Kelly in NC

Sorry to say that it has taken me over a week to write this post. It’s funny how emotional you can be about losing a pet, but when he has been a part of your life for 12 years, it truly is like losing a member of the family. It has taken me this long to get my thoughts together on how to say good bye to an animal who was more than just a pet. He has been our “1st baby” and best friend for as long as Tim and I have known each other and losing him has been an emotional roller coaster. Even if we knew that the end was near.
As most of you know, Tim got Ozzy as a puppy only a few months after we first started dating. Ozzy was the typical black lab puppy. He loved to chase his tail, go on walks, and of course swim. At the time Tim lived with his parents who had a pool. Life could not have been better for any dog. Ozzy would stay in the pool for hours. He even claimed a raft for himself and on many occasions when he would go missing, you only had to look in the pool to see him snoozing by himself on his float in the water. And yes, he really did claim the raft as his own. If you ever tried to lay on it , he would usually come over, tip you off and the climb aboard. He also loved to retrieve tennis balls from the pool. I can personally remember one occasion when I counted how many times he would jump in the pool after the ball. At 100 times I quit counting, and yes he kept retreiving! One other Ozzy pool memory was his desire to make sure everyone was safe while swimming. Tim used to torment poor Ozzy by swimming to the bottom of the pool. Ozzy would circle and circle above him barking, hoping that Tim would soon come back to the top. Yes, Ozzy was a friend, but he also a protector of those he loved.
I am not sure how Tim’s parents felt when he brought the little black puppy home for the first time, but it wasn’t long before he weaseled his way into their hearts…and really into the hearts of almost anyone he met. Ozzy immediately took a liking to Mom B. She was definitley the alpha in his life. He would listen to her better than any other human on the planet. I’m sure that it was due to all the attention she gave him. She taught him most of his commands- sit, stay, lay, get the paper, and made him into the perfect walking companion. I really think that Ozzy gave Mom B an excuse to go on walks everyday and also gave her another baby to dote on since all 4 of her children had grown into teenagers by that time. Regardless of the reason, Mom B can be credited for disciplining the O into the well mannered dog he became. Now not to insinuate that Ozzy did not have a special relationship with all the other members of Tim’s family because he did. On the day he died, I think all of Tim’s immediate family members shed a few tears when they heard the news. And no one seemed more concerned and upset than Tim’s Dad who had always taken on the role of provider and caretaker.
While I liked Ozzy from the moment I met him, it wasn’t until he came to live with us that I fell in love with that silly dog. Tim’s mom decided that once we got married, Tim (and really I) was responsible enough to have Ozzy full time. While Ozzy mourned the loss of his daily swims, he quickly found other things to occupy his time and make him happy. His desire to stalk squirrels grew to a new level and he would spend hours in our back yard hoping to sneak up on one of the critters. I taught him some new tricks like how to balance a cookie on his nose, toss it into the air, and catch it and Tim and I would take him on walks almost every evening. He loved going to the dog park and when we were really adventurous we would sneak him into a neighboring apartment complex’s pool.
Tim and I often took Ozzy on hiking trips which he also loved. Ozzy loved to run ahead of us on the trail, although he would often look backwards to make sure we were still in sight. Tim & I would make a game of hiding from him when he got too far ahead. Once he realized we were gone, he would come running back at full speed, searching frantically until we were found. He also enjoyed sleeping in the tent with us…maybe too much. While he would always start the night in a ball at our feet in the tent, by the next morning he always found a way to stretch himself out until he as taking up more than his share of the room. Still we loved him and couldn’t imagine a trip without him.
The biggest change of Ozzy life occurred with the birth of Grayson. It is funny that Ozzy seemed to know that his life was going to change that year. The bigger my stomach got, the more he began to show favoritism toward TIm. Up until that point, he had always preferred me. He must have had some intstinct that with the birth of little one, he would not longer be my number one priority and so he began sleeping near Tim and greeting Tim first when we would come home. Now Ozzy was not particularly excited when Grayson did finally join our family. It was about 6 months before Ozzy would even make eye contact with the baby. I guess by then he know that Grayson was here to stay and finally decided to accept him as a friend too. Grayson loved Ozzy from the moment he met him and by 6 months he would light up anytime Ozzy would enter the room. Ozzy was patient with the baby and would allow Gray to crawl all over him, chew on his ears, and even sit on top of his back. I believe that even though Ozzy triend hard to not like Grayson, within a few months he just couldn’t help himself. Even now, Grayson will tell you that Ozzy is his best friend, and since his lost has started carrying around a little black lab stuffed animal that he calls his “Baby Ozzy”. He has also requested the “Ozzy” song (sung like B-I-N-G-O) most nights before bed.
Over the past few years we have watched our dear dog age. Once he reached the age of 9 we saw him move from being a playful, active dog who NEEDED to be walked every day into living the retired life of a senior citizen. His hair began to gray at his chin, around his eyes and on his paws. And we were pleased to see our good dog turn into a GREAT dog. He continued to be well mannered and happy-but without the extra energy that would sometimes get him in trouble. It wasn’t really until he was hit by the UPS truck three moths ago that Tim or I ever considered that the end of his life was near. Yes, he had already slowed considerably and his arthritis was bad enough that he could not longer go on a full walk with us- but he still seemed incredibly happy and healthy considering his age. But after the accident, his health never fully recovered. WHile his spirits were most often up and he did find a way to beat the odds and walk again on his own, Ozzy’s body began to deteriorate before our eyes. He lost a considerable amount of weight over the past three months and became a very picky eater. Tim and I tried everything we could to get him to gain weight, even in the end feeding him people food, but he just couldn’t seem to fatten up.
His last week with us was also the week that we brought Gage home from the hospital For the most part Ozzy seemed extremely happy that week…to the point that I even said something to Tim about how perky he seemed. I joked that perhaps Ozzy was suicidal since he seemed so uplifted, but I had no idea how close to the mark I was. On two different occasions that week, Ozzy went missing around our house and was later found in the woods. Lots of people say that dogs know when they are going to die and will try to go off on their own when it is time. On those two times, we carried him back up to the house and he seemed fine. On Thursday he went missing again. After searching all over for him, Tim’s dad again found him in the woods and this time Ozzy’s spirits did not perk up. His happy demeanor would come and go and within a few hours, it became obvious that Ozzy was near his end. HIs breathing became labored, his tongue started to turn purple, and he started to slip in and out of consciousness- all signs of cardiac arrest. This was in stark contrast to his behavior earlier that day- when he followed me to my garden, played with Grayson, and even chased another dog out of our yard. It was surprising to see him turn for the worse so quickly, although I was very happy to be left with some pleasant memories of him from that day.
So now it has been a week that he is gone and while I know that he is no longer in pain, it still breaks my heart that he is no longer with us. I can’t tell you how many times in the past few days that I thought that I heard his chain rattle or that I thought that I heard him barking. I often drive in the yard and expect to see him laying in the grass. I am glad that we had the last three months with him to prepare for his leaving, as I cannot imagine how difficult his loss would be with out the preparation. At least we had our opportunity to say our good byes and reciprocate the love he had given us over the past twelve years.
So farewell dear Ozzy. You were an amazing dog who we could never replace. You were a loyal companion and will always be thought of as a member of our family. We are sorry to lose you so soon but are grateful for the twelve years of memories you have given us. You are missed today and forever.

