Randoms (1/27-2/2)

heatherlynn321

@afranzen85 Thanks! I feel a lot better now!

chewie5990

@soprano19 I live in Denver - too many people moving here and not nearly enough houses in our price range. I'm trying to hard to stay positive, but it's just depressing when we go to put in an offer only to find out that there are already 4+ offers all over asking price or full cash offers. Our realtor said that most houses are going at least 15 thousand or more over asking price and prices just keep going up! 

pirateduck

@chewie5990 I’m in CO also.  The housing market here is crazy.  The other problem is that houses don’t always appraise as high as people are asking so if you put in a full price or over price offer you might not get a loan because the appraisal isn’t high enough.  I was in shock when I saw my neighbor’s house listing a few months ago and thought she was nuts for asking that much, but she got it in the end.

chewie5990

@pirateduck Yes! It's insanity. The market is just out of control - originally we were hoping it would stall out so we waited 2 years, but it just keeps going up and up and up! My parents moved here 10 years ago and their house has almost tripled in value! 

pirateduck

@chewie5990 and to make matters worse, incomes are not rising nearly as quickly as the cost of housing.  Where I'm at, rents have risen substantially as well.  My husband and I are fully aware that when we move out of our current home, we will need to move out of the area entirely.  

We keep thinking the market will stall out soon too.  It's definitely slowed down some, but it's still hot.  It can't keep this up forever though.

heyybritt

Since so many of us are professed homebodies in our role call thread, I thought others might enjoy this weekly newsletter I get called Girls Night In. They send out self care recs and links to articles that were trending for the week every Friday. I've read some interesting articles and gotten some good recipes and book recs from them.

https://girlsnightinclub.com/

lajoliedreamer

I had the same issue with housing in the PNW. We started house hunting right when the prices started going up and it was constant bidding wars that we never won. After searching three years and being completely priced out, we gave up. It was a deciding factor in our decision to move back to New England. The market here is also a bit crazy in the more popular areas, but this past summer we finally became homeowners on a house that we originally lost in a bidding war, but it fell through so we got another shot. I hope the perfect place falls into place for you, @chewie5990!

bananapanda

It looks like there is only one weekly check-in group so far for this week.  Are we just slacking or did we decide to do away with this or switch it up to one big group check in like the role call?  I'm fine either way just don't want to start a thread for weekly groups if we are moving away from that format.

shamrocandroll

@bananapanda I don't think we made any formal group decision, but I personally stopped making them for Group 1 because they felt kind of boring to me and I like interacting in the group-wide threads more.

babyfoxden10

Ok so here’s my freak out for the day. I had a meeting in a different building, but randomly decided to stopped back in my classroom to drop off my bag to find a student with a full blown rash on his face. So I’m freaking out of course it’s red and raised he said it itches a bit, but who knows. It basically looks like he ran outside in the cold for too long.
Well my mind of course goes to fifths disease. Common childhood rash, but bad if you’re pregnant. I have to go to my meeting so I don’t get to talk to the nurse. Meanwhile tomorrow is my last observation and my birthday. I just can’t. 

Go into teaching they said....

mamaj1220

@babyfoxden10 did he go to the nurse? I would have it looked at just to be safe! 

mamaj1220

I had a plan meeting today at my office and it was such a good meeting. Like I feel like it was such a win for how well it went and how long my client was able to sit with us, it was amazing. Usually he lasts maybe 5 minutes but today he sat with us for over an hour.

babyfoxden10

@mamaj1220 yes he was sent home from the nurse. No fever which is what I’m holding onto. 

drkoyya

@mamaj1220 That's good to hear! I know that work has been rough for you lately. 
@babyfoxden10 I totally get the freak out, hopefully you didn't catch anything in your brief encounter. Good luck tomorrow and happy early birthday. 

Speaking of sick people... I went in to see my OB yesterday because I have a sinus infection and a yeast infection (awesome). Good news is that both infections are resolving quickly, baby is good & my doctor wasn't concerned. Bad news, there were soooo many people with facial masks. There is a confirmed case of the Coronavirus in a neighboring county and everyone is being cautious. I was freaked out just walking around the clinic with actively sick people. 

lisush

Thanks all for your thoughts on the CNMs vs. OBs. It's definitely about the people and not the credentials for me. Both of my options seem really great, which is making this choice so hard. I'm sure whatever choice I make will be great!

heyybritt

@drkoyya we have a case here too and a few students came on with face masks today. I know they do it as a precaution but it made me more freaked out than I would like.

