BFP Chasers...........Feel free to join....

[Wish2BMom]

FX'ed JLo!! another TWW for us all to watch! sounds like you're doing everything you need to as well - good luck!

 

[Wish2BMom]

welp, failed the first GTT. Awesome. So now going in for the 3 hr one next Friday. I'm so annoyed.

 

[JLObytheBeach]

Wicky - any update on your MIL?

Wish - thanks lady!! I feel good about this time around so fingers crossed I'm right. It sounds like you are doing good!

I have a surprise 40th birthday party for my DH tomorrow. I'm excited, 35 people and still a surprise. The best part is he started planning a 40th party for himself! I hope you both have a nice restful weekend!

 

[mikihope]

Seems like a lot has happened since I last posted… Wicky is in the 2nd trimester, Ask has started Lupron injections, and Wish has 12 pound twins

Wow, this cold was a doozy. I'm just barely recovering. I normally don’t fall ill, and if I ever catch a cold, it’s very mild and I feel well in a couple of days. My coworkers told me that this cold that was making its rounds at work was a bad one, but I think my pregnancy exacerbated it. It was agony for a long time! Plus it was really hard not being able to just eat my usual comfort foods, or home remedies because of my restrictive diet. Recently, I’ve been extremely short of breath when working in the lab. I don’t know if it’s the cold or gummy pressing on my diaphragm. My lab work requires that I move around a lot, alternate between standing and sitting, bending over and squatting, and it’s getting very hard. I am getting slower each week, and I feel bad, as I am usually a multitasking maniac and fast worker. My boss is very supportive, but I feel like I’m letting him down.

Ask- Thanks, I seem to be doing quite well with my diet now. I’ve heard it gets harder as time goes on, though! You get hungry when you’re sick too… so you can imagine how hard it was to not be able to gorge myself on tons of pasta or all the other carb rich foods that I seem to crave when ill! Don’t worry about the PIO shots, even though everyone worries about it before they actually do it. Like Wish said, it amazingly doesn’t actually hurt when the needle goes in. I used a heat pad both before (I know some use ice before) and after the shot, injected straight in and slowly, took the weight off the side I was doing the shot in, and I made sure to massage the area after the shot. I had zero lumps, no residual discomfort, and there was no sign of where I did the shot the next day. I think the post-injection massage is very important! I got the nurse to draw circles on my butt to show where I should do the shots, and I just redrew the circles whenever they looked faded. Don’t worry, you’ll do great!

Wicky- How is your MIL? That’s really scary, especially not knowing what caused the electrolyte crash. I hope they find the cause soon. You’re in your second tri! So wonderful! I’m glad that you’re zen about your blood sugars. It sounds like you’re getting great care on that front, so things should be good. I’m glad that I’m receiving good care to help manage my gestational diabetes, and hopefully I’m more zen about it now! I’m not yet at the point where I’m wishing the baby out, but I can see myself getting there! One weird thing is that my belly is getting visibly bigger, but my weight gain this whole pregnancy has been pretty stagnant at around 10 pounds for quite a few weeks.

Wish- Oh, it sucks that you have to do the 3 hour test. I know how that feels. A large percentage of women go on to pass the 3 hour test, and I hope you’re one of them! I was unlucky, and it seems that just being Asian was a big risk factor. Hopefully you’re one of the lucky ones. I’m so glad to hear that your babies are doing so well, and quite relieved to hear that they’re not actually 12 pounds! Isn’t it cute and fun to play with them through your belly? Gummy is responding to outside touch too, and he’s making some very uncomfortable movements, especially at night when I lay down to sleep!

JLo- Good luck with your TWW!

How is everyone else? Vonn, MsR… how are you and your sweet babies doing?

 

[terripeachy]

Wish-sorry you failed the test. Maybe you enjoyed the drink a little too much. Hee hee. You're actually the first person that said it tasted good. That made me laugh.

Wicky-hope your MIl is getting better and drinking lots of fluids.

