SLEEP!!!!

When you are pregnant, many moms will tell you, "Sleep now while you can!" They will cackle like a witch when they say this. You will think "what a creep!" and "Maybe my baby will be different!" I hate to tell you that they are 100% correct! Your baby will be unique for sure, but I don't know any mom who has come out of the new born haze without some sleep deprivation - well maybe rich women who have a baby nurse or nanny! If you are one of those women, please quit reading this because I hate you! Rich women with baby nannies who get lots of sleep, I hate you more than you can ever comprehend!

Ok back on track here, I am going to try to give you my two cents about how to survive the sleep deprivation and "baby blues" - not to be confused with postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is very very serious and I am not a doctor, nor have I suffered from it, so if you really think this is your issue, call your doctor immediately! I have suffered from extreme sleep deprivation and a little bit of the "baby blues" and I am a survivor (as are all moms, because we all make it through to the other side). 

SLEEP:

Yes, rest as much as you can now! It is a lame thing to tell a pregnant woman, but it is also true! Your entire world is about to be flipped upside down! Nothing will prepare you for what you are about to encounter! If you are a control freak and a "type-A", this will be the hardest for you! You cannot control everything related to your baby from the second your go into labor until, well, probably ever. Your baby will not have a schedule at the beginning and possibly for months at a time. Once you find yourself in a great baby routine, a week later, your baby will change the routine! Your baby will want boobies non stop some days and you will have those milkers out all day! Does your hubby have the boobies? Nope, you do! It is a blessing and a curse! Your hubby will never share that bond that you have with your new born baby, which is an amazing bond, but in return, you may never sleep again! Despite the sleep deprivation,  I feel lucky to share this bond with my girls!  While you are in the middle of this non-stop boobie-buffet accompanied by nearly non-stop crying and/or rocking/bouncing/swaying around the house (See the Happiest Baby on The Block Book), you will have days where you cry... a lot! You will have other days where you get 5 hours of sleep and feel like you are on top of the world! You will not have days where you get anything over 5 - 6 hours of sleep for a while, unless you do a lot of bottle feeding that your hubby can help you with.  Bottle feeding either means lots of pumping or formula feeding.  Pumping seams to add extra stress for new moms at the beginning and I recommend waiting until your baby is a couple of weeks old or more before you try to start a system for saving up milk. I think for the first couple of weeks it is best to keep it simple.

IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST BABY:

Sleep whenever the baby sleeps! They told me this... like most new moms with that adrenaline rush, I didn't listen! When you come home with your first baby, you may feel a little anxiety! There are no nurses to help you! I remember thinking - are they really letting me out of the hospital to care for this tiny baby all by myself? What are they thinking??? You may also be infatuated by this adorable little eating/pooping machine! You may find yourself staring at them constantly or taking millions of pictures and texting them to everyone you know! You may also be freaked out about SIDS and check constantly to make sure they are still breathing (this was my obsession the fist time around and even the second time). At any rate, no matter how much they tell you to sleep, when you first come home, you probably just wont for a couple of days until things settle down. Oh and you will have tons of visitors too! That will definitely keep you from sleeping when baby sleeps! At any rate, once you settle down, be sure to sleep whenever you can! Your body will heal much faster and you will be less likely to have postpartum depression. 

IF THIS IS YOUR SECOND BABY:

You will get even less sleep than you did with your first! Your hubby wont be as much help with this baby because he will be tending to your other kid(s). You will be more calm and want the sleep, but your other little friend needs you too! When the baby sleeps during the day, you will need to spend quality time with your other child! The sleep deprivation is insane! 

WHETHER THIS IS YOUR FIRST OR TENTH BABY:

* Sleep whenever possible

* If anyone (family, friends, the mail man, whoever) offers help, say YES!!!

* Accept the fact that its okay for your house to be a little messy right now and quit cleaning all the time!

* Take a shower every day! They say its not possible, but I promise that most days you can fit in a quick shower! Do it while the baby is sleeping... do it when someone else is holding the baby... find the time! A shower will make you feel so much more human and functional.

* try to make yourself feel cute - nothing is more depressing than sitting around the house all day and on top of that, being stinky (from not showering), and wearing your husbands T shirts and sweats... try to find a few minutes to put on a tiny bit of make-up or buy a cute sweat suite that makes you feel less frumpy! It sounds very very superficial, but it helps! I put a little make-up on most days and it just makes me feel like I am part of the real world. Its weird, I know! With the first baby, I rarely showered, dressed super frumpy, and didn't make any time for myself at all and it was way way more stressful and the "baby blue" days were so much worse!

* Go somewhere every day! Whether you take a walk around the neighborhood, go to the grocery store for a few items, go to Target, or run small errands; getting out is important! It will make you feel so much better! I know its scary taking a brand new baby out of the house at the beginning, but they will be okay! Don't take them to a super crowded store where people are coughing all over the place, but a nice weekend morning at Target or the mall isn't going to hurt your baby and it will make you feel good to get out of the house!  Trust me!!! If you stay in the house every day all day, you will get depressed or at the very least, cry a lot and feel a little crazy!

* Whenever you feel down or like crying, it is okay! But be sure you talk to others about it! You are not a failure if you feel sad or like crying! You are a good mom! But talking it out with a more sane, less sleep deprived person will make you feel better! Whenever I feel really sleepy and weepy, I call my best friend to talk me through it, or have my local best friend come over to chat and tell me about her life in the real world... or even your mom! I often vent to my mother-in-law and she is very sweet and kind and comforting! Sometimes you just need someone to remind you that you will survive and that others have been there too! Your husband can be helpful if he is the sensitive type - hee hee! The fact is though that if they don't have a vagina, they can't understand you or what you are going through! It isn't their fault! They are MEN! Most of them don't deal well with emotions and crying! 

Baby Natalie is Here!

Dear Mommies,

It has been nearly four weeks since my last confession.... My last blog was Friday, September 21, when I announced that after our little scare, our baby was growing and thriving in my tummy.... It turns out that the baby wanted out! The very next day, my water broke and labor began. It happened on the couch while watching "Bubble Guppies" with Emily, and while my husband was at a golf fund raiser for his football program. I will share the entire store soon! 

Natalie Rose was born on Saturday, September 22 at 9:55pm via C Section. She was 6lbs. 1oz. and 19 and 1/4 inches long. She is small but nearly perfect and beautiful! She is doing really well and I am slowly starting to feel human again!  Natalie is nearly four weeks old now and I am ready to continue my blog. I really wasn't functioning very well except for basic survival until last week and this week I am ready to take on more. I will try to continue my blog now, since I really do enjoy sharing my thoughts with, well whomever, about being a mom and what I have learned.

The C Section was a rough recovery and I am still not 100%!  Baby Natalie is very healthy and happy and thriving with her big big blue eyes and that is the important thing! Emily (our three-year-old) loves her baby sister and is very sweet and gentle with her. I just wish she was sweet and gentle with mommy too! It has been interesting but wonderful and I will share all about it in good time! 

In coming blogs, I will share new words of wisdom about new borns, three-year-olds, breast feeding and the like! Feel free to comment if you have a request of something you want to know about! 

Healthy Growing Baby!!!

We went in for our growth scan today and Baby Girl is doing great! She is growing and the placenta is doing its job pumping all the good stuff to her! She will probably be a little bit smaller than my first one, but she is healthy and growing! I am so happy and relieved and will sleep so much better tonight knowing that she is growing and healthy in my tummy!  Our scheduled c-section for this little one is on October 1st - unless she wants to come out and get some snuggles early! I was hoping she would miraculously flip to head-down on her own, but she is really stuck in the breech position. The ultrasound tech said that the baby's but is stuck down really low into my pelvis! Many babies come out with a cone-head - mine may come out with a super ghetto booty or a cone-butt! ha ha!

