4 hours in the ER

So while doing some work outside Brenden comes to the front door screaming that he is bleeding. Since Brenden is prone to bloody noses because of his allergies I assumed that was all it was and told him to go to the bathroom and I would meet him there. When I got to the bathroom I quickly realized when I saw the gash in his face that this was going to be much worse. Since Chris is out of town I needed to take all three kids to the ER. And to top it off, it was supposed to be nap time for Rylan.

What I saw when I arrived in the bathroom - It actually doesn't  look as bad in picture form

We got to the ER quickly, but everything after that was slow. We spent nearly 4 hours at the ER and most of that was spent waiting around. When they finally were able to see us we discovered that the laceration was all the way through his cheek. As it was explained to me, Brenden was running away from Jake and tripped in his room and hit is bunk bed. I'm not sure where he hit it, but my guess would be the corner of the stairs. The cut was extremely deep and he must have bit the inside of his cheek to make the hole through the cheek complete. Lovely.

Poor guy had to have lidocaine shots inside and outside of his mouth. It broke my heart and I think I was crying as much as he was. After his cheek went numb they gave him 7-8 stitches. They put 2 or 3 on the inner tissue of the outside of his cheek, 4 stitches on the outside to close it completely, and 1 on the inside to close that off. The inside should have gotten 1-2 more stitches, but the lidocaine didn't seem to completely work and Brenden was screaming so getting the one was nearly a miracle.

He is on a liquid diet for today and hopefully  back to real food tomorrow. The doctor was concerned about particles getting inside the cut in his mouth since they only did the one stitch. Hopefully it'll do some good healing tonight and close up quite a bit.

Waiting......

 Numbing stuff before the Dr really looked at it to see that he would need lidocaine shots

  

After 7-8 Stitches and a lot of tears :(

The silver lining of the day was Chris's parents arriving to stay with the kids this weekend so I can go to Michigan to have a small break, see friends, and eat all the Ann Arbor foods I've been craving. Also, Chris's dad brought my new car with him so I would have it for my trip. After the long day it certainly was a nice end :)

Lucky Number Slevin (aka The Cincinnati Kid)

I've been keeping this journal for the past several weeks as we started the journey with Eby Baby #4....again.


May 4, 2012
3w, 5d

Need I say more? So apparently I'm as fertile as they come. Just a few weeks after my most recent miscarriage we are pregnant again, the 7th time to be exact. As of now I'm just in shock. We really weren't "trying" this time, granted we weren't trying not to either. So far I'm already feeling nauseous, tired, and have serious pregnancy brain. I've already called the doctors office and am scheduled for a confirmation of pregnancy appointment on May 21st and they will call me Monday once they get the doctor's permission to have me come in for betas/progesterone testing. I'm now just trying to take it all in and just relax.

I had had a feeling that I might be pregnant when a couple of days ago I really noticed being dehydrated and feeling like I needed water immediately and haven't stopped drinking it since. And then for the past few days I've had some serious moments of feeling sick so today I decided to get a test and see. Now its just waiting to make sure everything is A-OK.

My initial instincts are telling me girl, but it might just be so I don't get my hopes up about a boy. I have always thought I would have 3 boys and I really do long for another boy. Don't get me wrong, I will be happy with a girl, all I really want is healthy and happy. I'm due somewhere around January 14th, different calculators have given me the 13th, 14th, and 15th so I guess I'll just stick with the middle date. The Ancient Chinese Gender chart says girl and so far it has said girl for Jake and Brenden and boy for Rylan. So who knows, that's still so far away and we still have a lot of hurdles to jump through before we can really think about that, but I'm sure I'll still obsess over it until I know for sure though :)

For now, we'll just think positive and have happy thoughts!

