Hiccups...

This is the first time in this pregnancy that I have felt baby girl's hiccups ... it feels so funny.  A consistent little tapping against my lower belly on the left side so I suspect that she is hanging out transverse with her head to the left :-)

I feel her all the time now and I am starting to recognize her wake and sleep cycles.  Her kicking and bouncing can be felt on the outside mostly on top, buttom and on the sides.  I assumed that the minimal kicks I feel right around my middle is due to the anterior placenta in the way.

I love feeling her move ... kick along baby girl ~ kick all you want!!!

Past the 27 week mark and entering the third trimester...

It feels so good to be past the point in my pregnancy where I delivered the twins.  Looking back over the last couple of months, there have been so many days bore reminders of some really difficult times and getting past these is good for my sanity.

Today I am 27 weeks + 3 days pregnant - exactly a week further along than when I delivered sweet N&J.  As I enter the third trimester, I am thankful for each additional day of growing time in utero and every week will feel like another little victory in my book.  I think that once you have experienced a significant complication, the worry of a potential repeat lingers.  I know full well that anything can happen at anytime and that feeling of vulnerability is there, but I hope and pray that baby girl will just stay put and let me love and nurture her below my heart for a good while longer.

In the last few weeks I have felt a drive to get stuff ready for baby.  I am very happy with some successful Craigs List purchases; a pack-and-play, a crib, changing table, play mat, bouncy seat, baby bath tub, some clothes and a great deal on diapers and bath stuff (a mom decided to go completely scent free and was gifted a lot of scented stuff at her baby shower) and a biggie... a brand new car seat of the exact model I wanted.  The seller still had it in the plastic bagging and box and sold it to me for $40 cheaper than I would have to pay at the store as she had received a second one at her baby shower!!!  Score!  And then when I went to get the matching stroller, I found the last one in the store on clearance :-)

I have also bought some newborn essentials including cute little bows for our little princess :-)  There are a few random pieces that we still need to get but overall I feel pretty ready in the baby department which is good as this term will be BUSY in school!

I started my rotation in the NICU last week and had a great couple of first days there.  It will be a challenging term and there is so much to learn.  Working with and looking at these little fragile babies is a staunch reminder of where my baby is in her development right now, it is also the work I have been drawn to for a very long time and I am really excited to be there.

Off to write a couple of papers and a whole lot of studying for my upcoming skills lab :-)

Happy Sunday everyone!

Whoopi...

Three years ago I met Whoopi!!!  Really it was a VERY exciting day.  I spent the day in New York City in the Studios filming the View, taking in Central Park, and enjoying time with M&M, Miss V and her brother ... it was a beautiful experience.  I want to go back to visit New York and take my children to Central Park and visit all the sights.  Today I just want to revisit the great pics!!!

 

Thinking back 3 years this specific day is held close in my heart as that was also the day we lost little J.  Even as time passes the memories are so vivid in my heart and I cannot help to wonder why he had to leave us so soon.

The day I left for New York I left the NICU as little J came out of his first surgery.  Seeing his little body so still and tied to so many wires and tubes is etched in my mind forever.  But more so is remembering the pain washing over everyone there.  L&J and L's mother and myself ... feeling so powerless against the forces of nature on a course that could not be changed by any medical intervention.

On Tuesday I will enter the NICU as a student nurse.  I know that my summer in there will bring close memories that are difficult but I also know that I am so excited to begin this final term of my education and looking foward to working with these little tiny babies.  Today I completed another preparatory task in for this summer term by attending the S.T.A.B.L.E. class.  It was great and filled with lots of learning.....summer term here we go!

99 days until my due date...

181 days have passed with out little sweet surprise growing steadily within me ... 99 days remains until my official due date.  However, knowing that I will delivery right around the 37 week mark leaves about 78 days give or take before we meet baby girl.

These next 78 days will be jammed packed with stuff for school and summer fun for the kids.  I start the new term up with an all day S.T.A.B.L.E class on Saturday.  It is a neonatal education program focusing on post-resuscitation/pre-transport stabilization of sick infants.  It covers practical aspects of neonatal care focusing on Sugar, Temperature, Airway, Blood pressure, Lab work, and Emotional support - all of which are crucially important in all newborns but especially so in premature babies.


