We are so in love and so thankful for our healthy baby boy.
I'll be posting a birth story at some point but for now I'm gonna soak in his newness, smell his sweet skin and hold him as much as he'll let me.
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Monday, September 22, 2014
Baby H: Week 39
I've been trying to keep up the "eviction notice" strategies as much as I can but so far nothing's working, obviously. I'm still drinking my raspberry leaf tea and going on long waddling walks in the afternoons with the pup and hubs by my side. I ate about 3/4 of a pineapple as part of my dinner one evening and have had numerous med school friends try pressure points and OMM on me in hopes of jump starting the process. I even thought holding our friend's two week old little boy might do the trick so we went and visited them in hopes my hormones would sense a baby in my arms and force my own baby out. No dice! Which just proves what I already knew, old wives tales are only a "thing" because of the few people who coincidentally go into labor after trying them.
I've been feeling so very pregnant this week. Braxton hicks contractions have kicked it up a notch in their intensity and frequency and I tend to imagine that they're starting to regulate themselves and/or be more painful than before in hopes of it actually meaning real labor. I've reached the point in pregnancy where I'm wishing for pain to start which is definitely a weird place to be. Bring on the labor pains and lightening crotch and contractions! Who am I!? Also this week J and I went on what will be our last dates which is so surreal. We went out for wings (spicy food induces labor right? nope!), saw a movie in the theaters with the fancy reclining seats, drove around looking at mansions like we used to all the time, ran errands and picked up a few last minute items before the baby comes. I'm sure he won't appreciate me sharing but the best part of the week was by far my mini pedicure from none other than my wonderful husband. I planned on having to beg him to take off my horribly chipped polish since I can't reach my toes and was absolutely thrilled when he not only said yes but also said he would re-paint them too. What a fantastic husband I have, I can't help but brag!
My doctor's appointment on Friday afternoon was definitely an adventure. I've officially progressed to a solid 3cm which is awesome news in the labor department for sure. We had a bit of a scare with some bleeding right afterwards as I started to get dressed but were reassured by my doctor, who we made come back into the room, that it was normal and everything was a-okay. J and I both had our thoughts of "holy cow is this it?" "did my water just break?" "are we staying here tonight?" which really put things into perspective that it could be any day now. The best news is that we officially have an end-date in sight as my doctor agreed to induce me the night of my due date if this little man doesn't come on his own before then. Originally she had said she waits until 40w4d to induce but since I'm making decent progress already she's comfortable moving it up. That leaves 7 days, seven whole yet short days until our son starts to make his way out one way or another! Holy crap!
Baby boy, we seriously cannot wait to meet you! Thinking about your birthday makes me want to jump up and down with excitement and joy and happiness. Then I remember I'm still pregnant and avoid the jumping for now. :-) We've waited 9 long months while you've been growing perfectly in my belly and the time is coming near to getting to hold you in our arms. I can't wait to look into your eyes and become your momma. I can't wait to hear your first cry as you announce your arrival into the world. I can't wait to feel your soft skin and kiss your sweet cheeks. You've changed my life forever already and I can't wait to see what's in store from here on out.
Monday, September 15, 2014
Baby H: Week 38
One more week down, how many more to go!? It's insane that every part of life has turned into a "... last time before baby" question. Is this the last weekend before baby? Is this the last football game before baby? Is this our last dinner out before baby? Is this my last update before baby?
The belly is large and in charge and I often bump into things (no pun intended) like the side-mirrors of our cars in the garage, the pantry door, etc etc. It's actually quite comical. This is the first week where I've noticed the belly getting in the way or making it impossible to do things. There's no way I could even think about painting my toes anymore, putting on my tennis shoes makes me out of breath and taking laundry out of the washer is such a joke now. Not to mention little man is dropping lower each day making even my stretchy maternity shorts no longer fit (let's pretend my shorts above are buttoned/zipped even the slightest bit and not actually wide open, okay). I'm still relatively swelling free, still lacking stretch marks, and still have a smaller appetite most of the time.
My doctor's appointment this week included my first check and I'm happy to report that things have started progressing. I was 2-3cm, 80% effaced and little man is at -3 station. Granted I know that "progress" really means nothing in terms of predicting when labor will be but figure, at some point or another I have to go from 0 to 10 so any movement along that scale is in the right direction. My doctor seemed very pleased and even told us "I'm here until tomorrow night so maybe you'll be coming in before I leave" as we were finishing up. I would sure love to not make it to my next appointment with her!
Overall it was a good week, fast which this prego appreciates. Based on how things are hopefully going to pan out with school I'd love if this little boy decided to show up sooner rather than later. Or if it must be later I'm hoping it's over 40 weeks (I can't believe I just typed that). I had an exam on Friday morning and have another on my actual due date so basically the closer to an exam he decides to meet the world the better. I have started ramping up the "eviction notice" old-wives tales as much as I can now in hopes of coaxing him out of his comfy home. I've been drinking Raspberry Leaf tea in the mornings and walked as much as I could over the weekend. I scheduled myself my last prenatal massage gifted to me by my favorite med-school ladies and might indulge in a pedicure sometime this coming week in hopes of some pressure points being activated. I know that most of these things aren't shown to have any certain effect but I figure it can't hurt. My hospital bag is officially packed, we figured out how to work the car seat and had our maternity photos taken so now we're ready and just playing the waiting game. Every time I see my mom she leaves by saying "see you at the hospital!" which I hope comes true soon.
