It's all good in the 'hood!

GOOD NEWS!! After spending 24 hours peeing into that pretty orange jug, I returned to the doctor to drop it off, and have them test it for protein levels. A sign of preeclampsia is high levels of protein in your urine. And lucky me - my protein levels are normal! I still have to continue to monitor my blood pressure twice a day, and at my next appointment we'll continue to monitor my weight gain, blood pressure, and overall "puffiness" just to make sure that I am staying on track and healthy as can be. But as for now, it's all good!

I am currently at 31 weeks and 2 days. Only 8 1/2 weeks left! I can hardly believe it. It seems so close, yet so far, and I am getting more and more anxious by the day! Here's how the big ole baby bump is looking now:

Matt and I have started to get more serious about getting the nursery together... and it's probably about time, too! We have a crib, rocker, changing table, and dresser - which we will be painting over the next week. I am so excited to see it all when it's finished! My wonderful mommy and I will be shopping for fabric for curtains this week :) I get very excited about the little things now a days!

We toured our hospital's maternity wing last week. Very happy and excited to announce that we will be delivering at Baylor Medical Center in McKinney! The place is very new, at almost 1-year old, and feels more like a hotel than a hospital! My favorite part: everyday you're there, there are "mandatory" cuddle hours from 2:00 - 4:00 PM. When cuddle time is over, you are served fresh baked cookies and milk! How awesome is that! I have a feeling that's a habit that will need to be broken in order for me to return to pre-baby size, but it's definitely something to look forward to. 

T-Minus 8 weeks and 5 days until Parker Lucille Truitt's arrival into the world! 

Preeclampsia, what?

Preeclampsia. The most uncool thing you can be told that you may be at risk of in a prenatal doctors appointment. But that is what I found out today!

This morning was a long appointment. I had to drink a solution made entirely of liquified sugar and wait an hour for the nurse to draw blood, so that they could test my glucose levels and ability to process sugar; aka whether or not I have formed gestational diabetes. How fun is that?!

Well, at the beginning of the appointment, my blood pressure was high. Over the past week or so, I've had several folks who don't see me on a regular basis tell me that I look "puffy". Not fat, which to me is a joke as of late, but "puffy". So Dr. Banks (the coolest doctor on the block; love her) told me to lay on my side for a bit and they'd come back in to take my blood pressure again. I've only gained 1 lb. in the past month, so the puffiness is not coming from weight gain. But again, about 20 minutes later, blood pressure taken: still high.

My instructions: to take home a gigantic orange jug, and every time I pee over the next 24 hours, it has to go into this jug. Return the jug tomorrow, and they will test all of my urine for protein. Another sign of preeclampsia: protein in the urine. If I didn't already feel weird and awkward and uncomfortable all of the time, now I get to carry a giant orange jug into the bathroom all day, and store it in the fridge in between bathroom breaks. Careful, Matt! ;)

Will update again when I get the results... but prayers are welcome! Preeclampsia can mean a lot of different things, but most likely bed rest. Which will result in one LONG summer until Parker decides to arrive!

http://www.preeclampsia.org/ --> more information for those interested

my pee jug! woo!

Pregnancy: Not for the weak!

Post by: Jenna

I am only 26, almost 27. So I have a limited number of friends who have kids, as most of us are just entering the phase of life which this is becoming more of a potential possibility or want. I have always wanted to be a mom, and always imagined having a big family. So the idea in theory was always wonderful. The actual 9-months of pregnancy to get to that point: NOT what I expected! My OB described it perfectly at my appointment last month... She said, "It's pregnancy amnesia. By the time you're ready for the next one, you completely forget about all of the bad things about being pregnant. Until you're pregnant again." Because up until that point, I had been questioning the sanity of everyone I know with multiple children. How in the WORLD could anyone want to do this more than once?! Geez Louise!

