Liam Update

Liam is still breech.  And odds are good he won’t be turning.  There are a few things that need to happen to make it easy for a baby to turn on its own…and those things aren’t going on all up in my uterus.  Some of those same things are the things that make an external cephalic version a more likely possibility…so that won’t be happening either.  At this point, the best and safest option for Liam and for me is a c-section.  We should find out next Thursday the date for that…it’s up in the air right now.

When right side up is upside down

At my appointment yesterday, the doctor checked me to see if I was dilating yet.  I am, barely, at 1 cm.  Beyond that, though, we had a bit of a problem.  She was pretty sure that it was not Mr. Liam's head she was feeling, but his rump.  I had actually wondered about that earlier in the week when I felt a solid rounded thing under my ribs.  It seemed too hard to be a bottom, but I wasn't sure.  The ultrasound machine confirmed it—Liam is currently breech.  Since I'm only 35 weeks and 6 days, it's not a huge cause for concern yet.  He still has time to turn on his own.  If he doesn't move in the next two weeks, then we'll have to take some action.  I'm praying he moves, because neither option is one that I'm particularly thrilled about.  So that's where we are…praying for Liam to move on his own in the next two weeks, so he can make like a fetus and head out….(that's a favorite phrase of my high school kids..it seemed appropriate)

So Tired....so, so tired

I have never been so tired in all my life.  Or if I have, I just don't remember it.  But mercy am I ever tired.  This week has really wiped out this very, very pregnant girl.

 

Wanna know why?

 

I'll give you a list.

 

-We had serious storms two nights in a row this week.  The storms Tuesday night knocked a limb out of a tree in our yard, and it broke over the roof of my car.  There's a nice dent in the roof right above the driver's side door.  It looks lovely.  And we were up with the storm a bit.  One of us is afraid of storms.  That person climbed on Andy's face and clung for dear life and then dove under the covers and attempted to surgically attach himself to Andy.  I'll give you a hint—it wasn't me, and it wasn't Andy.

 

-I had two late nights in a row.  I had the Academic Superbowl Competition on Tuesday, and didn't get home until ten.  Normally I'm in bed by ten.  Last night was parent teacher conferences, so I didn't get home until 8.  These really messed up my prime resting on the couch hours.

 

-My rash is worse this week than last.  I am really itchy right now, and nothing seems to be helping for very long.  Andy told me this morning that every time I itch in bed, he wakes up from the shaking….so we were both up most of the night last night.  Oliver, however, slept through the whole thing and awoke refreshed and ready to go…he jumped on my face this morning to wake me up, and then jumped me from behind and knocked my knee out from under me when I was walking down the hallway.

 

-I have two appointments today—one to register at the hospital, and another with the doctor (not my normal doctor).  I think Liam has dropped.  Andy thought I looked shifted, and I can tell sitting at my desk that he's not as high.  And I've been having some pulling and cramping this week that I didn't have before and it's kind of harder to find a way to lay in bed.  Those aren't really making me tired yet…they are just added to the list of things I need to do.

 

-Also, on a totally unrelated note, I desperately want an iced green tea from Panera.  I haven't had one in a long time…and it's a serious favorite.  I can't even begin to explain how badly I want one…sadly, the closest Panera is almost an hour away and that just breaks my heart.  I really do have some errands I need to run in Clarksville, the town with the Panera, but I don't know when I'll be able to do them.  I need to get the stuff from Michael's to make Liam's baby book, and I have a few things to get at Target that I couldn't find here in town.  And I just want to walk through Old Navy.  I am in love with the baby boy clothes.

The weekend and then the insanity

Last weekend was all sorts of fun.  We had a houseful (literally…not enough seats in the house) of guests and it was a total blast.  A few weeks ago, Andy's friend Blake had asked if he could come visit before Liam arrived, since he had never been to our house before.  We readily accepted—Blake is a family favorite around here.

 

Shortly after, Andy's friend Josh heard about Blake coming, and he hopped on the bandwagon.  Then Blake's roommate Ty decided to join the party.  So basically, our house was about to be overrun by testosterone (which I suppose I should get used to, since we're about to experience the Andy, Ollie, and Liam man trifecta).

 

Then, the best part happened.  Jon and Carrie decided to come for Saturday—that's right, a girl—and one of my favorites to boot!  Then John and Desiree decided to drop by for a few hours (you know…make the two hour drive from Indy and drop in).  And that's when I got really excited.

