Finally! :)

Sunday, April 18th


Midnight.



There are two nurses taking care of me that have the same name (of course, now I can't even remember...maybe it was Nancy. I remember thinking, who cares? I'm in pain!) When they were trying to put my IV in, she blew the vain on my right hand. Great. More pain is all I need! Another nurse comes in for blood samples. Yay. More pokes. I ask them when the guy is going to be there to give me the epidural. "He's on his way!" They told me.





Lies!

Another 15 minutes go by and the dude is still not there! Contractions are aweful, and even worse now that I have to be in bed laying down. I'm also so tried. I think it's something like 40 hours I've been awake, but I also haven't been having good sleeps the past 9 months, so I'm really tired. I can feel my brain starting to shut down on me.

"Where is he?!" I asked again, sounding angry (based on fear) and pathetic, even to me. "He's on his way!" They said again. "You keep saying that!" I remember feeling and sounding so pitiful and upset.

I remember my body starting to shake uncontrolably-- I guess that was happening because of adrenaline or something, but it started to scare me! My mom and MIL were rubbing my legs trying to help me relax.

Sometime just after 12:30 the anathesiologist (sp?) entered the room!! He was really nice and light hearted, and worked fast, which was my favourite part about him. He didn't talk to me very much, which I was really thankful for--I was sick of people to people. lol One of my nurses told me to swing my legs over the bed, and she gave me a pillow to hold onto. Contraction. Pain.

She tells me that when he's putting the needle in, no matter what, DO NOT MOVE! I know she has to tell me this, but it really scared me! What happened if I moved? What was too much movement? What if I had a contraction and I breathed? Would I die?? But I was so drained, I couldn't even ask. I just nodded my head and closed my eyes. He waited until I was done a contraction, and then started his business. I felt a sharp, freezing poke, and another contraction came. It was all I could do not to move, not to sit up straight and deal with the contractions the way I had been. I remember the nurse telling me to breathe and the relax, and I wanted to slap her so badly! But I didn't even have the energy to tell her to shut up! lol. I'm sooo tired of feel pain now, I can feel my mind trying to fall asleep, and mostly for escape from it all. My world consisted of me and these pains, and I was sure it was never going to end. I think I had even forgotten that I was about to have a baby!

I feel another contraction come on except... something is different. The intensity isn't there. I still feel it, a lot, but it's dulled. The nurse asks me if I feel anything different, and I say yes. I feel another contraction come on, but it's dulled even more! My spirits lift a little, and they tell me I can lay down. Now that the contractions are almost "gone" I start falling asleep. My midwife starts asking me some question that I can't even remember, and I answer a few of them, then tell her to ask either my mom or Aaron, and I pass out.

3 hours later I start to wake up. Nancy and Nancy are on my left looking at some machines. They welcome me back to the world and seemed to find it funny that I could fall asleep so fast. "You were even snoring a little!" I remember them telling me. lol I couldn't believe I had only slept for 3 hours. Why had I woken up? Then I felt something really weird. It was a contraction, but there was no pain, and I guess a feel of having to go to the bathroom came on!

Next thing I know, my bed is being raised, Aaron is being given instructions on what do to for me, I'm being instructed how to push, and a mirror is placed in front of me and angled so I could see my "WOOHOO" :)

The next 25 mins or so went by in a blur, filled with Aaron lifting and holding my head, legs being shoved up to my ears, and holding my breath while I pushed, slumping back onto the bed... repeat... It was a really interesting experience, since I'm going on 3 hours of sleep and am still very drugged up! Thanks to the mirrior, I could even watch as I tore! Really crazy, since I couldn't feel anything, and just watched it happen! haha.

Nurse Nancy tells me she can see the head coming, and after a few more pushes I can see it too! I reached down with my hand and got to feel my little baby's head. A few more pushes, out comes this little person's face! I've never seen anything so amazing before in my life! I pushed again, and out the rest of her came! Immediately my daughter it layed on my chest and I get my first touch, first smell, first everything with the newest love of my life!

She was born at 4:54am

I remember looking at her, listening to her tiny cry, looking at and feeling her little body and thinking to myself, "So you're who was inside me!" and feeling complete shock. I was a Mommy. This was my baby. This is my life.

I remember watching Aaron as he touched her and leaned over her, and I remember his eyes and seeing the awe and love (and tiredness too :) ) in them, and my heart just swelling! I've never loved that man more than when I saw him with our daughter for the first time. I was so thankful for the man he was, that I was his wife, and that together we brought this beautiful little person into the world. It was such a sweet moment, and one I hope I never forget!

I remember them asking who was going to cut the cord, and Aaron said he didn't want to (he faints at the sight of/ though of blood) so I jumped at the chance! It was and interesting feeling of "releasing" her from me, yet she was now bound to me and my life forever is such a strong and unbreakable way!

