35 weeks and entering the final month!

Wow the past 4 months have flown by!! From traveling across the nation to visit family, getting everything packed up and moving to a new country...We've been a bit busy! We expect to receive all of our household stuff (furniture, dishes, toys, beds etc...) next week. That's right...just a few days before Christmas and only 1 month before the baby is due! My nesting instinct is going crazy since I haven't been able to organize and get settled. I'm anxious to get our stuff, unpack our boxes and set up the nursery!

We just got internet last week so I figured I'd better update the blog because we are about to get severely busy getting settled, celebrating Christmas and getting ready for the baby. So, I may not get the chance to update again until after he is born. That's right..."He", for those who didn't know we are having another boy! We were a bit surprised but we are excited because we know God has a plan for our family and we are thrilled to welcome Jordan Daniel in to our lives!

Now we are "flirting" with the idea of trying for 1 more baby after this since we are not having a girl this time. I was excited to be done after this one but sometimes plans change. It will depend on how smooth labor/delivery goes! I would expect to have another boy, of course. I told Jarod he can have his basketball team then. Daddy and his 4 boys on Team Savage! (4 boys! Holy Moly...)

Through all of this craziness I feel so blessed to have a healthy baby and a healthy pregnancy. I am a little anemic so I take a supplement but that's it. I have no health risks and can function quite normally. Yes, I am getting uncomfortable from the lovely 3rd trimester side effects of sciatic nerve pain, leg aches, back aches, hemorrhoids, swollen feet etc... I have to assume the "sumo wrestler" position every time I need to bend over and it's a challenge to keep my undies dry when I laugh, cough or sneeze. I get a few contractions each day, sometimes more if I've had a busy day. I am certainly not "small" anymore. I have outgrown many of my maternity clothes and am only comfortable in the stretchy large sizes. I embrace all of these symptoms because they tell me that my baby is growing healthy and strong and we are getting close to meeting!

We are becoming more comfortable with our surroundings. It has been a big adjustment moving to England! So much is different! We found a lovely house in a sweet, quiet village that is very close to our Base. (hopefully our furniture will all fit inside!)

We are PLANNING a home birth! (unlike our last home birth that was unplanned) I found a wonderful certified midwife that is covered by our insurance! I have talked to other military spouses who have had home births with her. She is amazing! We all enjoy her British wit and charm!

Jarod is very busy with work and I don't know many people yet so I was concerned about doctor appointments and such since there is nobody to watch Micah (our 4 year old). With our midwife I don't have to worry about that! She comes to the house and interacts with Micah while taking my blood pressure and listening to the baby's heartbeat. If she needs a urine or blood sample she does it all here at my house. It's SO nice and relaxed!

I am so excited to have a relaxed childbirth experience this time, rather then a panic and rushed (OMG call 911) childbirth like last time. All we will have to do is call the midwife and work on relaxing. Hopefully we will have enough time to set up the pool. I'd love to try a water birth. I think I am most excited about recovering in my own bed!

I am also STOKED to have my step-mom (Darlene) out here! She is due to arrive nearly 2 weeks before Jordan is due. She will be with us for about 5 weeks. I was a little scared about going in to labor alone and not being able to get a hold of Jarod. With Darlene here I have peace knowing I won't be alone. She'll also be a huge help with the house and kids, helping us get settled in and helping me recover after Jordan arrives. God is so good!

I hope to update again after the holidays and as we enter the final stretch but my next post may be the details of Jordan's Birth-Day!

Until next time...
-Linda

Week 14- Hello 2nd Trimester!

Well, I've tried this great "belly band" to give me more options for clothes. The idea is to put on your regular shorts or pants, unzip farther as belly expands and put this stretchy band on top to conceal the unzipped part and hold your pants up. My problem is I can't get most of my pants over my butt! The ones I can get up are very tight and they want to move down as I sit and stand so the belly band isn't working well for me. Luckily some of my maternity clothes have just a small stretchy band around the waist and they fit already!

Another issue I've developed with this pregnancy is Allergies! I've never had allergies! It may just be Colorado but either way I was miserable for 7 weeks. Daily headaches, sinus pain/pressure, sore throat, post nasal drip etc... I finally made a Dr. appt. They said we'll try Zyrtec. It's as safe as Tylenol in pregnancy. 3 days after taking it I had no more sinus pain! At my appt. I found out I've gained 7 lbs!! The most I've ever gained in a 1st trimester! I also got to hear our baby's heartbeat. A strong 160 bpm. LOVE that sound!

