Time to Dust Off the Blog

One whole post in 2019, what a slacker I am.  Actually, I'm just a tired mama with a lot on her plate, but I can say, we're all thriving.  My baby boy is growing by the minute and is the best little guy. At 15.5 months, he's walking and always on the go and giving mama a run for her money all the time.

So let's see....I'll try to give the Cliff Notes version of the last 8 months.

After Mother's Day, Declan went to his first Cardinals baseball game and we celebrated the Blues winning the Stanley Cup and attended the Championship Parade as a family on Father's Day weekend.  My brother also got married in June so there was an abundance of excitement throughout the month.

In August, Dustin and I celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary while on our family vacation to the Upper Peninsula. Declan got to experience the Soo Locks for the first time and see the Point Iroquois Lighthouse.

In September, we went apple picking and started planning Declan's 1st Birthday Party.  It was the first and maybe only time I tried to be the "Pinterest Mom."  We planned a St. Louis Blues Stanley Cup Championship party and it was a huge success!  We invited our immediate family and planned it for a day the Blues had a game so everyone could wear their Blues gear.  It was really symbolic for us to have this party for 2 reasons -- 1) I went into labor opening night of the 2018-2019 season and 2) the Blues won the Stanley Cup for the first time ever.  For me, it had an extra special meaning. Declan is such a special boy and he is definitely loved by everyone!

Declan officially finished taking bottles at his first birthday too.  It's was so hard to believe that this little guy was considered a toddler and we transitioned to food and regular milk 100% of the time.

Later in October, Declan celebrated Halloween with Kinny.  Both went as pumpkins and they were the cutest pumpkins around. It was a brutally cold night so he and Dustin only visited a few of our closer neighbors but he also got to go to a Trunk or Treat at my work earlier in the month so he didn't totally miss out on the Halloween experience.

In November, we celebrated Thanksgiving.  Declan has the cutest Thanksgiving Feast at school one afternoon and Dustin and I were lucky enough to attend with him.  Also, as his shirt suggests, he was all about the pie!  :)  Dustin took Declan Black Friday shopping as I had to work and they had a lot of fun hanging out.  Dustin even splurged for breakfast before shopping and that probably was Declan's favorite part of the day.

December brought the first snow of the season along with the holidays and a lot of travel for us.  We visited everyone in Michigan and also had multiple Christmases here at home.  Declan also met Santa at Breakfast with Santa at his school and we're happy to say he did not cry when meeting the jolly old man.

At the end of December, I officially lost my baby to the toddler years when Declan got his first haircut and let's just say there were a lot of tears from both Declan and mommy. Declan didn't want to sit in the chair and get his hair cut and mommy saw her baby grow up in a blink of an eye.

So far the New Year has been unbelievably busy for us.  I'm in my extremely busy time at work so juggling parenting, home life and work has been a whirlwind. We're surviving but we're taking advantage of a few minutes of downtime when we can.

I celebrated my 10 year anniversary at work (prior service and current service) last week and was celebrated by our Owner and VPs.  It was nice to hear their comments about my role in the Company.  I went to dinner at a REALLY fancy restaurant with them and our Director of Operations that evening and was given some promising news about my future. I hope I can continue to impress them and be successful in my position while trying to be the best mom and wife I can be.

That Cliff Notes version actually was pretty long!  As I continue to juggle what life throws as me, I hope to be able to update more regularly, but I won't make any promises so I'll just say...until next time!

My First Mother's Day

I know it's been forever since I've updated and life has passed us in a blur over these last 5 months!  My sweet little boy is now 7 months old and growing up too fast for my liking. Every day I think back to how small he was and it's so hard to believe just how far we've come.

So over the last 5 months, Declan has:
- Started school
- Started solid food
- Learned to roll over
- Gone to his first Blues hockey game
- Celebrated Easter and met the Easter Bunny
- Started sitting up on his own
- Spent a whole weekend without Mommy

And I'm sure there is so much more I'm missing!

Yesterday, I celebrated my first Mother's Day and it was truly an emotional day for me. Exactly one year ago (05/12/18), I felt Declan kick for the first time.  This year I got to hold my boy and celebrate how lucky I am to be his mama.
We had a great day! I made french toast for breakfast and then cuddled with my little guy while he napped. We had a late lunch with my mom and Michael at this cute little pizza place in Cottleville and stopped at Home Depot for potting soil so we could plant the new perennials I got for Mother's Day. Afterwards, we came back to our house, planted the flowers and had cupcakes and overall just enjoyed the afternoon and the time together.

I got the cutest gift ever from Declan. At school they helped him with painting his hand prints on a canvas and added a picture of him. It was the sweetest gift I could have gotten and he was so proud to give it to me. I also got a chocolate bar and a cute card.

I had to get a picture of us to celebrate the day too.

