My Journey Through Pregnancy

I should have given a better try at posting sooner, but when you have a newborn and no sleep, you just don't think about these things . . .

Babysierra arrived on February 28th, 2008, weighing in at 7 lbs, 3oz, and measuring 20.5 in. I would totally tell you the whole story (and probably will in the future), but I'm running on so little sleep right now I can hardly stand myself. I MUST get some rest (and the computer battery's about to die).

SO, I'll direct you to my husband's post (and the the picture post before it), where he's detailed everything for me. :)

I'll give my side later, when I'm not about to pass out.

Night!

I've been a lump on the couch all day. No energy, no motivation. SO tired! I went to sleep kind of late last night and woke up earlier than I'd intended. I did get a lot of emailing done for a project I'm trying to wrap up and turn over before I give birth, so that's something. And I've been in front of the computer all day in order to put out fires and shuffle schedules, so that's kind of nice, too.

Unfortunately, the lack of movement isn't helping my back and hips, which are stiff from a fall I took on the stairs last night. Don't worry – it wasn't anywhere near as bad as the first one, but I did land more on my tailbone than I did the first time (fell in a sitting position, but leaning back a bit, so my cheeks did take the brunt of the fall, as did one of my elbows. Not bad). Result: Just a little pain and stiffness. Baby and I are fine, otherwise.

I just can't shake this malaise I've had all day. I'm even skipping my Mary Kay meeting tonight in order to conserve what energy I might have left for tomorrow, which will be a long day with an early start. Kiwanis meeting first, then grocery shopping, then lunch at a La Leche meeting, then preparation for Bible class, then Bible class, then time with friends. I'll be up early in the morning, and we might be out late.

It's the last Wednesday teaching Bible class, though! I'm happy about that. The 4- and 5-year-olds are cute, but I just don't have the energy for them anymore, and I think they sense that.

I think I'll make dinner now. My tummy is feeling empty again . . . well, except for the squirming body in my belly, who has decided that Hungry Time is good Jazzercise Time. He's calmed down a little for now, but I was getting heels and knees every which way a little while ago. Violent little upstart! He's really resenting the lack of space in there now! :)

Tonight: Wash baby clothes and pack go-bag. And watch a chick flick while doing so. :) I need to send them back to Netflix . . .

I hadn't gotten much sleep in the past couple days. Monday night, I couldn't sleep till after 1am, and then I woke up around 4-something and couldn't go back to sleep. I took a little nap during the day, but nothing terribly significant. I had stuff to do.

Tuesday night, I stayed up till about midnight and woke up around 5am to get ready for my Kiwanis meeting (after which I had both an OB class and a WIC appointment). Again, I got a little nap that afternoon, but I really needed more sleep.

By evening, I was pretty exhausted. Thankfully, the Bible class I'm teaching (4- and 5-year-olds – one more week, thank goodness) only had two children in it, so it was very low-key. However, by the time church was over, my body was getting sore. We went to some friends' house, and I was noticing low, mild cramping that wrapped around from my abdomen to my back. It came and went without much fanfare, so I didn't put it in the category of actual contractions. However, by bedtime, it was getting pretty uncomfortable. Just a little reminder that I only have a few weeks to go!

I went to sleep around 10:30-ish and got up this morning around 9am (I woke up earlier than that, but didn't want to get out of bed right away). I didn't wake up to any pain (except when I had to go to the bathroom around 4am – my bladder doesn't wake me up till it's REALLY full).

I'm going to take it somewhat easy today, though I have several tasks to take care of. When Sweetie comes home tonight, I hope to have my Go-Bag list done (and maybe have the bag somewhat packed), and we're going to go through Baby stuff and write thank you cards. Those who did my shower were very clever, and had the guests address their own envelopes, so all I have to do is write the cards, slap on a return address label and a stamp, and send them off. I even have stamps! Not enough, but some. :) I might go pick up some special ones today, though.

Okay, I need to get to work. Laterz! :)

I had another OB class today. We talked to one of the pediatricians; a very interesting conversation. We also learned how to bathe baby, using a doll. Sweetie was our example. :) He did a very good job bathing baby.

During my "table time" (getting the fundal height and the heartbeat), the midwife couldn't tell if Baby was head up or head down. She got a good, strong heartbeat, but just couldn't tell from feeling where he was. She had us come in after the class to do a quick ultrasound to see his position, and, thankfully, we discovered that he was, indeed, head down. Head very down, actually – she commented that he was quite low. At one point, she pointed out a movement that indicated he was practicing breathing – his little diaphragm was moving up and down. He stopped, of course, when it was pointed out, but we still got a good look at it. :) We also got another look at his little boy parts. Though they weren't very clear, it was pretty easy to tell that he's still a boy. :)

Good thing, too. He's got a LOT of boy stuff! :)

I'm also happy to report that I've lost two pounds since my last appointment two weeks ago, and my sugars look great (even though I've indulged here and there in the past couple days). Woohoo! ;)

Gotta finish fixing dinner. I'm STARVING!

Tomorrow marks 37 weeks! I can't believe we're that close! Baby is getting bigger and heavier. He's still waaaayyy out front and curls up pretty tight, so I look rather pointy and front-heavy. The irony is that I don't really feel that big, till I get up-close-and-personal with a mirror, ;), and I'm not really all that unbalanced. It is a little hard to get pants on and off, and stairs are a little more worrisome than they used to be, but the nice thing about this short, stocky frame of mine is that I actually have fairly good balance for a very-pregnant woman.

I don't think I've been having any Braxton-Hicks contractions, but there has been cramping. Some of it is gas, some of it is Baby's weight on certain areas of my pelvis that have not had that kind of weight on them before. Sometimes, I feel like I have to walk with my legs close together to keep him from falling out, that's how much pressure he puts down there (besides the fact that my bladder is his pillow, and he has to punch it every once in a while to get comfortable – ugh! It's a very interesting sensation to be punched in the groin from the inside). But, for the most part, it's not so bad. He does have a tendency to stretch straight out as if he wants to enter the world through my belly button (butt-first), which is uncomfortable for a while. He hasn't really reached my ribs or kidneys, which is a blessing. Thankfully, I have very high, wide ribs already, so I guess I just have room for everything up there. :)

Except for my stomach. Oh MAN. Heartburn has been coming back like crazy lately, and I'm really close to requesting more Zantac from the doctor. I can sometimes stave it off by avoiding certain foods (not that I have a lot on my list of allowed foods to begin with!), turning to recline a bit to my left if I'm sitting, doing some deep breathing, and/or eating a few antacid tablets. It still hits, though, when I'm hungry and an hour or so after eating. Blecch.