I remember them laying her on my chest and her self-attaching, which was amazing! And then feeding her again laying beside me, listening to her little sounds as she tried to latch on, with Daddy right beside trying to help her. :)

This started getting choppy from then on. Now that I had done my job of getting her out-- I was zonked! I remember my Midwife stitching me up (a lovely 2nd degree tare) and taking the baby over to be weighed and measured (8.2 oz, almost 21 inches) and barely hearing her talk to Aaron about what she was doing... and I remember my mother in law asking me if I wanted to brush my hair, and I asked "Why? does my hair look aweful?" and she said no, just thought it might feel nice. lol

Really, the next thing I remember if my father in law coming to visit, and having to cover up so he could come in the room. lol I was awake for a few minutes when he came in, but then I was out again.

Once I was able to go pee, we were allowed to leave the hospital. I think it was around 11 or so in the morning when we left to head home. I got to ride in a wheelchair! :) Our baby girl was dressed in the same outfit her daddy wore when he came home from the hospital!

I remember feeling protective right away. While it would take several weeks for it to sink in that I was her mommy and that she was actually my baby and not someone else's, I sure felt protective! is she warm enough? Make sure that blanket it tight! Is she hungry? Well let me just try to feed her... even with people holding her, I was very protective. But that's getting ahead of myself. :)

Anyway, the long and short of it is, we made it home! My brother Ken and his wife Heather and their two girls came to visit with my dad, and I was so happy to get to show her off, even if I was falling asleep when people were talking to me. :) My dad gave me some flowers and a balloon ( that's STILL floating!) and Ken and Heather gave us some food! So nice!! :) Later in the evening Aaron's brother Matt and his wife Holly and their new baby boy Elijah came to visit! I don't think everyone was gone until 10:00pm and I don't think I had napped yet, so we both were super ready for sleep! lol

That night was scary, because I chose to co-sleep, but Aaron and I were both so scared of rolling onto her! But I was awake every 1-2 hours to feed her, plus waking up periodically to check on her. :) She was also still coughing up amniotic fluid and mucus, which did a very good job at keep us awake! man, I remember my heart stopping when she would cough up...But, we made it though the first night just fine!

We chose her name the next day after ruling out all the names on our top 3 list. We chose the lovely name Terrah. The next day we chose her middle name--Lynn (my middle name) And so we got Terrah Lynn Glanfield! CUTEST BABY EVER!

I am so grateful for this amazing experience! There were definately HARD parts, but I would do it all over again if it meant having Terrah! Motherhood is something I could never have prepared myself for, because for all the work that is invloved, I could never have imagined how much I would LOVE this sweet baby Heavely Father has entrusted to me! Every time I hold her I think, "I love you so much... but I have no idea what I'm doing!" and I pray daily that I'll be able to teach her the best I can, to love her the best I can, and that Heavenly Father will pick up the peices I drop and fill in the wholes. And I pray that when she's older, she'll forgive me for the mistakes I made!

I'm also so grateful for all the love and support we have been shown by family and friends! To make a list of everything everyone has done for me would take several blog posts! lol But I am so grateful for the amazing people my daughter gets to have around her, and for the example they will be to her as she grows! Thank you, and I love you all SO MUCH!

Day 2--Day of Sorrow

Saturday, April 17th, 2010

I laboured like that, alone, for about the first 3 hours. I didn't want to wake up Aaron yet, because I knew he would need his sleep, and for some reason I just didn't want to disturb him. Silly me. lol I was texting my parents though, and talking to my poor sister, Tami (who is going slightly crazy over this! :) She wants to be here very badly, and I wish she could be too... so she's compensating by not sleeping either. lol) She was doing great, giving me tips to try and helping me out as best she could.

I had called my midwife, Kelly, and found out she was at a birth, and so was her backup midwife. Which meant if I wanted to be checked or anything I would have to go to the hospital. I really didn't want to do that, and told myself I was still okay and could handle this myself for a little while longer, and see if the lady she was with would have her baby soon, making Kelly able to come to me. But I wasn't doing very good labouring on my own. I told Kelly I was seriously considering having a epidural. She knew I really didn't want that, and reminded me of the pros and cons to having one. I decided I would hold out a little while longer.

3:30am, I told my dad to tell mom it was time for her to leave to come here. I should have told her to come eariler--why I was trying to be "strong" by myself, I have no idea! I decided to get in the bath tub and see how I faired in there, and the water seemed to help me a lot, so I called to Aaron and told him to get the birth pool ready. It was already blown up, so he just needed to put the liner in and get the hose to fill it up. He was very attentive to me, asking me if I was okay before going to the house for the hose and a big pot for boiling water, and worked really fast and efficiently. :) I was feeling a lot better now that someone else was with me, and got a glimps of hope that I could actually do this the way I had always planned.

Aaron's mom, Carol, ended up coming over to help boil water to speed up the tub being filled. I wanted to get in there so badly! lol It quickly became apparent that I needed Aaron with me whenever I had a contraction. I needed to feel his strength and his support while I was going through those few seconds of pain.

Around 5:00am my mom arrived, sounding all cheery and happy, like we were having a party or something! lol It felt even more possible to have a home birth now that she was there, and having the support of her, Aaron and Carol really boosted my confidence level.

FYI-- Contractions SUCK! Mine were coming every few minutes and last somewhere around a minute. Some people told me contractions feel like a wave, starting off small, getting large and heavy, and then dying down. I didn't get to experience this. Mine just seemed to be already at the peak when they happened, and then stop, then come again! The best thing I could do was hold onto Aaron and breathe in while he rubbed my back upwards, then when I exhaled he would rub down. Meanwhile, I was rolling my head from side to side, trying to make everything as rhythmical as possible.