Miki-you're getting so close to due date. You won't remember your carb woes in a few weeks! Are you scheduling a c-section? What happened with your mom and sister visiting? Did you get it all straightened out?

Ask-things are on there move! Hope you are doing well.

Ttc-where are you?

JLo-fxfx. Hopefully this is your turn!

Not sure if I told you that I went to see Trevor Noah a few weeks back with my former co-workers. We had such a good time. We went to dinner at an Italian restaurant in the city and hubs and I treated everyone. It was so nice to see them and hang. I really don't care about money and I'm so fortunate to feel that way. I just wanted everyone to have a fun time.
I was never able to upload my picture from the retirement party. You'll just have to imagine me as a cute flapper with a pillbox hat and a feather.

Today we have a fantasy football party. I finally moved out of last place so I'm thankful. In our league the person in last place gets an ugly trophy that no one wants. I refuse to get that trophy. My team is pretty bad but I'm still beating people periodically so hopefully I won't be near the bottom anymore after this week. I'm tied for 9th with two others. Only two points separate us so if I can win and get more points I'm really be in good shape.

All right, I've blabbed enough. Not pregnant.

 

[Wish2BMom]

terri - you crack me up! Your FF league sounds similar to my girls league but we've recently tried to instill the following rule - you lose, you get publicly humiliated when we go out to dinner after the next year's draft. That has only happened once, though, as we weren't able to get together this year. But the year before, we had a huge placard that the loser had to wear around the bar/restaurant and up and down the main street we were on for the whole night. Hysterical. And what happened?? you usually win yours! I'm clinging to 2nd place right now in one league and the other league is divided into 2 divisions - I was 2nd in that one too until my FIL bumped me to 3rd after last week (all of my good guys had bye weeks).

miki - ooooh sorry about the hard-hitting cold!! Glad you're on the mend now, though. Your job does sound like it would be tiring with all of the movement. I'm measuring about where you are right now and it's tough for me to move around a lot too. It's also tough for me to sit in one spot for a long time and get up and walk after, so I don't know what the best answer is! I asked my boss if I could WFH a couple days a week and she's totally fine with it. Even the walk in from the parking lot is getting to be a lot more laborous than I ever thought it would. I hate it! I am usually completely fine with any type of physical activity! So I know you feel like you're letting your boss down but please try to give yourself a break. You're not failing, you're not lazy, you're not falling short. You're pregnant and have wacko physical things going on right now that are taking over! It's only for a short time longer, so take it slow and think about the vessel that is holding gummy for now!
Are you working right up until you give birth or leaving a little early?

JLo - how goes the TWW??

Wicky - updates on you and your MIL please! hope all is well!

all others - :wave: miss you!

afm - had a great weekend basically relaxing all weekend. I did some cleaning but also binged Stranger Things 2 from the recliner. It was heaven. DH made a beer run to Maine for a special release with some friends on Sat so he was gone all morning and into the afternoon. An early dinner with FIL for Veteran's Day and then Sunday DH had bball in the morning so I finished ST2 before football started. WOOP! Also found out that we are not getting EITHER of the free cribs!! Oh well, the thoughts were very generous. One, they couldn't find a main screw and I guess Home Depot doesn't sell that exact one. And the other was ruined in storage by moisture. what can you do? So we'll go crib shopping when my folks get into town next week and they can buy us one, we'll buy the other. Easy peasy.

I actually can't wait to get those - I feel like the nursery is on hold until then and I really want to get going on it so we are ready for these munchkins to arrive at any point. I really really at least want to make it to Christmas! That will be week 35.

 

[mikihope]

Terri- Great update, as usual! Fx you don't get the ugly trophy. Although... sounds like something I would want Your night out to see Trevor Noah with your former coworkers sounds like so much fun. Ah, to be able to go out to eat Italian food! Thanks for your support, it's true that my carb woes should be a distant memory in a bunch of weeks. For now, it's almost impossible for me to eat out, especially Asian food. And I can't eat sweet stuff such as cake, which sucks since I'm craving that stuff
Oh yes, my sister is coming to visit, along with her family! They'll be here for a week, and the kids and her husband will return to Singapore, while she remains here for about 2 weeks more. My folks will be here mid December, till... no idea when.

