Baby Diary
Well, probably not really a diary as such but here you will find all the posts I've made referring to my pregnancy.
The Bump
Many of you said you wanted to see a photo of my baby bump and so I finally decided to bite the bullet and take one.
I'm not a photogenic person so I usually tend to avoid having my photo taken. But, I've been thinking about it and this is one of those events in life you really want to record, if just for the sake of your own family history. I have a feeling it would be one of those things that, later on in life, you would look back and think, "You know, I wish there had been a photo taken during that time, even if it was a really bad one." Well, maybe not if it was a really one bad but you get my drift.
And so, with that thought in mind, for the last week or so I've been waiting for the right timing and conditions (weather and garden) to the set the camera up and record this little bit of history. Specifically, I was waiting for a bright but overcast day as I find that is when the garden photographs best. On New Year's Day, that day presented itself – it had been overcast and calm all day. Ironically, the moment I got the camera out and set it up, the sun came out and wind got up. And, then visitors arrived.
Don't Push it
I'm having a grumpy day today.
I'm still feeling somewhat tired from a big day out on Sunday and coupled with that, I had another glucose test for gestational diabetes, at the lab this morning. The results from the last test came back at 8.7 (normal is about 6, I think) and so my doctor wanted me to go for another one. I had to fast for it this time.
The waiting room was full when I arrived, so it was about half an hour before I was seen. The routine involved taking a blood sample from me before I drank the "flat lemonade", and then I had to sit around for two hours this time. At least I didn't end up feeling a bit light-headed like last time around – which I'm hoping was a good thing. Maybe it was something to do with the marshmallows I had eaten during last week. Anyway, whatever. The effect this week was that I was left feeling just a little more drained than when I arrived. At the end of the two hours they took another vial of blood from me. And, then I was free to go AND GET FOOD!
The rest of the day might have gone alright if one particular manager hadn't created extra work, which I don't need right now as I'm going on leave for Christmas at the end of this week and have got enough on my plate as it is. Add to that the fact that when I get back from leave I will only be there for another three weeks before I'm off for 12 months on maternity leave. It did not help the stress levels and, needless to say, I'm feeling more than a tad irritable.
It's Not Fair
This is thoroughly the wrong time of year to be six months pregnant! I'm not just talking about it being summer. It's Christmas! And, with Christmas there comes all the various social get-togethers and all that delectable food, and it's traditionally a time for habitually overeating. Right?
Unfortunately, being six months pregnant means there is not as much room for my stomach to expand as there would be normally therefore limiting the amount I can consume. In fact, if anything, it has shrunk. I can't even eat a meal of normal proportions let alone enjoy the delights of gorging on Christmas fare.
Yesterday, I made the mistake of eating a meal for tea that, before now, would've been a normal sized portion and then a bit later in evening followed it with some pudding. Even though it was a very tiny portion of pudding I had, I totally regretted it with a painful gripey belly right through the night.
And then I had a small breakthrough with Pippa during the night. Inevitably, I had to get up to visit a particular room – as you do with a gripey tummy. Pippa, who was probably sleeping in the lounge at the time, heard me get up and she got up, too, and she followed me back to bed!
"Yeah, so, big deal," I hear you say. Well, the big deal is that Pippa won't normally get on a bed. If you pick her up and place her on one she jumps straight off again like she has been burned. Before now, the closest I could get her to willingly get up there herself was onto the pillows or along the headboard but she would not go near the duvet/bedspread area.
So, I was most surprised last night, when I tucked myself back into bed, to feel her walk along my pillow and then very slowly and tentatively – like she was walking on glass – walk down between my husband and I, then very carefully walk over me to the other side and curled up in the small of my back.
And then, no sooner had that happened, guess what happened next ... I had to make another urgent visitation. Can you believe it? She was contentedly settled and purring away and I had no choice but to disturb her. Suppressing the urgency of which I needed to go, I gently picked her up and placed her on the other side of me, beside my husband, and was careful not to rush out of bed so as not to startle her but, unfortunately, she did not stay. And she did not come back again afterwards.
So twice curse the limitations of a pregnant stomach! It is just not fair.
Worst Lemonade Ever!
