Inducing Update

Just a quick update...after sending Sadie off to Camp Johnson, we arrived at the hospital and were in our room by 7:15. I was hooked up to the IV by 7:45 with fluids and Pitocin. Things are going well...I can tell I'm having contractions though they're not at regular intervals. I do get a sleeping pill tonight and should do that within the hour more than likely. They said they would "amp up" the amount of Pitocin at 5:00 am to really get things going, so hopefully we'll have a baby sooner rather than later.

Funny / scary story #1 (stay tuned for more): Brad and I were sitting in our room watching TV when we heard a bloodcurdling scream. We both looked at each other with great big eyes wondering whether we had arrived at the hospital or a haunted house. The nurse came to check on us a few minutes later and we asked about it...she said the "screamer" had just had her baby, so we probably wouldn't hear much more out of her. Now I know what to look forward to. :)

Oh the irony...my nurse tonight graduated from FRA as well (11 years ahead of me, thank goodness).

Stay tuned for further updates from Babyland!

39 Weeks - This Is IT!!!!

I went to the doctor this morning for my 39 week appointment hoping that we would find out some more information. I had not made much progress as far as being dilated, but there was a little more protein in my urine than she wanted to see, so she said we are throwing in the towel. I am going in tomorrow night, Tuesday, to start a slow drip of Pitocin (since I'm not as dilated as they'd like me to be) and then Wednesday morning, will start the Pitocin at a normal pace. My doctor will be available Wednesday and is the on-call doctor Wednesday night, so that is definitely a good thing! They did take some blood to make sure nothing is urgent and I should hear back on that later today. If for some reason some of the results come back questionable, they will ask me to come in today, but she said that is not very likely.

So, now we have a little over a day to mentally, physically, spiritually, etc prepare...and to play with Sadie so she is not feeling too sad :) She has no idea that her doggy world is about to be turned upside down! I also get to pick where we eat for dinner tonight as it will be the last time Brad and I go eat together, just the two of us, for a while. I may also get my nails done for good measure :) And now, the 39 week belly pic (please excuse the deodorant spot on my shirt)....

Single Digits

I happened to jump on the computer for a few minutes after watching "Role Models" with Brad and noticed that the ticker on the blog that is counting down days until my due date is currently in SINGLE DIGITS now!!!! Holy crap...this baby girl could arrive anytime now (and I couldn't be happier). We are all set as far as the nursery goes...we have the carseat installed in the car...and the bags are packed and in my car. Now all we need is a baby! :) My next appointment (39 week appt) is Monday morning at 9:00 am, so I will post an update afterwards.

Ha...maybe by me posting about this, I am tempting nature and will go into labor before my appointment Monday morning....a girl can wish, right???

The Waiting Game

Well, I went to the doctor again this morning and everything is holding steady. My blood pressure was 130/92 (still high, but not going up) and I was still the same amount dilated and effaced. The bloodwork results came back the same as last week too - so, everything is basically staying the same, which is good (though I wouldn't mind being more dilated so I could be induced).

Everything looked great on the ultrasound - Katie was doing a great job "practice breathing" and was perfectly content sleeping in my belly. We had to do some creative shaking to get her to move around! She is also head down which is good - hopefully she is getting ready to make an entrance to this world sooner rather than later! Also, based on all the measurements that they took, she weighs 7 lbs 4 oz...the ultrasound tech said that typically her measurements are slightly high, so there is a better chance she is closer to 7 pounds. We did get some good pictures of the baby - some good profile shots, as well as proof that her feet are pressed on the top of my uterus right under my left ribs now.

My doctor still said she would like to induce me once I am at 2 - 2.5 cm, so I am going to have to have a pep talk with my body over the weekend. If I go in Monday morning for my 39 week appointment and am 2 - 2.5 cm dilated, I would likely be induced Wednesday morning (my doctor is off on Tuesday), which is also good because my doctor is also the on-call doctor Wednesday night. If I go in Monday and my doctor sees something slightly questionable, and I have not made as much progress as she would like, they would likely start me on a slow drip of Pitocin on Tuesday night and then hit it full speed ahead on Wednesday morning.

