Our Hilton Head Babymoon

Jacob and I have always been more of the "making memories" type of people than the "giving presents" type of people.  Early on we agreed that while it would be nice to get jewelry, clothes, roses, or the like for an anniversary, we would really rather spend time together.  So every year, since our honeymoon, we have gone on a anniversary vacation together.  Our honeymoon was amazing and quite extravagant (think...1 day in Savannah, 3 days in Disney World, and 4 days on a Disney Cruise to the Bahamas). Since then our anniversary trips have been a little more affordable and we have gone to Atlantic Beach, NC (1 year), Gatlinburg, TN (2 years), Hilton Head Island, SC (3 & 4 years...what can we say- We love it!), and Myrtle Beach, SC (5 years).  

This year for Christmas, we decided to forgo the presents for each other and use our Christmas budget to take a mini-vacay (we'll call it a babymoon) back to one of our favorite spots...Hilton Head Island!  Now before you go thinking, we could never afford that....let me change your mind.  It doesn't take a lot of money at all!  I bid on our room on Priceline (there are some tips/tricks) and had it narrowed down that we would either be staying at the Omni Hotel & Resort or the Sonesta Spa & Resort....both of which we were more than okay with.  I ended up winning the bid and paying a whopping $72/night for a 4 star resort.  Amazing.  

Saturday

So, Saturday morning we struck out on the 5 1/2 hour trip to Hilton Head! When we finally got there we were pleasantly surprised with beautiful accommodations including a newly renovated king room.  

After arriving and getting our luggage unloaded, we struck out for a walk on the beach!  Even though it was a little chilly and very windy, the view was gorgeous. Afterwards, we headed out to the Tanger Outlets in Bluffton and shopped around a little bit mostly killing time before we headed out to dinner.  For dinner we ate at one of our go-to joints for any vacation, Mellow Mushroom!  After eating some pretzels and pepperoni pizza, we headed to Sweet Frog and got some frozen yogurt.  

This whole day, I'll mention, that my stomach had been a little off.  I attributed it to way too much soda, not enough water, and generally unhealthy food (Bojangles for breakfast, McDonald's for lunch, Mellow Mushroom for dinner).  More to come on Sunday....

After dinner we hung out at the hotel and played Ticket to Ride, a super fun board game.  We played a total of 4 times and Jacob beat me....four.times.  Ridiculous!  But, we still had a lot of fun!

Sunday

Sunday morning I woke up and my stomach was still all out of whack so I called the BCBS 24 hr. nurse line.  After asking me a series of questions, the nurse on the phone had decided that my symptoms were either due to: 1) pre-term labor or 2) C. Diff (Clostridium Difficile) and that I should go to the nearest Urgent Care or Emergency Room immediately.  Um, HELLO?!  I am in South Carolina and on vacation!!  Well, of course, I freaked out and started crying.  I tried to call my OBGYN for a second opinion and apparently, they no longer have a doctor on call phone line (something about new federal guidelines). I asked Jacob what he thought, I asked my parents what they thought. Then, I ultimately decided to do something that I don't like to do.....annoy my midwife.  I texted her what was going on and she almost immediately texted me back. She said to take some Imodium, drink TONS of fluid, and see how I progressed throughout the day.  Well, obviously I progressed just fine and things cleared up. Thank the Lord for midwives who go above and beyond.  

So, we spent a little time that morning scouring the island for Imodium, eating McD's for breakfast (I had their fruit/maple oatmeal and it was delicious), and playing Ticket to Ride.  And the good news is that I finally beat Jacob!! Afterwards, we went for another walk on the beach and the weather did not disappoint. Gorgeous sunny skies, little to no wind, and about 65 degree temps.  

On our walk, we even got to see some of these...

One of our favorite places on Hilton Head Island is Lawton Stables.  It is a gorgeous farm located smack dab in the middle up an uppity, gated neighborhood that makes guests pay to get in!  In the middle of the highfalutin folks' community is a beautiful horse farm.  But even better than that....chickens, goats, cows, a pet deer (yes, you read correctly- her name is Callie), and PIGS!  You can walk through their farm, go on horseback rides, and pet/feed the animals.

