Monday, December 28, 2009

One More Week

39 Week Update from BabyCenter.com:

"Your baby's waiting to greet the world! He continues to build a layer of fat to help control his body temperature after birth, but it's likely he already measures about 20 inches and weighs a bit over 7 pounds, a mini watermelon. (Boys tend to be slightly heavier than girls.) The outer layers of his skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath."

After reading that update, the first thing that popped in my mind was, "I carried a watermelon??" I can't believe I'm carrying around a mini watermelon right now! Well, yes I can, it totally feels like a watermelon in there!! Our appointment last week was pretty uneventful...my doctor was out of town so we saw another doctor in the practice. He said I was still at 2.5cm and he moved our next appointment up to Monday (today) to see if there was a chance my doc might want to induce this week. So this morning the doctor said that I'm still at 2.5cm and she sent me for an ultrasound to check the baby's size and the amniotic fluid. She said my blood pressure was fine, but she did notice my swelling (hard not to, my feet look like cavemen feet!). So we had the ultrasound done and he is weighing around 8lbs 7 oz!! Oh my goodness, that is a big boy! She said it could be off a pound either way, but still....that means he could be a nine pounder!! The amniotic fluid looked good so we are on track to be induced next Monday, January 4 if he does not come on his own before that. The doctor stripped my membranes though, so maybe just maybe that will get things going and make him come on out!

Our Christmas was good, although it didn't really feel like Christmas to us this year. I guess with the house stuff going on, plus baby, our minds were preoccupied with other things! We did not get Christmas presents for anyone this year so it helped that we avoided the hustle and bustle of Christmas shopping. We had dinner at our house on Christmas Eve Eve for Justin's parents and grandparents, went to his parents house for dinner Christmas Eve, then to my grandmother's for lunch on Christmas Day. Somehow with all the food I've eaten over the last week, I managed to lose a pound since my appointment last week! Not sure how that happened... I got to see my brand new nephew Brayden for the first time and it was awesome! He's so cute and perfect and I didn't want to let him go the whole time! I can't wait to be able to hold my own!

My friend Nikki did not get such great news after her last tests. Her numbers have gone back up and she is now going to participate in a clinical trial that will start the first of January. I know this was not the news she was hoping for right around the holidays, but she is strong and will overcome the fear that has managed to seep inside of her right now. Please pray for her and for this clinical trial.

I am off this week so I will try to post some pictures from showers, Christmas and of course my belly :) It has definitely grown!! I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and have fun plans for New Year's Eve!! Who knows, maybe we'll have a New Year's baby after all!

Monday, December 21, 2009

Ready When You Are, Austin

So I'm just on the computer...checking out blogs and catching up on email. My back is killing me from sitting here so it's about that time to make my way to bed. I watched a show on E! featuring Kendra Wilkinson from The Girls Next Door. I have never been a fan of that show, or a fan of Kendra's show for that matter, but this one hour episode was only about her baby and the end of her pregnancy. I am even more ready to meet my baby boy now after seeing that. I want that so badly it's driving me crazy!! It's all I think about and I'm just READY. I'm really hoping the doctor will tell me something tomorrow to boost my spirits. It's not that I'm sad or depressed or anything like that...I just want to meet my baby. Is that too much to ask?! You would think the waiting would be easy after doing it for almost nine months, but it is so much harder here in the home stretch. I feel like everyone around me is having their babies...{insert whiney voice here}...when is it gonna be MY turn!??!

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Still Waiting

38 Week Update from BabyCenter.com:

"Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.
Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)"


Well, no Austin yet. We're still waiting. So much for me thinking he was coming by today!! I guess we'll see how much, if any, my body has changed to prepare for his arrival on Tuesday when I see the doctor again. I had moved up 0.5 a centimeter at the doctor's visit last week to 2.5 cm, so maybe we're making some progress. I did NOT like the doctor I saw last week. She was the final doctor in the rotation and quite frankly, I am pretty happy Austin didn't come this weekend since she was the on-call doctor. I would not have liked her delivering my baby. Not that she isn't a great doctor....I'm sure she is. She's just a great doctor for someone else, not me and my personality. We just didn't mesh well and I don't like being made to feel stupid in a situation that is brand new to me and I know nothing about. Okay, enough about that...

