No baby K... yet...

Aaron and I went back to the doctor today to have my blood pressure checked. It was back down to normal. I don't remember the exact reading, but something like 110/70. So since it was not high, Dr. Tamucci didn't see any reason to induce. I also lost 2 pounds!! This is probably due to the fact that I went to the doctor before lunch today and right after lunch on Monday. Oh well...

The tests that she ran on Monday were normal and she mentioned again that the ultrasound was normal. Now I will go back on Monday for another CST and checkup.

Dr. T did mention how there are pros and cons to both letting nature take its course and inducing. With letting Kerrigan decide when she's ready, it allows her to stay in the womb longer and allow her to grow some more and will help her lungs adapt to the real world. However, her staying in there could also lead to me having high blood pressure, which could potentially be a dangerous situation. With inducing, it would allow her to come on out without the possibility of me getting toxemia. This in turn keeps my health out of jeopardy. However, her due date is still 3 weeks away and she may not be able to adjust well to the real world. She may have to go to the NICU if she were to have trouble breathing or eating. It's just one of those situations where we will just wait and see. Dr. Tamucci said this is the reason she's been running all of the tests on me--just to make sure everything is okay. I'm confident that if she thinks it is time, then she will do what she needs to do.

So basically our next step is for me to go back Monday and get checked out. That is, if Kerrigan doesn't decide she is ready to come out before then. I still don't think I'll make it to the 30th.

Thanks to my mom's friend Debby Godfrey for making the window treatment for Kerrigan's room! She finished putting it up today and the finished product is great! I am really happy with how it turned out. Here are some pictures:









Also, Kerrigan's big brother Father (AKA: Fahj) was checking out her room tonight:



So the other night, I posted to my Facebook this status: "Anyone have any suggestions on a good baby monitor? We are leaning towards a video monitor... didn't know if any of you had used one before." The results--Video: 5, Audio: 5, Uncle Dave: "let the lil bugger just cry...teaches him coping skills. lol haha jk of course :)" Thanks, Dave. LOL!

So this made me confused--what else is new? But we did some research and knowing my paranoid self, I would probably be watching her all the time anyway, so we decided on the Angelcare Deluxe Movement Monitor. I went to Babies 'R Us and got it today. Hopefully we'll be happy with our choice. But I thank everyone for their help and suggestions!

I also needed a pedicure in a bad way, so I went ahead and got one this afternoon. I'm running out of time! I keep thinking that any time I leave the house to go to the doctor, I won't return until after Kerrigan's born. Then I won't have time to do much of anything! But it was very nice and relaxing. The place over by my house that I've been going to the past few times is well worth the $25.

Tonight, Megan and the boys brought some things over for Kerrigan. They are letting us borrow their swing, a baby gate and a tent to use at the beach or pool or anywhere outdoors. We finished setting up the swing and we tested out the gate with Marley while they were here. He stayed put in the kitchen, but he still whined because he wanted to play. He's up for a rude awakening pretty soon! :) Anyway, the boys LOVE their Guncle's guitar and I took some video of them singing. Pop taught them "Yellow Submarine" so they sung a little bit of that. Of course, by the end, it turned into the "Green Submarine" but it was very entertaining to say the least. You'll have to mute my iPod player so that it doesn't interfere with the video. They start singing around the 28-29 second mark, but the first part is pretty funny too.




Tomorrow (Thursday), I am meeting up with the 1st grade teachers for lunch. I was afraid I may not get to go but glad to get the chance. In the upcoming days before my next doctor's appointment, I plan to go to my parents' pool so I can relax. Anything I can do to keep my blood pressure down will be good. So Saturday, I probably should steer clear of Aaron while he watches the US play in their first World Cup game. He can get pretty intense! ;)

Until next time...

lj

Weekend at the Pool & Kerrigan Update

Well, no luck last week getting a lamp for Kerrigan's room or that night light that I showed a picture of on the last blog. But we did find a very pretty butterfly night light that looks really good when it is lit up. It almost looks like stained glass.