Aaron and I tried to rest as much as we could between contractions. However, that meant laying down for only a few moments, before I was saying Aaron's name (which was his cue to get up and start rubbing my back)

The day moved surprisingly fast. One minute it was dark, then we saw the sun come up, then it got dark again! lol

I was calling my midwife at various times to keep her updated. I think it was around 5 or 6pm that she was able to get to my place. That was another source of hope for me-- now that she was here, I could get this baby out of me! Oh, how nieve... She checked me when she first got there, and said I was 6cm. I was so upset. Only 6?! Didn't my body know how much pain I was in, how long I've been feeling it all for, and it had only opened to 6?! Everyone else thought this was great, which made me more upset. Dummies-- 9 would have been good news! lol

By now my contractions are right on top of each other. Kelly asked if my water broke, but I didn't know (how are you supposed to know when you're in water? lol) So she broke my water for me at are 8 or 9pm (those kind of details are fuzzy now... but doesn't really matter I guess.)

Now I'm feeling hopeful that this baby will come! There was even a time I thought I was feeling urges to push... Kelly kept telling me I would "know" when it was time... but I think I was feeling so done, I imagined I was ready. She checked me, and in a few hours I had only gotten to 7 cm. When I heard that, I could feel my spirits drop, like someone had opened my mouth and poured already drying cement down my throat.

I had been having a hard time managing the pain from the contractions for a while. My strong grunts and moans became higher pitched, and I could feel myself losing control of my breathing. Crying was becoming more and more frequent, and I could see the stress of my being in pain showing on Aaron's face, so I'd try harder, and tried to tell myself that if pioneer women could do this, if women have always been able to do this, I could too... But I was tired, and in pain. Aaron reminded me that we could always go to the hospital for an epidural, and told me that I wouldn't be letting myself down at all, and that he was proud of me and how well I was doing. Even Kelly suggested going to hospital.

Aaron and I were in the bathroom together while I finished a contraction when I had another crying break down. That's when I told him I was thinking of going to the hospital. He was encouraging, but told me it was my decision and that he'd support me with whatever I chose to do. I had so many arguments going through my mind... I had come all this way, only to quit now? Was I really this weak? I hate drugs and hospitals and Doctors, and never wanted my babies born there. I've been awake for so long, how much longer can I really do this for? And I knew the answer-- I was done! I knew there was an escape goat to the pain--and I wanted it!

So, I made up my mind. I announced I wanted to go. Once I had made up my mind, it was all I could think about. I was starting to feel my mind and body shut down, my strength leaving, and my overall drive was fading. Kelly had to pack up all her gear and call the hospital and I'm not sure what else.. My mom and MIL (mother in law) finished packing my bag for me. I was scared of the car ride, because contractions were hard for me to manage while I was sitting. I usually had to be standing, leaning on Aaron! (Poor guy got a real work out that day, too! Trying to hold up a fat pregnant woman. lol)

When they were almost ready to go, Aaron and I left first. I know Heavenly Father was watching out for me now, because I only had 2 or 3 contractions on the way to the hospital, and they seemed somwhat easy to manage. We got to the hospital, and Kelly took my to my room while Aaron did some paper work I guess, then met me in the room. I was the only woman in the ward at that time! Pretty sweet. :) We got there around 12:00am Sunday morning... which means, one last post before the end of the birth story! :)

Come back soon!ish...

...What Is This Feeling???

Friday, April 16th, 2010



What a dumb day! I've been having contractions the past 2 days, but this morning things seem to have totally stopped, or at least slowed down so they're next to nothing. This has put me in a mildy bad mood.



My sister in law, Betsy, had mailed me a package for the baby, and so my Mom and I went to pick it up at the post office--but I had to sign for it, and since I haven't legally changed my name yet and updated my government ID stuff, they wouldn't let me get it! Oh, even though they know my mother in law super well, and it's obvious I'm pregnant and about to burst and the package says "Baby Glanfield" on it... it was just really infurriating!



Then my mom took me to the mall to get my hair done, We were in a bit of a time crunch because we also had to go to lunch for my fatehr is laws step mother's birthday lunch. But no one at the mall could take me until 1 (Which is when we were supposed to have lunch) So now I'm in a pretty crummy feeling mood--my contractions have stopped, I can't get my packagae, and now I can't get my hair done! Seriously, everyone is against me today, I'm sure about that! ;)



After lunch (which was very nice, BTW) Aaron took me to the post office so I could get the package. :) And i tore into that thing! She had sent some super cute outfits and a cover for my nursing pillow! Baby things seem to make everything better. :)



My mom decided to go home that afternoon, thinking that if she did that would help put me into labour! At this point, anything is worth a try to me. She left shortly after we got home from lunch, and I went to work using the breast pump to try to get some oxitosen (sp?) going through me to bring on the contractions.



My mother in law gave me a call and asked if I wanted her to take me to the mall to get my hair done. I guess she felt bad for me and wanted to make me happy. :) So I made an appointment and she took me over there for 6. Well, I started having a few very mild and very spaced out contractions while getting my hair done, and by 8:00pm they were coming on pretty strong and frequently. I warned my mom, and they stayed in contact with me for updates.



