Pulling up

Last night I laid Xander down for the night, he wakes up as usual, and is fussing in his crib.  I wait 15 minutes to go check on him because he's not calming down.  As I enter his room, he's STANDING up in his crib!  Yikes!  This is one task I have not encouraged because I've heard of the horror stories where the baby stands up and can't get back down.  Well it's finally happened to us.  Hubby will lower his crib now.  I'm nervous for the lowering of the bed because if it's lower and my belly keeps growing, how will i get him out when he's laying down?  2.5 months left!

I bought a humidifier yesterday, a Vick's kind, and he woke up not sounding like a carburetor.  So, the thing must be working.  It's the kind that you put medicine in it and it steams the room. 

Merry Christmas

pup was not harmed...other than maybe his ego?

Until I download the rest of the pictures, hopefully these will make you smile.  Xander came down with congestion on Wednesday, then on Christmas Day, he started coughing.  Poor baby!  He's doing well though otherwise, just extra extra clingly.

29 weeks

How far along? 29 Weeks (25 December 2011)

Total weight gain: 15+
Gender: Girl
Maternity clothes? Maternity, except PJ’s
Stretch marks?  Thankfully not yet
Sleep: Not the best.  Back pain keeps me up lately
Best moment this week: Cleared out babies room and set up her stuff…what we have
Miss Anything?  WINE!!
Movement: Mostly at night and first thing in the morning.  Started doing kick counts before bed.  Baby is a tumbler still…feels like my bladder is going to fall out when she moves over it…the weirdest feeling ever!
Food cravings: Holiday Mix (hard candies), hotdogs, plain chips and french onion dip or sour cream and onion chips
Anything making you queasy or sick: riding in the car!  Just started getting car sick again yesterday L
Labor Signs: No, but have been having Braxton hick’s contractions
Symptoms: Heartburn every night, some serious killer back pain, itchy belly
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy mostly, but I did have 2 days where I was emotional and moody…poor hubby!
What I’m looking forward to:  Deciding on a name!  Such a hard task! 

Naming a child

This task is proven to be difficult!  Once we think we have decided on a name, we're just not sure it's the right name.  my o my!  Naming Alexander was the easiest, why can't this child's name be the same.  Alexander we've had on our "list" for about 8 years and have always loved the name.  The girls names on that list have fallen off and don't interest us as much because they've become too popular.  We're not looking to choose a name that every other child has, and we're not choosing a name that no one knows how to say or spell it.  What a task!  Today we will choose 5 names, including middle names, then sit on those for awhile to see which one stands out the most for us.  Wish us luck!

Have a great day!

28 weeks

How far along? 28 Weeks (18 December 2011)
Total weight gain: 15+
Gender: Girl
Maternity clothes? Maternity, except PJ’s
Stretch marks?  Thankfully not yet
Sleep: Not so great…been waking up around 2 am for the past 3 nights, wide awake.  Maybe my body is preparing for middle of the night feedings…ha!
Best moment this week: Nick came home today
Miss Anything? Sleeping on my back without fear of losing the baby
Movement: Mostly at night and first thing in the morning.  All day yesterday I could not feel her move; that scared me.  I normally feel her first thing in the morning, and nothing.  So I tried taking it easy, hoping she was just getting some extra rest.  I used the fetal home Doppler… (4 times!), heart beat still strong.  Before bed, I still hadn’t felt her move so of course I didn’t sleep well at all.  I woke up at 2 and did another heart beat check, still strong…then suddenly she started moving and won’t stop now (which I love to feel)!  She must have been having a resting day, taking the day off, and wanting to give mommy the jitters all day long.  Let’s just say if I didn’t have the fetal home Doppler, I would have been at labor and delivery because I was getting worried
Food cravings: Still chocolate, fruity candies, and peanut butter…along with puppy chow and oatmeal cookies
Anything making you queasy or sick: working my way to having meats again…slowly
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Heartburn every night, some serious killer back pain, and round ligament pain (I think…hope) at the top of the uterus along the ribs

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy
What I’m looking forward to:  Snow, Christmas morning (I’ll be 29 weeks), my appointment at OB tomorrow morning (which I will bring up the no movement all day), and clearing out the baby’s room to start personalizing it for the little peanut.

Oh, and we have a name, however, hubby thinks we shouldn’t say anything until after she’s born…just in case we change our minds.  We better not because I’m planning on putting her name on the wall...ha!  I'll say it will start with a 'B'.

Have a great day!

A few more days

Until hubs makes his return.  I'm so excited!  Normally his TDYs/deployments are no big deal and they are...for the most part...easy on me.  I'm always excited for his returns, but this time, I've been ready longer than usual.  I miss his help, I feel disarrayed, and life just don't feel normal without him. 

Xander has been struggling this week with taking his afternoon nap.  He'll fuss in his bed for up to an hour, I go in every 15 minutes to try to soothe him, but no luck.  Not real sure what's going on, maybe another tooth?  I don't think I'd mind him skipping his afternoon nap if he'd take a decent morning nap.  We don't even get that anymore.  His morning naps have dwindled down to an hour tops.  This boy needs an afternoon nap, he's so cranky when he's tired...like most all kids :). 

