I had my regular appointment on Tuesday. All went well, in and out in 15 minutes. She found the heartbeat with the Doppler this time, pretty much right away (last week she saw the heart beating with the Ultrasound). It was so cool. I wish Gary could have heard it, but he had to take care of some internship paperwork. There's always next time. So after a few hurdles in the beginning, hopefully we're on to smoother roads.
Lovenox shots are well under way, making little bruises along the way. They feel like bee stings, some last about 20 minutes, some I don't feel much at all. Being the wonderful husband he is, Gary gives the shots right away in the morning. What a trooper.
Well not only do my friends and I back home get married in the same month (or within a year), but we like to have kids within a week of eachother. Erin & Brandon are expecting #1 on October 22 and Kristen & Dan are also expecting #2 on October 22! How cool is that! On top of that Marc & Nisi are due in August with #2, Nick & Allison are due in August with #1, Kathi & Troy are due in September with #3, and then the 3 of us in October. I also found out a couple friends from highschool are expecting in September/October. It's a baby boomer year! It's almost as if God wanted to put us a little closer through this even though all of us are across the US and Canada. So as we went through the million weddings in one summer a few years ago, we're now going through a million kids in one year. Please keep all of us in your prayers, but also keep in your prayers an old classmate and coworker who just found out she lost her baby about 10-12 weeks into her pregnancy. You just never know what God has in store for our lives.
Gary had a 2nd round interview for a job position at Steelcase on Monday. He actually interviewed for 2 positions during this time, one seemed to be very tailored to his talents and abilities, so maybe this is one they're creating for him? Not sure. Either way, he found out that Steelcase is a very family friendly place to work with a lot of people working there for many years, this is different from what he heard otherwise. So that was really nice to hear. It would be awesome to secure a job at this point, too!
We're also in the process of going through the pros and cons to this house we love in Allendale. Maybe we over analyze things, I don't know. But everything else we've done we could change if we didn't like it or it didn't work out. With a house, it's a lot bigger deal. So hopefully after talking it over with the parents and realtor this weekend, we can make a decision next week. Exciting! Here's what we're looking at: http://grandvalley.michigan.remax.com/listings/ListingDetail_r4.aspx?LID=22737582#aTop
I guess that's all for now. We'll keep you posted on job, house and baby (next appointment May 8)! Have a great weekend!
Love,
Gary & Christie
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Friday, April 6, 2007
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
One of many bumps in the road
I got a call on Monday from my nurse, Joy, saying that my pap smear came back abnormal. She said not to worry, so I tried not to. :) She scheduled me a little more time for next week's appointment to do a colposcopy (more in depth pap smear). I told Gary what she said and he called her back just to hear why it would come back abnormal. She said it could be a host of things that it could be, but that we shouldn't worry and these cells should be wiped out during labor. So after Gary called and talked to her, knowing I was a bit worried, moved up my colpsoscopy to yesterday.
We switched doctors to the female doctor in the office and we love her! She's so nice, personable, and just a caring person. She talked to us about why it would be abnormal. Before we headed over to the precedure room, she tried to see if we could hear the heartbeat with the Doppler. To no avail, she couldn't find it. So we headed over to the other room where she did the colposcopy. And as an added feature, I got to see my cervix up close and personal. Hehe. I know you wanted to know that, but you've joined the ride of Christie's pregnancy. :) She showed us what she was looking for and said everything looks good and she didn't need to do a biopsy. Yay! So instead of waiting till next week, she wanted to see if she could get a heartbeat yet. She tried to find the baby with a regular Ultrasound, but again couldn't find it. So she said the heck with it and did a vaginal Ultrasound (I know, I know... but it is what it is!). And there he/she was! It was absolutely amazing! It was this little body and big alien head with little fists and only one! She also could see the heartbeat. It was so cool, it was almost like sealing the deal. What a cool thing for us to share after the bumpy start we've had so far. I'll go back next week for a regular exam and see if she could get the heartbeat again. Fun!