Today, I took Gage to the Pediatric Cardiologist to follow up on some “clicking” noises they heard in his heart when he was first born. At the time, they did an echocardiogram and discovered that there were some connections between the ventricles of his heart that had not closed off, as well as some possible thickening of his pulmonary valve. In many ways these problems are common in newborns and most often they will remedy themselves. So today’s appointment was to check to see if the connections had closed and to decide if the there was an issue with the pulmonary valve. After meeting with the Cardiologist and sitting through another echocardiogram, Gage was given a clean bill of health. His heart looks great and the clicking noises have gone away. What a relief!
Also, last week, Gage had his 1 week doctor’s appointment. He weighted 6 lbs, 6 oz (up 3 oz since leaving the hospital) and was eating up to 3 ounces at a time. They checked to make sure he was not jaundice and the blood work returned in the normal range. Dr. Young seemed happy with his progress and our next appointment will be in a couple more weeks. As far as Gage’s progress over the last two weeks, so far he seems to be a pretty easy baby. As is typical, he spends most of his day sleeping with the other minutes filled with eating and pooping! Most of the time he eats every 2.5-3 hours although over the last few days he has been hungry every 1.5. We have figured out a system for getting plenty of sleep through the night. (Go ahead and shake your head…) I have found that by keeping him in bed beside me, he barely wakes up to nurse and will then fall right back to sleep. We usually have two feedings in the middle of the night. For now, this system is working well for me- although I know that I will change in sometime in the next few weeks. But let’s be honest, me getting my rest is super important to me right now.
Grayson continues to do well adjusting to having a little brother in the house. He wakes up every morning, comes down the stairs, and asks “Where’s my baby brover?” He will often pet Gage’s head or give him a little kiss before barreling off the play or eat breakfast. For the most part, the times when Grayson does pay attention to Gage are very sweet. For instance the other day as Grayson was watching a cartoon, I placed Gage on the couch beside him and went to tidy the house. When I walked back by I caught Grayson sitting right next to Gage, stroking his baby brother’s head. A few minutes later, Grayson yelled my name and said “Mommy, here’s my baby brover!” Grayson seems very proud to show off Gage to his friends at school and to complete strangers. So….So far we have not seen any signs of jealously and we are crossing our fingers that that ugly monster will not raise it’s head anytime soon.

IT is funny how sometimes you do not realize how easy you had things until something occurs to make life a bit harder. That was the case with the birth of Gage. While I thought that my delivery of Grayson was challenging, I had no idea how “cake” it was until I went through labor with Gage.
For Gage’s birth, we had a planned induction due to the fact that my blood pressure kept going up and the fact that my doctor, Dr. Craddock was leaving for vacation the following week. The positive side of the induction was that we knew when we were going to the hospital and so we were able to prepare ourselves and Grayson for having the baby. Tim’s Mom offered to stay with Grayson and to take care of him while we were in the hospital- so that as an added relief. We checked into the hospital on Wednesday evening and lucky for us, we were assigned one of our nurses from Grayson’s birth- Gayle. Gayle was an absolute blessing, seeming to always look out for us, and bossing the other nurses around. I had no idea at the time how lucky we were to have her on our side. Everything seemed to go well as far as the check in- that was until I had my IV inserted. I guess that the difficulty involved in that “simple” process was a bit of foreshadowing to how the rest of my delivery was going to go. Since Gayle could not find a vein that she felt comfortable using, she called in one of the other nurses who was an “expert” with IVs. This expert 1st chose a vein on the interior of my right arm that unfortunately had a valve and was unusable. She finally found a better vein on my hand instead. Have I ever mentioned how much I HATE needles and how much I HATE the sting of an IV?
By 5:00 one of the other doctors in the practice came by to insert the Cervadil (the medicine that causes the Cervix to dilate and efface). At that point I as already 3 cm dilated and was 80% effaced. The doctor was concerned that by giving the Cervadil, I could begin labor that night- which was not part of Dr. Craddock’s original plan. I later found out that while he did insert the Cervadil, he did not place it as high and as close to the cervix as it is normally given. So while Tim and I were on edge all night wondering if I might go into labor, very little happened until the next day.
At 7:30 on Thursday morning, Dr. Craddock came by and gave the permission to start the Pitocin. At that point I was still at 3 cm. dilated. By 8:30 my contractions began although they were not too uncomfortable. At 9:30, my contractions were two minutes apart and were painful enough that I asked for the epidural. Gayle checked and I was 6 cm dilated. By 10:00 the anesthesiologist came in and proceeded to give me the epidural. Inserting the needle into my back was an easy process that provided immediate relief, but the difficulty came in threadign the catheter through the needle. For what ever reason he had trouble threading the needle so that the epidural would effect both sides of my body. After 15 minutes of working on it, we thought that he had finally found the right spot and for a little while at least, I was relieved of the pain. Unfortunately within 15 minutes of the anesthesiologist leaving my room, I began to regain feeling in the left side of my body. I called the nurse and found that the longer I waited, the more I could feel the contractions on my left side. Gayle returned, called back the anesthesiologist, and then discovered that I was already 10 cm dilated and ready to push. Since I was already at the pushing stage, it was too late to adjust the epidural and I was forced to proceed with the delivery feeling 100% of the pain on the left side of my body. Luckily, it only took pushing through 3 contractions to deliver little baby Gage- but it was the three hardest, most painful pushes of my life.
With the final push, Gage emerged at 6 lbs. 12 oz, & 20 inches long, and was put on my chest. He was a deep blue in color and even after clearing his airways, he did not scream. I was immediately concerned and apparently the nurses were too, since they rushed him to the side and paged a specialist to come and assist him. For what felt like forever, I watched him from my hospital bed praying that he was ok and waiting impatiently for him to let out a cry. The nurses began rubbing him down vigorously, and the specialist began to force air into his lungs with a small hand pump respirator. Within a few moments, Gage finally let out his first scream and it was music to my ears. His first Apgar was a a 6, with points loss for color, heart rate, and respiration. At five minutes, his Apgar was a 9.
But even then, my delivery was not over. In the moments while I waited to hear that my new baby was ok, another problem had developed. The placenta was not detaching from the uterus wall. After much manipulation from my doctor, it appeared as if I had a retained placenta, also known as Placenta Accreta, and that it would have to be manually removed… without an epidural, mind you. So with a shot of morphine under my belt, Tim and the baby were removed from my room and Dr. Craddock then began the excruciating process of detaching my placenta piece by piece. Without a doubt having the placenta manually removed was far more painful than pushing out a 6 lb. baby- even with the opiate!
After the placenta ordeal, Tim and the baby returned to my room and I was finally able to appreciate the reward of my labor. I quickly asked Tim what we should name him and he replied Gage. Tim then placed Gage in my arms and I was surprised to see that he looked nothing like Grayson and maybe even looked a little like me! Tim was a bit concerned about the fact that he would have another boy that this time did not look like his clone, but I was secretly excited to see that maybe my genes had over powered his this time. I marveled at the tiny hands and long fingers on our little Gage and was instantly smitten with his perfect pink lips and his creased brow. He had a had a head full of dark brown hair and the most perfect, clear complexion. As I held him him, he focused his eyes on me, and formed his mouth into a little “o”, as if to say “Oh- so that’s what my mom looks like!” Finally after 39 weeks, I was able to hold my tiny little baby boy and I thanked God for blessing me with another wonderful miracle.

My newest son arrived on Thursday, June 11 at 10:52 am, weighing 6 lbs., 12 oz. and measuring 20 inches long. He was exactly one week early. I promise to post the birth story soon as I just do not have the time to write it all out in detail right now. I will leave you with photos from his birth day though! Check them out by clicking here!

Doctor’s Appointment: They have scheduled to induce me later this week! Partly because my blood pressure has continued to rise (It was 140 over something- usually at around 118-120) although when I lie down it goes back to normal. And partly because I am ready to have this baby. Everything else besides the blood pressure was ok. I have dilated to 3 cm now. As far as the induction, I will check into the hospital on Wednesday night where they will insert a medicine to help “ripen” my cervix- basically make in thin out and open up more. On Thursday morning they will begin Pitocin. I should have the baby sometime THursday afternoon, unless he decides on his own to come a bit sooner!

Baby Development: At almost 39 weeks, the baby’s waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it’s likely he already measures over 20 inches and weighs over 7 pounds. My doctor is guessing that he will weigh in at around 7.5. I am guessing at over 8! The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath. The baby is definitely running out of room to move and his kicks and jabs have gotten much stronger and more frequent. All of his organ’s are developed and we cannot wait to see him later this week!

