Before we had left on our trip we had scheduled two appointments for the week we returned. One with the specialist up in Murray and the other with my primary OB. After a long day of traveling (turning in to 2 days because of weather and delayed flights) we returned from our trip on January 22nd. Our appointment with the specialist was the following day. We were going in to do another ultrasound to check again on how baby girl was doing. Looking closely at her spine again and other things that might be indicated by my high test levels.
There is something about the whole specialist experience that gave me serious anxiety. As if, as a first time mother, I wasn't already highly aware of my baby and worried about all the many things that could go wrong. I know what a miracle a perfect healthy baby is, and with the test results looming over me every day it was hard to be positive and hope for the best. After this appointment, it was even more difficult.
The appointment started out pretty normal. Take my blood pressure (which is always high from that said anxiety I have at the specialist), and set me up for the ultrasound. The tech came in, did some measurements, checked for heartbeat, all pretty standard. It was around this time that I found out I had an anterior placenta, which just meant that the placenta was above the baby, so I was told it would be more difficult for me to feel the baby's movements- which really made me sad because all I wanted was to experience everything with this little girl.
Tuesday, April 23, 2019
Babymooning
Despite the unsettling test results we were given the go ahead to continue on our 2 week trip to Europe. This is the trip that Mike always says was my proposal to him, and we left on January 8th for a 10 day cruise through the Mediterranean.
Before we left the doctors wanted me to do the genetic screener again, that high of a number caused them to think that there might have been some lab error and that perhaps it was a misread of my blood sample. So I went in and had another draw. They called me with new test results while we were in the LAX airport getting ready to fly to London. The results showed not much change, instead of a 16, it was a 12. So less, but still abnormally high with no real explanation yet. Still disappointed, and still very unsettled we went on our trip.
We left LA and flew to London, on the longest flight of my life, 11 hours. Being pregnant I had to get up and "walk the aisles" every couple hours while was harder than you would think, but we made it. It was squishy and uncomfortable, and I am so paying for an upgraded seat if I ever fly over 5 hours again :) We then flew from London to Barcelona where we had a hotel for the night and then boarded our cruise ship the next day. As we were making our travels on this day we started to see the same people on our flights, from Utah to LA, from LA to London, and started to connect that all these people had found the same deal we did and were going to be on our cruise. There were 2 other couples around our same age and many older couples. We started to chat and because good friends with 2 of the couples and in fact spent almost everyday of our cruise with one of them or both of them. It was fun to have some new friends on our trip.
Before we left the doctors wanted me to do the genetic screener again, that high of a number caused them to think that there might have been some lab error and that perhaps it was a misread of my blood sample. So I went in and had another draw. They called me with new test results while we were in the LAX airport getting ready to fly to London. The results showed not much change, instead of a 16, it was a 12. So less, but still abnormally high with no real explanation yet. Still disappointed, and still very unsettled we went on our trip.
We left LA and flew to London, on the longest flight of my life, 11 hours. Being pregnant I had to get up and "walk the aisles" every couple hours while was harder than you would think, but we made it. It was squishy and uncomfortable, and I am so paying for an upgraded seat if I ever fly over 5 hours again :) We then flew from London to Barcelona where we had a hotel for the night and then boarded our cruise ship the next day. As we were making our travels on this day we started to see the same people on our flights, from Utah to LA, from LA to London, and started to connect that all these people had found the same deal we did and were going to be on our cruise. There were 2 other couples around our same age and many older couples. We started to chat and because good friends with 2 of the couples and in fact spent almost everyday of our cruise with one of them or both of them. It was fun to have some new friends on our trip.
Monday, April 15, 2019
Genetic Testing
At 17 weeks we went for another appointment, still gushing over the news of our little girl. Everything was looking great, strong heartbeat, healthy mama. The doctor brought up the news of doing some genetic testing since I was 34 and while not to old, old enough haha.
***Side note- did you know they call a pregnancy after 35 a GERIATRIC pregnancy!! That made me feel incredibly old***
The test that we did was a genetic screener that basically gave you an idea of anything that might be going on with your baby. The doctor described it as a screener and not a diagnostic test, so it wouldn't tell us that we have a problem, but more that there could be a problem. The test screens for multiple genetic disorders including down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida, etc. I thought the test would be good since I am no spring chicken and despite not fitting the "geriatric pregnancy" requirements I was pretty darn close. So we had the blood test done.
***Side note- did you know they call a pregnancy after 35 a GERIATRIC pregnancy!! That made me feel incredibly old***
The test that we did was a genetic screener that basically gave you an idea of anything that might be going on with your baby. The doctor described it as a screener and not a diagnostic test, so it wouldn't tell us that we have a problem, but more that there could be a problem. The test screens for multiple genetic disorders including down syndrome, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida, etc. I thought the test would be good since I am no spring chicken and despite not fitting the "geriatric pregnancy" requirements I was pretty darn close. So we had the blood test done.
Sunday, April 14, 2019
It's a...
