Hurricane Rita

Wow! I am in shock, I just saw this picture of the church I went to in High School in Orange, Texas. This is after Hurricane Rita hit full force there. I got this from www.kogt.com.

More Pics

Well it's been a good morning... Bryce woke up happy and has stayed that way :) I decided we needed to take some pictures and I did go a little crazy but here are a few anyway.

This one is from when Kristen was here a couple weeks ago:




These two are from this morning...

In the Swing of Things...

Bryce will be 6 weeks on Wednesday already! He has been a great baby, only cries (screams!) when he is hungry and other than that he is pretty content :) Just a couple days ago he found his thumb... I am torn as to whether to discourage that or not cause it sure would be convenient not to have to pick up his pacifier every 2 seconds when he loses it just to put it back in his mouth. But then again you can't take away a thumb later like you can a pacifier!

Shawn's school semester is in full swing, he is taking 17 hours and it keeps him really busy! I am taking 2 online classes: Honey Bee Biology and Ecology for Teachers. They have been pretty easy so far. Last Friday we had an assignment due in HBB and apparently a lot of people were having issues accessing the pdf file, so the teacher sent us a word file to fill out... Turns out she sent us all the answers in the word file. Needless to say everyone got a 100 on that assignment!

Today I went walking with a friend from church for about an hour, maybe more. It was really fun to get out and to talk to someone who had a baby about 4 months before us. We decided we are going to go riding bikes and walking almost every day :) I am excited.

I also got a job offer to work at a hotel. I am just a little nervous about leaving Bryce for too long. It actually wouldn't be a big deal but I actually do a lot around here during the day so I feel like things may have to go undone. We'll see how it goes. I am supposed to call them tomorrow...

He's Here!!!

Well...

We went in to induce labor on Wednesday August 24, 2005. I was 10 days overdue at that point. We arrived at 5:30 in the Emergency Room and got to go up to Labor and Delivery. At about 8, after antibiotics and prep stuff, I finally got started on the pitocin to start labor... About 8:15 the doctor came in and decided to break my water to accelerate things. Well right after he did that, Bryce's heartrate dropped from around 130 to the 50s and 60s and they couldn't get it to come back up... So we were off in about 3 minutes to have an emergency C-section!! It was scary there for a few minutes, but before long I was completely under and they were pulling him out!

He was born August 24 at 8:39 a.m. weighing in at 8 lbs 10 oz. He was 21 inches long. He and I are doing great :) He was a week yesterday and he is generally either eating or sleeping. Right now he is sitting in his bouncer chair wide awake but yawning :) Here are a few pics to enjoy...

This is one of me seeing him for the first time when I woke up:



Our Little Burrito:



Going home in his Texas A&M Jersey:

Overdue

Well it is now 5 days past our due date!

I went to the doctor yesterday and no progress... So Monday, the 22nd, we go in and set up a time to induce if we haven't had him yet. Tonight is a full moon, but still nothing :) I am so ready to have him already!! Ready to be able to bend over and able to get off the couch without a fight! We'll see what happens the next couple days I guess. If we do have to induce I think we'll go with as early as we can next week... perhaps the 23rd??

Baby Shower

We had the shower on Saturday and it was so much fun:) Got to see most of the girls on my side of the family and Kristen, Brandy and Sarah got to come too! We got some cool stuff, and got to visit for a few hours...

We have gotten a lot of our big items lately. My mom sent us money to buy an exersaucer and a pack & play that was practically new from our next door neighbor... Some friends from church gave us a stroller that fits with our carseat, so that was great!

Sarah volunteered to make our crib bedding and I am so excited about it. It is going to be a quilt made of cowboy fabric with red, blue, and tan colors to go along with it. She's also making a bumper, a dust ruffle and a diaper stacker :) My aunt Caryl took the same fabric and made an awesome diaper bag for me, too! It is precious. I'll have to put a picture of all of it when I get it here...

Tomorrow is my next doctor's appointment, then it is off to Lometa for a few days. Should be interesting if I go into labor while we are there! That'll be a long trip back, but oh well...

Maternity Leave... Sort of

Yesterday was my last day at work :) D-1 shut down in Bryan and so Sunday is the very last day for the place to be open but our contract is closing Friday at 5pm. My days off normally are Thursday and Friday, so I get paid for Saturday and Sunday and don't even have to work... pretty cool, huh? So I guess I could call it maternity leave but it was forced maternity leave whether I wanted it or not (I wanted it!)

