36 Weeks - Meet Cooper

I guess I took my last pregnancy picture just in time.  On Saturday November 5, it was our 5 year anniversary, and I was 36 weeks 2 days pregnant.  Ryan and I went out for dinner and I had him take my picture when we got home.

The next day I went into labour.

Meet Cooper Lorne.  Born on November 6 at 8:54 pm.  7lbs 1oz, 19.5 inches long.  A full head of dark black hair.  We were surprised that he was a boy, with dark hair and was so big!

My labour, birth and first few days with a new baby have been completely different than last time.  So I hope to be able to blog about all of that in the next little bit!

35 Weeks Pregnant - I've Never Been This Pregnant Before

I'm 35 weeks, 3 days pregnant.  I had Parker at 35 weeks, 1 day so I'm officially the most pregnant that I've ever been.  Which is kind of weird, because I'm feeling things that I've never felt before and I'm not sure if it's normal pregnancy stuff or not.  But it feels good to have passed where Parker made it to.  At this point if I had the baby, hopefully it would be an easier road than Parker.  

I'm ready for this baby to come out, but at the same time, it's best if it waits another 1 week and 5 days.  That's not that much longer, so it should be able to handle it.

• I'm feeling low pressure more often I think, and yet the baby still seems high.  So I don't know
• I feel more crampy than I used to
• I had a lot of back pain this week, Ryan says I always think the worst because I said it could be back labour, or a UTI and he said it could just be back pain because my belly is so big.  These are all true, it could be any of these things
• GBS swab was done
• I charged my camera batteries because when my back was hurting so badly I thought what if I go into labour in the middle of the night and all of my cameras are dead.  So they are now ready to go
• My parents made it home from Myrtle Beach without me having a baby, I was sure I would have the baby while they were away!
• The baby is still moving a lot, but the movements kind of feel like it's running out of room now
• Up 38 lbs.  It's a lot, but it's only 2lbs since my last appointment, which is what it's supposed to be (a pound a week).  So if I only gain 5 more lbs in this pregnancy I will be happy with that...
• The belly is big.  My side profile is pretty massive.  
• I've just given up on working out, it's not going to happen

Pregnancy at 34 Weeks

34 Weeks is kind of a big deal around here.  It's a milestone in preemie land.  I can give birth in a more local hospital, plus my midwife has hospital privileges.  Babies born after 34 weeks typically do very well.  They may need some help breathing and eating, and a short hospital stay will be required, but nothing that I can't handle.  Although I would like to avoid it if possible.

I've thought I was in labour many times since 26 weeks.  Partially because Parker was a preemie, partially because I've just been feeling so lousy.  And so I still feel like this baby will be early.  But maybe that's just because I really can't imagine feeling like this for another 6 weeks.

I have mixed emotions, I so badly want to meet this baby and give it a name.  And yet I'm terrified to have a newborn.  I'm looking forward to a four month old, but not so much the whole newborn thing.  It's a lot of work!  But apparently, they come out as newborns, not as four month olds, so what can you do.

• Braxton hicks have gotten pretty intense.  I get them whenever I stand up and do anything
• Bought the baby a baby book, which is my last baby necessity.  I just need to buy some size 1 diapers so that I'm prepared if I happen to have a baby too big for all these newborn diapers that I have
•  I'm back at work this week.  Making it to 34 weeks makes a huge difference I think.  We were really trying to prevent going into labour before that.  Now that I've made it, I still want to keep this baby in, but it's more an "am I actually in labour?" than an "oh crap, if this is labour it needs to stop"  Because I'm comfortable with having a baby now, if necessary
• Sleep is still very uncomfortable, the other night Parker woke up at 3 and I didn't get back to sleep until 5:30, and got up for work at 6.  It was part discomfort and part just insomnia I think
• I don't think I have any stretch marks, but I seem to have a lot of visible veins in my belly so sometimes I wonder if I see a stretch mark, but it's hard to tell
• There are a few odds and ends that could get done before the baby, but if the baby came now we are ready.  We don't have the car seat installed yet or anything, but we know how to do it, and until 37 weeks I know that it's unlikely that the baby would come home with us, so we would still have time to do that and tie up other lose ends

