2.20.2011

Christian Took This Picture Yesterday


And I like it. I wanted at least one good picture of me while I'm super-pregnant, and this is exactly what I had in mind. I didn't want to pay a photographer, I didn't want hearts over my stomach, or anything baby-themed. Just me sitting and looking happily pregnant -- I think Christian did a great job. He's pretty good at getting me to smile.

2.18.2011

Some Serious Stuff

This is my serious story about the past few days, if you'd like to know what's been going on with me, and why I keep talking about bed rest on my Twitter account. Since this post covers a few days, it's pretty long -- just be aware.

On Monday I was going about my usual day, being pregnant and working on my little blog design business and trying not to call Christian too often. I had in my mind that I would stay pregnant for about another nine weeks, and I was excited that we were in the single digits of weeks left.

Then something happened. I'm not going to say exactly what it was, because there are certain things I don't feel the need to publish on the Internet {like images of my uterus or pictures of my naked pregnant belly}. If you're curious, feel free to send me an e-mail; I don't mind telling people, but I do like to maintain some semblance of privacy. So this thing happened, and I felt like it was something that I should maybe be concerned about, so I called Alice to ask her what I should do. I often call Alice when I feel like I need to talk to someone right away; she's good about picking up the phone. Alice told me to call my doctor. The doctor said to come in so they could check me out and make sure everything was okay.

I had a small panic attack while I was getting ready to go to the doctor -- one of several I would have over the course of the next few days.

Once I got to the doctor's office, around 2:30 in the afternoon, we did an ultrasound and a quick exam. The babies were both fine, with healthy heartbeats, but I was dilated a centimeter. My doctor wanted to be sure I wasn't having contractions, so she sent me over to Rex Hospital. I called Christian and let him know what was going on, then went up and got settled into my room. I had another small panic attack when I saw that I was in a room that also contained one of those hospital baby beds. I really didn't want anything to do with that bed for several weeks. Christian arrived shortly afterward, which helped calm me down.

I was hooked up to monitors, which kept the nurses informed that the babies were still healthy, but also told them I was having contractions that I couldn't feel. Having contractions when you're only 28 weeks along isn't a good thing, and I got a shot to stop the contractions. I got another shot of steroids to help the babies' lungs develop {just in case}, and then I was moved to another room, where it was assumed that Christian and I would pass the night. We ate dinner, we watched some TV, we went to sleep.

I woke up in the night, around 12:30, because I was feeling something I thought might be more contractions. I called the nurses and they hooked me back up to the monitor. Sure enough, I was having contractions that I could feel this time, and they were starting to get painful. I was moved to another room, and put on an IV of magnesium sulfate. The doctor was concerned that my contractions weren't stopping, so she made arrangements to have me transferred to UNC, which has a good NICU {just in case}.

I had another panic attack as I was being loaded into the ambulance and we drove away from Rex. It didn't help that Christian was supposed to be following us and I couldn't see his headlights.

I arrived safely at UNC early Tuesday morning, around 4:30. It was a little funny to Christian and I {just a little, though -- enough to make us smile at each other}, because just a couple days before we had joked about how we would feel if our children were born in Chapel Hill, and if it would be like on 30 Rock {even though 30 Rock isn't funny anymore} when Jack's daughter was born in Canada.

Once at UNC, I was hooked up to more monitors, given more magnesium sulfate, checked out by more doctors. We got a few hours of sleep, until about 7:00, when doctors started wanting to talk to me about C-sections and epidurals {just in case}. When it was determined that I was still only dilated one centimeter, and my contractions were slowing down, I was moved to a different room. My fifth hospital room in 24 hours.

My contractions continued to slow down throughout the day, especially after the nurses told me that I needed to keep myself hydrated, and also go to the bathroom often {full bladders bring on contractions}. I was hopeful that I could go home soon on modified bed rest, and remain pregnant for at least a few more weeks.

We spent the night on Tuesday, and then had an ultrasound scheduled for Wednesday morning. The ultrasound was, first, to determine how far along the babies were developmentally {just in case}, and second, to see if my uterus would allow me to go home. It turned out that the babies were healthy, if still very tiny -- just 2 pounds and 5 ounces each -- but my cervix had shortened, from 23 millimeters on Monday to 13 millimeters on Wednesday morning. All signs pointed to a prolonged hospital stay for me.

A little while later, after I was back in my room, a doctor came in and said that since this was my first pregnancy, they weren't sure how relevant it was that my cervix was shortened. If I had a history of pre-term labor, or if I had delivered other babies early, then they might be more concerned. As it was, I could go home on modified bed rest. And I did come home. And I'm so happy to be home.

I'm grateful that these babies are still inside me, because I don't think any of us are ready for them to be born yet. I'm grateful for Christian's company and support; I'm grateful that he has the priesthood and was able to give me a blessing. I'm grateful for the Spirit in my life, and for the continued comfort, peace and reassurance that I've been able to feel over the past several days. I'm grateful for everyone who has showed their love and concern for us. I'm grateful that I can be at home.

2.13.2011

Happy {Early} Valentine's Day!



A couple days ago Christian asked me if I wouldn't mind getting my Valentine's Day present on Saturday instead of Monday. Always excited at the idea of getting presents, and even more eager at the prospect of getting presents early, I quickly agreed. He came home with a bouquet of roses, and I was happy. I love flowers.

