kid) but he was very obviously pleased to leave. I just think it's fabulous that he can let me know things like that, kwim? I'm fascinated by the way he (and all babies) communicate.

Even though my belly is definately smaller than it was carrying Eli (I can still button all the buttons on my overalls!) I have definately entered the 'beach ball smuggling' phase. :LOL My mother thinks that my belly only looks smaller because *I* am smaller, but she's mistaken; I'm actually not that much smaller than I was. The belly, however.. well, I think it's because she likes to sit transverse. When should I get worried about that? I don't think a transverse baby can deliver vaginally... I also will have to remember to ask my doctor if he will deliver a vaginal breech. My MIL was absolutely shocked when I told her that most won't; her first delvery (SIL) was breech and she said "Enough people should have learned watching me. All I heard the whole time was 'Come in here, you gotta see this!' There must have been a dozen people in there!" It really surprised her to hear that these days, a midwife is more likely to deliver a vaginal breech than a doctor is.

Awww!! Eli just walked into the bedroom and came back out again. I said "It's all right, you can go lie down if you like." He looked up at me and said "nap". I said "You need a nap?" and he said "Please. And nursie nursies." How can I say no to that?

[seedling]

Rynna, you might try alfafa tablets (pretty affordable at WellSpring). They actually counteract the constipating effect of the iron tablets. Or you could try nettle tea. You could probably get dried nettles at WellSpring too...I got mine from my midwife. Anyway, I think both perk up your iron levels.

Well, DD down early b/c no nap but I've got a disaster zone in the house and another day that I came up short with work time. Uggh.

[Modesto Doula]

Greaseball- Your midwives were using your sheet as a rebozo (a Mexican shawl), iin a traditional Mexican technique for baby turning. There are several ways to do it, all of them for different reasons. I wouldnt worry about an OP baby right now though, you've got plenty of time.

Kim- That Dr is a real A$$. Sorry you had to go through that.

On the same note, we are officially looking for a new ped too. The ped that my first two are seen with just has too many damn patients. We've just gotten back health ins, and so I wanted both of them in for a well-child check, since kimber didnt get a 4yr physical and zack will be 2 next mo and hasnt seen her since his 1 yr visit. The first available appt to fit them both in at the same time~~ mid SEPTEMBER!! Im like, are you nuts? Thats 5 months from now, Im going to have three kids to fit in by then!! We can do individual appts, they said, in August... LOL. I scheduled them with an NP in JULY (july??? Thats forever from now, on the other side of the rainbow... Im not making any plans past the middle of june right now, LOL). I hope we'll have found a new ped or family dr by then.

My first home visit was today. My house has not been deep cleaned, my birth kit was just ordered a few days ago, no clean baby clothes ready to go in case... I told the midwife (the back up came today) that I have no plans to do any of it until next week and the week after cause the cleaning will have to be done again and we have to clean out the garage to get to the baby clothes. good thing I go late! Ive put all this off so long that if I went early I'd be in deep doo-doo. (and my dogs are doo-doo eaters too... nasty little mongrels.)

[Queen of Cups]

Well, now that the closing date is set on our house and my m-i-l is here, all activitivy (surge-wise) has seemed to stop. Figures, huh? I was getting myself all prepared to go litterally at any moment, but all of a sudden I feel like it will be weeks... I would be thrilled to have the baby next week, actually, because then I'd have some time to recover before the move!

I'm now back to sitting on my birth ball - I forgot how comfy it is! I love being able to gently bounce and rotate while I'm working at the computer...

[eilonwy]

Wow, am I sore! My entire body feels like I've been beaten up! Must have been the busy day yesterday. I was feeling pretty decent, so I did a lot but now I'm seriously regretting it! Eli seems to have gained a pound or two just over the past week.. or maybe that's my anemia talking.

Speaking of which.. alfalfa tablets?! Like you feed to guinea pigs? I didn't know they were for people, too! I'll send Mike in search of them when he gets home.

