A Weekend with Emily and Tim

One of my best friends, Emily, came into town last weekend!!  We had such a fun time catching up in person and spending time with our buddy Tim McGraw.  She flew in on Friday afternoon, so we dropped her things off at the house and quickly headed out for dinner and the concert.  When we were getting onto the main road to take us to the concert venue (for your Corpus people, merging onto Crosstown from SPID), Em asks me, "You have the tickets, right?"  Ummmm, let's just go south on Crosstown instead of north real quick.  So we took another quick trip by the house to grab the tickets, then officially headed downtown.  I haven't been downtown in a while, and I was super sad to see that both the Mexican restaurant and the burger joint I was going to take her to for dinner were now closed.  Sad!  So I took her to the original Whataburger instead!  She has now joined the ranks of those who have experienced a time honored Texas tradition.  (In reality, I think McDonalds is way better than Whataburger...so have no fear, you aren't missing out!)

After dinner we headed to the concert venue.  The Band Perry and Luke Bryan opened for Tim - loved the Band Perry, wasn't real impressed with Luke Bryan.  Pretty much every song was about drinking, driving, and driving while drinking.  Neat, buddy.  But, then Tim came on!!  Our seats were in the back of the venue, near the floor (perfect pregnant lady seats - since Em and I are both expecting - on the aisle and the bathrooms were close by!), but the stage sort of weaved it's way around the floor.  This was especially cool because Tim actually opened the show about 10 yards from us at the back of the venue!

Here's a shot of how close he was!

(totally stole this from Em...because mine didn't turn out as good)

The concert was so good - he sang a good mix of old and new - and really, what Tim song isn't good?!

Here's our self-portrait from the show

(again, stolen from Em, because I always mooch pictures off people when they take them instead of taking my own!)

On Saturday we slept in - which isn't anything new for this pregnant lady on a Saturday morning - but for Em with 3 beautiful daughters at home, I'm sure it was glorious!  Once we woke up, we headed to the beach!  The last time the Nyes visited, our beach day was AWFUL.  It was seriously the worst day I have ever been at the beach.  Picture a Saudi Arabian desert with sand blowing in every direction - then having to clean that sand out of every crevice for about 2 weeks (but you put sunscreen on, so it sticks to your skin, making said cleaning nearly impossible!).  Fortunately, Saturday was NOT like that day!  It was gorgeous - about 90 degrees with wind coming straight off the water, so it felt much cooler.  I'm hoping our Texas beach has, at least somewhat, redeemed itself!  The only bad thing is we both ended up with really odd sunburns that ended up blistering and were really painful.  I guess at least we didn't have that bad of a burn all over, just in weird small places!

Em and I on the beach, with a little seaweed in the backdrop!

(again, stolen picture!)

And a nice preggo shot on the beach...hoping my daughter will appreciate this some day!

(and this picture was actually my own!)

Saturday night Dan joined us and we went to dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants in town.  Those of you who have come to visit, have definitely been taken to La Playa!  I was stoked because my favorite burrito didn't cause my blood glucose levels to go high! :-)  After dinner we went to see the movie Soul Surfer, which was incredible!  I bawled through about half of it (fortunately so did Em, so I didn't feel so bad).  Dan really enjoyed watching it with two sobbing pregnant women! :-)

Her last night in town...we had to wait for a while after the movie so our eyes wouldn't be red and splotchy!

(yes...stolen picture!)

Thanks so much for coming, Em, it was such a memorable weekend!!  I'm so sad that we live so far apart now, but am glad that we are still a big part of each other's lives!  And I hope you get your boots in a couple of months! :-)

