Grab Bag.

this entry will contain a lot of random and unrelated info.

first off, i want to announce that my fourth nephew, isaiah christopher smith has made his arrival!  he was born on july 27th at 5:18pm and weighed a whopping 9lbs 6oz!  my superwoman sister-in-law popped him out after pushing for a grand total of 18 minutes.  total labor? 5 hours.  wow, talk about setting the bar pretty dang high kimmy!  and to top it all off, she did it all natural.  my hero.  he is perfect and beautiful and looks just like a marr (kim's family).  instantly i could see her dad and even matthew (and jon)'s dad in him.  mama (and daddy) and baby are all doing GREAT and will get to go home today.

 

meet isiah christopher :)

perfect little family.

next topic. puke.
the other day (9 weeks 6 days) we woke up and headed downstairs.  jon had to leave for work pretty quick so he asked me to make him breakfast.  i was feeling a little queasy but thought i could handle it if i didn't inhale too much.  well as i start making his eggs, i couldn't help but gag. after the third gag i knew where this was headed.  i ran to the bathroom and puked.  whats gross though is that there was nothing in my stomach.  so it was one of those wonderful bile throw-ups.  eww ok that's enough i'm gonna gag again just thinking about it.  but whats weird is that this was the first time i've thrown up! usually this is around the time where i start feeling better.  oh well, i can't complain.  i was worried when my symptoms started going away so i welcome sure signs of pregnancy.  my dad even told me he was praying for nausea. haha thanks dad! i informed him he can cool it a little after i puked.  lesson learned?  have food on my nightstand to eat right when i wake up before i get out of bed.  its helped.  i still gag at nasty smells (hot stale trash in our garage bleh) but the puking so far has been a one-time thing.

as of yesterday i am officially 10 weeks! amazing!  this is an exciting week because not only have all the major organs formed, but it begins the fetal period.  our baby is no longer an embryo but a fetus.  hey, its the little things ok?  also the baby is now the size of a kumquat (whatever that is) and about an inch and a half long.  i'm happy to also announce i haven't gained any weight yet. score! there's really no reason to gain in the first trimester since our baby weighs a fraction of an ounce.

10 wks. i wish i could say this is a baby bump but i'm pretty sure it's just baby bloat. relaxed shot not flexing though. might as well be honest!

have any of you heard of linea negra?  it's that line that some pregnant women get on their belly that usually runs from their belly button downward.  usually it shows up during the second or third trimester (if at all).  well lucky me has seen a faint line since week 7. dang i was hoping for no line but oh well.  i guess you are more likely to get it if you are tan and spend time in the sun. (me.) it would be more exciting if there was actually a belly for it to trail down, but no. for now its just a random faint line down my non-cute-non-existent-pregnant-lady-belly.

so last night jon and i went to a rascal flatts concert (courtesy of the barrel room management as a going away gift in feb).  we had lawn seats which are always fun!  well don't get me wrong, we had fun....but we also had a horrible time.  first of all we get there early to tailgate. yes, the two of us.  i immediately noticed we were much older than the average person there.  surrounded by teenagers and college students who were "secretly" trying to get away with drinking. jon enjoyed a few beers and i kept fighting back the vomit i felt coming while trying to get down an gyro. it sucks to be the sober one at a concert. anyway, we found a seat and sat down on our cute little blanket and immediately started sweating.  it was way too hot.  justin moore came on, then easton corbin.  they both did a great job and surprisingly it started raining.  this was actually welcome since it was so hot but needless to say our "seats" got soaked.  my patience level is apparently at an all time low right now, because every time some drunk, disrespectful teenager stepped right on our blanket i became infuriated.  i mean it seriously pissed me off.  i kept having to tell myself to calm down and jon just sympathetically let me be annoyed.  anyway, after sara evans performed (she has perfect legs) i decided it was probably a good time for me to go pee.  i take a mental note of where our stuff is and head to the (hot and stuffy) women's bathroom.  i come back and start weaving through the massive crowd of people back to jon.  i get completely lost.  i have not only no idea where he is but now i don't even know where i am.  i start slightly freaking out.  then, the lights turn off and it goes pitch black.  rascal flatts comes on.  crap.  i try calling him and when i could actually get service, his phone just rang and rang.  i sent multiple text messages and i kept searching.  now about to cry, i run out of ideas.  i can't see anything.  i walked back down to the stairs and crouched down and cried (i'm an emotional wreck, give me a break).  finally, a good 30+ minutes later, i get a text from a random number asking me where i am.  i tell this strange number my exact location and finally jon came and got me.  i proceeded to cry some more and even have a mini panic attack.  turns out his phone died and after i didn't show up he went searching for me.  ugh that was awful  i almost just said, let's go home.  but i manned up and we headed back to our soaked blanket and trampling feet.  there was a kid smoking weed directly behind us and my [amazing] husband turned around and told him he needs to smoke somewhere else because his wife is pregnant. i love him. :) overall we actually did have a good time.  rascal killed it and put on an always great performance.  and although there were definite downsides, we enjoyed ourselves and want to send an extra thank you shout out to tbr!