I spent the weekend at my parents' pool, which was very nice. On Saturday, we had our biannual family get together with my late grandmother's sister's family. There were close to 30 people there! Unfortunately Brad couldn't come home from Georgia this weekend, so he wasn't able to make it. But the boys did a great job in the water. They were getting more comfortable in the pool with Guncle (Aaron) and Pop (my dad). And I swear Carson and Parker ate a whole watermelon!! It was hilarious seeing all the juice running down their bellys. I'm stealing a picture from Megan's blog:



On Sunday, my mom and I went to eat at The Bright Star. Then we came back to the pool again. I was able to float on a raft and lay on my stomach! I can't even remember the last time I was able to lie on my stomach, but it was nice. Nice to feel weightless in a pool and not like a ton of bricks!!

I have been having contractions--not labor contractions--but I have been able to feel them more these days. I guess it has something to do with approaching my due date!! I am still getting swollen feet and ankles even though I'm not working. I can't wait for that to stop!

Yesterday, Aaron and I went to my doctor's appointment. We started out with lunch at Momma Goldberg's in Homewood. Then we got to the hospital and I had my CST first. Once again, the nurse was looking to see how the baby was going to respond to contractions. I was also supposed to have 3 contractions in 10 minutes, which I did. My blood pressure was fine throughout the test, but I was lying down for 20+ minutes. Once the test was finished, we went up to Dr. Tamucci's office for my checkup. When they checked my blood pressure again, it was high... I want to say 150/96. Last week when it was high, she thought it may have been a fluke. However, this time, I think she was more concerned since it had been high two weeks in a row. She thought the blood pressure they checked was probably more accurate because it's my "walking around" blood pressure. While I was having my CST, I was lying down and not moving for a significant amount of time.

Anyway, she wants me to come back Wednesday to check everything out again. She wanted me to do another urine sample so they could check for protein in my urine, which I later found out at home is a sign of toxemia (or preeclampsia). Her main concern is that my blood pressure has been fine throughout my pregnancy, even though I have high BP anyway. Now, these past 2 visits, it has been high. So she told Aaron and I that she wants to check me again on Wednesday. If she is not satisfied, then we may have to do something on Thursday. Even though she is a firm believer in letting nature take its course and having patients go into labor on their own, she doesn't want to risk me getting toxemia. She wants to for sure wait until I'm full term--which is 37 weeks. I'll be 37 weeks tomorrow. So where we stand now is that Kerrigan will be here sooner than the 30th because the doctor wants to do something between 37 and 39 weeks. It could even be at the end of this week! Who knows? I will find out more tomorrow when I go back, I suppose! I am now close to 2 cm dilated and 80% effaced.

So it's a little scary, but also exciting to know that she really is VERY close to being here! After Dr. Tamucci left the room, Aaron and I both looked at each other in shock! I wish someone was there to take our picture!

Then I had an ultrasound and the baby is fine. My amniotic fluid levels were good (thank you Crystal Light, water and decaf tea with Splenda!). She measured her, but since her head was so far down, she indicated it might not be the most accurate measurement. But according to her measurements, she was 6.7 pounds (which is what Aaron and I both weighed when we were born--crazy!!).

She looks less like an alien these days! But apparently the older a baby gets, the harder it is to see her on an ultrasound... her face is far down and squished. But I thought it was a pretty decent picture:



I'm trying to take it easy... watching out for headaches or vision changes. I did feel nauseous last night when I got in bed. I'm not sure what that's all about, but it went away. I need to make a mental note to tell Dr. Tamucci that tomorrow.

Anyway, I'm very anxious for 11 a.m. tomorrow to get here. Wondering what my blood pressure will be, wondering if I had protein in my urine yesterday, wondering if I'm going to have a baby in the next few days!!! So surreal!

So last night, I had Aaron install the car seat bases in our cars! Call it jumping the gun, but I want to be prepared!