I'm also seeing a massage therapist and chiropractor which helps with my migraines. I started having muscle spasms in my upper back so I saw my chiropractor. He discovered a rib out of place. Not sure how that happened but it explained the pain I was having. He fixed it and I've been good ever since!

I have whole days now without any nausea. Sometimes I get heartburn or gassy or I get a craving that I can't figure out and I can't satisfy it. No big deal. I don't feel like I have to eat something every hour so hopefully my weight gain will slow down now!

I'm craving more fruit now. Watermelon is my best friend! It's gotta be cold. It's so nice on a warm day! I also enjoy apples, pears and all the berries.

On base, here in CO, we only get an Attic fan which sucks in the cool air at night and then we shut the windows in the morning to keep in that cool air. Well...it feels nice in the morning but as the day heats up the house gets close to 80 degrees!I've been so hot that Jarod went to Home Depot and bought me an A/C window unit! Even though we'll only use it for about 1 month...it's 1 month that I will be a lot more comfortable!

I still feel like I could use a nap every afternoon but I don't feel drugged like I HAVE to sleep! So, energy is getting better. I've been able to do my Yoga DVD more and get more organizing/cleaning done to prepare for our move.

Jarod will be done with his summer program soon and will be able to be home with us! I'm really looking forward to having my partner/helpmate here more often! The next 2 months are going to be CRAZY! We will travel to see family for 23 days and then we'll have 3 weeks to get everything done for our move to England! At some point we will get an ultrasound to check on the baby and hopefully find out the gender!

I'm working on some pregnancy jokes so be looking for a good laugh with my next blog posting!

:)

Happy Times!
-Linda

Weeks 9-13 Finishing the 1st Trimester!!

This month has flown by! More symptoms I'm experiencing are weight gain, tight clothes- shoes are even tight!- new lumps in my thighs and butt. Yah cellulite!-Very dry skin on my body but oily on my face and scalp- Have to be careful when I cough, laugh or sneeze thanks to a leaky bladder- more cramping (growing, stretching uterus)- feeling emotional and weepy- dizzy spells- the heat outside makes me feel sick and faint- bigger, bloated looking belly-The gas has been monumental! I can clear a room!- migraines (an issue I had before pregnancy)- sciatic pain- Only threw up one time! A record for me!

Craving salty, spicy and carbs. (peanut butter, breads, bagels, french fries, banana peppers, prefer medium salsa instead of mild now, pot pies, chicken salad, pickles, sausage, bacon...and pears. I'm not sure where the pears craving came from!) I also have to eat a snack before bed so I don't feel hungry and queasy. Usually a toasted bagel with cream cheese or peanut butter. SO....that's why I've gained weight! I actually need to weigh myself to see my total weight now. I'm guessing 5 lbs.

Had to box up over half my wardrobe labeled (small pre-prego clothes). The Belly Band won't work because I can barely get them over my new larger butt! I had to get bigger underwear and bigger bras. I unboxed my maternity clothes and bought some new ones I found on sale. Some of the shorts and pants fit now! I'm using a rubber band on my non-maternity pants that are tight to close.

Week 10 I started feeling the ball of pressure low in my abdomen. Also had my first OB appt and got to see our angel on the ultrasound. The midwife let me record a video clip of the ultrasound so I could share it with family and especially Jarod since he couldn't be there. Very strong heartbeat! 168bpm. We are totally in love!! All of my annoying symptoms simply didn't matter at that point. It's SO worth it!

They calculated my due date to be Jan. 29 but after the ultrasound and measurements they changed it to Jan. 22.

Weeks 11-12 starting to get little bits of energy. Am working out to a DVD called "Yoga Booty Ballet...Baby on the Way", when I have the energy. I LOVE it! It completely focuses on the baby and it's specially designed for a pregnant body!

Week 13 I've noticed more days where I wasn't queasy all day. I've had more bouts of energy. I feel more "normal". Only my close friends can see my "little bump".

All in all it's been a typical 1st trimester. One I can look back at and laugh! I'm so glad it's over too! I'm ready to have more energy and get more done around the house as we prepare for vacations and our move overseas!

Weeks 4-8

My symptoms started right away. I became a little less patient, I started getting queasy, getting headaches, heartburn, bloating, gas pains, wrist pain, cramping, sore boobs, low back pain, sensitive to heat/cold, sensitive to smells and tastes and so SO tired all the time! WHAM BAM all of it hit me like a truck! I feel all my symptoms are exaggerated this time around. I have every symptom in the book! It's kind of annoying. On the other hand, it lets me know my body is working hard to give life to this little angel inside me.

