Month: January 2015

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Baby #2 #35 Weeks

peanutsmiles

Dear Baby,

IMG_4537 Ahh…. 35 Weeks. The milestone of ’35 weeks down and 35 days to go’. 35 days seems like nothing, but 5 weeks still feels like a ways away. At home, I’m feeling like I don’t have a whole lot to do to prep for your arrival. Your room is ready, I have diapers and wipes, nursing stuff ready and he fabric shells of all of your gear is washed. The three things I have left to do include: getting a hospital bag packed, buying an outfit to bring you home in and buckling the car seat base into the car. This is miles ahead of where we were with Lexi considering we hadn’t even had a shower at this point.

What I’m not ready for is stepping away from work and all of the things that come with a having a newborn. I’m ready to have a break from the craziness of work and just be at home with our family, but there is so much going on that only I am aware of and need to start to mind dump my projects onto others so things don’t fall apart when I leave. I’m also slightly disappointed to be leaving as I feel like there are a couple of projects I’ve been working on for the past 6 months that are finally starting to make headway and now I’m going to have to step away and wont’ be able to close the loop on everything. This is such a different mindset than I had with Lexi and honestly surprises me. I’ve never been so engaged and passionate about a job before. I’ve always been passionate about doing a good job, but haven’t been attached to what I’ve been doing. I can already tell that it will make going back to work so much easier than with Lexi.

I’m also not prepared for life with a newborn. Lexi was so easy on us, but I know I can’t expect that you will be like that and almost feel very naive of what to expect. I’m not ready to have lots of sleepless nights and wake up at 5-6 am everyday for the next 6+ years. I’m not ready for the amount of time I will need to spend with you and how that will change my relationship with Lexi. The other thing I don’t feel prepared for is the amount of love I will have for you. It is so hard to understand and believe that I could love another little babe as much as I love your sister.

The pain I was feeling last week when I walked or stood on one foot has gone away, and been replaced with the pregnancy waddle and a non-stop need to go to the bathroom. I constantly feel like I need to go, and that if I don’t go I may have an accident. This could also be a result of drinking more water, but I think it has a lot to do with you just getting bigger. I also subconsciously groan when I stand up and need a little assistance by pushing off on my own legs or holding onto something when I get up from the floor. I also have a hard time going up stairs while holding Lexi.

Sleep is getting more difficult. I have a harder time staying asleep and mobility is limited. The thought of rolling over is comparable to the idea of running a marathon–terrifying! In general, I have very littler energy. I’m working hard to try and not let that effect Lexi and have her watch TV every night after work, even though that’s what I want to do.

I’m looking forward to next week when we have another ultra-sound and get a better progress update on how things are going. 36 weeks feels like a big mental milestone.

Love,

Mama

Baby 2, Pregnancy Updates

Baby #2 34 Weeks

peanutsmiles

Dear Baby,

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The bump continues to get bigger every week. I have a couple of defined stretch marks to the left of my belly button and it looks alike a couple developing on the right side. There are 3-4 lines on each side and make about 2 inches long. My belly button still remains an ‘innie’ although it is starting to appear flatter.

This past week was interesting. On Sunday, Daddy and I went to a movie for one of the first times in over a year. It was such a nice treat to 1.) see a movie and 2.) see it in a theater. Grandma B and Papa watched Lexi and after, Lexi and I sat in the hot tub. Papa was nice enough to turn the temp down so it was safe for me to go in. While I was in there, it felt great, but almost immediately after, I felt more pelvic pressure and a little pain every time I would put pressure onto a foot.

This pain continued throughout the week and had me a little concerned. Did my water break or get a really small leak? What was making me feel so crappy? Then on Tuesday, I had a couple of real, painful contractions, which had me very concerned. There were only a couple so I’ve coupled it up against dehydration and just trying to do too much. Mental note to myself that nothing at work is worth having you arrive early or put onto bed rest. Must take better care of myself.

Overall, work continues to be absolutely insane. Being down two-and-a-half people on our team of 4 is a killer. I’m working ~15 hours a day and working on a project that is pretty complex and brand new to me, so I’m a little worried I may be missing something or with the aggressive timelines may not meet the deadline. Hoping that everything falls into place and things settle down in the next two weeks when our new team members start.

Other updates around you: sleep continues to be pretty good. I wake up around 4 to go to the bathroom. Just not feeling like I’m getting enough sleep. Your movement continues to be aggressive. Lots of stretching, hiccups and kicking of my internal organs verses the outside.

At the doctor’s appointment this morning, your heartbeat was the lowest it has ever been, 133–which has me leaning on the boy side of the gender again. The doctor also thought you were sleeping which may explain the lower heart rate. Everything else seems to be going well. I did have her check me to make sure you hadn’t dropped or any kind of progression had been made and she confirmed that everything looks as it should for 34 weeks. Weight gain is at 17 lbs.

I think that is it for now.