Last night, I told Mike to go back and empty the car because there were wet diapers in it, and Eli's carseat needs to be washed. He said he knows he hasn't been doing as much around the house as he said he would, but that he worled really hard today. I said I'd love to be more sympathetic, but that's why I wanted him to help me with all this crap back in the first trimester when I could still bend over, and he totally refused. He's the one who waited until I was a beached whale to get started on the big jobs, not me! I've been trying to do this for the past 8 months! He was annoyed by that, but he shut up in a hurry because I was right. At any rate, he didn't bring the diapers in, so I'm sure the car smelled like cooked pee this morning. Lovely, and entirely his fault. :LOL Maybe he'll actually bring them in tonight. :LOL

I think I'm doing nothing but putting together bracelets today. I'll have to go back to Wally World to see if they got the small envelopes in so I can start mailing. I'm not looking forward to walking around in there. Ick.

Yesterday, it occured to me that I am less than 5 weeks away from where I was when Eli was born. Unbelieveable! 5 weeks seems like nothing at all... but when I was this far along with Eli, I was miserable 24/7 and desperate to get him out ASAP. I was 34 weeks pregnant with Eli for my 25th birthday, and boy did that ever suck. I wanted a baby for my birthday! :LOL I also asked for a foot massage, a bath (I needed Mike's help to get in and out at that point because I had no leverage) and a cake. I got none of those things; Mike came home from work and passed out like someone had hit him. That's no way to behave on your wife's birthday, even if she's not 8.5 months pregnant!! I'm still mad about it, can you tell? :LOL

[seedling]

The Alfalfa supplement I'm taking is put out by "Nature's Way". 100 Capsules to the bottle and I'm pretty sure they are under $10. I got them from Whole Foods. What I've read about them says that they are high in both calcium and iron and that the two don't interfere with one another as they do in regular (non-whole-food) mineral supplements. They are also high in vitamins C, A, E, and K. They can cause loose poop so you should start out taking them slowly...one the first day, two the next and so on until you are up to two after each meal and two before bed (8 a day!). They are supposed to help postpartum with blood loss & bowel movement but just take them the first day and not again until the fourth or fifth postpartum day b/c they can promote lactation to the point that it makes engorgement worse. Also, they can make newborn jaundice worse. I'm paraphrasing all this from "The Amazing Alfalfa" an article written by Lisa Goldstein, CPM, CNM. I don't have a link to the article, sorry. It's a handout that my midwife gave me. Hope that helps!

[curlygrrl]

The alfalfa has helped me a lot too, I didn't know that about stopping them after the first day pp, I thought they would help with milk not thinking about making engorgement worse, thanks for that!

I just have trouble *remembering* to take the vitamins/supplements.

The baby has not been moving much the last couple days and I'm worried. My midwife is very laid back about it, she says as long as the baby moves everyday it's okay. Well, of course it's squirming around right now as I'm typing this, LOL!

Yesterday something happened to the manual transmission on our car. I don't know if it's fixable or not. I took the bus to work today and was just miserable, because I had a terrible charlie horse at 4:30am and could barely walk most of the day. But must say that I'm very fortunate to have the option of taking the FREE bus to work in these situations. DH is going out of town with his band next weekend. Thinking about being home alone all weekend with no car makes me want to panic. I was supposed to go stay with my mom but if I can't get there I don't know if she'll come pick me up. Argh.

Tamara

[eilonwy]

*sigh* Well, Eli woke up from his morning nap about an hour and fifteen minutes later than usual with a fever. He's been a limp, sad ball of Babyness all day. Just not his usual cheerful self. He nursed a fair bit, but he kept falling asleep. Mike came home and he woke up & went to daddy, so I finally got a chance to go to the bathroom (I can no longer stand up on my own when I'm holding Eli.. : ) and then I took his temperature. 103.0. Is there anything I can do to get rid of his headache without lowering the fever too much? I couldn't handle seeing him in pain any longer this afternoon, so I gave him the tylenol.. he was just miserable.

