HELLO
Mom to Iris. Wife to Todd. Our little family lives at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains in Fayetteville, Arkansas. We love it here and I love sharing little bits of our life.

© 2014 sarahfortune.

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Posts Tagged: pregnancy blog

Pregnancy Blog: 18 weeks

18 Weeks

18 weeks! Well, nearly 19 now. This week has been a busy one (but SO much better than the last). In fact, just this morning at 2:58 am I became an Aunt again! We spent the weekend cheering on Katie and Caleb, who are now Mom and Dad to Cole David Murry. He’s a cute lil laid back dude who arrived on his actual due date, which I hear is pretty rare. Seeing how calm Katie was during the whole birth process was really inspiring. Hopefully I can pull it together and be like her when my time comes.

Hospital snacks.

Cole 5.15.11

Cole 5.15.11

Cole 5.15.11

Cole 5.15.11

Cole 5.15.11

Happy Birthday, Cole!
I can’t wait to watch you grow.

As for this week of pregnancy for me, my stubborn cold is gone, my baby is the size of a mango, and I am seriously getting bigger by the day.

18 Weeks

18 Weeks

18 Weeks

No new developments except Todd and I have been discussing baby names. Meaning, I think of them and Todd vetoes each one. There is one name that we’ve both liked from the get-go, but finding a middle name has been a challenge (a fun one at least). I’ll probably wait until we know the full name for certain before I post it, but at this rate that might not be until she’s born. Naming a person is a task that we do not take lightly – we certainly want to make sure it will suit her for the rest of her life. I feel lucky to have a simple (non-makefunable) first name, followed by a unique middle name. Fortune is actually a family name, so I love the added significance too. I’m trying to keep that in mind when thumbing through my name ideas. We’ll see.

Other than that, I’m feeling great and can’t complain (especially since the halfway mark is just around the corner!

(Almost) Mother’s Day

My Mama & me

For the first time in years I was able to celebrate Mother’s Day with my momma (even if it was a day late). Instead of mailing her a card, I was able to leave fresh flowers from the Farmers’ Market on her kitchen table and take her out to dinner. It really is all about the little things in life.

To top it off, this weekend was surprisingly filled with my own (sort of) Mother’s Day.

My very first Mom’s Day card from Brandy & fam in Memphis

1st Mother's Day card

My mom surprised me with the baby bag I’ve been drooling over!

Boden Baby Bag

And I don’t think it was because of the holiday exactly, but I did end up being spoiled with a few other gifts!

Two adorable baby outfits from Aunt Brains

Gift from Aunt Brains

Gift from Aunt Brains

A deluxe pedicure from Seth & Ashlee
(I will certainly need some pampering this summer)

Pedicure from Seth & Ashlee

The CUTEST Arkansas Hog hat that ever existed,
also from Seth & Ashlee (available at Riff Raff)

Baby Hog hat from Seth & Ashlee

What sweet little prizes.
Thanks, friends!

Before I hit the hay, I’ll share a bit from Everett Cat.
This evening Todd pointed out that while we are used to him sitting this way (he does it daily), it’s actually kind of weird. Hmm.

Everett

Maybe he’s weird because I do stuff like this to him.
(Our kid is in trouble)

Everett

Oh well.
Goodnight!

Pregnancy Blog: 17 Weeks TAKE TWO

17-2sm

My apologies, but this week I may not sound quite as chipper. I’ve come down with a cold and it’s turned me into a huge wimp. Without the help of my beloved Theraflu or the miraculous Afrin nose spray, I’m kind of miserable. My eyes are itchy, my head is completely clogged up, and with every sneeze I worry that my baby is being hurled into the side of my uterus. With this lovely mood that I’m in, now might be a good time to share the not so cute side to being pregnant.

Let me reiterate that I’ve been very fortunate to have an easy pregnancy so far. That doesn’t mean, however, that it’s been all rainbows, kittens, and pickles. While so far the baby is doing great, I do have a few worries here and there.

To start it off, I’m Rh negative. This means that I have a negative blood type, which is somewhat rare. Todd is a conformist with his positive blood, so I have to get a shot called Rhogam in order to keep my blood from fighting the baby’s blood, if indeed the baby is born with Todd’s blood type. I think it used to be more of an issue back in the olden days, but supposedly with this shot there’s nothing to worry about. But of course I still worry.

Usually we pregnant, negative-blood-having ladies receive this shot at around 28 weeks. However, I was called in to get my first round of it last Friday because of yet another thing that’s been on my mind. Apparently my placenta is slightly low-lying and that can cause bleeding (which I’ve been fortunate not to have so far). To be on the safe side, they went ahead and injected me early. Apparently this low placenta thing is very common and my version of it is very mild. Ninety-five percent of the time the issue corrects itself, so they’re telling me not to be concerned about this either. Still, I worry.

To top it all off, my chart at the doctor’s office has a big fat red sticker on it which reads, “HIGH RISK.” This has nothing to do with my blood type, placenta, or the fact that I want to eat nothing except mashed potatoes. This stems from a past surgery that I had years ago and my doctor wants to keep a closer eye on me. She doesn’t foresee there being any complications and to tell you the truth, I actually prefer that they are treating me with a little extra attention. I wouldn’t have already had two ultrasounds, with at least one more on the way and I wouldn’t have the peace of mind that I do, despite the few worries that I have.

Maybe these are the things I’m not supposed to blog or talk about. It seems like a lot of the horrible, gross, scary things associated with having a baby you don’t hear about until after it’s too late (i.e. – pregnant). I don’t mind sharing and in the grand scheme of things, my worries really aren’t that bad. I feel blessed to be this far and if anything, it makes me want my baby here to love even more.

All of that being said, you may have noticed the title of this blog post being a little redundant since last week I also had a 17 week post. I had my monthly doctor’s visit today and all is well, except she doesn’t want to officially change my due date. She reinforced my fear that I might just be having a big baby. So, my due date is once again October 12th. I’ll leave you with a bit of bright news – I’m pretty sure I can feel the little one kicking me in there! It’s so surreal and it really makes me realize, hey – there’s a person in there! So crazy. And I love it.

Pregnancy Blog: 17 weeks (16 weeks, actually)

Today I’m 17 weeks pregnant… I think.

17 Weeks

I’ve started wondering if there’s a chance that when I see my doctor next week she’ll just say I’m having a big baby and that my due date/weekly progression hasn’t actually changed. While the ultrasound technician said to go by my new due date, I know my doctor could say something different at my next check-up. All in all it doesn’t really matter – most babies aren’t even born on their due date. Now that I’m pregnant though, each week seems like a HUGE milestone, so I really like counting them just right.

Another reason I’m thinking that my baby might be jumbo is because, well…
I was a chub. I weighed just over 10 pounds when I was born. Yowzers. Emphasis on the “ow.” And to top it all off, my mom gave birth to me completely naturally. She likes to remind me that she didn’t have so much as a Tylenol. Just to let everyone know, as grateful as I am, I will not be following in her footsteps.

My dad actually wrote about my birth experience for an old Memphis paper called the Dixie Flyer. For this, I am also grateful. It captures my debut in such a raw, sweet way. I hope one day I can do the same for my baby girl.

(click images for larger view)
My Birth Story (by my Dad)

My Birth Story (by my Dad)