How I Feel: While this pregnancy has been fairly easy, I am very excited for it to finally come to an end. I continue to feel fine and have kept myself busy doing things around the house- like weeding, gardening, cleaning, etc. But I must admit that the size of my belly has really started to make things more difficult. I have now started to get carpal tunnel in my left hand too- causing the middle finger on that hand to also go numb. But all things considered, this growing baby hasn’t really made my life too difficult. It isn’t so much the discomfort that has caused my desire to be induced, as much as it is the fact that I cannot wait to meet the little boy who is growing inside of me. I have dreamed about him and cannot wait to hold him for the first time. Who will he look like? Will he, like Grayson, be the spitting image of his father? Will this time around be a bit easier or will our 2nd son also scream so loud that he is nicknamed “Wild cat”? I anticipate Grayson’s reaction at seeing and holding his brother for the first time and I look forward to seeing the look of absolute adoration on Tim’s face again. The past 39 weeks have at time flown by and at times crawled along- but this baby will be well worth the wait. I thank God in advance for blessing my family by giving us another little being to love.

Tiffany tagged me for a Meme. Thanks!

The rules are that I have to thank the person who tagged me (check), complete a list of 8 (check), and then tag 8 other people (and let them know I tagged them). (Check). So here goes nothing:

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To:

1. Seeing my new baby boy (in at the most 12 days!)
2. Summer break
3. Plus maternity leave
4. Being able to drink an alcoholic beverage again!
5. Our trip to the beach in August
6. A new school year- hopefully without all the drama
7. Seeing my mom and sister
8. Eating sushi again

8 Things I Did Yesterday:

1. Took Grayson to school
2. Treated him to Dunkin’ Donuts
3. Worked
4. Helped present at our 8th grade graducation
5. Sand songs with Grayson on the way home
6. Made spaghetti for dinner
7. Facebooked
8. Read The Pillars of the Earth

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:
1. Ged mad without crying
2. be more athletic
3. keep my house spotless
4. drink a margarita! (especially after a day like today)
5. sleep in past 9 am
6. have time to bake everyday
7. get caught up on my scrapbooks and family videos
8. go on vacation every three months

8 Shows I Watch:

1. Lost
2. Gray’s Anatomy
3. The Office
4. American Idol
5. Top Chef
6. Desperate HOusewives
7. Borthers and Sisters
8. Celebrity Rehab

8 Favorite Fruits:
1. Cantaloupe
2. Strawberries
3. Fresh Peaches
4. Fresh Cherries
5. Gala Apples
6. Bananas
7. Blueberries
8. Raspberries

8 Places I’d Like to Travel:
1. Greece
2. Africa
3. Alaska
4. New Zealand
5. Costa Rica
6. England
7. Ireland
8. Italy

8 Places I’ve Lived:
1. Webster
2. Lake Panasoffkee
3. Gainesville
4. Clermont
5. Cornelius
6. Matthews
7. Midland
8.

8 People I’ve Tagged:
1. Renee
2. Jacquleine
3. Angelle
4. Dena
5. Misty
6. Stephanie
7. Rebecca
8. Courtney

Doctor’s Appointment: Another week down, two more to go! Again everything continues to go smoothly. No concerns as far as blood pressure, urine, weight, etc. I am now about 2 cm dilated- but I think we all know that that doesn’t really mean anything. I could stay that way for the next two weeks. My next appointment is on Monday. My doctor will check me again then and then set an induction date for the following week in case nothing happens on it’s own in the meantime.

Baby Development: The baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and likely measures around 20 inches from head to heel. Crown to rump length is around 14 inches. He has a firm grasp, which we’ll soon be able to test when we hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. By now all instinctual reflexes should be developed- sucking, rooting, grasping, breathing, etc. It is now only matter of time before labor begins.

How I Feel: I am definitely starting to feel more uncomfortable. The baby seems to be pushing downward a lot these days which makes walking a bit more cumbersome. The swelling does not seem to be as bad as a few weeks ago, although the carpal tunnel continues to linger. My belly is officially HUGE! I am down to only a few things that I feel comfortable wearing. Luckily this is the last week of work at my school- so no need to stress about what to wear next week! I could wear the same thing everyday if I have to! On a funny note, I tried roller skating last week. Now I completely calculated the risk of skating based upon my changes in balance. However, I never once considered how the widening of my hips would affect my ability to move on wheels. That made things very difficult indeed! Needless to say I made ONE very slow lap around the rink and then called in quits. I was disappointed that it didn’t bring on a few contractions- but as I know from experience- my babies like to stay in womb until the due date if not longer. So unless anyone out there has some sort of great advice for causing labor, I believe I am in for at least two more weeks!

Also, click on the photos above to see the maternity photographs my great friend Dave took for me. It has taken me a while to get them posted on here- but aren’t they worth the wait?

Okay. After lots of pressure from my “friends” and realizing that almost every person I know does it, I finally joined face book. I was a bit overwhelmed at first with the site, but I think that I am finally figuring it out. I will admit that I feel a little bit addicted to it and have checked it every day since singing up. So is this what happened to most of you bloggers out there? Switched to face book because it doesn’t require as much thought and time? I think that I will do both. So for those of you who do one or the other or both- how did you decide which worked best for you?

Doctor’s Appointment: Nothing has changed. Everything continues to go well. My blood pressure was a little bit higher than normal- but still in the safe range. I haven’t gained weight in the past two weeks- so I am really happy about that. My Strep B test came back negative- so no worries there. Three more weeks to go… will I make it?

Baby Development: As of tomorrow, the baby will be considered full term! This means that his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though his due date is still three weeks away. By this week he likely weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel. He is still in the head down position and will likely remain in this position until he decides to make his entrance into the world.

How I Feel: Ready! Man, am I ready! This is likely because my cousin-in-law, Anna, who was three weeks behind me in pregnancy, just delivered her little boy today- 6 weeks early. This is just my luck- as a similar situation occurred when I had Grayson. Just knowing that she can already see and hold her newborn increases my desire to go into labor. Unfortunately, no amount of wishing will cause my water to break. I have had to remind myself a few times today that what I really want is a healthy little boy- so if staying inside is what’s best for him- I really should feel happy. And on top of that, I must admit that I continue to feel pretty good- aside from occasional sciatica flare up and the carpal tunnel- and so I really can’t complain. I am sleeping soundly at night and luckily work is keeping me busy enough that the days are passing quickly. Only two more weeks of school for me. Finally, I have had a few comments asking about our naming dilemma. We have settled on two names and cannot choose between them- so we have decided to wait until we see him before making the final decision. Tim’s favorite is Colton. My favorite is Gauge. We both like both names, but we each have a favorite. Out hope is that when we look at him the first time, it will be obvious what the name choice should be.

From random

I have mentioned Grayson’s new bedroom in a few different posts and decided that it was time to finally let you see what it looks like. He has been in his new room for a couple of week now and as expected transitioned without a problem. We went with a construction truck theme. Anyone who knows my kid, knows that he LOVES trucks. I made the border and Grayson stickers myself- as I couldn’t find anything that matched and was at a reasonable rate. We purchased all the furniture courtesy of Craig’s list. $375 for the bed (with mattress), night stand, and a dresser with mirror (not pictured). I still need to purchase a reading chair for the dormer window area and I’m considering using the chalkboard paint on one of the walls too. Has anyone used the chalk board paint and have an opinion? So while the room is not completely finished, it is livable and Grayson loves his new “Blue Room” as he likes to call it!

For Grayson’s Birthday weekend (back in April), Tim and I took him to the local zoo. This is a smaller zoo than the one we visited last year- but the perfect size for taking a three year old. I mean let’s be honest- his attention span isn’t really that long. We were at the zoo for a total of 3.5 hours and were able to see all the animals- except for the gorillas. We tried to see the gorillas on three different occasions- but each time they were hiding. Just my luck (They are my favorite!) Grayson’s favorite animals were the grizzly bears (which we saw wrestling), the fish in the aquarium, and the sea lions. He enjoyed the elephants, giraffes, and lions too- but loved the first three the most. The other highlight of the trip was Grayson’s ride on the merry-go-round. He picked out a big baboon to ride and smiled the entire time he rode around and around. Check out the photos from the day by clicking here.