Reason being: the end result. I get that. But everything leading up to it... not fun for this 5'1'' gal. Short people get the short end of the stick (no pun intended) on a lot, pregnancy not left out of this. There are only so many places for the weight to go! So much room for your organs to shift around, so much time before your feet and ankles start to swell to the size of watermelons... I am cynical, and a fairly pessimistic person by default. What can I say, I like to cover up my discomfort with my quick wit and hilarious sarcasm. However - it's really tough to think on your feet when you can barely see them.

I am currently at 29 weeks, 5 days of my pregnancy. Still have a LONG ways to go... Went to the doctor today, and got some interesting news - will require a new post :) So maybe not as long as I think, which I am 100% OKAY WITH! Hurry up, baby Parker!

Introducing: Baby Truitt!

In case you are just now catching up on our life... we are expecting our first bundle of joy at the end of this summer! Baby Truitt is estimated to be due on August 23, 2013. We are SO excited and cannot wait to meet her!

If you are friends or family and would like to help us get our little one's life in order: we are registered at Babies-R-Us and The Land of Nod. You can search both registries online :)

We found out in early April that baby Truitt is a GIRL! This was shocking and very exciting news for both of us. We honestly thought this nugget was going to be a boy. Were pretty convinced, too. Until that fateful sonogram when our sono tech said "It's a girl!". While shocked, we could not be more thrilled to bring a sweet little princess into the world.

NAME: Parker Lucille Truitt

Our Timeline

Well, to keep everyone in the "know" ... Here is a bit of a timeline to give a complete overview of all of our major life events:

June 30, 2012: Matt proposed! Obviously Jenna said yes :) It was an incredibly happy day, and we felt so blessed to have our families there to celebrate with us.

Summer 2012: Begin the wedding planning! We started planning, and planning, and planning... Being a teacher, Jenna wanted to take advantage of her time off. Potential wedding date: June 15, 2013.

September 2012: Speed bump! Jenna's sister, Erin - also the MOH, found out that she would be taking some of her students on a trip to Spain and France from June 12 - 18. Which made the June 15 date a big impossibility unless Jenna wanted to get married without her MOH! Don't think so... This started the period known as: Wedding Planning Take 2. Matt & Jenna tossed around several ideas, and narrowed it down to March 10 or August 3. Nothing set in stone yet.

January 3, 2013: SURPRISE! Something told Jenna that taking a pregnancy test would answer a lot of symptoms she'd been experiencing lately... and there it was - Matt & Jenna were expecting! This solidified the wedding date choice: March 10 it is! Now there are 3 months to cram it all in.

March, 10, 2013: WEDDING! They did it. Not only pulled off a fabulous and classy wedding, but were able to do it in just 3 months. Fortunately, there had been the whole previous summer of 2012 - which a lot was able to carry over from. Happiest day of our lives!

April 7, 2013: Gender Reveal Party! And baby Truitt is..... A GIRL!! Parker Lucille Truitt.

Later in April 2013: Start the house hunt! Living in Matt's apartment (which was a lofted apartment on the 3rd floor without an elevator) ... was not going to last much longer as the Texas heat began to increase.

May 25, 2013: CLOSING DAY! Perfect house found: check! Closed on a fabulous 3-2 with a playset in the backyard for baby!

AND NOW....

We're in our new house in Carrollton, we are MOSTLY unpacked (still a few boxes here and there), we have started setting up Parker's nursery, and Jenna is back on summer vacation, trying to take advantage of this time to plan, plan, plan!

AUGUST 23, 2013: is our Estimated Due Date for Baby Parker! We can't wait to meet her and continue with this whirlwind of our life!

Start Your Engines!!

2013 has been, and is continuing to be, one HECK of a year for Matt & Jenna Truitt. In a better attempt to keep all of our friends and family "in the loop" - I have started this blog to keep everyone updated on our happenings! And as it may seem that I will be on bed rest most of the summer (more to come on that later), I will have PLENTY of time to keep this thing updated! Love you all!

- Jenna & Matt