24 weeks

Hurray! Technically, the baby is now "viable". A word I hate, but love!

She is kicking like crazy these days - usually for a few hours once I get to work, and then a little in the early afternoon, after dinner, and then a good solid hour or two before I fall asleep.

Seems like she's inherited my love of schedules!


I'm feeling all right - my body is definitely telling me that this will be the last child! Lots of aches and pains. My chair at work is broken, so I have no back support, and that's causing some big problems.

I have my second (and last! hopefully) glucose test next week. As much as I love to hope I'll pass it, I have had several low-blood-sugar episodes this week, and I have a sinking feeling that I know why. I could test my blood sugar at work anytime, but I'd rather live in denial for a few more days. If I test positive, I will do the 3 hour test... and hope that I'm just "borderline" like the last time.

I'm starting to get REALLY excited about my mat leave. The fact that I'll be home with this baby seems like it's too good to be true. Plus, being able to be there for the kids before/after school, be available for class-volunteering, be able to grocery shop on any day OTHER than the weekend, and GASP be able to make dinner again... I can't wait. I have decided to take a handful of on-line courses during my mat-leave (let's be honest, if I didn't do SOMETHING I'd probably go crazy), so I'm looking forward to that too.

Names - we're still stumped. We have a list of about 8 names currently, and really it's a matter of fitting together 3 of them. I have a sneaking suspician that this will be a repeat of what happened with Lili - changing our minds on the way to the hospital, changing our minds again once we saw her... etc etc. Oh well.

24 weeks... the time is certainly speeding by. I guess I should post a picture at some point... I don't think I've allowed anyone to take any so far! By far the hardest thing for me to deal with this time around is the weight-gain. Having just lost over 30lbs, it has been quite the mental struggle to accept seeing my weight go up rather than down. Even though I know it's for a good reason. I've already gained more in this pregnancy than I did with either of my other two... which my OB says she's pleased with, since she feels I didn't gain enough back then. Still, it's hard for me to deal with. At least I know what I have to do to lose it all again... I just fret that I won't have the time. I'll make the time!

So, yeah, maybe I'll post a picture this week.

My first somewhat-inappropriate comment received during this pregnancy: In the elevator, on the way to work, these two (very goodlooking, may I add) men smile at me, and one says "hey, you can come up to our class and be a guinea pig!" I figure they're taking the EMR class. The other one smiles too, and says "you must be about ready to deliver!".

Sigh.

"Nope, 3.5 months to go!" I say. "WHOA, are you carrying quintuplets in there?" The first guy asks.

Lucky for him, we'd reached my floor, and I got out without comment.

Geez.

sad coincidence

So, yesterday, as I picked Cohen up from Daycare at the school, one of the providers started to chat with me a bit. She asked me when I was due, and when I told her, she said "I would have been due around that time too. May 6th."

I didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry".

She said that apparently God had other plans for her little one. "But," she added, "imagine my surprise when I call the paramedics, and Cohen's dad shows up!".

I was speechless. A few months ago I'd blogged about that call - the 14 week old fetus, how emotional Ian got because I was 13 weeks along, how he said that the couple reminded him so much of us when we were younger... he didn't sleep after that call for weeks!

And all along, it was Cohen's daycare provider.

"He probably gets calls like that all the time, so I'm sure he doesn't remember it."

I didn't tell her how shaken up Ian was as a result of that call. I just mumbled niceties and got out of there. Not great etiquette, I know... but I was in shock!

So today, I will be sure to start a conversation with her. What, I dunno.

So sad :( I feel so bad, she has to see my big belly every day and be reminded.

False alarm?

No additional bleeding since, so I'm sure everything is fine. Nice little scare though!

Some of the 1st trimester fatigue is coming back to haunt me. Usually around 10:30 and 4:30, I am hit with the overwhelming need to curl into a ball and sleep for 20 minutes. I took full advantage of that while on vacation... now that I'm back to work, it's really becoming more and more difficult to stay productive around those times. I'm considering bringing a pillow and blanket to keep in my office. I don't take breaks during the day, so I'm sure no-one would care if I snoozed for 15 minutes 2x per day. God knows, when I smoked, I probably took about 45 minutes worth of breaks each day! So yeah. The carpet is looking mighty attractive right about now.

Freaking out a little over clothes. I have 2 pairs of mat pants, and one of them are jeans, so I can't wear them to work. My other pair is only going to fit for another few weeks. I desperately need to get some more maternity pants/shirts. However - the ONLY store in Calgary that sold anything above a size 16-18 just closed. Which means, now I have to order any clothing from HERE.