Later this afternoon, our window treatment will be here and hung up. So I will try and get pictures of that posted soon.

lj

Happy Birthday Aaron!

Today is Aaron's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AJ!!!!!


It is also Kerrigan's 36th week in the womb birthday! According to my weekly email update: Your baby is gaining about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy hair that covered her body, as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Next week, your baby will be considered full-term. Most likely she's in a head-down position, but if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an external cephalic version, where she'll try to turn your baby by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

Back to Aaron's birthday... even though I am out of school, I still got up at 7 to make Aaron waffles. Wow, I'm such a great wife! But I figure I can take a nap later if I need to. ;) Plus, I won't be sleeping in much longer, so I should try and get used to it. Marley gave him another Home Depot gift card--I see a new grill in the future. I also got him some new soccer shoes... or "boots" as futbol players call them.

Speaking of soccer, Kerrigan has been told by her daddy not to come out on the following days: June 12, June 18 or June 23. Why, you ask? Well, the US Men's National Team plays in the World Cup on these days. Daddy would have a hard time choosing between the two. HAHAHAH!!! She should come out on one of these days so we can see what he would really choose. Just kidding, Aaron!!!

Yesterday, I went to the doctor. I had a CST test first. I asked the nurse what the difference was between an NST and a CST. She said with the NST, they are looking to see if the heartbeat can accelerate 15 beats for 15 seconds at a time--3 times. I think I explained that in an earlier post. Anyway, with a CST, they are watching for contractions to see how the baby responds to them. My results were fine. I had some contractions during the test, so that was what they were looking for. They didn't hurt or anything--later Dr. Tamucci said they were "false contractions" and that I would for sure be able to feel the real ones! At one point, I did have to do something to stimulate contractions, but I am not going to write about it on this blog!

Even though I wasn't having an NST, the nurse still wanted to see if her heart rate would accelerate, so she put this little "zapper" thing on my belly and it gave her a jolt. She was definitely awake after that! I thought Kerrigan was going to jump out of my stomach, she moved so much. It was kind of crazy! After that, she moved around a lot. She had been really still up until that point. My blood pressure was pretty normal throughout the test. But when I got to the doctor's office--they checked it there and it was high. My doctor said, "What's up with that?!" But after looking at my blood pressures from earlier, she thought it was probably just a fluke. Anyway, I am now 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. Kerrigan's head is also "in the right position." I asked what position that was and Dr. Tamucci said her head was headed down. My blood work and urine tests were fine. I also measured fine. I go back on Monday for another CST and an ultrasound. I'm anxious to see how big KJ is. I am hoping the gestational diabetes hasn't made her too large. We'll see soon, though.

Dr. Tamucci had anticipated that I would do fine with the CST tests, but she said it's just something they do with all high blood pressure patients. She did tell me to be on the lookout for "high blood pressure signs." There are 3: (1) intense headaches, (2) seeing spots or having blurry vision where you can't focus and (3) having pain above your right abdomen, where your liver is. I'll be paying close attention for sure!

Yesterday, I went to Storkland and got two little "do-dads" to go on Kerrigan's wall. Since the new pictures on her wall are of a butterfly and flower, and her mobile has butterflies hanging from it, I decided to stay with that theme. So I got a pink, glittery butterfly and a pink, glittery flower to hang up. I'm so surprised at how much pink I'm allowing in this child's room! I called Aaron to tell him what I got and was asking if I should get anything else. I'm glad I called him because I was about to get a third "do-dad" of either a ladybug or a caterpillar... except, these were green and not pink. He kindly said, "I don't know if the green will look good since the wall is green." DUH!!! Pregnancy brain at it's worse. I can't believe I wasn't thinking about that. Oh well. Like I said, glad I called him.

I want to go to Kirkland's today to look about a nightlight I saw online.


I also want to see if they have some sort of lamp to put in the room, too. At Storkland, they were too... oh, what's the word? I can't think of it now, but let's just say, not my style. Haha. Anyway, I hope to be able to knock those out today. Then the only thing we'll really need to get for the room is a monitor. We were leaning more towards a video monitor. Anyone have any advice?

