Fleur de Aleta

" You take the blue pill - the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes." Sorry, I was having a Matrix movie moment :) During my first visit with the OBGYN to confirm that we are pregnant, they gave me a "goodie" bag.  It was filled with information about future doctor visits, things not to eat, a baby magazine and a bunch of different prenatal vitamins to try.  The doctor said, "Try them and let me know which one of them you prefer." Here's a picture of two, a yellow and purple.  Guess which I picked?  (Hint, it wasn't the horse pill)  When my friend, Kim, was pregnant about 13 years ago, she couldn't take any prenatal vitamins because she couldn't keep them down.  When I told her about the yellow pill, she wished they had that available back then.  My doctor also said there are gummy prenatal vitamins for ...

My husband knows that I love willow tree figurines.  They are beautiful in their simple grace.  The figurines make me happy, because they convey warmth, love and hope. Just recently, Greg bought me a new Willow Tree, "Cherish."  The figurine captures tenderness and the wonder of pregnancy.  When I looked up the name, it also had "Waiting on a Miracle".... how true!

I went to see a specialist.  The doctor checked the back of the baby's neck for fluid and also checked the bones on the nose - both early indicators of Downs Syndrome.  So far, so good.  The doctor said there aren't any indicators that she can see.  Baby is growing well, is now 3.26 inches.  Heart rate is 165. But we have a prankster for a baby already.... When the nurse did the ultrasound, the baby refused to move, no matter how hard the nurse pressed on my stomach.  The baby moved, but refused to get into a different position for the nurse to see the back of the neck to check for fluid. Then the doctor came in and baby was moving all over the place.  Doctor said, "We have a yo-yo baby!"  But she was able to get one good view of the neck. I have to do more testing at week 17 and they are concerned with my blood pressure.  The other hope is that the placenta will move up, because it's at the bottom right now. Below are two pictures of...

I've been told not to buy certain pregnancy books, because they aren't worth it.  I guess there's a lot of truth in that... and besides, the Internet is always available.  Sometimes with too much information, but definitely information! But this is one book I accepted with an open heart and teary-eyes. Mom gave it to me.  It was published in 1965; she read it during her pregnancy for my brother and then for me.  Mom said, "Back then, we didn't go to the doctor's often.  We didn't have ultra sounds.  I used this book to help me know what was going on with my babies." She kept the book for over 45 years.  It's moved from place to place in her home, but never been far from her memory.  Back in 1994 she even wrote something on the inside of the cover: When I read the words, after Mom gave me the book, I got teary-eyed.  It was a special moment.  When my husband saw the book and what Mom wrote, he said, "Nice.  Maybe yo...

This week we had our 11 week ultrasound.  The technician did a bunch of different  measurements and afterwards I had an informative conversation with my doctor. Dr. Wild said that everything looked great.  She is still keeping me on progesterone pills for one more week, even though she doesn't think I need it.  She wants to be sure.  I asked, "What if the placenta doesn't make its own progesterone?"  She was adamant, "It will.  100 percent of the time."  And so, I let that worry walk away.  Dr. Wild said, "At this point you have less than a 5 percent chance of a miscarriage."  She was so positive and upbeat, that it left me feeling great! The baby's heart rate was 170 and at one point when the top of the head is being measured, the baby moved, so cute to see!  And you can see the eyes at that point too.  Pretty wild. Below is a picture from the ultrasound and also a youtube video.

My husband suggested that I keep a journal of our pregnancy.  My blog is pretty much a journal, but I figured I’d add this to the journal in finding out about being pregnant. It wasn’t long ago that I told my cousin, Holly, “I wanted to have time to learn to cook and do things with the garden and wished for more creative time.  I sure didn’t think God would send it to me in the manner of unemployment!” (My cousin quoted me in an article that she submitted about the positive take on unemployment.) I’ve worked since I was 16.  This is the first time I’ve ever been unemployed and it was difficult for me to adjust to at first.  I’m still applying for jobs and I’m currently training myself into a different career path that will bring me a great deal of joy in film editing.  But I also took the time to do the things I had wished to do when I was working, such as cooking, gardening, beading, etc. I figured this was the path God wanted me on...

That's what it felt like we landed on, another planet.  But it was just another huge building, labeled, "Babies R Us." For FTP (First Time Parents), instead of a registry station, they should have a consultation specialist!  Someone to help you walk through all the aisles and ease the "oh my gosh, what in the world" feeling you get. There's so much baby stuff!  We went there, not to buy, not even to register.. just to... look.  The other more knowledgable parents must have snickered at our expressions. We explained our sense of overwhelmed anxiety to another couple who are also FTP and much further along in their pregnancy.  They laughed and completely understood. Car seat, stroller, crib.  Those are the standards, so we went in that direction, for something we felt comfortable with. Do you know they have different strollers for different lifestyles?  If you are a jogger, there's a three-wheeler stroller with large wheels.  We looked at ...

