Past Weeks & the Dreaded Three Hour Test

This is about how big Emerson was since the last time I told you her size...

Week 23, a pomegranate...

"At about 10.5 to 11.8 inches and about 12.7 to 20.8 ounces,

baby's not just getting bigger, she's getting even cuter."

• She's forming little nipples (yeah, really!)

• Her face is fully formed now -- she just needs a little extra fat to fill it out.

• She's listening to your voice and your heartbeat -- and even to loud sounds like cars honking and dogs barking.  

Week 24, a grapefruit...

"Your 10.5-to-11.8-inch baby weighs about 12.7 to 20.8 ounces and every week she gets closer and closer to being ready to survive (and thrive!) in the outside world."

Her see-through skin is gradually becoming more opaque.

And it's got a new pink glow, thanks to the small capillaries that have recently formed.

Week 25, an eggplant...

"During month six, the average fetus measures about 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches

 and weighs about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds."

She's enjoying her new sense of equilibrium -- she now knows which way is up and which is down.

She's growing more fat and more hair too!

Week 26, a head of lettuce...

"She's still growing in the 13.6- to 14.8-inch and 1.5- to 2.5-pound range,

 and developing her senses, features and talents!"

Her eyes are forming, and her eyes will soon start to open.

And her eyelashes are now grown, too.

She's getting her immune system ready for life on the outside by soaking up your antibodies.

She's taking breaths, too. They're of amniotic fluid, not air, but it's still good practice.

And as of TODAY, Week 27, cauliflower...

"At 13.6 to 14.8 inches and 1.5 to 2.5 pounds,

she's not just getting bigger, she's getting smarter."

She's practicing inhaling and exhaling with her rapidly developing lungs.

It's official: Baby's showing brain activity! And her brain will keep on getting more complex.

One of my preggo friends just had her baby boy this past week!

Congrats to Josh & Jillian McDonald on sweet little Dawson Hayes!!

I've got another preggo friend out in California about to deliver her sweet girl in just a few weeks!

It's starting to become very real now. It's getting closer and closer!

So, I went for my THREE HOUR glucola test this past Tuesday.

I went in at 8am and they pricked my finger. My blood sugar was 67.

I drank the (orange) thick koolaid tasting substance. A whole bottle this time.

Ugh.

One sip isn't bad, 25 sips later, it's bad...and thick...and so I started praying for it to be over!

I did ask for a straw (thanks to previous advice) and that helped to get it down.

I decided to wait in the lobby for the first hour, so I worked on my Temple Run score! lol

Towards the last 20 minutes of the first hour, I started feeling sick. 

They called me back right as the hour was up and drew my blood. Blood sugar 165. (Needed to be lower than 180)

The next hour, I decided to leave and go to my parent's house and lay down. I felt much better.

Went back, blood drawn, blood sugar 133. (Needed to be lower than 160)

...so, making positive progress!

Third hour, hung out at my parent's house again...STARVING at this point.

Went back, blood drawn, blood sugar 43!! (Needed to be lower than 140)

I was lower alright! It had dropped from 133 to 43 in one hour!

They looked at me and asked, "Are you feeling alright?!" lol

I was fine, but they made be drink a Mello Yellow to bring it back up.

But hey, I PASSED!! No diabetic diet for me! Thank you Jesus!

I treated myself to Mig's at that point with Abby. And yes, it was good!

Wednesday, I went for my prenatal massage. I was so excited about this! I had been patiently waiting for this for a while now. I finally got an appointment. She had a special pillow that the belly goes into so clients can lay on their stomach. It was very nice, but apparently I was very tight, because I am extremely sore now! I wish I could get one once a week!

Glucola Test Appointment

Yesterday, I had an appointment for the "dreaded glucola test."

I was already nervous the night before.

Should I eat this? Should I eat that?

But a very knowledgeable nurse told me it would make no difference what I ate the night before.

I felt fine the morning of, as I drank the small cup of orange sugary substance. From that point on, the hour began that I had to wait for some results. The hour went by pretty fast. 10:26am came and a nurse called me to the back to get my finger pricked.

