Fat Girl in a Lazyboy

My new recliner finally arrived Saturday morning and oh how wonderful it is. We’ve had it two nights now and I’ve slept in it at least a few hours each night so far. It is so nice to have an option when my heartburn just won’t settle down or I can’t get to sleep because I’m just not comfortable. And Hardy likes it because it means he can get some sleep without having to endure my horrible pregnancy snoring. It also helps me to think happy thoughts as I close my eyes surrounded by cute baby things.

I must admit that I am getting pretty nervous as our due date gets closer. Approximately 5 weeks from today we will be in the hospital getting induced and after that our world turns upside down. Luckily between now and then we’ve got family coming into town, a couple of fun holidays that include two of my favorite things - firework and snow cones, and I’ve got a few baby showers so those will be a good opportunity to spend some quality time with the people we love before we become shut ins at the PCMC.

We have a dr appointment this afternoon so hopefully everything will still look good. Jack is definitely growing, no doubt about that. I’m getting fat enough that people keep asking me when I’m due. When I tell them in August they always have to remind me how hot and miserable I’m going to be this next month. Thank goodness for central air.

Family Reunion and Cribs

As I mentioned previously, we had our city celebration Country Fest this past weekend. It was hot and a lot of work, but they gave me my own golf cart to buzz around the park so that I didn’t go into labor, so that was good. All my vendors except 1 showed up and the event was a smashing success. Whew…glad that’s over.

Saturday afternoon Hardy and I drove to Heber where my family reunion was already in progress at my parent’s cabin. We somehow managed to squeeze 10 adults, 6 kids ages 2-10, and 4 babies ages 1 and under all in one tiny little cabin with 1 bathroom. It was cozy, but luckily the weather was great so we spent a lot of time outdoors. It was really nice to spend some quality time with everyone. And Hardy was such a trooper. He didn’t complain, even when my mom marched us all outside for the annual family photo that all the bro-in-laws hate. He won over the hearts of the big kids when he spent hours lifting them onto the giant slide at the neighbor’s cabin when no other adult would accompany them. And the babies all adored him since he took more than his fair share of turns holding them. What a good daddy he is going to be.

Speaking of Hardy being a trooper, we got our crib and changing table set up last night. Hardy only swore once, which I thought was pretty good considering the complexity of putting it together. It looks great, I just need to get the rest of the junk out of that room and get it decorated. Our new lazy boy gets delivered on Saturday and I am very excited as it will give me another sleeping option when I’m uncomfortable at night. We’re making progress.

SJ Country Fest

This weekend is our big City Festival at the park, Country Fest. I am in charge of all the vendors and boy are they a lot of work. Why people wait until 2 days before an event to try to sign up for a booth is beyond me. Too bad for them I am mega-pregnant and therefore have little patience and the answer to all the late comers is a big fat "No...but we'd be happy to contact you for next year." Here we were 3 weeks ago worrying that we weren't going to have enough vendors and now I can't find a stick big enough to beat them back.

According to the weather report, it's going to be nice and sunny this weekend. That is good if you are coming to the festival, less good if you are 32 weeks pregnant and required to be there. Don't worry though, I have made it very clear that I will be sitting in the shade of the pavilion with a large beverage and will only be there as long as I am absolutely needed. As soon as I can get all 65 vendors settled and their issues resolved (and watch the parade), I'm then headed to the mountains to join my family reunion which will already be in progress. It will be great to see everyone and spend a little quality time together. We're squeezing a lot of bodies in a small space, but that's half the fun, right Hardy?

Birthing Classes and Cribs

We went to the doctor for a routine visit yesterday afternoon. Things are still looking fine as far as the pregnancy goes. I’m healthy and little Jack is growing.

We got to see the room where we will most likely deliver. It looks like a typical delivery room, but has a special window that goes directly into the NICU. If that room is full when we go into labor then we will deliver in the operating room since there is a window to the NICU in there as well.