Well, I reached the 28th week of my pregnancy on Wednesday and, with that milestone, had to go and visit the lab for a "polycose screening" (the test for pregnancy diabetes), which I did first thing yesterday morning. This entailed drinking a cup of some liquid that tasted a bit like half flat lemonade and then sitting around for an hour while it ran its course. I wasn't even warned about the affect it might have until I'd been sitting there for about 30-40 minutes and the nurse stuck her head around the corner and said, "If you're feeling a bit woozy or nauseas we've got a bed you can come and lie down on." At that stage I'd already been feeling a bit light-headed for about 10 minutes but not that bad that I needed to lie down. Although, the mention of a bed did sound very inviting at that moment – having not slept that well during the night, and with the added light-headedness, I was quite ready to curl up and go to sleep right then! Eventually, the hour was up and I was taken through into another room where they took three little vials of blood off me. And that was it. I then waddled my way back to work feeling slightly peculiar.
Today, I rang my doctor to make my next appointment as they wanted to me come back after having the test done. I told them I'd had the test done yesterday and they said to me, "Ah yes, about that, we've got the test results and we need to talk to you about them." Uh oh. I'm picking that does not bode good as my doctor never mentions test results unless you specifically ask about them.
They made me an appointment for Monday morning and, in the meantime, I am not going to stress about. I think if it was particularly dire, they would have got me in straight away.
Worst lemonade indeed.
Bung it!
So much has been happening lately that I haven't given you an update on what's been happening on the baby front for a while.
Things have been ticking along quite well – at least, I think they have been. Okay, maybe that is not being entirely honest. There is one thing that has my feathers slightly ruffled. It's my breasts again. No, they haven't gone up another size (thank ceiling cat) – actually, they seem to have stabilised at a size D. No, now they have started leaking! From what I can gather this usually doesn't start happening until much closer to one's due date. But no, not me. Mine had to go and start at 21 weeks! Why me? Is it because everything has been going so well that fate had to throw in a curve ball somewhere? Is there an unseen rule book somewhere that says no-one is allowed to have a perfect trouble-free pregnancy? I haven't even been moody except for the odd occasional grumpy session – which has been short-lived, I might add. So, what's the big deal, you ask – just buy some breast pads! I guess what I'm most annoyed about is having to wear a bra 24/7. As if sleeping at night isn't already uncomfortable, I have to sleep in a bra as well! I find myself envying my car. At least when she's got a leak it's merely a matter of tightening something up or throwing in new set of seals. Maybe I should tell hubby to pop down to the local automotive parts store and order me some new nipples!
Last week I had my usual four-weekly check-up at the doctor at 25 weeks (it should have been at 24 weeks but by the time I got around to booking the appointment a week had gone). It was mostly the usual stuff – weight, blood pressure, baby's heartbeat – except this time they told me I have to go back for another ultrasound scan at 32 weeks. Apparently, the last scan at 20 weeks showed that my placenta was too low. Apparently, what this means is that, if it doesn't move up to where it should be between now and my due date, there is great risk that the placenta will tear away from the uterus wall during birth and cause bleeding. I am told that this doesn't happen very often and that, in most cases, the placenta usually moves up to where it should be before birth. So, to check its progess, I need another scan at 32 weeks. If it remains low, they won't let you go into labour and you have to have a caesarean. Keeping fingers crossed that placenta does what it should. I don't particularly relish the idea of having a caesarean.
I was also told that, before my next check-up, I have to go for another blood test and "polycose screening" at 28 weeks. This is the test which checks for pregnancy diabetes. And then, to top it all off, I was given one of those little jars and told to bring a sample to my next check-up. Do you know how much I hate having to pee in the jar?
As the Wind Passes
I have to be honest and say that I am not a big fan of toilet humour. However, I thought you might find it amusing that I have recently discovered a new appreciation of farting!
This morning while lying in bed before getting up I happened to let rip a fair whopper and, before I'd even thought about it, out of my mouth popped the words, "Oh my god, that felt good!" Well, hubby just about rolled out of bed laughing.
After getting over my momentary embarressment about what I'd just said, I had to laugh too. You see, being 24 weeks pregnant, there isn't a lot of room for the normal bodily functions we take for granted. Honestly, even the tiniest of farts is such blessed relief!
I Got a D!
I'm crying. I can't believe it! I am absolutely appalled! I've gone from B's to D's. As if a C wasn't bad enough!
