It's been awhile since I posted any details of my pregnancy with this little boy in my belly, so I figured I would get you caught back up to date!
We came home from our summer vacation at the beginning of my 22nd week, and by the end of that week I was put on partial bed rest. My normal blood pressure is 110/60... at that appointment my blood pressure was 140/80, and I had gained 15 pounds in the three weeks since my last appointment. My OB gave me strict orders to stop work immediately and to begin resting during the day as much as possible. She also ordered what seemed like 1000 tests to be done over the course of the following week. I had developed preeclampsia/toxemia during my pregnancy with Reagan, so we were prepared to keep a close eye on things for this pregnancy... we just didn't expect to see the symptoms so soon!
Since then, my blood pressure has pretty much remained the same. All of the blood work and other lab work came back within the normal ranges, so I have managed to remain on only partial bed rest thus far. This means that I am resting either in bed or on the couch more than anything else while still being allowed to take the occasional walk around the block or to run an important errand. More than anything though, I'm being lazy! It's tough though because my nesting instinct has kicked in, and I can't really do any cleaning while laying on the couch. There was one day that I decided that all of the shoes in our house were dirty, so I put ALL of them in the washing machine. I figured that was the best way to cure my itch to clean and yet not do any physical labor in the process! And now we all have clean shoes! So far, I haven't had any other crazy cleaning urges thank goodness!
My blood pressure may be staying down, but my weight is still going up like crazy. I'm averaging about 5 pounds per week which means that at the rate I am going, if I carry to full term I could weigh over 250 pounds. It has become harder to move around or to roll over in bed or to get off the couch without feeling like I need a crane to lift me, and I know a lot of it has to do with the water that I am retaining. Just the same as with Reagan, I'm swelling in my face, hands, and feet. Oh who am I kidding... I'm swelling all over! My face, hands and feet just seem to be getting the worst of it so far!
Thankfully, I passed the Glucose Tolerance Test on the first try. I felt HORRIBLE the rest of the day that day, and I was terrified that I would have to take the extended test to rule out gestational diabetes. What a relief to know that I at least don't have to worry about that!
If the old wives tale about heartburn has any truth to it, then this baby boy is going to be born with a full head of hair. I didn't think that heartburn could get any worse than it was with Reagan (and she had a full head of hair at birth!), but this little boy has got her beat for sure. I'm eating Tums like crazy, but they only help a little bit.
Let's see, what else can I complain about in this post? How about some serious sciatica pain?! At least this ailment tends to come and go, so I am blaming it on whatever position Myers works himself into that puts extra pressure on the sciatic nerve. He must have already figured my breaking point and is testing me because every time that it seems I have had all that I can take of the pain, he thankfully gives me a few days of relief before maneuvering himself into the painful spot again!
My family would surely complain about my pregnancy hormones! Lately, I have been all over the map with dramatic and crazy and emotional ups and downs and highs and lows. I remember being hormonal when I was pregnant with Reagan, and there were a few days that I remember being "grumpy", but NOTHING like what I have been going through with Myers. This past week has been extremely emotional, and it took a toll on me for a couple of days. The worst part has been the crazy surges of raging emotions that I have had. I've taken to throwing things at people - a can of ginger ale at my sister, and a tub of butter at my husband (the ginger ale was full... the butter tub was empty!) and on more than one occasion I have felt like punching a wall. THIS IS TOTALLY NOT LIKE ME AT ALL. I am going to blame these "neanderthal" like symptoms on of all of the testosterone in my body that I am not used to. Thank you very much little boy for causing havoc on my body in so many ways! I have always known that boys can be much more of a handful than girls, but good grief I wasn't expecting to have to start dealing with it before he is even born!!!!