 

After going through Sea Pines, we headed back over to the Tanger Outlets to pick up a few cute outfits that I had spotted during our first round through.  As to not be impulsive, I waited it out a day before buying them!  Let's just say that I LOVE Carter's & Janie and Jack :-)

 

  

For dinner, we went to The Crazy Crab which sits right on Jarvis Creek (the sound).  While we can always count on this being the most expensive meal of the trip (around $65 with tip), it is always worth it.  Delicious food, great customer service, great views!  Unfortunately, that wasn't the case this time.  Let's just say that it was way less than wonderful. Terrible service, cold to lukewarm food....and that is just skimming over it.  Well, we paid the bill and were about to leave when I noticed one more thing with the bill that tipped me over the edge. So, I went and talked to the manager, very calmly but very matter-of-factly.  We didn't expect it at all, but she ended up taking one of the entrees off of our bill as well as the surcharge for macaroni and cheese (which is what tipped me over the edge)!  We walked out with a bill of $25 instead of $50.  Jacob (notice I did not say "we" here) generously tipped our waitress $10 saying that we should always offer grace because we don't know her situation.  True? Probably. But still, she gave terrible service.

After dinner, we headed back home, relaxed, watched Bridesmaids on TV, and played a few more rounds of Ticket to Ride (all of which I won)!

One of our favorite scenes....I mean what is not to love here?  Privacy (short i), That's from my undercarriage.  HAHA!  WHAT?!  I mean, so wrong....yet so hilarious.

Monday

Sadly, Monday morning meant that it was going home time.  We slept in until around 8:30 and then headed out to the beach for one last walk.  It was definitely difficult to leave because the beach was at its best.  

The beach was littered with sand dollars.  We saw at least six and there were families finding them everywhere as well. It was so exciting and so of course, we had to take some home!  We took the ones that were clearly already dead because they were up near the sand dunes and had already turned greenish.  You can see in the pictures above, that the beach in Hilton Head has a very gradual slope.  No crazy drop offs or sand bars like you find in Atlantic Beach.  And, the sand is packed firm so the wind doesn't blow it everywhere.  This means that when the tide comes in, it is all the way up to the bottoms of the dunes; yet, when the tide goes out there is at least 500 yards of packed sand.  This makes it an ideal vacation beach because it can be slammed packed and you still feel as though you have all the space in the world.

After our walk, we headed back to the car and left the beloved island.  There may have been some hormonal tears spilling down my face.  It was an end.  And end to our vacation, an end to this one last vacation as a couple of two (even if we vacation alone in the future, we'll always be a family of 3).  But I got it together quickly when Jacob took me to Chick-Fil-A for a CFA biscuit and...ice cream!  At 10:30 in the morning :)

We had a wonderful time in Hilton Head and will definitely be going back soon...

Baby Bump: Week 25

How far along? 25 weeks

What's baby up to? Baby Morgan weighs about a pound and a half and is approximately 13.5 inches long. She is about the size of a rutabaga.  In addition to adding on some baby fat, she is also growing some hair.  And since she is coming from me and Jacob, I would say her hair is going to be quite the sight!

Total weight gain: 7 pounds total at my appointment on 1/21!

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes.  Shirts, not necessarily. 

Symptoms: RLS, some back pain, and discomfort if I stay in one position for too long then try to rearrange (especially in the morning after waking up).

Sleep: Can't complain!

Food cravings: Not really!

Food aversions: None

Movement?  Oh....is there movement?!  Here are a few videos of what it looks like from my perspective:

Miss anything? Being able to comfortably move around at night and sleep through the night.  Rolling over has become quite the chore and I have to get up to go to the bathroom at least 2 times.  More average is 3.

Best moment of the week: Hilton Head with my main squeeze <3

Looking forward to: Another long weekend (thank the Lord for optional teacher workdays), and eating at Mike's Farm on Thursday

Baby Bump: Week 23

How far along? 23 weeks

What's baby up to? Baby Morgan weighs a little over a pound and is about 11 inches long. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to help her breathe.  She is very active and is now moving all around.  We can even see her kicking around in there when she gets really riled up!  

Total weight gain: 6 pounds total according to my scale.  I'll know for sure at my doctor's appointment in 2 weeks.  My goal is to stay around 7-8 pounds total gain by that appointment.

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes.  Shirts, not necessarily. 

Symptoms: RLS and that's it!

Sleep: Gotten better since the introduction of a huge body pillow that steals the covers from Jacob and steals bed space from our kitty girl, Halle.

Food cravings: Not really!

Food aversions: None

Movement?  For sure.  She's moving all around and you can even see her moving around in there.

Miss anything? Nope!

Best moment of the week: Keeping our house clean.  Does that count?  What am I talking about....yes that counts.  It is nothing short of a miracle, really!