Today I took the 1 hour glucose test (the drink was not bad at all).  I'm hoping for normal range, but I'm not so positive.  As much sugar as I've been eating these past 7 months is unreal!  This morning before the test, I didn't eat anything, I was told to eat my normal breakfast.  I just wanted out the door before Xander's morning nap so he wouldn't be screaming while we sat there for the hour wait.  I took my Christmas cards to finish up and get in the mail, brought him some toys and thought this will work.  Yeah right!  LOL.  I did about 5 cards and he wanted nothing to do with sitting in his stroller.  He was ready for his nap already.  We had 45 more minutes to wait so we went walking around the hospital...that worked, as long as I was moving him.  By this time, I was wishing I'd ate something because I was beginning to feel light headed...yikes.  I sipped on some water and was fine.  As soon as we got back to the car, I was eating my protein bar I was encouraged to take with me.  I'm glad I listened to this step!  Xander was knocked out before I even backed out of the parking space, so i decided to use this time to go finish the cards in the post office parking lot while he napped.  I'm glad I did because he was able to get an hour nap in. 

(I just checked on Xander, 1 hour and 15 minutes later he's finally sleeping)

In other news, we finally have decided on baby girls first name.  Once we finalize the middle name, I'll let everyone know.  I'm excited that we finally have narrowed it down.  It's been between two names for about 2 weeks.  Then I realized that I liked the middle name of the one name choice and the first name to the other...so I put those together and we agreed.  But now, he wants to add in another middle name...yikes.  We'll see, my sister gave me a nice alternative to hubs desire...so now i'm waiting for a reply to see what he says.

Well until we have decided on the name...

Have a great day!

27 weeks

I thought it would be fun to start keeping track of some of the "fun" parts of being pregnant.

How far along? 27 Weeks

Total weight gain: 13+
Gender: Girl
Maternity clothes? Maternity, except PJ’s
Stretch marks?  Not yet
Sleep: Not the most restful nights, I’m a back sleeper so trying not to sleep on the back keeps me up trying to make sure I stay off it
Best moment this week: Baby Xander started crawling
Miss Anything? Going on walks without having to pee by the time I get to the corner, wearing my cute non-maternity sweaters, and shaving my legs without having to be in awkward positions
Movement: Mostly at night and first thing in the morning.  When I use the heating pad she moves a lot.
Food cravings: Chocolate, fruity candies, and peanut butter
Anything making you queasy or sick: Can’t stand meat
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: Heartburn every night and some serious killer back pain
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy
Looking forward to: Hubbies return and getting some help with baby Xander

Rough week

...for this pregnant mama. Xander's been great, crawling all over now. Today he followed me everywhere I went as I was vacuuming. He normally just goes after the dog, but today he was all over. He's been clingy and when I'm out of sight, he screams. It's normal for this age so we are just trying new things to keep him content and happy. We did our first craft on Friday. We made a handprint Christmas tree with paint. It turned out cute, considering his age and cooperation with the task at hand.
I've been having really bad back pain for the past week. Before this it was occasional, but it's been constant for 7 days now. Today I did something I haven't done during this pregnancy, took 2 extra strength Tylenol at once. I know it's safe to take during pregnancy, but I don't like taking anything that could possibly risk the outcome of the pregnancy. I've also been using the heating pad for the past 3 days any chance I get. I think baby girl likes it. Whenever I have it on, she's moving within a few minutes. Other than the back pain, things are fine. I'm ready for hubby to make his way back home and stay for awhile. It's hard being 27 weeks pregnant, a bulging belly, getting groceries and lugging them up 4 flights of stairs, carrying a 20+ pound 8 month old around, bending over to play and entertain my boy, trying to clear out the computer room to make into a nursery, rearranging closets, giving bath time, just everyday stuff. It's exhausting and getting some help in the evenings hopefully will be what I've been missing.
Excited for the 18th, hubby's return, then the 19th is his 31st birthday. I'm hoping his gift makes it this week.

Well I'm exhausted and tired. Have a great day!

Crawling!

I didn't think this was going to come so soon.  Yesterday he just began doing a leap the frog type of crawl, where he'd take a leap forward, fall to his belly and do that over to get what he wanted.  Tonight I saw him take about 4 perfect knee crawls and thought...oh my.  After his nap, he was doing long length crawls.  He's a quick learner.  Now, he's been trying to crawl since about 7 months, but was only getting up and rocking, not actually moving.  Then last week I decided that our floors are limiting him and started leaving his pants and socks off so he wouldn't be slipping everywhere.  It's so amazing how fast babies grow and learn what to do.  It's just a matter of time for him to be walking.
I've also discovered that even though he don't like puree peas, try the real thing.  He liked them!  I gave him peas and carrots mix from the can like hubby eats and this boy tore them up!  Gotta go give him his bath as he's ready for bed.  He's had a long day with doing/trying new things.

Have a great day!

Baby Girl

25 weeks 4 days

Tickled PINK!

Today was the anatomy scan to get all the measurements and status of the baby growing inside me. Since there were "no boy parts obvious" as put by the ultrasound tech, she said she was 98% sure it's a girl. Since I'm so far along, 25 weeks 3 days, she said the boy parts would be pretty obvious by now. She measured a day ahead of my gestational age, weighed 1 pound 13 ounces and has lips and nose just like her daddy. It was amazing seeing her finally on the screen. Just when I let one worry out, I'm sure another will creep into my worried mind. She's growing beautifully and looked healthy, but won't find out for a few days. Just hoping I don't receive a phone call from my doctor, then all is healthy and good with the baby. I also learned today that the reason I haven't felt much of her movement is because I have an anterior placenta...which is cushioning the movements for now.
Since the middle of October I had a feeling it was a girl, but still thought it was a boy. So I almost cried that it's a girl because I prepared myself for a boy. I'm thrilled and excited Xander is going to be a big brother and protector to his little sister. I'm going to have a hard time resisting the urge to buy all the cute bows, hats and headbands. I'm undecided if I want to do anything special to her nursery, not even sure I will purchase a bedding set since we don't even use Xander's for him. If I do, I have learned that most of it won't be used so don't spend a lot. I thought about just buying girly sheets and blankets and calling it good. We'll see if I can find a good deal on anything.
Now we just have to come up with a name.

