Long Awaited and Much Requested

Back in December I took one of these - mostly to prove to Oliver that I was indeed pregnant. He kept asking how I knew, I just did. December 5th was a day to remember - I was five weeks and a few days.
On that day we looked like this (for the record Oliver still looks like that).
Then after 15 weeks I looked like this...yeah YOU can't tell, but I could.
Then at 20 weeks more people could tell.
Since some people thought I was just getting fat and since I was feeling fat, I hacked off all my hair. It was so people would stop focusing on my weight/waist/whatever, and have a conversation about something else. I work in an engineering office - they aren't known for being subtle, sensitive, tactful or politically correct. It was supposed to make me feel better and beautiful and it mostly worked. But then, ask anyone who knows me, I LOVE CHANGE!

So then at 29 weeks I looked like this.

New Machine

I went in for my regularly scheduled doctors appointment on Monday and asked about when they would be scheduling my follow-up ultrasound to check on the progress of her developing kidneys. It just happened to work out that the office that does my ultrasounds would have a rep in town the next day demoing some new features of their machine to be able to see the baby with all her skin, etc. This type of ultrasound is ideal for women past 26 weeks and before 30 because the baby has some skin and fat but isn't too big to be able to see anything. That made me a perfect candidate. My doctor doesn't believe in doing ultrasounds just for fun...but since I was needing a follow-up anyway she scheduled us for the next morning at 10 am! Our friend Missy came with us and there were 4 techs in the room learning how to use the machine...it was hot and AMAZING!

First we got some standard pictures like ones we have seen before like her profile...
At my appointment I was diagnosed with a pregnancy rash that isn't supposed to manifest itself until 35 weeks and 75% of the women that have the rash deliver boys. Needless to say I left my Monday appointment worrying whether she was still a girl (and if I was super far along)...so I asked the ultrasound tech to check and make sure. I would be devastated...hello, her room is already decorated! :) Sure enough, she is still a she.
She was yawning over and over and they were able to catch a picture of it.
After they measured her kidney progress (the tech doesn't tell me anything I have to wait for the doctor to call) they switched over to their new technology and started looking at the baby in 4D. These pics don't even do justice to how amazing it was in the office. Everything at the office was in color - not full color - but colored. So the picture below shows her resting against the placenta which is attached to the uterine wall. In the office her skin was one color, the placenta another and the uterine wall a third. AMAZING!
And here she is with her hands curled up to her face...she's learning to say her prayers.
And we don't have to wait to make sure that she has all her fingers, because you can count them clearly in the following pictures.
We'll let you know about her toes when we meet her.
For now, it was amazing and we haven't heard anything. But we'll keep you posted as we learn more. She weighed in at 2 lbs 12 oz and is measuring 8 days ahead of schedule, but this won't affect my due date.

We also still lovingly call her baby x. As we were discussing names last night I vetoed one from Oliver's list I was pretty emphatic that it didn't matter how much he liked it, she wasn't receiving that name. When he asked why I told him that it has nothing to do with the name, I just hate the way he says it! Yep, he's from Utah, and consequently some names are immediately stricken from the list because I don't like the way they get said... :) No, I'm not telling you which name it was...

Public or Private

Our blog was once public, then Oliver wanted it to be private, then I wanted it to be public and I'm sure we'll have the same back and forth hundreds more times. Currently it's public and I prefer it that way. I like that I end up at the top of people's blog rolls when I have posted recently so that my blog actually gets read (kind of self-serving but whatever). I like that people that don't know how to log into a private blog can now read mine - like my parents, etc. I also like that people don't have to ask to view my blog, they don't have to have a gmail account, and they can just read when they want.

I don't like the Chinese character comments though. Do you know what I'm talking about? What is up with random people commenting on my blog? And I have a few OCD issues in my life so every time I get a Chinese character comment I delete it (I cannot verify that they are actually Chinese characters but my sister can correct me if they are/aren't 'cause she's fluent). But do you know what bugs me about deleting these comments - they still add into the total comment tally - and they aren't real comments. If I could change the number of comments and delete them you bet I would! Anyway, returning to my original thoughts...

I read a post yesterday of a friend requesting that everyone remove her family's last name from their blog roll and it was a huge AHA moment. And so, out of respect for her privacy, and all my other friends who go back and forth and public/private, I am removing everyone's last name from my blog roll. Because, well, I'm OCD, and it's all or nothing for me!

I also hate reading private blogs. I understand the need for privacy, protecting your kids, going through divorce, etc. The part of it that I hate is that it doesn't come up on my blog roll when it's been updated. And since I have OCD, I click on each private link EVERY SINGLE DAY to see if it has been updated. It used to be a good use of my time when only one or two people had private blogs but now I read 14 private blogs! I probably should get over my issue - but I find it really annoying when people with private blogs only update once every 6 or 8 weeks - because by then I have clicked on your blog, typed in my username and password, and waited to be re-directed more than 50 times!