So we have about nine more days until we get to meet this little girl and I am getting excited! Soon you will be reading crazy ramblings of a super tired mommy on this blog! 

I can't wait to hold my little one and snuggle her - that is the thing I look most forward to. This pregnancy has been tough and it will be so amazing to finally see her and how beautiful and healthy she is. The next will be when Emily comes to meet her little sister! Its going to be so cool! Emily is going to be the best and bossiest big sister this side of the Mississippi! She already tries to boss our dog around with no success! Now she will have an actual human under her control! She tells me every day about how she is going to teach her baby sister to ride bikes and play base ball.  I have been preparing her for the reality that the baby will not be doing much for a while besides eating, sleeping, pooping, crying, and maybe a smile here or there.  

One last thought before I go to sleep - I haven't told Emily anything about breast feeding yet. I don't know how to explain it ahead of time, she will just have to see it. I feel like we have a lot of funny discussions in our immediate future! I will try to hide the breast pump for as long as possible though! That could traumatize an adult! For you first time moms out there, that pump is going to turn your nipples into a national geographic special! They will look like cow utters for about 10 - 20 minutes after you pump! It will be disturbing to you even after you do it a hundred times! The actual breast feeding really isn't bad at all! Its nice, calming and you get to snuggle your little soft newborn! Its a pleasant experience for the most part! Its the pumping that will be discouraging! But remember ladies - pumping is your ticket to freedom! Think of it as a milk bank! You make a couple of bottles - you just bought yourself a trip to get a pedicure or go to the mall all by yourself... You make several bottles - you just bought you and your hubby a date night out to see a movie! Pumping is a necessary evil for independent women who need to have "Me" time and who have to go back to work when their babies are still breast feeding! I just can't imagine what Emily will be telling all of her friends at pre-school once she sees how babies really get milk! While it is one of the most natural things in the world, to Emily, it will be quite an interesting spectacle! I just hope she doesn't ask to try it too!!! 

To Grow or Not to Grow... that is the question

I have been a bad blogger-mommy this week! It has been a weird week! Monday was my last day of work and I have been off for some pre-baby doctor ordered R&R! I have been finally able to relax and rest now that I am not at work and my long-term substitute teacher has taken over my job and is doing fine!

Tuesday was our Non Stress Test (NST)... This is basically just a baby monitoring session in which they place a heartbeat monitor on your belly to monitor the baby's heart beat for 20 minutes to an hour. My Baby Girl's heart rate is wonderful! After the NST, we talked to the Doc for a while and she answered all of my neurotic questions and put me at ease. She said that her heart rate is great and that means she is getting plenty of oxygen to her brain and body. There could still be a problem with the placenta or cord if she hasn't grown any, but we will find that out tomorrow and if she isn't growing, we will get her out of there and get her growing out of the womb! I am closely monitoring her movements at home and if she doesn't move enough, obviously I have to go to the hospital immediately! She has been a good little mover for me all week! 

Tomorrow afternoon is the ultra sound that determines if she has grown at all in one week. The Doc will also check the blood flow from the placenta to baby via Doppler at this time (some sort of ultrasound device that detects blood flow).  If she hasn't grown at all or if he sees anything concerning, we may have a little baby tomorrow night or possibly Monday. If she is growing and thriving in there, they will keep monitoring her via NST every few days until our planned c-section on October 1st (she is breech). It is entirely possible that she is just going to be a smaller baby. That does happen! It just seams so odd for that to happen in either of our families! 

She has been doing some pretty big movements in there! I think she might be trying to flip herself to the correct position, and the poor little thing is stuck! She always ends up with her head back under my right rib! I wish I could help her move! 

I don't know if anyone actually reads my blog, besides EB, but if you do, think positive growing baby thoughts for me tomorrow!!! 

Sorry I am not very witty or entertaining today. I am just a sleepy pregnant girl who is worried about her little baby! 

R & R:  I will say that I think every pregnant woman deserves to rest for a couple of weeks before their baby is due if they can afford it! Even with the worry about my baby, it has been very nice and relaxing to be home and resting and keeping the stress of work out of my brain for a little while! I feel like I am healthier and in a better mental state and ready for this baby! I also get to spend some extra alone time with my 3-year-old before the baby comes and that has been nice too! We made cupcakes today and that was fun - except for when Emily just couldn't wait for them to cool any longer and started picking little pieces off of the cupcakes and eating them while I wasn't looking. She mutilated three cupcakes before I noticed what she was doing! That kids loves cupcakes!

My idea of working until the end was a bad one and I am glad that the Doc said I needed to slow down and be resting! You have to love a doctors note that requires you to rest! If you have a stressful, on your feet all day, non-stop kind of job, its just really hard to keep going at the end without wearing yourself out! Having another kid (or kids) already really magnifies the stress and exhaustion by ten or more! Take care of yourselves ladies! That is my advice for today! In the long run, its better for you to get some rest and not be stressed. Save up that energy for child birth and all those sleepless nights to come!  Soon enough your life will be on a strange time schedule full of boobie feeding, trying to remember whether you left off on your left or right boob, getting baby poo all over yourself, forgetting to shower for days on end, and trying to figure out how to safely bathe your slippery little newborn without dropping her. Being a new mommy is a wonderful thing, but it takes a lot out of you, so you may as well start off with a full tank right? Right!!! 

Operation "Baby Flip" Was a Flop! :(

The Bad(ish) News: The ECV procedure in which the doctor tries to manually flip the baby from breech to a head-down position was unsuccessful yesterday. The doctor tried to flip her, but her little butt and hips are stuck down too low into my pelvis. It was a painful and awkward procedure, but I am glad we at least tried it. My lower uterus is sore every time the baby moves today - a weird bruised sort of feeling!  We have a C-Section scheduled for October 1st. I am still not thrilled about having the C-Section, but I know that its best for us and that everything will be ok.  

The Scary(ish) News: One thing that the doctor discovered while attempting the ECV procedure is that our little baby girl is a bit on the small side. She is approximately 5 pounds and at this point, the average baby is 6 pounds or more. This is concerning. It could be nothing, just a small kid, or it could be a sign of trouble. Emily (my three-year-old) was 7lbs. 9oz. and she was almost two weeks early. My husband and I are not small people and even the shortest people in our families (our moms) are average height. In fact Emily is in the 100th percentile for three-year-olds. Baby Natalie is estimated to be in the 7th percentile for babies at this point in pregnancy. Her heart rate was monitored for over an hour and it was strong and great... she looked healthy via ultrasound. She is just smaller than she should be. Because of this, the doctor wants to monitor her and make sure that she is growing and not having any issues. At home I have to be extra aware of her movements and kick-counts... On Tuesday, we will be going in for a Non Stress Test (NST), where they will monitor her heart rate for an hour to make sure it is steady and consistent. Next Friday, the doctor will do another ultrasound to check her growth rate. If she hasn't grown at all or not enough, we may end up with a C-Section that evening. If she is thriving and growing, then we will continue to monitor her until our scheduled C-Section date.  I was a crying pregnant mess once we got in the car from the ECV appointment! It was a lot to process - kind of a mommy-brain explosion started to happen - The baby won't flip - boom - you have to have a c-section - boom - she looks a little too small - BOOM!!! - oh and, you need to stop working and rest until the delivery date - BOOM! It was a lot to think about and a lot for me to obsessively research online all in one night! 

