Thursday, May 31, 2012
Burping Challenge
Who knew burping a baby could be so tiring after a half hour. My cousin's baby hates to burp, and half the time you can't get him to. He's still extremely cute though, especially sleeping in your arms. Still can't wait for our little boy to get here, and then I'll get to be a mommy.
Cancer Battle
Along with many people, I've had an experience with cancer. My little sister was diagnosed with Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma when she was almost three years old. This cancer is found mostly in children under ten years old, and can cause tumors neck and up. Her first tumor was bigger than a golfball, and it sat in front of her left ear. She went through chemotherapy, and had surgery to remove the tumor. This caused her ear to stick out more than normal, and it left a large scar around her ear.
She then went into remission, period of time where you're cancer free, for four years. Sadly, when she was about eight years old, she relapsed. This tumor was the size of a softball, and it sat behind her left eye, and reached down to her mouth. During this time she went through chemotherapy and radiation. Her left eye was removed because she could no longer see out of it, and they also removed her left cheekbone for easier access to the tumor. When they removed the tumor in surgery, a piece of the roof of her mouth came with the tumor, along with a couple teeth.
Because of this, she needed to have a feeding tube put in. During this surgery, they could not intubate her because her face was so deformed and they couldn't get her mouth open enough. Therefore, they had to put a trach in. She had this trach for a few months then which caused her to not talk. I was the only one that could get her to talk.
Later on, her doctor made her a special retainer so that she could start eating solid foods, but she was never able to get completely off her feeding tube. Then, she finally went into remission again, but this remission only lasted a few months.
Her final relapse was when she was nine years old. She had gone in for a normal checkup at Geisinger, and they took samples from her eye socket. In those samples they found recurrent cancer cells. This was a devastating discovery. My sister, Kaitlyn, had by now basically built up an immunity to chemotherapy and radiation. Therefore, these treatments would not work for her.
This left a decision. Kaitlyn and my parents were told that they could start experimental treatments, but that Katie's chances were not good. My sister, at nine years old, made a life-changing choice. Katie told the doctors that she did not want any more needles which meant that she was not going to do the experimental treatments. My parents agreed.
Katie was told what would happen, but she already knew, and she wasn't scared. Soon before she turned ten years old, she was in the hospital. During this hospital stay they threw her a birthday party because no one thought she would make it to her tenth birthday.
Kaitlyn proved them wrong though. She turned ten on April 14th, 2007, and she had another birthday party at home. A singer came and sang her favorite songs, and all her family and friends were there. She got to open presents, and have a great time. Even though she was really sick and weak, she still smiled and had fun with her usual attitude.
On the last day of April, Katie went into a coma. What the doctors said would happen came true. Kaitlyn's tumor had developed into a brain tumor. By now you could actually see the tumor growing out of her eye. It was larger than a softball.
We also had hospice by now so that she could pass away in the comfort of her home. Although we had to keep the bed downstairs because she couldn't get around well enough, but she was still home with her family.
When Katie's doctor came to our home to check on her, he gave her a few more hours. That was the hardest time. Everyone was told to say their goodbyes. To this day, it is still hard for me to talk about having to tell my little sister that it was okay to go to heaven at such a young age.
Again, Kaitlyn proved the doctors wrong. Katie did not pass away until May 4th, 2007 which was the first day of our local relay for life.
Her battle was not an easy one, and she fought the hardest she could. Throughout her whole life she was always strong, loving, and caring. She never complained about all of the struggles that cancer brought. To this day, Kaitlyn is my hero because of how she handled what she went through. I would not have been able to do the same.
This is her story. Thank you for reading.
In memory of Kaitlyn, and all of those people that lost the battle.
She then went into remission, period of time where you're cancer free, for four years. Sadly, when she was about eight years old, she relapsed. This tumor was the size of a softball, and it sat behind her left eye, and reached down to her mouth. During this time she went through chemotherapy and radiation. Her left eye was removed because she could no longer see out of it, and they also removed her left cheekbone for easier access to the tumor. When they removed the tumor in surgery, a piece of the roof of her mouth came with the tumor, along with a couple teeth.
