My first blog!

Baby Dean at 10 weeks!

29 weeks & already a Packer fan!

Definetley a boy

Hi everyone! Well since I'm limited on what I can do, I thought it would be a good idea to chronicle these last few months before Baby Dean gets here.  I'm not the most creative person, and most days I probably won't have a lot of entertaining things to say, but at least I can share what I'm going through with everyone. Nick will probably post some blogs of his own I'm sure, and he's really good with the Go Pro camera so you might get to see some "baby dancing in the belly" videos!
This pregnancy has definetley taken me on a roller coaster ride of emotions. I knew going into it that it wasn't going to be a "normal, uncomplicated" pregnancy due to my Lupus. I had sort of a "the complications aren't going to happen to me" type of attitude, but that all changed very fast. At our 10-week appointment with the OB I learned that I would have to start giving myself blood-thinning shots in my abdomen twice a day to prevent blood clots and a miscarriage.  Even though I'm a nurse, the thought of poking myself was beyond my ability...........so Nick had to learn real quick! That first shot he gave me was so nervewracking, but I just closed my eyes and prayed that he wouldn't poke me too fast or even worse, too slow.  But to my surprise, I barely felt it and he did such a great job.  I've since taken over the job of injecting myself and I'm very used to it by now :)
At that same appointment, I also learned that I have gestational diabetes which meant more poking of my body parts, fun! Because they recently changed how and when they test women for this, I was diagnosed much sooner then if I had been pregnant 1 year ago.  This distressed me even more than having to give myself shots everyday just for the sheer fact of now having to watch what I eat. What the heck? I thought when you were pregnant you got to be a little more indulgent for the first time in your life????  Overall, I have to say that my blood sugars have been pretty well controlled and I have allowed myself the indulgences that I crave.  Having the diabetes probably has been a blessing in disguise and kept my sweets consumption in check, which is good for the scale!
From 10 weeks to 26 weeks, everything was going smoothly and I felt great. I was continuing to work my 3 12-hour shifts a week at the hospital and staying active with walking and prenatal yoga. I had thoughts that I was blessed with such an easy pregnancy! Then 27 weeks rolled around and everything just took a turn for the worse. My blood pressure out of nowhere spiked up and I had the worst headache I have ever had.  Of course being a labor and delivery nurse I knew that these were symptoms of a condition called Pre-ecclampsia. But being a labor and delivery nurse also means I ignore the symptoms and high blood pressure and deal with it. However, after multiple doses of extra-strength Tylenol and no relief in sight, I gave in and called the doctor who then told me to come into the hospital. When I got to the hospital my blood pressure was high (no surprise) and it took 2 doses of Norco to dull my headache. Luckily, my blood work came back normal but I was sent home with a jug to collect my urine for the next 24 hours to measure the amount of protein in it. When I returned to the hospital the next day, my doctor basically told me "no more work and bedrest until you deliver".  She was very concerned that I was on a downward spiral of worsening pre-ecclampsia and having to deliver the baby early. I was given a steroid shot that would help baby Dean's lungs mature much quicker in case he had to be delivered prematurely. Needless to say I walked out of that hospital feeling very defeated and scared. As an OB nurse I have seen it all throughout my years and the thought of not having a healthy term baby really upset me.
So here I sit on bedrest trying my best not to go crazy and drive my husband insane. To go from living a life that you can freely be out and about and go places as you wish to now being sort of a prisoner in your own house is really difficult. I enjoy my job and the people I work with and although it's weird to say it,  I actually do miss work.  As I write this I am 30 weeks pregnant and am doing much better. My blood pressure has stabilized, but due to some elevated lab work and the risk of the pre-ecclampsia worsening the bedrest order has not been lifted by the doctor.
In the meantime I'm finding different activities to keep me occupied, like writing this blog for instance. I've also learned how to crochet which I NEVER thought I would do. I'm also going to finally be able to tackle projects that I've been putting off for awhile like making a wedding and honeymooon album. Any other ideas that any of you have would be greatly appreciated!
The main goal here is to have a healthy full-term baby boy and I am willing to do whatever it takes to achieve that goal. I'm not saying it's going to be easy and I'm sure there will be some tantrums and hormonal meltdowns along the way, but in the end Nick and I will get the greatest gift of all :)
Thank you all for reading and I will update you soon!!

~Kristina