Obsessive Online Research Discoveries that were actually helpful and comforting last night:

1. after thoroughly searching the world wide web, I discovered that I have been a good pregnant mommy! I haven't done anything on the list that causes babies with low birth weights, and I have done all of the right stuff. I take my vitamins and eat well and take good care of myself. There is nothing I could have done to prevent the possibility of a small baby. Even stress hasn't really been proven to cause low birth weight. This made me feel a little better at first, but almost more worried later because I just don't understand what could be wrong. I need to hope that she will just do some big growing in the next two weeks! 

2. C-sections can take anywhere from twenty minutes to an hour start to finish depending on the doctor. Thats not so bad! 

3. Since I find "Skin-to-skin" time with the baby right after birth to be very important and healthy, I will have to be pushy in the OR and try to force someone to hold my naked little baby up to my chest as they are finishing stitching me up after the procedure (my arms will be strapped to side boards - aaaahhh). But this can be done! I just have to be pushy!!! I learned this from some random mommy blogs and it was nice to know! That was one of my main concerns with having a c-section. Look up the benefits of "Skin-to-skin"... its amazing and it was a really cool bonding experience! We did skin-to-skin time a lot for the first few weeks and it was really calming for me and baby. 

I tried to keep my online research light last night so as not to panic! I avoided horror stories and webMD!!!

Another tale from the ER....

This time it was me, not the three-year-old who had to go to the ER. Don't worry, baby girl and I are healthy and safe and there were no emergency deliveries!

Here's the story... Excuse the grammar and run-ons, I am typing quick so I can get back to my day of bed-rest!

PART 1 - The Scary Incident:  I had a nervous nauseous stomach all morning and couldn't figure out why. I wasn't actually nervous about anything, just felt queazy!  First period went off without a hitch! The lab went well, the kids did great, and life was good. Between classes, I started seeing a bright spot in my left eye... It seamed like when you stare directly into a light or the sun or even a camera flash and you see that weird light in your eye for a few seconds. This was not your ordinary spot! This spot wouldn't go away. I wasn't worried yet though. I closed the blinds in my classroom thinking that the sun was too bright. Kids left, new ones came in... Still a bright spot in my left eye... Next there were a bunch of spots and a blurred peripheral, so trippy - aaahhhh! I adjusted my contact lens and it was fine... I looked down to read an email and realized that I couldn't see it very well because the words were moving and shifting around, and that my left hand also seamed strangely uncoordinated... this is when panic set in! Blurry left eye and sort of tingly uncoordinated left hand... I immediately sat down in my big comfy desk chair, told the kids to get started on their warm-ups and writing down their homework, and called my classroom aide over to me (A woman that helps a group of kids with special needs who are in that class).  Remember that I am 36 weeks pregnant at this point, can barely see out of my left eye, and can't coordinate my right hand properly! I am in a panic! I explain to the aide what is happening and she asks me some questions, we decide to call my principal over... My boss is awesome! She is a mother of three and was very sweet and calm through this whole ordeal. She immediately radioed the office to call paramedics (against my pleading to not call them and that I would be fine - I am so dumb sometimes)... I was so worried about the baby.... Since it was only on one side of my body, I was thinking of blood pressure and preeclampsia and heart attacks and having an emergency C-Section to get the baby out, which is a bit too early for my liking... What if I die of heart attack and my children have no mother... AAAHHHH!!!I was sooooo scared! My vision in my left eye was still practically gone and my left hand was still weird... They cleared my scared classroom full of kids out to the library and the paramedics came in... There were 4-5 of them... there was poking and prodding and questions and oxygen tubes in my nose and blood pressure apparatuses and heart monitors... It was crazy and caused more panic! I was slow to react to their questions and it was just craziness! My hubby showed up lightning fast from his school which is only about 5 minutes away and looked so worried and helpless. The medics found that my blood sugar, pressure, heart rate, etc. were all normal and that it wasn't anything heart related. None-the-less, they had to take me to a hospital to be checked out and make sure the baby is doing well and find out what is wrong with me. The entire time all of this was happening around me, baby girl #2 was kicking excitedly in my belly, which helped ease my mind a little bit... After about a 30 minutes from the start of the whole thing, my vision had returned and my hand was back to normal as well... I was still very shaken up and terrified!

PART 2 - The Ambulance Ride: They wheeled me into the ambulance in the middle of campus near my classroom - so embarrassing right?!?!  Jon followed in his car behind the ambulance the whole 20 minute drive to our Kaiser hospital. I could see him in the window, which was comforting! He was terrified! The medic  in the back with me was really nice and just chatted with me the whole time - I think they have to do that to make sure that the patient is responsive. I was just scared, but his small talk helped ease my tension a little. I still was so panicked that I couldn't recall basic information about myself! It was so weird! An ambulance ride is the bumpiest ride in the whole world! Especially for a pregnant woman who is laying uncomfortably on a stretcher and really has to pee!  Somehow the medic was able to perform putting an IV with a saline block during Mr. Toads Wild Ride, without hurting me! What a magician he is! He was awesome!

Part 3: The Hospital: Once at the hospital, they checked all my vitals again. They used a "Doppler" and found the baby's heart beat and she was great and moving around in there so much that the nurse had trouble getting an actual reading! Go go baby girl!!! That eased my mind so much to know that she was happy and not in distress in my tummy! All of my other vitals were fine and clear. We were so confused as to what could be wrong with me. It wasn't a random panic attack! I didn't actually panic until after I couldn't see out of one of my precious eyes!!! Jon paced nervously around the tiny room until the doctor finally came in. He immediately said "Sounds like you had an Ocular Migraine"... a What???? I have never had a migraine in my life and furthermore I didn't have a headache!?!? What a quack I initially thought - until I listened to what he had to say... He described the symptoms I had experienced perfectly... He talked about seeing bright flashes and spots and not being able to focus or read out of only one eye.... he mentioned how it affected my hand... he even asked if I currently had a headache and ya know, I did, a very small head ache above my right eye... he said the head ache is usually found on the opposite side of the head of the visual disturbance because your left brain controls your right and visa-versa.  Often times an "ocular migraine" occurs with no headache at all, or in my case, a tiny little headache that went away very quickly. Baby girl #2 was checked again via ultrasound and she was still just fine! We were sent home by lunch time to rest and regroup!

Part 4: OCULAR MIGRAINES: Apparently women (or some men) can experience any type of migraine due to stress, sleep loss, or hormonal changes. Ocular Migraines are just one specific type. Migraines are hereditary ladies (sorry)! After talking to my mom, she shared that she had had these while pregnant and even a couple before pregnancy and later in life - she never knew what they were though.  She thinks my aunt experienced them while pregnant too but was going to check.  I guess pregnant women sometimes (fairly rare unless they already have a history) experience these due to hormonal changes at the beginning or end of pregnancy. I am hoping that this was an isolated incident and the doctor even said I may never have one again. He said they usually start during puberty in women or even in their early twenties. Anyway, I am here and safe and so is baby girl!!! If one of my eyes freaks out on me again (like it took its own little hit of acid), I will not panic! I will sit and rest until it passes. These things usually last for about a half of an hour.

So that is my fun little story! I am okay! I taking an extra day to rest just to be cautious! Back to work for me tomorrow!

Post Baby Birth Control and the Old Snip-Snip!

I was just thinking about post baby birth control and how annoying it can be. Your doctor or nurse will offer you a "mini-pill" to take while breast feeding because there is a slight chance that you could get pregnant while breast feeding. The fact is that if you accidentally got pregnant quickly after giving birth to your baby, the new pregnancy would likely result in miscarriage and/or health issues. It just isn't healthy to get pregnant right away after having a baby! You need to give your body time to heal and get back to business as usual first. So some pushy medical professional will be pushing pills on you like a drug dealer.

