Caitlyn @ 10 Weeks

She's getting so big and growing so fast it makes me happy and sad at the same time! We took her to her 2 month appt last Monday (Nov 17th). She weighed 11 lbs 7 oz (75th percentile) and is 23 in (50th percentile). She has really bad reflux issues. We had her taking Zantac, but it didn't seem to be making a difference so the pedi switched her to Prevacid. I think it's making a little bit of difference but she still spits up all the time. It doesn't seem to bother her most of the time it's just a huge mess. We keep a bib on her constantly because it's easier to change that then her clothes all the time. She got 3 shots and an oral vaccine while we were there. That was heart breaking. Since I'm still breastfeeding they let me feed her right after the shots and that seems to calm her down pretty quickly.

Milestones:
She's smiling more and more and starting to giggle a little bit too. I love talking to her because she's starting to respond back. When I say hi to her she trys to mimic the sound and say hi back. It's so precious!!! At 9 weeks she finally figured out how to keep her thumb in her mouth! So she's a little better about self soothing. She's still colicy at night but much better during the day. And even though she's colicy at night once we start her bedtime routine she's a happy baby and goes to bed pretty easily and is sleeping through until 5 or later in the morning! For bed time routine we do a bath, I feed her and swaddle her and put her down. Sometimes she'll cry when I lay her down but it never lasts more than 5 min and she's usually out! She'll also stay in her swing for more than 5 min now. She hates tummy time so we don't try that much anymore. She's holding her head up on her own now which is so much better. We can sit her on our laps and play with her. She loves being naked! When I'm dressing her in the morning I take her clothes off and let her lay there as long as she wants naked. She's so happy during this time! I need to write these things down as they happen...I feel like I'm forgetting things!

I go back to work in less than 2 weeks. I'm so sad. I've cried a few times and tried to convince Jared I should stay home. If it wasn't for health insurance I'd be able too...it totally sucks! But I've got to do what I need to for our family. We got into the daycare that we wanted which is by my work so I can go see and feed her over my lunch hour. I'm hoping to continue breastfeeding after I go back to work...we'll see how pumping at work goes. I never expected to enjoy bfing so much. I can't imagine not doing it...it's our bonding time!

Pictures of Caitlyn to follow....

Caitlyn @ 6 Weeks

Caitlyn will be 6 weeks old on Sunday - I can hardly believe it. Time goes by so quickly! And she's changed so much in this time already. She's a very colicky baby and this has made things a little tough for us. It's just so frustrating to have her cry when you've satisfied all of her needs. She's been fed and her diaper is changed and she should be happy - but she's not. She's getting a little better as she gets older. They say this usually passes by the time they are 3 months old. This makes me a little sad as that's when I have to go back to work. So by the time she's no longer fussy I won't get to spend as much time with her. But I'm also glad that I hopefully won't be taking a fussy baby to daycare. It's one thing for me to be frustrated, but I don't want someone else who is watching her to be frustrated since I don't know how they deal with their frustrations.

We took her to see her pediatrician when she was a week old and found out that she was tongue tied. We were referred to an ENT (surprisingly it was Jared's ENT) to have her evaluated. We took her and were told that it was about 2/3's tied so it wasn't totally bad and since I wasn't having problems feeding her we didn't have to get it clipped. But if we waited she could have speech problems later on and if we were to get it clipped when she was older she would have to be put under general anesthesia. So we decided to get it clipped right there in her office. It took about 15 min and Caitlyn slept through the entire procedure!

I've known since the day after she was born that she was going to be a thumb sucker. I thought maybe I could fight this...but it's a losing battle. She's still trying to totally figure out how to get it in her mouth and keep it there...but she's getting better at it with each passing day. I know she'll be a happier baby and will be able to self soothe more once she totally has it figured out so I'm now praying it happens soon. She very rarely takes the pacifier - even though I try each time she's upset.

She's already outgrown her newborn clothes and has moved into size 1 diapers. They're still a little big for her but she's too long for the newborn clothes. At least she'll be able to wear this size a little longer. She didn't even get to wear some of her newborn outfits. And she won't get to wear some of her 3 month clothes because they're summer clothes and it's too cold for those now.

