Nearing the Pregnancy Finish Line

33 weeks

• How far along are you? 35 weeks
• Movement: Still a mover. I'm pretty lucky with my longer torso; he doesn't really kick my ribs (yet). I definitely feel movement much higher nowadays but none of the miserable rib-kicking other women have told me about. That's not to say I'm not uncomfortable. There is plenty of discomfort to go around. Little mister does seem to thinks it's fun to take looooong breaks from noticeably wiggling-like the whole weekend, every weekend. It keeps me on edge for sure. He's always back to moving on Monday morning though, stinker.
• Belly button in or out? Um..flat. It's making its way out but I don't know if it will reach that "turkey is done" status before d-day.
• General Mood? Still pretty good. The discomfort level lately has made me pretty unforgiving of middle school behaviors at work. Poor kids.
• Thoughts: I'm feeling overwhelmed the closer it gets. There's just so much to do and the list keeps on growing somehow. I'm still pretty nervous about labor but I'm starting to get into the stage where my attitude is becoming more of a "whatever we've got to do" outlook. I'm ready to be able to move without letting out squeaks of pain.
• Doctor Appointments: Well these have actually been semi-exciting. I went in to take my glucose test with piqued curiosity about the infamous sugar drink. I was pleasantly surprised. It tasted just like orange Hi-C. I thought it was delicious. And I passed! Woop! I had a kind of random "appointment"due to our crash with a deer. Baby moved some after the crash but then didn't move for a good 24 hrs so we decided to go in. The nurse-Phyllis-was a lady I've known my whole life which I ended up being grateful for. She has a fantastic bedside manner. She hooked me up to the monitors and we basically chilled for a few hours. She did tell me and Dillon that the change in barometric pressure probably didn't help. Apparently babies don't like when the pressure changes and they tend to not move as much. Phyllis said they anticipated an influx of worried moms that day and sure enough, they were busy. The monitor showed his lovely little heartbeat and we could hear him moving but I couldn't feel it which they thought was odd (they being Phyllis and Dr. Gatherum who was watching the screen from his house). They sent me home with instructions to come back if I didn't feel him within a day. Baby gave me some feeble moves the next day but the day after that was back to his usual self. The last appointment worth mentioning is more just funny than anything. Every appointment they ask you to pee in a cup, right? So I was in the bathroom trying to get situated when my cup folded in on itself of its own accord (seriously, I think a ghost kicked it) and fell in the toilet. It fell in pre-business but still, "clean" toilet water doesn't really exist in my opinion. So then I had to fish it out which got toilet water everywhere which led to me cleaning up their floor etc. as best I could. Much too long of time later, I washed my hands and tried again (and then washed my hands again). I walked into the other room and told Dillon and the nurse about my predicament. The nurse got a kick out of it and told me she wondered what was going on in there. What can I say? I live to amuse.
• Baby: Baby is pretty much fully formed with all of the necessities and will now just keep on putting on fat for the next few weeks.
• Symptoms: Well my stomach looks like a super awesome tributary system of shiny pinkness. Dillon got to experience poking my swollen foot and having his finger imprint stay in my skin. Freaked us both out. My poor, pelvic region hates all movement- all.of.it. Throwing up has revisited the scene. And all of the other typical aches of the 3rd trimester. All worth it, though. Worth it.
• Cravings/Aversions/Eating: Dr. Pepper for the last week or so. This is really odd as I pretty much never purposely seek out that particular drink. Apparently this little guy digs those 23 flavors.

Starting With a Bang

Well November started out with a bang, quite literally.

Dillon and I were headed over to the annual hunt/craft show event in Delta. Dillon gets to bond with his dad, the dogs, and guns for a few hours while I get to walk around a gigantic craft show and spend too much money while wishing I had brought more. But not this year.

The morning of November 1st we decided to take the back road to Delta (maybe not the wisest choice in hindsight?). Everything was smooth sailing until we came over a hill and Dillon had enough time to yell, "Deer!" and then bam!

We pulled over to the side of the road, our car leaking antifreeze everywhere. Have you ever smelled antifreeze? I never had and I was convinced that it was the poor, mangled deer bleeding everywhere. THAT is what antifreeze smells like-death.