In other news . . . I had my baby shower yesterday, and now our living room is covered in gift bags! My husband was thrilled that they went with the dinosaur theme. :) There were several hand-made items: Quilts, a crocheted blanket, bibs, hats, burp cloths and wipes; LOTS of clothes; a few books; diapers and wipes; and some furniture-like items. I feel so blessed. :) Our baby is set! :)

We even have a name picked out! :D

I can't wait to meet him!

The past couple nights, I've looked down at my belly during times of baby-activity, and I've noticed a peculiar sight (and sensation): A rhythmic (yet gentle) rising and falling, as if my belly was breathing on its own!

I knew that babies "breathed" the amniotic fluid (and hiccuped and yawned and swallowed), but I wasn't sure if it was something that noticeable. Every time I touched there, wondering if it was just "walking" practice, he moved. However, it just didn't have the feel of feet against the uterine wall (THAT feeling I know well!).

Well, according to my latest email from Whattoexpect.com, they DO practice breathing while in the womb, getting those lungs ready for real air. Perhaps that's really what I saw and felt! My little boy taking baby breaths just under my skin. :)

Of course, later that night, it was back to Jazzercise. ;)

"Yummy, yummy, yummy, I've got love in my tummy!" <--Some cheesy song from the 50s, and the commercial ditty to a stuffed toy available in our childhood that I can't remember the name of now. At any rate, it's what I think of when I think of Baby's tummy parties.

Baby parties every night. It's like Jazzercise, or something. It's even funnier when he gets all his limbs going, and I feel like a bowl of Jell-O with how much wiggling is going on. Of course, it does get kind of exhausting – for me – and I feel a bit tenderized on the inside after a while. Thankfully, he also gets tired (or bored) and sacks out for a few hours. I never wake up to him moving, unless he's bumping my over-full bladder.

His head has been pressing up against my bladder more and more, or he punches it now and again. Fluffing his pillow? Letting me know he's running out of space? My bladder wonders what it did to deserve this abuse.

I've been "nesting" off and on, but not quickly or frantically. Sweetie did help me clean the hallway out so we could move some things out of the bedroom (he even vacuumed for me!), move some other furniture, and set up the baby cage crib (he calls it a baby cage – kind of a spin on our nephew's habit of calling his younger brother's Pack-n-Play his "crate"). Right now, though, it's a baby-stuff storage facility. I don't really have good storage for baby stuff, so that's it. Hopefully we'll have that problem rectified by the time he arrives. It's really exciting, though, having the crib (a Graco Pack-n-Play) all set up. :) The rocker is sitting next to it (just a plain rocking chair – I need to make cushions for it). There are a LOT of clothes piled around, but I'm trying to find a way to move out the pre-maternity stuff and keep the maternity stuff I borrowed separate from each other, my own maternity clothing, and the rest of my pre-maternity stuff. I only have one closet in this house. I seriously need to purge clothing!

I think we've finally decided on a name, but it's a secret for now. I'll probably not announce it online, anyway. No need to destroy this baby's identity during infancy. :) What I might do after he's born is create a "friends who know me" filter and post the name for you all. Until then, Sweetie wants me to keep it secret, so I will. :)

(I need to go to sleep. I just deleted a long row of "m"s I accidentally typed when I fell asleep at the keyboard.)

My husband got an awesome fortune in his cookie today. How perfect is that? :D

'Night all! I must sleep . . .

As of Monday, I'm officially 35 weeks pregnant! I didn't take any pictures that day, because I didn't take a shower and get dressed till much later in the day, and I didn't put on any makeup or do my hair – so photos were out. :) Tuesday was a better day. :)

Here you go!





Sweetie took these for me. I had to adjust the brightness and contrast, because they always look fine in the viewfinder, but washed out in iPhoto. Now, if I could just airbrush out that double chin . . . ;)

In other news . . . I had my Centering class today, and the midwife says the baby has turned! Hooray! :D I'd suspected, since the pressure on my pelvis and bladder have been different lately. I need to work on those Kegel exercises . . .

My Kiwanis club threw me a little baby shower this morning, so now I have a few more baby items, including a hand-knitted blankie, a mini-layette with frogs all over it (cute!), a palm-imprinting kit, a hot-water duck, and some diapers and wipes. I need to remember to get thank you cards out (I'm usually pretty bad about that). They're so sweet. :D

Now I need to get the car cleaned out (it's beginning to fill up with baby stuff!) so we can install the car seat. Gosh, I'm so excited! :D

The GD diet is good because I've been keeping my blood sugar and weight within acceptable limits. It's bad, because sometimes I just can't get creative enough, and I just crave food I can't have. It's very sad. I could totally eat half a pizza right now on my own – or something similarly doughy and comforting. Vegetables just don't fill me up right. I want SUBSTANCE, preferrably hot. Maybe I'll just have some yogurt (substance without heat, but still good for me) . . .

I DID get pizza last night! I went to hang out at my parents' place, because it was Dad's birthday and he was home from work. Sweetie met me there after he got off work, and we just stayed and talked and had Papa Murphy's new chicken, bacon, artichoke deLite (thin crust) pizza for dinner. My sugar was not elevated two hours after eating three pieces, but it did stay higher longer (it was at 100, or so, around 3:30am – but it was back down to 72 at 8:30am).

I had a Comp OB appointment today, and Sweetie had the day off, so he got to come with me. The resident was a male this time. He seemed to think he was feeling the baby's butt up above my belly-button, although he wasn't sure, but he knew just where the heartbeat would be. He let Sweetie wield the Doppler wand today, and we heard Baby's heartbeat loud and clear. :) That was pretty cool. Sweetie didn't want to put the wand down. :)

Unfortunately, today was also GBS testing, which requires a swabbing "down there". It figures I would have a male resident today (the first male I've seen in the OB clinic yet, other than wandering fathers!). It's a good thing I've mostly gotten over any hangups over strange male doctors performing rather intrusive tests in certain areas. I'll probably have several male nurses hanging around while and after I give birth – I should get used to the idea now.

I'm hoping that test is negative, because I do NOT want to be hooked up to an IV while I'm trying to get this baby out. I'm leaving the option open (meaning I'll have them give me an IV lock, just in case), but I'm not looking forward to being hooked up to a bag on a stand. Bleh.

My sugars are doing well enough that I don't have to continue regular appointments in there. In fact, I have the choice of emailing the Comp OB nurse my numbers if I feel like it – or not. I don't have to do it unless I notice a trend where the numbers are getting higher no matter what I eat.

They were impressed at how well I was doing, and that I had a good understanding of what was causing the higher numbers I was getting. It helps to have the science background, where you learn cause and effect, trial and error, and how to read trends and extrapolate data points. If I really wanted to, I could start an Excel file and keep a graph. I'm not going to, though, unless it gets out of control.

