Rooster

- Posted by Jodi

Fish Are Friends, Not Food

Olivia has been explaining this to our three cats tonight because we have a new little member of the family. . . .her new betta fish named Rooster! 

Yes, we decided to let her have a fish.  We went to the pet store and told her to pick out a fish that she liked.  She ran straight to a fantail goldfish who grows to be over 8” long!!  Woah. . .hold on a second.  That’s kind of frightening!  I kept directing her over to the betta fish and with a bit of persuasion, she decided on one of them.  Whew!  Ryan agreed to do all the cleaning and upkeep of the tank and Olivia and I only have to remember to feed him every day.  So, I could live with that.  It was actually a very fun evening spent as a family, picking out the fish and the gravel and his house and a plant for the tank.  Olivia is so very excited! 

I think the fish might actually might be a good thing.  She likes to sleep with some sort of light on and the fish tank makes a great night light.  She also gets lonely at night by herself and she’s looking forward to sleeping right beside Rooster.  We can’t put him in his new tank for 24 hours, so she was a little disappointed with that.  But, she is very proud of her new pet!! Welcome Home Rooster!

Monday, June 25, 2012

Well, I’m entering a challenging part of my pregnancy.  For one, I am extremely emotional and I cry at the drop of a hat.  I think I’ve cried every day this week and I don’t think I shed any tears during my first trimester.  I’ve seriously had a headache, too, for a week straight.  And, my blood sugar is proving to be a challenge.  As you know, I have diabetes and my blood sugar spikes pretty high. . .especially after eating.  About a month ago, I realized that I wasn’t having problems with the real high numbers anymore, so I got a bit lazy about testing it.  Before my surgery, my blood sugar was 67 and they wanted it a bit higher before surgery so I was given some dextrose.  I hadn’t eaten in almost 12 hours, so that is to be expected.  Lately, I’ve been ravenously hungry.  I feel like I eat the same amount as three grown men!!!  And if I don’t eat every 3 hours, I get extremely shaky and irritable.  So, I eat breakfast, my first lunch at noon, second lunch at 3 pm, dinner with snacks in between.  I have to do a second full lunch or the shakiness does not go away!  Nibbling on carrots or crackers does not do it for me.  Well, tonight it had barely been over 3 hours and I was waiting for my husband to get home to eat dinner.  I started feeling awful.  Shaky, unsteady, very lightheaded.  I made it over to the cabinet and grabbed my blood glucose meter.  Luckily, Ryan was home and I told him that I didn’t feel well and showed him my number and he took over from there.  It was 52 and I felt awful!  He grabbed a bag of M&Ms and they helped raise my number back into a normal range.  I’m so frustrated by it all.  I was diagnosed with diabetes 2-3 years ago and they basically handed me a blood glucose meter and put me on a diabetes medication and that is it.  I don’t feel like I’ve gotten a good grasp as to how to handle it.  And pregnancy has definitely made it more of a challenge.  I just want this baby to be getting everything he/she needs.

In other news, Olivia has been crazy about fish for some time now.  She’s even going to have an Under The Sea birthday party in August.  She really wants her own fish and I hate fish.  I had one goldfish growing up named Bubbles and he lived for a week.  I made my dad bury him in the backyard because the thought of flushing him down the toilet seemed cruel.  But, seriously, any pet but a fish. . .you can’t even pet it!! Aughhh!!  However, her pretend fish/fish bowl beside her bed is quickly losing its appeal. Haha!

But, we’ve been thinking about getting her a betta fish.  I hear they are inexpensive and easy to take care of. . .and they make kitty-proof bowls for them.  So, who knows?!  Wait until you hear what she wants to name her fish, though.  Hilarious!!!  I’ll share if we break down and actually get her one.  And pray one of the cats doesn’t eat it because knowing me right now, I would bawl.  

14 Weeks

Current size of baby: Lemon

How far along? 14 weeks

Total weight gain: 5 lbs

Inches Gained: 2 inches

Maternity clothes? A mix of maternity and non-maternity clothes.

Sleep: Good

How I'm feeling: Ravenously hungry and very fatigued. I was hoping the fatigue would go away in the 2^nd trimester, but since I’m fatigued even when I’m NOT pregnant, I doubted it would. It has just gotten worse.

Best moment this week: Being incredibly spoiled by all those who chipped in to help out this week. We had multiple homemade dinners made for us (four, I believe.)

Movement: Can’t be certain. At certain times if I lay really really still, I feel a little flutter on my right side.

