25 Week Appointment and Alphabet Kid!!!

As many of you know this has not been the "smoothest" pregnancy for me. Because of the bad cramping I had on Wednesday, I got my appointment moved up to today from Wednesday.

Some good parts of the appointment:

* I did not gain any weight from last month! (Gained 6 pounds total so far!)
* Blood pressure was good!
* Baby's heartbeat was strong and loud at 137 bpm!

Some REALLY good parts of the appointment:

* Amniotic fluid level is no longer an issue!!!! :)
* Baby is now measuring in the 53rd percentile!!!! :)

One not so good part of the appointment:

* Placenta Previa is still a concern


The doctor did reassure me that 95% of all women that start out with some sort of previa will no longer have it at 32 weeks. With that being said.... I am going for a repeat ultrasound at 32 weeks to determine the location of the placenta. IF the placenta is still too close to the cervix, we will have to schedule a C-Section at that point. She said by 32 weeks, the placenta will not have a chance of migrating far enough up the uterine wall to have a vaginal delivery. Please keep your fingers crossed for good news at 32 weeks!

As for the cramping.... The doctor did check me and said that my cervix is still very closed and very thick; both very good signs. Just to be sure, she cultured the area down there and had me drop it off at the hospital lab right after my appointment. She said if I were at risk for pre term labor within the next few weeks, this test would come back positive and I would know the results by tonight. Well, it is 8:30 pm and I have not gotten a call from the hospital, so I would say that's great news!!

She said the cramping most likely is due to how the baby is positioned at the the time. She also said that majority of her patients that have had multiple pregnancies say that all of their pregnancies after the first have been MUCH more uncomfortable, like the baby was just going to fall out, and that they were much more achy in the pelvic region. I remember with Macy this being the greatest time of the pregnancy! I felt SOO good, so comfortable, and like I wasn't even pregnant at all. Darn you 2nd pregnancy and my weakened female parts!

All-in-all, this appointment was great! I left feeling so good that the baby is measuring right on track and the amniotic fluid levels are no longer a concern. We are just keeping our eye on this placenta of mine..... 95% chance that it will fix itself is a pretty good bet to me!


Now onto my little alphabet master......



About 2 weeks ago she started displaying an interest in letters. She would point to them in her books, one-by-one, and even little sayings I have around the house. I decided to download some alphabet apps onto my droid. She LOVES them!!! She can repeat many letters and even name them without hearing them first! Her favorite letters to say are: I, M, R, V, K, L, H, S, C, O, P and B. Haha, sorry for the randomness of the letters, but that is just how they came to me. :) She is also starting to really take off on her vocabulary and repeat a lot of what Chuck and I say to her. She has been a late bloomer with the talking, but I think she is finally coming around!!! She is also very fond of the "colors" flash card app I downloaded. Who said technology is a bad thing for kids?

Name Change

Not so much a name change as a name modification.... Chuck and I were talking last night about our newest little lady that will be joining us in May. It was hard not to talk about her, because she had me in tears most of the evening with extreme cramping. I don't know what it is about this little one that enjoys making me miserable so early on..... lol. Anyways, we were playing with Macy on her magna-doodle and were writing out the baby's name, Adilynn. We then were playing around with the spelling. After a few minutes of thought, we decided that we like the spelling "Addilyn" a lot better! So now, her new, modified name is Addilyn Mae. Just thought you all would like to know. Haha.

Update...UGH!

I have been trying to keep a very positive attitude about the challenges I have had with this pregnancy. Anyone who knows me, knows I am quite the worry wart; a fault of mine that does much more harm than good. So, yesterday I was quite excited to go to this ultrasound to hear some good news! I get there and the technician was quite pleasant; she talked small talk, and actually seemed interested in the details of this pregnancy so far.

She kept asking what I was told my due date was. She must have asked this like 3 times which raised somewhat of a red flag to me. I just came out and asked her what my fluid levels were measuring at (what percentile) and what percentile is the baby currently at for her growth. She told me she doesn't have the "chart" that gives percentages, and that I would have to get that from my doctor. UGH!!!! This is what I ave been waiting to hear! She did say that she measured 11-12 cm of fluid, which when I got home I researched myself to find out that it is within the "normal" range. It is not quite at the median (50%) level, but not in the danger zone. She then said that she was measuring my due date as May 15th-ish. The previous ultrasound technician said she was getting May 9th. This was a little over 2 weeks ago... I don't know what to think of this. It's not a HUGE difference, but enough to make me a little uncomfortable. I wish it would have been closer to the May 9th due date. She did say however that my placenta is very close to my cervix. She said she could even measure any distance between the two. As of now, it is unsure whether is is just considered to be a low-lying placenta or a partial previa. This is news I definitely did not want to hear: 1. I am terrified to have a C-Section and 2. Some of my daily habits would have to change such as picking p Macy and playing with her the way I do. Ugh. I am trying not to think to much about this because it is a worse-case scenario. My doctor told me 4 weeks ago that 90% of the time a placenta will migrate on its own to a safe place where a natural delivery can occur. I just have to keep my fingers crossed that I am in the 90%.

