26 week scan

We saw our precious baby boy on Monday, 16th.  He is growing nicely and is weighing almost 1kg now!  From the actual scan pictures, it looks like he has hair, but we will confirm this next week at our 4D scan, looking forward to it and hoping the cord or his hands aren't covering his face like when we had Lily's 4D scan.  It creates horrendous shadows distorting the pictures making your baby look very alien-like!

He was very active, even the doctor could feel the kicks and movements while doing the scan. At one stage he was playing with his toes and we got a beautiful view of his perfect little fingers.  The scan was an overall healthy one, with the only negative being that the doctor said he is still in a breech position.  This didn't bother me in the slightest initially as Lily only turned around the 32 week mark, but he said that this little baby is lying in a "splint" position which means his legs are in a position which blocks him moving head down.  So the doctor doubts he will ever turn and he will be in the breech position throughout the pregnancy. 

I was a little disappointed as I was hoping to try for a natural birth, but with having had a c-section with Lily, the pregnancy had to be 100% normal with everything in perfect place.  With this latest scenario, a c-section will definitely be on the cards again.  Funnily enough, although I would have liked to have tried for a natural birth, I'm happy either way as long as both baby and mommy are healthy at the end of the day.

I have taken a picture of my 26.5 week bump - we are growing very nicely as you can see!

Here is a very light, unclear picture of the scan picture the doctor took of our beautiful baby boy's profile:

Next week...

Next week we will be seeing our little man again.  At this scan, I want to ensure that I get some information, unlike my last "out of the blue" scan when I was having stomach pains.  Due to the anxiety caused by the discomfort and the unscheduled scan, I didn't even think to ask how much he weighed nor for any of his measurements.  Now that this is a routine, scheduled scan, I will take my time to ask for all the details concerning his growth as well as some much-needed pictures.

Then 2 days following my scan, Lily and I will be heading off to the paediatrician.  She is a new doctor who we haven't met before as our paediatritian has since relocated and is no longer working in South Africa.  I've heard great stories about this new doctor though and look forward to meeting her, especially for our new little baby making his way in 3 months time.

The reason for Lily's visit is that her daddy noticed that the piece of skin connecting her upper lip to her gum is very low down, in fact so low down that it goes inbetween her two top teeth causing quite a significant gap.  I initially blew it off as a paranoid, overprotective father being overly concerned, however, since Googling the condition, I'm now a little more concerned than I had initially been.  From our research, it seems she has a condition called Upper Labial Frenulum (awful name!).  It appears that diagnosis can be simple and left untreated as well as quite considerable in that it can cause significant gaps between the top teeth and speech impedements.  So I've decided to rather have the condition seen to and see what our options are as Lily's piece of skin is rather thick and the gap between her two teeth is quite wide - something a little girl shouldn't have to contend with in our opinion.

So here's hoping for some good news regarding the condition when we visit the Paediatrician on Wednesday (and that Lily cooperates and opens her mouth!) and for a lovely, healthy scan with our little boy on Monday.

Hello 2012!

Another year that has just flown by in what feels like an instant. I can't believe that we are now officially in the year 2012, the year that is to be filled with life changing, exciting, challenging and please G-d, happy and healthy times. This year our family is set to grow, our house is also due to increase in size and the number of Hertz's living in Cape Town is also increasing. I can't wait!

At the moment my 20 month old daughter is truly the cutest! She astonishes me daily with her little antics, how incredibly bright she is, the new words she uses and how determined she can be (at times rather trying!). Her latest enfatuation is with my iPad. As soon as she wakes up in the morning she wants it, asks for it and is totally engrossed in operating it. I can't believe how a 20 month old knows exactly how to operate a technological gadget, a gadget that many adults have difficulty with. She slides her finger across the screen to open up the applications, touches any 'x' to close an advertising screen and knows exactly which app she wants to play. Truly astonishing! I quite like the fact that the iPad provides such entertainment, especially while I'm trying to prepare dinner or when I need a few minutes coffee break!

Lily was weighed recently and still hasn't broken the 11kg mark. She is almost there though at 10.9kg. She is slowly fitting into her size 18-24 months clothes although the majority of them are a little too big. She is still comfortable in her size 4+ Pampers Nappies and is still in between a size 3 and 4 shoe (tiny feet). Detailing these statistics makes me wonder how her brother is going to grow in comparison... I have a feeling he is going to be a little bigger than his sister. Obviously I have no idea why I say that, just a feeling I have.