Pregnancy at 33 Weeks

• 1 week to go until 34 weeks, which in preemie world is good.  It means I can deliver at a hospital that is 30 minutes away as opposed to an hour and 15 minutes
• Up 36 lbs total, only 2lbs from my last appointment, which is pretty good for me this time around
• I got my ultrasound results at my midwife appointment.  My cervix has shortened slightly, but isn't in extremely dangerous territory according to my midwife.  But I'm off work for a week hoping that it doesn't continue to shorten and that this baby stays inside for a bit longer.  I'm not dilated at all yet though, which is good
• My belly button is very flat, much flatter than it got last time
• Baby is still head down
• I'm feeling a bit nauseous again
• My stress level has been through the roof.  I think its a combo of work, worrying about having this baby early and of course Parker doesn't exactly help either...  And then I get more stressed about being stressed because that isn't good for the baby
• The hormone hurricane is back.  Looking back from 33 weeks last time I was going through the same thing.  I'm emotional and have all kinds of pregnancy rage going on.
• I get kind of worried about having 2 kids sometimes.  Parker is going through a challenging phase and having to split my attention while taking care of a newborn is a bit scary
• Every so often I have a reaction to my wedding rings.  Then I go and get them rhodium plated and they are fine.  So I recently did that, but they are so tight that I'm still reacting to them.  I never had to take my rings off with Parker, but this time they are off already.  

Pregnancy at 31 Weeks and 32 Weeks

I only got a bit behind again....second pregnancy problems...

31 Weeks

•  Time is flying by!  I think about how if I have a 35 week baby again, there's only 4 weeks left!  And that stresses me out a bit sometimes, but I'm also so excited
• It's weird once you have a preemie because you realize that your due date means absolutely nothing.  We have all of these Christmas parties and activities in November and right around my due date and I have no idea if I will have a 4 week old or a newborn or still be pregnant, so it's hard to make plans
• I was off this week (or last week I guess) and got Parker's room together.  Now I just have to work on the babies room and getting it reorganized.  Parker's room was my priority because I wanted him settled.  The baby stuff will come!
• Being off with Parker for a week was exhausting, especially when he decides to have some no nap days.  But it was nice to spend some extra time with him.  
•  Up 34 pounds...yikes!
• Sleep is tricky.  I'm pretty uncomfortable and am usually awake a few times a night and then realize that while I'm awake that I have to go to the bathroom

32 Weeks

• I feel like the baby is really low sometimes.  I still get kicked up high but then sometimes literally feel like the baby is going to fall out....that sounds crazy I know.  
• I had an ultrasound and the ultrasound tech told me she wanted me to wait while she called my midwife to check if I could go home.  Then she said that I could leave and my midwife would call.  I'm still waiting for that call so I don't know if anything is actually wrong or not
• This weekend is thanksgiving.  I'm sure that will help with my weight gain problem!
• Everything else is kind of the same.  Sleep is tricky, I go to the bathroom and 5 minutes later have to go again, my belly hurts...
• The countdown is really on.  This baby is "welcome" to come anytime after 34 weeks.  I would really appreciate it if it stayed in until 37 weeks, but I don't want to be picky, so my first goal is 34 weeks.

Pregnancy at 30 Weeks

• Still not sleeping
• Irritable uterus was really bad this past weekend, it hurt every time I did anything, so I really didn't do much
• I walked to pick Parker up from daycare one day and thought I was going to die by the time I got back.  It's about a 10 minute walk total....
• I had one day where the baby was so high up, it was uncomfortable.  By the end of the day the baby was jabbing into my side and it was actually painful.  
• So basically the third trimester is hard
• On the bright side, the baby feels pretty high, which is good.  I don't want it dropping any time soon!  And it still moves a lot.  I can sometimes feel a foot or a butt sticking out
• We moved Parker to his real bed, so it's time to get the nursery back and ready for baby.  I have the next week off so I'm hoping to get a lot done and also pack my hospital bag.  Last time I literally packed a bag for myself at 3 in the morning.  This time I want to be prepare and actually have a bag for myself, Ryan, the baby and Parker.  Because packing that much at 3 am would not be fun
• As seen in the above photo, we went to a wedding (at 30 weeks 2 days).  I wore the heels for the ceremony and maybe half an hour after and that was enough.  And then I found a comfy chair and sat in it all night.  But it was actually a lot of fun and I had lots of friends who thought the comfy chairs were a pretty good way to spend the night too, so it all worked out!