I started getting nervous.

The nurse, who is so sweet, said, "And the results say.......   oh."

Oh? What does that mean? Good? Bad? Tell me!!

She turned around very slowly and said, "It's 131."

"130 and under means you have passed."

AHHHHH!

What!?? One lousy point?????

NOOOOO!

Perfect. So now, even though it was just one stinkin' point away, I have to go through the same test, but for THREE hours, just for them to probably tell me..."You've passed."

So that's not good news, but I am thankful that it wasn't way over 130.

Everything else was fine.

I have recently felt a foot, or some other limb, sticking out of my belly! That was very exciting! I know she's in there, hanging out, cutting cartwheels, listening to her ipod, working on her dance moves...you get the point! lol

But to actually feel a limb vs hardness....it's pretty cool! 

I can't WAIT until we have our 3D ultrasound! I am so anxious to see what she looks like, even though I have a strong feeling that she looks like her Daddy and is bald headed.

Baseball Baby

25 weeks today.

For some reason, I feel like 25 weeks is a bit of a milestone. Or a slap in the face. lol

The acid reflux is still lingering around, but I now have chocolate milk in the fridge and Tums on my bedside table. So that is helping.

Back pain is so so bad. I have noticed that it is worse towards the right side. It has literally brought me to my knees a time or two before. I have a heating pad on every night when I go to bed and have started bringing one to work too. It feels good at the time, but still no help. Danny gave me a gift certificate for a Maternity Massage at a local spa. Fed up. I have called and set up an appointment 3 times. All have been cancelled due to her "bad shoulder." Really? Can ya not refer me to someone else, lady??!! #backpain #preggoproblems #illasahornet

Last night, the family went to see the Chipmunk movie and it was too cute! Very funny! After, we went to O'Charley's for dinner. I had the Bruschetta Chicken, thinking the description sounded a bit like what I had at The Village Grill the other night.

Ugh. No.

It was nothing like that! The chicken tasted "not done." It had cold bruschetta on it, topped with tomatoes. It was just a funky dish that Emerson was having NO part of! So I stuck with the potato soup, fries and bread. Oh, did I fail to mention the brownie dessert that came with it? Cause it was awesome!  

Wanna see what my favorite mail lady brought to me today??

How cute!!

It goes great with her new Baby Legs to match...

...and...

the perfect bow to match, with a number 8, instead of 15 (Wells's baseball number).

She is already excited to cheer on her big brother!

24 weeks & counting

Last Wednesday, Danny and I went for another ultrasound to get a better view of her brain and heart. Everything looked great and we are so pleased!

Like I've mentioned before, one of my favorite things to do these days and the thing I look forward to most (besides heating pads and sleep)...are ultrasounds:) We were so excited to see how big she had gotten and how active she was (again)! Her hands were moving all around her face, just like the time before. She was completely curled up with her legs and feet near her head! The ultrasound tech said she was very comfy and snug! She tried to get a good shot of her profile for us, but her was bein' stubborn:) And I'm sure all the grandparents would agree, that's perfectly okay:) lol

Here's the shot that she was able to get...

So in the past few weeks, I have had some nausea. Apparently, it is heartburn and acid reflux???

I have never had this before, so I didn't know what it was like. WELL I DO NOW! Ugh. It never happens until I lay down to go to sleep. Then, all of a sudden it hits me, I need to puke. So I usually sit up in the bed, breath, eat Tums, drink a little water, and pray. No seriously. Because at that point, all I want to do is go to sleep! So I pray that it will go away and God will put me to sleep.

Two nights ago was really weird. Danny has had a horrible time with his wisdom teeth coming in and has taken some pain medicine to help. Well, he took some two nights ago (after staying in bed all day with pain). That night, I woke up at 3am to nausea. But I was so confused for some reason. I just felt lost. That morning, my alarm clock went off and I looked at the clock like.....what? What time do I normally get up? Is this right?

Lost, again, so very lost.

Still don't know what that's all about.

Someone mentioned to me the other day about crib bedding. Oops.

I probably need to get on that! So, I start researching.

