The waiting game

Well, here we are. I wake up everyday and feel like a walking timebomb; wondering if something-anything will happen today. And, it doesn't help that everyone and their brother is asking how I am feeling, or what's going on or if there is a baby. We have had some excitement lately though. We thought we were getting a belated Christmas gift. Brad and I were spending two nights at my parents house for Christmas Eve and Christmas day and he suggested bringing all of our hospital stuff with us. Fine, whatever-but I didn't see the need. Well, we had the need. About 9pm on Christmas day I started having contractions. For the first hour they were irregular but by 10:15 they were pretty regular. Brad and my mom sat up with me and got me water, took turns rubbing my feet and ankles and got me walking a bit while also timing contractions. By 12:30 we decided to head to the hospital since they had been at 6 minutes apart for over an hour and were painful. By the time we got to the hospital they were 4 minutes apart and I was hooked to machines. Mom and Brad kept helping with my breathing and relaxing me. I was checked and of course only about 1 cm so we knew we had a while. They wanted me to stay for a while longer and before long we had moved to 2 minutes apart and kept that up for about 2 or 3 hours. However, they weren't lasting long enough-only 30-45 seconds long (felt longer to me). After checking me again with no progress the nurse said to go home and labor there where I could be more comfortable. She was positive I would have the baby that day and expected me back at the hospital later once the contractions were longer. So, we went back to my parents house and were able to sleep for about two hours and when I woke up I still was having the contractions. Everyone was so helpful with timing and relaxing me and taking care of me. By mid afternoon unfortunately they were slowing and I would go for as long as an hour wihtout having any, but of course they would then pick back up. By midnight they were done :(and I was still pregnant. The next morning we went back in after church because I was feeling awful and sick and the baby had very little movement. The baby of course was fine but while in the hospital and I was hooked up again and they were ready to send me home, they noticed I had been having contractions again! So, we stayed for another hour or so and when I was checked again-after doing this for over a day I had not progressed at all! But, I was still contracting-no fun. Thus began our trying out every old wives tale there is. I began eating lots of spicy food, consumed tons of pineapple and pineapple juice, we walked the mall THREE times and even my parents neighborhood in frigid temps, I bounce on my exercise ball, do different stretch positions, we're rubbing my back and feet in the right spots and yes we have done that other thing that is supposed to help :) Even that blue moon thing on New Year's didn't make a difference! I went and saw the doctor on Wednesday (after having contractions on and off ever since that Christmas night) and he was pleased with everything-and by then I had made a tiny bit of progress. He said it all sounded good and meant baby was trying to make it here soon. I was hopeful! He doesn't think he will see me in the office this week (2days to go) and if I do he will begin to take steps to try and get my labor going before we have to move to an induction next week. I am looking forward to this! I am so tired, uncomfortable and sore at this point and just want my baby and some relief! Brad was supposed to be out of town last week but on the 26th after we left the hospital he made the decision to not leave me now and his bosses were very understanding and are still being great about our stubborn child stuck in there. Please know that between Brad, our families and the internet we WILL let the world know when this little stinker decides to make an appearance. If you haven't heard from one of us then no, there is no baby yet! Please pray for me and if you might pray to my new best friend, the Blessed Mother. I think I talk to her most these days! In the meantime-we still wait! Hope 2010 is going as good for you as it has for us so far! Please send lots of labor dust and healthy baby wishes our way!

Full Term

Yesterday was our 37 week appointment with the doctor. It went well as did our ultrasound in the morning. Baby is looking well; even though it was harder to see everything since he/she is so big at this point. I had a bit of a hard time being on my back for that long so the tech had to finish up quick toward the end and then get me a wet cloth for my face and a glass of water to help me out. But, she did tell us what her calculations were for baby's weight. Now, this is no way even close to being accurate and the doctor explained that these ultrasounds can be off by more than a pound either way. I sure hope if it's off of the guesstimate that is is LESS than what they think! I am not going to say what the guesstimate is but rather wait and see what baby bear really weighs in at! Which, we will have to wait for. The doctor is fine with the size and amount of fluid in there and we are just stuck waiting for this kid to get things started on my own. If I don't go into labor on my own by the week of my due date he will do another ultrsound and then decide if we need to induce. I am glad for one reason not to be induced-inductions are more likely to end in c-sections according to most of what I've read and what my doctor told me. I would like for this part to be over and to be holding my child but I know that I want whats best for both of us. So, for now 'gigantoid' (the new nickname) is staying put and gaining weight steadily...while I actually have lost some in a week. We are looking forward to celebrating this very special Christmas and wish you and yours the best. I can't help this year but think about our blessed Mother all the time to help me through. I am so grateful I don't have to do this on the back of a donkey and give birth in the hay with only a man to help me :) Merry Christmas everyone!