I'm not talking about a report or an exam as such. If you haven't already guessed, it's my bra size I'm talking about. As I no longer fit my old black bra, I went to buy a new black bra on the weekend. I discovered, much to my dismay, that I had to get a D.
What once fitted neatly into the cup of one hand I can't even cover with two hands now! My beautiful little bundles have become great big dongyknockers!
Betwixt & Between
Last week I was getting to the point where I was having a clothing crisis. If I wasn’t working, it probably wouldn’t have been as much of a problem. Unfortunately, it has got to the stage where only my tatty old garden clothes still fit, and one pair of good trousers for work. But garden clothes aren’t exactly acceptable attire at work.
My jeans ceased to fit me weeks ago and so, while visiting the city for my ultrasound scan at 13 weeks, I made a side trip and purchased some maternity jeans. I made sure I tried them on before purchasing and they seemed to fit well enough. Unfortunately, when I got them home and actually started wearing them, I found they constantly slid down and were uncomfortable as a result. So the next time I was over in the city for something else, I made another side trip to a different shop (which had been recommended to me) and got a different style of maternity jeans with adjustable elastic in the sides. Once again I tried them on before purchasing; I did the crouching down, the bending over etc etc to make sure they felt right. I took them home but when I wore them, they did exactly the same thing. Someone suggested that maybe I hadn’t got to that stage where I was big enough to make them sit right. I decided I must’ve been at an in-betweensie stage – too big for my normal clothes to fit anymore, too small for the maternity stuff – and left off buying anything else for a while.
Fortunately, it has taken quite a few more weeks for me to outgrow my work clothes, so I haven’t had quite the same crisis as with my weekend wear. That was until last week, when I suddenly discovered I only had one pair of trousers left in my wardrobe that still fitted me. One pair of trousers for a whole week is not really ideal. Unfortunately, I didn’t have much of a choice – there wasn’t a lot I could do about it. Half the problem is that we only have a handful of clothing outlets in our small town and the pants they sell rarely, if ever, fit me well. Of course, that means finding time to take a trip to the city.
Last Saturday I was supposed to go with my mum to a Home & Garden Show up in Hawkes Bay but, at the 99th, hour Mum decided not to go, as she’d come down with a cold. The plan was to go shopping for clothes while we were up there. The trip to Napier/Hastings was cancelled but I still desperately needed to get clothes for work, so I took myself over to the nearest city instead.
The first shop I went to was Egg Maternity. In all my other trips to the city I hadn’t managed to get to this particular shop yet – time was never on my side. I now wish I’d found this place first! The lady there was so helpful and really knew her stuff. I was even more impressed when she told me that Egg Maternity like to have feedback about their clothing. I found two pairs of really smart pants for work here and, although they were not cheap, they were not overly expensive. What’s more, they have proven to be very comfortable.
I left that shop feeling very pleased that I’d only been in the city for a little over half an hour and I’d already got more than half of what I wanted!&nsbsp; I continued the rest of the day shopping around the general clothing stores looking for smart tops to suit a baby bump. There wasn’t much out there that took my fancy – I’m sorry, the current fashion to wear dress-type tops over leggings I think is hideous. I did manage to find one really nice baby-doll style top and I came home very chuffed with my day’s shopping effort.
I should now have a wardrobe to, hopefully, take me right through to the end. Weekend wear is another matter though.
Scan Results
It's been a while since I gave an update on how the "bun" is coming along. The truth is, things have been quiet and ticking along fine, and there hasn't been much to tell.
I finally got the results of the scan when I visited my doctor last week. Although, he didn't even mention the subject to me. I found out later in a rather round-about way, actually. At the end of my check-up I was given the form I had to take down to the Lab for my blood test. There were two pieces of paper and I didn't actually pay much attention to them as I thought they were just the usual gobbledegook that the lab uses for the test. I never realised the second piece of paper was a copy of the letter regarding my scan results until the lady at the lab in a moment of confusion asked me, "Is the copy of this letter meant for you?" Having not looked at it, I just shrugged and said that I didn't know, that I had just been handed the form and told to bring it down here. She soon realised it was to go with the blood test but she offered to give me a photocopy of it, which I accepted. I'm pleased I did. After reading through all the paragraphs of jargon I finally came to the all-important words: "low risk". I know that it is no guarantee but it did make me feel relieved.
