21 Weeks

How your baby's growing:

Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well.

First snow triggering my OCD

Depending on how well you know me makes a big difference on how much you know about my OCD. Or knowing exactly how it effects me and just how bad it could be. I suppose that I've always had some level of OCD but I know that after my accident in 2005 my OCD hit a whole new level. So did my depression and anxiety attacks. That is when I really started with the medications. And as time went on over the next year or two, everything just got progressively worse. My medications kept getting upped and some new ones added. They even had me on medication that would help with my OCD. But it never went away, just became manageable for the most part.

When we started trying to get pregnant I came off ALL my medications. And I did it very quickly. Because I came off so quickly I ended up going through a horrible detox. The headaches were unbelievable, I was exhausted and was constantly vomiting. It was not fun. But I was proud of myself for getting through it. I was worried about how I would do with my anxiety, depression, headaches and OCD.

Shortly after I found out I was pregnant I was extremely anxious and always felt like my skin was crawling. The OB said I could go back on my Wellbutrin. My doctor agreed to put me on a very low dose. Within a few days my anxiety was 100% better.

Over the last few months I had and have the migraines but there isn't much I can do about it. I have a few bad days here and there with my depression. The anxiety is pretty good but the OCD is a bitch.

For the most part I need to just stay away from certain situations if I know it will be triggered.

So that brings us to this evening. It's been snowing all day. Which doesn't really bother me because weekends are my time to sleep and watch my DVR. I record all the A Baby Story episodes. I've seen atleast 100 and still not one repeat. Well a couple of times today the power has gone off and come right back on. Unfortunately the last time it did that the box started only working for 2 minutes at a time. Finally Mike called Comcast. Looks like the power outages blew the DVR. The one with 40 episodes of A Baby Story that I needed to watch. It couldn't have been the DVR in the living room that has almost nothing on it...NO of course not. So now Mike has to go Monday to get a new box.

And yes, it is kicking my OCD into over drive that I may now never see those episodes. For some reason it's making me nuts.

Picture Catch Up

Halloween Part Uno

Victoria had a Halloween Dance at school tonight. She looked so cute!

Baseball season is officially over

It's official. Baseball season is done for 2011. Although the Yankees didn't make it past the playoffs, I still kept track of what was happening and was just hoping against one team winning. I was hoping everyday since playoffs started that Texas would be knocked out. I don't know what it is in particular that I don't like about the Texas Rangers, I just don't like that. I dislike the Boston Red Sox way more but they are second. So I was not happy when they beat Detroit and made it to the World Series. That is when I made the switch and temporarily became a National League fan. I just didn't want it to be Texas. So the St. Louis Cardinals became my dog in the fight. And of course, Mike, who is a NL fan wanted Texas to win. All because he is a Nolan Ryan fan. Weirdo. I'm just convinced he wants the opposite of what I want. Either way, if the Cardinals were going to lose they were going to make Texas earn this Series. Each game went back and fourth with who won. It was brought all the way to tonight, Game 7, the final chance. Finally earlier today when we all started talking about it being D Day, I was resigned to the fact that if Texas won, the earned it and I was alittle less upset but still having faith in the Cardinals. If Texas won it wasn't an easy series, the Cardinals clawed their way to the end and all 7 games would be played. But alas, game 7 was just as frustrating as the previous games. This would have been Texas' first World Series Championship. But alas, the Cardinals didn't let me down! Maybe next year :)

When sleeping dogs won't lie

Boomer turned 5 years old in September. I can't believe how fast time is flying. But unfortunately tonight is dragging.

I went to sleep 5 hours ago and have  to wake up in 4 hours to go to work. 9 hours of sleep may sound like a lot. But add being pregnant, having a cold and a headache and 9 hours isn't enough. Especially when you are lucky if you can go longer than 45 minutes without getting up to pee!

On top of that, Mike is working tonight like he has the last 3 nights. Normally Boomer would stay at my moms house when Mike works overnight. But Monday night Boomer stayed home without any problem. Tonight is another story. I guess last night was a fluke.

Ever since Mike has been living with us Boomer has been his shadow. And when Mike's not home all Boomer does is bark. He thinks every little noise is Mike coming home. Now this constant barking would be bad enough during the day, but at night it's absolutely unbearable.

