Baby Mendiola

38w, 6d

2009-02-21T09:40:00.002-06:00

I complained long enough and he heard me!!!!

Timeline: 1:40am: My water broke. I woke Mike and he made a mad dash out of bed. We called my friend Anne to come sleep at our house to be with Jace, while we packed a few last minute things.

1:55am: Called the L&D triage phoneline at the hospital. I was told I'd get a call back within a half hour by the on-call doc, and if I didn't - to call them again.

2:10am: Contractions started. Very mild at first, but definitely more than the "uncomfortable" status I'd been giving them for the past several days.

2:20am: Now they hurt. I was squatting anywhere I was standing in my house to help the pain.

2:25am: Doc was supposed to call back by now. I decided that since my contractions were barely a minute apart already (that happened fast!!!), that I didn't need to call back and we decided to just go to the hospital.

2:40am: Arrived at hospital and stopped at the L&D desk to get checked in. I was in rough shape at this point. They escorted me to triage where the "fun" really started. My contractions were no longer plural and it was one big, long, never-ending contraction. The triage nurse kept trying to get me to lay on my back to check my cervix, but I could not even move to that position, it hurt so badly. She finally managed to check me and I thought I'd get the familiar "Can't feel your cervix, it's too high", but she didn't really say anything. Pretty soon my room was flooded with nurses and I had no idea what was going on. They threw up the sidebars on the bed and brought me out of that room... I managed to ask, "Could you feel my cervix?" And she said, "Oh no. Definitely not - it's gone, honey - you're delivering now." And I was SHOCKED. Beyond shocked. We got into the delivery room and it was full of blue scrubs. I was still in disbelief that it was happening right then and there and that the labor part was officially over. Within minutes, they had me in stirrups and the doc arrived just in time to wash up, throw on a gown and tell me to push. 3 pushes later, he was out. 2:53am. I did get to hold him while they wiped him off, and saw him briefly while he was in my room, but then they took him to be monitored in the nursery for the first few hours - he swallowed some meconium sometime and needed to have it sucked out. But he's doing great now, and we're working on breastfeeding. He seems interested, but not quite latching right. We'll get there.

Stats:
8lbs, 2 oz (just one ounce heavier than big bro was!)
20 inches long

I just can't believe how it all happened! We arrived at 2:40, Cade was born at 2:53. 13 MINUTES after I arrived. Amazing. Simply amazing.

And all the little what-ifs!
1) Had we waited any longer at home, we'd have had a home birth. The doctor later told us that she did receive a page to call me, but it was missing one digit in the phone number, so she couldn't call back! Good thing I didn't wait!
2) It also was amazing that in the last several weeks, MN has had unseasonably nice weather and just yesterday/last night it snowed - a lot. We had very slick and slippery conditions - of course I would go into labor on a night like that :P

But all in all, we're in awe. He's so beautiful and wonderful and we're thrilled to death. Didn't sleep all night :) I'm feeling ok - I'm very crampy from the uterus shrinking. It's like having super mild contractions all over again - not fun. But I took Tylenol, I hope it helps.

I called Jace around 7:30 this morning to tell him the news and he said, "Are you KIDDING me?" Too cute. I can't wait to introduce the brothers. :)

38w, 4d

2009-02-19T17:42:00.005-06:00

I had two painless contractions this morning when I woke up.... and nothing since.

Seriously? Yesterday, I walked AND RAN on the treadmill.

Stats:
Time - 20:39
Distance - 1.00
Calories burned - 101
Pace - 3 mph for 4 min, then jogged at 4 mph for about a minute (which looked more like a fast shuffle, but what do you expect????), took it down to a 2 mph to catch my breath for a minute, then held steady at a 3.5 mph for most of the rest. Then I did one more 1-minute burn at 4 mph, then ended at 3.5.

The result? One severely exhausted pregnant woman, with horrible abdominal pressure, but no labor symptoms.

W.T.F.

And now, it's Thursday evening and still nothing. I picked up Jace from daycare and the teachers said, "Oh wow, you're still pregnant?"

Er, um..... yeah. Thanks for noticing.

38w, 3d

2009-02-18T18:40:00.000-06:00

I've had contractions (non-painful) all day.

Let's hope it leads to something!!!!

38w, 2d

2009-02-17T08:34:00.001-06:00

I'm still pregnant.

