Journal › Personal category

For the most part, we had a good visit with our doctor yesterday. First off, we are still stable. That’s the good news. Our doctor is very relieved. But there was some confusion on my due date and how far along I really am.

I’ve been looking forward to the 30 week mark for the last few weeks. 30 weeks was our soft goal. Both Doug and I have been anticipating the 30 week mark since this journey began. Today however, my doctor said I was 28 weeks. I couldn’t believe what he was saying and I started to have an anxiety attack. Seeing my panic we went through my entire chart. He wanted to give us the  most accurate due date possible so we have realistic expectations.  We finally agreed that I was in fact farther along than 28 weeks, but not yet 30.

As of today, we are 29 weeks and 2 days. We will continue everything as we’ve been doing, including 100% bed rest. At this point it has to be ok because it’s what is working the best.

Now I lay here and wait for Sunday to come around. Just so we can hit our 30 week goal…again!

It’s been a very long time since we have posted anything around here. I guess life has taken hold and we just haven’t had time. I have been busy with both websites FrugalDay and NoThankYouPlease. Doug has been working really hard at Twitter.

Unfortunately, our journey in life has forced us to slow down. Well, mine anyway. Many of you know we are expecting a second baby girl mid-April. A few weeks ago we found out she is very eager to arrive a lot sooner than later. I’m on many medications, injections and full time bed rest to try to keep her in as long as possible. After two weeks of bad news, we were told that I am stable for now. We just have to keep doing what we’re doing. Which for me, that means absolutely nothing!

I’ve posted two older posts today from NoThankYouPlease. This will give you a better idea of what’s been happening the last couple of weeks. For now, FrugalDay is on the back burner. It’s actually a huge relief. Many might think “bed rest” would give me a lot of time to get things done but it’s been quite the opposite. It’s actually a very lonely process that is wearing on me more and more each day.

We go to the doctor every Monday for our progress report. We will be posting updates as we get them. Right now we just ask for prayers that I get to stay home for the remainder of the pregnancy and won’t have to move into the hospital anytime soon.

“Everyone gets to experience some kind of challenge or heartache during their life.” Words from Doug when I was really down. Words that were suppose to reassure me. Because the words I had heard from my doctor, just a few minutes prior, didn’t leave me feeling reassured.

I don’t know why, I just assumed that my second pregnancy would be just as normal as the first. Em was textbook, just a little early. I’ve heard of women having complications, but I never thought I would be one of them. continued ›

Today I had my monthly OB follow-up appointment. Doug was actually able to come with me to this one, and we were hoping to get in a quick unscheduled ultrasound. He just wanted to take a peak at our little girl. We have an awesome OB who doesn’t mind doing ultrasounds whenever we like. What we weren’t expecting was a necessary ultrasound that would change the course of my pregnancy. continued ›

I wish I could tell you how awesome the weather was this weekend. We didn’t even have weather like this the entire summer last year. The temperature in the Bay Area was in the high 70s to mid 80s all weekend. We really took advantage of it by getting outside as much as possible.

On Saturday, we drove up to Marin and spent the morning in Tiburon. We had a great brunch and a nice walk around the harbor. Emma loves looking at the water and wanted to hop on a boat and take it for a ride. We should have taken the ferry over from San Francisco, but we didn’t think of it until we were already in Tiburon. We drove around the peninsula and saw some gorgeous homes that we’ll never be able to afford. Emma still wanted to be outside when we got home late in the afternoon, so we went on a long ride with the tricycle she got for Christmas.

On Sunday we drove back up to Marin. This time, we spent most of our time in Mill Valley, where we hung out at the central plaza’s Depot bookstore and cafe. There, Emma talked us into getting her a red velvet cupcake. Imagine that! Note her excitement as she prepares to dig into this cupcake with cute little hearts sprinkled on top.

The town square also has a cute outdoor area where people watching is great fun. Emma even made a new friend: a big fluffy dog. We walked across the street to this unique toy store where Emma and Doug played for an hour with every toy they could find. I went next door to Baskin Robbins to get us some rainbow sherbet just to help us cool down a bit. Overall, we had a great weekend!

I can’t even begin to express our heartfelt “thank you” for all your thoughts, prayer and donations for the Johnston family. Because of you, Brandi and her family were able to have a wonderful Christmas!

Luke has had his first month of chemo and will start again next week. He is proving to be a strong little boy with a lot of fight in him. You can read about and follow Luke’s journey at Caring Bridge.

I met my friend Brandi Johnston in those first few hours of my freshman year at college. She listened to me talk non-stop about a “Doug Bowman” for a solid two years, then occasional mentions of him for the last 16 years. How’s she still my friend, I’ll never know! I cherish Brandi because she is an amazing person, someone I wish I could be like. Some of my best college memories are with, and because of, her. continued ›

I’ll be the first to admit there may be a time or two I might cut a corner. Usually to save time that I just don’t have anymore. Emma kept tripping for some reason. She was becoming really clumsy. It finally occurred to me that maybe she needed new shoes. I measured her feet, and she actually skipped a whole size!

I was really bummed because I already bought a couple pair that she hadn’t even worn yet. I had several store credits to use, so I did a little on-line shopping for new shoes for Emma. Apparently, I didn’t read the fine print. Maybe I didn’t even read the name. It became apparent when our new “Wee Squeak” shoes arrived yesterday! I’ve deemed these the “Daddy and Emma” day out shoes!

A friend of mine told me a very sad story this week. Her best friend lost their two year old son very unexpectedly. No apparent reason. Just didn’t wake up. In an instant, gone. This isn’t suppose to happen at two years old. Children this age are suppose to be happy and healthy, getting under your feet and driving us crazy.

My heart aches for the poor family and has made me love Emma even more. I didn’t know it was possible. For all the times I want to pull my hair out or think the day will never end, I am grateful for the amazing child we have. I’ve held onto her desperately this week, never wanting to let go. I just can’t imagine life without her.

She must sense something is up. She’s really taken advantage of the ice cream this week, that my friends will probably come to an end very soon!

Emma is having so much fun with soccer. I can’t stop smiling when I watch her! Here is a bit of soccer practice week 2.