Past Ready

Gee, I really am getting slack in keeping this thing updated. But I'm using pregnancy as an excuse. I won't be able to use that one much longer, though. I've only got 3 weeks to go, and man does that seem like forever!



I didn't make it this far with Gehrig, so it's definitely a new experience. This is the most uncomfortable I've ever been in my entire life, but I know it will be worth every bit of it. I just can't wait to finally hold Gibson. Here's a picture that the nurse at my specialist's office took for us:



Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen? Of course, I'm partial :)

Everything has been doing well with my blood pressure (praise God!) - just the normal pregancy stuff - sore back, swollen ankles, totally exahusted, etc. Gibson has been doing really well too. He's always practicing his breathing on every ultra sound, which happens to be every week. The doctor still says he's a big baby. I'm okay with that! There was one issue that was discovered about 2 weeks ago. It looks as though Gibson's ureter (the tube that goes from his kidney to the bladder) is enlarged. The specialist didn't seem overly concerned, so we aren't either. He did recommend that we go see a pediatric urologist. Nothing can be done until birth, but at least the urologist would have a heads up as to how to possibly treat the situation. My specialist said that in most cases, the baby is given antibiotics to avoid any possible infection, and that the issue resolves itself. I couldn't get an appointment until Jan 9, and my due date is the 13th. Chances are he'll be here before I see the urologist. But the doc said not to worry. Everything would be taken care of. Surprisingly, I'm not worried at all. Concerned, yes, but not worried. I know that God is bigger than any problem and that He'll take care of it all.

I cannot believe that Christmas is just two days away. Where has this year gone?? Originally, we were going to have Santa wait one more year before visiting Gehrig. Between Brian's parents (only grandchild) and my parents, we figured he'd have more than enough new toys. But Santa had other plans. He said he wasn't skipping our house for anything :) I can't wait to see Gehrig's face on Christmas morning. He had fun last year, but he's so much more into it this time. Up until about a week ago, when asked what he wanted Santa to bring him, he said "Christmas tree". Now he's added "toys" to the list. I think Santa can handle that :)

I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

TGIF

The title says it all: Thank God it's Friday!!

It's getting really hard for me to work a 40-hour week. Maybe I'm just a wimp, but by the time Friday rolls around, I'm 100% exhausted. Oh, the joys of being pregnant :)

Thankfully, my last few doctor's visits have been good. My specialist did some measurements on Monday, the 17th. Not sure how accurate their calculations are, but they're telling me Gibson weighs 5 lb, 1 oz already. Wow! That's how much Gehrig weighed when he was born, and I'm still two weeks away from when I delivered him (week 34). My last two visits with my regular doctor have been good ones, too. My blood pressure continues to be perfect. I've gained 30 lbs up to this point. I'm hoping not to gain much more, but who knows? I'm pretty sure eating Oreos dunked in milk @ 9:30 p.m. isn't helping the situation.

We went ahead and scheduled a c-section for Tuesday, January 13. This was to ensure Dr. Attar would be doing the surgery. He did my first one, plus Gehrig's circumcision. Awesome is all I can say about him. He informed me that because of my high blood pressure issues, which is being controlled by meds, he didn't want me to go past my due date of Jan 15. Also, since I've already had a previous c-section, I can't be induced. So, long story short, unless I go into labor before Jan 13, little Gibson ??? (Conner, maybe) Knapp will be here Jan 13.

Between you and me, I'd be perfectly okay if he came a couple of weeks early. I don't want to say I haven't enjoyed this pregnancy, but it just seems a lot more uncomfortable than my first. Acid reflux, back pain, ligament pains, leg cramps, etc. But at least it's not the middle of summer like before. I'm loving this cooler weather!!

Gehrig has officially hit the "terrible twos". Don't get me wrong - he's still a VERY good little boy, but he's definitely having more of his "moments". We've implemented time out, which he doesn't like at all. Nine times out of ten, he poops while he's standing in the corner. Of course he tells us before he does it, but we just tell him to go ahead and when time out is over, we'll clean him up. His big thing is throwing his toys, or whatever he happens to be holding at the moment we tell him "No" or "Hold on a minute". Thankfully most of his little outbursts are at home with us. He's really good outside the home (knock on wood).