I go to a breastfeeding support group every Wednesday and get her weighed and as of last Wednesday she weighs 10 pounds 6 oz. We don't go to the pedi again until 2 months so I like knowing that she is gaining well since I don't know exactly how much she's getting with each feeding. I love going to this group as it gets me out of the house and talking with other new mothers. Listening to them I know that Caitlyn and I are normal with the things we go through.

I'm hoping to post more often with news of Caitlyn and how she's changing and growing! I'll be posting new pictures soon - I just need to get them downloaded to the computer!

Introducing....

P

Birth Story

Saturday night, September 13th I started having contractions at about 5pm. We were going over to Jared's aunt Charlotte's house for Italian night. I kind of felt like my water was leaking, but wasn't sure if it was that or just me leaking more pee than normal. We went to Charlotte's and my contractions got closer from 20 min to about 10 min apart by 9:30pm. On the way home I called the hospital and because I thought my water had maybe broken and I had tested positive for strep b they wanted me to come in right away. I went home and took a shower and headed to the hospital. Turns out that my water had not broken. They had me walk around the labor and delivery floor for about an hour to see if we could make anything happen...but I stayed at 2cm. The contractions were getting stronger and I was feeling them both in the front and in my back. The back contractions were HORRIBLE! They said the reason I was feeling back contractions was because she was laying face up instead of down. So her spine was aligned with my spine and this was causing the back contractions. I labored all night and finally gave in and got the epi at about 5am. Jared tried to be there for me while they put the epi in...but he almost passed out and they had to have him lay down while the anesthesiologist finished. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. The Dr. came in to check me at about 8am and broke my water and they decided to give me pitocin in my IV at that time as well. The epi was wonderful when it worked. I got to 4 cm by about 11am and then didn't dilate at all until about 3pm. Then I went from 4 to 8 in about half an hour. I finally got to 9 1/2 cm at about 4pm but stalled out there. During this time my epi wore off twice. They gave me a button to push every 5 min for the pain...but this didn't do anything to alleviate the back contractions I was feeling when the epi wore off. She wasn't moving down and I had just a lip around my cervix that the Dr. thought was too much to push through and the baby's heart rate was dropping with each contraction. At about 6 he started talking about c-section. I freaked out a little bit at this point. I cried. I had labored for over 24 hours and I really wanted a vaginal birth. They talked about the pros and cons and left for Jared and I to discuss. The most important thing was for us to have a healthy baby. So we decided the c-section was the best way to go. They got me all prepped and took me in at about 7pm. Jared was wonderful through all of this. He doesn't do well with blood and needles, but he was a real trooper. He even held my barf bag as I got sick. Caitlyn Anita Darling was born at 7:34pm on September 14th, 2008. She weighed 8lbs 11oz and was 19 1/2 in long.



Recovering from the c-section has not been fun....but it's totally worth it! I love our little girl more than I could have imagined possible. We waited so long for this and it was worth every minute!

Over Due....

This title fits for a few reasons. First I haven't updated this blog for 2 weeks. I've just been so tired that when I get home from work I don't want to do anything! Second - I was due on Tuesday and am STILL pregnant!

When I last posted my blood pressure was pretty high. It was high that whole week. My first appt was on Monday, and I had made a follow up appt for Friday. Well Thursday afternoon I wasn't feeling well so I called and they had me come right in. My blood pressure was actually better than on Monday, but still high. So they had me come back for my appt on Friday morning. Still high, but again not as bad as it had been on Monday. I was told to take it easy over the weekend and had another appt scheduled for Tuesday. The only problem was that my family reunion was that weekend and I was hosting at my house on Saturday. I did pretty good letting others take over and help out - but felt tremendously guilty about it and had a couple of crying melt downs in the process. But I got through it and had a great time with my family!

At my 39 week appt on Tuesday my blood pressure was back to normal! There was no change in my cervix...still only 50% effaced and no dilation. He had me come in for another bp check on Thursday and again it was normal. Yippee!

At my 40 week appt my bp was normal and I had progressed a little bit! I'm now 1 1/2 cm dilated and about 60% effaced. I know it could still stay this way for awhile, but it gives me hope that maybe she'll come on her own before my induction date on the 15th. Early Monday morning I was feeling a few contractions...this got me very excited. Only they stopped and I haven't felt anything since. I have also been losing my mucus plug slowly but surely this week. Yuck!

