Spring is here...Finally!

After a horrible winter with record snow falls spring is finally here! Flowers are blooming and it's been so warm. It's wonderful.

I'm having fun working out in the yard. We've been planting fruit trees and bushes this past weekend and Dave and I went to Lowes and got two more trees last night. So much garden stuff is out already I'm resisting the veggies can't plant those until end of May but the TREES oh I can't stop planting trees. We now have seven raspberry bushes, (2 black, 2 red, 2 yellow, and a purple), 2 blueberry bushes, 2 cherry trees and a peach tree planted in the yard.

I have strawberries growing in a hanging planter and I plan on getting a pie cherry tree and maybe a plum before it's all over. Good thing we have a large yard. We've also started cleaning up the garden area so we can get it plowed and fertilized to be ready for planting. I so enjoy living in the country there is nothing like home grown produce.

Bad news again

Went to my 12 week check up and ultrasound yesterday only to find out that my baby had stopped growing a few weeks ago. From what they figure it was shortly after my last ultrasound. I go in for a D&C today and they will be running tests to see what went wrong. I will be consulting with our Fertility specialist in a few weeks to see where he wants to go next. This is a crushing blow but we won't be giving up anytime soon.

9 weeks 3 days

I had my first OB appointment on April 24th. It was at the high risk clinic but unfortunatly my RE who was my high risk OB last time is no longer doing OB work and he neglected to tell me! I was so upset that he wasn't there since he knows my history and all the tests that need to be done. Instead I get a new doctor I actually just saw the nurse practioner today she was super nice but I mean really during normal check in with the nurse they told me I could have sex and it would be ok I was like ummm no I can't I have incompetent cervix it's complete pelvic rest for me as soon as I got that BFP.

They did all the normal things pap, urine test and physical exam. Also did blood work and some extra tests to test for more infections (I get an infection around 17 weeks that causes me to miscarry this has happened twice but we still have no clue what is CAUSING this ) I was also upset that I will not be getting Ultrasounds at every visit (like I did last time with my old doctor) But I guess that's just something he did. It's frustrating I don't know why they don't just do it to make sure everything is ok. It's not like my insurance doesn't pay for it all.

The Nurse Practioner did sneak me in for a quick ultrasound (just on the belly so no picture) to check the heartbeat. Didn't really see much since I didn't have a full bladder or anything but I did see that heart flickering at a nice 175 bpm. So fast and it sounded so wonderful.

My next appointment is May 5th which will be my pre surgical consult as I'll be having a cerclage put in at 12 weeks. This time I'll actually be seeing the doctor who will be doing the cerclage.

6w 1 day

I went for my first ultrasound on friday just to confirm everything was ok. Got to see our baby for the first time. The little heart was just beating away and the doctor said everything looks great. I was referred to my RE's high risk office and have my first appointment there on April 24th. They are going to do everything they can to help us bring our baby home. My Due date is December 3, 2009! We couldn't be happier!

Great News

So we've been seeing our fertility specialist since early February. I went to see him because I wasn't ovulating on my own causing me not to get my peroid for something like 3 months. He was great! He started me on provera to start a period then put me on Clomid to help me ovulate. On day 13 of my cycle I went in for an ultrasound and I had not one but TWO follicles growing! I was advised to take ovulation predictor kits and well....

Happy Easter

I've been so horrible in updating this blog but I guess it's because nothing big has been going on lol. We've been working on the house slowly but nothing big yet. We're close to starting the kitchen. We've got most of the old ceiling torn out and most of the floor replaced. Just need some drywall and then we'll be ready for cabinets!

I can't wait to finish the kitchen as I'd really like to be able to bake and cook like I want to. It's hard to do anything elaborate with little space.

One new thing we got for the house is a new front load washer and dryer. We got them on black friday and I LOVE them. Never thought I'd be one to love an appliance lol.

Updates

Just wanted to post an update since it's been forever. We've finished our guest bathroom. It looks great. I'll post a photo when I finish touching up everything.

Our garden is doing great. We've got squash, zuchinni, cucumbers, and peppers coming out of our ears lol. We're still waiting for the green beans, tomatoes, corn, and watermelons to ripen. I'm probably going to can some jalepenos next week or so. They are growing out of control. Dave's happy he loves jalepenos. (yuck) so it would be nice to get a few jars put up from this years crop.


We've also started on the kitchen. We have to do it in pieces but part of the floor has been replaced and we bought the lumber to raise the ceiling. I'm so excited once this is done we can start planning and building cabinets! I'm getting completly custom cabinets made by Dave and I just can't wait to have all that storage space!

Once the kitchen is done we'll only have to do the mudroom and pantry and that section of the house will be done. Then all that's left is the laundry room, both master bathrooms, our bedroom, and the basement! WOO HOO we're so close to being done.

Root Canal

Can I just say that having a root canal on Friday the 13th is just freaky. That's right I had a root canal on friday the 13th. I was scared to death everyone I know told me that it was going to hurt horribly. So Dave and I went to Somerset PA for my appointment since there was no way I was going alone.

