Last Blog Before Baby?

Hopefully this is the last update before the baby. This weekend is going to be filled with odds and ends and some relaxing, so this shouldn't be on my mind. But I had a few other random things to add:

• Overall Weight: According to the doctor's scale, I gained 26 lbs total. According to our home scale, I gained 35 lbs total. Pretty much the difference is my starting weight - for some reason, I must have just weighed a lot that first time I saw the doctor, who knows. Either way, I'm pretty happy with the overall weight result.
• Circumference: 46.5 inches. Who knows what my original waist was anymore!
• The last day of work was difficult but I tried to keep a brave face all day. First off, I'm sad to leave the kids. I feel like I just got started with them and now I'm passing them off to someone else. One of the girls even said, "But you are my brand new teacher and you are already leaving!" Oh, break my heart! I did promise the kids I would be back with the baby for Halloween and they are pretty excited about that, so I pleased them a bit today. I gave them a nice good-bye speech today and then also "threatened" them that when I come back they better be behaving and I will know if they haven't been. :) Secondly, I LOVE my ladies at work! I will very much miss having lunch with them, chatting, gossiping, randomly stopping and talking to people, etc. They are all such a rewarding part of my job. I tried to keep it light and casual today, but I will be missing them all very much over the next few months! Hopefully they'll save my seat in the teacher's lounge! :)

Well, I think that pretty much sums up my pregnancy this far! The blog will certainly NOT be updated as much after baby boy is here. I can't believe that in 3 days, I will have a little baby! It still seems surreal. But I know that I cannot wait to get him in my arms and kiss and cuddle him! Just trying getting to hold him - I dare you! :) And I am very much looking forward to have all this time off with him. This has easily been the best year of my life and I am so happy that I will be home with him until January. Fall has always been my favorite time of the year, but having this little baby, being home, watching Browns games, cuddling with my Layla Bear...I think I may be on Cloud Nine for the next 100 days!

Thank you to everyone that has been so supportive and loving to us during our pregnancy. My life has truly been blissful since January and we are so blessed. Please say a little prayer for us on Monday that everything goes well and we come home with a healthy baby boy!

I think I am ready for the next chapter of my life to begin....

Last Ultrasound Photos - 38.5 Weeks

His foot, a side view His fingers, a few of them at least

The back of his head and his ear

Doctor Appointment Part 2

Tom and I went for our doctor appointment today to get another ultrasound and talk about induction. I wasn't really sure why I had to get another ultrasound or why they were so worried about the amount of fluid I had - but now I do. Apparently, all the fluid can cause the baby to stay up higher and if my water were to break before he descended, the umbilical cord could come down first and be pinched by his head - not good! So no more trying to break my own water! They want to induce me, have the contractions move him down into position and THEN break my water. Makes so much more sense now! So the moral of the story is we are going in Monday morning at 8 am to be induced.

Random things:

• We went back today to meet the doctor that is SUPPOSED to be at the hospital on Monday but it turns out, he's not on that day! Apparently my main doctor didn't realize this. She sent him all these messages today about meeting with me, my record, when to send me for an induction, etc and he didn't understand why she was so concerned since he's not on call that day. Oops!
• The doc we were meeting with today wasn't one of our favorites - we had met with him before and he was just too laid back, etc. So we were nervous about having him as the doctor on Monday. BUT today we ended up really liking him and THEN figured out he won't be there on Monday! The irony!
• The doc that WILL be at the hospital on Monday is my 2nd favorite doctor though! Tom hasn't met him yet but I did and immediately liked him, so I think it's all working out just fine.
• I asked if there were any eating restrictions, when I should stop eating, etc before the induction and he told me eat as much as I want. Not the answer I was expecting, but a yummier one!
• My plan for walking all weekend to break my water is off! But maybe I'll be able to dilate some more with my walking.
• A 2nd doc has agreed that being 3 cm dilated is a good thing. He also gave me the "looks really good" speech. So hopefully it will count for something and move things along better.
• My birth plan has always been to go as naturally as possible with an induction being one of the last things I wanted. Turns out, I like the idea of knowing when I am going into the hospital - everything will be ready, I'll be showered, Tom doesn't have to rush to get me there, etc. It also is putting a bit of a kink into my no epidural rule. I never said I would not get an epidural, but I wanted to see how long I could go naturally because I wanted to be able to get up, walk around and feel the contractions to hopefully help with the pushing. Getting an induction tends to go with epidurals, but I still think I will see how long I can go without it. It's more now the thought of my giant baby coming out that makes me think I'll get that epidural in the end! :) But as every doctor has said, it's all a play it by ear thing - just go with everything - nothing is written in stone - relax. Deep breath!

