I apologize for my lack of posting lately. You would think that I would post more frequently because now I have all the time in the world, but as it turns out, when I can't get off the couch and Caleb is gone all day, I really don't have much to say.
My days go something like this:
1. Eat.
2. Lie on the couch.
3. Drink my weight in water.
4. Lie on the couch some more.
5. Eat even though I'm not hungry.
6. Pee 86 times.
7. Drink more water.
8. Call Clayton at work for the 5th time to tell him I'm bored.
9. Nap.
10. Watch every rerun of A Baby Story on TLC.
It's shocking that this daily schedule would leave me with little to talk about, eh?
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Lindsey: The Human Incubator
Where to begin? I finally spoke with the OB nurse at my doctor's office Monday afternoon and she asked me to stay on bedrest until the doctor could see me on Tuesday morning. Thankfully, Caleb was napping by the time I talked to her and he slept until Clayton got home.
Clayton took me to the doctor yesterday morning and I'm 2 cm dilated but not effaced at all yet. The doctor said he wanted me to continue on a modified bedrest until Sunday when I'm full term (resting the majority of the time, but able to get up for a few minutes occasionally if I'm not having contractions). He said everything looked good but the baby was measuring on the small side, so he also wanted me to have an ultrasound to check his size.
The ultrasound tech didn't have any openings for another week, so they advised us to go down to her office and wait and she would fit me in between appointments as soon as possible. We waited for a little over an hour before she called us back and we started the ultrasound. The placenta and cord looked great, but baby is definitely on the small side. His head was actually measuring a week or two ahead, but his body was measuring about a week behind. She said this difference is typical, because when a baby starts to fall behind in growth or nutrition, all the nutrients get sent to the baby's head to his brain and then the rest of his body starts to fall behind. His weight was estimated at 5 lbs 14 oz and this puts him in the 28th percentile. He was in the 34th percentile at my 20 week ultrasound, so it's a definite concern that his growth has slowed and dropped off a bit.
The other alarming part of his small size is that Caleb was a fairly big baby and usually in the 90th percentile for size. He was born at 38 weeks and was 7 lbs 15 oz. The other concern the ultrasound tech found was that my amniotic fluid is on the low side. The normal range for this is between 8 and 18, and my measurement was 9. I'm technically still in the normal range, but the fluid typically decreases towards the end of the pregnancy, so the tech stressed repeatedly how important this was to keep an eye on. We don't want it to dip too low, as this is dangerous to the baby.
Because Caleb was always so big and both pregnancies have had very few complications until this point, all of this information came as quite a shock. The ultrasound tech said the most important things I can do are to stay on bedrest and be off my feet as much as humanly possible, and then be sure to eat enough and push a lot of fluids. This upset me even more because after her lecturing, I felt like she thought it was my fault. Because of the hip/pelvic pain I've had, I've been considerably immobile the past couple of months. I'm not trying to be "super mom" as she put it, and I have certainly let Clayton take the lead with most things at home. I also am not a person to skip meals and in no way, shape or form have I been trying to diet or limit my food intake. I eat a ton and have been drinking 5 or 6 16oz glasses of water every day.
So once I went home and digested all of this, Clayton and I talked and decided that the only thing I could really do different, is be on complete bedrest and not have Caleb home with me. I was really upset and torn about this because on the one hand, I feel like I need to not move off the couch if I'm going to take care of Owen and be a good mom to him. For him, my most important job is to rest, eat and hydrate so he can grow and "cook" as long as possible. But on the other hand, there is a strong sense of weakness and failure that comes with having to ask someone else to take care of Caleb when I'm home doing nothing all day long. I hate feeling like I have to choose one child over the other and I hate worrying about burdening others because we need help. Plus, I really, really miss him.
It was an emotional and stressful day, and thankfully we do have wonderful family that is helping out with Caleb the next day or two. Clayton has been taking great care of me as well. He brings me anything I need and has been doing everything for Caleb and around the house by himself. It's hard to see him do so much and be so tired and then have to go to work all day.
I hope things get better soon. I'm praying for a healthy baby and that I can stay strong and hang in there until he's ready to come out.