Another bump in the road came that night. We tracked the package with my Lovenox shots and found the order was cancelled. So to keep the story short, we were on the phone with a few different people to get an account established with the speciality pharmacy to wonder if my insurance would cover this really expensive prescription. Then after Gary couldn't sleep last night and I woke up with worry, throughout the day we were in touch and the pharmacy was in touch with us, we were able to find out they did cover these shots. They will cover 90% of it actually, which is still $80 a month at $2.67 a shot and we'll take it! The alternative is $800 a month at $26.67 a shot. Thank you amazing insurance! The little bit of headache in the last couple days made us feel a lot more at ease to know that we can afford them. God certainly brings us through these bumps in the road. So, about those shots everyday.... not looking forward to that, but I'll live. :)
Otherwise, we're doing well. The baby is about the size of a lime now. I'm still feeling good, just a few food adversions. Gary's working on finishing up classes in the next few weeks and ready to finish up this chapter. And that's about it for today.
I hope all is well with everyone, leave a message or email and I'll write more soon!
Love,
Gary & Christie
We switched doctors to the female doctor in the office and we love her! She's so nice, personable, and just a caring person. She talked to us about why it would be abnormal. Before we headed over to the precedure room, she tried to see if we could hear the heartbeat with the Doppler. To no avail, she couldn't find it. So we headed over to the other room where she did the colposcopy. And as an added feature, I got to see my cervix up close and personal. Hehe. I know you wanted to know that, but you've joined the ride of Christie's pregnancy. :) She showed us what she was looking for and said everything looks good and she didn't need to do a biopsy. Yay! So instead of waiting till next week, she wanted to see if she could get a heartbeat yet. She tried to find the baby with a regular Ultrasound, but again couldn't find it. So she said the heck with it and did a vaginal Ultrasound (I know, I know... but it is what it is!). And there he/she was! It was absolutely amazing! It was this little body and big alien head with little fists and only one! She also could see the heartbeat. It was so cool, it was almost like sealing the deal. What a cool thing for us to share after the bumpy start we've had so far. I'll go back next week for a regular exam and see if she could get the heartbeat again. Fun!
Another bump in the road came that night. We tracked the package with my Lovenox shots and found the order was cancelled. So to keep the story short, we were on the phone with a few different people to get an account established with the speciality pharmacy to wonder if my insurance would cover this really expensive prescription. Then after Gary couldn't sleep last night and I woke up with worry, throughout the day we were in touch and the pharmacy was in touch with us, we were able to find out they did cover these shots. They will cover 90% of it actually, which is still $80 a month at $2.67 a shot and we'll take it! The alternative is $800 a month at $26.67 a shot. Thank you amazing insurance! The little bit of headache in the last couple days made us feel a lot more at ease to know that we can afford them. God certainly brings us through these bumps in the road. So, about those shots everyday.... not looking forward to that, but I'll live. :)
Otherwise, we're doing well. The baby is about the size of a lime now. I'm still feeling good, just a few food adversions. Gary's working on finishing up classes in the next few weeks and ready to finish up this chapter. And that's about it for today.
I hope all is well with everyone, leave a message or email and I'll write more soon!
Love,
Gary & Christie
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Looking Ahead
Well, a week's gone by since my first appointment. It was a rocky start, but you can't dwell on the past, only look forward. After talking it over with Gary and my family, I called my nurse on Friday to reschedule my next appointment with the female doctor at our office. I explained what happened with that appointment with my nurse, although she didn't say that that happens with him, but told me that I needed to be comfortable. So throughout the conversation, she realized that I didn't really want to meet the other doctor, but just switch to her altogether. She said to call anytime with any questions I have. So she made me feel comfortable with my decision and was very supportive through the conversation. I was worried that she'd question it or wonder if she'd go and talk to the doctor about what I told her. But in the end, I need to comfortable with my doctor and she made me feel better about everything.
We got the first batch of Lovenox shots ordered. Everything went smoothly there and won't break the bank too bad. So eventhough the idea of shots everyday is not a great one, it's not the end of the world and it's affordable. Thank you insurance! :)
Otherwise, I've been feeling fine. Nausea is gone, eating pretty good, getting out for walks with the beautiful weather we had for a couple days there, getting ready for the big spring cleaning, and trying to motivate Gary for the next 5 weeks. We're also back to looking at houses. Yay! We have a big tour this weekend of houses we found, so that should be fun. We want to be in house this summer so we can get settled in and all set up before the baby comes. It will be that much easier and we're bursting at the seams in our apartment, so if we add a baby to mix and all that comes with the baby, we're really going to be in trouble. :)
The countdown begins. 29 days till the big 30 for Gary and 30 days till graduation! He's doing good, just the normal case of senioritis. :) We're looking forward to spring, to be able to talk walks, bike rides (for a short time), going to the beach, hanging out with friends. Not sure why, but I'm really ready for spring this year. More so than most years. It's going to be a great year, maybe thats why.