Everytime I'm almost asleep he thinks he hears Mike. And it's a bark that would wake the dead. It scares the crap out of me and makes my heart pound everytime. Be startled awake many times a night along with peeing, having a cold, headache and being pregnant does not lead to a happy or well rested Peggy.

So Mike hurry up home and Boomer, GO TO SLEEP!

Headaches...holy hell

I'm having a hard time with having a headache everyday. And it's an even worse day when the stupid headaches turn into absolutely horrible migraines. Before being pregnant I had headaches all the time. From the time I was young I have been having migraines. A few years ago the migraines were getting alot more frequent. I started seeing a neurologist. They did a few tests. And in the end the answer is that I'm apparently just going to be miserable with these crappy headaches and migraines. They did put me on a daily medication to try to control the migraines. After a few months I was maxed out on that medication. And had another prescription pill for when the migraines did get through. Up until then, whenever I got a headache I took tylenol and motrin. Of course, since I started so young by now I'm taking 3 tylenol and 4 motrin. And sometimes a couple times a day. I may not have working kidneys or a liver someday but I won't have a headache. But since being pregnant, no more daily medication or break threw pills. And unfortunately I can't take the tylenol and motrin like I did before. But lucky me still gets the headaches and frequent migraines. The first trimester the doctors said all I could really do was take a tylenol (not 3) and drink soda. Some headaches that helped, most it did not. And if a migraine happened I was stuck in bed for 2 days straight. I had the blinds closed, tv off, air conditioner and fan blasting and hugging a giant ice pack to my head. After that for 2 days I would be able to go back to work. Once I got to the second trimester the doctor said I could keep drinkinh the soda, taking the 1 tylenol and can have 1 motrin. I just can't take motrin everyday. So if it's a regular headache I just take tylenol. But if it's a migraine or heading in that direction, on comes the motrin. With doing this I'm able to still kinda function at work which is better than 2 days in bed. I drink 1 soda a day. It helps keep the migraines at bay and if I'm really lucky, gives me a rare headache free day! Unfortunately today is not one of those days.

20 Weeks! HALF WAY!!!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure, measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)
He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

No Crib Bumpers!

(Parenting.com) -- Bumper pads should never be used in infants' cribs, according to new guidelines released by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
This recommendation, issued as part of an updated and expanded set of guidelines on safe sleep and SIDS prevention for babies, is the first time the AAP has officially come out against the use of crib bumpers. According to the AAP, there is no evidence that crib bumpers protect against injury, but they do carry a potential risk of suffocation, strangulation, or entrapment because infants lack the motor skills or strength to turn their heads should they roll into something that obstructs their breathing.

When the AAP issued its last policy statement on sudden infant death syndrome in 2005, it recommended using bumpers that were thin, firm, well secured, and not "pillowlike."
What's behind the change in thinking to remove bumpers altogether? Recent studies have shown that bumper pads may be far more hazardous than previously thought. "In 2005, when we last published a policy statement and recommendations, we had some concerns about bumper pads, but we didn't really have a lot of evidence that this was a real problem," said Rachel Moon, M.D., FAAP, of the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C, chairperson of the AAP SIDS task force and lead author of the new guidelines. "Since then, there have been some published studies looking at bumper pads, and we concluded that if there's no reason for them to be in the crib, it's better to just have them out of there, particularly in light of the deaths that have been reported, that have been associated with the bumper pads."
Since the AAP released its landmark guidelines in 1992 that all babies be placed on their backs to sleep, deaths from SIDS dramatically decreased initially, but have plateaued in recent years. At the same time, sleep-related deaths from other causes, including suffocation, entrapment and asphyxia, have increased.

