39 week appointment

I was sure excited going into this appointment this morning but pretty bummed out when leaving. Looks like there is no change in the cervix, in fact she said it's so high she could hardly reach it. Uggg. Looks like this little lady won't be gracing us with her presence until her due date (next Friday) or after that. What a bummer. I didn't even have a chance to talk about an induction since the doc was called out to a delivery. Might just be letting Mother Nature figure out when her birthday will be.
Oh well, looks like I have another quiet weekend with just my boys. Looking forward to it.
Just thought I'd share.

Weekend Update

So the big cooking day yesterday went really well. I was cooking from about 10 am until 1 pm and got nine full meals plus three loaves of banana bread and a huge bag of frozen cookie dough made. I also cooked up a big bag of cubed chicken breasts so that simple meals can be made without cooking meat. All in all a good beginning. In the next two weeks I hope to make several large meals that will have leftovers to freeze as well, so maybe I can get through without cooking for two or three weeks. Here's hoping! And of course my wonderful Mother-in-law said she'd cook us up a huge batch of meatballs to freeze when they get here after the baby is born. Thanks Randi, can't wait!

Today we went and picked up the big load of hay for the horses to eat all winter. For the past four years we've purchased hay from my friend Jessica's aunt but this year she cut the hay and unfortunately it got rained on before she could bale it. We've had a pretty crazy summer in regards to the weather and finding a non-rainy weekend has been tough. So I had to do some calling around and found a guy not a mile away selling hay. Of course it was quite a bit more money but what can you do? He was nice enough to load it on his trailer and all we had to do was go pull it home and unload it. Sean was nice enough to do the unloading while Wesley and I watched. Have I mentioned how I'm married to a really great guy? Well I am. So now I can breath a little easier knowing the horses have at least a 100 bales in the shed this winter.






In baby news.....well there is no baby news. The ticker says 12 days (12 days!?!) and I literally can't wait. I have my 39 week appointment on Thursday so we'll see what the Doc has to say and see if I can plead with her to set up an induction date. I had a really great experience with my induction with Wesley and would love to just duplicate the experience. Most Docs won't induce unless you're dilating, so here's hoping all this cramping and mild contractions this past week are doing something beyond the 1cm I was at 36 weeks! I'll let you all know.
Hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

18 days

So I said I was going to stop bitching and moaning about being pregnant. I said I was going to focus on the positive side of it all. I pretty much lied. This has got to end soon. The little ticker to the right says 18 days but that might as well be two more years because the days are going by sooo slowly. I know, I know it will be over soon and I'll have a sweet little girl in my arms to focus on but for now I can't stop focusing on being miserable. It was so easy to glorify pregnancy when you wanted to be pregnant. To look at the beautiful side of it. And I will be the first to admit there is a beautiful side to it. It's beautiful up until about 28 weeks. Then reality sets in and the days slow down. Here are a few key points as to why I'd like to not be pregnant anymore.

• I'm sick of being a bi-stander to my life. I sit and watch Sean rough house with Wesley. Play their chase game. Just be fun and silly and I'm not able to join in because I'm too dang tired or physically can't get off the couch. It's sad. I miss being a fun Mom.
  
  
• I'm selfish enough to say I need my body back. I miss my body. I miss my body being my body. Just mine. Not sharing it with anyone else. Just for the record, I've officially evicted my tenant. Yes, she got her walking papers last week yet she's not getting the message. She's just camped out in there until next year.
  
  
• One word. Hemorrhoids.
  
  
• I know every pregnant woman complains about sleeping but it's just so true. There is very little sleeping going on. It's just going from one bathroom break to another. I got up five times last night. Five. I'm debating getting some Depends and just not getting up to go to the bathroom anymore. It's tempting.
  
  
• I'm so tired of driving 1.5 hours total,there and back, to the doctor every week for them to test my urine, take my blood pressure, hear the heartbeat and send me on my way. That I will not miss at all.
  
  
• I can't wait to wear my normal clothes again. I'm down to two maternity shirts that actually fit and completely cover the giant belly. After those two have been worn I start wearing the shirts that almost cover the belly, thus making me one of those skanky women that walk around with part of their belly hanging out. Luckily I don't go out in public much these days and when I do I have my trusty two shirts. Poor Sean on the other hand....
  
