One Week!!!

Our little boy is one week old today and it is so hard to believe.  I keep thinking back to last week and all of the pain and pressure I faced through labor and delivery and you know what....it was all so worth it!!!
I am absolutely in love with this little guy!  He's brought so much joy and happiness to us in such a short amount of time. Since coming home Sunday evening, we're starting to settle in at home. Sunday night my dad and step-mom stayed with us. They picked up dinner for us and helped us unload all of our hospital goodies at home.
Monday we had an appointment with the pediatrician. While our boy is perfect, he did end up losing more weight from his birth weight (down from 7 lbs 3 oz to 6 lbs 13 oz to 6 lbs 6 oz) and our pediatrician suggested supplementing his feedings with formula. We started that with each feeding and were then told to follow up with another appointment to check his weight on Tuesday.

My mom came out to help and stay with us on Monday and most of Tuesday. It was really good to have her here to help. With being in the hospital last weekend we were behind on laundry and cleaning and she jumped in to help with those chores and also help us with taking care of Declan. She also went with us to the follow up pediatrician appointment and thankfully Declan gained a bit of weight back (up to 6 lbs 10.8 oz). After the appointment, we took Declan out for pizza. Ok, not so much pizza for him but it was lunchtime and there was a Mod Pizza close by so we stopped for lunch. He was so good sitting in his carrier and just looking around and occasionally dozing off.

Wednesday we just stayed home and tried to enjoy a family day together, catching up on rest when we could and decompressing after an eventful few days.
Thursday we had a day similar to Wednesday but we did have a few visitors in the evening. One of my friends and her boyfriend stopped by to see us and drop off one of the cutest outfits I've ever seen. It was nice to get to catch up and show off our pride and joy. Similar to last Thursday night we watched the Blues game and I reminisced about the week before and the "gush" that started it all. What was even funnier is that at about the same time I felt my amniotic sac rupture last week, I had another "gush" this week. This time, I knew for sure it wasn't me, but I had a little fella on my lap that somehow peed outside of his diaper and it landed all on his mama. I had to laugh and it was such a full circle moment for me.
Today we had another fairly low key day. D took my FMLA and Disability paperwork back to work and my mom came out again to help us. D and I were both in need of some sleep so she watched our sweet boy and let us both take some time to nap. I've been used to getting up multiple times during the middle of the night during my pregnancy so it's not been as hard to get used to getting up every few hours to feed Declan but I did need a couple of hours to get back to feeling a bit more normal.

We don't have a whole lot planned for this weekend. More of just getting used to our new normal and enjoying family time together before D goes back to work on Tuesday.

Right now a few tidbits about our little guy at one week old:
- Declan loves to sleep. If given the choice to wake up and eat or stay sleeping, Declan would choose sleep.
- Declan is a night owl, just like his daddy.
- Declan hates having his arms swaddled and finds a way to get his arms loose and out of the swaddle every time.
- Declan has a strong grip and will hold is own pacifier if you're not holding it exactly the way he wants it.

We're just so in love with our miracle and are ecstatic that he is here.

Just going for a ride to the pediatrician

Kinny wondering why we turned her brother into a purrito.

Kinny babysitting her little brother

He's Here!!!

My induction was scheduled for this evening but we won't be keeping that appointment. Declan decided to make his entrance into the world on Friday night at 11:40 pm after 6 or so hours of labor.  While my labor was considered short, it was extremely eventful and a truly emotional experience.

So, let's start at the beginning.....I had my last doctor's appointment and ultrasound on Wednesday afternoon. At the ultrasound Declan passed all of the biophysical profile requirements and was right on target for his gestational age of 38 weeks and 6 days. We didn't get any ultrasound pics because he was so low in my pelvis and most of the pics would be mostly unidentifiable. The ultrasound tech told us that while we didn't get any pics, we'd see our boy soon enough since I really only had 8 days until my due date. After my ultrasound, I saw my doctor and she did a cervical check and determined I was still 1 cm dilated but I was nearly completely thinned out. My belly was measuring 39 weeks, which was also on track. We talked about my scheduled induction and went over a few things before leaving the office. The last thing my doctor said to me before leaving the room was that if Declan decided to come early, she was on call all weekend at the hospital and would be the one delivering Declan.  I just laughed it off and told her I'd see her at my induction.

Thursday started out like any other day and weeknight. We got home from work and D and I went to workout for 30 or so minutes. After our workout we made dinner and sat down to watch the Blues season opening game. We talked about the upcoming weekend and were planning one last date night on Saturday before Declan's arrival.  Our date night was going to consist of dinner at Olive Garden because I was craving soup and salad and D wanted the never ending pasta bowl....I know, we're wild and crazy! Around 9:30 pm, as we were watching the 3rd period of the Blues game, I felt a gush of something.  I thought I accidentally went to the bathroom on myself and ran down the hall to take care of that. It was a strange feeling but I didn't think my water broke.  I spent another 15-20 minutes in both bathrooms dealing with a few more gushes. I just thought it was my mucous plug and decided to just put on a sanitary pad and head to bed for the night.

I got up multiple times during the night and was soaked each time I got up. It was starting worry me some but I wasn't sure what to expect so I tried to research it a bit in the middle of the night.  Still not convinced it was my bag of water, I got up the next morning, showered and went to work, still feeling the small gushes every 20-30 minutes.

I had quite a bit to work to finish up and a conference call with our biggest customer but still wasn't feeling 100% right. I thought about coming home in the afternoon and just trying to take it easy but D convinced me to call the doctor to see if I needed to come in, in case it was something major. I called the doctor's office at lunchtime and they told me given the fact I was 39 weeks and 1 day along, I should probably go to Labor and Delivery to be checked out, so I sent a quick email to my boss to let him know I was leaving for the day and off to the hospital I went.

They set me up in Triage, put the monitors on me and started a few tests to determine if I was leaking amniotic fluid or if it was just mucous.  After 3 hours in Triage, they determine I had a ruptured amniotic sac and I was going to be admitted into the hospital and I would be having a baby sooner rather than later!

I was moved to a room around 4 pm on Friday where they hooked me back up to monitors and started my IV of fluids.  Around 4:30 pm, they started the Pitocin and we were off! I texted all of my family to let them know what was going on and everyone was crazy excited. My mom, step-dad, dad and step-mom all started heading toward the hospital to be there for support.

Each half an hour they increased my Pitocin and I was feeling alright and my contractions were bearable until around 8:30 pm. At that point, I hit a wall and my contractions became super strong. I asked for my epidural and was set to get it when all hell broke loose in Labor and Delivery and the Anesthesiologists headed towards the OR for other emergency C-sections. I was still only dilated to 1 cm but the contractions were extremely intense and the nurses explained that I'd get my epidural as soon as everything slowed down. Unfortunately things did not slow down in Labor and Delivery for quite some time and at 10 pm, I still hadn't received my epidural and I felt like I was dying from the pain of the contractions. At that point, they again checked to see how dilated I was, which was still 1 cm so they offered me an IV pain medication, Stadol. This made me extremely tired when I wasn't in the middle of a contraction but it did help take the edge off and allowed me to rest. Around 10:30 pm, the Anesthesiologist finally arrived to administer my epidural. I was in such pain that it made it difficult to sit still for them to insert the catheter into my back and I had to rely heavily on the nurses as they made my family leave the room.  About 10:45 pm, they finally had the epidural set.  I was hoping this would be the answers to my laboring prayers but unfortunately it was too little too late for me.  I, somehow, went from 1 cm to 10 cm in less than an hour and once I hit 10, it was time for me to push. The epidural did not have time to work through my system and I virtually had to deliver via a natural birth.  At 11 pm, I started pushing and began the final descent into motherhood.  It was an unbelievable amount of pain and pressure and with each contraction and push, I felt weaker and weaker and just wanted for it all to be over. Between breathing, pushing, resting, breathing, pushing, resting, I was exhausted. I remember yelling at one point, "just get him out of me!"