Have a great day!

Happy Thanksgiving

Xander's 1st Thanksgiving.  He enjoyed himself some mashed potatoes, carrots, pineapple and a slice of pumpkin pie with cool whip on top.

That kind of day

Today was...that kind of day.
Baby was clingy all day. Wanted to be held all day. Didn't want to sit to be held, had to be standing up. My head is killing me and my back is miserable. The only way to keep him calm was by holding him walking around, or else it was a scream fest. I doubt he will sleep well tonight, nothing else went right today, so why sleep? This new tooth coming in is putting him in so much pain. Oral jel is not working, teething tablets didn't work, and Tylenol is doing nada also. Poor baby! I wish he would let me comfort him sitting down. Oh, I did get two smiles out of him tonight. One was when I was reading him his book he likes to eat, yuccy yuccy. The other was when I put peek-a-boo barn on the iPad. He loves watching the animals and their noises, but it only lasted for about 20 minutes and 3 times through.
My emotions got the best of me again today. Probably from being worn out with a fussy clingy baby and not being able to get anything done around the house. Didn't get dinner made, that was an impossible task. I had plans to make shrimp scampi with linguini. A meal that don't take long, but I don't dare cook over a hot stove with a baby in my arms. I wanted to start clearing out our computer room to make it into the new baby's room. That was impossible. I couldnt set him down and walk away without a fuss. I have to get a side cleared out as the crib and mattress are getting delivered Tuesday. Maybe this weekend Xander will be playful and not mind playing by himself for 20 minutes? We shall see. This too will pass with time.
Hubby is gone for another 3 weeks, I wish he was here right now so he could lug around our 20 pounder. I especially miss him for moments like today where I could use a second set of hands. He returns the day before his 31st birthday. Nothing special planned this year.
Tomorrow we aren't doing anything. Xander and I will hang out at home. I'm making us a pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, ham sandwich for me, Gerber veggies for baby, and some chocolate. I'm excited to watch the Macy's day parade. I wasn't sure it would be on over here, so I'm glad I won't miss it. Last year we were in Italy, so we missed it. Everyone invited us to their homes for dinner tomorrow, but I declined all offers. I just want to stay home with Xander and watch the traditional Thanksgiving day shows and finish setting up the Christmas stuff.m
Next week is my OB appointment on Monday and the anatomy scan is on Wednesday. I'm nervous for both appointments. I'm not sure I will ever embrace this pregnancy. I really want to, but I'm having an extremely hard time. My friend offered to come to the anatomy scan with me, but I'm not sure. That might be weird. What if something is wrong? I'm not sure I'd want her there trying to comfort me and talk the... it will be okay talk to me. she's going to watch Xander for me, but if I let her come with me, her husband will watch the twins and Xander. I'm not sure.
Going to bed in hopes that it will be a full nights rest. But first, I'm a bit nervous to sleep because the dosage for the tylenol the doctor gave me just seems so high. I've only been giving him .8 ml since he was 4 months, now this new bottle of Tylenol they say to give 4ml...not .4, but 4! That seems like so much for his little body. I hope he will be fine and we both can get rest tonight. Teething is definitely not any fun for my poor baby!

Have a great day!

Roll over

So today is a big day in our household.  Xander FINALLY rolled over from his back to his belly!!!  I didn't think this was ever going to happen as he's already 7 1/2 months old.  I saw him get halfway over on his side, then kept rolling back to his back.  Finally, I grabbed the remote, he's in love with the thing, and he went all the way over!  In his own timing he will make progress.  Today we have been working on crawling also.  He gets into position so well and will scoot both his knees at the same time, but no actual crawl yet.  He loves to stand against the coffee table, still wobbly, but he's working on it.  In his own time...that means, I have to back off, continue to encourage it, but don't push it so hard. 

Have a great day! 

E.mo.tion.al!!

This may be a bit too honest for the world wide web... So I have been extremely emotional for the past week and yesterday was my breaking point. Everything made me cry, the thought of having a baby made me cry, the thought of being pregnant made me cry, the thought of delivering a baby made me cry, the thought of losing this baby makes me cry, I cry when Nick looks at my growing belly, I cry that no company will ship the crib I want over here. I was a crybaby yesterday. I took it out on hubby yesterday when we were planning to try to capture some family pictures and he turned into his normal self trying to get out of it, coming up with every excuse to get out if it and making things into a huge rush made me break down. I didn't want to admit that it was the hormones because I really didn't think so, but then 2 hours later when I'm still crying, maybe it was? I've said some pretty mean things about this pregnancy, I think because I'm afraid to be happy and get attached. I'm sad that I don't get more time, just Xander and I, but am trying to come to terms with it. I don't understand how we can go ten years trying for a baby, going through MANY MANY infertility treatments, not carry a baby to term, adopt a baby, then 2 weeks after our family being together we are pregnant without any treatments? I'm confused. I'm scared. I'm in denial that all this is the way it's supposed to be. It's too soon I tell myself. Nothing I can do but try to relax and enjoy. As I was telling hubby this, he said I needed to start trying to enjoy the pregnancy and be happy because later after the baby is born I will regret not being happy. He is right. I will try. I just don't know how. Onto other things now... Xander is making a recovery. Yesterday he had 2 regular poops and 1 runny one. He's sleeping through the night, for the 4th night in a row now. He's not going to sleep before 1030 pm so I'm going to try to change that, but he's sleeping till 7-730 then going back to sleep after diaper change and bottle. It's so nice to sleep through the night again. We decorated our Christmas tree on Friday. Nick actually wanted to help this year so we did it early. I usually do it the weekend after Thanksgiving, but since he's going to be gone, he brought the tree up early and we decorated early. No harm, just get to enjoy it more. We also wrapped the presents we had bought, and the one from Nana so far. the weekend after Thanksgiving I will hang the door hangings and the lights on the windows and patio. I'm 23 weeks 1 day today. I feel the baby move a lot now. It's all surreal. I actually laughed a few nights ago because I didn't feel anything all day and the second I placed the Doppler on my belly, baby was moving all over the place and it felt so weird. Have a great day!

