update

Let's see...it's been awhile since I was able to post anything so I'll try to just hit the high points...
Jeremy's classes are nearly finished. He has a research paper due in his writing class on Wednesday and the final in his psychology class later that night. He's done really well in his writing class, and has really enjoyed it. His professor invited us over for dinner this past Friday evening, and we had a nice time visiting with her. Jeremy seems to have worked his charm on her 'cause she certainly thinks a lot of him. As for his psychology class...it has been more frustrating than enjoyable. He's figured out that all he needs on the final is a 47 and he'll pass. I've asked him to aim a little higher...Otherwise, he's still enjoying volunteering (though I don't particularly enjoy pulling a half dozen ticks off him when he gets home); he starts physical therapy for his back on the 12th; and work is, well, work.
I've been ok. I had planned to head back to Colorado for a couple weeks, but I've had some contractions so the doctor and I had a long conversation and pretty much concluded that a 10-hour car ride was not something that I needed to do. It was very disappointing to not be up there because it meant that I wouldn't be able to attend the shower that my family was throwing for Amy (my sister) and me (bridal for Amy and baby for me). More importantly, it means that I won't be able to attend Amy's wedding later this week. It was very weird to realize that when I last saw everyone at Thanksgiving time I didn't even know I was pregnant, but the next time I see them I'll have a baby. Crazy how quickly life changes!
Other than that, not much has been going on. The cardiologist told me he thinks that my heart is just sensitive to changes in my body and that's why I'm having the palpitations. But, they're going to do an echocardiogram (basically an ultrasound of my heart) in a couple weeks just to make sure.

quick note

We have been without internet access for the last 9 or 10 days, so I haven't really been a "slacker," I've just been unable to do much of anything. I will give you all a nice update this weekend (with pictures of my ever-growing belly included). In the meantime, I have a lot of email and fantasy baseball to catch-up on, I should probably do some on-line banking too, but email and fantasy baseball are much more pressing at the moment...I'll be in touch soon!

belly pics and several updates

I admit I've been a blogger slacker this week, but I've made up for it by giving you a separate posting for all of us (including the dogs and cat). Though, on Jeremy's update I forgot to mention that we ordered a shell for his truck this week and he would definitely not be happy with me forgetting that most important detail! (Yes, Bill, when the shell is installed in a couple of weeks I'll put a picture up of it!).
I took these belly pics last week (see! I had every intention of posting last week)...Jeremy tells me that my belly grows from the time he leaves in the morning and he gets home in the evening, but I think these are still pretty close!
Enjoy the updates, and I'll do my best to be a better blogger this week!

lil' Gherkin

Lil' Gherkin's doing quite well. She's an active little one! When I was at the doctor yesterday and they were monitoring me for contractions and checking her heart rate, she was not pleased to have something pushing on "her space." The entire 2 hours they had the montiors on me she just kept kicking and punching at them. It had the nurses really laughing 'cause she just refused to leave them alone! I was hoping for a calm, easy-going baby...Something tells me that's just wishful thinking! Oh well, I can still hope...

According to babycenter.com, lil' Gherkin: Head to heels, she measures 13 1/2 inches. Her weight is about a pound and a half — but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for a more rounded one. As she gains weight, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more like a mini newborn. Her hair is probably recognizable now in color and texture, although both may change after she's born.

Melanee

I'm doing pretty well. I had some pretty bad cramping and stuff on Sunday and Monday and just felt "not right" for the rest of the week. But, everything's fine now!

I see a cardiologist on Tuesday morning. I thought the cardiologist was just going to look at the results of my Holter Monitor testing, but apparently I have to be seen. My heart still really pounds hard a lot of the time (Jeremy laughs 'cause he can take my pulse just by looking at the vein-or is it an artery?- in my neck), but I still feel confident everything's fine.

Jeremy

Jeremy's staying busy. School is going well, but it's very demanding. He's got an 'A' in his writing class and is working on a research paper. He's got a 'B' in his psychology class and is studying a lot. He had a test this past Monday, was supposed to have one this coming Monday, and then another one the Monday following. Because he completed an assignment in class on Wednesday he doesn't have to take the exam Monday, so that was a big relief.

He is still loving his volunteer work with the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge. He spends 4 hours on Saturday and Sunday up there leading hikes, helping in the visitor center, and doing whatever else they need. He's already seen a few rattle snakes and has brought a few ticks home with him. The refuge has something he can carry with him to deal with the snakes, and he found some bug spray that supposedly works to repel ticks so he's testing it today.