  Ok, I now have that all off my chest and can get on with it. Sorry, had to vent.
  

Loose ends

I had my 37 week appointment today. I was under the impression the doctor was going to check my cervix every week now but was informed that she won't do that again until 39 weeks. On one hand I would love to see if there is any progress but it is nice to not have to have that done every week....it's not the most pleasant thing in the world. Everything looks good. They were really trying to push the flu vaccine on me today. They said it's a good idea to get it now and then when the H1N1 vaccine comes out late September or early October get it as well. Since there seems to be only a limited supply of the H1N1 vaccine they are targeting higher risk groups first, including pregnant women. I'm kind of on the fence as to whether I plan to get that one, if they delay getting it out to the public until October it will make my choice easier since I will no longer be pregnant and part of the high risk group. Sean and I do plan to get the regular flu shot as soon as I give birth to provide a bubble of protection around a newborn and a two year old (who will also get the flu shot). I have decided to stop watching the news because all this talk of the Swine Flu already has me worried about bringing home a newborn in the Fall/Winter months. We are currently taking preventative measures when out in public and I don't need the nightly news stressing me out anymore.

I've been busy wrapping up all the loose ends around here. Getting the final preparations done before this little lady arrives. My hospital bag and the baby bag is packed and ready to go. I got preregistered at the Birthing Center today so that's one less thing to do once labor starts. We are installing the car seat and bases in the cars this weekend. I need to sterilize all the pump parts and bottles. I've got a list of frozen meals I'm making, so I just need to go get the fixings for them so I can fill the freezer with easy casseroles, stews and quick breads. That really helped us out when Wesley was born and I plan to double the amount for after this baby is born. I'm also making a bunch of freezer meals and snacks for Wesley, things Sean can defrost and give him easily like mini muffins, chocolate chip pancakes and individual servings of home made mac and cheese to name just a few. Sean is going to be Mr. Mom once this new little one arrives and take over my duties with Wesley for a little bit while I attempt to recover. I figure the poor guy will be more than ready to go back to work after his two week paternity leave is up.

Good Appointment

I had my 36 week appointment today. First off, no weight gain which is pretty incredible since I haven't been in for almost 3 weeks (the doc was moving her college bound kid to CA). So that's a positive! Second, the baby is head down and ready to go (second positive!). Third, I'm one centimeter dilated (third positive!). I know, one centimeter is not much but at least something is happening. I walked around 3 centimeters dilated when I was pregnant with Wesley for three weeks and still ended up getting induced, but hey progress is progress.

I asked the doctor about how size relates to second babies. I was under the delusion that having a girl as baby number two would mean having a smaller baby than Wesley who was 8 pounds 12 ounces. She informed me that the majority of baby girls outweigh baby boys at birth. Something to do with Mother Natures way of continuing a species. So this led me to ask if this baby girl could be bigger than Wesley was and she's guessing this one will be within a few ounces of Wesley's birth weight. I totally expected to have a much smaller girl than boy. Strange stuff. I'm not worried though...it just surprised me.
That's about all, just wanted to share my good appointment news.

35 Weeks

35 days left to go! It's officially crunch time. We are down to the wire and this baby is going to be here soon! I'm so excited. I know I've been bitching and moaning about this thing and that concerning this pregnancy but I'll be the first to say I've had it easy. This has been an easy pregnancy. With five weeks (or less) left I've decided I need to really quit with the belly aching and just enjoy it. This is, after all, the last time round.....two children is plenty for us.

-I'm happy to report that the swollen feet and ankles have disappeared. Not a clue why but I'm thrilled. Actually it probably has to do with the weather being down right chilly. Chilly in August, now that's a first. I also have to say that I've never before in my life seen it so lush in August. The grass is all green and thick, all the rain is just keeping it beautiful around here. It's been a strange summer. A wonderful summer to be pregnant during.

