New Name Battles

We still are trying to come to a conclusion with a baby name! Thanks to all of you that have voted on our poll. It has helped us! However, I am now afraid that Carrigan will get shortened to Carrie, which would be horrible and K is afraid that Kenly is too close to his name. So, the choosing just gets more complexed. However, Kenly is not totally out of the question...I still like that one very much and it seems many of you do too!

I do think we may have a middle name....Wren. I had chosen this name for a boy (spelled differently) and a girl before I was pregnant. It came from (in a wierd way I guess...Warren...my maiden name).

Other names on the table now:
-Callie (or some spelling version of this)
-Kamdyn (Although K really doesn't like this one)
-Karmyn

Nothing is really standing out right now! Thanks Amanda for offering to share your baby name book! I am going to take you up on your offer since I can't find mine at the time and would like to have a name for this child soon. It really has become a complex for me!

Not Bad

I had my first progesterone shot tonight...and I must say it wasn't bad at all! The hype to get it here was definitely much more worse than the actual shot. Thanks Nana (K's mom) for a job well done!

My adventures of getting the shot go back to last week and beyond...
Last Friday I had to call the Dr. about another issue. Keep in mind that I have had my prescription for at least 3-4 weeks (written by another Dr.), but haven't bothered getting it filled because I had planned on taking it to the CVS almost within walking distance of my house.

So, Dr. Bale actually calls me back about my issue and takes notice in my chart that I am beginning the shot and asks if I had any problems getting it filled. I replied that no I actually was planning on dropping it off that afternoon to CVS. He quickly let me know that CVS was not the place to get it filled (cost and don't keep in stock), and told me that I should have been instructed to get it filled at a pharmacy in Columbia. No one has mentioned this before and here it is the day that I am supposed to get the shot filled/begin shot soon. Surprised and panicked...I ask what do I do now (I only have a small window to start shot). The part that even is worse is that I have been to Columbia since I had the prescription and my Grandma was even there the day before and could have gotten it for me. Thankfully, Dr. Bale was able to fax the prescription and they would be able to get it filled and sent in the mail to me in time (of course with a shipping fee).

It doesn't end there...
Dr. Bale then says that insurance needed to be notified as well, because they may not cover the potentially expensive shots if not. Again, no one told me this either, so I had not done so. After spending all day (literally) on the phone with insurance, drug card company, Dr.'s office, and the pharmacy, it was finally determined that I will have to pay for the shots and get reimbursed from insurance (I am crossing my fingers this happens).

I got the shot in the mail today and called K's mom to see if she could come by the house to do it. I have been all worked up all evening about having to take it (granted the fact that I looked at the needles earlier today didn't help). However, she assured me that she knew what she was doing (very experienced...has to give Pop shots biweekly) and it wouldn't hurt. Sure enough...it was not bad AT ALL. Thank goodness since I have to have them from now to 34 weeks! It is so worth it though!

Belly Pics

Showing off my 16 week belly!
Wow...I really have a bump at the end of the day!

Finally, I have some pics of my belly. I have been forgetting to get K to make some, so it finally hit me to get a friend to take the pics last Friday when Amanda and I were having a girl's movie night, while K was out of town. Of course my camera batteries were completely shot...thankfully Amanda thought of her camera phone.

Hopefully it will not be so long again before I show my bump off! Thanks Amanda for your help and your patience in getting these sent to me!

Just Can't Help Myself

I know I said I wasn't going to let myself get excited that there is a great possibility that bean is a girl, but I can't take it. I am SO EXCITED! I can't wait to start planning, and with that first comes a name! K and I are having a hard time with this, unlike with CR. We had him named before we knew he was a boy.

This time we have ideas many ideas for girl and boy names, but we are having a hard time deciding. So, please help us out by voting on our "baby girl name poll". I hope I am not setting myself up for a boy! I have also included several spellings of some names, so please let me know which way you like the name spelled too.

Still bean

The baby is still a bean (Yes, just one baby) for now....the u/s tech was not able to "say" for sure whether bean is a boy or girl partly because it is still too early (she has been wrong twice before this early) and bean didn't help much because he/she decided to keep his/her legs crossed most of the time.

