Happy Thanksgiving!

There's so much to be thankful for this year! I have been given the most precious gift- my daughter! She makes everyday worth living! I can hardly wait to get home from work everyday just to see her adorable little face. I cherish the 7 o'clock hour when she's in her pj's and sitting in my lap having her bedtime bottle (even when she's trying to backflip off the bed). Every smile, every giggle, every babble is etched forever in my mind. I am so blessed.

Last weekend we went to JC Penney Portrait Studio and had our Christmas pictures taken. Sophie, of course, looks perfect in all of them! I, on the other hand, look like I'm crying. A few days before, I went to the eye doctor, thinking I scratched my eye. Wrong! I had an ulcer on my cornea! My eye was itchy, sore, blood shot, teary, light sensitive...all around yuck. By Sunday it seemed somewhat better, but not great. Well, everytime the camera flashed my eye squinted (light sensitivity!) and started tearing. So out of about 10 family pictures, one was decent enough to put on our Christmas cards. I didn't even get an 8x10 of it. Oh well. We'll take other pictures throughout the holidays and hopefully we'll have a nice one in the mix.

Anywho... Hope everyone has a lovely Thanksgiving, we're going to Kati's house today for it. I made homemade mac&cheese, greenbeans with garlic and soysauce, watergate salad (because my Grandma Evelyn used to make it all the time) and I'm bringing the crackers and cheese and rolls. I even pureed some green beans for Sophie (sans the garlic and soysauce!)

Happy Turkey Day!

Vacation 2009

Ahhh, home again home again clickety clack. We had a wonderful vacation, despite the horrific heat! Seriously, it's not cool when you get in your rental car and it tells you its 104 degrees outside. Here's the run-down:
Sunday: had a 6 am flight, so we were up by 2 to be out of the house by 3. Now, I am a morning person, but not that early! I was a ball of nervous energy. I suddenly was overcome with all sort of irrational fears about flying with Sophie. We got through it though and she's a champion flier! Seriously, the most well behaved kid on the plane! Fast forward- we land in Orlando and neither of us are dressed for the oppressive heat. We hop in the rental (got a Kia Soul- so cute!) and head to Target! I needed shorts STAT! Can I even tell you they didn't have any shorts?! It's FLORIDA and there were NO SHORTS in Target! I ended up getting yoga shorts and calling it a day. We had to kill time, so we went to an early lunch at Logan's (my fav steakhouse in Kissimee!) and then drove around, checked on my Grandma's house, moseyed through Celebration, etc. Still having to waste more time- we went to Downtown Disney and did a little shopping and added "No Expiration" on our Park Hoppers. We couldn't check in early to the time share, we tried to though! Once we did check in though- HEAVEN! Our villa was amazing! We had a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, full kitchen, washer/dryer, patio overlooking the golf course piece of fabulousness! We didn't do much other than shower (because we were gross from travelling and sweating), unpack and go to bed!
Monday- We put on our swim suits and hit the pool! Sophie absolutely LOVED it! She was a little uncertain at first, but once she realized it felt good and splashing was fun..she was hooked! Later that afternoon we lunched at Breezes in the resort- they had a fab deal where you buy a frozen cocktail for $7.95 and you get to keep the cup. Then every frozen cocktail refill in that cup is $5! Awesome! That night we went to Hollywood Studios, mostly out of boredom. Took Sophie on 2 rides- she did really well! Then it started to rain, so we hightailed it outta there! It was already hot and humid, wasn't really looking to add being wet to that combo!
Tuesday- Pool day again! We really enjoyed just laying by the pool/in the pool. Met some nice people sitting around us, carried on a few little convos, etc. Went to Cracker Barrel for a late lunch, went for a walk with the babe around the resort, then found sanctuary inside! Ahh blissful air conditioning!
Wednesday- Kati, Brian and Alyssa arrived at 8:30 am! Brian hit the sack, but Kati and Aly came to the pool with us for a while. Around noon we went back to the villa and woke Brian up to come to the lazy river with us. We did the lazy river for a few hours then went back to the room, showered, changed and went for a late lunch at Logan's. Once we got back to the villa we had plans to get apps and drinks that night but Kati, Brian and Aly all conked out at about 5 pm for a "nap". We tried to wake them at 5:45 and 6 but they were out cold so we went out without them. We got back around 8 and Kati finally started stirring. She came out into the kitchen where I was washing dishes and was all "are we going out?" I laughed and said, "we did and we're back already!" She was all confused "what time is it?" etc. I just told her to go back to bed! We had a big day the next day!
Thursday- Happy 4 Years to me and Sal! We had a Character Breakfast at the Polynesian's Ohana restaurant! It was fabulous! We met Lilo, Stitch, Mickey and Pluto. Aly had them all sign her autograph book, we took pictures, etc. Soph loved Pluto! After that we went over to the Animal Kingdom. Kati, Brian and Sal all left their sunglasses on the Dinosaur ride.. Brian and Sal's were recovered, Kati's got jacked. Of course, cute girl sunglasses are not going to be returned to the Lost and Found. Kati, Brian and I went on Expedition Everest leaving Sal with the girls. He swears we were gone for over an hour (it was really about 20 minutes LOL). Then we watched the Nemo show. After that we called it a day there- we were dying and Kati and Brian wanted to check into their room. We reconvened at 5 pm at Epcot. It was the Food and Wine Festival! But honestly, it was so damn hot, all we had were frozen drinks. The thought of hot food was a turn-off. Not for my hubby though! He ate in Greece, France and ... somewhere else I can't remember. We had Sophie's pictured taken for one of the those 3D crystals.. $200 and 45 minutes later we finally got a pic. You have to sit completely still for 6 seconds to get a proper picture. Not an easy task!
Friday- Magic Kingdom day! We got to the park by 8:30 so we could see the opening ceremony! Aly loved it, she was so excited to see the characters arrive on the train. We did a bunch of rides, Soph conked out for It's A Small World, which was fine, it was air conditioned so I didn't mind holding her sweaty little body LOL At 12:30 we left to take a break- shower, etc since we all sweated through our clothes again. Met back at the park at 4:30 and discovered it was only opened until 7 pm. WTF?! So we inquired about getting tickets to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. They were $60 each! For 3 more hours?! I don't think so! Needless to say, we didn't spring for them. If they were $20ish we were going to get them for the 4 of us and stay, but $240?! No way!
Saturday- Pool Day! Kati and Brian had to do their time-share tour crap, so we decided that we'd each do our own thing. We hung by the pool, then hit up the Super Target again- almost made the whole week on just one pack of diapers! I love Super Target... just sayin'.
Sunday- Time to go home... boo! We were extremely early to the airport since we had to check out at 10 am. Our flight was at 2:30. It wasn't too bad though, we got lunch in the airport and walked through the shops. Oh and Soph had a massive poopy diaper right before we boarded! Thank you for your good timing lil mama!

