Our New Ride

With a new baby on the way we've been looking for a bigger car since we can't fit two carseats in our little Civic. We found this Toyota Highlander on Craigslist from an older couple here in town. We're especially glad because we thought we would have to drive to Phoenix to find what we wanted and since I'm not allowed to travel right now it didn't look like it would happen. But here you go, a real family car that's not a minivan! :)

The Final Update (Hopefully)

I am definitely ready to write about something besides babies and bedrest but for now I'd better finish up this week's story.

I did get released from the hospital on Monday but it was a lot harder to be home than I expected. That first night I couldn't walk from the kitchen to the living room without a contraction. My orders upon leaving the hospital were to call if there was ANY more bleeding or contractions so I panicked. I did NOT want to be locked up in the hospital again and with Birch having a test on Friday, he really couldn't take over the house anymore.

I called my mom and she was here the next day. I know many of you had offered to take Trevor or help in other ways but I really needed someone here all the time and she was amazing! The house was clean, her food was delicious and mostly she helped us make the transition back to "normal" life. I'm grateful I could still be with Trevor at home but someone was there to chase after him and play. Birch got the studying done that he needed, took his test and now has a week of Spring Break. My mom left yesterday and I think we're ready to try things on our own.

In the last few days my body has gotten stronger. I don't know if I ever mentioned what the problem was, but I had an abruption of the placenta. I still have to sit for most of the day but I can walk around the house now without contracting right away. It still happens occasionally but my doctor said as long as they're not consistent it's nothing to worry about.

I wish I had pictures or something fun to post, so here's the recipe for Zuppa Toscana, an Olive Garden soup my mom made for dinner. I don't think this is the exact recipe she used but it's probably pretty close.

Zuppa Tuscana

Hospital Perks

I'm now on Day 5 of my hospital stay with plans to hopefully come home tomorrow. Even though I haven't had any contractions or bleeding since early Wednesday morning, my doctor wants me to be here for 4 or 5 days after to keep a close watch. Thank goodness for cell phones and WiFi to stay in touch with people!

I've never been a hospital patient before (besides Trevor's birth) so I'm learning about all the fun perks that come with it:
*Meals in bed, delivered without any cooking or cleaning on my part
*Free waxing (from all that tape they rip off your arm for IV's)
*A comfortable seat that I'm required to sit on when showering
*Hours of Food Network with no guilt

Seriously, I am ready to come home and get back to a somewhat "normal" routine. My biggest problem now is trusting that everything will work out okay. I have a million questions about when the baby will come, what may or may not happen until then and what I should do or not do. I've got a long list of questions for my doctor when she comes by in the morning, so watch out!

Thanks to all of you who have helped with meals, watching Trevor, calling, texting, visiting, etc. I'm not used to being a patient but I'm so blessed to have great family and friends!

Hold On Baby, We Still Have 13 More Weeks!

I knew my first pregnancy was an easy one but I've appreciated it even more the last few days.

Tuesday night I woke up with some fresh blood so we drove to the hospital. Fortunately from the beginning our baby girl's heartbeat was strong and the ultrasound looked good. The doctors say part of my placenta separated from the uterus, causing the bleeding and along with it came some contractions. Nothing big but enough to hook me up to magnesium to make them stop.

Since I was admitted the bleeding has stopped and the contractions are almost gone. I'm just hot and woozy from the magnesium. They also gave me a steriod shot to help the baby's lungs get ready in case we had to do a quick delivery.

Women say every pregnancy is different and I think that's the hardest part for me. I've tried to treat this pregnancy just like my first but even before this incident it was not the same. The baby has moved less, I was more sick in the beginning but less tired, and my body has not been able to exercise as long. I guess it's a combination of pregnancies being different and your body adapting after already having given birth.

When I get home I will be under "light" bed rest: I can walk around my house and cook meals, but NO MORE exercise and no lifting heavy objects (like a toddler). At first it's a hard adjustment to get used to all at once but the excuse to relax sounds kind of nice.

Happy Days

I wondered why Birch was in such a good mood after coming home from a church meeting on Sunday night. Should've guessed it was because of basketball. But like everyone else, we were convinced U of A was headed to the NIT this year. Nope! It's another year in the tournament. We'll see how far the Cats make it this year.



I took Trevor to Home Depot last weekend for their Kids Workshop and he LOVED it! Banging a hammer, making a racetrack, it doesn't get any better than that. I'll admit, I was just trying to look like I knew exactly what I was doing and hoping I didn't make a silly mistake on the "simple" kids' project. The best part is it's FREE! Thanks, Janae, for spreading the word! Here's a link if you're interested:

Home Depot Kids Workshop

Two (Well, Maybe One) Great Race

I was so excited to write about two amazing races Tucson has in the spring: the Police Memorial Challenge and the Sabino Canyon Sunset Run but the first has been cancelled...sad. I guess I'll still mention it because some of you have asked about it, wanting to enter, but it's been cancelled for this year. Who knows why? Here is a picture from last year to keep you interested.

Police Memorial Challenge

Birch always says that running without a ball has no purpose but even he admitted he would enter this race with me. It's a 5K with "challenges" from the police training course throughout the run. You get to climb through a car, do lunges while holding a gun, shoot a gun (and do push-ups if you miss the target), run up flights of stairs, cross monkey bars, etc. The best part is that it's very casual. No one is taking it too seriously and the challenges help break up the run. Keep it in your head for next year and hopefully it will come up again.

The other run is through Sabino Canyon. It's a little long, 7.4 miles but SO worth it if you're up for a challenge. The best part is the view! After running through city parks and the streets of Tucson in other events this course is amazing! (I'm not in this picture, but it's a good shot of the race finish).

Sabino Canyon Sunset Run

WE Are How They Make Their Money

In the last few months Birch and I both arrived at that magical time when we were eligible for a new cell phone. And not only that, after two long years we had earned a "free" cell phone! Sad to say, we are both examples of how these darn cell phone companies make their money.

Of course we thought we had beat the system when we each chose the "free phone." It did say $50 on the price tag but we were certainly responsible enough to send in a mail-in rebate, right?

T-Mobile must have known how much I hate clutter and that I would drop that cell phone box with the UPC in the recycle bin right after I opened the phone. T-Mobile surely also knew that Birch would stash his rebate form in a secret place where I couldn't get rid of it as clutter and that the date to receive the rebate would pass.

Is there really such a thing as free out there?

Nesting

Something about pregnancy makes me anxious to finish projects around the house. I know this isn't the most exciting post, but I've been busy painting lately and even recruited Birch to join me last weekend. I have big plans to finish the trim outside and the bathrooms, kids' room and office inside...we'll see what actually happens.

I'm also trying to figure out how to decorate a room for both a boy and a girl. I'm thinking about using navy blue. I've found some cute ball bed sets with blue and green for Trevor and I think I can make blue and pink work for our girl. But paint? Can you really paint a wall navy blue? Maybe just the bottom half? Anyone with any interior design ideas, please help!