Apparently I waddle!

Hello All:

Apparently I've started waddling. Between the walking boot that I'm wearing on my healing leg and my growing belly I have developed a penguin like walk...according to John and my brother. I'm just grateful that I'm able to walk at all. Recently I took a 1 hour glucose test and failed, therefore, I had to take a 3 hour glucose test. I then failed the 3 hour glucose test as well. This resulted in me being diagnosed with gestational diabetes. It is a form of diabetes that you can develop during pregnancy. This means that my pregnant body is unable to produce enough insulin to compensate for the hormones that the placenta is producing and the glucose that comes from my diet. I now have to monitor my blood sugar 4 times a day and measure and watch everything I eat. This was extremely upsetting when I first found out, however, once I got focused on the fact that this would all be worth it once Jack arrives, it all seemed like no big deal. As John and I discussed...who couldn't use a little help with their diet. I just have to be a lot more aware of what I'm eating and how much of it I'm eating. Jack has been very active and doing all kinds of punching, kicking, somersaults and lots of "exercising". It has been very exciting for John and I to experience. We had a sonogram the other day to check his growth, to make sure the diabetes wasn't making him grow too quickly. He looked great. They weren't able to get us any good pictures because he had his feet in his hands up by his face. Everytime we thought we had a good face picture he would grab his feet again. It was EXTREMELY cute.

The leg is healing great. I've been walking around with my boot when we go out of the house but when I'm at home I go without anything or I wear the ankle stirrup that the Dr. gave me. It has been a long process but I'm glad it is going so well. I'm still moving slow, and as I said above, apparently waddling quite a bit. I'm still having no pain, just some muscle tightness and the bottom of my foot is still getting used to walking on solid ground again.

We are all doing great and it is so nice to finally be walking again. Can't wait to hear from all of you and hope you are enjoying the holiday season.

Love and Miss you,
J&R

Baby & Cast Update

First of all...we had an absolutely fabulous Thanksgiving. My parents were able to come down for the long weekend and brought another couple with them that have been friends of the family since before I was born. It was so fantastic to have Thanksgiving in our new home. We are so thankful for all of our family and friends...and baby Jack too! We hope you all had a great holiday with your families.
The cast has officially been removed and replaced with a walking boot. We just got home from the doctor and he said I can walk on the boot and if I start to experience any pain in my leg I need to rest. I will have the walking boot for 2-3 weeks and whenever I feel comfortable I need to start working my way towards a stirrup. I don't have to go back to see him until after the baby is born to have some xrays done to check all of the progress. John and I are both extremely excited for me to be a little more independent. He has been great through all of this but both of us were very ready for me to be able to walk, shower and get around without assistance.
We have officially entered in to the 3rd trimester. We are 27 weeks along and feeling great. The munchkin is growing like crazy and my belly is too. My appetite is growing as big as the baby as well. We have another appointment with the Ob today and we'll have another sonogram to check a few things that they couldn't see last time. I'll also be having my glucose test to make sure that I don't have gestational diabetes. I'll update later this week with news from today's appointment and any other news we may have.
Love and miss you all!

26 weeks

Okay, so we're 26 weeks along and things are still going fantastic. Only one week until cast removal and we are both SO excited. It seems like my belly grows overnight, it gets bigger everyday. The heartburn has increased, it doesn't matter if I eat spicy food or drink water, there should be some antacids close to me. I have several cravings but the most dominate one is crab rangoons...I want a lot of them all the time. Food has become one of my best friends, because I am hungry all the time. I'm not able to eat a lot at each sitting but in just a short time after eating I am ready for some more. Our little munchkin is still very active and he is even more active after I eat. John has been able to feel him kicking and punching around. Last night John and his friends got the baby furniture upstairs and in to the nursery, now it just needs to be assembled.
On another subject, we are so excited to have my parents and close family friends, The Hutsons, down to our house for Thanksgiving. John took me to the store on Saturday and we got all of our yummy ingredients for a fantastic turkey dinner. We have so much to be thankful for this year and I can't wait to share it with family. I wish all of you an amazing and fabulous Thanksgiving!
Love & Miss all of you!