We thought we could have those damn doctors eating their words by having this kid on OUR calculated due date of 2/11, but we were wrong. Bummer. Our clinic-calculated due date is in a week and a half so I guess we're shooting for that now.

I've had two rounds of acupuncture, some acupressure, 3 chiro adjustments, consumed more than my fair share of pineapple, spicy foods, eggplant parmesan, and special teas, bounced daily on an exercise ball, walked vigorously on our treadmill, taken oils for labor prep, and even forced myself to have secks with the hubs (no offense to him, but it's SO not enjoyable at this point!) - and nothing. Lots of contractions but no baby. He's very stubborn, apparently. Like his mommy.

COME OUT, BABY, PLEEEEEASE!

37w, 1d

2009-02-09T07:55:00.002-06:00

We are FULL-TERM, kid - so let's get a move on! :)

That belly is just not the most comfortable thing to be carrying around, so be nice to mommy - come out so daddy can carry you. For the next 18 years. Heh heh heh. :)

I have a chiropractic appointment this morning in hopes to open up my pelvis some and relax me so that baby is encouraged to move downward. Then I'll probably take it easy for today and tomorrow and then Mike and I have our last birth class to attend tomorrow night and you can bet after we get home from that, that I'm already planning the acupressure, sex marathons, and spicy food and pineapple pig-out. And I've talked to a couple of acupuncturists about making appointments. So let's hope something works! Bring it on!!!!

36w, 3d

2009-02-04T15:46:00.000-06:00

I had my 36 week appointment on Monday.

I was actually nervous because I didn't want to leave feeling let down. Having gone through one overdue pregnancy, I am paranoid that this one will be overdue too.

As part of the appointment, I had an internal exam and was really PO'd to hear that the doc couldn't even feel my cervix to check for dilation or anything, because it's too high up. WTF. So due to that, he figures I've made no progress toward labor at all. I was miffed. So basically, baby is ready - lungs developed fine, all parts in order, he's ready to come out developmentally - just hasn't moved down far enough yet! However, I've heard that from a lot of people and from reading a lot of websites, that baby doesn't necessarily have to be dropped into the pelvis to go into labor. In fact, the most common information I'm getting is that with first babies, they drop before labor occurs - anywhere from weeks to a few days before. With subsequent babies, labor can happen without having baby drop. In that case, what's the big deal if he's up high? Cripes. I don't remember ever "dropping" with my first pregnancy - at least I didn't feel it anyway. I just figure, I may as well go through the steps and maybe TRY to get him to drop or help him along (exercise ball, lunges, stairs, walking, etc.) and then maybe I'll have better luck doing the other home methods to get this going. I might start with a chiro alignment to get my hips to open up for kiddo to settle in there, later in the week. We're hoping to get this rolling by late next week - fingers crossed! :)

And not saying the doc doesn't know his shit either - he's the doc after all. And he's a great guy - super level with you, not even doctor-like at all, more like a cool guy who checks your whoo-hah every now and then. :) He is very sympathetic to my pain with the ever worsening sciatica and the recent potential Symphysis Pubic Dysfunction disorder causing my pelvic bones to hurt horribly, and to my unfixable broken tailbone. So if nothing else, he knows I'm in pain and that I'm not just trying to be unsafe about delivering soon. He gave me the all clear for labor at that appointment and knows from watching me that walking is becoming impossible.

He did prescribe a few things to get this going:
- Treadmill waking
- Swimming
- Bouncing on my exercise ball while watching TV, etc.
- Sex.

So, I know what I'll be doing for the next two weeks til the 38 week appointment! :) All of those things, plus faithfully taking my Evening Primrose Oil capsules to help ripen the cervix. Let's hope it does something! I don't want to be pregnant anymore!!!!

34w, 6d

2009-01-24T13:50:00.000-06:00

35 weeks!

32w, 6d

2009-01-10T22:13:00.001-06:00

GOOD LORD THIS PAIN SUCKS.

Buuuut, I digress.....

Here's Cade's latest 4D images from Tuesday's appointment:

What a cutie! :)

32w, 1d

2009-01-06T09:52:00.000-06:00

Had my 32 week check-up today!

The doctor said baby is measuring big! Not sure what that means.....I was hoping it meant they were maybe a little off in predicting the due date and that he'll actually come sooner OR that they'll induce sooner, but neither was mentioned. Darn.