The end is near?

Today was our 36 week appointment; I am going every week at this point. From last week until today I managed to only gain 2 pounds!!! yay me! However, there is some sort of sizing problem with my belly all of a sudden. My doctor is sending me for another ultrasound (I only had the one done at 20 weeks and all was well) before my next appointment on Tuesday. The reason being is that I am measuring a 'bit bigger' than he would like. He measured me three times today to be sure and I of course didn't ask but just sat there and listened and thought of the HUGE baby I might have :) He says he just wants to be sure that we are still on track and on schedule and that all is well and we don't have to expect anything earlier than we thought. I will be on edge until we find SOMETHING, anything out on Tuesday and I think Brad is just overjoyed and gloriously happy. He keeps saying 'but, we get to see the baby'. Remember, he couldn't take off of work to be at the first one and now there is nothing that can stop him with this second chance! But, while I am sittting and waiting I am also being humored. While I think that I am going to have a big child my family (mom and Melissa to be exact) are even more convinced that there is and always have been two babies in there! Abby says there is one baby and out of the blue announced the other day that baby snoopy would be here before Christmas would....they say children have an intuition so we shall see! Other than this new development all is well. I am large and feel like I am carrying around a rock most of the time and am really looking forward to the end. I have been having some major Braxton Hicks lately so I am getting a good idea what to expect-I least I hope so! Both baby and I are (finally) ready to leave for the hospital at a mometns notice and I can't wait. After Tuesday I am sure to have more updates so check back then but in the meantime keep us in thought and prayer.

This time last year

I was a blushing bride and Brad was letting go of his bachelor status. Yes, it really has been a whole year since our wedding! We've made it to our first anniversary and I still can't quite wrap my head around the idea yet. I hope nothing changes too drastically between us now that we aren't quite 'newlyweds' anymore. We enjoyed being together today and celebrated well. We actually went to church with my family-in the church where we were married last year. Brad has been working third shift for a few weeks now and he dropped me off at my folks on Friday and he worked until 3 am and had to be back at 8am for a few hours. So, because we were both so tired we spent another night with my folks and went to church down there. We exchanged our cards this afternoon after getting home. Our 'gifts' to each other should start arriving soon. Brad had done his research a few weeks ago and found out that the traditional gift for a first anniversary is paper. He then suggested we buy each other a year subscription to a magazine-which I thought was a great idea. So, sometime soon I will be getting People magazine (a guilty pleasure) and he will be getting Weird-I mean Popular Science :) We spent some time talking about our wedding and reminiscing and I even played our song for him on the ride home. Then, one of the best things we did to celebrate today was let each other take naps! We each slept for about an hour and felt so good...we must be an old married couple. We also enjoyed an AMAZING dinner at the Melting Pot in Troy which we have never done before. WOW, what a great meal to celebrate with! As soon as I have some room left in my tummy I will go cut into the top layer of our wedding cake that has been defrosting all weekend. We've gotten phone calls and cards all weekend from so many people and we have been thinking of everyone who shared this special time with us last year.

In baby related news ( I can't seem to keep him/her out of any post) I think we are shifting downward! I am pretty sure it dropped a bit. I got out of my seat at the restaurant tonight after feeling the baby move a bit during dinner and then I looked down. I stared for a while and Brad thought maybe I was watching it move. However, I was wondering where my tummy went. I swear that the top of my belly is smaller and there is more space between my chest and the bump. Plus, I feel like I am sticking straight out even more now. So, I am very excited at the prospect that this little butt will not poking me in the ribs as much anymore and the end is truly in sight!

6 more weeks of waiting....