We also registered at Target today, because I have a baby shower in two weeks. That was kind of fun, but I felt like everything was so expensive and that I was being kind of greedy with the things I picked. However, there were some ADORABLE dinosaur clothes I just couldn't resist scanning, as well as a little bathrobe I couldn't help but squee over last time I was there. There wasn't much in the way of warm sleepwear, because, you know, it's obviously spring and no one needs warm clothes right now (*eyeroll*), but I hope to find some used, or make some (totally easy video tutorial here for making a "baby pod" out of a sweatshirt). Our house is not terribly warm, even in the spring, so he will need some warm blankets and clothing to sleep and hang out in. I should be getting a sling from someone at the shower (she's claimed that gift opportunity), so Baby can hang out with me during the day and keep us both warm. :) He won't be sleeping in our bed, though, so he will need a little help staying warm.

Gosh, I can't wait to meet this little guy. :) We really should come up with a name for him, though . . .

My friend had her baby! :D

I don't have all the pertinent details yet, other than he's here and he was born 6:55am this morning (on her due date!) by C-Section. I'm going to assume she went into real labor, but it's possible she had an agreement to have the baby on her due date. I don't know.

But he's here, he's adorable, and I'm so happy for her! :D

She (or her mom, probably) sent me a picture by cell phone:



Welcome to the world, little guy! :D

Is that a hand? A foot? Am I actually feeling individual fingers and/or toes when I touch the place where you're pressing, or is that my own skin or muscle? What is that little bump I feel when you stretch out, an ear or a nose?

He's been moving around a lot today. He's also had hiccups a few times. Except for the times where it hurts when he socks me or does his Aliens impression (I swear I should put "Ridley Scott" on our list of possible names), I'm still incredibly entertained by the movement in my belly. Such a weird, unique feeling! :)

I'm also surprised by my girth. I have one mirror in this house that is low enough for me to see myself from the hips up, and I rarely get very close to it. I don't look into it very often, either, because it's kind of an old mirror, and a bit warped. It lies, in other words.

So, when I go places where there is a large or full-length mirror in the bathroom, I am amazed at how HUGE I am! And how much area is covered by stretch marks ("service stripes", right?). However, in the past few weeks of keeping track of my sugars and eating relatively healthfully, I have lost some inches in some noticeable places (and a couple pounds – I was at 198 at my last appointment). Even my husband says so (I guess he should know, though, since he sees me the most in various states of undress). He said the other day that it was as if Baby had sucked the extra weight off me. I hadn't really noticed – but I'm glad it was something noticeable. :)

My clothes are getting tighter around the middle, though. A shirt I could wear last month is now a little snug. Many shirts are becoming too short, even though they still fit in the arms and chest. Much as I don't want to, I might have to go find some larger shirts for the last couple months. And I've learned that I have to try them on before I can determine by size that they'll actually fit. :\

I went to Target on Wednesday for a few things, and found a shirt on clearance that was pretty cute. It had kind of a loud pattern, but I've been tired of wearing so much black lately, and I wanted a fun shirt to wear to a concert (which I didn't end up attending, but that's a different story). I never tried it on, thinking that an extra-large would have to fit, since I was only just growing out of some of my large shirts. When I put it on, the sleeves, shoulders, and neckline were horribly tight; the bust was baggy in the wrong places (but at least I have to give them credit for allowing room for pregnant boobs!); and the lower half (below the extraordinarily unflattering empire-style waistline) did not flow very freely over my belly as it seemed it was supposed to. I would take it back, but it could still be a nice shirt with some tweaking – especially after the baby's born. It's been relegated to the refashioning pile.

Still, this does not fill me with confidence. Doesn't anyone make clothing for short, broad-shouldered, broad-bellied pregnant women? Don't get me started on the Motherhood store – a large shirt there fits like a medium, and does not account for extra boobage. When you start adding X's, you also start adding $'s. I think they know this is a racket. Yay for mall stores. :\

Time to visit Goodwill and a consignment shop or two. I still have clothes that fit, but I need to plan for contingencies. Not to mention it's been pretty cold out, and warm, cute shirts are occasionally hard to come by, as are sturdy yet inexpensive sleeping/lounge pants that aren't going to strangle my belly.

ANYway, things are still going well. I wasn't able to get my Zantac prescription renewed, but I'm doing fairly well without it. Still some instances of heartburn, but I can combat it easier since I'm eating less.

Well, I'm getting sleepy, so I should wrap up and call it a night.

Night! :)

My sinuses have finally cleared up, for the most part, and so has my voice. I was a zombie pretty much all week last week, though. Unfortunately, this meant that I missed out on some things I had scheduled and was late for all the others. Getting up in the morning was IMPOSSIBLE (I've been really, really sleepy, anyway, but I've had to drag myself around this past week even more than usual).

I was embarrassingly late for my doctor's appointment on Friday. Thankfully, someone came in early, and they just switched us. I didn't know it would be more comprehensive than "let's check your sugar again", or I would have worn a short-sleeve shirt under my flannel.

Apparently, I'm being seen by both the Complicated OB clinic AND the "Family Centered" OB clinic – which are in the same place, but one is staffed by obstetricians and the other is staffed by midwives. As long as my blood sugar remains controlled through diet, I am allowed to continue in the Centering program. If it spikes and I have to go on meds to control it, I will have to transfer into the Complicated OB clinic as a high-risk patient.

They're all nice and friendly in the Comp OB, but there's more of a medical feel to it than a comfortable feel to it. In my Centering class, the midwife told me the baby was still head-up (I don't remember the term she used, but I know she didn't say "breech"), but he had plenty of time to turn. In the Comp OB clinic, the resident seemed concerned that he was still breech (I don't like that term unless I'm at my due date and it's an issue), and let me know that if he didn't end up turning, they could do a procedure that involved muscle relaxants to help turn him manually. She then proceeded to say that sometimes the babies don't like that and sometimes it causes early labor. In that case, we would have to do a C-section.

Here I am at 33 weeks, and she's already mentioning C-section. I know that at some point I might have to be considering that kind of procedure, and it's good to be pre-informed, but, psychologically, I don't even want that term used in relation to me until or unless it's an absolutely unavoidable circumstance. I'm not usually one to panic over medical information, but it made me feel a little uncomfortable. The baby has lots of time to turn. Doctor's can back off until nature fails to come through when nature is supposed to.

The more I read about it, the more I'm set on having this child without the use of drugs or medicinal intervention. The doctors can intervene if I have real medical difficulties – but until then, I want to do this myself. No epidurals! And it's not because I feel like I have something to prove. It's because I feel it's best for me and the baby. I want to meet him face-to-face, and as coherent as I can possibly be after pushing a watermelon through a straw. ;)

Believe it or not, I'm actually looking forward to it. :)

Before I wrap up, I have to share my most recent fun "snack"-like thing I invented: Sugar-free peanut-butter hot chocolate (the chocolate is sugar-free, the peanut butter is just peanut butter).