The dentist made me watch this little corny video about root canals and then I went in for the procedure.

At first the dentist thought I would have to have it done in two visits because my abcess was so bad but he was able to get it all out and done in the one visit. It took about 1.5-2 hours for it to be completed but there was NO PAIN! Now I just have to go to my regular dentist and get the tooth filled.

They drilled a hole through the crown that was already on my tooth so all I need is a "patch job" and it will be all done. But I am back on antibiotics AGAIN just to make sure the infection goes away.

Can I just say I love CVS and Coupon Shopping?

For the past year I've been trying to save money shopping by using coupons and buying on sale. I've done a great job!

One store I shop at is CVS. I get so much FREE stuff at CVS it isn't even funny. They have a program called the Extra Care Buck program and it's awesome.

I've got some photos of my cvs stockpile that I'll share below:


All my laundry detergent! I no longer pay more than $1 a bottle for Laundry detergent.


Medicine! This gets handed out to everyone we know since it expires so quickly but I'm always getting medicine from CVS


Big box on the right holds razors and blades, in the middle from bottom to top is: vitamins, Makeup, and toothbrushes. On the left the bottom box holds air freshener adn the top box is holding a bunch of Post it notes!

Air Freshners and cleaners, tissues, Charmin wipes, Hair color, and cough drops


Top left to right: Shampoo, Conditioner, Bar soap and hand soap
Bottom left to right: Toothpaste, Feminine products, and Body wash


Box on the right holds mouthwash the other box holds facial cleaners on the far left is misc items


Top box holds hair styler and men's hair dye
Bottom large boxes holds shaving cream/lotion, and Deodorant

This is not showing the stockpile of Toiletpaper, paper towels, cleaning products, gift bags, Dog and Cat food and treats, dishwashing liquid, Food, coffee, soda, and bottled water.

I pay less than $20 a month to bring home hundreds of dollars worth of stuff that we would usually have to buy at full price. It's also nice to be able to give items to people who need help.

Just an update

Well the work on the house has been going slow. Dave's sick so not much has been done. We did pick up paint and shelving for dad's bedroom closet and a door for the bathroom. Hopefully we'll get something done this week.

On the TTC front we should know in two weeks if this month was sucessful or not. We're not holding out hope but they do say it's easier to get pregnant the month following an HSG so maybe we'll get lucky!

Went shopping and house progress

I went shopping last night and bought us a new Grill. We needed a new one as the one we were using came with us from San Antionio and was getting OLD. The new one is BIG and so nice. I plan on grilling up some dinner tonight as soon as Dave gets home from work.


In other news we're still working on the guest bathroom and Dad's room. All that's left to do in Dad's room is paint the closet and finish painting the room. Finish putting poly on the built in desk and lay the flooring and put up trim.

The bathroom needs the rest of the marble layed on the floor and the drywall finished and painted. And then the rest of the wainscotting and trim. The clawfoot tub needs the outside painted. Everything needs installed. We've got everything except the light fixture for over the vanity but we'll get that this week. It's all going to look great.

I'll post finished pictures when it's done. (sorry haven't posted living room pictures it's not quite finished as it's being used as the hold all while other rooms are being worked on LOL

Test results back

Well I got my test results back from the doctor. They were negative. My doctor has no idea why I keep developing an infection in the second trimester causing loss.

So I've been given the green light to start trying again! Woo hoo! The doctor told me that when I get pregnant again that they will be doing the cerclage early (between 11-12 weeks) and I most likely will be on antibiotics the entire pregnancy and of course no sex (I don't know why the doctor insists on telling me this. Every pregnancy so far I've been on sex restriction from the get go so we already know this LOL)

He'll also be testing me for everything under the sun once I get pregnant. Hopefully this will work we want a baby so badly.

I really hope we can have a baby on our own. I don't want to go down the surrogate road but we will if we have to. I'm just glad that option is open to us.

Drs Appointment 4/24

I went for my follow up with my RE doctor. I'm being tested for a couple things to find out why I keep getting infections. The doctor also put both of us (Dave and I) on an antibiotic in case we have a bacterial infection (there is one that is thought to cause miscarriages but it's hard to test for so it's easier to treat it)

So I'm waiting for the test results and then most likely will go back to the doctor. We're still waiting for a green light to try again. (one more month to wait!)

The doctor did say that with my next pregnancy that he will do the cerclage at 11-12 weeks (before it starts changing) and he'll most likely keep me on antibiotics the entire pregnancy to prevent infection I'm hoping that will solve the problem.

HSG Today

I had my HSG today. My doctor (the RE) did the test. It wasn't horrible, hardly any pain and it was over rather quickly. They did not find anything wrong with my uterus, only a slight bump from being pregnant recently. No septums nothing abnormal at all. So we'll have to check something else. I go back to talk to the doctor further on Thursday.