He's also taken to "tee-tee"ing in the potty. Last week he asked to go, so of course we were thrilled. He did his thing, then wanted to wash his hands. He had so much fun soaping up, that now we believe that's the only reason he wants to tee-tee in the potty. Hey, whatever it takes! He'll strip down to absolutely nothing, do his business, flush and say "Bye bye, tee-tee!", then move his stool over to the sink to scrub up. I've asked him a few times about pooping in the potty. So far, he wants no part of that. Maybe next time we put him in time-out and he says "do-do", I'll run him to the potty. Can't hurt to try! He'll already be mad at me anyway.

Tonight is "Twilight" night, and I'm sooooo excited! Brian and I are going with Gehrig's babysitter, Ms. Karen and the whole Harrison crew. It's going to be so much fun. Gehrig was going to spend the night at my parents' house tonight. I was so excited about sleeping in tomorrow morning. For some unknown reason, Gehrig has been waking up at 6:30 a.m. every morning instead of his usual 7:30 or 8 a.m. Unfortunately, plans changed. My parents had their carpet cleaned first thing this morning, and they told them to wait 24 hours before moving any furniture back. It's never taken that long to dry, but we all decided it wouldn't be a very good idea to have him over there. My mom is coming to our house instead to babysit. I tried to talk her into spending the night so she could get up before daylight, but she didn't seem too thrilled about that idea :) Oh, well - it was worth a shot!

Another Transition

I decided to take half a day personal time from work yesterday. The day just got off to a crappy start. It was raining and cold for one thing, which in my opinion is a perfect formula for staying in bed all day long. I went by Dunkin' Donuts and got a turkey sausage flatbread sandwich and a large coffee. When I got to work, I was juggling my purse, my food, coffee and umbrella. As I approached the door, I was trying to close my umbrella without dropping my coffee. Instead, I punctured a huge hole in the cup, which in turn got coffee all over me. I almost went home then. But I waited it out until about noon.

On the way home, I thought that it would be a perfect opportunity to switch out the beds whie Gehrig was still at the sitter's house. Brian was in the middle of writing a story, so I started taking the crib apart. Of course, being the weakling that I am, Brian had to come in and help me. All of a sudden, I just started crying uncontrollably. I stated that I didn't want Gehrig to ever leave his crib and grow up. Very similar to my first post on here actually :) After a good 45 minute cry, I was okay. We got the crib apart and the twin bed moved in. When I picked Gehrig up from Ms. Kay-Kay's house, I told him what I'd done. He seemed really excited. Karen asked him who was going to sleep in his baby bed, and he said "Brother". So cute!

We had dinner @ El Charro last night. I had every intention of cooking, but after messing with those beds, plus cleaning out all the clothes that Gehrig couldn't wear anymore and putting them in storage, I was wiped out. My back was so sore. After "Char", we went to Wal-Mart to let Gehrig pick out some new sheets for his bed. We were only getting new sheets, but ended up with the whole deal. I just couldn't pass it up!

We watched Wonder Pets in our bed as usual, then he wanted me to rock him. He was very hesitant to lay down, but once he did at around 9 p.m., I never heard a peep out of him all night long. I was up about four times during the night doing my normal potty breaks. Everytime I checked on him, he was sound asleep cuddled up under his blankets. He finally decided to wake up around 8:20 this morning. And he didn't get out of the bed. He just layed there calling me until I came to get him up. I'm not sure if it'll be this easy tonight, but I wouldn't complain. He's always been great with every transition so far. I'm just so proud of him!

I was afraid to take his picture while he was actually sleeping in his new bed - I didn't want to disturb a good thing. But I did take a pic of his new bedding. Maybe tonight I'll try to get a shot of him snoozing away.

Quick Updates

Just wanted to let everyone know that I got my results from my glucose tolerance test from last week - I passed! I was so glad. I really didn't want to do the 3-hour test. I had to do that with Gehrig, and it was no fun. I told Brian I was very surprised that I passed. He said, "Why? You shouldn't be." It really made me think - I shouldn't have been suprised at all. God takes care of his children, and I'm no exception. I know people were praying for me during that test that everything would come out just fine, and praise God it did!