Speaking of this little boy, he is now the size of an eggplant at approximately 14 inches in length and just over 2 pounds. (How is that possible when I have gained almost 40 pounds already?!?!?!?!) Despite all of the craziness that is going on with my body, he is growing just as he should be. He can now blink his eyes, and he even has eye lashes. His eyesight has developed enough that he can now see light that filters through the womb. He's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and sucking his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, his brain is very active now. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if he were to be born now. However, I have no plans of this baby boy being born any time soon! Right now, I'm enjoying feeling all of his kicks and punches and hiccups (except for the ones that center around the sciatic nerve of course!) from the inside.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Friday, August 13, 2010
Silly Bandz
Many of you already know the craze of Silly Bandz, those little rubber bands that have been created into most any shape imaginable and are worn and traded by the kids like crazy. Well, the phenomenon has not hit our part of Canada yet. Not to worry, because when we were down in the Carolinas on vacation, Reagan discovered first hand what the hype is all about.
Our cousin, Kim, and her boys sent a package to Reagan that was STUFFED full of Silly Bandz! Reagan was at first just excited to get mail of her own while at the beach, but she really got excited when she opened up the bag to see what was inside. She spent the first little while sorting them out on the floor, and then she began to sort which ones she was going to wear first.
We acquired several more packs over the rest of our trip... enough to almost fill a gallon sized ziploc bag! Now that we are home, she thinks she is the coolest kid in Canada because of all of her bracelets. She shows them off to anyone who will pay her attention, and she has introduced several of her friends to the latest fashion trend.
I'm in the process of trying to convince our neighbor who owns a salon right on the beach in White Rock that we need to invest in these little babies and sell them out of her store front. Honestly though, I just wish that I had been the creative genius to come up with the original idea of Silly Bandz in the first place!!
Our cousin, Kim, and her boys sent a package to Reagan that was STUFFED full of Silly Bandz! Reagan was at first just excited to get mail of her own while at the beach, but she really got excited when she opened up the bag to see what was inside. She spent the first little while sorting them out on the floor, and then she began to sort which ones she was going to wear first.
We acquired several more packs over the rest of our trip... enough to almost fill a gallon sized ziploc bag! Now that we are home, she thinks she is the coolest kid in Canada because of all of her bracelets. She shows them off to anyone who will pay her attention, and she has introduced several of her friends to the latest fashion trend.
I'm in the process of trying to convince our neighbor who owns a salon right on the beach in White Rock that we need to invest in these little babies and sell them out of her store front. Honestly though, I just wish that I had been the creative genius to come up with the original idea of Silly Bandz in the first place!!
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Who's Thirsty for Some Lemonade?
The next-to-last morning at the beach, Reagan woke up in tears. She was upset because we had forgotten to have a lemonade stand!
Weeks before we ever even went on vacation, Reagan decided that she wanted to have a lemonade stand. She also decided that the best place to have one would be at Pops & Momsey's beach house where it is hot, hot, hot!
This little girl has a way of getting whatever she wants out of her Pops and her Daddy, so she immediately started working on them to build her a lemonade stand so that she could "make some money" on her last morning at the beach. All she had to do was ask, and the two of them set out on the mission of building the perfect stand.
The next morning, our last day at the beach, Reagan and I got busy slicing up the lemons and mixing up her special drink. She was ready and waiting for all of the world to become thirsty!
Reagan was convinced that every person, golf cart, car or bike that went by her stand was supposed to buy a drink. Thankfully, Mr. David from across the street was out cutting his grass and decided that a glass of tasty lemonade would be the perfect treat. He was her first customer, and he kept coming back for more!
She stood on her stool, behind her stand for almost an hour. She served up 2 pitchers of lemonade that morning to friends, family, and strangers for 25 cents per cup. When the lemonade ran out, she was $13.30 richer... she had even made a few tips!
And yes, she has already asked her Daddy if she can have a lemonade stand here at home... She's quite the little entrepreneur!
Weeks before we ever even went on vacation, Reagan decided that she wanted to have a lemonade stand. She also decided that the best place to have one would be at Pops & Momsey's beach house where it is hot, hot, hot!
This little girl has a way of getting whatever she wants out of her Pops and her Daddy, so she immediately started working on them to build her a lemonade stand so that she could "make some money" on her last morning at the beach. All she had to do was ask, and the two of them set out on the mission of building the perfect stand.
The next morning, our last day at the beach, Reagan and I got busy slicing up the lemons and mixing up her special drink. She was ready and waiting for all of the world to become thirsty!