Anti-Bumper Sentiment Growing
One of the major turning points in the medical community's attitude toward bumpers was a study published in the September 2007 issue of The Journal of Pediatrics that examined deaths and injuries attributed to infant crib bumper pads, based on information from the Consumer Product Safety Commission for 1985 through 2005. Researchers found reports from medical examiners and coroners of 27 accidental deaths of children ages 1 month to 2 years, that were attributed to suffocation when they became wedged against a padded bumper or strangulation by a bumper tie around the neck. Eleven of the infants who died most likely suffocated when their face rested against the bumper pad, 13 infants died when they became wedged between the bumper pad and another object, like the crib mattress, and three infants died when they were strangled by a bumper tie. The conclusion of that study read, "These findings suggest that crib and bassinet bumpers are dangerous. Their use prevents only minor injuries. Because bumpers can cause death, we conclude that they should not be used."

The CPSC initially interpreted this data differently and in the summer of 2010, reached the same conclusion as the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association, which had conducted its own analysis of an unpublished CPSC review of crib deaths involving suffocation or strangulation. The JPMA asserted that other factors, like babies sleeping on their stomachs or a crib filled with pillows, might have been a factor in those deaths instead of the bumpers. Less than a year later, the CPSC announced it would take a closer look at crib bumpers in response to consumer advocates and news reports, especially those from the Chicago Tribune, highlighting potential dangers, as part of a broader regulatory crackdown on an array of baby sleep products blamed for injuries and deaths. As part of that crackdown, in September 2010, the CPSC along with the Food and Drug Administration warned parents of the dangers of infant sleep positioners, some of which had been marketed to reduce the risk of SIDS but in fact had caused up to a dozen suffocation deaths of babies in about as many years.

Why is action being taken now to protect infants from the potential dangers of crib bumpers? Reports in the Chicago Tribune from late 2010 and early 2011 alleged that federal regulators had known for years that crib bumpers posed a suffocation hazard but had failed to warn parents of the danger and took the CPSC to task for failing to investigate 17 of the 52 reports it had received over a 20-year span of infant deaths where bumper pads were mentioned but not necessarily ruled as the cause of death. Twenty-eight of those deaths had already been associated with bumper pads by the agency. The Tribune also found that since 2008 the federally funded National Center for Child Death Review has received 14 reports of infant suffocation in which a bumper was relevant in the death.
While the coverage in the Tribune pushed the CPSC to take a closer look at the safety of crib bumpers, local governments also started to act. On September 8, 2011, Chicago became the first city in the U.S. to ban the sale of crib bumpers. Less than three weeks later, on September 28, 2011, Maryland became the first state to propose a ban on sales of crib bumpers.

Why Many Parents Are Still Using Bumpers
Why are bumpers still so popular despite building evidence that they aren't safe? For starters, many parents believe bumpers prevent injury from a baby's head hitting the sides of a crib, or from limbs getting stuck in the slats. And indeed, bumpers were first conceived to cover the space between crib slats so babies couldn't fall out or get their heads, arms or legs stuck between the bars. But regulations changed in the 1970s and now mandate less space (just 2 3/8 inches—about the width of a soda can) between slats, making bumpers more an aesthetic choice than a safety necessity.
As to the question of safety, Moon explains that young babies (for whom bumpers are designed, given that many carry a warning suggesting that they be removed from the crib once a baby can pull himself to standing) don't have the muscle strength or coordination to fling themselves across the crib hard enough to really injure themselves. Additionally, she adds, while it is possible for a baby to get an arm or a leg stuck between crib slats, it's virtually impossible to break a limb by doing so—which means that at most, the experience will be uncomfortable and upsetting, but not life-threatening, until a caregiver arrives to help.

Parents also buy bumpers because they think they're supposed to, given that they're sold in crib bedding sets, and because they just plain look good, explains Moon. And there's little question that modern nurseries tend to look cozier or more "finished" with bumpers, but Moon added that if parents stop buying bumpers and manufacturers stop making them, perhaps attention will ultimately be focused on other ways of making a nursery look cute.
Although the general counsel for the JPMA warned that should sales of bumpers be banned, parents might start to jerry-rig their own bumpers, Moon said, "There's always concern that parents are going to create things and make things when they see the need to do that. Our responsibility is to let parents know that some of these products are not safe, and we need to understand that this may be an issue and proactively talk to parents about these concerns so that perhaps they'll be less likely to do things like that. My hope is that parents learn about these things in prenatal classes, through their obstetrician's offices, through other places like that before the baby is born and before they've actually gone out and purchased these products."