Chicken Soup - Crock Pot Recipe Ingredients: Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast - cut into cubes 1 Squash - cut into bite sized pieces Potatoes - cubed Stewed Tomatoes Chicken Broth Celery - chopped Various creole seasoning - onions, garlic, etc. mixture - can buy this at the local grocery store already pre chopped Salt, Pepper, Garlic Salt Easy - Make sure everything is cut into small pieces to be enjoyed with a spoon.  Turn crock pot on to low - add all ingredients.  Cover and cook on low for 5 hours.  Then I turned it to high for 2 hours to make sure the potatoes are good and soft. My husband gave it the thumbs up. It cooks all day and makes a large portion for left overs!

Greg calls this picture:  Book Ends In this next picture, Tigger (the cat) is a little confused.... He's drinking out of the dog's water bowl. :) Penny was not amused.

Today is Greg’s birthday!   We celebrated it a day early with his family.   Lots of  fun conversations, yummy food and I made a German Chocolate Cake (his request).   Below are some pictures and a video.   I have to laugh when I hear the video, because his family has a tradition now of “Haaaa   Haaaaaa” as if trying to tune the vocal chords.   Makes me laugh, please excuse my singing :) I asked Greg if he made a wish after he blew out the candles and he said it already came true :) This morning, Greg had a birthday card waiting… from his baby-to-be…   Baby-to-be wrote, "I'm looking forward to giving you lots of hugs and cuddles."   That made him smile. But my poor husband… I put him through the emotional ringer today.   I stayed as calm as I could be and I think I did a good job, considering that I started to spot bleed right before noon. Greg agreed that I should call the doctor, which I did. ...

This is going to be a boring post for most, my apologies.   Today’s Lesson:   Progesterone I’m writing this blog post in case another woman is on the Internet trying to sort through all the information out there about low progesterone and pregnancy. After the ultrasound, my doctor took blood work from me, primarily to test for the progesterone level.   The result came back at 6.5, which is very low, when it needs to be no less than 15. What does progesterone do?   In a normal cycle, a woman’s ovary releases progesterone to build up the uterine lining.   The lining is where the fertilized egg attaches.   If there is no fertilized egg, the ovary will discontinue sending out progesterone and the lining is “flushed out” – the woman’s period. When a woman is pregnant, the ovary will send out progesterone to maintain the lining, but only for a brief timeframe.   The ovary stops sending progesterone when the placenta is supposed to be fu...

Reactions After sharing the news with Greg, we went to my parents’ home.   We all talked for a while about this and that.   Then Greg said, “Aleta gave me an early birthday gift.   Want to know what it was?” Of course my parents were curious.   Greg smiled, “Aleta is pregnant!” Stone silence.   Looks of, “Ok, what’s the punch line?”   Still silence. Greg repeated, “Aleta is pregnant.”   They looked at us, still silent, as if to say, “Yeah, as if we’re going to fall for that.” Both Greg and I chimed in again, “No, seriously, we’re pregnant!   Really, we are!” We had to repeat that in earnest again before the stone silence cracked. Mom covered her face with her hands and started to cry.   Dad gave us hugs saying, “Congratulations.” Mom had concerns, just as I did.   We talked about our worries and Mom said, “We’ll be hopeful, but cautious, just like Greg said…. And this time, I know that no matter what...

I wanted to blurt it out the minute he walked in the door, but more importantly, I wanted it to be a special moment for my husband to treasure.  Even though his workday was over, he still had reports to finish up on his computer.  While he did this, I prepared a simple meal, baked chicken and a side salad. It gave me something to do with my nerves. For a little while, I second guessed telling him that night, because he became frustrated over a complication with the report.  I thought to myself, "I definitely don't want to tell him while he's in a negative frame of mind.  I want this to be positive." Because he was focused on the phone call to fix the report issue, Greg didn't see me walk into the office and take out a long shaped jewelry box.  I brought the box into the bedroom, put the gift inside, bow on top and no tape.  Which is totally unlike me.  I'm the Tape Queen, but I didn't want my husband to get annoyed with the tape.  Positive was...

A friend on Facebook found a very old Singer Sewing Manual from 1949 and took a picture of one page from it.  I thought it was funny: Advice From a Singer Sewing Manual From 1949 Prepare yourself mentally for sewing.  Think about what you are going to do....  Never approach sewing with a sigh or lackadaisically.  Good results are difficult when indifference predominates. Never try to sew with a sink full of dirty dishes or beds unmade.  When there are urgent housekeeping chores, do these first so your mind is free to enjoy your sewing.  When you sew, make yourself as attractive as possible.  Put on a clean dress.  Keep a little bag full of French chalk near your sewing machine to dust your fingers at intervals.  Have your hair in order, powder and lipstick put on.  If you are constantly fearful that a visitor will drop in or your husband will come home, and you will not look neatly put together, you will not enjoy your sewin...