Clayton took me to the doctor yesterday morning and I'm 2 cm dilated but not effaced at all yet. The doctor said he wanted me to continue on a modified bedrest until Sunday when I'm full term (resting the majority of the time, but able to get up for a few minutes occasionally if I'm not having contractions). He said everything looked good but the baby was measuring on the small side, so he also wanted me to have an ultrasound to check his size.
The ultrasound tech didn't have any openings for another week, so they advised us to go down to her office and wait and she would fit me in between appointments as soon as possible. We waited for a little over an hour before she called us back and we started the ultrasound. The placenta and cord looked great, but baby is definitely on the small side. His head was actually measuring a week or two ahead, but his body was measuring about a week behind. She said this difference is typical, because when a baby starts to fall behind in growth or nutrition, all the nutrients get sent to the baby's head to his brain and then the rest of his body starts to fall behind. His weight was estimated at 5 lbs 14 oz and this puts him in the 28th percentile. He was in the 34th percentile at my 20 week ultrasound, so it's a definite concern that his growth has slowed and dropped off a bit.
The other alarming part of his small size is that Caleb was a fairly big baby and usually in the 90th percentile for size. He was born at 38 weeks and was 7 lbs 15 oz. The other concern the ultrasound tech found was that my amniotic fluid is on the low side. The normal range for this is between 8 and 18, and my measurement was 9. I'm technically still in the normal range, but the fluid typically decreases towards the end of the pregnancy, so the tech stressed repeatedly how important this was to keep an eye on. We don't want it to dip too low, as this is dangerous to the baby.
Because Caleb was always so big and both pregnancies have had very few complications until this point, all of this information came as quite a shock. The ultrasound tech said the most important things I can do are to stay on bedrest and be off my feet as much as humanly possible, and then be sure to eat enough and push a lot of fluids. This upset me even more because after her lecturing, I felt like she thought it was my fault. Because of the hip/pelvic pain I've had, I've been considerably immobile the past couple of months. I'm not trying to be "super mom" as she put it, and I have certainly let Clayton take the lead with most things at home. I also am not a person to skip meals and in no way, shape or form have I been trying to diet or limit my food intake. I eat a ton and have been drinking 5 or 6 16oz glasses of water every day.
So once I went home and digested all of this, Clayton and I talked and decided that the only thing I could really do different, is be on complete bedrest and not have Caleb home with me. I was really upset and torn about this because on the one hand, I feel like I need to not move off the couch if I'm going to take care of Owen and be a good mom to him. For him, my most important job is to rest, eat and hydrate so he can grow and "cook" as long as possible. But on the other hand, there is a strong sense of weakness and failure that comes with having to ask someone else to take care of Caleb when I'm home doing nothing all day long. I hate feeling like I have to choose one child over the other and I hate worrying about burdening others because we need help. Plus, I really, really miss him.
It was an emotional and stressful day, and thankfully we do have wonderful family that is helping out with Caleb the next day or two. Clayton has been taking great care of me as well. He brings me anything I need and has been doing everything for Caleb and around the house by himself. It's hard to see him do so much and be so tired and then have to go to work all day.
I hope things get better soon. I'm praying for a healthy baby and that I can stay strong and hang in there until he's ready to come out.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Everything Always Happens in the Middle of the Night
We had an eventful night on Saturday night. That evening I started having pretty regular contractions. I decided to start timing them around 9 pm and they were around 6-1/2 to 7 min apart. They weren't very painful, just uncomfortable. Then they started getting closer together and by 11 pm, they were about 4-1/2 - 5 minutes apart - they had gotten a little bit stronger, but still weren't very terribly intense. I kind of just wanted to wait it out and go to sleep and figured if I could sleep, it wasn't too serious. However, Clayton was getting really worried and wanted me to call the doctor - especially because I am only 36 weeks and not considered full term until 37 weeks.
I ended up calling about 11:15 and didn't hear back from the doctor until about 12:30 am, telling me to go to the hospital. We packed up our stuff and took Caleb to Clayton's parents and finally made it to the hospital around 1:30 am. When they first hooked me up to the monitor, my contractions had slowed down and I didn't have one for the first 15 or 20 minutes. I was starting to feel like an idiot and was going to be really irritated if they had stopped after all that, but sure enough, they started up again. I had one big one and then they were 3-4 minutes apart but pretty weak.