Which is fine - except I have no $ for that right now. Or anytime soon. So I'm starting to panic a little - I really have nothing to wear to work. It stresses me out every morning. I'm hoping Ian takes an OT shift soon, then I can put in a $150 order, and be set for the rest of this pregnancy.

As for the little sweet princesss - slowly but surely I'm getting what she'll need. I can't tell you how many times I've hit myself on the forehead for getting rid of everything we had. Thank goodness for the generosity of friends/family! We now have 2 high chairs (which is actually a good thing, because Brae is still in a high chair too), 2 cribs (same deal), an exersaucer, an umbrella stroller (hey - anyone have a spare Graco stroller? We kept the carseat but not the stroller)...

I still need... hmm lets see.... a bath, washclothes, receiving blankets, bassinet/cradle, TinyLove Mobile (really, I won't use anything else... this damn thing was MAGIC with both of my kids, put them to sleep when nothing else would work, plus it has a REMOTE, how cool is that... yes, we gave ours away), stroller, co-sleeper, crib bedding (yay EBAY), change table/dresser (did you hear that forehead slap?), diapers (gotta start now), toys (ahhh infant toys - right now my house is filled with a billion little tiny preschool toys that are just begging to be choked on by some poor, innocent infant), nursing supplies (bras, nursing pads, lanolin, nursing pillow), bouncy chair... I know, it seems excessive. But you know, I know from experience that although some of this stuff won't get used for the first 3 months, I know that I will be too busy and overwhelmed - and broke - to be going out shopping in the first 6 months. So I'm desperately trying to get everything now.

Plus, lets face it - I'm type-A - I wan't that room (nay, the entire house!) ready for this baby. And I'm fully counting on 3rd trimester nesting to help me make this happen. Which is why, I think, I may work only until mid-April, rather than May 1. Give myself a few weeks to prepare. I have a feeling that this little girl is coming a week early. (Could be wishful thinking, I know). Actually, if I could have my way, she'd come about 2.5 weeks early, as my cousin and his wife are coming to visit from Australia around that time!

11:00am... I supose I blogged my way through the 10:30 lull. It's almost time for lunch... even though I'm supposed to avoid deli-meat, I'm having a Subway sub for lunch. I just can't stand the thought of any of the other places that are downstairs. Don't worry, I'll heat the sub up, no listeria here.

Trying not to freak out

Took the kids swimming tonight, and when I was getting undressed to go home, there was some blood in my swimsuit. Not a lot, and not bright red (bright = bad). Have been crampy for a few days, chalked it up to Braxton Hicks.

Ian offered to take me to the ER but it really wasn't very much, and my Dr appointment is on Thurs. Plus, I've been checking every hour or so, and so far, there has been no more. So I'm trying to relax.

Keep your fingers crossed, say a prayer, whatever.

22 weeks

and feelin' fine! other than the cold I came down with Thursday evening. Yup. I KNEW it was going to happen. It's a doozy too, but I'm hanging in there. More annoying than anything else.

Did I get my stuff done? Nope. Did I sleep a lot? Yes. Which, I suppose, is just as much of a treat and probably more important.

Tomorrow I vow to get at least one thing crossed off of my list.


Today I went shopping with my step-mom. Or rather, she shopped! I restrained myself to one outfit, a pack of cloths, and a pack of soothers. She got a ton of sleepers - in addition to the bag of stuff she had already bought, including those oh-so-adorable infant socks and shoes. It was fun... I am slowly starting to get everything that I need. My friend Beth has invited me to come over and raid her garage of her old baby-items. I have a crib (2 actually), and now just need a changing table. I have to get two single beds and dressers for Cohen/Lili, since their double beds won't fit in one room. My cousin has a bassinet for me. I have a carseat still, and a playpen. I have an excersaucer.

You know what... I'm going to start a baby registry even though I'm not having a shower (most likely. I mean, anyone wants to throw me one, feel free! But realistically, people don't generally throw showers for third-timers). This way, at least I can keep track of what the heck I still need.

My Dr appointment is this Thursday. I was hoping Ian could come for some moral support - but I forgot that the kids have music class at that exact same time, so he has to take them. I'll just remember to write down all my questions, I guess.

Names! No luck. We've decided one one for sure without a doubt - after both of our grandmothers. Both of my grandmothers passed away this past year, so I'd like to honour them both, but I'd also like to pick a name or two of our own! SO I'm not sure. One of my grandmothers and Ians grandmother share the same name, so that one was easy. There are a few names that I really, really love, but each of them is the name I would like to actually call her... and that name has been decided already!