There are a few things in her closet that need to come out, but they are for the kitchen. I have to clean out and rearrange some cabinets first. I would like to get that done sometime this week or this weekend. The earlier I can get stuff done, the better I'll feel! When Kerrigan is older, we are going to read all of these blog posts together so she can see all the hard work we put in before she came along. :)

Here's a picture from a website of Kerrigan's stroller, carseat and pack and play. I don't think I have put pictures of them up here yet. We have all three and I'm excited to get to use them soon!


We went to eat with Megan and the boys last night at Logan's. Those two are a MESS! :) We are going to eat at Petruccelli's tonight for Aaron's birthday with my parents, Megan and the boys. Brad is in Georgia working this week, so he won't be able to make it. No comment on that situation!

More to come after my next doctor's appointment (unless something HUGE happens before then!).

lj

How Many New Parents Does It Take to Hang Up Letters on a Wall?

First of all: SCHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL'S... OUT... FOR... SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, sorry--had to get that out. I can't believe I made it, but it feels good knowing that I won't have to worry about getting up and stressing about work for a few months.

In other news...

Here are some photos of me a couple of weeks ago. I was almost 34 weeks. I'm getting bigger and bigger and bigger and bigger. I may just explode! I'm probably even bigger now--yikes!





Well, it has finally happened--we have hung up the things that needed to be hung on the walls of KJ's room! I do believe that the only thing left to do in there is put up her window treatment, which should be done fairly soon. There are also some cute things at Storkland (where we got her baby furniture) that I may try and check out after my doctor's appointment on Tuesday.

So, you may ask... why does this post have the title it does? Well, it probably took us an hour or two to get the letters ready and hung up.

Our first dilemma was how long we should cut each piece of ribbon. Well, it was kind of a look and see type deal, but after some attempts, we finally figured it out. At first, some were too long and that would make the others too short. Then we thought we may run out of ribbon. Ahhhh!! Finally, after some tweaking, we were able to work it out.

Then, we were going to try and tie our ribbon like Brad and Megan have Carson and Parker's letters in their room, but we couldn't figure out the best way to do that. Our frustrations were also getting in the way. :) So we decided to Google what other people had done. Some people had used eye screws, some had used velcro and some had used hot glue. So we decided that we would try hot gluing the ribbon on the back of the letters. Now, I am majorly OCD, so I had to make sure that the ribbon was glued the exact width apart on each letter, so I had to measure all 8 letters in order for this to happen. Then I had to mark the positions. Finally, I had to glue all the ribbon. Okay, so this was done... not quickly, of course.

Next step, hanging them so they are the same distance apart. Well, we measured the width we had to work with--45.5 inches. So we figured, hey--divide that by 8. Uhm, no. That doesn't work for future reference! Luckily, we didn't go ahead and hammer in the nails. We just used pushpins at first so we could get an idea of where to put the nails. So they didn't leave that big of a hole. We had the first one and the last one up, then we put the final 6. Between the 7th pushpin and the last pushpin, there was a HUGE gap. After looking at it, I finally figured out you have to divide by 7 (not 8) in order for this to work since we wanted the first nail to start at 0 and the last nail to end at 45.5. Confusing, I'm sure... but they are nailed on the wall... and I must admit, they look pretty good! Who knew this task could be so difficult? I'm sure for most people it's not. But Aaron and I sure did a great job at making it hard!!



Then, Aaron hung up the toy hammock in one corner of the room. We were able to clear out some of the closet space that was taken up by stuffed animals. Aaron arranged all the animals so they were all facing the front and you could see all of their faces. Who knew a man could care so much about something like this? :) If you look in the top right corner of the picture below, you'll see the hammock.



We also got the two pictures and mirror up that we had bought a few weeks back. And we also decided to move the chair, so that it wasn't so cluttered around the window. Really, I think the main reason Aaron wanted that to happen was so that Marley and the cats could still look out the window--haha! But I really like it better. Plus, we will be able to see the window treatment more with the chair on the other side. See below for updated pictures of the nursery.