Some cute things to note that Lily is saying: Uncle Willie (Rollie) is the flavor of the month - she loves him! Baby Noa is referred to as Nonie; she still says Gig Gig for Granny and Gig Ga for Grandpa; she can count to 10 but often forgets 8 for some reason; she attempts to copy everything you say to her even if the pronunciation is completely inaccurate. She loves Harley and Bella and often goes up to them for licks, sometimes lying on the floor next to them.

Her sleeping is still GREAT! Loving the uninterrupted nights and the nice lunch time breaks I get. Making sure I enjoy them before the new baba arrives. Her eating however is atrocious to say the least! I'm really nervous her lack of nutrition is going to result in scurvy at this rate! I am persevering though and hope this fussiness will soon be a thing of the past.

Otherwise here's hoping 2012 will be filled with much love, laughter, happiness, health and wealth for our little family, my parents, Lauren and Roland and my hubby's family. Looking forward to all that awaits us.

A little scare

Yesterday, during the early hours of the morning, I felt uncomfortable and started having cramps.  When I eventually got up for the day, the cramping hadn't subsided and accompanying the worrying aches, was nausea.  I was reluctant to give my doctor a call as I would hate to be perceived as an over anxious pregnant woman, but at my husband's persistence, I decided to give him a call.  After asking about my symptoms, he said I was to go to his offices and he would fit me in.  He needed to measure my cervix to determine if I was possibly going into pre-term labour.

Now pre-term labour isn't what you want to hear at any stage of your pregnancy, but especially not as early as 22 weeks!  We quickly got ready and went to his offices.  Luckily he only kept us waiting for about 15 minutes and then he took us in.  After an internal scan, he said that my cervix was fine - I have never been so relieved to hear news about my cervix!  He then did a quick external scan to check the baby's heartbeat and did a few measurements and everything is going according to schedule and looks healthy.  What a relief!

He attributed the aches and cramps to ligament stretching and growth.  I'm not sure what attributed to the nausea, perhaps it was coincidental.  Nevertheless, I took it extremely easy yesterday, lying down when Lily went to sleep and just relaxing as much as is humanly possible with a busy toddler running about.  Murphy's Law this would happen while my domestic worker is on leave so I had no-one to alleviate the busyness of a toddler!

Today I've experienced a cramp or two, but honestly feel so much better.  Perhaps it was a sign to slow down a little and to realise that I am in fact pregnant.  It is easy to forget when you are running around after your 19 month old and get swept away in the craziness of our daily routine.  We have now extended our next scan by 2 weeks so will only see Baby Boy A mid-January... Can't wait!

Cutest thing!

Lily is truly the cutest little thing at the moment.  She is like a sponge - copying everything we say and do and just absorbing it all.  This morning she did the cutest little thing... She watched me pick up my bag and sunglasses for our little visit to the shops so she immediately said "glasses" and reached for her own little pair.  I gave them to her and she promptly put them on and walked to the door!

Usually the glasses are on for a few seconds, but today, she wanted to officially wear them on our journey.  I just had to take a photograph - it was too precious!  Just loving this age!  She is a true little character and I fall more and more in love with her every single day.

Damn mosquitoes!

It is that time of year again when the wind, sunshine and heat arrives and along with all those weather elements, comes the dreaded mosquitoes.  Last year Lily was bitten by mosquitoes and had horrendous outbreaks on her little face.  Now, two days ago, she was bitten again and has come out in severe welts on both her little arms and her one leg!  Poor baby looks terrible and so incredibly sore and itchy!

I took her to the doctor this morning and we got a prescription for a steroid syrup to alleviate the itchiness and to hopefully reduce the swelling.  I also got an anti histamine to help with any discomfort.  Luckily I haven't noticed her scratching too much, however, just before I put her down for her midday nap, I saw her scratching at the one welt on the bottom of her little leg.  My heart just aches for her!  I wish I could take it all away and have the mosquitoes biting me instead.

Needless to say, her mosquito net is now back over her cot, her insect repellent stickers are stuck on her cot's panels and I'm off to the shop to buy some more Target spray for the passage outside her room.  I'm nuking these damn mosquitoes with a vengeance!

Proof of the severe reaction my baby experienced :(

My 2 pregnancies so far

I thought I would do a little comparison of my pregnancy with Lily and my pregnancy with her baby brother up to this stage:

The dreaded weight gain:
I started off heavier with Lily than I did with this pregnancy, however, I'm definitely putting on weight faster this time round. I essentially weighed 2kg less at the start of this pregnancy than I weighed at the start of my first pregnancy, but at almost 21 weeks, I weigh exactly the same as I did with Lily.  To date I have gained a dreaded 6kg and hope it slows down!  However, having said that, this is probably my last pregnancy so I kind of have the mindset of why not enjoy it, eat the delicious foods I usually avoid as I'm going to gain weight anyway!  I can worry about it once the baby has arrived.