My last day of work was yesterday, so I'm home relaxing and getting ready for the arrival of our little girl! I'll try to have Jared take one more belly pic before we go to the hospital. There has been great debate at work all week regarding whether it looks like I've "dropped" at all or not. I think I have a little bit as the pelvic pain has gotten better...but the back pain has increased.
Soon there will be pictures to share of Caitlyn....I can't wait!!!

38 Week Appt

My appt yesterday was not a very good one. My blood pressure was really high. I think it was 179 over 142. The nurse took it twice, then had me lay on my left side for a few min and took it again. It went down a little bit when I laid down. So the Dr. wants me to go back on Friday morning for just a bp check to see how I'm doing. My bp was a little high at my 37 week appt - but the Dr. didn't seem concerned at that point. This week was quite a bit higher. Still nothing going on down below. Still not dilated at all and still about 50% effaced. If she doesn't come out on her own by Sept 15th we'll be induced that day. Hopefully it doesn't come to that...I really want her to come on her own! If my bp stays high they may induce me earlier. So we're just waiting....

I'm training my replacement at work and she's picking up really quick! I'm so thankful that she has some background. It makes the training so much easier!


We did a maternity photo shoot tonight. It was a lot of fun! Some of the poses and outfits she had me do I wasn't prepared for, but I kept an open mind and figure I don't have to share anything that I don't want to! I can't wait to see them. She said it would be a couple of weeks before she sent me the link.
I'll update again after my next appt.

Fred Flintstone's Feet & 37 Week Appt

I didn't come up with this term on my own...but that is exactly what my feet look like when they are swollen! At first the swelling didn't bother me so much because I couldn't feel it. But now my feet are sore because they swell throughout the day and then go down at night. It's really taking a toll on my poor little feet. Sometimes they go all the way down at night while I'm sleeping and other times I wake up and they are still slightly swollen. It really depends on how hot and humid it is outside. I wish it would just cool down and stay cool...this would make me very happy for several reasons. Then I could walk at night with the dog. And everyone else wouldn't think I'm crazy when they are freezing in the air conditioning and I'm still sweating. Jared sleeps with 2 blankets and a sheet while I sleep with barely the sheet draped over me and the fan going! Plus the swelling wouldn't be as bad and maybe my feet and fingers wouldn't hurt near as much.

I'm also dealing with extreme pelvic pain, whenever I sit or lay down for too long. This is a huge problem while sleeping at night. I'm getting up about every hour to hour and a half to go to the bathroom and it is extremely painful to get in and out of bed. It's a good thing Jared is such a sound sleeper - so he doesn't wake up every time with my whining and moaning! I know this will all be over very soon and as soon as I see our little girl I'll forget all the pain that this 3rd trimester has brought to me. I can't wait for that day to be here!!! I try to picture what she looks like and dream about holding her and taking her home. That time is almost here!

Nothing much happened at my 37 week appt. I did have another internal exam and I'm still not dilating. He stated that my cervix is starting to soften and that I'm about 50% effaced. So a little more progress than last week...but not much. It was a very short appt. In and out in 15 min! Next appt is on Monday the 25th.

Counting down...only 2 1/2 weeks to go if she comes on time!

36 Week Pic

34 & 36 Week Appts

At my 34 week appt we got a 3D u/s. This appt was actually very disappointing. The appt was supposed to be at 4:15. They were running behind so we didn't go back until after 5. This made for a very crabby pregnant lady with a very full bladder! So they get me back there, take my blood pressure (which is actually still good...considering) and take me to the u/s room. They are training a new u/s tech (which is why they are so behind). They take all the measurements and every thing looks good. Baby is healthy and actually weighing in at 5 lbs already! This freaked me out a little bit. The nurse and Dr. are like oooh healthy baby!!! And I am happy that she's healthy....but they don't have to push her out! By the time she's ready to come out she's going to be over 8 lbs! Guess I should have laid off the decaf iced caramel macchiato and apple fritters from Starbucks! This has been my only constant weakness throughout this pregnancy! Well...that and orange sherbet! Anyway, because our appt was running so late the Dr. was rushed (you could tell he had somewhere he had to be). They couldn't get any good face shots for us. So we got one picture of her face, one of her foot (which I totally can't make out) and 2 of her female parts. We're definitely having a girl! Her heartbeat has already started to slow down...I can't remember the exact rate it was at...but it was down in the 130's. Dr. says this is totally normal!

