Weekend of Sickness

This weekend wasn’t at all what I had hoped for. Friday afternoon, after feeling nauseous all morning, I got awfully sick and began vomiting. I was weak, hot, and miserable. Vomiting while 9 months pregnant is by far the most uncomfortable thing your body will endure while sick. My abs hurt and the vomiting motions made my Braxton Hicks contractions kicks into over drive. Needless to say, it was a miserable day.

I had got to bed early and when I got up Saturday morning I was feeling a tad better. I ate breakfast, studied a bit, and tidied up the living room. Lucas ended up sleeping until 9:30, so I knew something must be off with him as well. I decided to head back to bed after cuddling with him for an hour and I woke again close to noon. I was certain that Lucas wasn’t going to nap that day considering he woke up so early, but he had passed out on the couch by 1.

Then everything turned for the worse. When he woke up you could see in his eyes how miserable he felt. He was very warm to the touch and didn’t want to move for anything. I stripped him down and he ended up staying on the couch for hours, only getting down once to pee.

As the evening approached I could tell he was running a really high fever. I grabbed the thermometer and nearly chocked when it read 102. Daddy gave him a dose of Tylenol and within minutes he was vomiting everywhere. So much for our new carpet. We made him a little spot on the floor and he remained there for the rest of the night. He didn’t fall asleep until 10:30, but I was able to get him to eat a banana, a cereal bar, and get some liquids down him before he dozed off. This was the first that he had eaten all day so I saw it as a great sign.

He woke up at 2 and crawled into bed with us. At this point his temperature had increased to 103 so I gave him some more Tylenol and placed a fan on him. I didn’t get much sleep because I was so concerned for him, but he slept until 6:30. Thankfully his temperature had dropped down to 100 when he woke in the morning! Daddy got up with him and they cuddled up together until I caught up on some sleep myself.

He hasn’t vomited any more today, but he has sure been miserable. He hasn’t really wanted much to do with me (which breaks my heart) so thankfully daddy is here to help. He has been very whinny, sensitive, and far too emotional. He’s taken most of his sadness out on the poor dogs. He cried that Rori jumped into our bed last night, complained that Ace woke him up because he growled, and whined that the dogs were going to get dog hair on his blankets. It’s been kind of funny to listen to, but he’s so upset and serious about their mere presence today. So, he’s spent most of the day cuddled with daddy watching the X Games and Shark Week.

During his nap he began sobbing in his sleep and didn’t even open his eyes. I tried to console him, but he kept crying that he wanted his daddy. Within seconds of daddy walking in the room and placing his hand on him, he stopped. I think he had a harder time with daddy’s California trip than we thought.

Needless to say, it’s been a really long and exhausting day. Hopefully we can all get some good rest tonight and have a nice mellow Monday. I just finished both of my finals this weekend and Friday was my last day of daycare. So come Monday…we are free to RELAX as much as we can before this baby arrives!

Benihana Birthday

Last night Levi and I went out to celebrate my birthday at one of our favorite restaurants, Benihana! We have a Benihana birthday tradition and always go there in April for his, and July for mine. We signed up for the Birthday Club two years ago which gives us a free $30 coupon to be used anytime during the month of your birth. If you are not signed up for this club...I suggest you get on that right away!

Instead of sitting at the table and watching the chefs prepare our food (which we love to do), we decided to sit in the bar area. It was more intimate, and sitting at a booth was much more comfortable on my back. We got the tuna steak meal (which comes with all the yummy fixings), two full size sushi rolls, ice cream and an alcoholic drink (not for me, obviously!) for only $20!

My younger brother watched Lucas for the first time so that we could go together, and I was pleased to hear that he did so wonderful. I love dining with just my husband and myself. Sometimes we truly forget what it feels like to just be a couple and not classified merely as parents. We've decided to make more of an effort to have frequent date nights! I believe every couple needs some good old fashion alone time to keep that spark going.

Chiropractic Care

I have always been amazed at the results the human body receives from chiropractic care. I’ve suffered from migraines for the majority of my life and even after all of the various medications I’ve tried, chiropractic adjustments were the only true relief I ever got.

My first pregnancy was difficult on my back, but it wasn’t until now that I really broke down and admitted that my body needed help. I haven’t seen a chiropractor on a regular basis mainly because I don’t have coverage for it. The out-of-pocket cost truly adds up after time and I really didn’t see it as a necessary expense. Boy was I wrong.