I think the reality that this is really going to happen in 6 or 7 weeks is setting in and that’s really strange. I feel like there is more I should do or know, but I’m not sure what. We haven’t taken any child birth classes like I had initially planned since I don’t feel like we are quite in the same situation as everyone else in the class would be. We don’t need to discuss pain medication options or take a tour of the nursery – those don’t apply to us. Instead we know that we’re being induced and will have an epidural, plus we’ve toured the PICU and have discussed what will happen after he’s born with the neo-natalogist. The delivery is really the last thing on my mind right now. It’s scary but seems like the easy part of what lies ahead.

We did finally get a crib and changing table yesterday. My mom came out and we went shopping, then Hardy joined us for dinner and helped us pick them up. We’re going to try to get them set up this evening. Next I need to find a recliner and get some bedding. Prior to last night’s shopping spree, I literally had absolutely nothing for the baby other than a few outfits my sister gave me that no longer fit her little boy and 2 shelves I bought. We’re making progress.

4 Very Happy Hours

Since last week tested the limits of my sanity, I decided it was a great time to cash in the Mini Day Spa gift certificate Hardy gave me for Mother’s Day. What a great decision that was. I spent the entire afternoon on Saturday being rubbed, cleansed, and pampered. First I got an hour facial, followed by a pregnancy massage, ending with a foot treatment. It was SO nice and did an amazing job of helping me regain my sanity. I had four hours of peace and quiet to meditate and process everything that has been burdening me lately and then focus on all the positive things that we have been blessed with. At the end I came home renewed and refreshed and life is looking a bit rosier. My house is still half in boxes which is a pain, but at least we still have a place to live, and we won’t have to worry about taking care of a yard while we are at the hospital, plus our mortgage is still nice and cheap.

Hardy had a lot of very happy thoughts coming his way all day Saturday thanks to his great gift. I tried to show my appreciation by making his first official Father’s Day a good one, but a day at the spa is really hard to top. He got breakfast in bed, a steak dinner, no church meetings, and watched golf and basketball to his heart’s content (plus a new wallet which he desperately needed since his old one is disintegrating).

He is going to be the best dad and loves this little guy so much already. I am ever so grateful that he is by my side through this journey. I don’t know what I would do without him. Whenever I fall apart he somehow manages to put things back into perspective and keep me going. I love him more every day.

Happy Father’s Day Hardy!

Ultrasound Pics from Tuesday

He's kind of hard to see, but here are our latest pictures of Jack. The top two are profile shots(with a hand in the way). The bottom left is his foot. Bottom right is his hand. Usually they take a million pictures, but they didn't do very many this time since they were just checking his growth. He's in the 58th percentile, right on track.

Is it really only Tuesday? I feel like I've been hit by a bus.

Well, I had a whole post written up about my house frustrations and our preparations to move tomorrow, but those are all gone now since the deal on our house fell through tonight. Due to the pending litigation in our complex the lender wouldn't do the deal, so even when our realtor found a lender who would do it, the buyer was scared off. We do get to keep the earnest money which will just about cover the cost of the POD sitting empty in front of our garage that we now have to send back rather than fill tomorrow. Our moving team is now coming over to help us move back into our house rather than move out.

Hardy was worried that telling me the news would send me into premature labor, and I'll be honest, I did get a little hysterical for a little while, but mostly because it just feels like another kick while we're already on the ground. I'm just so tired. Some day looking back I'm sure this will all be a little comical, but I'm not there yet.

We had 3 dr appointments this morning. First we met with Dr. Su, the cardiologist at Primary Children’s, for a fetal echocardiogram. His assessment was that it looks like a pretty straight forward Hypoplastic Left Heart and the right ventricle looks like it’s doing well, which is about what we can ask for at this point. He stressed that this is probably the most complex congenital heart defect to operate on, and eventually Jack will probably need a heart transplant, but we can cross that bridge when we get there. We also got a tour of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) where Jack will most likely spend the first 4-6 weeks of his life. There was a little girl in there who was born 2 weeks ago with HLHS and had her surgery last Wednesday. It was pretty intense to see all the machines she was hooked up to, but she was beautiful.

Next we had an ultrasound. They confirmed that Jack is growing right on track, and that brain thing they worried about before but thought was probably nothing looked totally normal today now that they could get a better look at it. All good news.