Wish- Oh no, so sad that the cribs didn't come through! Luckily your folks are getting you one. My folks are getting us one too! Thanks, I'm so glad that cold is more or less gone! Haha, you hit the nail on the head with the moving around/sitting situation. Moving is tough... sitting in one spot is tough... And yes, walking is tough. I still park in the usual spot instead of getting a special parking pass for pregnant women which gets me a closer spot. I have to walk about 10min to my office, and most of it is uphill! It's great you get to work from home, I wish I could bring my lab work home with me.
I have no idea when I'm going to stop working, it seems like I'm going to keep working until it's almost Christmas! How about you?

We went out for dinner with DH's cousin, husband and kid on Saturday, and I managed to keep my glucose number down. I was so pleased. And they gave us a video baby monitor. Yay! My sister is getting us a stroller and my folks are getting us a crib. I'm very happy, but now I have to go through the stress of choosing those items. I tried looking online once, and the sheer amount of choice was too daunting!

 

[Wish2BMom]

oh I can relate to the stress of the research! If you want, here's what I ended up doing with most things - 'best ___ of 2017' and then see what you want from there. I know it's all subjective, but you can usually see what add-ons you would want or not need. Yesterday I googled 'best convertible cribs' and the brand Sorelle came up as the top. I clicked in the image that was from Toys R Us and they had a gray one (our nursery color) without a changing table (already have this separately), I think with some drawers underneath (who doesn't love extra storage) for under $200! And it's a convertible so it can be used as a toddler and regular bed later - $200 for years of use! Done and done!

That's awesome you got a monitor and were able to control your glucose!! I'm starting my extra-carbs diet right now for my 3 hr test this Friday. Did you have to do that? stress your system with carbs 3 days beforehand to see how it panned out on the test day?

 

[mikihope]

Thanks so much for the tips, Wish! It makes me feel much less anxious about having to pick out things like strollers and cribs.

I didn't do the carb loading thing as I wasn't asked to do it, but I read about it. It seems that it actually can help in having a good outcome for the test. I hope that's true for you! Funny thing, I also kind of liked the glucose drink. I didn't like how I felt the first hour after I drank the 3 hour one, though! I felt like I was about to pass out several times.

Well... more bad news for me. They found protein and ketones in my urine at my appointment yesterday. The doc ordered a bunch of blood and urine tests to check if I have pre-eclampsia, even though I don't have high blood pressure. And I have to do a 24 hour urine test for protein. This means I have to collect urine into a huge container over the space of 24 hours, and keep it cool somehow. It will probably go in the fridge! Since I've kept live meal worms in the fridge and a dead snake in the freezer in the past, I told DH that this isn't the worst thing we've had in the fridge. He agreed

I went after work, some of the results have come in, and I have an elevated number for some liver function test. I don't know what it means, but I'm feeling really down. It kind of looks to me that I may have pre-e I was feeling so down about the prospect, and gummy kicked me cutely and lightly, which made me feel so sad for letting him down. Sigh, I guess I'll know after my 24 hour urine test (planning to take it on Sunday) whether I have pre-e, and how bad it is.

 

[Wish2BMom]

oh no, miki!!! that's terrible - I really hope you don't have it. But I'm glad they are finding it and taking care of it now if you do. That's no joke, so please rest up. You're not letting gummy down, this isn't anything of your doing.

...dead snake??

today's my last day of the working week - I love this schedule! Every other Friday off and we have next Thurs/Fri off for the holiday too, so we have 3 short weeks in a row. Love it! my 3 hr GTT is tomorrow morning, along with a regular appt with a doppler. I thought I felt Baby B flip last night, I swear he was sideways while we were at our Birth class. Alas, i still think I feel a head up near my ribs this morning. Sigh.
The rest of the weekend will be spent cleaning, prepping for my folks to arrive on Sunday afternoon, cleaning for hosting Thanksgiving...cleaning. HA!

