Family Christmas Photos

Christmas photo 2008 (taken almost exactly one year ago)

Today we went for our annual family Christmas photos at Sears. Last year although we only liked a couple of the poses, and they were with only Nadia. This year we did buy a few prints of one of the family shots. None of these really "wowed" me though. I would say of all the times we've had pictures taken, the best two by far were in early May (Mother's Day) and the end of June (her 1st birthday). Those two times it was really hard to pick as there were several great shots with wonderful expressions on her face. The times we took her prior to that she didn't ever smile for the photographer, and the problem these last two times (Halloween and today) has been that she is a girl on the go. It's really hard to get her to sit or stand in one location for more than two seconds. Actually the last time I felt it was the photographer's timing that was off although we still got more smiles with her penguin outfit than we did today. They showed us nine different poses, and we ordered prints of three of them. I've posted eight of them below. The ninth one was of Nadia and me, and my face isn't showing at all. I can't believe they thought we might consider that one! We did order some of the first photo (above) - the close up of her face and the second one (below) - of her in the process of getting out of the chair.

It was hard to decide which pretty dress to have her wear. I had bought this green dress (size 24 months) at JCP awhile ago, and I also had bought a couple of red plaid ones at yard sales (size 2T). Paul doesn't like plaid; so we went with the green. I had on two different black tops before deciding to wear a red one. So many choices to make! I can't believe my little girl can wear size 24 months already. There are only a couple of pair of size 12 month pants that still fit her. Mostly she wears size 18 months now. The size 18 month sleepers and dresses have zero growing room. She'll be moving to 24m/ 2T in those very soon.

We did order some of this family photo (above). I liked the background better of the other family photo (below), but Paul's eyes aren't totally open in that one. I was hoping to use the free 10x13 coupon for a family photo for our family room, but that frame is hung in a vertical fashion so this photo wouldn't work for that. So we got our 10x13 of just Nadia. We won't be waiting until December for our next family photo. I assume next year we'll get two family photos - one in February with Ian and one next December. Hopefully one of those two times we'll get one we really like that's oriented vertically.


They took two maternity poses. She wanted to have Nadia touching or kissing my belly, but that wasn't going to happen. I will say though that a couple of times at home today Nadia pointed to my belly and said "baby." I doubt she really understands, but it proves she does listen to some of what I talk to her about! We didn't order any of either maternity pose. I also had Paul take two belly shots at home, and I added them to yesterday's post. Today I'm 32 weeks!! The choir director last night made my day when she said to the choir (as I walked past her to find my seat), "She's the cutest little pregnant woman I've ever seen." Awww how sweet! I wouldn't use "cute" or "little" as adjectives to describe myself, but it was music to my ears! Your comment was very kind also, Tamera. :-)

I spent more today than I ever did before, but I was planning to buy a Super Saver membership. If you spend $50 then the membership only costs $10 the first year and $5 a year after that. If you spend less than $50 then the membership costs $40. In January of this year they started charging $5 a person if you have more than one person in the session. The rest of this year we avoided that fee by only having them take pictures of Nadia, but I know I'll want pictures of Nadia & Ian together over this next year, plus I'll want some of the four of us. There are other perks to the membership, but that was the main reason I wanted to join. In light of how much we spent today, I should definitely be able to resist the $25 package they'll try to sell me when I pick these up. This is the first time I haven't ordered a collage from Sears. I was planning to do so because when I picked up her penguin photos they were advertising a new collage that can include up to four photos from different sessions. It was on sale for $10, and when I asked they said it would still be available at our next appointment. I had gone online and selected three poses (one from July 2008, November 2008, and June 2009) and was planning on using one of today's as the fourth. However, they told me today that product isn't available yet. Hopefully I'll be able to get one the next time we go as I think it would be wonderful to have a collage of her first 17 months of life.

