Funniest Friday...

I couldn't help but chuckle, and then slowly start laughing really hard at a text I got during lunch today:
I work at a facility that has a few long-term residents (they live here) and they are on their lunch outing now...we also frequently do "Casino Nights" with fake slot machines (they work, they just don't dispense anything - when a resident "wins" they get fake paper money...)

The text from the activities assistant accompanying them on their luncheon today:
"Did [Mrs. Smith] withdraw personal funds from her account? She's trying to give me Casino money!!!"

For some reason, this really started to crack me up... lol


ALSO - important Ben&Jerry's update!

The Stop&Shop had my flavor - and it was on sale!
so I bought three containers...


AND THEN (said in chinese voice from "DudeWhere'sMyCar") -

this happened:

that's Button in his big boy bed this morning (still asleep) - after sleeping uninterrupted ALL NIGHT LONG!
E was paranoid as we went to bed last night, wondering if he should plug in a nightlight out in the hallway (I said NO! He could wake up, come out and grab a HOT bulb! and/or then start playing with the nightlight in the outlet!) or if he should leave the bathroom door cracked (one of our outlets has a built-in nightlight - and again, NO! the bathroom sinks have all kinds of stuff - even if it's just hair products) underneath that he could get into! (no... no childproof locks on those cabinets...)) and we finally left Button's door cracked, bathroom door SHUT, our door about 1/3 open (the gate at the top of the stairs firmly locked shut) and all the lights off...

It went fabulously! I peeked in (as you can see above) this morning around 6:15 and he was still laying there! After going back to sleep, I heard the slightest slip of a wisp of a sound, and mother's instinct had me BOLTING upright in bed - to see Button standing in the hallway right outside our bedroom...

(Do you remember your mother having that magical ability - the superpower - to shoot up in bed, no matter how soundly she was sleeping, the second your toe crossed the threshold into their room?!  Yup, I've got that superpower now!)

So we've started (officially) the transition out of the crib!



And hopefully the hormonal upheaval starts to calm down soon as second tri (somewhat) nears - my administrator asked (again!) the other day, "are you ok? You've been 'off' the past few days..."
I was all, yes. yup I'm FINE.  (because, seriously - she asked me last week if I had my period - could that be why I was tired?  How about - it's NUNYA business!)

If that sounds cruel - I only know her very first reaction to the news will be, "how long of a leave are you planning?!" with pure concern only for who will be doing my work when I'm gone, and how soon will I be back...

Anyways - glad the work-week is almost over - we've got a big hockey game tonight to start off the weekend!

LET'S GO RANGERS!!!

Let's F*CK 'em UP!

(and actually - I can't recognize that player... it doesn't look much like the current captain McDonagh... lol)

Best! DAY! EVAAAARR!!!

So last time I was pregnant (with Button), we went on a family vaca (with all the ILs - it was actually pretty fun!) to Lake George, NY.

In Lake George, they have a Ben & Jerry's shop, where I found the MOST AMAZING greek frozen yogurt ever:

Now if you went to that link for the Ben&Jerry's flavor page, you saw this little button that I nearly jumped out of my seat at...

I haven't seen this flavor (in store or "Scoop Shop" ONCE since we left Lake George, and was certainly broken hearted about it, especially when pregnant! (E made fun of me, saying the Banana and PeanutButter combo was SUCH a pregnancy craving...))


YOU GUYS I FOUND A STORE NEAR ME THAT SELLS THIS FLAVOR!!!!*


hence, the BEST.
DAY. 
EVAR!!!!

(*according to the Ben & Jerry's site... I will be HEARTBROKEN again if I go to this Stop&Shop tonight and they don't have it...)


Quick doppler note (at 9w3d) from this morning (after fully intending to use it together last night, and both of us conked out by 10pm) - I told E the place I found the hb last session (after agonizing minutes of searching!) right on my c/s incision, on my right side...

Not even 2 seconds after he touched the wand into the gel, we heard the 180bpm gallumping!!!

Hi Little Bear!!

(E smiled, and then said in his monster voice - "It's ALIIIIIVE!")

mish-mash Monday... (9w1d)

Even though it's Tuesday... (HA! go pregnancy brain...)

what a way to return to work from a vacation, right?

Week1 - three days (Wed, Thurs, Fri)

A nice three-day weekend, followed by another short work-week (Tues-Fri)


E caught "Montezuma's Revenge" (or so he says, from Mexico... I blame the fish and pork he ate at the buffets - I was having none of that! And didn't get sick!)  and so our plans of a weekend DownTheShore were kaboshed...