Pregnancy at 29 Weeks

• Only up a pound from my last appointment, so 29 pounds total so far
• I wake up at least twice to go to the bathroom in the night, plus more just because I'm uncomfortable, plus more if Parker wakes up
• Irritable uterus seemed slightly better this week or I'm getting used to it
• Parker started swimming lessons.  I went in the pool with him but wasn't really a fan of the whole pregnant in a bathing suit at a public place thing...So I'm sending Ryan in next week
• I did exercise a bit more this week.  Either 3 or 4 times.  Nothing strenuous of course, mostly some yoga and a bit of light weights
• My belly button has been pretty flat for awhile.  The top part of it kind of pops out which makes it look like it has popped, but it hasn't really

Look at me at 29 weeks with Parker.  I feel a lot bigger this time, but really when you look at this picture and compare it, it's not a massive difference.  I feel like I got bigger faster this time and then it slowed down.  However, I'm sure that this baby is going to be bigger than Parker was!

Pregnancy at 28 Weeks

I'm actually 29 weeks now, so I'm only a week behind...

• This week has been ok.  I don't know that I'm actually feeling any better, but I'm getting better at sitting down when I get sore.  And I'm trying really hard not to pick Parker up as much and teach him some independence.  So I let him walk places that he can walk to.  With such a tiny kid it's been easy for us to just carry him everywhere, and he's gotten used to that.
• I thought I was in labour at the cottage.  I kind of had a melt down.  It wasn't pretty.  But turns out I wasn't in labour.  Thank goodness.  I haven't felt like that again since, so that's a good thing. 
• Sleep is getting more difficult.  I wake up a lot in the night and am just uncomfortable and turning over isn't very easy.
• Ryan and I shipped Parker off to Grandma's for a Saturday and got so much done around the house! We got Parker's room partially set up, which makes me feel a lot more ready for this baby.
• Because I feel like I will have this baby early every day is a milestone for me at this point

Pregnancy - 27 Weeks

• Apparently I'm 7 months pregnant.  I found this thing online that tells me that, I thought I was only 6 months, so it's like I gained a month all at once!  Seriously, that month calculation is really difficult for pregnant people...
•  I had my glucose test at the beginning of this week.  Good news, I don’t have gestational diabetes.  Bad news, my iron is low.  It’s not actually that big of a deal, I just have to take iron supplements.  I don’t mind the orange drink and was more just bored sitting there waiting for the hour
• We went camping at the Pinery.  It was fun but I was disappointed that I couldn’t do all the things I wanted to do when we booked it.  I wanted to bike and hike and go paddle boarding.  Maybe next year….
• I haven’t been feeling great at all.  I had an appointment with my midwife this week and kind of broke down.  I feel like a lot of stuff has been building up between work stress, and stress getting ready for this baby, plus worrying about having another preemie.  My body hasn’t been feeling great, which makes me more nervous for having this baby early.  So I’m getting an ultrasound next week and at 32 weeks to check on my cervix length.  She’s hoping that gives me some piece of mind if it comes back that it’s not thinning out.  
• I have an irritable uterus.  Turns out I had it last time too, I just didn’t realize what it was.  But this time it’s worse and has started earlier.  It’s the tight crampy feeling that I get below my belly and is kind of constant contractions.  It’s caused by stress, exercise, lifting heavy objects, dehydration…so basically everything I do.  
• I’m supposed to take it easy.  And I’m not good at listening to advice like that.  It’s not that I’m overly active and trying to do a million things, but I do like to do stuff on my own and I don’t like to ask for help with things that I feel I should be able to do.  So that’s difficult for me.
• For now, my focus needs to be on keeping this baby inside.  I’m trying to take it one week at a time, as every day is better for the baby, and at this point I’m just hoping to make it to 34 weeks.  Once we get there we can focus on keeping the baby in until full term!

Pregnancy Week 26

• I am tired and achy and it worries me that I'm going to go into labour early
• Chasing after Parker is getting very tiring, but at the same time I want to make the most of his last few months as an only child
• I had some days off this week.  We went to Ikea and I got a lot of stuff for the house and Parker's room.  The baby doesn't need much this time around, but there is still a lot to do to get ready!
• I want to get Parker into his real bed sooner rather than later because I don't want to be going through the transition once the baby is here.  But if you saw what his room looks like right now you would understand why I feel like it's never going to happen.  
• I wake up a few times each night and have to change positions to get comfortable and usually have to go to the bathroom too
• My next midwife appointment is next week....I'm crossing my fingers that I haven't gained another 10 pounds

Pregnancy Weeks 23-25

Here we are again...3 weeks behind!  

