The House of Burks » 2011

11 Weeks Redux

Posted on February 28th, 2011 by Rachel B.

Well, here we are again. 11 weeks pregnant. The days and weeks are flying by. I can’t believe the second trimester is a mere two weeks away. I am looking forward to it, though, because unlike last time, the first trimester has really taken a toll on me. I am so very tired most of the day, and at night I have to wake up at least twice to use the bathroom. But at least the morning (all day) sickness seems to be gone for good. I haven’t felt nauseated very much at all over the past two weeks, so hopefully it will stay gone. As you can see from the picture over there, my belly is starting to stick out a bit. I attribute it to evening bloat and the fact that I am considerably fatter this time around. For that I have no one to blame but myself (and a 32-pound short guy that lives in my house, and who used to live in my stomach).

In baby development news, BabyCenter says that Mayhem is about the size of a fig (The Bump says a lime), and its body is almost fully formed. From BabyCenter: “Her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under her gums, and some of her bones are beginning to harden. She’s already busy kicking and stretching, and her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet. These movements will become more frequent as her body grows and becomes more developed and functional. You won’t feel your baby’s acrobatics for another month or two — nor will you notice the hiccupping that may be happening now that her diaphragm is forming.” So little Mayhem is in there having a dance party. I have heard from other second-time moms that if you sit very still and remember exactly what you are waiting to feel, you might be able to feel some flutters from the baby earlier than with your first pregnancy. I hope that is true, because it was my very favorite part of being pregnant and I can’t wait to experience it again.

We have a doctor appointment coming up on Monday, with the big NT scan and some genetic testing that is now being offered. The Mister and I are both looking forward to the ultrasound. I can’t wait to see those little arms and legs moving around. The genetic testing won’t be a big deal. I’m an old pro at blood draws now, so just another visit with the lab tech for me. Hopefully I will have a CD of images of the ultrasound to share since we didn’t get very many good shots at the last two ultrasounds.

CJ is embracing the role of big brother already. He will walk up to me and pat my belly and say “I love you baby” and kiss my belly. Today he shouted “BIG BRUDDAH!!” all the way home from school. It was quite funny. He talks to the baby and pats my tummy every chance he gets. I am so excited that he is going to be a big brother. He is going to be great at it, I just know it.

In non-Burks baby related news, congratulations to my friend Danielle! She is due the same week as me with a little Christmas surprise of her own! And as she finally announced it on her own blog, I can blab about it over here. Even though we don’t work together anymore, it will be lots of fun to compare notes this time around since our due dates are three days apart. It has already been an interesting contrast. Her pregnancy has been remarkably similar to her first, while mine has been as different as it could possibly be. We are both excited to be going through a surprise pregnancy together. It’s funny how these things work out!

I’m going to keep these weekly entries short and sweet, mainly because we’ve been through this once before and know what is going on, but also because it’s more fun to write about CJ and his latest shenanigans. As I finish up this blog entry he is piling bubbles on top of his head in the bath. He is such a silly boy, and I love him so very very much.

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20 Months Old and a Little Mayhem…

Posted on February 20th, 2011 by Rachel B.

Well, my baby isn’t a teenager anymore, monthwise.

Seriously, where did my little Peanut go? Was it really so long ago that his entire body was the length of my forearm? It’s like all of a sudden he’s turned into this little person. He runs, jumps, throws, catches, climbs, and follows directions. He talks in full sentences. He knows exactly what he wants and knows how to tell us what he wants. All it takes is for us to say a word once, and he gets it. CJ is still ahead of the curve verbally. He likes to hide from us and tell us where he is when we start asking by saying “I’m right here!” He loves to read his books to us, especially Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See? He can recite it word for word, and even points out the animals from the book when he sees them out and about. He can count to ten, say most of the days of the week, and is getting better at the alphabet every day. One of our nightly traditions is watching a Veggie Tales Silly Song or a They Might Be Giants podcast on Youtube before bed, and CJ has started telling us which ones are his favorites and which ones he doesn’t like.

I have a lot of pictures to add, but they are all on the Macbook Pro, which the Mister has with him today at work. I will post some when he gets home.

I really don’t have that much more to update about on CJ. He is just about as perfect and wonderful as a toddler can be. Except for when he is teething and fussy, he is extremely good-natured and easy-going. I could not ask for a better child. I love him so much more than I ever knew was possible. I honestly don’t know how I will love another child as much as I love him. But I better figure it out before September rolls around.

Yes, you read that right.

