Bed Rest

I posted about being on bed rest for the weekend and realized I hadn't really explained why. Mainly because I don't want to be that TMI person on Facebook (you know the ones I'm talking about) and also because I'm still not sure how I ended up here exactly.

On Friday night Justin and I were driving home from Target when a car cut us off. In order to avoid an accident J had to slam on the brakes. As he did (I was looking down) my head jerked a little, but more so  it felt like something in my lower belly had been ripped away. Kind of as if everything was Velcro stuck to a board with matching pieces and something had been quickly pulled from said board. the rest of the evening there was dull pain there, but I didn't think much of it so I went to bed. The next morning my neck was incredibly sore, but so was my stomach. I called my doctor and gotten the on-call doctor, but he said that unless there was a large amount of blood (I only had a little) I shouldn't worry. As the day wore on, so did the pain. Except that randomly it felt as though my muscles *down there* would cramp up and then release. As the pain continued I grew a little more worried and tried to do some research but everything I read freaked me out. By 4pm the pain was pretty strong so I went to the ER.

I've got to admit, I'm not much of a crier. I was when I was younger, but since people made fun of me for it I learned to toughen up and am known in my family for "being heartless" because I cry so little. But I'll tell you what, when you hurt like that and you're worried about your baby, you can't help but cry. I cried when I checked in to the ER, I cried when they were taking my vitals, I cried when they checked for bébé's heartbeat (but that was a relieved cry). I was just a ball of nerves.

They went through the basics checking me and the baby. He was in perfect shape. For the most part I was too. But after they did an ultrasound they found what is called a venous pool or placental lake. Basically, it's a pool of blood (mine specifically being 2cm) between the placenta and uterus. While these aren't uncommon (they happen in about 18% of pregnancies) because of my accident they wanted me to be observed. Lucky for me, they weren't going to do it at the hospital. They sent me home with the charge of staying in bed/rested as much as possible (I'm breaking the rules by going to sacrament meeting) until I can see my Dr. tomorrow morning and get a follow-up ultrasound to make sure it hasn't gotten larger. Apparently these things don't harm the baby (thank goodness) except that if they get too large they can restrict growth and cause low birth weight.

So here I am hanging out in bed shirking my responsibilities (who am I kidding, it's nice to have a mandatory break from Primary, as wrong as that sounds) and reading up on placental lakes as well as a few novels I've neglected over the past few days. If you're interested in learning about them, here is a link I've found useful: http://www.perinatology.com/Q&A/qanda37.htm

Bébé Buisson

When Justin was on the mission he caught a lot of flack because it was 2005-2007, he is from Texas AND has the last name of Bush. One ward in particular was ESPECIALLY cold towards him (it was Calais, the unofficial HQ of the communist party in France and most members were part of that political party) to the point  where he asked the mission president if he could get a new nametag with the French equivelant of Bush, Buisson, printed instead of his actual last name. The mission president said he would if Justin ever got beaten up. Needless to say, he stayed Elder Bush the full two years.

When we went to have our anatomy scan/gender ultrasound we I was really nervous. I had heard of stories of non-compliant babies who don't "show the goods" and leave parents and stenographers guessing until he/she comes out. It's not that I cared whether it would be a boy or girl, I just wanted to know so I could plan ahead. And by plan ahead, I mean make seriously cute onesies and such.

So away we went to the doctor's and were quickly taken back to see. Unfortunately Justin didn't get to sit by me so I couldn't see his reactions. I was in one corner and he was sitting in the opposite corner of the room while we both looked up at the tv in the corner we both faced. I really am of the conclusion that the reason why most parents, okay, maybe just myself, cry during visits like this is because a) I'm glad I didn't do something to kill my baby and b) the nerves are too great.

The sonographer got started and to be honest, neither of us could clearly tell what we were looking at. But we saw the heartbeat and she did audio so we could hear that he has a regular heart beat (which was a concern to me since I don't). Okay, fear number 1 over. Next the sonographer began measuring the different parts of the body and labeling them for the doctor. I couldn't really tell what each was supposed to mean except for leg and arm, but whatever, there was a heartbeat.

She double checked and said, "you want to know the sex, right?" "Yep" I said and she had to work a bit for it. Eventually she got the legs to open and it seemed relatively clear what this kid would be. An awesome little boy! Needless to say, he does not take after his semi-exhibitionist maternal uncles and cousins, but that's okay. I cried a little. At first I thought it was a boy and I wanted it to be a boy. But then I thought, "But girls are really fun and cute too!" so then I wanted and thought it was a girl. The closer we got to finding out though I thought, "It's going to be a boy. Even though I kind of want a girl." Honestly, all I wanted was a healthy baby and that was good enough for me. Before the stenographer came in I made Justin give me his last-minute predictions and after I said boy he said, "well, I'll say girl. One of us has to be right then."

