Thursday, July 30, 2009

Let Me Show You The Door

Yesterday, my in-laws aka Grandma and Papa, came over for a visit. They had been on vacation so the boys hadn't seen them in over a week. So needless to say they were very excited for Grandma and Papa to arrive. We talked about it all day and I had to keep reminding them the visit wouldn't be until AFTER nap.

Before summer began, we had a weekly visit scheduled with Grandma and Papa on Thursdays. They would come to our house and watch the boys and it was usually my night out and Hubby would be working etc. So the boys are used to having their special time alone with them.

Well, yesterday Hubby and I had planned to go out to dinner, but we wanted to visit for awhile first. The boys excitedly greeted Grandma and Papa and started telling them stories and opening all the surprises that had been brought back from vacation for them. Then they kept asking Hubby and I when we were leaving. I explained we wanted to visited and talk a bit first.

After the initial hellos and present opening, I wanted to show Grandma the progress on Baby Bean's room, the new bedding we bought and all the clothes we have collected so far. Cenzo decided to come into the room with us and thought it would be fun, but then he got tired of it and said, "Are you going to keep talking to grandma?" And he wanted to know when I was leaving.

When we returned to the living room, Luccio was saying goodbye. I told them we weren't quite ready yet. But, the boys couldn't wait any longer. Cenzo was frantically trying to get me to go and giving me hugs goodbye.

And Luccio finally walked over to the front door and opened it and said "Here you go MommyDaddy, see ya later!" And he ushered us out the door!

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Culture Shock

Sunday was big day...I reached 24 weeks in my pregnancy which means The Bean is viable!! The significance of this is being that if I went into labor at this point the doctors would try to save my baby. A lot more reassuring than the response I got a few week sago when I started having some contractions and the on-call resident told me "Well, you might as well wait until the office is open tomorrow and call back because there isn't anything we could do anyways." Hmm....great! So now Bean is viable, WOO HOO!!! A new milestone!!

Also, Sunday night I started developing sudden sore throat and swollen glands. I thought I was having an allergic reaction so I took some Benadryll. But, then it developed into chest soreness and congestion and wheezing. I was coughing all night. UGHHH!!! I called my doc in the morning because I am basically paranoid that coughing too much will start up contractions. I went in for an appointment and the doc listened to my lungs, he said its Bronchitis. Great!

Since my throat was really red and swollen they decided to do a throat culture to rule out strep.
The nurse came in to do the culture and it was a tedious process. I normally have a horrible gag reflex, but pregnant I am beyond awful. So every time she said to open my mouth I felt like I was going to throw up. She quickly swabbed one side and then gave me a break. But, she needed to swab the other side. I was so embarrassed when I started gagging and making disgusting noises that I couldn't control. I was willing myself to throw up on the poor woman.

The nurses response was "Don't worry about it, actually I wouldn't mind if you throw up on me cause then I get to go home early."

Well...

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Sleepovers

The boys just returned from a sleepover at Stregga and Papa's house. This is their second time sleeping over there this week!! The first one was on Thursday night. Hubby and I went out to dinner and a show. We saw Pippin which was fantastic!!! The boys really enjoyed their time at Stregga and Papa's house so much. So yesterday when we were over there, Cenzo asked if he could stay over again. Stregga said yes and so Cenzo put his plans into motion. He wanted to play with the toys, watch a movie and sleep in "Stregga's Big Bed." He also wanted Hubby, Luccio and I to leave pronto!! But, Luccio had plans of his own and began chanting, "Stregga Big Bed!"
Hubby and I tried getting him to come home with us by telling him that he didn't have his "Wubbas." He didn't seem to care that Wubba was home, he only cared that he wanted to sleep over too. Luckily Stregg and Papa didn't mind at all. So we moved our party indoors and started putting on jammies. But, we didn't want to leave Streg and Pop in a lurch without Wubbas because we knew Luccio's tune would change at bedtime when he realized he had no pacifiers. So Hubby raced home and packed a quick bag of essentials and dropped them back off.
We are not dummies, when someone offers to keep both of our kids overnight we move into high gear to ensure that they will not change their minds, LOL!!!

I remember sleeping over my Gram and Pop's house growing up, I loved it!! Gram was way ahead of her time and had cable long before the rest of us, so there were tons of channels to watch. And her freezer was always stocked with ice cream, the yummy chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry kind that allowed you to have a scoop with all 3 flavors in one! She always had hot fudge and fig newtons too. We could stay up as late as we wanted and sleep in late in the mornings. It was so much fun to go there and just hang out. Sometimes we would play cards or board games, sometimes watch tv or play with toys.

