The Final Countdown

These last few weeks have been a blur. I guess mostly because life consisted of craziness at school, doctor appointments, and complete exhaustion. I was constantly on edge about going into labor at any moment, especially since the Diva was rolling around in my belly in every position but head down. A lot of research, effort, and several copays to the chiropractor were put into attempts to get her to flip, including one involving the ironing board and me being in a position you shouldn't be at 9 months pregnant, but in the end none worked.

The perinatologist started talking about the high possibility of needing a c section, and my brain went nuts. I was worried that my OB wouldn't be willing to work with me, and attempt to flip her before wanting to just do a c section. It was also concerning that if she did flip head down, that she may or may not stay that way, due to the extra fluid. I began to mentally prepare myself for having a c section, and all that that would entail. Talk about high anxiety!

In the end, even though I had been frustrated with my OB, he ended up being very open to discussing a our options. At my 36 week appointment we talked about my concern that we were running out of time, since my water broke with Carter at a few days past 38 weeks. Basically if my water did break, he told me I needed to get to the hospital pretty quickly to have a c section, since there was a high chance of cord prolapse with her not being in a correct position. But he also told us that he thought I was a good candidate for an external cephalic version to flip her, and that I may be also able to avoid having an epidural to do that since there was extra fluid. Once it was successful, he could go ahead and break my water before she flipped back. That seemed to us like our best option, even though it meant essentially choosing her birthdate, which I fundamentally have a problem with. He told me to discuss all this with the perinatologist the next day at my appointment.

So the next day I did so, except oddly enough with a doctor I never had seen in all my trips to that office. He told me he thought Delaney would be fine to do this procedure at 38 weeks, and even made a call to my OB while I was there to let him know.

The following Tuesday at my 37 week appointment, after confirming that she was indeed still breech, we started talking dates to schedule the version. Christiaan and I were hoping that he would go for doing it Friday, since it was only one day from 38 weeks, because the next option was the following wednesday, the day after Christmas. Unfortunately, he said he couldn't do it before I was officially 38 weeks, or he would get in trouble. So the 26th it was. This made me nervous, mainly because I was worried that my water would break before then, but also because she was getting bigger by the day and I wasn't sure what effect that would have on the version. But we didn't have a choice. I just turned it over to God as to what happened.

Little did we know what on earth our fiesty little girl had in mind... :)

Fall activities

I'm going to interrupt the string of pregnancy related news for a photo update.  Let me just say that things/Blogger/BlogPress app are not making it very easy to post pictures these days. A) My computer has been rendered completely useless by a virus it caught at my school, which I cannot afford to get fixed because, you know, ridiculous amounts of medical bills; B) Blogger keeps flipping pictures sideways randomly, and I only just this morning figured out how to remedy this; and C) My BlogPress app refuses to upload pictures. Useless. Completely useless.

Anywho, here are some things we have been up to this fall, via iPhone pictures emailed to myself and uploaded from a computer....



Carter helped Daddy carve a pumpkin.  Well Carter helped him clean it out, then watched from afar as he carved it.



The final product! Carter was so proud of it! Sidenote: He had been recovering from round 3 of the stomach bug that day, and after getting him down from the counter I discovered that he had had a small blowout, and left some on the counter.  Enter massive scrubbing/Lysol wiping/hot bleach water to sufficiently sanitize.

Buzz Lightyear at Trunk or Treat, prior to hitting up the games for candy. I had to make sure I was photographing my own child, as there were several Buzzes walking around

Sweet mercy.  His eyes basically looked like that under the glasses too.

Carter got to go to Baylor's homecoming game with us. I have never seen a 2 year so into a game! Screaming Touchdown! Fumble! Interception! Sic em bears! GO GO GO GO RUN FAST!! He was quite entertaining! Well until halftime, when, reminiscent of homecoming 2 years ago, th stands were cleared due to approaching severe storms. This time we did not hang out with 15,000 fans under the bleachers, but chose to wait it out in the truck.  Which by the way, was parked VERY close to the stadium since Mom loaned us the handicapped tag! Shhhh.....

