Boring Saturday

It is a pretty boring Saturday... doesn't Vern just look thrilled? Joe has been gone for a few hours but when he comes back I think we are going to head to Target to check out their baby furniture... see if any of it is decent quality. I am starting to get kinda antsy about setting up the baby's room.

I know it's still early but I can't wait until I can walk in there and see a nursery :)


Picture to the right: Random picture of myself... not a very good one either since I took it myself.
Picture below: The growing belly that represents Baby Kirklin : )

15 weeks...

Okay, I said that I would post a belly picture, and so here is one at fifteen weeks. As you can see my pants are pretty darn tight (and terribly uncomfortable) at this point. Joe is planning on taking all the belly pictures and putting them into a video when we get to the end, so that as you watch the video you see my tummy grow. So every night we have to take a picture (so that we will have enough pictures to make the video long enough), and every time I have to wear the same shirt. Have to admit most of the time I don't feel like changing to do it, but it will look neat once he puts it all together.
Changing the topic completely, last night I had Joe take me to the ER. For the past couple days I have been sick (just a head cold). Stayed home from work yesterday and was feeling absolutely terrible. Couldn't hardly breath at all, and unable to take anything. Well last night I was sitting watching TV and my chest started to hurt. I figured it was from the cold, either settling in my chest or because I have been breathing through my mouth so much. Didn't think too much about it and went to bed. About two hours later I couldn't sleep and it was hurting more. Than I started to get kinda scared. It felt like my heart was racing (which it has been beating much faster since I became pregnant) and I was afraid it was going too fast thus causing the pain. So not wanting to go to the hospital, but really not wanting there to be a problem with my heart, I had Joe take me to the ER at about 11:30 last night. Once we got there they ran all the normal tests they have to run when someone says they have chest pain. So I had to have an IV, ECG, chest X-Ray... my heart rate was fast, averaging around 96-115. But they kept telling they didn't think it was my heart. Blood work came back fine, film came back okay, and ECG must have been okay too... So you know what the Doc said it prolly was, acid reflux (aka heartburn). I felt kinda dumb when that was all it was, but I never realized that heartburn hurts so much. It really does feel like your heart is burning! And as far as my HR, he said that it was pretty normal considering I am pregnant and pumping for two. I still don't like my heart beating so fast, but I was relieved to hear that it seems to be okay. So he had me drink nasty Maalox, which did nothing. Than he sent me home with a script for Pepcid (twice a day) and Claritin for my congestion (I didn't ever think about using Claritin for my cold, but it's an antihistamine so it does help dry up your sinuses). I asked him about Sudafed, since they say you can have that when your pregnant (after the first trimester). I hadn't taken any though cause I still wanted to cautious, and he said that one of the side effects would have been an increase in HR... that made me really happy I hadn't taken it :) My heart didn't need to go any faster! Today I am still home from work, but I plan to go back tomorrow... as long as all this medicine works! I was able to sleep last night after I took them, so that was good :)

Picking up pace

Things are starting to get busier for myself. This week is my first week of work... I will be in orientation/training for the first 6 weeks. So far I have really enjoyed it. Just learning the very basic things right now, which would include where things are in the hospital, supplies, getting to know the way the beds and incubators function. I feel so thankful that I have been given the opportunity to start out in such an important unit :) As well as the way I will able to work so closely with families and their new ones (in the good times and the difficult). I think that God has placed me here, and I will be given such a chance to touch others lives as well as the impact they will have on me! I can't wait until I can actually start working with a baby and teaching and working their parents. I hope and pray that I can become a wonderful nurse in this area, and that my patients will feel that warmth.
When I was in school doing my Labor and Delivery clinical (which I loved, surprise, surprise) I had an assignment with a mom and baby postpartum. I spent so much time with them, helping mom and answering mom's questions (crazy to think I could help her since this wasn't her first baby). Several weeks later my instructor came up to me and said that when the hospital had called this lady following discharge to find out how she felt her care was during her time at the hospital she had specifically said my name and said how wonderful I had been... that left such an impact on me, not to mention it felt great! And that is my desire, I hope that all patients will be able to say the same thing :)
Even though this is a specialized unit, there is so much to learn! This tiny, precious babies are so fragile that things you completely take forgranted in bigger babies HAVE to be considered with them, literally their lives depend on it. For instance, during a diaper change you have to be careful as you lift their little legs up, because too much of an angle causes blood to rush to their heads and can cause intercranial hemorrhages. Also just with the diaper changes you need to be sure you pull the diaper down and away from their bodies before you slid it out from under them. If it slides across their skin it can tear their skin or cause abrasions because their skin is so thin and fragile. There is alot to think about.

My own pregnancy continues to progress well. I am now starting to get very uncomfortable in my pants (I have been for awhile, but it's getting worse). My belly is getting bigger, though it doesn't really seem to be pouching yet too much underneath my belly button (maybe a little bit), but I think my uterus most be pushing things up and out of it's way cause I feel like my 'gut' is sticking out alot! And no, I haven't gained that much weight :) Joe and I are going to start taking belly pictures, tonight even... we hadn't yet cause not too much was really happening! But I will post those as we do.
Being a parent brings about so many new worries... and my baby isn't even born yet! But right now there are so many unknowns (will they be developed normal, will they be healthy)... I pray everyday for God to protect this child. And oh how much I hope that my baby won't have to visit where I work. God-willing things will continue to progress smoothly, and we will have a healthy baby come March :) I still can't really believe it, I find myself looking at my belly and wondering, "are you still there baby"? Can't wait for my next doctor's visit and I can hear the heartbeat again :) Joe is able to come with me to the next one, so I am really excited about that too! This will be the first time he has ever heard the heartbeat! I think it will make things that much more real for him, and that is exciting:)