Instead, Saturday morning (after a failed doppler attempt #1... was mentally ok, figured it was an empty bladder, that I'd try again later...) I went shopping! With gift cards, no less!
Gift cards that I found in the house 6 months ago - from clothes E had gotten as gifts (over a year ago!) and had returned for store credit... he didn't even know/forgot the gift cards even existed!

So off to Hollister and American Eagle I went (And Bath&BodyWorks - gift card for Mother's Day from SIL)... I treated Button (and myself) to fro-yo on our way out of the mall, since he was such a good shopping partner!

Sunday morning, E felt he could brave the drive DTS, and off we went - where he then chilled in the backyard (close to a toilet) while the gals (MIL, her sister, SIL, and younger adopted SILs) and I went to the bay with Button... we all joined up for a trip later to the boardwalk for some rides and dinner (season's first crab legs! YUMMMMMMM!)

A late night drive (it would have been utter chaos squeezing into a 3-bedroom house already sleeping 7 adults and a dog...) got us home around 11:30.

Monday I had plans to get together with my bestie, Dee - I still hadn't told her in person about the pregnancy and was so excited to tell her! After the first 30-40 minutes at the park with our boys (hers is almost 11 months) I finally said, "there's been no cute good segue presented, so I'll just tell you - Button's going to be a big brother!"
She was so thrilled! And told me she had a dream a week ago that I was like, 8 months pregnant and telling her it was a girl!!!

SQUEEEE!!


And then when Button and I got home, E was out food shopping, so I figured I'd try the doppler again (I guess I feel less pressure when E's not there...) and 10 minutes in with no luck (I refused to give up...) I started to panic, and wondered if the OB office would be open on Memorial Day for an ultrasound... when, THERE IT WAS!

I found the sweet little heartbeat, and got a great long video (I showed E later... I think he wants to listen to it in person, I'll see if we can try together again next time... lol)


We then blew up Button's pool, and sat in the sun, grilling burgers for just the three of us, and had a fabulous Memorial Day...




And now, because E and others have asked, and I, myself, am curious - a to-date comparison of Button's hb and Little Bear's hb (for shits and giggles...)

So, obviously, no clear Boy/Girl indicator yet!

I shouldn't have... (8w4d)

...but I totally did...


I got the doppler out last night, while E was mowing the lawn.  And I totally figured, ok - so if I can't find hb, no big deal - I'll call the OB office and take them up on the "offer" (my earlier demand) of another u/s before 12weeks...

If I find it?

Great! No need to pester them for an u/s!

I FOUND THE HEARTBEAT!!!!!!

It took just a few minutes' searching - and it came through, steady and fast... (the doppler never registered the bpm, I'm gonna geustimate 150-160ish... so definitely baby's hb!)

Now I need to try and refrain from daily use... we're going DownTheShore tonight so that should take care of the temptation until we get back Saturday night!

And I finally have a get-together scheduled with my bestie, Dee, on Monday - I've been waiting to tell her in person and am so excited!!



Happy Friday!!

to "Tide" you over!

get it?

Like an ocean tide?!


Sorry, I'm still loopy on vacation...

and EXHAUSTED.  I'm more tired being back to work than when we were in Cancun.

Which makes total sense: all we did each and every day there was buffet breakfast, hang by the pool, maybe hang by the kids' pool area, get buffet lunch, nap, and when the sun was weak enough - played on the ocean until we showered and went for dinner.

And then we all went to sleep.

Between 9 and 9:30.

IT WAS AMAZING....

and because most of the pictures are on the big camera at home (and because I've had no energy to do anything once home from work but nap on the couch, watch E feed Button dinner, and then pull myself together to put him to bed - which means a dishwasher needs to be emptied, the kitchen is atrocious, and none of our vacation laundry has even made it out of the suitcases...) - here are a few pics to Tide you over!

that's the view from our huuuuuuuge windows in our room... I mean - we were a corner room! two walls of windows!

Do you think he's enjoying himself?! =P

He hasn't stopped talking about the "yeh-yo boat" he went on! And he crashed so hard each day for his nap...

They had these awesome "Pirate ship" cruises (we didn't go on any) but got to watch them leave harbor every night! 

And the peacocks! we couldn't pass this glass partition in a certain hallway without saying, "hello birdies" and "bye bye birdies!"