Beauty from Ashes

Yesterday was a bittersweet day for me. April 2nd was my due date for the baby we lost in the ectopic pregnancy we had in the fall of 2009. While we never knew this baby's gender, we affectionately called "him" Jimmy. So yesterday would have been Jimmy's first birthday. There are so many reasons to be sad and hurting over losing our little Jimmy, but yesterday I was reminded of the beauty God promises to bring from ashes. As I think back over the last 18 months, I can see God's hand in every step of our journey, and there are pieces that I would never trade back. Dan and I grew so much closer during that hurting time, a time before we really had a church home or friends here in Corpus. I'm fairly certain I never would have finished my PhD had we carried little Jimmy full term. Knowing what it took to finish up the last 6-8 months of that process, and now knowing how draining pregnancy is on your body and mind, I certainly wouldn't be finished now. But by the grace of God, here we are, nearly a year after my defense, closer to each other than ever, and awaiting a new miracle - the most beautiful thing to ever arise from ashes. I thank God daily for her, and will do everything that I can to introduce her to the Lover of her soul...the one who promises to raise beauty from ashes, and does.

A New Glimpse at Our Baby Girl

We had a 3d ultrasound this week, it was pretty amazing! Dan laughed when I asked the ultrasound tech, "She didn't develop any boy parts did she?" :-) I was just thinking that the nursery is pretty pink! Here's a picture of our precious girl! Dan and I think she has Dan's nose and my forehead (although some close friends are claiming it's my nose). She also has squishy cheeks...which I absolutely adore!

This is our little angel at 30 weeks...

We can't wait to meet you and hold you in just a couple of months!!!

Gestational Diabetes Update

I saw the gestational diabetes specialist this week and learned a ton! She is the kind of doctor who gives you the absolute worst case scenario before she says anything else. As she was sitting there telling me these things, I was thinking she was saying this is what WOULD happen, not what COULD happen, so I was totally freaking out! Then she ended with, "but we can completely control this with your diet, so those things shouldn't happen with you.". She ran a test called an A1C that apparently tells her what my blood sugar has been doing over the past 90 days. She said that my number for that test was average/normal, so that whatever is happening has just started (good news). She also said that my gestational diabetes is placental in nature (there are two types of gestational diabetes, placental and maternal). This means a few things: (1) once I deliver, this is will away, (2) my risk for developing Type II diabetes later in life is less than if it were maternal, (3) my risk for developing gestational diabetes in a future pregnancy is significantly lower than the maternal.

Her treatment for me is to control this with diet. As I met with the dietician, I realized that the diet I put myself on in the two weeks while I was waiting to see the speialist was way too restrictive. The biggest changes have been being conscious about the carbs I am eating and eating more regular, smaller meals throughout the day. It has taken some getting used to, but I know it is good for the baby! The benefit of having an easier time losing baby weight will be good, too! The other part of my treatment is to monitor my blood glucose levels four times a day...which is REALLY not my favorite. I hate it. But knowing it's keeping our little girl healthy makes it worth it. I remember when my nephew was diagnosed with a milk allergy while my sister was still nursing. She had to completely cut milk out of her diet, and I couldn't imagine how she did it. I guess I understand now...even before I've held this child in my arms, I would do anything for her...even stick myself four times a day!

Perfect Pregnant Patient to Gestational Diabetes

It's been a little bit of an emotional week this week. I had my 28 week appointment last Wednesday which went well. My OB called me her perfect pregnant patient because I am right on track with my weight gain and the baby is measuring just like she should. Hooray! This appointment also brought along the fun of the glucose challenge test. For the moms out there, you remember the fun of drinking (aka, chugging) the nasty orange (lemon-lime, cola, fruit punch...) nastiness that they call "glucola". For the non-moms, it's pretty much the equivalent of drinking a glass of orange kool-aid with about 8 cups of sugar in it. My sister said when she did it, the lady told her should could drink the glucola OR two 2 liters of orange pop OR 4 cans of the concentrated juice you get with pears. Now I have a sweet tooth, but this stuff was disgusting! I survived and found out a couple of days later that I had failed the test, which meant I had to to in for the 3-hour glucose tolerance test. In this one, you get to drink twice as much of the nasty glucola then sit around for 3 hours to test if your body handles the glucose overload. Well, I failed two of the four markers, which means I have gestational diabetes. If you talked to me on Tuesday (the day I found out), I was a wreck. I was so sure that I didn't have it because in my limited understanding of GD (gestational diabetes), I knew that it meant your baby was likely to be big, and was tied with excessive weight gain in pregnancy. I've since learned that there's a lot more to it than weight. Apparently in some pregnant women, gestational diabetes can be mostly hormonal. Which, technically all diabetes is hormonal...but in the case of pregnancy - all of the pregnancy hormones that are rushing through your body are fighting the hormones trying to deal with the break down of carbohydrates and sugars in your body, which is (as one book I read put it) a train wreck waiting to happen!

