Monday, December 26, 2011

Third Trimester

We've finally made it to the third trimester! I still have 12 weeks to go, but I am so relieved to have made it this far. I'm continuing to have the constant contractions, and am beginning to feel quite large and uncomfortable. I'm sure I will look back weeks from now and laugh at the fact that I thought I was big. This is strange territory for me. Baby's movements are getting stronger each day, and I can now feel little body parts... I'm not quite sure what body parts I'm feeling, but it's very exciting! I'm scheduled for another ultrasound and Dr. appointment this week. I will update after those.

Here's my most recent belly shot taken last night. 27 weeks 6 days:

And one from Christmas (I didn't realize how tiny our tree was until I saw this photo. I look GINORMOUS!):

Ralph and I are going to go baby shopping this weekend. We haven't bought one single thing yet. We have been feeling nervous and guarded when it comes to buying things. However, we feel that 28 weeks is the first BIG milestone and we want to celebrate accordingly. I am so excited!!! I feel like reality will set in more when the house begins to fill with baby stuff. I'll let you know what we buy. 

I finally finished the crochet baby blanket! I figured out that it took me approximately 30 hours! I have the attention span of a raisin right now, so I'm sure it took way longer than it needed to. I'm pretty proud of it, as it's the first blanket I've ever made. I posted a black and white photo below which doesn't really do it justice, but the colours would give away the baby's gender. Many of our family and friends know the baby's gender also, but some don't want to know so we are trying to keep it a secret for them. 

We had a good Christmas. We slept in til' 10am, since this will be the last year we will be able to do so. I got lots of nice things, and tons of chocolate! Can't wait to have a little one to buy for next year.

I will try to update next weekend after the ultrasound, appointment, and shopping. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and have a wonderful new year.

Amy

Monday, December 19, 2011

27 Weeks

Well baby has decided to hang out for another week. I'm 27 weeks today! I'm still getting constant contractions, around 4-5 an hour, but I'm hanging in there. I can't believe it's only a week til' Christmas! Since I have to take it really easy I haven't been able to do any Christmas shopping. My husband Ralph has been such a trooper; he went out and bought all the gifts... even for himself. Ha! Well at least he knows he will like them. He's also been really good about doing all the housework and cooking. I really am so lucky to have such a wonderful husband! Of course I feel super guilty about not being able to help with these things.... well the cleaning anyway. Those of you that know me know I don't cook. Below is my most recent belly shot - 26 Weeks 5 Days.



















My options for entertainment are limited these days. I spend a lot of time on the internet, watching TV, and crocheting. I'm currently crocheting little peanut a blanket. I'll post a pic when it's done. I'm just winging the design, and it looks pretty good if I don't say so myself. I recently discovered this app for my iPad called Stumble Upon, it's also available on iPhone and theres a website. I get kinda bored checking Facebook or Twitter every 5 minutes, so I find myself looking up random things on the internet. This website/app finds those random things that suit your interests, such as video's, photos, news articles, and websites for you. I highly recommend you check it out!

- Amy

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Pregnant!

Well, its been a while since I've updated my blog and a lot has happened in the meantime. I'm going to bore you with all the details of my current pregnancy..... so be forewarned. I took Clomid from June 15th-19th. This is the 3rd time I've taken Clomid. I took it first in 2009 when I got pregnant with my girls on the first round. Then I took one round in March, got pregnant and had an early miscarriage. So, when I took it again this time I really didn't think I would get pregnant a third time on one round. On July 9th I worked a day shift and had been feeling kind of off all day. I also had quite a bit of pain in my left flank. I took a pregnancy test at work which was negative, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I could possibly be pregnant. I took a home pregnancy test later that night and this is what I got.

To a normal, non obsessed person, the vvvveeeeryy faint line may be missed. But no, I did not miss that line. I quickly showed my husband, who said there may be a line there but he wasn't sure. Ughh, MEN! I just don't think he wanted to get his hopes up. So of course I had to buy more tests! I took this one 8 1/2 hours later.

My husband couldn't deny there was a line there this time, albeit still faint. Over the next few days I kept taking tests and the line continued to darken, and I of course had to take the clear blue digital test that says "pregnant" or "not pregnant". It said PREGNANT!! yay!! My heart skipped a beat when I read that.

Now that I knew I was pregnant, I couldn't help but wonder why I had so much pain in my left side... hmmm... My nurse brain immediately thought ectopic pregnancy! On July 11th my HCG was 42. This single number doesn't mean anything as the number has to start somewhere. The main thing is that the number at least doubles in 48 hours. I had repeat bloodwork on July 13th; my HCG was then 105. It more than doubled! Woot!