23 Weeks

• Starting to get pretty sore.  My belly feels heavy and actually got in the way while I was sleeping.  Am I already bigger than I was when I delivered Parker?
•  This baby is a mover!  I can’t believe how often I get kicked.
• I really want to make an effort to work out more but it’s getting hard because I’m so sore and tired, hopefully that eases up a bit
• I’m trying to eat healthier because I gained 10bs in the past month!  Total weight gain is at 20lbs
•  I typically only have to go to the bathroom once a night but I find I wake up a lot most nights even though Parker has been sleeping well

24 Weeks

• Feeling the urge to nest and organize, but I don’t have the time or the energy
• I’m so relieved to have made it to 24 weeks and have a viable baby growing in there.  Of course I don’t want to have this baby any time soon, but with a previous preterm labour it’s a nice feeling to know that if I were to go into labour they would do everything they can to make sure the baby was ok.  The further I go, the stronger the baby gets!
• My belly is sore
• Still hardly finding time to work out!  With going away every weekend and then being busy with Parker at night, unpacking and packing, workout time is so limited.
• Parker kisses my belly which is the cutest.  He doesn’t know why he’s kissing my belly but that’s ok.
• We bought a minivan.  Haha I’m officially a soccer mom, except I hate soccer and hope my kids never play it.  But I’m really excited to have more space for car seats and the ability to actually go away in my vehicle because we will have trunk space

25 Weeks

• We got the new van this week. So much space for baby!
• I’m still trying to work out more but I’m just so tired at the end of the day.  I went to the gym at work once on lunch and I think I should try to do that more often.  They keep cancelling my prenatal yoga classes which is very disappointing.
• I had a sharp pain below my belly that lasted for about 5 minutes and freaked me out.  I’m not quite ready to have this baby yet!  We need at least another 10 weeks!  Now I’m still sore but I think it’s how I’ve always felt, I’m just noticing it more now because I’m worried about it.
• I’m ready to start getting my house in order, but every time I try to do something Parker comes in and messes everything up, so it’s a very slow process.  I have a list of things to do before the baby.  I know what I want and how I want it, and the list doesn't seem that bad, until I realize how slowly everything happens in our house with the little Texas Tornado running around...

Boy or Girl?

Is baby O a boy a girl?  I have to admit, I'm so much more curious this time!  I want to know if I will have 2 little boys running around or if Parker will have a sweet little sister.  But I'm going to be strong and not find out!  It's always fun though to look at the old wives tales and make some predictions!

Girl            Heartbeat higher than 140 bpm
Girl            Carrying all around
Girl            Carrying high (I honestly can't really tell...)
Girl            Morning sickness in first trimester
Girl            Crave sweets
Girl            Needle test
Girl            Girls steal your beauty - My skin was much worse                   earlier in this pregnancy
Girl             Not craving protein - I actually wanted nothing to                      do with it early on!
Girl             My first instinct



So you can see why I'm fairly certain that this baby is a little lady!  We will see in a few months if I was right!  There are so many more old wives tales, but some of them I had a really hard time determining.  

Pregnancy Weeks 19-22

I really did mean to be blogging weekly.  But I have this problem and his name is Parker.  If I go into the office then he must follow me in and destroy everything in his path.  I was actually half way through writing this post 3 days ago and Parker crawled under my desk and turned off the power bar.  So it's just a lot easier to not go in the office.

This pregnancy is seriously flying by.  I can't believe that I'm already 23 weeks pregnant with bean #2.  I'm constantly thinking about how much time we have left, because I know how fast the past 5 months have gone and we are less than 4 months to my due date now!

19 Weeks

• I started to have round ligament pains and thought they were contractions.  Which I then remembered I did last time as well.  But when you have a preemie I guess the thought of going into labour early is extra scary because you know that it can happen
• Had retesting done this week for my ureaplasma and I still have it.  So now I'm not sure what the next step is.  I'm kind of tired of extra doctors appointments just to try to get rid of something that they aren't sure will actually change the outcome.  
• Had an extra midwife appointment because of the testing.  Baby's heartbeat was 140 and I'm up 10lbs
• Acid reflux in the afternoon and evening
• My anatomy ultrasound is next week!

