It is GEORGIA GAMEDAY, err’ybody!  I have been daydreaming about dressing my children up in full-blown Georgia Bulldawg gear on game day since attending my first UGA football game my freshman year of college (8 years ago!).  I can’t believe in just 2 short months, this is actually going to be a reality.  I’m already having so much fun collecting all kinds of Baby Dawg outfits for my future Bulldog. 🙂

They really make football jersey onesies?! 🙂

I'm not even sure if we are going to give baby pacifiers, but these are too cute to resist!

The Bulldogs are playing at the Dome in the ATL tonight- wear red and don’t forget to cheer them on. 🙂 Goooo DAWGS!

BABY UPDATE:

Our doctor’s appointment couldn’t have gone better today- all of my contractions have stopped, PHEW!! We got all of our test results back and everything is just as it should be.  The second Downs Syndrome test came back negative, as well as the Glucose Intolerance Test (thank goodness, no special diets!).  I apparently have better (higher) iron levels than most people so that means I should have lots of energy (um, should being the key word, because I have never in my life been so lazy), and I have gained two more pounds (for a total of 8 now!!).   My uterus is measuring 1 centimeter small; it should be about 30 centimeters, and it is 29, however, she said 2 or 3 centimeters above or below the “norm” is perfectly natural- nothing to be concerned with.  I have my next doctor’s visit (the 32 week appointment) in 12 days- and she told me I could be looking forward to more blood tests (oh, goodie 😉 ).  She also told me it was time to find a pediatrician!

I am so thankful all of the crazy contractions have stopped, and even more thankful that we have made it to 30 weeks!

Baby Mielke is now the size of a Cabbage!

He now weighs in at 3 lbs and is about 15 3/4 in long!

FOSTER CHILDREN UPDATE:

We just got off the phone with our girls- they sound great.  They had just finished shopping for new beds for all of them, and the oldest was stoked because she gets her own room.  🙂

I also talked to our oldest foster son for about an hour and a half today.  He’s 12 and moved home with his mom in February.  We miss him and his brother and sister so much and think about them every single day, so it is always such a relief to hear they are doing well.  He is actually working on an independent study type of home-schooling this year instead of going to school, and if you knew him, you would know that this is truly the most beneficial opportunity that he has ever been given.  I’m so glad his mom enrolled him into this program.

All in all, it has been a FANTASTIC Friday… Have a great Labor Day Weekend everyone- and don’t forget to cheer on the DAWGS Saturday! 🙂 COLLEGE FOOTBALL IS BACK! 🙂

29 week bump from the front 🙂

29 weeks from the side 🙂

So, I read that the 3rd trimester isn’t the most comfortable, best time of pregnancy.  This is an understatement, at least for me, throughout the last week.  As I wrote about on Monday, I had about 60 incredibly painful contractions and spent the majority of the afternoon in the hospital.  A short time after I arrived, a nurse came into the room and asked me how I was feeling as she took my blood pressure and attached the monitors.  I calmly explained to her how I had been feeling severe, tight pains in my stomach.  She seemed to find this rather unremarkable and told me to wait a moment for the midwife on duty.  Ian and I waited patiently, feeling reassured by the sound of our baby’s heartbeat.  About 20 minutes later, we heard the midwife outside of our door.  We could hear her ask the nurse how I was doing.  The nurse informed her in a loud, clear voice that I was DEFINITELY having contractions, and as I soon found out, this meant that she would be performing perhaps the most….umm…invasive and insensitive and inconsiderate and crude test I have ever heard of, let alone been subjected to.  Those sneaky women entered the room and continued speaking to each other as if they hadn’t decided what to do yet, when the test very obviously began.  After the women left, Ian and I decided that this would be the last time we would be walking into this situation unprepared, and I would be giving him a very specific, pre-determined hand signal in the future when it was time for him to intervene and end any future test, especially the sneaky ones, in anyway necessary.  Well, enough about Monday.

