28 Weeks

Here we are, we've made it to the 3rd Trimester! Only 12 weeks to go... This pregnancy is just flying by! I know I say it every month, but I can't believe how quickly we are moving right along. It is so exciting to think that we will be able to hold our little bambino in no time at all.

At our 24 week appointment, we endured a minor scare. As our doctor was listening to the baby's heartbeat, she couldn't quite place a minor heart arrhythmia she heard. She said those words no expecting parent wants to hear, "I'll be right back, there's nothing wrong, I'm just hearing something and I want to run it by another doctor." I laid there on the table, telling myself to continue breathing, mostly for John's sake. I'm sure my heart was just pumping out of my chest. The second doctor came in and listened. They both agreed that we should have a fetal ECHO to determine if there were any structural problems with the baby's heart. Our doctor asked if we had any questions, and at that time, we didn't. We left the office without a set appointment to meet with the Pediatric Cardiologist, but we were told we'd be contacted with our appointment time. Just a little bit more waiting... I called back to the office 2 days later and was told we still didn't have a time. Finally, on Thursday (our Doctor's checkup was on a Monday), our appointment was set for the following Thursday, one week away.

Working in the medical field has its ups and downs, and this was where my mind started to wander off into the scary side. Knowing the fetal abnormalities an ECHO could show, my mind played through each scenario over the next week. Sleep did not come very easy the first few nights, but thankfully the timing was perfect and I headed home to PA for the weekend where I was able to keep my mind pleasantly busy. As I said repeated times, even if there was something wrong with the baby's heart, there was nothing we could do at this point to fix or correct any problems. We could only sit back, pray, and continue to wait for the baby's arrival where we would then place our trust in their hands to surgically correct any problems (if that were the case).

As we headed to the appointment with the pediatric cardiologist, I was extremely nervous, but trying to hide my fears. John and I sat in the office waiting room, holding hands, anxiously reading Golf Magazine together. It seemed like hours went by, but it was probably only 10 minutes until we were called back to the room. The ultrasound tech and cardiologist were both ready in the room to begin. I laid back on the table and was unable to see the screen from where I was positioned. This I was glad for. Even though I'm not a professional US reader, I was still familiar with the terminology I was hearing and would be able to place her words to the images. Instead, I could only listen. As I heard the Doctor examining each chamber, heart valve, major arteries and veins, and blood flow through the heart, she continually said, "everything looks great, I don't see any structural problems." Tears were streaming down my face with each word spoken. As John squeezed my hand, I felt such a sense of relief wash over me, I could take a deep breath again. Once the US concluded, the Doctor talked about her findings and felt there were no structural abnormalities. She wasn't convinced the baby didn't have an arrhythmia, but she assured us that it is not an uncommon thing and is something that can correct itself before birth or shortly after. I know we were both relieved walking out of the office into the sunshine that day. There can be so much uncertainty with being pregnant, you have to trust God that things will work out the way they are meant to be.

Just a few days ago, on a glorious Tuesday afternoon, I had the pleasure of drinking down that oh-so-sweet glucose water for my glucose screening. Honestly, it really wasn't as bad as it is hyped up to be. Mine was a red/possibly cherry flavored beverage. It tasted like a flat Red Pop to me. The hardest part was sitting there in that waiting room for an hour for them to draw my blood. If you know me, I can't sit still. With the rib pain I've been feeling on my right side, I'm way more comfortable standing or moving around. But I sat, took a 15 minute cat-nap, chatted with Jenn, and the hour was finally up! So we shall see if I passed next week, we have our monthly check-up on Thursday. I can only think positively because I DO NOT want to endure the 3-hour test if I fail! I don't even want to think about it!

Speaking of that rib pain, I went to see Dr Larry at Twistars a few weeks back to have him examine me. I felt as if I had a rib out and knew he'd be able to fix me right up! Although Larry didn't end up coming in that night, Brooke was able to help me out. Sure enough, I was right indeed, I did feel a rib out. But not just 1, I had 5 out! And I'll tell you what, once she put the first 2 back in place, I could already feel a noticeable difference. I do have one difficult rib that is definitely back out now. Brooke told me that rib would be tricky since she felt the baby was pushing on my diaphragm causing that rib to displace. It was only back in place for 2 days maybe, I'm sure I'll be making my way back over to the gym for another re-positioning soon.

