almost 31 weeks...

My Dr's appt went well yesterday.

I'm still measuring a week further along, maybe that means he'll come a week earlier? *hoping*
Baby is head down and doc expects that he'll stay that way.

The no-sleep thing is continuing to be a problem. I feel like my brain is mush and I can't concentrate. I'm trying Tylenol PMs for now. If that doesn't work well enough, then the doc will likely prescribe Ambien... so we'll just have to wait and see.



We are getting geared up for the 4th of July weekend. Lots of fun stuff for the kids!!! Just hoping that the weather holds out for us and we have lots of sunshine!

Restless Leg Syndrome sucks!!!

I think I've averaged about 3 hours of sleep each night for the past 3 nights.
I get RLS (Restless Leg Syndrome) while pregnant in the 3rd trimester.

I feel so completely drained and exhausted but as soon as I start to doze off into sleep, that creepy crawly feeling in my legs wakes me up.
I had a breakdown 2 nights ago and cried for about an hour because I was so tired and frustrated.


On another note...
Mickey Mouse is doing great. We are officially in the 3rd trimester homestretch now. He's getting a lot stronger and loves to kick me in the ribs. I know he's getting squished and uncomfortable in there but I don't think he realizes that making me uncomfortable isn't going to help. HAHAHA!
We've got about 2 1/2 months to go. Time is really going by quickly and the kids are more and more interested every day.

Just the other day, Millie was taking a shower with me and cupped her hands over my belly and said "Wow, you're belly is getting so big cause Mickey Mouse is growing".
This pregnancy has been so much fun with the kids, especially Millie. She really grasps the concept of what's going on.

My ever growin' belly...

I may soon have to start rearranging furniture in order to fit this belly. I have a hard time remembering that I can't very well squeeze into tight places anymore...
or bend very easily
or play without shortness of breath
or go anywhere without a bathroom because I need to pee every 10 minutes.

I suck...

It's been frickin' FOREVER since I've updated my blog! OOPS!
Where has the time gone???

Let's see here:
I'm 24 weeks now!
We are having a boy!
He has a name but we are keeping it a secret!
The kids call him Mickey Mouse!
I'm craving Mexican food ALL THE TIME! So if you come to visit me, bring me some please!

The kids are GREAT!
Millie just has another month of this school year left.
Millie is VERY interested in writing letters now.
Maccoy's ECFE (like Mommy and Me) class ended last week.
His favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz!
They are both getting so tall (but still small compared to their peers).

Lucas is still working rotating shifts.
Hopefully that will change within the next 5 years. ????
He indulges my EVERY CRAVING, I'm surprised I haven't gained more weight by now.
He's back on a steady work-out plan, he took a much needed break for a little while.

We are doing some home upgrades:
We had AC installed a couple weeks ago, that will be so nice when I'm fat and HOT this summer!
I think we will be putting up some fencing soon also, we need to keep the kids corralled.
We got rid of our piano and freed up some much needed space in the living room.
I'm trying to de-clutter a little at a time. Yep, NESTING has begun!

I think that about covers the most important stuff!
I'll try harder to keep this place updated!

Lots of Love, Char

Blogging Brain Block...

Everytime I sit here to write a new blog, I realize that there's so much to catch up on and that I don't have the time to "write" it all down.

Just know that we are all ok.
I'm sick AGAIN! 2 stomach bugs and a cold all in one month's time.
Lucas is out of town and I miss him so much
My baby girl- Millie- turned 4 yesterday.
Maccoy just impresses us everyday with his vocabulary.
Mini Rice has a strong heartbeat and I'm starting to feel some tiny flutters and thumps.

I need some warm weather NOW! I'm sick of the frigid air.

I could just cry....

tears of happiness and relief!

These past 9 weeks have been an emotional roller-coaster wreck!
I'm not sure if it was the supplemented progesterone or what, but I have been hormonally unstable, aka SUPER BITCH!
Constantly yelling at my husband and kids, no patience whatsoever, even wondering why I wanted so badly to bring another child into this world when I couldn't even enjoy the ones I already have!

But this past week has been a breakthrough! I've found some patience, I can actually talk to people at a normal volume and without a pissy tone of voice. I'm again enjoying everything that made me happy before!
This revelation couldn't have come at a better time, I seriously thought that I needed anti-anxiety medication.

And although I seem to be MORE tired over the past week, I've actually found the energy and motivation to start cleaning my house from top to bottom. Yesterday was the bathroom, today has been in, on, under, and around my couch, as well as scrubbing some of my floors on hands and knees (I know, my ass in the air is not the picture you wanted in your head).

Thank GOD for hormonal balance!

All's well that ends with... NAPTIME!

That is, for the kids.

Naptime is MY time and here lately, I NEED lots of naptime. Too bad the kids only sleep for a couple hours.

Naptime is for:
Taking baths, online surfing, sewing MacPacks, reading, no talking, eating lunch without little fingers picking at my food, sometimes sex, cleaning (did I really say that?), being really quiet and praying the kids will sleep for a long time, and on rare occasion- taking a nap myself.

There's just not enough naptime hours in the day.

it's 12:22- 8 more minutes till the kids go down for nap!

Can you direct me to the nearest..... BED

The only thing I have to report is that the nausea is getting worse, a great sign of healthiness for the pregnancy.
In fact, the nausea is worse this time around than what it was with Millie and Maccoy. Is it because I'm more tired (they say tiredness attributes to nausea), or maybe because I'm not doing well at heading off the nausea by keeping something in my stomach.
Oh, and the ginger is NOT working as well as I'd like it to.

In any case, I know it'll all get better in just a few SHORT weeks.
It's already been 3 weeks (tomorrow) since my positive pregnancy test. I think I'm still in shock. Even though I feel sick, the reality of it hasn't set in yet.


We are headed to The Cities this weekend for some fun at a Water Park Hotel and The Mall of America. The kids are very excited.
I am too, my FAVORITE restaurant is there. It's this awesome Vietnamese place! YUMMY- I'm salivating already!
I'm also hoping to get a little shopping in (not that I really need anything at the moment). Owell, shopping always makes me feel good.

Pass the ginger, please...

Morning (all day) sickness has hit me!
Now, I'm fortunate I know that I'm not actually throwing up. But the all day nausea is kinda difficult with 2 other young ones running around.

Thank goodness that Millie is old enough to understand about me not feeling 100%. I've already explained that sometimes momma will feel sleepy and like throwing up, but it's ok- that means the baby is growing big and strong. She totally gets it. And today she comes downstairs with her stuffed moose exclaiming that "Olivia (the moose's name) has a baby in her tummy and she feels like throwing up", I cracked up!

So, I've been sleeping with my crystallized ginger next to my head, when I wake up, I immediately pop one and wait a few minutes to get up. I totally believe ginger is the nausea miracle food!

With my previous pregnancies, the nausea lasted from 6-11 weeks.
1 day down, 34 to go!

New Blood Work Results!

just to re-cap:
14 dpo #s:
HCG-433
Progesterone- 55.2

HCG should approximately double every 48 hours...

and the results for 18 dpo:
HCG- 2069
Prog- 46.9


YAY!!!!
The HCG #s are higher than average for my current weeks gestation.

...and here's a picture of what a 5 week old fetus looks like (only much smaller than what is shown):