It's been a while

I know, it's been a while. I'm sorry :( Life has been good but HECTIC!

I have lots of pictures to post and lots of catching up to do. For now though, I'll leave you with this...

Day Two: water, water everywhere

Well, we're moving right along. My water broke this morning on its own! No Pitocin yet, and with my contractions being 5-6 minutes and pretty strong, I may not need any.

Stay tuned. Thanks for the prayers!

Still Day One :)

Trading Places! :)
Me, looking fat and happy :)
If you look closely, you can see my swollen ankles!!!

Day One: Still Waiting,, but not so boring

I'm having contractions. These initial ones are pretty similar to what I thought they'd feel like, so no big surprises yet :)
The "stuff" they are using to prepare me for the Pitocin is doing a good job. I told my nurse I was getting a little more uncomfortable and she clapped and said "yeah"! Haha! Not exactly what you want to hear, but it's true... Yeah!
Anyway, thank you for you prayers! Keep praying that things move along and that we can welcome a sweet baby girl sometime in the near future!!!

Here's the Popop to be doing his Crosswords, just waiting :)

Mmmm... Hospital Food...

Spinach or collard greens? I don't know...

Day One: Just waiting

Well, we're here at the hospital... No baby yet and no active labor... we're just waiting. My mom is sitting with me while Jason is working, yes, working... and Jake is working, and my dad is exploring Canton :)

Jason and I checked in around 9pm last night and they started me on some preparatory medicine. They haven't started me on Pitocin yet, they are waiting to see if I will dilate any more on my own.
Right now I'm in my bed just chillin'.
We covet your prayers that labor would progress naturally, without Pitocin. Also that we would trust the Lord and not be anxious!
Hopefully more news to come soon!!!

38 Weeks

Here we are at 38 weeks, that was Friday... Everything with baby and I has been going really well. I have to visit my Dr.'s office twice a week, once for an ultrasound and once for a non-stress test. Each time, she passes with "flying colors". We have been blessed to not have any major complications or concerns with this pregnancy. Sometimes things can arise when you are diagnosed with gestational diabetes, but other than having to taking insulin once a day we are doing great!

Stay tuned for more. I need to post pictures from my AMAZING anniversary get-away/baby moon this past weekend.

Also, we are going to try and do some "live blogging" once its time for this little one to make her appearance. So if you're interested, they will be some play by play updates on the big day.

Lately

I decided just to compile some pictures that describe the last several weeks, so, here we go:

Ohio Cornfields

Family Reunion in Xenia, Oh. Above the family (minus Josiah, Francesca, and Arden), below Grandpa and Grandma Battaglia and Grandpa's brother, Uncle Bob and his wife Aunt Collette (they let us borrow their jag while on our honeymoon!)

The gold, silver, and bronze medal winners of Bocci Ball :)

Around home: watering my hydrangeas!

Lots of laundry

learning to grocery shop on a very tight budget while having diabetes...

making yummy snacks for my hubby :)

hubby, working on the car that is almost dead. Therefore: new car in the near future.

Baby showers and such...

Gestational diabetes: testing my blood four times a day. and as of yesterday I will be taking insulin before breakfast.

Multiple doctor appointments during the week. Mondays I have an ultrasound to make sure she is practicing her breathing amongst other things. Thursday is the non-stress test where the monitor her heart rate for about 30 minutes (if she cooperates!)

And, yes, I'm still pregnant :) There we are, around 33 weeks (two weeks ago)...

Baby girl's room: we've been setting things up and organizing!

Her dresser with some freshly washed and folded baby girl clothes, love it!

The munchkin herself as seen in a 4d ultrasound... gotta love technology!

Our crib!

Stuffed diaper caddy that needs to be straightened out :)

Well, that's about it folks. I hope you enjoyed the pictures.

My last day of work was over two weeks ago and I'm loving being home! I have been super busy, which is good. I've also been able to get lots of rest, which is also good! I have loved just being home and getting things done that I typically did not have much time for.

We don't know for sure, but we may be getting induced one to two weeks early - sometime between September 5th and 12th ( a common result of gestational diabetes).
So, maybe next time I post it will be for a baby watch! ;)

(no editing, everything really was this color one evening)


Almost one week down... I met with my nutritionist last Thursday afternoon and she really helped me gain more perspective on what's going on with my body while I finish out this pregnancy. She also provided me with a really helpful list of foods I can eat during the rest of my pregnancy. At least they are all good foods :) I had to say goodbye to ice cream and my 6 glasses of milk a day though. Man, I really CRAVE milk... Anyway, it is very similar to the South Beach Diet eating plan in that you can have fruits, veggies, and carbs, you just have to count them and limit how much per meal. I have to keep up with my blood sugar by pricking my finger and taking a reading of my blood four times a day as well as eating every two hours. Good thing I don't get squeamish with needles or the sight of my own blood, because I get to see a lot of it.

It hasn't been as difficult as I thought. Jason is doing an amazing job (that's and understatement) in supporting me and encouraging me. He always asks me how I'm doing and how my blood sugar reading is going, and if he's around me he sits there and watches with me.

I had my bi-monthly appointment with my OB yesterday and she was incredibly encouraged to see how well I have done on my first week. My numbers are all where they should be and she said that is great, especially for the first week! I also learned that I will be practically be living at the dr.'s office. As she put it, they become "very involved" in my pregnancy from here on out. So, I will go once a week for the next two weeks then after that (at 32 weeks) I will begin going twice a week. I'm very grateful for my dr.'s and their level of involvement and how they are really great with explaining everything to me and walking with me instead of just telling what I have to do and when I have to do it. They are definitely patient oriented!!