Virus

Well Xander came down with the gastroenteritis bug somehow.  We were out on Monday and Wednesday since we've been back, so I suppose him just touching things then putting his hands in his mouth will do it.  His poor bumper is so red!  The rash has increased with each runny diaper.  This all started on Tuesday evening where he had 2 runny diapers...but he slept 7 hours that night without any runny diapers!  Wednesday he woke up and was fine for an hour or so then it started again.  He had 4 throughout the day, then at 9pm he had the poopies every 2 hours all night long.  I decided to give the nurse a call and see if it was just teething or something more and she said it was most likely the virus going around because there have been many complaints of it.  She gave me some home remedies and since he's eating fine and peeing normally, nothing to worry about now.  We just have to let this run it's course and watch for dehydration.  Poor baby!  I feel bad for his little bumper as it's so sore from the rash that has developed.  So for now, we aren't using wipes...we rinse with warm water in the bath; we give 2 baths daily with baking soda in it and let him play for 10 minutes; keep putting ointment on to act as a barrier from the wetness; keep feeding him normally; add yogurt to his diet to get rid of the bacteria that is growing; and let him be naked for awhile after diaper changes, the more fresh air, the better. 

In a nutshell...

I can't believe that Xander is already 7 months old (on the 2nd).  He's quite the character and is developing his personality every day.  He's now sitting up on his own, really close to crawling, grabbing at everything he can, has his first tooth (on the 30th it popped out), and just a bowl full of sugar...that's 19 pounds 13 ounces of sugar!!
We returned from our trip to the states to visit family on Friday and Nick also returned from his temporary duty assignment that same day!  Our family was once again together, but is short lived because Nick is getting ready to leave again next week for a month.  He'll return the week before Christmas, so I'm excited that he won't be missing my favorite holiday.  We've already started ordering Christmas gifts for Xander...well Nick has.  It's hard to decide what he needs to have to help him develop and grow.  We don't want too many toys as it's just clutter and we don't deal well with clutter.  The choices are endless though and tough to decide on.
Our trip to the states was a great and it was so good to see everyone.  I had a hard time saying goodbye to my Grandma.  I stood in the back of the funeral home, looking up at the coffin, balling my eyes out for an hour and a half.  It was hard.  I'm glad I was able to get our tickets changed so I could say that goodbye.  I finally walked up to her to let her know that I love her and that the baby growing in me was growing strong.  She knew I was pregnant as I told her early on, but I told her at that time I was scared the pregnancy would end.  So I was happy to tell her the baby had a strong heart beat a few days earlier.  I was also excited to introduce her to Alexander.
After 5 days in Sioux Falls, SD for the funeral, I headed back up to North Dakota to spend time with my sister for the next month!  We had a great time and I'm so glad Xander was able to spend time with his cousins!  He loved playing with each of them, but I have to say I think the 2 year old was his favorite.  The 5 year old discovered that she can hold him and walk around with him, so that was her favorite thing to do with him.  They dressed him in tutu's, let him play with their dolls, and ride in their pink car.  Lets just say I hope this month around all girl toys won't have a negative affect on him.  I'm sure it won't, not like it would matter I guess.  My sister ended up staying dilated to 2 cm for a month!  She finally had her baby boy on Oct 18th just after midnight.  He is just the most precious baby ever!  I never did get a size up with the new baby and my big boy, but that's okay.  We have a lot of fun memories while we were staying with them. 
Now that we're back home, I'm working on getting Xander back on his sleeping schedule.  He would not get on schedule while we were on vacation and was up many times during the nights.  Last night was his first night of sleeping 7 hours straight!  Now, I've been exhausted being up with him every hour or two for the past month and a half, so 2 nights ago I decided to turn off the monitor in our room and let him cry it out.  The first night was hard for me and he cried...well fussed is more like it because he wasn't screaming or anything...for about an hour, then slept for 3 hours, fussed again for about 20 minutes and back to bed for another 2 hours.  Last night was much better, he fussed for 20 minutes and then slept for the next 7 hours.  I'm hoping this continues because I woke up feeling so rested!
Last night Xander had 2 runny diapers, and today so far another 2.  He's not finishing his bottles (he'll leave about an ounce or two of a 7 ounce bottle), but he's not crying in pain or anything.  Should I be giving him pedialite?   How long does this go on before I would need to take him in to see the doctor?  I'm not sure where this came from as I haven't given him any foods for 3 days now, only his formula.  We go in next Friday for his 6 month well baby...yes I'm aware he's 7 months, but we were away for his 6 month.  Maybe i'll ask her then even if it clears up by then? 
My brother in law also took some great pictures of Xander while we were there, so I'll post a few on here that we won't be sending out to family.  I'm excited to get them developed and hung out, passed out and create a Christmas card.  This weekend we plan to take a family picture to also add to the Christmas card.
I received my Bachelors degree diploma in the mail! It's so exciting to see it, I still need to take a picture with it...LOL. I know the next phase of beginning my Masters is right around the corner. I just can't decide if I want to start in January like planned or wait until August so I will be adjusted to life with 2 babies. This decision is tough because if I start in January I could be finished before we move in 2013, otherwise I will have almost a whole year left. I think I'd like to be done before the move, but I don't know if I will be able to handle all the work a Masters degree entails, taking care of the kids, and still doing everything around the house.