After all the medical measurements and observations had been made, the technician let me actually see and watch the bay for a little bit. This is something that I have yet do do because all of the ultrasounds thus far have been so medical and complications had been found. This was a definite bright spot in the appointment. I asked if she could confirm that the baby was actually a girl just because I am further a long now and things should be more obvious. Well, just as my luck would have it....she was not cooperating and the tech could not see anything because of how she was positioned. I am still quite sure that our little Adilynn Mae is in there though.

The technician told me that she would be sending my report to the doctor right away and to call their office sometime after noon today to find out the actual results. I called today at 11:45 and the nurse said they have received my report, but that the doctor has yet to read it and they would call as soon as it is read. Needless to say... I did NOT receive a phone call today. UGH! I am taking this as somewhat of a good sign that nothing extremely worrisome is wrong. I guess I will find out the detailed report a week from tomorrow when I have my OB appointment and hear the results directly from the doctor's mouth. Until then, let the waiting begin....

In other news... Macy has finally figured out how to open her bedroom door. I was woken up two mornings ago to the sound of her walking into a rattle toy in the great room, and the shadow of footprints beneath my bedroom door. It's the little things like that, that make me smile :)

Nesting

I did NOT go through this with Macy. Sure, I was excited to decorate her nursery, but I did not have to have the house spotless or crazy organized before she got here. WELL..... I have already started going crazy with feeling my house is not clean or organized enough. Yesterday I organized all of my kitchen cabinets and drawers. I still dont feel like they are good enough. Everywhere I look, something is bothering me about my house.... I am totally paying for it today though. I am exhausted and so crampy. :( This pregnancy again, has been different in every way from Macy's. If I felt like I do with this pregnancy (discomfort and fatigue), I would have gone mad teaching, just mad. I never had ANY complaints about my pregnancy with Macy until I starting swelling like crazy around 34 weeks. Even then, it wasn't like I was uncomfortable, just disgusted. lol.

I go Monday for my ultrasound to remeasure the baby and recheck my amniotic fluid levels. I am a little nervous, but really feel that all will be okay. I have been feeling her a lot lately (VERY low) wich again, different from Macy. Hopefully I will get some answers Monday from the ultrasound tech or the doctor herself. If not, it may be January 25th until I hear actual results (my next appointment). Knowing me, I will not be able to wait that long and will be calling the doctor's office on Tuesday if need be just to ease my mind. I will update as soon as I know something!

On another note, Macy has been staying either on her main mattress or the secondary mattress of her bed lately! I hated seeing her sleeping on the floor. Baby steps...baby steps! Yay!

We Have Our Napper Back and My Current Thoughts on the New Nursery!

Macy has been in her big girl bed since December 30th and every time I have tried to put her down for a nap; she has napped!!! It has only taken me about 10 minutes to get her down with NO FUSSING!!! This is a huge change from when she was refusing naps in her crib, having tantrums that would result in bruises on her head and a pain in my heart. I do have to pat her back, but I will take the sitting in the for 10 minutes and comforting her rather than listening to her scream and worrying that she is going to flip out of her crib. My sanity is much more important, as is hers. So yes, we have our napper back!!! :) She does go to bed a bit later though, but she is a MUCH happier toddler during the afternoon and evening. I will gladly take it!

As for other news.... I finally have my vision of what Addy's nursery will look like. We will be painting the one wall where the crib will be only. The other walls with stay the tan color they are currently. The color we chose was




It is quite a bold color, but with the other walls being a lighter tan color, the room needed a little boost. Above the crib we are going to put this decal .....





Here are my other inspirations for the room.....













I am planning on making a few of these things myself and purchasing others. This is just a little taste. I am also very excited to be making my own bed skirt for her. When the fabric has been bought, I will post that as well! The crib will be a cherry wood tone. I love decorating; especially baby rooms!!! :)

Macy's Big Girl Bed!

Macy's Bed



Macy's Bed When She Goes to Sleep




My Pumpkin.....

Just Found Out....

I am going to be an Auntie to TWO babies!!! Yes, my sister Katie and her husband Pat are expecting twins this fall! How exciting! They are in for a real treat. Having kids is such a blessing and miracle in itself, but especially for them with having to go through IVF. I also known Macy and Adilynn are excited to have some cousins coming! Congrats Katie and Pat!