Last night, I was craving something hot, sweet, and substantial SO bad I could hardly stand it. I'm not a big fan of plain hot milk, so that wouldn't do, and I obviously couldn't make regular hot chocolate. I was also hungry and needed some more protein to satisfy the munchies. SO I dug out my Magic Bullet, poured a little (lactose- and fat-free) milk in, threw in a spoonful of peanut butter and one of my little Hershey's sugar-free mini dark-chocolate bars. Unfortunately, the only peanut butter I have is extra chunky, so I knew it was going to be a grainy drink, but I didn't care. I blended the three things together (the milk got really frothy), threw it in a mug, and heated it for about two minutes so the chocolate would melt and I could stir it all together (NOTE: It's important to stop it after a minute to stir it, because the milk will boil over).

It wasn't very sweet or chocolatey, but the smell was WONDERFUL and it hit the spot! It also knocked me out like a light half an hour later. I fell asleep sitting up around 10:30 and didn't wake up again till 1am! When I finally got up the next morning, I could still smell it in the mug on the nightstand. YUUUMMMM!!! And it didn't throw my sugars off. :)

It would be better with creamy peanut butter, probably, but the little chunks didn't bother me at all. I'll have to do it again later, but be ready to konk out immediately after. There's a nice twist on hot milk for ya. :)

I'm still fighting this cold. It's moving down into my chest a bit, making me cough, but at least it's draining. I haven't been motivated to do anything, even drop a load of laundry into the wash. The house still desperately needs cleaning!

The other laundry list: Health Issues!

1. This cold. I can't take anything but the little Sudafed pills, and only four doses a day. I don't take that much, anyway, but it doesn't seem to be doing anything when I do take it. Because of the diabetes, I can't have juice or much fruit, which are my comfort foods while I'm sick. I might have to pick up some sugar-free Kool-Aid and Splenda, so I can at least pretend I have juice to drink. ;) Because of the heartburn, I can't drink much tea. Water and sugar-free Jell-O are my friends.

2. Heartburn. I just took my last Zantac today. I'm seeing a doctor tomorrow to follow-up on my diabetes, so I might be able to get it refilled or changed, or at least talk about it. I had it so bad last night while teaching Bible class that I thought I was going to have to run out of the room to throw up. It was excruciating. And it was two hours after I'd eaten a tuna sandwich for dinner. Nothing horribly heartburn-inducing in that, but between Baby taking up space and my digestion working slower than the U.S. Immigration Service, ANY food causes heartburn. And I was out of antacid in my purse. It was a long evening.

3. Gestational Diabetes. This is manageable, honestly, just a little inconvenient, especially since I want juice and oranges so badly (although, if my sugars are doing well in the afternoon, I can have half a grapefruit with some cheese for a snack – YUM!). I got a tip about massaging my finger from the bottom up to get a good flow of blood for the test strip, so I haven't had any trouble with going through several strips and fingers before I get a decent amount for one testing. I've been using my left hand, mostly, and the thumb, index, and middle fingers of that. The other two hurt too much, and I use my right hand a lot, so I don't want to stick those fingers. I've had to stop using my index finger on my left hand, though, because one of the stick-sites is either infected or irritated (kinda swollen and sore, but not white or bright red). I'll be bringing that up to the doctor when I see him tomorrow. The nice thing about the diabetes is the fact that I'm not gaining extra weight, and have actually dropped a few inches here and there. Baby is gaining all the weight now. :)

4. Yeast infections. Thankfully, like the diabetes, this is pretty much under control, but still has to be taken care of daily. The diabetes has been helping to cause them. I got some Clotrimazole from the doctor, and it has made a WORLD of difference. The funny thing is, though, I had a tube of the exact same stuff in my medicine cabinet, but didn't think I could use it. Now, instead of just two tubes prescribed to me by the doctor, I have three tubes. That's good, I guess. :) I'm not gonna run out any time soon!

5. Stretch marks. Oh, man. The ITCHING!!! My stretch marks have stretch marks – I look like half a zebra. I was using a lotion specifically for stretch marks and pregnant bellies, but it didn't work as well as a can of body butter my mother-in-law got me for Christmas. It's the only lotion that calms the itchies (thanks, Mom!). I'm just afraid I'm going to run out in the next month!

Now, the fun stuff!

1. Baby is so much more active! I can't believe how much this guy moves now. I read that I've pretty much produced as much amniotic fluid as I was going to by this point, and now that Baby's getting bigger, I'm going to feel more movement as he gets more crowded. He seems to be telepathic, though: Every time I draw someone's attention to my wiggling belly, even when I don't make a sound doing so, he stops as if he knows someone's looking at him. It's still terribly entertaining to watch (and feel) him move, even when he's stepping on my bladder or round-housing my hipbone. He kicked hard yesterday while we were watching a movie. Boy's a strong one!

2. My belly is freakin' huge. I don't look at my bare belly in the mirror very often, but I did last night. It really doesn't feel like it's that big, but it looks that big! The mirror is kinda warped, though, so it might look bigger than it is, but it's still pretty impressive. It's even more impressive when Baby curls up horizontally above my belly-button and pushes out. I get pointy.

3. My belly button is still relatively flat. It looks as if it wants to pop out, but it's still pretty flat. Most people, at this point, have a big outie. My innie is still a little innie, with a bit of a bump in the middle. Maybe by the time I give birth, it will stick out, but for now it's flat!

4. I discovered sugar-free, fat-free instant Jell-O pudding! Lately (aside from grapefruit) it's the most wonderful thing I've put in my mouth. I recently made the White Chocolate flavor. I still have Butterscotch, Cheesecake, and Chocolate Fudge. I try to stretch it out, but it's so good, I want a little bowl every day. I have these little 1/2 cup "prep" bowls that are perfect for measuring out four servings. SO nummy!!! My other favorite snack (besides grapefruit ;)) is sugar-free Jell-O and fat-free, plain yogurt. I can't really have ice-cream, so these things are a great alternative. I'm going to have to hit Grocery Outlet, Wal-Mart, and the Commissary to see if I can find more sugar-free instant pudding for cheap. I'd be happy with plain chocolate, but the fun flavors are a real bonus. :)

I should take a shower now, at least so I can say I did something today. Well, I guess I did some dishes this morning, so that's not so bad. I need to rewash the load of laundry that's been in the washer for a couple days now (oops). That might be the only other thing I get done today. I'm still feeling like a total lump.

At least I got some grapefruit for a snack. :) It's the simple pleasures, you know? :)

I'm fighting a cold right now – sore throat, stuffy nose, tired eyes. Bleh. Baby's plenty happy, though. Between him and the cat, I had a hard time taking a nap this evening.

The sore throat does not help the heartburn situation, and the stuffy nose does not help the food situation. I'm hungry, but I don't want anything. Nothing healthy, anyway. I did have some chicken noodle soup and tea for dinner. Still hungry, though . . .