Yes, I know I have issues and maybe I'll re-title this post OCD. Thanks.

Poor Baby Girl

I had my regular monthly check-up last week. In between the last two appointments I had my exciting ultrasound appointment and determined we're having a GIRL! :) Well, the purpose of that ultrasound isn't really to find out about the baby's sex, but to measure all sorts of other things. While at the doctor on Friday I asked about the results of the my ultrasound.

She flipped through my chart and said that everything looked good EXCEPT - that's when I stopped listening or my breath caught or something - EXCEPT - who says that to a pregnant woman, why didn't you call and say something to me, etc, etc flew through my head. Okay - Heidi - seriously you probably should listen to what she is saying EXCEPT about...

The babies kidneys and ureters (tubes connecting the kidneys to the bladder) are swollen. Sometimes, a birth defect in the urinary tract will block the flow of urine in an unborn baby. As a result, urine backs up and causes the ureters and kidneys to swell. Swelling in the kidneys is called hydronephrosis. Swelling in the ureters is called hydroureter.

Here's a picture of what it looks like normally...
And here is a picture of what it looks like swollen...
She went on to explain that it is not known what causes the condition (they compare it to acid reflux of the bladder kicking stuff back into the ureters and kidneys) and that it typically corrects itself during fetal development. The next step is to have another ultrasound at 32-33 weeks and see if it has corrected. If not, Baby X will have her own ultrasound once she is born, to see if the last few weeks of development corrected the problem. Then, if not, WHO THE HECK KNOWS, they just tell you it normally corrects itself.

So then, like any good parents or informed person, you go home from the doctor and start surfing the web. I've decided I'm a "worst case scenario" kind of a girl. That is not helpful. I read all sorts of stuff online and probably should just quit. Luckily I married a "best case scenario" kind of guy who adds some needed perspective. Truthfully, there isn't anything we can do right now but wait and most likely it will work itself out. If not, there is all sorts of information, it is a well researched issue, we live in a country with excellent medical care, we live in a state with tons of pediatric specialist, and we both have great health insurance.

So now we wait, we pray and we are patient (nope not great at any of that kind of stuff - luckily I married a great man)...she'll probably be just fine. And the upside is we get to "see" her again at 32 weeks...and that's always fun!

Random Thoughts...

I am a blog stalker. There is a general theme in stay-at-home mom's blogs that have expressed in moments of frustration that it would be nice to go to work, to dress up, to eat out and to pay someone else to raise their kids. It would be less stressful - but overall, when they step back and reflect, they are enjoying being home raising their kids the way they want to.

I want to stay home - I want to be done being pregnant - I want that luxury that so many get to "enjoy".

I think staying home to raise kids is a lot of work and a totally different kind of work then the job kind. My work can be stressful and demanding and wake me up in the middle of the night too (seriously people, I don't care that you're sprinkler didn't come on and it is 3:30 am - but I'll pretend I do) but it's working for someone else and not really changing the world. I have never wanted to work at a traditional job for all of my life.

I have worked really hard, I put myself through college and a masters degree debt free, and I have had a job all year round since I was 16 (except while on a mission) - I am tired of traditional work and ready for a change. But it isn't going to happen - at least not at this point in my life - unless one of you would like to purchase our townhouse.

I have serious anxiety over putting our daughter in daycare. I have guilt about not being able to stay home full-time. I have the best possible work situation for having to work after she comes in terms of setting my own hours, having a flexible schedule, still making good money and keeping full benefits without working full-time - but I just don't want to do it. I don't even have a child yet and I feel like people are judging me because I will choose to go back to work.

The following rant is controversial and I am okay if you don't agree with me...but this is my blog so STOP reading if you want to. I currently HATE some government programs which provide assistance to people choosing to grow their families without the financial ability to be able to do so. I am talking about health care, medical insurance, food stamps, food assistance, getting more money back on tax returns then they pay into them, walking away from a house commitment, having a reduce mortgage because you chose to over finance for some cash out, etc. It might be because I am jealous that people can "afford" to stay home because they are receiving handouts...but it makes my angry.

I would love to just walk away from the commitment that we made to own a townhouse. I would love to say to the entire economy/neighbors/bank/etc - sorry we bought at the top of the market, sorry that the housing market sucks, you just deal with it because I don't want to - but there is no integrity in that. I am not saying that everyone who does those things is doing so with the before mentioned thoughts - but it happens.

I realize that many of you don't care about my rant or my frustrations or my guilt...but there it is...in all it's randomness.