Reagan was convinced that every person, golf cart, car or bike that went by her stand was supposed to buy a drink. Thankfully, Mr. David from across the street was out cutting his grass and decided that a glass of tasty lemonade would be the perfect treat. He was her first customer, and he kept coming back for more!
She stood on her stool, behind her stand for almost an hour. She served up 2 pitchers of lemonade that morning to friends, family, and strangers for 25 cents per cup. When the lemonade ran out, she was $13.30 richer... she had even made a few tips!
And yes, she has already asked her Daddy if she can have a lemonade stand here at home... She's quite the little entrepreneur!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Waterslides With Bathing Suit Baby Bump Pics!
WARNING! THIS POST CONTAINS PREGNANT LADY IN A BATHING SUIT PICTURES!!!
Towards the end of our vacation in North Carolina, we spent a morning at the Magic Mountain Waterslides on Holden Beach. We had taken Reagan to these same slides last summer, and she loved it. We automatically assumed that she would love them again.
NOT AT FIRST!
Blame it on pregnancy brain, or just call me a space cadet, but I have no idea what I was thinking. I sent Reagan up to the top of the slide with her Daddy, and just expected her to slide on down by herself while I took tons of pictures. I completely forgot the little detail of someone needing to be at the bottom of the slides to "catch" her. Of course, this is more just for her comfort than for her safety, but I should have thought about that before we sent her up to the top of the hill. No wonder she was a little timid of the slides at first!
But once I got a clue as to where I was and what I needed to be doing, it was literally all downhill from there... down the hill and straight into the water!
Over and over and over again. She eventually got to a point where I didn't even have to really catch her... I was more or less just standing there on life guard duty!
The only way that we were able to convince her to stop sliding, after almost 2 hours worth of sliding, was with the promise of an ice cream cone. We ALL enjoyed an ice cream cone before heading to the house!
By the way, you can consider these pictures to be my 21 week baby bump pictures!
Towards the end of our vacation in North Carolina, we spent a morning at the Magic Mountain Waterslides on Holden Beach. We had taken Reagan to these same slides last summer, and she loved it. We automatically assumed that she would love them again.
NOT AT FIRST!
Blame it on pregnancy brain, or just call me a space cadet, but I have no idea what I was thinking. I sent Reagan up to the top of the slide with her Daddy, and just expected her to slide on down by herself while I took tons of pictures. I completely forgot the little detail of someone needing to be at the bottom of the slides to "catch" her. Of course, this is more just for her comfort than for her safety, but I should have thought about that before we sent her up to the top of the hill. No wonder she was a little timid of the slides at first!
But once I got a clue as to where I was and what I needed to be doing, it was literally all downhill from there... down the hill and straight into the water!
Over and over and over again. She eventually got to a point where I didn't even have to really catch her... I was more or less just standing there on life guard duty!
The only way that we were able to convince her to stop sliding, after almost 2 hours worth of sliding, was with the promise of an ice cream cone. We ALL enjoyed an ice cream cone before heading to the house!
By the way, you can consider these pictures to be my 21 week baby bump pictures!
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Cousins
One of the best things about being at the beach for the first two weeks of July (other than just being at the beach for that long) is that we got to see TONS of family! Our beach house is nestled amongst 5 other houses that are in our family, so the beach during the summer is like a steady family reunion of sorts. Reagan got to spend time with over 40 cousins and aunts and uncles, many that she had never met before, and she had a ball playing with all of the kids.
She and her cousin Taylor put on a fashion show for us all one afternoon. The ironic part of this fashion show was that the girls had matching bathing suits that had been purchased the previous summer by each of their grandmothers without the other even knowing it!
Reagan also enjoyed playing in the sandbox with Taylor's brother Davis, and watching Caleb, her other Davis cousin, swinging on the baby swing.
Cousins Jordan and William kept Reagan entertained for days! The three of them together were constantly rotating between our two houses. Of course, this was when they weren't begging Kris, Jordan and William's mom, to ride the tube with them again!
Cousins Cassidy and Brice came down for a weekend, and watching Reagan play with the two of them REALLY reminded me of when I used to play with their mom, Melissa and her brother Frank, when we were all much younger. There is nothing like seeing the next generation carrying on some of the same traditions!