Austin's room is just begging for him to take it over!! Justin has already put the carseat in my car, the stroller is out and ready for use so all that's missing is our precious baby boy!! I am so ready for him to get here and so ready for pregnancy to be over. I hate to say that because it really has been a joyful experience...until about two weeks ago! How great would it be if pregnancy was only eight months long, and this last month of miserable-ness just didn't exist?!

The contractions are still coming, sometimes very regular and other times not. Tuesday night I was up for about four hours with them, laying in bed and timing them and unable to fall back asleep b/c of being uncomfortable. They were coming every six minutes but never progressed to anything stronger like real labor pains are supposed to feel like. Every time I get a contraction, I can't help but think - Is this it?? Is this the one that lets me know that labor has started and the time has come?! But, no such luck just yet. Hopefully soon though!!

Congrats to Melinda, Justin and baby Evan Graham, as well as Jennifer, Jimmy and baby James Whit - both babies were born Friday and I'm so happy for these sweet families and their new bundles of joy!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Whoa Baby, Not Quite Yet!

37 Week Update from BabyCenter.com:

"Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away.
Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz."


It's amazing how much can change in a week!! Last weekend I was talking about how there has been no progression with my pregnancy. This week, it's a whole different story! Let me back up to where I left off...

So last Saturday was fantastic!! We won the SEC Championship and now we're on our way to Pasadena for the National Championship game! Right before the game started, I looked down to see one cankle! Yes, just one...but definitely a cankle!! For some reason, my swelling started the day I hit 36 weeks and decided to only go after my right side. It was a funny, yet disgusting, sight and little did I know, it was only going to get worse! The swelling has definitely increased and has moved over to the left side too, so from the waist down, I feel and look like a marshmallow!! My feet look disgusting and we just have to laugh at them.

Sunday I went to Decatur for my last shower and had so much fun! It was great getting to see old friends that I haven't seen in a while and we got tons of awesome stuff! Thanks to Becca, Anna Lee and Amanda for hosting such a great shower for me!

By Wednesday, it was back to summer foot wear for me - my swollen feet decided that the only thing they were going to fit into was something that was completely un-restrictive. Flip Flops. So I went to my doctor's appointment and work wearing flip flops, and had to ignore the fact that it was freezing outside! My feet appreciated being free rather than being warm. They did not check me at the doctor's office so I didn't have any news as to what my progress, if any, was at that time. I did get confirmation that my doctor would NOT make me go 41 weeks, which was music to my ears. Other than that, it was a normal ole visit with no excitement. That afternoon, however, I began to feel Braxton Hicks contractions! It was the strangest feeling to realize that's what it was I had been feeling for the last few days, but also really exciting to know that my body was preparing itself for labor. The contractions were off and on most of Wednesday afternoon and night.

Saturday was a busy day in our house - it was our weekend to get everything done in the nursery to prepare for Austin's arrival. Time to get the crib put together (since it was late arriving and didn't get here until Friday!), paint some furniture, hang decorations and wash his clothes. My best friend Jenn came to help and it felt like we got a lot done...except the crib and furniture. So Justin and I prepared for a long day on Sunday. Oh, and I did invest in some Crocs Saturday night so now my feet can be warm AND not be restricted for these last few weeks while they look like sausages!!

