I can blame it on a lot of things like school starting or beginning a new position at the school, etc. etc. but instead I will just say it's because I haven't sat down and wrote here lately.
BIG news -
My placenta finally moved a few weeks ago and I am good to go to have Anna Kate normally instead of by c-section. The doctor attributed the drastic move of the placenta in small increments to RUNNING. Since the placenta was sitting like a pancake on my cervix, she said that it wouldn't have moved that much on its own.
Anna Kate is 16.5 inches long and 3.2 lbs thus far. despite my small belly size, the doctor said that she is measuring perfectly for the week of pregnancy I am in.
She likes to move around most when we are laying in bed or soaking in a nice bath.
Her room is so close to being done it is scary. It is super cute and non-traditional in color and I can't wait to share pictures soon.
After the placenta moved, we got news that I was anemic and iron deficient. It's always something, isn't it? I take my pre-natal vitamin every night, but am now taking an iron supplement and eating foods which are super high in iron. Ask those I work with, how could I eat any more food and any healthier? I have continued to sit down to a lean gourmet meal, 2 fruits, and a whole can of some sort of vegetables at lunch every day. I am now trying to eat more cans of spinach and more red meat which were both suggested as iron rich foods. The doctor said it was not in the "worrisome" stage and that Anna Kate was not being affected. Basically she is taking everything from me and leaving me hanging high and dry. Anemia could cause me to be tired, dizzy, lightheaded, and could cause fainting. All of which ... I have NOT felt, so I refuse to worry and will combat it with eating more iron.
My weight gain has not been much (3 lbs altogether thus far), but I eat a LOT - I just eat healthy foods. For example - I haven't had chocolate in 7 and a half months. I do treat myself occasionally to treats, but I try to stick to a healthy routine for sweet Anna Kate.
Anna Kate on the night that she walked in her first (of many) graduation ceremonies (for my Master's Degree).
In the above picture, I am around 6 and half months pregnant.
Things that I am nervous about -
That we only have 9 weeks until Anna Kate is here and that is SCARY! I don't know that I am ever going to feel ready. I do know that I can't wait to see her sweet face. After all, I have waited my whole life for her.
I am nervous about attempting to have Anna Kate the all natural way, but see it as a challenge and a test of endurance and will give it a try. I very well might fall flat on my face and run in screaming "EPIDURAL", and I will be okay if that happens too.
Things I will miss -
Anna Kate kicking and rolling in my belly. I just love it and will miss it terribly.
Being able to eat what I want and not gain anything.
Feeling Anna Kate roll and kick as I read at least 6 stories a day in library to my scheduled classes.
Things I am looking forward to -
A shower being thrown by my sweet friends Laura and Rebekah.
Showing Anna Kate's room to family when they drive up soon for the shower.
Seeing Anna Kate Davis' perfect smile.
Thanksgiving .. just in general .. I am craving my family's traditional cooking!
Christmas with a new addition to our family.
Our traditional day after Christmas trip to Bass Pro Shop with Anna Kate (maybe) ;)
It's been nearly a month, so I thought I would write. I have a lot to say, because we have "discovered" a lot since the last time I wrote.
We are SO excited to be having a little girl! Let me tell you about the ultra sound which was last Thursday. It was me, Zach, and my dad who went and we were so happy to see Anna Kate's bones, ribs, little legs moving out and in (I'm sure she was running), her little heart in all its perfection, her brain, her lips, and little nose. The ultrasound tech took 60 pictures documenting her growth and head size, etc. We were so ecstatic to hear that she looked healthy as I have been worried since you can't even tell I'm pregnant and we are nearly 22 weeks. We couldn't have been any happier until we heard the very last of the news. I was laying there and she said "so what do you think you are having?" I said, "I want a little girl the most, but I am sure it is a little boy." She just looked at the screen and pursed her lips and shook her head. Then she said "Its a GIRL!" Dad squeezed my pinky toe and we looked with excitement at the pictures she had as she showed us how the gray and white was a little girl and not a little boy. I was on cloud nine!
Oh yes, the whole time we were in there Zach was asking scientific like questions. "What are you measuring there?" "Is that the amniotic fluid?" "Is that the brain?" "Do you think that it is the radiation from the ultrasound that is causing her to kick?" What can I say, the guy is a learner and is always curious.
Anyway, after that I met up with a good friend and her two daughters and we went SHOPPING! The first thing I bought sweet Anna Kate was a purple tutu and a darling little purple hat with a purple bow on it. Just what she needed, right? What a FUN day! It will be remembered always as one of the best and most memorable days of my entire life.