I just realized that I have really been slacking when it comes to sharing my photos lately. I know that you are all so sad…but to be honest, I usually post them on here and write down a few details so that when I finally get around to scrapbooking I have all the info I need. Deceptive, isn’t it? Well, now I am going to have to go backwards- load all my photos and give you all the details of the past few months. So here goes!
Last night, Tim and I were invited (although we may have invited ourselves??) by Renee and Kevin to take Grayson to NASCAR Pole Night. This was Grayson’s 1st experience sitting in the speedway and man did he love the race cars. He was able to identify his favorites- Kasey Kahn, Elliott Sadler, Carl Edwards and was very excited when he saw them. He only went without the headphones for a couple of laps and the look on his face when he heard the loud cars was priceless. He would have sat there forever had we let him and when we did finally leave he kept saying funny things like:
“Doze Wace Cars were Smokin’ fast!”
“Why we haf to weave now?”
“Are the race cars going nighty-night too?”

Doctor’s Appointment: Well, I am now on the weekly appointment schedule. There were no changes since last time. They did the Strep B culture this time and checked my cervix. I have not started to dilate- so it looks like this booger is not planning to make a super early arrival. I did find out that they will not make me go past my due date (my last OBGYN wouldn’t talk about induction until you were at the two week over limit.), so that made me very happy. That means that I really do have only 4 weeks and a couple days to go.

Baby Development: At 36 weeks, our little boy is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. He should now weigh around 6 pounds and measure more than 18 1/2 inches long. He’s shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered his body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected his skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Yucky but true- the baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, that will form the contents of his first bowel movement. At the end of this week, the baby will be considered full-term.

How I Feel: Just more of the same. I found out that the Carpal Tunnel is likely to stay with my for the rest of my pregnancy. It has changed from the annoying tingling, pins & needles feeling from last week and has now settled into my two middle fingers causing them to feel numb (imagine the feeling of a tight rubber band cutting off blood circulation.). Believe it or not, this is an improvement. Also this weekend, my sciatica resurfaced. It didn’t last for long and I am now crossing my fingers (the ones that work properly) that it doesn’t return again. Other than those two issues, I continue to feel great. I still have plenty of energy and plan to keep myself as busy as possible until this little one decides to make his entrance. I have (for the most part) finished Grayson’s new room and he has officially moved out of the nursery. I spent the last few days organizing all the baby clothes and reminiscing about how tiny Grayson used to be. It hard to believe that my first baby is now so independent and that in only a few weeks I will have another tiny person who will capture my heart… and require a ton of love and attention. I am trying very hard to appreciate the “simplicity” of my life as it is right now as I know that it is on the verge of changing drastically. I have also spent an incredible amount of time trying to prepare Grayson for his little brother. I know this will be hardest on him. Anyone have any tips on how you helped siblings adjust to a newborn? Pass along all the tips you have!

Grayson cracks me up constantly and I just realized that I have not been documenting these funny quips. So here’s his latest:
A few evenings ago Tim and I took Grayson and Ozzy for a walk. Since Ozzy is not able to walk far distances, we actually load him into a wagon and Tim pulls him around the neighborhood. (Yes, I can imagine what my neighbors think.) Anyhow, about 1/2 way through the walk, Grayson also gets tired and decides to ride on the wagon. About this time, we reach the turn around point for our walk and Tim realizes that he now has to pull both the dog and Grayson back up a hill that we just descended. Tim starts to complain saying, “Great, now I have to pull both of them up that hill!” Before I could open my mouth, Grayson quips in, “Oh Daddy! Just use you’re big muscles!” Ha! So shut it Daddy and get movin’ - that’s what I would have added- but I was already laughing too hard!

I am sure that this has been linked to at least a million times by now- but I can’t help but post it too! Hilarious! My favorite line: ‘We are so cool and thoughtful.” So here ya go- if you haven’t seen it already or if you just wanted to see it again- the follow up to SNLs “Dick in a box”…

Dr. Appointment: Today I met with one of the other doctors in the practice. There are a total of three doctors and they usually deliver their own patients- unless you go into labor on a weekend. For this reason, they like for you to have met all three of them at some point. So today I met with the only female doctor in the practice. She was nice and other than meeting her, the appointment was rather unremarkable. I am measuring right at 35 weeks and besides a bit of water retention (which would also be considered normal at this point) everything continues to run right on track. At my next appointment they will check to see if I am dilated and will do the Strep B culture.

Baby Development: The baby doesn’t have much room to maneuver now that he’s over 18 inches long and tips the scales at around 5 1/4 pounds. Because it’s so snug in the womb, he isn’t likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but he is still kicking just as strong and often! His central nervous system and lungs are continuing to mature. The kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he’ll spend the next few weeks putting on weight. His fat layers — which will help regulate his body temperature once he’s born — are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever.

How I feel: Bigger and bigger as the weeks march by! I have started to have a little bit of swelling in my hands and feet. My toes have just begun the process of turning into Little Smokies! I know that they will look like little sausages by the end of this. Yesterday I was afflicted with carpal tunnel in my right hand/arm- I guess that’s another sign of water retention and swelling. Tim has indicated that my snoring has officially kicked in. Last week, he woke me up to tell me I was snoring. I wanted to kill him because it now takes me a while to fall asleep. My little bun in the oven is now very sensitive to my movements. If I roll over in the middle of the night, he will then take a good 2-3 minutes to reposition himself in the womb. That’s 3 minutes of me waiting for him to stop tossing and turning, kicking and jabbing before I can even attempt to fall back asleep. Tim suggested I roll over to stop snoring. I suggested he move his butt upstairs to the guest bedroom. I mean, hey- I’ve been inconvenienced for over 8 months with this baby invading my stomach. Too bad if he is inconvenienced for the next 5 weeks by sleeping upstairs. He readily agreed and when my snoring is annoying enough, he moves upstairs without waking me up. Now that is what I call an amazing husband and father!

I declared the entire weekend for myself! And luckily Tim agreed! On Saturday, Tim let me sleep in late and then made us all breakfast. Afterwards, Grayson and I ran errands. After Grayson’s nap we then went to my in-laws house to celebrate all the moms! GB made the most delicious Bourbon Cajun Beef Tenderloin. It was the best, most tender meat I have ever eaten. Tim’s contribution to the meal was a yummy fruit salad. He was so proud of cutting all the kiwi by himself- and no one believed (at first) that he made the salad. Delicious! On Sunday, Grayson decided to treat us both by sleeping in late and I actually woke him up at 8:30. We spent the morning working in the yard and the garden. (FYI- Gardening has become one of my favorite past times.) When Grayson went down for a nap, I rested for a bit and also started reading John Grisham’s “The Appeal”. (It hasn’t completely caught me yet- so I’ll let you know how that turns out.) After Grayson’s nap, we again went outside and Gray played on his slip-n-slide. That alone was enough to make my mother’s day. It was a hoot watching him laugh and giggle, pretending to be anything from a turtle to a snowboarder. Don’t ask! I just love watching him use his imagination. For dinner, on Sunday, we went over to our neighbor’s the Waddell’s for a scrumptious dinner of beef kabobs and shrimp. Tim contributed his delicious skillet potatoes. And by the time dinner was over- I was exhausted. Thank you Tim and Grayson for a wonderful Mother’s Day Weekend. I am lucky to have you both!