I am so glad my boys are getting to make those memories with their own grandparents. And I am grateful for the break that it gives Hubby and I . Especially now that I am pregnant again, I am so much more tired. Its nice to know the boys are getting attention and having fun! And it is great that they are comfortable sleeping over or staying for a day with their grandparents so that when I do have the baby they can easily transition while I am in the hospital.

Friday, July 24, 2009

The Dark Side

The other day I had a little scare when contractions started up. I felt a few throughout the morning, but i didn't worry because i had just seen my doctor the day before and he said if they didn't have a regular pattern then they are Braxton-Hicks contractions. Well, by the afternoon they were getting more an more frequent. At one point they were coming every 5 minutes so I decided to call the OB office. They told me to come in right away given my history. I had already had tons of water to drink, taken Tylenol and a hot bath and nothing was slowing them. By the time I drove the 30 minutes to the hospital I was in a bit of a panic thinking "what if this is the start of my worst nightmare." As I entered the Labor and Delivery Unit, better known by staff and patients and "The Dark Side," I felt a smidge of an anxiety attack starting up.

Now under normal circumstances going to L&D shouldn't be worrisome. My group of doctors are Maternal Fetal Specialists (MFM) so they only see pregnant patients in the office on Tuesdays, any other time they are working on the L&D floor and you go there for exams and evaluations, etc if needed.

But, for me, a visit to the Dark Side brought back a lot of memories from my pregnancy with the boys. I had started preterm labor with them at 22 weeks and was admitted to the hospital for the duration of my pregnancy. I was placed on the Antepartum Unit, which was fantastic! The rooms are large and sunny with lots of windows and it looks more like a hotel room than a hospital. But, if you "act up" and start having lots of contractions or dilating you get sent to the Dark Side. It's referred to in that way because the labor rooms are small, dark and have no windows. And you leave there feeling very confused and out of it!

One night, after I had been in the Antepartum Unit for a couple weeks, my contractions had started to get close together. A resident, adorable Doogie Houser-ish guy, came in to check me.

He said, "Remember when you were admitted and I told you not to panic until I told you it was time?" And I said, " Yeah." He said, "well, its time!"

I had dilated 2-3 cm. and the next thing I knew my bed was being rushed down the hall to the Dark Side. Before I could ask any questions I had a catheter, IV drip and a sleeping pill. I was 25 weeks pregnant and spent the next 5 days hooked up to a magnesium (The Mag) drip. Even though it was the middle of the night someone had called Hubby to come in and my mom was there too, the staff had fully expected the babies to be born that night. The Mag was awful!! My vision blurred, I felt so sick I could barely sit up and my muscles wouldn't move (the whole point of The Mag is to knock you out so that your body relaxes.) And I hadn't eaten in days, ughhh.

That "episode" ended well. Meaning, labor was held off. I was moved back to Antepartum where I stayed until the boys were born at 32 weeks. The residents couldn't believe it, they told me that had been taking bets that I would deliver that night and when they got together for coffee the next morning no one could believe I hadn't had the boys! Great I was Coffee Talk!

Even though its been 3 years, you never quite forget an experience like that. I have blocked it out somewhat and it has faded into my memory. But, when I walked into the Dark Side this week, it all came back to me. The smell of that placed is unique and it hit my nostrils full force bringing with it all the thoughts of The Mag and the utter fear that I would leave that hospital without my babies. Not to mention the idea that it could happen again and I could have to remain there for another pregnancy. That scares me!! I don't want to leave the boys.

SO, Thankfully, this time the scare was nothing!! The contractions were not strong enough to do harm. The doctor said my uterus was just "irritable," but my cervix is still tightly closed and thick. They also did a test which can tell if you will go into labor in the next 72 hours and it was negative. I drank TONS of water and the contractions spaced themselves out. I was told to rest and not do anything strenuous, so that is what I have been doing and no contractions have returned, Thank God!!!!

Even though the nurse are fantastic and so nice, I don't plan on visiting the Dark Side again before October!!

Monday, July 20, 2009

Updates...