Plus since I stayed til the end I get paid a retention bonus equal to two weeks pay... This whole thing worked out pretty good for us. So I will be getting my last check I believe August 26 and I was done on July 27. Not bad.

Anyway, I have another doctor's appointment today, so more later.

Here's a pic of the last day at work with some of the cool people I worked with:



Jamie, Danielle, me, Stacey, our manager Darren, and George

And here is me at one of the many cubicles I inhabited over the last 8 months (Does my face look big/fat/swollen to anyone else?):

Back to Normal

At my last appointment I had lost half of the 9 and a half pounds, so I am now back on track as far as weight gain :) 28 pounds at 36 and a half weeks. The ideal was 25-30, so I'll be pretty close hopefully. Nothing else new really, the baby shower is this weekend, yay!! I am excited to get to see everyone and hang out.

I also found out that I am GBS positive, so I have to have antibiotics during labor. Apparently it is 2 doses 4 hours apart. What fun! That's about it for now...

9 and a half pounds?!?!?

I had my latest doctor's appointment on Thursday and in 2 weeks I have gained 9 and a half pounds! I was doing so good, too! Now I am at 32 pounds in 35 and a half weeks. The doc did say that there is no other way to gain that much weight except for retaining water, so at least that weight will be easy to lose once the baby's born :) Other than that I got tested for Group B Strep and was informed that I get to go the doctor once a week now... It is getting so close now! Only one more week til he's considered full term (37 weeks). That's all for now I guess...

Baby Shower :)

I just realized that I haven't said anything about our upcoming baby shower... My aunts are organizing it in Pearland (south of Houston) at my Aunt Mekdes and Uncle Larry's house :) I'm excited cause we won't be having our church baby shower til after the baby's born plus now we'll get to see everyone in the family (or a lot of people anyway!) It'll be July 30th at 2pm. If anyone reading wants to look at our registry it is at Target and you can go to www.target.com and click on gift registries at the top. Then search by my or Shawn's name and you'll get to see it...

I've got my next doctor's appointment on Thursday and I am getting tested for Group B Strep. If it is positive I have to have antibiotics during labor so I don't pass it on. It doesn't cause problems in adults usually, but in babies it can... Other than that nothing new!

The Crib is Up!

Thanks to my wonderful mother in law, we got the crib last night and set it up... It was interesting cause we had to empty a spot in the room first:) And now that I have my camera back I took advantage of the timer:

Pictures!!

Last weekend Shawn and I both had friends down for the whole weekend:) Kristen, Brandy, and I stayed with Sarah at her apartment and Shawn and Matt stayed at our apartment... We had a blast and I even talked Kristen into taking some pictures of me and my big belly, so here are a couple:)







And here is my favorite one:

Prepared Childbirth Class

Well I managed to drag Shawn to the class last weekend... It was pretty basic information for me, but since he hasn't read a lot I think it was good for us to hear it all together. We did some relaxation exercises and some breathing stuff too. Plus there were the obligatory birth videos that he turned away from every time! :) Oh well! It was good overall, the lady was really nice, and she seems to know our new Family Doctor and thinks well of him. We are going to use Shawn's doctor as our pediatrician too since he does family medicine. We know him and he'll be able to come up to the hospital right when he's born and check him out for us...

Anyway, we only have 6 and a half weeks left! And we still are somewhat unprepared! I know he'll be fine even if he does have to come home to no crib, but I'm hoping we'll get that and set it up soon... This weekend Kristen and hopefully Brandy will be coming down for a few days. We are going to stay with Sarah:) All my bridesmaids together again except my sister! It'll be a girls' weekend, and Shawn is having Matt down too so we'll both be having fun with old friends...

Bryce is kicking or squirming all the time now, but especially when I'm laying down. I have gotten to the point of having feet in my ribs all the time and I have to say, I liked it better before he could kick me this hard in my bones! He's a pretty strong little guy, and sometimes he likes to just wedge his foot in there and not move it. I'm left to try to stretch it out or move around til it isn't as irritating! :) That's all for now! I've got another doctor's appointment on Thursday (tomorrow).