Food cravings: Nothing really in particular. Whatever seems to sound good at that moment.

Food aversions: Becoming less and less as my nausea improves. Although, the other night I had horrible nausea out of nowhere.

Gender: Unknown

Labor Signs: NO

Belly Button in or out? in

What I miss: Cooler weather. This pregnant gal can’t take the 100+ degree heat.

What I am looking forward to: My husband and I have our 9^th wedding anniversary this week. For our gifts to one another, we are buying something for the baby. It seems very fitting.

Milestones: I made it through the cerclage with no complications!!

Surprise!

We surprised Olivia with a new bike today.  She has really been struggling with learning how to pedal and her tricycle was not working very well.  We got this adorable John Deere bicycle and I just think it’s the cutest bike I’ve ever seen.  Olivia is not into Barbies or princesses and those are the main two kinds of girls’ bikes. 

We headed outside to work on pedaling and she just can’t seem to master it yet.  What seems “natural” for most kids doesn’t come quite so easy for Olivia.  But, once she gets it, it will be like she’s been doing it forever. 

Afterwards, we came inside to practice some bicycling with our legs.  We WILL get it, even if we have to practice multiple times every day!!

I’m doing well after my cerclage and it was nice to get out of the house finally today.  Overall, it was not as bad as I envisioned and I’m feeling completely normal. 

Cerclage Day

This morning, I had my cerclage put in.  I thought I would post my experiences in case 1) I ever have to do this again or 2) a fellow preemie mom must have one done.  It’s nice to know what to expect (without going into too much detail.  LOL.) It’s best to have it done between 12 – 14 weeks and I was 13 weeks, 2 days.

Cervical cerclage

The surgery itself went great.  I had low blood sugar when I arrived because of not eating for 12+ hours, so they had to give me some dextrose.  I did get a general anesthetic so I don’t remember anything.  They had to check my blood sugar multiple times while I was out to monitor it and for some reason they poked the inside of the same finger.  Sheesh. . don’t they know that you poke the side of the finger and you alternate?  Now, my finger is sore when I type! LOL!  I woke up coughing with a really sore throat and an awful headache!!  Not sure if the headache is from blood sugar fluctuations or something in the anesthesia.  The first thing I said when I woke up was, “My head really hurts!!” And, it’s been my main problem all day!  I’ve had minimal spotting and no bad cramping, thank goodness.  That’s been my main concern. . .how do you tell what is normal spotting/cramping and what is not?  Hopefully, it just improves as the days go on.  My main restriction with a cerclage is no heavy lifting.  It’s amazing how much lifting you do as a stay at home mom. . .whether it’s carrying in the groceries, lifting Olivia into a swing or up to wash her hands when we are out somewhere, carrying the vacuum downstairs, buying litter and cat food at the pet store, carrying my huge bag to t ball games, etc.  So, it’s really hard to not do any of that.  But, I have no choice and may need all the help I can get.

Thanks to Grandma Sailing, Grandma Glunt and Aunt Shelley who will be taking care of Olivia for the remainder of the week.  And, thanks to my husband for taking care of me today.  (Although I’ve been a pretty good patient and have just slept all day.)  Thanks also to my friend, Amanda Updegrove, who provided us with a delicious homemade dinner!!  I’m trying to enjoy these few days of rest and relaxation as it will probably be years before I get to enjoy this again.  And, you know me and my love of sleep!  My cat, Autumn, lives for the days that I nap with her.  She’s in for the best week of her life and hasn’t left my side all day. 

So glad the cerclage is done as I’ve been worrying about it for years knowing that it would be done with a future pregnancy.  So far, it hasn’t been that bad.  But, I’ll be sure to update you often because there isn’t much else to do while in bed for the next few days.  I will most likely start weekly progesterone shots at 17 weeks as another precaution.  We aren’t taking any chances with this pregnancy and I’m looking forward to a healthy, full term pregnancy!  And. . .a healthy, full term baby who cries at birth and gets placed immediately in my arms.  Just thinking of the first picture of Olivia and her new baby sibling brings tears to my eyes.  That will be heaven on earth!

13 Weeks

Current size of baby: 3 inches long and weighs about an ounce.

How far along? 13 weeks

Total weight gain: 5 lbs

Inches Gained: 2 inches

Maternity clothes? Yep, but I haven’t started wearing maternity jeans yet. . .just had to move up a size. Good thing I held onto my old jeans!