Here’s the low-down of the past week!
~On Monday, since it was Grayson’s birthday I brought the afternoon snack for his class. He requested spiderman popsicles and the kids loved them. I mean what kid wouldn’t love a popsicle with the warm weather that is upon us? For dinner, Grayson asked for pizza and Nagy and Pop-Pop met us out to eat. Afterwards, we went back to Nagy and Pop-Pop’s to sing Happy Birthday while Grayson blew out his three candles on top of a Little Debbie brownie.
~On Tuesday, when I picked Grayson up from school his teacher declared that there must be something wrong with him. He had hit, pinched, and bitten (3 times) his friends at school. I was completely surprised. This is not the way Grayson usually treats his classmates. I mean hitting or pinching- that is his M.O. when he is extremely frustrated. But he has NEVER been a bitter. So three times in one day was unbelievable! So after I made Grayson apologize to his teacher for having such a terrible day, we left the classroom and walked out to my car. As we got to my car, he grabbed his left ear and proclaimed, “Mama, my ear huwts! There’s a wood chip inside it!” So I take a look and sure enough there was something inside his ear. I assumed it was earwax and attempted to scoop it out with my fingernail. Before I could barely get my finger nail inside his ear, he began howling. I then decided to take him back into school to see if I could get someone else’s opinion. Luckily they had a pair of tweezers and with the help of the preschool director, I extracted yes, a wood chip. His teacher was as surprised as I was. She had asked him all day what was wrong and had even taken his temperature because he was so unlike himself. She had questioned him all day if he felt ok, but not once did he mention the fact that he had stuck a wood chip in his ear while on the playground- 1st thing that morning. Why he waited all day to tell someone is beyond me. No wonder the kid was biting people- a wood chip stuck in my ear would have made me pretty irritable too!
~Now unfortunately, that is not the end of the biting story. The next day when I picked Grayson up from school I again asked his teacher if he had a better day than they day before. “Yes,” she answered, “although he did bite someone.” I was again in shock- since I had totally blamed the day before’s incidents on the wood chip. Then his teacher told me the rest of the story. After he bit his friend, she put Grayson in time out and was explaining to him that it is not nice to bite your friends. According to her, Grayson looked up at her with his blue innocent eyes and said “But Miss Wendy- I wasn’t biting. I was nibblin’.” NIbbling? Miss Wendy said that at that response she had to walk away since she was on the edge of laughter. I was perplexed as to where the word nibbling came from. It is not a word that I ever use and Miss Wendy said that she doesn’t use it- but obviously he picked it up from somewhere. Later that evening I told Tim the story of Grayson “Nibbling” and when I get to Grayson’s excuse for biting someone, Tim turns bright red and begin laughing. “It’s form you. Isn’t it? YOU use the word nibbling?” Tim had to admit that yes, he was the source of Grayson’s newest vocabulary word and he also to blame for Grayson thinking that it was ok.. to “nibble” on someone. Apparently, we the two of the them are wrestling, Tim will press his teeth to Grayson’s ribs (which tickles him) and Grayson will say (while laughing) “No Daddy. No biting.” Tim’s response? You guessed it- “I’m not biting! I’m just nibbling!”
~On Saturday, Carri and Dave visited our house. I asked Dave if he would be willing to take a few maternity photos of me before I got way too fat to be photographed. He was kind and brought over all of his equipment to do the photos. I cannot wait to see the final product. I saw some the shots and they are great! I’ll be sure to post them when I get them back!
~This afternoon after working around the house all day, Tim and I went inside to eat lunch. When we came back out about 30 minutes later, we could not find Ozzy. We walked all the way around our house, into the woods, looked in the garage and in the shop, and could not find him anywhere. Now Ozzy has gotten much better at walking- but not so good that he could leave our yard. (We live on over an acre.) Or at least we thought. I finally decided that I would go ask our neighbors. They love our dog and sometimes come by to visit with him. As I started walking down our drive way and across the street to their house., I saw him- sitting submerged like an alligator in the pond next door. Somehow, Ozzy managed to get all the way out of our yard, into our neighbors yard, and down into the pond (a total of about 200 ft). Man, that dog is motivated. Now I should probably tell you that Ozzy pretty much lived in the pond before his accident. So it should be no surprise that he wanted to go for a swim. We were just surprised that he could walk that far. I guess we won’t leave him outside unsupervised anymore!
~Finally, here are the photos I took of Grayson at age three.

Doctor’s Appointment: Things continue to go normally with this pregnancy. All of my measurements were right on target. I have gained about 30 pounds so far with this baby- which is very similar to my last pregnancy. I got permission to lay off the iron supplements as long as I promised to eat green leafy vegetables and meat! Yipee! The baby’s heart rate was at 135 beats per minute. My next appointment will be in two weeks and I will meet with one of the other doctors in the practice. After that appointment, I will start seeing the doctor every week. It definitely feels as if I am in the home stretch and with the end of the school year lurking near, I know it will pass in a flash.

Baby Development: At almost 33 weeks, our little boy most likely weighs over 4 lbs. and has passed the 17-inch mark. He’s rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. In the next month and half he will go through a growth spurt, increasing in weight by about a half pound a week and gaining a third to half of his final birth weight. His skin is now soft and smooth. He has toenails, fingernails, and real hair. His skeleton is hardening and he can now turn his head from side to side.

How I feel: The sciatica issues have not resurfaced in the past three weeks- thank goodness- and neither have the terrible calf cramps. I have overall been sleeping well at night- despite having to get up at least once to use the bathroom. The frequent need to urinate has finally begun- mostly during the day when I am upright and the baby is pressing on my bladder. At work, it seems as if I am in the restroom every hour and half. The line down the middle of my stomach (linea negra) has again shown up with this pregnancy. Tim and I felt the baby’s hiccups for the first time and I continue to be amazed at how much this kid moves. He continues to get stronger and he often surprises me with a jab of his elbow or foot. I predict that this baby is going to be bigger than Grayson, as I feel as if he is already running out of room. He is finally large enough that I can encourage him to move at almost anytime by applying pressure to my belly. Speaking of my belly, it is finally big enough that I feel as if it walks in the room before me. I did break down and purchase a few sleeveless tops to get me through the next 6 weeks of work. I have been lucky enough up until now to get by on all the clothes that people (Jill, Kate, Julie, and Corrine) loaned me. (Thanks everyone!) However, with this pregnancy my boobs have gotten much bigger than before and most of their summer tops will no longer accommodate my pregnant body- at least not in an appropriate for middle school kids kind of a way! With only 7 weeks left to go, I have begun to feel the need to make sure I have everything ready for the birth of the new baby. I began the process of decorating a new room for Grayson so he will be moved out of the nursery before his little brother arrives. I have bought a box of diapers and wipes (whew- it’s amazing that I had already forgotten how expensive swaddlers can be!), a new outfit for the day he comes home from the hospital, and I have begun to unpack all the tiny clothes that Grayson once fit into. I can’t believe how close my due date is and am starting to feel a little bit anxious about delivery.