So that's all to report really. Next appointment is April 10 and we get to hear the heartbeat!
Love to you all!
Gary & Christie
We got the first batch of Lovenox shots ordered. Everything went smoothly there and won't break the bank too bad. So eventhough the idea of shots everyday is not a great one, it's not the end of the world and it's affordable. Thank you insurance! :)
Otherwise, I've been feeling fine. Nausea is gone, eating pretty good, getting out for walks with the beautiful weather we had for a couple days there, getting ready for the big spring cleaning, and trying to motivate Gary for the next 5 weeks. We're also back to looking at houses. Yay! We have a big tour this weekend of houses we found, so that should be fun. We want to be in house this summer so we can get settled in and all set up before the baby comes. It will be that much easier and we're bursting at the seams in our apartment, so if we add a baby to mix and all that comes with the baby, we're really going to be in trouble. :)
The countdown begins. 29 days till the big 30 for Gary and 30 days till graduation! He's doing good, just the normal case of senioritis. :) We're looking forward to spring, to be able to talk walks, bike rides (for a short time), going to the beach, hanging out with friends. Not sure why, but I'm really ready for spring this year. More so than most years. It's going to be a great year, maybe thats why.
So that's all to report really. Next appointment is April 10 and we get to hear the heartbeat!
Love to you all!
Gary & Christie
Friday, March 23, 2007
Moutains and Valleys
We had our doctor's appointment on Wednesday at the 10 week mark. Everything baby wise is going great, growing appropriately and in about 3 weeks we'll get to hear the heartbeat for the first time.
On the other hand, some unexpected news in regards to my health history. I had a pulmonary embolism in August 2004 (blood clots on my lungs) due to a combination of birth control and a very long car ride without a lot of movement on my part. I had a lot of blood tests done and was on coumadin for about 6 months. I've been dealing with anxiety due to worry and other things in my life and have finally come out on top of being able to control my anxiety. The doctor, in a not so tactful fashion, told us that I'll need to due Lovenox shots everyday for the duration of the pregnancy and 6 weeks post natal. I had to do these shots 3 times right when I got out of the hospital in 2004 and they're not fun. I was getting upset due to the cost we incured at that time b/c our local pharmacy plan doesn't cover suringes and needles, only the mail in plan. So at the time we paid about $70 a shot. I thought this was going cost an arm and leg at that price. We found out we can have the doctor pre authorize the script and why I need them with the mail in plan and will only cost us about $200 for 2 - 90 day prescriptions. So I'm over the shock of the cost, now I'm just not looking forward to having to give myself a shot everyday. Martha told me it's more common than I think and she knows friends that did it and everything went fine. I'll more than likely have to do this for all of my pregnancies. This certainly won't stop us from having more kids, though. Just a bit of a bummer.
The doctor, which I know has to be numb to everyone, also seemed shocked that we were pregnant after we didn't discuss it when I was in back in July. He had "family planning" down as what we discussed. We didn't know that required us to call him to tell him we were going to start trying. It almost seemed like a "what are you doing?" He also never said, ok when you are thinking about trying, please contact me so we can go over what's in store for you for your pregnancy in terms of your blood clots. So after a great start to the day and being excited to start our appointments, I left a little upset by the "slap in the face" of these shots and his demeaner. I understand that this is for the health of me and the baby and I greatly appreciate the precaution, just wasn't mentally prepared for it. Otherwise, things are great for me and the baby and we're still super excited about all of it!
The other great and exciting news is that Gary nailed down an internship! He was going to call Gordon Foods on Wednesday to see how things were going in their decisions and they called him back that morning! They offered him an intern position, to be determined yet, at GFS full time this summer at $15 an hour. We're really excited and this is the one he wanted. He has great potential to be hired in for a full time job and hopefully work his way up. We can now start looking and deciding on homes. It's going to be a busy year, but we're getting more excited every day about what's to come.