May 7, 2012

4w, 1d

So I've tested for 3 days in a row to see if the line is getting darker, my 3rd world version of Hcg testing. And it looks good to me! (At least that's what I'm hoping) I haven't heard back from the Doctor's office yet, but I just put in another call to see if they want me to come in for blood work. I don't mean to be a pest, but with my history I'm freaking a little and would like to have my levels tested ASAP for some peace of mind, no matter what the results. I just want to know. I've still been feeling quite crappy and I'm hoping that's a good sign, but until I get some scientific, from the doctor confirmation I know I'm going to be weary. Hopefully they'll call me back soon and I'll be able to get tested today or tomorrow. Fingers crossed and positive thoughts!

May 8, 2012
4w, 2d

Got the word from the Doctor yesterday that I could be tested and of course I was there an hour later. At 4pm today I finally got word back from the receptionist that my Hcg level was 202 and my Progesterone was 39. The Hcg is in the normal range for 4 weeks and the progesterone is nice and high, from what I have read it should be between 9 and 47. So I'm feeling a bit of relief, especially because I had a nightmare last night about a miscarriage and today I didn't feel as sick. I should be getting tested again tomorrow to see if the levels are doubling as they should be and tonight after dinner I thought I was going to be sick, a few more things that should keep my mind at ease. I'm pretty sure the next 2 months are going to feel like an eternity for me. Positive thoughts!

May 10, 2012
4w, 4d


Hcg level 464 - Wooooooooo Hooooooooooo! It doubled! I'm still nervous and I have a LOT of anxiety, but hearing that the levels doubled as they should is good news and it helps. The doctor has ordered for me to have an ultrasound at my first appointment. In order to get me in for the ultrasound and the appointment at the same time we moved my appointment to May 23rd, only 2 days later so I shouldn't freak too much :) I have butterflies in my stomach, things are good :) More Positive thoughts!

May 14, 2012
5w, 1d


I thought I would put up a belly picture - a little nicer than looking at my pee sticks ;) It doesn't look too bad in the picture, but when I look down it looks huge to me. I know its mainly just bloating, but its comforting to see it growing so soon :)

May 23, 2012

6w, 3d

Ultrasound day....I was very excited and VERY nervous. But it seems it was all for nothing :) We got a heartbeat and the baby measured at 6w, 2d. Since this pregnancy is directly after a miscarriage we didn't know for sure what the EDD was because I hadn't had a period yet (sorry if TMI) so the ultrasound was in part to have an accurate Due Date as well as check for viability. 6w, 2d puts me at a January 14th due date, which is what I had had initially. Even though this is all VERY good news I'm still an emotional wreck. With the pregnancy last fall I saw the baby at 8w, 1d  on an ultrasound so I know that a heartbeat is no guarantee that this pregnancy will make it. I'm still trying my best to think positively and the Doctor is being very considerate and having me back in 2 weeks to have a quick peak ultrasound and then back 2 weeks after that for fetal heartbeat without ultrasound. I think I can make it 2 weeks until the next appointment, I'm sure I'll still be anxiety ridden until then, but its better than waiting 4 weeks like what would normally happen, YAY for nice Doctors!

And here's my lovely belly pic:

The boobs are growing and I'm just looking really fat/bloated right now. This is by far the biggest I've looked this early, but I suppose that's what happens when you've been pregnant this many times. The past couple of days I've started feeling a lot more queasy and I've had an acid taste at the back of my throat almost constantly. This has been the most unique pregnancy by far, it has a few bits and pieces that I've gone through before, but for the most part it has been a lot of new stuff. I have absolutely NO IDEA if its a boy or girl. With Jake I was sure from the beginning, Brenden took me at least a month before I was sure, and Rylan I was in denial about - I had swore she was a boy and refused to believe the dream I had had that said otherwise and my symptoms were completely different from the boys. My symptoms are all over the place in terms of what I had with the boys and what I had with Rylan. I guess I'll just have keep in tune with my body and if I don't get any clear signs one way or the other I'll find out around 20 weeks at the big Ultrasound. Until then, positive thoughts!