I'm still not entirely sure what all of this means for me. My OB has referred me to another OB who specializes in gestational diabetic care. I go to see this doctor on the 24th. When I asked what I needed to do in the meantime, the nurse practitioner told me nothing. She also mentioned that the fact they are willing to wait 2 weeks to see me tells her that I am a borderline case, which is potential good news. I will know more when I see the specialist, of course. From speaking with people who have gone through this or who treat patients with GD, it sounds like this will be treated with diet and exercise. I will find out how strict that diet will be in a couple of weeks. For now, I am trying to make the best choices in food that I can (not really knowing what is completely off-limits and what needs to be limited because every book/website you read tells you something different), and exercise more regularly. I had been swimming about twice a week and walking or doing yoga/prenatal exercise DVDs about twice a week - but I'm working to get in activity at least 6 days a week. Of course that will be good for the baby and eventually for delivery, so I'm starting to see ways that this can be a blessing. One of my good friends also pointed out that the stricter diet I am on now, the less weight I gain, the less I have to lose - and that's a win-win situation! :-)

I certainly appreciate any prayers to help me remember that God's truth still remains, even though this circumstance seems crappy. It certainly seems trivial to worry about something like this, that I essentially can control, in the midst of today's news of the earthquake in Japan and ensuing tsunami danger across the Pacific. I just want to do the best I can for our baby girl and make sure she is as healthy as can be (even if I am going to have to test my blood glucose levels daily and desperately HATE needles!). I'll update as I figure more of this out when I see the specialist!

Simple Things I Miss the Most

I have officially hit the point of pregnancy where I feel huge and uncomfortable most of the time.  So in honor of achieving this milestone, I share with you the things that I miss the most from my pre-pregnant days (in no particular order).

1.  Breathing.

I miss breathing through my nose and not having such swollen sinus membranes that eating requires taking short breaks to catch my breath.

2.  Coffee.

I miss coffee with caffeine.  Yes, I know, I technically can have a cup a day, but I know I can't stop at a cup.  And really, I miss caffeine in general.

3.  Sleeping.

I miss sleeping on my stomach and my back.  And I really miss getting out of bed without having to roll out of bed (and without elbowing Dan in the face when I get back into bed for the fifteenth time each night).

4.  Running.

I miss running, especially now.  This is my favorite time in Corpus to run in the evenings - it's perfect.  I had such terrible siatic pain early on that my doctor wouldn't let me run, and now that the pain has been taken care of, she says too much time has passed to start running again.  So I walk or swim (which I have enjoyed getting back in the pool more often!).

5.  Sushi.

I miss Philadelphia rolls, and Texas rolls, and Christmas rolls, and...  Dan will likely be making a trip to Imperial Cafe shortly after I deliver. :-)

6.  Walking.

I miss walking without waddling, gasping for air, and tingling feet and hands.

7.  Painting.

I miss painting my own toenails.  While I do enjoy the monthly pedicures I am letting myself get, painting my nails has always been a very relaxing time for me.  I miss that time.

8.  Drinking.

I miss the occasional margarita and the occasional Fat Tire.

9.  Eating.

I miss eating with no heartburn or indigestion.  And I miss sandwiches with lunch meat.

10. Clothing.

I miss not having to pull your jeans up every time you stand up.  Although I do love maternity pants, they are the best invention ever.

Luckily, I know this will all be worth it in 3 short months when I get to hold my daughter for the first time!