After giving birth to my daughter, they gave me the "mini-pill" and told me that as soon as I was done breast feeding I would need to start taking a regular birth control pill, so that is what I did... Funny, yet natural things happen to your body and hormones after having a child. When I started taking the pill in my late teens/early twenties, it was wonderful. It made my periods lighter and my PMS barely noticeable. It was smooth sailing and it really regulated my hormones and made me feel more balanced. Before the pill, I was a hormonal mess! After having Emily, my body and hormones were so different that the pill was actually causing me problems. Problems that were so bad there was no point in taking the pill to begin with because the sex was less likely to happen anyway! It caused me to have longer periods and crazy (CRAZY) PMS symptoms among other things. I gave up after a few months of hell and stopped taking the pill and my body went back to normal. Nice easy short and light periods and easy going PMS.  I guess babies are good for our bodies! 

Dealing with any sort of birth control ever, from condoms to the pill, is just a pain! It isn't convenient or sexy! It is necessary, but can be a mood killer, especially when you don't have much time to "get it on" anyways due to the new crying pooping machine (baby) in your lives.

One thing I am really looking forward to after baby girl #2 comes (very soon) is getting my husband "snipped". I can't wait!  Its like Christmas for me!!! We only want two kids and can really only handle and afford two kids. Once this baby comes out and is healthy and good to go, my hubby will be scheduling himself a much needed vasectomy.  It will be so nice not to have to worry about accidentally having a #3.  It will be so nice to never think about any sort of birth control ever again! When he has his doubts about getting the procedure done, I just remind him of his friends who have had it done and ask "aren't you more manly and tough than they are honey???" It works like a charm! See, sometimes the male ego is a good thing!  

Men are so weird about their man parts! I have had an entire human being come out of my hoo-hoo while several people watched and helped, and plan to do it again in a few weeks, and yet these men worry about a quick little snip-snip that they won't even feel in their sack! They get to lay on the couch for a couple of days with some frozen peas on their junk hopped up on pain meds watching sports, and then they are back in business! 

There is a secret evil part of me deep down that can't wait to see what a baby he is about the whole thing when it happens. I know its mean and cruel, but the heart wants what the heart wants! 

In conclusion ladies, I truly believe that after you and your man are done having the babies, it his his job to get snipped! It is what is fair and what is right! Don't feel bad for him! Don't let him off the hook! You have done your part and suffered with birth control long enough. You have powered through labor and delivery and breast feeding and all of the thankless parts of being a mother. It is his turn to take one for the team! So take him out of the ball game ladies!!!! 

The 3-year-old and the Quarter...

My story begins around 8:30pm on Tuesday night. I want to preface the story with the fact that my daughter, Emily is very smart and mature for a 3-year-old - USUALLY!!! My baby is no glue-eater!

My husband was at a friends house doing his ever-important Fantasy Football Draft. Emily was in her bed still talking to her favorite stuffed animal, Turtle. I had settled in to put my feet up and watch some trash TV before going to sleep.

At around 8:30, I heard loud loud crying coming from Emily's room. My initial reaction is that she must have bit her tongue or fell out of her bed while attempting some new acrobatic move or something along those lines (neither of these would be unheard of in our house).  I went in and she was sitting up and once she calmed down a little she said "There's a quarter in my tummy!" We went through a comical line of questioning from there because a quarter seams so big to me for anyone to just swallow! "Can you breath? Are you sure it was a quarter? Why was the quarter in your mouth? Are you sure you swallowed it? Does anything hurt?" - You get the idea!  I got a bunch of non-helpful 3-year-old answers that didn't make any sense to me.

Because she was acting just fine, breathing normally, and very chatty at this point, instead of panicking, I called the Kaiser advise nurse to see if we needed a trip to the ER or if a child could actually successfully digest a quarter. I teach about the digestive system to my 7th graders and I know that the small intestine is a really really narrow tube. I just didn't see how it was possible for a quarter to go through! The nurse did all of her weird trouble shooting questions that she is required by law to ask including my favorite question, "Is the child suicidal?" Followed by "I'm really sorry mam, I am required to ask all of these questions." I started laughing (yes I am immature)! At this point she asks me to hold up a bunch of different coins for Emily to make sure its really a quarter and not just a dime or a penny. I know that Emily knows her coins well, but I held up all the coins  as requested and Emily looked at me like I was a simpleton and said "Mommy I told you it was a quarter!!!"  In the end, I was instructed to take her to the ER because they needed to do an x-ray to make sure it was in fact a coin and not something more hazardous (like a battery) and to make sure it wasn't lodged in her esophagus.

I told Emily we would be going to the hospital and the child got really excited! Hospitals are cool and have ambulances!!! A late night field trip! Yay! How Fun!!!  I called my hubby and he said, "Do you really need me? I have a couple of picks left before the draft is over..." I hung up on him! He deserved it! He came to his senses and called back for me to pick him up on the way to the ER. Our closest Kaiser hospital is about a 20-30 minute drive away. Emily excitedly chatted away about the hospital the whole drive there! All I could think was "There better be a freaking coin in this kids belly or mommy going to lose her S-H-I-T!!!"

We got to the hospital, Emily had a lovely time with the triage nurse! She was very interested in the blood pressure checker and the cool new bracelets they put on her wrist. We went in and got the picture of her tummy and sure enough, the quarter had made its way into her stomach! I wish I had the x-ray to show! It is funny! A tiny little rib cage and this huge shiny quarter!

Apparently, if you can swallow it, it can be digested and passed through your intestines with no trouble (unless its a sharp object). The Doc said she would poop it out and to watch out for signs of illness and sent us home at 11pm. Thankfully he said I didn't have to go sifting through poo to find the quarter! Emily was very excited at the idea of pooping out a quarter like it would be magical!

I still cannot believe that my 3-year-old ate a quarter!!! I thought we were out of the woods with the tiny objects in the mouth! We give her coins all the time to play with and think nothing of it! Can't believe it! It is a funny story to tell to her when she gets older!

Breech Baby - Part 2

Today's blog is a follow up from a few days ago about baby girl #2 being breech.

Today was my 35 week baby/mommy check up. I am healthy. More importantly Baby girl #2 is healthy! That is the good news and it is always great to hear that we are both healthy and doing fine! 

Unfortunately she is completely 100% breech - confirmed by ultrasound! Her head is near the right side of my rib cage. Her abdomen and butt region are right above my cervix. I am bummed! Really bummed! I really thought she had moved over the weekend!

In about two weeks, we will try ECV to get her to flip. If that doesn't work, a C-Section will be scheduled for week 39. I'm hoping that she will just be a good girl and flip on her own! Most of the people in our family are pretty stubborn though, so I can't expect her to be any different! Its in our DNA to be difficult I think! Even our dog is stubborn! Dogs are not supposed to be stubborn!!! It is my destiny to be surrounded by creatures big and small who are just as stubborn as I am or more so! I would worry if this baby is any different! ha ha!

I will blog about how the ECV goes once it happens! If anyone is actually reading this, keep your fingers crossed for us that she flips on her own before the ECV or at least that the procedure is successful! I am completely scared of the pain, but its worth it if it works! 

I will try to find something more fun to blog about tomorrow! :)

The Terrible Threes and Pregnant Mommies

As my due date approaches in about five weeks, I have become increasingly irritable and impatient. This new mood of mine is not meshing well with my very opinionated three-year-old's bossy attitude. She is so demanding and challenging and I am so tired and impatient! Its a bad combo!

