Big brother Joey is so proud of his baby sister Kate!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Put me out of my misery.... please!
I know that the pregnancy books say that pregnancy only lasts forty weeks but I swear it's much longer than that. Honestly, I can't remember what it feels like to not be pregnant. I know there was a time that I woke up in the morning and didn't have to rush to the bathroom and throw up. Yep, there was a time that I could bend over and pick up my son without getting out of breath. There was even a time that I had more than two pairs of pants that fit. But, that's a distant (and blurry) memory. Right now, I think I've been pregnant forever. Literally forever.
Last week, my hyperemesis took a turn for the worst. Instead of throwing up 4-5 times per day, I started throwing up everything I ate, drank or thought about eating. By Friday morning, I was pretty dehydrated. My doctor had me check my ketones (and fortunately, I have a handy ketone kit left over from my home care days) and they were elevated so they asked me to come into the hospital for an IV. Well, after some blood tests, they found that my potassium levels were dangerously low (which can result in heart failure) and so they admitted me into the hospital. I had to stay overnight and get poked and prodded and loaded up with nine IV bags full of potassium rich fluid.
Honestly, I thought they were just going to deliver my baby. The nurses and doctors stood there trying to figure out which drugs to give me to keep me from throwing up and how to get me hydrated enough to go home. I wanted to scream at them that the perfect solution was to JUST TAKE THE BABY but they didn't listen. Instead, they cited some regulation that my hospital doesn't induce labor for babies less than 39 weeks gestation unless it's a medically critical situation. I was 38 weeks 5 days. Two days short. Needless to say, I'm bitter.
So, here I am, 39 weeks and 2 days pregnant and STILL pregnant. Sure, I have a scheduled c-section on Monday but that's six whole days away and I'm not sure if I can make it. Six more days of throwing up. Six more days of losing my breath everytime I walk up the stairs. Six more days of being unable to chase my son around the living room. Six more days. Feels like a lifetime.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Nesting
Sept. 4, 2007
My mom says I'm nesting. I don't know about that. I mean, my baseboards are still covered in dust and my laundry room hasn't been cleaned in weeks (OK, months). Yep, my closet is still piled high with old clothes and my desk drawers, well, we won't talk about those. But, I have been working hard to get my nursery and Joey's big boy room done.
I started Joey's big boy room weeks ago. My excuse was that he had to get used to it before the baby came, but in reality, I think I just wanted an excuse to redecorate. I was tired of my cluttered, mis-matched guest room. Now, Joey has a fun "big boy bed" and dresser, a new bookshelf and fun sporty walls.
In the daytime, he loves his room and his big boy bed. He reads books to his "Anmals" and cuddles with his UT Bevo toy Cooper. Nighttime is a different story... the transition hasn't gone as well as I had hoped. While he has slept through the night in his big boy bed a few times, he has also spent plenty of nights in his pack & play because staying in bed is much easier said than done. Every night when he's getting ready for bed he says "Bi bo be" (translation: big boy bed) and then says "Me, stay stay stay!". Well, he usually forgets about the staying part about 5 minutes later and ends up in the pack & play for the night. Oh well. He'll get there, right?
Last week, I spent the week getting this little girl's nursery ready. I wanted it to be bright and girly. It's a spring garden with lots of flowers and leaves and is filled with all things pink and pretty. I can't wait until there's a little girl to put in it. Just two and a half more weeks. Seems like a lifetime...
Babies, puppies & hot summer days
Talk about a slacker. I haven't written in my blog for over two months. I could make up a glamorous excuse as to why. Maybe I spent the last six weeks riding my bike through the Andes and living off the land (don't laugh... it could happen) or perhaps I went on a road trip culminating in a romantic stay at a bed-and-breakfast in the Napa Valley (that's more like it). But the truth? I've spent the last two months wallowing in the couch in pregnancy-induced pity wondering when this hot, sticky summer is going to end.
I hate being pregnant. H.a.t.e. it. Don't get me wrong, I want this baby more than anything, but at this point, the idea of this baby is still a bit abstract and the hours spent hunching over the toilet are fresh in my mind. I'm tired of being sick. Tired of being tired. Tired of being fat. Tired of everything. And, I have 6 weeks and 4 days to go (I'm having a scheduled c-section on Sept. 24th) and that seems like a lifetime. An absolute lifetime.
