Easter

First of all, I have to make a corrrection-Kellie told me the shower was actually thrown by my sister-in-laws Jen and Connie as well. Maybe mom too? I'm not sure. Sorry, I just assumed Kellie and Jeni because those were the RSVP people.

Well today me and Wade taught our new Sunbeam class. We had 3 boys in sharing time, but the 3rd never made it to class because as he said, "I don't like them!" (meaning Wade and I). We had a good laugh about that. The other 2 were very cute and we had a good time trying to teach them, the key word being TRY. The one was very quiet and the other one very talkative. He went off on a lot of tangents. It was very cute.

Wade is dissing my Josh Groban music. I don't appreciate it. He is such a snob. Jeni will have to show him what's up. ;-) Hehehe

I am making some deviled eggs for Easter dinner which of course Wade won't eat because they have both mayonaise and pickles-2 of his arch enemies. Hopefully the rest of the Manns will like them. I missed coloring eggs and watching little ones look for them this year. :-( So sad.

Today is Wade and my anniversary. We will probably go out to eat next week to celebrate, but I did bring the top layer of our wedding cake back from Salt Lake.

Our baby is still being quite the little kicker. She just moves so much-especially during movies. We have another ultrasound next week and meeting with the neurosurgeon.

Later!

Baby shower

Well, I spent last week in Salt Lake with the family. It was a little exhausting, I must be getting used to the quiet of a house of 4 adults. Plus I grew a lot bigger in that one week I was gone. I guess my body was just exhausted from the growing. Wade was surprised when I got back and he saw how much bigger I was! I like it when he refers to me and the baby as his girls.

Jeni and Kellie threw me a shower. We had a really good turnout and got lots of good stuff! I thought it was really cute that my niece Sydney wanted to give something from just herself since my older nieces did, so she donated a book of her own to the baby. We played a couple games and Kellie made a lovely diaper cake. Jeni made a tablecloth out of a heart and crossbones print fabric, since my baby likes pirates. hehehe We had cake and chocolate strawberries. I wish I'd taken a few more pictures but hopefully with the ones Jen and Kellie took, they'll be enough.

My almost 4 yrs old niece, Elizabeth, enjoyed touching my tummy and saying she could feel the baby move. Usually it was not a time when she was moving, but that's okay, she liked thinking she could feel her. She also asked me if she could wash my baby, so I promised her that yes, she could wash my baby after she was born. I think she got this idea from when she had a bath with my 2 year old niece, Gabrie.

All in all, I had a good time with my fam but was glad to see my Wade again.

Update on baby

I had another ultrasound and appt. today. The placenta is still low but the baby is no longer in breach position currently. They said today that the level on the spine is looking like an L4. That is not an L5, but at least it's not an L3. I asked about the head measurements and strangely enough, the head is actually looking small right now. It's in the 5th percentile. The doc said it is common for the brain to slip back a little because there is more room with the gap in the spine (or something like that) but that with the hydrocephalus that usually evens out more but it's still looking small. Hmm, strange. Well, we shall see what comes of this. They had me take a test for gestational diabetes. I had to drink this orange drink, which really just tasted like overly sweet soda and then have my blood drawn an hour later. Well, that's about all that's new for today.

I'm been finding a lot of hymns, either on my Cd or just hearing them at church where I really appreciate the words. I never really thought of myself as the type to be doing this, but if it can give anyone else the strength and comfort it gives me sometimes, I would like to share it. So here are the words to my latest "favorite", 'How Firm a Foundation". (All the verses are good, I just put the ones I liked best.)

(3rd verse)
Fear not, I am with thee, oh be not dismayed
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by my righteous omnipotent hand

( 4th verse)
When through the deep waters I cause thee to go
The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o'erflow
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress

(5th verse)
When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply
The flame shall not hurt thee, I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine

(7th verse)
The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose
I will not, I cannot, desert to his foes
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake
I'll never, no never, no never forsake!

Our baby

Well for those of you who don't know, on February 24 I went in for my ultrasound. I prefer not to think about the details of that day so, long story short, we found out our baby has spina bifida. It was very devastating. We talked to the perinatologist who explained more about it to us. Many of you might know or know of someone with spina bifida but you really can't compare any two cases, they are never the same. Anyways, with spina bifida, there is a gap in the spine. Basically, it sounds like the higher the gap, the worse the disability. At the very bottom of the spine is the area that controls bowel and bladder control so I guess most people with spina bifida do have problems with that. The perinatologist told us it looked about like an L5, which meant she would likely be in a wheelchair, I guess kinda paralyzed or something from the waist down. He said hydrocephalus often goes along with spina bifida. The fluid leaks out through the hole in the spine and goes up into the brain. At our most recent appt. her head measurement was 12 when it should normally be 10 for a baby at this point in the pregnancy. We don't know how much bigger it will get. This could likely cause brain damage though, we just don't know to what extent and will just have to see how things go. A few days after the first appt. we saw a pediatric neurologist up at Doernbecher's Hospital in Portland who was more optimistic about the outlook, sounding like she may be able to use braces rather than a wheelchair. But then on the next appt. (with our new perinatologist up at the hospital) with a more recent ultrasound, they saw that the gap was actually looking a little higher, like maybe an L4 or L3, so who knows? It sounds now like she may be able to use braces as a child but more likely have to use a wheelchair as an adult. Again, that just sounds like the most likely scenario right now, it could be a little better or worse. I guess maybe I'm more worried about the extent of brain damage and her mental ability. There are also other possible syndromes that could go along with the spina bifida that we may have to deal with. I was looking at some pictures of babies with spina bifida the other night, I guess hoping for a little comfort that she could still look normal. I found that some did, and others did not, I am really worried about her having a big head. They will do some operations right after birth, one of them to put in a shunt ( a tube) that will drain the fluid from her brain to her abdomen. It will be under the skin so it won't be visible. It is also sounding likely that I will have to have a C-section. I guess the placenta or something is low right now. Well, that is how things are going right now. I will try to keep you all updated.