A few weeks ago I began having a very intense pressure in my pelvic area. My midwife had commented on how low baby was already positioned and I accustomed the pain merely to his location. But it continued to worsen, and at one point, I couldn’t even walk. It was nearly impossible for me to raise my right leg up when getting dressed and I walked around with this awkward limp while holding my groin area. Believe me…it was not attractive.

I’ve met some wonderful ladies being a member of the Alaska Birth Network and I decided that it was finally time for me to go in and see one of the chiropractors who specialize in pregnant women. During my exam I was not surprised to see that I wasn’t properly aligned, but exactly how much so was a bit of a shocker. My pelvis was tilted so that my right hip bone was ¾” higher than my left. Ouch! No wonder I was in pain…the baby’s head was practically rubbing on my bones.

The first adjustment was pretty uncomfortable, but that was to be anticipated. She had to place intense pressure on my round ligaments to loosen them, and that my friends, felt almost as painful as childbirth! She sympathized with me and laughed that this was perfect practice for labor. She had to press on them for quite some time for them to loosen, but once they were softer it felt like such a relief. I scheduled an appointment to return the next week for a follow up and a second adjustment.

The day before my second appointment I began having extremely bad back pain. This wasn’t the usual lower or upper pain that I typically felt from all the excess baby weight, but I didn’t really think too much of it. As the day progressed, so did the pain. I couldn't stand or sit for more than a few minutes without having to move around. There was a particular point on my left-middle back that felt almost as if I had pulled a muscle. It burned and nothing I did seemed to help. My chiropractor was happy to see that my pelvic adjustment had held up and after I informed her of my back pain she had me do a couple stretches to see if they helped. Nothing did. I sat down and when she started feeling around…she felt a rib. Yes, a RIB!

I still can’t believe I had a rib sticking out my back. The female body sure does endure a substantial amount of manipulation when it comes to creating a new life. The mere fact that we can stretch and birth a baby is amazing, but to find out that my insides are being dislocated is a bit unnerving.

I absolutely love being pregnant and enjoying this little man wiggle about inside me. But for my body’s sake, I am so thankful to be in the home stretch. I’m beginning to feel the same pain again and fear that my rib has decided to poke out once more. Thankfully, I have another adjustment scheduled for tomorrow.

I’ve always heard how beneficial chiropractic care can be during pregnancy but I can now say that I am a firm believer. Not only can they keep your body aligned and make for an easier birthing experiencing, but the baby itself can be physically manipulated if they are not in the correct position.

Chiropractic service is now something that I will urge all of my doula clients to partake in. Yes, it may be an out-of-pocket expense for some, but the benefits of feeling great and helping your body prepare for childbirth in a natural way are priceless. There’s no reason to endure pain just from being pregnant. Chiropractic care can help!

Daddy is HOME!

Levi may have only been gone for 8 days, but it sure felt like forever. I am used to either him or myself traveling quite frequently, but this time around was a whole different story. I am usually just fine being on my own, but the week was definitely no walk in the park.

Being ultra prego comes with its own set of struggles…namely, exhaustion. The summer season has my child not wanting to sleep til nearly 10:30-11 at night, and I just cannot keep myself going that far into the evening. I did exactly what I told myself I wouldn’t do, and that was to throw Lucas in bed with me. I was worried I would create an awful habit just before the baby was born, but he has adjusted back to going down in his own room just fine. Crisis averted!

It may have been all the added stress of juggling everything on my own, but the entire time hubby was away I was a hormonal mess. It was all so new to me! I was never hormonal with Lucas, nor have I been this pregnancy. Crying on the drop of a hat completely threw me off guard and I’m sure my little brother thought I was losing my mind. In my defense however, it seemed like everything that could go wrong, did. One morning, on my birthday nonetheless, the toiled overflowed. And this wasn’t just a tiny flood- it continued pouring out with absolutely no sign of stopping. I was freaked, screaming, and bawling my eyes out as I watched my bathroom, laundry area and half of my kitchen fill with water. Thankfully things finally started looking better for me after that. I don’t think I could have taken any more past that point.

But now that daddy is home, everybody is happy! We just went and took family maternity photos last night and I cannot wait to get them back to share!! I just love these handsome guys of mine. And nothing makes me happier than to see Lucas in daddy heaven.

