It's ALMOST that time!!!

So, it's March 29...I'm due April 11.  Asher would have been born on March 21, the day I turned 37 weeks.  I'm now 38 weeks and counting.  Yep, she's gaining one half to one ounce EVERY DAY!  I think of how crazy this time is.  The life of my little family of 3 is going to change drastically and I have to admit, thinking that I can say "the kids" while referring to my own family rocks my little world and makes me feel old.  It's so hard to fathom that I'm going to love little Sloan with the same passion and intensity that I love Asher.  So much of my time now is focused on buying, preparing, and planning.  Honestly, it's quite frightening knowing that having Asher is already like having my heart so vulnerable but now it will be doubly so.  I can't wait to see if she looks like Asher?  Will she have the same beautiful beach blonde hair?  Will she be under 8 lbs.?  Yikes- I'm already thinking not.  This baby girl can stretch so far across my abdomen that I feel she's got to be long, I was.  I was also 8 lbs. 6 oz.  Let's just say, I can't wait to hold her in my arms and have my child content in my arms again.  Asher will cuddle, just not for long.  : ) 

On to my little nesting project from yesterday... Asher has a little fabric square that we keep in the car and call his "lulla bug."  I'm not sure he's necessarily attached but it's just habit that it stays in the car and goes into his lap for car rides.  He leaves it there and I believe it gives an element of coziness along with texture.  Asher's was from Bunnies by the Bay.   I have yet to find one that I liked for Sloan.  So, after having a sewing machine for 2 1/2 years or so, I learned to thread it.  I first had 2 dear friends assist while I made a pillowcase dress.  I got so excited I went out and bought fabric for 2 more dresses.  I also bought materials to make Sloan her own "lulla bug."  Yesterday, I actually sat down and pulled out the machine and gave project 2 a try.  I'm quite pleased....  

My 2 fabrics and ribbon choices



I pulled out the scrap booking tools, which probably haven't been used since college, to cut the fabric.  I saw this done in a tutorial.

I'm sharing all of this because, yes, I am quite impressed with myself.  I'm much more of a "sayer" than a "doer."  And this, I actually did!  Look out etsy!

So, Sloan now has her own little lap buddy for car trips!

4-D Ultrasound

So, Asher was delivered at Lexington Medical Center because I was still teaching and had my own insurance.  Sloan; however, will be delivered at Tuomey Medical Center because I now stay home and will be delivering under Brent's insurance.  With Asher, they automatically scanned 4-D while doing my normal ultrasounds and we received free copies from his ultrasounds.  Because I was glucose intolerant, which basically means not bad enough to be labeled as gestational diabetes but still having some glucose issues, they gave me an extra ultrasound at 34 weeks.  Here are a few of our little Asher...

Asher sleeping away and sucking on his left arm while having his right arm up by his head...



They then buzzed my belly trying to get some movement.  Here you can see he opened his eyes.

And apparently, he wasn't in the mood for company as he threw up his hand as if to say, "leave me alone."

This one just shows how he was a little cramped in there...

     Well, this time around I was not labeled as glucose intolerant, so I was not going to get that extra ultrasound, they did not do any 4-D scans or pictures, and honestly Brent and I wanted them.  : )  Not only that, but at my 20 week appointment when we found out it was a girl, we were told in a slightly different way.  They did the ultrasound but never showed us the sex.  She actually handed me the towel to begin wiping off my belly and I was very confused.  I said, "Oh, we wanted to know the sex."  She said smiling, "Well, you've got to work for it."  She then gave me small wrapped box to open.  Inside, there was a small pink bear key chain.  Well, as exciting as that was, I was a little bummed that we never got to truly see for ourselves.  She did give me a picture that had the arrow pointing to certain parts saying, "It's a girl!" 

      This past Friday, Brent and I decided to make an appointment in Columbia at a place called Wee See Imaging just so we'd have that extra ultrasound and some pictures to share with Sloan one day.  We were able to see that it was a girl with our own eyes and now have a DVD and CD of photos.  Overall, the pictures are not quite as clear as Asher's and she had some difficulty getting Sloan to cooperate and move her hands away from her face but it's still very cool to know what's going on inside.  Apparently, Sloan's face is right behind the  placenta so she had to have me on my side to get a better angle.  Here is a small clip showing our baby girl.  Towards the end, you can actually see her open her eye an give a small smile. 

Looks like Sloan may be a thumb sucker or at least she is here...

Just a sweet picture...

Here, it looks like she's covering her ears and her eyebrows are clearly scrunched.

I asked if we'd be able to tell how much hair Sloan had and she said let's check.  She said usually you can see little white spots that represent hair but Sloan has distinct little lines.  This one shows that our little girl will have a head full of hair like her brother did at birth. 



Just look at all of that light blonde hair!!  The nurses all commented on it.  : )  They say it's very rare to have a blonde newborn much less, one with so much blonde hair!  Oh, I can't wait for this moment again.  There's nothing quite like it.

I'll end with one of my favorites of Sloan.  Here she's looking truly like a girl with her hand delicately folded under her face and making pouty lips, which I'm sure she'll try to use to get her way. 