First Baby Photo
Well, not really a photo as such but it is the first picture of baby.
The ultrasound scan I had on Thursday went really well. At least, the lady operating the scanner seemed relatively positive, so I hope that was a good sign.
It was an interesting experience. First time I've ever been to an appointment that requires some sort of pre-preparation. I was instructed to empty my bladder one hour before the appointment time and then drink one litre of water over the next half hour.
The city, where my appointment was, is approximately a 40-45 minute drive from our town, so hubby drove the car while I drank. About 10 minutes before you get to the city there is a particulary windy section of road. Of course, as I suspected would happen, just as we hit that section of road things started becoming urgent!
Fortunately, they took me in for my appointment almost as soon as I arrived. I hopped up onto the bed as instructed and the the lady starts the scan. She then says to me, "I'm going to have to get you to empty out, we can't see the baby very well." If I wasn't so relieved to be able to go and relieve myself I might've wondered why I'd just endured the discomfort of the last 15-20 minutes! I did see the irony of it, though. But, oh, blissful relief!
Back up on the bed, the scan starts again and, yay, we can see a whole baby on the screen this time! At first, it was a little unreal – like we were just watching a documentary on TV. But as the lady explained the various parts and what she was doing, it began to dawn that this image on the screen really was there inside me, right now. Especially so when the lady tried to capture an image and baby would squirm right at that moment – we laughed at baby's lack of cooperation and decided it was camera shy. It just would not turn to face the scanner! Watching it wriggling was quite amazing. And, it was quite a wriggler, too. I think the appointment took a bit longer than one might usually because of the little wriggler!
At one stage during the appointment I looked at baby's profile and thought... it looks perfect. Does that mean there hope for me yet?
I’m Pregnant
Ack! That word “pregnant” still seems so alien when referring to myself. I find I am avoiding saying it if I can help it. I really don’t like it; it’s just... it’s just so blatant! If I try and think about why I really don’t like it I will probably end up psychoanalysing myself, and that will just do my head in! So, let’s not go there.
Today I had my “12 weeks” check-up at the doctor. Unlike the check-up at eight weeks, this was a much simpler affair. I had to provide a pee sample again (man, I hate doing that bit!). Fortunately, at my last check-up, they gave me a vial to bring back so I could do it in my own time before the appointment (doesn’t make it any less icky, though!). I was weighed, had my blood pressure taken and the doctor listened for the baby’s heartbeat. Then he gave me a turn to listen. I heard my baby’s heart beating for the first time. It was barely audible but I heard it!
And then I was asked if I wanted to take the Maternal Serum Screening test and to consider the decisions I might have to make based on the results. Some women choose not to know. I decided to take the test, which has prompted a sudden rush of appointments.
You see, I am actually at 13 weeks today and the small window of opportunity for this test closes at 13 weeks. In the past this test has not been free and usually only older women (over 35, I think) were asked to take it. Due to some very recent changes this test is now free and my doctor only received notice of this last week. Hence the sudden rush. So, I am off to the city tomorrow for an urgent ultrasound scan (thank goodness I have a flexible employer). When the results of that come back I then go for a blood test. And then when the results of that come back the two lots of results are sent away for analysis.
I Was Never Told That!
As you may have already gathered, having kids has never been a priority in my life. Consequently, I have never paid much attention to the hype surrounding babies. Of course, as a woman, you can never completely avoid the topic as most other women go nuts about them and there will always be times when you’re caught in the middle of a group having one those conversations. On those occasions I usually shrunk back and let others lead the conversation, smiling and laughing as appropriate, but generally I didn’t pay much attention.
However, there are certain baby topics which are predominantly at the top of the pile. For instance, morning sickness. Who hasn’t heard that one come up? Everyone tells you about that, so I’m not going to talk about it. Let me tell you some of the things I’ve experienced in my 12 weeks so far that I’ve never heard about in general conversations (okay, I know I said before that I didn’t pay much attention but I didn’t zone out completely).
1. Tiredness. When I discovered the certain “extra presence” at four weeks, I was sleeping like the dead at night. I’m not a light sleeper but I’m not a really heavy sleeper either. It was fantastic to sleep right through a whole night with no interruptions, until I discovered the reason why I was sleeping so heavily. The only drawback with sleeping like that was that I slept through my alarm clock a few times (oops!). The tiredness got worse over the next few weeks so that, at the peak, I was going to bed several hours before my usual turning in time. By eight weeks it was easing and at 12 weeks I am almost back to normal, however, I can’t have a late night as it just makes me really crook for the next few days.