Fresh Flowers

I never realized until now just how much I truly love having fresh flowers in my home! I've always been content with fake ones because well, they just die anyways, right?

We watched our good friends' dog while they went to Hawaii, and they surprised us with a beautiful bouquet of Hawaiian flowers upon their return. I'm not exaggerating when I say this thing is gigantic - it is nearly as tall as Lucas when you include the stems!

Lucas has always loved to pick me flowers so we made a little tradition to pick our favorites any time we go on a walk. We had a huge patch of daisy's on the side of our home that needed to be picked before daddy mowed them over, so we found a cute little vase and went to town! Then we found some beautiful purple flowers on our way to the park to add in.

On my birthday a few days ago my mom and younger brother sent me this beautiful bouquet! I just love the colors!

And last but not least, my hubby (who is away in California at the time being) sent me these yellow and white daisy's for my birthday as well! It's nice to know that he pays attention and knows what my favorite flowers are!

I have a house full of fresh flowers and I just love the feel that it gives off. I think I'm officially addicted! Thankfully there are tons of fresh flowers here in the summer, otherwise I could see this new love of mine costing quite a pretty penny.

Mini Camp-Outs

Since Lucas and his daddy went camping and fishing a few weekends ago, my child now refuses to sleep in his bed. I didn't know why he was so adamant about sleeping on the floor all of a sudden, so I asked.

"I'm Camping!"

So there you have it. Lucas enjoys a mini camping adventure every day of the week. I guess you might as well improvise when you can't have the real thing, right? Boys are just too funny!

Uncle Brian

My younger brother Brian has been up in Alaska for one week now. He got really sick a few days after being here and has been very under the weather, but Lucas has been enjoying his presence nonetheless.

Lucas sure loves his uncle! He especially loves having someone to splash, jump around with, and tackle!

We spent the morning at the park down the street and the kids sure played hard! Persuading Lucas to leave is always a difficult task but Brian sure had the trick. He got Lucas to believe that his shadow was chasing him so Lucas ran home laughing hysterically!

After nap we took a drive out to the Boardwalk at Potter's Marsh. We didn't see as much wildlife as I had hoped, but it was a gorgeous day and we got a good walk in.

It makes me so happy to see these boys together. It's always difficult living so far from my family, but I'm happy that Lucas takes to them all so well every time we're together. It's been a bit of an adjustment having a 15 year old boy to look after, but it's also been a big help. Lucas follows him around everywhere and I never have to load or unload him into his car seat anymore. It's like having my own personal babysitter on hand!

But the best perk is that he truly tires my little man out!

Baby Moose

This is Baby Moose.
He is Lucas' security item, lovey, or whatever it is that you want to call an attachment item. In addition to his two blankets, baby moose never really leaves his side. He travels with us, and Lucas insists he be tucked into bed every night along side him. He has no problems sharing any of his other toys, but god forbid someone try to take his moose. It's not a pretty sight.

I've bragged about how wonderful and excited Lucas has been about his baby brother, but even this next event surprised me. After we set up the crib together in the nursery, (where he then asked why his baby brother was going to be kept in a cage!) Lucas insisted that Baby Moose needed to lay down in the baby's bed too. This was over a week ago, and Baby Moose is still there.

I've asked him twice every day (nap time & bedtime) if he wanted me to grab him for him, but his answer is always the same. His exact words..."I want to share him with my baby brother".

Can you say amazing?

He has already taken every single baby toy out of his room and moved them to the nursery, but for him to want to share his most prized possession absolutely melts my heart!

Lucas is going to make the best big brother EVER!!

Underwear & Homer

My boys decided to take a weekend trip to Homer, and that left me home all by my lonesome. But don't get me wrong...I definitely wasn't complaining! I am far too pregnant and uncomfortable to commute and didn't even want to think about being on a boat. I was perfectly content sitting home in silence.

As much as I told myself that this weekend would make an optimal time to get a few things done around the house without any distractions, I didn't do a single one of them. Instead, I lounged around in my underwear and a baggy t-shirt, ate, caught up on some shows, and slept! I did leave the house for about two hours on Sunday to attend the monthly birth network meeting, but I came home and immediately fell back into my lazy routine. It was great!