So all in all, we had a wonderful time. Was it hotter than hell? Yes most def! Did it ruin our good time? Certainly not!! Can't wait for next year!! Already planning...

Almost Disney World Time!

I so can't wait for Sunday. We're taking a long awaited and much deserved vacation! We are taking Sophie to Disney World! And a bonus? Kati, Brian and Alyssa are coming too! I checked the 10 day on weather.com and it looks like it's going to be hot... which I am not too thrilled about. I like warm, but 87-90 degrees is a bit much for my liking. So, we'll see how that goes.

Speaking of Florida.. I went tanning this week. I figured if it was going to be hot and sunny I needed some sort of base tan, especially since this body hadn't seen a bathing suit all summer (seriously, not once!). So I went Monday and Tuesday- no problem at all. Then I went last night and I am BURNED! Holy crap. I didn't stay in longer than the other days (8 minutes all 3 days); the only difference was I went in a stand up last night. Whoa nelly! So today, I will smell like a salad because I had to break out the vinegar to take away some of the sting. Owww!

In other news- Sophie is growing like a stink weed! She's 5 months and a half and as gorgeous as can be! She's got such a personality! She's very into "mommy" these days. Not that I truly mind, I love being with her, but sometimes things have to get done! Eh, I suppose it's just a phase.

Gotta run, have to get dressed and go to the Chiro (that's another story for another day...)

Stole this from Tracy

I've neglected this blog- it's hard working full-time, being a mommy full-time and writing regularly! Anyway, here's a Meme about naming your kiddos! I took it from Tracy's Blog "What's on Mommy's Mind".

1. Do you have any cultural or religious naming traditions?
Nope.
2. Did you or your partner come to the marriage with pre-selected names?
No. I had "favorites" from childhood/teen years, but when we first started dating, then got married, we weren't sure we were going to have kids.
3. Did you consider the sound of the first and middle and last names together? Did this make any sad eliminations?
Oh yes... this was absolutely necessary. Not much sounds good with Monardo. Personally, I think my own name sounds weird with it.
4. Did you have veto powers?
Of course. There will never be a Salvatore Anthony Monardo Jr.... too Staten Island for me.
5. Did the baby naming cause arguments?
No, Sal was pretty good about just agreeing with me :-)
6. Do you think it is easier to name boys or girls?
It's hard both ways for us, again because I think most names sound weird with our last name. We do have a boys name and another girls name picked out though if/when we have another. And the boys name is actually all family names- as long as you don't steal it, I'll share: Jack Thomas Bryce Monardo. I really hope I have a boy because I love the name.
7. Did you eliminate names because of people from your past or present who you don’t like or because a certain image comes to mind?
Yes, but at this very moment I'm drawing a blank on what it was... I just remember being very adament!
8. Did you / would you survey your children to get their thoughts on the name?
No we didn't. And honestly, my M-I-L hated Sophie's name. But tough cookies because mind was made up!
9. Did you tell people the name or possible names before the baby was born or were they “in the vault”?
Yes, but we weren't swayed.
10. Did you use baby name books?
Yes, but they weren't the deciding factors.

