31 Weeks

I am 31 weeks pregnant today! Wow...only 9 more weeks till we get to meet our little girl. Although I don't want her to come early, I can hardly wait to hold her in my arms for the first time and look at her sweet face. The nursery is almost complete and ready to be filled with all of the baby stuff we will be getting this month from the 4 baby showers that are to come in the next month. Along with our birthing classes on 2 Saturday mornings and a breastfeeding class, January will be a busy month to say the least. Two big events to celebrate this month include our 4th Wedding Anniversary on the 8th and Brad's birthday on the 26th. What an exciting month we have to look forward to!

Christmas 2008

Christmas Eve with the Bartholomews

This is our annual grandparent & grandchildren picture.

Wow! Christmas was as always a whirlwind, and now it's over. We are thankful for the great times we had celebrating with family and friends. On Christmas Eve we spent time with my dad's side of the family at my aunt & uncle's house. After that we went back to my dad & Sandy's to exchange our gifts with each other. It was really nice this year being able to stay home and wake up in our own house on Christmas morning (last year we were with Brad's family in Brevard)! Christmas morning we headed to Dunn, NC for the day. First we stopped by Brad's aunt & uncle's house for a quick visit and then we headed a few miles down the road to spend the day with my mom's side of the family. We had a nice, relaxing day enjoying each other's company, eating, napping and watching some NBA.

Christmas with the Emorys

Then, Friday afternoon, Brad's mom, dad & sister arrived for the weekend. We exchanged gifts that afternoon and after dinner we went to see Marley & Me. Unfortunately, it was sold out so instead we saw Yes Man with Jim Carey. Saturday we spent the afternoon walking around and shopping in downtown Apex and headed to Amedeo's for dinner. Sunday we headed to church, ate lunch and then they all packed up and got on the road. Now it's time to pack up the decorations, put the gifts away and put the house back together. Luckily, Brad is off tomorrow so we can do these things together along with watching some football, of course. I am thankful for another great holiday and look forward to celebrating next year with our little girl!

The Melting Pot

Kristan, Carla, Leslie, & I enjoying our chocolate fondue

This year instead of drawing names for Christmas my accountability group decided we would treat ourselves to a night at The Melting Pot! Even though we were short Amanda and Mandy we had a great time catching up with each other and eating all the yummy food. We all decided to splurge and get the 4 course meal, and boy was it worth it. Although I must admit, the chocolate was definitely my favorite part of the meal. There is nothing like cheesecake and strawberries dipped in chocolate....delicious!

So Far so Good

Well, today is day 3 of monitoring my blood sugar and things are going well! Since I have been eating based on the nutritionist's advice I have had no levels above the normal range. This did mean eating a salad at Bojangles the other day after church (which was surprisingly good) but I did have a few fries and part of Brad's biscuit, so it wasn't such a big deal. It has been good learning about balancing out the starches/proteins/fruits/dairy, etc. through out the day, including snacks and I feel more energetic as a result. I think being on this meal plan will also help sustain me during the hunger that I will supposedly experience while nursing.

I did notice that yesterday I started craving sweet, sugary foods such as the left over Oreo balls in our fridge and the box of Peanut Butter Captain Crunch in our pantry. The good thing is that I can eat a little bit of these things as long as my blood sugar is within the limits (and if I eat it at night after I'm done taking my blood sugar for the day). On Thursday night I am going to the Melting Pot with my accountability group for our Christmas get together and I will enjoy it! Bring on the chocolate fondue...

Dr. Appt

This morning Brad and I went to talk to the Perinatalist to talk about how to handle my Gestational Diabetes. We spent most of our time talking with a nutritionist about how to try to control my blood sugar through diet. She gave me some good suggestions of things I should be eating for snacks and main meals. It doesn't look like I will have to change my diet up that much, except for snacks and breakfast. I also learned how to take my blood sugar using the monitor and will begin doing that 4 times a day for a week to see how things are going. If the diet works then I will go down to 2 times a day.

There is a lot to be thankful for in all of this. 1. There are no major complications that arise from GD to me or the baby except that she might be a little bigger than normal. 2. Most cases are able to be controlled by diet and exercise alone, which is our continued prayer. 3. We get an extra ultrasound next Friday to see how big she already is!

"The Sugars"

Yes, that's right it looks like I have Gestational Diabetes...woo hoo. This past Monday I went in for my routine screening and drank that lovely fruit punch mixture. I can't explain it but something inside me wasn't too surprised when I got a call yesterday morning from the Dr. office about it. It turns out my blood sugar was around 200 and the most they want it at is 99. The good news is that I don't have to go back to take the 3 hour test, the bad news is that when your blood sugar is as high as mine was they just automatically send you to a specialist. So, this Friday the 12th Brad & I will be going to this doctor to see what they want to do about it.

A blessing that I see in all this is that Cheri, a good friend of mine, went through the same thing during her pregnancy about 2 years ago and was referred to the same doctor. It's good to have someone to talk to who has gone through all of this before. Also, this is something that is very treatable whether it's through diet & exercise (goodbye holiday treats), a pill, or shots, there is a way to regulate it.

One of my biggest concerns is that she'll be a giant ,which may increase the chances of a
c-section! I had visions of holding a 6-7 pound newborn in my arms, but the chances of that happening are looking less and less now. Please pray that I would rest in the Lord's care for us and not allow any anxiety to creep in during all of this.

Thanksgiving

Last Tuesday night Brad and I headed to Brevard to spend some time with his family. On Wednesday we headed up to Gaffney, SC to go outlet shopping with Brad's mom, Lynne. I was especially excited to go to the Pottery Barn in search of a few more items we would like to have for the nursery. We ended up buying a cute 3x5 rug as well as some storage bins for the dresser/changing table. I was hoping to find some cute crib sheets that coordinate with the bumper I already bought, but no luck! Brad's sister, Leah came into town late Wed. night and on Thursday around lunch time we headed to Brad's granny & Paw's house to give thanks with his aunts, uncles & cousins. On Friday we relaxed at the house and ran a few errands before we met the family at the movie theatre where we saw Four Christmases.

On Saturday morning Brad and his dad left the house early headed to the App State game. Lynne, Leah, and I headed to Brad's other grandparents house for our Thanksgiving meal with his mom's side of the family. We hung out all day there and enjoyed time together. Sunday morning we got up early, packed up the car and headed to church. We ate lunch with the family and got on the road headed home. Don't get me wrong, I love going places, but there's nothing like coming home!