Besides my lower back/right rib pain, the only other complaint I have is my heartburn. It is terrible! I am taking Pepcid now to help, but it really isn't doing that great of a job. Tums make me feel nauseous, so I'm stuck just trying to tough it out. It doesn't matter what I eat or drink, the heartburn is there. I've been trying to drink less with meals, keep myself upright after eating/drinking as long as possible, and eat slower... it's hit or miss every time. I certainly can't wait for the heartburn to subside. But as many people keep saying, hopefully heartburn is a sign of a lot of baby hair!

Well here are the baby bump pictures for this week!

28 Week Belly Shots:

The baby bump is definitely getting bigger!!

28 Week Stats: Baby L is as big as a Chinese cabbage -- I've never even heard of this veggie before!

-Length: Almost 15 inches. WOW!

-Weight: 2.25 lbs.

-Major Milestones: Baby's eyesight is developing and its been doing a lot of blinking in response to lights and darks. Also baby is starting to collect and add on some fat. This will help to keep baby warm after birth because heat loss is a major factor for a newborn as their brain can't quite regulate their body temperature immediately. Here comes the weight gain for me!!

Weekend in PA

It was so very nice to spend a weekend at home with my family, even though it always feels super short and jam packed with events. But it is always worth it! And I hate saying goodbye every single time.

Of course no trip is without some sort of snag, and this time it happened on the way out. I arrived in Flint with plenty of time to spare for my flight. We took off right on time for Cleveland and arrived there a little early. I walked to the gate for my connection to Philly and sat down to wait the 45 minutes. Low and behold, the announcement overhead.. our flight wouldn't be leaving for another 2 hours. We had been grounded by the FAA. So instead, I sat.... and sat... the 2 hours came and went, with no word as to why we were grounded and why we still hadn't left. Finally we boarded and thought we were off. Instead, we taxied out, then the engine shut off and we were grounded again for another 45 minutes, with no explanation. Once again we finally took off for Philly, yea!! BUT.. after the captain announced we were 20 minutes out from landing, he came back on again to say we couldn't land yet. So we flew around in giant circles for at least 30 minutes. Finally we landed.. and sat on the plane for another 20 minutes waiting for some rain showers to stop because we had to de-plane into the rain. What an adventure!! I'm just glad my luggage arrived along with me!

My parents picked me up and we headed back to their place. We were going to have a picnic with my brothers and sisters since this was really the only day to get everyone together. Even though it was a little cloudy and overcast, we managed to have a great time!

Sunday was baby shower day! From working and doing a lot of sitting while traveling, I took my mom along with me to get a pedicure. I needed some foot and leg rubbing! And boy did it ever feel great! After my pedi, we headed back to Mom's house to get ready for the shower. (See my previous post on the baby shower) I can't keep saying this, but the shower was wonderful! It was such a good time and I'm so very thankful to my family for putting it together.

Sunday night was Penny's Pizza night! I can't come home to PA without stopping and getting a little piece of goodness! Yummy!!

On Monday, Dylan and Bryn had the day "off" from school so we could have some fun. The 4 of us walked around the outlets and had lunch at Chick-fil-a! Amy and Andrew met us for lunch as well. After lunch we visited with MeMom and PopPop. It was so sunny and nice outside! The kids had a grand time playing in the backyard.

Bubbles!

MeMom and Bryn playing catch

Silly Andrew

Monday night was Dylan's 1st playoff's game. It was a perfect night for baseball, the sun was shining, not too hot or chilly, just perfect! MeMom & PopPop, Mom, Kim, Jd, and Lola were all in attendance. The boys played very hard but weren't able to pull out the win. But I don't think any of the family minded because Dylan hit a 3 run, inside the park HOME RUN!! It was so awesome to watch (even though I couldn't jump up and down and scream with the rest of the family) I'm so proud of him and so happy to have been able to see him play! It was awesome! On top of that, he pitched so well. Even PopPop said that Dylan did a great job and can really pitch. Some pictures from the game:

MeMom, Lola, and PopPop checking out the game

Dylan on 1st Base

Sneaking a peak at the batter on 1st

Up to Bat

Pitching a few innings

All Smiles after his Home Run!