Not even a full two minutes later, a man pulled over to help us out. He actually lives in Cedar too but we didn't know him and will probably never see him again but shout out to Skyler! He was so helpful and had the best chuckle which somehow made the situation more bearable.

He checked on the deer (the poor thing was not dead but was struggling- soooo sad; it did eventually pass on its own) and called dispatch for us. He then lined up a tow truck for us while Dillon was on the phone with my parents to see if they would come get us so early in the AM.

After that it was mostly a matter of waiting. Skyler kept us company and told about his work on the pig farms. That work is actually what had him on the back road. He drives that drive twice a day most days of the week. 

My parents showed up, we transferred our stuff out of our car, then highway patrol showed up, then the tow truck- all in pretty quick succession. 

We got everything squared away with insurance and the dealership where we had our car towed to. $6,000 in damage (so glad we have insurance) and three weeks later we're looking at having our car back on Monday. Baby and I are so excited (side note: we did have to make a trip to the hospital to make sure everything was a-ok, it was). Dillon's jeep has a broken window and pretty much zero suspension. I'm kind of surprised this kid hasn't been bounced out of me.

To keep me content, these two albums arrived in the mail a few days after the crash. No let downs here, love them both. (Bad Blood from T-swift is a fav).

All Things October

October was a super busy and super fantastic month. During this month...

I completed some "conference crafts" while listening to conference. I have to keep myself busy or I fall asleep on the couch every.dang.time. My favorite talks focused on standing up for your beliefs while being polite. Unapologetic, but polite. I appreciated that because I feel like sometimes I'm being told that I'm offending the general public by believing what I do. That's not really fair. My intent with my beliefs is to better myself, not to offend others. So unapologetic, but polite it is.

Before

After

This isn't finished yet in this picture. I started this dang craft during April's conference. Ridiculous. But who knew it would take so many stinkin' pearls?! It's done and hung up now though so, yay.

I enjoyed some delicious drinks. The Nesquik was discovered by accident but was so yummy. Happiness in a bottle. The glucose drink was like a cold, orange punch. I really did like that one too. And I passed the glucose test. Boom.

We went up North and visited our friends the Britos. Lindsay gave our hair some much needed lovin' and we got to catch up with her and Rob.

Fresh looking with our new hairdo's

View 1 of the bump

And view 2

We also started our 6 week prenatal course this week. Most people already know this story but...our first week was interesting. It focused a lot on breathing and relaxation techniques during labor. My personality is not a "breathe through it" type so I had a hard time taking it seriously. Then during the video we watched it panned to a nice, blooming pink rose and the narrator said, "Imagine your cervix opening like a rosebud." Wha?? It's a good thing Dillon and I were in the back row. Covered up laughter definitely ensued. Prenatal class 1. Maturity 0. Other than that week though I've actually really liked the class. The instructor is even in her opinions and truly just wants to inform all of us moms-to-be as best she can.

My mom invited me to go see The Little Mermaid at Tuacahn with her. It was really fun and their effects involving creating the underwater appearance were pretty impressive. The only down side was the lady who sat down next to us and let us know that she was super sick with an intense cough but not to worry because she brought cough syrup. Thanks lady. Me and my baby appreciate your cough syrup. Some people's children.

My dad threw a family baby shower for me. He kept it perfectly easy. Food, hanging and chatting, then presents. Top notch. He did an excellent job. Pro-shower thrower. We loved all of the stuff people were kind enough to get us and are seriously so grateful. These are some of my favorites:

That same day Dillon and I headed down to Tuacahn with his sister and mom to see Thriller. I liked 90% of the show. It was a fun atmosphere but that Giggling Girl could giggle herself right off the program and it would be just fine.

Dillon and one of the roaming zombies

Our friends Amy and Dan invited us to their house to do some pumpkin carving.

Dillon working on our pumpkin. He did all the work. It's really just his pumpkin.

Dan showing his pumpkin who's boss

Amy with her and Dan's cute, new baby boy Sammy

Finished product

Mr. Gnome

And finally, we were invited to a Halloween party at my co-worker's house. It was a lot of fun. Heather and her husband Bart put lots of effort into the party for the kiddos and adults. Dillon and I aren't exactly dedicated dresser-uppers but I was still proud of our last minute costumes.