Cousin Bailey and her Grandpa Bobby flew in all the way from Nevada, and they made sure that their trip coincided with our trip. It was great to see them, and Reagan tried to spend as much time with beautiful Bailey as possible.
We are hoping that we will be able to make this same kind of trip to see family and friends again and again over the years to come!
She and her cousin Taylor put on a fashion show for us all one afternoon. The ironic part of this fashion show was that the girls had matching bathing suits that had been purchased the previous summer by each of their grandmothers without the other even knowing it!
Reagan also enjoyed playing in the sandbox with Taylor's brother Davis, and watching Caleb, her other Davis cousin, swinging on the baby swing.
Cousins Jordan and William kept Reagan entertained for days! The three of them together were constantly rotating between our two houses. Of course, this was when they weren't begging Kris, Jordan and William's mom, to ride the tube with them again!
Cousins Cassidy and Brice came down for a weekend, and watching Reagan play with the two of them REALLY reminded me of when I used to play with their mom, Melissa and her brother Frank, when we were all much younger. There is nothing like seeing the next generation carrying on some of the same traditions!
Cousin Bailey and her Grandpa Bobby flew in all the way from Nevada, and they made sure that their trip coincided with our trip. It was great to see them, and Reagan tried to spend as much time with beautiful Bailey as possible.
We are hoping that we will be able to make this same kind of trip to see family and friends again and again over the years to come!
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Summer Water Sports
Yes, it has been over 3 weeks since I made a post. Yes, we have been home now for almost 3 weeks...
We've been a little busy!
The last few days at the beach were jammed packed full of fun, and I just couldn't stop long enough to make a post. The first few days home were full of trying to get back into the swing of things, and I just didn't feel like making a post.
A lot has happened since we got home from vacation, including me being put on bed rest, and I will hopefully catch you up on all of that news in a few more days. For now, I need to catch you up on the last few days of our vacation!
Reagan absolutely loves the beach... who doesn't! She's turned into quite the swimmer this summer, and she has also taken a love to some other water sports as well.
A little pier jumping anyone?
She also fell in love with the jet ski. The first time she rode this summer, she was sandwiched between her Daddy and her Pops, and she felt safe and secure!
She had a ball riding around, so we decided to let her try to give driving a try the next time she hopped on. She was a bit hesitant at first, but then she turned into a little stunt-girl! All she wanted to do was to go faster. She and Ryan came to a stop right in front of the pier, and I assumed that she was ready to get off. WRONG! All I heard was, "Hey Mom, watch me do some tricks!" and then they were off again, spinning in circles and jumping the waves. I have always said that this girl is fearless...
And finally, what water sports extravaganza would be complete without a little tubing? Reagan and Auntie Anna rode up and down the waterway again this year, bouncing along and having a grand ole time...
I'll be back either later today or again tomorrow with more delayed posts from the waterway!
We've been a little busy!
The last few days at the beach were jammed packed full of fun, and I just couldn't stop long enough to make a post. The first few days home were full of trying to get back into the swing of things, and I just didn't feel like making a post.
A lot has happened since we got home from vacation, including me being put on bed rest, and I will hopefully catch you up on all of that news in a few more days. For now, I need to catch you up on the last few days of our vacation!
Reagan absolutely loves the beach... who doesn't! She's turned into quite the swimmer this summer, and she has also taken a love to some other water sports as well.
A little pier jumping anyone?
She also fell in love with the jet ski. The first time she rode this summer, she was sandwiched between her Daddy and her Pops, and she felt safe and secure!
She had a ball riding around, so we decided to let her try to give driving a try the next time she hopped on. She was a bit hesitant at first, but then she turned into a little stunt-girl! All she wanted to do was to go faster. She and Ryan came to a stop right in front of the pier, and I assumed that she was ready to get off. WRONG! All I heard was, "Hey Mom, watch me do some tricks!" and then they were off again, spinning in circles and jumping the waves. I have always said that this girl is fearless...
And finally, what water sports extravaganza would be complete without a little tubing? Reagan and Auntie Anna rode up and down the waterway again this year, bouncing along and having a grand ole time...
I'll be back either later today or again tomorrow with more delayed posts from the waterway!
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