Reason to Rejoice

So, by the title of this post, you know that I am, once again, in the hospital. My doctor's appointment did not go well yesterday. My blood pressure was 149/114 the first time and 179/98 the second time. I am dilated to almost 2 and 70% effaced. I was SUPER puffy yesterday...hands, face, and most drastic is my face! I noticed it when I woke up yesterday morning. So....my doctor sent me to the hospital and gave the impression that I would be having a baby soon....my thoughts after her talking was within the next week or so. I will be 37 weeks on Friday and the baby will not be premature at that point. So...my plan for March 12th may not work out after all but God knows what He is doing and I have to have faith that everything will be okay. We have a big baby girl at this point and hopefully her little lungs are getting ready for the world! So....last night, I slept better than I did the last time I was here...the bed...SO MUCH BETTER!! I was so sleepy from the night before...

Here is Baby Sister. This is the sonogram that I had last Wednesday. We had another on Monday but I liked this one better. All of the bubbles in front of her face is the umbilical cord. This is the only profile shot we have gotten the entire pregnancy. I think she looks pretty sweet! =)

What in the world would I do without my mother in law???? The question of the week! She has been such a big help with everything this week. She has done the dishes, picked up the house, cooked, and helped with Rachel...oh and has driven me where I have needed to go! Yesterday was quite challenging. Rachel has good days and bad days. Yesterday was not a good day. The interesting part is that she was only here for part of the day because she was Parent's Day Out from 9-2. She was just defiant, whiney, and just plain ornery. She wouldn't mind and I think I spanked her at least 4 times before Brice got home. She was awful! Oh, the days of a 2 year old..... Last night was not any easier. She started crying at about 1:00. Brice went in to check on her and she was crying uncontrollably so I went in to assist. She wanted Mommy. I sat in the floor with her in what is left of my lap and played with her hair until she quit crying. She had her fingers in her mouth so I thou...

Went to the doctor this morning. She said that my swelling is better and my blood pressure was 149/88. That isn't a great BP but it wasn't terrible either. I had a sonogram and she checked the amniotic fluid. Apparently, last week my fluid levels were low and I didn't know it. She said that it looks so much better today which was reassuring. I did tell her that I was having headaches pretty constant and that my ears were ringing but she said that if that came back or didn't go away with Tylenol and rest to go to the hospital. I have another appointment on Friday. I will continue seeing her twice a week and will continue to be on bed rest until we have munchkin...... which brings me to my next point..... She said that she will induce anytime after 37 weeks (of course, unless something goes worse between now and then). I will be 37 weeks on March 6th. Her next call date after then is March 12th which is almost another week after that. I will be 1 day shy of 38...

Well, here I am....still at home. I have to report that I am feeling much better. The headaches have subsided for the most part. I am still very very tired during the day and do not last an entire day without a nap. So, the orders were bed rest..no driving, no taking care of my child, no cooking, cleaning, etc....well, my husband has been very good the past couple of days. After my 2nd trip to the hospital with the overnight stay, I think he realized how important this is. My Aunt Donna had Rachel all day Thursday and Friday so last night Brice bought some cube steaks and cooked dinner for her and her family. He did an amazing job! It was AWESOME!!! He even made me peach cobbler that I requested. He did the dishes afterwards and everything. Today he made breakfast and dinner and brought it to me on the couch. He has been very good to make sure that Rachel doesn't get too be too much for me. I just love him! This past week has been crazy!!! I barely was able to see my...

WOW!!! This week I have been in the hospital, out of the hospital, to a doctor's appointment, told my unborn baby is the size of a term baby, sent back to the hospital, sent home again! WHEW! I am home.....on bed rest, once again. I go back to the doctor on Monday for another sonogram and visit with the doctor. If I get another excruciating headache that won't go away or if my swelling increases, I am to go back to the hospital....hopefully I won't have to do that.

I went to the doctor this morning and my blood pressure was bad again. I think she was actually more concerned with me having a headache for the past 3 days and Tylenol not touching it. So, I am back in the hospital for at least overnight. She said that she might let me go home tomorrow but said that it is possible that I might not go home since the hospital is a more controlled environment and I can maintain bedrest better here. I will know more tomorrow. I did have a sonogram today of the baby and SHE IS BIG!!! I am 34 weeks, 5 days pregnant and she measured 37 weeks, 4 days! That made her estimated weight and length to be 7 lbs, 4 oz, 20 1/4 inches long!!! WOAH!!! The goal at this point is to keep baby inside until 37 weeks to get her to term. That is a little over 2 weeks so we will have a baby soon!!! I will update sometime tomorrow when I know more.