Because of this, she needed to have a feeding tube put in. During this surgery, they could not intubate her because her face was so deformed and they couldn't get her mouth open enough. Therefore, they had to put a trach in. She had this trach for a few months then which caused her to not talk. I was the only one that could get her to talk.
Later on, her doctor made her a special retainer so that she could start eating solid foods, but she was never able to get completely off her feeding tube. Then, she finally went into remission again, but this remission only lasted a few months.
Her final relapse was when she was nine years old. She had gone in for a normal checkup at Geisinger, and they took samples from her eye socket. In those samples they found recurrent cancer cells. This was a devastating discovery. My sister, Kaitlyn, had by now basically built up an immunity to chemotherapy and radiation. Therefore, these treatments would not work for her.
This left a decision. Kaitlyn and my parents were told that they could start experimental treatments, but that Katie's chances were not good. My sister, at nine years old, made a life-changing choice. Katie told the doctors that she did not want any more needles which meant that she was not going to do the experimental treatments. My parents agreed.
Katie was told what would happen, but she already knew, and she wasn't scared. Soon before she turned ten years old, she was in the hospital. During this hospital stay they threw her a birthday party because no one thought she would make it to her tenth birthday.
Kaitlyn proved them wrong though. She turned ten on April 14th, 2007, and she had another birthday party at home. A singer came and sang her favorite songs, and all her family and friends were there. She got to open presents, and have a great time. Even though she was really sick and weak, she still smiled and had fun with her usual attitude.
On the last day of April, Katie went into a coma. What the doctors said would happen came true. Kaitlyn's tumor had developed into a brain tumor. By now you could actually see the tumor growing out of her eye. It was larger than a softball.
We also had hospice by now so that she could pass away in the comfort of her home. Although we had to keep the bed downstairs because she couldn't get around well enough, but she was still home with her family.
When Katie's doctor came to our home to check on her, he gave her a few more hours. That was the hardest time. Everyone was told to say their goodbyes. To this day, it is still hard for me to talk about having to tell my little sister that it was okay to go to heaven at such a young age.
Again, Kaitlyn proved the doctors wrong. Katie did not pass away until May 4th, 2007 which was the first day of our local relay for life.
Her battle was not an easy one, and she fought the hardest she could. Throughout her whole life she was always strong, loving, and caring. She never complained about all of the struggles that cancer brought. To this day, Kaitlyn is my hero because of how she handled what she went through. I would not have been able to do the same.
This is her story. Thank you for reading.
In memory of Kaitlyn, and all of those people that lost the battle.
A Kicking Baby
Since I was about 19 weeks pregnant, I've been feeling my little one kick. Now my fiance and I can sometimes feel him kick on the outside which is exciting. It's amazing how strong he is already. We're starting to feel his stretches, which is the weirdest thing. Mason gets creeped out when he feels those movements. I can't wait until he gets even stronger.
I know a lot of moms get scared when their baby doesn't move as much. I'm the same way. Jason is extremely active, but when I'm preoccupied, I don't feel him as much. I also believe that he tires himself out and sleeps. I can't help but get worried when he doesn't move as much though.
I've learned a trick that works for me to get him to move. I know that a lot of people say to drink something sugary, but that doesn't seem to work too much. What I do is roll onto my left side and lay half on my stomach and half off. Every time I do this, he moves like crazy.
Also, I think that I don't feel him move all the time yet because in the beginning he was really low. Now he still stays pretty low, but there are times where he kicks higher up. I think it's harder for me to feel it when he's higher up because he has more room. I'm not sure on that though, so let me know if it was that way for you.
I am so excited for him to get stronger, and kick me even harder. He loves to kick at night, so I know he'll be keeping me up, but I love him kicking. It reassures me that he's still healthy in there.
I know a lot of moms get scared when their baby doesn't move as much. I'm the same way. Jason is extremely active, but when I'm preoccupied, I don't feel him as much. I also believe that he tires himself out and sleeps. I can't help but get worried when he doesn't move as much though.
I've learned a trick that works for me to get him to move. I know that a lot of people say to drink something sugary, but that doesn't seem to work too much. What I do is roll onto my left side and lay half on my stomach and half off. Every time I do this, he moves like crazy.
