Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Lots of Pictures on This Post!

I was uploading pictures from my camera and found some from our Bible study’s RAISH.  They were so wonderful to help rake our yard while I cooked up some fish from them.  Here are a few of the helpers; I wasn’t able to get them all.

Stasos taking a break to rock out on the raketar.
The man of the house :) 
Tough girls
Jay was one of the three men who were brave enough in our birthing class to wear the sympathy belly.  Here are a few pictures from my phone. 


He's just a little bit bigger

This past weekend we were able to travel to each of our parent’s house for Thanksgiving.  It was one of the most relaxing trips we've taken I would have to say.  Jay did a few unique things while we were up there too.  
My dad and Jay made homemade rolls for Thanksgiving dinner.  My mom and I were able to sit in the recliners with our feet up and enjoy the show.  

It was entertaining to say the least and the rolls were amazing!


Next on the unique things done list was stuffing and smoking deer bologna.  The process starts with mixing deer meat with hamburger and the right amount of seasoning. Then you put it into a casing and smoke it for about 8 hours.  I got the tail end of the process.



Last but not least, knitting.  Cara brings her friend Ky home for the holidays and we have a blast. This year Ky wanted to learn now to knit…. Which started a knitting party.  Jay took part and we even learned that my dad knew how to knit at one point in time. He had knit a scarf that all of us kids used to wear when we went sledding.


So intense!!!
While at home, we were able to see my older sister Nina, her husband Joel, and their son Wyatt.  Since he is about one and half, it’s a little harder for them to travel so it is always a treat when we get to see them.  Here’s a picture of the ‘little’ guy.  He’s not so little anymore. He’s growing up so fast! 


What a stud!
That was the first two days of Thanksgiving. The second two were spent with Jay’s parents.  We were able to relax and watch some college football and cheer on both Ohio State and Wisconsin.  Darlynn put together a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.  
We even got to watch a movie later that night as a family. 
The next day I was able to get a few new items to decorate our home for the Christmas season from Darlynn.  Here is the final product.
Looks amazing!

Before we headed south on Sunday, we tried out the new Buffalo Wild Wings in Owatonna and watched some of the Packer game. 
Then the short, yet seems super long when you’re pregnant, trip started. 

An update from home: 
I took some time off work to get things a little more ready around the house. We have a few things left to purchase for our little girl’s room, but overall things are pretty set and ready for her.  I’m working on cleaning up the rest of the house, because I know I will soon lack a lot of motivation to do any of the regular household chores.  
I’m right on track according to the doctor and things are looking great. I forgot that I haven’t put up a picture for a long time. Here we are at 32 weeks! 



Saturday, November 20, 2010

First ER Trip: Big Event, Little Results (a good thing!)


First of all, the baby and I are okay. Here’s how the last 48ish hours of my life unfolded. Thursday at work, I started reading while on my lunch break and was seeing small dots or white splotches but only with my right eye. I thought this was somewhat strange but thought maybe I had been looking at a computer for too long. I decided to go get some fresh air and called my OBGYN to see if I should take any action or if this was just normal. I had left a message and decided to wait for the return call while sitting in my car. I tried to read again to see if the dots were still there. They were; so I made myself try to read out loud. I could see all the words, even the simplest words, but not read them out loud. I would get two words into a sentence and get stuck on the word ‘the’. So I shut the book, tried again in another 10 minutes, same results. Now feeling a little uneasy, I went back into work, in case something would happen to me. During this time, the dots in my eye went away and I developed a headache.
I went back to working on the things on my desk when the portion from my fingertips to my elbow on my right arm went numb. Thinking maybe I hit my funny bone or something I could shake if off. The numbness feeling got worse and more powerful. I called my doctor again and explained the situation. While on the phone, the right side of my face and tongue went numb. Talk about not knowing what was going on or what to do. Through many phone calls, my friend Colleen ended up driving me downtown to the Mercy ER because along with my symptoms, I am 30 weeks pregnant. After being admitted, they did an EKG and CT scan and told me I would need to spend the night in order to see a neurologist in the morning. Jay had switched spots with Colleen at this point and we just sat and waited for a room to open up. They explained to me they have seen this before in pregnant women. Sometimes it is a migraine, but I had never really had one of those, a thyroid problem, or a TIA (a mini stroke) but they thought I was too young for that.
We waited…got to our room and then they needed to check on our baby. We had an ultrasound and girl has she grown! They guessed that she weighs about 3 lbs 10 ozs. So growing strong. It was amazing to see her bow structure from the first time we had seen her to now.
After that, we went back and tried to get some rest. Jay slept on the cot next to me which was so comforting to know he was right there if I needed something. He got up early the next morning and headed to work because all they were going to do was cart me around and do testing all day. I saw the neurologist first and did an ultrasound of my neck. Then I was sent to the heart floor where they did an ultrasound of my heart. Finally I was going back to the room. We waited most of the day to hear the results. The neurologist came in at about 2:30 and told me that everything looked good. What he believes happened is that my brain was over stimulated and couldn't process the many things that were going on. With that the process of a migraine comes in. But this was an abnormal migraine that can impair vision, numb parts of your body even to the state of being paralyzed for a brief time, and allow you not to focus. He said this happens to some pregnant women and if it happens again to allow myself to lie down, relax, and try not to let myself become over stimulated.
As scary of an event this was, it was mind blowing to remember how much of life you don’t have control over. I was so thankful for each set of hands that helped me while I was there. From Colleen getting me there, the former pastor, newly expecting mother, grandmother with strangely named grandchildren, a women just getting back from serving in Iraq, proud grandmother of 10, Harry Potter fan, medical students, the cleaning lady who says “God bless” to each patient, to my husband, I was thankful to come home and be able to say it was just a migraine and not something like a mini stroke.

Friday, November 5, 2010

One Shower Down, Another Tomorrow

Two weekends ago we made the trip to Minnesota, a trip we hadn't made since my older sister Nina got married in June! Nina and my Aunt Pat put on a shower for us and our growing baby, in which we were blessed with many gifts from family and very close friends. It was a bit chillier being farther north but it gave us a taste of what we'll have soon down here. We acquired many new items including: super cute outfits for our little girl, a tree swing, an inflatable bathtub, a baby book, many toys, and even our high chair! I know I'm missing things, but we are so thankful for each and every gift. We also got to see the dresser for the first time that will be in her room! I sent my mom on a hunt one day and she ended up making a great deal with the guy. All that has to be done is a little sanding and some paint and it will be ready for her room!

I found it a little ironic that we both chose to wear blue that day.
I promise we are having a girl :)

We're getting ready for the winter season. Tonight our Bible study is coming over to help rake leaves. It will be an adventure but one well worth it. I'm planning on frying up some Minnesota caught sunfish and crappies for dinner. I know I'm looking forward to munching on a few as the chef must try the food before hand :) I'm hoping to get some pictures up from this event as we are so blessed to have extra bodies to help us tackle our large yard.