Gestational Diabetes

Today I was officially diagnosed with GD. My hopes of being able to put away the glucometer were dashed, but actually the news that I need to start following the diabetic meal plan was far more upsetting. I don't think I'll be gaining any more weight the rest of this pregnancy. That is one good thing. In fact I won't be shocked if I lose weight over the next seven weeks. 45 grams of carbs per meal is really limiting. For example, a light yogurt (100 calories) has about 20 grams of carbs. I'm going to have to force myself to eat more protein, or I think I'll be passing out. I ate one breakfast in the past week that had only 45 carbs, and my blood sugar was less than 80 after that meal, and I felt like I was going to pass out, which wasn't a good feeling to have while sitting on a subway train. Veggies and protein are my least favorite food groups. I mostly eat fruit, carbs, and dairy. I wrote the NP back and explained that I had been out of town all week and hadn't been eating what I normally eat. This morning after my usual breakfast, my blood sugar was 117, which is a good number. She wrote back and said that if I wasn't diabetic it wouldn't matter what I ate and my numbers would be under 120. I had a banana and egg salad sandwich (on rye bread) for lunch, and my level was a littler over 120 so I guess even here at home I wouldn't be under 120 all the time. If my numbers don't stay under 120 while following the diet over the next week, I'll be put on an oral medication (which has the same effect as insulin shots). I'll also be meeting with a dietician sometime in the near future. The good news is that I'll be 32 weeks tomorrow and that means the c-section is exactly 7 weeks away if Ian doesn't decide to come sooner than that. I can do anything for 7 weeks, right?

I admit I cried a bit over this news. That's probably due in part to all those extra hormones floating around in my system. It's a good thing I ate lots of sweet potatoes on Monday as I'll have to skip them on Thursday. There have been years in the past where I haven't eaten any turkey on Thanksgiving Day because I'd much rather have stuffing, cranberry sauce, and sweet potatoes. I guess this year I need to stick with turkey and veggies. Ian is 100% worth it; I just wish I could have escaped this diagnosis, especially since those 7 weeks encompass Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's which typically involve lots of sugary foods. I had made some brownies for Paul before I left for Maryland, and he hadn't eaten all of them. I did have a brownie this afternoon as my last hurrah after I got the message from the NP. I will do my best not to eat any more sugary sweets until after he's born.

As nice as it is to visit family or go on a vacation, it's very exhausting when you get back home as you need to unpack, do a lot of laundry, go grocery shopping etc. I did accomplish two items on my lengthy school related to do list while I was in Maryland (graded at least 60 papers). I am glad I did or I'd feel even more overwhelmed than I do at the moment. Paul has a lot on his plate right now as well as he has a paper due to his advisor at PSU plus he needs to finalize his master's thesis (that he hasn't worked on for over 15 months) as he's trying to graduate in January. He was going to paint Ian's room while Nadia & I were in Maryland, but he said it would be better to do it this week; so that's also on his to do list. It will be fun to decorate his room!

Seventeen Months!

Children grow up soooo fast! The top picture was taken in August 2008, and the bottom one was taken today. It seems like it was just yesterday that I was feeling Nadia kick inside me, and now she's running around the house. I had planned to start potty training her around this age, but I think in light of Ian's arrival I'm going to wait at least until she's 21 months old to start potty training her. I've heard that older siblings often regress in this area when the new brother or sister arrives on the scene.

The area in which Nadia is changing the fastest these days is her vocabulary. Lately she often says at least one new word a day. Today's new word was "turtle," and the way we heard her say it was she pointed to a picture of a turtle and said what it was. Although she's been using words for several months, she has only recently begun to identify objects in books before we've said the word. The same goes for making the correct sound when she sees a picture of a cat, dog, cow, etc. Her vocabulary includes at least 40 different words. I look forward to being able to communicate even more with her in the future!!

Thanksgiving Dinner #1

One perk of being married is that it seems we often end up eating two special meals at each holiday. The last few years I've cooked the Thanksgiving dinner for my family, but this year my Mom cooked today, and on Thursday we'll be eating with Paul's family. His sister-in-law, Millie, will be cooking that yummy meal. My parents will actually be having two meals this year as they will be eating with my sister, Wendy, and her family on Thursday in Chicago. There were 13 of us at the meal today, not including Ian. It was all very delicious, and I am happy to say that I resisted eating any pie while I was in Maryland, even though I like pies better than cakes (and there were 3 to choose from - banana cream, pumpkin, and cherry). I can't say I resisted ice cream the whole trip, but I didn't have some every day. My two favorite Thanksgiving dishes are sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce. Paul's favorites are turkey and mashed potatoes (with gravy).