Doctor Appointment Part 1

I went for what I thought would be my last doctor's appointment today, but alas, it is not (which is why this is titled Part 1). It seems like everything is about the same - baby still isn't completely down and I'm still 3 cm. I am going again tomorrow for an ultrasound to just check on everything, especially the fluid levels and then if everything looks relatively good, it looks like I could be induced as early as Monday.

In other news, my class threw me a surprise baby shower today! It was Browns themed with an orange and brown cake that said Lucky Baby on it!! They got me a Browns diaper bag, blanket and outfit! There were also lots of little goodies inside the diaper bag. The kids all drew pictures of what they thought the baby would look like and wrote down their name suggestions! It was wonderful!

What a Week!

It seems as we are nearing the big day, things just keep going wrong! I'm hoping this means we're getting it all out of the way so that labor and delivery will be smooth! Here's just some of the "issues" we've had since Saturday (it's only Wednesday!):

• On Saturday Tom took Layla for a quick walk and she stepped on something. We assume it was a bee because her foot swelled up! Tom was by himself and figured out what to do! He'll be a great daddy! He put some sort of baking powder paste on her foot, put a sock on it and sat with her, tried putting an ice pack on it (that didn't work!) and called the vet. By the time I came home, it seemed better so we sent her to the hair cutters, but later at night it was still swollen. The vet said to give her Benadryl and that knocked her out! And took the swelling down. Our poor puppy!
• On Sunday Tom went to rinse off the deck. We had noticed these little black things on the deck and didn't know what they were. While trying to wash them off the table, he looked up into the umbrella and found 2 bats! He tried to hose the one off, tried to hit it with a broom and eventually it flew off. Then we found another one! BATS!! ON OUR DECK!! Hello, does that freak anyone else out??
• The curtains we bought for the baby's room are black out/insulated curtains. This makes them thick and difficult to get the wrinkles out. The curtains were also not pleating correctly so we had COIT come out and see what they could do. Long story short, we either have to move the rod (drill new holes, fill holes, repaint with our custom color paint that we don't have anymore) or hem these crazy thick drapes! YIKES! Forget it - just take the wrinkles out!
• My awesome blow drier broke on Sunday. It will not turn off anymore. I tried to plug in a different blow drier and the test button was going in and out and clicking and scared me that our house was going to burn down!
• We cleaned out the basement and found a ton of the paint cans from when we first moved in and painted. The paint was bad so we tried to figure out how to get rid of all the cans. We decided to put them out with the trash and put them in garage bags and then in boxes. One of the cans spilled and Tom had to scrub the driveway down so that it didn't stain. Then the garage men wouldn't take them and my mom almost got in a fight with the garage men! Tom ended up taking them to one of my dad's dumpsters last night to get rid of them!

So far, no catastrophes on Wednesday yet.....

As of September 10th

Tom and I went for our 37 week doctor appointment on Thursday. We had another ultrasound to check the size and weight of the baby. Again, we were told Baby Boy is big - 8.5 lbs and in the 90th percentile. The ultrasound tech was very nice and we had a fairly long ultrasound. We even saw the baby open his mouth! She also said that I still have a lot of fluid, which is why my belly looks so big and round. We then met with the doctor and she determined that I am now 3 cm dilated. She was impressed that everything is moving along quite well. She does think that the big baby plus all that fluid are helping to speed things along. So everything sounded ok and then she dropped the bomb shell that I could basically go into labor at any time and if I do not go into labor by Thursday (September 17th) then we will schedule an induction for very soon after that! My last day of work is SUPPOSED to be September 18th and I would like to make it to that, but at the same time, I'd rather go into labor naturally vs. being induced. So now we're officially in a waiting pattern! ALL our bags really ARE packed now! We also have tarps and towels in my car because we were told twice that IF my water breaks, it will gush and be like Lake Erie, so we have THAT to look forward to! We knew that all this could be a possibility but hearing it on Thursday and realizing that she definitely cut a week off my pregnancy timeline made everything VERY VERY real! So wish me luck and pray that Baby Boy can stay in there a little longer - I would like to at least make it through Monday and Tuesday of next week!