With that said, after weeks upon weeks of hot, boring drudgery of pregnant summer, we've had quite the exciting week this week. First, my dog Zoe went into labor and whelped 9 healthy puppies. Not the best timing in the world considering the pups will be seven weeks old when I have my baby, but we have puppies nonetheless. Joey loves them. I'm dreading the day that they are big enough to get out of the whelping box. My husband is looking forward to the day that they go to their forever homes and we get a nice little payday. I'm already dreaming of some new non-pregnancy clothes. Ann Taylor Loft, here I come (talk about wishful thinking... as if I'll fit into non-pregnancy clotehs anytime soon).
Second, my first nephew Jacob was born on Tuesday morning. He is just precious (check out his picture above). Unfortunately, he's caught a bit of an infection and is currently spending a few days in the NICU. The doctors think he'll be fine, but that doesn't make me worry less. Nonetheless, I'm in love with my new little baby and I'm getting my baby fix from holding him. I'm still not impressed that I have more than six weeks to go... but having a stretchy, sleepy baby in my arms definitely eases the pain.
I promise it won't be this long again. Well, at least for awhile... once this baby is born, who knows what I'll find to occupy my time.
finding out
April 30, 2007
I have my twenty-week ultrasound where I can find out whether this baby is a girl or a boy on Thursday. I'm feeling a bit conflicted about whether or not I should find out. I really, really want to know. I'm not the patient type. I want to get the nursery ready. I want to pick out a name. I want to go shopping. Still, part of me thinks that maybe it would be best if I didn't find out. You see, I'm afraid that my disappointment about the gender might plague the rest of this pregnancy. A very unkosher thing to say, but I'm saying it nonetheless.
I want to say that I will be happy with whatever sex as long as the baby is healthy. That's what all of the PC moms are saying. That's the "right" thing to say. But, the truth is, I won't be happy with whatever sex. At least at first. I confess. I want a girl and I want a girl bad.
I'm not saying that I won't love a little boy because I know I will, but I also know that it'll take some time getting used to. I've always wanted a little girl. A girl to play dress-up and tea party with, to go shopping with and to teach about girly things like make-up and Kate Spade bags. I also don't want to get pregnant again (I may change my mind, but for now, this is it). With that said, I'm really hoping and praying for a girl this time.
So, what do you all think? Should I find out?
I have my twenty-week ultrasound where I can find out whether this baby is a girl or a boy on Thursday. I'm feeling a bit conflicted about whether or not I should find out. I really, really want to know. I'm not the patient type. I want to get the nursery ready. I want to pick out a name. I want to go shopping. Still, part of me thinks that maybe it would be best if I didn't find out. You see, I'm afraid that my disappointment about the gender might plague the rest of this pregnancy. A very unkosher thing to say, but I'm saying it nonetheless.
I want to say that I will be happy with whatever sex as long as the baby is healthy. That's what all of the PC moms are saying. That's the "right" thing to say. But, the truth is, I won't be happy with whatever sex. At least at first. I confess. I want a girl and I want a girl bad.
I'm not saying that I won't love a little boy because I know I will, but I also know that it'll take some time getting used to. I've always wanted a little girl. A girl to play dress-up and tea party with, to go shopping with and to teach about girly things like make-up and Kate Spade bags. I also don't want to get pregnant again (I may change my mind, but for now, this is it). With that said, I'm really hoping and praying for a girl this time.
So, what do you all think? Should I find out?
Another ER visit
Seriously, I think that the ER doctors are starting to know me by name. Next time I go, they'll probably have my favorite latte waiting for me at check-in and my favorite music playing on the loud speakers. They should. I've been there enough lately.
Today's trip to the ER started at Costco. We walked through the door and Joey started to shiver. At first, we thought it was the fans. It was eighty degrees out so we laughed at his chattering teeth and rubbed his arms a few times. By the time we made it to the back of the store, he was shaking pretty hard. We decided that maybe he really was cold in the store so we decided to head home and come back to Costco another day. He continued shivering in the car. We cranked the heat (I know, I know, rookie mistake) and sweated through the trip home.
