Everything We Learned, We Learned from Cartoons

So our best friends took their family to France and swapped houses with a French family...for a whole year!  Anyway, Michael and I started talking about the differences in nature between France and New England.  It all started when he offered the French family produce from his garden and handed them a veggie they had never seen before.  It was summer squash.  So it brought up the question, "I wonder what other things they'll experience here that they've never seen before in nature?"  It got me to thinking about raccoons.  And possums.  I mentioned to Mike that I thought raccoons were a distinctly American creature.  Because in the Disney movie, Pocahontas, John Smith didn't recognize the raccoon as a familiar animal.  Then I asked Mike about skunks - do they live worldwide or just here?  That's when he pointed out that they must live in Europe as well.  After all, Pepe Le Pew was French.

My Baby Shower

Baby showers have been an elusive or tough event in my life.  I've been pregnant 5 times now, and I've had your traditional big baby shower twice - once for my daughter 20 years ago and another for my firstborn son 9 years ago.  And hey, I completely understand that's typically one more than most people!  However since my firstborn son arrived in 2002, each pregnancy has presented its own challenges in allowing my best friend to throw her own unique celebrations for each new baby. Mind you, I have no need for new baby products for each new pregnancy and instead appreciate the thought that goes into trying to simply celebrate this new life as well as new stage in my own life. My previous two pregnancies seemed determine to end with nary a nod to my burgeoning belly, esp. thanks to an early emergency cesarean with Landon.  Which is why I was so pleased and grateful that my friend was able to finally celebrate (and in style!) this latest pregnancy with all of our girlfriends.

The party was held at my friend Erin's house.

 There was wonderful food...

 

Peg's daughter, Emma, worked her magic as a henna artist...

Beautiful, isn't it?  All the names of my family are included in the Tree of Life except the baby's which we were keeping somewhat of a secret at the time...

 Fun and laughter abounded...

And everybody had a chance to get "inked"...

 Thank you, dear friends.

38 Weeks & Counting

Now that I'm nearing the end of this pregnancy, I have to say I'm fairly surprised at how well I'm doing.  This is, after all, my fifth child and I'm no spring chick anymore!  With the exception of being diagnosed with gestational diabetes, there have been absolutely no problems with this pregnancy as of yet (I say "yet" because I know HELLP doesn't typically show up until around now so we are keeping a close eye on that - so far so good).

The gestational diabetes has been an interesting journey for me this time around.  The last time I had any problems with sugar was being pregnant with Lauryn 19 years ago, and they called me "glucose intolerant" and I only had to cut out sugar from my diet.  Apparently, these days, they are much more conservative, not only with testing, but with the treatment of it.  I've had the pleasure of sticking my fingers 4-5 times a day to check my sugars with a glucometer, recording them and then reporting my numbers to the diabetic center every week.  It was a bit rough in the beginning as my fasting sugars (those taken first thing in the morning before eating) just refused to stay within limits.  Because of this, the doctors put me on insulin every night before bed and then kept upping the dosage. After two weeks of the insulin shots (ouch!) and seeing absolutely no improvement, I stopped the shots AMA and started experimenting with what worked to actually keep my sugars down.  Surprise, surprise - it was not insulin that kept my fasting sugars within limits; it was protein!  Yes, if I eat a piece of protein just before bed (typically a plain hamburger), my sugars look great in the morning.  I think the doctors think I'm cheating or something.

Anyway, with the awareness of once again being glucose intolerant, I've had to be very careful with my meals - what I eat, when I eat, how many times I eat, etc.  Because my body is a protein-type and it has always done very well with high protein, low-carb diets in the past, I feel better than ever at this stage in my pregnancy.  Now I'm not technically on an Atkins diet or anything like that as eating too low-carb could be dangerous for the baby.  I just need to be careful with how many carbs I have and what kind I'm eating.

The baby seems to be doing very well and is as active as ever.  I've had way more contractions in this pregnancy than any other - my hope is I'll be halfway through labor by the time I'm in it! lol  My commute to the hospital is just about an hour which is a little nerve-racking, but being one who typically has longer labors, I'm not too worried about it.  For peace of mind though, I did buy an emergency birth kit to keep at home and bring in the car on the way to the hospital....just in case. :)  It's hard to believe within 3-4 weeks, our little boy will be here!

And for those wanting to know what I look like at this point in the game, here's me with the baby belly!

Baby #5

After months of searching for a midwife/doctor who would not only take me as a patient but also subscribe to my birth philosophy, I'm happy to say we've found one!  Because of my previous history with HELLP syndrome and then the resultant C-section, it was impossible to find a midwife willing to help me with a home birth which was my ideal preference.  The midwife I was in communication with paired me up with a local doctor (actually in the same practice as the doctor who delivered Landon by c-section) who suggested they co-manage my case.  This would mean I would receive midwifery care throughout the pregnancy and then when it was time to deliver the baby, I would enter the local hospital where I would try for a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean).  The two obstacles I faced were the necessary permission from the doctor's partners (did they feel comfortable with her taking me on?) and the local hospitals typically not allowing for VBACs (so any VBAC would be AMA - against medical advice).  Unfortunately, the obstacles were enough to prevent this idea from working out.  I found myself at a dead end with no midwife, no doctor, no prenatal care and feeling the pressure of time working against me as I was already 23 weeks along. 

After speaking to a local midwife about my case and getting her valuable advice, she recommended a doctor associated with Concord Hospital.  At first, I wasn't so keen on traveling all the way to Concord (not when home seemed the best distance for me), but being desperate at this point, I called the office.  Getting in touch with someone at Concord Women's Care, I quickly made an appointment, if for nothing else than to get my initial prenatal blood test done and an ultrasound set up before this baby got too big!  Michael and I went to meet the doctor there and instantly knew we were in the right place.  The doctors there encourage VBACs as much as medically possible, and my previous diagnosis of HELLP didn't scare them off.  Because the VBAC was very important for me to try, I knew this was the place I would deliver.  Concord Hospital is a top-notch hospital and one of only a few hospitals in the United States given the certification of  being a "Baby Friendly" hospital (something to do with its great breastfeeding program).  I hear rave reviews about The Family Place (the name they've given their maternity ward), and I look forward to touring it soon.

After finally having my initial blood tests (which were great), an ultrasound was set up.  With bated breath we waited for the day we would find out whether this baby was a girl or boy.  Though we did not find out with the last two boys and each one was a wonderful surprise when they popped out, we figured this one might just be a girl and that just might be something worth knowing about ahead of time.  Yesterday was the big day, and we not only found out it was a seemingly healthy baby (and only one at that, thank goodness!) with ten fingers and toes, but...drum roll please....IT'S A BOY!  Again! LOL  We had to ask the technician if she was sure, and she showed us the proof-positive evidence - there was no mistaking the little appendage that proved beyond a doubt this was no girl.  As Michael apologized for not providing the necessary X chromosome yet again, I had to lay there and laugh.  So there may not be any pink in our near future, but you must agree once you get past the alien-like appearance of every sonogram photo, he's a beautiful boy, isn't he?

Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year!

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