Saturday, December 30, 2006

Week 30




It's hard to believe that in only 10 weeks (give or take a couple) we'll have a little girl. We'll be holding our daughter who we already love so dearly in our arms. Of course I'm not totally filled with daydreams of how great it's gonna be. First I've got to go through the most excruciating pain of my life so there's that and then there's the crying, the poo. . . I'm content with where things are; I'm in no hurry as of now.

Yesterday Rocky and I went in for our 30 weeks check up and things couldn't be better. I hesitantly stepped on the scale this time after last time's "you must have had a good thanksgiving" comment, but the scale was once again my friend saying that I'd somehow (must have been a miracle) lost 1/2 a pound. Blood pressure-- still perfect. Measurements-- textbook. Heartbeat-- steady. She's head down and ready to go as of now though that could change (though we're really hoping it won't).

Today we head up to Dallas for Winter Conference. I'm actually excited about it this year. I've only got 2 jobs so i'll be able to chill more than I've been able to for the past couple of years. I'll be working on another upcoming conference in San Antonio though so I'll need the extra time. I'm sincerely looking forward to a few weeks from now when I'll be working only part time. It seems like there's still so much to do as far as getting the nursery ready and such.

We were in Louisiana visiting family the 16-26. On December 17, we had our first baby shower. It was at Judson. There were about 30 people who came (or at least dropped by gifts). It was pretty fun. Emily who was on STINT with us was there; we hadn't seen her in a long time so it was really good to catch up. It was so cool to feel so cared for by the people of the church.

From experience, I knew I probably wouldn't be getting alot of stuff from our registry at the shower and it turned out to be true once again. We did get lots of clothes and blankets and stuff we needed (all of it in pink of course) but not too much from our registry. I feel like we've got SO much stuff already though I know there's tons more to get. It's crazy to see how much stuff a baby adds to a household. Here's a picture of me and our daughter on christmas.

Friday, December 15, 2006

28 weeks.

Obviously i had a great thanksgiving or at least that's what the nurse told me when i went to the doctor this week. so far every time i went in, my weight was creeping along at a slow pace. 3 pounds here. 4 pounds there. Well, this time i went in and i'd gained a whopping 8 pounds. i felt crazy, but the doctor said it was totally normal.

i also had to do my diabetes test this time as well. i don't think i've ever had anything to drink that was quite that sweet. got the test results back and everything's good to go. now the appointments move to every other week. it's so exciting to think that we'll have a little baby in only 2.5 months.

i saw our daughter move for the first time the other morning. i was lying in bed trying to get the courage to get up and out of the corner of my eye i saw my whole stomach move. i think that was possibly more thrilling than feeling her move for the first time.

Friday, December 01, 2006

it's been a long time. . .

. . . since i've posted anything but that's because everything's been going so well. we've got an active daughter. i'm feeling healthy. my heartburn hasn't even been quite as bad. my dream's are as crazy. the only thing that's been wacky has been my emotions. i cry alot, feel sad for almost nothing. it's so frustrating. i feel like i'm going crazy at times.

right now i'm almost 27 weeks along, entering the 3rd trimester! i'm pretty excited. our last appointment at 24 weeks was fine. we had to visit a different doctor since ours was having twins. we were a little freaked out when the doctor listened to the hearbeat and said it has slowed for a second. she listened a little longer and said everything was fine. she thought our daughter must have been squished for just a bit. weird how something so little can make you worry.

things have been crazy. our schedule's have been overwhelming with hanging out with friends, work, raising support, holidays, getting ready for baby stuff, etc. i'm ready for the end of january. even though the office will be stressing a bit after i'm gone, i'm looking forward to some time just to get stuff done here at home.

Friday, October 20, 2006

The Big One

On Tuesday Rocky and I went in for the 20 week appointment-- the one with the ultrasound, the one where you can tell the gender, the one where you find out how things are looking, the one that calms your nerves or not. . . I have honestly been such a freak emotionally since I've gotten pregnant. I had been having nightmares for about a week which only made me worry more that something was wrong. I had dreams almost everynight that something major was going to be discovered. pregnant Sunee couldn't even eat the night before the ultrasound.