Also, I think that I don't feel him move all the time yet because in the beginning he was really low. Now he still stays pretty low, but there are times where he kicks higher up. I think it's harder for me to feel it when he's higher up because he has more room. I'm not sure on that though, so let me know if it was that way for you.
I am so excited for him to get stronger, and kick me even harder. He loves to kick at night, so I know he'll be keeping me up, but I love him kicking. It reassures me that he's still healthy in there.
Training to be a New Mom
Today I'm taking care of my cousin's two month old baby boy. I'm in training to be a new mom. The longer I spend with this baby, the more excited I get about our baby getting here. I can't wait to be a mommy and take care of him. It's unbelievable how much I love him already.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Eighteen, but Still a Child?
We're renting a room from my parents, and this is extremely hard. My mom still treats me like a child. She tells me to clean the room, and makes it sound like it's a mess. A couple pieces of clothing on the floor means a tornado went through, and a couple pieces of garbage means I'm a slob. She keeps telling me I can't live like this when the baby is here, but it's not messy. She should see other eighteen year old's rooms, and then talk to me about it. It wouldn't be so bad if she wouldn't bug me about it every day. She never gives me a break. I know she's helping us out a lot, but I wish she wouldn't nag me about this and that every day.
Respecting your parents can be so hard!
Respecting your parents can be so hard!
Don't Forget!
Don't forget to think about God today, and thank Him for all the blessings He has given everyone. Every day is full of little miracles. Be on the lookout, and don't forget to recognize the beauty in every day life.
Ants This Year
I might be one of those few people that don't like ants. I especially hate it when they're in the house because I feel like their going to crawl on me in my sleep. That definitely gives me the creeps.
Apparently ants, along with flees, are bad this year. We are finding this out. My parents have ants throughout the house, and they have just now decided to move in to our room. Great! (not really)
If anyone knows a cheap remedy for ants, let us know. They've been driving us insane for over a week.
Apparently ants, along with flees, are bad this year. We are finding this out. My parents have ants throughout the house, and they have just now decided to move in to our room. Great! (not really)
If anyone knows a cheap remedy for ants, let us know. They've been driving us insane for over a week.
Our Baby Boy's Name
In the beginning my fiance, Mason, and I could not think of a boy's name. We had the girl's name set, but we kept argueing about the boy's. When I picked one, he said it was too sissy, and when he picked one, I didn't like it. So, we decided to wait until the ultrasound to see which name we needed to pick. Turns out, it was the one that we didn't have yet.
That day we looked at names, and Mason was stuck on Jason, while I liked Ezekiel. I knew that Ezekiel was out of the bible, but I didn't know that Jason was too. When I looked up bible baby boy names I seen both Jason and Ezekiel on there. This made our decision up for us. His name will be...
Jason Ezekiel
This means, "He that cures with the strength of God." Both of us personally love this name, and we think that it's neat that the two names' meanings created a sentence, which wasn't planned. So far, my parents aren't too thrilled about the name, but from what I heard, most parents don't like the names their kids pick. Let me know on whether that's true or not.
Everything is becoming so real now that we've named him, and seen him on the ultrasound. Now we can't wait to be able to meet him.
That day we looked at names, and Mason was stuck on Jason, while I liked Ezekiel. I knew that Ezekiel was out of the bible, but I didn't know that Jason was too. When I looked up bible baby boy names I seen both Jason and Ezekiel on there. This made our decision up for us. His name will be...
Jason Ezekiel
This means, "He that cures with the strength of God." Both of us personally love this name, and we think that it's neat that the two names' meanings created a sentence, which wasn't planned. So far, my parents aren't too thrilled about the name, but from what I heard, most parents don't like the names their kids pick. Let me know on whether that's true or not.
Everything is becoming so real now that we've named him, and seen him on the ultrasound. Now we can't wait to be able to meet him.
My Pregnancy So Far
At my last appointment, I had gained twelve pounds overall. I was worried that this was too much, so I asked my nurse about it. She told me that this was perfectly normal, and to expect to gain more soon because the baby would be growing about a half a pound to a full pound every week. She said if you're in the normal weight zone, which I am, then you should gain between twenty-five and thirty-five pounds throughout the whole pregnancy.