The boys found ways to entertain themselves

And when the storm passed(which wasn't severe at all) we went back in and finished out the game.  And on the way out of the stadium, Carter was asking for more football.....

Making his Christmas wish list for Nana

Practicing how to hold a baby with cousin Jaden

The last belly pic of me and Chels taken the day before she was induced

And Miss Thang, AKA Leighton the next day! I literally cried when i met her! So precious, and made me so ready to have our own sweet girl in my arms!

Aaaannnnddd......round 3 of the stomach virus.  The night before my baby shower he came down with it. And this time he was totally miserable until Sunday night.  This may very well be the saddest face ever. 

But this was his face Sunday night, as he was on the mend!

He thinks he is big stuff wearing a Baylor hoodie like Daddy

On our annual visit to Ice at the Gaylord, we decided to take the boys this year. The theme was Madagascar, or Afro circus as Carter calls it, so we thought it would be a hit, and it was!

Carter, Raygen, and Brycen

Sweet picture of the kiddos, then the big boys decided to replicate it.....

We had Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Carter was pretty impressive helping Miranda make the "bana" pudding. Check out the tongue stuck out in concentration!

We took a ton of pictures in the front yard, and I stole this one from Devin.

Mom had the guys get all her Christmas stuff down, and they finally found this guy in the attic! She has been dying to let Carter have at it, since it was a staple toy when we were kids! Of course he loves it....

We took Carter to see Santa at Bass Pro.  He was stoked to see him, even practicing his cheese smile while we were in line!And he had been talking about what he was going to ask Santa to bring him. But walking up to him the nerves kicked in, and I had to coax/drag him near Santa. He refused to sit on his lap, but Santa offered to let him stand on the footstool, which Carter was ok with.  He wouldn't speak or look the poor man in the face, but when told to smile, this is what we got....what a ham! He was so proud of himself and kept saying "I did it! I say cheese! But Carter no sit on Santa lap..."

Well, that's about all I have on my phone! If anyone would like to donate free computer fixing services so that mine can actually function again, that would be awesome.....

I give up

Uncle. Mercy. Stick a fork in me, I'm done.

I don't do 9 months pregnant very well. Why on earth women would voluntarily do this over and over again is beyond me. Yeah, yeah, you get a sweet blessing from God, it's only temporary, and all that jazz, but seriously Michelle Duggar, what crack are you smoking?? I'm a huge Duggar fan, but 19 pregnancies?? Beyond nuts.

I hate feeling helpless and not being able to jump up and handle things. I hate asking for help. I hate not being able to do laundry or take out the trash because we live on the second floor and it's all I can do to go up and down the stairs. I hate that my 2 year old has watched movies so much in the last couple of months.

But everything I do makes me have contractions. Bending over, carrying anything, standing upright too much, even laying a weird way in bed at night. I hurt most all the time, for one reason or another. Going to church this morning and lunch afterwards absolutely wore me out.

It's super frustrating.

I've got things to do, lists to cross off, lessons to plan. And I can't seem to get any of it done.

I didn't feel this way with carter until the last week or so that I was pregnant. Obviously this pregnancy is a bit different and there are some added stressors that are making it a smidge complicated, and I'm older too. So where on one hand I really really want Delaney to stay put for a few more weeks so that A)her little body is better developed, and B) she has time to flip out of a breech position, and C) I can get paid for Christmas break, I'm also ready to not be pregnant and ready to hold my girl.

The perinatologist reduced my work hours starting last week and is also having me come in weekly for non-stress tests. Basically they monitor her heart rate for a half hour to make sure there are no signs of stress from the round the clock contractions and extra fluid. My OB's response was he thought it was overkill....it took every ounce of inner strength not to serve him a knuckle sandwich for dinner. Who says crap like that to a nervous, hormonal pregnant woman??

Then there are the nightmares. Oh good geez, pregnancy dreams make a bad acid trip look like a walk in the park. Not that I know what that's like. Some of them involve actually things I am nervous about, mostly in regards to labor and delivery, but the rest are just totally whack.

