Monday, September 29, 2008

Squeaky Wheel Gets the Grease

If you whine, things will happen... My water broke at 1:26am this morning. I then had contractions every 4 minutes for about 45 minutes. Then they got really intense but slowed to be 20 minutes apart for a few hours. I did manage to sleep from about 4-8am, on and off between contractions. Now, the contractions are sporadic in time and intensity. I did go for a walk, but it is now too warm outside to be comfortable. My next trick is to do laps around my house to hopefully get things moving along. Please pray that things go smoothly and that this baby arrives safe and sound. I'll try to update when I return from the hospital. If nothing else, I'll have a real life friend post a comment to this entry.

Thanks in advance for the prayers!

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Waiting

I am 38w2d and I am ready for this baby to come. Periodically I still have some cramping and contractions, but it has slowed down since my 36th week. =( I have to say I am quite annoyed about that! Just when I hit "full term" baby decided to hunker down for what seems to be the long haul. Hubby and I have been doing *things* to try and encourage real labor to begin. Unfortunately, any contractions that result usually peeter off after about 30 minutes...

I don't mean to be whiny. I'm still ecstatic to be pregnant with a live and seemingly healthy baby! I have really had a pretty good pregnancy! I have only gained 20 pounds (metformin had a lot to do with that, I'm sure!) and I'm not even swollen like I would have expected. My heart hasn't had any episodes lately and my platelets seem to be stable. It's not that I am so miserable being pregnant that I can't wait to get it over with. I have had a good pregnancy. I'm just very eager to meet my baby. Also, there is another selfish reason that I am a little ashamed to admit. I have been having some frustrating experiences with one of the ladies I supervise at work and I really need a break from her...

However, I really don't want my baby to come if he's not quite ready. The most important thing to me is that we both are healthy. I am not asking to be induced or anything. I am going to wait until baby decides he's ready (unless I reach 42 weeks and then my doctor will induce). I really hope he comes soon though. It feels like this pregnancy has been dragging on for too long. Why does gestation have to take so long? I think I might have a talk with God about that...

In the mean-time, the carseat is installed, the baby's bed is put together and clothes are washed and put in drawers. We still haven't put the mural up in the baby's room, but we are waiting until my mom comes (Oct. 21st) to visit because she has hung wall paper before. I have had 3 baby showers and people have been very generous. I think we have all the basics that we need. We will probably need some more clothes, but I can buy those as we need them. I think we've got enough to get started. We also have *lots* of blankets. So many that we are probably going to give some of them to a cousin who is due a couple weeks after us.

Anyway, that's the short update. I will try to take a picture of my belly soon. Baby has dropped (which is encouraging) so you can really tell I am pg.

I hope everyone is doing well! Take Care!

Friday, September 19, 2008

Full Term

Today I reached 37 weeks. It is nice to hit this milestone! For the past week I have been taking it easier and working from home half the day because my pre-labor symptoms increased throughout the week. I know it is possible for me to have these pre-labor symptoms for weeks, but I also didn't want to go into pre-term labor. My cramps and contractions would increase when I was standing or walking around. So, I tried to sit or lie down much of the day... or at least not be standing for too long. Of course, the contractions eased up yesterday, just when I was about to enter the "non-danger zone." Today I haven't really had any contractions, just some gas... Go figure.



Anyway, I had a check up today. The good news is that I tested negative for group b strep. I was glad because it would be a hastle to *have* to be connected to an IV during labor to receive antibiotics. Now we don't have to worry about it. =) The other 2 tests I had done today were a blood draw to check my platelets and an u/s to check the size and position of the baby. My doc couldn't tell for sure if he was head down so he wanted to double check. Baby is weighing in at about 6.3 pounds (31st percentile). Hopefully that means that he will be fairly easy to give birth to...



So, now for your viewing pleasure I can share a picture of my son's face. For those of you who have a hard time distinguishing these pictures, his face is on the right-hand side of the picture, with his chin smack-dab in the middle of the picture. you can see the shadows of 2 eyes, his nostrils, and his mouth which seems to be a little open. =)

Sunday, September 14, 2008

MIA Update

Sorry for the long period of MIA. Kathy V, thanks for checking in on me! I'm sorry I worried you. I am doing well. I am 36 weeks along and have been very healthy. I am now seeing my OB weekly. Hubby and I took a Lamaze class last weekend and have had our final prep meeting with our doula. Supposedly we are ready for labor/birth. I feel pretty good, but am tired most of the time. For a while now (over a month) I have been feeling like my baby will come early. I think I was right. Over the weekend I started to have some pre-labor symptoms (menstral crampy feelings, braxton hicks contractions, and baby lowering into my pelvis). I haven't lost my mucus plug or had regular contractions, so I am not considered to be in actual labor yet. However, I do kind of expect to go into labor within the next couple weeks. I have to admit, I hope that I do go into labor shortly after I pass 37 weeks... I'm tired of being this pregnant and all the awkwardness that goes along with it. However, I am proud that I have only gained 20 pounds and that my ankles still look normal. For some reason that feels like an accomplishment... Here's a fairly recent picture:






The above picture is from the baby shower my friends threw for me over labor day weekend. I am the huge one on the left. I was 34 weeks at the time. I'm bigger now... The woman to the left of me is due about a month after I am. The third woman on the right is not pregnant. She is "filling in" for our friend who wasn't able to be at the shower and is a couple weeks ahead of me but who looks like she just had Thanksgiving dinner. There was a lot of laughter while this picture was being taken...

It is getting late so I am going to sign off for now. I will try to be a better blogger. I will let you know when my baby arrives and post some pictures. Thank you to all of you who are still checking in on me. I appreciate your thoughts and prayers.