Hopefully this is nothing more than my body fighting off the flu vaccine. It looks and feels a bit like allergies, though, but it could be a combination.

I also miss my sweetie. He's coming home tomorrow night, and we've gotten to talk on the phone every night, but I still miss him. Sometimes it almost seems the shorter-term absences are worse than the longer-term. But they each have their lame points. I'm just glad he'll be home soon. :)

I think that's all the whining I have to do tonight. Time for some Jell-O and yogurt. Yum yum! :)

I haven't been sleeping like I should. Don't get me wrong – I've been sleeping plenty, but I haven't been sleeping consistently. I don't like to go to bed when Sweetie's gone.

Last night, I got home a little before midnight, because it was snowing and I had got to drive from a friend's house in it, so it was slow going, even though I left around 11:30 (it's usually only a ten-minute drive). The night before, I went to sleep after midnight, and got up around 5:15am to go to my Kiwanis meeting. I didn't take a nap at all. But I wasn't all that tired when I got home, so I dinked around on the computer for a little while.

Well, I was trying to decide if I should go sleep in my bed last night, or sleep on the couch again, because I have mountains of laundry on my bed. However, I'd managed to clear two mounds off my side of the bed (clean laundry, yay!), and the third could be dumped on the floor. However, before I did that, I fell asleep on the couch – sitting up – for two (three?) hours.

My word, was it ever cold in the house! Anyway, I got up, changed clothes, washed my face, and cleared off the rest of my side of the bed so I could sleep there. Because it was about 3:30am, I took my sugar (good number), turned off my alarm, and slept till 10am. Even after sleeping that long, I had a heck of a time getting out of bed. Since then, I've been groggy and sluggish. I expect Baby is kind of squishing my lungs a bit, too, because I'm feeling sort of short of breath.

I attribute the sleepy sluggishness to my weird sleep schedule lately, but also to the flu shot I got yesterday. Usually, I'm against getting a flu vaccine, but because I'm working with little kids, and the CDC is just so darn convincing (not really), I decided to just go for it. Free, simple procedure. Done right after my OB appointment yesterday. My arm was a little sore, and I feel a little crappy, but now I'm vaccinated against a few strains that will probably mutate, anyway, and render the flu shot moot! ;) (I have such confidence in pharmaceuticals, don't I?)

I wanted to get some major cleaning done today – which I still can, but I don't have the entire day anymore – but I am so wiped. Maybe a touch of caffeine in my green tea and a shower will help perk me up a little. Breakfast, once digested, will probably also help. I was at 70 mg/dL this morning, which is borderline hypoglycemic. Food = good.

I had a great OB appointment yesterday, and learned a little more about the absolutely wonderful OB clinic in the Naval Hospital. Seriously, this clinic is far and away better than any other department in the hospital. I NEVER thought I'd be so happy with anything in that hospital ever again, but I'm seriously impressed with the OB and birthing facilities. It's better than the brand new birthing center put up by the local civilian hospital here.

We watched a video about labor and birth. Now, I've seen videos about labor and birth before, but not something so comprehensive. It was cool. :) I expected to get a little scared and worried watching something that huge come through a hole that small, but I was utterly fascinated! I think I was looking at the numbers and thinking, "You know, those contraction times [during second-stage, active labor] just don't seem that long! I can do that!" Also, the end result [my baby in my arms] is all that matters. I (and I wasn't the only one) got kind of teary-eyed when the babies in the video were finally born and the women got to hold them. I didn't look to see how the two men in the group were reacting. I do know that my baby wouldn't stop moving the whole time. :) I think he was anticipating lunch more than labor, but it was funny, anyway. :)

After the video and a little discussion and housekeeping (Baby would barely stay still long enough to get his heartbeat on the Doppler, and I had to go take my weight because I got in a minute or two after the video had started), we went to tour the birthing center. Woohoo! :D

First, I have to say that I was happy to see that I weighed a pound less than I did last month, which means that though Baby's getting bigger, I am not gaining, as well. Hooray! Also, the midwife found my sugars to be in perfect, healthy ranges, which means I'm doing a good job controlling the diabetes through diet. Lastly, my blood pressure was great only a minute or two after entering the classroom (which it isn't, usually), and I attribute that to getting to hold a sleepy little chihuahua puppy for half an hour or so while visiting my dad at work before my appointment. :)

Back to the birthing center: Aside from a few spots of construction, this place is BEAUTIFUL. The rooms are absolutely HUGE, and so are the tubs in the bathroom. :) They're not birthing tubs, unfortunately, because the crew can't be on all sides of you, but you can be in there up until the baby comes out, if you want. They let you do almost anything you want to get the baby out, too (within reason, of course), and are familiar with all sorts of birthing strategies, so they can support your birth plan. They will even let the husband assist in catching the baby!

I was almost in tears all day, because it was so relieving to hear all this. All my fears about being confined and forced to stay on my back, hooked to a monitor, were unnecessary. This baby is in good hands. :)

After my appointment, I got my flu shot, and then I had to visit the Comp[licated] OB nurse to check how my sugars are doing. She is great – funny, loud, but definitely down to business. :) I never knew how we were supposed to treat the appointment system – whether we were to bring up problems to the midwives in the classroom (when we get our one-on-one time after the baby's heartbeat is measured), see a nurse when a nurse had time, or call in to make an official appointment. Yesterday, the lady at the desk told me to discuss it all with the Comp OB nurse, since I was seeing her, anyway.

After having my sugars all reviewed and praised (yay for praise!), I told the Comp OB nurse that the lady at the desk told me I should bring up any "issues" with her while I was in there. She asked what was up, and I told her about the rash and itching I was having "down there". See, I thought I would have to be seen in a regular exam room, officially, but she just pulled a curtain and said she could take a look at it there.

She was pretty sure it was a yeast infection, and went to get the midwife to confirm it. It was the midwife's lunchtime, and then she had a class, so the nurse let her eat lunch, and the midwife still gave me her time, even though she was due in another OB class. :) And she was totally great. She also diagnosed a yeast infection, gave me some strategies for fighting it, as well as a prescription for Clotrimazole. Halleluia! Relief!

She said I'm more prone to yeast infections, because of a) being pregnant, which gives my body all sorts of reasons to be sensitive and freak out over my own body fluids, b) having more places where moisture can collect and stay (then see reason 'a'), and c) the diabetes – I have more sugars in my body that have nothing to do but mess up my pH and other mischief. The length of time that I've had this infection is, thankfully, not an issue. It's merely discomfort.

