Our last day with just Emma...

Well, today is our last day with just Emma--I can not beleive that I finally get to have the baby tommorow! I know I am not past due or anything, but the way my doctor talked--taking me off work early, having two appointments per week, modified bed rest--I never thought I would make it to my actual scheduled date!

Jon and I tried to make Emma's weekend special; acknowledging that it is SUPER HOT right now and that I don't do to well in the heat. Here are a couple of pics of Emma playing with us on our last weekend before she is a big sister:

Running from the sprinkler:

"Ohhh its cooooolllllddddd"

Cooling off mommy's swollen feet!

Daddy spraying her with the hose!

Baby News--or lack thereof

I had my final OB appointment today--it was a success. Baby looks great, my blood pressure is fine, and there are no longer any medical needs to have the baby early. I have one more NST at the hospital on Thursday and then we will be having the baby on Tuesday. The only way, at this point, that we are having the baby before Tuesday will be for me to go in to labor. Unfortunately, the baby is breech and I have only had one or two contractions since Saturday, so its unlikely that I will be going in to labor!

Baby Gabe came to visit and eat dinner with us today. He is SO stinking cute!!! I love him and I love being an aunt so much!!!

Its a ZOO out there...

Our Cincinnati zoo passes expire on May 31--and since we are moving to Nashville, we did not renew. The zoo has been a great place for us this year--over the summer Emma and I went alone about once a week and met Jon for lunch. My mom, Emma, and I also went about once a week, and sometimes Emma and mammaw went by themselves. There were weeks over the summer that Emma was at the zoo three times!!! It is zoo baby season and today was the only day between now and our expiration date that Jon could join us--so we went to the zoo. (Secretly, or not so secretly, I was hoping to induce labor by walking a ton as well!!!)

Anyway, Mammaw went with us--Emma enjoyed having mammaw all to herself--and we saw all we could see at the zoo. I am going to post a few pics from our trip!

Baby News: I have an appointment tommorow--I am officially the farthest along as i have ever been (Emma was born at 10:40 am on this day of her pregnacy). I have been having some mild contractions--but so far they ahve not amounted to much. The baby is super active--and seems quite content where he/she is! I doubt anything will happen tommorow unless my BP is up again or unless these contrations turn into something more meaningful!!!

Emma looking good in her shades (above) and Emma eats her icecream (right)!

Emma and mammaw on the elephant statue (above) and Emma pets baby goats (below--see daddy in the background!)

Can we say NESTING :)

Well, Sunday I am officially the "most pregnant" I have ever been. Today I woke up with a sense of panic/anxiety and starting cleaning like crazy. When my blood pressure started acting up, I was afraid of having the baby too early. Now, that I am full term and approaching the day in pregnancy that Emma was born--I AM SO READY TO MEET THIS LITTLE ONE!!!

While I was cleaning today, I came to realize that there are a few things that annoy the crap out of me:
1: The silverware drawer--How does it get so dirty. All we put in it is clean silverware--it does not make sense for it to get so gross.
2. The refrigerator: again--how does it get so gross? It took forever to clean it today.
3. LAUNDRY--I was so excited to have 100% of the laundry in the house done--give Emma a bath and get ready for bed and now we have washcloth, towel, today's clothes for Emma, today's clothes for me, today's clothes for Jon. Almost a full load again. LAUNDRY is never done.

Anyway, no real update--just a little rant about cleaning! The house is clean, the van is clean, everything is ready for baby. Now, its just wait time...

AUNT KATI :)

 So, yesterday I got to experience the joys and stress of being an Aunt for the first time!!!
One of the first things I learned about motherhood was that babies make all their own decisions, and Beth learned that as well-- Gabe decided he was happy where he was and refused to make a debut! Beth ended up having a c-section and Gabe arrived at 8:26 weighing 7lbs 4 oz and as 19.5 inches long. He is adorable and so tiny! I got to rub his little tummy and play with his fingers and toes last night.  He was under the warmer so I have not gotten to hold him yet!!!
Emma and I are going out today to see him again--Emma is not allowed on the mom and baby floor (no one under 14 unless it is a sibling can go) so Emma will be joining mammaw and pappaw for lunch while I get to Gabe time :)
Beth did great and i am so proud of her!!!

7 years ago today...

I woke up nervous that I would trip going down the aisle...
My mom paid for a hairstyle that we had to redo when we got to the church...
I yelled at my parents and bridesmaids for hem-hawing when I was ready to get to the church...
I laughed at my dork of a fiance who was trying to greet guests at the door before getting in trouble with the photographers...
I walked down an aisle to start the journey of a life-time...
I married my best friend.