Aaron and I went to bed, but as soon as I layed down the contractions got stronger and really hard to deal with, so I got up. That seemed to help-- I guess I felt out of control or something when I was laying down, and moving (like swaying) seemed to help me a lot.

And that was Friday! Next post will be about Saturday. :) Stay tuned!

What the PUPPPS?!

Alrighty, here's the story. Last Friday (April 2nd) My parents, brother Ken and his wife, Heather, their kids, Talia and Katrina, and the MacRae children were going to the temple. So I woke up at about 8:00 am to say bye to everyone. When I got up, I noticed that my stomache was SUPER hot! I went into the kitchen and told my mom that I thought my stomache had a fever! She put a hand on it and thought the same, and so did everyone else. Also, my stretch marks looked BRIGHT pink! I figured the baby had just gone through a massive growth spurt or something and my tummy wasn't handling it very well.

So throughout the day I kept a cold wash cloth on my belly to try to keep the temperature down and my discomfort to a minimum. I then went about my morning doing the things I had planned. I did laundry, cleaned my bedroom (like, really cleaned it! Washed the walls and everything!) and I was wiped by the afternoon. The heat still hadn't gone away by the time everyone got home.

That was my last day living in kitchener! No more driving back and forth between houses like a child in the middle of a divorce! lol

Alas---my stomache got worse. Not only did the marks stay bright pink, but they also began to raise up. The first night it woke me up, I was in absolute pain! It was as if someone had slammed a red hot frying pan on my stomache--just pure, white hot pain. I couldn't sleep in the bed anymore--it was too uncomfortable, and I didn't have easy access to ice cubes or fresh cold water. I even froze some pads so I could cover my stomache during the night.

I tried doing research online about this. "sore stretch marks" "painful stretch marks pregnant" things like that. Everywhere was simply telling me "You may get stretchmarks while pregnant, however, they do not hurt..." I was pretty close a couple of times to emailing these people and chewing them out! lol

Then a few days ago, a friend of mine (Nicole) told me she had read somewhere about PUPPPS, and thought that's what I had! I googled some pictures, and was shocked--they looked just like my belly!! So I did some research s to what PUPPPS is, and self diagnosed myself with it. The next day, Aaron's family had a guy visiting that had been a missionary here many moons ago, and he's a dermatologist! I told him what I thought I had and if he had heard about it, which he had, and gave me some recommendations of what I could do, but he basically said that I just needed the baby to come out so it would go away.

(You can google PUPPPS to get better pictures)

Pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy (PUPPP) is a benign dermatosis that usually arises late in the third trimester of a first pregnancy. If you're interested, you can get a brief run down here: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1123725-overview

My mom found a really helpful website with lots of different things women have tried to ease their suffering: http://www.naomikritzer.com/motherhood/PUPPP.shtml

My symptoms:

Hot belly

Raised stretch marks

Explosion of strech marks :(

Incredible itchiness (but I don't scratch, because when I do, the white hot burning pain returns and it takes a long time to get rid of it)

Bright pink/red stretch marks

Unfortunately, this PUPPPS stuff has also begun on my ankles, and my thighs (on top and inside), making it VERY hard to sleep at night. My nights normally go like this:

Fall asleep: 11:30ish

First wake up: 1:30 (this is usually the most painful wake up call)

Second wake up: 2:30

Third wake up: 4:30 (and I usually stay awake the rest of the night/morning)

I know a lot of people think/say "It's just training for when you have a baby!" And you know what--I don't have my baby yet, but that is crap! lol First, you don't need practise or training for not getting sleep! It's one of those thing you grow into. And, how does this logic make any sense? Do we need pratice before we get married, so we live with the guy for a while first? Well...some do. lol But NO, you don't need to do that. And Secondly, there's a huge difference to being woken up by your child because they need you and you're the only one that help them, and you know that that precious child has been entrusted to you by GOD, and being woken up because you're in pain! Big, big difference. So... there! lol

So far, this is what I've been using to try to help me:

Cold compresses

Arnica cream w/ hypericum

hypericum pills

Apis pills

Tinactin

Hydrocortisone

Diaper rash cream

Cocoa Butter

Dandylion tea

Strawberry tea

Some improvment in appearance has begun on my belly. It's not as bright, and only a few marks are raised now. I can go about the day pretty normally, but nights are still a battle.

As I'm writing this, I think it's starting to spread to under my arms a bit. :( If that happens, I am swearing off clothing! Sorry world!

Anyways, I wanted to blog about this to cause awarness, and so if I complain to you about it you can have a better idea of why I am, since this is a pretty rare pregnancy symptom and not many people have heard of it. WHY DO I GET ALL THE WEIRDO PREGNANCY THINGS?! lol

Keep me in your prayers please! That this baby will come soon, that she'll be healthy, and that my body will be able to cope with all this! :)

Aaron Turns 25!!