Lola having a fun time JD and Dylan

MeMom & PopPop with Dylan after the game

It was a great weekend trip home and I can't wait to do it again. I'm super excited for my mom, Pam, Bryn, Kim, Jd, and Lola to visit in July! July 13th can't come quick enough!

Baby Shower home in PA

I had the pleasure of traveling home to PA this past weekend for a few (too short) days. My mom and sisters had planned a baby shower for baby L. It was such a wonderful day, just perfect! My family really knows me well and planned a shower exactly as I would have imagined. It was simple, intimate, comfortable, and I was surrounded by my grandmothers, mom, sisters, aunts, cousins, best friends, and my other moms growing up. The day was just beautiful :)

We were certainly spoiled with many gifts for the baby, lots of things to get us started for parenthood. I am just so thankful to everyone who was able to attend and for their generosity, we are truly blessed! Of course, I am so so grateful for my family who took the time to plan this perfect day. I know it can be a pain in the butt at times, planning, coordinating, and making ends meet, but I am forever grateful. Everything about the shower was wonderful, I can't say that enough. And knowing that you are only given one baby shower, this one was definitely worth all your efforts! I love you guys!

Here are some pictures from the shower:

Thanks so much to Kate for taking all these pictures for me!!

Food, Cute decorations and balloons

YUMMY cake!

Chatting it up

Opening gifts

My 2 nieces were a great help!

MomHerr and I

MeMom and I

Aunt Maralyn and Aunt Deb

2nd cousin Emily and cousin Christine

Cousin Sheila, almost cousin Ashley, and

cousin Gretchen with her daughter Maddie

Mrs Krajnik, Mrs Price, and Mrs Kraft

(2nd moms growing up)

LOVE my wonderful best friends- Julia, Wendy, and Davis

(missing you Laura and Vanessa)

SO great to see you Lindsey!

Mommies-to-be!

Best friends :)

Only 14 more weeks before we can meet our little bundle of joy. What will it be, a boy or girl? We certainly can't wait to find out!!

24 Weeks

Have we honestly already made it to 6 months?! This is absolutely insane. This pregnancy has been flying by so quickly. It's so crazy to imagine that in 4 more months our baby will be here. We better get busy around the house...

Speaking of the house, we are in the process of ALMOST completing our basement. This has truly been a work of labor and love. Our dear, wonderful friends Bobbi and Nick have been making the drive down from Traverse City every few months so Nick can continue to help build our basement. (as John supervises..hehe!) Next weekend the kitchen cabinets will be put in, the desk cabinets will arrive, and hopefully we will have the stair rail complete as well. (I'm getting nervous about missing a step as this belly continues to grow) In the next little bit after that, the counter tops will go in, plumbing completed, and the final touches made! So super excited!

Once the desk is complete, I will begin the transition of packing up the office upstairs and moving all the "desk stuff" downstairs. Keep your eye out on Craig's List for our desk and bookcase, we've gotta get rid of it to make room for the baby's room :) I'll post the before and after pics once the whole basement is complete, I think you will be shocked at the difference, I know I am.

I (/we, mostly me) finally picked out the paint color for the baby's room and cannot wait until John is able to paint. I think once that point arrives, things will really start to sink in some more. I'm so excited for the baby's arrival! I'll wait until the room is complete before posting any pictures, keep everyone in suspense a little longer!

Baby L is moving so much these days. I swear its doing belly flops in there. All that spinning, kicking, and shimmying around, lets hope it is acquiring my dance skills, not John's. (I don't profess to be the best dancer, let me stress that, but I can keep a beat).

We head to the Doctors office on Monday for our monthly check-up, here's hoping everything checks out well!

24 Week Belly Shots:

24 Week Stats:

-Length: 11.8 inches! Almost a foot, how crazy!

-Weight: 1.3 LBS- We made it to the pounds mark!

-Major Milestones: There is a lot going on in there this week. The checklist includes: ears-done, fingernails-done, taste buds developing, and that long, lean body will begin to fill out in the next few weeks/months. Baby's lungs are developing the tiny branches of the respiratory tree that will produce surfactant. This will help keep the tiny air sacs inflated once baby arrives and we hear the first of many cries.