Pregnancy Update : Repeat PROM & Preterm Labor Concerns

I feel bad for getting so upset over it all. It seemed so daunting at the time, but when I think about it now, it's not such a big deal.

I went to a new doctor last week and received some news I wasn't entirely expecting. My regular OB set up an appointment with the Maternal Fetal Medicine doctors who specialize in higher risk pregnancies. So this was my first meeting with the high risk doctor.

Background:
I had borderline high amniotic fluid levels with Calvin. And at 32 weeks I had PROM, premature rupture of membranes. My water was slowly leaking. It is suspected it could have been caused by the high fluid levels. I was in the hospital for 5 weeks. My doctor in the hospital wanted me to get to term, despite the fact that anyone else would have delivered Calvin at 34 weeks, which is the medical standard, I am told. I thank God we had the specific doctor we did! Calvin spent time in the NICU, but he was perfect.

The high risk doctor I just saw is concerned about PROM happening again and the possibility of preterm labor.
He is recommending I take hormone shots every week from 16 wks forward.
He is also having me go in for ultrasounds every other week to monitor my cervical length from now until 28 weeks.

That doesn't sound too bad, right? It's not. There are plenty of women who have way tougher pregnancies. But I cried the whole way home from that appointment. I felt so bad. I felt like, once again, I wasn't fit to carry a baby. I wanted so bad to have a normal pregnancy this time!

And that's all on top of the fact that I want to try for a VBAC so bad. But it seems each additional complication puts that further and further from my reach.

It also brings up the question, is it worth it if we have to do this for each additional pregnancy too? Is it selfish?

My husband and I want four kids. I've always wanted four. We've always talked about four. And yet these complications (or rather possibility of, because nothing is going downhill yet!) make us question that.

And I know that these are all just precautions to prevent the same thing from happening this time around. I know that driving to the doctor all the damn time is better than being confined to a hospital room away from my home and family for weeks! And I know there are plenty of women with way bigger concerns than I have here. I should be so grateful!

And I shouldn't even be worried right now. Nothing bad has happened. We're simply trying to prevent bad things from happening. I shouldn't worry about the what-ifs. Everything is good so far. New baby is growing right on track and, even though it is still early, my fluid levels and cervix are looking good.

But we're extra keeping an eye on things this time. Looking back, we could see the warnings. This time we will know better what's going on if things start to go downhill.

So although it is scary, I know we are doing our best and handing everything else over to God.

Thanks for reading.
Love,
Alaina & Tiny Baby #2

15 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #2

Week ending Oct. 10, 2017.
Due Date: April 3, 2018

Dude, this is going by way too fast!

Bump:

Officially up 10 pounds. :(
This is the week my bump really popped with Calvin. I feel it's happened this time around too.
Finally feeling some real movements more consistently, not just the little flutters.

Energy:
This is the week my energy started to return with Calvin. I think it's starting to return a bit this week, but I'm still not right back to normal. I don't just want to pass out as soon as 8 pm rolls around and I can stay awake for TV time with Justin better.

Physical Symptoms:

Slight, slight heartburn might be starting in the evenings.
Migraines are still a thing and I'm about to lose my mind over them. I can't stand them! I'm just so tired of having them all the time and nothing works to fix them! Had a couple really terrible ones this week.

Food:
Perhaps I've been slightly more hungry. Went to the grocery store this week and picked up a lot more produce than usual, trying to stay on the healthy track. Justin hates pretty much all vegetables, so it's really just for me and maybe Cal if he's feeling adventurous.
Back at the beginnings of the year I went through a phase where I was trying to reduce our meat intake and up our veggies, so I'm trying that again.

Sleep & Dreams:

One night of restless sleep. It was hot and I couldn't decide if I wanted the covers or not. I just kept waking up so many times throughout the night. I was able to go right back to sleep, but I just kept waking up!

Favorite Moments of the Week:
Date day/night with Justin. Even though we didn't get to do everything we wanted and it actually turned out somewhat uneventful, it was still surprisingly nice to spend with day just with Justin and not having to worry about Calvin. He spent the day with Grandma. Then I slept in until 8:45 am Sunday! Holy crap. I literally don't think I've done that since Justin and I got married. It was actually nice because, unlike every other time I've left my baby, I didn't really miss him or feel guilty, I was able to enjoy the day without all that extra burden in the back of my mind.

Anything I Miss:
Sometimes I look back on my first pregnancy and laugh because it was so easy peasy to be pregnant and not have to worry about a toddler. Ha. Pregnancy is exhausting and having a toddler is also equally exhausting. It really is hard work!

Random Thoughts:
Calvin's running out of big kid clothes. I just cleared out all his 18 mos and under stuff and he now has a very minimalist wardrobe lol. With the change of the season upon us (mother nature still can't decide if it should be 90 or 60 out), I wanted to go through his stuff and see what cool weather clothing he may need. So we bought him a couple pairs of soft jeans. He has a bunch of traditional, stiff jeans, but to me if I was a little dude, I'd rather have stretchy jeans, so that's what we got him.

Love,
Alaina & Baby #2

14 Weeks Pregnant with Baby #2

Week ending Oct. 3, 2017.
Due Date: April 3, 2018

Yay! It's the second trimester! Let all the joys of pregnancy begin! Haha.