22 weeks, eh. More than halfway there. Hard to believe. I think that the next 6 weeks are going to be really tough, mostly because the closer I get to my mat leave, the more intense my job is going to become. I'm trying to stay positive (not my norm, LOL, I know) and remind myself that the harder I work, the faster the time seems to go.

I saw this "Baby Story" yesterday - this poor women, diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer while 3 months pregnant. Honestly, I turned it off after that part, I couldn't deal with it. She had a 4 year old as well. She said - "we came to conclusion that God wouldn't just give us this baby only to take me away from her". Such faith. I wish I could have that type of faith! Like I said, I didn't stick around to find out if her faith was rewarded. Can you imagine?

Alright. Me and my indigestion are going to do a load of laundry and get to bed early, lots to (try) and do tomorrow!

Vacation!

Well, a few weeks ago it was discovered that I have over 130 hours of vacation time that I have to use before my mat leave starts. Boo hoo! LOL!

So, I took this week off, since Ian has 12 days off as well. Boy, did we have plans! Since his next vacation isn't until April, we wanted to try and get as much done as possible this week. Start getting Cohen/Lili's shared room started (it's currently just Lili's room, and VERY pink), pick a colour and bedding for the baby's room, do SOMETHING with the basement bedroom for Jaedyn and Brae... etc etc etc! Not the mention the FUN stuff we'd planned: we promised the kids swimming, bowling, a trip the the museum...

Of course, we sorta forgot to take into consideration that we'd have J & B Sun-Mon-Tues-Wed. That's ok, not a problem. So, here's how it's gone so far:

Sun - J & B show up at 7:00am. 7:30am, I change super-diahhrea diaper (I'm talking up to - and in - the hair, resulting in a bath). I notice that J is coughing still.
5:30pm - parents pick up, I casually mention super-diahhrea diaper. Mom says, "oh... we had the flu on our off days, he must still be suffering from it a bit".
Mon - J & B show up at 7:00am. 8:30am, I change another super-diahhrea diaper. I'm not happy. It's one thing when it's your own baby... it's completely awful when it's not.
5:30pm - parents pick up.
6:30pm - Cohen's tummy hurts, and he refuses ice cream for dessert. Clearly, it's serious.
7:00pm - Cohen barfs for the first time.
11:30pm - Cohen barfs for the 11th time, Ian barfs for the first time.
1:00am - Cohen barfs for the 13th time, Ian barfs for the 3rd time, Mary starts to feel horribly queesy.
3:00am - Cohen barfs for the 15th time, Ian barfs for the 4th time, Mary gets it the other end.
6:00am - Cohen finally barfs for the last time (poor guy), Ian barfs for the last time, Mary races for the toilet for the second time just as Lili says "mommy... my tummy hurts".
7:00am - Lili barfs for the first time.
8:00am - Mary starts to cry, as this the family has been sick for EVERY vacation she's ever had. 8:30am - Lili starts to cry with Mary, as today was her "special helper" day at preschool - I was supposed to come and spend the day at her school, something I NEVER get to do because I'm always at work. Mary calls school to beg off.
11:00am - Mary calls J & B's parents to tell them that the Swaffield's are too sick to care for their kids that night. J & B's parents say they feel bad - since they probably gave it to us.
4:30pm - entire family is still in bed, starting to heal thanks to popcicles and pedialyte. Still too weak to stand up for more than a minute or two at a time.
4:35 - J & B's parents call. They can't find alternative care until 8pm, so they'll be dropping the kids off as normal at 5:30.
4:36 - Ian breaks phone by throwing it at the wall.
7:30 - Cohen starts to cry as he realizes that he's missing his first swimming lesson in level 3 because he's sick.

Well, we got through 5:30 - 8:00pm somehow (definitely NOT the best childcare I've ever provided). Cohen and Ian slept in our bed, Lili and I each took a couch and drowsily chatted until midnight when we all fell into a feverish sleep.

The good news is, it's over. By the morning, we were all feeling somewhat better - a shower for the adults and bath for the kids really helped. We managed to get most of the house cleaned up (it's amazing what one sick day can do to a clean house), although we still had to stop and rest every 20 minutes or so. We got some food into us... a few bites really... Got out of the house to run some errands. J & B were back again tonight at 5:30...

