Facebook is quicker, but blogging is dandy

So the Jedis went to school on Tuesday after many days off, and the return to routine has been good. I am a happier mom when things are at least a bit more consistent, and they're happier too. M-girl came down with a tummy flu on Wednesday morning, vomiting all over a pile of clean clothes that I had been putting off sorting for size and season. So I washed those in addition to quite a bit more laundry. Then our water turned orange and ruined a few things, but mostly socks. Apparently the water issue had to do with the fire dept doing hydrant maintenance and stirring up sediment. This was the worst we'd seen of this phenomenon, but at least our drinking water is well filtered enough to not be orange. I went to the water dept and got some mineral remover for appliances and fixtures. The water is fine now, and I'll be cleaning the washer tonight.

M also has really bad diaper rash from her flu problems, and she woke up from a nap with it so bad that she screamed for over half an hour before we went to get the boys. I just got a call from the doc saying I can put prescription burn cream on it. Great! It's soothing, it has antibacterial medicine in it, and the cream wipes on and off pretty easily, and I have an unopened jar from my burn in November. Her bum looks very painful! As a precaution, I'm doing a long hot soak of her diapers with double detergent and oxiclean to sanitize them. I have enough disposables on hand to get by, and I might as well use them so I don't get cream built up on the diapers.

The best part of today so far has been a visit to the obstetrician this morning. Dr.O' had some time to join me this morning, and I was so glad he did! We timed the drive and got there in 11 minutes. We were in the exam room with the nurse quickly. I had stayed the same weight since he last visit but had gained 2 pounds since my first visit there. I'm guessing I've put on about 8 pounds. The nurse probed my belly extensively with the Doppler but could not find the heartbeat, unusual at nearly 14 weeks! The normally chatty nurse got very quiet and went to get the doctor. Dan came and grabbed my hand and I cried a few tears. We agreed that we'd be okay. Sad, but okay. If this baby just wasn't going to be with us, we would accept that God is sovereign. Lots of drama, I know, but the nurse seemed concerned, and I've never felt quite certain in this pregnancy. The doctor came in and immediately put the ultrasound wand to my belly, where the baby's beating heart was going strong. We saw what my late grandfather would've termed a "well-formed head", a long spinal column, little limbs, tiny kidneys, a face in profile. Stunning. Fragile yet strong. Amazing. Life is beautiful! I'm going to feel a wee bit of anxiety until this person is in my arms and at my breast, and then I'll have the usual lifetime of Generalized Motherhood Anxiety that I already have for my other fantastic little people. I can manage that just fine!

Open-ended structure today

The Jedis have yet another day off today. I kick myself occasionally for not traveling to see family on Easter weekend, but we really want to be with our own church community for Triduum services. Yesterday was nutty with the kids, but I was so glad to celebrate with our congregation and to eat a festive meal in our own home. The kids get stir-crazy after this many days home, so I'm weighing the possibilities for today.

I have a La Leche meeting today, but I don't know how well the Jedis will do in a room full of littles. They definitely need to clean their room today because it is littered with Easter candy wrappers and LEGOs and is due for a vacuuming. Mara's room is trashed as well because of her naptime ransacking.

Dr. O' has to grade 20+ papers, so he's going to take advantage of a quiet campus today. He is also planning coursework for 2 classes that he's teaching this summer. I'm so thankful for his help at home and his hard work to support us! We are trying to get the money to pay for a van without taking out a loan, or only take a loan for a few months. We'll definitely have to trade in our beloved Honda CR-V, but it will be great to have a vehicle with lots of room.

I woke up every 2 hours last night and was awake for the day at 5am. I've been in bed sipping coffee, nibbling baklava, listening to This American Life, and feeling the newbie moving around in my belly, a quartet of peaceful pleasures! I think watching a movie will be on the schedule so M and I get a nap.

Easter Preparations

I got moving this morning and managed to get 3 dozen Easter-themed sugar cookies rolled, cut, and baked. The challenge is to keep the kids from sneaking them before I can get them iced! I took a rest because of some Braxton Hicks contractions and then made baklava for the first time. It was so easy! I can't believe I haven't done it before, and it's definitely going to be a holiday tradition for us.

Dr. O' stayed home yesterday to help out and had to go in to catch up today on grading. M-girl was my constant shadow during baking and is down for a nap now, although I can hear that she's not sleeping yet. The Jedis are watching Veggie Tales and wearing capes because they're nutty. I-M helped me put the Easter tablecloth out, and we'll do a touch-up cleaning this evening. For now I am doing my medically mandatory relaxing for a few hours and watching Mad Men DVDs in bed. I get so constantly hungry with this bebe, and not gaining a ton of weight is a challenge!

I need to make a quick run for some new polo shirts for the guys to wear to church. Thankfully, M-girl has a box full of pretty dresses to choose from, and I'm set for a dress that I've worn while pregnant before.

Tomorrow's dinner will be a spiral-sliced ham, some kind of potatoes, broccoli and cheese, fresh bread, veg stuffed peppers, and Key Lime Pie, yummy! We'll be at church in the morning and enjoying some family time at home for the rest of the day.

Blip, blip, blip!

So I've kinda been mentioning quite a bit of tiredness and some medical appointments. If you check in often, you might have pieced a few things together. The Crowded Kitchen is getting more crowded with love and noise! I am really excited to be 13 weeks pregnant on Easter, with the due date around Halloween, eek! It has not been an easy pregnancy, which is a bit unusual for me. I have had a few scares, but things are fine, as evidenced by 2 ultrasounds. I am under orders to rest with my feet up 4 hours/day and not to lift anything, which is challenging with a toddler! I am heartened to feel the blippy movements of a new little life every day now. The whole family is thrilled, and the Jedis have temporarily dubbed the baby Yoda, which will assuredly change once we know the gender. I think we may even have names narrowed down! A-man is certain that newbie will be a Jedi Master, and I think he might be disappointed! M-girl also thinks she has a new baby in her tummy, and she stuffs things in her shirt to show me. I don't need to stuff anything; I'm showing pretty obviously.

I have found a reasonable caregiver and am confident in my hospital choice, which is not the one 2 minutes from home but is rather an Ohio hospital 10 minutes away. I wanted to do a homebirth this time, but no CNM's serve the area, and a lay midwife 90 minutes away isn't for us, especially since my practitioners missed my last 2 births, and my first 2 babies had meconium. There is a stellar birth center an hour away in Pittsburgh, but that's just too far for us to risk! I settled on a doc who does a lot of c-sections because he handles a lot of high-risk pregnancies, not because he pushes too much intervention, according to some local mom friends. He supports my choices to go as natural as possible and thinks we'll manage just fine with my history, so I'm happy. I have a superb birth coach in my husband, who figures the doc will miss this birth, anyway!