So hopefully my reduced work hours will help give my worn out body the rest it needs to keep the Diva put for at least 3 more weeks. I'm so grateful that she has held off this long, despite all the times I thought she was coming early. I can't possibly imagine having to leave my baby in the hospital after I was released. Which has been the subject of a couple of my nightmares. Carter has been asking lately about baby Laney coming out of mommy's tummy...wish I had an answer for ya dude!!


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My what is irritable??

So at the perinatologist appointment on Wednesday, I was very relieved to hear that my cervix had not gotten any shorter, and the level of excess fluid had not gotten any higher. But then she tells me that it seems that I have an irritable uterus.

Um, ok.

She said that the excess fluid is causing it to flair up, causing the more than normal Braxton Hicks I have been having, but not really affecting my cervix. I thought that sounded hilarious, and had to turn to the Googles to figure out exactly what she meant. After reading some things about it, it totally makes sense. Why I can't walk from my classroom to the gym without having contractions, or bend over, why it hurts my "uterus" to sneeze, why I thought I was in full blown labor and made an emergency visit to the OB last week, even why I thought I was experiencing a resurgence of morning sickness. There's also no definitive research as to if it's a causative factor of pre-term labor; some go past their due date and some deliver early. Well ok then, I guess I'll just chalk it up to another weird medical thing I have and move on.

On Thursday I actually felt pretty darn good all day. Granted I didn't get out of my chair much, but just before I left school I was thinking hmm I had a good day (physically) today. On my way out of the building I stopped to talk to another teacher, and while doing that I felt a gush of fluid. Like way more than the incident in September. Enough that I knew my pants were wet. I threw down my stuff and waddled as fast as I could to the bathroom down the hall. What I saw alarmed me, and I called for my preggo friend Chelsea to come see. So glad that I work with some of my closest friends who wouldn't think twice to look at my skivvies when I think something is wrong. That's love right there.

She too thought it was not right, and she and Deanna convinced me to call the doctor. Even though I knew they would think again that I peed myself. The nurse told me to go on in, especially since I have all the extra fluid because it does put me at a bit higher risk of preterm labor.

When I got to L&D the nurse(who didn't impress me much from the get go) quickly determined that once again, it was not amniotic fluid, which I honestly wasn't surprised about. But then she told me that I was dilated to 1 1/2. Say what?? Because 24 hours ago my cervix was completely closed on the sono, and the week before I wasn't dilated either when my OB checked. Between that and the fact that I was having a spell of contractions every 2-3 min, I was taken aback. She said they might do another sono to see what my cervix looked like, then went to call in to my OB to see what he wanted to do.

So needless to say when she came back in about 5 minutes and said ok he says you can go home, I was more than surprised. And for once a bit speechless. Mom was surprised too, and when she questioned the nurse about the contractions and being dilated, the nurse said my OB was less than impressed that I was dilated, due to it being my second pregnancy. When I did voice my concern, Nurse Rude said "well you can stay here as long as you want to, but I'm not checking your cervix again." Thanks for easing my mind so pleasantly.

I guess I'm just at a loss here. None of these things happening sound in the realm of normal, and although I didn't go to med school, I'm not a freaking idiot. Nor do they sound normal to any friends around me, and my mom can't believe they haven't at least put me on bedrest. But what do you do when your doctor is "less than impressed" by any abnormal symptoms you have, regardless of the fact that I'm only following his own directions on when to call your doctor. I feel like I'm being treated like a moron that's just panicking over little things. I'm seriously kicking myself for not going with a midwife, and have thought about contacting the one my friend at work sees, because I really doubt a midwife would blow off my instincts about my own body. I've pretty much decided that I'm not calling another doctor or visiting L&D again until I'm hurting so bad I can't talk or someone has to mop up my amniotic fluid.

Meanwhile, I've got the baby's bag all packed, and I've started my hunt for my hospital pajamas. Which is kinda hard to do when you can only go to a couple of stores before needing a nap. I really should start using the motorized carts. :)



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New Name!

Well I finally came up with a new blog name.  And good grief, if you know us at all, you know how fitting it is! 

