Just checking in

Hi everyone!  Sorry I haven't updated lately; we are fine - just a lot going on!

But yes, baby and I are good.  My only complaint is that my seasonal allergies are co-mingling with my pregnancy rhinitis to make me a sneezing mess at times.  Most of the time I'm fine - but when I do sneeze a 'good' sneeze (sometimes a dozen times a day); for the next 10 minutes I feel like I'm in the midst of a horrible head cold. Then after a bunch of tissues and being able to breathe through my nose once more, I'm fine again.   

If anything it means sneezing shouldn't startle Tabby when she's a newborn since she's hearing tons of it now. 

I have a regular OB checkup appointment on Friday, which will also be when I'll have my 1-hour glucose test. My blood pressure readings at home have been great; so no problem there ... yet (fingers crossed that it stays that way). 

We continue to slowly work on the nursery: getting furniture in its place, washing & folding stuff and putting them in their proper place, grouping toys in age-appropriate storage bins.  My tendency to over-organize makes it a taxonomy project, which is oddly fun for me.  But the organizing also gives me a chance to take inventory of what we have (tons of stuff) and what we need (not much really).  

My favorite 'project' for the nursery are the window dressings.  I am having 2 custom Roman shades made with fabric I picked out that matches the nursery's colors. They're being made now; though I don't know when they'll arrive.  But once they show up and (please please please!!) fit as perfectly as I painstakingly measured them to fit; I'll be sure to post pictures and a link to the shop where I got them.  

Other than that we've been having some issues with our cat Hannah that has taken up a good chunk of our time and energy  lately.  As it turns out my poor little furry girl has this really rare (wait for it....), hardly seen by vets (wait for it.....), little understood (wait for it......) SKIN DISEASE!  Yep, leave it to us to now have a cat with the rare feline disease called: Plasma Cell Pododermatitis.  

Long story short: we were going to a vet that wasn't (in my opinion) doing all they could - not to mention the vet had never seen Plasma Cell Pododermatitis.  One of Hannah's paws is quite bad off, and we have been  bandaging it.  (Not exactly memories we want to be reliving).  I thought it needed stitches, the vet didn't agree, and she also basically said we didn't know how to bandage her properly.  This vets course of action was to just give steroid shots as the swelling came up, and treat any infection that may come about from the ulcerated paw pad.  

Just so you have a little idea, (and if you get grossed out easily don't click on it) - here is a link to what an ulcerated paw pad of a cat with this condition looks like 

(Please note that Hannahs paw is nowhere near this bad - her ulcerated pad is about 75% less than this): http://www.theskinvet.co.uk/page/343968211

So last Friday I called another vet (one that is much closer to our house), gave the story to the receptionist and she said the owner of the practice is the best around, and would be happy to see us and give his opinion.  

So on Monday off we went and found ourselves a new vet.  He has seen and treated several cases before, he thinks we bandage just fine (duh), he thinks stitches are totally warranted, and he wants to try some medication that has worked for cases in the past to try to clear up the condition all together.  

So tomorrow Hannah will go in to get her widdle poor paw pad stitched up.  If you could, please say a little prayer that all goes well.  I've had Hannah for 6 years -- and my furry girls mean as much to me as my non-furry girls.  

Luckily because of my appointment on Friday I'll be home to make sure she's doing OK on post-surgery day.  

And I'll also get to watch all the coverage of the Royal Wedding!

I'm a big geek for this kind of thing.  Plus, my Mom was pregnant with me 30 years ago when she got up at 4 AM to watch the wedding of Charles and Diana!  I've also been re-reading The Thorn Birds this past week (which is what my Mom read while pregnant with me and where she got my name from).  She was also 29 while pregnant with her second daughter - pretty cool coincidences all around.  

Also, I'm trying to get a design together to re-do the blog to make it more Turnquist family centered, thus including Tabby with her big sister.  And last but not least on our to-do list: Jeff is opening his own business! 

So with being pregnant, working full-time, feline appointments and surgery, business start-up work, prepping for baby arrival, getting the chimney repaired (another ordeal in itself) and all the regular day-to-day laundry, cleaning and bill paying; we're keeping ourselves busy - just the way I like it.