Drumroll Please…What did you name your kid(s)?

Sophia Jayne

An Unexpected Visitor

The title of this post will be serving a duel purpose today. There are actually 2 unexpected visitors in my world.

First, I'll tell about the really unwanted visitor- my period. Yes, I'm just over 5 weeks postpartum and I got my period. I swear I jinxed myself because I told the doctor on Tuesday that I was feeling cramps. He told me that cramps can appear a few weeks before my period arrives. Cool. I can deal with cramps, they're not so bad. Then Wednesday the cramps invited their friend dull backache along. Wednesday night, cramps took a break and sent "the headache" in for a round. This morning, cramps, headache and dull backache were all in attendance for the big show! Ugh! At least I can start back up on my BC. Just annoying.

My other visitor is one of the spirit variety. It seems Grandpa Bryce has been hanging around my house the past few days. I smell him. Know how all grandpa's have that distinctive scent? Yeah, he did too. And every time I smell it, Sophie looks up to a particular corner of the living room and smiles. I asked her the other day "Who's up there? Is that Grandpa Bryce?" And she continued to smile. I firmly believe that children are more open to seeing the paranormal- they do not have the knowledge of what they are "supposed to see" or "not supposed to see". Before I was believing it was my Grandpa, I did search around the house to be sure it wasn't something else. I checked all my candles, air fresheners, etc. And it wasn't Sal's cologne- he so very rarely wears any. I think Grandpa was just checking in on us and peeking at the latest addition to the family. I often "talk" to my grandparents and perhaps they sent him down to see what all the fuss is about :-)

Anyone who knows me well, knows about how haunted my parent's house is. And we're all in the belief that the spirits are my deceased grandparents. The sightings didn't start until the passing of my Grandpa Jack. And with each death after they increased. Why they picked my parent's house, I can't say for sure, but my mother has always been "sensitive". So maybe they figure it's they best place to be noticed?!

The Price of Children

My Aunt Pat sent this to me in an email today, I loved it so much I wanted to post it. Every word is so true!!


The Price of Children

I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way.

It's nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raisinga child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family.

Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* A mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don't have children if you want to be 'rich.'

Actually, it is just the opposite..

What do you get for your $160,140.00?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how
your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodlewreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck.

You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
* First step,
* First word,
* First bra,

* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal.
You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great- grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God.

You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!
It's the best investment you'll ever make!!

Before I Was a Mom

One of the girls posted this on my April 2009 Mommies message board on Babyfit.com; I believe it was an email that was sent to her. I had to share it though, I love it!


Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put them down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby..
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

Birth Story of Sophia Jayne!

On April 20th, I had an appointment with my OB at 9 am.  We were taken in and I was hooked up to the NST.  The previous night was very rough on me, I was getting terrible back pains and my sciatic nerve was absolutely killing me.  So laying on a hard table hooked up to a monitor was not fun for me.  By the time the doctor came in to check on me, I was fighting off tears, I was so uncomfortable!  He asked how we were doing and I just lost it.  I couldn't help but cry.  He asked what was wrong, etc and I explained everything to him.  He gave me some tissues and told me to relax and he'd be right back.  I composed myself and he returned a few moments later.  He asked what I would think about being induced.  I told him I was ready to have the baby, so I was fine with that.  He then checked me and I was 1 cm.  I looked over at Sal and we both were expecting the doctor to plan an induction for later in the week.  Well, Dr. Molina surprised us both when he said "Okay, what I want you two to do today is go have some brunch, walk her around a bit and be at the hospital this afternoon at 4"  I was shocked!  I honestly didn't think he'd schedule it for that afternoon!

So, we left there completely elated!  We went and ate at the new diner by our house (I had pancakes and pork roll!) then walked around the mall for a bit.  We were home by 12:30 or so and finished up loose ends.  Last minute packing, wrote out some bills, made our phone calls, etc.

We got to the hospital by 4 and were settled into our room.  Dr. Lehnes was on duty and he came in and put in the Cervadil at 5:30 and of course I immediately had to go to the bathroom!  Too bad for me, I had to be horizontal for at least 2 hours before I was allowed to get up.  They did offer me a bed pan, but I declined.  I'd rather squirm with the need to pee than attempt a bed pan!  Around 9 the doctor came back in to check my progression and I was 2 cm, so the Cervadil was doing its job!  At 10, the nurse came in to check me and she removed that damn shoe string- it was really bothering me for some reason; very scratchy!  She gave me a sleeping pill to help me get some rest and I dozed off for a bit.  At midnight I woke up with some serious contractions, the nurse checked me and I was 3 cm.  She called the doctor and he said I could have a shot for the pain.  Well, Sophie's heart rate wasn't high enough to give me the shot- we tried for about 2 and a half hours to get it up- rolling me over left and right, etc.  My nurse called the doctor again and he said if I wanted the epidural, that I could have that.  So at 3 am I got my epidural and by 4 am I was fast asleep!  At 7 am the doctor came back in to check me and I was 5 cm, so he broke my water and ordered for the Pitocin to be started at 8 am.  From there, things seemed to move pretty quickly, I was fully dilated by 11:30 according to the nurse, who wanted to confirm that with the doctor.  Dr Molina came in and confirmed that and told the nurse to "teach me" how to push.  So at noon we did "practice pushes"- 3 per contraction.  Well, I only needed the one contraction to confirm I knew how to push- in fact, with my practice push, Sophie was starting to crown.  My contractions were pretty far apart- about every 6-8 minutes, and by 12:38 pm I had Sophie Jayne!!  