Maternity clothes:
With both pregnancies I have been relatively lucky in the fact that I've carried small.  I think both of my babies like to lie in my bum area versus the traditional stomach, but as a result, I haven't had to wear maternity clothes too early in my pregnancy.  With Lily my clothes started getting snug at around 22 weeks, however, the first time I wore any actual maternity clothes, I was 24 weeks pregnant.  This pregnancy has found my clothes getting tighter much quicker at around the 19 week mark and today, just 2 days shy of 21 weeks, I am wearing my comfortable maternity jeans.  I don't know what it is that makes me reluctant to relent and wear the more comfy pregnancy clothing - perhaps vanity?  I have now realised I would rather be comfortable than walking around in this heat, pulling in a stomach that doesn't react to being pulled in and having to unbutton my pants every time I sit down!

Baby movement:
With Lily I only began to feel movement at around 18 weeks, whereas with this pregnancy, I felt the first flutters at about 16 weeks.  They say that this is usually the case with the second pregnancy as you know what to feel for.

How I've been feeling:
With both my pregnancies I was exceptionally nauseous during the first trimester, although I didn't actually vomited.  I also went off meat and chicken entirely and craved carbohydrates which my doctor said is best for the nausea.  Obviously my body knew that!  The nausea, if I remember correctly, seemed to last longer in my first pregnancy than my second, however, my second pregnancy has seen me being far more agitated and exhausted.  Perhaps it is due to me looking after a toddler whereas I could relax and take things easy during my pregnancy with Lily.  I also remember suffering from back pain during my first trimester with Lily - something I've gratefully been spared this time around.  My hubby seems to think I'm far moodier this time round than I was with Lily... This is something I don't care to confirm or deny :)

Otherwise, I don't see too many distinct differences in these pregnancies despite the fact that I'm expecting a different sex this time round.  I pray that this pregnancy continues to go smoothly and echoes my first pregnancy in terms of my health, the baby's health and my overall well being.

20 week fetal assessment

So we are officially just over 20 weeks pregnant and had our 2nd fetal assessment scan this morning.  Baby A #2 is still a boy by the look of things (STILL getting my head around this idea!) and he weighs 332g.  We couldn't get a nice length measurement as he wasn't very cooperative and was lying with his back facing my stomach (he is facing my back) and then decided to do some gymnastics and was in all kinds of weird positions.

Everything looks normal with the pregnancy which is always such a relief.  I've been going to the toilet far too much though so the doctor is sending my urine off for further testing just in case there is a UTI present.  In the mean time, bless the doctor, he has prescribed some Aterax for me to help me sleep.  Lately I haven't been sleeping well and I am not sure whether to attribute my lack of sleep to my hundred toilet visits or attribute my toilet visits to my lack of sleep (and me then thinking I need the toilet when in fact that's not really the case).

I had to laugh, the doctor said it MUST be a boy as he had his hand between his legs.  Yes, the touching and fiddling in that area starts in utero!

I cannot believe that we are half way to meeting our little prince.  I cannot even begin to imagine what he is going to look like and often try to picture his little face.  I'm assuming he will have lots of dark hair like his sister and cousin Noa and of course he will be beautiful.  The doctor reckons he has quite a long nose so we shall see.

I am still managing to fit into my normal clothes and have been avoiding my maternity clothes as much as possible, although the button on my jeans does get undone near the end of the day!  I think it will be a matter of days before I relent and go for the more comfy clothes!  Weight wise, I am gaining much faster than I did with Lily and although it is a relative concern, I also feel like this could possibly be my last pregnancy and why not enjoy eating the odd indulgence while I'm getting fat anyway!  So I'm not going to stress too much and just let nature take its course.  I'm now off to wolf down some lunch!

19 months old

Today I watched my little angel playing at her Top Tots group with a sense of nostalgia... As I keep saying in almost every update I post, it was like yesterday that she was a floppy, helpless little being who required every second of my attention (when she wasn't sleeping of course) and now she is a determined, happy, entertaining, gorgeous little 19 month old!

Lily is really such a blessing and I look forward to seeing her smiling face every single morning.  She is honestly a happy little thing who greets me as I open her door with a "morning" or "hello".  Truly heart melting!  As I've said before, her vocabulary increases by the day and it seems like I only have to tell her something once and she is like a sponge - soaks it all in AND retains the information as well.  Such a proud mommy over here!