By the time we got home, Joey was trembling hard. I brought him upstairs and took his temperature and was shocked to see that it was 104. I wasn't overly worried. He was acting normally apart from the shivering and he's had fevers higher than 105 before. I took him downstairs and gave him some Motrin and rubbed his back for awhile. When his fever didn't drop, I called the pediatrician.
The pediatrician said that while his temperature was high, he was probably fine and told me to give him a luke-warm bath. I hung up the phone and as I stood to put him in the bath, his body convulsed. A few seconds later, he was in a full-in seizure, with his eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body convulsing. My husband grabbed the baby and I called 911.
The seizure stopped a few minutes later (the longest few minutes of my life) and Joey immediately lost consciousness. The 911 operator said that his body was so exhausted from seizing that he simply couldn't maintain consciousness. We were told to check his breathing and keep him cool and wait for the ambulance.
The ambulance arrived with lights and sirens and the paramedics were able to wake Joey up. They checked his vitals and hooked him up to a whole bunch of monitors and whisked him into the ambulance to head to the children's hospital. There, he was rushed into the children's ER and stabilized. The doctor did a variety of tests and we waited and waited and waited while Joey was put on observation.
In the end, they determined that Joey had suffered a febrile seizure from a sudden spike in temperature. They gave him medication and sent us home, asking us to wake him up every couple of hours to make sure his fever stayed under 102. They said that there is a good chance that he'll have another seizure in the next few days, so we're under strict instructions to call 911 as soon as his fever starts to spike. I'm nervous. The doctor didn't seem too worried.
So, we're home now. Joey's asleep in his room and sleeping soundly. His fever is down and hopefully it'll stay down. For now, I'm just hoping to avoid another trip to the ER. I've spent enough time there lately.
Today's trip to the ER started at Costco. We walked through the door and Joey started to shiver. At first, we thought it was the fans. It was eighty degrees out so we laughed at his chattering teeth and rubbed his arms a few times. By the time we made it to the back of the store, he was shaking pretty hard. We decided that maybe he really was cold in the store so we decided to head home and come back to Costco another day. He continued shivering in the car. We cranked the heat (I know, I know, rookie mistake) and sweated through the trip home.
By the time we got home, Joey was trembling hard. I brought him upstairs and took his temperature and was shocked to see that it was 104. I wasn't overly worried. He was acting normally apart from the shivering and he's had fevers higher than 105 before. I took him downstairs and gave him some Motrin and rubbed his back for awhile. When his fever didn't drop, I called the pediatrician.
The pediatrician said that while his temperature was high, he was probably fine and told me to give him a luke-warm bath. I hung up the phone and as I stood to put him in the bath, his body convulsed. A few seconds later, he was in a full-in seizure, with his eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body convulsing. My husband grabbed the baby and I called 911.
The seizure stopped a few minutes later (the longest few minutes of my life) and Joey immediately lost consciousness. The 911 operator said that his body was so exhausted from seizing that he simply couldn't maintain consciousness. We were told to check his breathing and keep him cool and wait for the ambulance.
The ambulance arrived with lights and sirens and the paramedics were able to wake Joey up. They checked his vitals and hooked him up to a whole bunch of monitors and whisked him into the ambulance to head to the children's hospital. There, he was rushed into the children's ER and stabilized. The doctor did a variety of tests and we waited and waited and waited while Joey was put on observation.
In the end, they determined that Joey had suffered a febrile seizure from a sudden spike in temperature. They gave him medication and sent us home, asking us to wake him up every couple of hours to make sure his fever stayed under 102. They said that there is a good chance that he'll have another seizure in the next few days, so we're under strict instructions to call 911 as soon as his fever starts to spike. I'm nervous. The doctor didn't seem too worried.
So, we're home now. Joey's asleep in his room and sleeping soundly. His fever is down and hopefully it'll stay down. For now, I'm just hoping to avoid another trip to the ER. I've spent enough time there lately.
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