March 24th is a pretty special day in our family! 25 years ago, it was the day Aaron, my bestest hubbyfriend ever, was born! :) And I'm very glad he was!! So, I wanted to do something special for him. This was going to be his last birthday without being a daddy, and I just felt like he needed a little bit of spoiling--maybe because I know how much un-fun stuff he's going to have to do in the next few years? haha! Maybe it's just because I think he's worth it! :)

Before I tell you about what he got, lemme take a moment to tell you a little bit about Aaron, and why he's such an amazing guy!

Aaron Michael Glanfield was born March 24th, 1985. It was a cold, dark, miserable night... (Okay, I don't know if that's true or not. I'm not even sure what time of day he was born. Could have been lunch time, with slight showers, or bright blue skies, with birds singing...)
He was son #3 (out of 4) for his parents. And like so many of us do, Aaron grew up-- to be a giant! 6'6''

He likes lego, music, hockey, animals, working out, reading the sciptures and fantasy-magic type books, and even school! He is a very neat person, and likes everything to be in its proper place. Aaron makes amazing banana muffins and milk shakes, and it pretty handy in the kitchener! He has a strong testimony of the gospel, and takes his church responsibilities very seriously! He's a very generous, trusting, and encouraging guy, and a lot of fun to be around! He loves his family very much and talks highly of them.

Right now he's in school for business, but will be switching his major to kinesiology, and later going on to physical therapy school. He has a great mind for science and math, and loves to help people, and is very excited for his career! This summer he is starting his own company selling aerration and later doing landscaping jobs for the summer. He's such a hard worker, and I have no doubts that he'll be successful!

He is also very good with children! I absolutely love watching him with our nieces and nephews. I can't wait to see him with our own little munchkin! He's so great in so many other ways too, but I don't know if the internet has enough room for it all :)

Okay, thanks for listening to me brag about my husband! :) Moving on with his birthday story!!
For a while now Aaron has been wanting a new guitar, and has been telling me so almost every day! ;) Unfortunatly, we don't have the dollars to buy him a new one. So I went to my dad and proposed a plan to him-- that he, Aaron's Grandparents, parents and myself go in on one for him. Dad thought this was a great idea, only problem was, how do we find out which guitar to get him??

A few weeks ago, Aaron and I were in kitchener for the weekend. My mom and I had gone out to do some shopping, and Aaron had stayed at home to finish schoolwork. However, mom and I were gone for SO LONG that Aaron was done and getting bored, so my dad took him over to a music store so they could play with instruments. While they were there, Aaron found a guitar he seemed to really like (and it was on sale!) So my dad told me this, and asked if I thought it should be guitar we got for his birthday. Well, I hadn't talked to Aaron's parents yet, so I tol dhim to hold off buying it until I could! :) Driving back to Welland, Aaron told me all about these two guitars he really liked, but was saying he liked one of them more than the other, and why he did, yaddayadda... And even said to me, "You know, with the questions your dad was asking me, I thought he was going to buy it for me!" I just gave him an awkward laugh...So I asked his mom if she would like to go in on it and the grandparents too, and she thought it was a good idea! So, I gave my dad the okay!

I have to admit, I was a little nervous about getting it for him! A while back he had told me that he wanted to pick the guitar. Okay... so in a way he HAD picked this guitar... but I dunno, I was just nervous! lol

Anyways, moving along a little faster. Dad went and got the guitar, my mom did an awesome job at wrapping it and making a card, and the three of us drove up to Welland on Wed. night for Aaron and his cousin Lisa's combined b-day dinner. We kept the guitar in the van so he wouldn't see it before we were ready to give presents. I had made a scavenger hunt for him, so it took me a few minutes to put the clues in place. Dad and I had planned that when we were in the apartment looking for clues, that would be his cue to get the guitar from the van and bring it into the living room.

After a delicious meal prepared by Aaron's mom (home made burgers, cesaer salad, potatoes, veggies, chocolate cake and ice cream..mmm....making me hungry!) We began to open the presents, and Aaron got his first clue! I was suprised, but he actually needed help finding out where the next clue was. I decided it was best that I go with him so he didn't take too long. lol We went to their "outhouse" in the backyard, then downstairs to the couch, then to a couple places in the apartment, and finally back to the living room.

He says that he knew what he was getting because of my last clue, but I think he was just HOPING. :) But, walking into the living room and seeing the box in the typical guitar shape--that's when he KNEW! He was all smiles as he opened it (or tore into it, I should say) and when he saw it was the one he had wanted, he looked at my dad knowingly, and he was just beaming! I was pretty thrilled that he was thrilled. He sat on the couch and played "Brown Eyed Girl" while the rest of us tried to remember the lyrics and sing (a total disaster...)

And that was pretty much Aaron's 25th birthday! YAY!! I'm so happy he was born, and that I was the lucky girl that got to marry him! Could not ask for a better husband! :)

I just wanna say...

So, I didn't sleep very well last night. I was having these really bad pelvic pains all through the night! I told Aaron they felt like the baby was trying to push her head through whenever (I'm still having them a bit) I bend over or squat--but even when I was tring to sleep they were there! Not very fun. Anyone know what they are?

And, I just wanna say--I really hate clothing!! GAH! Right now I feel like ripping them off, they're just so uncomfortable. Pregnant women should not be expected to wear so much clothing. It just isn't fair. lol Maybe I shouldn't blog when I haven't gotten much sleep. It's like an online ranting opportunity!