 20 Weeks

• We had out anatomy scan.  It was really long because the ultrasound tech was a student, but she was really nice and was still really into babies so that was fun.  I was very uncomfortable after lying on my back for an hour and a half.  We haven't heard the results from the midwife yet.
• Baby moves a lot!
• Round ligament pain comes and goes
• Acid reflux is getting worse
• I'm starting to plan Parker's room so that baby can have the nursery and I'm really excited about it!

 21 Weeks

• Not much new to report this week
• Baby is still moving a lot
• Round ligament pains continue, especially after activity
• We were on holidays this week and started them off in Tobermory!

22 Weeks

• Holidays continued this week at the cottage and camping at Inverhuron
• Mama was tired by the end of the week, being a stay at home mom would be hard!
• Round ligament pains are much worse when I'm active, but it was nice to finally go for some bike rides and long walks since I haven't been working out as much as I would like
• I had some very vivid dreams this week, which I haven't had since early in my pregnancy

Pregnancy Weeks 14-18

No picture, but here is what I recorded for 12 weeks:

•          The cravings!  Last time I just craved carbs as a whole, which was easy, because I could always satisfy the craving.  This time I find myself craving something more specific.  The other day I had to stop on my way home to get Miss Vickie’s Salt and Vinegar chips.  I have never craved chips in my life because I’m a chocolate person so it was a weird feeling.
•       I’m feeling pretty good, the fatigue still hits me hard sometimes, but that might just be because I’m a mom with a busy kid who doesn’t always get a full nights sleep
•          I got my snoogle pillow out this week and it’s wonderful.  Ryan isn’t happy about it, but I sleep so much better with it!
•          I’m excited to start talking about names, I love knowing what we are naming the baby.  We still have a name picked out for a girl so we will see if that sticks, but we are starting from square one for boys names, so it could be interesting!
•          I’ve been on the hunt for a double stroller.  I’m hoping to find a good deal on a used City Select so I’ve been keeping my eyes open on kijiji because you have to jump on them fast when someone posts them

13 Weeks

• We told some of our extended family about the baby last weekend as well as our friends.  It’s nice to have it out in the open!
•  Still just showing mostly in the evening, I can tell during the day but nobody else can. But at night I look super pregnant.
•  I still fit into my regular pants, which is nice.
•  I got a call from my midwife this week to let me know that I tested positive for ureaplasma, which is linked to preterm labour.  I was looking it up to try to decide if I wanted to treat it or not and only found really bad things about people going into labour at 24 weeks…I’m trying not to freak out until I talk to my midwife more about it at my appointment next week
• I would say I’m not as tired (except for Parker having a cold and waking up 3 times a night doesn’t help) and I feel pretty good most of the time.  My boobs are more sore than they were in the first trimester and are fuller.

14 Weeks

• I announced my pregnancy at work this week, nice to have everything out in the open and can stop whispering to the people who know about it
• We picked names….maybe…. I’m not fully set on the boys name, but I’m thinking Ryan is so it will probably stick
• Up 3 lbs so far, I’m happy with that
• My midwife suggested going to a naturopath about the ureaplasma.  I’m trying not to worry about it too much as there isn’t that much I can do
• Parker got an ear infection so we spent 3+ hours at the hospital.  Of course he was happy while we were there and so I spent 3 hours chasing him up and down the halls cause he would not sit still.  This made for one tired out mama!