The next day, I drove to Little Rock and shopped with my grandmother. We picked out the Crib and furniture at Kid's Furniture and then we were done with that! We also shopped at some sweet stores. It was amazing how long we spent just looking and choosing hair bows. Finally my grandmother said "okay, we have GOT to get out of these bows!"
We spent a lot of Saturday shopping around with my dad and we even squeezed in a stop at Fort Thompson gun and sports store in North Little Rock. Hey, I had to give a little, right? Look what my guys were doing for me!
We ended the weekend with a drive to Hot Springs to eat dinner and shop a little with Zach's Dad and Step Mom. They are so much fun to be around and we enjoyed ourselves tremendously.
In other news, the swatches of fabric for the crib bedding came in recently. I still am not ready to share the colors with you until the finished masterpiece is constructed. I do love the colors, but I am having a hard time choosing just the right ones from the 18 that I ordered!
The only piece of bad news that I have to report is that yesterday when I went to the dr for my normal monthly visit, she let me know that the ultra sound showed a healthy, beautiful baby girl but that I had Placenta Previa. Of course, I have no idea what that is. She said that the ultra sound showed that my placenta was sitting on my cervix. Picture a large pancake sitting on top of a little hole. The placenta moves throughout the pregnancy, but you do not want it sitting over your cervix. Anyway, she said that sometimes the placenta is just sitting near the cervix, but that mine was literally smack dab centered on it and overhanging on each side. Great, huh? Well what this means is that I cannot deliver Anna Kate normally and that I will have to have a scheduled c-section. We scheduled another ultra sound to see if it moves in four weeks, but she warned me that the likelihood that a full placental previa would move completely off is slim. There could be other complications with placenta previa, i.e hemorrhaging (most likely), bed rest because of that, early delivery, and even at its worst possible hysterectomy! However, I choose not to worry about any of that until 4 weeks has passed. Besides, it is going to move anyway, right?
I am a pretty laid back person and so I choose to not sweat it at this point. I am going to focus on her words that were strong when she said "Anna Kate is beautiful, healthy, and going to be just fine" and the rest will fall into place.
I asked her if this was because I had been running and she assured me that it was not. I asked if I should stop running, and she said no that I was still good to go on that. She did have me stop a few things that could cause hemorrhaging, but not running. Thank goodness. I have a feeling that I better enjoy it while it last, because bed rest may be in my future.
Well, that is all for tonight, I am genuinely head over hills for Anna Kate already and consider myself beyond blessed in so many ways. I'm not sure what I did to deserve such happiness, but I will not complain.
We went to the doctor today. I still have gained no weight and even lost another pound, but the doctor assures me that it's fine and that the baby is taking everything it needs from me with regards to nutrients, etc.
She also told me that I can take Phenegrin for nausea everyday and that it won't do a thing to the baby. I try my best to not take it, but some days are awful and I just have to have something so that I can function. For example, yesterday I had to leave my summer school kids twice to throw up. How functional is that? Not functional.. I know. However, I usually do well enough to only have one of these pills once a week or so.
The room colors are in my head and I have a plan now. It will be gender neutral, but not green or yellow. It will be contemporary, clean, fresh, and trendy, but that is all I can say so far! I don't want to ruin the masterpiece that is carved in my head. So you will see pictures closer to the due date.
We picked out paint, or maybe I should say I picked out paint. As I was picking it out, Zach's response was "I'm going to go look at lumber." I know.. he was bursting at the seams with excitement and eagerness. That lumber was not for the baby room project, but for something else in his brilliant head full of ideas. ;)
One last thing is that we are scheduled for an ultrasound on July 15th. They will look at the physical characteristics of the baby and make sure everything is developing correctly. They will also tell us the sex of the baby if we choose to know. As of right now, we aren't going to find out.
I was the type of kid that couldn't stand a secret so I am not quite sure why I am entertaining the idea of not finding out. Im telling you-- I don't do secrets. As a kid, I spent many years sneaking my presents and surgically unwrapping them with a butter knife throughout the Christmas season. Then, re-taping them after finding out what sweet piece of awesomeness was inside. How the heck am I going to not find out? But, its my idea and I feel kind of comfortable about it.
Hi there! Boy it is hot outside, but not as hot as it has been. We are sitting at around 83 degrees today. I just finished mowing and weeding the flower bed and now it is raining. Now that it's summer, I feel like I have more time to get things done that I sometimes put off.
