We're making progress!

Whoa it has been quite the day!

First, a HUGE congratulations to our good friends Stef & Andy, who welcomed their second adorable daughter, Alyssa Grace, into the world yesterday afternoon! She is absolutely beautiful, and big sister Kaitlyn is so proud! I was so happy to sneak in some snuggle time this morning after my OB appointment next door :) I rely on Stef a ton for tips, and answers to "is this normal?" I'm so thankful for her, and looking forward to "practicing" more with Alyssa!

Which brings me to more news...I passed my glucose test this morning! Yippeee! Doc said I passed so easily, and that I must be getting everything I need because the rest of my #s (iron, all that other good stuff) looked good too! Today was the first time he actually hauled out the tape measure and measured the 'ol belly, and he said I'm measuring right on track. Plus, I've gained approximately 18 lbs! I was worried because so many people have been giving me the "that's all the bigger you are at this point?" looks & questions. Stupid to care what they think, I know. He says I should be happy to carry the way I am since I'm so tall, and it's just the short people and the opinioned folks that are jealous :) So there! {At least it makes me feel better}

I did make a point to ask him about Miss S's kidneys--if it was just one, or if both were dilated. Sadly, he said both...but he did say it was barely "moderate," whatever that means. He's confident it will clear up on his own, but we have scheduled another ultrasound to monitor it. I go back in a week and a half, on 4/23. I do feel much better about it after hearing a friend of mine's daughter has the same thing, and that she's doing just fine {she still has it I guess--only very low grade} at 11 months old.

We also scheduled our Childbirth Education class! I say class, not classes, because our hospital only offers an all-day Saturday class. Not ideal if you ask me, but it should get the job done. We officially become "educated" May 5th!

As for the nursery, we have a little {err..LOT of} work to do. My mom came over last weekend to help me shampoo the carpets, so at least we're at the point of having a "clean slate" to work with right now. We actually painted the room a nice shade of chocolate brown {it's a sunny corner room} over a year ago--I'm so thankful not to have to worry about that! Maybe a future post on our progress later?

See? Lots being done. Sort of. Gaaahhh, there's just so much left though!

Seriously though, look at all this progress!
 

Holy cow! 26 weeks!!! That first shot makes me almost want to cry!!! Someday, maybe someday again. Note to self: husband is no longer allowed to touch the camera...I don't know what he does to make it so blurry!

bumpdate: weeks 21-25

OH MY LANTA. How did I let this go for so long? Busy, perhaps? Yikes. Life has been wild lately. This pregnancy is moving at the speed of light and it's starting to make me so weepy that in 10-14 short weeks, it will all be over! I am beginning to take time for myself here and there everyday to sit and reflect on this little miracle inside me. Seems that this "alone time" is just what I needed! I can't tell you how much I enjoy watching her little dance parties in my belly. This girl is quite the mover & shaker! Ross has been quite busy at work, and putting up their new barn most nights so he doesn't get home until after 10p. For some strange reason I'm starting to turn into a bit of a night owl, and am functioning {semi-normally} on less and less sleep. Must be the ol' bod's way to preparing me for motherhood! Between all these physiological and psychological changes, we've also been speaking with the realtor about the land we're looking, and possibly listing our house. I never thought I would see the day where we showed our home with even as much as a half-hearted intention of selling--especially while pregnant. What are we thinking?! Eh, really we haven't made any solid decisions yet, so the whole idea is still up in the air. Still, it has required cleaning and prep everytime this guy comes over to talk!

Ross has been great with helping out lately. I'm not sure what has happened, really. I was only gone for a few days in TN, but it was the first time that I've left him home. Usually it's the other way around--he goes out for work, or hunting. I was welcomed back with so much love and appreciation, and a clean house! It's like a "what have you done with my husband" sort of thing, but I'll take it! Maybe he sees that I can't quite accomplish all my responsibilities as well as I used to, and that I'm starting to slow down a bit. I don't know. His graciousness has thrown me for a loop, and I find myself with that feeling of "what more can I do for him" that brings me back to the days when we were first dating. I love it, and really felt the need to make a little note here on the ol' blog. You know, for the days when I feel like I've absolutely lost my mind and am going this alone? Not going to lie, it happens. Especially when he's working long hours. When you are the boss, you work around the clock. There's always "go-sees" and "bids" that need to be done even after the sun has set. At least I know when the sun sets he has to stop nailing boards and setting posts!