The doctor didn't want to check me for progress because they didn't want to cause my uterus to contract even more, so they just gave me a shot of Brethine and then a prescription of Procardia. Both can't really stop labor if my body is ready, but they will slow it down. I have to take the Procardia every 6 hours around the clock. I've never had to set an alarm clock to wake up in the middle of the night to take medicine. Between the insomnia, discomfort, 8 bathroom trips and getting up to take the medicine, my plan of sleeping as much as possible before the baby is born is quickly falling apart.
The medicine has slowed down the contractions but definitely hasn't put a stop to things. I was having some pretty intense cramping last night and today I have a horrible lower backache. Clayton wants me to call the doctor and see if they want me to come in but I'm still kind of in the "wait and see" mode. I think most pregnant women have a general fear of "crying wolf" before labor is actually here and I certainly fall into that category. It's just kind of tricky since I'm not quite full term.
I'll keep you all updated. I'm going to try to convince Caleb to let me take a shower and consider calling the doctor in a little while. :/
I ended up calling about 11:15 and didn't hear back from the doctor until about 12:30 am, telling me to go to the hospital. We packed up our stuff and took Caleb to Clayton's parents and finally made it to the hospital around 1:30 am. When they first hooked me up to the monitor, my contractions had slowed down and I didn't have one for the first 15 or 20 minutes. I was starting to feel like an idiot and was going to be really irritated if they had stopped after all that, but sure enough, they started up again. I had one big one and then they were 3-4 minutes apart but pretty weak.
The doctor didn't want to check me for progress because they didn't want to cause my uterus to contract even more, so they just gave me a shot of Brethine and then a prescription of Procardia. Both can't really stop labor if my body is ready, but they will slow it down. I have to take the Procardia every 6 hours around the clock. I've never had to set an alarm clock to wake up in the middle of the night to take medicine. Between the insomnia, discomfort, 8 bathroom trips and getting up to take the medicine, my plan of sleeping as much as possible before the baby is born is quickly falling apart.
The medicine has slowed down the contractions but definitely hasn't put a stop to things. I was having some pretty intense cramping last night and today I have a horrible lower backache. Clayton wants me to call the doctor and see if they want me to come in but I'm still kind of in the "wait and see" mode. I think most pregnant women have a general fear of "crying wolf" before labor is actually here and I certainly fall into that category. It's just kind of tricky since I'm not quite full term.
I'll keep you all updated. I'm going to try to convince Caleb to let me take a shower and consider calling the doctor in a little while. :/
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Good Things Brewing
For those of you who know Clayton, you know what I mean when I say he is really into beer. In case you don't know him, I don't mean in a chugging, frat boy, Bud Light, drunken sort of way... I mean he gets into beer like other people get into wine. He completely geeks out about the different flavors, brewing processes, history, and trying new varieties.
Needless to say, he was incredibly excited to receive a home brewing kit from my sister for Christmas this year. He opened it up last night and got his first batch started. He was like a little kid with a brand new toy. He kept telling me about each step and what he needed to do next. Then he would read me different things in the manual about ways to add different flavors and customize his beer. The beer won't be ready for another 3-5 weeks, but he's already asked for more refill packs and accessories for his upcoming birthday. I was really happy to see him enjoying a hobby so much. He doesn't take time to do "just for fun" things as much as I wish he would, so it's a nice change for him. Thanks again for the cool gift, Jaime. :)
We enjoyed a pretty lazy day today and stayed in our PJ's all day. I originally wanted to run a few errands, but after seeing something on the weather about a wind chill of zero, I decided they could wait until tomorrow.