2. Breasts. I can’t believe I’ve gone up one whole bra size already!! I’ve heard the conversations about breasts being sore and sensitive and, yes, I’m experiencing that but nobody mentioned that they start getting bigger right at the beginning! I’m only at 12 weeks! I want my little my little B-cups back... hey, I liked being flat-chested. *Wailing and throwing toys* I don't wanna play this game anymore!
One of Those Life Changing Moments
It is not unusual for my female friend’s monthly visit to be late. I’m talking only a day or so but on 21st June, after three days and no sign at all, I was pretty sure that visit wasn’t going to happen this time. While I was at my Mum’s place, borrowing her clothes dryer, I mentioned it to her – my mum is my best friend and confidante – and we chatted about what it meant.
The following day (Sunday) I decided to go into the supermarket and see if I could buy a “test kit”. I was not even sure if it was something you could get at the supermarket but, being Sunday, the chemists were closed so I had to try. Ironically, I bumped into Mum there and together we searched the shelf in the personals section. We must’ve spent an age looking. Neither of us knew what we were looking for, ha ha! I’d just given up when Mum picked up a packet and asked, “Is this it?” It was kind of hard to tell at first – the packaging, although obvious once you studied it, was very discreet and unobvious to the casual glance.
Later that evening, I did the test. I can’t remember the last time I was that nervous. I am still not sure why it made me so nervous. It was a simple enough task, and I was already pretty certain what it was going to tell me. The first pink line showed up instantly. Half a minute later, was that the barest hint of a second pink line... hmmm, hard to tell... the instructions say you have to wait about five minutes. I had to walk out of the room at that point and go and distract myself watching some carp on TV. It was just about doing my head in to stand and watch the lines appearing. A short time later I went back to look. Two pink lines – one not as bold as the other but two definite pink lines.
Time to ring the olds. Dad picked up the phone. “Do you want the good news or the bad news?” I said to him. “You’re going to be a granddad.”
“Oh,” he said. “I guess you want to speak to Mum.” He didn’t know that Mum already knew and was just awaiting the confirmation. In the background I heard him say to Mum, “I’m going to be a grandfather!”
So, for those of you that’ve been asking, that’s when and how I found out. Suddenly, my life is barrelling down a different road, and I didn’t take time to stop and get a map! Right now, though, I’m not sure that a map would help because I’m too scared to look! Kind of out of character for me, actually. I’m one of those people who like to know what I’m doing, and how to do it, before I get there. Guess, I’m still in denial.
Only one week to go and I am at the end of my first trimester. I have a bit of a bump starting to show but it is not obvious. I can’t suck my stomach in flat anymore.
To Plan, or Not to Plan, or Maybe a bit of Both
I’ve been happily married for nine years. After we first “tied the knot”, the questions always were, “So, when are you starting a family?” These eventually faded and stopped when everyone realised I wasn’t inclined to be a sprog factory. I’ve never been inclined towards children but I’ve always said I would have a family before age 35.
In that time I’ve been waiting, hoping, for something of a miracle to happen. Hoping that, someday, a maternal spark might suddenly be ignited within me; that I will one day have that desire to want to be a mum and be ready to start a family. That day has never happened. And so I resigned myself to the thought that, as I’m never going to be ready for it, the only way it was ever going to happen would be suddenly and completely unplanned.
...And so it was; planned, but not planned.Is it the Weather or Something Else?
I was just glancing back through some of my older posts and it suddenly occurred to me that it has been a while since Roman brought a mouse in for a midnight lesson in mouse catching.
Now, I'm sure there is no shortage of mice out there. My Mum's cat, Edison, is still bringing them inside and letting them go at her place. So, that doesn't seem the likely reason.
It is the middle of winter here right now, so that could be it. Although, it does seem the colder it is the more time he spends going out.
Maybe the last time he brought a mouse in was an exam, which I passed, and I have no more need of midnight mouse catching lessons. (Yay, if that is case!)
Or then there is the conincidence that, since that last mouse catching episode, it is roughly about the same time that I have been pregnant. Does he really know?
So, which is it? The weather? Or, something else?