As of yesterday I am at 34 weeks with 6 more to go. I remind myself often that I only have six more weeks left-something has to get me through the day! This is the only time in my life where I am looking forward to a milestone involving the number 40. We had our doctor appointment today and it was a really good one. At my last appointment two weeks ago, the doctor I saw wasn't sure if the baby was head down. But, the doctor today was able to immediately confirm that baby bear has headed south and is in position!!! I was so excited after spending the last two weeks asking the baby to move and praying I wouldn't need a c-section or anything. I also found out that I have a very boney little bottom pressing up against my ribs making me quite uncomfortable most of the time :) Baby bear doesn't have much room left but kicks and moves all the time. His little feet are on the left side of my belly just as I expected from the amount of movement latley. He also gets the hiccups more often and it is easier for me to feel them and it is so cute. I also didn't gain much weight this time much to my surprise and I am very happy with my weight gain thus far for the pregnancy. I get braxton hicks contractions alot and have passed the point where anything can make me comfortable. Sleeping has become a bit of a chore and the baby does NOT like when we spend too much time in the car! That boney little bottom likes to push upward then :) But, we are all ready for the arrival of our little one and it seems it is all I can think about through the day. Brad has had a very tough work schedule lately where he is working nights and sleeping during the day so that makes it tough for both of us and he may have to make a small out of town work trip soon so please keeps us all in thought and prayer as we get closer and closer everyday. We can hardly wait for this ourselves and look forward to sharing our joy with you soon!

Our "Nest"

Well, I think I am nesting...and Brad agrees with me! We spent a lot of time this weekend cleaning and organizing-which is great with the holidays all coming up as well as the baby arriving soon. I actually had a bit of a small meltdown in the kitchen the other day because it was so messy and unorganized and seemed like it would take forever to fix it! Poor Brad didn't know what to do with me. The nursery is all ready; it now has a nice glider and area rug to finish everything off. Everything is put together, if it needs batteries it has them and all clothes and blanket and linens are freshly washed and put away. Baby Bear even has his bag packed for the hospital. Mommy will get to hers in the next couple of weeks when I figure out what the heck I need to have with me! Along with all the cleaning I've been doing I did a lot of organizing and downsizing and throwing stuff away and such which is good. Brad and I are packrats and hold on to everything, even junkmail sometimes and it can get bad. We also both admit that we are guilty of being droppers-we leave things wherever we can drop them and then eventually (like days or weeks later) we put them where they belong. This will never work with a new baby around :) But, since we got the house so clean we began work on Holiday things! Yes, our tree is up and yes you can make fun of me because it is only November 15. But, I have been forbidden from doing any decorating or box lifting on my own this year :( so I have to do it when I have the help and the energy. I will slowly work on getting the rest of it pulled out of the boxes Brad took out in the next two weeks. And, hopefully I will have outdoor decorations too this year as Brad has finally given in to my pouting and pleading and we have an outlet outside! Honestly, who builds a house without electricity outside? Most of our shopping is done as well and whatever has been bought has even been wrapped. Go me! As of Tuesday I will be 32 weeks and 8 months pregnant! I will be asking the Doctor on Wednesday if we can figure out where everything is-head, butt, feet etc. Whenever I sit down I have something snuggled up really close to my rib cage on the right side and it can get uncomfortable :) Baby bear moves alot and my stomach does a whole lot more jumping when he moves. He gets a new schedule all the time and the current one gets his energy up and jumping around 8-9 at night. And, when I go to bed at 10 we are still going strong and kicking away. As you can see we are gaining weight and growing right on schedule. Only a few more weeks now! Pretty soon we will be 'rounding third' as some may say.

Showers of Blessings

We had a jam-packed, fun-filled Halloween weekend and we may need a whole week to recover! When my mom and sister found out Halloween would fall on a Saturday this year they knew it was the perfect time for a shower-I love Halloween as much as Christmas! I really enjoyed my afternoon with our family and friends. I saw some people I hadn't seen in a while and I won't soon be forgetting it. Baby bear has LOTS of new things to look forward to. We are so grateful for the generosity of everyone and have 99% of our baby gear ready and waiting now! We spent today washing all the new things and putting together all of the baby stuff. After putting together so many things we may need to start buying batteries in bulk-almost every baby item needs something! I love all of our new things and was surprised by several touching items that we received that we didn't register for. Baby bear already has his first Green Bay Packers sweatsuit, lots of homemade baby hats, a beautiful afghan that will be perfect for the baptism day and I even got a bit emotional when I opened the gift from my brother and his fiancee. Knowing he is thinking of all of us while so far away really got to me. And, my sister and her family bought a toybox for us and inside was the picture that hung in our nurseries as babies with a note on the back saying mom had given it to her and she was passing it to me and in time she asked I pass it to our brother...yet another tearful moment! We feel more ready and we will spend the next few weeks organizing it all, figuring out how things work and buying any other things we think we need. Hopefully we can get it all done before January!