I'm feeling very conflicted lately with my pelvic pain keeping me off my feet and the intense urge to nest and clean/organize everything in sight. This sort of energy and motivation doesn't hit me very often, so it's especially depressing when I can't fully take advantage of it. I definitely overdid it the past couple of days and I'm paying the price today. So...Baby Owen better not get too comfortable in there, because he's going to be receiving an eviction notice very soon. Although, with all the coughing, I can't imagine he's enjoying much peace and quiet. The nurse at my doctor's appointment the other day said that her husband swears she coughed her last baby out. I'm afraid this might be Owen's fate as well. :)
Another downer about being off my feet so much is that I've really been missing taking photos. I haven't had my camera out in weeks. I think I might try to snap some pictures of Caleb this weekend and maybe a few of my belly before the baby comes. I haven't been taking on any new photo jobs the last several weeks because of the pelvic problems and once Owen is born, I am really looking forward to getting back in to the swing of things business-wise. It really stings to have to turn down new sessions right now. :/
We're having a nice family night tonight. Caleb has been asking Clayton to build a fire in the fireplace for the past two days and Clay just got the fire going a few minutes ago. I'm not sure what his obsession with the fireplace is, especially because he doesn't pay much attention to it once it's going (other than to occasionally point to it and tell me to be careful because it's hot). I thought it was cute that he came up with the idea all on his own though. Now he's helping Clayton by handing him logs. My boys are the cutest. :)
Needless to say, he was incredibly excited to receive a home brewing kit from my sister for Christmas this year. He opened it up last night and got his first batch started. He was like a little kid with a brand new toy. He kept telling me about each step and what he needed to do next. Then he would read me different things in the manual about ways to add different flavors and customize his beer. The beer won't be ready for another 3-5 weeks, but he's already asked for more refill packs and accessories for his upcoming birthday. I was really happy to see him enjoying a hobby so much. He doesn't take time to do "just for fun" things as much as I wish he would, so it's a nice change for him. Thanks again for the cool gift, Jaime. :)
We enjoyed a pretty lazy day today and stayed in our PJ's all day. I originally wanted to run a few errands, but after seeing something on the weather about a wind chill of zero, I decided they could wait until tomorrow.
I'm feeling very conflicted lately with my pelvic pain keeping me off my feet and the intense urge to nest and clean/organize everything in sight. This sort of energy and motivation doesn't hit me very often, so it's especially depressing when I can't fully take advantage of it. I definitely overdid it the past couple of days and I'm paying the price today. So...Baby Owen better not get too comfortable in there, because he's going to be receiving an eviction notice very soon. Although, with all the coughing, I can't imagine he's enjoying much peace and quiet. The nurse at my doctor's appointment the other day said that her husband swears she coughed her last baby out. I'm afraid this might be Owen's fate as well. :)
Another downer about being off my feet so much is that I've really been missing taking photos. I haven't had my camera out in weeks. I think I might try to snap some pictures of Caleb this weekend and maybe a few of my belly before the baby comes. I haven't been taking on any new photo jobs the last several weeks because of the pelvic problems and once Owen is born, I am really looking forward to getting back in to the swing of things business-wise. It really stings to have to turn down new sessions right now. :/
We're having a nice family night tonight. Caleb has been asking Clayton to build a fire in the fireplace for the past two days and Clay just got the fire going a few minutes ago. I'm not sure what his obsession with the fireplace is, especially because he doesn't pay much attention to it once it's going (other than to occasionally point to it and tell me to be careful because it's hot). I thought it was cute that he came up with the idea all on his own though. Now he's helping Clayton by handing him logs. My boys are the cutest. :)
Friday, January 7, 2011
Week 1: Complete.
It's amazing how just one week at home with Caleb can make me feel so much closer to him. He's actually been favoring me in the evenings a lot (which is rare - he's definitely always been a daddy's boy). Throughout the day he'll look at me with a big smile and scrunch up his nose and it melts my heart. It's a look that says "I'm so glad you're here with me." <3
On the flip side of that, he hasn't let me get a big head and forget that his Daddy is still a VIP in his book. Today we had this conversation:
Caleb (as he runs in to the kitchen from his bedroom): "Aaaaaa! Mom, the monster's are getting me!!"
Me: "Monsters? Oh no! You better stay in here with Mommy then. I don't want any monster's to get my little boy."
Caleb: "No. It's DADDY'S little boy."
So don't worry, Dad, apparently you're still number 1. ;)
Potty training was another major topic in our house today. He's showing a LOT of improvement and we even tried putting big boy underwear on him for a little bit tonight. Here's there score so far:
Successful potty trips: 6
Accidents: ? I lost count
Underwear casualties: 2
Aaaaand... we're back in pull ups for the night. :) But before we changed, we got one quick photo in the new undies:
(I apologize for the blurry cell phone picture, but mommy was much too tired to get up and get her camera. I know... it's shameful.)