Cade's heartbeat is at 140 bpm, so he's doing great. And he was very playful during the appointment so the doc could see firsthand what I have to go through every day!

We also discussed my terrible sciatica pain and constant inability to get around the house without holding onto things or husbands (ha!) and having almost constant pain and he said we can discuss "stripping my membranes" at my 37 week appointment. I'm not sure if that means he'll DO it then, or discuss it for the following week or what. Man, if he'll strip at 37 weeks, he will be my new best friend!!!!! I had this done with Jace on my due date and labor STILL did not start on it's own, so I ended up being induced at 41 weeks and I don't want to go that late again! So if he'l do the procedure at 37 weeks, I can be hopeful that perhaps labor will start before week 38 or 39. Here's to hoping!

All in all a great appointment, and I go back in 13 days for another check-up! Woot! Home stretch!

(AND we have another appointment at the 4D place tonight because Cade wasn't being so agreeable to being photographed at the last one, so we're excited for that!)

31w, 5d

2009-01-02T18:31:00.000-06:00

Wow. The first baby was born on Wednesday, from my "March 2009 Expecting Club" message board I've been participating in. The pregnancy lasted for 29 weeks and 5 days, so the baby is very preemie, but according to the latest post, she's doing well and breathing well and is very healthy for a 29 weeker. I just can't believe women I've been chatting with for the last several months, who are due in the same month as me, are starting to give birth. I'm only 8 weeks from my due date, how scary and exciting! All I have to say is, this kid better stay the heck in there til February 8th at the earliest. I'll be 37 weeks on that date and then - by all means, kiddo - make your entrance! :)

31w, 2d

2008-12-30T18:51:00.000-06:00

I declare today, "Baby's Most Active Day Thus Far"! Seriously, this kid would not settle down and my belly was a mass of jabs, kicks, & bumps of feet, elbows, and whatever else he's using in there to keep me in constant painful motion. It'll be great when he can kick someone else! :)

30w

2008-12-21T18:38:00.000-06:00

Cade.

Baby boy's name is going to be Cade. I'm pretty darn sure of it. We've had a fun time, thus far, calling him "Tic-Tac" (that one was great for when he was the size of a Tic-Tac around 6-8 weeks) and "Baby Ninja" (this one still applies, since he absolutely must be practicing his ninja skills in there for all the movement that is going on....) - but for a real name.... we like Cade.

29w, 6d

2008-12-20T22:24:00.000-06:00

I am in PAIN. Goodness, it's awful.

I saw a Physical Therapist for my sciatica. I went for 6 weeks during 2nd trimester, and it didn't help. Now, in addition to that, I have a painful groin and hip area and with those two things happening simultaneously, it's making life miserable! I seriously cannot walk without pain and without taking breaks in between steps. NOT cool.

I looked it up on Google to see if anyone had posted about groin pain, problems walking, etc and found this:

Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction

And thought that it could be what I'm experiencing. Sounds similar, I just am not convinced it's a bone structure problem and could simply be the sciatic nerve + some normal pregnancy pressure in the groin.

But what an ordeal.... can't wait til baby is out of me and I can share him with others! GAH!

29w

2008-12-14T09:04:00.000-06:00

Lightning crotch.

A term I recently learned that describes the feeling a mother has, when her unborn baby kicks, jabs, elbows, knees, etc - her cervix. It literally sends a shooting "lightning" type of pain into the groin area and is overall, not a very nice feeling. I know from experience. Baby Ninja is a big fan of practicing this ancient art.

11 weeks left to go. 11 weeks, 11 weeks, 11 weeks, 11 weeks......

28w, 3d

2008-12-10T19:44:00.000-06:00

So, today was the big 28 week appointment and I had to do the dang gestational diabetes test. I started out my morning with a bland breakfast (so not to throw off the results of the test) of dry toast, a hard boiled egg and a half glass of milk. Not terribly exciting.

But I ended up passing the test with flying colors, so it was worth it!!! I've also had anemia issues in the past, so they checked my hemoglobin numbers too and those also look very good. Not too low at all!

During the part of the appointment where we were listening on the doppler for the heartbeat, the baby was funny - he kept moving around, like he was trying to get away from the doppler, so it took her a bit to get a heartbeat count, but it was great - 152! I guess he's a shy baby (must get that from his daddy!).

