It is 5 o'clock in the morning on a Saturday and I am awake. I have had trouble staying asleep since around 2:00 am when my husband burst into the bedroom to tell me that he was going to take a shower (which I thought meant come to bed afterwards) and, by the way, we had some tornadoes heading straight for us. I guess that since I was only partially awake and therefore only partially processed what Adam had said, I went back to sleep, at first, with little trouble. Then my brain must have continued processing while sleeping and I kept waking up expecting to hear high winds or pounding rain or some other scary storm-related noise. These noises finally started occuring around 4:30 am. I got up to find my husband standing in the bathtub and looking out our small bathroom window so he could view the storm. When asked why he had not come to bed after showering, Adam replied he was expecting another phone call from work between 4 and 5 am (it never came) and didn't see the point in going to bed at 2:30. Call me crazy, some sleep is better than none, right? I guess this means that Adam can stay up with the baby when she can't sleep. :) Anyways, I decided that I was hungry and wanted to see what the weather people were saying about this storm. Adam and I both came downstairs. I had some cereal and now Adam is continuing to play his 50-turn game of Mario Party 3 for Wii. For those of you who don't know, a 50 turn game lasts at least 3 hours, but you can take breaks so that you don't have to play all at once. (Now I, and you, also know the real reason why Adam never came to bed. :) ) Adam is down to his last 10 turns now so the fun is wrapping itself up. I plan on returning to bed when I am finished with my blogging. I would guess that Adam will start another game. We'll see.
In other interesting news, I had to complete my glucose test on Wednesday. I was very nervous about taking the test. I know I have many risk factors for gestational diabetes and I had pretty much convinced myself that I was going to have gestational diabetes. Plus, I have known 3 people who have had gestational diabetes within the last year and just read an article the other day saying that more and more women are being diagnosed with the disorder.
I had to take my glucose drink to school with me and was supposed to drink it at the end of science class. On Tuesday I had had a discussion with the science teacher (who has 2 children) about having to consume the drink at the end of class. This then turned in to a whole class discussion about gross glucose drinks, tests done during pregnancy, and whether or not the students thought I would get sick while drinking the stuff. This, of course, meant that on Wednesday all the students were chomping at the bit to see me drink the stuff. It's a relatively small bottle, but it has to be fully consumed within 5 minutes. After seeing how excited the students were about the possibility of the stuff making me sick or have some awful reaction, I decided that there was no way I would be able to drink it in front of them. I figured one of two things would happen if I tried to drink it in front of them: 1) I would end up laughing and spit a large part of the stuff out OR 2) I would actually get sick (which seemed to be what most of them were hoping for). So, I dutifully waited for class to be over and then got in my car to race towards the hospital. I opened the container and started swallowing the stuff. It really wasn't so bad. It was like a strange version of orange pop. Now, admitedly, I don't like orange pop, but I had built up such great fears about how awful the stuff would be, that orange pop didn't seem so bad.