But, like I said earlier... now the room is almost done--I'd say 90-95% complete. We also have 2 bags packed for the hospital for Kerrigan and I have my bag packed--for the most part. I need to go back through and make sure I have most everything ready. If you look in the picture that shows the toy hammock, you'll see the two bags hanging on the door--an easy grab and go.

We're almost down to the final month now. This is a good thing, even though I'm still really nervous about giving birth and being a new mom, because being pregnant is getting harder and harder everyday! It's so hard to move and walk and bend over and get off the couch or out of bed and get dressed and shave, and my legs/ankles/feet and fingers are so swollen, etc., etc.

My next doctor's appointment is on Tuesday, so I'll try and give an update on it soon afterward. I have a CST and then I meet with Dr. Tamucci. Hopefully everything is still going well and I'm measuring okay. I don't think I'll get an ultrasound this visit--I think I remember her telling me it would be the next appointment.

Since summer has officially started for me, I've seen more rain than sun. Hopefully these thunderstorms will stop, but it looks like it may rain most of the week. But I'd like for AJ and I to try and get some pool time tomorrow since he'll be off work for Memorial Day.

PS: Aaron's birthday is on Wednesday--call, text, email, or Facebook him and wish him a happy day! ;) Monetary gifts are welcome............................... teehee!

lj

5 weeks & 2 days until the due date...

I will be 35 weeks pregnant on Wednesday. It's hard to believe how close I am until my due date. This pregnancy has really seemed to fly by. There hasn't really been too much going on in our lives the past couple of weeks. I have definitely hit that third trimester tired stage because I haven't even had the energy to log on and blog about nothing. But today I took the day off because our school has Field Day and I definitely would not have made it with the combination of the heat, humidity and my poor swollen feet and ankles. So I am taking advantage of it and going to write about a few things.

Last Wednesday, I went to the doctor for a Nonstress Test. I was hooked up to a heart monitor for about 20 minutes so they could check Kerrigan's heartbeat. For the most part, it was averaging between 135 and 140. In order to pass the test, her heart rate had to escalate 15 beats (around 150 or so) for 15 consecutive seconds three times. Apparently hers did because I passed. I was also hooked up to a blood pressure cuff the entire time, so that was a good way to get my blood pressure checked. It was normal the whole time. The thing that really was interesting is when the nurse said, "You're having a contraction right now. What does it feel like?" If she wouldn't have said anything, I wouldn't have had a clue! I had a few contractions but they were mild. Just felt like a little cramping and tightening in my abdomen. I also had to click a button whenever she moved. It seemed like she moved a lot which was unusual for the time of day.

My doctor told me that I was going to have these tests each week until I deliver. However, with this week being the last week of school, the only day I would have been able to go back this week would have been today. At first she was okay with that but I guess she figured it wouldn't hurt to go past a week, so I go back next Tuesday, June 1. This time I will have to have a CST (contraction stress test). I am not really sure why I will have this test this time. While I had the NST, there were a few instances where Kerrigan's heart rate dropped. But the nurse was not concerned about it. She said that it could have been that Kerrigan rolled over on her cord or the amniotic fluid got low. I will update that doctor's appointment next week.

After I had the NST, I went to see Dr. Tamucci. All she had to do was look at my results and she said it was a great heartbeat. Since my BP was already checked and we just spent 20 minutes testing the heart rate, all she had to do was measure me. She noticed my feet and ankles and she was not concerned. She explained that they were preparing my body for labor--basically they serve as a type of "IV" because once I deliver, I will lose lots of fluid/blood and the fluid built up in my legs, ankles and feet will help replenish that. Hopefully I explained that correctly. Not being a doctor, all this stuff tends to confuse me. But I thought it was interesting.