Grayson,
How is it possible that three years have passed since the day you made your late entrance into my life and changed my world forever? It seems like only a small time ago that I held you in my arms for the first time and thought that your white, shriveled fingers were the most beautiful things I had ever seen! Of course, now I know that is not the case. Because in the past 1,096 days I have been blessed with seeing your face light up with your impish grin on numerous occasions. That smile to me is the most remarkable sight and the reason I try everyday to be a good mom to you. I can remember my excitement when I saw your first toothless smile, but even then I had no idea how much better my life would become because you were a part of it. Without a doubt this year has been my favorite yet. Yes, gone are the days when you loved me unconditionally. Gone are the unlimited moments when I could snuggle with you on my own demand. But instead those tender moments have been replaced with an independent little boy who knows just how to melt my heart and brighten my day. You have grown so funny in the past year and I often look forward to your next funny story that I can tell others. The most recent funny story was when we were eating breakfast yesterday and I asked you to not touch me with your sticky, syrupy hands. You thought this was funny and immediately stuck out both arms in an attempt to hug me and said, “But Mama- I LOVE you!” Now how was I suppose to respond to that?
This year, you have really expanded your language skills. You now use words like “actually”, “cool”, “awesome”, and “really” and will use adjectives to describe anything you are talking about. You have gone from using two word sentences last year to telling entire stories. You love to talk and often compete with your daddy at the dinner table to control the conversation. You will proudly proclaim “It’s my turn to talk” when you think that Daddy has taken up too much of the dinner conversation. When we agree that it is your turn, you will often start talking gibberish and laugh, thinking that you are the funniest person alive. Usually Daddy and I agree! Anything to see that smile, right? You have learned a number of opposite words- like big/small, tall/short, happy/sad, good/bad, yummy/yucky, etc. and you enjoy using these words to tell things apart. You have also learned how to pick out things that match and like to play games using those skills or select a shirt for Daddy that matches your own. Your love for books has grown and you often request that same book over and over again- using each reading as an opportunity to memorize the words on each page. Your favorite books this year have been “That’s Good, That’s Bad”, “See & Find Thomas”, ‘Trucks”, and “Jack and the Bean Stalk”. You finally began singing songs by yourself this year. You do not love to sing- but do it occasionally, more frequently in the morning than later in the day. Your favorite songs to sing are ‘Twinkle Little Star”, “Ba Ba Black Sheep”, and the “ABCs”. You know lots of other songs, but those are three that you will sing spontaneously. But just because you do not love to sing, doesn’t mean that you do not like to listen to music. You have now begun to request that Daddy play the Drum Song (Pearl Jam, of course) when you are in the truck together and you still let me sing you songs at bed time. You most frequently request some songs that I completely make up like the “Back Hoe Song (who went to work), or the “fire alarm” song, but you still love the oldies and goodies like “Grayson, Grayson” or “You are my Sunshine” and “Take me out to the ball game”. Now of course, Daddy and I would not be doing our jobs as your parents if we did not teach you the Gator pep song (Boys from Old Florida), which I have also turned into a frequent night time lullaby.
Your physical skills have also increased in the past 365 days. You have learned how to do somersaults, walk backwards, climb a tree, kick a ball, hit a ball on a tee, and manage the stairs all by yourself… most of the time. I mean you did have your first fall down the stairs about a week ago. Of course you were fine..a little shaken up, but no injuries. And to be honest, it may have been one of the best things to happen to you, since you are now much more careful and now take the time to hold onto the banister. You have mastered most playground equipment and love to climb ladders- usually indicating that you are a fireman when doing so. Most recently you have begun working on balancing on top of objects and find it hilarious when you accidently fall down. At your birthday party (which we celebrated a few weeks ago) you finally got over your fear of inflatable bouncers and I am hoping that your fear of swimming which began last summer will also disappear. You continue to love sports and this year added a new one- fishing- to your repertoire.
Finally, you have proven in the past year that you really are not a baby any longer. As if all the verbal and physical skills were not proof enough, you have really spent the last year attempting to sever all the ties between being a baby and becoming a “big boy”. At the beginning of year three you officially gave up you paci- with no fuss at all! This was a surprise to both me and Daddy, as we had been dreading the night of no more paci for months. Then in January you decided that you wanted to use the potty and within two months you were officially potty trained. You wear big boy underwear all day long and have only had two accidents that I am aware of- one of which was not your fault. For the past couple of months you have stayed dry at night (except for on a rare occasion) and so we are now considering wearing underwear to bed too! That hasn’t happened yet, but will definitely be a goal for year four! The other big change was your move from the crib to your “big boy” toddler bed. Daddy and I had been procrastinating on moving you because you had been so good in the crib. You had only tried to climb out once (years ago) and after being scolded, you never tried again. We were afraid of how difficult it might be to keep you in a bed and so we waited and waited until we realized that it was best to move you into the toddler bed before you new baby brother arrived. As is your style, you transitioned beautifully. You were very excited about the “big boy” bed and even now you will stay in your bed and call for us when you wake up. Again, alot of worry on our part for nothing.
Grayson, in most respects, you have been an easy child to raise up to this point. You are a good listener and accept consequences without issue. You are polite and caring. You love to interact with others and have never in your three years met a stranger. You are funny and smart and a good boy in so many ways. While Daddy and I would like to take credit for these skills, we know that most of it has to do with your big heart, your desire to make others happy, and your own independent nature. You are a happy kid with a priceless smile and you have in so many countless ways reminded both me and Daddy of the greater purpose in our lives. Three years ago, we only had dreams of what it would be like to be a parent. But now, because of you, our dreams have been realized and our dreams are so much more than we could have ever imagined. You have made us better people and have given more meaning to our lives than we ever knew was possible. You remind us daily to appreciate the simple things and to notice the world as it passes so quickly around us. Grayson, you truly are a blessing in our lives and I thank God every day for allowing us to be your parents.
Without a doubt, I love you more and more each day!
Happy 3rd Birthday!
Love,
Mama

Yes, my dog must be a miracle dog. FIve weeks after being hit by a UPS truck and being told that he would most likely never walk again, Ozzy has decided to show everyone what he is really made of! A few days ago last week, I watched him stand up on all four legs unassisted and try to take a step. He wasn’t successful with the step- but I was so excited to see his progress. Since then I have been bribing him to stand up and attempt walking by holding a dog biscuit just outside his reach. Within a few days, he successfully took his first unassisted step. Since then we have seen his confidence rise. This morning, we watched in amazement as he picked himself up and took 10 steps out of the sun and into the shade and then laid back down again. We are still hoping that he will regain some strength is the right paw (as he is still not putting much weight on it)- but even if he doesn’t- we are so excited to see that he now has the ability to move himself around. So there you have it! Ozzy the wonder dog!

Lots has happened in the past few weeks and I have been very slack at posting about it all. This may be a long post, but here’s the happenings of the past few weeks;
~Saturday, April 4: We celebrated Grayson’s 3rd Birthday a little early this year with a combined party for him and my niece Ella. My sister Renee and I decided to celebrate their birthdays together so that our family from Florida would only have to drive up once. Their two birthdays are less than 4 weeks apart. So Grayson thinks that he is already 3. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that he won’t be three until the 27th. No real harm done- right? Anyhow, the party was lots of fun. The party was held at a local inflatables play center. Surprisingly, Grayson got over his fear of the big inflatables and had a blast going down the big slide and racing Uncle Kevin. Grayson received way too many toys. So many that I actually put most of them in the closet and plan to break them out once the new baby arrives. It’s hard to believe that he is almost three- but hey- I’ll save that for a post in 2 weeks! CLick here to see photos from the party.
~My Mom and sister Jennifer came in town for the weekend of the party. they spent part of the weekend with my sister Renee and part of the weekend here at my house. It was nice having them in town for a few days. I think that their next trip up will be in June.
~This past week was my spring break. I had lots of things on my list to accomplish. Like landscaping. We finally (after building our house 1.5 years ago) got around to landscaping the front yard. The funny part of this story is that we were ready in October, but Tim had to second guess everything on the landscape plan. After months of getting people’s opinions and NOT listening to me, he finally decided 6 months later, to go with our original plan. AHHHH! Yes, it is times like these that I want to strangle him. I guess that technically, I shouldn’t be too upset- I did get my way with the plan design after all. It is amazing the difference that landscaping makes. Thank you GB for helping us with the planting! Oh yeah, one more thing…Tim finally finished making the shutters for our house. Of course, now that we have those up- we are considering putting them on a few of the other windows too. (We originally didn’t think that we would have room for them on the other windows.)
~Another item on my spring break list was decorating Grayson’s new bedroom. After lots of hemming and hawing I finally decided that I should move Grayson to a new bedroom and keep his current room as the nursery. Then I would only need to completely redecorate one room. My goal for the past week was to get the room painted. Since the landscaping took longer than I expected, I didn’t quite meet this goal. I did pick out a color for the walls- inspired by our new IKEA (which is awesome by the way), and I did start the painting. It just isn’t finished yet. I also still need to decide on a bed frame. Lots to do- but technically I have a couple months before it MUST be finished, right?
~Ozzy has started to show more improvement since my last update. Since the weather has warmed up slightly, we have started taking him swimming in my neighbors pool. We were excited to see him completely move his right leg and paw to swim. After a few practice laps, he was even able to swim completely by himself multiple times. Since he began his “swim therapy”, he has now started trying to the use the leg when he is walking. He needs only one person now to assist him in walking (to help support his front half) and he is now able to consistently walk on his back legs. Just this past week, we caught him attempting to stand up completely on his own! He is able to get about 3/4 of the way up by himself before tiring out and sitting back down. Ozzy is also now able to roll himself over- so now more getting up in the middle of the night to flip him. It really seems as if he has turned a corner and I now feel as if I have good reason to hope that he will walk again. Thanks to everyone who has been asking for updates!
~For Easter we went to My S.I.L. Jill’s house for lunch. We feasted on the best food imaginable- ham, turkey, green bean casserole, potato salad, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, etc. I made the two dishes that always remind me of the holidays growing up- Sweet Potato Souffle and my Maw-Maw’s Hummingbird cake. Delicious! Earlier that morning, Grayson was very excited about the Easter Bunny and got up at 7:15 to see if he had left any prizes. He was very surprised to see a trail of Easter eggs filled with candy that led from his bedroom door right down to his basket. He loved all the gifts the bunny left- from the Play Mobile Go-Carts to the Mack Hauler (from Cars) he enjoyed it all. He ate a breakfast of jelly beans, life savers, and peeps, which TIm and I paid for much later that afternoon. Click here to see my photos from Easter.