I arrived at the doctor and continued my waiting process. The nurse finally called me back. She asked me some questions and then wanted to check my blood pressure. I told her that I had no problem with her checking my blood pressure, but that I would expect it to be running a little high because I hate having my blood taken and I knew that that was going to be the next part of the appointment. She seemed very surprised that I needed my blood taken because the nurse that I checked in with had failed to mention that I had consumed the glucose. They are supposed to take your blood exactly one hour after you finish the drink. At the time, this was about five minutes away. Just as we were getting up to go over to the "blood station," a woman rolls past us with her stroller. In the stroller is her 9th month old son. Walking beside the stroller is her 18 month old son. And, as I soon learned, she was getting her blood taken because she was pregnant again. So, the fact had already been established that this woman was crazy and therefore what happened next came as no great surprise. The woman went to sit down in the "blood-draw" chair. The nurse had just given the 18 month old son a Dum-Dum sucker. Being that 18 months is still a little young, in my own opinion, to be fully responsible with a sucker, the kid decided to stick it to his baby brother. He took the stick of the Dum-Dum sucker and stuck it up the 9 month old brother's nose. Of course, much crying ensued and the 9 month old was gushing blood from his nose. However, since the mother was having her own blood taken, there was not a great deal she could do (not that I think she would have done a lot to begin with - she clearly has her hands full!). So as I'm watching this whole seen unfold I'm thinking to myself that since I hate the sight of blood, maybe I'll pass out before the nurse can actually get to me and she can just take my blood while I'm already down. :) Fortunately, the nurse that had brought me back to begin with interrupted this whole seen and told the blood draw nurse that I needed my blood drawn immediately because I had had the glucose drink and was out of time. This forced the other woman to deal with her screaming child and her 18 month old and allowed for me to have a seat in the "blood draw" chair. I explained to the blood-draw nurse that I don't like having my blood drawn and would prefer to get this over as quickly as possible. I also told her that my veins have a tendency to roll which usually means that I get stabbed multiple times, hence one of the reasons I hate having my blood drawn. She actually listened to me and used a surface vein in the corner of my elbow pit. This was GREAT because not only did it not hurt, but it left virtually no bruise! She had to take 4 vials of blood because of all the different tests they were running so while it did take a while for her to draw all of the blood, I didn't mind so much since it wasn't hurting me.
After the blood draw I had my regular check-up with the doctor. She had a hard time measuring me because my fibroid sits at the top of my uterus. This meant that it was challenging to tell what was fibroid and what was baby. So, she said that we would just get more accurate measurements at my next ultrasound. That ultrasound is scheduled for June 23rd, so stay tuned for those results. I did ask her about when I might hear back about the results of the tests. She said I should expect to hear from her by Friday unless there was nothing to worry about, in which case, she would not be calling at all.
On Thursday I had an appointment with my regular doctor. She always gets duplicates of my test results since she is my primary care physician. She came bounding into the room and was excited to tell me that I do NOT have gestational diabetes. YEAH!!!!! For those of you who don't know, a typical blood sugar level is somewhere betweeen 80 and 120. For a pregnant woman they typically extend the top number to 135. My number was 116, so things are really looking quite good!
So, I am now feeling much relief at having avoided another possible pregnancy complication. I'm beginning to even hope that I may make it to August without having preeclampsia (high blood pressure), but it's just a glimmer of hope at this point. :)
Just so that you all know, Adam has finished his Mario Party 3 game. He won, by a lot, and just told me that he is going up to bed! Fantastic! Additionally, the storm has now completed passed over us. So, it's clearly time to go back to bed. Enjoy your weekend everyone!
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Road Trippin' It With 8th Graders & "High Fives"
It is Saturday May 24 and I arrived back home late last night (around 11 pm) from a 4 day trip with my beloved 8th grade students. We left very early (6:30 am) Tuesday morning on a bus headed for Washington DC. We visited the Smithsonian museums (I only managed to make it to the Natural History Museum with my group), the Hard Rock Cafe, the White House, took a subway ride, and visited the Iwo Jima Memorial and that was only Tuesday afternoon!
On Wednesday we were up very early and had our picture taken on the steps of the Capitol. Then we got to go up inside the Washington Monument and view Washington from high above. Then we ate lunch and headed to the National Cathedral. Next we visited Arlington National Cemetary. We had two students who actually participated in the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and then got o witness the changing of the guard. This was particularly neat for me since the last time I was at Arlington was when I was in 8th grade and I was in the wreath laying ceremony. :) (On another side note, Arlington is VERY hilly and I would like to give myself special kudos for trekking up the many hills of the cemetary while 6 months pregnant! Go me!) After Arlington we headed to dinner and then took a walking tour of the FDR memorial and the Jefferson memorial. By the time we got to the memorials it was getting darker, which actually ended up being pretty cool. Finally, we headed back to the hotel.