Anways, here's the good stuff you've been waiting for {you know, to see how much weight I've put on and what sort of monumental meltdowns have gone down in the past month}  kidding.

How far along? 25 weeks 4 days

Total weight gain: a whopping 17-ish pounds! we have a quickly growing babe here, folks!

Maternity clothes? Oh yes. I've got quite a few tops that still work, but the ever growing belly is quite visible now. Jeans are out of the question. Since the weather has been warming up, I'm loving dresses and maxi skirts for work. Thankfully, she's been carrying "like a boy" {what everyone has been telling me at least} and is mostly out front. Weeks ago, I thought I looked weird, but now I'm loving this belly!

Sleep: Starting to get worse. I have found myself functioning on less sleep, and going to bed much later. I don't know what's going on, but it's not so bad I guess. Better than going to bed at 8p like I did in the beginning!

Best moment this week: Video taping one of Miss S's dance parties. She is so active, and her kicks are quite visible! I can't wait to show my family at Easter how funny she is!

Miss Anything? I can't say that I do. While a nice cold beer has sounded pretty good lately, I'm not really feeling like I'm missing out on anything. I've been strangely optimistic lately--and I'm digging that!

Movement: All the time! Ross thinks I'm obsessed--and I might just be. It is so reassuring to see her wiggling around in there. I can tell when she reacts to loud noises, or Ross's voice. She already loves her Papi!

Food cravings: I've been having the "I don't know what I feel like eatings" lately. Cereal seems to do the trick nicely though. Still loving anything hot & spicy too. Last night I did catch myself making a preggo snack of a pickle spear on a piece of bread with a slice of cheese and mustard. And I liked it! I have also been doing some irrational food-hoarding lately. Like I won't make something specific because I "need to save it". I don't know what for?

Anything making you queasy or sick: No, thankfully. I do get really antsy when I go too long without a snack though. It is then that I generally end up making poor food choices that make me gain 7 lbs in one month.

Gender: Girl!

Labor Signs: No

Symptoms: let the waddling begin! The chiropractor really helped my SIJ feel better, but I'm starting to slow down and look weird getting up off the couch/bed.

Belly Button in or out? Flat! Also very weird looking, but I kind of like it. It's kind of like a sterotypical pregnancy look--but it's a cool little milestone to finally have that I suppose.

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: So happy! ....and so sappy! I've been wandering around with a perma-grin lately. Maybe it was the time off that helped me mellow out. Whatever it is, it's working!

Looking forward to: Easter weekend with the family. I have another appointment next Friday 4/13 for my glucose test, ack! {yes, somehow my appointments always get scheduled on "strange" days---2/29, Friday the 13th...not that I'm superstitious or anything, but yikes!} Looking forward to hearing more about what the doc has to say about her kidneys. Last time I was in too much shock to ask any questions, so I want to find out which one/both, and I'll have an opportunity to schedule the ultrasound appointment for 28 weeks.

I will try and get some more pics up this weekend! You'd think that having the internet and all, I'd have that all sorted out {not!} Sorry :(

Tennessee Weekend

I'm baaaack!

Last week Thursday, my mom and I ventured on down to Tennessee to visit my cousin and her husband for a few days. I was a little unsure how well I would do traveling (even if it is only 9 hours) given the constant urge to pee and/or get up and walk around, but it wasn't bad at all! We stayed overnight near the Edinburgh outlet mall so we could do some shopping in the morning before hitting the road again. The weather was awesome...80-85 degrees & sunny every day! 