Summer is off to a great start! I am teaching summer school this summer. I have taught summer school every year for the past 4 years. I like it. It only lasts three hours each day, gives me something to do, and is good money. Anyway, once I get caught up on some of these chores around the house I will probably be at the pool every day after summer school. The goal will be to stay cool while also tanning this white body (that can't get in a tanning bed this summer). :)
We are 16.5 weeks along and I am still not really showing. Don't get me wrong, I like that just fine. But I have a feeling that I only have a week or so left of this before the little one is apparent in my mid section. I don't have many recent pictures from the past week or so, to show any growth in the belly region but those that I have are below.
My sickness has not stopped. Can you believe it? I thought for sure with the first trimester ending so would the nausea. However, that has not been the case. On the first day of summer school (Monday), I had to leave my class twice to throw up and then after I left for the day, I threw up in the parking lot. Because of that day, the last two days have begun with a prescription Phenegrin before my head even leaves the pillow in the morning. I have been doing a great job at not taking medicine and just working through nausea with food, but at this point I can't take the chance that I will be that sick during teaching. For now I will take the medicine and this weekend we will see what happens without the meds.
Zach and I floated the Buffalo River with good friends this weekend. It was a LOT of fun. As we drove down there, we had to pull over twice so I could be sick. Then I cried (ha!). Then Zach encouraged me (like he always does) to eat some bites of breakfast even if it makes me feel sick so that we can get over the sickness for the time being. Anyway, by the time we made it to Harrison I was hungry for another breakfast. Isn't that funny? I'm telling you I am like a newborn baby. Every two hours I need food. But, it's not a lot of food. It's tiny portions and that's all. Floating was great and I wasn't sick at all while we floated. Then we had a big fish fry down there. We had a lot of fun and I can't wait to do it again soon.
I am still running. Same amount, same pace, same partner (Fletch). She loves the exercise and we keep each other at a good pace. I would run with our yorkie, but she is too "froo froo" to go out and get dirty.
Some of my cravings right now: pickles (I can go through a jar in two days), chicken wings (I know.. bad bad), and corn
Some of the foods that soothe my tummy: Mashed potatoes, Ramen Noodles, and Mac and Cheese
The only funny thing that I can think of that Zach has said recently is this --
We were eating at Colten's and I didn't feel good as usual. I ordered a side of mashed potatoes which is normal for me these days. It's small, soothing, and fling enough for me. Sometimes Z orders food and I just eat his side. :) Anyway, I was filling sick and Zach says "Well if y'all hadn't eaten the apple...." My response was, "Ha ha, babe. Besides, you know that if you and I were standing there choosing whether to eat the apple or not you'd be the one who would eat it."
He is Mr. Funny man. I like the sense of humor. I have the same one really.
He has been so caring here lately. I don't mention it to him, but I can tell that he is going to be a good daddy. I doubt that he thinks he will, because I know he is scared out of his wits about the ides, but I am telling you that he will. He is constantly asking if I need anything, making me snacks, and he always takes care of me when I am sick. He is my best friend and I love him dearly.
Hi! It's been a while. I attribute that to finishing up my Master's Degree. I'm free now and with summer coming I should have a lot more free time. Let's see.. where to start.
Well, I am 13 weeks along. We went to the doctor today and heard the heartbeat again. We have also had an ultrasound. Below is a picture. The little thing is growing like a weed. It is the size of a lime now supposedly.
My "all day" sickness has not subsided. I spoke too soon in my last entry. I have been sick for 42 days now. That has GOT to be some type of record! Okay.. I know I'm just being dramatic, but I can tell you this-- If someone had told me that I would be sick for as long as 42 days or more, I would have said "no way. I can't hack that. Not a chance. Forget the kids. I'll adopt. I can run two marathons but I cannot hack that." But surprisingly I have made it this far. It really is amazing how much you can do when you put your mind to it or when you have zero choice in the matter. ;)
I have decided that I am either getting slowly but surely better when it comes to morning sickness or I am getting really good at this being sick thing. Who knows which one.