I was at Target last night, looking at all the baby stuff of course, and saw that they make a baby papasan. It was so cute. I'm looking forward to registering for baby showers (hopefully it'll go a little smoother than our wedding registry). I don't think the nausea is coming back, so that's wonderful. Just trying to eat well, stay active and feeling my pants get a little bit more snug.
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Gary & Christie
On the other hand, some unexpected news in regards to my health history. I had a pulmonary embolism in August 2004 (blood clots on my lungs) due to a combination of birth control and a very long car ride without a lot of movement on my part. I had a lot of blood tests done and was on coumadin for about 6 months. I've been dealing with anxiety due to worry and other things in my life and have finally come out on top of being able to control my anxiety. The doctor, in a not so tactful fashion, told us that I'll need to due Lovenox shots everyday for the duration of the pregnancy and 6 weeks post natal. I had to do these shots 3 times right when I got out of the hospital in 2004 and they're not fun. I was getting upset due to the cost we incured at that time b/c our local pharmacy plan doesn't cover suringes and needles, only the mail in plan. So at the time we paid about $70 a shot. I thought this was going cost an arm and leg at that price. We found out we can have the doctor pre authorize the script and why I need them with the mail in plan and will only cost us about $200 for 2 - 90 day prescriptions. So I'm over the shock of the cost, now I'm just not looking forward to having to give myself a shot everyday. Martha told me it's more common than I think and she knows friends that did it and everything went fine. I'll more than likely have to do this for all of my pregnancies. This certainly won't stop us from having more kids, though. Just a bit of a bummer.
The doctor, which I know has to be numb to everyone, also seemed shocked that we were pregnant after we didn't discuss it when I was in back in July. He had "family planning" down as what we discussed. We didn't know that required us to call him to tell him we were going to start trying. It almost seemed like a "what are you doing?" He also never said, ok when you are thinking about trying, please contact me so we can go over what's in store for you for your pregnancy in terms of your blood clots. So after a great start to the day and being excited to start our appointments, I left a little upset by the "slap in the face" of these shots and his demeaner. I understand that this is for the health of me and the baby and I greatly appreciate the precaution, just wasn't mentally prepared for it. Otherwise, things are great for me and the baby and we're still super excited about all of it!
The other great and exciting news is that Gary nailed down an internship! He was going to call Gordon Foods on Wednesday to see how things were going in their decisions and they called him back that morning! They offered him an intern position, to be determined yet, at GFS full time this summer at $15 an hour. We're really excited and this is the one he wanted. He has great potential to be hired in for a full time job and hopefully work his way up. We can now start looking and deciding on homes. It's going to be a busy year, but we're getting more excited every day about what's to come.
I was at Target last night, looking at all the baby stuff of course, and saw that they make a baby papasan. It was so cute. I'm looking forward to registering for baby showers (hopefully it'll go a little smoother than our wedding registry). I don't think the nausea is coming back, so that's wonderful. Just trying to eat well, stay active and feeling my pants get a little bit more snug.
Have a great weekend!
Love,
Gary & Christie
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Warm Fuzzies
I realized that more people read this than I thought and I'd better keep up on it!
It's been a good week this week. My nausea has seemed to subsided this whole week and I'm just hoping it continues. I have a heightened sense of smell so things still don't smell good to eat yet, but I'm trying to eat the best I can. It's eased my mind, as I found out this weekend, that some moms didn't even have a twinge of morning sickness with any of their pregnancies. I have the worry wort gene, so I wondered "is everything OK because I'm not sick?" Apparently I am and I now breathe a sigh of relief once again.
I had my first appointment with the doctor this past Tuesday and Gary was able to come with me. I actually just met with the nurse that will be with me throughout all my visits. They call it an educational visit. They took my blood and urine to run quite a few tests for a lot of things. That was kind of interesting. I had a small episode with getting my blood drawn though. I haven't had my blood drawn since I had blood clots in 04-05, so I figured it was about 90% of the time they got it right away, no problem. I gave her the arm they always used at the hospital figuring it was sure-fire deal. The needle went in ok, didn't feel anything and then trouble began. She couldn't find my vein. Ugh. After digging a little deeper and little deeper yet, she got it and was able to fill up 3 of the 4 viles she needed and opted not to fill the last one. Thank goodness. Moral of the story is: give her my other arm next time and hopefully it'll be better. :) She ran through a whole bunch questions about my health history, family history and all the necessary things they need to know. She gave us brochures and magazines to read. We've been enjoying the magazines quite a bit. It's neat to see visually how each month it progresses and to know that that's going on inside of me! Very cool.