The nurse assured me that if I had other issues in the future, I could bring them up to the midwife during the one-on-one time, and they would take me aside to address the issues in another room if they were personal. She said the clinic was meant to be "one stop shopping" for us, so we wouldn't have to wait around for anything. That was also an awesome relief. God be praised – these people are wonderful. :)

I was desperately in need of food when I was finally done, so I got a Subway sandwich downstairs (slowest. Subway. EVER.), and hunted around for a place to eat it (the dining room is not well labeled, so I had to go to the information desk just to find out how to get in there, or where I could just sit down and eat). I was going to get my pre-admission form done, too (so I wouldn't have to do it when I'm in labor and needing to be admitted right then), but the door was shut. I'll just go back later.

After lunch, I went to get my prescription, then finally went home. It was so nice to put my feet up for a little while!

I'm happy Sweetie will be with me next month. He was supposed to come with me this month, but he has a two-week language immersion that he cannot get out of. That's okay, we're going back up to the birthing center next week to practice different labor positions. That will be a good class for him to experience. :) In the meantime, we need to work out my birth plan, the paperwork for which we were given this week. I'm excited to get it filled out. :)

I went to church last night, despite feeling like crud, and was happy to see my sister-in-law, brother, and my nephew, who I got to love on for a little while (it's SO COOL that he now reaches out to me for cuddles when he sees me – such a sweet boy!). My sister-in-law, who's had gestational diabetes in the past and I think has it now, too, shared a tip with me about drawing blood for checking sugar. I've been poking myself too close to the middle of the pad of my finger. She showed me where she usually tests, and I tried that area on me, and it works MUCH better. It's a little closer to the fingernail than I thought it should be before, but it works SO much better, and hurts less. Hooray!

Bible class nearly kicked my butt after that – I don't know what I was thinking when I volunteered to teach a bunch of active four- and five-year-olds. I'm insane.

Afterward I stuck around to talk to people, and the lady who is giving us a stroller and baby clothes gave me the baby seat and car adapter from the stroller that her son has grown out of. I get to install a baby seat in my car! :D

This is getting so real. I have eight and a half weeks to go! Baby is getting more active all the time – there are times when he will not be still, and then he sacks out for a little while, only to start up again later. He's getting the hiccups a lot, too, which feels weird. :)

I can't believe we're going to have a baby . . . I really need to clean my house! I think my energy is returning finally. :) That, or the nesting instinct is kicking in!

</me runs off to take a shower and get to work!>

I've been eating all right. I went shopping for more produce the other day, so I could have more veggies to work with (which have a low glycemic load) and I got some more meat, too. I haven't been eating much meat, because a) it's often expensive, and b) chicken is what we have the most of, and it just never sounds appetizing. However, eating beans as a substitute adds to the sugar issue. A cup of beans is worth a starch choice and a lean meat choice. That's not bad, really, but if I'm already eating a starch, I don't want to add to that. Eggs are another substitute, but they're also pretty fatty and have a lot of cholesterol. I'll save those for breakfast. :)

My first full day keeping track of my sugars, I was hypoglycemic (sugar level less than 70 mg/dL) for half the day. Weird, since I ate bacon and eggs and a piece of toast for breakfast. I haven't been that low since then – in fact, I spiked over 120 today after lunch (135 mg/dL), but I'd just gotten out of the shower and it was a little longer than two hours after my first bite of lunch. Since then, it's been fine. But I've been STARVING.

I'm so flippin' HUNGRY. I know much of it is attributed to the fact that I'm eating less than I'm used to, so my body is adjusting, but it makes me feel weird. I hate to check my blood again to see what my sugar level is currently (in case I'm hypoglycemic again), because I hate pricking my fingers – but I'm terribly curious. Curiosity might win out . . .

I've discovered that the best place to get enough blood is my thumb – I get a good amount of blood, and it hurts less for some reason. My other fingers seem to be more sensitive, and I can barely get enough blood on the first try to fill the reservoir halfway. I went through four test strips yesterday afternoon, and pricked my fingers four or five times. I finally had success with my thumb. From then on, I've pricked my finger and coaxed the blood out before putting the test strip into the "pookah", as the lady at the hospital called it. I tried again tonight to use a different finger other than my thumb, and had no success. So, back to the thumb it is.

It's not that I don't like needles. I don't even mind pain that much. But there's something off-putting about deliberately poking myself five times a day. No matter how small that darn lancet is, or how fast it comes out of the gun, it doesn't get any easier. The scientist in me, however, is morbidly interested in this whole process. The mother in me knows it has to be done to keep my baby and my body safe. The stomach in me resents it all and wants to call out for pizza.

Maybe that's what I'll ask for shortly after the baby's born . . . except I will probably still have to watch my sugars for a while.

Oh well. It's time for bed. I've had a snack this evening, but I'm thinking of having another before I go to sleep. I'll have to check my sugar, though. It's been two hours since I ate my snack. I've been experimenting with certain low GL foods to see what I can get away with. Pears might affect me more than I thought, even though they have a fairly low glycemic load. It could have been when I ate it, too (only half a pear – I'm not allowed a full piece of fruit). When I got home around 8pm tonight, I ate half a pear with some cottage cheese. Still hungry not long after, I finished off the small turnip I ate half of before dinner tonight and a few slices of cucumber. I've been sipping tea since then, but I am STILL hungry.

Okay, just took my sugar again. 98 mg/dL – so no bread before bed. I had a string cheese, and that will have to do. I'm also getting pretty tired, so I need to go to bed soon.

I might have to visit the dietician again to get a new meal plan. As it is, I'll have to focus on having more protein and fat for the first two meals. There has to be some fiber with those so I don't go into ketosis (the point of the no-carb Atkin's Diet), because ketosis can affect the baby's growth, so a slice of toast or bread and butter to accompany breakfast and lunch will not go awry.

Okay, this talk of food is not helping me feel less hungry. I need to wrap up and go to bed.

Night!

I went for my diabetes counseling today, and it was relatively painless (somehow, she made the needle not hurt – why I can't do it is a mystery. Guess I need more practice).

She made the whole carb-watching thing sound easy – much easier than I thought it was going to be. I was already mourning the loss of my favorite sugars: Dark chocolate, hot chocolate, pizza, popcorn, dried fruit, and fruit juice. These things give me heartburn, anyway, but I'm still sad to see them go!

I'd eaten lunch just before going there, and when she took the practice shot (about an hour after my first bite, I think), my sugar was 145. She showed me what they were during the 3 hour test, too, and it was the sugar levels after the second and third blood draws that were higher than they were supposed to be. The fasting one was fine and the fourth draw was fine, but the other two weren't, so that's what they were concerned about. They weren't off the charts, but they were higher than they should be.