I haven't had too serious of symptoms yet, but these are what I have so far. I've been told that they think I'm swelling a little bit at the ankles, but I have yet to notice. Who's to say though because I don't periodically look at my ankles to check. In the beginning, I was really constipated, and now I have been having more loose stools. I'm starting to develop back pain when I lay flat on my back, (which I don't do too often because it's not suppose to be healthy). I still get tired earlier in the night, which is weird because I heard you're supposed to get your energy back in the second trimester. I have to go to the bathroom quite a bit, but I only have to go once in the middle of the night, so it's not too extreme yet. Also, I'm finding that I need to eat snacks more often, or I feel sick. Yes, I'm one of those that will have morning sickness the whole pregnancy unfortunately. Finally, I'm definitely rounding out more. As time goes on, I'm becoming more and more obviously pregnant.
Thankfully, I haven't had too bad of symptoms. I'm just enjoying being pregnant. Before I couldn't wait to find out the gender, and now I can't wait for the baby shower!
I haven't had too serious of symptoms yet, but these are what I have so far. I've been told that they think I'm swelling a little bit at the ankles, but I have yet to notice. Who's to say though because I don't periodically look at my ankles to check. In the beginning, I was really constipated, and now I have been having more loose stools. I'm starting to develop back pain when I lay flat on my back, (which I don't do too often because it's not suppose to be healthy). I still get tired earlier in the night, which is weird because I heard you're supposed to get your energy back in the second trimester. I have to go to the bathroom quite a bit, but I only have to go once in the middle of the night, so it's not too extreme yet. Also, I'm finding that I need to eat snacks more often, or I feel sick. Yes, I'm one of those that will have morning sickness the whole pregnancy unfortunately. Finally, I'm definitely rounding out more. As time goes on, I'm becoming more and more obviously pregnant.
Thankfully, I haven't had too bad of symptoms. I'm just enjoying being pregnant. Before I couldn't wait to find out the gender, and now I can't wait for the baby shower!
How We Told Our Parents
As you know, we got kicked out of my fiance's grandmother's house, and we had to move in with my parents. It was a very frantic phone call to my parents from his house because we needed to find a place to go fast. There was a lot of reasons why, but we were pretty much in danger because of certain people, so we couldn't stay there any longer than we needed to. Therefore, telling my parents was not the way I wanted it to be. I was crying and begging them to give us a place to stay, and I just blurted out that I was eleven weeks pregnant. My mom just asked if I was seeing a doctor and everything. She was worried about my and the babies well-being. Now, we're living with my parents, and they're really supportive. My mom and I go yardsaling practically every weekend to find baby stuff for cheap prices. She's really helped us out, and I am so glad that I told her. They are happy to have a grandchild, they just aren't happy that we're so young. In their words though, "There's nothing we can do about it now." So they're just enjoying the miracle on the way.
Now, just recently we told my fiance's dad. We told him on Sunday, the day before Memorial Day. I had left it up to my fiance to tell him because it was his dad, not mine. Therefore, he procrastinated a little bit. In the beginning, we were worried about miscarriage, and then we just figured we'd just tell him when we found out the gender.
What we did was put a little onsie that said "Grandpa's Team", and it was a boys onsie. We also put a profile picture in the gift bag too, with tissue paper on top. The first thing he pulled out was the onsie, and he just said, "What the heck is this?" I believe he thought it was some kind of joke, but then he pulled the picture out. Ironically, all he could do was stare at me with that "look", and not my fiance. He took it pretty well though. He said he wasn't mad, but he was worried about us financially because babies were expensive. He also told us that he'd help any way he could. We told him we weren't asking for his help, we just wanted him to know.
My fiance's dad took it pretty well, but now he acts like we didn't even tell him. He just talks to us like nothing happened. We don't know yet how this will turn out.