15 Weeks

•          This belly that comes and goes is weird.  Some days it’s here some days it’s not.
•          I kind of feel like I have a UTI.  Symptoms include frequent urination and getting up at night to pee.  Ok thanks google, that’s just pregnancy in general.
•          I can’t wait to feel movement, it could happen any time now, but with Parker I didn’t feel anything until 21 weeks.
•          I’m sleeping great with my snoogle pillow!
•          Hungry most of the time

17 Weeks

•          Reflux has started up a little bit although not all the time like last time
•          Sleeping pretty well and overall pretty comfortable
•          Craving carbs, not a huge fan of meat, I basically just want to get take out all the time
•          The naturopath has me on a bunch of pills to hopefully get rid of the ureaplasma, we will test again in a few weeks to see if it worked

18 Weeks

•          Up 9 lbs from pre-pregnancy weight, but this is where I was at when I started my pregnancy with Parker, so I’m ok with that!
•          Started feeling movement at the beginning of this week!  Some days there’s more than others an sometimes it’s really obvious and sometimes I have to be concentrating to feel it
•          I find it feels more like definite kicks than it did last time.  I can sometimes feel it from outside my body whereas the early kicks last time were more like flutters.  Does this mean my baby is massive?  Or just really strong?
•          Acid reflux is more steady
•          Had a midwife appointment – heartbeat was 144
•          Looking forward to the anatomy scan in 2 weeks!

Pregnancy to 13 Weeks

I told you that eventually I would get around to blogging about the pregnancy....I'm not quite as hardcore this time.  Although I want to be, I just don't have the time in the day to take weekly pictures and document as much, so I've tried to do as good as I can with it.  I'm more summarizing what I've been feeling.  Here is everything up until 13 weeks!

5 weeks

•         We can’t really believe that we are having another baby.  Are we crazy?
•         No symptoms prior to positive test
•          A bit of a sore back.  No sore boobs this time around though.

 7 Weeks

•          I’m tired all the time and can’t believe how early it started this time around.  Probably something to do with sleepless nights and chasing after a busy 15 month old
•          Definitely feeling more nausea this time around.  I especially have it in the morning, I don’t want to eat, nothing seems appetizing, but I have to or else I feel sick.  But it can also hit at any time during the day.  Specifically when I’m hungry or have eaten too much.  It’s a fine line…
•          When I wake up in the night I have a really hard time getting back to sleep
•          Crazy vivid dreams, I should be keeping a journal of them!  In one I was the Blue Jays 1^st basement, terrible idea!  I can’t catch to save my life. 
•          We told our families and I think surprised them all!
•          One day I took a picture of my belly because I looked 20 weeks pregnant.  It was clearly just bloating and went away, but it scared me.  Other than that I feel a bit chubbier.  I’ve been trying to eat well before real cravings hit as I know that first trimester is no excuse!

 9 Weeks

•          Still tired
•          Nausea hasn’t been quite as bad but can still hit me pretty hard at times
•          I told my boss and one other co-worker because we were talking about staffing and I felt bad keeping it a secret.  Then we went on an offsite meeting and it was hard to hide not being able to go in the hot tub or drink anything
•          The belly comes and goes
•          I have my midwife appointment this week.  Finally!  I’m looking forward to seeing the midwife and getting an ultrasound booked

11 Weeks

•          Had midwife appointment at 9 weeks. Isabelle was surprised I was back so soon!  It’s so nice to know what’s going on this time around, we got down to business at the appointment.  Because I had a preemie we are going to do some extra testing this time around to try to prevent that if possible, but there are no guarantees
•          I actually hadn’t gained any weight, if anything I’ve lost a few pounds, which kind of makes sense because my appetite was definitely not big while I wasn’t feeling well
•          Had an ultrasound at 10 weeks!  I drank too much water and had to pee a little bit 3 times during it and was very uncomfortable.  But Ryan and I both got to see the baby, which was amazing
•          I’ve been feeling pretty good overall.  Nausea isn’t too bad anymore and I’m generally less tired I would say, however weekend naps are still really nice.
• We are looking forward to telling more people next week about the pregnancy. 
• Next midwife appointment is at the end of May
• Some days by the end of the day I look very pregnant, but in the morning the belly is pretty small again, which is good for work so that people don’t catch on!

Second Pregnancy Problems

You know when you're pregnant for the second time and you don't have the time in your day to actually blog about it and announce it until 17 weeks?  That's me!

For any of you who didn't already know (or people who aren't my immediate family, if any of you are reading this blog), Parker is getting a little brother or sister sometime around December 1!

Some fun facts:

Yes this was planned.  Yes it happened quicker than we thought.  And yes, sometimes I think we're crazy.  Having 2 kids under 2 (only for a few months, they will be about 22 months apart if I go full term) is going to be pretty insane for awhile I think.  But I'm also really excited about how close in age they are going to be.