Well, finally the appointment rolled around. We went right into the sonographer's room. It was pretty much like I expected-- gel on the belly, metal probe looking thing being rolled across it, and a wonderful monitor where we could watch the inside of me! Technology is wonderful. Well right off she asks if we want to know the sex, and I'm not kidding you, one second later she had our baby's "tush" (as she called it) up on the screen and was telling us it was a girl. What a shocker. We're not sure why but we really thought the baby was going to be a boy.

Thankfully that was the only shocker from the appointment. Everything else looked great! We got to see all 10 fingers and toes. Her lips and nose, her kidneys, stomach, brain, heart. She was right on target for growth. That's what I'd been praying for all along.

As we were leaving, the sonographer handed us a DVD of the experience. Needless to say, I could not wait to get that thing into a DVD player and watch it over again. As soon as we got back to the office what did I do but put in that DVD. Only to find out it didn't work! I was about to freak out, but Rocky called the office and scheduled another appointment for the following day just to get another DVD.

This was one screw up I wasn't too sad about. I meant I got to go check out our daughter yet again. It was pretty exciting all over again. This time she was moving around alot which she didn't do too much of the first time. She was kicking and flailing. Very cool.

Things are setting in pretty fast now. She's due in about 4 months. That's it. We've got alot to do-- find a pediatrician, sign up for classes, come up with a birth plan, come up with a name. . .ahhh, it's a little overwhelming to think about it all but i'm sure will be well worth it? I'm sure it will be. I can't wait to meet our little one.

Here's the ultrasound video:

Saturday, September 30, 2006

Baby's a kicker

So around week 12 I thought I felt something that was the baby kicking (or moving around). Well, it's now week 18 and I've had the feeling repeatedly since then. It doesn't happen every day and some days it happens alot, but I'm pretty sure it's the baby. It doesn't seem like the feeling corresponds with gas or any digestive thing. It's so exciting to feel the baby.

Crazy Dreams

OK, so I heard that pregnancy dreams were crazy but now I'm attesting to that. I've never been the kind of person that had vivid dreams or even could remember what I dreamt, but now it's a whole 'nother story. From dreams that freak me out like my baby's kidneys not developing to gas prices dropping to $1.07, they've all seemed so real. It's a weird thing, but a fun one most of the time.

3rd Appointment- 16 weeks

Every thing went so well except for the hour wait for Dr. Chalasani to get out of surgery. In the midst of my frustration Rocky reminded me that I would want her to drop patients to be delivering my baby.

Rocky surprised me and recorded the sound of the baby's heartbeat on his phone. I'm such a super dork; I've been listening to it almost everyday. It's such a comfort to hear especially in a time when I'm not feeling so pregnant.

Weight gain was still on target but not quite as exciting as the one pound like last time. This time the gain was around 3 1/2 pounds. Making my total around 6 1/2 lbs. Not so bad I don't guess. I'm just now starting to feel hungry all the time so hopefully I'll stay on target.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Nesting

So Rocky thinks it's crazy that his usually sane, laid back wife has started a little nesting. First she wants to move the office/ cats' stuff into the reading nook. Then she wants to get rid of all the reading nook furniture. Then she wants to put shelves in the guest room closet. Then she wants to decorate the nursery.

I'm loving it. I feel like if I'm gonna be at home more often every day I need to set things up how I'm going to be the most happy. Rocky was fighting every minute of my nesting instinct at first but now he's just rolling with it. I've gotta say neither one of us backs down very often, but I really appreciate it now more than ever-- the projects are rolling right along.

Things are looking up

After weeks and weeks of pukiness, I've been feeling so much better. I didn't want to say anything too early and jinx myself, but I think the "morning" sickness has passed. It pretty much lasted from week 6- 14 with some days that were better than others but overall with alot of dry heaving. Occassionally a little gag comes along now, but it's nothing like it was before (which was something like pure misery). At times now it's harder to feel pregnant. No continual reminder that I've got a bun in oven. I don't think I really look pregnant to anyone but me, Rocky, and close friends. And now I don't really feel much different either. I can tell you, I'm really looking forward to some kicking pretty soon.

Our 2nd appointment, August 23.

Well, I switched doctors after the first appointment. Friend's opinion or not, a woman who says who partners are just average aren't good enough for our baby. So I headed back to Dr. Chalasani who I've been going to do since I moved to Austin.