25 Weeks!

Hello All!

This is the most recent head shot of our munchkin, taken today at our appointment. He had his hands up by his face and was being pretty shy so the pic isn't as detailed as some of the others have been, but I still think he looks adorable. He weighed in at 1 lb. 13 oz., I can't believe he is almost 2 lbs. His heart rate was great, my blood pressure was great and all is good in our world today. We go back in 2 weeks and will have another sono to check on a few things that they couldn't get a good picture of today and I will also have a 1 hour glucose test (standard procedure to check for gestational diabetes). This will all happen on "get the cast off day". I can't wait to give you all that update. Tyson is also doing well, he loves lying around with me during the day and resting his head on my growing belly...he has got to be the cutest dog in all the world. I know John is getting pretting tired of playing nurse to me during this whole leg mess but he has been fantastic! I don't know what I would do without him. We have so many things to be thankful for and today has been full of reminders. Once again, I hope all is well with ya'll. Love and miss you! -R-

Fantastic Baby Shower

Well...Saturday was the day of the baby shower in Kansas City. It was amazing! My Mom really out did herself. We had delicious food at Cafe Verona and she even had individual cakes for everyone that were covered with blue polka dots...I just LOVE polka dots. After the shower John and I couldn't help but feel extremely lucky. We got an amazing amount of baby items for Jack. He is going to be so rich in love, family and friends. We feel so blessed to have had so many of our friends and family at the shower and to have gotten so many lovely gifts. We also received some lovely gifts by mail from some family that couldn't attend. Thanks Grandma and Aunt Marilyn. All is good with the baby and the leg. The leg seems to be healing well and the baby is VERY active. We have a sonogram appointment on Friday, so we'll have new pictures of Jack. Hope all is well in your life and we love and miss everyone!

Week 22

We are currently 22 weeks pregnant, almost 23 weeks and the baby is doing great. He is very active. He is finally big enough that we can feel his movements on the outside of my belly. My doctor's office called yesterday to let me know that they had 50 doses of the H1N1 vaccine available on a first come first serve basis for their pregnant patients. I called John and he left work immediately and came home and took me, since I'm unable to drive right now. So needless to say I got vaccinated and am very grateful that I was able to get one before my trip to Kansas City. I'm getting lots of rest, especially since crutches are such a pain. John has been amazing! He is taking care of all of the laundry, cooking dinner and helping me with everything. Tyson (our chihuahua) is adorable. He stays by my side all day and is very concerned when I get up and "crutch" anywhere. Overall everything is going well for us. We are looking forward to our trip to Kansas City and just glad that the baby is doing so well.
Love and miss you all,
J&R

Leg Update

Hello All!
Well we made it to the doctor safely this morning. They took all the bandages off and the doctor took a peek. He said everything was looking good. They removed the stitches and gave me a nice new fiberglass cast. I was lucky enough to get to choose the color of this new accessory and I chose a nice powder blue, in honor of our munchkin in waiting. According to the doctor I will have the cast for the next five weeks and will then move on to a boot. I will still be non weight bearing with the boot but will be able to remove it to take a shower and to do the excersizes to help me get my range of motion back to normal. I am currently on crutches, which I have come to the conclusion are terrible. They make it easier for me to get around the house my self but they are such a pain.

While my Mom was here she took me to get my hair cut and her and John took me out to a movie. She fixed and froze a ton of dinners and did an amazing job helping to make John's life easier. She was also able to take me to the Ob and we got a great report for me and the baby. Our next appointment is in November and we'll have a new sonogram to share.

I appreciate all of the well wishes and will do my best to keep the blog updated.

Love & miss you all,
J&R

Ankle pic

Ankle Pic

My crazy life!

