NO GD FOR MEEEEEEEE!

Hooray and hoorah and huzzah I say!  I never heard back from the doctor after my glucose tolerance test.  It's been over a week now and so I feel safe to say that I passed.  Thank goodness!

Now, I know that gestational diabetes is not the worst thing that could happen.  Heck, it's probably the most easily managed of all of the potentially dangerous complications.  And, it would lead me to make even healthier food choices for me and little bit in there.  But can I just say that I'm glad I can have a cupcake today?  It's my blog so I say yes, it is ok.  I am glad I can have a cupcake today!

I will be heading to the fabulous Retro Bakery and will be indulging in a little yumminess. Mmmm, the flavors. My current fave is coffee and donuts but the hopscotch is always a steadfast and delicious standby.  (I'm sorry to torture any of you that either a) have GD and are right now cursing my existence or b) do not live near a fabulous cupcake place (sorry Duck))

Then, on a sugar high, I will start in on "Project Get Ready for Baby."  Step one: Holy crap get some stuff cleared out of the spare room/nursury/it's-been-a-catch-all-room-since-we-moved-in.  I would post a picture but my camera is out of batteries (yeah, that's a good excuse ;)  Really, it's scary in there.  

So, wish me luck.  I'll need it.  But at least I'll have a cupcake to get me through.  

Already?!

Holy crap, I'm under 100 days!  Holy crap, holy crap!  I have waaaaaaaay too much to still get done (heck, started even) to have under 100 days left in this pregnancy.  Wish me luck people.  This weekend will start "Operation Prepare for Baby."

My school is stupid

Again, I shall regale you with tales of the stupidity that is my school.  You may remember this post from earlier this school year.  Well this time it's not really the administration's fault, but still.  HUGE oversight on everyones part.

So, a few weeks ago we were preparing fire drill.  This may be a little known fact to all you non-teachers out there, but word about coming fire drills spreads quickly throughout a school.  Especially if you are not in your classroom.  I have the advantage of being in the "annex" of our school and so my door faces the school across the street.  The fire truck always does the drill at that school first.  So, if I hear their alarm go off and see the trucks outside their school, I know to expect a drill at out school within the next half hour.  I make sure that I don't start any lessons that can't be stopped quickly (investigating mealworms for example) and I try to keep my kids in the room (no bathroom breaks).  

Well, this drill was set to happen just as second grade was heading to prep.  I quickly walked my kids to P.E. and went back to my room to grab my attendance folder and emergency bag.  I was standing outside my room waiting for the alarm to sound when another second grade teacher came around the corner and asked, "Do you have a pull in your room?  The fireman is just around the corner and I need to find the nearest pull and there isn't one in my room."  Oh crap.  The fireman is just around the corner and here I am standing around.  (another side note to all non teacher people - the fireman do not pull the alarm.  They randomly grab a teacher and say something like "there's a fire in your trash can" and you have to follow the procedure and pull the alarm.  This has never happened to me and is one of my biggest fears in school.  Strange I know.)  Anyways, I say yes and both of us duck into my room.  I turn to prepare myself for the possibility of pulling the alarm.  And there is no pull.  

Wait - What?!  No pull?!  I know I have one! I turn to the other side.  No pull there either.  I swear I'm not crazy.  I know I had one!  Instead all I find is an electric cover.  Like a light switch plate with no switch.  CRAP!  Now what will I do if the fireman comes to my door.  

See it there with the arrows?  That's from the beginning of the school year.

The other teacher and I decide to hide (Yes, we really are grown ups. I swear.)  I turn out the lights and we hide behind the armoire (the one on the right in the picture).

A few minutes pass with no alarm.  Hmm, this is kinda strange.  We brave walking to the window to peer out and see classes streaming out.  Umm, WTF?  I guess we should head out, too.  So we do.  Although we hear no alarm (and believe me, a fire alarm is not a sound you can miss.  and even if you do, flashy lights should be going off as well.)

Turns out, the alarm system in the annex was somehow disconnected and never fixed.  Oh fabulous.  So if there really was a fire, we would have no way of knowing.  And all the pulls throughout the ENTIRE school were taken out.  There is now only ONE pull in the front office.  (the poor teacher that had to pull the alarm was frantic and on the verge of tears.)  Apparently, the school district people came through and "updated" our alarms to make them more sensitive so pulls shouldn't be needed.  (does anyone else see a disaster waiting to happen?)  The problem is, they didn't bother to tell anyone this.  It came as a shock to teachers and administrators alike. 

Yet somehow, we passed our fire drill.  I know for a fact that one second grade teacher was in her room throughout the entire drill (because of the no-alarm-going-off issue.)  Whatever.  Hopefully we all don't burn.

Until next time, be fire safe internet people.  And send some fire safe vibes my way while you're at it.  lol.

 

Is it strange to feel this way?

This post has been floating around in my head for quite awhile, but after recent events and reading this post by JackiTiger (who also made my common thread bracelet for me), I feel that it need to be written down.

I can't help but feel like I'm a faker.  Yes, I'm pregnant and I accept this (most days).  But in my head, I'm still suffering through IF.  It's so strange.  I feel the baby moving around.  We had an u/s on Friday and everything looks good (She's measuring right on track with 150bpm heartbeat and my blood pressure was finally down as well).  And I could not be happier about all of this.  But when I go out, I find myself being self conscious of my belly.  I love it and stare in fascination when I'm at home, but out and about, I wonder who I'm hurting with it.  Not physically, but emotionally.  