Apparently, the placenta can create a situation where the body becomes intolerant to insulin. I didn't know this is what causes gestational diabetes. My age and weight don't help with this matter, but it's nice to know it's not entirely my fault. ;)

I have to take my sugar level about half an hour after I wake up, two hours after my first bite of food at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and sometime during the night when I get up to go to the bathroom – preferably around 3am, but she said it's best if it's a little random. It's recommended I eat three meals and three snacks, the last snack being a mandatory snack before bed. This is no different from what the dietician told me at the beginning of my pregnancy, but lately I've been avoiding the snack before bed, because it will only give me heartburn in the night. But now it's mandatory, so I'll just deal with it. I've been getting hungry in the middle of the night, anyway. I just haven't wanted to get up and eat. After all, the last time I got up to eat in the middle of the night, I acquired a six-inch bruise on my butt that is very near to black. Impressive! But not the kind of thing I can take a picture of to post. ;)

ANYway, I had bacon, eggs, and a piece of toast for dinner tonight, and two hours later, my sugar was at 79. That's good, I guess. It has to be less than 120. There was too much fat in my meal, though, because I've been fighting reflux all night. The Walgreens antacid tablets (basically Tums) have helped. The nice thing about the Walgreens tablets over the Tums brand tablets is that the Walgreens brand uses sucralose as a sweetener instead of sucrose, as Tums uses – not to mention they break down easier and aren't as chalky. I can eat the Walgreens tablets with near impunity (except I don't want to OD on the magnesium my body can't even use), because they won't affect my blood sugar. Woohoo!

I'd been hoping I could prick my upper arm instead of my fingertips, but they'd rather me use my fingers, because the upper arm blood isn't as accurate. Darn. I don't like poking myself in sensitive places. At least it's quick, and it doesn't hurt for very long.

I should try ingesting apple cider vinegar again, because it's supposed to reduce insulin resistance. It's a thought . . .

Well, I've rambled enough. I need to eat my snack and go to bed. Nighty-night!

I finally got a call from the OB clinic yesterday, but didn't get the message till they'd already closed. She didn't leave any information, so I had to wait till this morning to call back. I figured it had to do with my GTT, since they wouldn't call me if everything was fine.

We had whirlwind visits with family last night, and dinner out. I was feeling pretty woozy and refluxy before dinner, so I knew I probably shouldn't eat pizza – even though we were at my favorite pizza place. I tried their chicken Caesar salad, and it was pretty good. While there, though, I put my hand under the chair to pull it closer to the table, and when I sat back down, parts that had separated when I moved the chair shifted and pinched my left index and middle fingers. They still hurt, though there are no blood blisters and only a tiny place where the skin was broken. It barely bled. But they're sore and kind of stiff today.

Later, we had Bible class. I don't know why I volunteered to teach 4- and 5-year-olds this quarter. What was I thinking?! Thankfully, my mom is my helper, and she's much more resourceful and experienced at it than I am. We watched a 30-minute video last night, colored, and ate a snack. I admit to being thankful for one-hour Wednesday night classes . . .

I was exhausted last night, battling a little heartburn (when am I not?), and just not looking forward to the going-to-bed routine, because I just wanted to skip it all and fall into bed. I had an 8:30 meeting this morning, so I was going to have to get up early-ish, and I wasn't looking forward to that, either. (Wednesday nights are made harder by the fact that I'm up at 5am for a 7am meeting, and we were out a lot after that, so I didn't rest much.)

While getting a glass down from the cupboard to make baking soda water before bed, a glass fell and knocked another glass out of the cupboard. It hit the glass cutting board in front of the toaster oven, shattered, and the rest fell to the floor to shatter some more. *Sigh* Sweetie helped me clean up, but I was disappointed, because it was one of my favorite medium-sized glasses, and pretty. It didn't match anything in the cupboard, but it was pretty, and the perfect size for juice. Man . . .

I finally got to bed, and turned my light off around 9:45-ish. I woke up around 12:30-ish to go to the bathroom (I think I'd gotten up around 11-ish, too), and to stretch out my aching right hip. ( Possible TMI )

I laid back down, but couldn't get back to sleep because I was hungry. I decided I wasn't going to go back to sleep unless I ate something, so I went to the kitchen and had a string cheese and a piece of bread. As I was descending the steps to the lower part of the house, I slipped on the first step (there are only two, but they're wooden), and landed on my left butt cheek hard on the edge of the step. I tried to catch myself, but my hand slipped off the stairs and onto the floor. It woke my husband out of a dead sleep – which is kind of a miracle in itself, but goes to show he probably will not sleep through the baby crying, like he thinks he will ;) – and he came out to see if I was okay. It really hurt. I didn't hit anything terribly crucial, and I have to admit I more thankful now for the extra padding I've acquired on my posterior, but it was kind of a last straw event.

I don't cry when I get hurt. Well, not usually. But I was so frustrated that I couldn't sleep already (it was about 1:30am at this point) and my hips still didn't cooperate at night, and here I was probably bruised to the bone on the side I was supposed to be sleeping on . . . I had to go to the bathroom again, and then Sweetie helped me to bed and went to the kitchen to get an ice pack and to the bathroom to get some Tylenol, and I just couldn't not cry. I was really happy that he was there to help me out, and I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. Not to mention it hurt. I just felt stupid and a little helpless. I couldn't stop crying! On the humorous side, though, a small voice was telling me that at least I wasn't hungry. Of course, a few minutes after laying on my right side, the food I'd eaten began the reflux cycle, and I knew I was going to have to flip over on my left side, or endure more pain.

Well, suffice it to say I didn't sleep too well after that. I'd been having dreams beforehand about going to the hospital to deliver the baby and being sent home because I wasn't ready, and then afterward I had dreams about people falling off of stuff and about food. Carby food. Carby food I probably can't have for the next ten weeks. It was a really lousy night. Besides that, I was worried I'd hurt the baby (not very worried, since I knew I hadn't been hurt seriously and nothing I landed on would affect any of my mommy parts or the baby), and that led to other worries: Has he been moving enough? Have my messed-up sugars affected his growth/mental development/activity level? Am I responsible enough to keep my sugars monitored so I don't have a premature birth? Blah, blah, blah . . .

Unfortunately, I finally got comfortable enough to sleep – just before my alarm went off, so I slept in an hour longer than I would have, which made me late for my meeting. I didn't really care, though, because I still hurt and was moving slowly. They would understand, and they did.

I apparently cut my hand when I fell, I discovered when I got up to take a shower, but it didn't bleed very much. My arm is bruised, too. I have a big, purple bruise on my left butt cheek (I'm sure you wanted to visualize that). And the rest of my body is just stiff enough to be slightly uncomfortable. We have metal folding chairs at the meeting site, so I brought a throw pillow to cushion my seat. It worked well enough, but it was a long meeting.

After my meeting, I got ahold of the lady who'd called me from the OB clinic, and she set up an appointment for me for tomorrow afternoon (it's too busy for me to come in today) to learn to monitor my blood sugar, because my GTT came back elevated. I was able to go to the pharmacy and pick up all the supplies, though. On the way, I almost cried again, because I wasn't looking forward to more pain – daily pain, self-induced on-purpose pain – especially on my fingertips. I've learned since then that I can draw blood from my forearm if I want to, so that is a bit of a relief.