mamaj1220

@drkoyya thanks, I feel like I have whiny about work lately because I just am over tired and sick of people most days (I really should have picked a different career path haha). Also we had a Coronavirus scare a county over, it is making me nervous to leave my house.

mamaqdubu

I'm real frustrated by my kid's daycare. My youngest had the tummy virus over the weekend. He's feeling better and back at school today, and (TMI) is poop is "solid enough" to go back, but the teachers didn't change him quick enough after his 2 BM's. When i picked him up he had a small BM in his diaper, and he screamed the entire ride home because his diaper rash is completely out of control. Like bright red raised irritated skin. I felt sooooo bad he just kept telling me he needs help and he needs a hug and there's just nothing i can do to make it go away quickly! I gave him a bath and literally loaded his bum up with healing ointment, but man do i feel bad for the kid. 

emlettuce

@mamaqdubu I felt that helplessness yesterday when DS was super constipated and kept asking me for help and was so frustrated when I told him there wasn't anything I could do. 

lisush

@mamaqdubu I'm sorry for your LO and that they weren't attentive enough. I hope he feels better soon.

jhysmath

@drkoyya we have a potential case in a town south of us, a student at a private school was in Wuhan earlier this month. One of my students was at the hospital yesterday and saw the student on a stretcher with masks and everyone riding him in had a mask on too. I'm happy to see it's not really effecting young people as badly and people who are dying have underlying health issues.

Also my principal called me yesterday about a student with shingles and that she wouldn't let him come near me, but after being freaked out I found out I'm not at any risk because I've had chickenpox before. 

pirateduck

@jhysmath I think you can get shingles even if you have had chicken pox.  My friend has a shingles flare up whenever she is pregnant and her immune system is weakened.  It’s not good.  

sunshinesea22

Oy this virus is scary. It’s crazy how small the world is these days and how fast things can travel. 

pourmeanothermocktail

I got a note from my son's preschool that a student in the classroom has influenza. And it's not a daycare type setting, it's in a classroom at a grade school. Lots of soft goods, and floor cushions, and not a place that is sanitized every night like a daycare.

I'm worried. So far my 17 month old daughter and I have caught everything that's gone around there. And my 3.5 year old has caught most of it. I did the flu once while pregnant, but I was at least physically able that time. I'm concerned.

brettanomyces

pirateduck said:

@jhysmath I think you can get shingles even if you have had chicken pox.  My friend has a shingles flare up whenever she is pregnant and her immune system is weakened.  It’s not good.  

As far as I was aware, shingles is when the dormant chicken pox virus reactivates in your body. If you catch the virus for the first time from someone with shingles you get chickenpox. I think, I’m not a doctor. 

mamaqdubu

The virus is super scary! I have to travel to LAX, PHX, and New Mexico in a few weeks and I’m honestly so scared. I’m never one to wear masks when I go on airplanes, but I’m seriously considering it, along with a pack of Lysol wipes, to wipe down my seat and tray table. 

pirateduck

@brettanomyces yeah, I was just doing some reading online because I was a bit confused myself.  If you have had chicken pox in the past it can resurface as shingles later in life, but I don’t think you would catch shingles from another person, if I understand right.  

In any event, reading everyone’s encounters with sick people is making me want a shower and want to hide from the world.  I do not want to be sick while pregnant, period.  I had a lot of sinus pain the other day but fortunately it ended up just being the storm that rolled in and not the start of a cold.  

brettanomyces

Unfortunately it looks like stupid is spreading way more infectiously than any virus right now. 

I saw a post on Facebook where someone asked our local public health if ordering packages from eBay or Ali Express was safe. 

Another post someone heard heard a woman at a Costco sampling counter say “I won’t take anything from an Asian”. 

ruby696

@brettanomyces I'd give that an eyeroll, but it's too offensive. I mean, I thought it was common knowledge that not all Asians are Chinese? And not all Chinese people have been exposed? Maybe I give people too much credit.

randic22

So, DH and I have a weekend trip to DC coming up in March with my bestfriend and her boyfriend for the cherry blossom festival and some general sight seeing. I was looking at it as a little babymoon. Now I'm overanalyzing and thinking maybe I signed on for way too much at 33 weeks pregnant? Any STM have any insight on how I will be feeling at that point?

lisush

@randic22 will you be staying pretty close to the cherry blossoms? If not, the city is SO crowded and transportation is terrible because of it. If you'll be nearby you can pop out when it's not as crazy (like very early morning or on a weekday if you take a long weekend). I went last year not pregnant and was pretty over the crowds.

rachelg777

@randic22 I think it really just depends on you and how things are going so far. For me personally, I would be comfortable with a weekend trip at 33 weeks. You will be bigger and a little more uncomfortable. How far of a trip is it for you? Oddly enough I did a DC trip at 37 weeks pregnant with DS (It was only a 4 hour drive for me). The trip up was somewhat uncomfortable because I was driving up alone but the way back was fine since MH drove. Anyway, all that to say - it really just depends on how you are feeling so far with the pregnancy. You can always sit down and rest if you are uncomfortable. The cherry blossoms are beautiful!