Now for the icky parts of today's appointment: The lab person was obviously new. And this made me nervous to think she was going to be doing my blood draw. She had me sit in a different place than I usually do for the blood draw, which also meant using a different arm. She got the tourniquet on and touched my blood draw area with her finger to locate the vein and then asked me "Have they had trouble finding your vein before?"

Uhhhhhhhh....noooooooo.

I did mention to her though, that I usually sit on the other side and that usually makes me left arm the default and she just moved to that side and tried again. After touching around the area some more, she finally called over another lab lady. Oh great. This is promising. NOT. That lady said "Here's the vein - right here, ya can't miss it." Good - we're finally getting somewhere. The first gal took control again and stuck me. Didn't hurt or pinch any worse than normal. But I don't ever look, so I never really know what's going on during those things. After a couple seconds, I the gal said "Uh, [insert experienced lab lady's name here], can you look at this?" And I still couldn't look, but I sure didn't like the sound of that. The lady came over and said "Yeah, there's nothing happening, is there?" Shit, shit, shit. Needle phobia coming fully into play now. She took control of the needle and stuck it further in and wiggled it around. OUCH. And finally, I HEARD blood start to fill the tube. Yes, HEARD it. Never heard it before and it's a bit gross. After it was finally over, I composed myself and got up and was stopped by my practitioner's nurse who said she was ready to give me my Rhogam shot. Oh good Lord. Another one. So we went back to the appointment room and she said she needed me to expose the top of my butt cheek for the injection and I freaked out. I TRY to be an adult about these things, but goodness - needle phobias are NOT helpful. I leaned over the exam table and held Mike's hand really hard (VERY hard, apparently - sorry, babe! Just wait til labor! Heh heh.......heh.) and I knew I was being a huge baby about it, but I cried. Needles freak me out. I'm only just starting to get used to blood draws (though today's gem of an experience did NOT help), but shots I am still panicky about. So, I teared up and got a bit emotional and it was over in a flash. No sticker or lollipop though, dammit.

28w, 1d

2008-12-08T18:08:00.001-06:00

The belly's gettin' bigger!

27w, 1d

2008-12-01T18:10:00.000-06:00

Jace attempting to play with his baby brother...

26w, 1d

2008-11-24T08:00:00.000-06:00

Belly - I haz one!

25w, 4d

2008-11-21T00:55:00.000-06:00

I'm having a lot of fun right now messing with baby. He has grown to the point where his legs (I assume it's his legs anyway) are up in the middle of my torso, a few inches yet from my ribs. I can see his kicking and movements very clearly on the top part of my belly and he likes to just pick a spot and go - not sure if he's stretching, doing karate, breakdancing....whatever. But as soon as I see that he's picked a spot to move more than once, I'll put my hand there and press down a little and he kicks it, as though he's trying to tell me there's not enough room in there as it is and my pressing on that part is not helping. :) It's kinda funny!

24w, 1d

2008-11-10T12:49:00.000-06:00

We had our 24 week appointment today and baby is doing wonderfully! Heartbeat is strong, movements are right where they need to be in terms of consistency, and I've only gained 9 pounds so far - which is great considering, I'll only need to put on about 6-8 more and that should be mostly all baby. All in all, another great appointment!

23w, 5d

2008-11-07T20:37:00.000-06:00

Jace got to feel his baby brother kickin' tonight!

Baby was kicking in one spot in particular, so when Jace walked by me, I said "Hey, give me your hand." and he put his hand on the spot, and sure enough - baby kicked it. Jace thought that was the coolest thing to feel his baby bro. :)

23w, 3d

2008-11-05T10:40:00.000-06:00

This baby has just become one of many lucky babies to be born into a historic time like ours....

The new first family.

Barack Obama - elected the 44th President of the USA. A lucky baby indeed!!!

20w, 6d

2008-10-18T16:28:00.000-05:00

Our baby is a ninja!

That's right - a ninja. Several weeks ago, I was impatiently waiting to feel the baby move around and kick and now that he's started, he won't stop! He's moving and jabbing and kicking all the freaking time!

I noticed my stomach move while I was sitting in a chair last week - that night I tried to get Mike to concentrate hard to see it, but he couldn't. He finally did a few days ago and yesterday, he felt it!