I got a "small" medical sharps waste container ("small" is bigger than a large city phone book), some lancets, and some testing paper. I haven't read the instructions, so I think I'll just wait till tomorrow afternoon to open it up, and try to eat healthy till then. I admit to knowing nothing about diabetes – the whole thing confuses me, frankly. I'm hoping to stay off of insulin dependence, but I will have to stick very closely to a diet. No more pizza. :( So sad . . .

So, the rundown:
-Pinched fingers
-Cranky attitude
-Broken glass
-Elevated blood sugar and possible gestational diabetes
-Bruised butt and arm, cut hand
-Little sleep
-Anxiety dreams
-Ten weeks of pokes and tiny blood draws – HOPEFULLY not any insulin shots!

It's not my best 24 hours ever.

Now I'm home and I've had some lunch. Baby is rockin' and rollin' in my belly, which makes me feel better, but I am tired. It's naptime. We're probably going to go out to dinner again tonight with some friends, so I need all the rest I can get.

I'll let you know how tomorrow goes. For now, I'm going to crawl under some covers and ignore the world for a while . . .

Today, I am 30 weeks and 1 day pregnant. I have ten more weeks to go!

It's funny: That's about 2 1/2 months, but "ten weeks" sounds shorter, for some reason. Smaller increment? Dunno.

Here are some pictures!


(My hair's a little frizzy in that one, but the angle is good.)


(I like this one best, but the angle isn't as good. And does my cat need to go on a diet?! She's lookin' kind of evil in that pic, too.)

I'm noticing a little shortness of breath as Baby begins to encroach on the last available space in my abdominal cavity. It's helped by sitting forward a little, although that gets him to move more – not necessarily a bad thing, because movement is good. It's only uncomfortable when he begins kicking or punching too hard in one corner. I'm also starting to feel more "crampy" sensations down low, some of which are gas, I'm sure, but sometimes just seems to be my body maybe practicing a little for the Big Day. I don't think I've had any actual Braxton-Hicks contractions yet. So far, Baby seems content to stay where he is. :) My body is complaining, though . . .

I finally had a dream where Baby had been born and we were interacting with him and I got to feed him. Of course, my brain adds random weirdness (Baby is more mobile and clever as a newborn than any newborn has a right to be, he's tiny and seemingly fragile, and some normal things are strangely shaped), because it's a dream, but for the most part, it was one of those sweet dreams that I wish I could have more of. It's nice when I finally sleep long and hard enough to have a dream that I remember. :)

His litany of "names" that Sweetie has come up with to fill in the blanks till we actually have a name for him (and to keep the name a secret until then) is getting longer and sillier every week. :)

For a while, Baby was "Winthorp Oliver Chesterfield III", or "Winthorp" for short. Then, he was "Mortimer" (although this name appeared earlier than the aforementioned "Winthorp", it went into regular "use" after it). That eventually changed to "Mortimer . . . q" (the "q" being sounded out as a "k" after a brief pause – a "non-silent q"). I visualized the pronunciation of this as "Mortimer_q". Sweetie says he visualizes it more like "Mortimer___q". I'm not sure how the "non-silent q" made it into that name, but I think there was a conversation about pygmies involved . . .

The current "name" for Baby is "Ian . . . Ian Cognito", spoken in the same tone as "Bond . . . James Bond". The difference is, we actually like the name "Ian". But the pun is worth the ridiculousness. :)

My sweetie is weird. But I love him. :)

I'm just wondering if I can break myself of calling Baby "Baby" when he's actually born. It's too bad my dream didn't reveal any favorite name combinations to me . . . We're still working on that. We probably won't have a decision until the baby's born, but hopefully we'll have it more narrowed down than we do now.

Until later!

Poor Baby – he's starting to feel the crunch. Poor me – so am I!

Last night was the first time that Baby movement actually provided much discomfort. My ribs are high and wide, so I don't really have much to worry about him pushing those out, but my poor belly! He gets his head and/or feet just up and to the right of my belly button (as I look down on it), and the other end he has been lodging on my opposite hip bone. Then he stretches. I call it his "Aliens Impression". Last night after church, I think he got good purchase with his feet on my left hip bone and pushed up. We fought for a while, but I think I lost.

Today, he was doing the same thing, only I think it was his feet up in my belly and his head at my hip bone. It hurt! Now there's a spot inside that, when he pushes on it, feels kind of bruised. Ouch. He's relaxing now, but I have a feeling I'm going to get more of this as the weeks go by. I wonder what's so great about that spot on my belly? My liver? Farther from my heart?

He is getting more active. In the "What to Expect" emails I've been getting, I've been informed that I should be counting movements after morning and evening meals, and anything under ten in an hour can be cause for worry. Do all the other movements he makes during the day count? He was dancing at lunchtime on Sunday. Something involving all his limbs. It was kind of funny. :)

I think he's starting to press more on my stomach, too, because I can do nothing to control the reflux. Bleh.

Well, tomorrow I go in for my GTT. Hopefully it won't be too icy or snowy, and we'll make it there okay. It's snowing now, but it's mixed with rain. If the temp drops tonight, it's possible that the roads could be pretty icy tomorrow. I am glad that we drive an Outback. Four-wheel drive has its benefits.

Baby got a few gifts for Christmas: Another blanket, an adorable outfit with elephants and monkeys on it, socks, and colorful onesies with pictures. We got a couple gifts that are more for us to use with Baby, one of which is absolutely hysterical: "Pee-Pee TeePees": For the sprinkling wee-wee. The instructions on the back: Hold feet with one hand so legs are at a 90° angle and place Pee-Pee TeePee on wee wee during diaper changes. They're in a blue camouflage pattern. I about died! How funny! :D But they will be very beneficial for keeping the fountains to a minimum. :)

I also got a "Hooter Hider": A thin "blanket" that has a strap you put over your head; a stiff, curved part at your neck that allows you to see Baby nursing without having to lift the blanket; and enough coverage to keep you and Baby modest during mealtime. My sister-in-law made it herself! It's lovely. :)

My husband bought me the Snoogle pillow and let me open it on Christmas Eve. I've slept so much better since then! The nighttime reflux is still a problem, but it's more comfortable to sit up and sleep with the Snoogle than with just a pillow. Also, I can lean back and stretch out my right leg when my hip starts to hurt, without needing Sweetie to be lying just right so I can lean on him and not end up flat on my back. The hip pain doesn't linger the next morning, either. It's so nice.

Well, I really should think about taking a shower and doing some straightening up. The living room is decorated, but is covered in Christmas (and not-Christmas) clutter. I'd like to relax and watch a movie with Sweetie tonight, but it's hard to when there's clutter everywhere. I need to get on that. And do some laundry . . .

I'll update about the GTT tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get the results quickly, good or bad.

Laterz!