30 Weeks

I've been told twice this week that I actually "look" pregnant now.

Hmmm...I wonder what I've been looking like until now? :)

Either way, I can't deny that Mr. Hudson has definitely decided to stick it out there.

Highlights of this week:

• Sleep is still not my friend.
• The gestational diabetes diet is still going strong. Though, I must admit I've been not-so-secretly coveting my students' sweets.
• I wonder if I could call in "clumsy" to work. So far this morning, I have managed to drop everything (seriously, everything) I have touched. I came thisclose to pouring lemonade in my cheerios instead of milk.
• Spring Break can't come any faster.
• I'm super excited about there only being 10 weeks left. In actually, since I'm having a C-Section, it's probably more like 8 weeks - yahoo!

It's all relative in the WV

This weekend, we traveled the 6 hours to Logan, WV for an intimate Baby Shower with James' family. It was such a blessing to see everyone. Enjoy the pictures and feel the love:


Cousin Mel started the shower out with a sweet song.

The gift table. The Henlawson VA Center was the locale, hence all the patriotic decor. James' Dad is now the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corp League. I honestly have no idea what that means, but everyone was pretty excited about it :)

Opening gifts, we had two little helpers: Kay and Hay, the daughters of James' Cousin Kelli. They were such great helpers bringing us the presents, helping us open them, throwing away the trash, and even explaining to James just what exactly this little froggie bath cover-up is for.

We got lots of monkey attire. Unbeknownst to me, while James had the scanner at Babies R Us, apparently he got a little too loose with registering for monkey gear. Crazy Man. It's OK though, Hudson will surely be an adorable little monkey.

James and his oldest cousin, Alden and his wife, Thelma. We visited with them after the shower and James and Alden literally talked for 4.5 hours straight - no lie. Alden is almost 81 years old and is a disabled Korean Vet. He and James discussed politics, movies (he used to run the movie theatre for the coal mines as a teenager), family history, etc... Meanwhile, sweet Thelma and I hung out and laughed at them.


Me with James' first cousin, Kim and her son, Trey.


Me and James' Sister, Hudson's Auntie Marney.


Me and James' Mom, Hudson's Granna.


We gave Granna a Grandmother's Bible in honor of her first grandson, Hudson. She liked it a lot.

29 Weeks

Check out that bump - geez louise!

See the bags under my eyes? Yeah, sleep is not my friend right about now. Actually, I would LOVE to be BFFs with sleep but apparently sleep doesn't want to hang out. Between heartburn, having to pee every four hours on the dot, nightsweats, and general uncomfortableness - I'm not sleeping very well. Sigh. I'm trying to take the high road and consider it the Lord's preparation for when Hudson arrives and sleep will be illusive then as well.

I had my 6-week follow-up with Dr. V, the thyroid doc. Good news again - my thyroid loves pregnancy - yahoo!

Stats from Dr. V:

Weight: 125.8, which is up .8 pound from my last OB two weeks ago.
BP: 109/65 (very pleased)

O2 Level: 100 (despite the nasty sneezing I've been doing lately)

Thyroid: 1.15 (normal is between 1 and 2)

Best of all - I get to not see her until 6 weeks (no offense, Dr. V)

The gestational diabetes diet is going well. My blood sugar is holding steady. I've had a few high and low readings, but overall my average is somewhere around 90. Of course, as Murphy's Law would dictate, it would seem that everywhere I look there's food I can't eat. Recently, I have been offered ice cream and a lollipop from two of my students (which I graciously denied and let them eat), given a free dessert (which I watched James eat) at KFC since they messed up our order, and ignored a mission trip bake-sale at school.

The next two weekends are going to be crazy busy with visiting family in WV this weekend and TN next. Gotta get in all that traveling before I'm too big to travel long distances safely.

28 Weeks

Yeah, so I'm bad at getting these up on time - but this is me in all my 28-weeks pregnant glory. I am big and am going to get bigger - lol.
See this weirdness. I call it my "cone belly." Hudson likes to stretch and when he does - out pops my belly. James says he's squished and is trying to make more room in there. Who knows? It does make for an interesting baby bump at times, particularly when he pushes out on both sides simultaneously.

Sunday, our friends Mr. & Mrs. O brought us a wonderful gift - a baby bed and changing table dresser. This sweet set was used by all three of their children. There are even little teeth marks in the rails from their kids - haha. I'm sure Hudson will add his to it soon enough. (Who knew having a kid was like having a puppy?) It's a convertible bed which will switch from a baby bed to a toddler bed to a full-size bed. Sweetness.

Check them out:

And the new fancy, shmancy mattress is from Mrs. B. One side is extra firm for use while a baby and the other side is a tad softer for use while a toddler.
Don't worry, we'll eventually move the internet stuff to another room but for now - one step at a time.

Education

Today I went to a gestational diabetes class at Norton Suburban. I was pretty nervous about it and am sad to say that I cried twice (darn hormones!). But overall, it was well worth it and I learned a lot.