Looking forward to: A long weekend vacation with Jacob!  Our Christmas present to each other this year was a long weekend vacay to Hilton Head over MLK weekend. So we'll head off on Saturday morning (1/17) to one of our favorite spots and spend some time relaxing as just the two of us.  We're staying at the Omni Hotel & Resort in a newly renovated King bedroom!!  Oh yeah, and we're pretty excited that we're going to buy the nursery furniture this coming up weekend. We've decided on a set from Buy Buy Baby that includes a convertible crib, 5 drawer chest, double dresser, and hutch/bookcase.  It's a little VERY pricey, but hopefully it will be worth it because it can grow with our little lady.
  

Baby Bump: Week 22

How far along? 22 weeks

What's baby up to? Baby is about the size of a spaghetti squash.  Mmmm....I love spaghetti squash!!  She is just under 11 inches and weighs a little less that a pound. Her lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct.  

Total weight gain: Not exactly sure....I've been afraid to weigh myself.

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes.  Shirts, not necessarily. 

Symptoms: RLS

Sleep: Still waking up some during the night, but not nearly as bad.  

Food cravings: Not really!

Food aversions: None

Movement? Yup!  And Jacob felt her move for the first time on the morning of Christmas Eve.  We were at his parents house and she was getting crazy.  He put his hand on my stomach and she gave him quite the show!  I could not stop laughing because it was like she started kicking even harder when we put his hand up there.  It was definitely very exciting for him to finally be able to feel her squirming around in there.

Miss anything? Nope!

Best moment of the week: Jacob feeling baby girl kick for the first time.

Looking forward to: One last week of Christmas vacation.

An Early Christmas Gift

So we have now heard back from Brandy (the genetics nurse) at ECU as well as my midwife, Mandy.  When I saw the phone number from ECU my stomach instantly dropped.  All I could think of was the last call and the news I had gotten.  As soon as I had picked up the phone and learned who it was my response was, "Oh no...."

So Brandy wasted no time diving in to the test results.  "You are low risk for Trisomy 13.  You are low risk for Trisomy 18.  You are low risk for Trisomy 21," said Brandy.  "I'm sorry.....what??!", was my response to her.  "You're low risk across the board!", she reiterated.  And I think I just stood there.  I didn't cry.  I didn't scream in excitement.  I didn't really do anything....I just stood.  I'm not sure what I expected my reaction to be, but I don't think I would have guessed that in a million years.

"Candice, are you still there?", Brandy was asking.  "Oh yeah, I'm here!", I replied.  When I got my thoughts straight, I finally managed to ask her what exactly low risk meant.  Similar to the AFP testing, the results come back categorized into risk factors.  I fell into the lowest risk category across the board.  Less than 1 in 10,000.  Yes you read that correctly, and I didn't accidentally type an extra zero.

I'm not sure if it was because I was expecting bad results or if I had written the whole situation off and was expecting good results.  I'm not sure what exactly had subconsciously gone on in my mind, but I do know that God had worked on me.  I think now, that I had finally come to terms with our situation. I had finally come to realize that I could not control the outcome of this situation (something that I have always struggled with).  I had begun to rest in the knowledge that God would bring us through any situation, either situation.  And I had started thinking about the beautiful life that we could still have even if our sweet girl did have "designer genes".

 I didn't know what the outcome was going to be and that was okay. And to be honest, we still don't know what the outcome will be. But we do have a little better picture into what is going on inside of me.  When I talked to Mandy this evening, she was so upbeat and encouraging (as she always is).  I told her that the doctor at ECU had offered us an amnio and she said that she wouldn't do that in a million years with the cards that we now hold in our hands.  And we're on the same page with her.  Obviously, there will be a tiny part of us that wonders until the day our girl is born.  But that won't steal our joy, for our joy rests in the Lord and is not contingent on situations or circumstances.  And we are just as blessed now as we would have been with a different report.  And we will be just as blessed at the time of birth if our baby has Down Syndrome as we would be with a typically developed child.

So, we thank each and every one of you for all of your prayers.  We have had countless texts, emails, Facebook messages (public and private) sharing your thoughts, prayers, and stories with us. I have even gotten messages from complete strangers....literally!  People that neither of us know from Adam that have shared their story, how they are relentlessly praying for us, and given us scripture.  And we are so grateful.  So this Christmas, we received an early Christmas gift.  One that wasn't wrapped up in shiny paper tied with ribbon and placed under the tree.  This Christmas we are praising God for good news- on a multitude of levels.  The good news that we received this week as well as the Good News that He has given to the world. Merry Christmas {a little early} Y'all!

