The Amazing Nursery Transformation-- PART 2

It's going on to 11 & we're almost done painting the corner! YAY! We started at 10.
We just need to do the edges & floor.
Andy is nervous that 2 cans won't cover our bedroom. We've already gone through half the first can, almost 3/4.

So to start I just want to tell you about this paint we got. It's probably the coolest stuff ever. It's VOC/Carcinogen free & has very low fumes, which allows me to help. It's safe for kids & pets, so we don't have to send our birdie or gerbils away while we do this.


What hooked me is when we went looking at the different colors they had. We wanted a clean, off-white color. Ironically, they had one called Grace's Smile:


It has a nice warm peach undertone to it in certain lights!

Here's a picture of Andy painting:


And just so you can see the color difference between the old & new paint:


Old on top, new on bottom.

and last, but not least...

Always remember:
"SAFETY FIRST!"


Goodnight, everybody!

The Amazing Nursery Transformation-- PART 1

Over the next few days, I will be posting progress reports on our amazing nursery transformation.
I was hoping we would be able to paint today, but our little project is taking a lot longer than I thought it would. We spent most of the day trying to figure out where all the baby furniture was going, since my perfect nursery picture doesn't exactly fit our space constraints, even though we had measured several times. We came up with a good compromise though.
It's going on to 11, and hubby is just starting with putty repairs around the bedroom windows.
He also had this novel idea:


"Honey, we're sleeping in the living room!"

We just moved the frame, box, and mattress, haven't put top sheets & blankets back on yet, but I am planning a blissful evening watching movies while Andy makes the putty repairs. He opened the putty this morning to make sure it was still good, and that stuff is stronger smelling than the paint!
So he'll be in our bedroom with my respirator, all windows open, and the door shut.

Camping out should be fun.

I'll get some more pictures tomorrow when we start painting.

Checkup

Today I went in for a checkup at the OB/GYN. They did a strep b swab "down there" and checked dilation. I'm still closed up, but I'm hopeful and remain positive about blossoming over the next 2 weeks.
I complained about fatigue. I told them I know I should be tired at this point, I mean I'm growing an entirely new human being, I get that. But needing three 2-hour naps on top of sleeping soundly through the night is ridiculous. I will feel fine one minute, the next I feel like I just smacked into a wall. I asked the nurse to check my iron level since I've had problems with anemia in the past, but it came back normal. The doctor suggested I have my thyroid levels rechecked since it's been a while.
We talked a little more about induction, and he said to cancel the amnio since my sugar has been so good. If I wait until I'm 39 weeks on the dot, they can just go ahead & induce without the amnio. He also signed my birthing plan (yay) and said it's all very reasonable. So let's just hope we get a baby here au natural before July 9.

A Narrow Escape

Today was another routine non-stress test. I've been sick the last 24 hours (upset stomach, turkey trots, and immense gas pressure... ugh!), and let the nurse know.
I was worried how being sick would affect Grace, but she was strong and healthy on the ultrasound while they measured the fluid. We even caught her breathing. She's really good at it, and squirmy as ever. I don't think there's going to be a concern about her lungs being ready if she is breathing as regularly as you & I do. I moved the amnio to July 7, and the receptionist said maybe she'd be here by then. I smiled & told her that was the idea.
So of course my stomach was rumbling and gurgling like Old Faithful was about to erupt during the NST thanks to the sick sewage stewing around, which aggravated my contractions, and sure enough... they wanted to send me to L&D again. *Sigh*
I asked if the gastro stuff would irritate the contractions, making them so regular, and the nurse said yes, so I told her I'd really like to avoid another $200 adventure to L&D. She paged the doctor on call and asked him a few questions. They offered me some medicine for the bowel irritability, and I told them I'd be okay. I also promised I'd come right in if the contractions became uncomfortable, or if the diarrhea got worse.
So, even though I was having contractions 1-2 minutes apart, lasting 60 seconds each, and all very regular & wave like on the monitor, they let me go home.
*Phew* talk about a narrow escape!

"Induce"-- I-N-D-U-C-E-- "Induce"

See the title? Yeah, it cost me the 8th grade district spelling bee!

Okay so I'm having an amnio done on June 25th to make sure Grace's lungs are ready for birth in case they need to induce me early. They want to induce me early. I have really mixed feelings on it, and the more I think about it, the more unsettled my tummy feels.
My sugar has been under tight control. The last few hA1c's have been 5.4 - 5.7, which is really great. My doctors are pleased as punch with that. So I'm not sure if I really NEED to be induced. The thought of choosing a birth date for my daughter feels more like "*GULP* Do I cut the red or the blue wire?!" rather than "Whoopee! We're having a baby today!"
On one hand, I don't want to take a chance & have complications (or even a sudden unexplained stillbirth loss-- which has happened in my family before), but on the other I want it all to happen naturally, to allow my body to start the birthing time on its own. So I'm really all mixed up inside about it.
Furthermore, I still have a few people look at me like I'm nuts when I tell them I plan to have an unmedicated birthing. I've decided not to mention my choice anymore, really, because I don't need to deal with negative feelings and the inevitable conflict it brings up. I've even gone as far as to tell them "If you can't be positive and supportive about my choice, then you're not allowed in my bubble". I do have a few friends, and at least two sisters-in-law, who are completely supportive of it (the sisters in law have gone the hypno route before and LOVE it, and encouraged me to try it). So, yeah... I just wish I had a few more folks on my bandwagon, or at least someone who'll honestly tell me "I believe you can do it".
*Sigh* I could really use a hug right now.