Emily is all of the things I dreamed my daughter would be and even some things I wouldn't have thought of on my own. She is very thoughtful (even at three), she loves animals, she is goofy, she is highly intelligent, she is a "tom-boy", she is a lover of outdoors, and she is even a good little artist. But we all have our faults and she is also very very strong willed (stubborn) and has a terrible temper! I have always been happy that my daughter is strong willed because I don't want anyone pushing her around; however, there is a down side to a strong-willed child! It makes parenting extra challenging! Everything is a fight or a struggle or a bargain! Its like I have a preview into puberty already and it aint pretty! When this little one hits twelve, look out world!!!

When she is at preschool, she has a strong will, but generally doesn't yell or have a violent temper and that is great... no one wants to have the kid that yells and hits and kicks! But once she gets home, she feels comfortable to act out and let loose. She especially loves being contrary about everything to me. Now I know this is just the mother-daughter dynamic and that she also feels the most comfortable with me to try out these fun little behaviors, but I am so dam sick of being tested by her! It is exhausting! No matter what I offer her, she wants something else! Sometimes for no good reason she will just say "Mommy go away" or "Mommy, I don't like you" in her best mean-girl voice as she snarls her little face at me.  She has kicked and hit me out of anger for not getting her way. She has screamed and yelled and thrown numerous fits for very minor differences in opinion. In fact in an attempted Target shopping trip yesterday, she threw a huge crazy fit in the store entrance and refused to come shopping with me because she just wanted to go home and pet the neighbor's cat (don't worry, I didn't let her).  She does this a little with my husband and her grandparents who are also her day-care providers while we are at work, but nothing compares to the rage that she throws my way. It is so hard to stay calm and be the adult sometimes! I will admit, sometimes I find myself yelling ridiculous things and realize that I have stooped to her level! It is the worst! I am the grown up! I feel so defeated when I let her get to me like that! I don't want to be the mom who is always screaming at her kids who don't really respect or listen to her anyways (we all know one of those moms).  I have to constantly remind myself to stay calm (at least on the outside).

Now, don't get me wrong, all of our time together isn't this terrible, but when it is bad, it is very very bad! At the same time, we do share a special bond that no one else has and for that I am lucky (I have to remind myself of this during the crazy child times).  No one can comfort her like I do and that is something that is very special! When she is sad or gets hurt or is sick, she wants Mommy! That is a nice feeling! I am loved and needed and feel that way most of the time. I just wish she would be nicer to me I suppose! 

At this point in my pregnancy, I just feel helpless with her sometimes when we are alone! If she is throwing a huge fit I can't just pick her up! She weighs 45 pounds - she is a very big and tall three year old and I don't want lifting her to put me into preterm labor! I also just don't feel good! She wants me to get on the floor and do building blocks with her and all sorts of things that I am physically not able to do without inflicting pain on myself. I am usually a very hands-on mom! I love to get down on the floor and play with her! It makes me feel so bad that I can't do as much as I used to! I hate having to tell her that mommy can't lift her or play on the floor with her. I am such a drag as a parent right now - probably as a wife too! 

I feel like I have lost track of my intended blog for the day! Uh oh! My final thought is that I think that mother-nature makes you super miserable during the last month or so of pregnancy so that you don't freak out about child birth! You are so uncomfortable, tired, moody, and hot that you really just want that baby out of there no matter how it has to happen!  I just want the baby to be out so I can snuggle her, my body to be back to normal, and to be able to play with my three-year-old again! That is where I am at! Five weeks left and I am physically and emotionally done! 

Breech Baby!

MY BREECH BABY: A few weeks ago at our 3-D ultra sound, we discovered that baby-girl #2 was head up in my tummy - Breech! I was told not to worry because I was only 30 weeks along and baby still had plenty of time to flip. I was also told that with 2nd pregnancies, they baby has more room due to your fabulously pre-stretched uterus and can take longer to flip to the head-down position.  At our regular Kaiser baby/mommy check-up two weeks ago, my midwife found that baby was side ways. She said there was still plenty of time for baby to flip but she also knows how neurotic I can be and told me all of the options for if the baby is still breech at the next appointment. My appointment is Tuesday and I will be 35 weeks. I can't tell if I feel a head near my ribs or a butt, but there is something big under my right rib,  so either baby is completely breech at this point or she's moved into position and her little booty is the knot I can feel under my ribs (fingers are crossed)!

EXTERNAL CEPHALIC VERSION: On Tuesday at my check-up we will find out for sure what her position is. If she is breech, they would like me to try External Cephalic Version - often referred to as just Version or ECV. This is where they manually move baby from the outside of your tummy and try to get her into the right position. Before talking to my mid-wife, I researched ECV... ONLINE..... Pregnant women should really not research online! In fact, they should have a pregnancy internet block like they have for kids that husbands can install on their computers so that pregnant women can't read all of the horror stories from the internet and panic.... What I read online about ECV is that it has a very low success rate (less than 60%), that it is painful, and that it can cause complications, such as the placenta pre-maturely separating from the uterus leading to immediate delivery of the baby.  There were other scary things about ECV online, but these are the main things.

When I shared my crazy concerns with my midwife, she told me the true facts about ECV. First of all, at Kaiser, they have a specialist at the local Kaiser hospital that does ECV every day and is supposedly wonderful at it with a high success rate. I like this idea! If he or she does them frequently with high success, then I am already way way less worried!  The doctor does the procedure while watching your baby via ultra sound the entire time to make sure they aren't hurting her. Second, ECV isn't very effective for first time moms, but it is highly effective for 2nd timers because of the uterus already being a little more stretched and roomier allowing more room for baby to move. I found out that they do this procedure at the hospital. In case there are any complications, they can safely deliver the baby right then and there. The do not do this procedure until the woman is full term - about 37 weeks, just in case you do go into labor because of the procedure. She said that the chances of placenta separation happening are so slim and that you are more likely to make it happen by bumping into a table or falling over.

I am still a little on the fence about ECV but if it comes to that, I will be sure to ask more questions before I go through with it. The only other option is delivering via C-Section and I really don't want to do that. I have heard from actual real women (not the internet) that ECV is pretty painful, but I don't want that to be the reason that I don't try it. I am scared about it though!

WHY I DON'T WANT A C-SECTION: I have many hang-ups about C-Sections even though I know tons of women who have had them who are perfectly healthy and have healthy kids.

First of all, my birth experience with Emily was chaotic at times, but awesome! I had health complications, but during the time when I was pushing and Emily came out, it was such a cool and even peaceful experience! For a while, it was just my husband, myself, and a nurse in a dimly lit calm room pushing away... nothing scary and medical feeling like they show on TV... I did have the epidural, but I could still feel everything (just not the extreme pain)... It was incredible. Immediately after she was born, they put her on my chest "skin-on-skin" for a brief moment before they took her to be checked out and measured. Despite all of my health complications and our long long stay at the hospital, I wouldn't trade that experience for  the world... The idea of having major surgery where they strap down my arms and legs and give me major pain meds afterwards makes me feel very very anxious! I don't want to wait to hold my baby for an hour after having her because the doctor is still sewing me up!

Again, I have many friends who have had C-Sections and even I was born via C-section, but I really don't want to do it! I feel like the "C-Section Women" are always trying to convince the world that it is somehow better than natural birth and a piece of cake. I think somehow they feel guilty because they couldn't do it the normal way and are trying to convince themselves that they did it the best way! There is no best way! It is actually really annoying because when they get together, they act like they are in some cool club because they all had to have a C-Section... It is way weird! I don't have a "my baby came out of my vagina" club where I sit around and talk about how amazing I am for having a baby the normal way.... I don't see anything wrong with having a C-Section if you have to have one! If it is safest for mom and baby, then it must be done! I get it! But lets not kid ourselves here like its the equivalent to going in to a nice day spa and coming out with a child! It is real major surgery! It takes a while to recover from it! They cut into your skin and stomach muscle tissue and uterus and have to sew up several different layers when they are all finished. It is major freaking surgery! I also don't want to be all doped up on heavy pain meds while I am trying to care for my brand new baby! I like to be as alert and functional and as self sufficient as possible! Is that too much to ask for? Even after regular child birth, they offer you strong pain meds and I would only take the Ibuprofen because I didn't want to have that druggy hazy feeling while learning to breast feed and change diapers!