 

We ended up having a fun time.  I almost peed my pants in CVS Friday night laughing so hard…and was never so thankful to NOT run into someone I knew while I was there.  We had awesome donuts and hung out.  The boys built a man cave in Andy's office that may well go down as Nerd Fest: 2011 in the books.  They crammed computer and man parts into every spare inch of space that room had to offer.  Carrie and I hung out, and then Desiree joined us.  We did dinner at the new sushi/Chinese buffet in town that opened Friday.  We played some games, and then spent many an hour Saturday night just talking and hanging out.  It was a great time…I really liked just lying on my living room floor, talking to old friends.  It felt a small bit like being in college again…which made me realize just how long ago that was.  We are definitely growing up, and life is definitely different now.  It's crazy how that happens.

 

The Harrises and the Lanes went home, but the boys stayed until Sunday, where they got to witness a man at church telling me that I was "waddling right along."  Sadly, they all missed the old lady who called me Fatso.  Only our friend Martin got to hear that one.  I got so tickled that I waddled right into the new Mexican restaurant (I think it opened last weekend too) in town and made a real Fatso of myself with my chicken chimichanga.  I crack myself up.  Seriously.  I think it's hilarious the things people say. 

 

The boys eventually went home, and we regained a small bit of normalcy in our house.  I say a small bit because I've never seen so much junk food in my house.  It's crazy.  And I keep eating it…which is probably why I don't keep it in my house.  You know, so I don't waddle regularly ;) 

 

I am glad we got to enjoy last weekend because this week is kind of a doozy.  I have the academic superbowl competition tonight, so I won't be home until almost 11.  Then tomorrow night is parent teacher conferences so I won't be home until late again.  We were supposed to have our OB Prep visit to pre-register at the hospital early this afternoon, but it got rescheduled.  I'm actually kind of glad…it makes today feel a little less stressful to me.  And my OB appt. on Thursday is with a different doctor, so it's not until 4:50…so I'll be home later than normal then too.  And then Mom and Dad and Lauren are coming this weekend—which I am over the moon excited about!!

An Upcoming Birthday

Want to take a wild guess as to whose upcoming birthday?  Mr. Liam, of course.  If all goes as planned, our little guy should be here May 14 (assuming I’m not one of the lucky girls who in labor over 24 hours).  That’s right.  My doctor scheduled my induction yesterday.  

Since Rashy McGee (I’ve named him) won’t go away until Liam Cook gets here, she said she would be willing to induce at 39 weeks.  I decided to go for it.  I know that not everyone will agree with my decision and frankly, from the outside, I might think differently as well.  But as I am the one living it, it was the best decision for me, and for our family.   I feel confident that this is the best decision for us based on the situation.  Andy agrees with me—so we’re just excited and enjoying our last month alone :)

o that’s it—our exciting news!  I should become a mom the day before Mother’s Day this year—how crazy is that?

Unexpected Day Off

This morning, the phone rang at 5:30.  Now generally speaking, unless it’s January, this signals bad news.  But today, I got an an unexpected day off.  The superintendent sent out a phone dialer message saying that there was no power going to the transformer that powers the middle/high school.  So no school at the middle/high school today.

I didn’t even have to get out of bed—Andy fielded the message, changed the alarm, and I was able to stay snuggly in bed until 8 this morning.  It was a late pregnancy miracle.  Except for one small thing.  I left my prescription lotion on my desk yesterday.  My desk in the school building where there is no power.  And my key is electronic.  And my classroom has no windows (really my whole hall has no windows).  So I’m without my magic lotion for a day.  But it’s okay.  I’m surviving.

Actually, I’m doing well.  I am working on some of the things that have been bothering me around the house (hello clutter, you make a neurotic pregnant woman feel itchier than her rash already makes her) and I feel pretty good about it.  If I can get more done, I’ll be in great shape.  What a statement….seriously.  My brain is fried.  But really, I’m glad to get our house in better shape—one, possibly two of Andy’s college friends is/are coming this weekend, and I’ve been sort of humiliated about the condition of the house….and I know that we will be getting visitors out our ears in the next few months, and I want to at least look like I have a little dignity and self-respect :)

So today I clean.  And rest.  And do laundry.  And write thank you’s. 

Thank you, sweet power outage, for just the peace of mind I needed.

Sometimes you get an itch you just can’t scratch

Oh I am hilarious.  Because I do have an itch.  Get it?  How funny. 