In other news, I had to wake Brian up this morning as I was getting ready for work. I found that I could no longer bend over to tie my own shoes. Sad, huh?

Catching Up...

I know, I know...it's been way too long since I've updated this blog. I hope this doesn't become a habit. I have very good intentions of updating this thing at least once a week. But I'll use being pregnant as an excuse :)

Just an update on the pregnancy - I went to my regular doctor this past Friday for my wonderful glucose test. I hope to have the results sometime today, tomorrow at the latest. I'm currently 27 weeks along. So far, I've gained 16 lbs, putting me just over the 200 lb mark. Not real excited about that, but I'll deal with it. My blood pressure was 124/78, which is perfect. I sure hope that trend continues. I'll now start going to my normal doctor every two weeks. I see my specialist on Oct 27, and then every week after that. I've been feeling really good, just very tired. But I'm assuming that will last for the next 15-20 years. The evenings are the worst, though. By then, after working all day, I'm completely exhausted, almost lethargic feeling. I have the best husband in the world who takes me out to dinner so I don't have to cook, takes care of Gehrig when he's going full speed, etc., and he doesn't complain when I conk out on the couch at 9 p.m.

We went to Ft Lauderdale the first weekend of this month for Brian's work. It was to cover the EliteXC event, which is mixed martial arts. We flew out Friday morning around 9:30 a.m. The cab ride from the airport to our hotel was such a fiasco. The driver spoke very little english. We told him the address of the hotel and he acted like he knew exactly where it was. Thirty minutes later, he asks for the address again, and then said, "Oh, I know where that is." We had driven as far one way from the airport as we should have gone the other direction. He was stopping in the middle of the road to call for help from dispatch. Not a very exciting ride. I was fuming! Brian told me to just smile. There wasn't anything we could do since we didn't know our way around. Finally, over an hour later, we arrived to our hotel. The total charge was almost $75. He said we could just pay him $60. The cab ride back to the airport Sunday morning ended up only being $35, so our first driver was definitely playing us. Thankfully, Brian's uncle (who lives in Miami) came Saturday and was our taxi. We drove down to Miami and South Beach. Pretty interesting place! We didn't get out because it was raining, but the bars were in full swing at 1 p.m. in the afternoon. I don't think that place ever sleeps! The fights were Saturday night at 6:30 p.m. It was really fun! A much better experience than the fights in Atlanta last month. There wasn't nearly as much alcohol and foul language around me and Uncle Greg, which was definitely a good thing. Brian got to sit ringside at the media table. IT was so neat to see him at work, doing what he absolutely loves. I'm so proud of him! We didn't get back to the hotel until 1:30 a.m. since he had to attend the press conference. Our flight back was at 7:15 a.m., so I only got about 2 hours sleep. It took a few days to recover from that, but it was so much fun!

This past weekend was a long one. Last Thursday night, Gehrig was up almost all night long, just crying. We asked him to tell us what hurt, but he was crying too much to tell. Being the wonderful Daddy that he is, Brian stayed up with him until 4:30 a.m. Friday morning. During the day Friday, he developed a fever. I made an appointment with Dr. Miller that same day. Gehrig had said that his teeth were hurting, so we were thinking it was his 2-year molars coming in. But we couldn't be sure, because Gehrig also said that his knees hurt, his elbows hurt, his hiney hurt, etc. When we saw Dr. Miller Friday, she informed us that his molars were already in. That was good news, because I'd heard those things can be rough on a little one. But the bad news was that he had strep. No wonder he was crying so much :( She put him on antibiotics and told us that he needed to stay away from other kids through Sunday. So, we stayed in the house all weekend long. He actually played most of the day Saturday and yesterday. Last night was a different story, though. He had a fever of 101.5 through a lot of the night. I was giving him Tylenol and Motrin every 2 hours as he needed it. Brian stayed up with him again last night. They camped out in the recliner for most of the night. Anytime I would come into the room to check on them, Gehrig would say "bye-bye". I guess that meant that he didn't want me in there. His daddy was doing a good job, so I just went back to bed and tried to sleep. He's still puny this morning with a slight fever, but at least he ate breakfast. I just hope he gets back to his normal playful self soon. I miss it :(

I suppose that's about for now. Here is the most recent preggo pic at 26 weeks, and a few others of my little guy. Most of you have already seen them on Myspace and Facebook, but just for the sake of sprucing up this blog, I'll post them again. Talk to you soon (I promise!)