Adventures in Labor & Delivery

So I should probably update you with my latest adventure.
Yesterday I went in for a routine Non-Stress Test and ended up spending an hour or two checked in at Labor & Delivery.
Grace decided to be naughty.
It was only supposed to take half an hour to do the test, but she was super squirmy. It probably didn't help that I had eaten a pop tart only an hour before. Mmm, sugar rush! They couldn't get her to maintain a stable resting heart rate. It was either 160 or 140. Finally she settled down to 140 for a while, and yet I was held captive. I started having irregular contractions 3-4 minutes apart. They soon started coming 2 minutes apart and lasting about a minute each. The nurse was very concerned, especially since I couldn't feel said contractions and she was unable to palpate them. So a call was made to labor & delivery where I was checked in as a precaution against pre-term labor.
So they hook me up to a similar rig in the birthing room. I had a great view by the way. I could see across the street to the clinic, and the mountains, and the fire department were running drills, so there was water shooting into the air & so on. I was highly entertained. I only had one contraction the entire time I was in the room. They checked me "down there" and I'm not even dilated to a finger tip, and less than 40% effacement. Still nice and firm. Then apparently my mother wanted to see me, and after explaining that my mother lives in California and would probably have kittens if she knew I was in a birthing room having contractions, the nurse figured out the lost woman was looking in the wrong room.
I ended up getting off the fifth floor around noon when I was expecting to be done by 10. I have been instructed to stay off my back, since it seems laying on my back triggers the contractions.
I had my friend worried downstairs, since I said I would be down there around 10 to sit with her while her husband had open heart surgery. So OF COURSE Grace would choose that day to act out, lol.
Everything turned out okay in the end, and we had an ultrasound today. I go back for another Non-Stress Test on Monday. Good times.

ZOOM!

So I meant to get a 7 month bump photo on Mother's Day, but everything has just completely whizzed by us. We have the 2nd half of our prenatal class tonight, and today is going kinda crummy for everyone.
I did, however, manage to get some more cleaning done.



You can see the floor now! Yay!
I can almost imagine the fresh paint on the walls. Just a few more weeks.

I got my hypnobabies workbook & I'm looking forward to practicing. I've read the first week's lesson, but I have a feeling the prenatal class will try to scare it out of me, so I'm holding off on getting too far with learning, as eager as I am to try it.
I am kind of reserved about telling people my birth plan. Two of my closest friends have both said "Heh, yeah, good luck with that." Which isn't exactly the kind of support I'm looking for. It makes me feel like I'm crazy for trying the natural route, and I get discouraged easily to begin with. At least Andy is supportive. His sisters have gone the hypno route & love it. Maybe I should talk to them more often.

I saw Clarene last week. My hA1c was 5.6. She was a little nervous about it, but more comfortable than when it was 5.4. She is still concerned about my lows & me passing out. And, as opposed to my mom, she is pro-breastfeeding and wants me to have all sorts of fluids & juices when I breastfeed to help keep my sugar up.
Also, why can't more people be supportive about breastfeeding? Good gravy! It's one of the most natural things in the world. Aside from entertainment purposes, it's the main reason God put boobies on women in the first place! When I mention that I'd like a breast pump, my mom shuts me down with how much I'll hate feeding. It bugs me. Just because she didn't like it (or even want to deal with it for that matter), doesn't mean I'll feel the same way. Luckily, many of my friends with kids have all gone the "Breast is Best" route and are supportive.

I also saw the OB on Monday. Everything checked out fine. With how well I've got my sugar under control, he said they're SO not worried about complications at this point (cuz I'm an awesome mama!)
The only thing is that they want to start doing weekly stress tests on the 27. As if the whole 9 months of waiting couldn't get any worse... now I have to sit in a dark room with a monitor strapped to my belly for 20 minutes to an hour & mindlessly push a button every time the baby kicks. Won't that be fun!

So, yeah, I guess everything's going okay. You can probably tell I'm just a little irritated today. Like I said, rough awkward moments with immediate family.

To end on a positive note, I was able to find the travel system (stroller/carrier combo) that I've been pining over for the last year. It has been discontinued for months, which bummed me out, but I found a brand new one on ebay for $70. It should be here in a week or two. I am looking forward to setting it up.
I also got some safety thingies for the cabinets, and corner bumpers for the cedar chest in our bedroom that we keep banging our knees into.

By the way... prenatal class is interesting. It's full of first timers, but I feel like I'm in a room full of complete virgins. They all seem so clueless. Example: When the nurse asked what it meant if your fluid was green when your water broke, and I knew the answer, everyone oohed and ahhed. Seriously, what the heck have you been doing the past 9 months? KNITTING?! How can you sit there and not educate yourself about this monumental change that's coming. I feel like they're thinking "A fluffy pink stork is bringing my baby from the cabbage patch. When it gets here, it will poop rainbows & spit up butterflies".
Am I the only one who has spent almost every day of gestation researching pregnancy & the first year of life?

Here I go ranting again... and you thought I was going to end on a positive note, HA!