Boo hoo.

Phil. 4:6-7

Oh, friends. This week has been nuts. I left my 37 week baby appointment feeling pretty good considering my blood pressure was down. I was ready to ward off any suggestions of inducing because I desperately want this kid to come in his own time. I was feelin' alright! The next day was one for the books, though. I had two appointments scheduled for Abel and when my babysitter was a no call/no show, I scooped up both of the boys and headed off to the appointments with them in tow. Speech therapy was a bit of a disaster. The toys that the therapist wanted Abel to play with were precisely the ones that Kinley wanted to play with. She had no problems getting him to talk! It was so distracting and I could see the repercussions of bringing big bro on Abel's face. He was much less vocal when he had to share the stage with him. Meanwhile, I'm having regular, frequent contractions. I started to get worried on the way to the next appointment so I kept my eye on the clock as I drove and realized my contractions were 3-4 minutes apart. Come to think of it, I hadn't felt Baby M move in awhile. I called and cancelled the second appointment and my great aunt came over to watch the boys so I could go to my doctor and find out what was going on. Once I got there, he started moving about with all the poking and prodding and my mind was set at ease. They told me I was slightly dehydrated. I believed it! I had hardly had time to eat or drink that day. 

There were a few good days in between then and my next appointment for 38 weeks, but there were some rough ones, too. I still haven't stopped contracting, although they are obviously not as regular. The worst part is that I feel them in my back. No wait, the worst part is that THE CONTRACTIONS AREN'T DILATING ME. Braxton Hicks contractions that hurt and I find difficult to breathe through at times? This is for the birds, y'all.

Late last night, I was up for hours with flu-like symptoms and lots of more of the same. Because I had an appointment scheduled today, I decided to wait it out at home and see what was going on. I cancelled one of Abel's appointments this morning and tried to lay on the couch for most of the day, but have you ever tried to do this with two toddlers running around? It's nearly impossible. I yelled when I shouldn't have. My patience- out the window. Finally appointment time rolled around and I just couldn't wait to at least have someone else take over for awhile so I could go figure out what was going on. In my heart, I wanted Doc to tell me - "Wow, you're a four! Let's admit you and have a baby tonight." Instead what she told me was that I have a stomach bug and am really dehydrated. "If you're not significantly better by morning, we need to admit you to pump fluids into you." Boo hoo. Not at all what I wanted to hear.

Anyway, I'm truckin' along. I went to get some Gatorade and already feel a little better by chugging those. Water just wasn't doing the trick apparently. I'm hoping that these unpleasant symptoms will subside soon. I have a certain cutie pie who has his third birthday coming up this weekend! I hope we can make it special for him.

As always, thanks for following along with our lives and truly caring about my well-being. I'm continually blessed by each of you who leave nice words for me to sign in and read and by those who take time to send cards and words of encouragement. Y'all are the best. I appreciate you listening to me whine ;)

There's lots of info in this one little post.

Pretty stellar weekend to catch you up on, friends! Because weekend breaks don't truly exist for stay-at-home-moms, I'll just start on Thursday. I was having a crazy, busy week and was feeling a little stressed. There was the sedated ABR test coming up and also the gender scan at my doctor. Lots going on! My friend, Rachel, who I easily haven't seen since high school or (maybe) college came over with her girls to visit. It was good for my soul, y'all. She's a wonderful wife and mother and now I live only minutes away from her. It was so so nice to catch up and it makes my new little town feel a little less lonely to know that she's not far away. After she left, I felt a little more at ease about the busyness of this life instead of the opposite. How many people can make you feel that way? It's a gift.