Quick sidenote:  the epi worked so well, I didn't feel a THING.  Literally, nothing at all.  It was a little weird pushing without feeling what I was doing, but hell, I did it! 

I ended up having to have an episiotomy because her head didn't fully rotate and came out sideways.  No big, ya gotta do what ya gotta do.  Dr Molina stitched me up and then they turned off the epi.  That's when things went downhill fast.  The withdrawal was horrible for me.  I began to feel EVERYTHING.  The nurses had to keep coming in to push on my belly, etc. to get all that extra gunk out- which I know is their job and is totally necessary, but HOLY HELL did it hurt!  They gave me a motrin and darvocet combo, which kinda eased things.  I thought I could handle that..until the nurse came in to get me up and into the bathroom.  It was time to clean me up and get me padded.  I sat on the edge of the bed and felt dizzy; so she put my arm around her and started to help to to the bathroom.  Then, the tunnel vision started and I thought I was going to pass out.  The nurse grabbed the chair and sat me down and whipped out her smelling salts.  She called for another nurse and they both tried to get me up when I said I felt a bit better.  A few more steps and I almost went down again- everything started to go black and I couldn't hear- the nurse had to pull the emergency lever.  Now I had 3 nurses and they got me on the toilet somehow.  I remember one squatting down in front of me holding me up and one behind me putting cold rags on my neck and forehead- the third nurse kept sticking those freakin' smelling salts under my nose.   Meanwhile- Sal is locked out, they wouldn't let him in to see me.  I don't know how long this all went on, but by the time they got me back to the bed, Sal was a bit frantic.  THEN I had to get up again to get in my wheelchair to move to my postpartum room- at least this time Sal was there and he caught me when I started to get whoozy while the nurse was coming at me with the smelling salts again (seriously, I now know why they use them- so nasty they can probably bring you back from the dead!)  

Finally get to my room after almost 3 hours!   I had no idea that much time had passed.  I was so delirious with pain and withdrawal, I didn't realize that I didn't get to see my baby (other than the 10 minutes right after birth when she was still in the room)!  Unfortunately for me, the room was filled with visitors.  I know they were just excited to see her, but I was REALLY not up for a room-full.  I hardly got to hold my own kid.  I actually had to kick everyone out to breast feed- no one got the hint.  

I opted for the nursery to keep the baby that night, I was in so much pain and so exhausted, I really needed rest.  I hardly slept in the past 48 hours- between the night at home with terrible back pain and then the night in the hospital in labor I had about 7 hours total.  Well, I didn't sleep much this night either.  I was up every hour and a half to use the bathroom and clean up.  Sal is such a champ; he prepared my "diaper" (as we got to calling it) every time.  I couldn't get comfortable at all, even with my motrin/ darvocet combo.  The next night though the nurse offered me a sleeping pill; she could see I was working on practically no sleep (I guess the black circles under my eyes gave it away!)  That worked wonderfully!  

The next day we found out the baby was jaundice.  We were okay with that, she was going to spend the day in the tanning bed, we were going to go home that night.  Or not.  Her levels kept going up and they decided she had to stay over night.  Okay.  Then the neonatal doctor tells us he wants to check for other infections because her levels are too high.  He explains there could be a problem because I was Group B Strep + and RH-.  Two things that can really harm the baby.  I did receive my antibiotics for the GBS and my shot for the RH-, but he still wanted to check.  At this point we were really worried.  Then I got discharged and they said we could go home (yeah, that wasn't happening) or we could use the hospitality suite.  We said we'd take the suite.  The hospitality suite was disgusting.  Once we got in there, I had a meltdown.  I was worried about my baby, we were in a 10x10 room that was one step up from a jail cell and I no longer had anything for all the pain I was in.  It was awful.  Then, we went back to the nursery to say goodnight to Sophie and I got a little emotional, I couldn't help it, we were supposed to be home doing this.  Well, one of the nursery nurses comes out and starts talking to Sal like I'm not even there about postpartum depression!  "You really need to keep an eye on her.  It's normal for new mothers to be a little emotional, but she really shouldn't be breaking down like this.  You may want to consider calling one of the counselors we have on hand.  It's just jaundice, the baby is fine."  HELLO?!  I'm right here and NOT depressed!  I just wanted my baby.  I didn't get to see her but for an hour all day!  We didn't have results from the tests the doctor was running, we didn't know that it was "just jaundice", it couldn't have been a serious infection!  Sal was furious.  We were both a mess.  And to top it off we were cut off from L&D; the gift shop was closed and the cafeteria was closed.  Thankfully Nicole was on duty that night and she gave us some snacks and stole some Motrin for me :-)  It was nice knowing she was just down the hall if we needed her.

