Medicated

I knew it wouldn't last. My numbers have not been consistently good, and for the past week they've been sporadically bad. So when I called the dietitan today to report in on my numbers, they grew concerned, put the doctor on the phone, and then prescribed glyburide. This is an oral insulin that is apparently safe for pregnant women to take (don't google this because I did and got conflicting stories). I am supposed to take half a pill at night with my post-dinner snack. I'll call back on Monday to check in and let them know my numbers and see if they've come down. Sigh. At least it's not a shot. I do, however, have to continue testing my blood 4x a day and no one said I could now eat whatever I want. So I have to keep on with the not-fun diet, prick my finger 4x a day, and now take insulin. Hopefully Baby Bun handles this all okay.

Baby Bun

I have swallowed a basketball.

Okay, not really, but it kind of looks like it, right? Baby Bun is growing rapidly and so is my tummy. I'm 29 weeks, finally in my third trimester, and feeling like I look like I'm about to give birth. Baby Bun is doing great and is super active, kicking all the time, much more so than I remember Zach or Em doing. Sometimes he kicks so hard that I jump, I'm so startled. I think we're in for trouble with this little guy. I think he's going to be active and mobile early. Maybe we should re-baby proof early this time around!

I have an ultrasound on Monday and my regular doctor's appointment on Friday, so I'm excited for those visits to check in and be sure everything is still looking okay. I'm a little worried about Bun's size since my gestational diabetes has not been as easily controlled this pregnancy. In fact, I need to check in with my dietitian tomorrow and I'm fearful that she might put me right on the oral insulin because my numbers this past week have been all over the map, and I'm eating the same stuff I usually do. Nothing is different. I want to do what's best for Bun so if that's what I have to do, well then I'll do it. Wouldn't it be nice though if I go on the medication and then she tells me that I can eat potatoes and pasta again? :) But I'm not expecting that.

Other than feeling quite large and getting winded more easily when going up the stairs, I'm feeling pretty good. I did notice a new spider vein on my left ankle tonight which doesn't make me happy. It's all on my left leg -- upper left thigh and then down by my ankle. Not a lot, but they aren't pretty. Not sure if these have developed because of pregnancy, heredity, or what, but I wish they would go away (and apparently they don't). Oh well, I guess it could be a whole lot worse. And I'll take a few spider veins on my legs over stretch marks on my belly anyday! I've still been lucky on that front as well although I have 11 weeks to go and you see how big I am already. If my tummy grows further it won't matter how much cocoa butter I use; Bun will probably burst through my skin!

I also still am having sleep problems which I always get while pregnant. It must be my body trying to get me ready for a newborn who is up every 2-3 hours at night to eat, but why can't my body do this in the last month of pregnancy rather than all 9 months? Fortunately for some reason I'm not a zombie all day due to lack of sleep. Waking up is hard to do, but once I'm up, I'm pretty good for the day (although sometimes I do sneak a diet coke or regular coffee with caffeine for a little boost).

Kevin and I are actively talking baby names now and apparently we are NOT on the same page like I thought we were. So we're kind of back to square one although I am still hoping he'll come around to the name that I love. It's really cute, goes really well with our last name, and I just can't get it out of my head. But I'm looking through the baby name book as well, to be fair, and trying to help find a name we can both agree on. While I won't share what that name is in advance, if we do come to an agreement, I'll keep you posted.

Old Wives Tales

When I was pregnant with Emily I had terrible heartburn for a good chunk of my pregnancy. She was born with a full head of hair.

When I was pregnant with Zachary I did not have heartburn. He was born bald (and without eyebrows) and really didn't have hair for the first year. He's also still working on the eyebrows.

And now while pregnant with Baby Bun I have sporadic heartburn. I think this baby is going to have "some" hair.

I think there's some truth to these old wives tales! I guess we'll see in a few more months.

Mommy, wow! I'm a big kid now!

Zachary has turned the corner on pottytraining now and all weekend used the potty more than the diaper! We have been trying to put him right into underwear after naps and getting up for the day, and being home for the long weekend was just the right timing. Zach both pooped and peed on the toilet and definitely prefers the inner cushioned potty seat that we place on the toilet to the potty chair. He does sometimes stand and pee into the potty (which is funny to watch), but prefers to sit. We just need to remind him to "tuck" while he's going. It's very different to have a boy child than a girl, let me tell you.

A big step forward was when we went out shopping yesterday -- I put Zach into a diaper before we left the house. We went to two furniture stores, out to lunch, and then to a third store before we were going to go home for his nap. It was actually well into nap time in that last store when he said to me "Mommy, I have to go pee pee." Well, we ran to the bathroom (and of course being pregnant, I knew exactly where it was), I took off his diaper (and it was dry!), sat him on the seat (had to hold him tight so he didn't fall in), and he went! I've never been prouder.

Zachary's New Big Boy Bed

So after 2 months of sleeping on the air mattress in the guest room because he didn't want to be in his crib anymore, we finally got Zach's crib taken apart, put in the other room, new bedframe purchased, new bed for Em purchased, and Em's twin mattress and boxspring repurposed to Zach's room. Oh, and painted Zach's room to boot! He is very proud and happy to be sleeping in his new big boy bed in his freshly painted blue bedroom (which is a nice change from the pale green it used to be).

