Blood Pressure Issues - Week 30

Thursday morning I wasn't feeling so great and got a little lightheaded so I thought it would be a good idea to check my Blood Pressure (BP). It was 149/95. Not good! This was after the doctor had increased my medicine from 750mg to 1000mg per day (Aldomet comes in 250mg pills) about two weeks prior. I had a nurses visit scheduled for Friday (yesterday), but I thought I should call anyway. They had me go in to get some blood work done, but fortunately everything came back fine. The Doctor increased my medicine by another 500mg, so I'm up to 1500mg per day! That's double what I was taking prior to getting pregnant. This medicine, like most BP medicines, causes me to be tired, lightheaded, dizzy... blah blah. Plus I'm tired from my restless nights (frequent bathroom breaks) and the fact I'm carrying an extra 20 pounds! I know it sounds like I'm complaining... haha! I promise that I still love being pregnant! :) So, anyway, the appointment on Friday went okay. My BP was down to 117/62 - which the nurse and doctor were happy about. The nurse also checked my pee and sure enough there was a little bit of protein in it. This can be a sign of preeclampsia if my BP was high too. I have to keep monitoring my BP at home and if it gets at all high than I need to call the Doctor. For now my next appointment is my normally scheduled 32 week check up - WITH ULTRASOUND!!

Family photo!
I love this picture minus the fact that from this angle I look "wide".

Sometimes my back just hurts so I gotta do a little stretching. ;) Tim actually laughed out loud at me, but obviously snapped a photo at the same time.

Nurse Nancy's Bran Muffins

I know everyone is anxious to know the bran muffin recipe that I got from the nurse the other day. :) I made some this afternoon and they are delicious! I even got Tim to try one! He liked it, but then he said they gave him heartburn. I don't think he knows what heartburn is because even I didn't get heartburn from these!! haha

So - if you're looking for a healthy fiber kick with a ton of other GOOD stuff (and maybe a couple of bad like sugar, crisco, buttermilk) than these muffins are perfect for you! According to nurse Nancy the last 4 spices in the recipe are key factors in helping you stay "regular". The recipe is large and depending on how big you like your muffins than this could make up to 4 dozen muffins!! I got 3 dozen plus 5. Some of the muffins I made were a little larger than others too.

Nancy's Bran Muffins

1 - 150z box Raisin Bran
1 cup melted Crisco
3 cups Sugar
5 cups Flour
5 tsp baking soda
4 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 qt Buttermilk OR 1 qt whole milk soured w/ 1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg

Mix dry ingredients, add egg, milk, stir
Optional: add 1-2 cups blueberries
Pre-heat oven 400 degrees
Bake 20 mins in greased muffin tins
** I used buttermilk rather than the soured whole milk and I used 2 cups of blueberries, but would have preferred more. And I think she said something about replacing the Crisco with sunflower oil to cut out some of the badness, but I didn't look into that. :)

29 weeks and feeling better

I went back to the doctor's on Thursday and saw one of the nurses to check on my blood pressure. It was down to 127/78, not as low as it had been but still good! I had them check my at home BP cuff too to be sure it was correct (which it is). I'm going back to see the nurse again on Friday to make sure my BP is still in check. The nurse gave me a recipe for muffins that are "guaranteed" to keep me "going" :) She said to eat about 2 every day and it should help me stay regular. It's a HUGE batch and I don't imagine Tim will be eating any so I'll probably freeze some. I'm going to make them tomorrow! YUM :)

I had my first prenatal massage yesterday after work. Tim set it up for me for my Valentine's Day gift. It felt really great! I hope to go a couple more times before the baby is born. Then of course I'll also need to go AFTER she's born :)

Tim and I went shopping today and I got some new baby outfits and a few books for the baby. Tim thinks that the baby already has more clothes than he does, but what he's not considering is that her clothes are in different sizes since she'll be growing so quickly. I also FINALLY got some new bras for myself! Everything I had just didn't fit well and was uncomfortable.

Obie was giving little lady a hug :) ... or not.

oh geez!! constipated...what?

This doctor's visit was a little less then perfect. Before I get into the embarrassingly honest part of the check up I'll start with the ultrasound. The baby looks good!! She weighs just over 3 pounds. She continues to measure slightly above normal, but it's not a big deal. Tim and I both weighed a little over 8 pounds when born so the doctor's expecting a big baby! YIKES haha! She refused to move her hands out of her face so we got a bunch of shots that look identical to the one above. This one at least has a little eye poking out :) I found out that because I have high blood pressure (again, I have been treating this with medication for several years) is the reason they are doing extra ultrasounds. So I'll have another one at our next appointment, March 11th, 32 weeks!! Often times women with high blood pressure have baby's that don't grow as well, but apparently our little girl is doing just fine!! YAY!!