next topic. i'm employed! (i apologize for the world's longest blog entry).
i got a nanny position for a local christian family.  it's perfect for me and i am so excited about it.  this family has 3 kids of their own and are about to adopt their first.  the birth mom is due august 29th and lives in texas.  my job will basically be to "play mom" during the time lauri (the mom) goes to get the baby and has to deal with all the legal paperwork and other stuff.  i will be there at 6:30am (holy crap) until 6:30pm for about 2 weeks.  then, when the mom gets back with the new baby, my job will change to about two days a week.  i will watch the baby and 2-year old so lauri can run errands, help out in her daughter's classroom, etc.  it is ideal for me and they are such a wonderful family.  god hooked it up.  what a blessing.

lastly (hooray, i know)....i'm going home tomorrow! AMEN!! i am overjoyed about this trip.  i get to meet isaiah, share our wonderful news AND eat tons of amazing southern california food that i have been deprived of out here in georgia.  i probably won't post again until i get back and i will apologize in advance because i'm sure it will be another long one.  i can't stop thinking about in-n-out, el cotixan, pat & oscars, bj's, the barrel room and urge.  i'm gonna come back fat.

happy friday world! and praise the lord for constant good news and new milestones! :)

Baby Grape.

i've managed to age and entire year since the last post.  i turned 25 a week ago, which means i have officially entered a new age bracket.  i now fit into the 25-49 range. eek.

a lot of positive things have happened in the last 2 weeks.

#1. i successfully made it to 8 weeks.  a milestone considering we weren't lucky enough to make it that far the first time around.

25th bday! 8 wks.

#2. i had yet another doctor's appt on monday.  they didn't do an u/s because everything was "perfect" at the high risk ob so there was no need.

#3. we got to finally break the news to our families!!

#4. bonus! i've now hit 9 weeks and am feeling pretty damn good.

i have to admit i was pretty pissed when they didn't do an u/s on monday.  i have been feeling "too good" lately. yes, i get it. i'm paranoid.  it comes with the territory ok?? but the doctor made me feel better.  i got back test results from more blood tests that they did.  negative on factor 2! woo hoo! this confirms i won't need shots until after the baby arrives.  i even got the okay to start working out again.

on monday afternoon i sent my mom a text that said, "i think i might be pregnant..."
i was hoping she would fall right into the trap and say, "why do you think that?". but instead she goes, "what??? AHHHH!", then proceeds to call me right away. no no no mom this is not how i planned it!! haha. so i of course rejected the call and sent her a picture of the u/s and said, "what do you think?". she kept me on my toes by not responding for what felt like 45 minutes because she was painting in a different room.  finally we got to talk and it was so wonderful.  felt so good to tell her and celebrate together.  she was of course surprised to hear of the roller coaster ride we have already experienced with this pregnancy and blood work, etc.  i followed that fun phone call with some texts to the siblings and ended the night with a talk with my daddio.  jon got to inform his dad that now all of his kids are pregnant at the same time (rachel is pregnant too! due 3 weeks before us!).

as of today our baby is the size of a grape.  measuring about an inch long.  don't get me wrong, i appreciate the fruit and veggie comparisons.  it really is a great visual....until you are juicing grapes and feel just plain cruel. 

sorry baby.

i thought that our big reveal to the family would curb my desire to spill the beans, but instead it just made me more anxious to tell everyone.  i can't wait to go home in a week and a half and start sharing our wonderful news!