And now...picture overload

And there you have it, our life in the past month in a nutshell!

Sorry for the misspelled words as blogger wants to highlight every single word!  And I'm not going through all that...LOL

Have a great day!

Newest purchase

I purchased a pocket fetal Doppler and received it yesterday so I've been constantly checking the heart rate. Today the rate was 160 and sounded like a galloping horse. It was the most beautiful sound this momma could hear considering all the doubt I've been having. My sister had her baby last night, a sweet baby boy. "Baby no namer" is what his sisters call him since they haven't decided on a name yet. But he is just precious...even without a name...lol! Have a great day!

Backwards

He's moving backwards (as of yesterday). I may wish for him to be crawling, but I will take the movement backwards and in circles as a sign that he's getting close. He's also been pushing his body up into crawling position almost...another sign. He's been doing good eating his rice, veggies or fruits once a day, although he's not too fond of green beans. Today he also had a pear sliced in his mesh bag, seemed to like that and took a lovely poop following it...lol! Yesterday and today I havent been feeling well. Yesterday I had a bad headache and felt like I was going to throw up all day, and now today I have the headache still. Ugh...no fun! Tomorrow I'm hoping my sister has her baby! I'm excited to meet my nephew. Ok, have a great day everyone!

ER visit

Because we are on vacation, our insurance instructed me to take Xander to the ER to get seen for his fighting to eat his bottles. It was 4 days of what seemed to be pain for him while he ate so yesterday off my sister and her youngest took us to the ER to get him checked out. We saw a very nice Dr., Dr. Tyler Price. He checked Xander over and said it seems like Xander has GERD. He prescribed some Zantac and my baby has been eating his bottles much better. We feed him upright, try to keep him upright for a half hour after feedings. Funny note...while the nurse was taking a rectal temp on him, he peed all over...it was funny! Oh and he weighs 18.7 pounds!! All the nurses and the Dr. were calling him a little chunk, but not concerned saying he'd outgrow it once he becomes actively moving around. Today as we were out getting a few groceries, it was raining, and I slipped off the running boards to my sisters Tahoe. I did this TWICE!!! My back is killing me! Hoping Tylenol will take away the pain! I'm staying up late for once and going to play games with my sister and her husband. It's always a fun time, so now I'm hoping Xander will sleep through the night for once (since we've been here, he's up looking for his paci about 3 times each night). Have a great day!

Not Sure

So yesterday I received an email from our birth mom finally. However, the email ercked me. She said she sent an email and hadn't heard from us. That is not ever the case! I ALAWYS reply almost immediately to her emails, but won't receive a response from her for a month or two. I replied to her and added her mom also to give an update on us and Alexander. I didn't bring up I never received an email without responding to, I just left it alone. I also sent pictures and her mom has already replied back, she always replies right away, but still nothing from our birth mom. I'm not sure if I should send monthly updates or every few months. I've been doing every two months, but maybe I'll start a monthly email to both of them. Xander has been learning lots here at my sisters house. He's concurring sitting up on his own, eating, and loves watching people in conversation. I have a few cute pictures of him playing with his girly cousins sitting in a pink cozy car and in a pink tutu....many memories are being made and we're having a blast. Still waiting on my sisters baby boy to make his arrival, but we are staying busy and having fun. He's been fighting drinking his bottle lately, which is not normal, so I'm a bit concerned. I think he's just not used to the water and may have gas. Maybe he's not liking the rice and vegetables? I'll keep an eye on him and if it don't improve I'll have to take him to the doctor. Oh, and some fun news...so I think...I think I felt the baby move yesterday. It was an all day event whatever I was feeling, but I think it was the baby. Today I've only felt it twice. So was it gas? Oh I don't know what it was! Hubby leaves for deployment in a few hours. He should be home shortly after Xander and I return home. I wish I knew how to upload photos on here. Have a great day!

Travels

A lot has happened since my last post. My grandmother whom I was close to passed away on Sept 21 so Xander and I made an emergency trip back earlier than we planned. We arrived on Sept 24th and will be staying until Nov 4th. My sister is due to have her baby boy Oct 25th, but is already dilated and on bed rest. I took her girls and Xander down to the funeral and we stayed for the week. It was a good time, and all the kids were good. Because we needed to come back earlier than planned, I rescheduled my doctor appt and Xander's post placement visit. Both appointments went well and the babies heart beat is at 140. Doc said every is looking good. I'm still not showing at 17 weeks, just looking like I ate to many gummies. My mind is still filled with doubt, which I was hoping would pass after my 16 week appt. I'm thinking once I start showing I was be more relaxed. Today is my niece and brother-in-law's birthdays. For lunch we went to Qdoba and for supper we will be going to space aliens. Both places are awesome! I won't be able to post pictures until after I get back home. I don't know how to on the iPad and I didn't bring my laptop. Today Xander turned 6 months! Instated him on rice and vegetables finally. He's also tried some puffs, animal cracker and learning to drink water from his sippy cup. He's sitting up pretty well but still not reliable on his own yet. During tummy time he just rolls in circles. I think he might be teething because he's been crankier than normal and gnawing on everyone's fingers. Thats it for today. Have a great day!