At 11:40 pm after only 40 minutes of pushing, Declan James arrived weighing 7 lbs 3 ozs and measuring 20 inches long.

I have never felt such happiness and joy and it was an unbelievable miracle! They laid him on my chest as soon as he was born for immediate skin to skin and I couldn't stop crying. I was so overjoyed and couldn't believe that after 9 months, I finally had my baby boy! It truly was the most amazing experience I've ever faced even if it was scary and quite painful.

We spent a good part of Saturday being checked out by the doctors and trying to get acclimated to our new life. The hospital completed his assessments late Saturday night as soon as Declan was 24 hours old and he passed with flying colors. Sunday was much of the same and we were released around 4:30 that afternoon to head home and start our new life together as a family.

We're slowly adjusting to life with a newborn but I can tell you, I have never felt this much love for a human being. He's the most perfect, sweetest little boy and I'm so happy to have him here with us. I pinch myself daily at how lucky I am to be able to be this little guy's mama and I can't wait to see what our future holds.

Baby R -- week 38 update and our quarantined Kinny

In less than 2 weeks we will be meeting our little boy!  It is so hard to believe that one year ago we were trying to figure out what we were going to do when we found out from the fertility doc that I had very few follicles and ultimately was diagnosed with Diminished Ovarian Reserve.  I still am pinching myself with how lucky I've been throughout these 9 months and I'm so glad we made the decision to pursue IVF even if it was a scary thought at first.

So what's been up the last two weeks....
Kinny had her Radiocat Iodine I-131 treatment and came through like a champ. She's been quarantined in our guest bedroom and we've had very little interaction with her. It's been hard but I know that it is best and she's on the road to recovery. We'll take her back to the vet on Thursday to have a 2 week Geiger check and then she'll have to see her regular vet in 2 more weeks for T4 bloodwork and renal panels.  She's been eating and taking her meds and overall seems to be back to normal. *fingers crossed*

As for baby Declan, I had my 37 week appointment on Wednesday, September 19th and we had an ultrasound scheduled along with my normal prenatal appointment to check on his weight and stats. Having gone through IVF and being of Advanced Maternal Age, my doctor wanted to make sure everything was on track. The ultrasound went well as did the Biophysical profile. Declan's estimated weight was 6 lbs 2 ounces and he was mostly on track for all of his measurements.
I was only scheduled to have the ultrasound at noon and then was supposed to come back at 5 pm for my actual prenatal appointment but the doctor was able to fit me in before I had to head back to work.  Everything seemed fine with the ultrasound and the appointment but after I left, the doctor reviewed all of the results and saw Declan's heartbeat all over the place from the multiple times they checked it and as I was on my way back to work, she called and ordered me to go to the hospital for a Non-Stress test to ensure the baby wasn't in distress. Let me tell you, that was one of the scariest calls I've endured. I turned my car around and headed to the hospital where they hooked me up to monitor the baby's heartbeat for 30 minutes. Thankfully Declan's heartbeat settled and was as perfect as it could be according to the L&D nurse taking care of me. Turns out that my lack of eating most likely caused the erratic heartbeats. Work was absolutely insane that day and I missed out on my morning snack and then had to leave for the doctor at lunchtime so I hadn't eaten since 6:30 in the morning. I learned my lesson and I've been making sure that no matter how busy it is, I need to take the time to eat my snacks and lunch on time so that we do not have any problems these last few weeks.  It also helps that the Ultrasound tech was able to change my remaining ultrasounds to 4:30 pm rather than at lunchtime.

On Friday, September 21st, D's office threw him a surprise baby shower in the office and I was lucky enough to get to join in on the surprise.  We got so many great gifts from all of his co-workers and they had a cute cupcake cake for us. D was definitely surprised! It was so hard keeping the secret from him because I tell him everything but I am super happy I was able be there for the celebration and not ruin it for him!

This week I had my 38 week appointment and had another ultrasound and prenatal appointment. D was able to go with me this week and see Declan on the ultrasound. My doctor also scheduled my induction date -- October 10th at 6 pm. My doctor expects that I'll come in and get prepped and I'll most likely be in labor for most of the 11th. While I'm a bit anxious about labor and delivery, I'm more worried about taking care of my little boy once we bring him home. In the hospital we will have a crew of nurses helping us and when we get home, we'll have to get acclimated to a newborn and figuring out a schedule that works for all of us.

This past week I also turned in my final work schedule to my boss. My official last day will be the 10th at noon and I'll return on January 3rd. I'm hoping to have everything set at work so that I can take off with little to no issue and enjoy every minute with Declan and Kinny.  Work has been so crazy that I don't know what to expect but I can only hope for the best.

I have one more ultrasound and prenatal appointment scheduled for this upcoming week before the big day!  Hopefully we'll have everything ready in time for D day!

Baby R -- week 36 update and Kinny update

Here we are at week 36!! Our little guy is the size of a large cantaloupe and is approximately 19-22 inches in length and weighing in at 6 lbs. I am still in disbelief how quickly this pregnancy has gone. It seems like not so long ago I was taking my stim shots and hoping for a positive outcome and now we're down to 26 days until my due date.
I had my weekly doctor's appointment on Wednesday night after work. As soon as I got to the doctor's office, I was told my doc had to head to a delivery at the hospital and that there would be about a 45 minute delay. I didn't have a problem waiting so I just sat down and waiting for D who was on his way. About 15 minutes into the wait, the nurses came back to tell us it would be about an hour until the doctor would be back to the office. Again, I had no problem waiting. It was much easier for me to wait than to try to reschedule around work. So I sat there on my phone and talking to the other women waiting to see the doctor while D came home to feed Kinny and check on her. D got back just in time for my appointment and in we went to see the the doc. At this appointment I had my group B strep screening. The doctor also checked to see if I was dilated and checked on the baby's position. Thankfully Declan is head down and surprisingly I am 1 cm dilated and my cervix is thinner than what the doctor expected for a first time mom.  Both were good signs and the doctor thinks this will help my labor and delivery. *fingers crossed*
Next week, I'm scheduled to have an ultrasound before my appointment. It will be the first ultrasound since late June and I can't wait to see Declan's growth and all of features now that we're nearing the end of pregnancy.  I'm convinced Declan will look like Dustin when he's born.