Here's some of what I learned:

1) I don't eat enough. Sitting with the dietician and writing down what I typically eat and looking at what she wants me to eat - I don't eat enough. I am the queen of skipping meals (horrible, I know). If I'm not hungry or get busy, I just don't think about food. This will have to stop. 3 meals and 3 snacks a day are in my future.

2) When I do eat, what I eat isn't the best for me. I'm low on protein and fat and high in carbs, which is pretty much the opposite of what I'll be doing from now on.

3) I am a wimp. The RN came in to show me how to use a glucose monitor as I now have to check my sugar four times a day. I know how to do it since my Mom was diabetic, but she made me practice anyway. I had to close my eyes to push the button on the stick to prick my finger. Geez Louise - I am such a sissy.

The Lord was kind to make special provisions at today's class just for me, I think. Praises to God for blessings at today's class include:

1) It was small - just the RN, the dietician, another pregnant lady, and myself. This afforded lots of opportunity for asking questions, getting to know each other, etc...

2) The RN was awesome. Though not old enough to be my mother, she was very motherly with me, which I think is what I needed today.

3) Medassist at Norton. With having no insurance, no one was sure how much this class would cost me. The normal co-pay is $150 with insurance. After class, the RN walked me down to the Medassist office to talk with them about financial assistance. Sadly, they had already left for lunch, but I am to contact them and get the ball rolling.

4) Samples. They give you a glucose monitor at the class. That's all you're supposed to get and that's all the other lady got. The sweet RN brought my monitor and a box of enough lancets to last me through the rest of my pregnancy and a month's worth of strips. She didn't make a big deal out of it (another evidence of her and the Lord's kindness), and I definitely appreciate her thoughtfulness.

So in an hour and a half (I just ate lunch at 11) I get to start my glucose log and write down my first official blood sugar test result (It was 73 when I tested it with the RN, but that was 3 hours after breakfast). Yahoo - here's hoping the change in diet works and I can avoid medicine.

The Lord is kind and compassionate...

Psalm 145:8

10 Reasons Why Having a Boy Scares Me to Death

All that stretching and kicking must be super tiring, huh?

10) It's a HUGE responsibility. Not unlike having girls, mind you - but it'll be our job to teach him how to be a man. How exactly do you do that?

9) What if he's sporty? James and I are, ahem, not exactly athletically-inclined.

8) Boys tend to be hyper; very hyper.

7) While we won't have to fight the modesty battle, we will have to prepare him to interact with a world in which modesty among girls is not cherished or even encouraged. A few weeks ago this thought hit me so I asked James how exactly we were going to protect Hudson from being distracted by girls in immodest clothing. He shook his head and laughed at me. Apparently I know little of what it's like to be a boy/man. Time to start praying for his purity now!

6) I really don't want to end up with a pansy son. Read this blog post for good laughs and thought-provoking parenting tips: http://dannyfranks.wordpress.com/2010/02/23/topical-tuesday-raising-pansies/

5) Boys get hurt. They tend to be more adventurous and risk-taking. While I definitely want to encourage "boy" behavior (remember, no Pansy Hudson allowed), I fear that we'll end up with many trips to the ER as the result. How will I know when to take him to the doc and when to have him "walk it off?"

4) No offense to you Thomas fans, but have you ever watched an episode of Thomas the Train? Bore.me.to.tears. Boys usually LOVE Thomas.

3) While I do love my husband and the man he is and is becoming - I have heard horror (and I mean horror) stories about the trouble he got into as a little boy. From pouring an entire bottle of dishwashing detergent on the floor to "skate," to trapping his sister in a toy box for hours while his mom looked for her, to running away while on vacation via climbing out the hotel balcany...if Hudson gets James' personality - I'm in BIG trouble. Come on God, I was a decent kid, let him get my temperment, please - pretty please.

2) He's gonna pee on me and I just know it. I have an issue with body fluids - sends chills up my spine.

1) I will be the example of what he looks for in a wife. That's a huge responsibility and I no-where-near measure up to what I want for him. Thankful for the Lord's sanctification and praying he makes me into the believer, wife, and mother that my Hudson needs to see.

27 Weeks

Today marks 27 weeks - the last week of my second trimester.

Here are the stats from yesterday's glucose testing appointment:

My weight - 125 pound. Up one pound from last month, up 12 pounds total. I was kinda disappointed because I felt like I should have gained more, but apparently I am mistaken as my doctors couldn't be more happy.

My BP: 120/80

Hudson's Heart Rate: 148 bpm

Like usual, there was protein in my urine. Sigh. But Dr. S encouraged me saying that the protein (an indication of this never-ending UTI) won't hurt Hudson. If my BP gets elevated it would be a sign of toxemia, but my BP has been great (despite the few episodes of white coat/Lackey lateness). So apparently that's just me and she isn't worried so I shouldn't worry.

Today was rather discouraging as they called to say the results from my glucose testing weren't good. After drinking the lovely orange concoction, my blood sugar was 197 and apparently that's really high. The OB Nurse said it was high enough that I don't even warrant doing the longer, fasting-glucose test. So off to a diabetes class on Friday I go (thankfully I have the day off - thanks God for planning that in advance for me.)