I know that there were days when we were struggling to conceive that it just about killed me to walk into stores and see the bellies.  I know there are other IFers out there who still suffer with this.  Target was often the worst and some days I would actually avoid shopping there, even though I really needed to, just to save myself the emotional drain. You other TTTCers know what I'm talking about, right?

Mike and I were out "shopping" (really, just wandering around in shops) all day Saturday and there must have been at least six visibly pregnant women in every store.  I swear that there must have been some pregnant water going around because there are pregnant women EVERYWHERE!  I actually turned to Mike and said, "If we were still TTC, today would have been a day I would have gone home and cried."  He looked at me like I had three heads.  I had to explain the frustration and anger that I sometimes felt.  And days when there were pregnant women all over the place were the worst.

The whole ordeal stressed me out.  I kept wondering if any of the other women I saw had struggled.  Were there any women I was passing by that were on the verge of tears and praying that they could just leave the store as soon as possible because of my belly?  I wish there was some way to say, "We struggled for this baby.  18 months of perfectly timed everything and monitors and drugs and one miscarriage before we got here.  Please know you're not alone.  Talk to me."  I mean, I have my common thread bracelet but only some people know about that.   And I've never seen anyone else wearing one.

So, in an open letter to all of you women I pass throughout this pregnancy (and into the time I'm holding a baby in my arms), I love my baby and I hope that somehow, you will know that I'm thinking of all of you in your struggles. I'm praying that soon, I'll pass you in a store and smile at your growing belly.  I hope that one day, we'll all be able to lift this weight that IF places on our shoulders and move past the frustration and anger we sometimes feel.  I'm thinking of you and sending you strength.

Houston, we have movement

And we have had really noticable kicking/punching for a little more than a week now. They're so strong that Mike can feel them from the outside already. Quick story that cracked us both up:

The first time Mike felt the baby move, it kicked him right in the head! He was laying on my tummy talking to her and suddenly - bam- right in the cheek. Then two more above and below the temple. Hahaha. She can already defend herself. :)

And for your viewing pleasure (or just my memory if you don't enjoy them), here are some belly pics.

18w in Phoenix visiting Mike's family

18w in Phoenix

21w here at home. I know you can't really see the belly but I like this picture.

21w. Sorry for the blurriness. It's hard to take your own belly pics.

Oh and none of my kids have said anything yet. I'm amazed every day.

It's Aliiiiive!!!!!

My laptop that is. Oh internet, I cannot tell you how utterly happy I am about this. Mike's been laughing at me because I have been stroking my keyboard and saying things like, "Oh, I have missed you so much" and "Don't ever go away again, ok?" and "I love you computer." But truly, I am sooo glad to be able to relax on the couch and surf away. What does this mean for you? Hopefully, I'll actually be able to update more often. Hooray! And pictures will be making a return. :)

Funny story for the day:
I was walking into the school this afternoon for lunch. I hear behind me in small whispers "hurry! she's going inside. go, go!" I glance behind me and three little girls from another classroom are hurrying toward me. I continue walking. They call my name just before I reach the door. I turn around to three faces staring up at me. "Mrs. M, are you having a baby? Yes or no?" Hmmm, must be showing more than I thought. I was taken aback my the bluntness. No wishy washiness there. No room for wiggling. I quickly thought through all of the options: Lie. Truth. None of your business. What do you think? Why do you ask? I decided on truth. Why not? If anything were to happen at this point, I would be out of work for awhile anyways so I supposed it couldn't hurt anything. "Yup" came out of my mouth. The complete and utter shock on the girls' faces was priceless. They went running off yelling, "Mrs. M is having a baby!" I was expecting to come into a barrage of questions when I picked my kids up from lunch but got nothing. Not a word from any of my kids. I'm thinking it won't take long for word to spread though.

I must admit that I'm happy it's been put out there. Because really, how do you bring up pregnancy with a group of seven year olds? And when?

My doctor's appointment is tomorrow. Hopefully we'll discuss the ultrasound. And I'll get to hear the heartbeat again. :) I'll be sure to keep you all updated.

((hugs)) to all. I have missed you!

OH MY GOD, IT'S A..........

GIRL! She had everyone but Mike fooled. You should have seen the huge smile on his face the whole afternoon. Even the ultrasound tech before looking for the sex said "I'm thinking boy for you." The poor girl has apparently been blessed with her daddy's big hands and feet already. Let's all hope she grows into them.

Everything is looking great according to the tech. HB 141 and she was wiggling around all over the place. It's amazing that I can't feel it yet. On the screen the baby looked HUGE. She's measuring right at 19 weeks (which is where I originally thought I should be according to ovulation time and all that) so I'm happy. We'll see if the doctor changes the EDD when I go in for my appointment on Thursday. I have another u/s set up for February 13th. The tech couldn't get as many angles of the heart as she wanted so she wants me to go in again. Dang. You mean I have to see my baby AGAIN?! Alright, twist my arm some more. HAhaha.

I'm going to try to get the pictures scanned soon so I can show you how cute she is already. I'm so excited!