However, everything looked awesome on the measurements and parts. It was so neat to see the tiny hands, feet, and little precious parts. God is so awesome! I feel so relieved to know that there is only one baby and things look very healthy!

We did get one shot that I am banking on though. The tech was able to get a shot from the bottom of the anatomy and it looks like....a girl! She said if she had to say today, she would say a girl, but don't go painting the room pink yet. That is good enough for me for now...although I will not get my hopes up until I know for sure...3 more weeks...Sept. 15.

Bad Turns Good

Sometimes bad things turn out being good!

The bad part...
Yesterday evening I started having lower back/buttocks pain, but I just wrote it off as I was tired. I thought I would sleep it off and if not better by morning, I would look into it. I didn't sleep good all night because it hurt every time I turned over. Then this morning, getting dressed and getting CR dressed killed me. I immediately panicked because I had VERY similar symptoms with my miscarriage. So, I decided I better call the Dr. They wanted me to come in at 9:30 AM to see Dr. Revell. By this time, I was completely in tears with the pain worsening.

Dr. Revell and his nurse were wonderful! They were so nice, helpful, and understanding! And yes, Amy he sounds just like Matthew McConehey (sorry about my misspelling). He determined very quickly that it was a lumbar disc problem and gave me back exercises to do at home. Thank goodness my dad was able to keep CR all day and I have iced my back all day. I already feel so much better than I did this morning, but hopefully I will be back to normal within 48 hours. He checked my cervix and felt my tummy and said that the baby is fine!

Now the good part....
He said sometimes things like this could cause stress to the baby, so he has set me up for an ultrasound at 4:00 today! Yipee....we will hopefully find out what we are having and not have to wait til Sept. 8. Stay tuned...I am going to go drink caffeine!

My husband

Last night, K was looking at my blog while I had it pulled up, something he never does, nor even knows how to get to it, not because he is not interested, but because he just doesn't have the time. He brought it to my attention that he is not mentioned a lot on it and bless his heart was even left out of our profile picture (just because I don't have a recent family picture of us...I need to make that a priority). So today, I want to dedicate this blog to him. Bless his heart...he deserves to be mentioned more. So many days I fail to appreciate all that he does for our family. He works 3 jobs to make ends meet while yet still being a husband and daddy. I tend to get so frustrated with him at times for not picking up more, doing more around the house, and taking care of responsibilities, but I fail to realize all that he does do. So K....thank you...I love you very much! You are a great husband and daddy!

Sweet Baby Girls!

Congratulations to my friend Amy on her third child, Aubree Claire! I am so happy that she had a baby girl this time to add to her family of boys. CR and I went to visit with them today in the hospital, and there is just something sweet about baby girls that little baby boys don't have. She is so precious! Maybe I will have some sugar and spice in my household too! It would be nice to have two little girls that would be so close in age to grow up together!

I thought I would take CR with me mainly because I was feeling guilty that I haven't spent much time with him this week, but I thought it would also be a great experience for him, since I will be there in a few months. He had tons of questions for me before we got there about why Mrs. Amy was there, where were her boys, what the baby was doing, and on and on. It was great for him to get to have this experience before I am actually the one there having a baby. Maybe it will make things easier for him when I have to go. He loved it...loved seeing the babies in the nursery, loved the room, the nurses, seeing Mrs. Amy/Mr. Brandon and their baby. He loved it so much he didn't want to leave. I told K when I got home that we may have a problem. I was worried that CR would not like the hospital and be fearful, but now I am scared that we will not be able to make him leave when I have the baby. Maybe it is because he spent so much time there right before his birth and during his birth. This brings me to my next experience.

It was very wierd but so awesome to take CR with me to the hospital that I was in for so many weeks with him (a week prior to his birth, a week of his birth, and then a few days still...almost 3 weeks total). In the middle of our visit, CR told me he had to potty, so I took him to the hall bathroom. Upon entering the bathroom, it hit me like a ton of bricks...I almost broke down in tears. This was the bathroom that I spent so much time in, wiped endless tears in, could barely walk into after dragging myself around the hospital for hours on end, day after day, while he was in the NICU. Now almost 3 years later, I am standing there with this sweet, healthy, little boy that is talking my ears off and using the potty. God is SO good!