Tuesday was a little better, but I still had 11 contractions.  Wednesday was pretty good- just some tightness, but not the “doubled-over, crumpled into a little ball on the floor bawling and screaming” kind of thing like the previous two days.  I was thinking (more like hoping and praying) that I wouldn’t experience anything like that again until Baby was finished cooking and ready to come out.  No such luck.  Today was horrible.  I had the worst contraction yet- seriously, sawing my leg off might have been easier.   I went into work, but left about an hour later, knowing full well that I belonged in bed, drinking as much water as I could put down.  I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow at 9:10 am- I am hoping that we get a few more answers.   (Don’t worry, Mum, Andrea is okay now.) 😉 We will keep everyone posted after our appointment.  Tomorrow is a big day though- 30 weeks pregnant.  Mom says “30 weeks is a viable baby.” 🙂 So, even if he decided he wanted to come early, it is a lot less scary after tomorrow.

Goodnight everybody.

xo,

Andrea and Ian

Even though the DFACS case worker told us that she would be moving our foster daughters to a new foster home on Friday, plans changed.  She called at 3:30 today and told me that they would need to be packed and she will pick them up to move by 5:30.  The Department of Child and Family Services asks that when foster children move from one location to the next, their belongings be placed in no more than two large, black trash bags.  After having built a relationship with these girls, it feels strange simply dropping their belongings into a large plastic sack that is typically only used to discard garbage.  In the past, we have scraped together old suitcases and back packs to send with the children into the unpredictable future.  Unfortunately, after having five children come and go, we simply ran out of suitcases.  We can only hope that the lessons and memories they have acquired in our home will someday guide them in the right direction.  That is perhaps the hardest part of fostering– the children are just gone one day, and you may not ever know if you have truly made a difference.

In nine months, we have had to say goodbye to now eight foster children.  It never gets easier, although each situation is different.  Our girls were supposed to be moving to another foster home- more strangers- in a different county.  Fortunately, the case worker was able to find the girls’ biological aunt and uncle who were willing to take them into their home.  The girls were so excited about the idea of living with family, it really made the “Goodbyes” a little less traumatizing.  Their Aunt and Uncle only live about 20 miles away and said that they would love for us to remain a part of the girls’ lives, so we will be able to keep in close contact with them (which made the whole situation less traumatizing for me).

Last night, with the therapist, we did our best to answer all of the girls’ questions. Little Lovebug took it the hardest, stating that she is not going to move, she was going to live with me forever.  I thought today would be even more difficult for her, however, she willingly got in the car with her sisters and is probably already in love with her new family- kissing their hands and foreheads, telling them they are “so cute.” 🙂 That’s our Little Lovebug.  Today, “Middle” was the most affected.  When the caseworker got to our home, she started to cry, and walked down the street.  😦 It was absolutely heartbreaking.

I made the girls a Life Book- a scrapbook of sorts that documents their life while they lived with us.  In it, I included a bunch of self-addressed, stamped envelopes so they can write to us at any time.  I also wrote the girls a letter (found below) that they were not allowed to read until they got to their new home.   This gave Nicole comfort, and I promised that I would call and check on them tomorrow.

goodbye letter to foster children

Thank you to everyone who offered us such great advice and provided us with so much support on our journey with these three girls.  We love y’all.

Andrea and Ian

The girls at their first Georgia Football Game

We were informed today that our three foster daughters will be moving into a new foster home closer to the county their mom lives in this Friday, as in less than 48 hours.  We are having the girl’s therapist come over tonight to sit down with us while we tell them the news and help answer any questions they may have.  The girls came to live with us on March 2 and they will be moving out on September 2- so they will have lived with us for exactly 6 months.  Together, we celebrated holidays, birthdays, family vacations, and most importantly- simple, day-to-day activities that families are supposed to do together.  I hope and pray that we have influenced their life in some small (positive) way and that they know that we will be here to support them in any way we can for as long they want us to be a part of their lives.  We have all learned so much from each other, and it is definitely going to be a big change not having them here.  Saying goodbye is, by far, the worst part of being a foster parent.

Please send positive, happy thoughts their way… they are going to need it the next couple days.