The guys, however, had a super busy weekend! They left Anchorage at about 1:30p on Saturday afternoon, drove nearly 5 hours to Homer and camped out in the back of the 4runner on the beach. They woke up nice and early on Sunday and went halibut fishing on the boat all day long. They maxed out on their limit and Lucas was even the first to catch a fish!

They originally planned on camping out again and driving home Monday morning, but Levi decided to get back home before the work week started up again. They left Homer a little after 6:00p and made it home a bit before 11.

Levi said that Lucas did absolutely fantastic the entire time! How in the world he managed to drive 4.5+ hrs each way with a toddler will never seize to amaze me. Sometimes I forget that Lucas is such an easy going kid. He said about half way through the trip Lucas asked to get out of the car and eat, but once they were done they kept movin' along. Lucas even did great on the boat too, but that wasn't as much of a surprise because he's always done fantastic on them. You'd think confining a toddler for 10 hours on the open sea would be difficult, but he really seems to enjoy himself. And best yet...the entire weekend was accident free! My child just doesn't have accidents, ever. I was nervous the drive would be too much for him, but that goes to show how much mama over analyzes things.

I asked Levi to take lots of pictures because I hated that I was missing out, but the camera died the moment they got there. Go figure. However, Levi was able to snap one of Lucas in the car...



...and then Lucas got to take one of daddy. I swear this kid is going to be quite the photographer when he gets older. He loves taking photos. He is so good at focusing on objects and people and they almost always turn out well.

I hope everyone had a great weekend doing whatever you did, or didn't do!

My business

My Doula business cards arrived a few weeks ago and I have recently begun building up clientele for the months following my own highly anticipated birth!

I have a client in August, although that birth ultimately depends on who delivers first, or if I'm even up for the task. I have one confirmed November birth, and I am waiting to hear back on another November and a December one. I was also told to expect a call about a September mama that may be interested as well. I am so anxious to get into the game and start attending these miraculous events!

My husband placed a few cards in his wallet and he truly surprised me this week. He met a couple that is expecting their first baby at the end of the year and mentioned to them that I was a Birth Doula. He practically sold the couple on wanting a Doula before they even met me! Fortunately, I happened to be around the corner and I got to speak with them briefly. I can't wait to talk with them further and continue to meet new expecting families looking for support.

Bring on those baby bellies!

Lucas Time

My #1 priority for the next few weeks is to spend as much quality time with Lucas as possible! I only have three more weeks of school, and have decided to stop doing daycare at that time as well. Our lives are going to be turned upside down once the littlest member of our family arrives so I'm taking every opportunity I can to love on my little man without any distractions. He sure loves his mommy...and the feeling is more than mutual! I love this boy more than I could possibly express!!

He has sure grown up to be a handsome, smart, sweet, funny, all around wonderful child. Levi and I are so honored to be his parents and we find ourselves fighting over him quite a bit. Lucas changed our lives for the better and we never fail to brag about how blessed we are! We love you Lucas Danger!!

My first roast!

I am not a huge fan of cooking, by any means. I don't mind preparing a meal, but I'm never truly excited to do so. Nor am I creative when it comes to spices and seasoning. More often than not, I avoid cooking dinner until its too late and I get frustrated when my boys don't really eat much. The funny thing is, I own a crock pot, yet I can probably count the number of times its been used on a single hand. My new plan is to start using it more often so that I'm not deciding what to make for dinner right before its time to eat. What's better than throwing together a few ingredients in the morning and having your meal completely done (without any effort!) right on time?!

The few times I've used my crock pot were cheater recipes. I've purchased the pre-made frozen meals that you just toss in, and I've made a super simple Italian chicken dinner. During our recent trip to Sam's Club Levi tossed a roast into the cart and I just looked at him like he was crazy. What the heck was I suppose to do with this??

So I was determined to make my very first homemade roast. I didn't put much thought into it until the morning of, so I was scrambling around the kitchen searching for ingredients to add. Lucky for me I had a bag of potatoes, some baby carrots, onions, and some random seasonings.

Lucas was such a big help! He pulled up a chair and literally helped me every step of the way. He loved the bag of potatoes and laughed so much at the purple ones! He probably would have carried them around and played with them all day if I let him.

Then he added all of the cut up potatoes and the baby carrots to the pot!

