Don't have time...cant slow down!

Whoa…where have we (me, BB Hoffman, and JCH) been and what have we been doing?  It’s been far too long since I’ve touched base with y’all.

Most of y’all are aware that I have organized a charity kickball tournament- Kick CF to the Cure- and that has pretty much taken over my life these past few weeks (BB Hoffman loves philanthropy already and seems to really enjoy mommy’s efforts).  I’ve been busy obtaining sponsorships, food donations, and working on team recruitment.  It’s a lot to do ALL BY YOURSELF…next year I need to recruit a committee to help delegate tasks.  Speaking of being busy…

You might remember, a few weekends ago we went to a beautiful wedding in Greenville, SC…and I got JCH to dance with me a few times.  I read in my baby book that BB Hoffman can feel my dance movements (swaying, bouncing, etc.) so I was really excited to start teaching him rhythm and show him his mommy and daddy have some moves.



Dancing at the Hanus Wedding



This was followed by one of the longest days of my life.  I was working on building my “stock photography” for work and met a photographer at 6am to run around town and capture images of Charleston.  I was with this photographer until 9pm that night…and put some serious miles on my feet.  Little did I know that 6 months pregnant and walking around for 15 hours was not a good idea (understatement of the century).

Sample of STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY-
Images Courtesy of Krist Michelle Photography

Sample 2 of STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY-
Images Courtesy of Krist Michelle Photography

My poor little footsies did not have time to rest up before they were being abused 2 days later in Atlanta, GA shopping for baby stuff.  By day 2 of shopping I pleaded with JCH that we rent a motorized wheelchair…my ankles were so swollen and every step was so painful.  Would that be ridiculous to use a wheelchair?  I didn’t think so.  Did we get a wheelchair?  Of course not, I’m a tough cookie.  We also celebrated JCH’s 30^th birthday while in Atlanta by allowing him a shopping spree at Bass Pro Shops, and going out to dinner at Maggiano’s.  YUM YUM YUM (BB Hoffman and mommy really enjoyed that part of daddy’s birthday).

Another thing that has been consuming my free time lately is “nursery planning”.  I’ve decided that BB Hoffman needs custom nursery bedding…and my mom is going to help me accomplish this.  I’ve picked out the fabrics and will sew the sheets, dust ruffle, and curtains, and my mom is going to sew a quilt.  I decided that with the mostly grey and white decor to incorporate elephants in the theme…and have since become OBSESSED with elephant stuff for the nursery.  Check out my “Baby Love” board on Pinterest if you don’t believe me.



BB Hoffman Nursery-Inspiration Board
http://pinterest.com/casey_luxem/baby-love/



I went to a beautiful baby shower last weekend and was 1 of 4 pregnant friends there.  How awesome is that? It was fun to joke about needing a crane to get us off the floor and talk about baby essentials and registries.  I love comparing notes and having a good friend to talk to about the strange things that are going on with my body.

My beautiful pregnant friends

At my last check up with Dr. C -I mentioned that I am twice the size of my other pregnant friends and he said that was nothing to worry about (I wasn’t worried-well yes I was-where is there room for growth if it already looks like I have a bowling ball under my shirt?).  He said that because of my retroverted uterus (tilted uterus) the baby’s position is going to also be tilted (and in my case-that is TILTED FORWARD).  I honestly catch myself holding/supporting my belly when I walk around…it’s just so “OUT THERE”...I feel like I'm going to fall over.

We’ve got another wedding coming up this weekend that I have been anticipating for months.  I absolutely LOVE the couple getting married and think they are really going to “bring it” when it comes to celebrating the love.  I’ve got a few friends that I’m super excited to see too….and it doesn’t hurt that I happened to find an AMAZING dress (while in Atlanta) that I cant wait to wear!  You remember how obsessive I was about finding a “stylish” dress to wear…and well I think I did.  YAY!

Excited to see BB Hoffman at our next ultrasound on April 30^th.  I bet he is HUGE and looking more and more like his daddy.  I’m just getting so excited to meet my little man…if only we could agree on a name for him.

OUCH! OUIY! and OH!

Yesterday was my "trial transfer" and sonogram.  I was told this would be a quick and easy procedure and therefore I told JCH I didn't need for him to come with me for this appointment.  Boy was I eating my words while sitting in those stirrups.  OUCH!

I'm sure you're wondering (as was I) what a "trial transfer" entails.  Not everyone's anatomy is according to "text book" and come to find out mine is quite different (but we'll get to that later).  So, what they do is use a sonogram and a catheter to "find their way" through the cervix and into the uterus, basically recording the measurements along the way in order to assist with making the process go much smoother on our actual "retrieval day". 

I think this is typically an "uncomfortable" procedure.  For me it was more than uncomfortable because of my retroverted uterus which according to the doctor made navigating through MUCH more difficult (and painful).  Once the doctor would turn a corner with the catheter he would wiggle it around moving it closer and further away from the sonogram (my belly) to be sure he was documenting the measurements correctly (that was awful).  Than he would PUSH HIS WAY around another corner (which was more than awful).  Plus I should also mention that I was told to come to this appointment with a "comfortably full bladder"...sooo pretty much the entire time I felt like I was going to pee on the doctor.  *I am also told afterwards that my bladder wasn't quite as full as they want for the actual "retrieval day"...which means I'm almost guaranteed to pee on him on October 4th. "Just another day at the office...got peed on during an egg retrieval"...lol...OUIY!!!

(If you are going through this in the near future, I wouldn't fear the "trial transfer" based on my experience, I think it's typically not that bad, I just have a silly backwards uterus.)

OH! We also started looking into "sperm donors" more seriously to have as a "PLAN B" (which more than anything in this world I hope we get to stick with PLAN A) but we still must be prepared.  It was funny last night going through these guys profiles and personal essays.  Some were extremely boring and generic and some actually pretty interesting.  We've "saved" 2 profiles as potential donors-which is a HUGE STEP!! I'm pretty sure we need to have this decision made by the end of the week! I'll keep you posted- of course! :)