Just 8 more weeks! :p

Well, we only have 8 weeks left to wait! I am almost done with summer school (just 2 more weeks!) and that means I am almost done with college! I will have all my graduation requirements fulfilled and I'll just be taking 2 online classes this fall and I'll graduate in December. So things are getting nearer and nearer, and everything is about to change for us.

They announced last week that the place I'm working is closing down on July 31, 2005! It actually works out pretty well for me, since that is 2 weeks before our due date... That means I'll only be working for 6 more weeks! Kinda crazy! Bryce is almost here, and Shawn will be going back to school full time and not working starting in August. He'll graduate in May!

Anyway, I am just rambling, but I did have a doctor's appointment last week and everything looks good still. I had gained 21 pounds in almost 32 weeks... Other than that nothing new. I am going to the doctor every 2 weeks now. We actually had to reschedule our Childbirth class to this weekend coming up, June 25. We'll see how it goes!

Well I had another doctor's appointment today, and I got to drink some sugary stuff, sit there for an hour, and then they tested my blood sugar to test for gestational diabetes. Thankfully I passed! The lady before me has to go back for a 3 hour test, plus you have to fast before that one. I won't have to worry about it though... I also got measured today, and I measured 27 cm (that is from the top of the pubic bone to the top of the uterus). The doc said that is good, normally it is 1cm for each week, and I am almost 29 weeks, but I guess that is in the normal range... I also didn't gain any weight since my last visit, which is good because I gained 9 pounds last time!

Shawn and I finally signed up for a childbirth class too. It is a one day thing, next Saturday from 8:45-5pm. Hopefully it will be an enlightening experience for both of us and it'll help us know what to expect :) That's all for now I guess.

Ticker: Timeline of Due Date

I just noticed my other tickers weren't showing up anymore, so here is one you can see!

Ultrasound Pictures

Wow, it has been a while since I've posted on here! We had some issues with the computer and had to get it fixed so now I finally have the pictures from our ultrasound ready to go...

In this picture he has his legs crossed... He refused to show us he was a boy at first!


Here are the boy parts at last:


And here is one of him looking at you, with the circular white parts in the middle being his hands. It looks like he is laying on his side...


I'll try to get another picture of me on here pretty soon, too. I have gotten quite a bit bigger since the last one I posted :)

It's a...

BOY!!! We had our ultrasound and everything looked really good they said. No problems that they could see. We got to see the 4 chambers of the heart, the stomach, the bladder, the umbilical cord, and his um... you know... :)

Yep, it will be Elvin Bryce Lockett. We are calling him Bryce though. There is a lot of meaning behind his name for Shawn's side of the family. Elvin is his dad's middle name, Bryce was his Mamaw's maiden name, and E.B.L. are his grandfather's initials. Good thing I like the name Bryce! Anyway, after we found out we went to Target and registered for some bigger stuff finally! But right now we have 3 different strollers and a couple of carseats on there cause Shawn went crazy with the scanner... I have to go back and clean it up a little online so that people will actually know what we want! That's all for now...

Ready for the Ultrasound already!!

Well we only have 2 days to wait but it seems like it'll never get here! We get our big ultrasound Thursday the 28th... Life is crazy lately, I'm finishing up the school semester with 2 papers, 2 presentations and finals in the next couple weeks, and Shawn is still working long hours at FedEx... He is going to have the afternoon off Thursday though, so he will either be jumping up and down (meaning boy) or fainting (meaning girl). We'll see:)

First Kick!

Well it was April 8, 2005 when I for sure felt the baby kicking for the first time. I was in my "Hispanic Culture through the 18th Century" class and we were watching a movie... A really boring movie at that! But anyway, it was pretty cool. I think that I might have felt it before but was never really sure til then, and it happened several times in a row, on the left lower part of my belly. I have found that he/she is pretty active right when I lay down at night so now it is taking longer to fall asleep but it's nice having some way to know that everything is going alright. So far Shawn hasn't been able to feel it from the outside, but hopefully soon:)

Also, we found out a while back that our good couple friends Mike & Becca are expecting their first baby on November 14th! So that is 3 months exactly from my due date.

We're moving!