-I'm officially "ready" for this little lady to make her entrance into the world. I've mentally wrapped my mind around going through labor again and I feel at ease with doing it all over. I can only hope that this time round it will be as easy as it was with Wesley. I'm actually hoping for another induction, that was a wonderful experience that I wish I could just duplicate (maybe without high blood pressure being the catalyst).

-I got excited the other day at the grocery store when I picked up a container of cottage cheese and saw that it expired on my due date. I remember with pregnancy #1 how that made me nervous, it's truly different the second time round.

-Here's hoping this is the last belly picture taken and that she decides to come a week or two early. Hey, a girl can dream right?

Watermelon Stealer

I was in line at Michaels this weekend buying craft paint when the man behind me said "You've been stealing watermelons haven't you?". I honestly didn't know what he meant, it took me a good 5 seconds to get it. Although I could have been distracted because his eyes each went off in different directions and he was wearing a sweat band around his forehead. I haven't seen a sweatband on a man since the 80's. Anyways, it got me thinking about watermelon and of course I started craving it. I've been eating my weight in watermelon lately (and that ain't easy if you've seen me) and thought I'd look up the nutritional benefits to it, if there were any at all. Turns out watermelon is a pregnant gals best friend. Who knew?

I found an article in FitPregnancy that just sings its praises and I thought I'd share a little:

"Watermelon eases heartburn and reduces swelling; its high water content (92 percent) and fruit sugars alleviate morning sickness and dehydration; and the minerals it contains can help prevent third-trimester muscle cramps. Ounce for ounce, watermelon is richer than tomatoes in lycopene, an antioxidant that protects against cancer and cardiovascular disease, boosts the body's immunity to infections and naturally raises the skin's SPF, according to Steven Pratt, M.D., author of SuperFoods Rx (HarperCollins, 2003).Even better news for pregnant women: A 2003 study in the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics found that daily lycopene supplements reduced the incidence of preeclampsia by 50 percent. Test subjects were given 4 milligrams of lycopene; a single serving of watermelon can have triple that amount. What's more, scientists have discovered that watermelon is packed with vitamins A, C and B6, as well as potassium and magnesium. These nutrients are important for the development of your baby's vision, brain, nervous and immune systems, and more. For you, potassium regulates water balance in the blood and body tissues during pregnancy. And you get all these benefits for less than 50 calories per cup."

Here is the whole article if you'd like to read it.
It sure makes me feel better about downing as much as I do.

33 Weeks

1. I can officially say I'm having a baby next month....freaky!

2. Seven weeks to go and it feels like an eternity. Seven more weeks of side sleeping. Seven more weeks of being unable to get up off the ground when playing with Wesley. I've actually just stayed on the ground if I knew Sean was going to be home soon so he could help me get up. It's sad.

3. Had my appointment today. Everything looks good, she has a strong heartbeat of 140 bpm. I've been having some cramping the last two weeks which she reassured me is normal, more so in a second pregnancy. Also I'm feeling a lot of pressure down there which she also said was normal. I get my cervix checked at the next appointment to see if there is any progress...here's hoping!

4. Sean has been refinishing the baby dresser this week after work and it really looks awesome! When it's done I'll post some pictures. I hope to have it done and in the house next week so I can start washing and folding baby clothes. The nesting instinct is growing stronger and stronger by the week. Soon I'll be scrubbing baseboards.

5. The utter exhaustion is still here and pops it's ugly head in around 3pm every day. I'm in the process of changing my diet so that I get more protein to try and keep my blood sugars even throughout the day. Doctor said this is normal in the last trimester, especially with a 2 year old keeping me busy.

6. My appetite is gone. I take that back, I'm still hungry for breakfast but not much else throughout the day. I'm hoping the weight gain levels off for the next few weeks.

7. I've been having fun buying the cutest things off of eBay for this little lady. Things that I never needed to buy for Wesley such as a car seat cover since she'll be a fall and winter infant.

8. She weighs between 4.5 and 5 pounds right now. From now on out it's just packing on that adorable baby chub. Grow baby girl grow!