This Wednesday will be the first visit with the doctor. I haven't had this woman yet as she's new to office as of October. I had another doctor for the past couple years and he'll be on call along with one other one, if she's not available at the time of delivery. We've loved every doctor we've had here, so I'm more than ok of having her as my doctor. This will start the series of visits throughout. I'll be having one visit every 4 weeks till I'm 24 weeks, one visit every 2 weeks till I'm 36 weeks, and then every week after that till we get to the big day most likely. The big day is October 16. :) It's really cool to actually have a date to tell. It's a week after my brother's birthday, which is neat. I think this visit we get to hear the heartbeat. How amazing is that?!
My dad has gone from asking how his grandson is doing to "how's little Ronnie?" Hehe. I guess whatever the sex is, it's going to be little Ronnie according to it's grandpa. The baby has also caught on to the nicknames of the Tiddbit and the Tiddlet. When all is said and done, we both know this baby is going to be loved more than it'll ever know and doesn't have a clue what's coming when it comes into these families. Hehe.
Continue to pray for us as we go to the doctor and all goes well there, that I can eat good things for both of us, that Gary's stress of finishing school and finding a job/internship will lessen, and praise that God continues to provide for us each and every day.
Thank you to everyone who has shown us such amazing support, love and hugs! We love it. Stay posted and I'll update as to how the visit goes on Wednesday. (I'll post pictures of my new duds - thank you Martha! and new baby duds - thank you Auntie Trish, sometime this week.)
Love to you all!
Gary & Christie
It's been a good week this week. My nausea has seemed to subsided this whole week and I'm just hoping it continues. I have a heightened sense of smell so things still don't smell good to eat yet, but I'm trying to eat the best I can. It's eased my mind, as I found out this weekend, that some moms didn't even have a twinge of morning sickness with any of their pregnancies. I have the worry wort gene, so I wondered "is everything OK because I'm not sick?" Apparently I am and I now breathe a sigh of relief once again.
I had my first appointment with the doctor this past Tuesday and Gary was able to come with me. I actually just met with the nurse that will be with me throughout all my visits. They call it an educational visit. They took my blood and urine to run quite a few tests for a lot of things. That was kind of interesting. I had a small episode with getting my blood drawn though. I haven't had my blood drawn since I had blood clots in 04-05, so I figured it was about 90% of the time they got it right away, no problem. I gave her the arm they always used at the hospital figuring it was sure-fire deal. The needle went in ok, didn't feel anything and then trouble began. She couldn't find my vein. Ugh. After digging a little deeper and little deeper yet, she got it and was able to fill up 3 of the 4 viles she needed and opted not to fill the last one. Thank goodness. Moral of the story is: give her my other arm next time and hopefully it'll be better. :) She ran through a whole bunch questions about my health history, family history and all the necessary things they need to know. She gave us brochures and magazines to read. We've been enjoying the magazines quite a bit. It's neat to see visually how each month it progresses and to know that that's going on inside of me! Very cool.
This Wednesday will be the first visit with the doctor. I haven't had this woman yet as she's new to office as of October. I had another doctor for the past couple years and he'll be on call along with one other one, if she's not available at the time of delivery. We've loved every doctor we've had here, so I'm more than ok of having her as my doctor. This will start the series of visits throughout. I'll be having one visit every 4 weeks till I'm 24 weeks, one visit every 2 weeks till I'm 36 weeks, and then every week after that till we get to the big day most likely. The big day is October 16. :) It's really cool to actually have a date to tell. It's a week after my brother's birthday, which is neat. I think this visit we get to hear the heartbeat. How amazing is that?!
My dad has gone from asking how his grandson is doing to "how's little Ronnie?" Hehe. I guess whatever the sex is, it's going to be little Ronnie according to it's grandpa. The baby has also caught on to the nicknames of the Tiddbit and the Tiddlet. When all is said and done, we both know this baby is going to be loved more than it'll ever know and doesn't have a clue what's coming when it comes into these families. Hehe.