Pretty awesome stuff!

20w, 1d

2008-10-13T13:21:00.000-05:00

Halfway to baby! :)

I took a few belly shots this morning, just for "kicks"....heh heh....get it? (Ok, I'm lame.)

19w, 4d

2008-10-08T09:34:00.000-05:00

BOY!

There - it's out! :) We're thrilled. We had kind of convinced ourselves it was a girl, and then were really surprised when we saw "boy bits"! :)

So, that's that! We have a couple good names picked out, but I think we'll wait til we see him in person to decide what he looks like.

Yesterday, we had an appointment at Premier Ultrasound and they specialize in 4D images of the baby and for being so early in the pregnancy (early for this procedure, anyway), we got some really nice shots.

Cute baby face!

We like to call this one "Touchdown!" because he has his arms over his head.

Baby butt!

Side view of legs and feet

19w, 2d

2008-10-07T14:24:00.000-05:00

I had an appointment today with a physical therapist to try to remedy some of this sciatica pain I've been suffering from! I have a compression belt as well as some pretty laid back exercises to do to calm the nerve. And I have bi-weekly appointment with that therapist for the next 3 weeks as part of the treatment, so let's hope this works!

19w, 1d

2008-10-06T11:17:00.000-05:00

We have a gender!!!!

Only I can't post it here because this is going to be a surprise for some people later in the week and I don't want to risk anyone seeing it before then.

So in the meantime - cute pics.....

Baby was so shy! Took forever to get it to move its hands out of the way so we could see the face and so the technician could measure the head and such. Too cute. Baby got daddy's shyness. :)

18w, 0d

2008-09-28T16:37:00.000-05:00

18 weeks today!

And one more week til we know if the baby is a boy or a girl. I'm really excited for that appointment.

The only new development that has come about as of recently is that my sciatica has returned with a vengeance. It's more common in the third trimester (that's when I felt it first in my first pregnancy), but I think because the sciatica never really went away completely with the birth of my son, it decided that a second pregnancy was all the push it needed to come flaring back - and earlier. I'm currently typing this from my couch, trying to enjoy an NFL game, all the while sitting on a heating pad to soothe the sharp pain in my ass. Ouch. So much for the happy-glowy-painless pregnancy!

17w, 4d

2008-09-25T09:05:00.000-05:00

Gender appointment in 11 days! Wheeeee!

16w, 2d

2008-09-16T08:39:00.000-05:00

We had our 16 week check-up yesterday and everything is going GREAT!

I've only gained 3 pounds since the start of the pregnancy (meaning none of it is extra padding, and it's all extra fluid, blood, growing uterus, baby....) and we got to hear the heartbeat again which always makes me stupid-giddy. I mean, I'm laying there, on the exam table and the doc has the doppler. He puts it against my belly and I just watch Mike with anticipation to hear the little heartbeat and the minute I hear it, I get giddy and have to work realy hard to contain my giggles so I don't move around too much for the doc. It just makes me really happy.

So, little one's heartbeat is registering at a strong 160 beats per minute, which according to one of the most popular "old wives' tales", means it's a girl. But since I can't put TOO much into believing that, I won't. I still DO think it's a girl, only because my pregnancies have been so different (first one being a boy), and just some other silly little symptoms - but I'm excited either way. :)

15w, 5d

2008-09-12T09:26:00.000-05:00

The wiggling has begun!!!!!

15w, 2d

2008-09-09T11:33:00.000-05:00

My bewbs started leaking today. *sigh* Gotta love this pregnancy stuff.

I was just sitting in a chair at home, after work, and I felt something in that vicinity and looked in there and saw small spots of moisture, one in each bra cup. Ahhh, the milestones!

12w, 1d

2008-08-19T16:08:00.000-05:00

We had our first OB appointment yesterday! And it went pretty well!

I told them that according to my home scale, I had lost weight in the first trimester, but when I was weighed that eclinic, they said I gained a lone pound. No matter - I have plenty to spare to gaining very slowly and minimally is better.