At my 36 week appt the Dr. did the strep B test. I'll get the results at next week's appt. Yes I've now graduated to weekly appts! He also did an internal exam. I had been hoping to put this off for another week. I am so uncomfortable and swollen in that area already. And I knew nothing was happening. I just have this feeling that she's going to be late. Don't know why...don't have anything to base this on. Besides the fact that I was 2 weeks late when my mom delivered me! And I was right! Nothing going on...although he did say he thought I was starting to soften. I think he just said this for my benefit because the exam was so painful. The Dr. did bring up induction because of how big she is measuring already. They won't induce me early. And at our hospital he only schedules inductions on Monday's and Thursdays because he's at the office closest to that hospital on those days. So he said either Monday the 8th (Jared's birthday) or Thursday the 11th. I definitely don't want to be induced on the 11th. If she comes on her own that day, I'm fine with it. But I wouldn't choose that for her birthdate if I had the choice. Right now Jared really doesn't want to share his birthday. So we may be waiting until Monday the 15th or just letting her come on her own before then. I really hope she just comes on her own and we don't have to worry about induction. But at least we are prepared if it does come to that.

We are still in search of a dresser for the nursery. I finally did my first laundry load of baby stuff last weekend. This is a slow process! We don't have a lot going on this weekend, so I hope to get most of her stuff washed this weekend! Jared will be busy with the fantasy football draft stuff....fun, fun!

Another update to come next week!!!

34 Week Pic

This picture is from my shower. Apparently this shirt doesn't really do my belly justice...so I'll be posting an updated one soon!

Baby Shower

My baby shower was held on July 26th. My sister, Shanna and Colleen held the shower at my house and we had a great turn out. Everyone was so generous, it was overwhelming! Faith (my aunt Theresa's little girl) was such a good little helper...I don't know how I could have done my gift opening without her! The food and punch were good and the cake (pink champagne, from the Cake Gallery) was to die for! YUMMY! I've started to go through all the things that need to be washed and taking them out of packages and getting the tags off...this is quite the chore! I finally remembered to buy some baby detergent, so the goal this weekend is to start getting things washed so that I can start putting it all away! We are also still in search of a dresser for the nursery. Who would have thought this would be the one thing we can't find and agree on??? Ugh!

I know I'm really behind! I'll be posting again later this week with an update from my 34 week and 36 week Dr. Appts.

32 Week Appt

32 Week Appt

My appt last week went really well. Dr. says everything looks good. Weight is good. I gained more than I thought again this month. I really have to just stop looking at the scale when I go in. It's so nerve wracking. Jared and I have a plan to help me lose the weight after baby comes...so I have to stop stressing about the weight I'm gaining before she comes. And I have to keep reminding myself of this! ;0) My blood pressure is good. Baby is measuring average to big...not exactly sure what that means. Heartbeat sounded wonderful! Jared mentioned that I was worried that she's still in a breech position so the Dr. was trying to see if he could feel what position she was in. Of course all he could tell me is that she's not sideways, but he couldn't really tell if she was head down or breech. And he was pushing so hard on my tummy that it was sore the rest of the night. We've now graduated to every 2 week appts and we get a 3D u/s at our next appt! We are very excited about this!

Jared and I painted the nursery 2 weekends ago. I LOVE the color. Now we just need to finish up some of the smaller details. We found some butterfly and flower stencils to paint on the walls. We also want to spell her name in wood letters and hang those over her crib. So it's still a work in progress. I want to wait until it's all finished before I post pictures. Jared also totally rebuilt the closet in her room. It's much more spacious and I LOVE it!

Not much else going on with baby at the moment. My shower is in 1 week....I can't wait!

30 Week Pic

You'll have to excuse the pj's! I also took a bare belly pic...but I'm not brave enough to post that one.