June 4, 2012

8w, 1d

So I had some spotting over the weekend. It was really hardly anything and I probably wouldn't have thought anything of it had I not gone through the miscarriage in January. I was originally scheduled to go back to the doctor this Wednesday, but I called them this morning to see if they could get me in any earlier. Since Saturday night I haven't been able to relax or sleep or keep my mind from going to the worst case scenario. Fortunately they were able to get me in this afternoon and the Ultrasound tech was able to do a super quick look to see the heartbeat. Unfortunately, since it was a super quick look we couldn't listen or really see much of anything, just that there was a heartbeat. I really am happy that they got me in and that they were able to see the heartbeat again, but its so hard to find any piece of mind. The doctor just kept telling me that it was good that there was a heartbeat and that now my risk is down to 5% for a miscarriage....Well, I've already been in that 5% this year so it really doesn't make me feel any better. I don't want to get my hopes up because last time that I thought everything was good it wasn't and it was one of the hardest things I have ever had to deal with, I'm still not over it and I probably never will be....Seeing the heartbeat should give me a sense of joy and relief, but instead all I can think is what if it all goes wrong again? Even if this pregnancy goes smoothly with no problems I think I will always be a little afraid until delivery. Its hard to imagine that the best case scenario right now is another 30 weeks of anxiety and worry, but I'll take it over the worst case scenario any day.

So now we wait for another 2 weeks to go back. At that point we should hopefully be able to hear the heartbeat on the doppler. Until then I will do my best to be positive.

June 6, 2012

8w, 3d

I hadn't put a belly picture on for a couple of weeks so here it is:

A lot of the bloated stuff has gone away and now its just belly. I'm feeling pretty good as long as I keep food in me, but I'm not sleeping. At all. I find myself up until 2am a lot of nights, I'm sure its anxiety and not being able to quiet my brain down. I've tried Tylenol PM, but no luck and then I just feel really groggy the next morning. I'm hoping the doctor will be able to prescribe something like Ambien at my next appointment because I have GOT to start sleeping. Hopefully once we make it to the 2nd trimester I'll be able to relax a little more as well, but as I said before I think this anxiety is here to stay.

As for the boy or girl thoughts. When I was at the doctor's office Monday I had a vision of my giant pregnant belly and seeing the baby wiggle around and I just got a very strong boy vibe. I've found myself saying "he" or "him" when I'm thinking or talking to myself so I guess my instincts are boy - for the moment at least. Also, my pregnancy symptoms lately have been tending toward what I had with Jake and Brenden more than with Rylan. But as I learned with Rylan, you just never know. Happy and Positive thoughts no matter what it is!

June 18, 2012
10w, 1d

Lookin' about the same and feeling that way to. I think the belly has started to slow down a bit as most/all of the bloating seems to be gone. I had a doctor's appointment today and liked this doctor MUCH better than the last one. It turns out he is from Adrian and went to undergrad at U of M and med school at MSU so that was a nice little extra. And I told him about all of my anxiety and not sleeping and he told me I could come in as much as I wanted to check the fetal heart rate - I'll be going back in one week to take him up on this! He also suggested Benadryl for my allergy problems and sleep problems so tomorrow I'll buy some and give it a try, it can't possibly be any worse than what I've been dealing with now. We were able to find the heart beat on the doppler today - he checked twice to be certain it was baby and not me. The heart rate was 163 bpm and the little guy/girl seemed to be moving around a bit. I came away feeling MUCH better after this appointment. I'm sure the fact that I've made it past 9 weeks is part of that and this new doctor certainly helped as well. So I'll go back next week for a heart beat check and then on July 5th I'll have an ultrasound for a prenatal screening. And the next week I will be in my 14th week and on to the 2nd trimester. It still has felt like it has taken an eternity to get to this point, but its nice to feel like the next step is in sight. More positive thoughts!