My homemade Solar System t-shirt

Baby Sawyer being featured as the Sun

Dillon as an astronaut..on leave because that's all we had...and because Dillon wouldn't be an alien as was suggested.

Pregnancy News

24 weeks

• How far along are you? 27 weeks (almost)
• Do you know the sex of the baby? Boy!
• Have you picked out names? Drumrooollllll.... His name is Sawyer Dustin Thatcher. Sawyer has been a favorite on the list our whole marriage. There was another name I was really liking but when I looked it up on the internet to check its popularity it was clearly rising...on the girl list. So weird. I don't feel like it's a girl name at all but I couldn't name our boy that and have him be this generation's version of the boy named Ashley.
• Movement: I started feeling him around 21 weeks. It is so weird. I feel like the description of butterflies/popping popcorn is not accurate at all. For me, it seriously feels like my internal organs are pulsing. You know when you smash a finger and it has its own heartbeat? That is how my bladder feels when little dude uses it as a punching bag. Yes, pulsing organs is a much better description.
• Belly button in or out? In but I don't know how much longer that's going to last.
• General Mood? Pretty good. Definitely tired but I feel like I've been tired ever since I hit my teenage years so I'm not sure that it's pregnancy related.
• Thoughts: I catch myself smiling when he wiggles now. I guess I'm feeling more affectionate. And then two seconds later I'm experiencing extreme anxiety about it all- everything we have left to do, actually raising a kid, going through labor and delivery. You guys, I'm terrified of labor and delivery. Utterly and completely terrified.
• Doctor Appointments: These are still pretty run of the mill. Babe's heartbeat is nice and strong. My numbers look good. All is well. This last appointment the nurse talked to me about the flu vaccine and TDAP shot. Usually I'm pretty indifferent to the flu vaccine. I've seen people that got the vaccine and then turned around to get the flu (though to clarify I am pro-vaccine in general..vaccines are good!). However, I figured I should do what I can to avoid sickness and help little man avoid sickness so I opted to get both shots. My body took the TDAP vaccine like a champ. The flu shot definitely left me with symptoms- body aches, fatigue, though nothing quite like the flu. The weirdest thing was my arm that I got the flu shot in was ticked. It was so sore and had a giant red swollen bump for days. Everything looks good now though. Up next: my glucose test. I'm kind of looking forward to trying the infamous drink.
• Baby: Baby has hair and can hear. He is longer than a ruler-about 13 inches and weighs a whopping 2 1/2 lbs. He apparently is comparable to the size of a head of lettuce. All of this according to the internet.
• Symptoms: Things are so much better than the first trimester I really can't complain. One symptom that hasn't been so fun is symphysis pubic dysfunction. I started experiencing that one around 21 weeks and even my doctor was surprised it started so early. It definitely makes walking hard (hello waddle), stairs are fun, and sleeping at night (particularly rolling over) is a chore. There's not much that can be done about it though so sucking it up it is. My shoes are also becoming limited in wearability. My feet have become too fat for at least half of them. Those that do fit, fit in the morning but by afternoon there's some definite spillage of feet flesh over the shoe's edge. 
• Cravings/Aversions/Eating: These change on a daily basis. Smells of foods seem to get me more than anything else right now. I've definitely been craving sugar but I don't feel like that's related to pregnancy. I've always had a sweet tooth. However, now if I want to eat a whole cake people are totally fine with it, no judgement (don't worry, I've actually not felt the need to eat a whole cake. I'm sure that would bring my nausea back). Pregnancy perk.

Life Lately

The most recent haps in our lives:


I finally caved and bought a body pillow during July. It worked wonders then. I now feel like I need four more to be comfortable. 

Dillon and I finally hiked Kanarra Falls together with a group of my co-workers. We didn't quite make it to the natural slide because of the weather but it was still fun.  This is literally the only hike that I like because there's shade and water and good scenery. It's pleasant even in the super heat of summer.