Sleep: Good

How I'm feeling: Ravenously hungry and incredibly tired.

Best moment this week: Hearing the baby’s heartbeat on my home Doppler. Then, I heard it again and I think I was picking up my own heartbeat as it was only 80-90 bpm. It kind of freaked me out and I’ve been afraid to use it again.

Movement: No

Food cravings: Cherries and ice water from Sonic. For some reason, their water (and ice) is just better than mine at home.

Food aversions: Becoming less and less as my nausea improves. 

Gender: unknown, but I think we have our boy and girl names decided. 

Labor Signs: NO

Belly Button in or out? in

What I miss: My husband.  He’s been working CRAZY long hours lately and I’ve barely seen him all week.  He worked noon to 4 am on Saturday and even had to work today, on Father’s Day.

What I am looking forward to: Having my cerclage OVER with.

Milestones: Making it through the cerclage. It’s on Tuesday.  It’s worrisome to think that a cerclage is used to prevent preterm birth, but it can also cause a preterm birth.  So, I’m going to be an anxious mess for the next week or so. 

Pregnancy Comparison

Just thought this was an interesting comparison.  Remember that my due date is exactly the same, so I am about the same place in my pregnancy.  I feel bigger this time and my first pregnancy was with twins.

Pregnant with Olivia and Logan – June 2007

Current pregnancy – June 2012

I’ve Got Rhythm

Olivia’s cousin, Rebekah, recently got a drum set.  Yesterday, Olivia was able to try it out.  She was a natural and has been talking about it ever since.  I can just picture my tiny, petite daughter playing the drums. LOL!  The girl’s got rhythm!

12 1/2 weeks

Since I didn’t get my 12 week picture, here is my 12 1/2 week pic.

I also just wanted to write a post to say thank you to my friend, Amanda, in Ohio.  Amanda and I met about 4 years ago through this very blog.  In October 2010, I flew up to Ohio to surprise her for her birthday.  So, we’ve only met in person once, but I consider her one of my dearest friends.  Weird, huh?  LOL!  She never stopped believing that I would get pregnant again. Even when I had serious doubts myself.

Before Olivia and Logan were born, I went through 3 years of fertility treatments and finally on my 8th IUI, I got pregnant.  Because of my extremely premature labor with twins, I didn’t want to risk getting pregnant with multiples again.  So, my husband and I decided that we would no longer pursue fertility treatments. 

Four years and a diagnosis of diabetes later, I surprisingly got pregnant in May 2011.  Now, I don’t want to be lumped into that category of people who just “stopped trying so hard” and got pregnant.  I credit my sudden fertility to taking a medication called Metformin to manage my diabetes.  Without Metformin, I do not have periods and do not ovulate.  With it, I do and therefore have at least the hope of getting pregnant.  That is just my experience with it.  For others, it doesn’t work like that.  Metformin is also prescribed to people who have polycystic ovarian syndrome (my official infertility diagnosis.) PCOS is linked to diabetes because it has to do with insulin resistance.  I was on it during my fertility treatments, but the highest dosage I was on was around 500-1000 mg.  I needed at least 1500 mg for my body to be regulated and 2000 mg to become pregnant.  Sadly, that pregnancy ended around 7 1/2 weeks.  It was deemed a blighted ovum and never developed enough to even have a heartbeat.  Nonetheless, I was heartbroken and confused as to why God would surprise me with a pregnancy only to have it end so soon. 

Amanda still insisted that I would get pregnant again.  I thought that maybe getting pregnant on my own was just a fluke. . .a 1 in a million chance.  But, exactly 5 years (to the day) after I found out I was pregnant the first time. . .I found out I was pregnant again. 

Here I am now at 12 1/2 weeks pregnant and trying to enjoy and treasure every minute of this pregnancy.  I don’t breathe that sigh of relief after the first trimester is over like most women do.  I thought I was in the clear with my first pregnancy and I was wrong.  Honestly, I won’t truly be able to breathe a sigh of relief until that healthy baby is in my arms.  Amanda says it’s a boy and, well, she’s been right about everything else so far!  But, boy or girl. . .I feel so incredibly blessed.

12 Weeks

I don’t have a picture of me today.  I just don’t feel like getting ready or having my picture taken.  I think I’m either getting another kidney stone or the one that I had (that never passed) is causing trouble again.  I’m not in pain, I just have that uncomfortable feeling that I’ve linked to kidney stones.  And, I feel like I’m getting a cold on top of it.  I’m just ready to go back to bed. LOL!