This past week we also had a visit for Kinny to determine the game plan for her hyperthyroidism. I called the specialty vet office and they told me that the treatment she needed wasn't something that they did and I needed to call the only vet in St. Louis that offers the Radiocat Iodine I-131 treatment. Luckily, this specialty clinic is close to my office and we were able to get an appointment on Friday morning.  Yesterday morning we went in for our consultation with the doctor.  The doctor reviewed Kinny's medical history and checked her out and feels she's a good candidate for the Radiocat Iodine I-131 treatment.  We've set up the treatment for this Tuesday and she will be in isolation at the clinic until Thursday because she'll have a high level of radioactivity due to the treatment. I hate that she will be in isolation and even worse for me when she gets home because she will have to be isolated away from me in our guest bedroom for 2 weeks since I'm pregnant. D will be in charge of taking care of Kinny exclusively for the next 2 weeks and can have limited time with her while the rest of the radioactivity declines. I'm sure this will be harder on me than on Kinny but I just hate that I won't be able to cuddle with her and the fact that she won't be able to leave the guest room when she usually has free reign of our whole house. I am a nervous wreck but I want my girl to be healthy! We're staying positive and are hopeful that this will help our sweet Kinny girl!

Baby R -- week 35 update

It's been a whirlwind few weeks for us and thankfully we're still plugging along in spite of all of the craziness we've been facing.
This week our little boy is the size of a canary melon and according to my app, he's 19-22 inches long and approximately 5.5 lbs. He's still quite the active boy!  I constantly feel some part of him moving and grooving!  Starting this week, I'm visiting the doctor weekly until Declan is born. It's unimaginable that in just 5 short weeks we will be able to hold our miracle. Right now I'm a wave of emotions....excited and happy to finally meet him, scared to experience labor and delivery and worried I won't know how to care for my child once he makes his entrance into the world. It's been so easy to keep him protected in utero, I just hope I can do the same once he's out in the real world. This upcoming week we'll do a strep-B test and weeks 37, 38 and 39 I'll have ultrasounds to make sure everything is on point for delivery. Week 39 is also when we'll set up an induction date in case Declan doesn't arrive by his due date. Being 35, means I have a few more hurtles to jump to ensure that we have a healthy baby and my doctor won't let me go beyond my due date to ensure that we avoid some of the known medical issues for mothers of "advanced maternal age."

So over the last few weeks, D and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary and made a trip to Michigan for our Michigan family baby shower. We had a great time seeing everyone and got a lot of amazing gifts from our family and friends. We also got to spend a few days visiting with family and also visited the MSU Dairy Store for an afternoon ice cream date. We had one little hiccup when the rental SUV we had got a flat tire. We tried to take it back to the rental facility to have the swap out the SUV and unfortunately they did not have another SUV of similar size to replace it with but they could give us a compact car. At 7+ months pregnant, this was not the thing to tell me especially when we made the trip up with a bigger car since we were having our baby shower. Thankfully we were able to find a tire shop to plug where 2 nails caused the flat.
The baby shower was a success. It was far more over the top than what I had expected but we had a great time. Here are a few pics from our trip:

D's favorite gift, the Tula. He even convinced Eli to go for a ride!

After our trip to Michigan, the next weekend we attended Kirchenfest where D kept up his annual tradition of bartending at the picnic. I unfortunately was hit with Sciatica and was in severe back pain not only that day but for about 2 and a half weeks. I've heard some pregnant women face this in the 3rd trimester and while I was lucky to not have many other pregnancy issues, this one took the cake for me. I'm so glad that this week I've finally started feeling better and can walk almost normally again.

Last weekend was Labor Day and we had a huge to-do list to complete to get ready for Declan's arrival. We spent the entire weekend cleaning our house, buying the last of the baby essentials, packing my hospital bag, getting our carseats installed at the hospital, washing all of Declan's clothes, bedding, blankets, etc.
On top of that we had a medical scare with Kinny and spent part of the weekend visiting both the vet and the emergency pet hospital. Back at the end of July, we took Kinny in for her visit to the cardiologist for a echocardiogram follow up for her heart murmur. During that appointment they determined she has hyperthyroidism and would need meds to help her heart, blood pressure and thyroid get back to normal. We'd been giving her the meds, even with her putting up a fight some days but she seemed to be doing better. Last Sunday, she was extremely lethargic and not eating or drinking and it scared us. We got her into her vet in hopes that it was something easy and as our luck would have it, it was not. Her fever was super high and they recommended we get her into the emergency pet hospital ASAP. We drove straight there where they started tests to figure out what was wrong. It was so sad for us as we had to leave her there overnight for observation. A pregnant lady should never have to do such a thing...I was a basket-case. Kinny is my first baby and all I wanted was for her to be back to her normal, happy, sweet self.
We got to pick her up on Monday after they determined that she had a reaction to her thyroid medicine. We got antibiotics because her white blood cell count was super low and told that we needed to follow up with her vet in a few days and consider another therapy for her hyperthyroidism.
While she still wasn't eating much, she did seem to perk up as the week progressed and her counts were back to normal when we went to her follow up appointment on Thursday afternoon. We do still need to address her hyperthyroidism issue and the therapy they recommend since meds are not an option is Radiocat Iodine 131. That means she'd have to have radiation and be quarantined for a week because this treatment would make her radioactive. I'm beyond nervous and scared not only for the treatment but the fact that I can't see or touch my girl for at least that long. Not only that, but with being pregnant, I don't know what else this means for us. Obviously she needs the treatment sooner rather than later but we have a human child coming in less than 5 weeks and the thought of her being sick and me being pregnant these last few weeks is nerve-wracking. This week I'm faced with talking to my doctor about Kinny's treatment and what it means for me and then getting back with the specialty vet and figuring out when to start her treatment.
She still is the absolute best girl ever and we'll do everything we can to make sure she stays healthy.
I snapped a few pics of her helping us with prepping for her brother over the last few weeks:

Testing out the bed and sheets to make sure they are up to Declan's standards

Inspecting all of the baby essentials we picked up

We thought it was stressful for us 3 years ago switching jobs, buying our house and getting married all in a span of 3 months but I think everything going on now has been harder on us but somehow we'll find a way to get through it all!

This weekend has been a bit more normal and I was able to make a few freezer meals for postpartum and take care of some of the smaller items left on our list. I also have spent a good amount of time just cuddling with my girl and getting some much needed rest.

Celebrating our 3rd Anniversary!

D and I are celebrating our 3 year wedding anniversary today!! I cannot believe it has been 3 years already and I really cannot believe how much our lives have changed throughout these 1,096 days.  We've gone from single, downtown loft-living individuals to married, suburbanites with a baby on the way!
The collage above represents some of the highlights of our 5+ years together -- from our first work trip, to our first road trip to KC, to our first family Thanksgiving with Kinny, to our family vacations to the UP, to our engagement and engagement photo session, to our wedding and reception and now to having a baby boy!
We've had our ups and downs but there is no one else I'd want to be with as I we tackle everything life throws at us and if possible I love my Dusty Bear more today than the day I married him.
I know as we become parents in the next few months, I married the most amazing partner and Declan has the greatest father possible.  Kinny also thinks her dad is the best too!

Baby R -- week 31 update

Week 31 is here!  Declan is the size of a coconut at approximately 3.2 lbs and should start gaining weight rapidly as we head towards the final weeks.
I started the week at work thinking it would be another normal week. We have weekly department meetings on Monday mornings and I was busily preparing my notes for the meeting and didn't realize the rest of the team left their desks beforehand. I scrambled thinking I was running late to my own meeting at 8:15 only to find that they had thrown me a surprise diaper party and breakfast in our conference room. They had the conference room decorated with blue and while streamers and balloons and everyone wore blue to celebrate my little boy! I, of course, wore a pink and white day and was completely taken by surprise. The entire team pitched in a bought different size diapers and all contributed to breakfast which consisted of french toast bake, an egg bake, a fruit tray and an assortment of fruit juices. It felt extremely nice to be honored and have my little boy celebrated by my work team.
Later on in the day, the HR department sent out an email to the entire office and we celebrated with cake for everyone else also.  We got the cutest little stuff animal toy book and gift card along with the cake.