I was called to be this years Girls Camp director for our ward. These girls are seriously the most easy-going, low-maintenance, no-drama group I've ever known. They made camp easy and fun. The actual camping part was an adventure. The heat (surprise) and lack of sleep made for some angry body symptoms which I can only assume had a lot to do with growing a little human.

One of the ladies in the science department (and my good friend) miss Jami got married! This, of course, made for some picture opportunities. Although, I didn't manage to get one with the bride..

We found out what exactly was growing inside that belly of mine. I drank a ton of water per hospital instructions and then found out that actually isn't as necessary as they make it seem. 

And we're having a little man! This is how I decided to announce it. I felt creative and had some people tell me that they indeed had not seen this idea before. If you have, don't tell me. I prefer to live in my bubble of creativity as that doesn't happen that often.

The little man was in a funny position the whole ultrasound. He was basically spread eagle the whole time but had both arms curved around his face. The technician acted like that was no big deal but my doctor called me later that day to tell me that I needed to get another ultrasound because they needed face shots. Those ultrasounds are certainly not cheap and we have to pay for two now (though it was fun to see our guy twice) and now we have learned a lesson: Don't leave that first ultrasound until they have gotten all of the necessary shots INCLUDING the face. The umbilical cord was covering his face the second time but the technician managed to get what was needed. All looks well for our babe so far.

We made a trip to Delta for all of the summer family birthdays. The Millard County Fair was going on while we were there and one of the events that we hit up was a concert by the band VanLadyLove. I actually really liked their sound and their songs. Fingers are crossed that they make it big.

This pup of ours is now a permanent resident of Delta. We actually took her over the July 4th weekend. She was just having a hard time in our yard. No matter where we put her, she was getting into neighbors' yards, onto our roof, or into things in the yard (all of this while on a chain!). We decided it wasn't fair to her to shorten her chain so she could barely move (which was about the only option we had left) and so asked Dillon's dad if he would mind a new addition to the farm. We both hated the idea and I definitely felt like a pet-owner failure but once we saw her again in August we knew it was the right thing. She is so much calmer and loves the farm. She has plenty of space and other animals to interact with. 

Dillon turned 24! He actually picked out and ordered some new shirts for his birthday and then told me about it. Which was completely fine, I just felt like I didn't do my job as I wasn't involved at all in his birthday present. He's happy so I'm happy. The day of his birthday we went out to the driving range to hit a bucket of golf balls which basically turned into me watching Dillon because I had no clue what I was doing...and maybe I was a bit distracted watching the prairie dogs run around. 

Every year Dillon picks something different that he wants for his birthday treat. He has never asked for the same thing twice. This year he decided he wanted to go to the french bakery in town and get one of their cream puffs. These things are the size of your face! And mmmm, so good.

And school is back in full swing. I feel like I'm finally getting the hang of things this year. Although, I am currently sitting at home with my first illness of the year. Blast those petri dish students.

Pregnancy Update

I suppose it's about time I do the obligatory pregnancy posts. I really was planning on doing them before now, and more often, as I want to remember stuff. Life happened and this blog was neglected so this post is two pregnancy updates combined. I made my own questionnaire of sorts combining a bunch of others I found. It may change as time goes on.

I should mention also that Dillon has been the best ever during all of this. He is so good to me; sympathetic when I need it, helpful all of the time. I just love him.