We found out today that we get to move! I have been wanting to move closer to everything, and it is an answered prayer! We are still going to be in an apartment, but don't have to sign a new lease or worry about subleasing cause the new place is owned by the same company as the old place. And it is only 5 minutes from Shawn's work (right now we are about 15-20 minutes away). Not that big a deal, but it will make it so much easier to run and get something real quick, cause its closer to a grocery store, Blockbuster, etc. And right down the road from church too:) Plus about 5 minutes from my doctor and the hospital where we'll be having the baby... I'm excited about it! Shawn picked one of the apartments today, I haven't actually been by there yet. He said it is a good location, only thing is it's second floor again... Anyway, should be interesting since I normally help move all the big stuff. I'll still do a lot but last time I tried to help him put something heavy in the truck it felt like I was stretching a little too far or something! More later...

Another Dr's appt...

Well today I had another doctor's appointment. I met Shawn for lunch before the appointment at 1:30 and since he was having a slow day at work he decided to come along:) It was nice to have company, but the appointment was pretty short... The heartbeat was 145 this time and the doc got Shawn to feel where the top of my uterus was at the level of my belly button. Right where it is supposed to be at 20 weeks I guess. I did find out that I've only gained 7 pounds the whole time, and only 1 lb since my appointment 4 weeks ago! The doctor said that anything under 10 pounds at 20 weeks is considered good, so I guess I'm on track. While we were listening to the heartbeat the baby kicked, but I haven't felt anything yet. He could tell by the sound on the doppler he was using to hear the heartbeat:) I should be feeling him/her move anytime now. Supposedly before 22 weeks anyway. Our big ultrasound is scheduled for April 28 at 2pm, I can't wait!

Pictures:)

Ok, so I finally figured out how to put pics directly into posts. Here is a picture I finally took today of my belly... This was taken at 19weeks 5 days.




And here is the ultrasound from 8 weeks 4 days...

Ultrasound Pic in my profile...

Well I finally got a chance to post the ultrasound pic from 8 weeks now that I am 19 weeks! Anyway, you can click on show complete profile or here is the link: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v200/zzmarcie/USpaint.jpg

Hopefully we'll have another in about 6 weeks to tell whether it is a boy or a girl:)

~Marcie

3rd doctor's appointment

Well I had another quick visit to the doctor this afternoon, got to hear the heartbeat at 148:) That is the slowest its been so far... Other than that I had gained 4 pounds since the last appointment which they said was fine. And I found out I will most likely get to find out whether the baby's a boy or girl on April 28th! That will be at 24 weeks, so by that time as long as he/she is cooperating we should be able to tell!! Other than that we finally broke down and bought a pair of maternity pants, the kind that fits under your belly, so it fits pretty well right now, and I still don't have a need for maternity shirts! One thing I have to start doing is making sure I get enough protein, cause I really don't eat much meat at all lately. The doc said 4-6 ounces every day. They checked my iron today and it was 13 point something, whatever that means. They said they don't like to see it below 11. That's about all I think. Til next time!

fun maternity clothes websites!

http://www.2chix.com/shop/Scripts/default.asp

Not that I'm hinting or anything, but these maternity clothes are so fun!! My favorites are the 3rd and 7th from the top... What is M.I.L.F.?? Ok, do NOT look that up on google if you don't know either!! Apparently it is not appropriate for children if you know what I mean!

http://fortuneteeshirt.com/shop/maternity.php?osCsid=6ccc94130164f518d6d184b52cf5062b
Those are cute too:)

nothing new to report...

But I felt like writing anyway... I feel like my belly has definitely gotten bigger though you still can't really tell through my clothes. And I can tell there isn't as much room in there as there used to be cause I feel sick if I eat a normal-size meal. I have to just eat a little here and there or I feel gross! Anyway, pretty soon Shawn and I are going to go shopping for some maternity clothes. Haven't gotten around to it since I am able to get by on what i have still. More later...

My second doctor's appointment...

Hello all, It's been forever it seems since I last posted (sorry Brandy!) I went to my second doctor's appointment on Thursday. It was just as I suspected it would be: pretty boring... I did get to hear the heartbeat on a doppler ultrasound, and that was cool. But other than that it only took about 20 minutes from walking in the door to walking back out to my car. My first appointment it took like an hour and a half! Anyway, the heartbeat was 160bpm again... Some say that would mean it's a boy. That would make Shawn happy:)

As far as how I'm feeling, I'm feeling great! The only thing that is slightly annoying is how tired I feel. But I'm not convinced that it is truly a pregnancy thing cause you'd probably be tired too if you kept my hours! On MWF, I am out of the house at school or working for like 14 hours... And no time for naps on those days. Praise God for Tuesdays and Thursdays, and of course weekends!

