10 months

Yeah,  you read right,  it's been 10 months already! And I don't even know where to begin. Clearly I'm behind, since my last post was September, so briefly, I will wrote about what Emily has been up to lately.  Mostly brief because I can't keep up with her mischievous little hiney.

So,  Emily went from not willing to stand up at all,  she would always pick up her feet and try to sit when I'd hold her up to stand and bounce,  you know,  the way normal baby's do, to standing and walking (with assistance) crawling, and sitting up by herself,  all in a couple weeks.  It was as if she could have done it all this time,  and perhaps practiced when no one was watching,  hahaha,  but just chose not to. 

Now,  she is so frustrated because she just wants to walk and be big like her sister.  She has 2 teeth (bottom) and is working in her incisors. Between teething, growing,  and wanting to be MORE mobile, she's been a cranky baby. 

She like most veggies,  although, we had great beans the other day,  which she used to like,  and she gagged.

Emily loves playing with her sister,  she plays pretty well for a baby.  She's learning that not everything goes in the mouth.  Lol. 

Daddy just started as a firefighter.  We are super excited for him,  this is a great career move for him, but it's a tough adjustment. 48 hours of just mommy and girls.  Needless to say,  kindergarten can't start soon enough.  Mom needs breaks.  Lol.  Emily consumes a lot of my attention,  but Kylie is pretty demanding as well.  Kylie wants Emily to play with her like a big kid would,  so she still comes to me asking me to play,  but I'm usually feeding Emily,  or telling Emily not to touch the TV stuff. 

So,  all the chaos,  they say you're going to miss it when they're grown...i keep that in mind when days are tough.  There will come a time when the house is too quiet,  the girls are grown and moved out with families of their own,  and I will miss those beautiful smiles,  playing with dolls,  and snuggles in my arms.  The random "I love you so so so so so much, momma" and Em's loves with the most adorable "Awe" you ever heard. 

I'm pretty much the luckiest,  tired,  stay home mommy in the world.  It's easy to forget,  but also easy to remember. 

...behind much???

Well, I didn't want to be that parent who wrote novels about their first born child, and then next baby was left out. I had intended on being fair. However, my computer didn't work throughout most of my pregnancy. So...here is the longest update ever. Lol! I was on disability for about half my pregnancy. I found out in May that I had Placenta Previa. It made for a long and stressful pregnancy. Every bleeding episode was stressful. Knowing that I couldn't go into labor made me very aware of every little thing my body was doing. I was due on August 8th, but with this condition, its rare for a Dr to allow the mother to go past 37 weeks. My Dr, however, was willing to try for my due date provided everything was going okay. We didn't want to jeopardize our well being, so we chose to have the baby early. The weekend before my due date, I went to the hospital with what I thought was leaking amniotic fluid. My Dr was out of town, of course, and I didn't want to have my surgery done by anyone else...so I stayed for observation over night, and was released the following day with everything looking good. It wasn't amniotic fluid and the baby was healthy. I saw my regular Dr the next morning first thing. He said that everything looked good, but if I was worried about waiting, we could reschedule my cesarean for the next morning. I told him that I didn't want to risk our safety just to get my 8/8 birth date. So, we got me on the schedule for August 5th. Now, I believe my previous posts explained that we hoped for a boy, but I would be just as happy with a girl. Kylie wanted a baby sister and the entire pregnancy she insisted we were having a girl. We bet a dollar on it, and she won 2 dollars when the ultrasound confirmed we were, in fact, having a girl. Emily Lane Griswold was born at 8:37am August 5th. She was expected to be almost 8 lbs, but was actually 6 lbs 8 oz, and 18.5" long. She was born very healthy and happy. The surgery went well, just a little scary when they were sewing me up. I felt like I was having a heart attack. Fortunately, my anesthesiologist was amazing. Emily has been such an easy baby. My biggest struggles are dividing my attention between my girls. Newborns take a lot of time with being fed and changed throughout the day. I think Kylie has been feeling a little left out now that she isn't the only kid. She is a wonderful big sister though. She helps out willingly all the time and talks to her sister. I love it. I'm a very lucky mom. Couldn't ask for better girls.