XO,

Andrea

Little Man gave us quite the scare today.  I have been having some abnormal pains in my lower abdomen since Friday, but nothing that was overly alarming.  I called the doctor on Friday and she told me to rest a lot over the weekend and drink a gallon of water a day.  I tried my very best to do just that, but despite my efforts, started getting severe pains last night.  I ended up being able to fall asleep and thankfully slept through the night without any major issues.  I woke up this morning and headed to work.  Around 9:00 am, I was having sharp pains so intense that I was in a ball on the floor of my classroom screaming.  Thank goodness I had the best fifth grade class ever and they were able to get help.  I really owe them some chocolate candy bars or something good after today.  Anyway, I had to go straight to the Women’s Center at the hospital and they got me right in and hooked me up to monitors.  Right away we heard the baby’s heartbeat, which was such a huge relief.  He is normally so active during the day, but for some reason, I hadn’t felt him move the whole morning.  I was a complete basket case.   Next, she hooked me up to a tocometer, which is the monitor that uses/reads pressure to determine contractions.  After a few minutes of watching the chart, she verified that I was having uterine contractions and they did a few more tests to make sure I wasn’t going to go into pre-term labor.  While waiting for the results, we got to stay hooked up to the monitor and listen to the baby’s heartbeat for over an hour.  I love that sound and wish I could be strapped to a monitor all day every day for the remainder of the pregnancy just so I can hear that reassuring noise.  After a long, eventful day we were allowed to leave, told to rest and continue drinking lots of fluids and to come right back if it happens again.  The tests showed that I will not be going into labor in the next 2 weeks, with a 98% accuracy rate.  Definitely reassuring.  I hope this doesn’t happen again for AT LEAST 7 or 8 more weeks.

Dear Baby,

Your movements from inside my belly can now very easily be seen from the outside.  This is pretty exciting because most of the time when your dad tries to feel you moving and kicking, you dart quickly away and are ever elusive with your positioning.  Now, I catch him just staring at my belly- and he giggles and gasps every time he is able to see one of your kicks.  You have no idea how much you already amaze us, and just your little movements are providing us with endless hours of entertainment.  Sometimes, I feel high kicks that are close to my ribs.  On those days, I can also feel what might be your 10 little fingers tickling down low in my belly.  I can be pretty sure on these days that you are already in the position that will be most conducive to our comfort when I go into labor in 2 months.  BUT, there are other days when you stretch to other positions.  Laying across my belly, stretching your body as far as it will stretch, kicking and fist pumping with all four limbs, all at the same time.

I keep wondering who you will be.  What passions will you have?  What will your personality be like?  I am trying hard not to project our personalities on you; I can feel every day that you are your own person… but it’s hard for me to not think of you as sharing at least a few similar interests with your parents.  I hope you won’t get too annoyed with me later in life when you strike out on your own and I tell you that you’re a part of us.  I’ll try to keep an open mind, ok?

For now, since I am able to communicate with these words, I would like to state for the record how I feel your kicking, rolling, and finger tickling will translate to your personality.  Bear with me a bit and we can laugh when you are older about how very wrong or very right I may be.

For now, you seem to like it when I pat you through my belly.  Maybe it calms you down.  Maybe it reminds you that the two of us are in this together.  When I stop before you are ready for me to be done, you kick and roll to let me know that we haven’t yet finished bonding.  I feel like this is an indication of what’s to come when you’re here, on the outside of me.  I’m appreciating the early training we have now while certainly looking forward to all the fun we’ll get to have later.  I think you might be a little like me, needing to know that someone is always there to love you and pet you.

The quality, consistency, and timing of your motion tells me that you’ve got a persistent character, but that you’re not too forceful.  You don’t move suddenly.  You build up and roll down.  You tickle rather than jerk.  You are a fluid little fish inside me.  Sometimes I poke you and you poke me back, playfully.  Sweetly.  I never feel as if you’re uncomfortable or unhappy.

This is all I know about who you are, for now.  And I realize that it’s all speculation.  I reserve the right to change my opinion of you at any time.  You can reserve the right to tell me that I’m wrong anytime, too.  Just please, be as gentle as you are now.  I already love you too much to fight.

Love always,

Your Mommy