Found nothing at a descent price point. Nothing.

But I did find this....

It's from Rosenberry Rooms.....aka.......Rich Mama's options.

I love the colors, light turquoise and light pink. I think it's sweet and a little different. Not necessarily the damask print. I like Chevron, etc. The crib we already have is white, so the colors would go great with that.

Also...

I can definitely make this! Well, probably.
If anyone has any ideas on how to do this look, cheaper, fill free to email me:)

I'm going to start posting the following questions once a week. I stole it from a fellow preggo blogger. (I hope you don't mind!)

How far along?   24 weeks & 3 days 
Maternity clothes?   Yes, all shirts and undershirts. I cannot even get away with a regular shirt with a high waisted band. Just doesn't fit right. A few pairs of pants, still wearing my regular pants, they just automatically roll down under my belly! lol
Symptoms?   Heartburn, acid reflux, BACK PAIN
Stretch marks?   Yes, very light on my lower stomach and around belly button. I need some good advice on what stretch mark cream to buy from folks that have used it and it worked.
Sleep?   Still good, but not as best as it has been in the past.
Best moment this week?   (last week) Being able to see her move around in the ultrasound
Movement?   Movement everyday:)  No kicking or movement felt outside the belly yet, just inside.
Cravings?   French fries with salt. Pizza. Water.
Gender?   She's still a girl:) Emerson Adele Gunter
Labor Signs?   None that I am aware of....BETTER be none!
Belly button In or Out?   Innie
What I miss?   Heels, oh, did I mention that MY FEET HAVE GROWN!!?? Because, they have. Really??!!
What I'm looking forward to?   Danny to feel her move.
Weekly wisdom?   Take Tums, drink milk and find out if I can have Maalox for the heartburn & acid reflux
Milestones?   Apparently, according to all strangers EVERYWHERE....I look very pregnant. Oh cool, because I still have 3 1/2 months!

It really DOES feel like a Rollercoaster!

Some people describe it as a feeling of a butterfly.
Some talk about it feeling like a tickle.
Others describe it feeling like you're going down a hill or a roller coaster.

The roller coaster feeling definitely came to me the other night as Danny and I were riding in the car on the way to a friend's engagement party. At first, it felt like something was wrong with my bladder! It was the strangest feeling. Yes, I've had to go to the potty way more often these days, but this feeling was just...different. Then it dawned on me....IT'S EMERSON MOVING!!

o.m.g. She moved. For the first time, she moved. And I felt her:) From that point on, it was such an exciting feeling! Since then, she has been moving often. Danny wants her to kick him so bad he can hardly stand it! lol I'm sure that will happen soon. I was getting a little discouraged in the past few weeks since I haven't felt her yet. "People" say you should start feeling the baby between 18 and 22 weeks. So I was waiting and waiting. Some say you won't feel much at all while others feel their baby all the time.

We go for an ultrasound this evening, so we get to see her move! I'm so excited!! Whoever LOVED going to the doctor so much?? Preggos! I've been waiting and counting down days until the next ultrasounds. lol

Funny story...
For the past few days, my car has been acting funny. I thought it was my battery. It didn't crank a day or two ago when I was at a friend's house. I called Danny and when he got there...low and behold, it worked! So since then, I have literally gotten in my car, sat there, and prayed that it would crank up. All prayers were answered, until last night. Some of you may have seen the Facebook post "Stranded at the mall with a dead battery AGAIN! It's COLD!" Called my husband, no answer. Called my Mama, she sent my little brother to rescue me. About that time, I saw a red Ford Explorer SportTrac near me and started pulling out of the mall parking lot. I called Danny and said, "Umm, is that you pulling out of the mall?" Well of course it was so I told him the deal and he came back:) His parents had to come and bring us jumper cables....I'm sitting in the car, STARVING, so I started eating Tums because that's the only thing I had in the car at the time. These days, when I'm hungry, I'm starving. And when I'm starving, I start feeling sick. And when I feel sick, I feel the need to puke. So Tums for a snack worked out pretty good! lol Apparently it's not the battery, it's the starter or alternator. Perfect.