Finally we met with a Neo-Natologist (a NICU doctor) who talked to us about the delivery process and what we can expect to happen right after Jack is born. Basically he’ll be handed through a wall to the NICU where they will stabilize him, then I might get to see him for about a minute before Hardy and the Life Flight Team walk him over to PCMC and take him into the PICU. If he has to be put on a ventilator we will not be able to hold him for possibly up to a month, but if he keeps breathing on his own we might get to hold him a few times before he has his Norwood surgery that first week.

Hardy gave me a mini day spa package for Mother's Day. I think if ever there was a week that I needed to cash that in, it's this one. I have a feeling that's where I'll be on Saturday, if not sooner.

The Joys of Pregnancy - Heartburn & Rib Kicks

I’ve had a really hard time sleeping this week. For the most part it seemed to be due to my cold, but now that that’s almost gone I realize that most of the discomfort is from my new pregnancy symptom – heartburn. I’ve never had heartburn before, but my pain and discomfort fit the description. I missed Hardy greatly while he was gone, but it was kind of nice to be able to prop myself up on a multitude of pillows and not disturb him for a few days. I’m going to have to figure out a new propping system that doesn’t take up the entire bed. I’d love to hear any tips or suggestions anyone might have for coping.
Jack has also decided that kicking my ribs is a great work out and fun night time activity. For the most part I find it strange and fascinating, but the heartburn is making it much less enjoyable.

Six Days and Counting

That’s how long I have left until I am officially homeless…six days. I’m choosing not to panic or be upset about it, but I better not meet Shawn, the realtor for the house we’re trying to buy, or he’s going to get a bloody nose since he still hasn’t finalized the deal he said the banks agreed to and would be done by this past Monday.

Technically we have until June 16 to move, but the person buying our house is very anxious to move in that weekend we were planning to move out, so to be accommodating and to ensure a happy buyer who doesn’t back out of the deal, we’ve decided to rent a POD and fill it with all of our stuff this Tuesday or Wednesday. We’ll then close on Thursday and it will be his by Friday. It feels really weird to think about not having a place to go home to, especially since I’m gigantic, hormonal, and still recovering from a yucky virus. I’ve loved that little condo, but I guess it’s time to move on. I just wish we could sign the papers on that darn house so there was an actual end in sight.

Our realtor has been great trying to get everything resolved. He even pulled the “My client is having a sick baby in 9 weeks and needs to get resolution on this house by Friday” card, but considering the guy’s stellar performance thus far in dealing with the bank, I’m not counting on him. I hate that he’s going to make money on this deal, but I love the house. Not only do I hate to walk away from it, but I dread the thought of looking at anymore houses.

Hardy gets home from California tonight so we’ll figure out exactly what evening we’re going to move and post it, but if you’re available Tuesday or Wednesday evening for an hour or so, let me know. We’d love some help :)

Dr. Appointment

I had an appointment at the U Hospital yesterday afternoon. Hardy is off in Palm Springs competing in the annual “Hardy Cup” golf tournament with his dad and brother, so I brought my mom with me to the appointment. We’ve had enough twists and turns with this pregnancy that I don’t plan to attend any doctor visits by myself.

Since we had to transfer our care up to the U, my new doctor is Dr. Erin Clark. Her husband is one of Hardy’s really good friends (Landon) and since this is her field of expertise and she’s one of the smartest people we know, we asked if she would take care of us and happily she consented. She’s just terrific. We didn’t do very much yesterday other than I got my glucose test done which entails drinking what tastes like highly concentrated fruit punch then getting my blood drawn 1 hour later, and Erin talked about what to expect going forward. Dr. Byrne had said we will probably be induced at 38 weeks so I thought we might set a date at this appointment, but Erin said that it’s better is we just wait and see how thing are coming along. No need to force it if he’s not ready to come out yet.

Our next appointment is next Tuesday when we will have our second fetal echocardiogram and get a tour of the PICU where we will spend most of our time after Jack’s surgery. We then will have an ultrasound to make sure he’s growing and healthy everywhere else. We also might meet with the neo-natal surgeon to discuss the surgery. It will be a busy day, but should give us a lot more information.

Now I just need to get over this terrible cold I’m suffering with so I can function again. I have a hard enough time sleeping at night due to the pregnancy, let alone throwing in a runny nose and a hacking cough. This too shall pass though. I just hope it’s sooner rather than later.