No news!

I definately made a bad decision to switch Dr's. I did not like Dr. Bajaj at all! Where do I start...let's see. Then I get in the room and Dr. Bajaj's nurse came in. I explain the situation that I experienced both Monday and Thursday night. She agreed that it was very interesting and starts to listen for the heartbeat(s). Just as she was getting started, she gets buzzed from Dr. Bajaj to come assist her in another room. So she runs out of the room, leaving me lying on the table with gel all over my belly. At least 10 minutes go by and no one has returned....I was beginning to get very uncomfortable, but didn't want to sit up and get the gel all over my shirt (seeing that I had nothing to wipe it with close by). Finally, someone comes in...it is the doctor. Right before she comes in, I am 90% sure I heard her say to a nurse that she had to leave soon for her daughter's "meet the teacher" day. So, she comes in and is in a HUGE hurry. She begins by starting the appt. (talking about my upcoming shots, etc.) with me lying on my back. I don't think she even introduced herself. I then ask her if I should sit up...she replies "whatever is comfortable". Then I ask, "can we listen to the heartbeat?". She replies, "Did the nurse not already do that?" I said "no, she was called out" as kindly as possible. Although I felt like saying, "no, I just like sitting here lying on my back with my belly shining with gel on it". DUH! So, she says, "I will do it". I then proceed to tell her my story, and she remarks..."it is probably just the hand and foot". I tell her that it shouldn't be possible where I felt the feeling (too far apart for a 4 in. long baby). She then says, "Ah, it was probably gas". At this point I am furious and have given up any hope on this Dr. She did hear a heartbeat (of 150), said it sounded good, felt my belly (said it feels "right on track" measures 16 weeks...even though I am not...I am 15 weeks). She continues to quickly cut off all my questions that I have for her about other concerns. You could just tell that I was not her focus. I hate this...I have heard from another friend that she was good. I think I just caught her on a bad day...however, this will was my first and last time seeing her (unless I get her during delivery of course).
Like I said before, I am sure there is an logical explanation (which her's was not one of them) and I don't have 2 babies inside me. However, being an at risk patient anyway...I would really appreciate it if doctors would at least listen to me and hear me out/investigate deeper. I have had a baby before and know what it feels like! It is funny too, that I have known more about my body in the past than the Dr.'s (they didn't want to believe me when I said that something wasn't right when CR was trying to make his appearance early and failed to investigate until it was too late and I also begged the Dr. to give me an MRI when I had a brain tumor when they wanted to blame it on everything else...stress, ENT problem, etc.) So...I just wish they would LISTEN!

Sorry...I really don't have any information to tell you but a lot did take place! I will know for sure on Sept. 8 when I have an ultrasound scheduled and will be seeing Dr. Garcia!

Cleaning out Camera

I have began to feel bad that I have not posted any posts with pics lately, so I decided to check my camera to see if anything was there. Low and behold...I did have some!

Sorry for my slackness!

Here are a few: I got crafty with our announcements to our family about the arrival of the new baby. Sorry it is not the best pic...it is the best I could get.
CR and Granda at a recent trip to the Lazy 5 Ranch.
What a view!
CR and Me-ma at the Lazy 5!
CR and Granda feed some "raffs"

I didn't know turtles yawned!

CR imitates turtle!Pretty pic of part of the neat fish ponds at the Lazy 5New (and limited time) addition to the Lazy 5 Ranch...a baby honey bear!

Nervous!

I am feeling very nervous right now...here is why!

Monday night I had a Home and Garden show at my house. Towards the end of the show, I decided that I would have my one a day caffeine drink (okay...I don't have one every day...just several times a week). Later on, I say an hour later, I am reclining in the chair upstairs. There feels like a war is going on inside my belly...it is the baby moving (the second time I have felt it). The previous time was about a week ago while I was upstairs one night on the computer and was leaning over...maybe quishing it. This time though...it was really going at it. The problem is...I felt a movement on the far left side, then a movement on the far right side. I totally thought maybe I was making this up, but it continued heavily for at least 30 minutes. Now...I need some veterans to explain! I know that child can't be that big to spread from one far side to the other at 14 weeks, and I don't think it could move that fast from side to side could it? Therefore, I am WORRIED! Has God decided to have a sense of humor and bless me with two babies since I said I only wanted two children period?!