Cruisin through Kentucky

We stayed with my cousin Tammy & her husband Ken just outside Nashville in a town called Goodletsville. They have the most gorgeous home nestled up in the hills of a private golf course--I couldn't believe the view! It was so refreshing to see the trees and flowers in full bloom as Michigan hasn't quite reached that point yet.

views from K & T's

Turns out, we went down there at just the right time....the grand reopening of Opry Mills indoor outlet mall :) I swear we shopped 12 hours on Saturday, I literally had to buy new shoes (of course they are leopard print Sperrys) because my feet ached so bad! We scored some major deals!

Ken played tour guide on Sunday, and after church we got to see where all the stars live in Sumner County. We saw Reba's estate & riding stables on the Cumberland river, Loretta Lynn's family home (literally a 1/2 mile from my cousin's), the school where Taylor Swift shot part of one of her videos, Conway Twitty's, Lorrie Morgan's, and my favorite--the remains of Johnny Cash's estate that burned after one of the Bee Gee's tried to renovate it. It was so weird to see that these celebs lived so close to us "normal" folk. I'm not sure what else I was expecting though.

Reba's horse barn

Side view of Reba's property

More of Reba's old farms...named after her label, Starstruck

Some random house, but this is what I think of when I hear "Southern Homes". Just like in Sweet Home Alabama...close nuff.

Shoot...I forget who lives here...

The sign in Johnny Cash's brother's house...next door

The Cash estate...burned

Strange, you could still see much of the burned remains after all these years.

This was once Lorrie Morgan's Liberty House

Conway Twitty's "Twitty City"

Ugh. Such a sickening picture. It was about 2pm and I hadn't had lunch yet...not happy! {Outside Conway Twitty's}

Hard Rock Cafe downtown Nashville

Great American County drive by

Tootsies on Broadway--apparently lots of celebs are spotted here

Loretta Lynn's family home. Guess she was just a coal miner's daughter?

random..Loretta's grandbabies' treehouse

The Ryman!

All in all, we had a great time. We left Monday afternoon, and stayed overnight near Indianapolis on the way back. I could have probably made the whole trip, but my mom was pretty pooped too. So much traveling, driving, shopping, and family time! I need a vacation from vacation! Next time I will be taking Ross, he was so bummed he couldn't come along--Nashville is right up his alley! It was my first trip away from him {usually he's the one going on hunting/work trips away from me} and at first I wasn't sure how it would go over. The day I left he wanted nothing to do with saying goodbye, and told me he needed a vacation from me! Crazy boy must have gotten over it, because my phone was ringing a couple of times a day with him "checking in". He must have done ok...I got home and there was a new work truck in the driveway and he had cleaned the entire house, including the nursery! No joke, I thought I died and went to heaven...absence must really make the heart grow fonder...did I mention I love vacation?



nice weekend!

We had such a big weekend over here! Nice weather, family time, and some much needed chill time with friends too. Some highlights:

1. i finally went to the chiropractor! what a godsend, really. no sooner did i hop up on the table with my big preggo pillow than the doc literally laughed at me for not coming in sooner. turns out, my right leg is an entire inch longer than my left. how did i come 24 years not knowing this? he wants to see me a few more times this week, then once a week until S comes to make sure my hips are aligned correctly {enough} for labor. holy macaroni i cannot wait for my appointment tonight! he did say it was a good thing i have naturally very loose joints, or else i would probably be hurting even more down the road.

2. some friends of ours, kate & kurt, came over for dinner on friday night to plan our other pals' bachelor party. kate was previously a birth center tech at the hospital we will be delivering at, so she was able to give me some nice pointers and "what to expects" while the guys were making out the guest list. it was so great catching up with them!

3. the boys started on the shop! my hubs & brother-in-law started "Schutter Bros Builders" back in 2007 {you know, at the worst time economically} and are finally building their own barn after years of storing their equipment at our parents', uncle jim's, or my favorite--our front yard in the "city". doesn't everyone have a kubota in the front yard? anyways--we've had a couple of great years, and are looking to expand the business. a few big jobs last year and this coming summer have given the guys the confidence to start investing in more tools-and of course a place to store them. we spent friday finishing up the site, and saturday the guys we already setting poles. by saturday night they had the perimeter up and the family marveled at their work over some yummy steaks out on the deck.