Birthday Boy

Wow - has it really been two weeks since I've updated this thing? Time sure does get away from me these days. That's exactly what I thought on August 9 when we had Gehrig's birthday party - two years old already??? Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.

He went from this...



to this...



...all in just a matter of minutes in my mind. I know we'll be sending him off to school before we know it. Boy, I don't even want to think that far ahead. I'm a wreck now just thinking about potty training him. I'm sure you all remember my last meltdown (or at least the one I told you about!)

We had a Blues Clues party for him on his birthday. We had a houseful of people, and Gehrig loved every minute of all the attention he was getting. He got lots of neat stuff. Mostly cars, but that suited him just fine. He's definitely 100% boy! Here are a few pictures from the party -








Of course, with a second birthday comes a doctor's visit. I lied to Gehrig and told him there wouldn't be any shots, but there was a follow-up shot he had to get. He was a very brave little man and only sreamed for a few minutes. The nurse gave him a sticker and that seemed to fix everything. Dr. Miller said that he was in the 25th percentile on his height, 33 inches, and in the 5th percentile for weight, 24 lbs. She said that most premies had already caught up by now, but that he might just be a smaller child. Brian is right at 6', and is the shortest man on his side of the family. I've got lots of tall people on my mom's side. We'll just have to see if he'll inherit any of that. The doctor said that he seems to be perfectly healthy, and that's all that matters to me.

Whatever he lacks in size, he certainly makes up for in brains. I know all moms say this about their own kids, but Gehrig is the smartest little man in the world :) He already knows all his colors, enough so that he will intentionally tell you the wrong color of something just to get a laugh out of you. He left several of his trucks at the sitter's house over the weekend. He kept telling us exactly which ones he was missing - "green car, black truck, yellow truck." It's just amazing to me that he knows exactly which ones he didn't have and where they were. He also remembers the color of everybody's vehicles, even when he's not looking at them. His memory is unbelieveable! He definitely takes after his daddy on that trait.

Nothing too much is happening with the new baby. My next appointment is this Friday, so unless something exciting happens in our household before then, I'll write back after my doctor's visit. Talk to you soon!

Poo Poo in the Potty

As soon as I found out I was pregnant again, some of my first thoughts were that 1.) I need to get Gehrig in a big boy bed, and 2.) we'd better start potty training. Well, after lots of advice, some solicited, most not, I went out and bought a Winnie the Pooh potty seat. Gehrig was thrilled to have it. He would sit on it in the living room and watch TV, read books, etc. Then we moved it into the bathroom. He knew exactly what it was for - he'd say "tee tee" and "do do" everytime he saw it. But when I tried sitting him on it naked, he flipped out. I just figured it was because it was new. Well, after the third or fourth time trying, I realized that the cup that you sit on just wasn't big enough. Everything (if you know what I mean!) wouldn't fit the way that it should. So, we decided not to use it. And of course, I was stressing out about the whole process. Thank God for Kim Brooks :) She reassured me that when it was time, Gehrig would do his thing. I wouldn't be able to force him out of diapers, just like I can't force him to eat his veggies. I can only offer encouragement.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, while in the tub, Gehrig informed me that he had to "do do". I picked him up and sat him on the toilet. Boy, did he scream! I think he was afraid that he was going to fall in. That's a mighty big hole for such a little tushie! I was determined that he was not pooping on the floor or in the tub, so squatted in front of him so he could hold on to me, and he finally pooped in the big boy potty. I let him see what he had done, then flushed. He said, "Bye-bye, do do!" Of course, I went totally overboard praising him for such a good job. He loved it :)

The next time we were in Wal-Mart, we bought him a seat that fits on top of the regular toilet. Yesterday, he became fascinated with it. He wanted to just sit on it for a while with his clothes on, so I let him while I worked on a Sudoku puzzle. Later in the day, he said, "Tee tee, pot" I ran in the bathroom with him, stripped him down and sat him on the toilet. Nothing. So I got him dressed again, and we practiced getting up and down from the potty. "Step, step, turn."