Current size of baby: Lime

How far along? 12 weeks

Total weight gain: 4 lbs

Inches Gained: 1.5 inches

Maternity clothes? My jeans are becoming a little uncomfortable. Time to bring up my tub of maternity clothes.

Sleep: Good, but I’ve starting waking up in the middle of the night to pee.

How I'm feeling: Ravenously hungry

Best moment this week: Seeing the baby on ultrasound jumping around.

Movement: No

Food cravings: Cherries, goldfish crackers and potato salad. I’ve started eating 2 lunches (one at noon and one at 3 pm.) I’m sooooo hungry and never feel full.

Food aversions: Becoming less and less as my nausea improves.

Gender: unknown

Labor Signs: NO

Belly Button in or out? in

What I miss: The naivety of a first pregnancy.

What I am looking forward to: Having my cerclage OVER with.

Milestones: Making it through the first trimester!!

Surprise 60th Birthday Party

My mom (Grandma Sailing) turns 60 this month so my sister-in-law, Shelley, and I threw a surprise party for  my mom today.  Since Shelley is a Jazzercise instructor, we were able to hold it there which worked out great!

My mom. . .I have no idea what year this is.  But, I don’t think my mom would have let me out of the house in a skirt that short. LOL!

Awww. . .my mom, dad, me and my brother.

Veronica made a sign as we made the finishing touches before my mom’s arrival.

Olivia with her cousin, Izzy, and Izzy’s cousin, Maddie.  These three were the best behaved girls in the world today.  And, they had a great time!

The birthday girl!  We made her sit up on stage with a feather in her hair while we sang Happy Birthday to her!

My mom had a great time visiting with friends. . .old and new.

My brother with his cupcake. . .complete with an umbrella!

Hey Kerry, you closed your eyes.  Let’s retake the picture!

Hahaha!

And no 60th birthday party is complete without a little game of duck duck goose! 

OB Appointment

So far in my pregnancy, I’ve tried to remain somewhat detached although I’ll admit it hasn’t worked very well.  After miscarrying last year and after giving birth at 23 weeks in 2007, I know all too well what can go wrong.  I guess I figured that if something happened and I lost the baby, it wouldn’t hurt as much.  Today, I had an OB appt at 11 weeks, 3 days.  The doctor tried to hear the heartbeat with his Doppler and there was silence.  It was deafening, but I tried not to worry.  I then I had a sono done and there was my baby. . .jumping all around.  At that moment, I completely fell in love.  And I also realized how in love with the baby I have been from the start.  The baby measured exactly on track and I left feeling so much more confident in the pregnancy.  And, goodness, look at the baby’s little profile. . .just adorable!!  Only 1 1/2 inches long and almost fully formed with little fingers and toes.  What a miracle and a gift from God every child is!

My cerclage is scheduled for June 19th.  With a cerclage, your cervix is stitched shut to prevent premature opening of the cervix.  I’m so incredibly nervous about it, but I know with my history of delivering at 23 weeks it must be done.  And I will do all that I can to give this baby the best chance possible.

And I feel so blessed.  And so happy.  And so at peace. I can’t wait to learn what God has in store for this little one and to watch Olivia flourish as a big sister.  There are simply amazing things in store for my family. 

*************
"When God wants something great done in the world,
He doesn't dispatch a legion of avenging angels,
Neither does He call forth a whirlwind nor ignite volcanic fireworks;
No commandeering of troops into battle nor discharging zealous crusaders to holy causes;
He does not orchestrate the burst and boom of thunder nor display His fiery arrows' majesty across the sky to bring His purpose to pass.

When God wants something done in this world...
He sends a baby - then He waits."

- Anita Robinson

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Today, I gave Olivia a paint brush and let her paint the sidewalk with water.  She acted as if I had entrusted her with a very big girl task.  She had a blast. . .and then we realized it was way too hot to be outside and not submerged in water.

So, we came inside to cool off and watch Care Bears.  She’s really into Care Bears right now.  Her favorite is Funshine Bear, but she’s upset that it’s portrayed as a boy in the movie.  She insists it is a girl.  I love the picture below because it really captures her natural smile.

And there’s nothing quite like cooling off and watching Care Bears with your best bud.  I tell ya, our cats have been so good for Olivia. . .especially Tobey and Kelsey.  Autumn is as sweet as they come, but she prefers the company of adults. 