Since it wouldn't be fair to Delaney if the blog was named after her brother, I have been racking my unclever brain to come up with some cutesy name to change it to, possibly something involving our last name. But alas, nothing ever came to me.....until the last couple of weeks when I finally resided myself to the fact that maybe our lives would never be "normal."  Not normal in the sense that most young families know, at least.  My life has always been a bit chaotic, but it was always just me, I never really dragged anyone else into it. And through every stage of mine and Christiaan's relationship I keep thinking.....well when he moves here....when we get engaged....when we get married.....when we get our own house.....

But by now we have reached each of those stages except getting a house, and it seems like each step brings its own version of crazy, or sometimes steps it up a notch.  My mom has always told Christiaan that one day he would see what normal looked like in our family, but I think we have yet to find that again.  Its actually one of the big reasons that my dad was so fond of Christiaan, because of the fact that he walked into this relationship without a second thought of what all he was being asked to take on at the time.  That and the fact that he knew just how passive a man it would take to corral me and my, ahem, flair for the dramatics....

Just to give you an idea of what I mean by crazy, here's a short run-down of events of the last 3 years....
-found out I was pregnant with Carter (and a whole slew of crazy that went along with that)
-Dad was diagnosed with leukemia, the same week mom found out she needed a hysterectomy
-my uncle almost died from pneumonia, the same week mom had surgery
-Carter was born
-the day we were released from the hospital, Grandpa was admitted and almost died the next day
-Christiaan got mono
-Christiaan moved here
-my Nannie broke her hip
-Dad relapsed, thus beginning 11 months of one horrible event after another
-Carter had surgery for ear tubes
-we got engaged
-Christiaan's Nanny died
-Aunt Karen's GiGi died
-we got married
-Dad died
-all the stuff with Mom's house being renovated, and we all had to move out, right after Christiaan had given up the lease on his apartment
-we had our official wedding
-got pregnant with Delaney, and since about week 25 she has been stirring up trouble herself

So there you go. And that's just the major events, thrown in the mix were multiple bouts of illnesses with all three of us, and other regular life struggles.  I know everyone has their problems, but I dare you to tell me that we haven't been through the ringer these last couple of years.

Maybe one day our lives will be normal, but then we will probably be bored. 

Sometimes I get overwhelmed by all the crazy.  But you know what??? Through a crazy amount of prayer and some leaps of faith, I'm still breathing, we have made it through each event, and are better because of or in spite of them. 

Today

One year ago today.....



I put on this little white dress....




And took my Daddy's big, strong hand, while my Momma pushed his wheelchair and the nurses pushed his IV poles....




And this man waited anxiously in the courtyard at Medical City Dallas....




And these people (and some random others inside the building) watched us repeat our vows to each other....




And we were married in the eyes of our God.

 In three short years both of our lives have changed incredibly.  If you don't believe in the hand of God being in charge of your life, come listen to our story.  A little over three years ago we were both wondering through life alone, waiting for that moment to happen when you realize your life is about to change.  Our paths had never crossed, we lived in two different cities.  And then one day.....

And just like that our lives came together. 

Even just reflecting back on what we have been through in the last year alone, I am amazed at what we have been through.  One year into our marriage and we are getting ever closer to meeting our baby girl, adding another piece to our little family.

My sweet guy, I cannot be grateful enough for you. I don't know how you tolerate me and my crazy parade, but I'm so glad you do! I am proud to be on this journey with you, and love the life we have started together, even if it means living in a one bedroom apartment atop a barn with two kids under two and two psycho dogs. All the more stories we will tell our grandchildren!  I can't wait to see where the next year takes us. I love you to the moon and back!

(Here's the story of how that day came to be, if you missed it!)

So about that 1%

Umm. Yeah.

Well that was Wednesday's news.

Polyhydramnios. Too much amniotic fluid. Who the hell?? Oh yeah, one percent. Me.

At this point it's a mild case, thank goodness, but it apparently justifies being monitored more closely. It seems to be the reason behind the frequent Braxton hicks(or what I thought were just BH), which could be the cause of the other news from yesterday...my cervix got shorter since they checked it two weeks ago. It's just over the normal length range, but the fact that it got so much shorter in two weeks is more reason to be monitored.

