Year End Wrap Up

I saw on a couple of my friends blogs that they wrote a sort of Christmas letter and I thought that was a great idea! I obviously didn't have it done in time for Christmas, but figured it would still work! This year has definitely been full and has gone by sooo fast. Jared and I feel extremely blessed for the family and friends in our life and look forward to 2010!

January: January was a bit of a whirlwind and it is hard to remember all the ends and outs of what we did. I switched to 4 10 hour days and got permanent long weekends, yay! We started contemplating the idea of selling our house and browsed the housing market to see what was out there. We did a lot of home improvements including new carpet, painting, organizing, etc. Which is a blessing to have done since we decided to stay! We also had several vet appointments to figure out what was wrong with our black lab, Lucy.

February: This is a month we would have rather skipped over. Although the highlight was Jared's surprise of an amazing Valentine weekend, filled with a scavenger hunt of sorts (to buy a dress, get a back massage, get my hair cut and colored) where we spent the night at Hotel 43 downtown and ate a yummy dinner at Chandlers. After Valentine's weekend our month went downhill and we had to put our 4 year old puppy to sleep after a battle with Lymphoma...no fun and something that was extremely difficult for us.

March: My birthday month! I don't remember a whole lot from March other than my brother and sister-in-law coming to visit. We had a great time with them and apparently that was the highlight of our month!

April: Since we decided to stay in our current home we refinanced in April to get a lower interest rate and house payment. We also bought a new refrigerator and put our old one in the garage...which I love! April also brought out the adventurous side of me, as I went on my first snow shoeing trip. We stayed the night at a yurt and had a great weekend with close friends. I am still embarrassed to post pictures of the weekend as I wasn't feeling good and think I look absolutely horrible :)

May: Jared turned 28 this month! We also continued the home improvements by redoing some of our landscaping out front, thanks to much help from my parents. My parents were able to come out for a week and it was wonderful to have them here.

June: Starting at the beginning of summer Jared's job cut back due to the economy and closed the office on Fridays. Although the pay cut hasn't been ideal, having 3 day weekends together has been fabulous! Nothing else significant is really standing out from June

July: This was a big month for us! On July 3rd I woke Jared up at 5:45 am to tell him that I was pregnant...I just couldn't keep the excitement to myself! It was such a surreal, special moment. We also got to visit our fabulous friends in Colorado and go on a mini vacation to Glenwood Springs with them. At the end of the month my parents came to visit again so that we could surprise them with the good news in person. Our first ultrasound was at the end of the month, where we got to hear our precious baby's heart beat for the first time and see them all bundled up. July seems like so long ago, but time as literally flown by!

August: Both Jared and I had our 10 year high school reunions in August. Jared didn't go to his but I flew out to Oregon for mine and had a blast. It was so good to see old friends and catch up with the people I spent almost my entire childhood with. Pregnancy was going well and we finally spilled the news and no longer had to keep secrets.

September: Football season started, which basically consumed our weekends. I feel like Jared is lucky that I like college football! We got to go to Boise State's opening game against Oregon, which was a blast (although I thought I was going to die walking up to the top of the stadium!) Jared's job was supposed to go back to 40 hours/week, however, that ended up not happening...so we have gotten to continue the long weekends together.

October: October seemed like a busy month. I spent most of the first half trying to get over a head cold which turned into a sinus infection. We went to Bear Lake, Utah with Jared's parents for a long weekend and had a great time away with them. We also welcomed a new addition to our family...a 6-month old black lab named Addie. We got ready for Halloween by going to the pumpkin patch with my niece and carving pumpkins with our good friends Justin and Annie. Jared and I hung out with friends on Halloween, but we were the lame ones who didn't dress up! We had our 20 week ultrasound in October and decided to wait to find out if our little one is a boy or a girl!

November: Most of November was spent at Dr. appointments to check my cervical length, preparing for baby and celebrating Thanksgiving. My parents came out for Thanksgiving and we went up to my in-laws for a yummy turkey dinner. It was so nice to have both sides of our family together. We also completed the baby room with the help of my parents which was a HUGE blessing (especially given my restrictions now). Starting in November I feel like my life (and blog) has pretty much centered around my pregnancy!

December: December has been an interesting month. Jared and I celebrated our 6th anniversary by laying on the couch! We had planned on going up to McCall for the weekend for one last get away without a baby; however, due to an unexpected 5 days of complete bed rest spent the time at home instead! I have cut back to 20 hours at work and modified bed rest for the times when I am at home. Jared and I just got back from Oregon where we got to spend a week with my family to celebrate Christmas. Due to all the appointments, monitoring, traveling and celebrating, December has truly flown by!

I think it is fun to reflect on the year and all that the Lord has done in our life. 2009 has been full of many changes and blessings. We are excited and nervous to embrace all that 2010 has in store, which includes a new chapter in our life together...parenthood. Through all that we face I find in encouraging to be reminded:

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

Jeremiah 29:11

Happy 2010!!!

Round 2 of Good News

I feel like all I have been posting about lately is my pregnancy woes...but when I have reduced hours at work and modified bed rest for the remainder of my day, nothing exciting really happens! We saw the doctor today and had another good ultrasound. Cervical measurements were above 2.5 cm again and some measured into the 3 cm mark. The doctor was really happy with the results and gave us clearance to travel to Oregon for Christmas!! I have another fetal fibronectin test tomorrow just to reconfirm that everything looks good before I leave. Jared and I were both really excited with how things looked and I felt a huge sigh of relief!