On Saturday, Aaron and I went to a Prepared Childbirth Class. It was an all day class that concluded at the hospital, where we were given a tour. We saw a lot of video clips and learned a lot of information. Not that I was considering anything differently, but I am now 110% sure that I will get an epidural. They showed us several clips of women having contractions and giving labor without one. And, uhm... no. I don't think I can handle all of that! We did do some breathing exercises, which I couldn't help but laugh while I was doing. I doubt I'll be laughing when I'm really having contractions!! I won't go into everything we learned about, but it was pretty helpful. When we got to the hospital, we were able to see where we go when I get dropped off. We saw some birthing suites and postpartum rooms. We also saw the Well Baby Nursery; although, it was empty. It really just made everything that much more real.

As far as Kerrigan's room, it is almost completely done. Mom's friend Debby is in the midst of doing a window treatment that should be finished soon. We have to put up the KERRIGAN letters still. We also have a couple of pictures and a mirror that we need to hang up. We got a mobile the other day that Aaron put on the crib. We also bought a net/hammock to hang up in the corner of the wall to put stuffed animals in. Aaron will have to work on putting that up, too. Just a few more loose ends to tie up and we will be set.

Yesterday was the first day Aaron and I got to use my parents' pool this year. So glad this time of year is finally here! After Friday, it will be summer vacation for me!

lj

We got everything put away in Kerrigan's room!

You can actually walk in Kerrigan's room now! We took a few hours tonight to organize all of our gifts and put things away. We have laundry going with little girl clothes, blankets, sheets, etc. The nursery is so close to being finished; all we need now is things for the wall! I took some pictures--you can click on them to make them bigger:

This is a picture of her room when you are standing in the doorway. It's hard to get a good angle.


Here is the picture of the new rug we got:


Here are some pictures of the new chair we got. You can see we have caught the cats in it!


Here's Hershey in the chair:


These are the letters Aaron and I painted to go on the wall above Kerrigan's crib. We haven't hung them up yet. I just finished painting them on Friday.


Here is a picture of a bouncy chair we got at my Baby Tea last Sunday:


Here is a picture of the high chair we got at my Baby Tea:


So we are getting there. There's still some minor things we have to do, but I think we are better off than we were a month ago. I have realized that I am going to need to reorganize some cabinets in the kitchen (or build some more) so that we can store baby items. That may be something I do when I am out of school.

I also wanted to post a few pictures of the lilies Aaron got me for our anniversary.






I must say that he did a great job picking those out.

Well, this marks the 3 week countdown until summer break. I sure hope that my kids understand that their teacher is super tired and super pregnant and that they will take it easy on me. Wishful thinking! :) I go to a Breastfeeding Class on Tuesday night. That should be interesting. I think Aaron may try to go with me. I hope so so that I can remember some stuff! Other than that, no other plans that I am aware of except for Aaron playing soccer tomorrow night. And I think Do Dah Day is on Saturday--so we may take Marley up to that.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there! I hope everyone has a great week!

lj

More Things for the Room, Baby Tea, Anniversary, Doctor's Appointment

Okay, it's a good thing that there are only a few more weeks of school left because I am so tired. I mean, I get home and know that there is stuff that needs to be done like laundry, picking up, emptying/loading the dishwasher, etc., so I go ahead and do some of it. But it's a pain and just makes me more exhausted. We have got to clean this weekend. Kerrigan's room looks like a tornado has come through and she's not even born yet, we have random stuff all over the place and our floors could use a cleaning. Sorry, complaining... we need a maid. Wish we could afford one!!

Alright, so thinking back to when I last posted...

Last Friday, Jenni and I went to Staples to print my Thank You cards that Jenni designed. The guy who worked there was not very pleasant and talked to us like we were idiots. We finally got them printed, though. They are designed to look like the pattern on Kerrigan's bedding. They are so cute! Then I went to get tanned that evening...whoop, whoop!