When the doctor came in and was a male Justin finally felt a bit more at ease to address his concern with the doctor that he hadn't shared with the female stenographer of myself. "Are you sure it's a boy? I just don't see it." The doctor laughed and walked to him and said laughing, "Your son is only 18 weeks. And about this big," holding out his hands. "That means it is only about this big. Give him a break. He's only a little guy right now."

While I won't lie, now I'm afraid they might be wrong (especially since after telling coworkers several came up saying, "Yeah, they said my sister-in-law/cousin/pastor's wife was going to have a boy and he ended up being a she.") I'm still excited that for right now, bébé Buisson will more than likely be a boy. Because now I get to start "planning ahead". I mean, look at how cute these onesies are!!

Spilling the Beans

Well, the secret's out. Today in ward council after I left early to set up chairs in the Primary room one of the brothers whose wife I am good friends with spilled the beans. He had been talking about how it was unnecessary to send EQ brothers to set up for RS activities when it would only be a table and a few chairs if the sisters were capable of doing it on their own. While I agreed with him, I left a bit peeved because I had sat there for almost an hour talking about non-essential stuff and we hadn't even gotten to discuss the things you should be talking about in ward council. But this poor brother was afraid he had hurt my feelings so he piped up and said to Justin "I didn't mean your wife. I don't mind helping her set stuff up in the Primary. I mean, she's pregnant."

This was the front of a postcard we sent out to extended family

Yep! The word's out! It seems more people are interested in sharing my news than I am (not that I'm not happy, I just find that I'm kind of a private person when it comes to certain things; plus I'm not a huge fan of unsolicited advice). He tried to quickly brush it over, but the Bishop and his counselors who didn't know clutched on to it and wouldn't let it slip until Justin (the ward mission leader and another regular at w.c.) confirmed. I've slowly accepted the fact that by the end of the day my pregnancy would be the ward's worst kept secret. I guess it's about time; I'm 18 weeks and we have "the big reveal" this week.

I think my natural worrier tendencies have been amplified to an abnormal level during my pregnancy. Even though with my previous two ultrasounds the doctor kept saying the baby looked very healthy and very active (and a bit larger than my due date would suggest) and the last appointment when we finally heard the baby's heartbeat confirmed the baby was still in there, I can't help but worry about EVERYTHING. "I'm only going to take a sip of this Coke Zero." "I'm going to tough out this headache and not take the Tylenol." "Crap! How can I NOT sleep on my stomach?!". But early on in the pregnancy Justin gave me a blessing and reminded me that Heavenly Father was in charge of this and that whatever happened is what He knew was best for us and this baby. So when I start freaking out about whether or not I should have cleaned the bathroom with XYZ cleaner, I just remind myself that whatever happens is as it's supposed to be.

A few funny things about this pregnancy though:

We've been referring to the baby by whatever fruit/vegetable it is closest to in size. (we use this chart)  For example, two weeks ago the baby was equivalent in size to an avocado. Thus this post on Justin's wall the other week.

It's supposed to be giving a high five, but my Microsoft Paint skills are pretty pathetic.

 We're big on high fives. So whenever something awesome happens, we give the baby "high fives" too.

While I have had an abnormal appreciation for salt and vinegar and pickle chips, what this kid has wanted most is anything spicy.

I have been referred to as both a "young mom" (mostly from people at work) and an "old mom" (I won't say by who). Who knew 29 was such a divisive age to have your first child?

I guess my fears, fascination and such with this pregnancy is based on the fact that I honestly felt this was something that wouldn't happen and I'm just worried it will be taken away before I get the chance to experience it. As a bit of background, I've been off of birth control for more than two years because my previous OB/GYN said I had so many fertility issues that it would be impossible for me to get pregnant without medical assistance. Justin is still in school for 2.5 more years and the insurance we have through work, while awesome, doesn't cover IVF treatments, so I just pushed it in the back of my mind and while praying it would happen, began losing hope that it would. With two+ years of nothing happening, I figured that my doctor was correct. So Justin and I have been serving in the temple for the last several months. I figured, "well, what better way to fill our time since we don't have a kid to fill in our time not occupied by school, work and callings?" Lo and behold, that's all it took to get a little bit more divine assistance!

So now that the word is out, what are your bets for baby? Boy or girl? We would be happy with either. Justin's felt the whole time that it would be a girl. I've gone back and forth... We'll see on Wednesday!