Anyway, Friday was a big day, huge. We found out both good and bad news with Baby A. We got him up bright and early for his procedure and marched that cutie patootie to the OR with the tiniest little hospital gown. I was nervous, but it turned out I had no reason to be. They were done so quickly. The audiologist returned to our private waiting room shortly after leaving and said, "Guess who has two flaming red infections in both ears?" He just got rid of an ear infection (we thought)! This poor child has likely been suffering from them since birth. She suggested we hook up with the ENT again and get his opinion, but she sees tubes in his ears in his near future. She told us that he can't hear at all in his left ear and has only very minimal hearing in his right ear. The good news, though, is that she thinks he could regain that hearing after the fluid is moved off his ear. He will likely still be hearing impaired, but they were hopeful that this could help him tremendously. I'll continue to keep you updated. His next appointment is in early April. From there, hopefully we can get a date to insert tubes and re-perform the sedated ABR at the same time.

He was so exhausted after the test, he fell asleep on the floor. Never happens.

The emotional roller coaster that was that morning for me was about to get crazier because that afternoon I was heading to the doctor for an ultrasound. There, they would tell me that I was having a boy or girl. I really had no clue what it was going to be. I sat down, rubbed the goopy solution all over my belly and anxiously waited as the tech turned on the sound so I could hear the heartbeat. swish, swish, boom. The heart rate was beating at around 144. It was then that I knew it was a boy. She told me about ten minutes later to confirm in my heart. I'm a mama to three perfect, beautiful boys. I never dreamed I could be so blessed!

Honestly, I was hoping for pink but now I am just so excited for another boy. I don't need a daughter, do I? These boys are sweet and I will be the best mom I can to them. Last night, I just couldn't stop thinking about the nursery, baby boy names, and all the fun things that come with this exciting time in our lives. I'm so excited that I don't really need to buy anything! Ha ;)

Friday night was fun, too. My dad and step-mom stayed for dinner (they had spent the night on Thursday to watch Cray K for us while we were at the hospital with Baby A). They brought pretty blue flowers and chocolate to celebrate a new baby boy in the family! We had dinner and talked and it was so nice because we hadn't been able to get together since Christmas! 

Cray K was a little terror that night. We've had such a hard time reigning in his personality since the upheaval of the nap time schedule. He loses his mind around 3pm every day. Smacking, grunting, pouting, pitching fits. It has been awful. AWFUL. I knew on Friday that something had to change and that what we were doing was not working. Yesterday, I decided YOU WILL TAKE A NAP OR ELSE and guess what? Sweet victory. He cried in his crib for about 20 minutes, but he finally fell asleep and I didn't feel guilty in the slightest. This kid needs sleep. He's a monster without it. Yesterday afternoon, my sweet eldest was back, rested and happy. It was a new leaf around here. I got so much done!

Gosh, where was I? Saturday, oh yes. We didn't do a lot during the day but that night we called up our trusty babysitter so that we could have ourselves a good ole date night. We went to see Divergent (of course) and it was good. I liked it.

Please excuse my crazy eyes. I don't get out without the kids much. #excited

Sunday it was time for church. Then Monday came and now here we are at Tuesday. I'm back to the grind without my sidekick who is off on a business trip for a couple days this week. I shall try to make the best of it! I hope you all had a good week and if you made it this far in this post- God bless ya. You really must be bored or interested in my life. Thanks. You're the best.

Love,

Thoughts on Baby #3 and Friday Link Love

Thank you all so much for the congrats and in case you haven't heard:

We are expecting! I tend to tell people when these things come about because I'm just so excited and because, well, I'm a writer. I need to write. I need to document. My feelings get all sorted out this way. While this was such a beautiful surprise for us, it's also a little scary. I wonder what the transition from two to three will be like! We'll be outnumbered after all. It was a surprise, but we do want a big family and so this is just perfect for us. We know these years will be precious and fleeting and perhaps a bit crazy, but we are thrilled to have this blessing and a new adventure as a family of five. I'm newly pregnant so of course I would appreciate your prayers for a healthy baby. I won't be going to the doc until after Christmas because the schedule was just too crazy, but I'll know more then. I wanted to share our news on social media because I knew if anything happened to this precious life I wouldn't grieve silently. I'd have to write about it. We are hoping and praying that this little one grows to a healthy, happy babe in about 8 months. Thank you for your support and love! Also:

It's time again for...