Let's talk about eating. Geez I do a lot of that these days. At the doctor today, I learned that I have not gained any weight and have even lost 3 pounds, but you wouldn't have guessed that by how much I eat every day. I am honestly hungry every 2 and a half to 3 hours. Not just hungry, but belly growling, eat something or your going to be sick hungry. I try to stick to mostly healthy foods, but the quantity is a ton! For example, a normal day for me starts off with watermelon and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for breakfast (okay.. sometimes two of those Uncrustable PB & J's). By 10:30 I eat lunch (which is when kindergarten eats lunch anyway). Lunch usually consists of some type of lean cuisine and a whole can of vegetables. I had lasagna lean cuisine today and a whole can of lima beans. I hope this baby gets my love for veggies instead of its dads. Zach wont eat anything that resembles healthy really. Anyway, I also eat a banana and a 100 calorie pack with lunch. By 1 I am usually hungry and eat some baked chips or a can of chicken noodle soup. Chicken noodle soup soothes my belly for some weird reason. At 3 I am hungry and have a snack and then when Zach gets home we eat. Then I have to have a pb and j before bed. I'm telling you that it's a TON of food. Hopefully I can curve the appetite a little bit in the coming weeks, but as of right now if I don't eat as soon as I am hungry I will be sick.
I am still running. I average 2 to 3.5 miles 4 or so times a week. I like it and have always done it and the doctor says its great for me and the baby. She has given me some articles on the matter and they say that when you run your belly actually doesn't move much.. making the exercise great for baby. She has told me to stop if I am gasping for air or if I have cramps. She also says to not time myself and run strictly for pleasure. Well that's not hard. I am not into timing anyway. She also says that I shouldn't be worried with those who snub their nose at me for running while pregnant, because they are simply just not educated on the subject. She says I can run through the whole thing, but to not push myself. So, we will see how long I can go. My intentions are to go until they tell me I can't or until due day. :)
I'm still religiously lathering up with Vitamin E nightly and taking Vitamins before bed. I am going to fight those stretch marks as best as I can. My belly hasn't started growing at all. In fact, I am getting a lot of comments like this one. "Are you sure you're pregnant?".. That comment has even come from Zach and he has seen the ultrasound! My response is "If I am not, then there is something inside of me and also I am super psychosomatic and am making myself sick."
The doctor said today that my abs were just trying to stretch and that I would probably show around 16 - 20 weeks. No rush on that for me though. ;)
I can't hardly think of any funny things that Zach has said lately. I guess because I did not post in time to remember. I will work on that.
He did ask me this weekend when I was going to run and had my shirt off - "Are you sure that you're pregnant?"
He also recently told me that "We could just borrow baby furniture." My response was "over my dead body." :)
He is such a sweet hubby. Every time I get sick, he runs into the bathroom with me and hands me water and keeps flushing the toilet every few seconds. ;) Sometimes I tell him that I need him to wait outside because I would like him to still think of me as attractive and because I need a little of my dignity. His response is that it's a double edged sword. If he doesn't come in there, it'll be insensitive and if he does it'll be insensitive. He is right. Keep coming in there, babe. I expect it like a kid expects a momma to come when they scrape their knee.
It’s official.I’ve started blogging.I told myself that I might take it up when we had babies, because I really wanted to keep up with the little details and I am not the scrapbooking type.Anyway, the time is NOW, because Zach and I are expecting our first baby this November.
I know!That is a hard idea to wrap your minds around.Or maybe it’s just a hard idea for US to wrap OUR minds around.This was not unplanned.We had decided that we would stop protecting and see what happened, but not “try”.Well, apparently we are fertile, because after 3 months here we are!
It’s really a funny story.You would have thought that we were underage teenagers who had to walk into our parent’s house to tell them the horrible news with the way we reacted.I found out on a Sunday and kept it from Zach for the day.Sunday evening I put a hamburger bun in the oven and set the timer.When it went off, Zach checked and got the “gist”.We were okay for a little while with the idea, but we slowly but surely started to spin out of control as to the idea of what we had done and how it would affect our “me” centered lives.
What can I say… I enjoy going to school and extending my titles with regards to my professional career, we like going out weekly for drinks, we love to buy things, and we love expensive toys. (especially Zach – who has multiple hobbies – all of which cost money!)We were so afraid that so many of these things would evaporate, but we have finally come to the conclusion that it doesn’t have to.While things might change, I am sure that we will be able to juggle our fun stuff with this new fun little blessing as well.
Below is a picture of me at 8 weeks.My life has changed already and I know that the craziness / best is yet to come!
