{Sisters}

{ Getting ready for baby }

Well, well.. Here I am at 40 weeks pregnant with baby #2. Holy moly, time has flown by! I was planning on working until I "popped" but I think baby had other plans. On Friday, I got to work and while I was chatting with some co-workers, I started feeling some contractions. They were strong enough to catch my attention. I informed my boss and co-workers of what I was feeling. I've been training my replacement for the past two weeks, so she should be good on her own now. I'm also a phone call away if they have any questions.

I called Brandon and told him what was going on so he left work right away and picked me back up. We headed home, I called Stephanie (midwife) and Rose (Doula) to let them know what I was feeling. Stephanie told me to keep her posted and Rose informed me that another Mom was in labor. I'm pretty sure baby wanted to wait for our wonderful Doula because as soon as we got home, things stopped. We laid down and napped for a good four hours. It felt good! We decided to wait and pick up Elora at her regular pick up time to take some alone time for us and relax. The house was so quiet. Almost too quiet.

It is now Sunday, October 30th and baby is still in my belly. I am definitely okay with that! Hoping tomorrow (Halloween) comes and goes. I'd rather not have my baby share her birthday with Halloween. My guess is November 1st, but we shall see how she feels about that. It's all in her hands now. I'm feeling pretty achy and I guess I'm not sleeping right because I wake up sore. I really need a massage, but I don't think that's going to happen before baby arrives.

I decided to stop working now. Friday was a wake up call for me. When I was getting the contractions, I felt super uncomfortable to be there. I didn't like the feeling at all. Staying home until baby arrives will give me some bonding time with Elora and maybe I can start packing some of our stuff, slowly. We will be moving at the end of November, hopefully to Chandler. We've been looking at rentals and found some good ones, but apparently it's pretty competitive out there right now when it comes to renting. So we will see. I have to stay positive and hope that everything will work out. I hope to continue blogging more as well. I love looking back at my posts to see what I was thinking/feeling at that time.

{Introducing the newest addition to our growing family...Blu!}

Blu-Blu, as Elora and I like to call him is our new family member. After doing tons of research on the breed of cat we wanted, we finally found him. He is a purebred Balinese cat. There is a local breeder in Scottsdale that we found and we went over there to meet his Mom, Dad & siblings this past Wednesday, Sept 28th, the day after Elora's second Birthday. He is actually a gift from Grandmama for Elora's Birthday. She wanted to get her something BIG and we thought getting her a kitten to grow up with like Brandon had when he was a kid would be perfect. Plus, cats live a really long time. Brandon still has his cat "Harley" and he's 17 years old now and still kicking! Blu is two months old and Elora is two years old so it worked out perfectly! I was hesitant on getting a kitten because I'm not a huge fan of cats, BUT I am SO glad we got him. It's only been one day and I am absolutely IN LOVE with this little guy. He is the sweetest cat, ever! He loves to cuddle and loves attention. Elora is good with him too, which is great! I know he's still adjusting to his new home but we hope to make it an easy transition on him. He kisses a lot too, which is so odd to me! I never knew cats were this cuddly. As we await our even newest arrive, Babygirl Padilla #2, there are lots to tell but I will have to do it in another blog post. Chow for now! Time to cuddle=)

{ Pregnancy Update - Week 11 }

So I'm obviously bad at blogging. There's really no excuse since it takes about 10-15 minutes to type my thoughts and feelings out. But I have been busy working full-time and going to school. Which, by the way I will be done with school very soon! My last week of classes is this week. I have 5 classes to make up (from being out because I was sick). Then I need to complete my clinic hours, case study project, take state board classes and reach my 600 hours. I'm around 450 hours right now. Okay, so maybe I'm close, but not so close? I still have a ways to go so I don't want to get too excited. I can't believe it's been almost a year since I started in June. It's crazy how time flies. I really should be finishing up my workbook for school, but I figured I needed to blog for a minute since it's been awhile.

So I am 11 weeks pregnant now with baby #2. They weren't joking around when they said you really "feel" things sooner with the second baby. I started feel nauseous at around 6 weeks. THEN, I got this gnarly sinus infection that just kicked my butt. I was so miserable. But I'm very thankful it has passed and hopefully *knock on wood* won't come back again! That's the first time I ever had a sinus infection that bad. I have already felt baby flutters (I'm pretty sure). I can feel them mostly at night when it's quiet and I'm laying down getting ready to sleep. I'm sure if I had more quiet time I could pay attention to it more and feel them. It's definitely weird being pregnant again because I feel like I was JUST pregnant not too long ago. Which is true, it's only been about two years. I haven't decided on a Doula yet but Stephanie is our Midwife. We have our second (12 week) appointment with her this Thursday. YAY! I'm so excited to hear baby's heartbeat again. I haven't had an ultrasound yet and I'm not sure if I will have one at all. I would like to but I know it's not "necessary". Plus, we have decided to keep the baby's gender a surprise! How exciting is that going to be?!

Anyways, time to get ready for a new week! Wish me luck with my finals =)

Hugs & Kisses,

AP

Without further a'dieu... I'm PREGNANT!

That's right folks, Elora will be a big sister this coming November. We are so excited about this new journey we will embark in. It's going to be very challenging, but so amazing!