My blood pressure was a little high, 130/81. Nothing major, but higher than the doctor would like at this stage of pregnancy. I had been running 115/74 or so. The doctor is increasing my medication dosage and I need to keep a closer eye on it. I have a blood pressure cuff at home so I can check it and he wants me to stop in sometime next week to see how it is. sigh* Weight gain. Oh, the weight gain!! 10 pounds my friends... I gained 10 pounds in one month!!! Not ideal!! I gained 2 1/2 months worth of weight in 4 weeks. In my defense the last appointment when I was weighed I was doing my glucose test so I hadn't eaten breakfast AND I normally have my appointments after lunch so I'm guessing I had really gained more at that point it was just the timing of the day that threw things off. With that said...I'm up to a total weight gain of 19 pounds. Not horrible since the doctor wants to see me stay between 25 and 35 pounds. Also, when the doctor did my exam to be sure my cervix was still closed as it should be he immediately says "you're constipated". I was a little surprised and said "I am?" and he again repeats yes haha! I said that I'm pooping every day or so I thought, but he said it just isn't enough poop! He made a lovely estimate of about 2-3 pounds of poop is in there! Which my first thought was "thank God, I didn't ACTUALLY gain 10 pounds, part of it is just POOP!" He said to take some Metamucil or another fiber supplement OR take a suppository. And in the doctor's words the suppository "would blow you right out" HAHAHA!!! Guess you guys know what I'll be doing this weekend! But seriously, how he knew in a matter of seconds that I was constipated without doing any type of rectal exam or even asking me if I was going to the bathroom is beyond me! haha! Tim was even a little surprised when the doctor just blurts it out!

Not my best doctor's visit. I am concerned about my blood pressure. I had noticed myself getting a little light headed once and awhile. I'm just going to keep taking care of myself, maybe cut out a few sweet :)

Waddled my way into the 3rd trimester!

Today was one of my more emotional days. The same woman that had asked me about my due date and suggested that I looked bigger or further along then I was about a month ago once again asked me the same thing! With the same suggestive attitude! I'm sure she isn't trying to be rude, but today it just made me feel a little upset. I went to another lady and asked her to please reassure me that I'm not too big for 7 months. Never once have I felt too big or unhealthy and when I look at myself in the mirror I never thought that I looked further along than I really am. By no means do I feel sexy with this big bump on the front of me, but I feel good! Anyway, the lady I talked with made me feel better along with a couple of other co-worker moms. I just don't understand why the mean girl says anything. She's a mom!!! Granted her son is probably in his late 30's, but that doesn't mean she completely forgot about what it is like to be pregnant. Then to end the work day I got a bloody nose.

So...apparently I have a waddle. :) Couple of people at work tease me about it. haha! And I'm to the point that if I drop something I actually think about whether I need to pick it up or if I can just leave it there. :) Not that bending down hurts, but it's uncomfortable.

Tomorrow we have our doctor's appointment which I'm really looking forward to. I haven't been paying as much attention to my weight gain, but I feel I'm still pretty much on target. I'll post another update with some pics after the appointment! Hopefully we'll be able to get another video of the baby so I can post that too!

27 Weeks - about 3 more months to go!

My friend who is 13 weeks ahead of me just had her baby on Tuesday. I saw some of the first photos taken of the baby and the three of them as a family and I practically bawled my eyes out. I have never been a mushy baby person, but seeing them together as a little family it made me want our baby to be here right now!! It's so special to see a new family that's just like us. I went to visit them Thursday after work and got to hold the baby for awhile. I loved it! It made me feel a little less scared and more excited for the day to come when we bring our little girl home.

I went shopping with Mom and Karen today. We spent some time walking around Burlington Baby Depot. I bought the bed set for the baby's room - it's in the dryer now so I'll get the crib set up as soon as it's dry!! I need to iron the crib skirt which I'll probably do tomorrow. I picked out a pack n play (play pen) that Mom is going to get for us. And I had shown Karen the changing table we want so she's probably going to get that! YAY!! We spent most of our time looking at little girl's clothes. Mom bought a couple of outfits - one of which I just LOVE LOVE LOVE! :) She won't be able to wear it until she's 6-9 months, but that's okay. I saw some of the sweetest summer dresses too!! LOVE.

Not a lot has changed physically for me since last week. The baby tends to move as soon as I lay down to go to bed. Her kicks/movement make me jump sometimes because she's obviously getting bigger and stronger. This is the time that I end up talking to her asking her what the heck is going on in there! :) Tim continues to point and say 'look at that belly'. haha! And I keep reminding him that it WILL be getting BIGGER! :)