 

[Ask4joy]

Miki - I’m so sorry you are going through all of this. You are doing everything you can for a healthy pregnancy so try not to beat yourself up - it’s not your fault! Hoping the other test results come back better than you are expecting.

Thank you all who shared PIO shot advice! I had my baseline ultrasound 2 days ago and was sufficiently suppressed. Lupron was reduced and I started Estrace yesterday. Transfer is in 2.5 weeks. Eek!

Wish - that crib sounds awesome! My brother and SIL are giving us a nice crib and changing table but I don’t love the color...I want white or gray furniture for the nursery (we already have a set of white dressers in there) and they are a dark stained wood, like cherry. DH said he can paint them...hopefully SIL won’t be offended.

Terri - sounds like you’ve been having a lot of fun! So nice of you to treat everyone - I’m sure it was appreciated.

JLo - how did the surprise 40th go?! Was DH surprised?

Very good news...my SIL is responding very well to the trial drug! She was able to come off of oxygen support and the scans showed that the masses in her lungs have DECREASED and some of the tiny mets in her liver are gone! She said she feels great and can even carry her two year old up the stairs without getting winded. We have no idea how long this will last as this is a first in humans trial. Eventually the cancer cells will mutate. Hoping this lasts a long time...long enough for another breakthrough treatment to come around.

 

[Wish2BMom]

oh wow, Ask - that's amazing about your SIL!!! I hope it lasts too and this is the miracle she needed!
Hooray for suppression and starting to prep for transfer! SO FUN! everything crossed for you!
Ok, so I'll be honest that I cringed a little when you said DH could paint over the cherry (I LOOOOVE cherry wood) but you gotta do what you gotta do! And free is best! And I totally get that it would look weird with the other white furniture already in there. We have a maple set already in the room so that's what I'm trying to work with. But all of the decorations and such are going to be white and gray, so white or gray cribs only makes sense to me!

 

[Ask4joy]

Thanks, Wish! We have 100+ year old dark oak woodwork all through our downstairs which I love but one of the previous owners painted all of the woodwork upstairs white. The nursery is upstairs and I’m not sure how the cherry would look? I do feel bad painting it - especially since SIL is giving it to us. And they are such nice quality. I’m attaching some pics. I like light colors for a baby’s room. Maybe I’ll look to pinterest to see how to make them work as is.

 

[Wish2BMom]

oh wow, they're gorgeous!!
actually looking at the changing table against your stairwell with the light paint and white trim doesn't look bad at all.

 

[TTC74]

Went offline for a bit to take the LO to Disney. I’m 3 DPO today.

 

[cameobelle]

New here...we having been trying for just two months. A little happy that I am not this month as we are having to make an emergency trip to family I don't quite get along with so LOTS of stress. Thinking we will wait until Jan to truly try again but not going to prevent it the next few months either. DH had VR in Sept and we are having some issues with it so won't know until early dec if everything is still good like first test.

 

[terripeachy]

Welcome cameo!

Ask- so happy to hear about your SIL. I hope the treatment works for a long time! I agree with Wish on the furniture. Pinterest had a lot of great ideas and I think you can make it work. I also like cherry furniture.
Also 2.5 weeks is right around the corner. Yay for transfer.

Wish-good luck with your test today. It's nice you get a few short weeks. That's probably so nice when it's hard for you to walk around a lot.

Miki-sorry about the news but again, at least the doctor's can test for it and help you. Like Ask said, it's not your fault. I hope your 24 hope test shows overall everything is fine and the test was a fluke the other day.

Welcome back TTC. I hope Disney was great although when people go to Disney you don't really have to say that. It's always great!!