Sunday morning, however, had a different plan for us than putting together a crib and painting furniture. Upon getting out of bed and going to the bathroom, I discovered LOTS of blood. Considering that I haven't seen the slightest drop of blood this entire 8 1/2 months, this really took me by surprise. Had it have only been a few drops, or just "spotting", I would not have been concerned. But I called the doctor's office and within 2 minutes the on-call doc returned my call and said to come on in. Shortly after I hung up with the doc, I started feeling contractions - this time with a little bit of cramping pain in my lower abdomen. Going to the hospital was NOT in our plan for the day and all I could think about was the fact that our crib wasn't done! We honestly did not think that I was in labor and felt like the hospital visit would be pretty short, so I called a dear friend, Emily, to see if she would accompany me to the hospital while Justin stayed home to finish the crib. So Emily came to pick me and off we went. We got there around 10:00 and they put me right into a room. The nurse checked me and shocked the crap out of me by saying, "Well, you're about 2.5 cm dilated and 80% effaced! You're in early labor!!" Holy Cow. NOT what I was expecting to hear, but exciting nonetheless! Around this time, the contractions started picking up and were getting a little more intense. According to the nurse, they were coming about every two minutes - WHAT?!?! I couldn't believe what she was telling me!! Early labor?!? So shortly after, the doc comes in and checks me, and she said I was more like 1.5 to 2 cm dilated and she really felt like they should give me meds to stop labor. Since I was only a day over 37 weeks (even though he is now considered full term), she felt like if they could stop labor, it would be better than delivering and have him go straight to the NICU since they couldn't be POSITIVE about my gestational age (even though I am). Soooo, they started pain medicine and contraction stopper medicine every four hours and told me I would be staying the night. Justin came to hospital once his duties were done at home and we basically just waited it out. I still had contractions but they were irregular throughout the afternoon and night. I got an Ambien to sleep, which definitely helped, but the back pain, uncomfortable bed and every 2 hour visits from the nurse made it really hard to get a good night's sleep. The doctor came in around 7am to check me and said I was still at 2 cm. They wanted to do more blood work at noon since my blood work that morning showed a decrease in numbers. They also scheduled me for an ultrasound to make sure the baby was okay and that the amniotic fluid was still intact. Finally around 11am, they came to take me to the ultrasound and then took my blood when I got back to the room. At about 3:30, the nurse came in and said my blood count was up just enough and the ultrasound looked fine so I was free to go home "if I wanted to". Are you kidding me?!? Of course I'm going home if I'm not having a baby right now!!

Soooo after the last two chaotic days, I'm "bed resting" today until I see the doctor in the morning. I'm still having contractions, some with cramping pain and some without. They are irregular so I don't think there is anything to worry about at this point. I had some slight bleeding during the night but nothing to be alarmed over. I'm hoping to get more information from the doctor tomorrow as to why they stopped labor, and I'm also hoping to get a better idea of when to expect Austin to make his true arrival! We're not sure if the doc will keep me on bed rest or tell me it is safe to return to work. I can't help but feel like he is READY! I would not be surprised if he came by the end of this weekend, but that could also just be some wishful thinking on my part :) I keep reading that the bleeding I had is an indication that labor could be either hours or days away. Hopefully I'll have an update tomorrow!!!

Saturday, December 5, 2009

It's GAMEDAY!!!

36 Week Update from BabyCenter.com:

"Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.
At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly."


Hard to believe I only have four weeks to go - and that I'm almost considered full term!! At my checkup this week, the doctor informed me that nothing was happening as of now and it looks like I have a ways to go. Great! Just what I wanted to hear! I know it's still early but a little progression would be nice! As much as I have loved being pregnant, it's beginning to be very uncomfortable and sleeping is so out of the question. My hips hurt, my back hurts, my stomach burns if I stay slouched over (due to my gallbladder surgery mishap), the heartburn is an everyday, after every meal occurrence now and I feel as if I'm carrying around a bowling ball!! But I'm not complaining!! :)

Justin is painting the nursery tomorrow while I'm in Decatur for a shower, and as soon as the crib arrives, we can begin setting everything up. A little late to be getting started but since we just moved in two weeks ago, we haven't had much of a choice! I'm so ready to get his nursery ready and get his clothes washed and hung up. He is going to love all his cute outfits!

Today is a BIG day for Tide Fans! I'm playing on the internet, writing thank you cards...doing anything I can to pass the time until 3:00 gets here! It's crazy that it's been a year since Justin and I were in Atlanta for this very same game against Florida. I'm hoping that today we have a different outcome than we did a year ago! If we win, we'll be headed to Pasadena for the National Championship game. I just hope Austin has made his appearance by January 7 so that his first Tide game will be the biggest one of the year! I would hate for him to miss this! Not to mention he has some great UA and Houndstooth clothing to sport for the occasion! I've heard all the Auburn fans cheering on Florida and Tebow this week...makes me wonder if they'll be cheering for Texas if we win tonight. I would hope that they would cheer for their own conference but I wouldn't be surprised. Anyways, all I'm gonna say about today's game is...May the best team win. And please Lord, let that be Alabama! ROLL TIDE!!!