I've been looking into different things like childbirth classes and I am thinking of trying to go without medication... I have looked into taking "Bradley Method" classes www.bradleybirth.com but not sure yet. That is a pretty big time commitment. 12 weeks, one 2 hour class a week on Sunday afternoons. Anyway, I'll try to update everyone more often! I am over 13 weeks now:)

I think I need new clothes!

Well, it was a strange feeling when I tried on my button fly pants this afternoon and they wouldn't button! I can definitely tell my belly is getting a little bigger, but I don't think anyone else can tell. My stretch denim pants still fit so I pretty much live in those, but I think I get to buy some new clothes soon:) I am only 3 months along, and they say normally around 4 or 5 months is when you need maternity clothes with your first baby, but of course that's after the first steps of bigger sizes or leaving your pants button unbuttoned... Or so I've read anyway! I think I'll try to avoid that practice except when I'm at home or safely sitting behind my desk at work where noone can see me!

Well my next doctor's appointment is a week from today, February 3rd. I'm sure it won't be very eventful but I am excited about going, cause it means one more month has gone by with no problems so far:) I've felt good so far but school started this week and I have been exhausted. Praise God that after tonight I have 2 nights off from work. Working so late really takes it out of me these days! I can't complain too much though... I'm blessed!

First Baby Clothes:)

Well I am now 10 weeks along and I was reading up on everything... Our baby now has all if its systems up and running and now they will just continue to develop until he/she is born:) I don't know if I wrote this before, but I also found out that my graduation from Texas A&M will be either August 12th or 13th, and with the due date being August 14th that should be interesting! Right now I am getting ready for my last full semester at A&M. I am still going to take 2 classes in the first summer session but I'll be done around July 1st... That'll give me a month and a half of taking it pretty easy before our little one arrives. I don't know how long I'll work, I guess it just depends on how everything is going. I only work part time though so I don't see it being a real big deal. We'll see! I am contemplating what I want to do after the baby is born and we've talked about me maybe keeping some kids at our house during the day so that I can still make some money while staying home with the baby...

Also, we have been travelling on vacation for the last week and we finally got to go visit my family for a few days. My sister bought us our first baby clothes! She got a matching bath set: a bathrobe, a big towel, and booties made out of towel material. They all have a little duck embroidered on there and they say splish splash. They are yellow and white, since we don't know whether the baby is a boy or a girl yet.

I got to see the baby!

Well I got to go to the doctor on Thursday and I was thrilled to find out that I'd get to do an ultrasound:) I got to hear the heartbeat (160 bpm) and see the little baby on the screen, and of course they printed out a picture so I could show everyone. I'll try to get it on here sometime but I'm not near a scanner right now unfortunately. Other than that I found out my due date is much earlier than I thought. It is August 14, 2005. That means I am almost 9 weeks along! They measured the baby on the U/S and figured it that way. Well not too much else to report, but my next appointment is Feb 3rd... And much to my happiness the doctor said that I don't have to feel guilty about drinking caffeine. Not that I drink much stuff with caffeine anyway, but at least I know that it's not that big a deal every once in a while... More later!

Anticipating the Doctor

Well tomorrow is my first prenatal visit, and I am wondering how it will be. It will be kind of fun to finally start out officially... I'm guessing they'll put me on prenatal vitamins and I'm hoping for an ultrasound, we'll see. So far I have been taking Centrum multivitamins since they at least have folic acid and I know I need some kind of extra vitamins. Anyways, the last couple days haven't been too bad, I have slept til at least 11 though both days. I justify that because I don't get off work til 12:30 at night so I figure I deserve it and so does our baby:) More tomorrow after the doctor~

Exhaustion has set in!

Well I am about 6 weeks in, or in my seventh week and I am so tired!! I haven't done anything strenuous but I feel like I could sleep all day and all night and still be tired when I get up! Plus I get lightheaded at the drop of a hat... I guess I need to drink more water. Anyway, I felt pretty good until about 2 days ago when my energy dropped off suddenly! I have my first prenatal doctor's appointment on Thursday, I'm not sure what they are going to do other than medical history, but I've heard that you can see the heartbeat on Ultrasound by this time. That would be cool :) According to the online due date calculator on babycenter.com, I am due August 26, 2005!