So, if things go like they did with Asher, who came 3 weeks early, it's possible I'll have some actual photos of Sloan next month!  She's due April 11.  We'll just have to wait and see!  



Glorious Sleep, Glorious Morning

     So, I've been thinking.  I love sleep.  I especially love to wake up when my body tells me to or when I hear my sweet Asher talking in his crib.  This time comes between 8-9 am.  I am so blessed that this has become my "norm."  I know my little world will be rocked in a few months when Sloan joins us and she does not know how glorious it is to sleep AT NIGHT. 

     I'm not a napper.  Actually, I'm not even a fan.  I have many requirements (hee hee) that must be met in order for me to fall asleep....comfy clothes, a cool dark room, a heavy cozy blanket, etc.  I'm also a fan of making the bed first thing in the morning and it's just not worth messing it all up again just for me to be awake groggy and sometimes grumpy after a nap.  : )  Yes, with a new baby and Asher, I have a feeling my views may change and the bed may go unmade so that it can be revisited later in the day and I'm preparing myself for this.  

     So yes, there will be changes with a newborn but I also realized that this may be the only time in my life where things are slow paced in the morning.  Soon, I'll be looking for a preschool for Asher and they usually begin at 9.  An alarm will have to be set for this.  After preschool, then there's real school.  Goodness gracious, an early alarm will certainly have to be set for that.  This will continue for the next 12 years!  Actually, longer than that since Sloan will then be in school and if we have a 3rd, then even longer.  I will be the mom that celebrates school breaks, celebrates snow days, celebrates summer.

     I guess I'm just thinking out loud.  I was just a little overwhelmed when I realized how quickly life changes and the potential of life to get crazy before we even realize it.  I thank God that I consider myself blessed to have this time.  And I thank Brent for setting his alarm, being quiet as he gets ready, and not resenting me as he struggles out the door while the house stays quiet and still.  For now, I'm going to enjoy my slow mornings, lack of scheduled A.M. activities, and the quality time with my little man that I would not trade for anything. 

Good Morning Sweet Buddy

Always eager to help with breakfast...

A quality breakfast.  I actually have Brent to thank for this one.

Brent captured this sweet moment from the balcony.  Asher enjoying his morning milk, watching his favorite morning show- Mickey Mouse, and giving some love to his baby sister.

Very Moved...

This Sunday at church, just as every Sunday at our church, I was so moved.  The songs always move me to tears and just bring this emotion over me that I can't control.  I don't really understand it.  I think pregnancy may have something to do with it but I'm always so overwhelmed.  So thankful, so grateful, and so ashamed of the little work I'm doing to spread God's glory.  Brent and I are so careful to bring our Bibles to church with us but do they get that same use Monday-Saturday?  No.  I think during the service of how I'm going to get home and blog my heart out about the message...but I get home, get busy, and misplace my notes.  So, for now, I'm just going to leave you with this video.  Please listen carefully to the words and listen to the end.  It's my favorite part.  I hope it gets across some of what I'm feeling....

First, scroll to the bottom of my page to pause the music.

The Stand by Hillsong United

Thinking back...

     So, I woke up this morning at 8:30 and all was still quiet in my house.  I rolled from my right side to my left and felt my baby girl shift sides completely in my belly.  : )  I must have woken her up because she immediately began to bump around.
     This flashed back to 2 years ago last night...I was 36, almost 37 weeks pregnant and after a bathroom trip I realized I was leaking blood.  They say some spotting is normal during pregnancy, but since I never had, and the blood was leaking at a somewhat fast pace, I called for Brent and with shaking hands I called the Dr.  He agreed that due to the circumstances I should go to the emergency room and be examined.  It was a Wednesday night, probably close to 9:30, when all of this happened.  I remember grabbing my purse and rushing out the door.  Brent drove and I can remember reclining my seat and feeling for signs of movement.  There were no tears but there were prayers on the way to the hospital that night.
     After all the normal tests, temperature, blood pressure, baby heart rate, etc. I was hooked up to monitor contractions.  The screen was going crazy.  Mountain after mountain on the screen and yet I was feeling nothing.  The nurse informed me that it's normal to be having contractions and not feel them.  Ha, this is glorious I thought.  I can handle this...I wasn't very dilated so there was no need to worry about labor just yet.  They said even with all that was going on, I could still carry until my due date- January 8 and it was only Dec. 17 and that all was well.  Relief!  We headed home around 11:30.
     The next morning, December 18, I returned to teach my kindergartners, and Brent returned to work in Sumter.  I had noticed tiny spurts of fluid throughout the day and told a few teachers on my team.  I felt completely normal, I just had these little spurts of fluid.  I went through the entire day until my planning period, which was the last period of the day.  My team : )  oh, they were so cute..."what in the world are you still doing here?"  "It's OK, I feel fine.  Let's get some planning done."  With their pressure, I went to the principal and told her what was going on.  She said my class would be covered for dismissal and I should go ahead and get things checked out...again.  I called Brent so he could start the hour drive from Sumter and meet me at the hospital.  I'm thinking they rolled me around in a wheelchair, which I thought was silly, but it is nice to be pampered every now and then.  : )  I remember they had trouble finding an examine room for me.  They wanted to do a swab to see what the fluid was.  She came back about an hour after the first swab and said it was inconclusive and she wanted to swab again.  Second swab and they discovered it was amniotic fluid.  "Looks like you won't be going home" the nurse said.  My thoughts: "What?  My class' holiday celebration is tomorrow.  I have no bag packed.  I was about to be on 2 weeks Christmas break and had a long list of things that I wanted/needed to get done.  I am a planner!  One thing on our list was to buy the car seat!"  Calls were made to family and friends.  I was brought to a room, a delivery room!  I asked for a doula, which had been part of my "plan."  They informed me that there had been a lot of births that day and all of the doula's had already been used.  I expressed my desire for a natural childbirth and that I really wanted to delay pitocin.  I had heard, and they agreed that it can make labor pain more intense.  One nice nurse who was going off duty used a marker to draw a black dot on my foot.  This was a known pressure point, which may help induce natural labor.  She also gave me a sucker and said something about the sucker on the roof of my mouth helping induce labor.  Well, you can bet, I was sucking that sucker and Brent was massaging that pressure point!  : )  We realized we would have a little time on our hands.  Brent went home to pack the essentials, my parents and brother weren't there yet, it was about 8:30 that night and the Dr. came in to inform me he'd like to go ahead and break my water to get things progressing.  They also wanted to go ahead with the pitocin.  : (  Apparently, once you're leaking amniotic fluid, they want to have the baby out within a certain number of hours or your risk of infection goes up significantly.  Well, I'd already been leaking since early that morning.  And let me just tell you, after realizing quantity, I'm so glad my water did not break in front of my little 5 year olds!  There could have been possible traumatizing.  : )