Tonight was our very first appointment with our Mid-wife Stephanie. We arrived at 6pm and I was greeted with a big hug from Jen who is Stephanie's Apprentice. I haven't seen her since I was pregnant with Elora. She wasn't able to stay for our appointment, but she will be at our next one. We sat down, got comfortable and Elora found her little area with tons of treasures to keep her busy. Stephanie asked how I was feeling and I told her that I think I'm feeling okay? I mentioned my sinus infection that I'm still trying to get over and the fact that I'm HUNGRY ALL the time! She said that because this is my second pregnancy, I should expect to feel things sooner (which I have been) that explains a lot. For the past couple of weeks, I thought I was over exaggerating my feelings, but now I know I'm not crazy.

We decided on what blood tests to do and figured out the finances. She said that we could try to see if we could hear the baby's heartbeat, but because I'm so early on there's only a 2% chance that we'll be able to hear it with the doppler. She said not to be disappointed or worried if we don't hear anything this time. Before I hopped onto the comfy bed, I went to the bathroom and did my urine test. I love that *I* get to see the results, so awesome! I just need to drink more water during the day. I reported back to Stephanie then got onto the bed and lifted up my shirt so she could use the doppler. The room was silent aside from the slooshing sounds from the doppler. She said that once she heard something FOR SURE, then she would give us the look. She moved it around a little bit then there it was... She looked at me with eyes bright and wide! WE HEARD THE BABY'S HEARTBEAT!!! Clear as day! Sounds so strong *tear* 7 weeks and 5 days STRONG! She said it sounds like it could be a boy, but don't get mad at her if it's a girl =) Either way, as long as baby is healthy, we will be happy! She took my blood pressure and it was normal. The top number was slightly elevated, but she said it could be because of the excitement of hearing baby's heartbeat. Stephanie tried to draw blood, but my veins weren't out enough. I didn't drink enough water before my appointment, plus I have thick skin!

We spent the whole hour in her office and the time went by so fast. I just love LOVE having my prenatal care with a midwife. It's total night and day compared to an OB office. I'm really looking forward to this new journey =) Will definitely keep you posted!

Hugs & Kisses,

AP

{Homesick}

Something hit me last night and it hit me hard... I'm homesick. I miss my family. I miss my Mom coming to my work so we could have lunch together. I miss the constant bicker with my Appa. Yes, he drives me crazy but we are so much alike that I just love him unconditionally. I miss going to the in-loves house and just lounging around, watch a movie if time permitted. I just miss miss miss the closeness with my family. I text or talk to my Mom everyday, but it's just not the same. Sometimes I want to say "let's grab some lunch", but that's obviously not possible. If we could sell our house and not have to owe anything on our loan, we would probably be back home. It's really hard to call Maricopa, AZ "home". Even though, I gave birth to Elora at home, it's just not the same. Our house seems so empty, so lonely. Maybe we just need more rugrats running around? =) HAHA!

Anyways, I go through this kind of mood once a month, so I assume it's hormonal? Or maybe I just ignore my feelings until I can't handle it anymore and just VENT! I don't think many people read my blog, so I'm just going to let it out there... Brandon and I are "trying" for baby #2. We started trying a few weeks ago. I've been charting my cycle and starting yesterday is my most fertile days until the 10th. So keep on, keepin' on! Here we go! I'm excited, nervous, scared, anxious, happy, thrilled, ecstatic and so much more! I know it's going to be challenging, there's going to be rough days, hell it will be rough for the first few years, but it will be worth it. I feel it in my heart.

Today is the Superbowl, not excited about it at all. I wish the Chargers were playing right now! It's the Steelers Vs. Packers. I'm going for either team at this point. No matter who wins, I still have to go to work tomorrow. Bahahaha! Anyways, I seriously need to keep up with blogging. It's like I only check in once a month. I need to be better about it, stay consistent.

I'm more than halfway done with school! I can't believe how fast time flies. I'm super nervous about taking the state board exam. I don't feel even close to being ready for it. I hope when the time comes, I'm confident. I'll wait to worry about that when the time gets closer. For right now, I need to focus on getting through the rest of my program.

Elora is getting so big! She's going on 17 months, WOW. I can't believe my babygirl is going to be two years old this year. I'm not sure what we're going to do for her birthday. I would like to have another party. I want to have a party for her every year, no matter what. I think it's so important to celebrate your birthday no matter how old or young you are turning. Birthdays should always be exciting!

Gotta get going now, time to work on some homework while listening to the Superbowl in the background, great!

{Monday, Oh Monday!}

Back to the same ol' grind today! After the Holidays, it's hard to get back into the mix. But now it's time to get focused! Back to school tomorrow. I'm excited about what we're going to be learning. I'm in the Green Block now and it's all about business and other modalities to add into our practice. I love learning everyday! I even learn something new everyday at work too.

So excited for our good friends, the Goodans. They welcomed their sweet baby boy Dominic this morning. How perfect, a boy and a girl! I've always thought that if you have a boy and a girl, you will have good luck by your side for life. I wonder if Brandon and I will be as lucky? As long as baby is healthy and thriving, that's all that matters. I would like to keep it a surprise next time, but Brandon doesn't think we can hold off that long without knowing. We will see! (soon, maybe?) hehe =)

Last night I said to Brandon, "do you realize how much we've been through the past five years we've been together?" It's pretty crazy and yet we have overcome all the obstacles. Time seriously flies when you grow up!

I completed my Doula training with Nurturing Hearts Birth Services in November but I need to find the time to attend births to gain experience. With working full time and school, I'm not sure how I can do it. There's so much I want to do and accomplish.

Elora wants to play so I better get going. Until next time!