The first thing we did was check for the heartbeat and I was so nervous!!! I could hear the whoosing of the fluid and blood, but nothing fast enough to be a heartbeat. DH didn't know what to think, having not heard any of that before. I had to tell him with every "whoosh" that it wasn't the heartbeat. That was about 5 minutes of looking....So, I got more nervous when the doc shut off the doppler! He told us he was going to do the exam first so he could see where the cervix was located and the uterus and all that jazz, and then try again. So I got the exam part over with, then he pulled out the doppler again and about 2 minutes into the second search, we heard it. Loud and clear and I was SO SO SO relieved. And Mike looked really happy, I think he knew it right away when he heard it too :) The doctor said he thinks it's a girl because it's being so difficult. :) (I would have to agree on that guess, based on the fact that this pregnancy sucks way more than my first one and that one resulted in an easy-going boy!) The only bad parts about the appointment was being told that I have early signs of GD (booooo) and so I was instructed to drink 5 bottles of water a day, eat one salad with spinach per day (I have anemia too, hurrah...), and that I need to be walking for exercise 3 times a week. So, anemia and potential GD. A lot to take in for the first appointment, but I'm trying to be as healthy as possible so it doesn't get rough at the end!

11w, 2d

2008-08-12T16:07:00.000-05:00

So, apparently, in the three months I've been pregnant, I've LOST weight. How bizarre! I've battled my weight ever since Jace was born and so I thought I'd for sure blow up in the first several weeks and the doctor would "tsk tsk" me for getting too big, too fast. But even Mike said "Well, you haven't really changed your diet and you tend to not be hungry a lot." True. Hmmm. But I weighed myself tonight for the first time since becoming pregnant and I was shocked to see I was three pounds lighter. Made me feel good in some ways, but not good in others. I mean, I can be in Weight Watchers for a month (all the while counting points and all that jazz) and only lose 4 pounds, but knock me up and it'll just shed right off, no dieting required?!?!?!?! Geeez. Oh well, as long as Tic-Tac is healthy, that's all that's important.
All in all, I'm feeling ok. I HATE sneezing because it totally hurts the ligaments surrounding my uterus. Like really - OUCH. Feels like my insides are ripping. And I still get a little tired at work, but I don't come home and crash like I did in weeks previous. So 2nd trimester is definitely approaching and I can tell because it's like I'm getting a second wind. My weird heart palpitations from 6 months ago are back and that concerns me some. But I had been to the ER for that back then and they found nothing wrong with me, even after an EKG, monitoring, and a lot of questioning. And a couple weeks after the ER visit, they were gone. So I can only assume this will pass too. But I'll definitely be bringing it up with our OB when we meet him in a week. I'm WAY excited for that appointment. I can't wait for Mike to hear the heartbeat! That's all from mommy and Tic-Tac for now, more next week after the End-of-1st-Tri appointment, including a new pic!

9w

2008-07-27T16:06:00.000-05:00

Friday I caved and went to Motherhood Maternity and bought a new pair of jeans, that have the mid-belly cloth. They are SO comfy. And I got a couple of tops too, just to treat myself :) They look hot.
For the last three nights, I have made it through the night, sleeping soundly, without getting up to pee! YAY!

8w

2008-07-20T16:05:00.000-05:00

My insomnia has subsided, thank GOD. I get up a lot in the middle of the night to pee. But at least I can fall back asleep. But I still feel just awful when I get up from a mid-day nap. Never when I wake up, I'm fine then. It's always when I wake up from a small nap that I feel like I want to die. It's really gross. And I'm still really fatigued. I lay around a lot. I'm a little paranoid that something is going to happen to the baby and I won't know it til our "end of the first trimester" doctor's appointment on August 18th. But I'm hoping that since I never had one flaw with my first pregnancy that this one will be the same. I'm sure little Tic-Tac is just fine in there....my boobs still hurt, so that's a good sign. I guess. Ow.

6w

2008-07-06T16:05:00.000-05:00

I can't sleep. I'll lay awake when I go to sleep at night, get up numerous times during the night and stay awake for a lengthy time at each occurance and it's driving me freaking crazy. When I wake up in the morning, I'm up for the day. Even if it's 4am. Usually I can get back to sleep if it's before that....but after about 4am, forget about it. And naps are making me sick. I nap because I want to, feel the need, and have to, but when I wake up, I feel nauseous and gross. Yuck. On a "TMI" note, my nipples hurt. Seriously. Now this is a symptom I didn't have with my first baby. And I'm not too fond of it.

We're Pregnant!

2008-06-27T16:02:00.000-05:00

BIG surprise!

