Countdown!

I've got one more month...if even that! I have another ultrasound tomorrow to see how big she is.  Last time she was a bit on the hefty side...so we'll see. I cleaned my car out today and I'm going to see if Jay will help me put the car seat base in when he gets home from work. Gettin ready!

Poor Mika is not a happy camper right now. (Which means neither is mommy.) He has acid reflux, as I believe I blogged before, and sometimes does this weird swallowing, licking, nausea thing.  Well, he did it all evening, threw up his dinner, couldn't calm down, so we took him to the emergency center at midnight.  They took some xrays, couldn't really find anything except a bit of an upset tummy and, of course, the acid reflux.  So they sent us home with meds.  Mika still was up almost all night doing his annoying thing (annoying to him AND me, but Jay manages to sleep right through it all) and he hasn't rested much.  I talked to his regular vet today who said to double his pepcid and call him in the morning. (haha. take two of these and call me in the morning.)  So I gave Mika pepcid and then breakfast...threw it up. And he is still doing his thing. Poor guy. (Plus he's gassy...even more so than pregnant me.)  Sigh. I hope we can figure this thing out.

Back to baby.  I pre-admitted at St. John's hospital yesterday.  They have us do that so that when we are in labor we don't have to worry about paperwork. :) We got a tour of the "baby" wing and its really nice.  All private rooms.  You have labor and delivery all in one private room, and then after baby is born you are moved to another private room for after baby is here.  We stay there two nights and are allowed to have baby girl in there with us as much as we want (or don't want.) Right after she's born, they won't have to whisk her away to the nursery...the nursery comes to us.  We watch her get checked out and weighed and then right back to mommy! :) I'm getting pretty excited.  I still haven't decided between going all natural, or having the epidural, but my doctor says I don't have to decide until the moment comes...so I'm gonna see if I can do it.

Well, its spring break this week! I just had my birthday! Lots of fun stuff! I am now 29 (getting awfully close to 30) and pretty content with life. I am trying to stay productive during my time off.  I need to get up to the school to get absolutely everything ready for my sub! They hired my maternity leave sub and she will be coming to "shadow" me next week.  I feel so important! She is older than me, so I hope it won't feel weird telling her how things are done. "After lunch we do our math lesson...if that's ok with you...ma'am." haha.

Well, Mika has calmed down a bit, so I'm gonna go luv on him. I'll try to blog some more during my break. 

Cross-Eyed

I would like to get some sleep. Some of my work friends have told me that my body is just preparing itself because I won't be getting much sleep when the baby comes. But COME ON, body! Now is when I need to sleep so I will be more rested and better prepared! Sigh.  I've been getting contractions (of the Braxton Hicks variety) especially at night and they make me so uncomfortable! Last night I was up from about 2 to 4:30am watching taped episodes of America's Funniest Home Videos because I couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep. I finally just fell asleep out of pure exhaustion. I walk around during the day seeing things a bit cross-eyed cuz I'm too tired to focus. lol.

My mom thinks these contractions (and sometimes accompanying cramps) are a sign that Marilee will be coming earlier than we thought. I would LOVE that except for it would mess up my work schedule. I would hate to have to go back to work this year. I planned it all so perfectly! Have a baby in April and get my maternity leave plus the summer off! But I guess if I had to meet my baby girl a little early I wouldn't really mind it. :) I am 32 weeks now and getting excited!

I wanted to write some more but my husband just came in and said we should go for a walk which sounds WONDERFUL to me right now! The weather is fabulous, so we are going to take advantage. I'll try to write more tomorrow. I'll write about something besides pregnancy, I'm sure that is getting boring.

On a final note, as much as I complain about being uncomfortable, I really do love being pregnant! Marilee makes me laugh already while she rolls around and pokes me from the inside. I am already in love!

Ok, I'm off for a nice walk!