Caleb-isms of the day:
-He was playing with his trucks and talking and said "You're really making me nervous!" lol I think he's heard that somewhere before.
-Caleb was in his room reading all his new Dr. Suess books to himself. He just got them for Christmas from Opa and has them all nearly memorized already. He picked up one and announced "This is Dr. Suess's book." Then he opened each one and turned the pages saying "Hop on Pop!" etc... It was adorable! <3
-We make such a big deal about him going pee on he potty, that he always tries to return the favor. You can't help but laugh when he barges in the bathroom and starts clapping and cheering for you, "YAY! You're peeing!" (and then offers a double high five). It's equally hilarious when I can hear him cheering Clayton on from the other room and Clayton gives him an awkward "Thanks, bud." :)
On the flip side of that, he hasn't let me get a big head and forget that his Daddy is still a VIP in his book. Today we had this conversation:
Caleb (as he runs in to the kitchen from his bedroom): "Aaaaaa! Mom, the monster's are getting me!!"
Me: "Monsters? Oh no! You better stay in here with Mommy then. I don't want any monster's to get my little boy."
Caleb: "No. It's DADDY'S little boy."
So don't worry, Dad, apparently you're still number 1. ;)
Potty training was another major topic in our house today. He's showing a LOT of improvement and we even tried putting big boy underwear on him for a little bit tonight. Here's there score so far:
Successful potty trips: 6
Accidents: ? I lost count
Underwear casualties: 2
Aaaaand... we're back in pull ups for the night. :) But before we changed, we got one quick photo in the new undies:
(I apologize for the blurry cell phone picture, but mommy was much too tired to get up and get her camera. I know... it's shameful.)
Caleb-isms of the day:
-He was playing with his trucks and talking and said "You're really making me nervous!" lol I think he's heard that somewhere before.
-Caleb was in his room reading all his new Dr. Suess books to himself. He just got them for Christmas from Opa and has them all nearly memorized already. He picked up one and announced "This is Dr. Suess's book." Then he opened each one and turned the pages saying "Hop on Pop!" etc... It was adorable! <3
-We make such a big deal about him going pee on he potty, that he always tries to return the favor. You can't help but laugh when he barges in the bathroom and starts clapping and cheering for you, "YAY! You're peeing!" (and then offers a double high five). It's equally hilarious when I can hear him cheering Clayton on from the other room and Clayton gives him an awkward "Thanks, bud." :)
Thursday, January 6, 2011
30 Days to Go
My due date is officially one month from today. This is a milestone I've been waiting anxiously for, but now that it's here, it still seems like TOO LONG! However, I was having a lot more braxton-hicks contractions today - and on a few of the contractions, I thought it was possible that they could be real ones. They weren't terribly regular, but I had the back pain and same discomfort I remember with the real contractions. I guess we'll just wait and see.
I am still feeling fairly crummy but I'm bored to death with sitting around... SO despite my body's objections, I did a little housework and laundry today and also made Chocolate Chunk Brownies! They were excellent. Yum! :) I also tried out knitting a new style of hat for Owen. I'm really happy with how it turned out. I think I'll use it for his newborn photos.
My favorite moments of the day today:
-Watching Caleb play his new Leap Frog video game that Santa brought him. I love seeing him so happy.
-After Caleb got a bath and was in fresh pj's, we sat at the table and shared a brownie. It was one of those moments where I wish I could freeze time. <3
-While Caleb was napping, I sat for a few minutes and watched my stomach move and take on alien-like shapes while Owen moved around. You would think you get used to that and the "wow factor" would wear off, but it really doesn't. It still amazes me.
Lastly, happy birthday today to our nephew Logan. He turned FIVE! I can't believe it! Time really does fly.
I am still feeling fairly crummy but I'm bored to death with sitting around... SO despite my body's objections, I did a little housework and laundry today and also made Chocolate Chunk Brownies! They were excellent. Yum! :) I also tried out knitting a new style of hat for Owen. I'm really happy with how it turned out. I think I'll use it for his newborn photos.
My favorite moments of the day today:
-Watching Caleb play his new Leap Frog video game that Santa brought him. I love seeing him so happy.