Love, Mama

Baby 2, Pregnancy Updates

Baby #2 33 Weeks

peanutsmiles

Dear little babes,

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Another week is checked off the list. I can’t decide if time is going fast or slow. It is hard to believe it is the middle of January and I only have to wait 7 or 8 weeks to meet you. It feels like the last 30 weeks or so have gone by in a flash, yet when I think about last June when we found out we were expecting you, it feels like another lifetime.

In general, work is insanely busy right now so I’m hoping these last few weeks feel like they go fast. I’m excited to meet you and see how you blend into our family.

This past week, the weirdness in my hands and feet has gotten more intense. They feel very dry regardless of how much lotion I put on and like they need to be massaged. However, after I’m done rubbing them, they don’t feel better. It is very much like restless leg syndrome in my feet. Wearing socks to bed helps–specifically, ones that have compressed arch supports. I remember this same thing with Lexi–which ended up turning into ICP, we’ll see if the same thing happens this time, or it is just a weird side effect of pregnancy.

Overall, I continue to feel pretty good and fairly comfortable. I still have a limited range of positions I can sit or lay at to feel like I can breath normally, which isn’t a big deal. Sleep is still going well. Eating is kind of up in the air. I do eat, but don’t have a large appetite and get full pretty quickly. For the most part, nothing gets my mouth watering–just eating out of necessity. Heartburn has been fairly minimal as well as general hip pain and swelling that I was experiencing last time.

I don’t have the time to analyze and day dream like I did with Lexi, which I think made those last 8 weeks with her go by slowly. I’m hoping these next 7 to 8 weeks will be quickly.

Overall, i feel like your movements have become much more intense over the last week or two. Kicks, rolls and you stretching out are much stronger and felt more intensely than they used to. I can now also identify different body parts. You’re head down and can tell the difference between your feet stretching out and your hands.

Until next week…

Love, Mama

Baby 2, Pregnancy Updates

Baby #2 32 Weeks

peanutsmiles

Sweet Little Baby,

IMG_4513

I’m starting this weeks update with the same phrase as last weeks, ‘What a difference a couple of days can make.’ This week was definitely smoother than last and included ringing in the new year. The year we get to meet you! So exciting. Work was busy all week and it was so nice having New Years Day off. I was able to take down and pack away all of our Christmas decorations AND get your bedroom ready for you.

Earlier in the week, we moved Lexi to her new big girl bedroom and so far she is doing great. This also enabled me to move a couple things around in your room and get the newborn baby tubs out. Your clothes are folded in your drawers and hung in your closet and Lexi’s toys all have a home. Overall, I’m feeling much more prepared. I even feel that it won’t be a big deal to if the basement isn’t bedroom finished by the time you’re born–which is a huge mental shift for me in general, but especially from last week.

Onto your progress. I had a doctors appointment this morning and you continue to appear very healthy! Your heart rate is at 155–which is another checkmark on the ‘your a girl’ list. It isn’t always the case, but girls heart rates tend to be a little higher and you’ve consistently been in the 150-160 range, which from my understanding is on the higher side of the scale. Overall, I’m about 50/50 in thinking your a girl or a boy. Lexi continues to refer to you as her sister. Completely unprompted, she was talking about how she wants to share her new books with her sister. Her confidence in you being a girl is definitely impacting my perception.

Sleep continues to be pretty good. I usually need to get up once a night to go to the bathroom, but on the nights that I’m able to make it through the whole night are glorious. No complaints in the heartburn department. Occasionally, I’ll have a little bit, but remember it being much more frequent and intense with Lexi. My fingers have started to swell. I removed one of my wedding rings, but am still able to wear the engagement/wedding so nothing too bad on that side of things. Energy hasn’t been too bad this week either, but that could also be a result of going into work later than normal as it was a holiday week so I was getting more sleep. Shortness of breath continues–most suprisenly when I’m just sitting. I’m pretty sure you are sitting much higher than Lexi was as I don’t have the hip pain or pelvic pressure I did with her. Overall, I feel pretty comfortable and am not impatient to meet you. I’m sure this will all change over the next 4 weeks. Mostly, i’m intrigued by how you’re going to arrive. Are you going to be breech and require a planned C-section, will ICP develop again and require an induction, which may or may not require a C-section, will you come early, or late, will I be at work? Will my water break first or will I start having contractions. Will you come fast and not enable an epidural? Will I be able to deliver at Maple Grove or need to go to another hospital, will Dr. G be able to deliver you? Will you come in the middle of the night, what will we do with Lexi? Really the scenarios are endless and it feels like they are always running through my head.

One other small note–I’ve had a couple of evenings where it feels like my feet almost have restless leg syndrome. They feel really dry (even if I have just put lotion on them) and feel like they need to be messaged. The feeling intensifies at night. I also vaguely remember this feeling building before the itching came with Lexi. Not to say the itching is coming, but just documenting for my own sake for potential future needs. Dr. G suggested wearing compression suggested wearing compression socks at night, so I’ll give that a try and see if it does anything for me.

One more two-week appointment and then on to our weekly appointments!

Love,

Mama