My advice to anyone else that is waiting to tell your parents is to be mindful of how much you're showing. I really popped around four months, but with a sweatshirt, or a baggy shirt, I didn't really show until when we told his dad which was at five and a half months pregnant. Then they were kind of like, "I can't believe we didn't notice." Everyone's different though. I would recommend telling them as soon as possible because he wasn't too happy about finding out so late in the pregnancy. It's scary, but it works out in the end. I was seriously surprised to find everyone so supportive, and your family may surprise you too.
Now, just recently we told my fiance's dad. We told him on Sunday, the day before Memorial Day. I had left it up to my fiance to tell him because it was his dad, not mine. Therefore, he procrastinated a little bit. In the beginning, we were worried about miscarriage, and then we just figured we'd just tell him when we found out the gender.
What we did was put a little onsie that said "Grandpa's Team", and it was a boys onsie. We also put a profile picture in the gift bag too, with tissue paper on top. The first thing he pulled out was the onsie, and he just said, "What the heck is this?" I believe he thought it was some kind of joke, but then he pulled the picture out. Ironically, all he could do was stare at me with that "look", and not my fiance. He took it pretty well though. He said he wasn't mad, but he was worried about us financially because babies were expensive. He also told us that he'd help any way he could. We told him we weren't asking for his help, we just wanted him to know.
My fiance's dad took it pretty well, but now he acts like we didn't even tell him. He just talks to us like nothing happened. We don't know yet how this will turn out.
My advice to anyone else that is waiting to tell your parents is to be mindful of how much you're showing. I really popped around four months, but with a sweatshirt, or a baggy shirt, I didn't really show until when we told his dad which was at five and a half months pregnant. Then they were kind of like, "I can't believe we didn't notice." Everyone's different though. I would recommend telling them as soon as possible because he wasn't too happy about finding out so late in the pregnancy. It's scary, but it works out in the end. I was seriously surprised to find everyone so supportive, and your family may surprise you too.
Why I'm Keeping My Baby
When I found out I was pregnant, I was already nine weeks along. Talk about scary! I didn't have a job, and my fiance was delivering papers for twenty dollars every two weeks. We couldn't feed ourselves with that money, let alone a child, or a pregnant mommy. Therefore, we really had to think about what we were going to do about the baby. This ended up in pretty heated arguements, and a lot of tears. I didn't want to have an abortion, but we couldn't eat healthy where we were living. Plus, once his grandmother (she was who we were living with) found out I was pregnant, she would have kicked us out. Neither of us really wanted an abortion. We would have been ecstatic about the baby if we knew we could take care of it, but that wasn't the case. I looked up the costs of an abortion, and boy, it is not cheap! Plus there are complications, and it's just scary in general.
So, in the end, we got kicked out of his grandmother's house, and I called my parents. We then moved in with them. Now they're helping us, and my fiance has a new job, and a truck. When we went to my ob, she told us that everything would work out in the end. I didn't know that that would actually happen, but our life is actually better than it was before we found out we were pregnant. Without this baby, I would not be where I am.
So, in the end, we got kicked out of his grandmother's house, and I called my parents. We then moved in with them. Now they're helping us, and my fiance has a new job, and a truck. When we went to my ob, she told us that everything would work out in the end. I didn't know that that would actually happen, but our life is actually better than it was before we found out we were pregnant. Without this baby, I would not be where I am.
Surprise! We found out the gender of our baby at 20 weeks. We will be having a baby... wait for it... BOY! He weighed eleven ounces in the ultrasound which is normal. They said the average is between ten and fourteen ounces, so he's in the lower average, but still healthy. He's extremely active, moving throughout the whole ultrasound, but we still got pretty good profile pictures. He was definitely not shy about showing which sex he was, which was good. We didn't want it to be a surprise. Now to go out and buy some cute baby boy clothes. Thank goodness for yardsales!
About me
About me: I'm eighteen, and I'm 22 weeks pregnant. I've been engaged to a wonderful man since Christmas of 2011, and we've been together for almost three years. We live with my parents, which is a struggle, but we're making it. I'm currently trying to make money on yahoo contributors. I'm going through the process of trying to find a stay at home job because my fiance works long hours, and I'll be the one taking care of the baby all day. We are very excited to have this baby. Thanks for reading my blog.
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