So....the waiting game continues...guess we will see!!

38 Weeks & Counting...

Well I headed to the doctor again this morning for my main weekly check-in. My blood pressure measured 128/88 the first time and 124/90 the second time, so it is stable (a good thing)! My doctor commented that she definitely wants to keep an eye out for toxemia, but she really thinks that I am just one of the women whose blood pressure creeps up at the end of pregnancy. She did not do bloodwork this time, which made me happy - I still have marks from both the times last week! She checked my progress and I am 1 - 1.5 cm dilated and 70% effaced. She indicated that since I am full term, once I reach 2 - 2.5 cm, I will likely be induced (unless, of course, I go into labor on my own) because of the high blood pressure. I fully support that idea because I don't want this blood pressure thing to cause any problems with the baby or with me.

When I go in for my next appointment on Thursday, she wanted me to have an ultrasound done so we could check on the fluid levels and size of the baby and all of that. I assume if she sees anything questionable, I will also be induced as a result of that.

So, all in all, we left the appointment feeling rather excited knowing that we would get to meet this sweet baby girl so soon! I just hope my body cooperates and my blood pressure stays stable :) For now I am staying off my feet as much as possible so my feet and ankles swell the least amount possible. That is such a strange feeling that I cannot wait to get rid of!

On Saturday, I went to a friend's baby shower. It is so nice to go through this whole experience with someone who is also a first time mommy-to-be and to be so close in the process. There are only 12 days between mine and Laura's due date, so we are able to ask eachother about what to expect and doctor's appointments and all those fun things. Here is a picture of a whole lotta belly!!

Appointment Update

Well, my blood pressure is inching higher, so I have to go to the doctor twice a week now so they can keep an eye on things. I typically go on Mondays, but now I am adding Thursdays in the mix. When I went today, my blood pressure ended up being something like 130/92. Monday there was no protein in my urine and today there was a very slight trace of it. My blood work came back the exact same as Monday (literally the exact same readings), so that is a good sign. On Monday, my platelet count was slightly low - if it continues on the lowering trend, it can be a red flag, but since it was the same today, that is a good sign. All in all, I am to continue resting as much as possible, drink lots of water, and not add salt to any food :) My next appointment is Monday morning (I will be 38 weeks). So for now, baby is doing well, and they are just keeping a watchful eye on my blood pressure and any other associated symptoms.

Happy Birthday!!

Today is the one year celebration of this blog! Hard to believe this time last year we were preparing to leave for Europe...and this year, we are at a much different place. Still very exciting, but quite a different experience! Funny thing is - I still haven't finished the Europe photo book I started...maybe I will do that today. It has to be finished before April 27 - that is the day we left last year and I swore to myself I would finish the book before it has been one year :) Happy Birthday, blog!

37 Weeks & An Update

First off - this baby is now full-term!! Hooray! By this time, all systems are developed and the baby would be just fine. Clearly, she is welcome to bake as long as possible to ensure that she is healthy and "done", but I am to the point now to where I am getting a bit uncomfortable and would welcome meeting my little one! I went to the doctor this morning - I am dilated to 1 cm and still about 60% effaced. The big issue this morning was my blood pressure - they had to take it about 7 times and it had gotten a bit higher. It ended up being about 120/90 (the bottom number was the issue) - I had no protein in my urine, which is excellent, and all the blood work came back in the normal range. Whew! So, with having higher blood pressure, I now have to go to the doctor's office twice a week. I go back Thursday morning so they are able to keep tabs on my blood pressure. I think if it becomes too much of an issue they will talk inducing, but hopefully we can hold off on that and I will go into labor naturally. In the meantime, I am to rest, relax, prop my feet up, drink plenty of water, and limit my sodium intake. Below is my belly this morning at the doctor's appointment....