I'd also like to know what's bothering him... my guess is that it's his ears. We have small tubes in my family, and while I didn't have them there is a family history of severe, recurrent ear infections. Of course, he smells sick (he has sick breath) which doesn't usually go along with the ear infections. I was thinking that we'd try to avoid antibiotics this time, but the sick breath says to me "bacterial infection" so I'm thinking we might have to take him in. I'm so not looking forward to it... Mike's new insurance is acting weird; apparently they don't cover well baby checks! I'm too pregnant (read: my fuse is way too short) to deal with insurance people right now, so I was hoping to avoid it until the brain fog lifts, but with Eli being sick I'm going to have to do it a heck of a lot sooner. *sigh* Anyway, he can't take the cheap stuff, so he'll be put on zithromax. On the positive side, it's only five days so he always gets all of it. On the negative side, amoxil only costs $6, which is way less than our co-pay; we have to pay the full co-pay for zithromax ($25, last time we needed it). Ick, ick, ICK!

And again, I feel guilty because I don't think he would be sick if he was still getting lots of nursie milk. Every time he gets sick, I feel like it's my fault. Mike said the same thing as soon as he got home, he always feels like he's somehow not being vigilant enough when Eli gets sick, and having to see Eli in pain is punishment for it. I try to tell myself that all kids get sick, that it's part of growing up, but that doesn't make it any easier to deal with.

[3girlsmommy]

Rynna- It sucks when our kids are sick. I always feel so darn helpless!! I think the whole sick thing is going around 'cause my little one has this yucky nose thing.

Hope your little one feels better soon!

[liz-hippymom]

yikes!
my computer is trashed..dammed viruses. i havent been able to get on MDC for 5 days!!! i was seriously aching for some MDC time! now i am on DHs work laptop. i am SO READY for my babe to COME OUT!!!!! i am 37 weeks tomarrow and my midwife said i could start trying EPO and sex and walking to get her out..im in too much pain. everything is ready except my belly cast which i am doing tomarrow and i need to buy some disposable cameras...yikes coming soon...a baby!

[Queen of Cups]

I have had about the worst day ever... DH and I went to Lowe's and fought about everything. Why get a $140 lawn mower when you could get a $180 one? Why a $600 fridge when you can get an $800? (but a deep freeze is frivolous) Why paint a room in two colors when you could paint it in 4 (including painting the ceiling)? There is no way we can afford maternity leave, a new house, hospital deductables, AND top-of-the-line appliances for everything in the house. He just doesn't grasp this concept, and makes me feel like a stingy mean person for crushing his dreams...

Then I talk to my parents, and they act like I'm a horrible sister because I told my younger sis that she can't drive with the baby in the car. She's been driving for only 9 months and she's had two accidents since February - both of which were completely her fault (hit one parked car and one fire hydrant). How in the world am I being unreasonable??? Not to mention the fact that I have given her my car, which I am still making payments on and paying the insurance for. And, she lives with DH and I because we invited her to so it would be easier for her to afford grad school. Yeah, I'm a horrible sister... (they did apologize and finally admit that I was making a responsible decision - but it would have been way nicer if they had been affirming from the beginning instead of guilting me about it first before finally admitting they would make the same choice)

My m-i-l is visiting, and so my f-i-l calls a lot, of course. But he NEVER asks to speak to me. I find it really insulting. But, I'm still upset at him because he told me 2-3 last week (during the whole PTL fiasco) that it was partially my fault that his daughter checked herself into a mental hospital. Wanna know why? Because I said I didn't want smokers to hold my baby, and she quit smoking. So, according to him, quitting smoking played a big part in upping her stress level to the point of going to the hospital.

Plus, everyone's acting like I'm trying to hurt the baby by being upset. Telling an upset pregnant woman that she needs to calm down for the baby's sake is just a big guilt-trip-gut-punch. Don't they realize that that comment helps ZERO - it just makes me more upset!

I'm also annoyed because DH and m-i-l have watched me walk around the house doing laundry and cleaning the bathrooms for the past hour and didn't even bother to ask if they could help.