30 Weeks

Whale watchers of America unite! Holy cow do I feel HUGE. I have 10 weeks left (or 70 days) of this pregnancy and naturally they happen to be in the hottest part of the entire year....great planning eh? It is going well though. She's officially dropped. When I sit at the computer I feel like I'm holding a watermelon in my lap. She's literally sitting on my thighs now. Her kicks are becoming much more "Kung Fu Fighter" like. Only a few have been painful, the kind where you cringe until they end. At my appointment last week the doctor measured my belly and said she's measuring a week ahead. So here's hoping she makes her entrance into the world around the middle of September rather than the 25th.

I've purchased the last of the needed baby items this week including a breast pump. I squeaked my way through breastfeeding Wesley for 10 months by borrowing two different people's breast pumps (thank you Jessica and Becca!) and decided this time to not be such a cheap skate and buy my own. So a nice new Medela Pump in Style is on its way to my front porch and I couldn't be more thrilled. It seems strange that something so trivial as a pump could make me giddy. Oh well. I also ordered some Dr. Browns glass bottles off of Amazon. I did the whole Playtex Nursers with Wesley and got so sick and tired of buying liners that just got thrown into a landfill. It was so wasteful. It also seemed expensive buying liners every time I had to buy formula there for those two months he was strictly on formula. So this time we are going the glass bottle route and I hope it pays off. That's about all that is happening lately.

Weekend Ramblings

My life is not very exciting at the moment (or ever for that matter) and I'm just going to write my average rambling blog post. I'm happy to say that our heat pump guy finally made an appearance yesterday after yet another phone call. I understand that it's 100+ temperatures and our priority is rather low in the scheme of things with other people possibly not even having air conditioning. Still, it was one hot boring week with the air conditioner acting up and being stuck at home to monitor it. It turns out after the repair guy plugged in all his hoses and meters that our poor unit was low six pounds of coolant (or freon or whatever it's called). I guess the unit only holds 16 units so six is a lot to be missing and still be expected to keep up in crazy heat like we've been having. Needless to say it is now all filled up and ice cold, un-humid air is pouring out of the vents. It's heavenly. I can stop constantly sweating now.

We've had our shop full of the unused pool equipment since the pool was removed over a year ago and I finally got around to photographing it all and posting it on Craigslist. Have I told you how much I love Craigslist? I posted the pump, filter, pool cleaner and ladder on Friday afternoon and by yesterday morning it was all sold except one thing. I even priced stuff for more than I thought I could get for it. One lady called in such desperation on Friday night. It appears her pool pump went out 2 weeks ago and the pool was now green and her kids were bugging her like crazy to go swimming. She was so excited to buy the pump and get her pool back up and running. I'm just glad all of that stuff is out of the shop and was able to make a few bucks in the process.

I've officially entered the third trimester of this pregnancy. I know I've said it before, but it is going so fast! I've got less than 13 weeks left to go, and to me that is measured in 13 weekends. How much can I get done in 13 weekends. I've still got a chunk of the house to paint, we'll need scaffolding to get to the second floor but that might come later. I still need to refinish the dresser I bought at a garage sale for the baby. Tons of baby clothes need to be washed and put in above mentioned dresser. Then there are all of the little projects like finishing caulking the kitchen, painting the horse shed, getting the crib and putting together in our room, and making and freezing a ton of meals for after the baby comes. Of course things will get harder as the time goes by and the belly grows to abnormal dimensions. But I'm thrilled we'll get to meet our little girl in less than three months.
Hope everyone is having a nice weekend!

25 Weeks

All I have to say is that this pregnancy is flying by so fast! I can't believe I only have 15 more weeks until "D Day". Scary! Even though I've gone through labor and delivery once already I have to admit I'm not looking forward to that whole experience again. Luckily it goes fairly fast and there is an end, can't go on forever.....right?

My wedding rings are officially removed and replaced with a large silver band that I used during pregnancy #1. The rings were getting tight from swelling and I thought it was time to bite the bullet and get them off while I still can. The swelling hasn't been too noticeable yet, only right before I go to bed do I feel like there might be some in my feet and occasionally fingers.

I call this stage the "freaky dancing belly stage". It's that time when you sit on the couch and watch the belly move and jive. If you place a cup or remote control on the belly it will move up and down and all around. It's cool. She's a mover and shaker! As I move into the third trimester I find the fatigue returning. It's getting harder and harder to get out of bed in the morning. Some of this is due to being sleepy and some is due to the fact that it's physically difficult to get out of bed. That's about all. I have my gestational diabetes test the visit after next and then I move into every 2 week visits to the doctor. Fun stuff!