His Foot

His Face His Fist

In the Last Week

We are getting more and more ready for baby boy to come, and here are some of the latest updates from the last week:

• The bags are packed and ready to go, the car seat is installed! YEAH! We had some debate over where to put the car seat, but the middle made the car seat too wobbly. So we decided to put the car seat behind the passenger seat. We're pretty set on that, but any thoughts?
• I went to the doctor's office on Thursday, Sept. 3. My doc again told me that I am having a completely textbook pregnancy with everything. She seems very excited about this. Also, according to the doc's scale, I have gained 25 lbs so far. She also checked me out and I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. To me, that sounded really great and like a lot has happened, but I guess we need to see if I've progressed by next week.
• We have hired a sub! YEAH! And it's a guy! Everyone told me this summer that I should stop referring to my sub as a "she," that it could be a "he," but I thought the chances were pretty slim of us finding a guy to sub for kindergarten. Regardless of the sub's gender, I am very excited and feel good that Steve will be taking over!
• Only 8 days teaching and I got my first cold! YUCK! Sunday I woke up with a sore throat and just completely tired. I did not do much this Labor Day weekend but rested. Tom was an angel putting together more baby stuff and doing the laundry, while I sat on my butt and napped a lot! But I feel MUCH better today!

I am looking forward to my next doc appointment this Thursday with another ultrasound!

Camera Issues

So in anticipation of baby boy, we bought (ok, my mom bought it for us) a new camera. It's small but takes amazing pictures. It also has lots of fun new features including a smile detector. Anyway, one of the features is that it puts those face boxes on a face when it sees it. Tonight Tom took belly pictures and not only did it recognize my head as a face, but it also recognized my extra large belly as a face! I mean, technically it's sort of accurate...but the way Tom was laughing/giggling (you know the one I'm talking about) it was not so funny!

Today was also a tragic day because my belly button disappeared. It is not in, it is not out, it is just gone!

Week 34 Ultrasound

He's still a boy!

His 2 feet!

His face (it's a bit distorted and hard to see)!

Today Tom and I went for our 34 week ultrasound. Everything was going pretty well until she mentioned that the baby looks like he weighs 6 lbs 12 oz! Now, our doc did say that the number could be off a pound one way or the other, so maybe he's only 5 lbs 12 oz but still pretty big for this point. He's in the 90% percentile (I really don't get what that means, but it's not good). They also said I have a lot of amniotic fluid. Big baby + lots of fluid = my big belly! The only other thing I was worried about was that they would say he's not a he anymore - or rather that they made a mistake, but it is not the case! He's still a boy! We also learned that he is already head down, so that is good. I did measure for 35 weeks but that's only 1/2 a week ahead, so not bad. My doc didn't think anything indicated that I would have the baby early at this point. I will go back in 3 weeks for another ultrasound to check the size again, but she said there is no intention of inducing me early if he's big. She agreed that going into labor naturally is the best method and they really do not want to induce - unless I am over 41 weeks.

New symptoms/issues:

• I have had horrible heartburn every night that wakes me up. She said Tums are not enough anymore and I should be on Zantac. Thought I had some at home - NOPE!
• I knew he was head down because there is major pressure on my bladder. I also just am feeling pressure when I'm up and walking, so she recommended a get a belly bra to hold up my belly and alleviate some of the pressure.

Random facts:

• Baby's heart rate was 135
• I was actually right on where all his body parts have been! I knew those were feet by my ribs!
• Speaking of ribs, the muscles over my ribs hurt a lot more, especially if I've been sitting for a while or driving.
• My wedding rings definitely do not fit anymore and I am now wearing a garnet/diamond ring Tom bought me for my birthday last year.
• The baby kicked Layla when she rested her head on my belly the other day (actually he "butted" her). She gave me a look like "Why did he do that?"

Baby Shower #2

On August 15th, Tom and I celebrated our second baby shower, this time thrown by Carolyn at the Lakeside Yacht Club. The day was absolutely beautiful and we received more presents then we know what to do with! Our house it now STUFFED with baby clothes, toys, equipment, etc. I definitely need to get all of this sorted and organized ASAP! Thanks for another great day!