Wednesday night after work we had our last childbirth class and we can proudly say we graduated from childbirth class! I'm not sure if that makes me completely ready for labor, delivery and a newborn but I do feel more comfortable.  After class, we brought home all of our handouts and booklets and Kinny started studying up so she's ready for her brother's arrival too.

Friday afternoon I had my 31 week doctor's appointment. I'm still measuring on track and Declan's heart rate was 133 bpm. He's still super active and having fun with the kick counts Mommy is tracking. It's so amazing feeling him moving around and I'm still in disbelief that I've been able to grow a human life inside of me. I head back in 2 weeks for another appointment where we'll talk about my options for delivery and put together a preliminary birth plan. For me, the birth plan is important but I want my doctor to do whatever she feels is necessary for me to have a healthy baby given my age and going through IVF, so my birth plan is going to be very flexible.
On my way back to work, I had the unfortunate luck of driving through the flipped truckload of rotten hot dogs on the highway. Of course all 3 lanes of the highway were covered with this mess so I couldn't avoid it. At first, I thought it was manure but it was slippery and extremely smelly and was really hard to drive through. I didn't find out until I got home that evening that it was actually rotten hot dogs and now we can't get the smell out from underneath my car.  I'm hoping it will eventually just wear off but being pregnant and it being super hot outside, the smell is disgusting.

Yesterday I had a hair appointment downtown and D was super nice to drive me down there.  Afterwards we had a date lunch at Hi-Pointe Drive In. We're huge fans of Sugarfire Smokehouse and Hi-Pointe didn't disappoint us! It was also perfect since my biggest craving through this pregnancy has been a burger. I didn't get a picture of D and I but here's D enjoying his bacon cheeseburger.

After our lunch we went grocery shopping and while we were checking out at Trader Joe's the cashier noticed all of the cookie butter in our cart. Cookie butter is a favorite of D's so we stock up when we shop there. She asked if that was my craving seeing I was pregnant. I told her no but it was D's favorite and that my little guy craves meat. She then says, "whoa, you look like you're going to pop! When are you due?" I told her not until October 11th and she comments, "are you sure it's not twins?" I assured her it wasn't but WOW!....way to make a pregnant lady feel better! I've only gained 20 lbs so far this pregnancy, with nothing gained in the last 2 weeks and really all of my weight seems to be in my belly.  I guess that's why I look like I'm going to pop even if we still have a few months left. Thankfully I'm still very healthy and everything is going as planned!

Baby R -- week 29 update

Here we are in week 29 and Declan is now the size of a small cabbage, measuring 17 inches and 2.9 lbs according to the What to Expect app.
Wednesday, July 25th was the 4th Annual Bump Day. A day to celebrate bumps everywhere and promote healthy pregnancies. I participated by sharing this pic on Instagram and Twitter.
We took this pic Wednesday morning before work in Declan's room.

28 weeks, 6 days! Can't wait to meet my little boy!

It's funny to me looking at this pic, because it doesn't seem like my bump is that big yet but as I look in the mirror each morning, it seems like my bump is huge! As I keep telling D, our mirrors must be skewed.  Ha!
I was supposed to have a doctor's appointment Wednesday evening after work but I got a call Wednesday afternoon letting me know that my doctor would need to reschedule as she had other patients in Active Labor. I completely understood and realized that could be me in a few months and rescheduled for Thursday morning.

On Thursday, I drove to the hospital for my appointment and everything went well.  My bump is measuring right on track at 29 weeks, which is exactly where I should have been on Thursday. My weight is also on track (I've gained 20 lbs since the beginning of IVF) and my blood pressure is in a normal range.  Declan's heartbeat was still really strong in the 150 bpm range. I got my Dtap vaccine protecting me from diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough, which is extremely important since whooping cough can be dangerous to our little guy. The doctor also recommended that D get the vaccine as well, which ironically he did when he had his work physical on Tuesday. We'll both be protected and protecting our son when we bring him home from the hospital.
While I was at my appointment, I also asked my doctor about labor and delivery and tried to get a better idea of what I want to do for delivery. Natural birth, epidural, or local anesthesia...there is so much to think about and decide which is best for me. She gave me some good information that will hopefully help with the decision. She also informed me about the possibility of having to have a C section and when she'd make the call to bring me back to the OR if that was necessary. We also went over if I need to be induced and at 39 weeks, she'll put me on the schedule for induction but if I go into labor before that, then that's even better.  Either way, I will have to deliver in week 40 due to my advanced maternal age.

I'm still feeling really good and am super lucky that everything is going well and on track! We're working to finish up a few things around our house and then we'll focus on getting ready for our little boy's arrival!

Baby R -- week 28 update

We've made it to the 3rd trimester and our little boy is the size of a cauliflower this week and should be around 2.5 lbs. He's so very active and we're only a few short months away from meeting our precious little one!

Since my last post, I found out the results of my 3 hour Glucose test that I took on July 7th and thankfully I passed with flying colors! One less thing for us to worry about right now as we enter the home stretch. We also started our birthing classes on the 11th and we've had 2 classes so far. The first class focused on labor and this week's class focused on delivery and positioning. We have a week off before we talk about inducing and C-sections and then our last class will focus on life with a newborn. It really has been super helpful attending these classes and it has opened my eyes to things I hadn't even thought about! Week one of class we also got to tour the hospital and the L&D floors. While we weren't sure if we would deliver at this hospital (since it's not my doc's main hospital, just a hospital where she has privileges), it gave us a chance to review the pros and cons of using this hospital. Yesterday, we went and toured my doctor's home hospital and learned about their practices for L&D also. While I've known and felt pregnant for this entire journey, yesterday it really hit me that soon enough I will be delivering this sweet boy and I'm not sure if I'm really prepared yet. We saw a premature baby in the Special Care Unit and he was so teeny tiny. That's what really made me think. People always say you're never totally prepared to have a child and I totally get that now. Obviously D and I had fertility issues which prolonged us getting to this point but I really thought, "oh, I'm in my mid-thirties, I'm financially prepared, I'm responsible, I've got this under control" and then you see such a small human being and I turned to putty and started thinking, "How are we going to care for such a tiny person?," "How will we know what to do to keep him happy and healthy?," "What if I can't breastfeed due to the infertility we faced?" "What if I'm not a good mom?"  I know it's all just pre-delivery jitters but it really made me anxious.
I also have to start thinking about what I want to do in Labor and Delivery.  Do I want a natural birth or an Epidural? I know everything can change but I want to at least have my birth plan mostly figured out so I'm not completely stressed entering the hospital. I'm torn between natural and using meds. While I'd like to think I could have a baby naturally, I'm just not 100% confident in that yet. I hope to use some of the relaxation techniques I've learned in childbirth class but will labor be too much for me? There is so much to consider and I need to figure out what exactly will be best for me, D and baby Declan.