Mike and I were right in the middle of planning our wedding when I took the home pregnancy test on June 23rd and it came out to be positive! I had taken two tests before the positive one and of course, after those two, I was pretty convinced I wasn't pregnant. But about a week after the 2nd test, I remember I had the third of the three pack left and decided to just use it up.....

Mike was in the backyard letting the dog out when I saw the second line, but I couldn't even wait for him to come back in. I went outside and prepped him ever so slightly and then just blurted it out. A big, nervous smile appeared on his face, as if he wasn't sure if I was kidding yet knew I wouldn't be shaking and crying if it were a joke. He kept asking me if I was sure and I explained the three tests in their order and then he suggested we go get another test, just to be sure. So, off to Target we went. I didn't want to be that couple that nervously goes to a Target and buy ONLY a pregnancy test, so I made Mike buy something else too, just to make it look a little less weird. So he bought four cans of Diet Rock Star. Yeah, ok. Still weird. But I wasn't in the shopping mood and I couldn't think of anything we needed, so 4 Diet Rock Stars and a pregnancy test would have to do.

We got home a few minutes later and I took the test. I didn't want to be the one to see the results, so after the 3 minutes, I made Mike look at it. And sure enough, he said "Two lines. What does that mean?" and my waterworks started all over again. All I could think of was that babies = money and so did our wedding and that if this pregnancy was real, our wedding was not, and the honeymoon was not. AND it occured to me that we didn't have room for a baby. We'd always said that we were going to move when we had kids, but we knew we couldn't afford to do that right now either. I'm not saying this baby was a bad thing - inside I was really, really content about it. But I couldn't help but think of the things we couldn't do, now that we were having a baby.

The next morning, I felt better. Guilty about how I had viewed this the night before, and better about the little family we were starting. In fact, it got exciting. I spent the morning on the phone with my women's clinic, making an appointment. That afternoon, we met with a nurse practitioner, and we worked out some dated to try to figure out how far along I was. We figured, according to my calculations, that I was about 6-7 weeks already. later, we were scheduled for an ultrasound. At the ultrasound, they started out doing it externally. And the sonographer didn't see a whole heck of a lot. But I wasn't worried - she said she'd just have to do an internal one, and that would be more accurate. But it wasn't. And I was nervous. She didn't see anything. So, she offered two possibilities: 1) That the pregnancy was eptopic, meaning the baby had implanted where it shouldn't have and couldn't grow in that spot and would have to be terminated. Or 2) That I was really off on my dates, and that we weren't as far along as first thought. I was hoping for the latter. So, they said I'd have to come in for 2 more blood draws that week, to make sure my HCG levels (pregnancy hormone) were rising and not declining. I was two take a blood test on Wednesday and again on Friday and my hormone levels should have doubled for the pregnancy to be considered "safe". After having those blood draws, I was anxious for the results. I called in, at the time they told me to, and I was relieved to hear that my levels had MORE than doubled....from a 700 to 1700, in two days. I was really happy to hear that. They scheduled me for an ultrasound a couple weeks out from that point, so that we could maybe see a baby.

On July 5th, Mike and I got married. It wasn't the May 15th, 2009 dream wedding on the Mississippi that I'd dreamed of, but it was sufficiant. Our parents were there, and a few witnesses and that's all we really needed. We didn't have a reception - only a dinner. And then Mike and I spent a couple nights in a hotel, for a mini-moon. We figure, we'll have a reception/celebration/meet-the-baby party next year sometime. If we can afford it.
On July 7th, we had another ultrasound. I felt ok about it, especially after getting such good test results from the bloodwork, but still a little nervous. I was excited for Mike, because it's his first baby and he's not experienced this before. I have, with my first son, so this was all very familiar. We got into our ultrasound and we had only the internal ultrasound this time. Good, I thought - going straight for the option that would show us the most. I was happy she did it that way. And even happier to see what was on the screen. There was our little Tic-Tac, nestled away comfortably....

It was really cool to have Mike there too. I was really enjoying experiencing his first pregnancy through his expressions and feelings, he looked pretty impressed by what he was seeing on the screen. Our next appointment is on August 18th with the doctor and I can't wait! I hate this long period in between appointments when all you can do is hope the little bean stays stuck and that everything goes smoothly! Especially in the first trimester!