First Glimpse of the Nursery

My Mom and Dad came to visit (code word = work) this past weekend.  I am so overwhelmed at everything that they did while they were here, we are so incredibly blessed!  They flew in on Thursday late afternoon, and I had three projects that I really wanted to complete while they were here - painting the nursery, hanging storage in the garage, and putting together the nursery furniture.  Dan had to work on Friday, so the storage in the garage had to wait for Friday night/Saturday morning.  By noon on Friday we were onto my secondary list of projects - shampooing the carpets in the nursery and fixing odd things that needed fixed around the house.  It was so nice to have them here, however I'm glad we have a granddaughter coming because I don't think they would be coming back anytime soon without her!

Here are some "before" pictures of the nursery...

My Dad isn't too fond of painting, so he put together the baby furniture while my Mom and I painted.

First wall of the nursery...it's borderline obnoxious - but I love it!

And here are some "after" pictures...

There's still quite a bit that I'm going to do with it, but having the solid color down on the walls was the biggest part, and had to be done to start!  My superstar friend, Jade, is going to paint the design from the baby's nursery decor (Carter's Butterfly Flowers collection) on one of the walls, and I have some decals and other stuff to hang on the other walls to complete it all.  I'll be sure to post pictures as everything comes together!

The last time my parents came down, every time we saw a Whataburger (which is just about every half mile in this town...), my Dad would make a comment about it.  I thought he was just being my Dad, but in all honesty he really wanted to try it.  So we promised him Whataburger on this trip (since he worked so hard).  Dan missed out since he was at work...

Friday evening, my Mom and I made a Babies R' Us run while Dad and Dan started work on the garage storage.  When we got home, we started cleaning up all of the cardboard and styrofoam trash that had accumulated in the garage.  Four trash bags full of styrofoam...the blue bin next to it is already filled with cardboard boxes, with another stack about 2 feet high waiting for it's turn to be recycled.  Apparently everything baby comes wrapped in cardboard and styrofoam!

Dad and Dan working on the storage

They finished up around noon on Saturday, which was perfect because we had plans to meet some dear friends from Wray (now they live in Greeley) for lunch.  Bill and Ruthie went to the church I grew up in, and now live in Port Aransas for two months out of every year.  Port Aransas is a beach town just across the bay from us where a lot of Winter Texans come from December-March every year.

My Mom and Ruthie

Dad, Mom, Ruthie, and Bill

We also went to church with them on Saturday night - which was a hoot.  They attend a church in Port Aransas that is largely comprised on Winter Texans...meaning the average attendee is no less than 60 years old.  We were by far the youngest pew there!

These last shots are some that my Mom took the last night they were here.

A huge THANK YOU to Grammie and Grandad for coming down and helping us get ready for little Miss Gaines.  Next time we won't put you to work (maybe...) :-)

Double Digits!

We are officially in double digits...only 99 days to go as we count down to our baby girl's arrival!  What is even crazier is that in one week, I will be in my third, THIRD, trimester.  Where has the time gone?  Part of me wants to start freaking out a little because there is still so much to do before she comes (paint the nursery, set up furniture, create my summer online courses, figure out day care for next year...).  Fortunately, my Mom and Dad are flying down tomorrow (yay!), and we'll get some of my list crossed off. (Don't worry Dad...I don't have enough to fill the entire weekend...we'll go to Whataburger).  I've got an idea of what I want to do with the nursery, hopefully it will look as neat done as it does in my head.  :-)  You can be praying that we will figure out the day care bit.  Our heart's desire is to find someone in Kingsville who does in home care for a small number of children.  My hope is to be able to leave campus and nurse at least once through the day, but we aren't having a lot of success finding that yet.  There is a child development center on campus that is really good - and we are on the waiting list there.  Our prayer is that we will find someone or that a spot will open there.  It's a little bit anxiety provoking to think about leaving our baby with someone we barely know...praying for God to bring peace and direction!

25 Down, 15 to Go!

Today officially marks 25 weeks on this little journey.  I'm still amazed that there is a little person growing inside of me!  I am also amazed, every time we take one of these pictures, at how big I am!  Dan says that I'm starting to walk and sit/stand up like a pregnant lady - so I guess I am getting big.  And while I'm on the topic of amazed, my belly button is crazy!  It's still (barely) an innie, but I am completely obsessed with it.  It's my own little growth meter.