Bountiful Baskets...

Oliver and I have joined a food co-op. It's amazing! Not only does it save money, buy organic and local produce, but it is a huge time saver. We ordered our fruit and veggie share on Monday and then it took less than 3 minutes to pick it up Saturday morning. Our $15 produce share bought all the following...
8 ears of corn on the cob, 5 sweet potatoes, 4 yellow squash, broccoli, 6 Roma tomatoes, 1 yellow onion and a head of lettuce. AND

A pineapple, 8 Fuji apples, 6 oranges, blackberries, strawberries, and 8 bananas.

Then in addition to our normal produce share we bought a case of mangoes for $8.50 and...

8 pounds of strawberries for $8!

Last night for dinner we had such yummy food and it is so much easier to eat fruits and veggies all day when we have a variety, plenty, and a fresh selection. I'm excited for our new food co-op! We also couldn't buy that much stuff at the grocery store for such a good price - or so quickly. LOVE IT!

Tragedy

Utah's Hogle Zoo says its 8-month-old giraffe, Jamar, was found dead in his enclosure over the weekend.

The baby giraffe was popular with visitors and staff after his birth last summer at the zoo.

Jamar apparently died early Sunday. Hogle Zoo veterinarians performed a necropsy and cited "failure to thrive" as the cause of death.

Inexperienced first-time mothers, like Jamar's mother Kipenzi, can have a weak maternal instinct. Zoo staff also say Jamar was an independent baby.

Staff say Jamar was at a critical weaning period in the transition from nursing to solid foods.I'm going to be a first time mom and my baby might be independent but I sure hope that I don't have weak maternal instincts....good thing small humans are a little more resilient right?

Do you think the editor kept their job?

Zoo-time Fun!

It's been almost 8 months since the last time we went to the zoo. But last year our zoo had all sorts of baby animals born and it was a blast. I love going to the zoo! I imagine that over the coming years it will become more and more fun as we grow our little family. Here are some pics of all the new animals that were born at our zoo last year.

The elephant Zuri (female): born August 10, 2009 at Hogle Zoo to Christie and father, Jackson (Pittsburgh Zoo).
The giraffe Baby Jamar (male): born July 30, 2009 at Hogle Zoo to Riley and Kipenzi (both living at the Hogle Zoo).
The three tiger cubs (my favorite) (all male): born June 2, 2009 at Hogle Zoo to Kazek and Basha (living at the Hogle zoo)named, Bronevik, Vikentii and Kirill.
And the snow leopard, Baby Himal (male): born May 7, 2009 at Hogle Zoo to Himesh and Nema (living at the Hogle Zoo).
Poor elephant was the only girl born last summer but it made for a very fun and exciting trip to the zoo. And, as usual, Oliver and I didn't take any pictures of the two of us, but we were running around and just as excited as any other child there that day.

Amazing Technology...

Friday we went to have our ultrasound done. They had just installed their brand new machine that morning which meant two things, first, we couldn't get a copy of our ultrasound on DVD or VHS because it wasn't hooked up yet, but second, that the picture was amazing. I was watching it on a project TV screen while Oliver and his mom watched the tech's screen. They say that it was amazing and the detail they could see was far better than what I saw. They even got to see the blood flow in color.Hand by face...
Crazy skeleton looking face...
Another profile with hand by face...
One of Oliver's favorite pics was the cute little foot...
And, we are happy to report that our child has not yet learned the importance of modesty. So for the first, and possibly last time of her life, we are posting a picture of her personal business for all the world to see. :) The three white lines indicate that she is a she (the labia and vaginal opening).

We are very happy and excited and will now embark on picking her name....ask us in August what we chose and will let you know when you meet her. Until then, by suggestion of my dad, we are lovingly calling her baby X.

Goodbye...

I decided it was time to clean out my closet. I can't stand to wake up in the morning, walk in the closet, and look at a bunch of clothes that don't fit. Since we have plenty of storage space in our house I am able to get them out of my closet, out of sight and out of mind. I have always struggled with my weight and I find it very discouraging to look at clothes that USED to fit and USED to be cute when I wore them. So I just packed them up and put them in boxes in the storage room downstairs. Now this is the current state of my closet. Empty skirt hangers...
And a ton of empty hangers!
Maybe I'll have to go shopping....or maybe I'll have to actually fold my laundry....hehehehe

Thanksgiving!

I got a roaster from my in-laws for my birthday. Seeing how I have borrowed theirs three times in the past two years - I was super excited! It is the best way to cook a turkey because then I can still use my oven to make rolls, roasted carrots, pie, sweet potato souffle, etc.
Kyle was just as excited about my gift as I was! Until he got stuck in the box and couldn't get his legs out from under the flaps...
And since we have the cutest nephew you could ask for - here are some more pics. He had to go to the doctor that day and wasn't feeling well but he is the best baby - and you would have barely noticed he wasn't feeling well AT ALL.