-After Caleb got a bath and was in fresh pj's, we sat at the table and shared a brownie. It was one of those moments where I wish I could freeze time. <3
-While Caleb was napping, I sat for a few minutes and watched my stomach move and take on alien-like shapes while Owen moved around. You would think you get used to that and the "wow factor" would wear off, but it really doesn't. It still amazes me.
Lastly, happy birthday today to our nephew Logan. He turned FIVE! I can't believe it! Time really does fly.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
If I Have to Tell You ONE More Time...
Well Caleb decided yesterday was the day he really wanted to give potty training a chance. Before the day was over, he successfully peed on the potty SEVEN times! Woo hoo! Of course he wanted to go sit on it about every 20 minutes which was pretty much the whole second half of our day, but it's definitely progress. I think we spent half the morning in the bathroom today and he has yet to be successful.. I think the draw is getting to flush the toilet (he insists on flushing regardless of whether or not he actually goes - I guess he thinks that is reward for trying).
So far, one of the major benefits of not working (aside from all the quality time with Caleb) is that I don't have to wake him up early. Since I was up most of the night last night, it was especially nice that Caleb slept in until about 8:45 this morning. I was up letting the dogs out and heard some music coming from his room. I peeked in and he was in bed "reading" his Thomas the Train book out loud (it plays music too). Even after he saw me, he stayed in bed reading his book and talking about Thomas for another 20 minutes. I can't help but think that THIS is how mornings should be when you're 2 years old. :)
My prolonged sickly state and consequential lack of sleep last night made me an embarassingly cranky and impatient mom today. I think children must sense when we're weak, and therefore make every attempt to take advantage of of such times by testing all the limits. Today was definitely one of those days. Because it hurts so much to talk (let alone yell), everytime I had to tell Caleb something more than once or twice, my blood just boiled. Hopefully we wore each other out so much that we'll both sleep well tonight.
I did manage to make it to the doctor this afternoon. The doctor thought I might have strep but it turns out it's bronchitis. She prescribed an antibiotic and I'm praying it will have me feeling a little more like myself in the next couple of days. I think Caleb might suggest I go back to work if I continue to be as cranky as I was today. :p
The great thing about this afternoon was that Clayton's dad watched Caleb for me while I went to the doctor (I think one of us might not have made it out of there had I taken him with me)... and when I went to pick him up, Clayton's mom had a nice hot dinner ready and invited us to stay. That right there is reason #874 why I'm thankful we have family so close. Being cranky, sick, 8 months pregnant and running on about 2-1/2 hours of sleep, makes having a nice meal prepared for your family seem like winning the lottery. Sure beats the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we probably would have had otherwise! :)
So far, one of the major benefits of not working (aside from all the quality time with Caleb) is that I don't have to wake him up early. Since I was up most of the night last night, it was especially nice that Caleb slept in until about 8:45 this morning. I was up letting the dogs out and heard some music coming from his room. I peeked in and he was in bed "reading" his Thomas the Train book out loud (it plays music too). Even after he saw me, he stayed in bed reading his book and talking about Thomas for another 20 minutes. I can't help but think that THIS is how mornings should be when you're 2 years old. :)
My prolonged sickly state and consequential lack of sleep last night made me an embarassingly cranky and impatient mom today. I think children must sense when we're weak, and therefore make every attempt to take advantage of of such times by testing all the limits. Today was definitely one of those days. Because it hurts so much to talk (let alone yell), everytime I had to tell Caleb something more than once or twice, my blood just boiled. Hopefully we wore each other out so much that we'll both sleep well tonight.
I did manage to make it to the doctor this afternoon. The doctor thought I might have strep but it turns out it's bronchitis. She prescribed an antibiotic and I'm praying it will have me feeling a little more like myself in the next couple of days. I think Caleb might suggest I go back to work if I continue to be as cranky as I was today. :p
The great thing about this afternoon was that Clayton's dad watched Caleb for me while I went to the doctor (I think one of us might not have made it out of there had I taken him with me)... and when I went to pick him up, Clayton's mom had a nice hot dinner ready and invited us to stay. That right there is reason #874 why I'm thankful we have family so close. Being cranky, sick, 8 months pregnant and running on about 2-1/2 hours of sleep, makes having a nice meal prepared for your family seem like winning the lottery. Sure beats the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we probably would have had otherwise! :)
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