30 Week Update

Today is the first day that I've noticed my feet swelling. My fingers have been swelling because of the heat for awhile now. Had to take my ring off about a month ago and haven't put it back on since. I was too afraid of it getting stuck and having to have it cut off. I thought maybe I'd get lucky and my feet wouldn't swell....but they've started. I'm trying really hard to drink more water...but I'm so tired of drinking all water! It makes it hard! I still have ankles - so that's the positive in all this!

Zeus (our miniature dachshund) is acting pretty funny. He is usually glued to my side and a cuddle monster with me whenever I'm home. But lately he doesn't want much to do with me and is much more attached to Jared. I know dogs can sense when things are changing or are going to change. Most pregnant women I've talked to with dogs say theirs got more protective of them when they started to sense something was up - as in being pregnant. Not my dog. He's mad at me. Doesn't he know I'm hormonal and this makes me sad? Of course he still sleeps on me at night. It doesn't matter how many times I move him off of me...he moves back. I'm already so hot...I can't stand him laying on me. Ugh.

Speaking of hormones....everything makes me cry lately. TV shows, Movies, small stupid fights with Jared, the dog, songs on the radio...I could go on and on. It's been worse than it has the entire pregnancy. I hope it goes away soon!

We're keeping pretty busy on the weekends...this makes the time go fast! Only 10 weeks to go...can you believe it???

28 Week Pic

28 Week Appt

So I had my appt on Monday and it was pretty uneventful. I've been having back pain so we talked about that. The Dr. felt my back and told me he thought it was muscle tension and that I should do more stretching to help ease the pain. Apparently back pain is very common in the 3rd trimester and there's not a whole lot you can do to relieve the pain. We listened to the heartbeat and it was in the 150's. The # on the scale scared me a little bit. I wish I wasn't so concerned about the amount of weight I gain during this pregnancy. But for someone who has always battled with her weight that's just an impossible feat. It doesn't help that I've been extra sensitive lately and feeling a little down in the dumps. Since I've always been an emotional eater....this has not helped my cause at all. So I've got to try to watch what I eat a little more closely...especially the ice cream consumption! The Dr. didn't seem concerned about the weight gain since he didn't mention it. And I know that he is a Dr. that would mention it if it was of concern as we've talked about this before. So for now I just need to try to not dwell on the # and watch what I eat and try to get a little exercise in as well.

I finally signed us up for our birthing classes. It's a 6 week class and because I am such a procrastinator our first class is on July 31st and our last class will be on Sept. 4th. Hopefully she stays put until after the last class! (Sorry Kimmie and Christy!) Some people have said these classes are a waste of time and others have found them helpful. I figured I needed to find out for myself. In 6 classes you'd think I'd learn something I don't already know!

Hopefully by my next post I'll have gotten Jared to paint the nursery and I can post some pictures!

Mini Updates!

A couple of weeks ago we were able to pick up the crib (Thanks Grandpa Jansen!) and Jared put it together pretty quickly...I was very impressed! We keep talking about getting the paint and painting the nursery. We know the color we want to paint in there, it's just having the motivation to go get the paint and actually getting it done! Motivation for me is very hard to come by these days. And Jared has such a long list of things he wants to get done with the house, and the yard, and the baby that he's very overwhelmed and doesn't know where to start. I probably don't help the situation much! I told him all he can do is take it a day at a time, eventually it will all get done!

I've been feeling her move a lot more lately. I still don't feel her a lot during the day when I'm at work. Jared has only felt her once, but it was priceless. She still shy's away when people put their hands on my stomach, so Jared has been the only one that has felt her besides me so far. I am just mesmerized when she's moving and I can see my stomach move from the outside. It's really freaky!

Little Complaints: I have not slept well since the first few weeks in my pregnancy. I get up at least twice a night to pee and then usually toss and turn the rest of the night. A good night is when I sleep until 3 before I have to get up and pee! I have pretty bad heartburn and acid reflux. Tums helps for the most part, but if I eat something really spicy there is no relief. I also have restless leg syndrome pretty badly. The Dr. tells me walking will help...I think it makes it worse. But overall my pregnancy has been wonderful so far! These really are little complaints and I wouldn't trade them for the world right now! My thought is that I want to document all the good and bad things so that some day when Caitlyn is expecting her little one she can reference this and know the things I felt and the timing for when things happened.