I tossed on some seasonings, added a bit of water, and it was now ready to cook for the next six hours. What a piece of cake! Someone please tell me why I havn't jumped on the crock pot wagon sooner? This is so easy.

I must add that it turned out pretty darn delicious! Levi's grandpa stopped by unexpectedly for the evening and he said it was really good too...although he could have just been saying that to be nice! Levi ended up working super late and it may have cooked just a little too long. It was a tad dry, but nothing a little salt couldn't fix!

This didn't give me the inspiration to cook more, but I'm proud of myself for the way it turned out. Lucas really enjoyed helping me and the experience with him was well worth it. If I have to get him involved to muster up some cooking inspiration...then so be it!

Climbers

Before Levi and I got married I started getting into climbing a bit. I have these crazy long arms and legs, so it came pretty natural to me. There was an indoor climbing center back in California that wanted to sponsor me if I were willing to join their team. Unfortunately, I was too busy juggling two jobs and school and just didn't have any time in my schedule to add on any extra curricular activities.

Levi and I have been talking about it, and after the baby gets to be a few months and I get myself back into shape, we're gonna start climbing together! I'm really excited and can't wait to have a family activity to do that we are all very passionate about.

I went to the park with both my boys and was blown away by Lucas' recent advancements in climbing. Levi has been taking him and teaching him to climb up the ropes and nets for the past few weeks and Lucas is just so proud of himself. At a recent play date with the preschool group, he was flying up the netting like I couldn't believe. It was interesting to watch some of the older kids struggle and yet see this little 2.5 year old zipping past them. When I took Lucas and the little girl I watch to the park last week Lucas kept telling her "Watch me climb! My daddy taught me how to do this!" I love seeing him push himself and be rewarded with the sheer task once it's completed.

The local rock gym here looks pretty exciting and they offer various classes to get you started. I'm really looking forward to learning new skills and pushing myself to new limits.

So so busy!

I feel like I haven't blogged in a while, and this is really disappointing to me. Life has been so hectic lately but we're all doing very well here. The weather has been fantastic and sitting home has been the last thing on my to do list. I even have a 10 page psychology paper due in 3 days that I haven't started. Eek! All this sunshine makes me happy, but sure puts my procrastination into over-drive.

Here's an update on our lives:

* Lucas is still potty trained! I swear, he must have been the easiest child in the world to train. We sure got lucky. He is now on his 22nd consecutive day of being accident free! We have never had to worry about poo and I can always rely on him to tell us when he needs to potty. Per his request, we have had to find restrooms in various stores and restaurants. I trust 100% that he'll inform us each and every time. He's such a big boy!

* I am now 33 weeks along in my pregnancy! Time is sure flying by and I can't believe how active this little guy is. We are getting so so anxious to meet him! I had an appointment with my midwife today and he is sure positioned low. It sure explains all the pelvic pain I've been having...that little head of his is practically grinding on my pelvic bones. I cannot believe I am due NEXT MONTH!

* We put a small dent into the nursery! Lucas now refers to it as the babies room rather than the office and he is so infatuated with the crib. After we finished putting it together he very seriously asked, "Mom, why are we putting my baby brother in a cage?" haha. It was priceless :)

* Summer midterm results are in: I got 98% on my Biomedical Ethics paper and 97% on my Psychology exam! Only 3 more weeks left of school. Yay!

* My mom's surgery went very well and she is now recovering at home. I hated being stuck here while she was in the hospital, but our fingers are crossed that it did the trick and we wont see any returning cancer cells. She's been such a trooper!

* We spent the 4th of July at the drag races (which resulted in my belly jiggling around like an earthquake...poor child) and then had a yummy BBQ at our house with some great friends. The weather was perfect and the salmon burgers we had were to die for! It was a great day.

* And finally, my brother is coming up for the remainder of the summer!! 8 weeks in Alaska? Every 15 year old boys dream come true. I'm so excited to spend some quality time with him and watch the bond between Brian and Lucas grow. Levi will have an extra set of hands to help with the yard work we're doing (building a new fence, leveling out the yard, etc) and we will have a live-in babysitter. Well technically he's staying in the trailer outside so I suppose he'll be more of a neighbor! But I am so excited to spend some quality time with Levi also before the baby comes and I think this trip will truly benefit my brother.

I vow to blog more frequently...so stay tuned!