[eilonwy]

QoC, your post really struck a chord with me. I'm sorry you're having such a crappy time dealing with family. Ick! I told one of my sisters I wouldn't let her take Eli for a drive after learning that a)she had driven with my nephew without a carseat when he was 13 months old and b)she didn't know how to fasten the straps properly on Eli's seat, to say nothing of installing it correctly. She was so offended by that, but mom and my other sister told her off. :LOL

My FIL has studiously avoided any mention of this pregnancy. It's really quite amusing, actually. :LOL Of course, he thinks we're all going to burn in hell. It just blows his mind that his only son has strayed so far from the path! :LOL The fact that not only are we excited but that we totally *planned* this pregnancy would probably make his head spin if he thought about it, so mostly he pretends that nothing is going on. It's absolutely hilarious, because MIL, while she wishes things were a bit different, is really quite excited about NewBean and her impending arrival. This will be her second grandchild and her first granddaughter, how could she not be thrilled? :LOL I am almost certain that the only reason FIL hasn't sat the two of us down to talk about our sinful life is that MIL threatens him in that quiet, non-threatening way she has. :LOL It's absolutely incredible to me how much control that woman weilds without raising her voice a single decible.. she doesn't even say hop before he says how high. :LOL

Mike and I fought a lot more last pregnancy than we have this time, mostly because Mike now knows his duties and what he must do. Keep me happy, and it will all be over soon. :LOL The fact that I've made it to 32 weeks feeling so good and with relatively few problems... well, that's just icing on the cake for him. He'll do anything within his power to keep me happy for the next few weeks. Now if only I can teach him to do this during the second trimester next time... :LOL

[ksjhwkr]

We found our Ped!!!!

Well, we found our Pediatrician today!!! We interviewed Dr. Borgenicht, he was SO compassionate and kind. He realizes how difficult this pregnancy is for us and that we will have more questions than most 2nd time parents. He is absolutely great!!!! He couldn't believe what the other doc said, he was pretty upset by that. He has no problem with us doing delayed vaccinations, co-sleeping, and thinks it is great that I love to breastfeed. Oh yeah, and he also said that he will only use antibiotics if they are absolutely necessary. That is great, he's not into overmedicating!!! I am just thrilled and relieved beyond belief! Oh! And the other doc wanted us to bring the baby into the office the day after s/he is born for a checkup. This doc said that as long as the midwife thinks baby is fine, we don't need to come in until baby is 2 weeks old. I love that!!! WHEW! Huge sigh of relief from me!!!

QoC- Huge Sorry your family is being so dumb!

Ryanna- I hope Eli gets feeling better soon. That has to be so hard.

And, I know my pregnant brain is forgetting something else I was going to say, but hey! We all understand that!

[Queen of Cups]

Kim - I'm so happy that you found a doctor!

By the way, were you in the Kansas City area? If so, who was your old pediatrician?

So far, I'm feeling much better today. We're off to do the house inspection, and hopefully that will be a positive experience...

[Doodlebugsmom]

Wow. Sorry that some of you have family that seems to act unreasonable at times. I must be very lucky.

Kim, congrats on finding the right dr. That's awesome. You must feel much more at ease now.

Rynna, I hope Eli is feeling better. Poor little guy! Poor mama too! I can't imagine trying to care for a sick child right now. I already feel like I'm at my wit's end! I can't find the energy or motivation to clean the house or cook dinner. I feel like such a slacker!

[eilonwy]

Thanks! Eli is feeling much better today. His fever broke in the middle of the night and we woke up with a very sweaty little boy. Must have been a 24 hour bug. He's not in pain, his headache is gone, but he still prefers me (he hasn't asked for Mike and has been fairly clingy this morning) so he's feeling better but not 100%. I still wonder what made him sick.. Ah well. He's fine now, so it's all good! :LOL

I, however, had a horrible night and am not feeling my best. Icky icky ick!! Mike got me a playball two days ago, and sitting on that is really comfortable. It's incredibly sturdy so I don't feel like I'm going to break it. The only problem is that it needs a bit more air than it has, and I don't have a pump for it. I'll have to find out if my mom has one floating around somewhere. That, and I can't hold Eli while I'm sitting on it.. and that's simply unacceptable right now! :LOL