4. saturday night ended with a bonfire at our friend kyle's, where we all found out about john & katie's engagement! the way this spring has been going, we're going to have so many weddings this year! it was great to catch up with more of our pals--you know, since i don't really get out all that often anymore!

5. on sunday, ross & i took a little drive after church to go check out a truck he's been lusting over. since michael gets to have the barn on his property, ross gets a new truck. not a bad deal, i'd say! somehow we ended up at the baby superstore, where ross just about had a "panic attack" from all the preggos running around. we were going to register there, but i think it's much safer if i just do it myself online!

6. speaking of which, the schutters finally got the internet this weekend! i found out on friday if you ask the right questions on charter.com "chat" you can get a pretty good deal. smoking fast wireless for $39/mo installed the next day with 1/2 the installation fee? too good to be true. our Dish subscription is up next month, and i will need to have internet access for my company to allow me to work from home leading up to, and after S comes. helloooo online shopping, blogging, facebooking at all hours of the day and night :)  

7. lastly, we found some property we might be interested in {long term future}. it's way out off a dirt road in BFE, with few neighbors and lots of wildlife. there's plenty of room to grow and play, and it's even in our favorite elementary school district. ross keeps calling the place "God's country" and telling me we need to "move closer to home". the lot is literally 5-10 minutes down the road, ha! we meet with the realtor on wednesday to talk lot lines, road access, and all that good stuff.

ok one more...my boss is on vacation all week {hello, working from home!} and i'm headed to tennessee with my mama thurs-tues! can't wait for a little break!

sometimes i surprise myself

I am not one for waiting.

I suppose waiting and trust go together. And sometimes most times it takes a lot of me to trust.

Which makes the waiting even harder. Way harder.

Without going into too much detail, we got some unexpected results back from the doctor yesterday regarding my ultrasound on 2/29. His words were "usually, we call with any abnormal results, but we wanted to talk to you face to face because you don't need to freak out."

Abnormal? Freak out?

Turns out, S's kidney(s) are dilated. Meaning: they're bigger than they should be. They won't put a diagnosis on it until my next ultrasound. Normally, they wouldn't do another one after the 20 week anatomy scan, but they've advised me I'll need to come back at 28 weeks for a better ultrasound to check baby's kidneys and they'll go from there. They said this condition is fairly common, though I had never heard of it before. He did say everything else looked good {praise God}, but they will need to monitor us for any changes.

Of course my brain went blank and I didn't say anything except "Well, I guess I get to see her again--which will be nice."

Shut up. Hold the phone. Did those words really come out of my mouth? Who all of a sudden gave me power over my emotions to focus on the positive?

There was no freak out. No immediate tears. I just left and that was it.

My mind wandered all day, and then my mind wandered to google.

Don't google.

It's sort of like restaurant reviews. The only people who post on forums about their experiences are the ones who had the absolute best outcomes, or the absolute worst. No average joes in the center of the bell curve retell their experiences.

Well, I googled anyway because you can't tell me no.

It was then I realized I was losing control. No more google. No talking about it to anyone except family until we know more.

Whew. Calmness regained.

I want to note {if it wasn't evident already} that I don't have a lick of cool, collectedness to me. I am generally an impulsive, fly off the handle immediately, negative nancy. Just sayin.

But today I learned something. Worrying will get you no where. We could go to our next ultrasound and the problem will be completely resolved. And if not, she could be born and the problem could still go away easily without intervention. Then all that emotion and worrying will be wasted. I don't have time or energy for worrying.  I also learned that your outward actions don't need to mirror your inward emotions. My inward emotions are a nervous wreck. I don't want my little girl to hurt. To feel pain. My positive outward emotions surprised me today, it was something I didn't know I had in me. The doctor even asked if I ever had bad days, because it seemed like I was always happy. To this I responded, of course I'm happy--we're having a baby! There are people who would kill to be in my shoes, kidney issues and all. I am vowing to focus on the positive from here out, at least until we're in a position to know more.