14 weeks

Wednesday was our appointment. Dr thought he might be able to determine the gender, at first we thought we saw a little winkie, but then never found it again. So it could have been the umbilical cord, or we are having a boy. So, needless to say, its still unknown. However, we have a healthy baby growing in there, and that's what's moat important. Today is my birthday, YAY!!! and the baby and I are getting super spoiled with yummies at work. Itwas the best birthday. Husband took me out to dinner after work...I got another cake which created a bit of a sugar high. AHHHH! BABY MOVEMENT!!! ALL THAT SUGAR HAS AWAKENED MY LITTLE ONE! AND ITS BOUNCING OFF THE UTERINE WALLS!!! LOL! All other movements were questionable, but this definitely wasn't gas. And on my birthday and the first day of the second trimester. Punctual little thing *wink*

Big Sister Sillyness

Absolutely adorable! Kylie made up a name with the letters in her bath, she called for daddy and explained that this is her sisters name. Oh, yeah, did I mention she still insists we are having a girl. LOL. I think she will be happy either way, but for now, she really wants a sister. I see the up side to a boy or girl, so I'm happy with either. I got my daughter :) And, I was wrong this morning...I'm not completely flat, still a little bump there.

AGAIN!?!

Another stinkin' cold! I don't know what the heck is going on around here, but it seems like the three of us are just getting one virus after another. The past 3 months I have been sick 4 times...enough is enough. And they're not little colds thar just give me sniffles and a slight cough. I cough so rough and so much I feel like my ribs are broken, my chest is bruised, and my head is going to explode. Fevers making me sweaty and hot but freezing with painful chills and joints that can only be described as someone stabbing them with an icicle. Its been rough, guys, real rough. With my daughter I threw up the whole first trimester, and I can honestly say, I'm not sure which is worse...I'm leaning towards this time. If it wasn't for these colds, I don't think I'd throw up at all. I have sickness first thing in the morning when I'm coughing up flem, and then sometimes in the middle of the day, or right after dinner. On the bright side, I'm almost done with the first trimester. Today I'm 11 weeks and 4 days. My tummy has gone almost completely flat again, so it appears the bloating has gone away. The baby is estimated to be about 2.5 inches (the size of a large prune or passion fruit) I'm excited for my next appointment right before my birthday. I think getting sick so many times has made me worry about the health of our little baby in there. My husband assures me everything is fine as long as I'm staying hydrated, but I can't shake the feeling thar my immune system being so low could have affect on the baby. Maybe just a protective and paranoid mom. I didn't experience much illness with Kylie. I made it past 10 weeks without any bleeding or spotting...that's a relief. At 10 weeks I thought I was miscarrying with Kylie. I was waiting for the same thing to happen, but this time I'd be more prepared. I think my job is far less stressful and hard on my body....for the most part. I have been having terrible sciatic pain, to the point I almost fall to my knees . I saw a chiropractor and he adjusted the upper of my back leaving the lower alone due to my pregnancy, and then I had a prenatal massage. It was a waste of a copay. Honestly, I didn't feel any difference...so its something I just try to tough out at work and I relax when I can at home. I think the majority of it is triggered by this damn cough. So, here's hoping this is the last virus I get for the rest of the pregnancy, and we have a healthier rest of the year 2014!

10 Weeks

Well, in just 3 more weeks we will be out of the first trimester! YAY!

We had our check up on Wednesday, and Dr Miller walked in thinking that I was 8 weeks, I told him I think I'm almost 10 weeks, but I could be wrong. I figured we would get a more accurate due date after this appointment. He did an ultrasound and immediately we saw what looked like a dancing/wiggling gummy bear.  THE ABSOLUTE CUTEST THING EVER!!! Dr took a few measurements and said, well it looks like you were right. You are 9 weeks and 5 days, making your due date August 8th.  I said, "YES! That's a great due date. My husband proposed to me on August 8th, '08." It was a wonderful appointment and Kylie was very excited to see her little sibling dancing. She is getting more and more excited. There is an app on my phone that shows how far along I am and what the baby looks like...Kylie loves that app. She tells me everyday how old the baby is. I personally think we are having a boy, but we will see in 10 more weeks *wink*.

 

As for the morning sickness and colds...I am still taking the prescription for the morning sickness, but I only seem to need it in the morning, and I think its only because of the cold I am recovering from. I can take it every 6 hours as needed, so I think that's good. The cold, it hit me pretty hard, but I have been taking in a lot of vitamin C and lots of water. I am already experiencing some pretty intense back pain. I didn't have Sciatica Nerve pain until I was much bigger with Kylie...it could be caused by coughing, so I hope after this cold passes the nerve pressure will lift and I will be able to function as normal.

 

My belly looks big already too. I was looking at pictures with Kylie, I was barely showing with her at 10 weeks. I didn't look like I had a beer gut until about 16 weeks, I look about 16 weeks already with this little one. Its so funny how you hear people say that you show sooner, but you don't really take them seriously...you kinda think they are making it up or exaggerating, but its no joke. Lol. This pregnancy has been very different in comparison to my first, which is partially why I think its a boy.