Olivia’s First Tee Ball Game

Olivia had her first tee ball game tonight.  All in all, it went good.  It was crowded (with not near enough parking) and hot.  Olivia doesn’t like to sweat any more than I do. Ha!  But, thank you to Kerry and also to Olivia’s grandparents for attending.  It really meant a lot to her! And thanks to Grandpa Glunt for taking some great pictures!!

She really enjoyed herself as long as daddy was within 1 foot of her at all times. 

Poor thing broke down into tears when she was in the outfield by herself. 

But, daddy was there to wipe her tears (and clean her glasses.)  She has major separation anxiety at times and it just breaks my heart.

She was ready to bat!

Here goes nothing. . .

Wham!

And off she runs to first base (with daddy running beside her.)  I don’t think Ryan realized that he signed up for tee ball too. 

11 Weeks

After watching me get my picture taken every week, Olivia wanted hers taken as well.

Current size of baby: Fig or 1 ½ inches long

How far along? 11 weeks

Total weight gain: 2.5 lbs I think I weighed more at 9 weeks. I haven’t gained any in 2 weeks.

Inches Gained: 1 inch

Maternity clothes? Not yet out of necessity, sometimes just for comfort.

Sleep: Good

How I'm feeling: Nausea has lessened a bit. Still fatigued

Best moment this week: Buying our minivan!  Now I feel like our family is truly expanding and I’m so blessed.

Movement: No

Food cravings: I’ve moved from cheeseburgers and fries to sandwiches and chips, cherries (yummy!) baked beans and maple covered long john donuts. I know. . .so random.

Food aversions: Getting better. I actually ate a salad at Olive Garden this week.

Gender: unknown

Labor Signs: NO

Belly Button in or out? in

What I miss: Only having Olivia to worry about. I worry so much about Olivia. . .I feel like my worrying is going to double!

What I am looking forward to: Getting off the Crinone, my OB appt this Wednesday, June 6^th! I’m hoping that everything is going well and we get my cerclage scheduled.

Milestones: Getting through each day, each week. . .one step at a time.

My New Ride

I’m now the proud owner of a Honda Odyssey!  My husband and I went looking at them today because they had 0% financing until the end of the month.  We were probably a little more than 50% serious about it, but I had never driven one and just wanted to see what they were like.  Well, I fell in love with everything about it!  I found the color and model I wanted.  Then, they gave us the price we wanted, the APR we wanted, the trade in value that we wanted. . .we just couldn’t pass it up.  So, we drove it home this afternoon!  Olivia was ecstatic!  Who knew that a 4 year old could get that excited about a minivan!  But, we’re a little excited too!

10 Weeks

Current size of baby: Olive

How far along? 10 weeks

Total weight gain: 2.5 lbs

Inches Gained: 1 inch

Maternity clothes? I put on an old pair of maternity shorts and they were glorious! I had forgotten how comfortable they were. But, I can still wear most of my regular clothes.

Sleep: Good

How I'm feeling: Nauseous and fatigued. I’m ready for this part to be over.

Best moment this week: Getting a bunch of maternity clothes at a garage sale.

Movement: No

Food cravings: Fried mozzarella sticks and Sonic has some of the best! Yum!

Food aversions: A lot! One day something sounds good, the next it makes me feel sick.

Gender: unknown

Labor Signs: NO

Belly Button in or out? in

What I miss: My favorite capris (pictured above) They were a little snug on me normally and are just too tight to be comfortable anymore. So, I had to pack them away in hopes to see them again next spring! That’ll be a goal of mine. . .to fit back into my capris. LOL!

What I am looking forward to: Getting over this nausea.

Milestones: Getting through each day, each week. . .one step at a time.

The Super Heroes

Olivia had her first t-ball practice this morning.  Her cousin, Izzy, and her are the only girls on the team.  They are really cute with their pink gloves and pink balls and pink helmets.

I was really proud of how she did this morning.  She didn’t even cry when she got her first softball hit to the head.  Sheesh. . .what are the odds of that happening at the first practice?

Izzy

Running the bases

Friday, May 25, 2012

Why is this little girl so happy?

Because she finally got a new water table (thanks to spoiling grandparents.)  Her old one was destroyed by hail last summer. . .it literally put two big holes in it.  She’s been begging for a new one ever since.  We didn’t want to get her a new table to use for one summer and then outgrow it.  I think for a second we forgot that we were having another baby.  Of course, it will get plenty of use in the years to come.  LOL!