TPR

hearing was yesterday for the birth father(s) and all went well.  We can now move onto finalization in about 2 weeks!

Pictures from our lazy Saturday

No more dad!

Playing with Hawkeye

Mommy and her boys

Hawkeye's always curious of his brother

continuing our walk

view of the village we walk near

Hawkeye prancing along

Not sure what these are, but I always thought they were some fruit...until now

this is the result of those red "berries"

all tuckered out on the way home

Birth Father Court hearing

Today marks the day for our birth father court termination hearing.  Because they can't locate him, they had to officially take it to court to make it official.  It took 5 months, but I'm so glad today has come!  They aren't expecting any concerns to arise, but one never knows.  We are remaining busy today to keep my mind off the wait.  We will be heading out to our friends house in a few minutes to hang out for a few hours. 

One of our many faces

Weeks in review

5 months

I'm not exactly sure what I get so busy with that I can't manage to update this blog :(.

Xander and I took about 2 weeks and chilled at home so I could get better without spreading my sickness to our friends and their kids.  Hubby ended up getting what I had, but lucky Xander remained healthy. 

Hubby's been taking time off work a lot lately, just to be home with us, that's been nice.  We went over to Metz, France one day.  It was beautiful and we look forward to going back as our trip was cut short due to some unexpected thunderstorm and rainfall.  Good thing it's only an hour from here.  A few days after this trip, hubby and I celebrated our 10th anniversary!  I can't believe how fast time has gone.  Of course, we've been through our struggles, however, we've also had a lot of happy, fun, and memorable times throughout our ten years. 

Xander turned 5 months on the 2nd.  He's turning into such a boy now and a boy that LOVES to spit!  This is one annoying phase he's in, but we're working on breaking him of this habit fast.  We started giving him rice cereal at least 3 days/twice a day during the week, along with a vegetable.  I know the doctor said not to, but he just stares at our food and watches us eat and screams.  I figured it was time.  He does well and we haven't found anything he hasn't liked yet.  We've tried peas, squash, carrots, and pears.  He's been winey lately and wanting to be held all the time.  Hopefully this phase won't last long either.  He's also been loving to rest on our chest and be rocked.  He just lays there and eventually will fall asleep, he's so peaceful during these times.  We also started reading daily.  He's starting to sit still, but still has his days where he wants to be standing up, bouncing around.  He loves the puppy also.  I'll catch him trying to "pet" him, but puppy loves it!  He realizes that this little person has another set of hands and feet to rub his back on...LOL!  Hawkeye (the pup) is funny around Xander.  He's very protective of him also.  Whenever Xander is on the floor moving around, Hawkeye is right in front of him, walking backwards, to make sure he's okay.  It's a cute bond they finally have. 

We've tried video chatting with our birth mom, but she hasn't showed up again.  The only time I get annoyed that she don't show up is when she schedules the chat and then don't show up.  Other days, we just sign in and hope/pray that she will sign in and want to chat.

We went to the Babies.R.Us/Toys.R.Us here on the 3rd and bought Xander his first two German toys.  He loves his telephone (handy), but not sure about the octopus thingy.  On the 5th we spent the day out at our friends, it was a lot of fun to finally catch up.  Their family was staying with them for 3 months so we stayed away and let them be together.  They took us out to a trail that they often take walks on, and we love it!  We went back out yesterday just to go for that walk. 

Xander and I are heading back to the states to go visit family in the midwest finally!  I'm excited, but extremely nervous for Xander on the plane.  I'm not so sure he's going to be quiet like coming over here.  I don't think i'm going to be so lucky and will be one of those on the plane that everyone hates by the end of the trip.  At least I will probably never see any of them again.

And now for some pictures!

Have a great day!

I'm sick :(

So this morning I woke up to a sore throat and now my nose is running away from me and my eyes won't stop crying...ugh...I feel miserable! The selection for medicine here is not great so I took the list of approved meds while pregnant and keaded to the store. I ended up buying benadryl since it was the only thing available on that list. It had some of my symptoms on the box so I'm hoping this will work. If not, Monday morning I'll be making a phone call.
The past 3 days I've been waking up very dizzy and lightheaded, so now I wonder if whatever I'm getting has had something to do with that or is it just the pregnancy "fun times"?
Have you heard of a hobo? Well it's my favorite grilled treat and hubby finally let me make it as long as I made something to go with it. Well I did, I made a pasta salad and dinner was delish! He loved it too. What's inside it? Well I make mine with bratwurst, sliced potatoes, sliced carrots and sometimes onions (depending on the mood). I season it, then wrap it all in a large piece of tin-foil. Growing up in MN, my family had this whenever the weather permitted grilling weather.
Xander is 20 weeks today! My little man is growing way too fast. I haven't taken pictures yet today, but I am planning since I've been forgetting to get the camera out and snap pictures. I started him on rice cereal 2 days ago...even though his doctor said not to. He was getting lazy on the bottle and trying to chew the nipple instead of sucking it. I've been making his cereal with apple juice and warm water and he loves it! The first day he didn't really know what to do. Yesterday he was a pro. Today he was confused again. I'm giving it to him twice a day at a tablespoon at each feeding. Next week I think I will start to add some vegetables, not sure though since the doctor didn't want me giving him anything except his formula.
So I've been asked how do I have such a happy, quiet and content little boy. It's simple, really. I plan our outings around feeding times. We arrive shortly before feeding time,then feed him and he's happy as can be until nap time. But, when we're out, he typically won't nap more than a half hour, but is held mostly. He loves being held and that in itself will keep him happy. At home I don't hold him as much because I feel he needs to have independent time, so we do have our moments at home. When it gets crazy I just pick him up.
My grandma has been moved to a hospice house in Sioux Falls, SD. Everyone is worried that her time is coming because her liver is failing her. I called her yesterday and she's such a fighter and is in strong spirits for everything she's gone through this last week. I'm going to get some pictures ordered for her to have there to hopefully bring a smile to her face.
For some good news, I figured a way to post comments on friends pages! Just use my iPad! I just wish I knew how to upload photos from here...I don't think it's possible?
Hopefully I'll get some updated pictures up by tomorrow!