In other news, we had our St. Louis baby shower last Saturday and while it was a lot of work getting everything ready, the shower was a huge success! The shower was co-ed and we had 25 guests attend. We had so much food, the games were a lot of fun, I enjoyed talking to all of our friends and family and we got a lot of great gifts!
We had everyone complete baby predictions and advice cards for us too.  Probably my favorite game was our Name That Baby game. We had 10 pictures of D and I as babies and everyone had to guess who was who. My mom, dad and aunt were not allowed to play since they should have known the pictures but we had everyone else play and the answers were so funny! No one else got 100% but my step dad and uncle came close with 9.

Here are a few more pics from our celebration.

The cute cupcakes!

Chocolates handmade by my Mom

My brother helping with the food setup

The prizes and the games

All the wonderful gifts!

The Grandparents

My future sis and me

Our niece and nephew with their homemade pictures for Declan's room

Gifts from my cousin Nicole - we have a future Sparty and Blues fan!

The Proud Dad to Be!

While the day of our shower was a long day, we opted not to try to put everything away once we got home. Thankfully we could just sit it in Declan's room until we were ready to tackle putting everything in its place. We opted to do that this weekend and found a home for everything for the time being. I'm sure we'll change spots once Declan is home and I realize no matter how organized I thought I was, there are more convenient spots for some of the everyday essentials.

This week I have another doctor's appointment on Wednesday afternoon. It's my last monthly appointment before I start seeing my doctor every two weeks until we hit 36 weeks and then the visits will be weekly. I'm still feeling really good and do not have any complaints about any common pregnancy issues. I've also been able to keep up with my workouts which I'm hoping will help me in labor and delivery with the contractions and pushing.  Overall though, I've been extremely lucky!

Baby R -- week 26 update

Here we are at week 26 and our baby is the size of an eggplant and weighs about 2 lbs. We're still plugging along and getting ready for our little guy's arrival.
This week we got Declan's dresser delivered and with the 4th of July holiday on Wednesday, we were able to start putting it together.  While it took a few nights to complete, we can happily report it is mostly finished...minus the back which we need a few more hands to help hold up and screw in.
While we were putting together the dresser, our helper decided to test out her brother's crib to make sure it was up to his standards. She gives it 3 paws up! I can only imagine what it will be like when Declan is here.  I'm guessing she will be in his room constantly checking on him!

She also inspected our work on the dresser when it was complete and gave us her seal of approval on that as well.

Having the extra day off for the holiday was extremely helpful this week.  It allowed us to get more of the baby shower preparations complete and also take care of many of our regular errands.  It also gave me a chance to get a few good workouts in before my Glucose Tolerance Test this weekend.
Yesterday morning, I had to be to the lab at 7:15 am for my 3 hour test.  We got there right on time and I was taken back for my fasting blood work.  After a quick draw, I got my 100 g of Fruit Punch glucose to drink. Similar to the Orange glucose at the doctors office, I down the 100 g in no time flat. I had 4 minutes to drink it and I think I had it finished in under a minute.  Really, I don't know why many pregnant women complain about the glucose drinks. They are super sweet, yes, but they taste really good! After I finished my drink, I sat back in the waiting room for 60 minutes until it was time for the 1 hour draw. At 8:28 am, I was called back and gave my second sample.  After a quick poke, I went back out to the waiting room for another hour. In between the draws, I drank a ton of water, read, watched tv and talked to D.  At 9:28 am, I went back again for a third draw. While the first two were done on my left arm, the phlebotomist decided to try my right arm to give my left a break. Unfortunately the veins in my right arm are even tinier than the small veins in my left arm and I ended up with a huge bruise in just minutes after my draw. I went back to the waiting room and waited another hour for the fourth and final draw. At 10:28 am, I was called back a final time and got the final draw done from my left arm again. Really it wasn't that bad. It gave me some time to think and read and relax before we took on the rest of the day but I was glad to get out of the lab around 10:40 and head back home to tackle the rest of our day. I hope to hear back regarding the results this week and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I passed and I don't have gestational diabetes. It scares me to think about having to manage that for the next 14 weeks and I just want to have a healthy little boy.

When we got home, my mom was there working on shortening the curtains we hung in Declan's room. We bought 96 inch panels because I thought the 84 inch would be too short and they needed to be taken up about 8 inches so they didn't drag on the floor. Since I'm not the most patient with sewing, my mom offered to take care of it for us. She had 3 panels done and was finishing up the 4th when we got home. Another item checked off the list for Declan's room.

Afterwards, we went to GFS and Aldi to pick up the ingredients to make the food for the baby shower next weekend. Since the shower is next Saturday afternoon, we'll need to prep and make everything Thursday, Friday and Saturday morning, which meant we needed to pick up nearly everything this weekend so we can make it in time. We're having a fairly simple menu of baked mostaccoli, dollar roll sandwiches, meatballs, salad, asian cole slaw, veggies, fruit, cupcakes and cookies but it still is quite a bit to tackle before next weekend. Thankfully with a few stops, we managed to pick up most of what we needed minus the veggies, fruit, cupcakes and cookies, which we'll get closer to the end of the week so they are fresher for the shower.

I also worked on finishing the games on Saturday so we can get those printed this week.  We have 3 games for everyone to play and I'm excited to see how everyone likes them.

As for today, we had household chores to work on and a bit more shopping to get finished. I gift wrapped the prizes for the games and packed up some of the stuff we'll need to take with us to the Clubhouse next weekend.  We'll have a busy week ahead and I want to be as prepared as possible so we don't have too much stress going into Saturday.  This week we have our first Childbirth class on Wednesday night then on Thursday afternoon we have our Cat Orientation at the rescue shelter where we're going to volunteer. I'm looking forward to the Childbirth class and I'm sure we'll learn a lot over the 4 weeks. I'm also excited to tour the hospital which will hopefully help us to decide which hospital to use for labor and delivery.
We're also in the process of working on our birth plan, choosing a pediatrician and starting to look for potential daycare/preschool options for next year.  So many decisions and time is passing way faster than I thought it would!  I'm enjoying pregnancy way more than I ever thought I could and knowing our little boy will be here soon enough is very exciting!

Finally, I want to share one other picture from this afternoon that completely melted my heart.  Kinny has been spending a lot more time cuddling with me. We talk to her all the time about Declan and we talk to Declan about Kinny also. It seems like she already is forming that sibling bond with her brother.  This afternoon as I was sitting on the couch, she cuddled up by me and put her sweet paw on my pregnant belly, almost like she wanted to make sure her brother knew she was there.  He kicked back a few times not hard enough to scare her or make her move but it was almost his way of telling her, he loves her too.

Baby R -- week 25 update

We're already in July and our little boy is now the size of a rutabaga and according to my the tech at my follow up anatomy scan on Thursday is weighing 1 lb 11 oz.

Last week, I had my monthly doctors appointment on Wednesday and my follow up anatomy scan on Thursday and both went fairly well minus one small hiccup. At my doctor's appointment, both my blood pressure and my belly size were normal for Declan's gestational age and his heart rate was a strong 144 bpm.  She asked how everything was going and also made sure to tell me that if my job becomes too stressful and affects my health, I need to let her know so she can provide doctor's orders in order to ease my workload.  While it is stressful and I'm working far more than I should, I don't want to have any restrictions just yet. I really want to keep my time off limited to after Declan's born so I can spend as much time as possible with him.
The doctor had me take my 1 hour glucose test while I was there as well.  I drank the orange drink in record time (it really tasted good...I don't know what other pregnant women are talking about when they say its gross, I found it refreshing!) and then had to go to the lab to have blood work completed. Unfortunately, my insurance doesn't allow me to go to the lab at the doctor's office. I sat there waiting for my appointment only to find out that I had to drive to a different lab a few miles away because they take my insurance. It was a bit nerve-wracking hoping I would make it within the hour time frame needed for the blood work but thankfully the other lab was fairly quiet and I was able to get there a few minutes before I was due for the draw. After the draw, I headed back to work for the monthly Financial meeting with our owner.