Let's see... what else can I complain about... OH!! Someone keeps stealing my tissue box at work! What the deuce, leave it alone! BYOT!! (Bring your own tissue) i think I know who it is too, but he's not in the office right now so I can't chew him out. Dang it.

Anyways, everyone is going to think I'm crazy if I keep going on like this. lol Ciao!

You wanna turn the wheel?!

You may remember in my pervious blog, "A bun in the oven discovered" I mentioned about Aaron and I getting into a car accident while driving home from Manassas last summer. Here's the story...

We were all packed and ready to go, it was nice and early in the morning, the sun was rising and it was looking like another beautiful day! After a final look around the apartment, we decided it was time to say goodbye to our Manassas home, and head back to Canada!

So, about 5 minutes on the road, Aaron becomes distracted by something for a second... but in that second we were approaching a bend in the road, on a rather busy street. I saw us approaching this bend, and became rather alamed that Aaron wasn't looking, or turning the wheel! He asked me a question, to which I replied, "Do you wanna turn the wheel?!"

I suppose I said it in a rather alarmed voice, because I scared him. Which made him slam on the brakes. Which made us skid accross the loose gravel on the road. This made the car spin, which then made the car hit the cement barrier on my side... That cause the car to spin in a full circle or so, which then stopped on some kind of gravel "parking space" for what we assumed was for construction workers--- the only safe place we could have ended up on that road, especially since it happened right around a corner, and no one coming would have been able to see us or stop in time before hitting us.

The first thing I did was ask Aaron if he was okay. I knew he was going to be the one that was most shocked and concerned. He told me he was okay, and asked how I was. I was fine--actually really fine. lol Maybe I was just trying to compensate for how I figured he must be feeling--the poor guy was pretty shook up!

I can't remember the order of how things happened after that... but I know we started smelling something funny from the AC.. We got out of the car and saw what happened to it, learned that my door was hard to open and close, and I think we were seeing smoke from under the hood? Not sure about that part, but it sounds right. I know he called the insurance company, and they told us to call the police. I remember the police man coming and saying that he didn't actually need to be involved because of some reason or another. Right before he had gotten there we tried to start the car again but the engine wouldn't turn over--we thought we were going to have to crash at our friends house until the car got fixed. Luckily, while the cop was there, the car started working! We decided to chance it and finish the 9 hour ride back to Canada so we could get it fixed there.

The rest of the trip went fine! We didn't turn on the AC because of the smell, but other than that the trip was fine. We got the car fixed back home, and it looks good and new! Now you know our car accident story.

Confession: Even though it had been a dangerous experience, I still found it kind of... umm...fun when we were spinning! lol i thought it was kind of exciting--maybe that's another reason I was able to react the way I did after. haha.

We both feel incredibly blessed that it happened the way it did though--that no one else was involved, that we were both safe, that we had stopped in the only safe place on the road, and that we were able to continue our trip!

A Bun in the Oven Discovered

Aaron and I knew we didn't want to wait too long before we started trying to have a baby. With a challenging family history and me having been told by a "specialist" that because of my "arthritis" I had developed in my knees a few years ago, the chances of my becoming pregnant were slim. (Side note--turned out I didn't have arthritis, but am actually allergic to gluten, which caused me to have arthritis-like symptoms.) This had made me feel really angry, stressed and sad--in fact, it was one of the two times I cried during that time in my life because of my knees/ankles problems. ANYHOO... Our first plan was to wait a year--but that did last very long! :)

We talked a lot about why we wanted to have a child, our reasons always being the same as each others. We knew that having children was what Heavenly Father wanted us to do. We knew that we would receive blessings by having children. We knew that we loved each other, and wanted to go through the pains and pleasures of having children, and that by keeping our love and relationship strong, we would become a stronger couple. We knew that becoming parents was the kind of hard work we wanted to do with our lives. We knew that there would never be a "perfect" time to start having children. We knew we were blessed with loving and supportive families that would love and help care for our babies. And we knew that Heavenly Father would prepare a way for us to support our children! There are many other reasons, but those, I think, are the major ones.

In April of 2009 (we were married Dec 13th, 2008) we headed down to Manassas, Virginia where Aaron was going to be selling pest control. It was a hard summer for us--lots of issues with the company vice president, and difficulties in the office... I was bored as heck, having no internet or tv (I think I read 17 novels that summer, pretty good for me. lol) Anyways, not the point, or why you're reading this blog! :) During the summer we decided that we didn't want to wait anymore, that we would just let things happen at their own pace, and see what came of it!

It was end of July, beginning of Auguest when I started thinking a lot about babies and being pregnant. We had become good friends with Jackie and Tyler King-- Jackie at the time being pregnant with their first baby girl! I started becoming more interested in her pregnancy, and my mind would constantly drift to thinking about what it would be like to have a baby of my own, what kind of mother I would be, what it would feel like to have something kicking inside you...

I think Aaron and I knew what was happening before we ever found out! If you ask him, he'll let you know that I was becoming more and more moody, jumping on him for small things, like leaving his shoes in front of the door, and getting over upset that he left the wooden spoon in the water! haha :) For me, I was suspicious because of how much I was thinking about wanting to be pregnant.