Have a great weekend everyone! I'm going to a couple's paint and sip with church tonight. I'm sure it'll be fun, but I really didn't want to spend the money. My house is getting overrun with these amateur random paintings. I should try to sell them on etsy. Hee hee.

 

[mikihope]

Wish- Thanks, I hope I don’t have it too, but it looks like I might develop it The doc called to tell me that since I have elevated liver enzymes and protein in my urine (I had to give a urine sample 3 times so they could be sure it wasn’t a false positive), it is likely I will develop it. They are not diagnosing me right now with preeclampsia because of my normal blood pressure. I have to take more tests on Sunday and drop off my ginormous urine bottle. On Monday morning, I will see another doc, as my doc will not be around next week. They are taking this very seriously, which I guess is good, but it makes me nervous.
Yep, dead snake! It was a beautiful one I found lying across my path on a hike, half brilliant blue and half bright red. A blue malayan coral snake, very deadly.
It’s great that you get some short work weeks coming up! How can you tell which twin is which? I still can’t really tell which way around gummy is most of the time. How was your 3 hour GTT? I hope your results come out good.

Ask- Transfer day is almost here! How wonderful! And how great that the treatment worked so well for your SIL. I hope it lasts a long time for her. Thanks, I’ll try not to beat myself up too much! Sadly, the test results aren’t so good so far, but at least they’re doing a good job monitoring me.

Terri- Thanks, I’m taking the 24 hour urine test today and the other tests on Sunday. I really hope I don’t have pre-E, but if it turns out that I do, I trust the healthcare team to take good care of me and gummy! I hope you enjoyed the paint and sip last night!

TTC- How fun, welcome back from Disneyland!

Hi Cameo!

Well…I was getting adjusted to my gestational diabetes, managing to keep my numbers down quite well and feeling more positive about it. The silver lining: It makes me even more excited about giving birth -- not only do we get to meet gummy, but I get to eat good stuff again! I told DH to get a milkshake and a beer ready for me in the delivery room. Anyway, now that I’ve gotten used to having GD, I may have to adjust to having pre-E. It’s scary! First, I was worried about gummy, and then I had to deal with the prospect that I might be told all of a sudden that I would have to deliver. I guess it’s good that I’m already 34 weeks along.

 

[Wicky78]

Hi everyone!

It has been a rough couple of weeks between MIL being in the hospital, morning sickness, and having to be away from DW. I've caught up and it sounds like lots has been going on.

Ask-I am so excited for your upcoming transfer! And such great news about your SIL!!!

TTC - Disney sounds like fun. How did LO like it?

Miki - wow, 34 weeks! It seems like time is really flying now, although maybe it doesn't feel like that to you. I hope you can get some answers about the pre-e, but I'm glad you trust your providers. It seems like a lot to worry about, but you're right - it's only a few more weeks. Stay safe!

Wish - are the twins 12 lbs yet? LOL I was sorry to hear your cribs fell through, but at least you found out before the babies came along. I think we're leaning toward IKEA for the crib - $99 convertible crib? yes, please! Now to pick out the other gazillion things!

Terri - no need to cut your stories short just because you're not preggers... I personally love your stories and hearing what's going on with you. FF sounds like fun, but I've always been too overwhelmed by the process to get involved. FX that you stay away from the ugly trophy

Welcome, Cameo!

Okay, now for my updates. It's a lot, so brace yourselves! MIL is doing well, but still not able to return to independent living. Her electrolytes are back to normal but the neurologist thinks she still has some swelling from the trauma, which just needs time to heal. On top of that, we found out a little over a week ago that she had a herniated disk that needed surgery fairly quickly. So she had back surgery on Monday to remove it and fuse the vertebrae. It went very well and she is tolerating physical therapy well, too. We finally got her out of the hospital on Wednesday after nearly 2 weeks, and she is in an acute rehab facility for a few weeks. So I've been driving back and forth to Maryland for the past two weekends while DW stays with her family. DW came home for a couple of days this week so she could be with me for our 12 week scan on Tuesday, so this weekend, I'm home, but flying solo (well, as solo as one can be with 3 cats under foot!).