As for my blood sugar levels, I deleted the first day's from my medical record since they were much higher than any other day. I haven't gotten feedback from the NP yet regarding the five days I have entered thus far. I am hoping she'll say I don't have GD. My fasting value is supposed to be below 95, and this morning was the 6th morning that it was indeed below 95. So far it's been between 79-94 each morning. Two hours after a meal it's supposed to be below 120. Of the 14 times I've checked (I couldn't check 2 hours after dinner today as we were on the road), it's been 120 or less six times (79-120) and the other eight times it's ranged from 122-138. Only three times has it exceeded 130 over the past five days. I'd love to stop pricking my fingers. Thankfully I am getting much better at doing it. I was going through WAY too many strips a day at first due to getting error readings.



Nadia slept solidly for one hour of our four hour trip last night. She slept off and on for about another hour and cried off and on for the other two hours. She rode with me the first 3 1/2 hours and with Paul the last 30 minutes. As much as I love spending time with my family, I have to admit I am glad we won't be making that trek again until March. That will be our first multiple hour car ride with two munchkins under the age of two. Hopefully Ian will be one who likes to sleep in his car seat.

Nadia's cousins gave her lots of hugs as you can see from the picture of Andrew (age 4 1/2) and Nadia. Paul was with us about 48 hours, and that's about the most his body can handle due to the fact they have a cat. It's not just adults who comment on the size of my belly. Jenna commented on how large it is several times. Tomorrow is a big day as it's Nathan's first birthday and Nadia will be 17 months old. On Wednesday I'll be 32 weeks which means as of Thursday I have less than 7 weeks left! :-)

Chuck E. Cheese

My niece, Jenna, turned seven years old today. After church this morning, we went to their apartment. Jenna opened her gifts, we ate lunch, and headed to Chuck E. Cheese. It was very crowded and noisy. The kids had a good time. It was Nadia's first time at a Chuck E. Cheese, and she definitely enjoyed the rides. Unfortunately my camera is very slow so I missed some great shots.

New Foods, New Words

Nadia has eaten a lot more the last couple of days. She also has eaten several foods that she hasn't ever had before - cheese quesedillas, a chicken strip from Chick Fil A, turkey bologna, slices of cheese, banana cream pie, etc.

Nadia's newest words include "push" (when she wanted me to push a button for her on a toy), "cheese," "kitty," and "light." Her current repetoire of animal sounds includes "moo," "ruff ruff," "meow," and "baa." At Donna's house on Tuesday she would point to their dog and say "ruff ruff."

She got her first scab on Wednesday night. We met a former roommate of mine (when I lived in Annapolis) for dinner at Panera, and after dinner Nadia ran around on the side walk outside the restaurant. She fell down, and her nose was scraped on the sidewalk. You can see her boo boo in the pictures of her on the scooter (in the previous post and this one). Speaking of the scooter, she sat on it and scooted around the porch until she saw one of her cousins standing on it, and now she prefers to stand on the scooter. She's enjoyed the fact that the temps have been in the 60's here.

Maternity Clothes and Manners

I've mentioned before that although I am 5'7", petite size pants fit me perfectly. This is because I have a long torso. This didn't pose a problem for me when I was pregnant with Nadia, but it has definitely been a problem this time. I am not sure if it's because of a difference in the style of summer vs. winter tops or because my belly is bigger this time around, but most of the maternity sweaters I bought aren't long enough to cover my belly any more, particularly if I am wearing an "under the belly" style of maternity pants. Normally I wear either a size medium or large sweater; it's rather frustrating when XL maternity sweaters don't fit. One solution I have found is that actually some of my tunic style sweaters (size M or L) fit. Something is wrong when a non-maternity sweater in a smaller size fits when a XL maternity one doesn't. My mom, Nadia, and I went shopping at Target on Wednesday, and my mom graciously bought me a few XXL maternity sweaters there. I don't think the fact that they were XXL was the difference but rather that sweater was a longer style. It's so nice not to be tugging on my sweater all day long to make sure my belly isn't showing!