His back is ok. He saw a doctor for it last week and she ordered an x-ray 'cause there's a spot near his scar that when she touched it was very painful for him. So, we're waiting for the results on that. He begins physical therapy on May 12th, and I'm hopeful that it will help!

The animals

The animals are doing all right. Jenny was having problems holding her bladder all night, so we had her checked by the vet and have been having her sleep in her kennel and the problem seems to have resolved itself. Since we had the carpets cleaned and Jenny doesn't mind sleeping in the kennel, she'll be sleeping in the kennel for the foreseeable future.

Tank's seizures are still not very well under control. We upped his medicine a few months ago, but he still has 1-2 seizures every 3 weeks. So, he's going back for more bloodwork on Tuesday to see if we need to up his medicine again or if he's maybe developed a tolerance to the medicine and we need to see about switching things up. Hopefully they'll figure something out 'cause it's awfully tough on him (and us)!

Jessie's doing just fine. She has allergies (or a cold) so she's been sneezing a lot. It makes Jeremy laugh pretty hard and the dogs look at her like she's crazy, but she's fine!

doctor's appointment and a storm

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and everything is looking good. The appointment was to follow-up on the ultrasound and then just a normal check-up. As for the ultrasound, they said everything looks totally fine; the fluid levels are good; developmentally everything looks good; and my August 1st due date looks to be pretty accurate. They do want a cardiologist to look at the results from when I wore the Holter Monitor a couple weeks ago. Apparently it picked up some palpitations (which is funny 'cause for the 24 hours I had it on I didn't actually feel them like I normally do), but it's nothing they're worried about. I think they're just being cautious. Otherwise, everything is good. I've gained 10lbs since I was in there last month. A bit more than I would've liked, but they all thought it was funny and just said that as long as I feel good they really don't care how much I gain.

Yesterday we got hit with a pretty good rainstorm. We were fortunate not to be in the path of the baseball size hail that went with the storm, but we did get the rain. I don't know how much exactly we got, but I do know that it started raining yesterday morning around 9 and didn't stop 'til around 4. Then it started back up around 10 last night and just poured until about 3 this morning. The thunder and lightning that went with it in the night was pretty incredible. It was popping all around us! (Jeremy was able to sleep through it, but I certainly wasn't!) I went out a little bit ago to survey the yard and see if there was anything more significant than a lot of standing water. I saw no damage, but our 2 ponds are now one large pond and in several places the water rose high enough to cross into our backyard. I think the water came up about 2 feet. Kinda crazy!

23 weeks

I was a slacker last week and didn't ever get my belly picture put up (actually, I never got a picture taken). So, I thought I'd do another self photo this morning and get a picture up before the week gets away from me. As for how lil' Gherkin is developing this week (according to babycenter.com)....she's more than 11 inches long and weighs about a pound. The blood vessels in her lungs are beginning to develop, preparing her for breathing, but full lung development will take many more months. The lungs are the last organ to fully develop.
I'm not looking forward to this week...Jeremy won't be home much. He has class tonight (and should find out how he did on the test last week); class Wednesday night; and has a 24-hour duty on Thursday which means he'll leave home Thursday morning and not be home 'til Friday morning. Not fun!!!

a full week

I apologize for not getting a belly pic up this week. Things got a big hectic. I had to take Jenny (our German Shepherd) to the vet on Monday. She had recently started having accidents in the house at night, so we wanted to make sure she didn't have something wrong with her bladder or kidneys. The vet said he thinks it's just a behavior thing and that our best bet is to just keep her kenneled at night. After my trip to the vet I ventured to the grocery store to buy some fresh produce (the local store is more expensive than Wal-Mart of the commissary, but the produce is so much better that we don't mind the higher price). Jeremy had his first psychology test on Monday evening. We won't know how he did 'til next Monday, but he feels pretty good about it. Monday night, we had to move everything out of the living room 'cause we had the carpets cleaned Tuesday. Jeremy had to have a root canal on a front tooth Tuesday morning. He had a cavity filled a few weeks ago and it really started hurting him Sunday night. By Tuesday evening I wasn't feeling good and went to bed at 6:30. I ended up not getting up 'til 11 yesterday morning and felt just downright awful all day yesterday. Unfortunately, Jeremy had to be at work at 5 yesterday and didn't get home 'til after his evening class (so, around 9:30). He had to be there at 5 again this morning, but hopefully it won't be as long of a day for him! And, as for me, I feel pretty yucky today, but better than yesterday. Hopefully this cold won't hang-on too long!