I have experienced 10 days of nausea.Not just nausea; pure hell.These days start with my two feet hitting the floor and then sprinting to the bathroom to throw up some form of florescent bile.I have tried so many remedies.Let me name a few.Each night I go to bed with a wide variety of ammunition on my night stand.Some things that are included are 2 dramamines, 1 perscription Zofran (which is a nausea pill for cancer patients), 2 tums, 1 Prescription Phenegrin, a piece of Ginger Gum, a ziplock bag of saltine crackers, a bottle of water, and my Sea Band bracelets that I wear on my wrists to block nausea.Now don’t freak out.I never eat all this stuff.I promise I am not pumping this little one with all that junk.I just have it for emotional reasons I think.Maybe it makes me feel more prepared for the hell I will endure as I wake up.
My routine at this point is to eat a high protein snack at bed like peanut butter toast so that my belly has food in it for a longer period of time.Then, I set my alarm for 5:00 am and I put on my sea band bracelets.They work, I am telling you.They hold down pressure points on my wrists and it keeps me from getting sick for a period of time.Anyway, back to the routine.I go back to sleep and wake up at 6.I attempt to cram saltines down my throat even before I lift my head off the pillow to avoid the empty stomach situation that usually results in throwing up every morning.After keeping my bracelets on for a while in the morning, I take two Dramamines and force breakfast down.Then I am able to take my bracelets off around 10 and am usually fine for the rest of the day.This was a science and I worked hard to figure out how my body could best combat morning sickness or all day sickness as it is sometimes.
The last two days have been wonderful.I attribute it all to the routine I have in place.Who knows though, it could all be in my head!
I am proud that I seem to have found a routine that eases my nausea and allows me to function in my everyday life which I love so much.How am I supposed to continue running, teach 20 fully involved 5 year olds, and finish the last part of my graduate career if I can’t keep the nausea at bay?If you do not know me, let me tell you that I am an extremely hard worker and a very determined person.I tend to set my mind to something and do not rest until I have accomplished it.This is how I handled my nausea or “tried” to.Don’t get me wrong, I know that I have little to no control over whether my body gets sick or not.But I am not the type to stand around and let it happen without at least trying to figure out how to fix it.Anyway, for now it is good.Hopefully I will report no changes in the next blog.J
There are a few other things that have rocked my world here lately.Basically really this whole deal has already rocked the world as Zach and I know it.Suddenly my selection of drinks includes Gerber Baby Pear Juice for constipation and boring ole’ water.I am like a medicine cabinet – Vitamin E capsules, B12 capsules, and prenatal vitamins every night.My shower routine has been changed drastically too.After showering, I rub Vitamin E all over my boobs and belly to avoid stretch marks (or attempt to do so).My vocabulary is also increasing -I have learned new words like Milk of Magnesia and Peri-colace.All very interesting and funny huh?Don’t worry, I see the humor.I really see humor in all things.Life is just one big joke, right?
A few other things I want to take note of include some of Zach’s unforgettable comments.I call them heartless, but he calls them bad jokes.Seriously, I agree that these comments are exactly his personality and are quite hilarious.
“Just think, only 8 more months of this.”- Zach as I hover over the toilet and expel my stomach contents.
“After this is over, it’ll just scream all the time.”- Zach again as I toss my cookies
“Are you showing yet?” – Zach when we were just 6.5 weeks
“I’m nervous about our dr. visit today.We are finding out the sex of the baby, right?”- Zach on the way to our 8 week appointment
“Babies aren’t born with teeth?!”-Zach in complete and total seriousness
“It’s just part of it.”- Zach as I lay curled up in a ball sicker than a dog.
And one more classic - - Picture this –
“I got an outfit for the baby today” – Me getting in the car after running into Old Navy.
I pull it out and it is a set of three onesies.One is off white with a little brown giraffe on it.The other is brown and off white striped.The other is off white with tons of simple little brown giraffes on it.It also came with matching pants.
“Let’s see it.”- Zach as I pull it out of the bag.
“Um.. that’s not for a boy.”- Zach
“Yes it is.It’s more for a boy then a girl, but with a big pink bow it could be for a girl too.”- Me
“Boys don’t wear giraffes unless they are gay.”- Zach
“Yes they do.And your little boy will be wearing giraffes.”- Me
“Fine.I’ll just tell everyone that all those giraffes on his shirt are the number of giraffes he dreamt that he killed last night.”- Zach
I am sure that I will have a ton more to add to the list as time goes by.They are really quite hilarious through my view point for sure.
This concludes my first blog post.I can’t wait to write another soon.
I am a 27 year old kindergarten teacher. I am a daughter to my wonderful, loving dad and a wife to my brilliant, sweet husband. I will be a first time mommy this winter.