I don't know how this happened either, but it reminds me a lot of my mom. We could be bleeding from the head, crying in hysterics, and my mom always managed to keep her cool. I never understood this when I was little, how could she be so calm? Didn't she care? Didn't she know the world was melting down?

So I'm not worrying.

We're just going to pray about it and take it easy. Stress will only make it worse {literally}.

Doesn't mean there wasn't a whole host of tears last night and this morning.

So while it seems we're stuck in the worst possible state--not knowing, not being able to plan or move ahead--we have to accept where we are. Do the best with the cards you're dealt.

 {I decided to blog about this today to share my experience, not the news we received. Since we honestly don't know any details at this time, please respect our privacy in this matter.}

Screw you, SIJ!!!

If you didn't know, SIJ stands for sacroiliac joints, or that spot on your lower back where you have those two weird indents. Husband calls them my butt dimples. Please tell me I'm not the only one with these.

This week I'm telling my SIJ that they can F off. Maybe I brought it on myself with a week of nice walks outside, vacuuming the car, and putting a massive spring clean on the house, but the ol' SIJ started slacking the other day and it really ticked me off. I was almost positive that if I stopped walking, my torso would continue moving forward and dislocate right off my legs.

So, I took to the internet to self-diagnose this pesky disease that has literally stopped me in my tracks more than once this week. The result: PPP, or Posterior Pelvic Pain set off by those lovely pregnancy hormones. Fairly common it appears, which makes me feel better, because that means i'm clearly not the only one with the butt dimples.
My research google led me to This website where I found home advice on how to deal {since I haven't yet gone to the chiropractor for an accurate diagnosis--though that is on my to-do list for next week!}. For kicks, my comments are in red.

Posterior Pelvic Pain Home Advice

Here are some tips for expectant women with posterior pelvic pain..

Lying down

• Avoid lying on your back for long periods of time, particularly after the 19th week of your pregnancy. Seems this is the only way I wake up in the morning. With my arms spread up over my head. I have no idea how long I've been in that position, but it seems to have worked for me for the past 22-23 weeks or so. Sleeping on the stomach {what I'm accustomed to} is out of the question.
• Try lying on your side (preferably your left) with a pillow placed between your knees and another under your tummy. Check on the pillow between the knees {body pillow} but how the hell am I going to fit a pillow under my tummy without rolling off the bed?
• If your waist sags down into the bed {this implies there should always be a space there?}, try placing a small rolled up towel under your waist. I no longer have a waist. I cannot distinguish where waist begins or ends, except in the front where it is outlined by boobs and legs.

Turning over in bed

• To turn to your right while lying on your back, arch your lower back, tighten your pelvic floor muscles and lower abdominal muscles and bend both knees one by one.
• Turn your head to the right and take your left arm over to the right of your body. Hold onto the side of your bed if you can. Just like how grandma does it.
• To turn, pull with your left hand and take both knees over to the right so that you roll to the right. As soon as possible, bend your knees up as high as they will go – this helps to lock out your pelvis and lessen pain.
• Reverse this to turn to the left.  So many steps--I don't have 15 minutes to get out of bed.

Getting out of bed

• Roll onto your side {if we're following the rules, shouldn't we already be on our side?} with your knees bent up, move your feet over the edge of the bed and push yourself up sideways with your arms. I don't know about you, but I could barely get a set of pushups in when I was 15 lbs lighter.
• Reverse the process when you lie down.

Standing from a sitting position.

• Sit on the edge of the chair.
• Keeping your knees apart slightly and lean forwards till your head is directly over your knees {easier said than done}, keeping your back straight. {ditto}
• Stand up by pushing up with your arms, with your back straight and tummy tucked in {who are they kidding}. This helps to hold your pelvic joints in their most stable position and may reduce your pain significantly. You know what else would reduce my pain? Not being pregnant. Being 15 lbs lighter. Being able to move without a 12-step program.