On Saturday, Aaron and I went to Tuscaloosa with my parents to visit a baby store that my mom had been to--Lily Pads and Baby Bundles in Northport. We wanted to try and get some accessories/decorations for Kerrigan's room, but they really didn't have that many. However, we DID end up getting a rocking chair that was marked down about 50% and we got a rug for her room. The rocking chair looks more like a recliner that doesn't recline. It's brown with pink polka dots... cute and super comfy! We also got a pink "ruffle" rug. I don't really know how else to describe it. Once we get some things cleaned up, I'll have to take some pictures to post on here.

Sunday was my Baby Tea. Once again, it was raining on the day of a shower for Kerrigan. I bet she'll be born on a rainy day, too... hmmmmmm. Anyway, a lot of family, family friends and friends showed up and it was great to see everyone. I haven't seen a lot of the people who came in a long time!! Kerrigan got hooked up once more! She got a TON of cute clothes, a high chair, a bouncer, some blankets, a bouncy seat/activity center, some practical items from friends who are mom's and a ton of other great stuff. This is why her room is such a mess. We brought all the gifts inside and haven't done anything with them since Sunday night!! Weekend project!! I've started thank you notes... gotta finish those!!

The beginning of the week was pretty uneventful. Yesterday (Wednesday) was our THIRD anniversary!! I can't believe it has already been three years. It's also hard to believe that that was our last anniversary where it's just the two of us. After my doctor's appointment (I'll talk about later), I met up with Aaron. That morning, I had left Aaron's gift at home for him to see when he woke up...since he's still sleeping when I leave for work (gag!). (It was a gift card to Home Depot to put towards a grill, in case you were wondering. Hahahaha!) After I met him, he put on this big front that he didn't think I was going to get him anything so he didn't get me anything. We had to kill some time so we went to the store and Aaron asked if I wanted to pick my own card out--no thanks. LOL! So, we went to Ruth's Chris for dinner. I had never been there before, so I was excited! We came up to the table and there were BEAUTIFUL flowers on the table...colorful lilies...and lilies are my favorite. There were also some books to read while I'm laid up and some little UAB gear for Kerrigan (booties, cap and bib) that my dad had brought Aaron earlier. So Aaron was trying to act like he hadn't gotten me anything when he had really gone to the restaurant beforehand and left the stuff to surprise me. What a sweet and wonderful husband I have! We got steaks and shared some scalloped potatoes and a Caesar salad. That was THE BEST steak I have ever eaten in my life. To top it off, our waiter brought us a piece of chocolate mousse cheesecake on the house for our anniversary. Needless to say, I did not check my sugars last night!!!

My 32 week checkup was yesterday afternoon. The heartbeat sounded good and she showed me where she thought she was laying in my belly based on where I feel her moving and where the heartbeat is coming from. Then I was surprised when she told me I was going to get an ultrasound. It was very brief, but I did find out that Kerrigan was 4.1 pounds, which I think she said was in the 34th percentile. I wish that I would have made sure that's what she said because I can't find anything on the internet showing the percentile your child is in based on fetal weight. She did say that was normal though, so maybe 34th percentile is right. According to her length she measured 31 weeks and 5 days and I was 32 weeks so that's good. Seems that the gestational diabetes isn't causing her to be large. At least, I hope that's the case. I got a picture showing Kerrigan playing with her feet. How cute is that? We didn't really get a good picture of her face... it was kind of smashed up against the wall or whatever. I don't know proper terms, obviously. I was told to drink more water so the fluid won't get dangerously low.

My next appointment will be on the 19th. I have to get a Fetal Non-Stress Test. My doctor told me this was precautionary since I have high blood pressure. They are going to hook me up to check Kerrigan's heart rate for about 15 or 20 minutes just to monitor and make sure everything is okay. Apparently, I am "high risk" since I do have high blood pressure, gestational diabetes AND am a teacher--around germs, germs, germs. I have to do this test once a week until the baby comes. Wow.

I'm so thankful tomorrow is Friday. I have training all day, so I'm sure I'll be ready to snooze when that's over. I'll have to get in a Friday nap for sure.

I think it's time for me to put my feet up... they are very swollen.

lj