You may wonder what I do during my days on the couch or in bed. Here's a clue:

My friend Annie has been trying to convince me to watch Grey's Anatomy for a very long time now. I never started watching it from the beginning and for some reason never had a desire too. I decided now was as good as time as any, I am almost done with season 1. It is actually really good and I'm excited to start season 2 because I heard it is one of the best seasons. Other than Grey's, I usually read, throw the ball for Addie, listen to online sermons or take advantage of our netflix account.

If there are any suggestions for movies, tv shows or books that I should know about, send them my way. As of now, it seems I will be resting a lot until 34-37 weeks!!

Dr. Update

Good news today at my appointment! Amazingly enough my cervix measured longer today by a significant margin! The shortest length was 2.97 and the longest measurement was 3.88 (which is 2 cm longer than on Friday)! Apparently bed rest and taking it easy works, which shocked both Jared and I. We both had to look again when we saw the new measurements because we thought we were reading something wrong. The longest length at my 20 week ultrasound was 2.4 cm, so we had never seen the 3 cm mark before. The Dr. said that I still need to take it easy and not overdo it, so I am on a reduced work schedule of 20 hours a week. When not working I have to be on modified best rest, I can do simple things, but no running, walking, shopping, heavy lifting, vacuuming, etc. I don't think that will be an issue though since Jared has already warned me about 100 times of how careful I need to be! We are both very thankful and think the Lord is amazing to work in such miraculous ways! I have another appointment next Wednesday to check my cervical length again. We are praying that I measure the same. We are supposed to go to Oregon for Christmas and the Dr. will let us know next week if that is okay.
Thanks to all for your prayers and concerns...it is so nice to be surrounded by such loving family and friends!

Happy Anniversary

Six years ago, I got to marry my best friend. On our wedding day we were full of love, hope and excitement as to what the future would bring. I can't believe how fast 6 years can go! Life has definitely given us both ups and downs. We had no idea that in 6 years we would experience life in both Medford and Boise, multiple moves, vacations, deaths of family members, weddings, births, stress of graduate school, new jobs, lost jobs, months of double unemployment, buying a home, home improvements, getting two puppies, dealing with cancer and the ultimate loss of our dog, reduced incomes at work, pregnancy and now possible bed rest (see post below). Through it all I thank God that He has allowed me to have Jared as my partner. I think it is amazing that God chooses mates for us that He knows will complete us and be the perfect fit. Jared is definitely that for me. He makes me laugh, keeps me grounded, reasons me through my insanity, has a huge heart and ultimately always points us back to God during the good times and bad. He has always led our family in the way of the Lord and I know that decisions he makes always come after prayerful consideration. When we started our journey together 6 years ago I'm glad I didn't know all the highs and lows we would experience, as it has brought us closer together and cemented our marriage. I am confident in my marriage and my husband. I have no idea what the future holds, but I do know that whatever it brings I will have the Lord as my direction and Jared by my side. What a reassurance!!

Here's to many more years!

Dr. Appointments, Ultrasounds, Hospital Visits, and...Bed Rest

Since week 20, I have been checked every two weeks (I am now 27 weeks) to determine the length of my cervix since it measured thin at my 20 week ultrasound. So far everything had stayed nice and steady at 2.4 cm. Yesterday was my fourth checkup and unfortunately we didn't get the same good news. My cervix has thinned and is now measuring 1.87 cm. This puts me at an increased risk for premature labor. So...yesterday Jared and I got to spend the afternoon at the hospital hooked up to a machine that would monitor whether or not I was having contractions.

The machine picked up on slight contractions, so the nurse gave me a shot that is a smooth muscle relaxant to stop the contractions. I am now on a blood pressure medication that ultimately has the same effect. Initially the doctor said that I would have to take it easy and only be up for about 5-6 hours a day. After results from the hospital she put me on full bed rest, meaning I get to take a 5 minute shower everyday and use the bathroom but otherwise I am on the couch or in bed.

Jared and I went back today so that I could get monitored again for contractions and have a fetal fibronectin test to determine if I was at risk to go into labor in the next 2 weeks. Thankfully the test came back negative and there was no signs of contractions today. We got to go home and I am on bed rest until Tuesday when I have another Dr. appointment to check my cervical length and determine a plan of action. The Dr. said with almost 100% certainty that I would have to cut my hours back at work and there is a chance that I will have to continue on full bed rest until baby is born.

Needless to say this isn't the information that we were hoping for as I was prepared to work up until I delivered. The financial situation is a concern but we have been through periods of unemployment and low income before and we know that the Lord has been faithful and will be faithful now. Overall, our spirits are good. I feel like God has given us both a real peace and sense of calmness. We are relying on him to take care of my body and the baby. Thankfully the baby looks GREAT and continues to grow and move and be healthy. Jared has it much worse than I do as he is now responsible (hopefully only until Tuesday) to cook, clean, do laundry, do the grocery shopping, take care of Addie, work, and help me with the things I need. Bed rest sounds wonderful but surprisingly it is difficult to literally do absolute nothing! It is an adjustment for our family but has been smooth so far. Jared is definitely stepping up to the plate and I am soooo thankful that he is my partner during this.

We know the Lord has a plan through all of this and will be faithful to see us through whatever is in store for us. We are thankful for the support and prayers of our friends and family. I will do my best to update!