Everything has been going great - Dan felt our baby girl move for the first time this week!  I had an appointment on Monday, and my doctor says that everything looks fine.  She has given me the OK to fly out to San Diego in late March/early April to receive the award that I received for my dissertation.  I'll be 32 weeks then, but as long as there are no problems between now and then, I'll get to be out there for it! Overall, I feel great.  I'm starting to feel pretty worn down at the end of days, especially my Tuesdays/Thursdays when I teach 4 classes back to back.  I've been swimming 2-3 times a week, and doing some prenatal exercise/yoga DVDs on most of the other days.  Between that and regular chiropractic adjustments to keep my sciatic pain in check, I can see why some women love being pregnant! :-)  My Mom and Dad are heading out next week to help us with a couple of getting ready for baby projects.  I'm hoping for nice weather so we can spend some time at the beach while they are here too!  Even Coloradoans probably don't want to spend a day at the beach when it's 30-40 degrees out!

The Great Ice Storm of 2011

I title this with a little bit of sarcasm, knowing that we have friends and family up north who endured real cold, ice, and snow this week!  However, we did experience our first south Texas winter storm over the past few days.  Monday the temperature was in the 70s, but slowly across Tuesday the cold front came through dropping us down into the teens and 20s for the rest of the week.  Much like our friends and family to the north, we haven't been above freezing in the last few days...however unlike our friends and family to the north, people here are major weenies about it.  The entire city of Corpus pretty much shut down throughout Thursday and all day today.  A&M-Kingsville closed as of 5pm yesterday...all in anticipation of snow.  

I think many of my students forgot that I am from Colorado, and spent 5 years in Indiana, so there's not going to be a whole lot of sympathy coming from me.  On Wednesday, within hours of the university announcing closing (not effective until 5pm Thursday, mind you), I had 14 emails from students telling me they weren't able to come to class on Thursday.  Excuses ranged from "I have children in elementary school, and since the school closed, I have no where to take my children" (completely legitimate and understandable - I offered to allow their children to come to class with them) to "the weather is too treacherous for me to drive to class".  We didn't get any precipitation with the cold until about 6pm on Thursday...so I'm not sure exactly what was treacherous.  Granted, south Texas does not have the equipment to handle ice on the roads (our version of a salt truck is likely someone sitting on the tailgate of an F-150 with a salt shaker), but at that time there was no ice to be handled!

The other amusing activity was heading to the grocery store.  We, unfortunately, needed milk - so I had Dan drop me off to run in quickly and grab some.  You would have thought we were going to be stranded in our homes for weeks with no electricity the way that place looked.  They had every line open (probably around 25), and the lines extended back into the aisles (probably 10-12 people deep in each), some with multiple carts full of food.  It was nuts.  I stood in line for 20 minutes to buy milk (and a few other I'm pregnant and that looks good items).  The best part is, we're supposed to have temps back in the 60s tomorrow and the 70s on Sunday.

Around 6pm last night, the "wintry mix" came and left between 1/4 and 1/2 inch of ice depending on who is reporting.  We both have the day off, and have opted to stay inside away from the crazy Texans trying to drive in this.  The sun is starting to pop through now, and there are patches of blue skies, so I anticipate everything being back to normal in a few hours.  

To remember this treacherous event in our lives...here's some pictures of plants around our house from this morning...

Bushes around our house that will probably die because we didn't cover them.

 One of our trees out front

 Trees in the back weighted down with the ice

 Random bird who didn't get the "let's fly further south" memo

 One of our trees that I've been nursing back to health since we moved in.

It has twice as many leaves on it this year than last...I fear it may bite the dust after this.

 Leaves on our palm tree...word to the wise, don't let these hit you in the head...

All in all, it's been amusing to watch these southerners respond to what is normal for about 70% of winter up north.  Our prayers are certainly with our friends and family up north who are dealing with the aftermath of a real ice storm (leaking roofs, broken trees, no electricity).