Because I'm pregnant I'm not allowed to paint (the fumes) so Kevin had to do it all on his own. I did tape the trim and put down paper on the floor, but Kev did all the painting himself. He did a great job although mentioned he'd never cared so much about getting the lines right before (when you paint in a rental apartment, you're just never that careful). When the paint was dry I swept and mopped the room so Kevin could assemble the bedframe. Zach wanted to help, but we mostly played hide and seek around the bed while Kevin worked.

Sandy, my fabulous mother-in-law, is busy at work making another wonderful quilt creation (along with matching curtains and dust ruffle) for Zach's new big boy room. We're doing a pirate theme so his quilt will be dark blue with a pirate ship on it. We already bought some pirate sheets, and Zach seems nice and cozy sleeping in his new bed. We still need to get him a new dresser and bedside table since we're handing down the old dresser (which we use as a diaper changing station as well) to Baby Bun, but that will be sometime in the next few weeks.

Anyway, just wanted to post our latest home improvement project update here since we're pretty happy to have at least one room (mostly) done!

Terribly Sweet 2's

On Monday Zach will officially turn 2 and a half (I just can't say 30 months)! He had a doctor's appointment yesterday, just a half year well baby check up. He passed with flying colors. This was actually the first time in a long time that he's had an appointment and hasn't had some kind of cold or ear problem before he got there. Knock on wood -- we've all been mostly very healthy this winter! Anyway, I was pretty curious about his height and weight since we don't own a scale at home (for many reasons) and since at his 2 year check up he wouldn't stand on the scale so we couldn't get an accurate height for him. Zachary has still not hit 30 pounds, but is getting close! He weighs 29 pounds, 10 ounces, and is 35.5 inches tall. I don't know what percentile that is for kids his age, but the doctor told Kevin (I couldn't make the appointment) that he is doing great and well within the normal range. Zach also got a flu shot and will go in next week for the first dose of the H1N1 shot. Funny, because I think that the big scare is over now. But we'll take him for it anyway because I think you can't be too careful.

Zach has been incredibly cute lately and in a very big Mommy mode. Mommy has to get me dressed; Mommy has to put me on the potty; Mommy has to put me in my booster seat... It's sweet, but sometimes I wish he'd have a Daddy mode day. I know he does when I'm not around, but with me being so hugely pregnant right now, sometimes I just want to let Kevin lift Zach up and get him dressed, etc. 30 pounds isn't a big weight, but when you've got a big Baby Bun in your tummy, it feels like a lot extra to carry around!

It feels like suddenly Zach is turning the corner from toddler to little boy. His speech has just taken off and he's speaking in multiple word sentences and using words that I didn't know he knew! While he does remind me that yes, he is 2 and knows how to have a temper tantrum, he also will do something incredibly sweet like say "I love my baby brother" and then kiss my tummy. He melts my heart multiple times a day by doing sweet little things like that! I think he's going to be a good big brother, well, as long as Baby Bun understands that sometimes there just has to be Mommy/Zachary time.

Chef Zachary Gets Cooking

Papa Bob and Grammy Claus sent this great kitchen to Zach for Christmas! He loves it and loves to do a little more cooking now that we've moved it from the playroom to the kitchen. I thought I'd share with you for your viewing enjoyment. :-)

Baby Bun

I’m almost 26 weeks pregnant now with a very active little baby. He and I are doing great although I’m now starting to feel “very” pregnant and it’s getting harder to move around easily. I feel badly when Zach wants me to carry him because I get a little whiney about it. He’s getting heavy too! But he is very interested in his little brother and talks about him now and we read stories to my belly last night at bedtime. Z is very sweet.

I had a doctor’s appointment yesterday (well, 2 actually) and found out that Baby Bun is a little on the big side, and looks to be about a week ahead, size-wise. They estimated that he’s now 2 pounds, 2 ounces. I’ve gained 11 pounds (although I feel like I’ve gained about 50), and it’s all belly. I’m trying to be diligent about putting on the cocoa butter because I feel like I’m getting really big suddenly and don’t want to get any stretch marks. I successfully avoided it with my previous 2 babies so need to be better about this one. I think what’s hard too is that I’m hugely pregnant in the winter this time and with the dry winter air my skin is really sucking up that moisture so I need to put it on a lot. My cold hands on my belly are not fun though, although if I do it right after the shower it’s not too bad. For some reason I’m the coldest pregnant lady ever. I’m always chilly!