There were times I was like, I can handle this...women throughout time have been able to handle this...

Followed my moments like this...

Although Brent says there were times I asked for the epidural, I met my goal of a natural childbirth.  And at 1:30 am on December 19, 2008 I gave birth to Asher Fielding Petersen, 6 lbs. 2.3 oz.

I had moments like these...

(Thank you to my family, who were troopers through the night.)

(Meghann & Troy, thanks for making the middle of the night trip!)

And FINALLY I got to eat!  : )

(Kristen R., thanks for chatting at approx. 2:30 in the morning)

What's this? I have a moment!

     So, I decided to travel to Orangeburg for the day.  Actually, Asher decided by saying, "Nah Nah's toys?" as I got him from his crib this morning.  I had planned on finishing dusting and vacuuming the upstairs but I liked Asher's idea a little more.  : )  So, after breakfast we headed to see Nah Nah, Papa, and Uncle Troy.  Lunch at House of Pizza is always a plus.  Oh, and I guess I'm officially showing because I had a lady say, "I thought you were pregnant but I was afraid to ask."  Yes, I'm 4 months along and at that in between, awkward, "is she just pudgy?", stage.  I don't mind though because the elastic waistbands are out and they're glorious!
     There's something so wonderful about coming home.  It's kind of like a mini vacation.  Food is prepared and provided for me.  Love is abundant- not only for me but also for my son.  My "To Do" list goes out the window.

     Haha, OK, that was all from Nov. 10.  I'm going to guess Asher woke up or my ADD kicked in and I moved on to something else.  Actually, I just remembered...mom told me that she had taped the Oprah episode where the family lost their 3 children in a car accident and then they were blessed with triplets.  I was in Cape Cod when that episode was on and had missed it.

     It's actually now, Nov. 15 and I'm in Orangeburg again!  Brent, Asher, and I made the trip yesterday for lunch.  We brought the trailer with all of our palms and seasonal outdoor plants to put in my parents' greenhouse.  Brent and I drove separately so that he could leave early this morning and head to work while I get the day to spend with family (and have Brent's car serviced at my dad's station).  Mom, Asher, and I enjoyed breakfast together; mom, dad, Asher, and I enjoyed lunch; and mom and dad have meetings tonight so Troy, Asher, and I are going out for dinner before I head back to Lexington.

     I guess I want to take a moment to Thank God for so, so many things.  I am thankful for an amazing family who loves and supports me, for a husband who works hard and supports the freedom I have with my days, for a beautiful son who loves life and adventure, and for the new baby who's now not just bumping but kicking around in my belly.  As I pray for others whose family members are ill, I am so thankful for the health of all of those who mean the most to me...  

Out at my parent's property...



And, one of the bump just for fun.  : )

19 weeks and counting!

    

Welcome Fall?

Ok, we're excited about all the seasonal changes and (somewhat) cooler weather.  I'm actually really excited about our electricity bill because our air/heat has not had to turn on.  We decided to take a family trip down the road to a local tree farm for some great fall photos.  Poor Asher...in the photo below I had him in a sweater and it was 85 degrees outside!  Don't worry, we were quick and I brought a shirt for him to change into.  As you can see, he didn't seem to mind the temperature...

Welcome Fall, we're glad to have you and look forward to all of the changes you bring.  (I, personally, am looking forward to the elastic waistbands)  : )