The 3rd trimester exhaustion set back in a couple weeks early! I was hoping to have a couple more weeks of having a little bit of energy, but it creeped back up on me. This is why my motivation is so lacking.

I should have another update this week...my next Dr. appt is on Monday! After that appt I believe I graduate to every 2 weeks for appts.

26 Week Belly Pic

24 Week Appt

I had my Dr. appt yesterday and everything looks and sounds good! Her heartbeat is always music to my ears! Dr. says my blood pressure and weight are both fine. I had to take the glucose test yesterday. Orange drink wasn't too bad and I'm a pro at getting my blood drawn. No big deal! He said they should get the results today and if I don't hear from them by tomorrow then everything is good. I'm a little nervous about this test. Since I was diagnosed with PCOS during my infertility struggles I have a higher chance of getting diabetes later in life. I don't know if this applies to gestational diabetes or not and of course I didn't ask my Dr.

I had also been having some painful pelvic pressure and mentioned this to the Dr. He then wanted to do an internal exam. I wasn't expecting this, I thought it was normal. Everything is fine, but boy was that painful! I guess it's better to know that nothing is wrong then to worry constantly about it. Hopefully won't have to go through that again for awhile.

I've started to feel actual kicks and / or punches from my little girl. It is the weirdest feeling and not what I was expecting. Not that I can describe what I was expecting. It is wonderful to feel her though and to know she's okay on a daily basis! Jared hasn't been able to feel her yet. He tried on Sunday night...but nothing so far. I'm sure it will happen soon enough!

I can't believe I'm almost to the 3rd trimester. The 1st trimester snailed by, and the 2nd trimester has flown by! I'm already starting to feel the exhaustion come back.

Caitlyn's Due Date

My estimated due date is September 9th. This is my mom's birthday. (For those of you that don't know my mom passed away when I was 5.) I know that more than likely I will not actually deliver her on this date, but I truly believe that my mom was watching over for me and this is why I am pregnant and why this baby girl is still with me. I've felt very strongly from the first moment that I knew I was pregnant that this was a girl. And I was right. But I only felt that way because of my due date. We definitely would have been happy either way!

Still waiting for that first real kick! Still only feeling flutters, and it's still very sporadic. During the first part of the week I didn't feel her much at all. So Thursday morning I had a little talk with her and told her she needed to let me know she was okay and move around more in there. She's such a good girl...she listened to her mommy and Thursday and Friday was very active in there!

22 Week Belly Pic

Registering

We went and registered at Babies R Us today. It was very overwhelming and tiring! But we got registered for all the big items and a lot of small stuff. And I can finish looking at stuff online. My next project is to find a bedding set so that we can figure out how to decorate the nursery! We had a gender neutral set picked out, but now that I know I'm having a girl...I really want to make a girly nursery! Shanna has some great idea's, hopefully we can get together soon and put them into action!

Funny Daddy Stories!

~On Monday night at Buffalo Wild Wings he came to the realization that at the end of this pregnancy we're actually going to have a baby and will have to bring this baby home with us.

~The other day I bought a couple of outfits for the baby. This was the first baby purchase that I had made myself. I came home and was so excited to show Jared. Apparently this made the baby all the more real to him. All he could say is "You're really freaking me out here"! Poor guy!

~Jared mentioned that he needs to be drinking more water to me the other night and I told him that I hadn't been drinking enough either, that I really needed to work on that. He says "yes you do, what happens when your water breaks and there's not enough there...you don't want root beer coming out of there do you?" It was so hilarious!

20 Week Appt

On Thursday April 24th 2008 we had our 20 week u/s. It's a girl! Although it wasn't that easy for us to find out. The u/s tech wasn't able to tell. Baby had her legs crossed and was in a breech position. So it wasn't so easy to see what was going on down there. But when Dr. came in she was more than willing to share! Baby measured perfectly! She weighs 13 ounces. Her heartrate was 157bpm. I was really happy when the u/s tech looked at my bladder and told me I could go to the bathroom before she finished the rest of the u/s. I had to go so badly and it was really uncomfortable. I think I would have had a harder time concentrating on what was happening with the u/s if I hadn't been able to go to the bathroom. This was huge for me! It was so awesome to get to see her for so long. And she was quite squirmy. All over the place actually, the u/s tech had some troubles getting the correct measurements down. But everything looks wonderful!