Once he got the climbing part down, we stripped again. He finally did go - only we didn't make it up the step stool in time for the wet part. But he did poo poo in the potty. Boy, were we excited!! Afterwards, he DID NOT want to get dressed. He was just so happy to be running around in nothing but his shoes. Here's proof -





I know we're a long way away from no diapers, but this sure is a start. At least he's asking for it, and I'm not having to push to much. We'll see what happens. Sorry if this is too much info, I'm just so excited :)

Doctor's Visit

I visited my doctor yesterday for a check up/follow-up from the specialist. The doctor I saw, Dr. Alexander, is new to the East Metro group. Brian and I both really liked him. He was very friendly, seemed to be extremely knowledgeable, and just generally a nice guy. Here are the results:

My blood pressure was 120/80, which is PERFECT! Praise God! I've gained about 7 lbs, if my math is correct. They told me I was only allowed 13, so it's not looking too good :) But they didn't say anything about that (not yet anyway!)

The doctor mentioned that I had what's called placenta previa, which just means that my placenta is very close to the opening of my cervix. He said that it would probably correct itself since it was still very early in the pregnancy, that as my uterus grows it should move it away.

In two weeks, I have to collect my urine for 24 hours. Because I developed preeclampsia at week 34 when I was pregnant with Gehrig, they want to get a baseline of my protein in my urine. Later in this pregnancy, if my blood pressure goes up, they'll collect more and test it to see how it compares to my baseline to determine if my medicine needs to be increased for my blood pressure or if I'm developing preeclampsia again.

We also discussed what kind of delivery I wanted. I had pretty much made my mind up before yesterday that I was having another c-section. But now I'm having second thoughts. I had a c-section the first time when I developed preeclampsia because after trying to induce labor, I was still only dialated to one after 24 hours. If I decide to have a c-section this time, I wouldn't be able to have a normal delivery if I were to get pregnant again in the future. I could have a third c-section, but the risk would be greater since I would have already been cut twice. In my mind, if we go with a c-section, that's it for us as far as pregnancies go. We haven't completely ruled out having a third child, but I'm thinking that two will probably be it for us, unless we adopt down the road. The thought of having a vaginal delivery scares me to death, for whatever reason. Probably because I don't know what it's like. Fear of the unknown. My main thing is trying to take care of Gehrig and the new baby after major surgery. My first c-section was great, but it took a good week before I was up moving somewhat normally. I'm sure it would be fine because Brian is the best dad and husband in the world, and he's always such a huge help around the house. We'll just have to pray and see what God says about it. I've still got a while to think about it.

Ah - decisions, decisions. What's a girl to do??

My Boys

Well, yesterday was the first visit to my specialist. The nurse took me back, weighed me (I think I've gained about 5 lbs), and took my blood pressure. It was 136/78 - Yay!! Then the moment we'd been waiting for - the ultrasound. We told her we wanted to know the sex of the baby. But it seemed like it took forever, because she was checking the baby head to toe. We got to see it's eyelids, the heart beating, its kidneys, fingers and toes. It was so amazing to see this little person literally doing somersaults, yet I couldn't feel it. Finally, the nurse said, "It looks like...a girl!" I'd be lying to you if I said I was excited. I felt guilty about it, but I was a little disappointed. I immediately started thinking about all the boy clothes, toys, bedding, etc. that I've saved over the past two years. Also, I'm just used to boys - I helped with my little brother (who is now 12!), I'm married to a guy, and I've been raising my own little man. However, I have yet to meet someone that was worried about what they were having still feel the same way after the baby was born. So it was a fleeting moment of disappointment. Then the nurse said, "Well, now it looks like a boy. This baby won't stay still." She took lots of pictures and said the doctor would make the determination. When the doc came in, he asked lots of questions and looked at the baby himself. He turned the machine off and asked if we had any questions. I said, "What are we having?"



