26 Weeks and Counting

Time is flying by and before I know it, summer will be over and I will be anxiously awaiting our newest addition.

Our gender reveal picture,,,the balloon popped almost immediately so glad I was able to capture this moment!

What has it been like to be pregnant with baby #2 and having lupus?  TIRED but I do not think this is a unique feature of having lupus.  I attribute it to having a toddler and a full time job.  So far I can't complain about much other than being tired and still not being able to sleep.  Typical pregnancy problems such as peeing every hour is annoying and probably the culprit of the lack of sleep.  During my first pregnancy, at 26 weeks you barely could tell I was pregnant.  Now, you can tell and so can I! My walk is slower and my bending is not as graceful. Again, not unexpected and not related to Lupus.

Two trips to the ice cream shop in one day at the beach!  Little sprout is really making out on these pregnancy whims.

This summer we have made it to the beach twice so far.  Staying out of the sun and slathered in sunblock helped keep any flare activity at bay.  I am grateful to be able to enjoy the beach while staying safe and healthy thanks to my wonderful family.  I can say walking across the hot sinking sand is not fun, especially when you weigh like 20lbs more than your used to weighing.

Trying not to buy too much but I could not resist this baby jogger city mini double when I found it used!

So far I have bought three outfits for baby.  I am really trying not to get sucked into buying tons of clothes knowing she will out grow things so fast.  I went through Sprout's old clothes and was able to reuse a bunch of newborn and infant items which is awesome and puts off the bittersweet idea of donating his little outfits.  Considering this is our last baby (fingers crossed) and this one is a girl, my husband and I decided to throw a party!  We are hosting a sprinkle for baby girl so our closest friends and family can celebrate and share in our excitement.  I have heard lots of feedback regarding this sprinkle, and I never thought it would be so controversial, but apparently people do not like the idea of a celebrating a second baby.  I don't see why we shouldn't have a party to celebrate the new addition. All parents are excited for their new babies and should be able to celebrate it anyway they choose.  Haters not welcome! I will update with our co-ed sprinkle details once the date gets closer

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26 weeks and healthy!

So, so far so good.  Monthly OB and high risk appointments continue.  Lupus check ups at Johns Hopkins every 6 weeks continue to return positive testing and show no signs of lupus activity. Thanks to lupus, I did have to see a pediatric cardiologist to make sure baby girl's heart is not affected by my disease, which it's not.  We took our hospital tour and we are super happy with the hospital, staff and accommodations.  Let the final trimester countdown begin!

The Longest Week

One week from today we have our anatomy scan for baby #2.  I do not remember the anticipation being this bad with my son. This pregnancy feels very similar to my last one or better. The second trimester is wonderful since, for the most part, the morning sickness has passed and my appetite is back to normal.  I have gained 1 pound so far and I am at 19 weeks.  I have had dreams about having a second boy but they could just be my brain remembering the last pregnancy and since having a boy is all I know.  My son refers to the baby as his little brother.  So the wait continues.  Next week I get to fill this box with pink or blue balloons for my son to open.  Either way, we are excited to see our little one and hope they are growing big and strong.

Sister or Brother? Time will tell...

I realized that since I had to keep this pregnancy a secret for so long I was in some kind of denial or non-acceptance.  Part of that meant not taking any pictures of my bump.  With my first son, I kept a pregnancy journal documenting each week and all the changes.  This time I have done nothing. Is this normal? Is this what its like to be the second child?  From here on out, I promise to embrace this experience as I did before.  To take pictures, eat better (or try), sing and dance and smile!

19 weeks

Lupus and Sprout Times Two

Today I am about 17 weeks 5 days pregnant with baby #2.  About 10 weeks ago I got sick, very sick.  It was the kind of sick I haven't talked about or experienced in about two years.  I was exhausted and stayed in bed for days.  I was so sick I could not eat or drink.  The headaches were out of control.  I made two trips to my primary care practitioner who told me it was most likely allergies.  After the second time of being told to continue taking my allergy medicine I decided to reach out to my Lupus doctor.  I knew something was not right but I didn't know what.

The following day at work, I ate my normal oatmeal for breakfast and promptly ran to the bathroom and threw it up.  A first for me.  That is when it started to click. On the way home I stopped by the local grocery store and bought a pregnancy test.  I was less than surprised when it came back positive.  My husband was in disbelief.

After I had my son and was diagnosed with Lupus, I was told the only birth control I could be prescribed was the Mirena IUD due to the hormones used.  Today I still have that Mirena IUD.  Epic Fail.  What are the odds that someone with a IUD and Lupus gets pregnant?  About .02%.  My Lupus doctor told us she has never had this happen in her 32 years of practicing medicine.  My OB told me my case was so rare she would be discussing with the other doctors in her practice and I was promptly set up with a high risk specialist.

What is the hardest secret you have had to keep? Not discussing this with my friends/family was very difficult however the odds of a miscarriage for pregnancy with Lupus is high and that is even more elevated when you throw in a faulty IUD which cannot be removed or you would abort your fetus.

The decision to have a second child was taken away for my husband and myself and this was forced upon us.  We are so grateful.  This was a decision we could not agree on or decide what to do.  The complications were scary and the risks didn't always seem worth it.  Now that we do not have a choice (and I know that some people think we still had a choice to make but in our eyes we did not.  Not going through with this pregnancy was not an option) its been a relief.  The hard part was decided for us by a greater power.  Now we just have to roll with the punches.

Those punches include routine doctor visits with 3 doctors every 4 weeks until they increase to once a week.  The good thing being I get lots of special attention and lots of testing and sonograms.  So far so good.  No signs of that pesky Lupus.  Now that I am out of my first trimester, I am feeling great.  Less tired, only 1 lbs of weight gain and no more vomiting.

And so my journey with Lupus and Sprout(s) continues.  Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.