However, as we were driving home from Wade's handball game, Christian started digging in his back pocket, and handed me an envelope. Inside was a coupon book made out of notebook paper and duct tape, which I thought was adorable. I started flipping through {after Christian corrected me as to which side was the front}, and was charmed by the coupons for one kiss, one hug, one high-five, and one back scratch. The next sent me reeling. "One laptop computer." Say whaaaaaat?

He outdid himself again. He spoils me, and I love him for it. I love him for a lot of things, and this isn't the most important, but it did make today very fun. Thanks, Ace -- you're my favorite.

P.S. When picking out a laptop, my requirements were "a good one that comes in yellow," which didn't make the selection process very easy at all. In fact, the Best Buy employee we talked to seemed like he had no idea what I was talking about. How hard is it to understand "I want one that's pretty"?

P.P.S. Just now I turned to Christian and said, "Isn't this fun? Both of us on our laptops? If we ever chatted online, we could talk to each other through the computer." And since we're re-watching Oceans Thirteen, he said, "It would be quieter."

2.12.2011

A Massive Post About Clothes

One of the things I've been looking forward to about {finally!} having these babies in April is getting to kiss their roly-poly feet. The other thing is losing baby weight and being able to fit into normal clothes again. I'm only slightly kidding -- I really do daydream about my ideal spring wardrobe, and how I could be such an awesome, cute yet practical yet really really cute mom in new clothes. Indulge me in my fantasy world for a few minutes, and let me share what I've been thinking. I'm loving reds, blues and yellows right now, and I've been trying to focus in on clothes that would really work for my new life with babies. Behold, my brainstorm:



1.  Several {not nine, but maybe like three} button-down tops. I'm especially in love with the red & blue plaids. My reasoning is, they're easy to move around in, the buttons provide easy nursing access, and they're cotton, so it's no big deal if I get them dirty. I also think that they could be a quick go-to outfit for when I have five seconds to get dressed in the morning. Add a few accessories {belt, statement necklace, scarf}, and I'm halfway to an awesome outfit.
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2.  Stylish and comfortable flats, so I won't look awkward pushing around my tandem stroller or running after kids at the park {I have the tendency to look awkward just while walking in heels}.  I'd also love a pair of gladiator sandals, so that my feet don't get sweaty in the summer, but I couldn't find a picture of ones that I like.

3.  A couple of cardigans to add some color and pattern. I don't know how long I've been drooling over the idea of a red cardigan -- maybe since last Valentine's Day? It's probably about time I got my hands on one.

4.  A few pairs of skinny cropped pants. I can't imagine taking care of two babies in skirts, and it's hard to find shorts that are both cute and modest. I love the idea of cropped pants because I can quickly roll up the cuffs as the weather gets warmer, and they definitely fit the magic bill of fashionable + easy.

5.  A pencil skirt in a bright color. {Ooh, and I would totally pair it with this blouse.} This is just because I am head-over-heels in love with the teal pencil skirt that I have now; I wore it to church constantly before I got pregnant.

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6.  A couple of floaty cotton dresses, just for fun. I can barely keep myself from purchasing the first two {the main thing holding me back is the fact that I don't know what the heck size I'll be after the babies come, and I don't want to splurge on an adorable dress just to have it not fit me}. Obviously these would be impossible to nurse in, so they're less practical and more eye candy. A girl can dream, right?

Thank you {those of you who stuck around} for sticking around and sharing my dreams with me. Thinking about the future makes the present better, even though the present is already pretty darn awesome.

2.10.2011

Important Thoughts 22.0

 
{image via weheartit}

22.1:  Mostly I don't hate eating the powder that accumulates at the bottom of a bag of cereal, and I actually kind of like the sawdust-y texture it lends to my last bowl of Cheerios, but the Frosted Mini-Wheats powder is a whole different story.  For one thing, there always seems to be about half a cup of it, which is way too much.  For another, it's basically straight-up sugar, and while I can feel healthy eating Frosted Mini-Wheats the normal way {because of the fiber}, I can't feel healthy when I've dumper half a cup of additional sugar in my bowl.  I normally wouldn't find this topic very interesting, but I just finished off our box of Frosted Mini-Wheats this morning, and it's on my mind.

22.2:  I need to do better about blogging.  Most of you, if you follow my blog closely, have probably already noticed this.  Know that I have also noticed, and have resolved to do better.  On the other hand, most of you, if I follow your blog at all, could do with posting a little more often as well.  Out of the forty blogs I have listed in my blogroll on ye olde sidebar, 28 belong to people I know; however, out of the ten that have been updated most recently, only one belongs to someone I have actually met in person.  Mostly this leads me to the thought that we are not good bloggers, guys.  But I think we can do better.

22.3:  Being pregnant is different than I thought it would be, and I now understand why people have been asking me if I was "uncomfortable yet."  At first I was like, "you mean is it irritating that I have to go to the bathroom all the time?  Because that's not so much an issue for me."  But I get it.  I am now uncomfortable.  I have a hard time sleeping, I have a hard time moving around, sometimes I have a hard time sitting and watching TV.  My knees hurt, my back hurts, my hips hurt.  I think all the discomfort has to do with the forty extra pounds I've gained in the last several months, but I could be wrong.  All that being said, I love being pregnant.  I love feeling the babies kick inside me {this has not yet become uncomfortable to experience}.  I love buying tiny things for them to wear.  I mostly love knowing that once Christian gets home, our little family is all together -- that is awesome.