Finding out we were pregnant so early made the wait for the doctors appointment feel forever away. I did start to notice a few things as we were waiting. I was exhausted, more tired than I have ever been. I never fall asleep before Mike and when pregnant I typically hit the pillow and was out! I didn't notice much sickness at first, but around 9-10 weeks I started to feel nauseous and was living on Ramen noodles. We would buy cases of them and I would have to eat them every night before I went to bed. I had downloaded a couple apps to track the baby's size and learn the many things happening to me each week. It was an exciting time. At 10 weeks we told our family and everyone was so excited for us. My mom said that she knew it, and my dad said he could tell because earlier that day we went to lunch with the family and my niece started to crawl on me and Mike told her to stop and that I wasn't "a jungle gym." Apparently that was a give away to my dad haha.
At 13 weeks we had an ultrasound and got our first profile pictures of our little baby. So tiny and so precious. To think that I was growing this little one was pretty overwhelming, and seeing an actual picture of that perfect little body was incredible. Over the next little while I wasn't feeling great, I didn't have morning sickness, it was more night nausea. I felt great for most of the day, but by about 7-8pm I was ready to curl up and go to sleep so I didn't feel sick.
At 13 weeks we had an ultrasound and got our first profile pictures of our little baby. So tiny and so precious. To think that I was growing this little one was pretty overwhelming, and seeing an actual picture of that perfect little body was incredible. Over the next little while I wasn't feeling great, I didn't have morning sickness, it was more night nausea. I felt great for most of the day, but by about 7-8pm I was ready to curl up and go to sleep so I didn't feel sick.
Thursday, April 11, 2019
Bun in the Oven
I need to start this post with some earlier information. When Mike and I were dating back in March, I found a travel deal for a 10 day European cruise with flights and hotels included for an incredible deal. It was for January of the next year (2019) but it was on a site that was called Utah Flash Deals and the idea is that the deal becomes available and they don't know how long it will be up. It could be up for 3 hours or for 3 days, so it kind of has a time limit for you to get it. I have always wanted to go to Europe and at the time Mike and I hadn't quite began the marriage talk, but I think we both knew it was going in that direction haha. So when I saw the deal I remember texting him and basically asking him if he wanted to book this with me... I added to that text the idea of it being our honeymoon, haha!!! He will now always say that I proposed to him, but you know he didn't say no! Originally our plan was to marry in the fall and it really would have been a great honeymoon! It turned out to be more of a baby moon :)
Honeymooning
We left the morning after our wedding for our 2 week, yes 2 WEEK, honeymoon! One benefit of working in a school is that I have some time in the summers for this, and Mike was able to with his normal days off and vacation days for the year take off some time too! It was so nice to be able to have time together, travel, but also keep it pretty low key.
We went to Las Vegas for a few nights, then headed to San Diego, we went on a 4 day cruise, and spent some more time in San Diego.
We started in Vegas and stayed at our now "usual' place. The Westin at Lake Las Vegas is seriously our favorite hotel. It isn't on the strip, it is more in Henderson, but it is like a resort with great pools, amazing atmosphere, and we love it! (Also travel tip, it is on Travelzoo top 20 deals a lot with their breakfast buffet included and it is pretty delicious)
We went to Las Vegas for a few nights, then headed to San Diego, we went on a 4 day cruise, and spent some more time in San Diego.
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Here Comes the Bride...
Mike and I were thinking about a fall wedding. With my school's break being in October we had entertained the idea of scheduling it for that time and taking a trip out to California. When we first started to discuss marriage we were planning to be married in the temple. With our religion we believe that a man and wife can be married for time and all eternity in our holy temples and not just have this life to be together. Being 33 and 36 years old, we had some existing challenges to making this happen. Mike has been married before me and was married in the temple to his ex wife so we would need a cancelation of the commitment they had made before we could go there ourselves. This could take some time depending on the cooperation of the former spouse and even having the wedding in October may have cut it close. As we were discussing and planning we also took into account many of our friends and family members who were not LDS or who wouldn't be able to attend the temple for our ceremony. I will also admit that the thought of planning a wedding while I was working each day, when I was currently in summer mode and had plenty of time, seemed not ideal and potentially overwhelming.
With all of those things to consider we decided we would kick our planning into full gear and shoot for a July wedding with a civil ceremony and go to the temple the following year. We chose Sleepy Ridge Golf Course as our location and booked July 16th as our date. At the time that literally meant I planned a wedding in 3 weeks. A HUGE thanks to my father who made it all possible and gave me the freedom to make it my (our 😂) special day. One great thing about using a the golf course as the venue was that they had a lot of things that they took care of for us. All we had to do was pick everything out. That took a huge load off of myself, my mother, and siblings. Linens, flowers, decorations, were one meeting with the florist for the golf course and then it would be set up and taken down afterwards by the venue! We even found our photographer from the preferred list given to us by the venue. IT MADE IT SO EASY! With a short deadline we quickly realized that we needed to get our engagement pictures done so we could get invitations out. On June 30th we went up American Fork Canyon to Tibble Fork for our engagement pictures... I LOVE THEM! They might be my favorite pictures of us ever taken- even over our wedding pics! haha Check some out!