9 wks.

damn you tv commercials!

i'll start off with some good news. GOOD NEWS! no bad news. nope, not today. it's a good day.

i had my appt with the high risk o.b. this morning.  i wasn't too sure what to expect other than another ultrasound.  the waiting time was a grand total of 3 minutes which was AWESOME.  i went straight to the ultrasound and she actually used the doppler this time.  you know...warm jelly on the belly.  that little flicker never gets old.  at 7 weeks 4 days, our baby's heartbeat went from 133 bpm (at 7 wks) to 156 bpm today.  grow baby grow! and the little peach is a whole centimeter long haha.  she also did a.....we'll call it "internal"......ultrasound.  she was digging all around in there. not an enjoyable feeling.  as far as the "bubbling' goes, the tech mentioned nothing about it.  i brought it up and she said she didn't see it, that it could have just been a bowel. gross. but awesome.  then the new doctor came in.  a guy this time.  i felt a little vulnerable considering i'm meeting this stranger while laying on a table with a thin sheet to cover myself.  it's kind of like, hello sir.  here's my va-jay! why is that ok?? hahaha. luckily he didn't have to take a look for himself.  he went over everything about the factor v leiden and made it much easier to understand.

7 wks. these will be a lot more exciting when something actually happens.

basically i inherited the gene from one parent, not both.  i have a 50% chance of passing it on.  since i have no personal history of blood clotting, i will not need to give myself shots daily.  i will, however, have to get them 18-24 hours after i give birth and for 6 weeks to follow.  fine by me!  during the pregnancy i will just continue to take a low-dose aspirin to thin my blood.  i don't have to see the high risk o.b. again until i'm 19 weeks.

what a glorious day!!!!

as far as morning sickness and symptoms go, it's been pretty consistent.  since about 6 1/2 weeks i've felt queasy on and off all day.  i've learned that i have to constantly have something in my stomach.  but the problem is, so many foods gross me out.  the only thing i ever want is whatever i see on a damn commercial! and let me tell you, man vs. food should make me wanna vomit, but 9 times out of 10 i want whatever he's eating.  needless to say i've been eating pretty crappy.  i haven't craved one certain thing yet, but i have wanted random stuff like applesauce, popsicles, ice cream, pickles (normal), etc.  as long as i can keep food down for now, i'm happy.  oh and my boobs kill.  you're welcome.

before church yesterday i made the mistake of taking both my baby aspirin and prenatal vitamin after only eating a banana.  jon almost had to pull over on the side of the freeway cause i was about to yak.  i don't know how i didn't.  church wasn't much better.  we had to sit in the back room right by the bathroom just in case.  the bright lights didn't help and i couldn't look up during all of worship but after that it was MUCH better.

ginger is my friend.  i was already obsessed but it helps with stomach aches.  even better.  ok i'm done.

i think i'm set.

the results are in.

yesterday was easily one of the most nerve-wracking days of my life.  i woke up way earlier than i wanted to and then just had to wait. and wait. and wait. 11:30 am seemed like it was never gonna approach.  [without grossing anyone out, i was overly freaked out that morning because i had some spotting the night before.  never a great sign. especially when it was my first sign of m/c last time.]

we get to the doctor 15 minutes early and they didn't call me in until 40 minutes after my appt was supposed to start. awesome.  i was sweating and once i heard...."kristen smith", i started shaking.  so thankful that my husband was there.  they took me back for an u/s and i undressed as fast as i could.  i laid down on the table and turned my head away from the computer.  i told the nurse i couldn't look until she told me she saw a heartbeat.  the next 20 seconds felt like an ETERNITY!  she wasn't saying anything so finally i was like, "ok is everything okay???".  i turned my head and there it was. a beautiful little tadpole with a perfect little flicker of a heartbeat.  you could distinguish the head from the little worm body (that doesn't have arms and legs yet).  she said our little peach has a great, healthy heartbeat of 133 beats per minute.  she even turned on the audio and we got to hear it! so amazing, i definitely wasn't expecting that.  i asked again if everything looks normal to her and she said, "the baby is measuring exactly on track at 7 weeks and the heartbeat is great, but i'm a little concerned about this".  she pointed to an area above the sac that looks like a bunch of little bubbles.  she said she's not fully convinced but it COULD be the start of a partial molar pregnancy.  i'm refusing to look this up online because i know it's bad.  basically it could mean another m/c. freaking a are we ever gonna just get GOOD news?! but i wasn't gonna let this bring me down.