I am torn as to what I should do regarding the maternity clothing I've outgrown. I put the summer maternity clothes in the basement because even if I decide to sell them on eBay, now isn't the right time. My bigger decision is whether to sell the 2 pair of pants (size L) that fit me in the early stages of pregnancy with Nadia that don't fit now and also the sweaters (L and XL) that no longer cover my belly. We're not going to do IVF again, and by the time I finish nursing Ian I will be getting very close to 39 years old (presuming I nurse him at least for 12 months). In the last 7 1/2 years since we started trying to conceive, we've never gotten pregnant without medical intervention (IUI or IVF). Although I would love to have a third child, I really don't think it's going to happen, and of course after being childless for so long, I am thrilled that soon we'll have two little ones. I'd hate to sell my maternity clothes and then end up needing them again, but I also think emotionally it's probably better for me to just assume that Ian will be our youngest child. I think selling the maternity clothes will help it seem more real to me that the door of having more children is closed. Yes, there is sadness when I think of that, but considering a few years ago I assumed I'd never be pregnant, I just need to focus on the two wonderful blessings God has sent our way and that helps decrease the grief over "only" having two kids when I always dreamed of having at least three or four. What would you all do in my shoes? Sell the clothes or hang onto them just in case there's a surprise BFP at the age of 39 or 40?


Yesterday I was at the NAEYC conference in DC. All throughout the day I had quite a few people ask me when I am due. One lady looked at me and asked "you aren't going to have that baby today are you?". Generally it seems the reputation is that people in certain areas (the South or rural areas) are more polite than those in other areas (the North, cities). Well I must say that in DC I was treated in a very polite manner all throughout the day yesterday. For example, I was offered a seat on a bench while waiting for the METRO train. This is one perk to it being obvious that you're pregnant. :-) The conference is so big that the Convention Center isn't big enough to house all the sessions. They also are using two nearby hotels. Unfortunately my session was at one of those hotels, and it was an ordeal getting there and back as the shuttle wasn't running every 15 minutes as advertised.

The expectation is that we will present at at least one national or international conference a year. I have typically gone to 2-3 conferences each academic year. I did still do three conferences in this calendar year (2009), but in terms of this academic year (09-10), this is the only conference I will be attending due to Ian's arrival, and I only plan to speak at one during the next academic year (in Baltimore in November 2010). The next year I am thinking of doing more than one is during the 11-12 academic year (one in DC and two in Philadelphia). Conference proposals are due about one year before the conference so it's something one must plan in advance.

Last night we had dinner at Chevy's. It was a treat to have Mexican food as I rarely get to a Mexican restaurant since Paul doesn't like Mexican food. We discovered that Nadia loves cheese quesedillas. It was no surprise that she devoured the ice cream that came with the kids' meals. It was nice to see her eat so much since she's been eating very little lately.

BIG Boy

Yesterday afternoon I met with a Nurse Practitioner first. She said that I haven't been officially diagnosed with gestational diabetes, but that she will make that determination after seeing my blood sugar levels for one week. I am to eat as I normally would and check my levels four times a day (first thing in the morning and then 2 hours after each meal). If my levels aren't good (greater than 95 for the first one and greater than 120 for the other three), then I'll meet with a dietician and be placed on a diet. If that's not enough to get my glucose levels where they want them to be, then she'll give me a prescription for an oral medication. If I am diagnosed as having gestational diabetes, I will need to go to the OB two times a week starting at 32 weeks (which I'll hit a week from today). One appointment will be for a non-stress test, and the other will be for an ultrasound. I enjoy ultrasounds, but I can't say I would enjoy going to the doctor 2 times a week for several weeks. I am hoping I am not labeled as having GD. I was unable to successfully do my fasting blood check this morning. I went through 6 strips and pricked my fingers about 8 times before I gave up in frustration. It only took me 2 strips and 2 stabs to get a reading 2 hours after breakfast, and it was less than 120 (117) even though I ate a higher carb breakfast than I normally do. I had cereal (granola) whereas at home I usually have a sugar free yogurt plus an English muffin or small Lender's bagel. Hopefully I'll continue to have good readings, and hopefully I'll get better at using these strips. It's bad enough to use 4 in one day; I'd already put drops of blood on 8 strips today by 9:30am!

My second appointment was with a nurse who trained me on using the glucometer. I didn't have any trouble using it that first try. I am not sure why it's been so much harder for me today. Then I had an ultrasound, which I wasn't expecting. The sonographer was unable to get any good pictures as he was face down the whole time (he isn't breech any more) and also he was in constant motion. He actually moved the wand she was using. Almost all of his measurements (length of his leg bone and such) were between the 92nd and 98th percentile! That has never been true of Nadia. His weight was "only" in the 82nd percentile. I know they aren't totally accurate in predicting weight from an ultrasound, but they estimated that he weighed 4lb 11oz. Considering Nadia weighed 5lbs 5oz a week after she was born, that sounds really big to me! They said he's measuring about 2 1/2 weeks ahead of where I actually am. It seems like Ian is going to be bigger than his sister was. I guess I won't be needing preemie or newborn size clothes for him - we'll just start out with 0-3 months this time unless he comes really early. I bought some diapers for him recently, and I didn't buy the newborn size that I used with Nadia at first. I guessed maybe he'd start out with size 1.

