Summer

It's been a very full two weeks of summer around the Hammond house! We kicked off the summer by moving all of my things out of my classroom and packing them up into the attic. It was a wonderful, bittersweet time.

We then attacked the house with a vengence and a passion. I had been wanting to do some deep cleaning and some getting rid of junk for quite a while. We decided we would attack a different room each day in an effort to get ready for Caleb's arrival. I did all of the scrubbing I could do from a standing or sitting position, DJ did all the rest (which turns out to be a lot). We cleaned out and rearranged stuff under both bathroom sinks, bleached every surface, washed every fabric in site, and washed the windows and mirrors. Another day we attacked the office and cleaned out more junk than you can imagine! We've spent several days working in the nursery - including a day of nothing but sorting clothes, washing, folding, and putting everything away. Each day we work in there it looks more like a nursery and less like a storage room. We still have some organizing to do, but the beauty of being married to a teacher is that summer days are wide open!

In the midst of all of our nesting, we've enjoyed some wonderful time with DJ's family (and some sweet, quality time with the pool!) and a couple of wonderful days with my friend Brandi. We've had several days where we just took it slow and enjoyed the slower pace the heat demands. It's been wonderful.

Last week, I suddenly had an uncontrolable urge to shop for the stuff we needed for Caleb. We had some gift cards stocked up and I knew I needed to buy stacks of baby things and I needed to buy them NOW. I couldn't explain it, but I cried when DJ suggested we wait until later. So we got almost everything off of our list.

On Monday I went to the dr for our usual appointment. Caleb's heart beat was beautifully strong and my weight gain continues to remain right on track. However, my blood pressure was elevated and the nurse was a little concerned. (Most of my life - with the exception of maybe 2 days ever - my blood pressure has always been right at 120/80.) She had me lay on my left side for a few minutes and took it again. However, between the heat and my nerves (laying on a hard table covered in paper is not relaxing!), my numbers had gone up. When the dr came in, her first words were, "Guess who just bought herself some bedrest?!?!" So here I am. Sitting in the recliner while my husband works around the house. I'm thrilled that my dr is being very proactive and is checking out every possibility - blood work to check hormone levels and liver and kidney function, sonogram to check Caleb's growth, and a 24 hr urine collection to check for pre-eclampsia. Instead of waiting two weeks to see her again like we normally would, we go back on Monday. Hopefully we'll have more answers then. We're praying this is nothing more than pregnancy induced hypertension. However, it could be several other things that are much more serious. So DJ and his dad are ramping up their efforts on building a cradle for Caleb to sleep in while he's still in our room, DJ's mom has made us a lot of meals, and my mom is coming this weekend to help get things done. And here I sit. And lay. And recline. And rest.

We are all very thankful that I made it through the end of the school year so I'm not missing any work. And we're thankful that I only have 6 weeks (or less) left. And we're very thankful for a dr who's checking everything and leaving nothing to chance. I have thought often of a friend who was on bed rest last summer and I can remember her saying that she was the only one who could care for her son - the only one who could help him grow and mature right now. I have told myself that often. I am the only one that can grow Caleb right now and the only one who can let his lungs mature. So I'll rest and relax and catch up on my reading. If you want to suggest a free on-line game or two, please feel free to pass along any suggestions! I'll have plenty of time to stare at my lap top in the weeks to come. :)