I had an ultrasound done on July 12th. I was only 4 weeks 1 day pregnant at the time so it was far too early to see any signs of a baby. However, we discovered what was causing me so much pain on the left side. I had an 8cm ovarian cyst, likely caused by hyper stimulation of the ovary by the Clomid. From what I can gather, the average size of an ovary is around 3-5cm. So this thing was around twice the size of my ovary. The ultrasound tech had the radiologist review the findings right away. Within a few minutes I was told to register in Emergency because cysts this big need to be surgically removed. Of course I was freaked out! So I headed on over to visit with my ER folk and waited to see the doc. He consulted with another doc. The consensus was that being pregnant, my growing uterus would push on the cyst not allowing it to twist or get bigger and would eventually dissolve. That was a relief; I definitely didn't want to go through surgery.

I continued to have my HCG checked over the next couple of weeks and it continued to double. I then had an appointment with my reproductive endocrinologist on July 26th. She did a quick ultrasound which found our little peanut was at the perfect size, but no heartbeat yet which we were told was ok at this point. She also had a look at my cyst. She chuckled as she explained to my husband and I that it was like those Matryoshka dolls......there was a mini cyst inside the big one.... awesome.... She also wasn't concerned about it and said it would eventually be reabsorbed.

I had another ultrasound done on August 15th, I was 9 weeks at the time. Our little peanut measured perfectly with a strong heartbeat! Yay!! Everything was going well until I hit about 14 weeks. I started to get the same feelings I had with my twin girls, a lot of pressure and frequent uterine tightening especially with standing. I continued to work, but was finding I needed to sit more often due to these feelings. Its kind of difficult to find time to sit working in an ER, so I knew I was not going to be able to work much longer.

On November 3rd (2o weeks 3 days) I was having increased pressure and a lot of uterine tightening. Given our past experience I was quite worried and went into labour and delivery to be seen. The doc checked me over and everything seemed ok at that point. The tightening was chalked down to braxton hicks. However, due to my history of preterm labour and the fact that my symptoms were exactly the same as with my girls, the doc thought it would be best if I stopped working.

So, I took it really easy from then on. However, on November 18th (22 weeks 4 days) the braxton hicks increased again. Back into labour and delivery I went. This time the monitor picked up the mini contractions and the nurse could feel them. The doc diagnosed me with irritable uterus, which i self diagnosed myself with in my pregnancy with my girls. I was admitted to keep an eye on the contractions and to make sure I wasn't going into labour.

I was just discharged home on Dec 12th. During my 3 1/2 week hospital stay I had at least 4-5 braxton hicks contractions an hour which would sometimes pick up in frequency. At one point they were every 3 minutes for 8 hours straight. I thought for sure that I was in labour, but apparently not!

So, now I'm home taking it VERY easy! I continue to have at least 4-5 BH contractions an hour. This just seems to be the norm for me. Its just physically and emotionally exhausting having them all the time. My belly hurts from my uterus contracting constantly and I always worry about the fact that I could go into labour at any minute. But, I'm 26 weeks 2 days pregnant today and I am so thankful to have made it this far!!

And now, some belly pics....

21 Weeks 1 Day
23 Weeks 5 Days
25 Weeks 1 Day

I'm sorry this post is so long, but I had 6 months of pregnancy to update you all on! My posts from here on out will be much shorter! I have some ultrasound pictures that I will scan onto my computer and post in the next little while.

We would like to thank you all for your continued love and support!

- Amy

Friday, July 8, 2011

Stem Cell Research


I know there is a huge debate on the use of stem cells, and I can understand both sides of the argument. However, being a health care professional I tend to lean toward favouring stem cell research. I read two stories today showing how useful they can be in health care. One story is about Mr. Beyene, a 36 year old who had an inoperable cancerous tumor obstructing his airway. Scientists constructed an entirely new trachea using a "scaffold" and Mr. Beyene's own stem cells from his bone marrow. The new trachea was then implanted into the patient. Because the trachea was constructed from the patients own stem cells, there is no need for him to take immuno-suppressant drugs. The use of stem cells also completely eliminates the need for a donor patient. Amazingly, the new trachea only took a few days to make! You can read the full story here.