I even know of some women who have "elective" C-Sections that their doctors allow. This kills me! C-Sections should only be reserved for women who actually medically need to have one!  These "elective C-Section" women will use the words "vaginal trauma" about natural child birth! I am not kidding! "Vaginal Trauma"! As if your hoo-hoo becomes traumatized doing the very thing that is was made for! Yes it will likely tear a little and be a little worse for the wear for a couple to a few weeks, but ladies, it goes back to normal!!! My hoo-hoo is fabulous and is in no way going through post-traumatic-stress disorder from giving birth to my child! Its not like my hoo-hoo was on the front line in a war!!! There are no complaints from my husband either! He's an honest guy (to a fault)! He would tell me if there was a problem!

Ok I should wrap this up now! I have gone on a tirade! SORRY! I guess my point in this blog is just working out my own thoughts about all of this... I am scared of trying ECV but even more scared of needing a C-Section. Let's just hope that on Tuesday we find that baby girl #2 has flipped head down and I can quit worrying about this! If not, at about 37 weeks (two weeks from now), I will probably try ECV and hope for the best. I will at least know that I did everything that I could to have the baby the way that I want to.  I will blog on Tuesday after my check-up and tell you how it goes!

Bye Bye Ankles... Hello "Cankles"!

After my first week back at work, my ankles are starting to disappear! I guess its the price I pay for teaching science to America's youth on my feet all day while pregnant! You're welcome, America!!! 

I naturally have bony and skinny ankles and after this week, they are not quite as bony or skinny. My socks leave marks for a while and I had to loosen my "running" shoes (running is in quotes because there is no way in hell I actually wear them to go running in these days!)

During my last pregnancy this swelling happened much sooner due to my working on my feet the entire time and my high intake of sodium and bad foods.  I am pretty surprised that this is just starting up now at the end of my 34th week.  It must be due to my restful summer! When 3 year old Emily napped, I at least laid down and put my feet up for a couple of hours! 

It is really weird when this happens to your legs and ankles because when you look down, it is like you are looking down at some other persons feet! 

"They" recommend support socks or stocking to keep the water from pooling at your ankles if you are on your feet all day.... The "They" I refer to must be a group of male doctors who have never tried on support stockings!!!  It has been 90 to 100 degrees here in my home town and I will not be wearing those tight, hot, itchy stockings!  That gives me only one option! Cankles, here I come! 

HOW TO AVOID CANKLES:  Well, I hate to tell you this, but you can't really avoid them all together - due to your extra (up to 50% more) blood and the fact that especially at the end of your pregnancy your body's cells naturally take on extra water and keep it in. The best you can do to try to avoid or minimize getting this crazy water swelling is to eat healthy and limit your sodium intake; and more importantly keep active - make sure you are keeping your circulation going by taking walks and not sitting or laying down constantly. Another thing that keeps your body circulating blood and water properly is to always lay/sleep on your left side. The left side is best for body circulation and digestion. Beyond that, if you are a work-on-your-feet all day kinda gal like me, you just have to put your feet up whenever you can and hope for the best! 

ACTIVITY TO TRY: Water-weight cankles can be fun! You can press your finger in all the way down to your bone and leave a weird depression in your giant ankles! Its a fun trick to gross your husband out with! 

To all my partners in the world of pregnancy cankles - I salute you! I know your pain - especially if you are vein like I am!!! 

Remember if you are a first timer, this weight will go away. Your ankles will be back! It will not instantly go away upon giving birth, but over the course of about a week, you will sweat and pee excessively until all of the water weight and cankles go away! It is pretty cool! I remember that every morning when I woke up on my walk to the bathroom, I would look in the full length mirror and look a few pounds thinner! It is kind of amazing all of the things your body does while pregnant and after! 

What Not to Say To A Pregnant Chick - Volume 1

If you are reading this, then you already know that pregnant chicks are very sensitive! Very Sensitive! Any many of us worry too much about pregnancy and baby related things that in the end will all work out just fine. We panic over little things and worry about "one in a million" types of scenarios happening during child birth... We have friends who tell us insane stories about their friend who gave birth in the hallway at home because they couldn't make it to the hospital in time... Probably a true story but the odds are soooo small! Yet we hear the story and we worry! We look things up online and read horror stories and we worry! 

Here are just two of the things you should never ever tell a pregnant woman:

NEVER TELL A PREGNANT WOMAN THAT SHE IS BIG, HUGE, OR THAT SHE MUST BE CARRYING A BIG BABY... She will dwell on it forever and you will make her so upset! During my first pregnancy, the thing I hated hearing the most from people (usually women of my parent's generation) was "Oh Honey, are you sure you're only seven months pregnant? You are carrying so low... you are so big! You poor thing!"  I was pretty big! I gained about 50 pounds with my first daughter. I wasn't great with my eating and hadn't discovered yet how badly sodium affects my body, causing me to retain ridiculous amounts of water. We ate restaurant food all the time. I was huge! All parts of my body were HUGE! My face was HUGE! My ankles were as big as my thighs (well close)... Every part of my body was HUGE! It was out of control! At any rate, I hated when people would tell me how big I was... I would spend the next hour worrying that I was too big and never going to lose the weight. I spent many doctor visits asking if they were sure I was okay - should they test me again for gestational diabetes? They would tell me I was fine and that some people just gain more weight when pregnant. Nevertheless I worried about it, and I worried about it because people felt the need to say something to me about it! It is hard being pregnant - especially toward the end when you can't see your feet, can barely shave your legs, and have trouble putting on your undies and pants! 

NEVER TELL A PREGNANT WOMAN THAT SHE IS SMALL, TINY, SKINNY, ETC.... She will dwell on it forever and you will make her just about as upset as if you told her she was huge.... When I have had the baby and its three months later and I am struggling to lose the baby weight, that is the only appropriate time during my prenatal and new baby time that it is okay to say I am skinny or tiny or thin! During this pregnancy, I have gained an appropriate amount of weight. With 6 weeks to go, I have only gained 25 pounds and I am proud of that! I eat healthy (sans the occasional chocolate or ice cream freakout). We eat at home for almost every meal and I watch my sodium intake like a hawk. I actually look like myself except for the giant basketball of a tummy in the front. Now I may balloon up here in my last month and a half, but for now, I am doing well! My pant size is only about a size up from normal.  I am one of those pregnant woman who doesn't look pregnant from the back - just a little wider than usual! I used to hate those pregnant women! At any rate, many woman at work (like five to ten of them) have recently told me how tiny I am! This makes pregnant women panic in the opposite direction... Am I too small? Is the baby growing properly? Is the placenta doing its job? Is something wrong with me or the baby?  I almost panic more hearing about how small I am than when they used to tell me how big I was! I know its crazy! Pregnant women are crazy! I told my husband that I was upset about people calling me tiny and he literally thought I was crazy! He said "You are upset because people are saying something nice to you?!?!" He is right! All of these women mean well! But still! I worry/panic that I am too small now! And this is a few days after a doctor visit in which my mid-wife told me I am measuring just perfectly! 

