Another week gone by...and since this one involved a trip to the doctor’s office, there’s just so much to share! Well, not that much, it was kind of a boring visit, but still...
First up, on Tuesday I went in for my 6-month check-up. My doctor was her normal self, friendly, informative, open to any and all questions...and since I had my 7 ear-old daughter along, there were LOTS of questions! Just kidding. J didn’t really ask as many questions as I thought that she might ask...must have gotten shy on the doctor for some reason. But the doctor had lots of paperwork information for me...which is why I said that this visit was sort of boring.
She talked to us about cord blood banking a little bit and sent us home with a whole BAG of information on the subject. B and I haven’t had a chance to review it yet...but this is not something that I did with J. Not that not doing it before means I won’t do it this time...but still. We need to read the information and make a decision about that within the next few months.
Next, she talked to us about finding a pediatrician. Since we already have kids, it’s a given that we have a pediatrician that we know and love, but still, this is the visit when you need to start thinking about finding one if this is your first child...so she was thorough and mentioned it to me.
Then she hit me with the hospital pre-registration forms. It’s another whole BOOK of paperwork for me to fill out and fax in. Yikes. I remember that with my daughter I registered at the hospital early...but don’t remember it being THIS early! Still, since you can deliver early with complications or something, it’s best to go ahead and get this stuff filled out and sent in. I’ll work on it tomorrow. Or this weekend, I promise.
Then she and I went over my work’s STD forms...that felt funny typing!...since the last time I was pregnant I worked somewhere that didn’t offer maternity leave, this is not a process that I’m familiar with. I wanted to make sure that I got the forms to her in plenty of time for her to fill them out so that I can turn them in to my HR department by the correct date. Unfortunately, although I had meant to put them in my car and take them with me, I forgot them at the last minute. So I’ll drop them off for her sometime next week so that maybe she’ll have them all filled out for my by my next appt.
And that was the last thing that we covered...my next appt includes the short glucose test. Since I had no problems with glucose levels during my previous pregnancy, this isn’t a huge concern for her at the moment. Hopefully, the short test will go well, and I’ll avoid the longer test...just like I did during my last pregnancy. But that’s not until next month, so I’ll worry about that blood draw another day – you know me! Saying that I’m not a fan of needles would be the understatement of the year! Lucky for me, I didn’t really think that the test itself was that bad almost 8 years ago...the juice wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst. The shakiness passed, and I didn’t pass out during the blood draw...good times all around. We’ll be crossing our fingers for the same outcome next month!
Then we discussed my aches and pains to make sure that they were all normal – they are. She recommended Tylenol PM to me for help sleeping, but since I used that while pregnant with my daughter, I was one step ahead of her. Luckily, I didn’t have to use it every night, but once every few nights to help me sleep. She also encouraged me to take Benadryl to help me sleep...both safe for the baby.
Lastly, we discussed my weight gain...or lack thereof. It’s not alarmingly low when you consider my pregnancy history with my daughter, so she’s cutting me some slack. And she’s thrilled that I’m moving in the right direction finally...but she’d like to see my weight a little higher. Hmmm...does that mean to eat more cupcakes? OK!!! Sign me up!!! Just kidding. I got a chart from here to track my weight gain and show you all the stats...and you can see for yourself (my weight gain is the green line) that it’s low. Which is good for me, and not necessarily bad for the baby yet. There are no signs of distress, and the fact that you can already feel his kicks on the outside is a great sign that baby boy is happy and healthy and getting all that he needs right now.
The top blue line is the high end of pregnany weight gain, with the bottom blue line the low end of pregnancy gain. Even if the chart is too small to see clearly, it's easy to see that my green line is below the lowest...First up, on Tuesday I went in for my 6-month check-up. My doctor was her normal self, friendly, informative, open to any and all questions...and since I had my 7 ear-old daughter along, there were LOTS of questions! Just kidding. J didn’t really ask as many questions as I thought that she might ask...must have gotten shy on the doctor for some reason. But the doctor had lots of paperwork information for me...which is why I said that this visit was sort of boring.
She talked to us about cord blood banking a little bit and sent us home with a whole BAG of information on the subject. B and I haven’t had a chance to review it yet...but this is not something that I did with J. Not that not doing it before means I won’t do it this time...but still. We need to read the information and make a decision about that within the next few months.
Next, she talked to us about finding a pediatrician. Since we already have kids, it’s a given that we have a pediatrician that we know and love, but still, this is the visit when you need to start thinking about finding one if this is your first child...so she was thorough and mentioned it to me.