Thursday morning, my follow up Anatomy scan was scheduled for 8 am so before heading to work, D and I drove to the hospital for that. The tech was finally able to get the shots she needed of Declan's heart and with a lot of poking, prodding and rolling around on the ultrasound table, we got him to move in order to get the pics of his face that were also needed. He seems to love to face towards my back and snuggle in rather than show off so it took a bit to get him to face forward. He was super active though moving his arms and legs throughout the process and both the tech and I felt his displeasure with being moved in order for us to get pics of his profile.  It was the absolute cutest little face though! He even stuck out his tongue and yawned a few times as if he was telling us not to bother him. I just love this little guy, he's just so amazing and I'm excited to be his mama!  I left the hospital and got to work at 9 am and started my crazy workday.

While at work, I got a notification that my test results from my one hour glucose test were in. Unfortunately my results were elevated and I did not pass as I had hoped. The doctor's office called and told me that I needed to schedule a 3 hour Glucose Tolerance test for this upcoming week. The 3 hour test is apparently more accurate and hopefully with provide better results. So after talking to the doctor's office, I worked to find a time that I could go to the lab for the 3 hour test. Because I have to sit and have blood work every hour for 3 hours after this next test, I opted to schedule it for Saturday, July 7th so I didn't have to miss too much time at work. It bummed me out that I failed the 1 hour Glucose test but after researching a bit, I found out that many pregnant women have to take the 3 hour test. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this test comes back with much better results. I really haven't been eating many sweets and I've continued to workout so I am hopeful the results will be better. I just want to maintain a healthy pregnancy and carry Declan full term with no issues.

This weekend, we started setting up Declan's room.  My mom and Michael bought his crib and mattress and it was delivered last week. Yesterday they came out and helped us build it and get Dustin's desk downstairs. It took a bit longer than expected because the entire thing needed to be built but thankfully it is done and ready for Declan's arrival. We also unrolled the new rug I bought last weekend and moved the rocker into place. Kinny came in to help us too.  She's getting excited to become a big sister in a few months. After the room was put together, we went to dinner with my mom and Michael and spent a few hours just relaxing on the couch watching Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.

 Next up for us is getting the dresser in and built.  Grandma and Grandpa Roberts purchased the matching dresser for us last week and it's expected to be delivered this week. It will take more help from our family since neither D or I are handy enough to do it ourselves. We'll have a crew out here on July 14th when we have our shower so hopefully we can get it completed then.

It's so hard to believe but our St. Louis baby shower is now in less than 2 weeks. I've still got quite a list of prep work I need to get through to make sure we're ready. RSVPs are due today so hopefully I will have a better idea of how many guests to expect so I can finish the preparations over the next 10 days. Next weekend, I need to buy the food so we can start preparing it a day or two ahead of time, print out the games and pick up a few other last minute things. The shower here will probably be smaller than the one in Michigan but I still want it to be a memorable day and fun for our guests. My mom has been making chocolates and Lifesaver pacifiers and seems to be enjoying helping me with the little details. I'm so grateful to have her help!

Baby R -- week 23 update

Our little boy is the size of a papaya this week and continuing to grow and move like crazy! I'm still in awe every time I feel him move and I just can't wait to meet this little fella in October.

We scheduled our childbirth classes and tours to the two hospitals that my doctor can deliver at. We'll go visit and take classes throughout the month of July. Our classes start on Wednesday, July 11th and last 5 weeks and will hopefully give us a good understanding of what to expect throughout labor and delivery. We also get to tour the maternity suites and meet the staff and then we'll decide which hospital we'll plan to have our little guy at. Thankfully both hospitals are close for us -- one is 3 miles away where my doc has privileges at and the other is 6 miles away and is my doctor's main hospital.

Last weekend, we helped my bro and sister-in-law move into their new house and while we were there we picked up a recliner rocker for Declan's bedroom. I had been looking for chairs online and the one I picked out on Amazon increased in price dramatically over the last few weeks to the point where it was just far too expensive for my tastes. In the meantime, I talked to my bro, who works at a local furniture store and he was able to send me a few ideas of what we could do instead of buying the overly priced chair and ottoman I found online. I fell in love with a slim gray microfiber recliner rocker  that matches perfectly and he gifted it to us for Declan's room. Kahla also gave us some of the most adorable clothes that she picked up while out shopping one day. They are so cute and so small and we are so grateful for her generosity! This little boy is so loved by our family! While we were out helping with the move we also got a chance to visit my dad and celebrate Father's Day a week early with him.

This week I finished up the invitations and dropped them in the mail for our baby shower in July.  It will be here 4 short weeks from today and we're excited to get to celebrate with our family and friends. I've got a bit more planning to do with my mom but I think we have the menu, some decorations and a couple games figured out. We'll finalize everything in the coming weeks.

Today I had a hair appointment and while I was waiting for my new highlights to set in, I uploaded some pictures to print out to add to Declan's "before birth" baby book. It's a photo album I started when we were on our IVF journey and I've added all of the sonogram pics and various other memories from the pregnancy so far.  I picked them up on my way home and worked to get those added to his book this evening.

We're going to try to enjoy the last few weeks of June with very little planned before we head into an extremely busy July and August.

Baby R -- week 21 update

We've already made it past the end of May and earlier this week I had my anatomy scan and monthly doctor's appointment.  Everything is on track and our little dude is now 15 ounces and quite the mover and shaker (or kicker!).
On Thursday D and I went to the hospital and had the anatomy scan with the Maternal and Fetal Medicine team. This was similar to an ultrasound but more in depth in order to check on all aspects of the baby. They looked at his heart, brain, kidneys, stomach and other growing internal organs, as well as all of his bones, including his spine and his all of his external extremities.  Let's just say, this little boy was not thrilled with the tech looking at him and he made sure to make her job difficult by moving every 2 seconds so she had a hard time getting a good look at him.  Of course, my little guy would have a mind of his own and march to his own beat!
From what we could tell, he's growing perfectly but I do have to go back at the end of the month so they can get a better look at his face because he wouldn't show it at all.  He kept putting his hand up to his face or turning his back to us....little stinker.  They also want a more in depth look at the chambers of his heart as well just to make sure they've reviewed everything thoroughly.

He's been moving a lot and I've been able to feel his kicks with some force over the last few weeks. We were out a few weeks ago, May 12th, the day before Mother's Day to be exact, and while D was driving, I started feeling flutters in my tummy.  At first, I wasn't 100% sure that it was movement, but as it continued I realized it was Declan and not just gas.  It was such an exciting and unreal experience and while this pregnancy has felt real since we started IVF, it really took it to another amazing level for me.  Since then, he's made sure to let me know what he does and doesn't like from his movement. Today, D and I were talking about a gluten-free diet today (for D, not me) and as we're talking, I could tell Declan was not happy about the possibility of his mom cutting out his "important" carbs and he made it known by continuously kicking until we stopped talking about it. While I don't think Declan knows what a carb is, it was still funny that he was making his position known.