Have a great day!

Blogger

UGH!!!  I'm getting quite annoyed with blogger recently.  I try to post on blogger friends web pages and it won't let me again.  I feel bad that I'm not being allowed to post on other's posts.  I thought I had this fixed a few months ago, but yet again, here I am with the same problem.  I can sign anonymous if it's an option and just put my name at the end, but still!

Sorry for the vent...that's all I had to say today...LOL

 I hope everyone else is having a great day!

I've got a mover

All weekend I was a nervous wreck waiting for my Monday morning doctor appointment and ultrasound.  I was nervous there wouldn't be a heart beat.  I think it's because in 2008 I miscarried our baby at 10 weeks 2 days and yesterday I was 10 weeks 1 day.  The doctor could tell I was nervous and decided to do the exam backwards and give me the ultrasound first so I could have peace of mind.  First thing she looked for was to see how many babies.  Thank you Jesus for blessing us with ONE!!!  As she was moving the ultrasound wand over my belly I saw the baby move it's arm, it looked like the little one gave me a wave, like Hi Mom!  As soon as I saw that, my heart relaxed and I was at ease.  This little baby was moving all over the place, we didn't get any good pictures because baby was constantly moving, so they are scrunched up pictures.  Oh well, it was awesome to see on the screen though.  I didn't hear the heart beat, but I did see it flickering on the screen and since baby was moving all over I was okay.  Yes, I would have and still would like to hear it, but next time. 

I haven't gained any weight, I actually lost a pound.  The doctor's not concerned since it's only a pound and it's still early, I'll have 2 trimesters to gain what I need.  My next appointment is Sept 26th.  Then I'll have the anatomy screen ultrasound about 3-4 weeks after that.

I have to admit, hubby and baby did come along, but didn't stay in the room during the ultrasound.  Hubby says he couldn't breath in the small room and was getting hot and Xander was getting antsy as it was his nap time.  I was sad that he didn't want to see the ultrasound.  I began to think that maybe he thought there wouldn't be a baby there because our history and didn't want to be disappointed.  He said no, and he wouldn't leave me alone if he thought that.  That was sweet of him to say.

The nausea has pretty much subsided.  I think it has a lot to do with me taking my pills at night rather than with my lunch.  I still have bouts of episodes, but not nearly as bad, although some days are really bad still where I can't do anything.

Well here are some pictures of the ultrasound.  Like I said, they're not good, but they are our first pictures.  I wish I had pictures of Xander in ultrasound!

(pictures removed)

Have a great day!

Stats

At 4 months Xander weighs a whopping 15 pounds 12 ounces and is 24 inches long.  He's in the 65% tile for his age for both categories.  The doctor does not want me starting him on solids yet,which is fine, she says he gets all his nutrients from his formula.  I'm sure we'll be starting in the next month or two though as he's getting lazy with his bottle recently.  He's still sleeping through the night, going to bed around 8:30 and waking at 6, then back down at 7 until 9.  This boy loves to sleep, so I let him.  He stays up for 1.5 to 3 hours at a time, which is really nice.  He's such a joy to have in our lives and sure knows how to put a smile on your face. 

trying out his new bath seat

it was chilly and windy one morning when we took our puppy out

Tooth!

We have our first tooth poking through on the top! Everyone was telling me I was crazy for thinking he was teething, but sure enough it's poking through already. Once hubby gets home from his work trip this weekend, we'll grab a picture. I tried but it just was not working trying to hold up his lip and snap a picture while he's trying to lick my finger.
Xander turned 4 months today! We have his well baby check on Friday so I'm excited to see his stats, he's getting so big! I'll have to post a picture tomorrow since I'm on my iPod right now and can't figure it out.

Have a great day!

My mind is eased

I had my first doctor nurse visit yesterday, where I just filled out paperwork and answered questions.  Xander did great at the office, it was his nap time so he got fussy a bit, but a nurse saved the day and he was giggling in no time.  He is such a happy and content little boy.  So in the paperwork I put in there that I wanted to know what my HCG level was, so I had my blood drawn also.  Much to everyone's surprise my levels were over the top!  I was 7 weeks 4 days and my level was at 114, 627!  Holy bananas!  The nurse said whatever is in me is growing good and more than likely its multiples...oh no!  Just as my mind was put at ease, I start freaking out about the possibility of twins.  I'm not going to totally freak until the ultrasound on the 15th, so until then, I will keep doing what I've been doing.  This pregnancy is so different compared to an IVF cycle.  During my IVF cycle I didn't have any symptoms that I was pregnant, so if it weren't for all the doctor visits I wouldn't have known I was pregnant.  This time is totally different, all natural and every symptom possible...well minus the throwing up...just extreme nausea.  I do find it funny that when I tell people I'm pregnant now, they automatically assume we used infertility meds...nope...nothing...all natural the "old fashion" way!  My mom and friends were asking me if maybe my fertility meds were still in me from back in 08!  Are you serious?  Um no!  They leave your body like 2-3 weeks after ending them.  People are funny!
I've been taking Xander swimming a lot this week.  He LOVES it!  He's such a water baby and I love it.  Now we just have to work on his daddy to enjoy the water with us.  He's making all kinds of noises, all welcomed as i love hearing him develop his personality and love hearing his voice.  He spits, drools, blows bubbles, squeals, giggles, and smiles all the time.  He's seriously the happiest baby I've ever been around.
Today I had my friend and her kids come and play with Xander while I went to take my final exam for my last class and he slept all but 30 minutes so they didn't get play time with him, but he was an angel for them.  They can't believe how happy and content he is.  While we were swimming all week, he was the same at the pool, no fussing, just happy, content, looking around and sucking on his hands.

