This one is a long one!

Ok, first, another doc appointment. The 24 hour urine test came back normal. So no more worries. I imagine they will leave me alone now. No change in my dilation at all, which I expect. I don't imagine I will change until labor actually starts. I stayed at 1 cm with Dylan until labor too. So anyway, it was an easy appointment. The only problem was that I sat in that stupid exam room for over an hour before the doc finally came in! Completely crazy. How can you leave a patient sit like that! Grr!!! Next appointment is Tuesday.
Now, to Christmas. Busy few days. Christmas Eve was pleasant because Ryan was home from work early, so it was nice to just all be together. After Dylan went to bed we put the gifts under the tree and stuffed the stockings.

Sorry the pic is sideways. I really don't feel like uploading these again. You get the idea anyway!
So when Dylan woke up on Christmas morning he came in the living room to turn on the tree like he does each morning and saw all of the gifts. He kept saying "wow! presents!" I think he repeated that 3 or 4 times before he turned and looked at me. He was thrilled! So we ate a quick breakfast and then started on the gifts. Dylan wasn't so thrilled about taking time to take a picture before he got going.

So he got some nice gifts, but not too many. Here is one more from that morning.



Later that day we went to Ryan's parents for Christmas dinner. The meal was good as always. I was very happy that Dylan was patient when it came time for the gifts. I worried that he would try and 'help' everyone else open gifts. I didn't want the other kids getting upset because Dylan wouldn't leave them alone. But he did very well. He patiently waited his turn to open each gift. Once again, he got some really nice toys. Here is one pic from that evening.

Again sorry that it is sideways. It takes too long to upload!

Then on Saturday, my mom's side of the family was coming down here for a lunch. Mom came down early to help this large pregnant woman cook an entire meal. Thanks mom! We cooked all kinds of stuff. The meal turned out great. Most everyone in the family made it down. We missed a couple though because of work. All of the kids seemed to get along well and played well together. Dylan can get a little out of control sometimes around other kids. He did some-what, but held it together for the most part. It was so nice to see all of the kids tear into their gifts. There's just something so nice about watching that all unfold! They all tore into their gifts and had most of their toys opened in probably 15 minutes. They all made out pretty well! Here is one pic from that day too.



So Sunday it was time to relax. We did nothing. We were able to get all of Dylan's gifts out and set up. I got the house almost back to normal. Sunday Dylan started to complain about his ear hurting. We kind of sat around that eve because he wasn't feeling well. Monday he didn't get to go to school because of his ear. I made him a doctor's appointment and sure enough he did have an ear infection. He got started on antibiotics. Now he seems to be completely fine. We are finishing the meds but they seemed to have done their job.

So today I got the tree stripped down. Its just waiting for Ryan to take it apart. I have been busy getting baby stuff ready too. I got Dylan's overnight bag packed and ready. I put all of baby's clothes put away into a dresser and laid out the outfits I want to take to the hospital for him. I still need to get my bag packed though. Bassinet and car seat are downstairs and cleaned, ready to go. I feel ready for the little one now. As ready as I can be. Dylan's new room still has had no progress which upsets me every time I walk by it, but there isn't anything I can do about it. All I can do is get the little stuff ready and try to keep the house together until we bring the little one home.
Ok, that's all from me now I think.
Happy New Year everyone

Yet another appointment this past week. Group b came back negative which is great. No worries there. But docs are still worried about the amount of protein in my urine each week. I haven't asked why they are so worried, because I didn't want to get myself upset. So I let them worry and figure it out. So anyway, they wanted me to do a 24 hour urine test. I had to take home this hideous brown gallon jug and catch all of my urine in that for 24 hours. Then I took it back to the office and along with that, they took some blood. I will hopefully find out what is going on at my next appointment on Monday. I have been told that it can be a sign of preeclampsia. Here is some info from Web-Md. http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/preeclampsia-eclampsia

Today is Christmas Eve! Yay. I cant wait to have Dylan open his gifts in the morning. It will be a lot of fun. I got most of the house straightened up yesterday. I have the kitchen and bathroom to take care of today. I always leave them until the end, because they are so easy to wreck! I also have a few things to make today for tomorrow and Saturday. I could get a lot more done in a shorter amount of time if I didn't have so much discomfort going on in my lower belly. And then after I'm on my feet for too long, they swell. Oh well, should be a good day today!
Merry Christmas everyone. I hope to have some pictures to post next time!

I had my appointment today. Everything is going ok. No issues this time at all. I was tested for group b strep, and will get the results next time, but I don't think I have to worry about it. The appointment itself didn't last long. They did check my progress and said that I am dialated about 1 cm. No big deal. I go back each week now. The next appointment is on Tuesday.
So nothing else going on. We have a few things planned for the weekend. Nothing on Saturday, but staying home and staying warm. Sunday we have a couple of places to be.

We took Dylan up to the firehouse to see Santa last night. By looking at the pictures you can tell he is a little unsure about the whole process. Santa tried to talk to him, but he didn't say much back. Anyway, he sat on his lap at least and almost gave me a good photo op.