With all of those things to consider we decided we would kick our planning into full gear and shoot for a July wedding with a civil ceremony and go to the temple the following year. We chose Sleepy Ridge Golf Course as our location and booked July 16th as our date. At the time that literally meant I planned a wedding in 3 weeks. A HUGE thanks to my father who made it all possible and gave me the freedom to make it my (our 😂) special day. One great thing about using a the golf course as the venue was that they had a lot of things that they took care of for us. All we had to do was pick everything out. That took a huge load off of myself, my mother, and siblings. Linens, flowers, decorations, were one meeting with the florist for the golf course and then it would be set up and taken down afterwards by the venue! We even found our photographer from the preferred list given to us by the venue. IT MADE IT SO EASY! With a short deadline we quickly realized that we needed to get our engagement pictures done so we could get invitations out. On June 30th we went up American Fork Canyon to Tibble Fork for our engagement pictures... I LOVE THEM! They might be my favorite pictures of us ever taken- even over our wedding pics! haha Check some out!
Tuesday, April 9, 2019
Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After...
Our story isn't a typical fairytale, but it is our fairytale. Mike and I met on December 2, 2017. We, like so many these days, met on one of those dating apps, our was Mutual. We swiped and matched on a Thursday or maybe it was Friday, but our first date was that Saturday right after. I think we both appreciated the willingness to meet and not "pen pal" for a few weeks or months. Our first date was dinner and a movie, and I was thrilled that is what he decided on. It is my absolute favorite date and still is our favorite date night. We decided to meet at the movie theater, because you always meet in person first on a first dating app date. I got there first, and I think texted him. The way he tells it is he was walking to the theater and looked up from his phone to see me standing against the wall and was stopped in his tracks, dare I say love at first sight? haha (gush gush, heart eyes, heart eyes, are you gushing from his version?)
From the theater we went to dinner at Cafe Rio (little did I know its his favorite and we would go all the time in our marriage)! I should mention that I was getting over cold and definitely didn't feel my best. I ordered soup! Which is just crazy to me because there are so many good things at Cafe Rio! We had a great time, conversation was easy. We went to see Thor Ragnarok, and I'm pretty sure he held my hand, or maybe put his arm around me, or something to that typical movie date behavior. We sat and talked in his car until 1am or so and had made plans to see each other again the next day. The rest, as they say, is history.
Dating through December and the holiday season was so fun and such a great way to start our relationship. Temple lights, zoo lights, gingerbread houses, and just time off of work to spend time together. I will say we were very pretty when we were dating 😂 truly our best selves!
Monday, April 8, 2019
Why a blog...
When I was younger and in college I had a blog. It was basically a place where I posted about my adventures in single life, the trips, the best friends, the concerts, the moments that were always high and always good. I try to make social media a place where I celebrate the good, great, and amazing things going on in life. I keep it positive and don't see it as a place where I vent or complain because quite frankly when I get on social media I expect to see those same positive kinds of posts from everyone else. So when life handed me a trial so big and so heartbreaking I didn't know if I could handle it. I debated on using the social media platform as a place to share it. It didn't match my typical celebrations of life full of laughs and smiles. It wouldn't necessarily be uplifting to my followers/friends and may actually make them cry rather than smile with me. I debated.
I decided to write a post for a rather selfish reason. The idea of having to share and relive the moments of my trial over and over again with every person I ran into, saw, asked questions, or reached out seemed unbearable. I wanted the word to get out in one blast so I everyone would know and I wouldn't have to live in social isolation with the fear of seeing someone who didn't know. I bawled through the writing of my post... how much detail to I give, how vague do I write it, what pictures should I attach, how long should it be... I felt like it had to be the right amount of information to not generate too many questions, but at the same time not be a novel that gets passed over. I swear it took me an hour to write it, and rewrite it. My husband read it for approval since he was going to be attached to it as well and I wanted to make sure he was comfortable with the information I was sharing. With a literal tear stained face I posted this personal, emotional, and down unbearable moment in my and my husbands life. The post read like this:
I decided to write a post for a rather selfish reason. The idea of having to share and relive the moments of my trial over and over again with every person I ran into, saw, asked questions, or reached out seemed unbearable. I wanted the word to get out in one blast so I everyone would know and I wouldn't have to live in social isolation with the fear of seeing someone who didn't know. I bawled through the writing of my post... how much detail to I give, how vague do I write it, what pictures should I attach, how long should it be... I felt like it had to be the right amount of information to not generate too many questions, but at the same time not be a novel that gets passed over. I swear it took me an hour to write it, and rewrite it. My husband read it for approval since he was going to be attached to it as well and I wanted to make sure he was comfortable with the information I was sharing. With a literal tear stained face I posted this personal, emotional, and down unbearable moment in my and my husbands life. The post read like this:
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