Doctor’s Appointment: I went last week for a checkup and an ultrasound. The doctor wanted to do another ultrasound to make sure the placenta had moved away from my cervix. At my last ultrasound, the placenta was low and I was at risk for having Placenta Prevera. Anyhow the most recent ultrasound relieved any fears of that complication. The placenta has moved higher in the uterus- so it should not be of concern for delivery. We did ask the ultrasound tech to make sure the baby really is a boy- and sure enough, we saw his little penis again! The baby didn’t move much during the ultrasound. I guess he decided to take a nap during our little peep show. According to the measurements, our little boy is about 3.5 pounds and seems to be developing normally. His heart rate was at 143 beats per minute. Other highlights of my doctor’s appointment include passing the gestational diabetes screening (yipee!) and having low iron (sob!). I really hate taking an iron supplement. Out next appointment will be at 32 weeks and then we will start seeing the doctor every two weeks.
Baby Development: At 30 weeks, our little boy is about 16 inches long and weighs about 3.5 pounds. He can now blink his eyes (we saw the eye lids during the ultrasound), which now sport eye lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through the womb- although his eyesight is not very keen. He’s also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world. The baby’s muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with medical help — if he were to be born now. He is definitely sleeping and waking at regular intervals and is very active now. I can attest to how much stronger he has gotten in the last month, as he now firmly pushes an elbow or foot into my side on a regular basis!
How I Feel: Up until a week and a half ago, I was feeling great with absolutely NO issues. Then the baby decided to start pressing on my sciatic nerve. I did not have this issue when I was pregnant with Grayson, so the pain in my right leg/butt and the inability to walk without intense shooting pain really took me by surprise. I had actually felt the pain about a month ago, but though nothing of it since in passed within 3 minutes. However the sciatic pain I felt about 2 weeks ago lasted a couple of hours. I haven’t had the intense pain again, but I have had some nagging tenderness in the right leg/back. Apparently sciatica is more common in 2nd pregnancies and it could get worse as the baby gets bigger. I am crossing my fingers that this will not be the case for me. The other issue that I have started to encounter are leg cramps in my calves at night. Ouch! I have started stretching my calves before going to bed at night and that seems to have worked. As you might imagine these issues are now starting to affect my sleep. Yikes! The dreaded waking in the night. Maybe some tylenol p.m. would help all these issues! I mean with only 60+ nights left before my due date, I really need all the sleep that I can get!

I have had a few requests for an update. Sorry that it has taken so long. We’ve been pretty busy as you might imagine given the condition of Ozzy. Last Wednesday he had the drain removed from his chest (it was put in as part of the surgery) and his stitches/staples seem to be healing well. He will have the staples removed later this week. He finished taking all of his GI medicines this weekend, so now we are down to only Antibiotics and pain meds- which is much easier to manage. We have seen some movement in the right arm (the one that was/is lame). He can move it forward to paw at you, but is still unable to bare weight on that leg. When we take him outside for potty (using slings)- he continues to drag it along. Ozzy is eating and drinking well and finally this weekend- all digestive tracks began working (we were worried about #2). He still requires 2 people to take him outside to potty- if we want him to try walking. He uses his back legs somewhat inconsistently. Sometimes they cross when he takes a step, sometimes his feet buckle underneath him. These issues may be related to a spinal column injury. But then other times, he uses his back feet well, baring all his back weight on those legs. We are still in limbo in deciding what to do. I read the paperwork incorrectly, and the neurologist suggested giving Ozzy 6 to 8 weeks (not 2) to see if he would be able to walk again. This weekend, since the weather was nice, Ozzy spent most of days outside on a quilt. He loved sitting/laying in the sun! Who wouldn’t? So, Ozzy’s spirits continue to be positive and are still left wondering what the best course of action will be for him long term.

Well, on Wednesday evening, Ozzy decided (unwittingly) to see how he would hold up against the local UPS truck. As you might imagine not so well. We are not sure exactly how it happened, but our best guess is that while the UPS truck was stopped, Ozzy innocently went looking for his daily treat from the driver. Unfortunately, it was not our usual driver and when the driver took off, Ozzy was in front of the truck. The UPS driver said that he never saw him. When we ran outside to see the damage, I was completely expecting to find Ozzy dead. Instead we found him alert and unable to get up. My neighbor calles in a favor to their vet down the street and Tim rushed Ozzy to get help. When they did x-rays the next day they did not find any broken bones (good) but suspected that there was some severe nerve damage to his front right leg (not good). This is especially troublesome because as a black lab, Ozzy has rather severe arthritis in his back hips. For the past two years, his hips have slowly deteriorated to the point that he relies upon his front limbs to pick himself up from a laying position. Without the use of both front legs, Ozzy may never walk again. The vet suggested giving him through the weekend and then if he regained no movement suggested we consider putting him down. We were heart broken with this news.
Anyone who knows me personally knows that Ozzy has been a part of my life for the past twelve years. He was my first baby and even though he has taken a back seat to Grayson, his is and continues to be a major part of our family. So to hear the news that we may have to decide to euthanize him was agonizing to say the least. After hearing the prognosis from the vet, we decided to take Ozzy to the local animal hospital to see a veterinary neurologist on Friday. The neurologist gave a similar diagnosis- but suggested we give O at least two week to regain muscle movement before making any final decisions. I guess many times, nerve damage can be recuperated if given time- depending on the type of nerve that was damaged. He also suggested that O needed surgery to close of a major gash on his chest. The surgery went well and we left him over night at the hospital for observation. On Saturday morning we received a call from the hospital to let us know that Ozzy was doing great and that we could take him home at any time.
30 minutes later, as we were getting ready to leave, we received another call from the animal hospital. Ozzy had vomited a large amount of blood and they were then concerned about some internal bleeding. The bleeding was most likely due to his arthritis medication. The began treating him for a possible ulcer, but were not sure if he would make it through the day. Their concern was that if he continued bleeding in the quantity that he had vomited, then he would most likely need a blood transfusion to stay alive. Tim & I were again devastated to hear this news. It seemed as if we were riding a roller coaster of good and bad news. Thinking that it might be the last time we got to see him alive, we then went up to the hospital to visit with our sweet O. It broke my hear to see him in the hospital that day. He was basically comatose and would not respond to our voices or touch. We sat with him for a while and pleaded with him to get better. Truthfully, we did not expect to have him last through the night.
The next morning (Sunday) we received another call from the hospital with good news. Ozzy was back to his perky self- although still lame in his front right leg. We could take him home. It was amazing seeing the difference in him from Saturday to Sunday. When we picked him up form the hospital, Ozzy was awake and looked happy. He pawed at Tim the entire ride home, letting Tim know that he needed more petting. Not much has changed since yesterday. Ozzy continues to appear happy- expect for when he needs to be repositioned (he cannot roll himself over) or when he needs to go the bathroom. He is taking a ton of medicine and needs the help of at least two people to go potty outside. He will use and put some weight on his back legs and front left leg- but there has still not been much improvement in his right front leg.
So at this point we continue to pray that he will be able to walk and we are his constant nurse maids. I keep telling him that he’s a lucky dog that we love him this much…but the truth is that we are the ones who feel lucky to have him in our lives- even if he isn’t 100%.