My main concern, obviously, is for The Diva's well-being, and as the doctor explained, most all mild cases are unexplained and have no effect on the baby. But possible reasons could be due to a large baby which she is not, mother having diabetes which I won't even go there again, and genetic disorders. I pretty much checked out after she said those two words, despite her saying out of four sonos they have done, she shows no indications of any. but as a mom, it's the holy crap moment you pray to never experience.

There are also a whole host of possible complications, most of which lead to pre-term labor and/or emergency c-section, but I'm choosing not to think about those since she said its considered mild as of now.

So I will go back in two more weeks for another sono to check on both of these issues, with the stern instructions to sit and rest as much as possible in the meantime and don't underestimate any small change in any symptoms I've been having. Any changes could lead to bed rest, and no part of my life has time for that nonsense. It's looking more and more like I'll be lucky to get to 38 weeks, but who knows. She's my child after all, she could very well give us all these fits and be two weeks late!

I do totally feel justified in feeling so swollen and distended, and it explains why my belly is so much bigger than with Carter. And again, the sono tech did a 3d one and actually got a shot of a smile before she replaced her hand dramatically across her face!

Thank God for technology. And sorry it is sideways.

Comparison

So lately I keep thinking that my belly is around the same size that it was at the end of my pregnancy with Carter. Tonight we took a 30 week belly shot, and now I'm pretty much convinced its quite close to the same size. What do you think??


I know that every pregnancy is different, and most people are bigger earlier in subsequent pregnancies, but holy crap. I mean, I still have 10 weeks til my due date, how much bigger am I going to get? And it's not just the size, it's the discomfort factor that I'm most concerned about. That picture was taken literally just a few hours before my water broke with Carter at 38 weeks and 2 days. I could barely walk, slept sitting almost straight up(when I could sleep), was having strong Braxton Hicks all the time, and had horrendous heartburn. Already at 30 weeks I struggle to walk because she's already so low, sleeping is increasingly difficult, have been having BH pretty regularly since 25 weeks, although the heartburn has been kept at a minimum thus far.

I guess it also kinda worries me that I'm experiencing all this so much earlier. I just pray it's because my body is in worse shape than before and that she stays put til noon on December 21!!

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Dear Moron at the lab,

Hi, remember me?? The pregnant woman that you yelled at in front of a waiting room full of people, including several young children?? And tried to dispute the orders that my doctor had written? You know, the guy who actually went to med school.

Well I'm writing to let you know that you really shouldn't have messed with my blood test results just to try and prove your point. It just wasn't a good idea. Not only will your supervisor be getting a phone call Monday morning, but your location has been blacklisted by my doctor's office due to your rudeness and ineptness. Oh and also, when I receive the bill from the 3 hours of blood work that I was forced to endure due to your stupidity, you can bet your butt I'll be forwarding that on to your office to pay, along with a letter demanding reimbursement for the time I had to take off work to do said blood work. Time I didn't have to give, time away from my unborn daughter when it comes time for maternity leave. And I'll probably throw in the $98 bill that I received last week from your office for the botched blood work you did, just for good measure.

Let me give you a piece of advice--don't piss off a pregnant woman. I have no clue if you've ever been pregnant, but seriously?? Are you that ignorant that you don't know how hormonal and emotional we are?? As for me, I tend to have a short fuse in general with rude people, but toss in some stress and a buttload of pregnancy hormones and things get taken to a whole different level. Also, just be nice to be people. I'm aware you see all kinds of weirdos since you work at a lab, but not everyone coming in there is a crack whore getting her monthly STD test done. In fact, the people I saw there were normal, everyday people, adults and children, who's doctors sent then for blood work. They were likely a bit nervous in the first place, then you treat them like trash and that certainly doesn't put them at ease.

Maybe you were just having a bad day, maybe you hate your job, but for goodness sake. Please just suck it up and pretend to be nice to people for the 8 hours you are there. I promise, in the long run it will make you a happier person.