Appointment

I had my 22 week appointment today. Everything is looking great. The little skittle had a strong 155 beats per minute. I was a little worried about getting on the scale since my appetite seems to have kicked in this past month. I'm literally hungry all the time. This pregnancy I'm craving watermelon (I can't get enough of it), mac and cheese and salty stuff. With the first pregnancy it was chicken fried rice. Wherever I went I'd always come home with some chicken fried rice. Funny how different this one is. I'm eating small amounts throughout the day since big meals just don't fit in the stomach like they used to. Things are definitely starting to get squished inside the old abdomen. I gained 5.5 pounds in four weeks which seems like a large amount but overall not too bad. I'm trying not to worry about the weight gain since it does come off in the end. I gained 43 pounds with Wesley and it was all gone within six months postpartum. I attribute that to breastfeeding. Natures Jenny Craig.

I asked the doctor about the tick issue again since they seem to be getting worse. It doesn't freak me out anymore when I find them, but I still get concerned with the threat of Lyme disease. If I take Wesley outside for 30 minutes I will always find at least two stuck to me somewhere. It's always a scavenger hunt trying to find them. My question to the doc was whether I should be using bug spray to try and deter them. I'm kind of wondering which is the worse of the two evils. Chemicals verses tiny ticks. I'm really trying to go all natural with this pregnancy and spraying my body down with nasty chemicals just doesn't do it for me. She said bug sprays are ok to use, although some is absorbed into the blood stream. Oh decisions decisions.

20 Weeks

Today marks the official half way point of this pregnancy. The only noteworthy thing I can mention that happens around this time in a pregnancy is the awkward question..."are you expecting?" This has happened a few times now, usually with people I haven't seen in a few months (or years). For example yesterday I went to the local Wally World to buy flowers and ran into an older lady that I used to work with at the vet clinic while I was in high school. She and I wandered around outside looking at the flowers and chatting and ended up at the check out lane. She then (after we had been walking for 10 minutes) timidly leaned in and asked in almost a whisper if we were expecting. Kind of like she wouldn't want to embarrass me if she was wrong and I was just packing on the poundage. It cracks me up. For one, women do not carry weight like this. Never in my 30 years on this planet have I seen a woman with all of her extra weight right out front like a beer belly. No, we get it all over....hips, rear and every where else in between. Two, it's not like I would have gone off and smacked her for asking. Hey, we all get curious now and again (sometimes our curiosity does get us in trouble eh Randi...remember Phoenix?). I'm just happy that it now appears that I'm pregnant and not just chunky, that phase sucks.

This little lady has been kicking up a storm. I forgot how powerful those little kicks can be. It amazes me since she's still so tiny. According to my online calendar she's around 10-12 ounces (the tech said she was 8 ounces at the ultrasound 2.5 weeks go) and 7 inches long. Of course my little helper is in the photo above. It feels like I'm looking at a Where's Waldo picture, maybe we'll rename it Where's Wesley.

Mister Wesley is going to have a.......

LITTLE SISTER!!

I get to shop for little dresses!! Holy cow!
We had the ultrasound today and were just shocked and delighted to find out the news. I thought it was going to be a boy, even though this pregnancy has been like night and day compared to the first pregnancy. With this one the morning sickness was a lot worse, I'm carrying differently, the heart rate has consistently been in the 140-150 range (Wesley's was always 170-180's), quite a bit less weight gain (gained 8 pounds in 18 weeks). The ultra sound technician said Wesley was going to have a little sister and I even cried a little (just a tad bit hormonal) they were tears of joy of course.