June 26, 20120

11w, 2d

Another good doctors appointment yesterday. I saw another doctor again this time and liked her well enough. She was able to find the heart beat fairly easily. My heart did skip a beat when she started on the right side with no luck, but as soon as she switched over to the left side she found it immediately, 160 bpm and strong :) We decided that if the appointment went well then we would let the kids know. So while eating dinner we let the boys know (and Rylan, but really how much does a 22 month old understand/care?). And the boys were thrilled! They threw their hands in the air and cheered. We explained that this would mean Rylan would be sharing a room with Brenden for a bit and he didn't even care. He actually said that he has been lonely and would even share with the baby :) And of course Jake was happy that he would get to keep his room to himself. And Rylan always tries to get in the bottom bunk in Brenden's room so I don't think she'll mind too much, at least I hope so! Jake did ask what if this baby dies and we explained that that would be very sad, but we had waited to tell them until we felt good that this baby would make it and we wouldn't have to worry about that as much. It breaks my heart that the losses we have experienced have really affected Jake too, he's definitely our sensitive one. 

Next week I have an early screening that should include an ultrasound and if all goes well we will start sharing the news with everyone. Until then, happy and positive thoughts!

July 5, 2012

12w, 4d

Well I had my early screen today and everything looked great. The screen does an ultrasound to measure the fat behind the babies neck and compares that measurement to blood they take from me to see the risk of such things as Down Syndrome. I never had this done with the other kids, but since it's been bumpy year I thought I would get all the information I could with this one and it gave me the opportunity to have another ultrasound to see the little guy/girl. 

The doctor and ultrasound tech said the measurement was great and likely when they get my blood work back in a few days that I will have a low risk.The tech was able to get a lot of good images and the baby measured 13 weeks, 3 days ahead of the EDD. It was such a relief to see the baby moving around and I even had tears in my eyes throughout the ultrasound. It is a happy day.

    

Party on the Plaza

Our neighbor invited us to go up to Party on the Plaza tonight. It is put on by Anderson Township monthly and there is music and food and drinks with everything for $3 or less. For my Ann Arbor friends and family, it reminded me a lot of Top of the Park just not quite as big. Chris was on his way back from a business trip so I lugged the kids up along side my neighbor with her 4 girls. It was a lot of fun. The kids had fun running, exploring, dancing, feeding the fish and ducks, and just being silly together. I enjoyed being out of the house and watching the kids go crazy. It was also nice to do something that reminded me so much of home. Chris got back in town around 7pm and met us up there for about 45 minutes. In all we were there for a little over 2 hours. I'm so glad Stephanie invited us and we were able to go.

Below are a few videos I took of the kids dancing, I think they're pretty funny :) Enjoy!

New Appliances are HERE!

So when I went to buy the appliances I  found a refrigerator that I LOVED and we measured it 3 times at the store to be sure it would fit. And when it got here today.....it didn't fit. But have no fear, my amazing husband is here! After seeing that the refrigerator bowed at the top to be about 1/4" too high for our opening he decided to call our contractor and have him saw the bottom of the cabinet off in order to make it work. And now if fits and you can't even tell what we did to the cabinets. So here's the final product:

And we used the new stove to make chocolate chip pancakes, the long oval burner in the middle worked great with our griddle!

And here's the dishwasher, we haven't used it yet, but I know we will soon :)

I'm so happy to have working appliances that look good too!

New Appliances

From about day one of moving in it was clear we were going to need new appliances. When the former owners bought the house 6 years ago they redid the kitchen, but either didn't put in new appliances or put in really cheap appliances. I would guess that they didn't do new ones since the dishwasher is a style they don't make anymore and when you use the oven everything on top of the stove gets hot too. Besides the appliances being crappy we really miss having an extra refrigerator in the garage, we had one in Dexter and it was SO handy! And we had a double oven range in Dexter that was spectacular so we wanted to get one again.

