You hurt where? Your head is where?

So there has definitely been alot of crud going around lately, mostly colds & a nasty stomach bug that's hit my co-workers, their kids, or my friends' kids. Last Thursday night about 30 minutes before bed, Brady kept saying he didn't feel well. It was pretty sudden & I started to wonder if a tummy bug was coming on. Friday, I went in to get Brady up & ready for school to find him laying in some throw-up. Oh boy! Rocky had a scheduled vacation day off & I really felt like Brady needed his mamma, so I stayed home too. This was the first time Brady had ever been sick & really acted sick, laying around, not wanting to play, needing extra rest. He even fell asleep on my bed at 10:30 instead of his usual naptime of 1ish. Later in the evening he fell asleep on the couch at 5:45 with his head down in the crevice between the backboard & armrest. Pitiful muffin! I asked him throughout the day what felt bad, and he would touch his mouth and say "My mouth hurts". I'd asked him about his tummy & he'd say that didn't feel good either. He was drinking very little fluids & Rocky had gone and gotten him Gatorade & Apple Juice. I know most sites on the internet say to stick to pedialyte with tummy bugs, but Brady has had one other bug & he refused it. In his defense, that is some nasty tasting stuff. On Friday, he never once got sick or had a poop. I didn't understand how he could have a stomach bug without these symptoms. I offered him fluids throughout the day & he would take one sip every so often. I offered him foods- applesauce, yogurt, pancake to which he would take one bite and declare he didn't like it. It was so hard to see him not eating & drinking well since he usually eats anything & everything and drinks alot. Rocky went to Target and got him Monsters Inc & Cars, and I had gotten him 7 new books at the Kids Everywhere Consignment Sale the day before, so this helped Brady pass the time while not really wanting to play. Close to 8 pm, Rocky suggested we look in his mouth since Brady kept mentioning that it hurt. Rocky shined the flashlight in there & we both let out loud gasps. His tongue & throat looked like a petri dish, covered in nasty white stuff. He'd also gone from a 99.7 to 100.7 to 101.7 degree temperature so I felt this ruled out thrush. Seemed to be strep throat to us. This explained the not wanting to eat or drink, and we think he may have thrown up due to be tired, fevery, and in pain. Poor little guy. At urgent care on Saturday morning it was confirmed that he had strep so he was started on penicillin. Penicillin tastes pretty yucky even when berry flavored & the ibuprofen burns his mouth because of the sores, but we're making sure he gets his much needed doses 3 times a day. By Saturday afternoon he was asking to go to the park, but the dr said he needed 24 hours of doses in order to not be contagious any more. He woke up 3 times during the night on Saturday, but went back to sleep each time. Rocky was up with him & I didn't even know about this until I woke up in the morning. Sunday I managed to get him to eat a whole pancake despite him wanting to be done after 3 bites. He wasn't fevery any more & was cleary wanting to get out of the house. I took him to Barnes & Nobles, and you could tell how much he loved being able to play again. He managed to eat a small amount for lunch and went down for a nap. I went out to run errands and came back to find that Brady had already been up for an hour and was being quite fussy. We figured he was hungry since he gets pretty crabby when he's hungry. We thought about what we could give him that he'd eat more than a few bites. Golden Corral it was, since we could offer him lots of mushy options- baked apples, rice, sweet potato casserole, macaroni & cheese. To our delite, he ate a full plate of food! I cried at the table I was so happy. From there we went to the park, and it's amazing how some food & time to run around changed his attitude back into being a much happier boy. He went back to school yesterday & ate all of his food there. He ate a decent dinner at home last night too. He's still fussier than usual, but I think he still needs to catch up on his sleep. Last night he told me "Mommy, I'll make you feel better. Lay down for me. Here's some bubblegum. Here's a Thomas sticker for your arm." The bubblegum was referring to his flavored medicine, and the sticker is the highlight of any trip to the dr's office. I was happy to know that he understood that we do all of those things to try to make him feel better. This experience made me realize how much I appreciate when he is healthy. It also gave me a new respect for parents whose children are "really sick"- those with chronic health problems that need constant care. It is so hard to see your child not feel well & know there is only so much you can do.

On the baby girl front, we get to see her again next Wednesday! Last Tuesday I'd gone ahead and booked a 3D/4D scan at Prenatal Peek, and we were going to get a 30 minute DVD of her. I thought it would be something neat to show Brady & the grandparents. Baby girl had other plans. I went in for my routine 32 week appointment last Wednesday. I hopped on the scale to find out I had gained 6 more lbs in 2 weeks. I was worried about this being a sign of pre-eclampsia, but my blood pressure was great at 110/68 so that was ruled out. Dr. Duncan came in, asked how I'd been feeling, to which I replied "I feel great, but I'm not sure why I'm gaining so much weight." At this point, I'd already gained 36 lbs, while I only gained 31 lbs the entire pregnancy with Brady. He said this was a concern since me gaining more weight would make her gain more weight. He measured my belly at 33 cm which is fine for 32 weeks. Brady would even measure 2.5 cm ahead. He performed the Leopold's Manuever (feeling around on the belly) to determine her position. The doctors who saw me at 28 weeks & 30 weeks had done the same and said they couldn't tell if she was head down. This 3rd doctor said he couldn't tell either. He said, "No worries. We'll just do a scan next time." He said they really need to determine her position & also to check her weight since she could be getting quite large since I'd gained that much. I felt crushed & once I got back to work and called Rocky I broke down. It's not a vanity thing, so that's not why I care about the weight part. I'd just hate for her to get so big that they suggest an induction or c-section. I do not believe in inductions unless a woman is quite past due (around 2 weeks), since I feel like if there is such a dire situation (high bp for example) then the baby should be delivered immediately via c-section. I also think it's nuts to offer a woman one just because she is tired of being pregnant. I think your body usually knows what is best. It also seems like so many inductions end in a c-section anyways. Brady was quite large, but since they never checked his weight via U/S, they never suggested any other option than me going into labor on my own. My other concern is that she is breech. There are times when I feel a hard ball up high & it makes me think that her head is what's up in my ribs. Dr. Duncan said she is very high up in my ribs which explains my shortness of breath. However, Brady was so low that I had all of the hip, pelvic, and leg pains, so this is much preferred. I asked Dr. Duncan if she does appear big on the U/S if they would suggest an early induction & he said not necessarily, but my brain was already thinking of all of these things and getting panicky. I went to check out & book my next appointment. The receptionist told me they did a scheduled c-section for her since her baby was so high. Not what I wanted to hear! I want her to be head down, drop nice & low, and for me to go into labor on my own. I will never forget the magic of going into labor with Brady & knowing my body was doing such an amazing thing. I have to remind myself that when it comes to pregnancy, it's not really about what I want. It's about what is best for getting baby girl here safe & sound.

Baby girl- I'm sure everyone is tired of hearing us call her that. She still doesn't have an official name. We thought we had it figured out, we tossed in another name, and we've recently started talking about another name that I've liked for some time. I think we may end up naming her once we meet her. I'm getting more excited every day, and I'm gonna start organizing her stuff this week by doing some laundry & putting her clothing in the pack-n-play and moving Brady's clothing up to his bedroom. I bought some NB diapers this past weekend and almost cried thinking about having a new baby who will be so tiny, especially in comparison to her big brother. I feel like I know Brady so well & it took me a long time to feel like I knew him. Soon I will have baby girl who I know nothing about & that experience of getting to know my child will happen all over again. I know it will be different since she will have her own personality and her own ideas about sleeping, eating, and all of her likes & dislikes. I look forward to getting to know her, getting to know Brady better, and getting to see them enjoy being brother & sister.