Anyway, I had an ultrasound at the hospital yesterday – I’m going once a month now for that to monitor the baby’s size because of my gestational diabetes. I don’t mind really because I think ultrasounds are super cool and I love being able to see Baby Bun any chance I get! During the ultrasound they switched on the 3D technology and we got to see what he really looks like! His nose and lips are well defined in the pictures and his sweet little baby cheeks look so cute! He is still breech (feet down) which at this point is not a problem. With how much he moves I wouldn’t doubt that he does flips in there anyway and just happened to have his feet down again this time around. I do think he looks like Zachary, but I guess we won’t know for sure until he is born. My due date is April 15th and I’m hoping he is actually born in April and not too early. I’d love to be off on my maternity leave for as much of the summer as possible! I get 3 months paid which is one of the best benefits my company has and I want to take full advantage of that time to bond with Mr. Baby Bun.

This GD G.D.

When you have gestational diabetes you can't eat a lot of carbs. When you're pregnant, all you want to do is eat carbs. Correction, all you want to do is overeat carbs. Or maybe you want to overeat carbs when you have gestational diabetes and you are told you can't have any. Whatever. All I know is that I'm tired of this stupid GD (gosh darn -- what were you thinking I meant?) gestational diabetes already! This past week has been the worst, I can't seem to get full. Fortunately most of the cookies and goodies from Christmas are out of the house now. I was able to get through Halloween, but cookies are my downfall, especially peanut butter ones (and we had two kinds of those in the house). Worse than sweets though are the other carbs -- the food kind. I have to be careful on potatoes (I'm an Irish girl, this is a staple in my diet, so this is especially killer), rice, BREAD! (another staple, I mean come on!), corn, beans, pancakes, waffles, I mean, so many yummy things. I can eat lots of other vegetables, but vegetables don't always cut it. I'm not allowed to drink juice, to use sugar in my coffee (although I've discovered that Equal is not so bad and far superior to Splenda), and I can eat half a bagel (but not a whole one or my numbers go crazy). Well, at least I have less than 15 weeks to go now! It's all going to be worth it in 4 months when I see that cute little face and kiss those sweet little toes. :)

E-Z Momma

Emily left to go to her dad's on Tuesday and we won't see her again until maybe spring break (unless I go for a visit, which I'm noodling on if I can figure out how to do so inexpensively). She spent one night there and then he drove her to Long Island to visit her college friend Abby so that they could spend New Years together. Em is still there now as she and Abby are driving to North Carolina together; classes start at the end of this week. Her time home was very quick and I hate that we didn't get enough time together, but have to accept the fact that we're not nearly as exciting as her friends. I did the same thing once I went to college. Still, I wish we could have more time together, just the two of us.

I wanted to post this picture of Emily and Zach as it's the last one I took of the two of them in 2009. They miss each other so much -- he asks about her all the time, and whenever he sees me on the computer he climbs up onto my lap and asks if we can talk to Em on the computer. He'll even settle for looking at photos or videos on Facebook, just so he can see her. It's very sweet.

When Zach was born I joked to my parents that they now have grandchildren from A to Z (starting with Andrew and ending with Zachary), and I also realized that I was E and Z's mother (EZ Momma, get it?) All that will change this spring when Baby Bun arrives. We still don't know what we're naming him (I do have a name in my head, but we're not settled on it yet). I'm sure it will neither start with an A nor a Z, so will have to think of some other way to think of myself. Maybe Queen Mom to the Princess and the Boys.

Post-Christmas Busy-ness

The week after Christmas passed by in a blur! We were busy doing...I don't know what, but time just flew by. The weekend was nice though as we had family visitors, which we don't get too often for the holidays! Kevin's dad, sister Amanda, and brother Ryan came for a visit. Zach (and the rest of us) LOVED having them here! We stayed in the whole time but played toys with Z and watched a bad version of Peter Pan. The best part was when Zach out of the blue said "I do believe in fairies, I do, I do!" Very cute.

On Monday Emily and I ran errands -- some banking for her, she bought her books for next semester, and we got her some things for school that she needed. Monday night Kevin and I had a date at a Greek restaurant we'd been meaning to go to (Em and Amelia babysat, it was wonderful). The place was okay; we were both hoping for more. Really, the service made it worse, just not very attentive. I got sick that night which ended the evening early, but it was still great to have some alone time with Kevin as that hasn't happened in months (we REALLY need to get a babysitter!) On Tuesday Em, Zach, and I lazed around the house, and then I took Em to meet up with her dad. On Wednesday Zach and I had a playdate with some neighbors which was REALLY nice! We got together with two moms and four kids -- all in the Zachary age range. This neighborhood is awesome! On Thursday Kevin dropped his car off at the repair shop while he was at work, and Zach and I picked him up on our way to our friends' Irish New Years Eve party. Basically it was a NYE party where we celebrated at 7:00 pm (Irish time) so that the kids could participate. It was really nice and we headed home around bedtime. Kevin and I then celebrated the US NYE celebration at home, in our jammies, in our new home. It was quiet but still nice. I can't remember what we did on Friday either. My days are getting mixed up since I've been home for so long! (2 weeks) It's nice though and I can't complain. Somewhere in there we bought some paint for Zach's room which we'll also use for Baby Bun's room and we ripped down the wallpaper in the Tiki Room (which will become Baby Bun's room). So our house is now kind of a war zone, but I'm really glad we're getting started on the work because I'm starting to get the nesting instinct pretty strongly now.