So the moral of this little blog tonight is that if you have to say something to a pregnant woman about how she looks, if you just can't contain your inner thoughts about her, just tell her she is adorable, beautiful, cute, etc! That works and adorable is nothing to panic about! We don't need to hear your opinion about our size! We just don't! Who are you to even comment on our size really? Just because you have had a baby or two or three doesn't make you an expert on pregnant women and what size they should be at eight months pregnant!!! If we type "adorable pregnant women" into google, nothing scary will pop up! There will be no horror stories for us to read about! Please just tell us we are cute and cuddly and all will be right with our pregnant little worlds!!! 

Over-the-Counter Meds for Preggos

Today, I will discuss over-the-counter medications while pregnant.

First off, being sick and pregnant is a huge bummer! You already feel awful and you are also worried about your baby! You already have trouble sleeping due to back aches and acid reflux and now you are adding one more complication on top of those! NO FUN AT ALL! But there is hope for you! I promise!!!

Many older women (my parents generation) have said to me while sick: “Oh you poor thing, sick and pregnant, you can’t take anything to help you besides tylenol! How miserable!” I am hear to tell you today ladies that this is SO NOT TRUE!!! YOU DON"T HAVE TO SUFFER! Maybe back in the day that was the case, but there are lots of fabulous medications out there these days that are perfectly safe for pregnant women to take if needed – this means that the product either doesn’t pass through the placenta to the baby or doesn’t harm the baby.

I have had some rough allergies for the last few days… My allergies tend to hit me in the lungs… I was up all night last night coughing (and then worrying that my violent episodes of coughing were going to hurt the baby or break one of my ribs or make my water break)… I described my symptoms to my Kaiser Mid-wife/NP and she gave me some suggestions of things I can take to help… Because it seams I have some sort of asthmatic cough due to allergies, she said Claritin or Benadryl are okay to take while pregnant to help fend off the allergens – these fit into the “antihistamine” class of OTC medications…  The other products that are okay to take for the cough are Robitussin DM and Mucinex DM (both have similar ingredients)… Pregnant woman can also take regular Sudafed for nasal congestion… for pain and fever of course there is always Tylenol, and for indigestionTUMs and similar products are okay…. 

My point in sharing all of this with you is that you do not have to suffer! Now, don’t get me wrong, I am no pill popper and won’t even take a Tylenol unless I am completely dysfunctionally in pain, but I need my sleep and I spent a good majority of last night not sleeping due to fits of crazy violent coughing… Not to mention my poor husband who had to listen to it! So, why suffer? It isn’t good for you or the baby for you to be sick and run down!

I will sum up what I learned about OTC meds today with a list:

FOR ALLERGIES:

Claritin and Benadryl: The medicine in Claritin is called loratadine and can be found in other brands and generic medications. I tried the quick dissolve tabs (dissolve on your tongue) and I already have less of that scratchy feeling in my chest and less coughing. I went for the 12 hour relief instead of 24 because 24 hour meds have always worried me. I know I am weird – but like I said, I am an anti meds kind of girl... except when it comes to child-birth! Epidurals are awesome (I'll remember to blog about them later).

FOR COUGHS:

Robitussin DM is okay for coughs… it contains guaifenesin (an expectorant) and some other sort of cough suppressant to give you a break from coughing. An expectorant is designed to thin out the mucus that is stuck in your lungs and make it easier to get rid of. Because of this, you should drink lots of fluids when you are taking any product that contains guaifenesin.

Mucinex has almost the same ingredients as Robitussin… it too contains the guaifenesin… there is also Mucinex D that contains an added nasal decongestant that contains the same active ingredient as Sudafed, so that kind is okay to take… Mucinex DM has the same exact ingredients as Robitussin DM but in pill form that lasts 12 hours.  Mucinex has been one of my favorite products for years. It is great for a teacher who needs relief from allergy or cold symptoms but still needs to be alert and functional. It just thins out all the icky stuff so you can either cough it up or blow it out your nose! 

FOR NASAL CONGESTION (due to colds or allergies):

Sudafed - only the regular Sudafed, nothing fancy!

and remember Mucinex D has the nasal decongestant and the expectorant, so it is wonderful!

REFLUX, INDIGESTION, & SORE TUMMIES:

TUMs or any other basic antacid are safe to take (I am not sure about any of those acid reducer products though – I would check with your Dr. on that one).

HEAD ACHES, BACH ACHES, FEVERS, etc:

 Tylenol is perfectly safe to take while pregnant... nothing else is! Tylenol contains acetaminophen, so any generic brand that only contains acetaminophen is okay to take as well. Tylenol is just the fancy name brand of choice.

melt downs happen - keep your chin up

Pregnant Mommy Melt Downs happen from time to time. It is normal, even though at the time it feels like anything but! I am having a melt down kind of day today. I am only writing through my melt down in the hopes that if this happens to you, you will remember my blog and think "I am not crazy... this happens to other pregnant women too!" or even "I'm not half the crazy bitch that Mindy is, so this melt down isn't so bad".

I woke up this morning super early feeling energetic and had lots of big plans for myself and my three year old. Within a couple of hours, my energy was already zapped and my back was bothering me. To make matters worse, I have a little cough due to allergies. I just don't feel right today mentally or physically! I know that these kinds of days happen as a pregnant woman but its extra tough when you have to put on a happy face for your energetic three year old and carry on with your day. Did I mention a very opinionated three year old who is very into testing my limits this week? 

My brain is moving fast - thinking of all these things I want and need to do before school starts in a little over a week and before the baby comes. My body; however, can't keep up with my busy brain and that can be a little bit of a downer.  I didn't realize that being a pregnant woman with a toddler is about 10 times harder than just being a pregnant woman! Women do this all the time, I tell myself... How do women do this? Why am I not better at it? These thoughts come into my head and then I feel like a total wuss and then my eyes start to tear up and the melt down soon washes over me! During the melt down, it all comes out... all of the worry... rational or not... How am I going to make it to week 40 if I am already this ridiculous at week 33?  How am I going to go back to work and teach for 4-6 weeks before this baby comes? What if they put me on bed rest? What if the baby comes too early??? I am not ready yet! My sub plans aren't finished - hell I don't even have a sub yet... my breast pump that I loaned out and got back is missing the tubes! What will I do without the tubes? Why don't Target and Babys R freaking Us cary extra tubes??? I need to order some dam breast pump tubes! The worries go on and on, but I think you get the idea! I don't want to make anyone else hyperventilate with me! It is ridiculous! I am a grown ass woman! I am strong and tough and should be able to handle all of this - right!?  I know that later I will calm down and figure out a way to make all of this work and all will be fine, but right now, this is how I feel. I haven't had a big melt down in at least a month, so I guess its my right as a pregnant woman to be a little emotional and crazy today. It is just such an icky feeling! 

My husband thinks I'm nuts and can't really understand what I am going through, well because he has nuts, which means that he is naturally pretty unemotional and insensitive! He can't help it really - its that dam Y chromosome! They can't understand why a person would cry at all, especially with no real reason! He is perplexed by this for sure! He has to be able to fix the problem or he can't deal. We have been together for eight years and he still can't manage in any sort of crisis that involves me crying! He had a couple of long-term girlfriends before me, they must have cried at some point, why didn't that prepare him for me? Girls cry from time to time! I even tend to believe that I cry less than the average woman! I don't get it... That is what exes are for! They prep you for the real deal! Right???  What a huge failure on the part of these girls!? I am disappointed in them! I should write them a note! 

Ok crazy ramblings of a broken down pregnant woman are done... I will try to post something warm and fuzzy for my Monday blog! If I have another bad day, I will just post a picture of a puppy and a kitten cuddling so that you don't have to read something like this ever again.

Some Random Favorite Baby Items

Since I am on this product review/recommendation kick for my blogs this week, and since I am feeling like a lazy writer today, I am just going to showcase a few items that I love. They are not the kind of items you really need or have to have, but they are just super cool! 