I had my 18 week appointment right after the ultrasound and got to talk about my latest problem. It's not so much my problem rather that the ticks around here think I am the tastiest piece of white meat they've ever seen. Wesley and I have been spending a lot of time outside enjoying the beautiful weather and once I come inside I, inevitably, find at least one tick on me. This has happened the last three days. YUCK! I really hate ticks. It happens to be one of the downsides to living in the country. City folk don't seem to have this problem. Of the three ticks, two have been attached to me. So now I have to monitor the bites and make sure they don't start looking scary. I've already started a little collection of dead ticks in dated zip lock bags in the freezer. You might ask "why do you have ticks in zip lock bags in your freezer?" Well, you are supposed to keep the ticks that you find attached to your body so that if the bite starts to look bad you can take your little tick friend in to be tested for lyme disease. Luckily they all seem to be little teeny tiny baby dog ticks, not usually the carriers for lyme disease.

Anyways, just thought I'd share our good news. Gosh I'm going to have to start thinking of a new name for the blog eh? Guess I have a few months.
Hope everyone has a great rest of the week, I know I am!

Random Stuff

Just some random things to say today.


• Wesley has started singing lately. There are a few songs that I sing to him routinely and he's picking them up and will join in on the words he knows. Generally he'll get the last line to most all of the songs. It is hilarious because he doesn't just sing the line, he screams the last line of the song. I'm going to post some video of him doing it soon.


• For about a week now I've been feeling the little Skittle moving around. In the beginning it's hard to differentiate between gas and baby flutters but I'm finally sure it's actually baby fluttering and not the bean burrito I scarfed down. This is about two weeks earlier than with Wesley, but I've heard that is common with the second pregnancy.


• We've officially entered into the rainy season around here. It seems to rain every other day. Unfortunately this came before we were finished laying down the compost on the filled in pool hole. Sean got about half covered and can't finish it because it is constantly too wet to drive the truck around the lawn. I debated what to do all last week while imagining how beneficial all this rain would be to baby grass seed. I decided yesterday too just bite the bullet and get the seed down before my open window of grass planting is shut. I figure clay isn't the worst thing for grass to grow in. So I went to Wally World and bought 40 pounds of seed and fertilizer and went to town raking and spreading seed. I got it down within an hour of a huge storm that dropped two inches of rain last night. Yeah! I can't wait to look out the back window and see green grass instead of a pool or worse, a demolished pool.


• The big ultrasound is this Wednesday afternoon!! Woo Hoo! We are so excited. We moved the date one day sooner so that my Mother could come along. I think it's the first time she's seen an ultrasound. It will be great having her there to enjoy it with us (plus another set of eyes to watch Wesley). If the little Skittle cooperates and shows us the "goods" I'll post the outcome Wednesday evening.


• Wesley has been hamming it up at the dinner table. He's really taken to his booster seat and seems to be happy to be out of the high chair. One of the pleasures of the booster seat is that he now has the ability to push himself away from the table and place his feet up on the table. I always know when he's done with his dinner because a foot will appear. It's hard to be strict with him and tell him to get his feet down when we're giggling.

Cuteness

Wesley has been cracking me up lately and I thought I'd share the cuteness. His new thing is to lift up my shirt and point at my belly button and say "baby". I taught him this a few weeks ago and he does it often now. Sean, Wesley and I were in his room and Sean yawned and stretched his arms over his head causing his shirt to raise up a bit. Wesley immediately pointed at his non-existent belly and declared it a "baby". It made our day.

Anyways, I just thought I'd share. I'm off to hard boil a ton and a half of eggs.

15 Weeks

I'm going to attempt to document this pregnancy better than I did the first one. This is going to be easy since I have a blog, unlike I did with Wesley's pregnancy. I must force you to endure belly photo's. I'm 15 weeks today and plan to photograph the old belly every 5 weeks from here on out. I think it will be interesting to see the differences. So I present "the belly" and my little shadow down in the corner. He has absolutely no clue what's going on.

Heartbeat

I had my 14 week prenatal appointment today. Everything is going great. We got to hear the heartbeat today, it was a strong 154 bpm. I took my sidekick Wesley along this time and he had fun making googly eyes at the people next to us in the waiting room. Everyone commented on what a laid back kid he is. He just sat next to me on the bench for the ten minutes we were in the waiting room eating his graham cracker. He's such a good kid, we really are lucky.