The second story I read was regarding a study on the use of stem cells to relieve angina when other methods are ineffective. The study included over 100 people and involved harvesting the participants own stem cells and injecting them directly back into the damaged areas of their heart. The goal was to grow new blood vessels in the heart to bypass the damaged vessels, increasing blood supply to the heart, and ultimately relieving associated chest pain. Within a few months many of the participants reported feeling better than they had in years. Researchers say that it is not clear whether the stem cells are producing new blood vessels or relieving the chest pain through other means. The results of the study justify the need for larger trials. You can read the fully story here.


While the use of stem cells can be greatly beneficial to our health, it is frightening to think what could be done if they are placed in the wrong hands. In 2005 Stem cell scientist Irving Weismann proposed creating mice with almost fully human brains. He stated his experiment could provide insight into how the human brain develops and how degenerative brain diseases such as Parkinson's progress. An informal ethics committee at Stanford University endorsed the proposal, stating if any mice showed human-like qualities they would be killed. The thought of a human brain being trapped inside an animal is positively frightening! Scientists are constantly blurring the line between research for health benefits and creating a whole new species... Chimera comes to mind...

Read here for information on stem cells.

- A


True Blood


I just started watching True Blood a few days ago and it IS SO GOOD!! I watched part of a recent episode last week and thought it looked interesting, so I started from season 1 this week. I didn't have much interest in it before because I thought it would be like Twilight. I cannot stand the Twilight series! The actors are horrible and so cutesy poo. I actually laughed out loud in the theatre when I was dragged along to Eclipse. True Blood is completely different!! The show stars Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, and Alexander Skarsgard. These actors are great, and it doesn't hurt that they are easy on the eye. So, go watch it... NOW!!


- A

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Happy Anniversary


Today is my 4th wedding anniversary, and I have been with my husband for 8 years in total. The time has gone by so fast; I cannot believe what we have been through together in these past few years. I love you so much! xoxoxoxo



Thursday, June 30, 2011

Photoshop Fail!


I just learned yesterday that Newsweek's latest issue includes a photoshopped photo of Princess Diana on it's cover. Newsweek's Editor in chief Tina Brown is responsible for the distasteful photograph, as well as a corresponding story detailing what Princess Diana's life would be like now, at age 50. I cannot believe that she thought it was appropriate to just dress her up like a little doll. She put a modern outfit on her, and added a few wrinkles to her face. This is so disrespectful to Princess Diana and her family.

This is obviously not the first time that photoshop has been misused in media. Women are constantly being edited to look skinnier, putting unreasonable expectations on young ladies.

Below Ralph Lauren over did it with editing on model Filippa Hamilton's waist. The photo on the left is unedited, while the photo on the right shows her with a waistline smaller than her head. The photo is actually comical because her size is just ridiculous.


Below are some more photoshop fails.... enjoy!










- A

Friday, June 24, 2011

Blah Blah Blah....

So, I've kind of neglected my blog this last week. I've been working, and I'm just so freakin' tired on my days off. My husband is watching the NHL Draft right now, and it's kinda cool to see the Winnipeg Jets have returned. It'll be nice to have another Canadian team. I've gotta say though the draft is reeeeeally boring to watch! It's just so long drawn out; they could condense 4 hours into 1.

Speaking of boring, I watched the premiere of Combat Hospital the other night, and I didn't even make it through the whole episode. I could go into a detailed review.... but I really don't feel like it. I just don't like it plain and simple; It was ridiculous. In the beginning of the episode this new physician attempted to intubate a patient without success and didn't think to place a chest tube... then his next patient he intubated them quickly and easily and knew everything he needed to order for the patient. Wow! He learns quickly... Pffft! So unrealistic! I'm debating whether I will attempt to watch one more episode. Sometimes it takes me a few episodes of a new show to warm up to it.

I'm going to leave you with the trailer for Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon. I can't wait to see this in 3D.


- A

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Vancouver riots: A repeat of 1994


I would be lying if I told you I wasn't sad or disappointed with the outcome of the game. The Canucks lost 0-4 to the Bruins. I feel like the Canucks started off strong and actually outshot the Bruins 37-21 in the game. Roberto Luongo of course cracked under pressure as usual, but he can't take all the blame. Daniel Sedin who ranked highest in points in the regular season only came up with 2 goals and 2 assists in this 7 game series. His brother Henrik, who topped in points last year netted one measly goal in the series. Now, I love the Sedin twins as much as the next Canuck fan but that's appalling!