First, we had tons of rain so June didn't feel like a summer month at all. Then Hubby finished work July 1st and the sun started shining again and then summer was in full swing before I realized it! We have been busy with beach trips, days the amusement park, visiting family and friends, cleaning out the office to create a nursery, and just life in general. It's amazing having Hubby home for the summer. He is a teacher and in the 7 years we have been together he has always worked a summer job. Luckily it has worked out so far that this summer he will be home. It is fantastic to have help with the boys and the house. Hubby has been waking up with them and staring their day with breakfast and getting them dressed. And most days he takes them outside or to the park or shopping so I get a lot of breaks! My mom is also around more during the summer and has taken the boys quite a bit for us so we can get some house projects done. And Hubby's parents both retired at the end of June so they have taken the boys to their house a couple times to have "Special Days," which has been nice!

Even though I am resting more, I am still so exhausted at night that I haven't have much energy for blogging. I have been reading my favorites blogs still, but often I am too tired to post comments! It's crazy!

But here is a short list of what is going on around here...

-We are cleaning out hubby's office. Well, actually he is. It seems that our house is not selling so we will most likely be here when the baby arrives. So Hubby will be moving his office to a space we have in our finished basement. Our house is a small ranch with 3 bedrooms. The boys share a room and the 3rd room has been the "man room"/office as well as the bedroom of our cat, Spooky. So along with Hubby, Spooky and her litter box will also relocate.

-I have picked out paint colors and a theme for Bean's nursery. The theme is the Lion and the Lamb. If you are Twilight Fan you may recognize the idea from the line "and the Lion fell in love with the Lamb." Which is actually a reference to Spencer's poem "The Fairie Queen." So we are going with the Fairie Queen idea. I found a really pretty nursery picture on Posh Tots.com that is similar to the look we are trying to achieve.

-I am 23 weeks pregnant and so far my cervix is holding strong at over 4 cm. My doc was as happy with the news as I was and was hugging me after my last appointment. She said if I continue like this to 24 weeks I will be out of the risk category for incompetent cervix. She also said she wants to write "Normal" all over my chart!!! LOL!! I asked her not to jump the gun on that one just yet! But, I have less than a week until I hit that milestone so prayers please!!!!

That is all I can think of for now. But, I am hoping to get back into my blog groove, I miss it!!

Summer Camp

I can't believe it's the middle of July already!! Summer has been going so quick!! I signed the boys up for Camp at the Toddler Gym where they have been taking classes. The gym closes for the summer, expect for 3 one week sessions of Camp. So they are going to attend a July session and an August session. It consists of going every day for 1 week from 9:30-11:30. On the last day they go 9:30-12:30 and bring a lunch. They play games, sing songs, make crafts and have snack. Today was the first day and the two hours literally flies by for me! But, they loved it!!

They were so excited to get there. I had to stop for gas on the way and Cenzo was having a fit, telling me "Hurry, we are going to be late!" How does he even know what that means???

I just cant get over how old they seem this summer. They will be 3 September 1st. And what a difference this year has made. Now when we go to the park or beach, I can actually sit on a chair or blanket and relax a bit while I watch them play. And they have friends!! Their own friends, not just kids that they know through me and my friends. During their gym class last spring they met this boy, Nick. He is like the Prom King of Toddler Class. He is the kids all the other children search out and everyone wants to be his friend. Luckily, his mom is so nice and very funny. So we have gotten to know each other a bit and coincidentally found out we were high school classmates, small world. Gym class has been on break for a month so the boys keep asking when are they going back and where is Nick??? Last week Cenzo begged me to call Nick's mom so I did and we made a plan to get the kids together along with a few others form class. We met up at a local park and everyone really had a blast.

Today, the boys went to Camp and none of their friends had signed up for this session. So they made all new friends. In August, 5 or 6 of the boys they have become friends with will be at the Camp too. But, I am glad it doesn't stop them from enjoying themselves today. They ran right in and didn't look back at me. Hopefully they will be just as excited tomorrow!

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Bean Report- 20 Weeks



I had another ultrasound today. I have been going every other week and I have to say it never gets old to see that little baby!!! Today I took Hubby and the boys with me. It was a quick scan so I thought that would be a good intro for them to see the baby. They were very excited to go, but I wasn't sure if they really knew what we were doing. They knew we were going to the doctor but Cenzo kept asking if I was sick!

When we got there the tech set me up for the scan and the image was displayed on a TV monitor on the wall so the boys had a good view. They were very excited and Cenzo yelled, "Daddy do you see that baby?" Then the tech let them listen to the heartbeat and they kept saying, "That's Baby Bean!"

The tech gave us extra copies of the profile picture so that boys could each have their own which was so nice!

When we got in the car, I asked the boys what they thought. They commented on the baby "swimming in the water." Cenzo said he thought she looked like Tinkerbell and we should call her Tink. And Luccio wanted to know, "where were the alligators?"

Well...