After my anatomy scan on Thursday, I had my regular doctor's appointment. She checked his heartbeat on the doppler and it was 144 bpm. She also measured my belly and told me I was right on track. My belly has popped in the last few weeks and you can definitely tell I'm pregnant now. I still fit into a few of my regular clothes but I have also started wearing maternity clothes because they are much more comfortable. Declan also does not like when my pants are too tight and has made that known to me as well with his kicks.

We also talked to her about creating our birth plan and asked about signing up for birthing classes. She told us we have a choice of 2 hospitals close to us to give birth. The first is the hospital where we had the anatomy scan and her main hospital n the same network, which is 6 miles from our house and the other is a hospital where she has privileges but is affiliated with another network, which is 3 miles from our house. Ultimately she said that we need to pick a hospital where we like the entire staff and feel like they are best suited for us. We're going to visit both and see which one we feel more comfortable with and then make a decision. We ended up booking tours for both hospitals and set up our birthing classes at the closer hospital because they had a better schedule for us and we'll complete everything throughout the months of July and August.

We've settled on dates for our baby showers too and I've been working to create the invitations for the St. Louis shower over the last week. We couldn't get the clubhouse in our neighborhood in August so we chose to have the St. Louis shower in mid-July and then the Lansing shower in mid-August. I created the invitations for St. Louis and with the help of my mom we'll tackle the decorations and food as it gets closer. I'm not quite sure what's going on for the Lansing shower and I don't know if Dustin's family will want my help or not. Luckily we do have a bit more time for that one.

Outside of the pregnancy, we've had quite a bit going on there also! Nicole graduated from college the first weekend in May with her Bachelors in Science in Criminal Justice.  She graduated a year early and we're so proud of her! That same weekend, Kahla asked me to be a bridesmaid in her and Ryan's wedding next year. D was also asked to be a groomsman for my brother. We're both so excited for them and can't wait for their wedding.
The following weekend D and I went to an event at a local animal rescue and learned about volunteer opportunities that they have. We're looking to reach out and help with the cats that are looking to be adopted. We have our volunteer training in July and then will spend a day or two a month helping out as we can. Mother's Day was also that weekend and we got to spend the day with my mom and step-dad. We went to the riverfront in St. Charles and walked around, browsing the shops and had lunch.
Last weekend was Memorial Day and we needed the extra day off! Saturday we did chores around the house, Sunday I went to brunch with Shell and we got to catch up since her last visit home nearly 3 years ago.  After brunch, we picked up D and went to her brother's for a BBQ.  We had a great relaxing afternoon just enjoying some time outside of our house.  Monday we got ready for the week ahead and spent a few hours at the neighborhood pool.  It was a blistering hot weekend and some time at the pool was much needed!  It was hard to go back to work on Tuesday but we both seemed to make it through the week albeit we were again ready for the weekend by the time Friday rolled around. Today, we went and signed the papers to have our deck redone and then went to lunch. It's been a pretty low key day again which has been nice.  We know these will be few and far between as the month's keep passing and our active baby boy makes his was into the world so we'll enjoy it while we can!

Baby R -- week 17 update

We're officially at 17 weeks as of today and Baby R is now the size of a turnip or pine cone depending on what pregnancy site you're on.  I had my 16 week doctor's appointment on Tuesday and my doc told me everything looks great.  The baby's heartbeat is strong at 150 bpm and everything seems to be on track.
We got the results of my Natera test back on April 13th and we got great news!  We are considered low risk for a multitude of serious genetic disorders and we found out the gender of our bundle of joy!
We're having a.....

BOY!!!

We're so excited and can not wait to meet him! And we've even decided on a name. It was far easier for us to come up with boys names than girls names so it was a relief to know that we're expecting a little boy. In fact, we had his name picked out before we even knew the gender. D wasn't set on even picking a girl's name until we knew we were having a girl so we were lucky to find out we're having a boy so we wouldn't have to go through the name debate for a girl. I'm not sure why it was so much easier picking out a boy's name for us but we actually agreed upon a name early on and it stuck.  The name we picked has a lot of meaning to it and while I've liked the name for quite some time, it only took me telling D the meaning that made him agree, it's the perfect name for our little dude.

Our little guy's name will be Declan James!

From Babycenter.com:

What does Declan mean?

A traditional Irish name meaning "man of prayer" or "full of goodness." St. Declan founded an Irish monastery in Ireland and St. Declan's Stone as purportedly been the site of many miracles.

Our baby is definitely a miracle and we're so happy to add this sweet boy to our family!!

Over the past few weeks we've started working on his bedroom and while I was planning to paint the room gray and go with a gray and turquoise color scheme of the bedding I bought but we've decided to leave the room the light blue we painted it when we moved into the house a few years ago. Declan's room will be D's office and we're moving D's office to the basement. We started cleaning out the room, moving furniture and purchased new drapes to match both the bedding and the walls.

Last weekend, we finally has some nice springtime weather and decided to make a trip to the Outlet Malls. I was in need of some maternity clothes as my clothes are starting to get uncomfortable. We stopped into Carters and Gymboree and D was like a kid in a candy store picking out clothes for his little one. Who knew he would love shopping for boy's clothes so much! Thankfully both stores had major sales and we didn't spend a fortune on clothes that will only last a short time.  I didn't fair as well at the Outlet Malls, since I also didn't want to spend a fortune on clothes and settled on a few items (leggings, a top, and a dress) from Burlington for far less than the cost of one dress at the maternity clothing store.

I go back to the doctor at the end of the month for my 20 week anatomy scan and next appointment. Being "high risk" with going through IVF and being 35, I've got to have a full scan done at the hospital. This is typically when a "normal" pregnant woman would find out the gender but for us it's just to make sure that everything continues to progress at the correct rate. This will also give us a chance to check out the hospital where we'll most likely have the baby. 

Up next for us is settling on dates for both a Michigan and Missouri baby shower. I think we've decided the best time will be in August as it will still give us time to get everything ready before Declan's debut in October but it's not too early as that is not proper etiquette according to all the books and blogs we've been reading. Where, when, food, games....it's a lot to plan for two celebrations so we're trying to get a head start.

It's such an exciting time for us and we can't wait for what's ahead!

Baby R -- week 13 update

So the cat is out of the bag (no pun intended for Kinny!) and over Easter weekend we told both of our families we’re expecting a baby on October 11, 2018. To say everyone was excited is an understatement. Both of our families are thrilled and can’t wait!
A few reasons why I haven’t posted since we found out - one I wanted to make it a surprise for my family and while no one reads my blog, I didn’t want to give it away. Two, I wanted go just enjoy the first few weeks with D and try to figure out a game plan for our future and three, well I’ve been just plain exhausted through the first trimester. Keeping my eyes open has always been a challenge, I love sleep and wow, have I needed so much more for Baby R!