Valentine's Day

Well for most of Valentine's Day, I hung out with Jeni and Lizzie who were visiting for the day. Elizabeth enjoyed investigating Wade's parent's house where we are living-she was pleased to see they had many toys. Then we went to Joann Fabrics. Elizabeth was trying to convince Jeni to buy her a treat. Jeni said, "Are you gonna share it with me?" and Lizzie says, "No," and pointing to the word Reeses, says, "it says 'own'," indicating it was meant to be one's own, and not shared. She is so funny. Then she picked another treat and said that that one said "mom" on it while the other one said "kid". We drove buy a pretty Catholic school and she said, "It's the temple!-a house of God a place of love and beauty!" all in one breath. She is such a funny little cutie. We also went to Old Navy where I got a new maternity dress and sweater with some gift cards I had and then had lunch, well i guess it was dinner, at Olive Garden.

That evening, Wade and I went to the very lame stake dance where I did not win a prize. But at least I got to wear my new pretty dress. For Valentines, I got Wade some new pajama pants and a candle. He got me a candle holder and a 48 pack of Snickers! I am always craving them, so now I have a huge stash! Woo-hoo!

My back has been doing better, but now I think I have a bladder infection or something. Or maybe the baby is just pressing on it a lot. I dont' know. To think-I'm only half way there! ugh! 20 more weeks of this!

This baby is getting on my nerve!

Lately, I have been getting some really bad back pain. It is in my low lower back, almost my butt I guess, on the left side. It is a sudden and severe pain that hurts when I move, I never know which movements will trigger it so I have to go slow. It's kinda funny-it reminds me of when dad would do that yelp thing like he was in awful pain and we'd all look at him and then he would just go on with whatever he was doing like nothing happened-no explanation or anything. It reminds me of that only in that sometimes it will be very quick and I will make some painful noise and then it will be over. Sometimes it is longer though, or I get stuck in a position that I can't seem to move out of. On Thursday night, I couldn't get off the bed. In my n, I kinda slid onto the floor. I had to wait there for a few minutes till I could try getting up. On Friday I called the doctor and the doctor said, "No more monkeys jumping on the bed!" Just kidding, anyways, they couldn't move my appointment up but made some recommendations. So on Friday evening, we went to get a brace thing at a pharmacy but we are not sure if we got the right one. Plus, I realized it is too small so I will ask the doctor specifically what brand and also get a bigger size. On Saturday, Wade and went to a really nice spa/gym that his mom is a member of and got us week long passes for. We went in the pool and hot tub. I tried to move around a lot in there and do little exercises and stuff. I also have been icing it and then using a heating pad on it. All these were things the doc said to do. They said from the sound of it, the pain is probably from a nerve, like maybe the baby is pushing on one or something. Well, today i was having a nap and tried to turn over but it was so painful that I couldn't at all! At least not for several minutes. So I am going to call the doctor again tomorrow. I originally had an appointment for this coming Friday, I just really would like to get in before then because this is seriously hindering my job search. Plus it just really hurts. I am afraid I will get stuck or fall when nobody is home. Wade's parents have both been nice enough to offer to take me to the doc tomorrow if I can get an appointment. My problems sound really similar to what Robin (Wade's mom) had during her last pregnancy. I just hope it can feel better. Well, that's what's going on with me!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well, today is my birthday, I am now officially 30 years old and honestly I don't mind a bit. Last night Wade and I went to the Portland temple. It was very pretty and reminded me of visiting the DC temple because it was in this wooded area with all these nice homes. It was a good thing we went then because it is now closing till the 23rd.

Afterwards, we went out to a Japanese restaurant for my b-day with Wade's parents. It was very yummy. Today Wade is making me a tasty birthday dinner and a cake.

Wade was offered a sales job which he has decided to take. I have an interview on Tuesday with Kay Jewelers and Motherhood Maternity said they will call me this week. They are both only hiring part time so maybe I could do both. That would be nice. I think I could make more money at the jeweler but the maternity store sure would be fun at this point in my life. Both stores are at a mall in downtown Portland so I would probably end up taking the Max train to work. Portland is a really cool town. There are so many neat shops and the color and decor of everything is so pretty. I wish it was more sunny though.

Whoever reads this, particularly family, please feel free to leave comments. It lets me know someone actually reads this. Plus I just like it. Later!