We found out the next morning that there was no infection and it was just jaundice.  Thank God.  But we had to go 12 hours without that answer.  And to top it off they wanted to keep her longer to test again!  So, Sal forced me to get dressed and insisted on leaving the hospital to go get some breakfast.  I practically had an anxiety attack the whole time.  We went to some diner on the Lakewood/Howell border and then to Walgreens to get me Motrin and flip flops (my feet were so swollen I couldn't wear my sneakers).  We got back to the hospital and checked on Sophie- her levels went up again, they were going to do another test at 12.  Those results went up too- but they still released her under the condition we'd bring her back the next day as an outpatient for another test.  We ended up having to bring her back both Saturday and Sunday, but her Sunday results went down a bit and the doctor said it seems she "leveled-off" and should be fine.  He told me to bring her outside for some sun periodically for about 2 minutes at a time, etc.  She had her first pedi appt on Wednesday the 29th and her doctor said she looks great- yay!

So that's my very long story.... now you're all updated!

Tomorrow is my due date

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and nothing has changed.  My cervix is still closed, but it's low and her head is "right there" (whatever that means!).  I had to have a NST because her movement has decreased significantly, but thankfully everything was okay.  I have to do kick counts through out the day until she's born.  If 3 hours pass without movement, I have to call and go back in.  So far, everything has been alright though.  I had to make another appointment for Monday the 20th, I'm hoping we won't have to go to it though!  If we do, I may have to begin the begging and crying routine.  I really can't go 2 weeks passed my due date.. that would bring me to April 29th!!!!!  Oh I could cry just thinking about that!  I know my body knows what it is doing, blah blah blah, but seriously?!  I've suffered long enough, anyone who knows me knows this has not been an easy pregnancy for me by any means!  I'm just so grateful my Crohn's didn't flare up during it, that is one highlight at least!  But it seems everything else has gone wrong!  It's almost over, it's almost over, it's almost over....

11 days to go...or 25 days..

So, let me update my last couple of appointments- 

At the high risk doctor: had another sonogram, she was still head down, face up (grr!), but growing well!  They said she's 6 lbs 2 oz so far.  So we can expect at least a 7 lb 5 oz baby!  Scary, but my mom delivered me at 8 lbs, so I know it can be done! LOL  That was my last high risk appointment, they released me :-)

At the OB: I had my first internal exam (ouch!)  There isn't any dilation yet, but he said my cervix is low- which is good!  From what I am told and what I have read, your cervix drops before it starts to thin and dilate.  So, we're making a little progress!

At this point I'm just waiting really.  I'm getting a little bored being home everyday, but I'm afraid to go out alone, so I just have to deal.  I've done little projects around the house- finished putting together some of the nursery things (diaper genie, breast pump, etc), cleaned the bathroom (this actually took 2 days because I got tired), straightened the office, made address labels for the announcements, etc.  Nothing too big, but at least I feel productive when I get some things done.

I didn't feel too hot yesterday though, very sick to my stomach and crampy.  I laid down on the couch for a while and then moved to the bed, it took a while but it eased up a bit.  I'm not feeling 100% today, but I am up and about.  We're having some of the gang over tonight for dinner, so I want to make sure the house is presentable!  Speaking of.. I should get up and finish vacuuming.

23 days...

Just over 3 weeks now from my due date and I feel like hell.  I just stopped working this past Thursday and have felt like crap since!  I thought stopping working was supposed to make me feel better!  I guess work was a distraction for me...

I've been having random contractions the past few days, lots of sharp pains "down there" and really bad headaches and backaches.  Last night was rough, I was up most of the night trying to find some form of comfort.  I ended up using the heating pad and taking 2 Tylenol PM's.  Didn't help much though, I was still up at 6:30.  Tylenol PM doesn't work like it used to I guess.  I actually took 1 around 11:30 am today to try and get a bit more rest.  I ended up sleeping for 3 hours.

I have an appointment tomorrow morning with the high risk doctor, so I'm hoping we'll see how things are going in there.  I'm really hoping she's face down, last appointment she was sunny-side up and I really don't want back labor!  I'm also curious to see how far down in my pelvis she is, feels like I have a bowling ball between my legs lately!  If all is good, this should be my last appointment there (keeping fingers crossed!)

My sister and Brian are leaving tomorrow for Vegas to get married!  I made her bouquet yesterday, it looks so pretty!  I wish we were able to go, but there's just no way.  I'll be there in spirit though!  I can't wait to see the pictures, I know Kim will take about a million!  Here's to wishing them a beautiful wedding day!