On Thursday we were up very early again and headed to the Capitol once more. This time we got to go inside the chamber where the House of Representatives meets. This is where the President gives his (or her) State of the Union address from every year. There were fewer than 25 representatives present that morning, which was kind of disappointing. However, the representatives that were there were giving 1 minute speeches on various things to basically just ensure they would be on the record. It was an interesting process and it was definitely pretty neat to see the actual building itself. From the Capitol we headed to the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. This is where our money is made. It was a very cool process and I was very excited to see the piles and piles of money just laying around and waiting to be shipped. If only it could be shipped directly to me! :) After our tour we went to the Mall where we enjoyed a picnic lunch. Please understand me clearly, I am NOT complaining, however, I must say that it was rather chilly eating lunch on the Mall. While the sun was out sporadically, there was a constant wind that made being outside a bit cold. But, I would MUCH, MUCH, MUCH rather be cold than hot, so I did not complain even once! After lunch we walked over the the World War II Memorial, the Vietnam War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, and the Korean War Memorial. All 4 were exciting to see and our language arts teacher and the students left a book of poetry behind at the Vietnam Memorial. It was dedicated to Clarence "Beau" Casto, who was the only man from West Jefferson to die in Vietnam. (Again on a happy side note, ALL of my students had their poems finished and turned in on time, so their works were all included in the book!) After the memorials we headed to the United States Holocaust Museum. Again, the last time I had been at the museum was when I was in 8th grade. That was 15 years ago and the museum had just opened. I can remember going there, but I didn't remember a whole lot about it. We unfortunately did not have a great deal of time, but I can definitely say that it is a museum that is well worth the visit. My students got a lot out of the visit and I did too! After the museum it was off to the National Archives Building. We got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Since we spent a great deal of time talking about all 3 documents this year, the kids seemed to really enjoy getting to see the actual papers themselves. From the National Archives Building we headed to the pier for our Potomac Dinner Cruise. We had a decent meal and then all the kids (and many chaperones and teachers) enjoyed dancing. I enjoyed sitting and watching everyone dance and got to enjoy the sensation of the baby dancing inside of me! Based upon Thursday evening's experience, this baby girl should be quite the dancer. :) Finally, around 10:15 pm we boarded the buses and headed back to our hotel. It was a VERY long day!
On Friday we were up early one last time and headed out to Mount Vernon. The whole plantation was very beautiful and we got to head down to the Potomac to get one last up-close view of the very pleasant surroundings. After Mount Vernon it was back to the buses and then a VERY long trip home. There was a horrible accident on I-70, so we had to take a different route for a large part of our journey (I-68). It was pretty, but quite hilly. We finally arrived back in West Jeff around 10:15 pm. It really was a great trip and I was very proud of all of my students. They weren't perfect angels, but I would say they behaved better than any other group we witnessed, which is really saying quite a lot. They are a good group of kids and I'm glad they got to enjoy this experience.
Now, with my journey told, I thought I would also complete this "Fivers" challenge that I have seen Amy and Al complete.
The questions are listed one at a time and my answers are right below the indvidual questions.
What were you doing five years ago?
In May of 2003 I had just moved back to Ohio and was settling in with Sarah and Jenny at 58 Crestview. I had just secured my first full year job for the 2003-2004 school year at Windsor Academy in Columbus Public. I was substitute teaching in Dublin and basically enjoying a fairly lazy existence. I wasn't dating anyone and my grandfather was still alive and living with my parents. My sister was getting ready to graduate from high school and life was all around pretty good.
What are five things on your to-do list for today?
Well, it's almost 8 pm now, so I'll reveal what was on my list for today.
1. Get caught up on my sleep (I accomplished this by getting up and eating breakfast and then going back to sleep!)
2. Enjoy eating food that wasn't prepared with tons of grease and prepared really quickly. (We went to a Mexican place!)
3. Play our new Nintendo Wii! (We just got it yesterday!)
4. Go shopping for a rocker/glider. (We went out to the JC Penney outlet store, but had very little luck)
5. Enjoy spending time with Adam and the kitties (I've done this all day!)
What are five snacks you enjoy?
1. Ice Cream - vanilla or strawberry are probably my 2 favorites
2. 100 calorie snack packs (pretty much any variety)
3. Chips with French Onion dip
4. Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
5. Mom's macaroni and cheese (usually a meal, not just a snack)
What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay off our own and our family's debts (It would be fantastic to be debt free!)