What's more appalling than the Canucks performance in game 7 is the reaction of our fans! Over 100,000 fans lined the streets of Vancouver to watch the game on big screen TVs. When the final buzzer rang things got ugly. People flipped cars and torched them, started fights, tipped porta-potties, and smashed windows forcing Police to use Tear Gas not used since the 1994 riots in Vancouver. Riots in 94' were triggered by the Canucks loss to the New York Rangers in game 7 of the final series. I am embarrassed to be a Canuck fan when people act out like this; it gives us a bad name. I just hope that nobody is seriously hurt by the idiocracy.

Despite the outcome of the game and the ensuing riots, I am still proud of the Canucks for making it to the finals. I'm a true Canuck fan and stick with them through the good and the bad.

- A

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

YouTube Talent

I spend a fair bit of time on YouTube looking at random shite. Most of the time I end up far from what I originally intended on searching, but that's how I discover hidden gems. 2 cases in point: Karmin and FreddeGredde

Karmin consists of 2 friends Amy and Nick from Boston, massachusetts. They cover popular songs in their unique style, and let me tell you that girl can RAP!!



Fredde Gredde consists of Swedish musician Fredrik Larsson. He performs covers, playing all of the instruments himself. He also has some original tunes, and classifies his genre as Progressive Rock. His sound is truly original and unique; I became an instant fan!

Covers:



Original (ok somebody else is playing drums, but he's playing all the other instruments):


So I wouldn't exactly call this a "gem"... Do you guys remember that guy Chris Crocker who made a YouTube video crying over people making fun of Britney Spears a few years ago?

This Guy:

Weellllll, he's now making "music". OMG! Here is one of his songs....

- A

Game 7!


We are just minutes away from the puck drop on Game 7. After the Canucks performance on Monday, I have to admit I am nervous. BUT they are back home, which is where they play best. I wish that we were in Vancouver right now; the energy must be incredible. They are estimating there's around 100,000 people in the streets of Vancouver. Wow! My husband told me they showed them "lubing up" the cup earlier... haha... polishing it I guess... Lets go Canucks!!! The cup is ours!!!



- A

Mind your step

Swedish artist Erik Johansson has created this amazing optical illusion in Stockholm. I am a huge fan of art and photography, as well as optical illusions. I also love the large scale of this project.


I enjoy art that takes me some time to process it. For this reason, I am fond of the works of M.C. Escher and Salvador Dali.

M.C. Escher:



Salvador Dali:


Stare at the centre dot, and the colours will disappear:



- A

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Random good tunes

Enjoy :)













- A

New Music: The Game Feat. Lil' Wayne - Red Nation


This is a new song from the Game featuring Lil' Wayne. It's one of the tracks on his new album R.E.D., which is set for release August 23, 2011.

Nursing/Medical Blogs

I read a few nursing and medical blogs, and wanted to share a few with you:
I like to keep up with the craziness in their Emergency Rooms. Funny enough, most of the scenarios mentioned sound very similar to the things I deal with at my job. I think my nursing peeps would appreciate these blogs, so head on over....

Speaking of nursing.... I got to press the "shock" button on a cardioversion the other day. I know, it's only a button but it was super cool. For
those of you who do not know what cardioversion is, it's basically zapping an irregular heart rhythm back into a normal, regular rhythm. I've seen a couple done before, but never got to charge up the machine or do the zapping.... "Clear" aaaaand "ZAP!" :) Have I mentioned how much I LOVE my job?? I am learning so much, and get to do a lot of cool stuff!



- A

Disappointed but not surprised

Well it looks like we are going to game 7. I can't say as though I am surprised as Luongo is like a sieve in Boston, and Tim Thomas is a wall!! However, I'm confident that the Canucks can pull it off in game 7 Wednesday at home!

- A

Monday, June 13, 2011

Shameless


Can I just say how amazing this show is?? None of my friends had heard about it; I just discovered it on Showtime. I started watching it a few weeks ago and thought the whole scenario and characters sounded familiar. I then remembered that I had watched the UK version of it a few years ago, which was also very good. It stars William H. Macy as a deadbeat father of six. He's an alcoholic, collects disability cheques, and is always looking for new ways to cheat the system. I highly recommend it; you can find information about it here.


This show also got me thinking about other remakes, such as the Millennium Series. These 3 books written by Stieg Larsson were made into movies in Swedish with English subtitles. The movies are absolutely amazing. They are very graphic, but well written. At first I thought the subtitles would be bothersome, but I got so into the movies that I didn't notice I was reading them after a while. So, now I have found out that they are remaking the first film "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" in English. It will be released sometime at the end of this year and stars Daniel Craig. I have no doubt that it will be good, and I really like Daniel craig but the remake seems unnecessary. Why mess with a good thing? The original is so good! Another example of needless remakes is "Death at a Funeral". The original British version is hilarious and I won't even bring myself to watch the American remake.