I am going to make this short...I am sleepy and still don't feel well. I went to the doctor today because of headache and swelling. My blood pressure was 149/99. She sent me to the hospital for blood work. I came home b/c blood work was okay and my blood pressure got better but I am still on complete bed rest until the baby comes. I have another appointment on Wednesday morning with a sonogram. I will update more later. Please just keep us in your prayers. Rachel will have a hard time understanding why someone besides mommy is taking care of her and I am going to have a hard time being on bed rest with a toddler.

We had a very busy weekend! Friday night and Saturday morning we helped paint Granny's house which is now actually Aunt Donna's house. She will move in soon and it definitely needed some upgrades and repairs. Saturday afternoon Brice's parents came from Little Rock and we went to eat Catfish for Valentine's Day. It was EXACTLY what I wanted! I thoroughly enjoyed the company and the food. Yesterday was the baby shower. I just need to start by saying that I have some incredible friends and people in my life. The shower was so much fun and the decorations were so cute. The Lord moved us away from Arkansas....away from our comfort zone to a place where I thought I would feel at home since I grew up here. That was not the case for awhile...I missed Arkansas really bad. I still do miss Arkansas and all of my friends there but I have no doubt in my mind that we are where we are supposed to be. God has brought us to a place where we can minister to others and we hav...

So, we all (I am sure) make parenting decisions that might not work or be the wisest but that makes us human, right? Well, I had the bright idea of buying one of those little DVD holders that hold like 15 DVDs to put beside the TV in the living room. I did this because I am tired of walking upstairs everytime Rachel wants to watch a DVD. Call me lazy....Anyway, I bought one and put Rachel's DVDs in it. It has been a battle since.....she will not quit messing with them. She also (at some point in time) figured out how to put the DVDs in the DVD player. Well, I have done everything I know to do to make her quit besides taking the DVDs and putting them where she can't reach them. I am really trying to teach her a little self control. Well, yesterday I had a talk with her about not touching the DVD player. Well, she actually broke her favorite DVD...Baby Einstein Baby McDonald. She stepped on it and craked it. It is going to have to go in the trash. This is unfortunate ...

On Tuesday we switched from DirecTV to AT&T U-Verse. It was a big move for us because we really liked DirecTV. We have had it for over 4 years. But the prices and bundling options as well as extra features were enticing and so we had everything installed on Tuesday. Let me just say...WE LOVE IT!!! I haven't seen Brice this interested in something in a long time. He loves the way we can watch anything that we have recorded on any TV. He also found a game channel and has played it everyday. There are a few things about it that we find a little inconvenient but all in all we are happy with the switch thus far!

I had a very productive day yesterday. I dropped Rachel off at Parent's Day Out and then headed for Arlington. I went to the mall first with a few things in mind - pick up contacts that have been ordered and paid for since before Christmas, go by the Bare Minerals store and get some more makeup, and see if Motherhood Maternity had anything on sale. Got to the mall at about 9:20 and it wasn't open. Well, the building was open but not the stores but I was able to get my contacts because the doctor's office opens earlier. So, I got those and then left. I went to Kid To Kid to get the baby some headbands and bought a bow for her to wear home from the hospital. You know, because I don't have enough bows.....Anyway, beside the point. Then I went to Dixie's...ordered a friend's birthday gift. By then it was time for me to head to the doctor's office. Checkup went well. Blood pressure was GREAT!!!! You have absolutely no idea how thrilled I was to see th...

I had a great weekend! After the week I had it was nice to have sunshine and time with friends and family. First of all, the weather was absolutely beautiful! Saturday I went to Babies R Us with Krista and spent a lot of time there!!! She added some things to her registry and I bought quite a bit of things for the baby. They were having a huge sale and it was well worth it. I bought some things for breastfeeding that I am sure no one else is going to buy for me....just sayin. I got diapers for Rachel and for baby and some newborn clothes, etc....anyway, let me just say that I do not intend on buying anything else for baby until she is born...or at least until after the shower in a couple of weeks! I am so excited about my baby shower! Today we had church this morning and I have to say that I was not feeling really well. I was terribly uncomfortable all morning. When we got home, I took vitamins, Tylenol, ate lunch and took a MUCH NEEDED nap! I felt 100 times better when I go...