My first item is Twilight Turtle - No this is not a book about a vampire turtle who sparkles in the sunlight and falls in love with a regular turtle against the odds. Twilight Turtle is the coolest baby/kid item in the whole world. Its a great gift item too! We got one before Emily was even born and played with it all the time. It is a cute little turtle that has lights in his back... his shell has cut-out stars and a moon in the shape of actual constellations and when you turn it on, it projects the stars onto the ceiling! It has three different light colors (amber, blue, and green).  It has a 45 minute timer so that it turns off on its own once your kid falls asleep! This has been one of the best baby items in our lives to date! The light is soft enough that the kid will still fall asleep but bright enough to be used as a night light. When you go to check on your baby in the middle of the night and its super dark, you can just push the little button and its easy to see your baby without waking them up with bright light. On top of this, you can see actual star constellations! Is it necessary to the survival of your offspring? Absolutely not! But it is awesome and worth the $30 or so that it costs! They even have different animals if you aren't into turtles (like lady bugs!  You can find these cool turtles at most major stores including Target and Amazon. The brand is called Cloud B and they make lots of other cool and different toys! Pillow Pet just started making a similar product but I just don't trust those pillow pet people!

My next item is called a jumpy seat... There are similar products out there that do similar things, but this is the one we have and we love it.  It was given to us as a hand-me-down and it is so great that we would have payed the nearly $100 for one if we had to! This is something you can wait to buy or borrow until after your baby is a few months old. The idea is that they can sit in it and their feet touch the ground and they can just bounce around... they can spin around to various toy and teething items that are connected to their little saucer and just jump and jump... Emily loved this thing for quite a long time! When she was super fussy for no apparent reason, we could put her in the jumpy and she was the happiest baby ever! She was so cute watching her chubby little legs bouncing happily up and down while she giggled and drooled all over the toys. It is a really safe apparatus (assuming you put it together correctly). I hate to say this, but its like a little mini baby sitter! You and your hubby can actually sit down and eat dinner together while your 3 month old cheerfully bounces away (in the same room as you of course). There are lots of similar products that our friends have that don't bounce but are still an activity center type of toy, but we loved the bouncing! Can't wait to use it with baby girl #2!!! This is the one we have - its a Fisher Price Rainforest Jumparoo:

My final item(s) of the day is a sound machine... This is an item that you may want to wait to see if you need first. We started out with the Sleep Sheep... It is an adorable looking sheep stuffed animal that has a little sound maker in the back that sounds like ocean waves or a heart beat. The one we got was small and could attach to a stroller, car seat, or crib rail if needed! The purpose is for the baby to hear soothing and relaxing "white noise" type of sounds to fall asleep to. Some babies are just good sleepers and could go to sleep right next to a train track, but others (like ours) couldn't do it! We found that the "white noise" sounds really helped her to fall asleep on her own. Our condo is small and the baby room is right next to the kitchen and living room. She can hear everything that is happening and sometimes its just too distracting for her. Here is a pic of the cute little sleep sheep...

Sleep Sheep is another Cloud B item... he was great while he lasted but at some point after around a year of use, the little device just stopped working. We may have over-used him! Maybe he was a lemon! This does happen with any sort of sleep machine though with excessive use, regardless of the brand... we are on our third one for the very same reason.  We now use one that is a little more mature than the sheep... It has lots of different sounds and volumes, although we only use the ocean waves sound... This one is cool because you can plug it into the wall or use batteries in it for traveling (or if there is a power outage). We love love love our sound machine and will purchase a new one for the new baby. Definitely worth $25 or so if you find you have a baby that is difficult to put to sleep! 

Rubber Ducky You're the One PART 2

I will continue from my blog yesterday about bath items for babies.

My first item is a tub stool for moms and dads. This was another fairly cheap item (around $20) that we still use to this day. Its a stool that can sit at two different levels (a lower and a higher level). It is great for when your kid is in the big bath tub. You can sit pretty comfortably (better than kneeling over) on the stool and bathe your little one. When they get to potty training age, they can use the stool to put their feet on when they use the big potty! It is perfect! The other advantage to this stool vs a cuter wooden one is that you can take the top off and store bath supplies or toys inside of it! Its a stool and storage container in one! It really is a great buy and like I said, my daughter is 3 years old now and we still use the stool for bath time and for her to step up to the potty. 

Next up is "Timothy the Temperature Turtle"... This isn't really the name of the product but its what my goofy husband has always called him. You simply push a button on top and let it float around in the bath tub. It has a digital thermometer inside of it and will tell you exactly what temperature the water is. This is nice! It takes the guess work out of bath water temperatures. It will alert you if the temperature is too hot or even too cold. I love this little turtle! Its another cheap item that saves you a lot of worry! There are lots of similar products on the market and they all do the trick (for under $15)! Here's Timothy:

IMPORTANT: If you choose not to be as neurotic as I am with a temperature turtle, and you choose to test the bath water the old fashion way, don't test it with your hands!!!! Your hands are less sensitive to extreme temperatures than the rest of your body is, and you may not realize how hot the water is! Always check it with your elbow! Dip your elbow in and if it seams warm but not hot, you are good to go! The old Elbow-Dip test works just fine! 

BABY WASH and SOAP: 

I've tried a few different baby washes over the years and as long as you find a gentle one that isn't heavily scented, your baby will be just fine and smell "so fresh and so clean!" Johnson & Johnson's Head-to-Toe Baby Wash is a pretty good one (and cheap). You don't really need a separate shampoo unless your baby comes out with a full head of super thick hair. You definitely don't want to get something just because it makes your baby smell like apples or vanilla! The less scented the product is, the less likely it is to irritate that beautifully soft infant skin!  

A baby wash that I really loved at the beginning (but have trouble finding it now) is Method Baby: Squeaky Green Hair & Body Wash.  The lid is the perfect rinse cup! I still have the lids from previous bottles of this stuff that I rinse her hair with in the tub to this day! The product has a nice natural scent and they use all natural ingredients. I am certainly not an "organic" kind of mom, but this is just a great product, green or not!

THE BEST OF THE BEST and THE PRICIEST OF THE PRICY - At my baby shower for my first daughter, a good friend gave me a gift basket of Mustela Brand products. I had never heard of them at the time, but they are very popular, very expensive, and smell AMAZING!!! On top of this, the products are actually really good and gentle on newborns! The foaming baby shampoo was wonderful. The lotion was fabulous and silky and smelled soooo good! It smells so good that they have created a Mustela perfume spray for moms because they loved the smell so much! After I ran out, I never re-purchased these items because they are very pricy (the lotion is $15, which is a lot for a baby), but there is one product that was worth its weight in gold. It is the Mustela Rinse Free Baby Wash. It is a product you can put on baby with a wash cloth or a cotton ball between baths that keeps your baby fresh and clean. If they have a really horrible "blow out" type of poop in which poop goes everywhere and all they way up their back (IT WILL HAPPEN LADIES), you can use this stuff on your baby to clean them up if you don't have time for a full-on bath session. I used it after each poopy diaper when we were at home! It is sorta like hand-sanitizer! It's baby sanitizer! It is gentle on their skin and smells great! Its like giving them a quick and cleansing sponge bath! I love love love this stuff!

My last thought about baths for today is that you will need tons of baby wash cloths! They are tiny and cute and soft! You will use them for all sorts of things besides bath time! Get a few packs of them! I always kept one or two in the diaper bag! You never know what you might need them for! You don't really need a ton of baby towels, but they are very cute! Your baby will grow out of them very fast, so don't get too crazy with those tiny hooded towls! 

Happy Bathing! :)