Other than that, not much. I almost got my Christmas shopping done. The only thing left is Ryan's stocking stuffers. Which isn't easy. I have a couple of ideas, but we'll see if I can get what I want. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I hope to take care of it all then after the appointment. Hopefully the appointment won't last long and everything is ok. Last weeks appointment didn't end on the greatest of notes.
I can't wait for Christmas!

Have you noticed, I don't do titles?

Yeah, I'm not creative.
Kind of a busy weekend. But it really has been a nice one. Friday we took Dylan and met with my Grandparents. They wanted to enjoy his energy for the weekend, so who am I to say no. So we met them, had a nice lunch and then it was just Ryan and I. We did a few things in town we needed and wanted to do. Then Ryan had to be up at the firehouse to help clean up for the Christmas dinner that was today. So we stopped in there. We were there very very late so after that, we crashed for the night. We didn't do much today though. Mainly a few little things around the house, getting things back in order around here. This eve then was the Christmas dinner at the firehouse for all the volunteers and their families. It was a nice dinner, good company. So here I sit, very tired, but happy.
I did call earlier and check on Dylan. Grandma said he wasn't being very good. Which is very easy for me to believe. He has been kind of rough to deal with lately. I really hope it is just some phase he is going through. But he can be, well, a pain. He has taken to back talking. And whichever form of punishment we try, nothing works. It is extremely frustrating. I just don't know what else to do other than what I am doing.
Anyway, I never have heard back from the doctor's office on my tests they sent out, so things must be ok. I have another appointment at the end of the week. This time, I will just watch what I eat before the appointment and see if that helps. Also, so far Dylan has shown no signs of chicken pox. So for the time being, that is great. Fingers crossed still though, because from what I read on the net, we are still within that window that something could still show up.
Christmas is sneaking up on me. I still have people to get for. Gift cards mainly, but I still need something for Ryan and I still need to get both him and Dylan's stocking stuffers. The week of Christmas we are kind of busy, so this week is really my last chance to get what I need. Oh, and I still have Christmas cards that need to go out! I ran out of stamps and kept forgetting to get some more. Great. Man this month is just flying by! Where does all of the time go anymore?

Where to start....well, first off, we got Dylan's future room all cleaned out. We put up the bed and got it where it needs to be. Now we just need the doorway. We have heard nothing from the guy who is supposed to be working on it. Who said he would have it all done by January. So yeah...still worried about all of that. We also got out Christmas tree put up. I am working on getting it decorated now. We've been staying pretty busy around here, but it feels good to get things done. No matter how little they are.
Yesterday when I picked Dylan up from school there was a sign on the door letting everyone know that there had been cases of chicken pox in some of the kids in the school. No one was every at the school with the actual spots, but had developed them over the weekend. So its possible that LAST Monday, Dylan was exposed to a child who was developing the virus. Although it was probably minimal exposure considering he was there for only a few hours on Monday, but it is still possible. I was completely ok with that. Chicken pox is really no big deal. Ryan and I chose to opt out of that particular vaccine for the time being with Dylan, so that he could be exposed and get natural immunity. So we know that he will get them at some point. We'll come back to this in a little bit.
I had my regular check up today. I am 34 weeks along now. Wow...
Baby's heartbeat was 144, which is good. My blood pressure was good as well. However, when they tested my urine they said that the protein and glucose in the urine was high. They are going to send it off for more testing. She said it could have been from my breakfast or there could be some sort of infection going on. The test will take 48 hours. So if I don't hear back from them by Friday, I will be in the clear. I really hope that there isn't something wrong. I am so close to the end of this pregnancy, it would be sad to have complications now.
So while I was there after all of that, I wanted to ask the doc about being exposed to the chicken pox. I told her the situation, told her we don't know yet if he has it, because there aren't spots yet, told her that I've had them already. I wanted to know if there were any precautions that I needed to take if Dylan does get them. Honestly I figured she'd say don't worry things will be fine. Well, apparently during pregnancy it doesn't matter if you've had them or not, they can cause problems. If Dylan does get them, then I have to go in for blood work so they can look for the virus and see if its old or new and then monitor me from then on depending on the results. It would mean more blood work and ultrasounds until delivery. She said that ideally, I should stay away from anyone with the active virus, but she knows that with your own child it's just not possible, so tests and more tests for me to make sure things are ok. I had NO idea that it would be a big deal since Ive already had them and the baby is safe inside of me, with my immunity! So instead of being ok or comfortable with Dylan getting the chicken pox I am now worried that he will get them. I know that if he gets him he will be just fine. Now its me and the baby that I worry about.
So let's all keep our fingers crossed that the urine test comes back fine and that Dylan does NOT develop the chicken pox!
With all of that worry its so close to Christmas. I just want the pregnancy to end well and Christmas to come and go happily. I am looking forward to Christmas. I just want it to be a happy time of year.
Speaking of Christmas 90% of my gifts have been bought. There are a few last minute things to get, but they will be very easy to get so it's not a big deal. I do still need something good for Ryan though. He isn't easy to buy for!