Then she hit me with the hospital pre-registration forms. It’s another whole BOOK of paperwork for me to fill out and fax in. Yikes. I remember that with my daughter I registered at the hospital early...but don’t remember it being THIS early! Still, since you can deliver early with complications or something, it’s best to go ahead and get this stuff filled out and sent in. I’ll work on it tomorrow. Or this weekend, I promise.
Then she and I went over my work’s STD forms...that felt funny typing!...since the last time I was pregnant I worked somewhere that didn’t offer maternity leave, this is not a process that I’m familiar with. I wanted to make sure that I got the forms to her in plenty of time for her to fill them out so that I can turn them in to my HR department by the correct date. Unfortunately, although I had meant to put them in my car and take them with me, I forgot them at the last minute. So I’ll drop them off for her sometime next week so that maybe she’ll have them all filled out for my by my next appt.
And that was the last thing that we covered...my next appt includes the short glucose test. Since I had no problems with glucose levels during my previous pregnancy, this isn’t a huge concern for her at the moment. Hopefully, the short test will go well, and I’ll avoid the longer test...just like I did during my last pregnancy. But that’s not until next month, so I’ll worry about that blood draw another day – you know me! Saying that I’m not a fan of needles would be the understatement of the year! Lucky for me, I didn’t really think that the test itself was that bad almost 8 years ago...the juice wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst. The shakiness passed, and I didn’t pass out during the blood draw...good times all around. We’ll be crossing our fingers for the same outcome next month!
Then we discussed my aches and pains to make sure that they were all normal – they are. She recommended Tylenol PM to me for help sleeping, but since I used that while pregnant with my daughter, I was one step ahead of her. Luckily, I didn’t have to use it every night, but once every few nights to help me sleep. She also encouraged me to take Benadryl to help me sleep...both safe for the baby.
Lastly, we discussed my weight gain...or lack thereof. It’s not alarmingly low when you consider my pregnancy history with my daughter, so she’s cutting me some slack. And she’s thrilled that I’m moving in the right direction finally...but she’d like to see my weight a little higher. Hmmm...does that mean to eat more cupcakes? OK!!! Sign me up!!! Just kidding. I got a chart from here to track my weight gain and show you all the stats...and you can see for yourself (my weight gain is the green line) that it’s low. Which is good for me, and not necessarily bad for the baby yet. There are no signs of distress, and the fact that you can already feel his kicks on the outside is a great sign that baby boy is happy and healthy and getting all that he needs right now.
But yes, Dr., I will vow to eat more. Of everything...but especially cupcakes! Hee hee!
She also mentioned that she was shocked to see me still wearing heels. Hello?!?! Were we not just talking about how little weight I’ve gained? That means that my bump is still small, and I’m still very capable of wearing my regular shoes. With that being said, I’m not wearing heels each and every day...and I’m favoring more of my lower heel shoes at the moment as a transition to flats...but I love heels. Love. Them. And as long as I’m comfortable and not in grave danger of falling and hurting myself and/or baby then she’s ok with it. It all boils down to I know my body best...and I need to listen to it well. Which I’m doing. I just didn’t mention to her that I’m not naturally gifted or blessed in the grace department. What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her, right? Right.
So that was my check up. What are the monthly questions that I’m supposed to answer? Let me look them up...oh yeah, here you go!
Weight? 4 lb gain – we’ve already discussed this one to death!Stretch marks? None yet. Belly Button - innie/outie? Innie still, but getting really flat!
Movement? Lots and lots! It’s like a party down there some days…and the other day, I would swear that you could see it from the outside.
Swelling? None.
Contractions/Signs of Labor? None. I was concerned after experiencing some mild cramping several days in a row, but after talking with my doctor, she assured me that’s normal and nothing to worry about.
Other Issues? I know that I’ve mentioned it before…but sleeping is becoming slightly harder. And I still have heartburn, but keeping Tums next to me at all times helps tremendously.
So here are my belly pictures for the week...just another example of a non-maternity top that can work before your belly gets too big...and another example of how much bigger your bump can look with clothes!
You may not agree, but I think that there is a HUGE difference between the picture of my shirt down and my shirt up...my bump IS growing, but it looked huge at first!
You may not agree, but I think that there is a HUGE difference between the picture of my shirt down and my shirt up...my bump IS growing, but it looked huge at first!Since I'm not at work today, I didn't get my babycenter.com weekly update...so let's just use our imaginations and understand that he's growing! Getting stronger with his kicks and nudges...and B even saw my whole stomach poke out once last night when he was kicking really hard! It's exciting for both of us to finally have B get to experience some of this pregnancy with me. I mean, he's been here...goes to every appt with me...but feeling the baby move and watching it happening are just cooler ways for him to experience it all with me.
I'm grateful that we're both healthy (and happy) and seem to be moving right along where we need to be...if I could just manage to eat a little bit more! Talk to you later!
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