Perhaps its the pregnancy, or the rain, or all that's going on in our lives, or a recent conversation that made me appreciate the people in my life who support us,  but I am feeling exceptionally emotional today. I look back over the last seven years, and can not believe all that we have gone through--and all that we have left to experience. I feel truly blessed to have such a wonderful husband, wonderful family, and wonderful friends--my cup runneth over :) Happy Anniversary Jon <3


Baby News: Appointment well great today. Blood pressure was okay--still borderline, but not terrible. Weight gain was nothing :) I have still only gained 12 lbs for the pregnancy :) Baby looked good on ultrasound--seems like I will be pregnant for two more weeks (which is great versus having some sort of problem which would make me have the baby earlier!).


Other baby news: Little sister Beth is at the hospital now!!! She is not in labor yet, but they will be starting her on pitocin and we should have little Gabriel Allen her within the next several hours (my guess is he will be born in the wee hours of the morning tomorrow 5/18) !!! I can't wait to be an AUNT :)

DDAVP Challenge: Check

What an exhausting day! And, we are glad its over!
Emma had her DDAVP challenge test today. This is to test the DDAVP medicine that she could take if she were injured or in need of major dental work or surgery. This medication helps the factor 8/Von Willebrand factor already in her blood work more efficiently. We had to do a challenge test because not everyone responds to the medication.
We got to Children's Hospital at 11:30 and the test began at about 11:40. I held her body while Jon held her legs. My mom and a child life therapist danced around and entertained Emma while two nurses held her arm to draw the blood and start the IV. Emma actually did very well--she cried very little: mainly when we had to switch her positions and she saw all the tubes sticking out of her hand. She also cried when the first IV spot blew and the medicine started to puff up her arm. They removed the IV, and ended up doing a second IV spot on her hand. After the 20 minutes of medication--Emma just sat in my and mom's laps and Jon fed her puffs while the IV ran (she did SO GREAT) the nurse removed the IV and Emma could move around a little. We were all pretty hot and tired and HOT at this point! It took the six of us to hold and entertain her for the third stick to draw the post-labs. Emma just stayed still and allowed this to happen again--she did not even cry for the third stick! I am so proud of her!!!

BIG NEWS: A nurse practitioner came in to tell us about Emma's other lab results that were off a little. The ratio indicated that Emma was a little "dry" that morning--essentially meaning she was a little more dehydrated than normal (she had less to drink that morning than she usually has). It was borderline elevated--so she said it was not a concern at all, probably one more glass of water that morning and Emma would have been fine! So--glad to hear that all is well with the kidney functions :)

After the DDAVP challenge we took mom to lunch (Jay Alexanders--mom's favorite!) and came home to relax. I was super swollen, so I had to lay on my left side. Emma went down for a nap--we were all asleep by 4:00pm. Emma woke up at 5:00 for some milk, and fell back asleep with Jon is the chair. At 7:00pm-I woke up and Emma and Jon were still sleeping!!! We were all pretty tired from the excitement and struggles of the day.
Results should be in in 3-4 weeks--so, for now, all testing is done on Emma :) No more blood draws for a while!!! YAY!

More Doctors and Baby Prep

Today has been a good day--a lot better than yesterday!

Yesterday started off with a phone call from Emma's hematology team to report results of her blood work. The person on the phone had not reviewed the results herself, and had not had the doctor review the results yet. Anyway, while I was on the phone, she was reading results and mumbling to herself. (Yes, putting me on hold would have been a better option). I heard her say, "normal, normal, hmmm that's elevated, normal, elevated). I was expecting her thrombin time to come back elevated--that's part of the Von Willebrands disease diagnosis. However, the other elevated results I was not expecting. I asked the person on the phone what was elevated, and she did not want to tell me without the doctor review--so, I specifically asked about each test. I found out that one of her renal function test results came back elevated: Bun and creatin ratio. She could not tell me anything else. So, I spend the whole day tense--a mother's worst nightmare is hearing "your child will not survive." I have heard that before--and its devastating. Hearing "abnormal results" in regards to blood work takes me back to that place I was with Hailey. So, for the second time in the last couple of weeks, I spend a day wondering what is wrong with my perfect girl. Essentially, after the doctor reviewed the results--we are told that this issue is separate from VWD and could indicate something else. However, Emma's BUN levels are normal, and her Creatin levels are normal--indicating proper kidney function. They are unsure why her ratio is off--and will be looking into it further during her DDAPV challenge test. The hematology team feels like because her other levels are normal, that this is not a significant problem, but will be discussing it with someone who is more knowledgeable about renal function tests.
I feel better that her kidneys are functioning, and there could be a lot of explanations as to why her B&C ratio is elevated--so, I am calmly waiting on more information and praying that there is nothing else going on.