PS: This is also the debut of my haircut! I got it cut last week because I was tired of it looking lifeless and dull - I can still pull it back into a ponytail! It has layers and is obviously shorter. It is also still easy to manage, which will definitely come in handy once I am forced to take a 2 minute shower because it is time for the next feeding :)

The Nursery Is Complete!!!!

Well, after letting the letters just sit there because I couldn't quite figure out how to hang them, today was the day to hang them. Hollie came over and helped - definitely could not have done it without her! I am so happy with how everything came together so nicely in the nursery. All of the colors work really well with eachother, the decorations on the walls help complete the look, and I really enjoy the dark furniture. I can't believe there really is going to be a baby to put in that crib and to rock in that glider in just a matter of days!!!

36 Week Picture & Update

Well I went for my weekly appointment this morning - 36 weeks...good grief. Our countdown is less than a month now...whoa! My blood pressure was about the same at 122/84. She checked me and I am 1/2 cm dilated and 60% effaced...making progress!! When I was in the appointment, my doctor said she was going to take my records to the hospital today - that definitely makes it more real! WEIRD! When I got home from the doctor I noticed that my left foot was REALLY swollen and bloated. I think I figured out that it is a result of wearing flip flops. With that said, I am really going to have to try to lay low more this week. Also, thanks to my friend Hollie, the nursery is officially finished! I will do a separate post with pictures. Anyway, here is a picture of my belly from this morning.

On a different note, the conference that I was planning happened this past weekend, so I have a little bit of extra time on my hands. I will still wrap up the loose ends from that conference, but it is nice to think that I am closer to being able to lay low. Yesterday, I began some of the organization projects I have been wanting to start. Hopefully I will finish some of that soon!

The Bunny Hunt

From the very first sighting of a bunny, Sadie has decided that they are her favorite animals. Where we live, we don't have squirrels, but we have tons of bunnies! This time of year, they are everywhere because it is getting warmer. Sadie likes to look out the front door and back door looking for them and "protecting her turf"...she growls, shakes, whines, and barks. The first picture is the innocent little bunny that happened to be in Sadie's territory, and then the next one is Sadie intently watching every move of the bunny. Never a dull moment in this dog's life!!

"Sadie, did you root?!?!"

When we let Sadie out, she really likes to root around in the backyard. Yesterday I let her out after it had just sprinkled a little, and when I went to let her in, this is what she looked like. I giggled to myself and decided to capture the moment on my camera - I asked, "Sadie, did you root??!" and this was her look. Doesn't she look so apologetic?? I think she does it because she likes the doggy massage when we dry her off. Gotta love our crazy derg...

35 Weeks Update

Can you believe it? I am really 35 weeks! I am now going to the doctor every week and getting checked for progress. When I went to my appointment this past Monday, my blood pressure was the same as the previous week and I had not gained any weight - hooray! I am not dilated at all, but am "softening and shortening". Progress is progress!!!! I had Brad take my belly picture at the doctor's office, so that is why the background looks different. I definitely feel enormous this week - and growing every day. According to the email, babies at this stage on average measure a little over 20 inches and weight approximately 5.5 lbs, so no wonder I feel large!!! Anywho, here is my weekly picture .... enjoy! ....

Staycation/Babymoon

This past weekend we decided to have our own little "getaway". We wanted to go to the beach for a long weekend together as kind of a last time to get away just the two of us, but we waited too late and then spring break was happening and nothing was available, and all of that, so we decided to do something locally. We ended up deciding to stay here at the Embassy Suites (free because of HiltonHonors points) Saturday night. We got a couples' massage (mine being prenatal obviously), ate dinner at Sol, went to see "Taken", and woke up to have brunch at Cracker Barrel. While we were only miles away from our own house, it was nice to feel like we had gotten away for a little while. This picture was taken after we ate our dinner at Sol.