And that's about it for now... feels like a contraction is coming...

35 weeks 3 days

Less than 5 weeks until my due date!  Hallelujah!  I am so ready to meet our little girl- and some days  it feels she's just as ready!  I've been having lots of Braxton Hicks lately along with some pain and cramping.  The swelling of my feet and ankles has gotten a lot worse!  I can't even wear shoes anymore... just slippers and flip flops.  Thankfully I only have 4 more days of work left, I can hardly wait!  I just need some rest and comfy clothes!

I've been washing/folding baby clothes for what seems like FOREVER.  The nursery is a slight disaster area at this point.. there isn't a place for everything and everything is not in it's place!!  It'll get there eventually, I hope so anyway!

I've devoted today to doing nothing at all.  I worked all week, 8 hour days with a hospital tour and child birth class thrown in there too.  I'm beat!  We may go out with the gang tonight though, I'd really like to, but we'll see if I can gather some energy to go!  I'm hoping maybe an afternoon nap will do the trick.

Nursery is DONE!

We finished the nursery last weekend!  Yay!  I love how it came out, it's fabulous!  We have some minor touch ups to do, but the bulk of it is complete.  We have a chandelier coming to hang from the ceiling- how awesome will that be?!  Very princess :-)  Also not in the picture is the ottoman that goes with the glider- it was just picked up the other night- Sal had to go to West Windsor to get it!  That's absurd.  The Babies R Us near us was completely useless.  I was willing to buy the floor model- it was still wrapped in the plastic and they refused to sell it to us!  WTF?!  Whatever, we have it now and that's all that matters to me.

Had two doctors appointments on Tuesday.  First was the OB at 8:45, then the high risk at 9:15.  Well, we got to the OB by 8:30 and weren't taken in until 9.  Then the doctor tells me I need to strip from the waist down for an exam/to test for Strep B, followed by a HIV test.  No one else could tell me this?  I couldn't have my blood taken first?  I made Sal call the high risk office and let them know we would be late (I hate being late for anything, it makes me all twitchy!)  So we finally get to our 2nd appointment at 9:30.  I was due into work for 10:30 just as an FYI.  They take us in to the ultra sound room within 10 minutes and the tech did all her measurements and whatnot within another 15 mins- now it's 10 am.  The tech leaves and says the doctor will be in shortly, he's across the hall with another patient.  Okay, fine.  Now, I'm laying on the table with gook all over my belly from the ultra sound, waiting for him to come in.  We can hear him trying to wrap things up with the other patient, but she and her husband keep asking questions- NOT medically relavant questions!  They wanted to know about insurance and hospital stays and private rooms, etc- CALL BILLING!  I was sweating bullets at this point, I was going to be late for work!  I texted Dawn and gave her a heads up and of course, she said it was no big deal, but to me it was!  FINALLY the doctor comes in at 10:15!  He read the tech's measurements and made a few of his own- in the end we found out that Sophie is 4 lbs 5 oz, she's in the 50th percentile and she's head down/ face up.  He reviewed all my measurements from previous appointments and said Sophie will probably be 7 - 7 1/2 lbs at birth.  She's been measuring very average- which is good- not too big, not too small.  So we were thrilled with that information!  By the time all was said and done we didn't get out of there until 10:30- there was no time for us to go home and get my car, my lunch, my stuff for work, etc.  I dropped Sal off at work and then sped my way to the office.  I was 45 minutes late to work.  Oy!  I was all sorts of flustered and worked up.  And to top it off, I had no food!!

The rest of the week went okay though.  My ankles have been perpetually swollen though and that's gross.  I just don't have time to sit with my feet up!  Soon I'll be on maternity leave though and I'll get some rest.  My sciatic nerve has also been killing me- literally, I think it's killing me!  Last night I came out to the kitchen to take my pills and it shot down my leg/butt and brought me to my knees.  I screamed for Sal (he probably thought I was going into to labor with the panic in my voice!) and he had to carry/drag me to bed.  I've had every pregnancy symptom so far... this better be one healthy child.  I can say though I've been blessed with NO STRETCH marks (so far anyway, 6 more weeks to wait and see)!  

Alright, I'm tired of typing.... tomorrow is my baby shower, I'll update some day soon and tell ya all about it!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love is in the air....

Happy Valentine's Day all!  Unlike most people these days, I still enjoy the silly mushiness that is V-Day!  I'm not as cynical as most and don't think of it as a Hallmark Holiday.  I do believe you should show the people you love that you love them everyday, but I still think it's nice that there's a day dedicated to it :-)  Sal and I are going to The Melting Pot this afternoon for our little celebration.  He gave me a beautiful card this morning and one adorable one "from" Sophie. He also got me a Baby Hawk Baby Carrier!  I've been drooling over them since my cousin mentioned them in her blog!  Now I have my very own!!  He also got Sophie a pair of Baby Legs- pink and brown stripe!  So cute!  I gave him a book called "Why I Love You- 100 Reasons" and a silly card with monkeys on it LOL

My momma is coming over this morning to start painting the nursery!  We're doing two walls a darker pink and two walls a lighter pink.  Then we got a chocolate brown border and chocolate brown peel and stick polka dots!  I think it'll look adorable when all is said and done. 