Baby Bump: Week 20

Halfway there!

How far along? 20 weeks

What's baby up to? Baby is swallowing more and has begun producing meconium. Supposedly the baby is about 10 inches long, head to heel, but I'm thinking she may be a little longer than that since she was already over 9 inches at our appointment in Greenville (which was in the 85th percentile). 

Total weight gain: 5 pounds- whoops!  Gained a little bit since I last caught you up.  I help on tight to 2 lbs. all the way up until 17 weeks then over doubled my weight gain in 2 weeks. :-)

Maternity clothes? Pants, yes.  Shirts, not necessarily. 

Symptoms: Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS)- I've always struggled with this a little bit, but if I sit in one place for too long it is even worse these days.  Other than that, no real pregnancy symptoms.  I got a head cold about a week ago which then turned into a sinus infection and let's just say it is NO FUN being sick--especially when you are pregnant.  Fortunately, my GYN agreed to see me in their office after I begged them to not have to sit at Urgent Care with all of the flu/strep infested people.  Bonus=getting to hear the baby's heartbeat while there!

Sleep: About 8 hours at night (if I don't wake up from about 1-3:30 which is pretty typical).

Food cravings: Not really!

Food aversions: None

Movement?  Yes!!  I finally feel movement.  I think it took me a little longer than average, but I can finally definitely say I feel movement.  There were things that I thought were movement around 18-19 weeks but I could never pinpoint it.  And so since I wasn't 100% positive, I just discounted it.  But I am definitely feeling wiggles and occasional pokes.  I would describe it as a fish flopping when she is wiggling.  And while I wouldn't say she is kicking yet, I am definitely feeling some pokes.  Now, we wait for Jacob to be able to feel things.  We've tried a few times, but every time he touches my stomach she immediately stops moving. 

Miss anything? While I've never really been a "back sleeper", I do typically lay on my back and read before going to bed.  Gone are those days :-(

Best moment of the week: CHRISTMAS BREAK!  For.Two.Solid.Weeks. Thank you, Lord!

Looking forward to: Seeing all of our family for Christmas, Christmas Eve service with Jacob's parents and STEAMED OYSTERS (I love that tradition), Christmas evening with my family after all of the hustle and bustle the day has to offer, relaxing on my break, and a manicure on Tuesday!

Fan, Alumna, Patient

During my time as a Morgan, I have gotten to know East Carolina University in many different ways. First, it started off as a slow fade to becoming a fan.  :-)  NC State had my heart for a while, but when we got married I converted over to a full fledged ECU fan.  About two years after we got married, I decided to pursue my master's degree in Special Education and applied to be a graduate student through ECU.  In December 2012, I graduated with my master's degree in Special Education from ECU and became an alumna.  Then in November 2014, I also added patient to my list of affiliations. No longer am I able to go to New Bern to see my beloved midwife.  I am now considered high risk. No woman wants to hear those words when she is pregnant....especially not one who is below 35 like me.  Clearly, that entails that something is wrong.

On the morning of our appointment, I was a mess.  I was barely holding back tears, my stomach was upset, but I was trying to put on a strong front.  When we entered into the hospital and I got registered, a peace came over me.  I was still scared to death, but I knew that God was right there with me.  I knew that he had already planned my days and chosen our baby specifically for us.  I knew that no matter what the outcome was, that my God was faithful and his providence would be made known through our situation. The lyrics resounding in my head were, a peace that passes understanding is my song.  Which, by the way, is very ironic because Aaron Shust has a son with DS. 

So, on December 5 at 9:10, we walked through the doors of the East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine high risk clinic to go to genetic counseling and have a Level 2 ultrasound done.

In genetic counseling, Allison (our counselor's name) explained to us all about Down Syndrome.  She didn't tell me anything that I didn't already know, but she trudged forward for Jacob's benefit.  She then went in depth about our family histories asking questions about general conditions (HBP, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart conditions, etc.).  But, more importantly she spent time drawing out our family tree asking about genetic disorders (by the way, Trisomy 21 isn't necessarily thought to be passed down through generations--though it can be-- it can also just be an anomaly) and intellectual standing of each person.  While we did tell her that there were definitely some branches of the tree that weren't all there.....just kidding!!  Allison ended the appointment with, to me, the craziest/most disgusting thing a mother will ever hear.  We explained to her that we wanted to do the Harmony test, wait for the results, then decide about an amnio.  To which she explained that we were pushed a deadline (wait 10 days for blood results, get back in for anmio appointment, wait 10 more days for results) and that would bring us dangerously close to 24 weeks (the legal deadline for abortion), so that if we wanted to terminate the pregnancy we wouldn't be able to.  I quickly shut her off and explained to her that we have complete trust and faith in the Lord.  And that he has a plan for us, and that we would never get in the way of that plan or even consider an abortion.  She was very understanding, told us that she had to inform us of all options, and didn't mention it again. Altogether, the genetic counseling took approximately 30 minutes and I walked away with a few pictures that I took, well...just for kicks and giggles.