We're going to have to sit down and lay some rules out. Their kids are ALWAYS sick, and we kep catching it. I've brought this up in a round-about way a few times, but the response is always a jovial "they'll probably always pass things back and forth". Enough is enough. I've already used my sick days. Ian has received a warning about the number of sick days he's taken. My kids have missed a ton of school and other activities. I DO NOT take my kids to daycare when they are sick - if I can't find alternative care, then I stay home.

So, here it is, Wednesday night, and we've done exactly NONE of the things on our list. I go back to work on Monday. I can't even stand to think about it. So, we're hoping to make the most of the next 4 J & B-free days. Bowling tomorrow. Friday, my mom is taking the kids overnight, and Ian and I are doing dinner and a movie. During the day, we'll try and get some furniture moved and rooms organized. Saturday, swimming with the kids. Sunday, skating with the kids.

I don't know why I posted this on the baby-blog.

In other baby- news... my friends Murray and Mel welcomed their baby girl Sydney Alyssa into the world yesterday. She's adorable... I can't wait to meet her!

In my baby news - Baby is kicking like crazy. I'm also having really obvious Braxton Hicks all the time, especially noticible when I'm stressed out, which is probably too often these days. My next Dr appointment is Jan 17 - hope to find out more info on the bombs she dropped last month.

I'm dying to go shopping - Once Upon a Child here I come - but I'm trying to show some restraint. I had put in several bids for bedding on E-Bay, but was actually relieved when I was outbid. Denial? Maybe! Or maybe I just didn't love it as much as I thought... will keep an eye on E-Bay and see if something I like more comes up. I think I might come up with a shopping schedule - January: receiving blankets, Month 1 diapers. February: Crib bedding, changing table. March: sleepers, blankets, Month 2 diapers. April: more clothes, co-sleeper, stroller, Month 3 diapers. Nursing pads/bras, labour supplies.

Hmm, well have to see.

All right, must get some sleep, will need mucho energy to pack what should have been 7 days into the next 4!

M.

it's still a girl!

well, no question, it's a girl! i'm relieved to know for sure.

she sure was active during the u/s, she had all of us giggling like crazy. cohen and lili were great - "is she going to take the baby out, mom?" said lili. it was really nice having them there... they got to hear the heartbeat, which thrilled them both.

names names names... we have 2/3 picked out, we think. it's tradition in my family to have 3 names followed by the surname. so we're working on one more middle name.

21weeks

21 weeks today. baby is kicking like crazy - mostly when i'm at work and right after i go to bed. i love the feeling.

what i don't love is this sore back! my lower back is killing me these days. i know it's most likely caused by this stupid chair at work, but not much i can do. oh well.

feeling ok. glad the stress of christmas is over, and now we're just trying to get back into the swing of things. the kids are still on the sugar high, so it's hard to get them to calm down!

haven't gone to the doctor re: tumour. i just can't deal with it right now. at my next OB appointment i will ask her for more information and go from there. that's in 10 days, so i'm sure i can wait.

today i have another ultrasound. this one is a private one, ian and i booked it to be sure about the sex of this baby! i've been trying to prepare myself all week for the possibility that the first tech was wrong and we're having a boy. today, the kids and ian are coming, so it will be a nice family experience. they take 30-45 minutes, and you can ask all the questions you want, which is nice. also - no full bladder needed! hurray! i will resist the urge to ask her to take a quick peek at my spleen. today is a day for good news and visiting with baby.

i'm trying to wrap my mind around the fact that this is our last baby. it's hard! logistically, i know that we just can't have any more kids. but i love being a mom. i love infants, and toddlers, and every stage. even though i'm run off my feet most of the time, at the end of the day, i wouldn't have it any other way.

maybe, if we win the lottery someday, we can have another one! on the other hand - to be 30 and done, well, that's a treat too - we'll be kid-free (in theory) by the time we're 48.

who knows.

in any case, i'm so excited for the future. spring is my absolute favourite time of the year, i look forward too it from November on, so to have a new baby coming at that time just adds to the bliss. i really hope that i can find some time to just BE with baby - cohen and lili at school, ian at work, whatever.

we're trying to figure out paternity leave for ian - they make it rather difficult. ideally, we'd love to have him take about 3 weeks off after the birth, go back to work, and then i would go back to work (perhaps) after 9 months, and he could have the last 2 months. however, it doesn't work that way. he has to take it consecutively, which means that both of us will have to be on leave at the same time. which is financially difficult. so i'm not sure what we'll do. he may just have to wait until the tail-end of my leave, and take a few months then. which will be hard - not having him for the first few weeks.

ok, have a meeting in 20 minutes gotta prep for, later!