Well, I better cut this short- Momma is on her way and I need to let the dog outside otherwise she'll never shut up! LOL 

Snow/Sleet/Rain/Ice and I have to drive an hour for a meeting!

So the weather outside is absolutely disgusting!  It snowed over night and now it's raining/sleeting.  I've been watching the news and nothing good has been said about the roadways.  This would all be fine and dandy if I didn't have to go to a meeting for work in an hour and a half!!!  I would have rather just gone into the office, worked a normal day and came home.  But noooooo!  I got the morning off because I have a mandatory meeting in Middletown- which on a good day is a 45 minute drive.  I wonder how long it will take me today!?  I could cry, I don't want to go out in this!  At least Sal cleaned off my car and shoveled the driveway.  So I'll be able to get down to the street, but they never plowed our neighborhood, so who knows what lies out there beyond my sidewalk!  I'm going to go sulk some more....

27 weeks!

So, I'm 27 weeks along today!  I'm up 20 lbs (yikes!) but it seems to be primarily belly, which I can live with!  Even if I gain a pound a week until I'm due (which is the norm), I'll have gained 33 lbs.  I was targeted by my doctor to gain between 25 and 35- so I'm within range.  I have an appointment Monday (19th) with my regular OB and then one Thursday (22nd) with my high risk.  I have a few questions for them, so I'm anxious to go.  I'm hoping we'll have a sonogram with my high risk, I'm dying to see how much she's grown (and to make sure she's still a she)!  We haven't had one since November, so I'm curious!!!  Well, I've got to get going to work, just wanted to give a quick update!

Our Mini-Vacation

We had a pretty nice time overall down in Orlando, there were a few bumps in the road though.  Here's the general run-down:

Friday- we flew out of A.C. and landed in Orlando around 9 pm.  It took forever to get our luggage, but thankfully nothing was lost.. they were just slow!  We left the airport, stopped at Publix and stocked up on a few essentials for the time share (fruit, water, etc).  Finally got checked-in and settled by about 11 pm.  Our room for the night was a 2 bedroom, which would have been fine, except the room Sal and I stayed in had 2 twin beds, no TV, no alarm clock, no bathroom.  So we had to sleep apart and every time I got up to pee, I had to walk through the living room and kitchen to the other side of the time share to get to the bathroom! LOL  Thankfully that was for one night only and our real time share was ready Saturday morning.

Saturday- we (well, not so much me, I didn't have a lot of say in anything we did, but that's okay) decided to go to Busch Gardens in Tampa.  It was about an hour drive and I get uncomfortable in the car but I managed.  The weather was amazing and I felt pretty good, so we walked around the park, but there wasn't much I could do- almost all the rides there are roller coasters!  We did do a safari ride where we got to feed giraffes! That was kinda neat but I started getting really uncomfortable standing in the hot sun for an hour.  In fact, by the end, I felt woozy/ light headed- so we went to the nearest restaurant to get me food and some air conditioning.  Things went downhill from there.  After lunch, my back and sciatic nerve started acting up..BAD!  The in-laws were in the stables looking at horses and I just broke down- sobbed my eyes out.  I was in pain but felt even worse that I was going to ruin everyone's day.  Sal decided we'd get a wheelchair and push me around.  That didn't end my pain, but it relieved it enough  that it didn't ruin the whole day.  I lasted til about 5 pm there, which is pretty good considering we arrived around 9:30 am!

Sunday- we went to Sea World and got me a wheelchair immediately.  This was supposed to be a half-day park so we could go to another one in the afternoon (we really only had 3 full days).  It turned into an all-day event though.  The in-laws wanted to see every show and the shows unfortunately were way spaced out!  Nothing was back-to-back.  And let me tell you, sitting in a wheelchair all day = not comfortable!  My ass/ tail bone were killing me!  At least it was different pain than I felt from walking around the day before, but it was still pain!