I went into the appointment thinking that I'd be proded and poked like on the first one, but no. Just alot of talking. The only thing that made me feel like the appointment was worth while was hearing the heart beat-- a steady 150 bpm. What a wonderful sound and what a wonderful invention. Rocky said he'd love to have one of those machines around (but he might be a little too much like Tom Cruise then!). In some ways, hearing our baby's heartbeat next to mine was even cooler than seeing it at the last appointment.

Next to hearing the heartbeat, the next most exciting thing was stepping on the scale. I actually had been dreading that moment since I haven't been keeping up with it at home. I felt like I'd gained about 10 pounds since my first appointment but I was excited to learn otherwise. I had gained just 1 pound since the appointment at 7 weeks! That's a pretty exciting thing to a fat pregnant woman. Although I'm dreading stepping on the scale all over again this time.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Weeks 7-10

The first people to know were Ped and Tik; then Jordan and Mandy who were there right after the first pregnancy test; Matt and Brandi; the Wagens; the Hurleys; and the Ronks. It's been pretty hard for us not to slip up especially for Rocky. He's so funny. He's even been scared to talk to me about it at this point because he's afraid he'll get used to talking about it and just keep talking about it in front of people we're not quite ready to tell yet.

We've always wanted to wait until after the first trimester to tell the majority of people. So we've decided to go ahead and tell everyone on the 23rd which will be week 12 right after my 2nd appointment. We're still wondering how we'll break the news to Rocky's parents. My idea of breaking it to them would be showing up at Christmas 7 months pregnant. We were both hoping to hold out and tell them later after all the pressure they've put on us to have kids.

Things have been OK during the last few weeks. Nothing compares to how bad I felt week 6 in Bangkok though I do have glimpses each day of that horror. Each day is unique pretty much. I tend to feel the sickest regularly around 3pm-6:30 or 7pm. However, it can come on at anytime especially if I'm leaving air conditioning and hitting the texas heat. Pretty much any time that happens, I'm gagging for a few minutes.

But in a weird way, the sickness (which I refuse to call morning sickness) is comforting because I know I'm still pregnant. That's pretty much the only sign at this point, other than majorly tender breasts.

Monday, July 24, 2006

The 1st Doctor's Appointment

We got back from Thailand on the 17th and I'd already set up an appointment with the obgyn for the 19th. I didn't call before I headed in because frankly I was too lazy in the midst of major jet lag. When I signed in at the front desk, I told the nurse that I was now pregnant and that I needed a pregnancy appointment instead of a annual. Funny thing was that I had told them when I set up the appointment that I also told them that I was thinking about getting pregnant soon. Oh well. They thought that was pretty funny.

I of course was weighed and had to pee in a cup. Weight was pretty good. I weighed only a couple pounds more than I did prepregnancy, that was mostly due to me wanting to get my fill of thai food.

I spoke with the nurse for a long time; she overloaded me with information, a pregnancy book, and prenatal vitamin samples. She also gave me my due date (March 6,2007) and all that other pertinent info.

When she asked if I had any questions, I only had one--the one I'd been having since conception. Why were my temperatures so crazy after we conceived? Well, the doctor was concerned about this as well so she called for a sonogram. That was one of the most exciting things ever. I got see our lump of a baby (hey, at 7 weeks there wasn't much to see) and see his heart beating. Everything looked good and I left feeling encouraged (though of course I still worry quite a bit).

The Morning Sickness

About a week after I found out I was pregnant (around week 6), the morning sickness hit and it hit hard. I was also questioning where the term morning sickness came from. I was sick in the morning but I was also sick in the afternoon, evening, and night. I would wake up totally nauseated and nothing would help but eating and the last thing I wanted to do was eat.

I love Bangkok but it definitely made things worse being there. The smells were so overwhelming, even smells I normally don't mind. I dreaded going into any kitchen, bathroom, mall, market, anywhere. I never threw up though I dry heaved all the time (which seemed worse almost). I was ready to get home.

July 17th could not come fast enough. Rocky and I stayed up the whole night before like we typically try to do to fight jetlag and somehow I managed to do it (I usually give in to a couple hours sleep at least). I was armed at 4:30 am for my 23 hour flight with with the normal books and toiletries but I also had tons of snacks, my Sea-Bands, and folic acid.