Thank you all for your prayers, Jason and I both would appreciate your continued prayers that everything goes smoothly throughout the rest of the pregnancy and that there are no complications with our baby girl and her health. Gestational Diabetes is just that, gestational. So once this girly comes out I'm in the clear and will have learned some really good eating habits to help me lose my pregnancy weight :)

Thank you

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3:5)

This passage kept coming to mind this morning after receiving the call from my dr.'s office that I indeed did not pass my second glucose screening. Thank you Katherine for posting this verse last week :) It really did encourage me this morning.

I go on to the Diabetes Educational Facility tomorrow afternoon for my first consultation. Basically they will ask me what I typically eat and help me come up with a diet plan that will essentially be balancing carbs and proteins. I am looking forward to learning more tomorrow and could definitely still use prayers that I would not be discouraged and overwhelmed by changes I have to make and that I will be able to manage my diet so that it would cause any harm to our little baby girl.

Thank you all again for your prayers. I am very grateful!

More Labs

So, the my doctor's office called just now... and my lab results came back and my levels were high. I have to go back in for a more extensive test which will keep me there for about 4 hours.

After this test they will know whether or not I will be diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes.

Keep those prayers going... :)

update...

I called my dr. yesterday and they told me that they would call if I did not pass the test. I haven't heard anything, so I'm thinking that no news is good news :)

Thank you all for your prayers :)

Prayer Request

I would covet all of your prayers that I pass my Glucose screening test that I took this morning. I had to drink this "Delicious" orange juice and then have my blood taken an hour later. This is to determine whether or not I have Gestational Diabetes... If I fail, I have to go back for a three hour test. If I fail that one, I do have Gestational Diabetes and it could lead to complications with my pregnancy as well as down the road. So, please be praying that my body is responding well to being pregnant and that everything is working as it should! Thank you :)

I should know tomorrow if I have to go back for more labs... I'll keep you posted.

Projects!!!

Recently, Jason has had some time to stay home and work on the house. So, last week he finished our front room. I am SO EXCITED about it and absolutely love it. It was going to be a dining room, but now I think I may want to make it a sitting room.

All the trim was dark wood, the bottom half was this nasty grass wallpaper that wouldn't come off, and the top was stripes of two different shades of tan.

Now the trim is all white, the bottom is beautiful bead board, and the top is "Happy Camper" (the same green we have in our kitched). It is so refreshing to walk into the house and not have to avoid looking at the "unfinished" room... Thank you love! You did an excellent job!!

As you can see, this room is the current home of all of our baby goodies!

Georgia Shower

This past weekend, I had another fabulous baby shower! Thank you Sarah for taking the time and opening your home to all those ladies :) Thank you mom and Marie for making the trek down here to join in. I had a great time and was once again, overwhelmed and blessed by my church's generosity!!

Sarah made these two cakes! Not only did they look good, but, boy did they taste good!

She also had this great game that we all played. She passed around ultrasound pictures, and we had to guess which parts the arrow was pointing to. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. But it produced some good laughs!!

Thank you all again for coming and blessing us with things we need for our little baby girl!

Baby Shower!

The reason we were in Virginia was that our dear friends Marie and Melanie were throwing me my first baby shower! Thank you, ladies, from the bottom of my heart! I was so blessed and overwhelmed by so many familiar and loving faces surrounding me. Jason and I are so grateful for all the clothes and goodies we received for our baby girl! Thank you, thank you everyone!

Cute little outfit, one out of many!

My Mimi, Dad's mom, came up from Florida for the shower. It was so nice having her there! Man, I hope I'm that stylish when I'm 82!!!

Some of the gals. Stephanie, you did a great job letting me throw tissue paper at you :)

Oh my! I got two of the most adorable bathing suits for next summer. This one is a little patriotic bikini! Can't you just see a little baby belly sticking out of that! I can't wait!

Dad, Jake, & Jason were playing pool during the shower, they came by later to survey the loot.

Look at all those clothes! After a little exchanging of sizes, I'll be set for a while. It seems like I'll have to change her outfit at least twice a day for her to wear everything!!

Thank you again to everyone who blessed us with provisions for our baby girl. We are so grateful! I love you all and miss you all so much.

24 Weeks!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's growing steadily, gaining about a quarter of a pound since last week, when she was just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long, that makes a pretty lean figure, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon put on more baby fat. Your baby's skin is thin, translucent, and wrinkled, her brain is growing rapidly, and her taste buds are developing. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" and cells that produce surfactant, a substance **that helps the air sacs inflate easily.

Yep, we're at 24 weeks!! just 16 to go :) That's weird to think about considering how quickly this first part has gone, in spite of being sick. I have gone about a week with out throwing up, which is an accomplishment. I still have bouts of queasiness every day, but they seem to be remedied by eating a little something. Other than cankles (the lack of an ankle due to swelling) and some lower back pain, Baby Girl and I are doing fantastic! In fact, Jason finally got to feel her kick two nights ago!

We were in Louisville this past weekend for New Attitude and then today we are heading to Virginia for a quick weekend trip! Busy, busy!

Hope you all are well and resting in God's amazing Grace!!!

I'll take that in pink, please!

We're having a GIRL!!!!!

20.5

We got home Saturday night from a busy, but very nice vacation out in Westminster, Colorado!
More pictures to come...

Mean while, here I am at 20 and 1/2 weeks!! We find out on Thursday if that bump is a boy or girl!!! Stay tuned :)

Thank you!

Thank you all, so much, for your prayers last week! My appointment with the cardiologist went well and he saw no visible problems with my heart :)

He told me no more caffeine (that includes chocolate!!) and to come back and see him a month before the baby is born. He also said my blood pressure was high and that I need to keep an eye on that because of complications it could incur. I should hear from by OB sometime this week on whether or not she wants me to come in more often to watch my blood pressure.

Again, thank you all for your prayers :)