On Aug. 3rd, I was late. Ever since we got married, I have been like a clock--every 28 days on the dot! (Maybe too much info for some of you, but...deal with it. lol) We joked about my being pregnant, but I think we were both joking while also thinking it was probably true! We were out doing some shopping and stopped in at a book store where they had sale on, selling some photo albums for super cheap! I told Aaron I wanted to get some so when we got pregnant I could do something cute to announce it to my family. Surprisingly, he didn't fight me on it...However, I think he did make some comments throught the day that he didn't want me to get my hopes up that I was pregnant, and then find out I wasn't. (I had done that for like the past 2 months...)

That night, I had crazy dreams about being pregnant. I remember waking up at 4 in the morning, and I knew... everything about me was telling me I was pregnant! I can't really explain the feeling, it was such an overwhelming experience! Without actually knowing-- I knew. We were going to have a baby! Well, I couldn't go back to sleep! How could I? There was so much to think about! I was so excited! I think i did fall asleep for a little while, but as soon as I woke up again, the feelings were there. I can't remember if I told Aaron my dream or not. I can't remember if I told him I thought I was pregnant. I decided that I was going to buy a pregnancy test that day and find out.

Before Aaron left for work in the evening, I asked him to leave his debit card so I could pick up a few things at the store. Now, normally when I ask for this, I get that oh-so-funny joke, "Uhh...I dunno... can I trust you with it?" Hilarious. Anyways, I didn't get any kind of resistance for him this time! He just put it on the table, gave me a kiss, and headed out the door.

Luckily we lives really close to shopping plaza that had a grocery store in it with a pharmacy. I went in and looked at the pregnancy tests--and HOLY MOLY! Are those things expensive! lol I asked the pharmasist which one I should get, and she recommended the cheapest one, since I guess the tests are really all the same, the only difference being HOW the results showed up. Good enough for me! It came with two, so I got it. I bought them--pregnancy testers! Me! haha, it was a surreal feeling, for sure. Then I went over to Michael's, and noticed in their $1 bin a coupon cook for couples--perfect. I even stopped in at a dress store and tried on some maternity dresses! lol Kinda jumping the gun, but I was excited!

Once back at our apartment, I debated with myself between if I should take a test now, or wait until the next day to find out... Aug 4th was our One Year Engagement Anniversary! I wasn't sure if I wanted to find out I was pregnant on the same day, or give it it's own date. I decided to wait until the next morning and take it while Aaron was with me, so I hid the box in my drawer. Half an hour later, the box was with me in the bathroom. I was so nervous, so jittery, but I couldn't wait to find out, and I wanted to surprise Aaron.

So I read the instructions, and seriously! Not 15 seconds had passed when that little blue line appeared. I started at it, and re-read the instructions, then stared some more. I waited the 2 minutes I was told to wait to make sure it was an accurate reading, but nothing changed. What happened next?

Shock. I felt numb, or blank... Then the tears started coming. I was in disbelief! Despite everything I had been feeling, I couldn't believe this was actually happening to me. I was scared! I started to shake a little, so I got into the shower to help calm me down--but I ended up breaking down! The tears were coming fast, and I was sobbing! It's amazing how many millions of thoughts can go through your mind in an instant. What was I doing? How were were going to support a child? Aaron has so much schooling left to do! We have no money! How will I do in the pregnancy/delivery? What kind of awful mother will I be? I'm not mature enough for this--I still think toots are hilarious, for crying out loud! And so on... :)

Anyway, after the shower I was still a bit of a mess, but I tried to dress up and put on make up (I wanted to look as cute as possible for when he came home) and I did a quick cleaning of the house, and got his surprise ready.

When he came home I was sitting at the table and told him I had gotten him something. He sat down and saw the coupon book and flipped through it, and said something like, "Cute, thanks..." And I was like, "Did you read the front??" So he goes to the front and starts reading through the checklist of coupons... 1foot rub, 1 free win of an argument, a night with total control of the remote... He startes to chuckle at the list, then reads, 1 Baby (checked) His smile vanishes. He looks at me, then back at the coupons.. "Really?"... I pulled out the tester and put it on the table in front of him, and told him it was positive... then I started crying again and buried my face in my hands. He came over and knelt infront of me and hugged me, and it was a very sweet moment, and I could feel my love growing for him again because of how he was responding. We talked for a bit, and I started to feel less shocked and scared. Then we went out to celebrate at our favourite restaurant--Chilies! I could tell Aaron was in shock just as much as I was, but I could also see how obviously excited he was, which made me feel more excited!