The summer term ~ my last term in nursing school ~ starts on Monday and I will be going for my first on the floor clinical day on Tuesday.  I am so excited to start.  I know there will be a lot of learning to get done between now and the end of summer ... but really that learning process will never end - there will always be more.

The kids go off to Camp K in the end of June.  Magnus is going to be a junior CIT this year so he will be going for two weeks.  Sebastian will join him in the first week and Olivia will be there for the second.  All three of them are looking forward to camp this year.

Going to camp also offers three weekends in a row on the coast.  I am looking forward to catching up with friends and getting yard work done around the house.  I really wish we would get an offer on the house and be able to conclude this chapter; however, that is not happening.  I am not sure yet what our plan going forward will be.  An offer would be amazing!

Busy summer ahead ... looking forward to every moment of it :-)

Father's Day...

Wishing both M and J a Happy Father's Day ... I hope for both of you that it is filled with lots of love and happy memories.

Also a very Happy Father's Day to my hubby .. I never thought that we would share another Father's Day expecting a little bundle of joy.  It makes me incredibly happy and she is kicking up a storm for you in my belly.

Hugs XOXO...

Great Craigs List finds...

I found a great deal on Craigs List for a crib and changing table last week.  $125 for both and the mattress and it is all in great shape.  We put it together when I can back from Portland on Friday evening and just this morning I got it all situation the way we want it in the bedroom.  It is a snug fit but it will do :-) 

I have also purchased a pack-n-play and bouncy seat on Craigs List - the bouncer is sitting in the crib.  I love getting some good deals for baby girl especially since we officially had no baby stuff left.

Out of the mouths of babes...

This morning walking Olivia and Sebastian to school Sebastian goes "..Mom look even your shadow looks fat!"

...Gee thanks honey ... but I think you got it all wrong ~ if I turn to a different angle I still look very long and lean ;-)

And for the record, I am still doing pretty good with my steps.  There are days where I do not reach my 10K goal but it evens out with days that I go over.  Looking at my progress on a weekly basis, I pretty consistently hit above 70,000 mark which makes me very happy!

5 years ago today...

I lost my father.  I miss him ... I looked back to my post 5 years ago and you know I am still missing his voice.  I still can't hear it even if I try really hard to recall it.  I know exactly how it sounded but the sound bites are still locked away somewhere in my mind.

I remember thinking during one of my visits home that at least he had met and seen all my babies...  that at least they all got to know him just a little bit.  Today it makes me sad to know that baby girl will never get that pleasure.  Instead I hope that he looks down upon us from above and sends his love.

Baby update...

Baby girl is doing great.  Her heart rate was galloping along at 138 beats per minute and her estimated weight is at 1 lbs 6 oz.  The placenta looks good and firmly attached - it makes me breathe a sigh of relief.  While the placenta is sitting across the front of my belly, all the blood flow is contained within the uterine cavity and there appears to be no risk for accreta along my previous c-section scar.  It truly was all good news today.

My OB is happy with my blood sugars - they are all within range even without any change to my diet.  Though I can tell that Mexican food is definitely giving my higher blood sugars .. so I will attempt to lay off that for the rest of my pregnancy.  I will continue to do blood sugar checks for the last few days before each visit.  The scale is up a few pounds so all in all I have gained about 12-13 lbs now.  

I checked in with my doc about the delivery date again and it looks like 37 weeks will be baby time.  I finish school in the very end of August and week 37 is that very next week.  It seems a little unreal and then again VERY real!  Wow baby girl stay snuggled up .. we have one exciting summer ahead of us.

I go back to the doctor in 4 weeks ... I am so happy and relieved that all is looking good. 

Ultrasound today...

I have an OB visit and ultrasound scheduled today.  I am excited to get a peek at baby girl and to see how she is growing.  The primary focus for the ultrasound is to check placental location and to look at my cervix to see if there are any changes.  This is just a precaution due to my early delivery with the twins.  Hopefully all will look great...update to follow :-)

I also called my insurance this morning to get a few things settled with respect to expected out of pocket costs and such.  My annual copay is $500 plus an out of pocket max of $1,000 ... thankfully my short term disability covers just about as much so.  In addition, great news is that my breast pump will be covered at 100% as long as I order it through a preferred provider.  I want to get that done soon so I have by time of delivery.  I plan to breastfeed exclusively and am really looking forward to doing so again.  Having the pump will allow hubby (and big siblings ... if they want) to feed baby girl as well and will come in handy when I start up working.