My blood results and risk percentages

Our family tree

Then, we went back out to the waiting room to wait for the Level 2 ultrasound.  Let me take a second to just say that we have amazing families. My mom and dad came as well as Jacob's mom to wait with us in the waiting room.  They knew there was a chance that waiting in the waiting room was all they would be doing, and they still came to support us.  It was definitely comforting knowing that they were behind just a few walls should we need them.  Back to the ultrasound-- While the Level 2 ultrasound is not conclusive, it was going to give us more information to work with.  It only differs from a regular ultrasound in the fact that it has to capability to do a nuchal translucency test.  The ultrasound lasted at least 45 minutes if not a little longer. Our ultrasound tech, Michelle, was amazing!  She took her time and explained to us exactly what she was looking at.  She looked at the following things specifically (and I may be leaving some out) and was looking for the followings things: the heart (4 ventricles with no holes), the paired organs (2 present), the intestines (blood flow was sufficient), big toes (in line with the other toes), pinky fingers (3 joints), femur bones (correct length), head circumference, nose bone (that it was present and positioned correctly), nuchal fold on the back of the neck (that the thickness was within normal limits), eyes/nose positioning (that the eyes were an appropriate distance from the nose), lips (looking for no indicators of cleft).  I think that is about it.  And the whole time, our baby girl was very cooperative.  I learned my lesson from the last ultrasound and did not drink OJ prior to coming.  Of course, I didn't eat or drink anything, because my stomach was in knots.....diarrhea with a tendency toward throwing up (probably TMI!). When the ultrasound tech started looking at our baby's heart, I asked her if there were 4 chambers there because somehow I had gotten confused in New Bern when they were only looking for 2.  At that time, she opened up and really started explaining to us what was going on.  Though she probably wasn't supposed to, she went through each of the above listed soft markers and explained to us exactly what she saw.  I was so thankful because it meant I didn't have to lay there in complete panic and worry throughout the entire ultrasound.  During the last 15 minutes, the ultrasound tech had Jacob go get our parents and they were able to come in for the last part of the ultrasound.  I think she knew she had an audience because she started showing off for all of the grands!  We got to see her moving her arms around, putting them on her head and cheeks, yawning, crossing her legs, and more.  It was the first time that I had actually thought an ultrasound was cute.  Up to that point, ultrasounds had only been scary.

At the end of the ultrasound, we saw the doctor and he again confirmed that there was no evidence of any soft markers for DS.  He also told us that the ultrasound wasn't fail proof because it was still only a screening tool.  In fact, 50% of the time a child has Down Syndrome, there are no soft markers present on an ultrasound.  Very comforting, right?! Then, of course, the doctor offered us diagnostic testing-- aka, an amniocentesis.  We decided to do one more screening before pursuing something invasive.

So, I headed off to the lab for more blood work.  Mandy, my midwife, had recommended that I get the Harmony Prenatal test done while there because 1) it is not invasive and carries no risk, 2) insurance covers it at the high risk clinic, and 3) it is much more reliable than the AFP test.

	False Positive Rate*	Detection Rate**
Harmony Prenatal Test	Less than 1 in 1,000	More than 99 in 100
Traditional Test	1 in 20	85 in 100

  The Harmony test screens for 4 different things as opposed to the less specific 4 the AFP test measures. It measure your AFP (alphafetoprotein), hCG, Inhibin A, and Estriol, then based on the levels of each determines your risk factor.  We are supposed to get those results in about 10 business days. From there, we will make a decision on whether or not to pursue an amniocentesis.

After my lab work, we headed back out to the lobby and were done!!  We decided to all go to lunch together at McAllister's Deli to celebrate the good report. Both Jacob and I got a bacon spud with a cup of chili and boy was it good!  I think it tasted even better because a little bit of stress had been lifted from our shoulders.