2. Move to Worthington
3. Travel - anywhere and anytime
4. Buy some new furniture (a bigger bed, a new couch, new dining room table and chairs)
5. Donate at least some of the money to a worthy charity (Cozy Cat Cottage?)
What are five of your bad habits?
1. Being too negative
2. Being too hard on myself and others
3. Not cleaning up immediately when I make a mess
4. Not speaking with friends as often as I would really like to
5. Not getting enough exercise and/or eating out too much
What are five places you have lived?
1. Columbus, Ohio (in Clintonville - Kensington and Crestview)
2. Worthington, Ohio (on Stafford)
3. Indianapolis, Indiana (at Butler and 2 different apartments)
4. Florence, Italy (while studying abroad)
5. Columbus, Ohio (in my house in the hood!)
What are five jobs you've had?
1. Worthington Public Library book processor
2. Babysitter
3. Blockbuster Video Cashier
4. Insurance Saleswoman
5. Teacher
What five people do you want to tag?
1. Adam (you can put your replies in my comments section!)
2. Rhian (she doesn't have a blog either and she's in Cyprus right now, so I'm not counting on this anytime soon!)
3. Jerry or Patty (I know you read this!)
4. Mom or Dad
5. Anyone else who feels they have something to share!
Well, I get to go to the doctor again on Wednesday and this will be my gestational diabetes "check" appointment. So, as soon as I learn something one way or the other, I will let you all know! Take care!
On Wednesday we were up very early and had our picture taken on the steps of the Capitol. Then we got to go up inside the Washington Monument and view Washington from high above. Then we ate lunch and headed to the National Cathedral. Next we visited Arlington National Cemetary. We had two students who actually participated in the wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and then got o witness the changing of the guard. This was particularly neat for me since the last time I was at Arlington was when I was in 8th grade and I was in the wreath laying ceremony. :) (On another side note, Arlington is VERY hilly and I would like to give myself special kudos for trekking up the many hills of the cemetary while 6 months pregnant! Go me!) After Arlington we headed to dinner and then took a walking tour of the FDR memorial and the Jefferson memorial. By the time we got to the memorials it was getting darker, which actually ended up being pretty cool. Finally, we headed back to the hotel.
On Thursday we were up very early again and headed to the Capitol once more. This time we got to go inside the chamber where the House of Representatives meets. This is where the President gives his (or her) State of the Union address from every year. There were fewer than 25 representatives present that morning, which was kind of disappointing. However, the representatives that were there were giving 1 minute speeches on various things to basically just ensure they would be on the record. It was an interesting process and it was definitely pretty neat to see the actual building itself. From the Capitol we headed to the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. This is where our money is made. It was a very cool process and I was very excited to see the piles and piles of money just laying around and waiting to be shipped. If only it could be shipped directly to me! :) After our tour we went to the Mall where we enjoyed a picnic lunch. Please understand me clearly, I am NOT complaining, however, I must say that it was rather chilly eating lunch on the Mall. While the sun was out sporadically, there was a constant wind that made being outside a bit cold. But, I would MUCH, MUCH, MUCH rather be cold than hot, so I did not complain even once! After lunch we walked over the the World War II Memorial, the Vietnam War Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, and the Korean War Memorial. All 4 were exciting to see and our language arts teacher and the students left a book of poetry behind at the Vietnam Memorial. It was dedicated to Clarence "Beau" Casto, who was the only man from West Jefferson to die in Vietnam. (Again on a happy side note, ALL of my students had their poems finished and turned in on time, so their works were all included in the book!) After the memorials we headed to the United States Holocaust Museum. Again, the last time I had been at the museum was when I was in 8th grade. That was 15 years ago and the museum had just opened. I can remember going there, but I didn't remember a whole lot about it. We unfortunately did not have a great deal of time, but I can definitely say that it is a museum that is well worth the visit. My students got a lot out of the visit and I did too! After the museum it was off to the National Archives Building. We got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Since we spent a great deal of time talking about all 3 documents this year, the kids seemed to really enjoy getting to see the actual papers themselves. From the National Archives Building we headed to the pier for our Potomac Dinner Cruise. We had a decent meal and then all the kids (and many chaperones and teachers) enjoyed dancing. I enjoyed sitting and watching everyone dance and got to enjoy the sensation of the baby dancing inside of me! Based upon Thursday evening's experience, this baby girl should be quite the dancer. :) Finally, around 10:15 pm we boarded the buses and headed back to our hotel. It was a VERY long day!