Bumper Alternatives: Are They Safe?
As an alternative to traditional crib bumpers, some parents have turned to breathable, mesh bumpers or other bumper alternatives, but Moon said that the AAP does not suggest that parents buy them. "We're, right now, recommending nothing in the crib, because again, we don't see the point of it. So, why have something in the crib if it's not there for a reason?"

Will Retailers Follow Suit?
The AAP now recommends that infants sleep on their backs, alone in a crib on a firm mattress, without any soft objects or loose bedding, which could also be hazardous, ideally in a room shared with a parent. Really, all that's necessary when it comes to baby bedding is a fitted sheet.

Despite the fact that the AAP warned that crib bumpers could pose a serious safety risk to infants as early as 2008, little has changed when it comes to what expectant parents can find in their local baby super store—in part because baby bedding is big business. The JPMA says that at least $50 million worth of infant bedding sets that include bumpers are sold each year, as well as more than 200,000 bumper pad sets.
Unfortunately for parents, it can be confusing to see bumpers on display in stores, not to mention challenging to find crib bedding sold without bumpers, since bedding is often sold in four-piece sets, including a sheet, crib skirt, bumper, and quilt (which doesn't belong in a safe sleep environment for an infant anyway). But it's not impossible; Carousel Designs, for example, offers a la carte options for purchasing coordinating fitted crib sheets and crib skirts, and retailers like Babies"R"Us and Buy Buy Baby, as well as web sites like Amazon.com, offer standalone fitted crib sheets.
Moon said that she hopes retailers will stop selling crib bumpers in response to the AAP's updated guidelines. "The problem is that a lot of parents don't understand that the Consumer Products Safety Commission is not a proactive agency; it's a reactive agency. So, it only recalls things if there's a problem. It doesn't approve products before they go on the market. And a lot of parents have this perception that it stores sell it, it must be safe—because if it wasn't safe, why would people sell it? And that's clearly not true. I think that it's important that parents realize that these things are not safe for their babies."

Additional Safe Sleep Advice: Breastfeeding & Vaccination
The AAP has also made a couple of other important additions to its safe sleep recommendations. Breastfeeding is now recommended specifically as a method of reducing risk of SIDS. Dr. Moon explains that as of the most recent policy statement in 2005, the AAP didn't have enough evidence to associate breastfeeding with a reduced risk of SIDS, although the connection had been established between breastfeeding and a lower risk of infant mortality overall, but since then, "there have been several studies that have come out that have demonstrated pretty unequivocally that breastfeeding is protective. So, we wanted SIDS risk reduction to be on the list of the many reasons why we should breastfeed." As of now, medical professionals still don't understand exactly how breastfeeding helps to lower risk of SIDS, and Moon explains that it may have to do with "anti-inflammatory properties of breastfeeding, or it may have to do with the fact that breastfeeding decreases infections in babies, because we know that babies who die of SIDS are more likely to have had a recent infection. It could be a whole host of things, and there are researchers that are looking at that." While the AAP recommends, when possible, that mothers exclusively breastfeed for 6 months, any breastfeeding has been shown to be more protective against SIDS than no breastfeeding.

And finally, the AAP now recommends infant immunization as a SIDS risk reduction strategy as well, as there is evidence that immunization reduces the risk of SIDS by 50 percent. This recommendation is particularly notable because, Moon explains, there has been a lot of concern amongst parents that vaccinations may cause SIDS: "I think it's largely because the high risk period of SIDS is between 2 and 4 months, and that's when babies start getting a lot of immunizations." She points out that the rate of SIDS has decreased while the number of immunizations infants receive in that period has gone up in the last 20 years, and that recent studies have shown that there is no cause-and-effect between SIDS and immunizations—and that babies who are fully immunized are at half the risk of dying of SIDS than babies who are not fully immunized, although the why's behind these relationships are not fully understood as of yet.


From: http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/18/health/no-bumpers-cribs-sids-parenting/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Too much on my mind....

My Mom wants to throw the baby shower. After thinking about it, I decided that it was a great idea for her to do it. This will be her first granddaughter and something she really wants to do. We have decided on colors and a theme for the shower. Mike and I want to have a Jack & Jill shower. We are just finishing up the guest list. It is all very exciting. We will have to go do registeries soon.