We've had a girls name picked out for awhile. We're expecting Caitlyn Anita Darling in September!

Next appt I have the glucose testing. Get to drink the yummy (notice sarcasm) orange drink and have more blood drawn!

19 Week Belly Pic

16 Week Appt

On Thursday March 27th I had my 16 week appt. This was pretty uneventful. I peed in a cup, they weighed me, we waited a few min for the Dr. to come in. He came in, listened to the heartbeat. Asked if I had any questions. That was it. He didn't tell me what baby's heart rate was at this appt. I also had an acupunture appt on this day. It helped me to relax before my appt.

Now I had 4 weeks to decide if I wanted to know what our baby's sex was. I was very conflicted about this decision. I always thought that I wouldn't want to know. The "surprise" aspect was always appealing to me. But part of me wanted to be able to plan for our baby and have the name picked out. I read in Jenny McCarthy's Belly Laughs that she felt more connected to the baby after she found out what she was having. This made sense to me as well. Jared on the other hand, really wanted to know.

Decisions - Decisions!

14 Week Belly Pic

12 Week Checkup

On Tuesday February 26th I was officially 12 weeks! We had our Dr. appt on Thursday February 28th. During this appt we got another u/s. We also did the testing for down syndrom and what they call a triple screen. Both the u/s test and blood tests came back normal! Baby's heartbeat was 168bpm. Now I just had to wait 4 weeks until my next appt. This was hard for me since I had been seen every 2 weeks for the past 12 weeks. My cousin Christy suggested I rent a fetal doppler so that I could listen to the heartbeat and reassure myself that everything was still okay. This was my best investment! I listen about once a week and I always feel so much better!

The Scare

On Wednesday January 9, 2008 I started spotting. I didn't have any symptoms with my last miscarriage but I thought for sure that I was having another miscarriage. I called the RE's office and they assured me that some spotting can be normal in early pregnancy. As long as I wasn't having any cramping they thought I was fine. On Friday January 11th I started bleeding more heavily. I told Jared that something had to be wrong. My sister was moving to Des Moines that weekend and we were supposed to help her move. Jared still went with them on Saturday, but I stayed home. We decided not to go to the ER as I didn't think there would be anything they could do. I was already taking progesterone supplements and I had put myself on bedrest. I wanted to wait until Monday to see my RE. I was sure the baby was gone at this point anyway. On Monday the RE fit me in right away. We did an internal u/s and come to find out I had some blood clots and as the baby was growing, it was pushing the clots out. It was still too early to see the heartbeat at this appt., but everything looked right on track as it should be. We went back 2 weeks later on January 29, 2008 for another u/s to see the baby's heartbeat...this was the best moment ever! The heartbeat was 167bpm. I had spotting off and on for the next 2 months as the blood clots were pushed out. I also got an appt. with an u/s every 2 weeks during the first trimester to keep on eye on what was happening.

Our Journey to Pregnancy

We stopped using birth control prior to our wedding. For the first year after our wedding we just waited for it to happen. I was diagnosed with PCOS in July of 2006 and started taking a drug called Metformin, I used this until I was 12 weeks pg. It was not a fun drug for me. Then in October 2006 I started using a fertility drug called Clomid. My main side effects of this was hot flashes and terrible mood swings. I tried this for 3 months and when we didn't get any results I was referred to an RE (Reproductive Endocrinologist). In the mean time I had started acupuncture in December of 2006. I love my acupuncturist and still have sessions - although not as often. She helped me in more ways than she can possibly know! January 2007 we had our initial visit with the RE. For the next month Jared and I went through all the testing. We did our first IUI (intrauterine insemination) on March 22, 2007. And wouldn't you know it we got pregnant with the first try! We were so ecstatic! Everything looked great. We saw and heard the heartbeat at 7 weeks through an u/s. It never crossed my mind that we could lose that baby. But we did in May 2007. I went for a regular check up and the heartbeat was gone. I had a D&C the Wednesday before Mother's Day. There are no words to explain how I was feeling at that time. We started trying again in June and it took us 5 more IUI's and a surgery to remove some polyp's before getting pregnant again. We got a positive home pregnancy test on 12/30/07!