So  I've been looking up appliances and researching them for the past month and finally today I decided to take the plunge and get it done. The size opening in the cabinets for the refrigerator limited us greatly on size. It looked like we were going to have to get a smaller refrigerator that would leave 1-2 inch gaps all the way around, yuck. Then I came across Kenmore and they had ones that would fix the EXACT size of the opening, they were the ONLY company with the right dimensions for us. We've done Kenmore in the past and had no problems so it seemed like it would be good. They also had a matching gas range with double ovens and a matching dishwasher - score! I took Brenden and Rylan with me to Sears today and we found exactly what we wanted AND they had a buy more save more so we got an additional 20% for buying 3 appliances - Wooo Hoooo! I'm so excited to have new appliances again and they come Thursday so I don't have to wait much longer!

So here's what I got!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms in my life! You are all very special to me and have helped me in countless days. I hope that you know how much you are loved and needed.

As for my family, they have treated me to a lovely Mother's Day Weekend. Chris started it with bringing home flowers on Friday:

And Jake gave me one of his gifts as well, a tea cup he colored with a poem on it and a packet of tea to enjoy:

And then today, Jake also brought me a nice note that he made of all the reasons why he loves me - some of them were quite funny, like that I make him nutritious dinners :) And after I got up there were cards from Chris and the kids and Michigan Themed gifts now that I'm an Ohio momma :) My family knows me too well!

Chris has let me sleep in both days and the kids are on a mission today to give me a yelling and screaming free day - the only thing I asked for :) It's a rainy day so we'll probably lay low and just hang home for the day. There was talk of going out to brunch, but really I'd rather just cozy up on the sofa and relax for the day. No matter what, I'll be happy as long as I have my family!

Alligators, Soccer, and Swim Lessons

About a month ago when we moved Jake brought home an assignment to do a report and project on Alligators. We of course waited until the last minute to get it done. The week before it was due we helped Jake gather facts about Alligators on the internet and out of a book his Grandman gave him, but we waited until the day before it was due to put it all together. And I have to say, Jake did a very nice job. We looked through pictures and picked ones out to print. He then cut them out, pasted them on poster board, and wrote down facts under the pictures. And for his report he put the facts he found into sentences in a 4 page report. Not too bad for a seven year old, and he even got a check plus for both the poster board and the report :)

Before we moved here I looked online to see if I could find anything to sign the boys up for so that they would have something to do and another way for them to make friends. During my search I came across a Soccer League through the local YMCA that looked perfect. It was for one night a week of practice for an hour and games on Saturday. The coordinator was nice enough to help me get signed up by faxes and emails since we wouldn't be moved before the sign up deadline. The league began this week and so far was a huge success. Brenden is on a team of 5 & 6 six year old boys and girls and practice for one hour on Wednesdays at 6pm. And Jake is on a team of 7 & 8 year old boys and girls that practice right after Brenden. Chris was out of town for this week so Rylan, the boys, and I headed up just before 6pm and stayed until the end at 8pm. All the kids did great, the boys played  with other kids when it wasn't their practice and Rylan played the whole time. It seems like it will be a very good league for the boys. They have one more practice before games start, but they are both excited for next week.

 

And last for me, Swim lessons. I have been having a terrible time trying to find a dive coach job since I've been here. I've had a lot of leads, but nothing has been able workout. I thought I might have a chance at the University of Cincinnati job, but it turns out it wouldn't pay enough to make up for any childcare expenses I would have. So instead of completely giving up I took the suggestion from my neighbor and applied to be a Swim Lesson Instructor at the Mercy HealthPLEX.. It is quite an impressive place, it seems to be a Rec center, spa, and doctors office all rolled into one. They offer lots of different stuff and have daycare for kids when you're at the center. I had an hour long interview today and at the end I was offered the job and told she would also list me a supervisor material if I wanted to do that in the future when the kids were older. If I work 10 hr/wk I will get a membership for myself that may include being able to drop off Brenden and Rylan while I teach lessons - Bonus! And its only about 2 miles away from my house - Double Bonus! And since I have coaching experience I might be able to help their swim team as well - Triple Bonus! I know I haven't been a swimmer for 20 years and I haven't coached swimming in 15 years, but I love coaching and I'm good at it so if all I can do now is teach swim lessons and maybe coach a swim team I'll take it!