Count your blessings

Today an 8.9 earthquake hit Japan and a tsunami followed creating massive destruction and death.  It's on days like this that I can't help but thank G-d for all of the things that I am blessed with and send out lots of prayers for those that are less fortunate, especially in times like these.  Today, and every day,  I am thankful for the following (not necessarily in order):       

1.  My precious baby girl, growing in my belly.  All of her hiccups, kicks, and jabs that let me know that she's still okay.

2.  My incredible husband with his hilarious sense of humor, his dedication, attention, affection, loyalty, friendship, intelligence, and patience with me, our pregnancy and lives.

3.  My huge family - my mom and her side, my dad and his side, my step-mother and her side, and Josh's side and all of my brothers and sisters and their families too. 

4.  A beautiful roof over our head.

5.  Reliable transportation.

6.  Health.

7.  Insurance.

8.  Scooter & Bailey that bring a smile to my face many, many times a day.

9.  Food. 

10.  Education.

11.  Employment (even though I may not love my job).

12.  Friends.  Josh and I are very blessed with all of the wonderful people we can call friends.

13.  Freedom.

14.  Religion.

15.  Clean water.

16.  Running water, electricity, and gas.

17.  Good neighbors.

18.  Clothes (even if almost none of them fit right now) and shoes.

19.  Medical care.

20.  Disposable income.

What are you thankful for?

You're Waddling! I WISH!

The past couple weeks have been hard.  The pregnancy has been going great, but now that Piper is in position (head down) I am in a LOT of pain. 

What is the Sciatic Nerve?
The sciatic nerve is the longest and thickest nerve in the human body, measuring just under an inch in width, comparative to the diameter of a finger. The sciatic nerve runs from the lower spine, through the pelvic area, and down through the hip and back of the leg. The sciatic nerve is the major nerve supplier to the legs, and it branches out to provides movement and feeling to the hip, thigh, knee, calf, ankle, foot and toes.
The sciatic nerve, in spite of its length and size, normally behaves like all other nerves; it transmits signals to and from the muscles and the brain. All movement and feeling in the legs and feet are dependent on the proper function of the sciatic nerve and its branches.

When the sciatic nerve becomes inflamed, pinched, or injured, the symptoms are known as sciatica. A troublesome sciatic nerve resulting in sciatica can cause acute pain anywhere from the lower back and hips to the feet and toes. In these severe cases, sciatica can result in a loss of feeling or reflexes, and/or weakness in the hips and legs. 

Symptoms of sciatica can include pains such as cramping, burning, or shooting sensations in the hip and thigh, though the pain can extend all the way to the foot and toes. These symptoms can be aggravated by simple movements such as coughing, bending, or squatting, all of which put pressure on the sciatic nerve.

Pregnant women often suffer from sciatica as the sciatic nerve runs directly under the uterus from the spine to the legs. The developing baby puts pressure on the sciatic nerve, resulting in mounting pain through the course of the pregnancy.

Lucky me.  This is exactly what has been going on.  For the past 2 weeks or so, I have had trouble walking.  I definitely "waddle" because I can barely walk one foot in front of the other due to the pain.  It feels better to walk when I dig my thumb in to one particular part of my butt while I walk, but since people look at you funny when you do this, I try not to do it at work. 

It's gotten so bad that I don't get up to get water during the day at work because A) I have to walk too far to the kitchen to get it and B) then I have to go to the bathroom all the time and it's too far. 

This week, I have had 3 awful episodes.  In the first one, I couldn't get off the couch and I was basically paralyzed.  It was scary!  The second episode happened when I was standing in Piper's closet putting stuff away and I couldn't walk out of the closet.  It feels like I've been struck by lightening and I can't move my legs without screaming in pain.  Josh eventually helped me down on the floor (half in the closet, half out) where I laid for about 20 minutes before I could move.  The third time happened on Monday when I was at Taco Bueno (my favorite) by myself for lunch and I couldn't get up out of the booth I was sitting in.  I had to sit there for about 15 minutes trying to get the feeling back in my legs.  Not fun.  Totally embarassing (when in public).  And not cool!

I go to the doctor today for my 33 week check up.  Hopefully she can recommend something to relieve the pain.  If not, it's going to be a looooonnnnnnggg and painful 7 weeks...

Parents-To-Be with Priorit-Tees

Before (and after) Josh and I got married we had a tradition of really living it up on St. Patrick's day here in Dallas.  I have always said, "it's the best day in Dallas".  In fact, it was on this day in 2005 that we decided to take our "friendship" to a new level and began dating. 

This year, although 8 months pregnant, is no different.  Unless of course you count the fact that we are signed up for breastfeeding classes that morning.  From 9:00AM until 11:30 that morning we will be learning the ins and outs of one of the most important bonding experiences we can share with our little baby. 

In years past, from 9:00-11:30 on this very day, we would be imbibing on bloody marys until we switched to beer for the rest of the day. 

Once we realized that we would be in class on this very important day, our first thought was to reschedule the class.  I even contacted the hospital to see about switching to another day when it occurred to me that this class is a priority! 

What were we thinking?!  From now on, our daughter comes first and if that means we have to show up to the St. Patty's day festivities 3 hours later than normal, then she's worth it.

See?  We're growing up and maturing right before your very eyes!  I'm so proud of us.  :)

¿No Aqua?