I’m almost through the first trimester or I am through it according to some books being 13 weeks and I’m feeling really good. I haven’t had any morning sickness and have only felt nauseous when I don’t get enough protein. Protein has been my biggest craving so far and especially red meat. I’ve wanted burgers, steak and roast beef sandwiches nearly every day. I’ve also been on a big kick with buffalo chicken. My once sweet tooth has pretty much gone away and I only want gummy bears, not for the sweetness but for the chewiness. I never knew how real cravings were or how emotional I’d get trying to figure out dinner. But, I have to say I absolutely love being pregnant right now and knowing after such a struggle, we have a little one waiting to meet us in October.
Besides our families, I had to tell work which hasn’t gone quite as planned. It’s been a struggle there and so much so, I’ve had to finally ask to pull back the reins and move me from the Manager of the department to just an Accountant. It was a hard decision and after a lot of tears I know it’s the right decision for me and my growing family. I think it would have been more bearable for me to remain manager if I had a full staff but since finding out we’re having a baby, I’ve only had half of a staff and not many leads on new employees or my ideas have been shot down, which has been extremely disheartening. This is my chance to do what I needed to do to take care of myself. Thankfully despite the pressure, I’ve held my ground for myself, which has brought a lot of extra stress and tears but I will hopefully be back on track to focus on me. I will say working in a male dominated industry has been rough. They don't quite get why I've decided to pull back and have been a bit rude about my decisions. All I can hope right now is that I can make it through the next 6 months dealing with the ridiculousness there and then enjoy my time off with our little one. I'm also debating on what sort of work schedule changes I'll make after my FMLA expires.

Right now though, I want to focus on the positive and enjoy this exciting time in our lives.  On March 9th, I graduated from the Fertility clinic to a regular OBGYN. We met her the following Friday for our first appointment and confirmation that I am indeed pregnant. At the appointment, we had an ultrasound and we talked to the doctor about what to expect throughout the pregnancy. She answered so many questions and eased our minds.  Here's a pic of our bundle of joy from our visit:

I went back to the doctor on Tuesday for my 12 week appointment. My new OBGYN is awesome. I really like her and I'm so glad I decided to find a doctor that not only is looking out for our baby's health but also my own. I'm no spring chicken in terms of pregnancy. In fact, the doctor classified me of "advanced maternal age" since I'm 35 and she's taking that into consideration with each visit. This time we talked about genetic testing and her recommendations since I am older. I decided to go with a test called Natera. It is a Panoramic test that not only checks out many genetic issues but also will allow us to find out the gender of the baby sooner. I had the blood work done after my appointment and hopefully will see the results within 7 business days. Ultimately, I don't have a preference on the gender but just hope that we have a happy, healthy baby.

Everyone has been so great since we announced our news. On Wednesday my mom texted me and told me that while she was out shopping, she happened to have a few things jump into her cart for us.  Besides the few items we've bought ourselves, this is our first baby gift, which was so sweet!

Yesterday we got a cute surprise at our door. We were getting ready to go downtown to get my hair done and run a few other errands and before we left, a florist dropped off the cutest arrangement of flowers. Grandma and Grandpa R sent us flowers as a congratulations and it was one of the nicest gestures I could have asked for.

I think everyone is as excited as D, Kinny and I are about our newest addition!

Day 31 -- The Results Are In!

The Philadelphia Eagles are Super Bowl Champions! Can you believe it?!? We ended up hanging out at our friends house for the whole game with our friends while eating Mexican food and had a blast watching the game and the commercials.

But I'm guessing the results of the game aren't really important right now are they? The results we've been anticipating for two weeks are finally in as well.
Monday I got up and drank a ton of water before getting to Quest at 6:35 in the morning. Took a second to get my veins flowing but thankfully we didn't have any issues getting the vial filled so they could check my hCG and progesterone levels. I anxiously awaited the results and finally at 1:47 pm my Fertility Coordinator called and asked if I was feeling pregnant. I responded, "well I'm really hoping I am!" She told me that according to my levels I am pregnant. My hCG was at 1569 and my progesterone was at 86.0. I was so happy at the news! It's exactly what we've been waiting to hear for months! She explained I still needed to go on Wednesday to check my levels again but that the doctor wanted to start my regular OB appointments to check on everything. I set up my first appointment for next Friday, Feb 16th at 1:15 pm.
After my call with my Coordinator, I walked into the hall and called D and gave him the exciting news.  He was equally as elated hearing that we're pregnant!  I wish I could have seen his face but I'm also glad I didn't wait until after work to tell him. When we got home, we gave Kinny the news too -- D picked her up and we told her, "Kinny, you're going to be a Big Sister!" I'd say she was pretty happy too.

Today I went back to Quest for my second round of bloodwork. Again getting there at 6:35 and while I again drank so much water beforehand, the phlebotomist had to massage my arm to get my vein flowing but I was in and out fairly quickly and made my way to work. At 11:19 this morning my other Fertility Coordinator called and even though I had my phone sitting on my desk, I missed her call. I called her back quickly and got more good news! My hCG has more than doubled to 3970 and my progesterone level is at 96.4. We're moving in the right direction...yeah!! I texted D with the good news and he again was thrilled.

It's been hard to concentrate at work waiting for the calls and thinking about our future but I'm beyond excited to see what is in store for us! We have had one change this week that I'm working through -- D is out of town for a few days at a conference and I can't give myself my progesterone oil injections so I had to get a few suppository samples from the doctor's office in order to get my required progesterone each day. This morning was the first day without my injection and I have to say, I actually prefer the shot over the suppositories three times a day. Who knew...the gal that is afraid of needles actual misses her daily injections. I almost think I could give them to myself but I'm still not sure I could look at the needle puncturing my skin....knowing me, I'd probably still faint. Luckily D is back on Friday so we'll restart my injections bright and early on Saturday morning.
I'm still feeling really good, no real symptoms to speak of so far and I'm maintaining as much positivity so that my body continues to respond the way I need it to.

Day 27 -- Only a few more days of waiting

We're still in our two week wait but it is quickly ending. I go in for blood tests on both Monday and Wednesday and we should finally have some answers. I've read articles that say you shouldn't be too positive or too negative about the IVF process and the outcome but I don't know if I agree with that, I'd like to hope that being positive will have a positive result in my body.

I'm still feeling really good. Occasionally I will have some cramps in the evening time, especially over the last week or so but otherwise I'm feeling fine. I've taken Ibuprofen a few nights when they've become too much of a nuisance. Last night was possibly the worst night of cramps and as I got to thinking about it, I have a feeling it was more of constipation pain than regular cramps (TMI, I know...sorry!). That's the main side effect I seem to be experiencing from the progesterone oil. I drank some apple juice this morning and we also picked up some prunes today and I'm hoping this will do the trick.

My 35th birthday was on the 29th and I can honestly say, it was the first day in about a month that I've let the stress and my emotions overtake me. It was an extremely busy day at work with our yearly audit starting, along with it being a Monday and having conference calls and meetings pop up all throughout the day. I decided early in the afternoon that rather than working out with some of my work friends, I'd just come home and relax. I needed some time to decompress and hitting the gym was the last thing on my mind. I got home around 6 pm after having a less than stellar day and put together some random dinner, which may or may not have been the healthiest. I, honestly can't remember what we ate. D mentioned something about not cooking and eating healthy and it triggered something in me. While he didn't mean that I don't cook the healthiest all the time, that's how I took it and I spent the rest of my night upset and crying in bed. So much for a happy birthday.
The rest of the week got better and I seemed to find a way to keep my emotions in check since then.
I was really happy to see the weekend come and have tried to use this time to "recharge my mental batteries."

Tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday and we're heading to spend a few hours with friends tomorrow night to watch part of the game. I need to stop into Quest for my blood work before heading into the office Monday morning so we're not going to make it a late night and as much as I typically like the Super Bowl, I'm really not into this year. Guess I've got bigger things on my mind more important than a football game. :)