Okay.  Not really.  I actually have bloody little scabs and some pock marks down my arms and legs and stomach from my itching.  So I’m going to look like the awkward kid at prom with all the scars.  I joke—I’ve never met anyone that meets that description—I think it’s totally a stereotype that doesn’t work.

Okay.  Moving on.  I itch.  You get that.  But I’m trying to do other things to keep my mind off of it.  I made myself a list of goals for the week.  Today, I want to clean out Andy’s drawers and do laundry.  You know….clean out his drawers, and clean his drawers…HAHA!  Is that too much?  I’m in a weird mood right now.  Like giddy and goofy, but I might also fall asleep standing up.

So today I’m cleaning drawers.  I really want to clean out my own…but it just doesn’t make sense to do right now.  My wardrobe is in serious disarray—I have things stashed all over the house in strange spots and our bedroom is a total pit right now.  I think it might make me feel better to have Andy’s drawers clean because it means I have some control over something in the house.

Refreshing Night

Sometimes at the end of the week, you just need a night to have a little bit of fun.  Last night was that night.  This past week has been kind of hard.  My rash was obviously a major issue, but there was a lot of other stuff going on at work that made for a really difficult week.  By the end of yesterday, I took off out of the parking lot quicker than I ever have before.

When Andy got home, we quickly decided that we probably needed to eat out (mostly because I haven’t purchased groceries in about 4 weeks and it’s slim pickins around here).  We went downtown to Sakka Blue, but they were out of seats.  Literally.  They have become instantly popular and it’s almost impossible to get a seat, which is awesome, except when you’re 34 weeks pregnant, on Prednisone, and constantly starving.  So we decided to go elsewhere.  I suggested we just start walking towards the rest of downtown and decide on something that looked good as we approached.  There was a slight problem with that, though.  Nothing else looked good.  We reached the end of downtown (like a mile and half down the road) and hadn’t made a choice.  Andy stopped into a shop to pick something up and I took a break on a bench.  And then we turned around and came back.  At this point, I was hungry, itchy, and sweaty.  And trying hard to not have a bad attitude.  It was really a beautiful evening (the first one we’ve had in a long time), but I was getting sweaty.  We ended up realizing that there was a restaurant right next to Sakka Blue that we knew nothing about.  It’s called The Lady and the Lion, and the menu looked good, so we gave it a try.  The service was so g00d—which is often a huge complaint of mine at any restaurant we eat at in town—there is never any good service here, and our dinner was great.  I had the chicken cordon bleu with broccoli and a baked potato.  It was all really yummy.  Andy ordered spaghetti and meat sauce, and a side order of lobster mashed potatoes (weird, I know…I laughed at him).  He really enjoyed both as well—I tasted his potatoes and they were really good.

So in the end, I got to have a wonderful meal with my husband, and a beautiful walk downtown.  Then when we got home, I decided I didn’t want to be cooped up indoors just yet.  It was too nice out for that.  So I changed into shorts (my legs are too rash-y for shorts in public….but I’ll wear them in the backyard) and we grabbed Oliver and went out back.  Andy decided to start a fire in the firepit, and we spent the next few hours outside, just the three of us, hanging out.  We figured out our plans for the backyard and the garage this summer.  We talked about Liam and his arrival and what that will mean for all of us.  We played with Oliver and laughed at how much he LOVES playing in the backyard.  It was honestly one of the best night’s I’ve had in a long time.  Now I’m excited to go to Lowes today and start our spring project list—I feel slightly rejuvenated after a restful night :)

An Itchy Mess

Early last week, I started to feel itchy.  I thought my skin was just dry and stretching, so I put on some extra lotion.  Then late last week, I noticed a sort of rash developing.  At first, it wasn't as noticeable as a rash as much as it looked like my new stretch marks were inflamed.  These stretch marks were a recent (unwelcome J) addition (I only saw them over spring break for the first time) and I didn't think that they had been swollen and inflamed when they first appeared.  But they sure were.  Then I realized my legs were starting to look the same as my stomach.  And on Friday and Saturday, I was an itchy mess.  I kept getting super sweaty during both of my baby showers, and it made the itching worse.  By Sunday night, my rash was a full-blown rash—all across my stomach, my thighs, and starting in on my arms.