ETA Always check with your OB before travel later in pregnancy though.  

jhysmath

@brettanomyces you can't "catch" shingles like @pirateduck said you can only get chickenpox from someone who has shingles. 

mamaqdubu

@randic22 of course things can change, but I think a lot of it is mindset. If you are looking forward to it as a babymoon, and can realize that you might need to take some breaks and should avoid being on your feet for say 6 hrs straight at a time, you'll be okay. If you expect to be on the go the entire weekend it's going to be rough. At 33 weeks you'll be on the cusp of being uncomfortable sometimes to uncomfortable often. I would say for me, 36 weeks + is when I really slow down and don't commit to literally anything and leave everything as a "i'll see how i feel that day". that's just my experience though. i didn't have major risks and most of my pain was back pain if i overdid it. 

shamrocandroll

@brettanomyces @pirateduck @jhysmath I had shingles early on in this pregnancy.  I can confirm that you can't give someone else shingles.  Anyone who has had chicken pox has it already dormant in their immune system, and it can flare up if their immune system becomes less efficient (like in pregnancy, for example), which is why it's predominant in older people.  They did tell me to take extra precautions around DS since he's only had one of the two chicken pox vaccines, but as long as I kept it covered, his risk was low and if he did get chicken pox from me, it would likely be mild because he's been vaccinated.  I did have to keep away from younger babies, though.  Thankfully it was all on my torso, so relatively easy to keep covered.  It sucked so much and was so painful, though!  

bananapanda

All this talk of chicken pox and shingles has me a little more concerned about my OB's comment yesterday that my blood work showed I am varicella immune negative.  I know I had chicken pox as a child, but maybe it was super mild so it didn't help me build immunity?  And I think the vaccine didn't come out until I was a little older so I guess I never had it.  Either way I can't get the vaccine while pregnant, but hopefully I can while breastfeeding so I can get it soon after delivery.  The great part though is that I went back and looked at my labs for my last pregnancy in 2017 and it showed the same thing and my crazy psycho OB never once mentioned it or I could've taken care of it in between my pregnancies.  Lovely thing of her to just skip over.

shamrocandroll

@bananapanda Ugh, I hate that crazy ex-OB of yours!!!  Yes, you can take it while breastfeeding, but I recently learned they will not allow you to donate breast milk if you've had the vaccine within the last 6 months.  But they did make sure to say that doesn't mean it isn't safe to breastfeed after having the vaccine.  You should be able to ask your OB about it!

m6agua

@bananapanda Are you sure the lab from this pregnancy and last was Varicella? I know testing your immunity for Rubella antibodies is standard but I hadn't heard of testing Varicella in pregnancy.

I just looked it up, I had the Varicella vaccine in January of '96, but I for sure had chicken pox the first 3 days of 3rd grade, which was Sept of '96.

rox7777

@bananapanda I’d highly encourage getting re-vaccinated. I had a very mild case as a child, only on my arms and chest. In high school I was on immunosuppressants for a year. I caught the chicken pox AGAIN from my little sister and got them on my legs, back, and face. They don’t tell you that you can in fact get chicken pox again in spots you didn’t have it before.

As for those worried about vaccines and babies. I have a 7 year old immunocompromised cancer kid. The first thing they told us when he was diagnosed was GET RE-VACCINATED. The only vaccine that encouraged us to do away from him was chicken pox because it does shed, but the shedding process is 48 hours. Everyone in my household got updated vaccines shortly after he was diagnosed, my 4 year old just got his yearly vaccines and I will get my TDAP this pregnancy. All while he’s still in treatment and immunocompromised. I know there’s a lot of back and forth with the vaccine debate, but I can say as a mom with a lot of experience in this department, that there’s a lot of wrong info out there.

pourmeanothermocktail

@randic22 I don't plan weekends out in the third trimester at all, but I'm more affected than most. I agree with above-if you're planning on just going and enjoying yourselves, great, but if your idea is to go go go and be on your feet and hustling around constantly, it might be too much.