It's at least a good thing that there are no abnormalities which means that I most likely do not need surgery. But then again we are still waiting to find out the reason why this keeps happening so we can fix it and start trying again.

Got my Appointment

I'm scheduled for my HSG for April 21st. Then my follow up with the doctor is scheduled for the 24th. Hopefully they find something and we can get to fixing it.

Doctors Appointment today

I went to my postpartum 6 week checkup today. Dave went with me and it was an ordeal. First they were doing repairs on some of the elevators so we had to wait in line to use the elevators (a security guard was in front of the stairs door for some reason) Then we end up waiting an hour for the doctor only to find out that my doctor (the Fertilty Specilist/High Risk OB) is in ITALY on vacation. So I saw two other doctors (one of which I saw when I was in the hospital).

I was told that the pathology report showed that there was infection found in the placenta (the same thing that happened the first time) no idea why it's happening.

I am also being scheduled for a Hysterosalpingogram (HSG) According to this Website

A hysterosalpingogram is an X-ray of the uterus and fallopian tubes which allows visualization of the inside of the uterus and tubes. The picture will reveal any abnormalities of the uterus as well as tubal problems such as blockage and dilation.

They want to check the inside of my uterus to make sure that there are no problems there. If there are then surgery may be needed to fix it. This will be scheduled sometime in the next few weeks. My doctor (the one in Italy) is the one who does this test so I have to wait for him to get back.

I was also told that next time I get pregnant I will need a cerclage earlier. Since they did the cerclage last time after I started dilating the doctor thinks that I was already in preterm labor when they did the cerclage.

On other note I got my baby's pictures today. They also gave me a plaster cast of his little feet. I also have the outfit they took his picture in along with the blanket and very small stuffed animal. It's heartbreaking but I'm glad I have them. It's much more than I have for my first baby. All I got with him was a polaroid picture.

Our new addition to the family!

We got a new puppy yesterday! His name is Bandit and he's 4 months old. He's an Australian Shepherd/Lab mix and he's super cute. He's been following us around everywhere. He's fitting in pretty good although Scooby is a little unsure of him. I think he's jealous that Dave is paying attention to a new puppy and not just him.

Here are some pictures of Bandit playing with his puppy teething key ring. So cute!

Happy Easter

I just wanted to update about me and to wish everyone Happy Easter.

It's been three weeks and I'm doing better. I'm trying to not let myself sink into depression like last time and am working with Dave on getting the house done.

We're almost done on Dad's room and then we can start on the guest bathroom. Our house is so close to being finished.

As for the doctor update. My appointment is April 10th. From there most likely we'll be scheduling tests and finding out the cause of all the losses. We're hoping to be able to start TTC again this summer. Hopefully my doctor can help us have a baby. It's heartbreaking for both of us to not have a child together after four pregnancies. Something has to give. I'll update after my doctor's appointment.

We lost the baby :(

I just wanted to update and let everyone know that I had my baby yesterday morning. I went to the hospital Wednesday with contractions and was immediately taken to L/D and was given medicine to stop the contractions. The medicine wasn't helping so I was transfered to the high risk hospital Thursday.

The medicine they gave me wasn't helping either and then my water started leaking. They did an ultrasound to check the baby and found no heartbeat. I had my cerclage removed and delivered a few hours later. He was a little boy we named him Trent Michael he was beautiful and perfect. He looked so much like his daddy. I'm devastated to be in the position again in my life.

I go back to my high risk OB in 6 weeks to start testing why this keeps happening to me.

UPDATE ON ME!!

Just sneaking online for a minute while SO is out of the room lol. He's determined to keep me in bed for the next two days.

The cerclage went ok. I went to the hospital at 11 am and got checked in. Got to hear babys HB and then had an iv put in and it hurt. I've had quite a few ivs and this one seemed much bigger then normal. I have very small veins and the IV spot still hurts but it's ok.

I had to wait what seemed like forever for my doctor because everyone was in doing an emergency c/s as the nurse said there is no schedule in L/D baby's come when they want to lol.

When I finally got to see my doctor it happened really fast. They decided to give me a spinal so I had to drink this foul tasting sour liquid which was the worst stuff I've ever had in my mouth LOL. Then I was taken back to the O.R. Can I just say that room was freezing lol.

I had the spinal done which I will NEVER ever agree to have done again it was the worse part of the whole thing LOL. It hurt horribly. After that I went completely numb and couldn't tell what was going on below my waist.

After that I went to recovery and started the long wait to get feeling back in my legs. It really is horrible to not be able to move your lower half. I got some crackers and juice a little later and was given pain medicine and some other medicine to relax my uterus to prevent contractions (which I had to take every 6 hours last night a total of 4 doses) and then when I could finally feel everything but my butt I got to get up and walk and go to the bathroom.

My doctor said everything went great and I have to go back to see him next Thursday but all in all I'm feeling great.

I've stopped taking the pain medication because the only thing that hurts right now is my back (at the injection site) and it's not that bad. Hopefully this works for us.