Aches and Pains

Well, Ive heard that in the last month of pregnancy, you might just hurt all over...well what if I still have 2 months left? Is it ok that I'm already hurting all over? LOL. My new pain is my hips. Sigh. I wake up every hour to switch sides I'm laying on because my hips hurt. I'm waking up every two hours to go to the bathroom. So after all is said and done, I am getting about 5 hours of sleep each night. I told Jay a couple days ago "One kid. That's it. Just this one." Haha. I'm sure once I see her, though I will want 10 more just like her. When she starts moving in my belly then all the pain goes away and I find myself smiling. :)

Yesterday I got a call from a friend telling me that the Expo Center was hosting a "Women's Show" and at one of the booths they were giving free ultrasounds. Well, Jay didn't get to go to the first ultrasound I had (which was at 18 weeks and I am now at 31) so I thought...fun! Let's go! So we went. It wasn't just the normal ultrasound, it was a 4D ultrasound (just like 3D only in real time...or something like that.) So we saw her precious face! I immediately noticed her nose...it is the Boccacci nose. My mother is very upset. LOL. Now when I say "Boccacci" nose, I don't mean my husband's nose, his nose is different. But it is his cousin's and aunt's nose (and i think he said his grandpa's nose.) He showed me a picture of his cousin and she is gorgeous. Anyway, my daughter has a big nose and big lips (lips are definitely Jay's, and he agrees.) And they are the most precious nose and lips I have ever seen. I can't wait to kiss those lips and that nose!

School starts again tomorrow! (At least that's what I'm assuming. Surely enough snow has melted away.) I am excited to get back to work and feel productive. I am a little nervous about figuring out my new schedule. Somehow I have to fit in my new diet and exercise plan with my everyday work schedule. Sigh. I guess I will be checking my blood at my desk. Ha. Maybe I can walk laps around the hallways after lunch or something. I'll figure it out.

Well, I guess that's all for now. I sure hope no kids bring me chocolate for Valentine's Day tomorrow. That would be torture. Sigh. Have a Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Eat lots of chocolate and think of me! I'll be eating an english muffin and cottage cheese. :)

Kickin'

Had my monthly appointment with my OBGYN today. Heard Marilee's heartbeat. Makes this diet worth it! I've only gained one pound in the last month. The nurse asked my secret. I said "My new diet". It's funny though, its a diet, but I am eating all the time and have not felt hungry since I started it. So that's good. My kinda diet (except for no milk chocolate).At my next appointment in 2 weeks we will do another ultrasound to see how big she is. It'll be fun to get a glimpse of her again. She is kicking me all the time it seems like, so maybe i can catch her actions on the screen. I'm excited!

Well, tomorrow has been called as another snow day. Sigh. That makes almost 2 full weeks. I hope I still remember how to teach when we go back on Monday. I think Jay and I are going to go see The King's Speech tomorrow. I love Colin Firth (aka Mr. Darcy), and have heard great things about this movie. And I will want to get out of the house. I just can't sit around much longer!

Does anyone else watch the "Teen Mom" shows? And the "16 and Pregnant" shows? I am obsessed with them. I am trying to figure out why. I feel so bad for these girls. And not usually because they are pregnant or have kids, but because they usually have horrible support systems. The guys hardly ever stick around, and usually their parents are a bit crazy. If you do watch it, is there anyone else who wants to smack both Jenelle and her mom right in their annoying faces?! Sigh. They drive me up the wall...and yet, I can't stop watching. LOL. Just like a car wreck. Can't look away.

Well, I don't have much more to write today. Roger is roaming free about the house which is probably not the best idea, so I'd better go find him and see what he might be destroying. Mika (my good one) is just laying at the end of the couch being lazy like his momma. He's a good boy.  Well, everyone have a nice day!

Sugar Free

The title of this post describes my new life... Sugar Free. Now, I do have some sugar during the day, but compared to my normal sugar intake, it might as well be no sugar. I have discovered Sugar Free Double Chocolate JELL-O Pudding. This will get me through the remaining 9 weeks and a 1 day. I get to have one every night before bed and it is DELICIOUS! I also discovered a natural/organic Agave syrup that I had this morning. Its no Griffin's syrup, but it takes care of my sweet tooth in the morning. So far I have been testing below my glucose limits. (Sometimes well below!) So that is good. No harm being done to baby girl. And that's the most important thing. But I will say this...as soon as she pops out, someone had better be ready with a bar of swiss milk chocolate, and a bottle of red wine! Well maybe just the chocolate. :)