An incredible time, so relaxing... And I didn't get much of a tan (boo!) because we put on too much sunblock so the last day has us frantically taking turns during Button's nap to squeeze in a few more hours of sun (sans sunblock!) by the pool... 

button was so great on the flights (there - 2 because we layover-ed in Orlando - and back - direct, thankfully! and the flight was totally not full, so he got his own seat!)

And I had to take 8w "bloat" shots - I felt so huge in my swimsuits, and then looked back at these pictures and totally laughed... because I didn't really look that different... lol

(ok this picture does look pretty bloated, probably because of my hand on my upper stomach. lol)

Anyways - more pics to come!!

and an update on the 2015 Reading Challenge!!

Less than 12 hours..

We're pretty much packed, baby sun block and cute little swim trunks to boot.. at the moment, we're watching NY Rangers play a currently tied game 7..

Ready to get to bed so I can get some decent sleep before getting up and out by 6am to fly out of JFK..

More importantly, ready to be on a Cancun beach!!!

Sighs of Relief... ( 7w1d ! )

This morning was an u/s at the MFM office (due to scheduling issues at my OB's office - they wouldn't have been able to get me in before we leave for Cancun - IN TWO DAYS!)

She did an abdominal wand first (SO much better than transV) but followed up with a transV wand later... (yuck yuck yuck - she graphically wrapped an actual condom on the wand, and then GLOBBED lube on the tip, which proceeded to liberally drip down in clumps... YUCK)


I nearly held my breath, watched the small 12" screen far away on the wall, while E watched the one over my shoulder the tech was looking at... at one point, he grinned and nodded his head and I thought,  oh thank god and assumed he'd seen the heartbeat (he had). and I said, "you're nodding! That's good!!!"

Of course, the tech immediately and solemnly goes, "hold on guys just give me a minute..."

PLEASE DON'T EVER SAY THAT TO ME AGAIN! IN THAT TONE!


Thankfully, a minute later she zoomed in on Little Bear (more on that in a second) and said, "ok don't move, don't speak - we're going to listen to the heartbeat!"

Don't worry honey! I hadn't taken a breath the whole time yet!

A solid, strong and steady 154bpm and a little gummi bear (Little Bear!) measuring RIGHT ON TRACK at 7w1d...

From 6w1d last Friday!!!

(so yes, an exclamation mark on the dates in the post title!)


I immediately grabbed E's had in happiness as I nearly cried with relief, a big grin from ear to ear...


now for Cancun packing tonight!!!

Thankful for What It Is

So...
That ticker over on the left, the countdown for the first ultrasound, should read 0...

Our appointment was this morning, and it was good... and it was bad (in my mind, at least)

The good part?
We saw a teeny tiny little flickering heart... YAY YAY YAY!!
(or more accurately, "cardiac tube" and "cardiac activity.")

Then I saw her place her little crosshairs on the crown, and one on the rump - and I measured 6w1d... when I should have been 6w5d by my O-date count.

Which isn't horrible... just the other day, I was trying to reassure someone on forums that, at this gestation - things are measured SO MICROSCOPICALLY that a 1/2 mm  could mean the difference of a few days...
(also - I was thinking, based on when I turned the very first test truly positive (10DPO) and how long it took until the lines got really nice and dark - theoretically the betas doubling and increasing - I was thinking I've got a "late implanter" on my hands... which, even though they measure gestation by date of conception, wouldn't a late implanter be a few days behind?!)


The doctor wants me to come back next week to confirm good growth.
YES, I love that I get another ultrasound so soon, it just surprised me that she wanted it - I feel like in the past, the office had the "can't change the outcome" mindset and would have just scheduled the 12w NT...

So maybe it's her reaction that has me slightly off-kilter... (btw - new OB at the practice, and despite what it may sound like, I LOVE HER) 

When she heard we were traveling to Cancun next week, she DEFINITELY wanted to get an ultrasound in before our vacation, to make sure everything was still ok.  And even said that she would provide a letter that said it was medically advised I not travel, if we wanted to get out of the trip...

which, hell no - I AM SO READY FOR A VACATION and SO READY to be out of reach of my job via telephone...
and also - if the plane travel is totally safe (as she told me it was) then there's no reason for me NOT to go to Cancun... except, in her words:

"if you miscarry in Mexico, you're in Mexico... and are not familiar with their medical facilities - if you need a D&C, etc."   **
(** how awful, right?  a PGALer can't help but think ahead about things like possibly miscarrying... and whether facilities would be available in case of medical procedures needed.)