1. It's nearly Christmas and I still haven't done my annual (virtual) Christmas List! My husband really depends on that, but I just haven't had time. I thought I'd throw this in the ring, though. I want P90X3! Get ripped in 30 minutes? Surely I can do that ;) Anyway, here's my favorite Beachbody lady, fellow blogger, Alana!
2. Also in the spirit of Christmas, my favorite web designer posted a Joy To The World free printable! It's pretty. I'd print it if we had any colored ink left. Ink cartridge is on my list of "crap to get".
3. If you don't make any other cookie this holiday season, make this one! My mom makes the best thumbprint cookie EVER. Not an exaggeration. You will definitely want to hop in that kitchen ;)

Anyway, what else did I miss on the world wide web today? Send me the good things you've found!

Maternity Photo Shoot

A local photographer asked me to help build up her portfolio by taking some maternity and newborn shots. I was thrilled! Well, initially I wasn't THAT excited about photos of myself as I feel like a big fat cow....

but after promising we wouldn't do any bare belly shots or anything like that, she talked me into posing for her and I'm so glad I did. It was really fun! I got a break from Cray K and some much needed girl time in. It was so nice to have someone new to chat with. I am pleased with the photos she captured, too. Here's a little preview-

If you're in the area, be sure to look up Jaclyn Culver Photography on Facebook.

Anyway, I don't have a lot to say today, but you can find me here if you'd like-

I'm off to enjoy one of my last days as a family of three. Captain J is off work so I'm happy to have this time with him...if he would just quit tickling me!

We'll chat soon.
XOXO,

Look out, pregnant lady down!

How did this cute, energized, feelin' good preggo lady

29 Weeks

end up completely disoriented on the floor of the hospital?

Well, I'll tell you. It all started with this:

Yes, the dreaded glucose test. I wasn't worried in the slightest about this little procedure. In hindsight, I think I should have been. I waltzed into the Army hospital with my cute ThirtyOne bag in hand, filled to the brim with school work I have yet to do. I wasn't about to waste this required hour simply sitting around in a waiting room.

For those of you who don't have a clue what I'm talking about:

"They" give you this ominous orange liquid that's incredibly sweet and disgusting. You have five minutes to down it. Then you must wait around for an hour and ponder why your husband put you in this predicament. After an hour has elapsed, you are then taken to a room where "they" will draw your blood.

Easy peasy, right?

WRONG!

After about 30 minutes, I began to feel very uncomfortable. It seemed ten degrees hotter than the minute before. I reached up to gather my hair from touching my neck and fan myself. Whew! Dizziness, too.

I put my books and notes away, willing myself not to puke all over the waiting room.

There were tons of people in there, as usual so I definitely didn't want to purge the system for all to see. A visit to the hospital is bad enough.

For the sake of everyone in the room, I decided I would go to the bathroom and lose my lunch there. I was quite bummed as I stood up because I was going to have to do this all over again, as tossing my cookies would void the test.

I grabbed my bag and made my way through the crowd into a not-so-crowded hallway where the bathroom was only steps away. Only...

I didn't quite make it.

Black spots everywhere. Elephants seemingly taking up residence on my brain. Heat. Head circles. Yuck.

Look out, pregnant lady down.

I woke up to a man staring at me and then calling for help. Then big, bad Army guys lifting me up and showering me with cold compresses, water, and lots of smiles. Were they laughing at me?

I felt so dumb. The women seemed frantic. The men were overly attentive. I was just hopelessly embarrassed. Of all the doctor appointments for Captain J not to go to! Of course, I'd completely lose it at this one.

Apparently, I didn't fall, so that's good. I also never painted the hospital green either, another plus. I got to continue with the test. Results forthcoming.

Blah. What a day.

P.S. - For other Ralphing terms, visit this website and expand your vocabulary as I just did.