It's not a huge surprise to me. First, I know I don't eat the best diet (I heart all things crunchy, which are generally of the carb-variety). Second, diabetes is all over my family: my mom had it, my dad has it, my paternal grandpa and maternal grandma had it; one look at my family tree will show every branch as sugar coated! Third, my doc had already warned me that having PCOS and taking metformin for a year before conceiving put me at a higher risk for developing gestational diabetes. Fourth, Hudson's consistenly weighed in a tad chubbier than normal, so I had a feeling something might be up.

Oh well, I'm hoping that by changing my diet (bye bye sweet carbs) and exercising a bit, it'll be OK. Overall though I am thankful that my docs are cautious and taking things seriously. While I do love carbs, I love Hudson more and will gladly give them up for my boy!

In honor of the last week of my second trimester, check out this collage of pictures ranging from 15 weeks to 26 weeks. It's wild how much my belly has grown! Grow, Hudson grow!

10 Reasons Why I'm Glad to be Having a Boy

Love that little face so much!

10) Chivalry Lessons! Eventually (give it a couple of years or so until he's bigger) there will be TWO boys (ok, one boy and one man) to hold the door for me, carry in groceries, and generally be gentlemanly. I like that I'm a girl :)

9) I like that if we have more children (which I'm praying I can squeeze out at least one more) that a son will be first. I hope it develops his "protector/provider" gene a little more. First-born girls seem to be a tad bossy, from my experience as a teacher.

8) The Lackey surname will continue. I'm not sure why this is so important to me, but it is...I guess I'm "old school."

7) We won't have to fight the modesty battle when it comes to buying him clothes. Have you seen the clothes stores sell for little girls? Shake.my.head.

6) Based on my experience as an elementary school teacher, I think boys are easier. Yes, they tend to be more hyper but I think that in the attitude/drama depeartment, they tend to be a tad easier going.

5) James will have a fishing buddy and it won't be me! I am no good at fishing at all, hence I dislike it fairly intensely. Hopefully Hudson will enjoy the outdoors because James will be crushed if he doesn't.

4) I don't mind dirt and boys tend to enjoy being dirty.

3) I really like legos and am looking forward to building stuff with my son.

2) While I'm sad that I'll miss out on hair-bows and such (unless the Lord blesses with a girl later) I adore little boy hair - the crew cuts, the curly mops (I'm not-so-secrely hoping he gets my curly hair), whatever - they are just too cute!

1) Sons LOVE their mothers. From all the "Moms of Boys" I know, this is a common comment. Like #10, it really all comes down to me - haha.

Sons are a heritage from the Lord,

children a reward from him.

Psalm 127:3

26 Weeks

Technically, I'm almost 27 weeks but hey - better late than never, right?

Highlights from this week:

• 3D Ultrasound was amazing, even if Hudson was less than cooperative. I find myself just staring at his pictures. I'm going to be good for nothing once he's born.
• Pregnancy Brain struck big time this week as I realized on Friday, 1 hour before our 3D Ultrasound that I had failed to fill out a teacher absence request form. Oops. Thankfully, Mrs. Beth (the school secretary) is so kind and gracious and Mrs. Morris (the school sub) is also very understanding and they didn't give me too hard of a time about it. I'm hoping after Hudson's born my ability to multi-task and organize my life return.
• I have pretty much out-grown my favorite maternity pants. Sigh.
• I feel like I swallowed a basketball. At times, it feels like Hudson's playing said basketball in my womb. Walking at times is difficult because I guess depending on how he's laying I feel a ton of pressure on my lower abdomen/bladder which is quite uncomfortable. Thankfully, it comes and goes.
• I still can't believe we're having a baby.

Praises this week:

• The FREE 3D Ultrasound - such a blessing!
• All baby showers have been scheduled which is pretty exciting. I so look forward to seeing friends and family.
• Goodwill is cool. I got Hudson a little outfit he should be able to wear his first Christmas, for a whopping $1.50. Pretty awesome.
• Yesterday, James and I went to our first childbirth/baby care class at the local hospital. I actually learned quite a bit and look forward to the other classes for which I'm signed up to attend.

Prayers for this coming week:

• Glucose testing is Tuesday afternoon.
• We really, really, really need to get his room cleared out. Gotta get motivated.

"A person's a person, no matter how small." - Dr. Seuss

First, Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss! I think the Seuss quote in the title is fitting as I present the awesome pictures of Hudson from today's free 3D Ultrasound.



Here's Hudson's little face.

See this craziness? This would be the position Hudson decided to lay in during the ultrasound. His head was basically in my ribs and his butt on my bladder. He had both legs pulled up over his head, one arm behind his head, and was holding a leg with his other arm. My baby is weird...and flexible.

Hudson yawning. Melt.My.Heart.

His face again. See that foot almost covering his right eye?

And finally, a butt shot. Yep, he's a boy.

He was quite the stubborn baby and kept turning over facing my back. The ultrasound tech was literally smacking my belly with the wand trying to get him to flip around, but alas. At one point James asked her if being stubborn in utero was a predictor of being stubborn after birth. She laughed and answered, "Uh huh." Great :)