So, yea - she's blunt... but I've realized I like that about her... while all the other staff - receptionist, lab tech for blood, nurse at intake, ultrasound tech - were all, "congrats! So exciting, a baby!" the doctor didn't shy away from the fact that bad things can (and do! I've experienced them!) happen...
And I'm realizing as I write this, I'm being thrown off by the fact that I feel like she's acting as an RE's office would, with plenty of visits and reassurances in the early scary weeks...

My OB/GYN office changed names (and I think affiliations slightly - mostly same doctors and nurses) and if this is their new policy, I LOVE IT.

And even better - when I asked if I could squeeze in another peace-of-mind ultrasound around 9ish weeks, she told me it would be absolutely no problem...

so while I'm bummed about still being stuck in the sweet-pea stage for awhile and having the big 7w blueberry be pushed off a few days, there is a tiny precious heartbeat... cardiac activity... whatever!


(I'll probably keep the same Sunday ticker-change until next week's ultrasound can confirm stuff... because also? 6w1d today would make the due date NEW YEAR'S EVE... of course.)

A Milestone (of dreams) and Makin' Things this Monday (6w1d)

So end of last week, I had my first bleeding dream (I sat in the bathroom Friday morning and noted in the blogger app so I wouldn't forget to post about it - good thing I did too! I just now saw the draft and was like, OH YEAAA!!!!)


So in the dream, I guess I was a little ho bag, sleeping with like 4 guys and realized I was around CD15 (FW!)
Cue the dream freak-out...
But then I got my period/started bleeding and I was like,  whew! ... wait...

Wasn't I already pregnant???


and this baby-making business is still exhausting... Friday night I fell asleep while putting Button to bed... I laid him in the crib, and I curled up, cramped on the glider (he would whine when I stepped out of the room... *sigh* it's something he pulls like, once every few weeks...) and he's laying in his crib kicking his monkey toy that's attached to the bars...
I didn't realize 45 minutes had passed (and Button still wasn't sleeping!) until I stirred and checked the clock!

Oh and more crazy dreams: I was, I think, going to some large indoor rodeo (I think it was AT my parents' church?!)

It morphed (like dreams do) into a circus, and all of a sudden I'm like, doing trapeze from the audience, swinging around on some rope.  There were 1-2 "mean girls" I recognized from high school, complete with frosty pink, nearly lilac, lipstick and chokers - awesome 90's gear!

Something like the "ring master" invites me to join the circus...

The same night, in another dream, I'm watching TV from a couch, and my sister and an hasidic Jewish woman (it was a speech therapist from my actual job!) are on a nearby couch, I think flirting!


All that to say - when I fall asleep (usually on the couch around 9:30) I get some crazy wack-a-doo dreams...



A quick Monday of Making Things: this thing being a craft/crayon/marker box for Button... (started as a Converse box with some leftover paper from the crazy Circus Birthday Bash planning last year)

I taped (meticulously) four pieces of patterned paper together, and then (painstakingly!) traced out a design of fold- and cut-lines...

I taped (on the inside, and again on the seams) everything down (lazy woman's hot glue...) and with a few trimmings here and there, my pattern worked!!

I think it came out pretty cute, and I'm excited to put it in his desk!

 (considering this was on my to-do list and sitting on the guest bedroom for a number of months, it maybe be a few more days/weeks until it actually gets moved to his desk in the playroom... lol)

just... stuff. (5w5d)

It's Friday, it's been a few days since I blogged -so for the sake of it (and so it doesn't grow to be weeks in between posts...)

one week  until our first appointment and ultrasound...

Time is admittedly passing pretty quickly (quicker than the first two pregnancies for sure) with a toddler to keep busy with... especially when he wakes up crying like he did last night (thankfully, a quick diaper change and he was back to sleep...)


I had to re-wash a load of laundry THREE TIMES because I kept forgetting about it and never moved it to the dryer... (stank. just gross.)


I'm just glad it's Friday - work has been getting on my nerves.

More honestly, I'm 10x worse than when I PMS and so, feel super bitchy towards everyone (but mostly just the administrator who feels like it's fun to waste my time with pointless meetings - the information gets repeated to me by the owner minutes later... and again by the administrator (again!) later in the day...)

I digress.


Got a cold sore Wednesday morning (the first one I've had in about 3 years...yuck) so I'm grateful there's no big plans this weekend that require me showing my face...



There's less than two weeks (13 days!) until our Cancun trip, and I'm so freaking excited to be incommunicado - work cannot call or text me for any "EMERGENCIES" - praise jaysus hallelujah...
I will most likely have to check email (only ONCE A DAY!) with the hotel's free wi-fi-, but I am drawing the line there.


13 more days...