Bump:

Just waiting for this little bump to really pop! It happened at 15 weeks with Calvin.
I've started feeling what I first described with Calvin as a low, light rumbling this week. It feels like your tummy is rumbling but it's super low in your pelvis and it's very, very light. I remember it distinctly from Calvin because it was some of the earliest movements I felt with him. It's only a matter of time before I really start to feel this little guy!

Energy:
Still not feeling back to normal yet.
Finally got some fall-like weather so we were able to venture to the park this week and hang out outside a lot more.

Physical Symptoms:

I know I was a bitch in the beginning, but I'm pretty sure I've been behaving well lately. :)
Allergies or other nasal issues due to pregnancy? I remember having nasal issues with Calvin too in the beginning but it was also a similar time of year, so it's hard to exactly blame it on pregnancy.
Morning sickness, what are you doing? Got a couple days of it this week. Pretty intense actually.
Cramping this week. Kind of intense and with a backache and achey hips some days. Up until now it really hasn't been a big issue so far.
Round ligament pain seems to be happening a little more frequently. Maybe once every couple days.
Hairline zits seem to be increasing. Got a couple pimples on my face too. Super.

Food:
I wanted ramen noodles after dinner one night but didn't feel like making them so I got over it. Justin wouldn't make them for me either. :(
Also really really wanted pizza for dinner Friday night so we ordered that.

Sleep & Dreams:

I've been really awesome at actually remembering my dreams this week!
Had a dream an old childhood friend died and we had to attend her funeral.
Also had a dream about some other childhood friends and their house was falling apart and the son just kept walking around inside as this place was about to collapse.
Dreamt I was driving along the road like I was leaving Justin's parents' house when he still lived at home and it was all flooded and I ended up running off the road onto this embankment where I had to abandon my car and I was going to walk back to Justin's and I had to walk along this cliff which totally doesn't exist in real life.
Had another freaking dream about smoking. I was at a bar with an old friend and I was smoking and offered her a cigarette and she was like, only if it's nicotine-free and we laughed. Like we both knew I was pregnant and smoking... what the heck?

Favorite Moments of the Week:
Watching Calvin play with the laundry basket in the living room. He was having a really good time climbing in and out of it and picking it up and carrying it around and putting it on the coffee table and pushing it on the floor. Like why do we even have kids' toys when you get this big of a kick out of the laundry basket? Ha.
Going to the park and taking lots of pictures with Calvin. It finally felt like fall and it was a beautiful morning.

Anything I Miss:
Not feeling like a super hobo who can't stay up past 8:30.

Random Thoughts:
I feel like the working mom guilt is getting a little better this week. The blog post I wrote seemed to help me be able to sort through my thoughts and work up the courage to speak with my managers about going back down to four days per week. In a couple weeks we'll be able to have that schedule back. I really think that will help me gather my sanity again. Ever since I got pregnant, I've had some serious working mom guilt and sadness, like I want to call in sick all the time, and I've just been dreading going to work and leaving my baby boy, and just not wanting to be there. I hope the schedule change helps. It's been 5 months now of working 5 days per week and I know it's getting to me.

Name:
We have known baby's name for awhile now, but finally decided to post it to social media and let our close family know this week. His name will be Eren Michael. And actually, posting his name really makes me worry that he's not actually a boy and we're going to have to go back and make separate announcements once we get the ultrasound haha!

Love,
Alaina & Baby #2

Flat Diaper Comparisons & Reviews : GMD, Geffen, FSTs, Nicki's

I love our AI2 system but I am also a fan of flats. They dry so quick, get the job done, and I do enjoy folding and seeing a cute little stack of ready-to-go flats.

Watch my video review here!

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Cloth-eez Birdseye Flats from Green Mountain Diapers

One Size 29x29 

$15.95/6 pk, $2.66/ea
These are kind of your traditional flat diaper. They work and they're basic. Not much else to say lol.
I do really want to try the Cloth-eez muslin ones, they're supposed to be fluffier and they just look nice so when they restock the one-size in late October I may have to pick up a pack. :)

Nicki's Diapers Bamboo Flats 

Large 32x32 

$21.95/6 pk, $3.66/ea
These might be my favorites at the moment. They are so soft and dry soft on the line, which is a huge bonus since I love hanging our diapers to dry. And they hold a lot of pee! There are times I change Cal after 2-3 hours with a pad fold and you can hardly even tell there's pee in there. They are a little bulkier in a pad fold, but not terrible, and totally fine as a traditional wrapped flat diaper. 

Room Essentials Flour Sack Towels from Target 

30x30 

$3.99/4 pk, $.99/ea

Pad folded, these work great and they're very affordable. I'd say they usually look about 2/3 full after 2.5 hours.

Geffen Baby Hemp Jersey Flat 

26.5x26.5 

$8.50/ea
These are too small to use as a traditional flat diaper on Calvin. I'm sure it would work great on a smaller baby though. So we exclusively use it in a pad fold and mostly at night time. They are an excellent booster. Hemp is the best for nighttime. 

Geffen Baby Hemp Fleece (Fladdle) Flat 

30x30 

$12.48/ea
This little guy will last overnight with our average wetter all by itself, which is crazy awesome! I do find it hard to Snappi at times. I prefe
r to fold it inside out so the fleecey side is not the side getting Snappied. 

 Geffen Baby specific review here!

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Alaina