I'm terrified of having 2 under 2 to be honest.  Parker is still very needy and he will be too young to really know what's going on.  But I know in a few years the small age gap won't make a huge difference.

They will be only one year apart in school because Parker was born in January of 2015 and this baby will be born before the end of 2016.

I have been having another good pregnancy, but the symptoms hit me a lot earlier.  I felt much more nauseous and the fatigue started immediately instead of at 8 weeks.  But luckily both of those symptoms calmed down by around 9-10 weeks. 

I started showing much earlier.  Like at 8 weeks, last time was around 20.  Most people still don't think I'm showing, it just looks like I have a bit of a gut, but in comparison there is a big difference to what I looked like last time.

I still crave carbs, just like I did with Parker.  But now meat is not my friend.  I can eat it, but it's not satisfying at all.  A big bowl of cheese cappeletti on the other hand...I could eat that every night!!

Maybe some day I will edit the weekly (ok biweekly...) pictures that I've been taking and post them.  I told you that second pregnancies were a bit different...

Parker's Birth Story: Part 2

Part 1

They brought me into a delivery room and hooked me up to monitors for the babies heartbeat and my contractions since the baby was early.  Which meant that I was stuck in one position for my labour.  The whole things was still pretty unreal to me at this point.

I was asked whether I wanted an epidural and was very conflicted.  I didn't know how long I would be in labour or how bad it would get.  Because we didn't have my GBS swab results back since it was so early, I needed 4 hours of antibiotics before they would break my water.  Because of that, the fact that I was told contractions would get worse, I hadn't slept in 2 nights and I couldn't change positions, I decided to just go for the epidural.  I couldn't believe how instant the relief was.  Life was wonderful and I couldn't feel anything!

Parker kept moving positions, so they were constantly trying to roll me on my side and my back and moving the monitor around so they could pick up the heartbeat.  

It is strange being in labour and not being able to eel it.  My midwife, Isabelle, told me that my contractions had spread out and I was a bit worried that things weren't progressing.  Later on they checked and I was at 7cm.

Finally my antibiotics were done and my water could be broken. However, because my midwife had to do shared care with the doctor, the doctor wouldn't let her break my water, and the doctor was too busy to do it.  WE had to wait an extra hour and a half for the doctor to show up!  After they broke my water, they told Ryan to go get something to eat while he had time.  Ryan messaged my parents just to tell them everything was fine, but not that I was in labour, as we thought it might be a few more hours.  The midwife and nurse kind of traded off taking a dinner break as well.

I could not feel a lot of pressure when I was having contractions.  I messaged Ryan and told him to hurry back right as he walked through the door.  I felt so much pressure with each contraction that Ryan went out into the hall and got the nurse.  I was 10cm!  No wonder I was feeling something.  We were surprised as it had only been about 20 minutes since my water had been broken.

Isabelle told me that extra people had to be there since I was so early.  So we had a nurse, 2 midwives, a doctor and 2 pediatricians waiting for the baby.  Luckily, the doctor let Isabelle do her thing and she just observed.  Isabelle and our awesome nurse Andrea coached me through the whole thing.  They were so encouraging.  Ryan held my hand and was really great too.  They told me to just pretend nobody else was in the room.  

I probably pushed for about half an hour or less.  Luckily, even with the epidural I would really feel when each contraction was happening and knew when to push.  It's amazing how your body just knows what to do.  I touched his head as he was crowning.  That was very weird!  With the epidural I wouldn't say that it hurt, but I could feel it.  

Finally at 6:40, Parker was born.  They handed him to me and he cried before they whisked him away. Ryan cut the cord.  After they checked him out, I got him back for about 5 minutes.  He was having a bit of trouble breathing, but I didn't realize it at the time.  Then they took him down to the nursery to check him out.

He was perfect.  10 fingers, 10 toes.  His breathing turned out to be fine.  I couldn't believe that we had a baby!  And that he was a boy!  I was so sure that it was a girl my entire pregnancy.  I was just so happy that everything was fine.

When Ryan came back from the nursery, we called our families.  Everyone was pretty surprised.  My parents knew we were at the hospital, but didn't think I would actually be having the baby.  Ryan's parents had no idea!

And just like that, a bit sooner than expected, our entire world changed.  Parker is the best thing that I have ever done and I can't wait to watch him grow and see the person that he will become.