Some cute little things to note is that she battles to start a word with the letter "f".  So a frog is a "rog" and a "phone" is a "wofe" for example.  She also can't quite grasp the pronunciation of monkey.  Instead Lily's version of the word is "monic"!  I can't help but giggle every time I hear it.

I'm still battling with Lily's eating habits, making meal times a true challenge in terms of actually getting anything down as well as controlling my frustration levels.  Vegetables are a no-no, but sometimes I manage to get her to eat a veggie finger or two and I've also resorted to making flapjacks with hidden pureed cauliflower and butternut in the mixture.  She isn't a fan though - think she has cottoned on to the fact that they're not quite "legitimate" flapjacks.  She does however love sausage, apples and cheese.  Yoghurt used to be a favourite, something I could rely on, but sadly no longer...  I'm really hoping that her eating habits improve soon so I can rest assured that my little angel is getting the nutrition she needs.

Sleep wise Lily is still a little super star giving mommy a much needed great night's sleep.  She sleeps from 7:30pm to either 7am or 7:30am.  I'm going to enjoy it for the next 5.5 months before baby #2 arrives!  And as I type this, she has woken up from her midday nap, after only napping for half an hour!!!  I don't know why, but better run...

Another overdue update

Wow, what a crazy last few weeks!  Aunty Lou (or AunLou as Lily fondly calls her) had her precious baby girl 11 days early and my gorgeous, tiny niece, Noa, is here.  She arrived on the 1st of November just before 9pm weighing 3.34kg.  It goes without saying that there has been an abundance of excitement in the family as a result, and we have had Granny and Grandpa visiting from East London.  Now that it is the 16th of November (AunLou's birthday!), things have quietened down and the grandparents have left... time for a little bit of an update.

Pregnancy update:
In 2 days time I will be 18 weeks pregnant.  On the one hand, it seems like I have been pregnant for quite some time, whereas other days it feels like the 18 weeks have happened so extremely quickly.  I can't be almost half way through this journey already can I?  At my 16 week scan my doctor confirmed the Fetal Assessor's prediction that we are in fact still expecting a little boy.  So the blue shopping and the name discussions can officially begin!  At 17 weeks I started to feel movement and now I am definitely feeling an active little boy inside my tummy kicking and prodding away.  Love it!  Can't wait for the kicks to become more profound and identifiable.  My next appointment is for my 20 week, 2nd fetal assessment scan.  Looking forward to it.

Lily update:
Lily is quite a little munchkin!  She is feisty, determined, knows what she wants, a true entertainer and loves being the center of attention.  She makes me laugh on a daily basis (actually multiple times a day) and I often find myself staring at her in awe, wondering how she grew up so very quickly.  There have been quite a few nostalgic moments of late comparing little Noa to Lily.  They are so similar looking as newborns, but yet I can't remember Lily ever being that tiny... Time really has gone far too quickly.

Lily's vocabulary is growing in leaps and bounds.  I won't even begin to list the words she now says as we would be here for quite some time, but one of the funniest and cutest things to note is that she calls her Granny "Gig Gig" and her Grandpa "Gig Ga".  I don't know where she gets those words from but obviously that's her pronunciation of her grandparents names.  She also knows the dogs' names and calls them out perfectly - "Harley" and "Bella".

Lily was always such a great little eater and would ingest anything that came her way with much enthusiasm... Gone are those days!  I find myself fighting with her just to get her to eat something nutritional.  I have now resigned myself to the fact that this is a passing phase (here's hoping a phase that ends very soon) and that I just have to ensure she has her daily multivitamin to make up for the lack of nutrition she is consuming.  Some days are better than others and some days are just plain frustrating.  Luckily I can always rely on banana loaf (I kid myself into believing she is therefore getting her fruit quota), cheese and milk to fill her little belly for the moment.

On a positive note, her sleeping (touch wood) is truly amazing.  She goes down perfectly for her afternoon and night time sleeps and she doesn't disturb in the night until the next morning when she wakes up at around 07h30.  This morning she actually slept until after 08h30!  I am going to enjoy these lie-ins as much as possible before baby #2 comes along!  Long may it last.

So that's about it for this update.  I will try to update sooner next time as there are so many cute, memory-worthy things going on in our household that it would be sad not to capture them before they're forgotten.  After watching tiny little Noa, it is truly a harsh reminder at how quickly they grow up and how quickly we forget...