On Friday we were up early one last time and headed out to Mount Vernon. The whole plantation was very beautiful and we got to head down to the Potomac to get one last up-close view of the very pleasant surroundings. After Mount Vernon it was back to the buses and then a VERY long trip home. There was a horrible accident on I-70, so we had to take a different route for a large part of our journey (I-68). It was pretty, but quite hilly. We finally arrived back in West Jeff around 10:15 pm. It really was a great trip and I was very proud of all of my students. They weren't perfect angels, but I would say they behaved better than any other group we witnessed, which is really saying quite a lot. They are a good group of kids and I'm glad they got to enjoy this experience.
Now, with my journey told, I thought I would also complete this "Fivers" challenge that I have seen Amy and Al complete.
The questions are listed one at a time and my answers are right below the indvidual questions.
What were you doing five years ago?
In May of 2003 I had just moved back to Ohio and was settling in with Sarah and Jenny at 58 Crestview. I had just secured my first full year job for the 2003-2004 school year at Windsor Academy in Columbus Public. I was substitute teaching in Dublin and basically enjoying a fairly lazy existence. I wasn't dating anyone and my grandfather was still alive and living with my parents. My sister was getting ready to graduate from high school and life was all around pretty good.
What are five things on your to-do list for today?
Well, it's almost 8 pm now, so I'll reveal what was on my list for today.
1. Get caught up on my sleep (I accomplished this by getting up and eating breakfast and then going back to sleep!)
2. Enjoy eating food that wasn't prepared with tons of grease and prepared really quickly. (We went to a Mexican place!)
3. Play our new Nintendo Wii! (We just got it yesterday!)
4. Go shopping for a rocker/glider. (We went out to the JC Penney outlet store, but had very little luck)
5. Enjoy spending time with Adam and the kitties (I've done this all day!)
What are five snacks you enjoy?
1. Ice Cream - vanilla or strawberry are probably my 2 favorites
2. 100 calorie snack packs (pretty much any variety)
3. Chips with French Onion dip
4. Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
5. Mom's macaroni and cheese (usually a meal, not just a snack)
What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay off our own and our family's debts (It would be fantastic to be debt free!)
2. Move to Worthington
3. Travel - anywhere and anytime
4. Buy some new furniture (a bigger bed, a new couch, new dining room table and chairs)
5. Donate at least some of the money to a worthy charity (Cozy Cat Cottage?)
What are five of your bad habits?
1. Being too negative
2. Being too hard on myself and others
3. Not cleaning up immediately when I make a mess
4. Not speaking with friends as often as I would really like to
5. Not getting enough exercise and/or eating out too much
What are five places you have lived?
1. Columbus, Ohio (in Clintonville - Kensington and Crestview)
2. Worthington, Ohio (on Stafford)
3. Indianapolis, Indiana (at Butler and 2 different apartments)
4. Florence, Italy (while studying abroad)
5. Columbus, Ohio (in my house in the hood!)
What are five jobs you've had?
1. Worthington Public Library book processor
2. Babysitter
3. Blockbuster Video Cashier
4. Insurance Saleswoman
5. Teacher
What five people do you want to tag?
1. Adam (you can put your replies in my comments section!)
2. Rhian (she doesn't have a blog either and she's in Cyprus right now, so I'm not counting on this anytime soon!)
3. Jerry or Patty (I know you read this!)
4. Mom or Dad
5. Anyone else who feels they have something to share!
Well, I get to go to the doctor again on Wednesday and this will be my gestational diabetes "check" appointment. So, as soon as I learn something one way or the other, I will let you all know! Take care!
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