Have a great weekend!

Exciting week

This is my LAST week of school for my Bachelors degree in Health Care Management.  I'm so excited to be done and have a little break before starting with my Masters.  I want to start painting again so I'm hoping this extra time will allow me to get doing it soon.
I also have my first OB appointment.  It's only with a nurse, so it still makes me nervous not knowing the status of the baby.  I went last week to get my blood work done and will get the results at the appointment, so I guess if everything is looking good with the blood work, I won't worry. 
Tomorrow I'm taking Xander swimming for the first time in the aquatics center.  I hope he likes it.  I'm a bit nervous to get in a suit, but will so I can have a little fish baby.

What a great end to a day

We video chatted with our birth mom tonight.  It was so nice to see her get on after 2 failed scheduled attempts.  I was getting worried that she wasn't interested anymore.  I'd send her emails and it takes her nearly a month to reply, then we scheduled 2 different video chat sessions and she didn't show up to either.  But today I left the video service open all afternoon hoping she would decide to open hers as well.  I'm so glad I did, we didn't talk long, but she was able to see how big and grown little man is getting.  She's doing good, still without a job, but has possibilities opening up to her soon, if everything works out.

I'm just so happy now.  I hope everyone is able to have a great day!

changes

15 weeks

Yesterday was Xander's 15th week with us!  He's growing so much and is such a joy to have in our lives.  I don't know how I was able to enjoy life without him in it.  I can't imagine life without him.  We had some pretty exciting news back on July 7th.  I've been holding out on putting it on here, but have since decided that's it's okay.  I'd actually wrote a post on the 8th, but kept it in draft format...below.

Amazing!

Written on July 8, 2011:  Have you ever heard the saying that if you adopt you will get pregnant?  Well, that's exactly what happened to us!  I say it's because Alexander has brought so much love and joy into our lives that we were so at ease, no stress, and just really didn't think about it...OK that's not so true...i told hubby that I didn't want to get pregnant so was resistant many days.  I was supposed to get my cycle on Sunday, well Thursday came and still nothing.  I thought it was just from being stressed, I chopped the peeing all the time to my all of a sudden urge to drink 2 liters of water, I had an excuse for it all...all except I was pregnant.  Sure it crossed my mind, but I feared the thought of it honestly.  The babies will only be 11 months apart!  How am I supposed to be pregnant and teach Xander how to walk and everything else he needs to know with a growing belly?  I'll figure it out.  I'm scared.  I'm nervous.  I'm thrilled.  I'm shocked.  I feel totally blessed.  But because we are so early, only 5 weeks, it's still too early to get too excited.  We're cautiously optimistic, just like through our adoption process.  It will work out.
When I decided to take the test, it was a last minute thing and I had to pee bad.  As I was peeing on the stick, it immediately turned positive.  I for sure thought it was going to be negative, just like all the other pregnancy tests in the past, but not this one!  I was shaking and nervous...yet very excited to see it.  I called my sister immediately and told her to get on webcam and I held up the test to show her...she busted out laughing, saying I told you so.  Everyone was telling us that we'd get pregnant after we adopted, but I never imagined it would happen to us.  I wanted to focus on our son and give him all my attention, not have to worry about every little cramp and growing belly over the next 9 months.
How did I tell Nick?  Well, he came home as I was feeding Xander, so my plan already was off.  But, good think little man decided to take a poop.  I went in to change him and put on a bib that I made for him...on it, it said, I'm Going 2 B A Big Brother.  While I was changing him, Nick decides to come keep me company before I put the bib on and asked if it showed up.  I said yes.  He said, darn, maybe next time...LOL.  So after i get the bib on, I take Xander to our room and hand him off to daddy to play with him.  He didn't notice right away...but he did notice a smell.  He said, boy, you smell weird...like a dogs flea collar...LOL.  I'm laughing so hard I'm crying.  He held him in the air like he always does talking to him..still didn't notice the message.  Then he laid him on the bed and saw it, but read it wrong.  He thought it said I'm too young to be a big brother...because i told him I'd gotten my cycle.  So he keep talking to Xander and I finally said, baby, I'm pregnant.  He was blown away.  Me, I was shaking and crying.

So now today...it took about 8 days for me to get really excited and accept this little blessing.  I've now been looking at it as a positive thing because yes, they will only be 11 months apart, but at least they will be close in age and always have a little sidekick to play with.  Xander's going to be a great big brother.  I'm still in shock and worry about every little cramp that I have, but I just tell myself it's the baby growing and making itself at home for the next 8 months.  I have my first appointment on the 29th.  I'm excited, but I'm not sure it will be much of anything more than just paperwork.  I'm hoping to see an ultrasound or at least the heartbeat since I will almost be 8 weeks then.  I've had a lot of nasuea, but not actually throwing up.  I've also been having hot flashes, which I find odd and will ask about at the doctor.  I'm not sure if those are normal during pregnancy.

loves his new ride in the Bumbleride Indie

(I love that it takes up less room in my trunk!)

Have a great day!