Sincerely,
Hormonal pregnant woman

P.S. here are the lab results from the 3 hours of blood work, which proves to me just how much tampering you did to the original results

The Diva

Delaney has earned herself a nickname before she has even taken her first breath. I had such high hopes that she would be calm natured like her Daddy, since Carter obviously took after me and I diagnosed him in the womb with ADD, but perhaps no such luck. She could prove me wrong and be of the quiet diva sort, but girlfriend is going to be a diva nonetheless.

So after the whole 4 hour stint in the hospital last month, I've been increasingly more uncomfortable and began having Braxton Hicks pretty much daily. 2 weeks ago I did the glucose screening test, and after a near physical fight with the moron at the lab (why in the hell are people so ignorant enough to mistreat a hormonal woman??), I supposedly failed the test. I'm not entirely convinced that she didn't do something shady with the blood work. I may not be a medical professional, but I find it difficult to believe that a person who suffers from low blood sugar problems can end up with gestational diabetes, or come even remotely close to it.

So today I had to take a half day from work to do the 3 hour test. Meaning, nothing to eat or drink since dinner last night, drink straight up the sugariest (i think I just made up a word) 3 oz of liquid ever first thing this morning, then sit around the doctor's office to have my blood drawn 4 times in 3 hours. While there I did have my monthly appointment where we addressed all the different things that have been going on, namely the previous episode and the more recent timing of Braxton Hicks, and my doctor decided to be on the safe side and have me see the perinatologist again to make sure my cervix wasn't getting shorter.

I had to run over to the hospital to get the Rhogam shot (5th needle of the day, thankyouverymuch) from the pharmacy there so I stopped by his office to schedule an appointment. They had a cancellation at 1:30, so my half day turned into a whole day.

Fortunately though, there doesn't seem to be any activity with my cervix, and Delaney is looking good, measuring right on time and at 2 lbs 15 oz! The doctor wants to check again in 2 weeks to see if there has been any change, but hopefully all will still be well and I'm going to do my best to rest and take it easy from here on out.

So apparently our girl either just needed some more attention, or is going to be a walking medical weirdo like her momma. I'm hoping she hasn't inherited my odd medical happenings. Sometimes I wonder if people think I'm a hypochondriac because the weirdest things happen to me. If there's a 1% chance of something, I am the 1%. I'll take a prissy diva any day of the week to balance out the epitome of boy that her brother is. :)

I guess the sweet sono tech felt sorry for me and turned on the 3D while checking out Miss Priss! It totally made my day! And makes me so much more excited to see her in person, if that was possible. Carter has even been talking about seeing baby Laney face!







Passed smooth out with her arm draped dramatically across her head. And wouldn't budge.

The general consensus is she has Christiaan's big lips and Carter's nose and big cheeks. And Carter said she looks like GramPam. Haha.

So, as much as I'm ready to kiss those squishy cheeks, we need her to stay there until at least Christmas break. Then all bets are off!

Picture Purge

Eating a grape co snone, as he called it


Loving on the "feral" barn cat



Being silly with My My



His beloved My My and Aly gave him this punching bag. Obviously it was a hit!



Karen sent me this from school



Entertaining us at Devin's first football game



First Baylor watching party of the season



Another gem from Karen...this is the 3 musketeers. One day they decided to have a dance party, complete with a semi-striptease...boys....



He put the Chiquita sticker on his head and declared himself a banana face



All we have gotten from Christiaan's tomato plant. He and Carter shared them both said they were good, but I may never know for myself if it doesn't make any more!







We passed these fruit snacks on an end cap at Walmart and he let out a scream so loud that several nearby people stopped dead in their tracks to see what was going on. What is up with these stupid birds??



His prized pumpkin. It slept with him a few nights, and he carried it everywhere for a few days.







I finally got him to put on his whole costume and not just the wings and gloves. He goes crazy while wearing it, and I know I'm biased, but have you ever seen anything so cute??



My family birthday dinner at Razzoo's



On a very rainy day, we just happened to find this super cute umbrella at the store! He thinks he's big stuff!

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