Monday- we went to Magic Kingdom and Epcot.  Again, we did the wheelchair thing- it really worked out well (we got to use the wheelchair access in all the lines!).  I was actually able to go on rides there, so I felt like I was a part of the vacation finally.  It did get a little crowded though, so we went to Epcot for a change of scenery.  This is where my nightmare began.  As I was being pushed around in my wheelchair throughout the day I felt Sophie kicking, punching, moving around.  I know it's normal for her to have "rest" time, but it occurred to me suddenly that I hadn't felt her move in a few hours.  I thought about it and realized it had been over 3 hours.  I tried to remain calm, but the tears welled up in my eyes quickly.  I tapped Sal and he leaned down to talk to me (for whatever reason, no one could hear me when I was down there) and I whispered to him that I hadn't felt her move, and saying the words brought on the flood of tears.  He kept reassuring me everything was okay, just relax, etc.  But the longer we waited, the worse my fears became.  I told him not to tell his parents, I didn't want to make a scene, but we should go to First Aid like he suggested.  He just told them I wasn't feeling too well and we'd meet up with them in a little while.  We got to First Aid and the women who greeted us were so nice.  I was a blubbering mess, could hardly choke out any words so Sal was my form of communication.  The nurses in the First Aid center needed us to call my OB and get his directions- they can't do anything really without doctor's orders in a situation like this.  For instance- they could say I just need to lay down but my doctor may want me to go to the E.R.  So, Sal got in touch with Nurse Diane (my OB nurse) and she gave the instructions for me to lay down and drink something sugary.  If I didn't feel movement in 30 minutes I would have to go to the E.R.  So the First Aid nurses wheeled me in the back where they had little cubicles of beds and took my vitals, laid me down and gave me Powerade to drink.  My vitals were good, heart rate was 86, blood pressure was 67/115.  So, I drank my Powerade, praying that it would work.  After about 10 minutes she kicked.  And the water works started again.  I was so relieved.  I had never been that scared before in my life.  I pray that it never happens again, but if it does, I'll know how to handle it.  Needless to say, I'm not going anywhere until this baby arrives.  I need to be within 30 minutes of my doctors for my own mental well-being.  

Tuesday- they (the in-laws and Sal) went back to Sea World, I stayed at the time share.  I was done with parks after the day I had Monday.  I did laundry and packed our luggage and just generally relaxed until it was time to go to the airport.  Our flight wasn't a great one though because of the storm that was hitting the East Coast.  I literally cried tears of joy when the plane finally touched down in A.C.  

And so, I'm going back to work tomorrow, I took today off to unwind.  I'm really looking forward to maternity leave though...LOL  That sounds terrible, but it's true.  I don't have another appointment until the 19th, so maybe by then we'll have a date of when I'm going out of work.

Happy New Year

Well, 2008 has come and gone.  There have been some ups and downs, but overall, I think it was a pretty good year.  I have a lot to be thankful for- my brother overcame his drug problem, my hubby and I were successful in creating a life, my best friend gave birth to a healthy and handsome little man, my niece is growing like a stink weed (and gets cuter everyday).. I could go on and on.  Here's to a positive outlook for 2009!

And now for a quick recap-  Thanksgiving was a slight nightmare.  I held it here for the first and last time ever.  It was way too overwhelming for my little house.  I simply do not have the room to host holidays like that.  Having friends over is different, they don't care if they have to eat off their laps sitting on the living room floor.  That doesn't jive with family.  Also, having everyone "bring something" doesn't work either, because not everyone brings their "something" hot.  I only have one oven.  I can't keep 6 trays of food hot.  So, everything was luke warm/verging on the side of cold.  I was on my feet the whole time, which resulting in terrible back pains by the end of the day.  Needless to say, I was miserable.  I'm not hosting Thanksgiving ever again.

The Christmas festivities went much better.  Friend's Christmas was held on the 20th here.  It was small this year, Lenny had the stomach flu, Ang and Ryan were with his family and Chris and Danielle had other plans.  I made spaghetti- which is nice and easy- it doesn't require multiple trays! LOL  After dinner we made cookies and played with Mason.  It was a quiet night.  Christmas Eve we spent with Sal's parents at Luigi's in Lakehurst.  Another quiet evening, had dinner, came home.  Just the way I like it!  I did host Christmas morning breakfast though- did ALL the cooking myself!!  And know what?  It was perfect!  The food was hot and delicious!  We opened gifts, ate, chatted, played with Aly and everyone was gone by noon.  It was a great day.

Last night, New Year's Eve, was supposed to be spent with Ron, Steph, Lenny, etc... HOWEVER, I ran into an issue that I just couldn't get past.  We were getting ready to go to the Sledzik's, so I hopped in the shower.  I put my leg up to shave and saw it... FLINTSTONE FEET!  My feet and ankles were swollen beyond recognition.  If you know me, spent any time with me at all, you know I have boney ankles and feet.  I screamed for Sal to come see and then proceeded to sob like a baby.  I made him call Steph and Ron and tell them we were coming, there was NO WAY I was letting anyone else see this.  I put on my pjs at 7 pm, got in bed, propped my feet up with ice packs and that's where I stayed.  So much for a fun NYE out, so much for the cute outfit I had picked out, so much for a good time with friends.  I was asleep by 8:30 (due to exhaustion for the extensive crying I did).  What a miserable night.  I know it's due to pregnancy, I'm not ignorant to that fact, but SERIOUSLY?!  I've had every other issue, why couldn't I be spared this one?!  WHY?!  In fact, they are still a little swollen this morning.. better but not normal.  And now, we're getting on a plane tomorrow- great.  More swollen feet.  

Oy.