Today, we did hear from the nurse practitioner from the hematology team. She is the person who will be leading the DDAPV challenge. We have it scheduled for Friday (May 14) at 11:30--it will be a long day--an hour to two hours with an IV--with a two year old will feel like 2 days! However, I will be glad to get it over with. Thoughts and prayers on Friday please--hoping we can somehow keep Emma calm and still enough for the challenge test to be effective!

I have been working on the final prep for baby. I am almost packed for the hospital--and I have a couple of small things to wash for when he/she is here and then we should be good to go. Jon assembled the double stroller and we set up the swing and bouncy seat. Its weird to see all this baby stuff out again! We are down to under 3 weeks before the actual scheduled date--and as well as my appointments have been going--we will probably not have the baby early!

Emma is super excited about the baby--she has been practicing being a big sister to her baby dolls. I have to keep in mind, despite all this extra stress concerning her test results, that these are my last few weeks one on one with her. We are having a lot of fun and I do truly appreciate spending time and playing with her. I just want her to be happy and healthy.

Life's greatest rewards

I/we decided to start a blog to keep everyone updated on all the "stuff" going on in our lives--since there is a lot of "stuff" going on!!! I can not promise to update daily, but it is my goal to update often--it is our hopes that when we move we will be able to keep family and friends in the know! There is kind of a lot to start with, so I am going to organize this first post by topic!
House: We went from 3-5 showings a week, to having two offers submitted to the bank to NOTHING. We lost both buyers and have not had a showing in over a week. My realtor said they have SLOWED down since the tax credit ended... so, we are still hoping and praying for an offer that sticks.
Jon:
The interview at Vanderbilt last week went very well. He felt like it was more of a recruiting session versus a regular interview. He was supposed to come home and talk to me about moving to TN and then get back to Dr. Conn. On Friday, Dr. Conn emailed and made a formal offer to Jon about working in his lab at Vandy Medical Center. The "official" paper work is on its way, but the email included information about salary and benefits. Jon will be accepting the offer!. Its kind of crazy to think that it is official--Nashville here we come (in July!)
Kati/Baby:
Finally, my blood pressure is under control. Thursday at the hospital, my bp was 130/66...the best its been. I am still off work, and have been for a couple weeks now. I was sad to stop work early because I miss my friends and family at FHS, however, the baby and I are doing so much better. I think being on my feet all day and the stresses that come with teaching was just a little too much on the little girl/guy. The baby is doing great now. I go for an ultrasound/biophysical profile every Monday and a Non-Stress test at the hospital every Thursday. Last week--all appointments went very well and it seems I will stay pregnant for at least a couple more weeks :) I can not wait to see our little girl/guy when he/she finally gets here!
Emma:
She is definitely the joy of our lives--and she has developed a new attitude called "two." She is becoming a little sass, and if you ask her whats wrong with her, she says: "two." She keeps us hopping, and is for the most part quite a happy little girl.
We recently had to have some testing done because of a couple of minor cuts that bled for long periods of time. Her bleeding time tested long--so a panel was run to test her for Von Willebrands Disease. As of right now, she has been diagnosed with type 1 Von Willebrands Disease--which essentially means that she does not clot well after she is injured and she bleeds for a long time. Day to day life is not really affected; she basically can not take aspirin or Ibuprofen and we will have to make sure everyone who is watching her knows how to respond to her cuts and bleeding. We will be having a DDAVP challenge test to see if she responds to the treatment. Essentially, she will only need DDAVP in the case of surgeries/major injuries.
At first, I was pretty stressed about the idea that something could be wrong with Emma--she is my perfect girl! However, now that I am more informed about whats going on with her, I am grateful that VWD is not a more serious disease. I am also grateful that we know in advance that she has this bleeding disorder and did not have to discover it through some serious injury. Essentially, she had to get it from Jon or I and we have both been fine. So, while I can say I am a little disappointed that she has this disease, I am grateful that it is not life threatening.

If you made it this far--thanks for reading :) Being Jon's wife and being a mom has been the most fulfilling and satisfying job I could have ever imagined. Though we have a lot going on right now, I would not trade it for the world---I love our life and can not wait to see what our future will bring!