Way, way back on December 18, my dear friend Tiffany over at Rural Chaos bestowed upon me my very first blog award-The prestigious Smile Award. Thank yo so much Tiffany! What does this great honor mean? Recipients of the Smile Award must:
~ display a cheerful attitude.
~You must show love to others.
~You must make mistakes.
~You must learn from others.
~You must be a positive contributor to blogging.
~You must love life.
~You must love kids.

According to Tiffany, I deserve this award because “Kelly has been making me smile for YEARS! We have been friends since middle school and have made some wonderful memories together over the years. She has a great personality that makes you want to be around her - and she always has something funny to say! She’s got a pretty cute little boy, too, who will definitely make you smile just looking at him! Kelly lives far away from me now, but is still very dear to me!”

Once you accept the Award you are then required to follow these simple rules:
Here are the rules for the Smile Award:
~You must link back to the award creator. (We still can’t figure out what the name is–the text is so small!)
~You must post the rules if you are a recipient.
~You must choose 5 people to pass the award to.
~You must fit the characteristics of the award.
~You must post the characteristics of the recipient of the award.
~You must create a post sharing your win with others.
~You must thank the giver of the award…

So it is with great pleasure that I present the Smile Award to:
soapbox.SUPERSTAR- As a close friend of my sisters, Misty is the blog that inspired me to start one of my own. I know that I will never be as funny, crazy, or blog as consistently as Misty- but she inspries me everytime I get behind to just keep blogging!

Nae Nae in NC- My older sister who often makes me smile with the funny things her girls do! Who couldn’t smile when she writes about the funny things that come out of their mouths?

Morpheme Palette_ Dena has the funniest son I have had the pleasure of wathcing on the internet. As a BFF of Misty listed above, you know she’s going to have some funny stories- but watch any of the videos that she posts of Ethan and you will be rolling!

Crabby Mama- Angelle became my friend when we taught together 7 years ago in Florida. Then as luck would have it she moved to NC a few years after Tim and I did! Angelle is full of great tips on all types of things- from cooking to great kid DVDs. She posts regularly and hers is one of the first that I check when I finally get the time to get on the internet.

It’s a Mom’s World- Stephanie often write about her two daughters and posts photos that will definitely light up your face. She also deserves this aware because she is so good about check my blog and leaving comments.

This week, Grayson has discovered a love of fishing. Across our culdesac, our neighbors have a nice sized pond. With the warm weather, the bass have started biting, so Mr. Waddel invited Grayson over to try his hand with a rod and reel. At first Grayson just wanted to watch, but as of yesterday- his love for fishing was born. He “caught” three fish yesterday (or Mr. Wadell and Tim caught 3 fish and let Grayson pretend that he caught them)! When he woke up this morning, it was all he could think about. “Let’s go fissin!” “I got three fishes yesterday!” So tonight we went back over to the pond. Grayson has gotten pretty good an winding the line back in. Of ocurse he’s too slow to catch anything. I guess we’ll need to go purchase a little boy fishing rod now!
By the way, how cute is that picture???

Doctors Appointment:Another “perfect” check up. Everything is right on target. This time the baby’s heart rate was at 142 beats per minute. My sore throat has now gone away thank goodness. My only health concern has been some occasional pressure in my cervix area. The doctor checked and everything looks fine. I did have one serious Braxton-Hicks contraction this past month, but I guess that I am now entering into that territory. In three weeks I will have another ultrasound to make sure the placenta has moved upward in the uterus and I will also have to do the crappy diabetes screening. Wish me luck on the screening. I really do not want to take the three hour test!
Baby Development:
Our little boy is now almost 26 weeks old. The average baby at this point weighs about 1.75 pounds and measures about 14 inches long. His skin may still be translucent, but that should change soon, especially as he continues to gain fat over the next three months.. More hair is beginning to grow- and if we could see inside, we would be able to see his hair color and texture. The baby’s brain is growing quickly now, and all of his senses are getting stronger. His sense of movement is well developed and he can now feel when I roll over at night, or go for a walk. The network of nerves in his ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He is now be able to hear my voice, the voice of those around me, as well as any other loud noises like the vacuum, or Ozzy barking. His sense of taste and touch are also continuing to develop.
In the past month, the development of the lungs has taken off! The lungs have developed “branches” of the respiratory “tree” as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. He’s inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he’s born and takes that first gulp of air. Is it only 100 days away?

How I Feel:
Larger by the day! Those “regular” jeans that I referred to last month are officially not working anymore. I have even had to retire some of my smaller maternity clothes at this point. Yikes! I still have a little over three months to go! Not to sound as if I am upset about my obviously pregnant body. I absolutely love being pregnant and am excited to actually look that way now! For the most part, I feel great. Other changes this month has been the development of heart burn (thank God for Tums) and according to Tim I have now begun to snore. I do not think that this has become an “every night” thing yet, but it will only be a matter of time. I snored terribly when I was pregnant with Grayson!
Speaking of Grayson, he was finally able to feel the new baby kick. I didn’t think that Grayson really understood what he was feeling, but a few days later he randomly announced (unsolicited) to our neighbors that his baby “bruhder” was kicking him though his mommy’s tummy. Oh, I am sure that it is only the first of a few kicks that will be thrown in their lifetime together! The baby’s kicks have gotten much stronger this month- to the point that you can actually see my stomach move. It must really bother him when I roll over at night, as that is when he gives me the hardest kicks and punches. I guess I must not be the only one who is trying to get comfortable in bed.
It’s hard for me to believe that in a little over a week I will be in the third and final trimester. It is amazing how quickly the time has flown. There are still lots of things to do before his arrival- like setting up the nursery and purchasing all those “newborn’ must haves! It’s time to get busy on all those last details- since he will be here before we know it!

I mean three posts in 3 days… and 4 scrapbooking layouts to boot! That really isn’t like me these days. I should probably wait a few days- but what the hell! The page is finished- so I may as well show it off! This one is of Tim’s guy trip out to Jackson Hole Wyoming last January. He had a great time- but do not even get me started on how I was screwed out this ski trip…anyhow, enjoy his photos.
This page was created using a template ($1) by LizDesigns and Kim Hill’s Snowboarding kit. By the way- I just realized that I have one MORE page to finish before I am officially finished with my 2008 scrapbook….

From Scrapbook

Also on a separate note, Grayson is really working hard on his potty training. The final step has been trying to convince him to go number 2 on the potty. We started with hot wheel bribes each time he used the potty and the first time he did it, I was cheering loudly and he looks up at me with those big blue eyes and says, “Mama, you pwoud uh me?” Umm, yea- I’m proud of you! Since the hot wheel bribes were going so well, we recently moved on to a potty chart. He has been working hard on filling in the chart and finally last night received his Hot Wheels Racing Hauler (a big rig). He was so excited to put his last sticker on the chart and then trade the chart in for the truck. YOu should have seen how happy he was!

Well, now that I have photoshop figured out- I am on a roll. Here’s the page I created today. This one is of my niece Kellynn’s Birthday back in January. I think that I only have one more layout before I can print my scrapbook for 2008! Then, I will need to get cranking on 2009… and 2007… and Grayson’s individual scrapbook. So let’s not get too excited. There’s still plenty of scrapping to do!

From Scrapbook

This page was created using my own layout, a free paper/embellishment kit from Shabby Princess. I used a cupcake template created (for sale) by Trish H Designs .