The flight was a hard one. Not really because I was so sick but because I couldn't really sleep. By the time we got on the plane, I'd already been up 24 hours but it didn't matter. I could not sleep (something I typically don't struggle with). I got to catch up on my movie watching though and in flight movies are always winners! I saw 16 blocks, Failure to Launch, etc. One thing I began to realize is that I will cry at anything and cry I did. I wept in the plane at the end of 16 blocks. Rocky just laughed.

Our flight got in at 4:40pm into Austin. I was so excited to get home and to eat Chuy's. It was so nice cause we were with the Dishmans and the Banks but it was so hard to keep our mouths shut about the news, and the Banks asked about a million times if we were pregnant or not.

Jetlag was hard for me this time; took me about a week to recover. I think it was a mixture of the total lack of sleep on the plane and the little parasite. But good news is that with the increased emotions and tiredness, the morning sickness seemed to take a back burner. Thank God!

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Making a Baby

After six years of marriage, Rocky and I decided to have a baby. We pretty much planned everything out to a tee. We started tracking my waking temperature and um. . ."mucous" about 9 months ago. I started reading books about pregnancy and talking to friends. We planned out our ideal month for getting pregnant, June. We even read into ways some people suggested increased the odds of making a boy (the idea of girls freaks Rocky out completely)! So last month, we set out to set our plan into action but at first things didn't seem to be going according to our perfect plan.

We were on Thailand Summer Project in June. When I noticed that it was that special babymaking day and that the time was right, I didn't want to wait but we had to be a meeting in like 5 minutes. Rocky's freaking out because he wants the time to be memorable and special and I'm freaking out because I just want to hurry so we don't miss the opportunity and so that people didn't start looking for us. So, um, I prevailed and 10 minutes later we're walking out the door for our meeting with a broken bed (yep, that's right) and high hopes that we sealed the deal.

As I monitored my temperatures over the course of the next week or so, I began to get quite freaked out. Generally once someone's pregnant their temperature increases and stays high all the way until the baby is born. Well, my temperatures went up the very next day but then plummeted a few days later and repeated the same thing again after that. I was concerned. According to everything I had read, I had lost our baby (our 2 day old baby). I wasn't that sad about it but I was just hoping my body would get back on track so that the following month we could try again.

Well a couple weeks later I kept expecting my period but it never came. I really was expecting it too; I even borrowed tampons from one of the STINT girls in Thailand cause I didn't bring any. After being about a week late, I decided maybe I should check into what's going on. Jordan, who was on STINT with us, and his wife, Mandy, were in the know and Mandy got 2 pregnancy tests for me at the Chiang Mai airport as we were on our way to Bangkok. She wanted me to take one in the airport bathroom but I wanted to wait and take it with Rocky alone later.

When we got to the KT GuestHouse in Bangkok that night we read the directions and set out to take one of the tests. We'd never taken one before so we were clueless. We knew it involved pee and sticks and such but that's about it. Well, the test was totally confusing. If there were 2 lines, we're pregnant, if there was 1, we weren't. Well there was a dark line and a faint line. In my mind, it totally confirmed what I thought my temperatures had been saying all along-- that we weren't pregnant.

The next morning Rocky and I (after a crazy fiasco with one of the project students losing his passport and running to the airport at 4:30am) took the next test. On this one, the second line was not quite as faint. Rocky and I kinda looked at each other, talked about, and decided we needed to visit a trained professional.

Ped picked us up from KT that day and we decided that we needed to tell him so he recommend a doctor for us. He was super excited and planned the appointment for the next day.

We went to Rama 9 hospital for the test, to the same doctor Tik went to. Ped wasn't able to make it though and the language barrier was a little rough between the doctor, Rocky, and I. We did understand though the we needed to take a blood test and that we'd hear the results in a couple of hours. Well, a few hours later Rocky gets a phone call from the nurse saying my hcg levels are something like 1500 something. We kinda know what that means but want as much confirmation as possible, so Rocky asked "does that mean we're having a baby?" The nurse replied, "baby, for sure."

I remember we looked at each other with these goofy grins for what seemed like 5 minutes after that.

That still wasn't quite enough for us though we wanted it in writing. We wanted more proof. (The morning sickness hadn't quite hit yet so I didn't have that to reassure me :). So we went back to hospital one more time to get a letter proclaiming "diagnosis is pregnancy." We were finally for sure. We were pregnant.