I just have to laugh at it all because it's my last pregnancy so I'll just have to enjoy the good, bad and the ugly!

One Line OR Two??

Because we actually tried to get pregnant I decided to take an early detection pregnancy test (which is about 75% accurate) 4 days before my period was due. It was negative. I was a little bummed because I really thought we had a good chance of being pregnant.

Also, that whole week before my period was due I was getting very hot and my heart would race and I would get angry and impatient. I rarely get that ticked off! I kept telling Jarod "I feel SO weird!" He was rather amused by my new "feisty" attitude.

I talked to a friend who has used the early detection tests before. She said out of all her pregnancies it detected right half the time. I felt a little better thinking I have a 50/50 chance but I wasn't very convinced.

Monday May 17...the day my period is due. It's 5:45am. I got up with Jarod. He was in the shower. I peed on the pregnancy test and left it on the window sill in our bathroom then went downstairs to make coffee. I came back up stairs and saw Jarod out of the shower. (he didn't know I took the test) I asked him to check the test and nodded toward the window. He said "huh?!" Then walked over to the window and looked down at the test. "Is this a joke?" He said. "No. How many lines do you see?" I said. (The test I took has a blue line in one window and a pink line in the next window. There's 2 pink lines if it's positive.) He held up 2 fingers and then said "1 1/2?" I said "How many PINK lines?" He said "it's faint but I see 2". Then I said "HUH?!" So I walk over to him and looked at the test myself. I looked up at him and said "I'm pregnant!" We hugged and kissed and "celebrated" and giggled and cried. Well, I cried. :)

(Because of the extremely faint 2nd line I took 2 more pregnancy tests the next 2 days which clearly showed the 2 pink lines!)

What an emotional and exciting day! We told everyone right away! I know some people wait until they are 2-3 months pregnant. I've never had a miscarriage and we've always told everyone right away. I figure that if something happens to the baby then I will have a lot of support from all the people who knew about the pregnancy. Plus all our loved ones knew our plan to try and conceive at this time and we wanted to make everyone smile with the thought of our new addition.

Thank you Lord for Blessing our desires to be pregnant at this time!!

Ready...Set...We have CONCEPTION!

We have 2 boys already and since we plan for this to be our last baby we would just love to have a girl! I've had dreams about our little Isabella Grace! I know she is destined. I'm not sure how or when we will have her in our lives but I sure hope it's now!

I read up on different techniques to make my internal "environment" more favorable for having a girl. Most of the stuff I read made me laugh and I thought "This is nuts!" It takes the fun out of it and after all that weird work to conceive, nothing is 100%. God's in charge! I received an email from an old friend who described how her and her husband conceived a girl. It was all about timing. Have sex right before ovulation so the girl sperm are still alive by the time the egg drops and most of the boys are dead. So I took her advice and bought an ovulation kit. I peed on these little sticks every morning after my period ended. 5 days later (May 4) the stick detected my "LH surge" which your body produces when it's about to release the egg in 24-36 hours. It's GO TIME!

I sent Jarod a text message midday explaining Micah was napping and I was all alone...(you get the picture) He did not text me back but he was in the door about 15 minutes later still in full uniform! His excuse to his coworkers was "it's a beautiful day so I want to go home and get my motorcycle".

Batta Bing Batta Boom!

Since then I've read some other information that said this was the best time to conceive a boy. Jarod and I just laugh and say It's up to God no matter what! At least we had fun creating this little miracle!

Planning for our Baby...

Although it's fun to be "surprised" by an unexpected miracle (which is what happened to us 2 times already)...We actually planned this pregnancy to the best of our ability and prayed for God's will to be done.

I came off birth control while Jarod was deployed and got to know my body and it's natural cycle for the first time in my life. I began tracking my full cycle and writing it on the calendar. After 3 months my body got on a very steady and dependable cycle and I felt better than ever!

I was taking my vitamins and exercising regularly. I got in the best shape of my life! I was preparing my body for a healthy pregnancy.

The month before Jarod returned we learned that we would be moving to England in October. We prayed about it and decided we would still try to get pregnant before moving. I wanted to be in my 2nd trimester while moving because I should be over the extreme tired and nauseous stage and I wouldn't be too big and swollen yet.

We figured the best months to conceive would be April, May and June. April was right after Jarod returned and I still wanted time to reconnect with my husband and enjoy a glass of wine with him without being pregnant! When we considered June we thought of how often he will be TDY and didn't think he would be home when I was ovulating. SO....May was our best option. One shot...that's it! Lord help us get this right the first time!