My next appointment at 18 weeks will be the ultrasound and hopefully we'll get to see the sex of the new baby. I'm excited. It will be the end of April. My intuition tells me its going to be a boy but who knows. I went back and looked at Wesley's heartbeat for the 14 week appointment and it was 178. There are old wives tales about heartbeat and gender and according to them this new one is a girl. Both the 8 week and 14 week bpm were 150 and 154. I really don't have a preference for the gender as long as he or she is healthy, that's all we ask. That's all that's new around here.

Second trimester here I come!

I am officially one third of the way through this pregnancy. Yahoo! I am so happy to report that last week, seemingly overnight, the morning sickness disappeared. After reading up on this it makes more sense. I guess around the 12th week your placenta takes over making the pregnancy hormones instead of your body. Which in turn pretty much removes that wonderful feeling of being sick. It is simply wonderful to not be curled up on the couch every evening feeling like I got run over by a tank. Simply wonderful. I actually have my energy somewhat back and poor Wesley doesn't look so concerned for me anymore. The kid really picks up on my feelings, he's a sensitive little guy.

This second pregnancy is already quite a bit different than the first. For one thing, the above mentioned sickness was 500 times more awful than with the first. Second thing is I already feel huge! I think I'm about the size now that I was at about 20 weeks with Wesley. It's strange to look down and already see a belly there and only be 13 weeks. I'm already in some of my smaller maternity tops. It makes me scared as to how large I'm going to get.

During the first go round I had some big problems with swelling. My feet and ankles were huge! So I've done my research and I'm bound and determined not to swell too much this time round. For one I'm going to make sure I drink plenty of water. I should be drinking 64-80 oz of water a day. 64 oz is equal to 2 quarts. So I fill up a two quart pitcher every morning and make sure I drink it all by the end of the way. This is a huge amount of water (I think). I have to drink a tall glass full every two hours to accomplish my goal every day. I'm finding it tough. The other thing to help swelling I've found online is to keep your potassium levels high. So I plan to eat a banana every day, which isn't too tough to do.

Overall it's been smooth sailing and I'm looking forward now to the second trimester.

A Joyful Twist of Events

I want a puppy. At least I think I want a puppy. This all stems from the loss of our beloved golden retriever, Cisco, last May (I can't believe we are coming up on the year mark). We were a happy three dog family. They all got along great together (for the most part) and since Cisco left us there seems to be a void. I see it when I look out the window into the dog yard and see Sophie moping around. She seems to be the hardest hit at loosing her constant play mate. I miss the steady flow of soggy tennis balls being dropped in my lap. I still get choked up thinking about how that doesn't happen anymore. Mostly I am saddened that Cisco never got to enjoy the constant attention and ball throwing he would have endured had he lived to see Wesley at this age.

Anyways, back to my puppy dreams. I go back and forth on this subject almost daily. I mean why would I want to bring a puppy into this house when I know fully well what puppies do. Puppies pee and poop everywhere, they eat anything and everything (including Wesley's prized toys) and they stink. I've always thought puppies stink, is it just me that thinks this? But then I think, oh puppies are cute....they grow fast, it would be a welcome addition to our family.

And then I get to talking with people (I shall not name names) that once the subject of a puppy is broached immediately say "Oh why don't you just have another baby?". This was funny the first time I heard it, but after the seventh person said it it started waring on me. It was hard. I couldn't tell these people that we are indeed trying and nothing seems to be happening. I want to scream it from the roof tops that for six long months we have been trying with no results. But I kept my mouth shut. You see, I decided if I wasn't having any luck getting pregnant then by God I was going to get a puppy. That I could control.

Early January came and I was stuck between wanting another golden retriever puppy or getting a miniature schnauzer puppy when....



.....much to my surprise......



....this happened......




Yeah, you saw that one coming a mile away didn't you? That's me trying to be all dramatic. We are so grateful and ecstatic that it happened. I know looking back that six months of trying is nothing, especially when some people try for years. It was just totally different than what we went through with Wesley (Mister one month wonder child).

I'm so excited Wesley is going to be a big bro! He'll have so much fun with a sibling.

Our little Skittle is 12 weeks old and due Sept. 25th.

Needless to say but there are absolutely no puppy plans in our near future.