Two days ago I decided to go ahead and bring the gift bag that I got from registering at BuyBuy Baby in from the car.  It was loaded with little goodies like free baby wipes, lotions, a bottle, coupons and a couple of magazines, one called Baby Talk and another for expectant new moms like me.

I sat down to leaf through the magazines and I was surprised at how quickly I became engrossed!  I never pegged myself as someone that would read, learn and/or be interested in something in them besides articles about how to dress cute while pregnant.  But there I was, reading each and every single article, wondering if I would be able to actually retain any of the good advice I was ingesting. 

One article in particular caught my eye and it was referring to milestones in a baby's life.  Of course there are the biggies:  smiling, laughing, cooing, crawling, walking, etc.  But then I learned there are others like this one in particular that scared me to death! 

Am I the only dumbass that never knew that you can't give a baby water until at least 6 months and even only after you've gotten your doctor's expert opinion?!  If I didn't even know this, what other harmful "milestones" will I mess up, potentially harming my child? 

When can my baby drink water?
Stephen R. Daniels, pediatrician

In general, it's not a good idea to give your baby water until he's about 6 months old. Until then, he'll get all the hydration he needs from breast milk or formula, even in hot weather.

Giving a baby younger than 6 months old too much water can interfere with his body's ability to absorb the nutrients in breast milk or formula. It can also cause his tummy to feel full, which curbs his desire to feed. (While small sips of water probably won't hurt your baby, it's best to check with his doctor beforehand during those first six months.)

In rare cases, a baby who drinks too much water can develop a condition known as water intoxication, which can cause seizures and even a coma. Water intoxication happens when too much water dilutes the concentration of sodium in the body, upsetting the electrolyte balance and causing tissues to swell.

Adding too much water to your baby's formula not only risks water intoxication, it means that your baby is taking in fewer nutrients than he needs. Carefully follow the package directions for mixing powdered or concentrated formula and don't try to stretch formula by using more than the recommended amount of water.

In some instances – if your baby has gastroenteritis, for example – the doctor might advise you to give him an electrolyte drink like Pedialyte or Infalyte to help prevent dehydration.

Once your baby is 6 months old, it's okay to give him sips of water when he's thirsty. You still don't want to overdo it, though, or you might give him a tummy ache or make him too full to eat well. After his first birthday, when your baby's eating solids and drinking whole milk, you can let him drink as much water as he likes.

My precious daughter

As the weeks fly by, I am getting more and more excited about meeting our sweet little Piper.  I think about her all the time and my heart just feels so full of love her her. 

Two days ago I was driving home from work and the song, "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars came on.  Normally I would change the channel because that song was too annoying, but as I listened to the words and applied them to my sweet baby girl, I realized it is the perfect song for her.

When I see your face

There's not a thing that I would change

Cause you're amazing

Just the way you are

And when you smile,

The whole world stops and stares for awhile

Cause girl you're amazing

Just the way you are

 

The way you are

The way you are

Girl you're amazing

Just the way you are

Piper, I can't wait to see you.

Third Trimester - The "real" countdown has begun!

Today marks the first day of my third trimester.  I'm 27 weeks and I swear, getting bigger every day!  Piper is a strong kicker and gets the hiccups every couple of days or so.  She's much more active during the day than she used to be too. 

It's funny that as soon as I hit 26 weeks, everything in my pregnancy started to change.  For example: 

• I cannot breathe sitting straight up, after walking to/from my car, after walking up stairs...
• Some of the maternity pants that Kimberly gave me are too tight around my middle/hips
• I get so tired mid-day and again driving home from work, and need to go to bed early again
• It's getting harder and harder to find something to wear to work each day
• I'm so uncomfortable
• My sciatic nerve hurts so bad that by the time it's time to leave work, I look like I walk with a limp
• I get full so fast and even though the food tastes good, I can't eat another bite
• Gas is not my friend and shows up unannounced from time to time
• Heartburn is hanging out with Gas and they are friends.  I don't like them.

BUT, here's the good news... there's a light at the end of the tunnel.  Piper Marie should be here within the next 13 weeks and that is SO exciting!  I have started to get some stuff for her and even got my first baby gift off our registry: an umbrella stroller that I tried to put Scooter in, but he didn't appreciate it as much as I had hoped he would.  He wouldn't even pose for a picture.  Maybe I'll put the new onesie I got for her on him and take a picture of that... 

Speaking of Scooter, my dad says that he might be my "baby" for now, but as soon as Piper is here, he'll go back to being "just a dog".  I hope not. 

So 13 weeks (maybe less) and counting... I can hardly wait!

The never ending checklist. Is it really necessary?

Having a baby is super exciting and the answer to our long awaited prayers, but the checklist of stuff to do to prepare for Piper's arrival seems never ending.  There is so much to think about, do, plan, consider, and buy that I get overwhelmed. 

I keep trying to tell myself that I am very blessed and that most people in the world do not have the opportunity to prepare like we do.  Most people on earth don't register, set up a nursery, take classes, see a doctor on a regular basis, and have the financial means that we do in order to "have a baby".  I feel incredibly spoiled when I put things in to perspective like that.  Is it all really necessary? 

I'm pretty sure that if Piper were to show up tomorrow, we would still be able to function.  Not well, but she wouldn't perish either.  And neither would we.

Just a thought.  Now I'm going to go sign up for "Preparation for Childbirth" classes...