Continue to pray for us as we go to the doctor and all goes well there, that I can eat good things for both of us, that Gary's stress of finishing school and finding a job/internship will lessen, and praise that God continues to provide for us each and every day.
Thank you to everyone who has shown us such amazing support, love and hugs! We love it. Stay posted and I'll update as to how the visit goes on Wednesday. (I'll post pictures of my new duds - thank you Martha! and new baby duds - thank you Auntie Trish, sometime this week.)
Love to you all!
Gary & Christie
Sunday, March 11, 2007
It's all in a matter of time
I'm back. :) Not a whole lot has changed yet in terms of the baby yet. I am nauseous just about every day, all day. I am able to take extra Vitamin B6 to combat the nausea, it helps a little, but its usually lingering. I'm more sensitive to smells and when things sound good to eat, they don't always taste good. The blander the better or I'm usually up for anything sweet, but I'm trying to eat good sweet things rather than filling myself with the cravings of candy corn, bakery goods or sherbet. I had to make Gary leave the room the other night when we were working on something because he was eating Cool Ranch Doritos and I could smell it like none other. I love Cool Ranch Doritos, but right now I do not. Tuna is still gross, before and during the pregnancy. That hasn't changed. :) Some pants a bit snug, but are still very much wearable. I do have some that are more loose than others, so I've resorted to those until I can wear my Capri's again.
My first appointment is on Tuesday with the nurse. This is where they take the blood or urine tests to confirm that I am pregnant. I can pretty much tell them that without doing these tests, but I guess it's something they have to do. :) She'll also answer any of the questions I have and whatever else goes along with this questioning period. Then the following week, I'll be seeing my doctor and do further exams. I'll leave it at that. :) I'll keep you posted as to how these visits turned out and hopefully an actual due date within the next couple weeks. I'm excited about that. To actually find out when the day is and to know really during that week of the pregnancy how the baby is growing.
Gary is finishing up Spring Break today and heading back to the grind stone tomorrow. He's been going to a lot of interviews recently and will do a few more this week. It'll be nice to nail down something, to know where he'll actually be working. This will help us decide on what to do about a house. We're still up in the air as to what to do about it, but we know everything that should happen, will happen. I'll just keeping plugging along at work, doing my thing. In the meantime, we're looking at baby stuff, how much diapers, formula, clothes, toys, all the necessities will cost. It's not cheap, lets put it that way. But we're looking to hit up some high end garage sales this summer (where rich people buy stuff, never use and sell it for really cheap) and hopefully find some deals. I know God will get us through all the ups and downs as He has so far. So as scary and anxious as we may get, I know we'll be OK.
I hope everyone has a great week and stay posted on the Tiddbit's progress!
Love,
Gary & Christie
My first appointment is on Tuesday with the nurse. This is where they take the blood or urine tests to confirm that I am pregnant. I can pretty much tell them that without doing these tests, but I guess it's something they have to do. :) She'll also answer any of the questions I have and whatever else goes along with this questioning period. Then the following week, I'll be seeing my doctor and do further exams. I'll leave it at that. :) I'll keep you posted as to how these visits turned out and hopefully an actual due date within the next couple weeks. I'm excited about that. To actually find out when the day is and to know really during that week of the pregnancy how the baby is growing.
Gary is finishing up Spring Break today and heading back to the grind stone tomorrow. He's been going to a lot of interviews recently and will do a few more this week. It'll be nice to nail down something, to know where he'll actually be working. This will help us decide on what to do about a house. We're still up in the air as to what to do about it, but we know everything that should happen, will happen. I'll just keeping plugging along at work, doing my thing. In the meantime, we're looking at baby stuff, how much diapers, formula, clothes, toys, all the necessities will cost. It's not cheap, lets put it that way. But we're looking to hit up some high end garage sales this summer (where rich people buy stuff, never use and sell it for really cheap) and hopefully find some deals. I know God will get us through all the ups and downs as He has so far. So as scary and anxious as we may get, I know we'll be OK.
I hope everyone has a great week and stay posted on the Tiddbit's progress!
Love,
Gary & Christie
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