The 12 week scan went great and baby measured just 1 day behind. We got to see lots of movement - arm waving, kicking, and even jumping around. It was really cool. I've included the three best images from the scan. My favorite is the one with the arm up by the head... it makes me think the baby was trying to hide from paparazzi We also had blood drawn for cell free fetal dna and will know the baby's sex sometime in the next week or so - just in time for either Thanksgiving or DW's birthday on the 27th.

I had an OB appointment on Thursday and they still couldn't hear the heartbeat by Doppler, so another u/s. This time, the OB turned on the sound so I go to hear baby's heart for the first time. It was so amazing, but I was really sad DW couldn't be there this time. The diabetes is still an issue, as I have not yet gotten my sugars under control despite 72 units of insulin per day and a ton of metformin. The OB isn't too worried because it's not totally out of control, but she is a bit worried about the future, as it will only get harder to control. I also lost 5 lbs in the last two weeks due to morning sickness. Even with the Zofran, I was still really sick in the mornings and had a lot of trouble eating enough food out of fear of throwing it all back up (I figured eating a little less and keeping it down was better than eating more and not keeping it down). The OB wasn't too worried, since I am a big girl to begin with, but she was adamant that I not lose any more. So now I'm on B6 and Unisom to try to quell the nausea so I can eat.

It's all so much! Sometimes I get overwhelmed because I'm only 13 weeks today and it seems like an eternity ahead of me. I know it's all worth it in the end, but it really does get overwhelming from time to time, especially when I'm hungry but can't really eat or can't find anything that sits well and isn't just carbs. Anyway, I'm actually doing well and happy about the baby, but I needed to vent a little, too. I think it's harder because I'm home alone and DW is under so much stress but far away. We're going to my parents' for Thanksgiving, so I'm really looking forward to 5 days together!

 

[Wish2BMom]

wow wicky - 3D at such an early stage, i've never seen that! So cool!! And happy 2nd Tri!! You're 33% of the way there. You are certainly going through quite a lot all at once right now, I hope it eases up on you soon. Plus what you've already been through in this pregnancy. I hope you and DW have an absolutely wonderful Thanksgiving and get to sit back and take a little breather together.

miki - I'd be nervous too, pre-e is nothing to mess with. I'm glad they've caught your symptoms early and can watch it, and that your BP isn't up there yet. Hopefully they can head it off at the pass, if that's possible! Hang in there - not long now!! A beer and a milkshake - sign me up! though mine will be a bottle of wine! HA!

terri - I giggled at your notion of being overrun with amateur paintings! I recently went to one of those places but painted wine glasses instead. I can USE those, and as I looked around at the regular paintings on the walls, I realized I didn't actually want to come to one of the regular easel painting nights. What the hell would I do with those?! Etsy it is!
Whatcha doing for Thanksgiving? How's your SIL doing with all the kids?

TTC - welcome back! Disney, so fun around the holidays (I assume, but as terri said, it's always wonderful!)

ask - 2 weeks! 2 weeks!

afm - not much going on! So happy I've hit the next mental milestone of 30 weeks. Phew! I think my brain is happy with every 2 weeks as milestones. If we can make it 6 more weeks (yikes), I'll be stoked! And so far, the boys haven't given any reason to think otherwise. And still no BH even! I think, anyway...nothing painful.
GTT results today - ugh, I hope I passssssss! Doppler on Friday showed the babies' HBs still going strong, Baby B is still breech. I think we'll discuss scheduling a c-section at my next appt (12/1) if he's still in that position.
Other than that, cleaned all weekend in preparation for my folks arriving last night for the holiday, and for the holiday itself. Did grocery shopping, DH raked leaves, etc. Mom wants to shop for baby this week and get a crib or two as well, plus the little odds and ends that we haven't gotten yet.