Everything in the pregnancy was going so well, however, now I have broken my leg/ankle in four different places. On Sunday morning I slipped at the top of our stairs and caught myself with my right leg/ankle. John had just boarded an airplane to come back to Dallas, therefore, I was home alone. I could instantly tell it was broken and was able to use my cell phone to call 911. After calling 911 the ambulance transported me to the hospital. Once arriving to the hospital and being checked out we found out that the baby was doing just fine. They took xrays and found that I had broken both bones in my leg right above the ankle. I had a spiral fracture on one bone that resulted in 3 breaks and a single break on the other bone. They informed me that I would require immediate surgery. John made it to the hospital before the surgery and was able to take very good care of me. I then had surgery and they put a plate and several screws in place. My Mom flew down Sunday night and made it to my room right after surgery. John and Mom have been amazing nurses. I am now at home with my right leg in a sterile splint, 5 month pregnant and unable to do anything without crutches. On the 22nd I will be going back to the Dr. to have him check the swelling and hopefully he'll be able to cast it. Mom is taking me to the OB tomorrow to double check on our munchkin. She has also made an unbelieveable amount of food to keep in the freezer to help John with keeping us fed. This has been an incredible journey so far and I would have never been able to make it through the surgery and pain without my fantastic husband and beloved Mom. See below for the pics of my new ankle.

Halfway there

Well...yesterday marked the halfway point of our pregnancy. We are officially 20 weeks along and enjoying every minute of it. The baby has been VERY active, especially after I eat (which tells me it is definitely a boy)! We got our furniture ordered for the nursery along with the bedding. It should all be delivered within the next 2 weeks. I'm sure John can't wait to spend a weekend putting it all together. However, that would require that I clear some room for him to work in the nursery. The bedding and furniture look so great together! The furniture is black and the bedding is black and white. We are planning on doing accents of lime green and electric blue. It looks like the only piece of nursery furnitre that we have left to buy is the rocker. The goal is to find one that will still be comfy and cozy after rocking for hours in the middle of the night. Hope all is well with all of you!
Lots of smiles,
R

Definitely a boy!

Profile Pic

Introducing our little boy!

3D of the face

It's a BOY!

We found out today that the munchkin we are expecting is a boy! We couldn't be happier. Finding out has made it so real! I was able to do some shopping today and I think I may have even found some furniture for the nursery. The theme is going to be black and white with accent colors of bright green and electric blue. I will post a couple of the sonogram pics tomorrow. It looks like we can all expect a John IV!
Lots of Smiles,
Robin

18 week appointment today

Everything went very well at the appointment today. I received my flu shot and the baby's heart beat was 157 bpm which is right where it is supposed to be. My blood pressure was fantastic and everything checked out great. No news is good news at this point. Still looking forward to our appointment on Monday, so stay tuned!

Tomorrow

I have an appointment tomorrow with my OB just for a check up. They'll be checking the heart beat and answering any questions we have, I better write those down tonight because I'll forget them before tomorrow. I'll also be gettting my flu shot from them tomorrow, John is getting his through his work so hopefully we'll be covered for the seasonal flu. However, we are a little paranoid about H1N1 since it is all over the place down here. They have closed several schools and there have been 6 deaths in the past month in North Texas. There is only one grocery store that we decided I can go to and the doctor's office. I was going crazy with the antibacterial wipes while I was at the store, is there such a thing as too sanitized? Just trying to keep me and the munchkin as safe as possible. I'll have a new update tomorrow afternoon after my appointment and then again on Monday when we find out what we're having. By the way...Keep your calendars open for Saturday, November 7th...my Mom is having a shower for me at Noon. Hope you can make it.
Lots of Love,
Robin

This is the sonogram pic from August. We were only 12 weeks along. On October 5th we will find out if we're having a boy or girl so stay tuned.

Welcome!

Hello All! We figured that since we have a munchkin on the way this would be the easiest way for us to communicate funny stories during pregnancy. Then it would be an easy way for us to share stories and photos once the angel is here. For now we'll probably just post funny stuff that is happening during the pregnancy, since there seems to be so much. Hope all is well with you!
Love, J&R