32 Weeks

I am now in my 32nd week and am moving right along. I've done a lot of picture updates of the room, but I thought I am missing some fun updates about me and baby boy! Here are some new things:

• Tom and I have been going to our Childbirth Classes. They are very fun and informative. We have learned a lot! My favorite part so far though was when our instructor Nicki made Tom "be the woman" and he demonstrated the 4 labor positions for the class! Of course I did NOT have my camera that day!
• I went to my latest doctor appointment on 8-6-09. It was the first time they told me how much weight they had calculated for me and my belly measurement. They have my weight gain at 22 lbs - which I think it pretty great! My belly measurement (not circumference) was 33.5 which is supposed to relate to how many weeks you are, so technically I measured a week early, but they didn't say anything about it.
• We have an ultrasound on Aug. 20th that I cannot wait for! I'm so excited to see my little boy again and especially figure out what position he is in. In my opinion, he is diagonal, with his feet by my right ribs and his head/hands by my left hip.
• I'm pretty surprised that my energy level is still pretty high. There have been a few days I have been dragging, but overall I have been an energy dynamo - staying out until 3 am for Melissa K's bachelorette party, dancing my butt off, finished all my lesson plans through the end of December, getting things ready, etc. I'm sure once I go back to school I'll be zonked!
• Speaking of Melissa K's bachelorette party...did you know men don't really care if you are pregnant? They will still come up and try to dance on you (yes, dance on you, because they are certainly not dancing with you) and grab your butt! Frankly, I'm a little disappointed boys!
• I am feeling very good overall. I feel like my belly got pretty big a few weeks ago and I was feeling awkward but it's been about the same size for a while now and I sometimes don't remember I have a big belly. It's nice to not feel like a blimp!
• I truly appreciate everyone's nice comments on how good I look, but it's not helping my exercise routine/after baby weight loss. I mean, if I look good at 1&* lbs, then do I really need to go back down to 1$# lbs? :)

The Baby Furniture is IN!

Thank you to Baby Tyme for our wonderful baby furniture, Fabric Gallery for our black out blinds and for hanging our Restoration Hardware black out/insulated curtains and Macy's for our SUPER comfy recliner!
We definitely have plenty of furniture - it barely all fits in the room. We're still trying to figure out if that is where we're leaving everything and if we're going to leave the hutch on the changing table. The poor nightstand keeps getting shuffled around and may just end up being stored until it's ready to be used. I can't wait for all the bedding and accessories to get in so that it all looks finished.

Baby Shower #1

On August 2nd, I celebrated my first baby shower at The Galaxy in Wadsworth. It was thrown by my mother in law and stepmother in law. We had multiple games, great food and fun! Thanks so much to all that came!

I Swear, I Won't Buy Anymore Clothes!

Top picture: A winter coat (I couldn't pass it up!), a so soft running suit and his FIRST HALLOWEEN OUTFIT! CAN'T WAIT!

Bottom picture: Off our Restoration Hardware Registry - it's cashmere and so cuddly!

Gymboree is Addictive

I had some GYMBUCKS to use and they were burning a hole in my pocket!

Daddy's First Baby Clothes Purchase

I took Tom to Outlet Stores when we were on vacation and had him pick out his first baby clothes. He was so CUTE! You can definitely tell the one outfit had to be picked out by a man! Can you guess which one??

Latest Doctor Appointment

Yesterday I went to my 1st "every 2 week" visit. The baby's heart rate was 144, up from the last time when it was 138.
I was very excited because I saw my favorite doctor out of the practice. She came in and we had a 20 + minute book discussion. Now I love her even more! She is so well read and into children, teen and adult books. She was even about to start Twilight! Plus, she looked at my green toe nail plus and said, "Oh! I wish I was that ballsy!" I mean, seriously, wouldn't you want this doctor to deliver your baby? I do!
Also, I asked my doctor about my weird flesh eating disease on my thumb. She thought it was some sort of fungus and recommended I get a jock itch cream for it! WHAT?! I have jock itch on my thumb?! I don't get it!

Third Trimester

I am now into my third trimester and feeling it! The tiredness is definitely back, I feel large and in charge, and if I have to pee one more time, I swear....

So here are a few updates:

Weight: + 20-24 lbs (still in the appropriate range!)

Waist line: 41 inches - eek!

Baby Boy's Room

The room is done! We also added a second heating vent for the room to make it extra warm. (If you've ever stayed in that room in the winter, you'd understand!) Now we just need to wait on the furniture and blinds! YEAH!

Day Five/Six: The All Nighter!

Picture #1: Tom finished taping off the room and is now taking at tea break at about 10:30 pm

Picture #2: Tom officially opening the paint!

Picture #3: Tom bet me he could be done by 1 am with 1 coat. He ended up working straight through until 5:40 am with both coats! It's done!

Picture #4: Removing the last piece of tape!