And here is our Thanksgiving table with really bad lighting. I'm too lazy to photshop fix it right now - but you get the idea.
We had homemade grape juice, pretzel salad, yummy homemade rolls (which I am still dreaming about), turkey, mashed potatoes (which weren't that good - I messed them up), stuffing, gravy, roasted carrots, a veggie tray, sweet potato souffle and pie! We ate it all on my grandparents wedding china and silver which they gave to Oliver and I as a wedding gift. My grandma never broke one piece in the 60 years they had it! I have had it for two years and so far all is well. We also laugh about how plate sizes were much smaller back then - but for Thanksgiving it turns out not to be a bad thing because my eyes are always bigger than my stomach.
Our dad flew in late on Thanksgiving day so that we could all celebrate with our Utah families that day and then my sister and her family came over on Friday to eat like champions again for our small little family gathering. It was a lot of fun and a whole lot of work. I didn't know that I was barely pregnant and I sure wasn't sick yet so cooking ALL DAY LONG was actually a lot of fun. Hopefully next year my sister and I will be happy to not be pregnant any longer and have a little more energy to get it all done. YUM!

Putting together nursery furniture....

This weekend Oliver and I drove to all sorts of baby stores to look at crib furniture, changing tables, etc. Who knew that people would really spend $500 on a crib? (No offense intended if that's you - I just am saving my money for a sweet rocker!) So, we price matched and compared and then remembered our Gerber friends who bought their nursery in a box 2 years ago. We went to look at them and there are none set up at the store, but I remember thinking that her's was cute and looked functional. So we decided to buy it, take it home and set it up, and then we still have enough time if we end up not liking it to get something different. Plus, you can't find a crib, changing table and dresser for $200 any other way - so our adventure began. All of these pieces are going to turn into a dresser, changing table and crib.
Here is Oliver setting up the crib. We decided to set it up in the living room where we have the most space. I'm sure those of you with experience realize the error in this judgment. Would have been nice to know that it wasn't going to fit through the doorway and into the nursery.... I called my mom at 9:30 that night to tell her it wouldn't fit through the door and she laughed and said she could have told us that 2 hours ago. So we un-assembled it, moved into the nursery, and re-assembled it. (Notice my empty coke slurpee cup in the background - YUM!)
We then set up the changing table, which actually fits perfectly in the hallway bathroom. It's as if they made that extra space just for a changing table.
Fits right behind the door - pretty cool huh?
We might actually go and get another changing table just to have one in the bathroom as well because I really think that we need the changing table for the bedroom. So for now we intend to keep the set (I forgot to take a picture of the dresser) and put our saved money toward something else.

And don't worry, while walking around Babies R Us this weekend we realized that there is always going to be "something else".

Nothing New

So I was scrolling down my blog today and I realized I have 8 followers. Poor followers! They are probably tired of me waiting to post an update about our not exciting lives. So, here is some catch-up from the end of last year that I haven't been able to get to.

I had a birthday at the end of November and my wonderful husband bought me flowers.

Aren't they purty?

I love the hot chili pepper and the warm yummy fall arrangement.

Almost nothing beats fresh flowers!

Yes, this is she.

My cell phone just vibrated at my work desk so I picked it up -

Me: Hello?
Caller: Is this Heidi Hansen?
Me: Yes, this is she.
Caller: This is Wxxxx Bxxxxxxx, a special investigator with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Silence...dead silence...gulp - um - okay...
My brain and stomach go - WHAT THE HECK DID I DO?

She explains why she's callings, sets an appointment to come to my work tomorrow and meet with me, and everything is totally fine and kosher - but why is my guilt complex the first thing to kick in? I'm really not a bad girl, I don't do horrible things - I'm just quick to assume the worst and feel like I'm being hauled off to federal prison.

I seriously have watched to many episodes of 24 and Criminal Minds and Law & Order - I need to stop watching TV and remember I'm a good girl...really, I promise, I am...

(at least my grammar was correct - I tell you I am a good girl)

Our World is Changing

I'd say this makes it pretty official - however over the last several weeks I have had no doubt everyday that I am pregnant because of all the throw up :) Today it has a heartbeat of 170 bpm which some are thinking it's a girl because of the rate - but we'll have to wait and see...

The addition is said to be arriving August 4th - give or take whenever the little child feels like coming. My aunt pointed out that it is easier to deal with the constant vomitting then it is to deal with a new child - so I'll be glad for 7 more months of fun and change.

Yeah for our new adventure - we are feeling very blessed and excited!