We don't have the boys for Halloween this year, so we are just taking Victoria tricker treating. We will all be together for the babies first Halloween.

And Mike and I have decided to do Thanksgiving at our house again this year. It went well last year, and this year we have the boys. It's just easier to be home.

I've been watching a lot of A Baby Story. And of course the parents talk about any past issues they've had. So now I'm hearing about Miscarriages and Stillborns between week 19 and 33. It's making me nuts. I'm 19 weeks and I was starting to feel better. Now I'm all stressed out.

19 Weeks!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.
Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

Oct 15...Pregnancy and Infant Loss Rememberance Day

HISTORY

The Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Movement began in the United States On October 25, 1988 when former American President Ronald Reagan designated the month of October 1988 as ``Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month
The October 15th Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day (PAILRD) Campaign began in 2002 as an American movement started by Robyn Bear, Lisa Brown, and Tammy Novak. Together, they petitioned the federal government, as well as the governors of each of the 50 states, and by October 15, 2002 (the first observance of PAILRD) 20 states had signed proclamations recognizing the date as such.
As a result of the American campaign effort, Concurrent Resolution H. CON. RES. 222 Supporting the goals and ideals of National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day was passed in the House of Representatives on September 28, 2006.
To date, all 50 states have yearly proclamations, with Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island, and South Dakota enacting permanent proclamations.
The Director of the Canadian Pregnancy Loss and Infant Death Awareness and Remembrance Campaign, Terra-Lynn Coggan, joined the American movement in September 2004 and took on the role as the Canadian Director for October 15 Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day and began the Canadian Campaign.
On October 12, 2005 when New Brunswick received official recognition of October 15 Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day Terra-Lynn resigned as the Canadian Director for the American Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Campaign and independently launched The Canadian Pregnancy Loss and Infant Death Awareness and Remembrance Campaigns. Since New Brunswick’s Declaration of October 15, Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day the province of Nova Scotia has followed suite with a similar declaration. The provinces of Ontario and Manitoba are currently considering a declaration.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pregnancy_and_Infant_Loss_Remembrance_Day

Vaccines

18 Weeks!

How your baby's growing:

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

It's a....

GIRL!!!!

New Resolution Could Bar Parents From Knowing Baby’s Sex

A Council of Europe committee has drafted a resolution that would instruct medical staff to withhold revealing the sex of the fetus in an attempt to prevent parents from “selectively aborting,” The Daily Telegraph reported.

The resolution would apply to all 47 member states – so midwives and doctors would be unable to tell expectant parents if their baby is a boy or a girl.

Some doctors are expressing concern over the recommendation.

Dr. Gillian Lockwood, medical director of Midland Fertility Services in the U.K., said some parents may be able to figure out the gender themselves, while looking at ultrasound screens.

Dr. Manny Alvarez, senior managing editor of FoxNewsHealth.com, said he is not surprised by the resolution, but it does not make sense.

“There are parents that specifically want an ultrasound to determine the sex so they can consider sex selection,” he said. “(But) the consensus of withholding information from a parent falls against the grain of a relationship between a doctor and a patient. It violates ethics.”

Alvarez said the practice could never be done in America, as any documented medical data done on a patient immediately becomes the patient’s property.

Parenting groups say parents will be upset if this resolution is passed.

"I can understand that there may be problems in some parts of the world with sex selection, but it seems ridiculous to apply the thinking to countries where this has not been shown to be a problem,” said Justine Roberts, founder of parenting website Mumsnet.

"I think pregnant women would feel pretty angry and disappointed to be told they can't be told the gender of their unborn child."

Alvarez said the gender can be determined anywhere from week 14 to 16. It is up to the government, or as in America, each state to determine when an abortion can be performed.

The resolution will be presented to the council’s Parliamentary Assembly in October.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/09/12/new-resolution-could-bar-parents-from-knowing-babys-sex/?cmpid=cmty_email_Gigya_New_Resolution_Could_Bar_Parents_From_Knowing_Baby%E2%80%99s_Sex#ixzz1a7QjzZqy

17 Weeks Baby!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.