I am to enter my glucose levels online and the NP will review them and write me a message once a week. If I ever enter a value under 60 or over 200 she will contact me sooner than that. Hopefully she'll tell me next week that I can stop testing. She said she thinks that maybe I had GD with my last pregnancy even though I passed the one hour screening in light of the polyhydramous I had (excess amniotic fluid) and the fact that Nadia's blood sugar was low after she was born. The good news is that as of tomorrow it will be less than 8 weeks until Ian is due to be born so even if I am officially labeled as having GD, I won't be pricking my fingers that long and of course it's all 100% worth it!!! The doctor said the bright spot wasn't as bright yesterday on his heart (I asked), but he said it often waxes and wanes so you can't read much into that. He said that with my age + the bright spot he'd put the risk at 1% that Ian has Down's syndrome. That was very reassuring as my OB made it seem like the risk was much higher than that.

As for weight gain, I had gained 3 lbs in 2.5 weeks so that's much better than the previous time when I gained 7lbs in 3 weeks. I've gained 28 lbs since the egg retrieval, and I now weigh 3 lbs more than when I gave birth to Nadia. I've never weighed this much in my life, and unfortunately I know I'm not done gaining. I'm still hoping not to gain more than 35 lbs total. I gained 33 lbs total by 36 weeks with Nadia. If I do go on the GD diet, that should help keep my weight gain in check.

Nadia and I made it safely to Maryland last night. I'm speaking tomorrow at the conference at the convention center in DC. Thankfully Nadia slept for a good portion of our trip down here even though I left earlier than her bedtime (since I'm not a safe driver past 9pm). Hopefully she'll be a good girl for my mom tomorrow as she'll be watching her while I'm at the conference all day.

Decreased Appetite

Nadia hasn't been eating very much lately. It bothers Paul much more than it bothers me. I figure she'll eat if she's hungry. She must not be in a growth spurt. She has been drinking more milk than usual. Unfortunately, the sippy cup leads to many tears these days because Nadia wants to carry it around all the time. We only let her hold it if she's drinking from it.

I went to a branch campus 90 minutes from our home to observe a faculty member this afternoon so Nadia was at Sarah's longer than usual, but she won't be going back to Sarah's for 2 weeks. Nadia has said the names of both of Sarah's children (Lane and Abbey). I've heard her say Abbey (age 3), and Sarah told me she's heard Nadia say Lane (he's in the 3rd grade).
Tomorrow someone from Lowe's is coming at 7:30am to measure for an estimate on the fence and deck. My other goals for the morning include making beef stew for Paul to eat while we're away (in addition to the pizzas I picked up today) and finishing packing our suitcase. Then I'm taking Nadia to Donna's house as I have my 2 hour doctor appointment tomorrow afternoon regarding the glucometer and such. After visiting with Donna I'll do a little shopping and then drive down to Maryland. I'm speaking at the NAEYC conference in DC on Thursday. It's a HUGE early childhood conference (average attendance usually exceeds 30,000). Paul will be driving down on Saturday, and we'll both be driving back Monday night. On Sunday we'll be celebrating my niece's 7th birthday, and on Monday we'll be having Thanksgiving dinner with my family. We'll celebrate with Paul's family on the actual holiday.

Daddy's Girl

At the top and bottom of this post are two of Paul's baby pictures;

there's no denying that Nadia looks like her Daddy!!

The photo above shows the outfit Nadia wore today to church and

to a luncheon to celebrate the baby dedication of Paul's cousin's daughter.

It was so nice to only need a sweater today since it got up to 70 degrees!

Sometimes Nadia steps into one of my shoes. This morning she stepped into one of Paul's, and I helped her get into the other one. She truly has been Daddy's girl this week. If both Paul and I have been around, she has chosen to be held by or play with Daddy not Mommy. It's very sad to her when Daddy goes upstairs to his office to get work done and she can't go with him.