biscuit's room!

so here it is...we are going to wait to add in the crib until biscuit is ready to move downstairs. (s/he will spend the first few months a little closer to us.) we'll use the bed as a place to nap or nurse until then. i made the curtains, crib blanket, bug pictures and mobile. the ark is from our recently passed grama graziano, so she can watch over the biscuit.

do what ya gotta do...

oh, poor me...i had to eat this delicious grilled eggplant with a hearty meat sauce over spaghetti for dinner and give away all of this evil, worthless starchy sugarness. i didn't even get one of those dang swiss cake rolls!

i'll just whip it out anywhere!

i met the girls out for happy hour the other night at the nite lite. (don't worry, i had a diet coke mixed with soda water and a salad.) somehow, i started posing for biscuit shots out on the patio. duke came to meet up, i think he was a little embarrassed. hee hee

30 weeks down...10 left to go!

since our last update, biscuit and i have visited with the dietician last tuesday and the midwife today. the dietician gave us a big ole pamphlet telling us what to eat and when, as well as a glucometer and some blood test strips. i have been blood testing 4 times a day since and keeping a food intake log. lucky for me, i like vegetables and i like to cook, so this new eating plan is not as difficult as i had feared.

except for no cake or ice cream...a small sacrifice for a beautifully baked biscuit!

so, it turns out that since pregnancy hormones are the greatest during the morning, that is when i need to be the most mindful. milk, of all things, is really high in simple carbs...aka sugar. that means no cereal for breakfast. the quick and easy is over in the a.m. high protein is what is called for. (actually everyone should eat a high protein breakfast...it leaves you fuller longer and with more energy.) this is a little harder for me since i have a slight allergy to egg whites. luckily, the morning star sausage patties fit the bill and are delicious along side of a slice of hearty whole wheat toast and some grilled asparagus...mmm.

at the midwife check-up today...i learned that i've lost a pound and the biscuit has grown to expand my belly to a whopping 33 centimeters. that is 3 centimeters in 2 weeks! wow. since i am doing so well on the eating plan, we should be able to continue this way until the birth. YEAH, NO INSULIN INJECTIONS OR MEDS!!!

they won't let me have a waterbirth, which i expected. just in case i am too big to get out of the tub quickly if there is an emergency is the logic. i say, let's see how big i get and go from there, but maybe they don't want to offend a fat preggo...haha. i can still labor in water either in the waterbirth tub or in the jacuzzi tubs for relaxation. i have a feeling that i am going to be a mover and a shaker anyway...way too many "ants in the pants."

the biscuit has been quite active! i can now feel kicks and pokes on opposite sides of my belly at the same time. while the midwife was trying to measure my belly and feel for positioning...my belly was doing the wave. i swear, this feeling will never get old.

despite all of this sugar drama, i feel great. i really am enjoying this pregnancy and getting to know the biscuit within. i am so proud of my big basket ball belly!!!

thank you all for your love and support!

much love xoxoxox t & b

sweet biscuit

yup...i have gestational diabetes. ah crap. tomorrow, i have an appointment with the dietician. she will help me regulate my sugar levels through my food intake. i go to visit the midwife in a week and then in two weeks, so that they can make sure that my glucose meter matches up with my blood work in the lab.

if i cannot be regulated through my diet, then i'll have to be put on meds. however, i am pretty confident that i can stay away from simple carbohydrates and sugar for 2.5 months. the biscuit is worth it.

most likely, they will not let me have a waterbirth. guess that will save $100. they won't let you birth in the water if there is any chance of complications. i can still expect/hope to birth naturally though. i am sure that i can push out up to a ten pounder at least! (cross your fingers for me, that it won't be necessary.) haha!

all should return to normal after the baby is born.

xoxo t and biscuit

28 weeks and full of sugar!

we had our 28 week appointment on wednesday 7/14/10. my belly has busted out another 4.5 centimeters for a whopping 30 total. the scale however, did not move a smidgen...still at 15#. it's all baby, baby. biscuits heart rate was 136 bpm.

since my bloodtype is A-, i received a shot of rhogam (mercury free, of course) to prevent any later complications due to rh antibodies building up in my blood and infecting any future child with rh disease. and, i got my blood work done. good news...i am not anemic! all hail mee yuk gook (beef and seaweed soup)! bad news...i failed my glucose test.

(for more info.. http://www.babycenter.com/0_glucose-screening-and-glucose-tolerance-tests_1483.bc )

anything under 140 is of no concern, however, my number was 178...cause for concern. so tonight i will be fasting and tomorrow morning at 7:30 am i'll be in the lab at ohsu getting a GTT (glucose tolerance test) which takes about 3 hours.

with that being said, only about 1/3 of women who have a high glucose number actually have gestational diabetes, so the odds are in our favor. it is hereditary and my gram had it during 2 out of 6 pregnancies. it is caused by hormone fluctuation and probably because i am older.

if i am found to have gestational diabetes, i will just have to alter my diet until biscuit is born. then it will go away. there would be increased risk for hypertension, pre-eclampsia and large birthweight. the first two could result in a early delivery and the last could mean a c-section...ugh. (my uncle was born 6 weeks early and weight in at 9.5#!) these problems would all interfere with my hopes to have a waterbirth.

i am confident that we are healthy and all will be well. think happy sugar-free thoughts for us please. i'll keep you all posted...no pun intended. hee hee

xo t

much needed trip to the beach!

we went to the coast on saturday

with our good friend sammy.

it was gorgeous day! sometimes you

don't realize just how good

it is to get out of town,

until you smell that ocean air!

we all shared some healthy snacks

before dining on fried food at moe's.

thanks for the fruit gina!

(whoa, check out the belly on that girl!)

sam did a great job of taking our first family picture

at the beach...sunny, biscuit and a kite. awww.

flinstone foot

the 95+ degree temperatures caused a slight change in wardrobe.

who knew flip flops could be too tight?