We decided to wait until we got back to Ontario to tell our families the good news. That was 3 weeks away. We had to really watch ourselves whenever we were on the phone with them that we didn't say anything to give anything away! But, 3 weeks is a long time, and there was no way we could keep it a secret from everyone for that long! We told Tyler and Jackie the next day, who were so excited for us! They even took us out for desert! having them be happy for us was really great, and I appreciated it SO MUCH! We also told our friend Daniel, who was equally as excited! He gave one of the best reactions we got from any guy! :) I also told a woman in our ward, the amazing Andrea Kunz, who spent 3 hours with me the day before going on a trip with the family to teach me the basics of Digital Scrapbooking, and teaching me how to use Photoshop Elements!! I used my newly aquired skills to put together a scrapbook page of each of the grandkids to put into a book, the last page being a picture of Aaron and I you can see below. THANK YOU ANDREA! She's an amazing teacher. :)

The day finally came when it was time to say goodbye to our home in Manassas. It was a bitter/sweet time for us. We hated having to say bye to the friends we had made, the palce that had been our home for 4 months... but we were also excited for all that waited us back in Canada. After getting ourselves into a car accident 5 minutes while on the road home (lol, that's a story for another time) we were on our way to Aaron's house, arriving right at dinner time! The whole family was there, with Holly (my sister-in-law) starting to show off a cute little baby bump! Aaron asked her if she was peeing a lot these days, to which she said yes.. then Aaron says, "Yeah, Rachelle has been too." Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at us, unsure of if Aaron was joking or not. Then Holly asks, "Is Rachelle pregnant too?" I started shaking my head yes, and began crying. lol Lots of hugs and congratulations! They were very excited for us, and it felt good to have been able to tell them in person!

I think it was the next day we went down to Kitchener. I hadn't gotten to albums put together, so I decided to show them the pages as a slide show. Once I finally got everyone together, we went through the pictures. My sister-in-law Heather was standing right behind me, and when I got to the last picture (the one of Aaron and I) she immediately grabbed my head and squeezed it (I think it's because she was excited. haha) I started crying again. More hugs and congratulations from my family and the MacRae's! I felt so relieved that they knew! I even got to tell my friend Jenna Howey that night when she had stopped by! I emailed the slide show out to all my siblings, and talked to each of them that night--some were shocked, others not so much (like my sister Tami) but everyone was of course--happy! :)

I'm so grateful to have this blessing of being pregnant! I'm so grateful that everything has gone well with the pregnancy, for the support Aaron and I have been shown, and just for this amazing experience! I'm so grateful to be married to Aaron. He's such an amazing husband, and I know he's going to be an amazing daddy! There are some days I'm in shock still, even being 35 weeks pregnant, and can't believe I'm actually going to me a MOTHER. There are days when I think, "Yikes, I'm not ready for this, let's try again in a year or so." But mostly my days are filled with excitement, and I can't wait to see her, to hold her and care for her, and to have her be part of our eternal family!! :)

First Glimpses-- Our 3D Ultrasound!

Today was such an AMAZING day!! Lemme tell you why...

Last weekon Thursday, Feb 18th, my Mother-In-Law threw a fantastic baby shower for me! We got so many CUTE outfits, fun baby toys and books, things I had registered for that I really wanted.. it was great! :) One of the especially thoughtful gifts was organized by my sister-in-law, Holly. Along with a few other very thoughtful and generous women, they set up an appointment for me to have 3D Ultrasound!! I had really wanted one, but couldn't justify spending the money for it.

My appointment was for the next day at 1:00. I drank a ton of water that day, trying to prepare myself as best I could so the pictures would be as good as they could be. Anyways... We went and started our session. She was in the perfect position for good pictures, with one little hinderance-- the little stinker had her hands covering her face! We tried for a good 45 minutes trying to move her--pushing on her, walking around, squashing her, drinking cold water, going to the bathroom to give her more room... Nada! And so, we left with a DVD of the session and another appointment for the following week-- TODAY!

We were a little concerned about what would happen today, since I'm now 33 weeks, and that's usually when they stop doing sessions.. I guess because there isn't much room left in there, and they baby is pretty squished up. But, I really wanted to try again, and was glad they were willing to give us another shot! I drank cold juice, and had a fudge sundae from MacDonalds (YUM) to try to get her active. And can you guess what happens as soon as I lay down??

Nothing. She went to sleep--hands in front of her face! More poking, prodding, walking, squashing, changing possisions... The technition lady suggested putting a cold cloth on my belly, since I notice she responds to cold. That seemed to help a little, at least she started to twitch a bit. I was laying on my right side, and a thought came to me...

I had Aaron come over and start massaging my back. Almost immediately, she moved her arms out of the way, and started moving her head, opening her mouth, yawning, and just being really cute! :) It was almost as if she was saying, "Hey! I know that touch!" lol. I actually got a little bit emotional watching her move. It was so amazing to see her without any limbs in the way! It made me so excited to see what she'll look like when she's actually out of me. The technition and I both think she will be a very Glanfield looking baby-- I personally think she has Aaron's lips.

We got 55 pictures in total with both session, and came away with another DVD and printed picture of our little peanut! It was a great day, and I'm so thankful to the women who made it possible, and to my wonderful husband in going with me and being so supportive! :)

I love being pregnant, and I'm sure I'm going to miss this awesome experience! However, I'm so excited for her to come and be part of our family! :)

Welcoming Myself To The World Of BLOGGING!

Well, how crazy is this. Really, I never thought I would create my very own blog! However, with our first baby on the way, and so many friends and family that live too far away, I decided to give this a try! Hopefully it will help keep those who are interested in our growing family to stay in the loop!

On the other hand, I have no idea what I'm doing with this blog. lol If anyone has any suggestions as to what I should be doing, I'd appreciate any and all advice!