-----------

All things aside, I think the world is telling me to get this checked out. About a week and a half ago {when all this falling apart started} I won a $250 gift certificate and hour long massage to a local chiropractic joint. Upon checking with the office I found out that they DO work on preggos and they WILL accept my insurance. #Winning. I've only been to the chiropractor once in high school where I was found to have two vertebre out of alignment and needed shock therapy for them to pop back in. Ever since, my back cracks on its own. Seriously. If I sit really still and breathe deeply, it'll snap crackle pop all the way down. Then there's the seated twisting I do to make it crack. Between the two, I may be addicted to aligning myself...it just feels so much better after. I do realize I'm probably screwing myself up for life. Flash forward 50 years and I'll be hunched to a mere 3.5 feet tall.

We'll see what doc has to say. How much work can they do on a pregnant lady? I'm thinking if they tied my feet to the ceiling fan I would feel better. Work them hips out a bit.

It's a.........!!!

Oh goodness it's been a while since I've been on! Take working 53+ hours a week for the past month straight and tack on 10 hours of driving time and I'm out of the house almost 65 hours a week doing work-related things. The agony! Who needs sleep? Between coming home crying every night to the hubs and repeatedly telling my boss I'll quit unless he buys me home internet access...I have officially lost my mind!

So dear followers, I'm sorry I've abandoned you. I really do appreciate your comments/emails of concern, as my last post was talking about the big ultrasound. Come to find out {yes, I actually did forget} I never revealed it to you!

Such lame excuses. I'm so disappointed in myself! This was meant to be a monumental moment in bloggy history! I feel like there's really no way to bounce back from such a dry spell than to tell you that baby Schutter is a....

GIRL!!!

And a very active and healthy one at that! We are beyond thrilled! She measured one day ahead of schedule, so my due date is now July 16th. We received the news after an hour or so into the ultrasound, she did NOT want to show us the goods {a trait I hope she holds on to til she's 30--ha!}. Anyways, Ross was so right about it being a girl and it hasn't taken long to have him wrapped around her finger. Soon as we got home he wanted to start cleaning out the nursery! I can't tell you how happy it makes me to know she's doing great. We'll find out what the doctor has to say at our next appointment on 3/16. As always, I'm praying for another good report!

How far along? 22 weeks!
Total weight gain: a whopping 14 lbs! someone hit a MAJOR growth spurt!
Maternity clothes? Thank goodness for all those deals a few weeks ago. Other than my usual black work pants paired with the belly band, nothing fits! My booty has expanded beyond all my jeans :( I'm sporting a few maternity tops, but mostly because the others are just a wee bit too short now.
Sleep: Great!

Best moment this week: Finding out baby Schutter is a SHE!
Miss Anything? Time for myself to rest and do something, anything, that I want to do. The ol' work schedule has not allowed for much of that lately. I'm looking forward to the next few weeks of Spring and a long weekend trip to Tennessee with my mamaw!

Movement: Oh jeez yes! "S" has officially joined the soccer team this week. I don't know what's gotten into her, but she's all over the place lately! I can feel her most around lunch time and just before bed. Her little punches have been such a blessing in that they take my mind off the chaotic mess this month has been.

Food cravings: Everything! I swear my appetite has exploded...just like my massive weight gain in the past few weeks. That, or it's that I've finally given up on Zumba and haven't really started my walking routine yet.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Leftovers. The whole idea of cold food is just weird to me.
Gender: A bouncing, healthy baby girl! For some reason my mind is so much more at ease knowing "S" is a she. I can't wait to snuggle her!
Labor Signs: No, though I did experience my first Braxton Hicks a few nights ago. I had just gotten home from my last Zumba class, and upon sitting down on the couch my guts and back got really tense for a few seconds. It didn't hurt, but the little twinge surprised me! I haven't had another episode since.

Symptoms: Gas in the am, and let's just say I miss being "regular". Must drink more water!
Belly Button in or out? In, but barely. I'm getting a bit flatter everyday. If I'm wearing a thin tank or tee, it looks like I have the belly button of a linebacker...sick.
Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy despite the stress!

Looking forward to: Visiting my cousin in Tennessee in 2 weeks!