What do you think? Are the American, Hollywood versions of these movies better than the originals? If so, Why?

- A

Vancouver Canucks vs. Boston Bruins Game 6

My husband and I are getting ready to watch game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals. My husband was born and raised in British Columbia, and grew up a Canuck fan. We lived in BC together for around 6 years; I went to Nursing School there so I too am a big fan. We are pumped for the game!! The series is 3-2 in favor of the Canucks, so they have 2 chances to take the Cup. Obviously we are hoping they win it tonight! LETS GO CANUCKS!!!!



Watch the game live within Canada here.


- A

Last wishes of a cancer sufferer

I've been reading over the past few days about this young girl, Alice Pyne. She is a 15 year old girl who is fighting cancer. She has written a bucket list of the things she would like to do before she passes away. Her story is inspirational, and brought me to tears reading her blog. Alice has made it very clear she is not looking for money, but appreciates any help in achieving the items on her bucket list. One of the things on her list was to see Take That, and she got to see them this past weekend. I'm so happy for her! She is redirecting any offers of money to be donated to cancer research.

I encourage you all to head on over to her blog and show her some support.

- A

Lets see where this goes...

This is my first ever blog post, and I'm not entirely sure what I will be writing about yet. I guess I could start off by telling you a little about myself. I'm a 24 year old married gal living in Canada... you can call me A. I'm a Registered Nurse that just graduated last year, and I'm currently working in an Emergency Department. My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for almost 3 years now. I have been diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. I got pregnant with Clomid in June 2009 with twins girls. Our lives were shattered when they were born too early in November 2009. I was 6 months pregnant when I went into preterm labour. Chloe and Zoe were in the NICU for 2 weeks before they lost their struggle. We miss them so so much, and think about them everyday. We have not given up though; I took Clomid again this past March and got pregnant again on the first try. However, that ended in miscarriage very early on. Soooo.... we are back at it again. I'll keep you updated.

I have so many interests that I think it would be too hard for me to focus on just one.... so I'll probably just write a little about all of them and see where this goes. I'm obviously interested in Nursing... as well as medicine in general. I have actually been discussing my desire to attend medical school with my husband recently. Don't get me wrong, I love nursing I just crave more! I'm constantly reading textbooks and researching. I thought I could share some "interesting" stories from my job, and perhaps things I'm learning along the way. I've only been working as a Nurse for 10 months, but feel like I have learned waaaay more than I ever learned in school!

My husband and I are huge movie fans. I'm going to try and get him to help me do some movie reviews. We actually just saw "X-Men: First Class" last night; it was very good! It was nice to learn the origins of the characters. I obviously didn't read the comics as a kid, so didn't know how the X-Men came to be. I also have some regular TV shows that I watch. I enjoy Nurse Jackie, Grey's Anatomy, Shameless, Mythbusters, Intervention, America's Next Top Model, Little Britain.... There are many more, I just can't think of them right now.

Photography has become a major interest for me in the last couple of years. I eventually plan on selling some of my work on here so stay tuned! I also enjoy scrapbooking, sewing, painting, and making jewelry. I suppose you could call me crafty.

I'm fairly techy, enjoy computers and LOVE my iPad!! I am a HUGE fan of Apple products. I will never go back to a Microsoft computer again! As I mentioned, this blog thing is new to me so bare with me. I'll learn how to add links, photos, etc soon so I can make this blog interesting. My husband and I love video games. We have a PS3 and a Wii. My favourite game is Call of Duty: Black Ops for PS3 ... and I'm not afraid to tell you that I'm pretty friggin' good at it :D

Ever since I gave birth to my daughters I've been struggling a little bit with my weight and body image. I'm 5'4" and weigh around 140lbs. I know, I know I'm within a healthy bmi, buuuut I am NOT happy with my body. I know, I know what woman is happy with their body?? Anyway, I plan on starting to eat better (I eat too much junk food!), and exercising again. I've played soccer since I was 5 years old, but haven't had too much time for it these past few years. So, here's hoping I get the motivation to head to the gym and eat better!

Wow! I didn't mean to blab on for so long. Anyway, you now know a little about me now and hopefully you'll keep coming back.

- A