1st trimester

About 12/13 weeks

• When did you find out you were pregnant? April 22, 2014
• When is your due date? December 29, 2014
• Who was with you when you found out? Nobody. Dillon had to go to a church youth activity and I decided to take the test while he was gone.
• Who was the first person you told? Dillon. Enjoy his reaction below. Although, I don't know why he seems so caught off guard. Results were quicker than expected? I love that he can't stop smiling.
• How did your parents react? We put the news in my mom's Mother's Day card. She giggled like a little girl and danced on the porch. My dad told us it was about time and then congratulations. I'll have to ask Dillon what his parents said, I don't really know except for the general congratulations from both of them.
• What was your first symptom? Feeling like someone took a mallet to my chest 24/7. 
• Belly button in or out? In
• General mood? Sick
• Thoughts: When I first saw the positive on the pregnancy test I seriously just thought, "No way." There wasn't a natural gush of lovey feelings for this tiny babe, mostly because it seemed unreal (it still does for the most part). The first trimester was rough. I remember thinking that everyone who says you forget how awful you feel is a dirty liar. 
• Doctor Appointments: The first appointment I had, I didn't really know what to expect. Everyone's seems to be different depending on which Doctor you go to. Dillon wasn't able to come to my first one with me and it just happened to be the most exciting. They pulled out the ultrasound machine and the doppler so I got to see and hear my little human. I think the doctor was feeling like he should put in some extra effort to make it a special experience since I came alone. He said in the cutest voice, "Look kiddo, there's your baby." It's hard to describe. I'm not naturally the most emotional person in situations like this so I just smiled. Everything looked good and baby was on track.
• Baby: I've been using two specific sites to track the baby's progress. According to them, by the end of the 1st trimester the baby was about the size of a peach and making all kinds of progress. Nervous system, fingernails, vocal cords, and all sorts of other stuff were in the works.
• Symptoms: Seriously, everything. It could have been much worse. I have a friend who is due about 10 days before me and the poor thing had to be hooked up to an IV because she couldn't keep anything down. I experienced the ones everyone thinks of as typical- definite morning sickness (more like ALL DAY nausea), vomiting, being tired, and already mentioned, an extremely sore chest area. A few things were ones that I didn't know were normal- I was so, so dizzy that it would wake me up from sleeping even though I was already lying down (this one was the hardest for me while I was still teaching). My body was producing so much extra saliva that I was gagging all of the time (this one is gone). I had an extremely gross aftertaste in my mouth all the time but especially after eating. It's described online as a metallic aftertaste, mine was more sour (this one is mostly gone). 
• Movement: Nothing
• Cravings/Aversions/Eating: Food pretty much sounded gross the whole first trimester but meat especially made me want to gag, particularly beef. I made Dillon eat his hamburger across the room from me because I couldn't handle the look and smell. During this time, I discovered and became grateful for easily throw-uppable foods. Carrots is not one of them. In fact, all raw vegetables instantly made me sick and run to the bathroom. So much for trying to eat healthy.

Now

• How far along are you? 19 weeks
• Do you know the sex of the baby? Not yet. We find out tomorrow!
• Have you picked out names? We have a list for either gender but haven't really landed on anything.
• Have you felt the baby move? Nope.
• Belly button in or out? In.
• General Mood? Irritable. Like, wow.
• Thoughts: I'm almost halfway there and it still doesn't feel real. I see my belly growing and hear the baby's heartbeat and it's just not quite feeling like reality. I'm guessing that will change once I feel Baby Thatcher move. 
• Doctor Appointments: These are pretty non-exciting. I don't know if Dillon and I are atypical or not but we don't really have any questions (mostly because we don't know what questions we should be asking) so the appointments last about 60 seconds.
• Baby: Baby is now the size of a mango and about 6 1/2 inches long. The waxy coating all over its skin has developed to keep it protected. Baby's cartilage is turning to bone. All sorts of exciting things.
• Symptoms: Thankfully, the 1st trimester ones have subsided. I'm currently in the easier stage. I am ridiculously hot all.the.time. Because of this I have the tendency to overheat really easily which makes me pretty sick. I've always run naturally warm (as in I like my house to hover around 68 degrees) but this is a whole new level. I basically hate being outside if it's hot at all. The dizziness has revisited but mostly just in the morning. It's not nearly as bad as it was.

**Dillon decided to buy this pool which was the best purchase of the summer. I basically wanted to swim every day to cool off but really didn't want to go to the local aquatic center. Running into your former students in your swimsuit is just..awkward. We have spent a few afternoons just lounging in this pool and it has been awesome.

• Movement: Still nothing.
• Cravings/Aversions/Eating: I still don't really crave meat but I can handle eating it now. If a food has too much melted cheese in it, it makes me gag. The idea of a grilled cheese sandwich is not appealing at all. I wouldn't really say I've had any consistent cravings but right now all I want in the world is Sour Patch Apples. The two places in Cedar that always have them...don't. I'm desperate enough that I'm considering ordering them online.