I go back to the Dr. next Tuesday where this will be my first item of discussion (as we have not had an ultrasound yet, and only have heard the heartbeat once). I am REALLY hoping that I will have some answers before I leave the office that day!

SO...if you don't hear from me after next Tuesday...I have checked myself into Bull Street in Columbia!

Words of Wisdom

CR has become totally insightful and even "instructive" these days. Some of our best conversations take place in the car. This morning he was full of insights. Here is a few:

-We were driving down the road in the rain (rain always makes him think of God because he knows that is who made it). He asks a question he asks a lot: "Mommy, where is God?". As always, I reply, "In heaven". CR asks, "what is he doing?" "I reply watching over us." CR then says, "I want to go there...when can I go?" Stumped...I reply..."Jesus will come get us one day to take us there". He then says, "Is he going to drive down to get me in his rental car?" He loves rental cars because K sometimes brings one home from work when he travels on the weekends and CR gets to ride in it. I reply, "maybe". He then says, "I bet Jesus has a big rental car". Bless him...I could not help but snicker and want to cry at the same time.

-Later he tells me how to drive...which is a common thing these days. This AM it went like this:
-CR: "Mommy you are driving too fast. You better be careful. You will have a wreck." Actually I was going the speed limit...I guess it just seemed faster because it was raining. I proceeded to slow down a bit. Then we get to a hill. He says:"Mommy go fast down the hill". Full blooded boy!
Most of the time his instructions for driving are: "You better drive"! He will say this to anyone he is riding with that doesn't have their hands just right on the steering wheel, or if one hand is not on the steering wheel.

I don't know how I would survive without his insights and instructions!

Great Days!

My second trimester has started off great! I seem to have so much more energy and eagerness to do stuff (can I be nesting already?) I have a constant urge to bake and cook (even if I don't eat a lot of it...although sometimes I do). Then, my brain is constantly boggled of things I need to be doing and want to do(clean closets, clean out baby's furniture and room, start switching CR's room, and basically anything else that involves cleaning (minus cleaning products) and more organizing). Maybe I fear that I will not make it to the end of my pregnancy (like I did with CR) to get things done. Who knows, but I am enjoying this new found energy that I don't even have when I am not pregnant!

Today's finished tasks: cleaning out my closet that you couldn't see the floor in and cooking meatloaf, homemade mashed potatoes, peas, beans, tomatoes and garden okra. K is enjoying my creativeness with cooking too that I haven't done in so long! I am off to think about what all I want to accomplish tomorrow!

Questions, Questions!

CR is so full of questions these days...bless his heart...he tries to comprehend everything. When we first told him that we were going to have a baby, he immediately started with questions (especially since so many of our friends either are pregnant or have been recently). One of them was of course, "where is the baby" but quickly the questions changed to, "how is the baby going to get out" , "what does the baby eat" and "why won't the Dr. let you get in the tub with me" (yeast infections)? We have been very upfront with him (yet only as much as he can handle)...for example, we told him that the Dr. has to get the baby out. He was fine with that answer. He is so smart though. My mom told me the other day that he was asking her the same questions...I guess he just wanted to see if she was going to give the same answer (or if I was teasing him...his new phrase to me a lot).

With a fear that CR is not going to "like the new addition" in our house, I am slowly trying to involve him in the baby stuff. For example, even today after his teacher told me that she thinks CR is going to have a hard time, I decided to let CR watch parts of the Baby Story with me (minus the labor part). This really turned out to be a good thing. He got to see new babies, their siblings help take care of them, and what babies do. He had lots of questions..."what was the baby eating (nursing)" and where was it coming from, what was the baby doing at all times, and the thing that concerned him the most, "why is that baby crying". I got to answer a lot of things for him and warm him up to the things that will be happening in our house. He was very interested, even to the point that he became upset at commercials. I think for the first time, he was able to see the baby in a different way. He seems more eager now...he even said that he wants to sing to it and help me with it! Yipee...maybe we have made progress! If any of you have any other ideas of how to get CR more involved or liking the fact of having a sibling, please send them my way.