 

On Monday, I called the doctor to explain what was going on.  She ordered a prescription for Prednisone and had me come in for bloodwork Tuesday morning.  I found out later she was testing for cholestasis of the liver (after looking this up, I'm thankful I didn't know what she was testing me for).  That came back negative (thankfully).  Meanwhile, I was still getting no relief.  I hadn't slept a full night since Friday or Saturday because of the itching.  I kept waking up and finding myself scratching my skin off.  I couldn't get more than 20-30 minutes of relief using Hydrocortisone and/or Benadryl cream.  Cold showers felt good for as long as the water was running.  I truly wanted to itch my skin off.  Wednesday night I stood in the shower with cold water running and sobbed because I was so miserable.  The rash has spread over my body—the only places I am NOT covered in a rash are on my hands, feet, and face.  It's more sporadic in some areas, but across the entire trunk of my body, it's pretty solid.

 

I went for my appointment yesterday, and my doctor just kept looking at me and saying, "Oh, this is awful."  She had to consult her medical books to make an official diagnosis.  I have PUPPS.  It's an acronym, obviously, for a longer word.  She said that in every case of PUPPS she has ever seen, it was only on the stomach, never anywhere else.  She was preparing to send me to a family practice doctor to get checked out when she went ahead and consulted the book to find out that in some cases of PUPPS, the rash spreads to the rest of the body.  Basically the rash was caused by pregnancy.  The majority of women who get it are carrying boys.  And it's not super common.  And it usually only happens in first pregnancies.  And I have the worst case she has ever seen.  And then for the good news: the only cure for PUPPS is delivery.  Which means that this rash won't clear up until after Liam is born.

 

I cried.  I feel stupid, but I did.  I am so tired, and so itchy on top of all of the other pregnancy side effects like heartburn, achiness, and discomfort, that the thought of continuing like this for another six weeks made me cry. (Let's be honest—I cried again later when I told my dad on the phone…I cried a lot)

 

 She was able to offer some relief.  One of the other doctors had developed a compound that worked as a soothing cream and could be mixed at the apothecary downtown (the only nearby pharmacy that still mixes medication).  It's got menthol, Lubriderm, and some sort of anti-itch soothing thing in it.  I picked up a bottle last night, and it seems to be helping some.  My itch feels manageable today—I still itch, but I don't want to crawl under my desk and tear my skin off.  On top of that, we discussed the possibility of inducing a little early, so I don't have to go the whole six weeks.  So Liam will probably be here before May 21, which is a wild and crazy idea to me right now.  I start going for checkups every week now, which is early.  I should have had a few more weeks before that, but she wants to keep an eye on the rash and my ability to stand it. 

 

So that's a part of what's going on here right now.  I still have pictures from my second baby shower to post, but somehow I saved them wrong off my camera, and I need my memory card back to fix it…and Andy has my camera at work, so I can't fix it yet.

Baby Shower #1

This weekend I was blessed to have BOTH of my baby showers.  The first was at home (literally…at my mom and dad’s house) on Saturday.  It was seriously so cute.  My wonderful college roommate, Lauren, put everything together, and in true Lauren fashion, it was incredible.  Lauren has a real knack for details and party planning….she is an awesome nurse, but I think she could totally be an awesome party planner as well.  She’s a multi-talented woman :)  Here are the pictures, with my commentary of course :)

The welcome sign—how cute is it?  Seriously.

Liam’s name banner—she did his first and middle name with the kites, and it was so sweet.

A sweet kite on the deck doors

Food and favors—everything was SO good.  Somehow I missed getting a donut….which is funny because they were totally an inside joke from the first year Lauren and I lived together. 

Details—the things that make everything special (LO—I loved your note to Liam—made me weepy and laughy)

Liam at 33 weeks

Party time :)  Can I just say that I loved all the games from this weekend?  I have NEVER thought that after baby or bridal showers—but the games at BOTH showers were so fun and quick!  In the first picture, Lauren is leading the game, and in the bottom, Tamara, Mariah and Kari are playing along (Kari is due just three weeks after me!  how fun!)  (Mom—sorry about your face in the back there) 

Unwrapping presents—most of these pictures have my face in weird contortions, so this is all you’re going to see :)  In the bottom picture, the picture is actually a fun story.  I made that giraffe in art class in sixth grade and it was chosen as the piece to be framed for that year (the art teacher chose one piece of art from the whole school each year to have professionally framed and then hung in the office).  They originally said I would get it back when I graduated high school, but I never did.  Tamara saw it a few weeks ago and asked if she could give it to my mom.  So they wrapped it up and gave it to me as one of my gifts.  It was such a sweet, fun surprise—I’d forgotten all about it until I saw it.

And some of the guests….seriously such a fun morning!  Thank you to Lauren and Lauren and Mom for all of your work—it was such a sweet morning!!