Baby Burks #2 is on the way!

To say that we were surprised by this news is a bit of an understatement. Given the lengths I had to go to to get pregnant with Lunchbox, I really didn’t think a surprise pregnancy was something that we would ever need to think about. But as one of the attorneys in my firm always says, we plan and God laughs. Well, God must get the gigglefits every time he thinks about me. I was SHOCKED.

It all started on January 9, the day we were leaving to go to Auburn for the national championship game. I had been feeling a little bit off the past week, so I decided to go ahead an take the one lonely pregnancy test that had been hanging out in our bathroom closet. You know, just to rule it out. So I took the test and went into the bedroom to finish packing. After three minutes had passed, I went back into the bathroom to pick up the what I was sure was going to be a negative pregnancy test. Boy, was I in for the surprise of my life.

At first I thought my eyes might be playing tricks on me. After all, I spent the vast majority of 2008 trying to see lines on pee sticks that weren’t there. So I showed it to the Mister. He studied it for a minute, and then declared, “there’s a plus sign there!” I still couldn’t believe it, but the Mister was sitting there looking like the cat that ate the canary. I was starting to get a little bit upset. We have a LOT of stuff going on right now, and a new baby was NOT really in the cards for us. But seeing the Mister’s excitement calmed me down.

So next I did what I usually do when I have baby or pregnancy-related questions. I took it straight to my message board, where I was immediately declared knocked up and told to re-test with a red dye test or a digital. We headed down to Auburn around lunchtime that day, so we stopped at Walmart on the way in and I got two red dye Equate tests, the same brand that told us of our little CJ’s existence. I waited until later that evening to take the first test. I was expecting it to be negative, that the first test was a fluke, a false positive.

Well, there was no denying it now. I was pregnant. Merry Christmas to us!

I took the other test the next morning with the same result. We were in absolute shock at first, but then as the shock wore off the excitement started coming through. A surprise baby! I had long since given up all hope of that ever happening for us. I love that I was able to get pregnant without medication, monitoring, pleading and begging God for a baby. We weren’t planning on trying again for several more months, but the age difference between children will be great. CJ will be over two years old so we won’t have to go through the dreaded 2 under 2. CJ gets more independent every day and by the time the Weeble gets here we hope to have him potty trained and out of diapers. That will save us a TON of money!

Even though the pregnancy happened easily, it has not been without drama. Oh no. First I couldn’t get through to my doctor’s office because of Snowmageddon/Icepocalypse 2011. Then the day of my appointment, it took us three hours to get from our house to Midtown. This is typically a 30-minute drive on a good day. At my confirmation ultrasound the next week, there was nothing there but a sac, and I was told that I was 4 weeks 4 days pregnant. That couldn’t be right, I thought, because that meant that I got a BFP at 6 days past ovulation, which is unheard of. I was put on a progesterone supplement and given another ultrasound four days later, and not only did I see a beautiful heartbeat, but the Weeble had caught up a whole week in growth and was back on track to where it should be, giving me an estimated due date of September 19. I just think the first ultrasound was at a bad angle or something. But nonetheless, I cried when I saw that heartbeat because I had been so worried. I spent the better part of that weekend between ultrasounds in prayer, and this baby is living proof (in more ways than one) that God answers prayers.

So as of right now I am 10 weeks pregnant. I have finally started feeling like a human being again. The past month was fraught with nausea and heartburn and extreme fatigue and NAUSEA. I lost 10 pounds because nothing sounded good and I didn’t want to eat, or what I did manage to eat I ended up throwing back up. Everyone tells me that this means the baby is a girl. We’ll see. I don’t know what I would do with a girl, but I guess I’ll figure it out. Most of the family knows, and my work knows because, as mothers of more than one child will tell you, it is harder to hide it the second time around, especially when you lose 10 pounds and have a growing belly.

I don’t have any ultrasound pictures to share because they were both so quick that I didn’t have time to ask for a disc, but I will try to scan a picture when I get home. We have our first big ultrasound in two weeks, and I may explode between now and then. I have tried to remain detached in case something goes wrong, but I can’t help it. I already love this little bean so much. I am so happy that CJ will have a little brother or sister to grow up with. He has already started talking to the baby and kissing my belly. It brings tears to my eyes to see how sweet he is already with his sibling.

My office called CJ Danger when I was pregnant with him, so we’ve decided to nickname the Weeble Mayhem. So in conclusion, Long Live Mayhem, Sibling of Danger!!

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