 

Today, Kylie said, "I am so excited about my brother or sister. Except I don't know what its going to be...what we are going to name him." I explained to her that the baby needs to grow a little bit bigger and we will know if its a boy or girl, then we can pick a name. She responded, "That's a great idea."

 

Hoping I can keep up with the updates...so far so...decent? Lol. Im doing better that I expected ;)

Sick, sick, always sick.

I'm almost 10 weeks now and in the past 2 months I have been so sick with cold after cold. The morning sickness isn't nearly as bad now that I'm taking anti-nausea pills. They didn't help with the morning sickness while I was pregnant with Kylie, but they seem to be working miracles with this little one. I'm very grateful for this baby, so I feel guilty that I feel so bitter about the first trimester. I'm just so miserable its hard to enjoy the fact that I'm not just sick, I'm growing a person. Anyway, I love this little one just as much as I loved Kylie. And its all worth it in the long run. 

We have decided on a couple names. I didn't want to discuss names until we knew what we were having, but on New Years Matthew came up with Luke Ryder and Sydney Lane. I'm not 100% set on Sydney, but I like the boy name. 

 I have a check up today. I'm looking forward to it. My only concern, I don't know if I want to continue going to this OB. He was good with us when we were having Kylie, but the more stories I hear, and the more bad experiences I have with his staff, I can't help but feel I should change doctors sooner than later. My Dr was on Christmas vacation, so the office was closed for 2 weeks. My morning sickness had faded in slowly right before leaving for vacation. The first 3 days were absolutely miserable. Christmas Eve and Day weren't so bad because I was very busy and distracted...a little sick but I wasn't curled up on the couch whining. Lol. After Christmas day at my in laws, we were driving home and it had really begun. I was throwing up the whole way home and the rest of the night was spent feeling sorry for myself on the couch. From then on it was just horrible. And I felt so bad because my family just wanted to spend time together for the holidays. That Friday, I called my OB...it was about 8am. I told the girl that I needed something for the morning sickness. She seemed very helpful at first, telling me that as soon as the Dr was in she would have him write the prescription and call me as soon as its faxed to my pharmacy. At 9am, I called back because I remembered they cancelled my last check up and I didn't reschedule it. The same girl answered and seemed to have assumed I was rushing them. I explained I wasn't worried they had forgotten me, I just wanted to reschedule my appointment and I also had a question about what they were prescribing me. I explained that four years ago, Dr Miller had prescribed me something for the morning sickness with Kylie and it didn't work, in fact, it had made it worse. I asked if there was any way for her to check my records so they aren't giving me the same thing. She said that because it was so long ago, they would have to look in my chart. There was a small pause and I said, "So, do you want to place me on hold and check on that or.....?" At that point her generosity seemed to take an all time fall. I said, "Okay, well I look forward to hearing back from you about my prescription, Hopefully it will help." By noon, I had still not heard back from the office about my script. So, I called to follow up, they didn't answer. I didn't listen to the voice mail recording, instead, I hung up, and tried back and hour or two later...the second time, I did listen to the recording and they were out of the office on Fridays at 12pm. FOR THE DAY! Are you kidding me?! No call regarding my prescription, and they are out for the weekend!? I was livid. I called my pharmacist, they said they had my pills there and they were ready for pick up. That night, the office manager called me.  Apparently she left something in the office and noticed a post-it note to follow up with me. I told her that she has been the only helpful person I have encountered with that entire office. I appreciated her assistance, she gave me her cell number so I could contact her if I needed anything more. I was ready to call that Monday to cancel my appointment and take myself and our new baby to a different OBGYN. Taylor saved Dr Miller from losing a patient. I still plan to give Dr Miller a piece of my mind, only because I think he should know, if he doesn't already, how his patients are being treated. I have worked in Customer Service most of my life, and I currently work with patients.  I have VERY high standards and expectations for customer service/bed side manner. So I think this appointment will determine how much longer I continue seeing my OB. The girls annoy me anyway, just walking in the office, they all have serious looks on their faces, not warm, inviting, friendly faces. They look like they are about 16-18 years old, picked off the cheer leading squad, and they don't seem to know what they are doing. If that doesn't turn women away, I don't know what would. Lol.

 I will try to remember to write more often. Unfortunately, I don't care for the app or web version of this on my phone...and our laptop is a piece of junk, so its less than convenient to write :( Which is sad cause I want to write as much about this baby as I did about it's sister.