I just love this boy so much! He's the sweetest, happiest little guy! Along with the flowers, my mom and Michael got me a bracelet with the coordinates of the exact location where Declan was born. I truly feel blessed and I'm so grateful for my family.

Speaking of which, we're happy to announce that my mom and Michael will be moving closer to us. About a month ago they closed on a house about 3 miles from us. It's a fixer upper that needs ALOT of work but hopefully by the end of the year they will be moved in and we'll get to spend more time with them. I was so lucky to have my grandparents close by growing up and I'm so glad Declan will be able to do the same.

Merry Christmas!!

From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

A few weeks ago we took Declan to visit Santa and it was so adorable! Santa knows he's been a good boy this year and is on the nice list.

After a week of traveling to Michigan to celebrate the holidays, we are celebrating at home today with a low key dinner. Declan is not quite old enough to understand the wonder and magic of Christmas so we will just enjoy our time together. We hope you have a wonderful holiday however you celebrate.

Ten weeks!!!

It is beyond hard to believe my little boy is already 10 weeks old! I'm pinching myself daily at how lucky I am and I'm enjoying every minute of watching him grow!

He had his two month check up last week and he's a healthy boy!
Here are his stats:
Weight - 11 lbs 13.6 oz (37%)
Length - 23.75 in (81%)
Head circumference - 38.9 cm (41%)

We did have a minor scare when his pediatrician thought she heard a hip click and sent us to the Children's Hospital for a hip ultrasound. A hip click could be the sign of hip displaysia and this mom went crazy thinking about it. Thankfully after the ultrasound on Wednesday we were told that Declan is growing perfectly and he doesn't have any hip issues. It was such a relief!!

This week Declan has also started mostly sleeping through the night. While getting him to nap during the daytime has been quite a task (the boy is too busy to nap!), at night he's sleeping between 6 and 8 hours at once. It's been great at nighttime but D and I are still waking up to check on him multiple times because we are *those* parents. He's going to think we're so lame when he gets older. :)

Mom, you're so lame!

Last night we had my company Christmas party. D and I attended and got to catch up with quite a few of my coworkers. Seems like there are many people awaiting my comeback and honestly I am looking forward to jumping back in 3 weeks from now. I never knew how much I'd miss my responsibilities and my role at work. I had a meeting with my bosses last week and told them I'd be back on January 3rd and they want me to take back on the responsibility of managing our entire department again. While it was extremely stressful early in my pregnancy, I'm up for the challenge now and can't wait to make a difference at work again.

Besides that, we're just getting ready for Christmas. I've finished all of the shopping and just need to finish wrapping the last few gifts. We've got multiple family gatherings to get ready for but it will be an exciting time for us celebrating with our little miracle!

I can never get enough of this smile!

Almost six weeks!!!

I completely missed out on a 4 weeks/one month post but we've had a lot going on and I've spent no time near a computer over the last few weeks. Who knew such a little person could keep me on my toes nearly 24 hours a day?!?
In any case, we're all doing well and I'm happy to report that Kinny is finally starting to become more comfortable around her brother. I think she realizes now he's not a toy and he's here to stay. She's become more protective around him and every so often will let me know when he needs something by finding me and meowing quite loudly until I stop what I'm doing to go check on him. She also sits by him intently when he's playing on his play mat each day.

Speaking of the play mat, this is Declan's absolute favorite toy right now. He loves the lights and music and has a blast swinging his arms and kicking his legs. Our days are spent with quite a bit of time on the mat, along with listening to other tunes and reading.
We've not ventured out a whole lot due to the ugly cold weather we've experienced along with the fact that we're heading into flu season but we did take a trip to visit daycare centers and to PetSmart to shop for Kinny and also doctor's appointments for both Declan and Mommy. After contacting multiple daycare and learning centers for availability we finally registered Declan at a great facility. He won't start until I go back to work in January but I'm glad we've got him locked in. I had no idea it would be so difficult to find a spot for him. Our area is so populated that out of the 10 places we contacted only 2 had spots in January. One place even told me they wouldn't have any openings until November 2019! With that I just laughed....I guess I should have checked into daycare centers before I was even pregnant!
Declan had his one month checkup and is growing like crazy!
His one month stats:
Weight - 8 lbs 14.6 oz (22%)
Length - 22.75 inches (94%)
Head circumference - 36.75 cm (32%)

I went to the doctor for my postpartum checkup and have healed since childbirth. I've been cleared to get back to my regular workouts (yes!) and the doctor even suggested I have the occasional beer in order to help my milk production. Crazy that I need to drink in order to breastfeed but I've struggled with my milk production and beer seems to help increase it. I'm still hoping I am able to get my supply up before I head back to work. I'm also working diligently to get off the last 11 lbs I gained while pregnant.