I've been thinking about my dogs, and how they tie in with all of this.  Here's a short history. My first dog was a golden retriever named Kimi.(Kee-mee). He was my "Heart Dog" as my mom and dad would say. He was and always will be MY special baby puppy. He had a minor heart problem (didn't seem minor when we first found out about it) and I had to take special care of him. Medication, not TOO much exercise, special diet, etc. My second dog, Mika (Mee-ka) is also a golden retriever. He was born with half a liver, and has acid reflux and is allergic to beef and chicken. He also has anxiety issues and takes Prozac...I'm completely serious.  So Mika also needs special care. Medications, special diet and so on.  Unfortunately, my Kimi died a year and a half ago at the age of 7. He had a tumor on his heart and there was nothing I could do to fix that.  Mika was a lonely puppy, so I got Roger. (Sigh) Roger is golden retriever #3, and he is a MESS! But a cute mess. When I first got Roger he was diagnosed with Parvo. A disease that basically kills doggies by starvation. We hospitalized him for a few days and then he was fine.

Here's what I'm getting at. I am not the most responsible person, and I don't like having to do extra work (especially when I may not be seeing results right away.) I always wondered why I happened to pick the doggies with problems or extra care issues. (I already told Jay he is picking the next dog.) But I believe now that God gave these dogs to me on purpose for a few different reasons. One, other people may not have cared enough to give these dogs what they needed. Two, I'm lucky enough to have parents that were able to support me and my doggies emotionally, and (especially) monetarily so I could afford to give these doggies what they needed. And three, I am again having to take special care of my child...by taking care of me.  Checking my blood glucose levels 4 times a day is already getting annoying (and a bit ouchy). And I have never had the desire (or need) to watch what I eat, count calories, check carb levels, eat certain combinations, not have any sugar! But when it comes to my doggies, and now, my child, I am better prepared and very willing to do what needs to be done. Its like I've become a grown up or something...wow! It only took almost 29 years. :)

Anyway, those are my thoughts for today. It looks like the Price is Right is not on today because the news people think they need to keep reminding us that its snowing. WE KNOW! Sigh. I guess I will go get my snack (8oz of milk and a fruit) and watch the episode of Teen Mom 2 I recorded last night. (I am obsessed with that show, but I will have to blog about that another time.)

Have a great day! Stay warm! Snuggle with puppies if you have them!

Post - The First

After reading some blogs of my friends, I thought I might give it a try. Also, having been off work for more than a week now because of "Snowmaggedon 2011", I am quite bored and need a new project.

I also enjoy talking about myself and recently have had quite a few things to talk about. So what better way to do that than to start a blog?

A little bit about me: I have been married for over a year now to my best friend. We have two Golden Retrievers, Mika and Roger, and they are our baby boys! However, we do have an actual baby girl on the way. She is due on April 15th and we can't wait until she arrives! As I type she is kicking my tummy and letting me know she is excited, too!  I am a Kindergarten teacher and I absolutely love it! This year has been my first year teaching (graduated from OSU in December '09) and it has been a great experience, though a bit tough at times. Basically, I lead a pretty good and simple life.

Recently, I did get a little bit of bad news, but I am being as positive as I can about it all.  I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes. I was NOT expecting that.  It was a routine test and it came back abnormal.  I still figured "Ah well. This happens. I'll go take the 3 hour test and it will be more accurate. There's no way I actually have this."  So I took the test, and my doctor called me the next day confirming the diagnosis. I was in shock! I have NONE of the risk factors. No symptoms...I thought it was ridiculous! The joy was being taken out of my very first pregnancy, and in its place was fear and worry that something would be wrong with my little baby girl!

So, I did some research and met with my dietician (no idea how to spell that) and a nurse yesterday.  They spelled out my meal plan for me and showed me how to use my blood testing meter to test my blood sugar levels.  I have to test my levels 4 times a day.  But I get to eat 6 times a day! Anyway, after talking to them, I feel much better about everything.  They assured me that the baby will be fine as long as I follow my meal and exercise plan and keep my blood sugar levels below the limits my doctor set for me. Also, I read that fetal movement (or lack thereof) can be a sign of some issues with baby.  But this little girl is constantly on the go! She kicks and pokes and rolls and who knows what else. She plays with me already! So that is also reassuring.

I started all of this yesterday and so far, my sugar levels have been below my limits.  YAY! I feel like I'm eating almost constantly, but I guess that's not so bad. It will be a little tougher when I go back to work, but I'll just tell the kids "Go learn stuff, Mrs. Boccacci needs a snack!" :)

Well, my plan is to stay determined and stay healthy for baby girl's sake. This will just make this whole experience even more special and even more worth it!!