"It's a boy!"

Of course, he gave the usualy warning - you can't be 100% sure until the baby gets here, "but it sure does look like a boy to me!" That was good enough for me. I couldn't be more thrilled. I'm most thankful that the baby appears to be very healthy and growing just like it should. I go back to my specialist in 7 weeks, and hopefully I'll get to see my little boy again. And now I don't have to teach Gehrig how to say sister. His daddy has already taught him "Brother". It's so sweet to hear. And now I can say "My Boys!!"

Happy Health

Yesterday, Brian called me @ work and said that he thought Gehrig had another ear infection. He had one about 3 weeks ago in his right ear, and he started pulling on his left ear yesterday. Brian said he wasn't too fussy, but just wasn't acting like himself. He didn't play at all, but sat in Brian's lap most of the day. I went ahead and made him an appointment with Dr. Miller to try and catch this one early. When we got there, Ms. Joy checked him out from head to toe, and no ear infection!! We were so glad :) He did have a low-grade fever, but she said that was probably a sign that his two-year molars were getting ready to come through. We went to Brian's parents' house last night for dinner, and Gehrig was playing a lot more than he had through the day. He didn't really act like he felt horrible. He slept all night and was his normal playful self today.

In other medical news, Brian's mom took my blood pressure last night, and it was 118/74! PERFECT!! I was so relieved. Most of you already know, but I delivered Gehrig 6 weeks early because of high blood pressure, and at my last doctor's visit with this pregnancy my blood pressure was 160/100. They put me on a low-dose medication, and it's working! It's been a constant worry of mine, but I know that worrying and stressing doesn't do anything good for the body. I'm having to make a conscious effort daily not to get worked up about things. And with my hormones, that isn't an easy thing to do :)

Getting Started

Okay, so several people have asked me why I don't start a blog. Here we go...not really sure what to write, but I'm sure I'll come up with something along the way.

Here's the latest - I'm currently 14 weeks along in my pregnancy, and a total emotional train wreck. That sounds really bad, but it's the only way I know to describe it. A lot of you already know the story, but for those of you who don't, I had a major meltdown Sunday night.

Here's what happened:

Brian and I went to the movies and left Gehrig at his Granny and Grandpa's house (Brian's parents). The movie lasted longer than expected, and it was nearly 9:30 p.m. before we picked him up. On the way home, I was telling Gehrig that we were going to get our jammies on when we got home and get in the bed. Of course, he said, "Milk." It was then that Brian mentioned the fact that we probably should start weaning him off his nighttime cup, or at least giving it to him earlier. I totally agree - I don't want him wetting the bed when we start potty training. But the more I thought about it, the more upset I got. When we finally got home and I put Gehrig down for the night, I absolutely lost it. I was crying hysterically. Brian was just looking at me like I was crazy, and at that point I felt like I was. The nighttime cup of milk is "our" time. It's the only time, other than when he's sick or Brian spanks him that he'll actually sit in my lap and cuddle. I'm not ready to give that up yet. So, I told this to Brian. Then I proceeded to say, "I don't want to potty train him, either. I love changing his diapers. I want to hold him like a little baby again. I don't want him to grow up." And poor Brian, all he could do was go to bed. There was nothing anybody could say to make me feel better at that point. I went into Gehrig's room and picked him up out of his crib (he was already asleep) and rocked him for a while. Then I got in the bed and cried myself to sleep.

The next day I was fine. Brian and I talked about it, and I couldn't help but laugh. It's very hard to see your baby growing up. Sometimes I'm afraid that he won't need me anymore. But I'm learning that he'll always need me in some way, just not for the baby stuff. Gehrig is growing into the neatest little man. He has such a great sense of humor and is really a well-behaved child. I guess no matter how old he gets, he'll always be "Mama's boy". Soon enough I'll be able to experience all the baby stuff again. I'll be praying Gehrig out of his diapers by then :)