we grabbed our one and only picture of our perfect little fighter baby and headed back to the waiting room.  i got called back in and got more pokes and prods than i was expecting!  a shot in the butt because of the spotting and being rh-, a pap (i'll leave it at that to spare the people that don't know what it is), a booby feel-up, AND 9 more tubes of blood drawn.

and now for the results of the factor v leiden.  i still don't fully understand it, but basically i tested positive.  what this means is, i have to see a high-risk ob for the rest of this pregnancy and any one to come.  they also tested me for factor 2 and some other blood disorders.  as far as the "bubbling", my doctor said she is cautiously optimistic about this baby and so are we.

my next u/s is on monday with the high-risk ob. i will also learn what we need to do to treat the fv.  from what i understand, i may have to give myself a shot in the leg everyday. awesome.  then a week from monday is another u/s at my regular doctor.

talk about an adventure.  we love this baby so much already.  jon and i both got emotional when we saw and heard that amazing heartbeat.  please be strong baby.  i will do whatever it takes to bring you into this world healthy and safe. we love you.

our perfect little worm :)

[fear] factor v leiden.

well it's been almost two weeks since i've posted and for good reason.  i'll try to make this as to the point as possible.

i went to PA for a wedding at the end of june where i got to spend time with my family. it was a great trip and i was successfully able to hide my pregnancy.  (wasn't hard considering i was only 5 weeks and my worst symptom was pounding headaches.)  somehow the topic of pregnancy came up in a conversation between my sister-in-law, mom and i.  laura (sil) mentioned that she had a bunch of blood disorders during her pregnancy which reminded both her and my mom that factor v (5) leiden runs in my family on my dad's side.  this a is blood condition that can cause clotting, and is especially dangerous for pregnant women.  it can be the cause of several miscarriages and even still births.  they suggested i get tested for it "before" i get pregnant again.  woops.

of course i played it cool from the outside but was freaking out on the inside.  i go back to the hotel room and start researching.  i learned that clotting can occur in the placenta and deprive the baby of everything it needs to survive.  crap. now it's a saturday. i'm out of town. i can't call my doctor. i felt helpless.  and it's not like only one person in my family has it.  my grandpa, dad, uncle, brother and cousin are all positive. and those are just the ones who have been tested.  i read that taking baby aspirin thins the blood and is recommended daily to reduce the chance of clotting.  but i'm with my family who doesn't know i'm pregnant. how am i supposed to get baby aspirin? i found my window when we went out to lunch and i saw a target in the same shopping center.  i ordered food and said i needed to go to target to grab sunflower seeds and chapstick. haha.

so monday finally comes and the second my dr.'s office opens i call and ask about this newly learned info.  the nurse left a message for my dr. and i got a call back a few hours later.  instead of waiting until july 18th for my first appt at 8 1/2 weeks she wants to see me right away. yikes.  so i went in the day after i got home, wednesday the 29th.  i was nervous to get an u/s because it was so early and i knew there was a chance of not being able to see a heartbeat.  well, the u/s tech said i was measuring on track but we weren't able to see a heartbeat yet.  all 3 of us thought we saw a tiny little fetal pole but no h/b and so she couldn't confirm it.  i was bummed but felt a little better that everything looked okay.

until the doctor came in to talk to us.  she informed us that the gestational sac was "irregular".  whatever that means.  she made it sound like there's a good chance this could end in miscarriage. again.  my heart just sunk.  this can't happen again.

they did blood tests for progesterone, rh factor and factor v.

i got a call 2 days later with my progesterone results and they were 24.4, which again meant nothing to me but the doctor said they look really good.  the numbers don't show a threat for miscarriage.  she also informed me that i am rh -, which means i will have to get a few shots throughout my pregnancy (assuming it is viable) so that my body doesn't try and produce antibodies to attack the baby.

i won't find out about the results of the factor v test until our next appointment.  if i am positive, i will have to switch to a high-risk ob and will also have to give myself shots daily throughout the entire pregnancy.  

talk about a long, crappy week.  our next u/s is on thursday to determine if this is a viable pregnancy or not.  basically, we need to see a heartbeat and if we don't, we lost this one too.

on a positive note, my boobs have hurt like hell and i get queasy about 3-4 times a day so that makes me feel better.

i'm praying that the next post includes a sonogram picture and not a tear-filled ending....

6 wks.