Speaking more about the weather, we've had a strange fall so far. We've had a couple of small snows this November and today takes the cake. We have about 6 inches on the ground as I type this with more coming. It's enough snow that Daddy took a "snow day" and is working from home in his office. While Declan isn't old enough to appreciate a snow day, we're going to take a few pics inside with the snow behind him later on to note the occasion. He does look adorably cute in his hat and mittens!

Other than that, we're getting ready for Thanksgiving and decorating the house for Christmas. I'm so excited to share the holidays with our sweet bundle of joy!

Three Weeks!!

Declan turned three weeks old yesterday and I keep thinking to myself, how is this little boy three weeks old already!?! He's so sweet and so lovable and just melts my heart every single day. We had his two week old checkup on Monday and it was the first time Declan and I attempted an outing by ourselves. I may have driven like an old lady going to and from the pediatrician but we made it with no issues. At our visit, Declan was still underweight and hadn't gotten back to his birth weight so the doctor suggested more feedings and more ounces of formula and a follow up visit for Friday.

It was a bit disheartening that my little guy still hadn't gotten back up to birth weight. I've tried very hard to breastfeed and it still wasn't enough to help put the pounds on our boy. Even in my few short weeks as a mom, I want to do everything I can for my son. I haven't given up breastfeeding but I know now that he needs more than just me so I'm pumping as I can and feeding mostly formula bottles and then breast milk when I get enough pumped out. Thankfully, my pediatrician has been extremely helpful and supportive which has made me feel like less of a breastfeeding failure. I'm also still keeping out hope that my supply will pick up with eating more calories and drinking more water. Breastfeeding is best according to the experts and I agree, but I also had to accept that I have to do whatever it takes to make sure my baby thrives and sometimes that means more than just breastfeeding.

We had our follow up pediatrician appointment on Friday morning and I'm happy to report that Declan finally got over the hump and got back to his birth weight and then some! Declan weighed 7 lbs 7.8 oz on Friday morning and that was even with a few urgent diaper changes at the doctor's office. Other than the weight issue, he's a perfectly happy and healthy little boy, which makes me so happy! Our next appointment will be for his one month checkup.

Thursday evening D's mom and step-dad came to town to visit and meet Declan. They are staying through the weekend and have helped us with a few unexpected things that have popped up around our house. Tonight my mom and step-dad are coming out and we're having a dinner here at our house. I was lucky to have everyone here yesterday so that I could also get out to grocery shop without having to take Declan out in the cold, rainy weather.

Other than that, our week was filled with playing on the new play mat we set up, reading books, listening to music and taking some much needed naps.

Two Weeks!!

Declan is two weeks old today and an absolute joy!! I know I can't say it enough but I am so in love with this little boy! I don't know where the last two weeks have gone but time needs to slow down so I can savor all of these sweet moments with my baby a bit more!

This week, he's taken a greater interest in breastfeeding and has latched better with each passing day. We're still supplementing with formula here and there but not as much as we had to the first week.

We were a bit nervous with his umbilical cord stub which was just handing and smelling pretty foul so we ended up going back to the pediatrician on Saturday. Thankfully, everything was fine and it was normal and the doctor ended up removing it to let his belly button heal. Declan had his first bath on Sunday evening, which lasted all of 30 seconds because he absolutely hated it but it was another milestone for our little guy. We'll have to work on getting him to like the water!

This week was also the week that D went back to work and Declan and I have started to settle into a little bit of a routine. We're not completely set yet but we're starting somewhere. On Sunday, Kathy and Nicole visited and brought us a bunch of meals Steve made for us. We had my mom over for a few hours on Tuesday, Kahla came to spend Thursday and a good part of today with us and my dad also visited for a few hours this afternoon. Everyone just loves this boy so much and we're so lucky to have everyone visiting and helping us.

Declan and I have been bonding all week and along with napping and eating, we've been reading books, listening to music and starting to work on Declan's baby book.

I also started working out this week and while I've been out of the gym for almost two weeks, it was good to get back in there and do something. I haven't been cleared for much (no heavy weights, extensive cardio, etc) but I decided to walk on the treadmill for 30 minutes just to help me get back into shape. It was a bit rough but I'm hopeful I'll be back on track soon!

Today we took Kinny to the vet for her two week checkup since she's been out of quarantine. She had her levels checked again and we are so grateful that everything came back normal on her Renal Panel. We're still waiting for the T4 results which should be back in a few days but at least her heart, electrolytes, temperature are back to normal. She's also gained a pound since her Labor Day visit to our family vet, which is also promising for the Radiocat Iodine I-131 treatment.

This weekend we do not have much planned, probably just taking it easy and staying around the house. I'm still a bit hesitant to take Declan out with the weather not super warm and heading into flu season. While I've had my flu shot and D getting his next week, Declan can't get his until he's at least 6 months old and this mama is a bit nervous of her baby catching something and getting sick. Also, we have D's mom and step-dad coming to town next week and we should be getting the house ready for their visit.

Here are a few pics from our week:

Kinny helping her dad care for her little brother.

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!