The Bump Continues...

So, I haven't written in nearly a month and a half. I'm guessing anyone who was reading this blog has long since given up on me and will never read it again! Oh well, I'll try to be better but I make no promises.

Life has been crazy busy lately which is great news. It means I actually have the energy to get out of the bed. I'm into my 19th week now and things are going really well. I'm feeling much better and only gag periodically throughout the day rather than every five minutes. We are gearing up for our KDHE home inspection so we can be licensed foster parents. We are hoping to get our first kiddo placement before the end of June. Our house is a complete mess as we try to get things organized for kiddos. We moved our bedroom into my office so we could make our old room the foster kiddo room. It is the biggest room in the house so we'll be able to license for three boys who can all share that room. We're cleaning out closets and every possible nook and cranny at this point which means our house looks like a tornado hit but without the beauty of an insurance claim.

In addition to all of that craziness, we are also working on finding a new job for Nathan. Due to some injuries he sustained in Iraq, he has had some progressively worse problems with his feet. He was told by his podiatrist last week that he needed to find a job where he wouldn't be on his feet for 10 hours a day otherwise, he'd be looking at being unable to walk by the time he is thirty. So, we've got to find another job in a broken economy in a city where over 10,000 people have been laid off since the first of the year. Good luck to us! But seriously, please be praying that the Lord would lead Nathan to just the right job at just the right time.

As for everything else, the boys are doing great and are excited to be out of school in just a few weeks. We're going to work on some things they are behind in over the summer months and see if we can't get them caught up.

The baby is also doing well and as of the last ultrasound he was measuring about a week ahead. Oh, right, BTW, if you're reading this and you don't have facebook or didn't get a phone call from me, our baby is a BOY!

Another BTW - my bump is getting progressively larger...

Bloody Noses and Big Macs

Today has been a bit rough. We are now 12 weeks and 4 days along putting us in the beginning of the second trimester. I seem to have come down with a stomach bug in the last 24 hours which has left me on the pot more often than I'd like. (I know, TMI!)

So there I am this afternoon, sitting on the least comfortable seat in the house dealing with the least comfortable symptom of a stomach bug when blood starts dripping from my face. I have never had a bloody nose in my life, at least that I can remember. Now here I am, on the pot, blood pouring out of my nose. So, like I always do when I don't understand something, I google it. I put in bloody nose and pregnancy and there it is, a pretty common occurrence. Who knew?!

On top of the stomach issue and the bloody nose, I've been unable to discover something that sounds yummy to me today. I've tried all the healthy crap I can muster but much to my midwife's dismay, I am currently waiting on the delivery of two Big Macs and a small fry. My midwife told me that if I must eat crap, I have to eat something good first. So far, I have eaten a slice of whole wheat bread, carrots, snow peas, broccoli, grapes, and three glasses of orange juice. Oh, there were also some hot wings in there this morning. Ooops. Seriously though, the health food isn't cutting it at the moment. So I've sent my dear Nathan off to the Golden Arches to supply me with food that isn't really worthy of being called food. I hope Lil' Bean likes extra cheese!

172 BPM

We had our second prenatal visit yesterday in order to hear Bean's heartbeat. She had a beautiful sounding heart running at 172 beats per minute. It was so good to hear her and know that she is okay and growing.

I am having a lot more energy lately but am feeling quite a bit more nauseous than I was before. I'm just trying to lay low and keep myself rested but there has been quite a bit of stress around here lately so it has been difficult. I'm sure it will get better soon!

Hope you all are doing well! We'll update again soon.

Pickles and Puppies

We are now in week eleven and things are going much easier for me. I have so much more energy now although I do get tired easily if I push it. I'm still eating everything in sight. Nathan recently pointed out that it isn't all that different from before I was pregnant. I've never really been afraid of the food!

I am craving cheese and pickles, not together though. The giant dill pickles that come in a weird little bag are my absolute favorite. I ate 5 pickles yesterday alone. It really is the oddest thing.

Other than the strange pickle deal, life is going well. We have a sick puppy that I have been nursing with a syringe for a couple of weeks now. We still aren't sure if he will survive or not but I'm giving it my best shot. He has been good practice for Lil' Bean. I have to get up several times each night to feed him and check on him. By the time Bean gets here I should be ready for the sleepless nights!

That's all for now. I'll post again soon, hopefully with some pics for all to see. Gotta get that stupid camera fixed first though!

Ick Week

The past week has been my worst week as far as feeling ill. Standing up just makes me want to throw up so I've spent a lot of time in bed the past few days. I'm still very tired and waiting expectantly for the end of the first trimester.

Nathan and I have been doing research for the past five weeks about the various options regarding Bean's birth. We have decided that we would like to do a home birth using a doula and a midwife. We have done a great deal of looking into the realities of birthing in US hospitals. The statistics are rather frightening. Of all of the most civilized nations, the US ranks dead last in infant mortality. Induction of labor and c-sections have become commonplace without regard for the timing that mom and baby have. There is a great deal of information out there regarding this issue and we have found that it is a rather controversial decision we have made. Every nation in the world finds midwives and home birth to be a valid option. We are the only nation that considers home birth to be something of the past.

So, for us, home birth is the option we feel is best. We have hired a midwife and a dear friend and relative is going to be serving as our doula. If you'd like more information on home birth and why we chose it for our Bean, just let me know.

As for the rest of our lives, things are going well. The boys are settling into the idea of Bean coming and life is going along rather smoothly. Apart from feeling awful, we are all doing great.

Lil' Bean is Looking Good!

We had our first ultrasound yesterday afternoon and Lil' Bean is doing well. Her heartbeat is at 178 beats per minute. There is an old wives tale that says that a high heartbeat means it is a girl. I'm really wanting Bean to be a girl so until we know otherwise, I'm sticking to the heart rate thing and will refer to her as a girl. She is measuring 1 1/2 centimeters at this point and has a nice big head. She really does look like a lima bean at this point. It was very cute!

Nathan said he could tell she was going to be adorable by the wavy lines on the ultrasound! How cute is that?! They took many pics of her and of me. It took them a long time to search for my ovaries and they ended up quitting after finding one. They said there was nothing to worry about though. So apparently I have a shy left ovary! I guess at least one part of me had to be shy.

So, everything is looking great and we're on schedule at this point for the October 2, 2009 due date. Yea for healthy bean!

Our House Smells Like Liquid Smoke and I Can't Take It

I am so tired today. It is really rather ridiculous how tired I am. Nathan is cooking downstairs and the whole house smells like liquid smoke. The smell is so nauseating it makes me want to move out.

Today has not been the best pregnancy day! But tomorrow is our first Ultrasound so things are looking up!