I put together this time-lapse and thought two things at the same time. Holy cow it's amazing that my body is growing our son and holy cow I want to feel skinny again! All the more reason for this little man to come meet the world already.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Baby H: Time Lapse
With the season of this pregnancy coming to a close I've been extra nostalgic lately about the journey that it's been. It's been fantastic and hard. There have been times of learning curves and moments where I've felt so sure of myself. It's been easy and a struggle, scary and exciting, and been packed full of ups and downs. I've hated my body, dealt poorly with the changes but also amazed by my body and what it's capable of.
While most of my time these last few weeks has been spent trying to avoid the aches and pains that come with third trimester, I have loved being pregnant overall. I love my bump except for the belly button fiasco. I love our son rolling and kicking and hiccuping regardless of how strong he's getting and if it keeps me up at night. And I love having him all to myself for the last 8+ months most of all.
Watching this transform has been incredible and I'm so thankful to have all the random photos from this part of life, my pregnancy with our first born. I've been taking daily pictures for the month of September because it's Birthday Month (!!!) and that deserves it's own documenting but for now, here's a look back at the amazing transformation growing a little human can be.
8w0d / 11w2d / 13w0d / 13w6d / 14w4d / 15w1d / 16w2d / 16w4d
18w3d / 18w4d / 18w5d / 2012d / 20w5d / 22w2d / 22w3d / 22w4d
The human body flat out amazes me!
Monday, September 8, 2014
Baby H: Week 37
This week moved right along which is always a plus as it means we're one week closer to meeting our little man. I feel like my belly is growing exponentially lately (along with my hips, legs and butt it feels) and the itchy/tight skin I have is the proof. But I'm still stretch mark free! I'm up around 32lbs but the gain has definitely slowed in the last few weeks probably because it's harder and harder to stuff myself and really eat very much throughout the day. And to top it off my heartburn is raging full force and is especially bad if I overeat so I try and avoid it whenever I can. Thankfully a few Tums usually does the trick in making it go away. I'm sleeping great still and only have to get up once during the night for the restroom. Braxton Hicks contractions have started increasing but thankfully I've been able to avoid the painful, real ones like I had a few weeks ago. It's amazing to me that my body is already starting it's "practice rounds" for when the time comes. The only real negative from the week is that my lovely husband decided to come home from a bachelor party weekend unable to walk with an ankle swollen to the size of a grapefruit and bruised as all get out. Between him and I we went to a doctor's office every single day last week and we're meeting with an orthopedic surgeon today. Please cross your fingers his high-grade full thickness tear doesn't need surgery because we don't exactly have the time for that before it's baby time!
My doctor's appointment this week was fast and all good news. My blood pressure has increased some from it's extra low state to a bit closer to normal and my belly is still measuring right on track. Baby boy's baseline heart rate is in the high 120's now and he is head down, ready to make his exit whenever that might be. My group B strep results came back negative which is great news and since my blood type is positive this means I don't have to get anything "extra" on delivery day. We talked with our doctor about her policy on induction and have our fingers crossed extra tight now that little man makes an early arrival because 40 and 4 just sounds miserable!
It's been a "cross things off the list that originally seemed so far away" type week and I'm loving it. I officially have a car seat base in my backseat ready to be checked by the fire department sometime in the coming week. My doctor placed a note in my file to call her specifically should I go into labor from here on out. The pack n play is set up in our room and there's a place in our kitchen now for bottles and baby supplies. My breast pump has been ordered through insurance and I have nursing wear shipments that should arrive sometime next week. Since the nursery was finished before I went back to school there aren't too many "nesting" type things left to take care of so I guess this is my way of finding things to do.
I've carried this little baby of ours for 259 days... that's over 8.5 months and basically all of the year of 2014 and I can't believe we're finally here at full term. I can't believe I was pregnant all of the spring, all of the summer and into the fall. I can't believe how much my body has changed in the last 37 weeks and how much I've been able to accomplish at the same time. I can't believe that I've been so lucky to have so few bumps in the road and am so close to a healthy baby. I can't believe any time now I can officially become this little boys momma.
Monday, September 1, 2014
Baby H: 36 Weeks
Holy cow we're under 30 days! The 29th came and went and it's insane that he will be making his debut sometime in the next month! September seemed so far away this past spring when I was sporting a super tiny bump and wishing for baby movements and now it's already here!
This week was actually pretty good pregnancy wise compared to the last few. It seems like little man's dropped a bit because my ribs have been feeling immensely better while my pelvis is taking the brunt of the aches instead. He still has his feet up nice and high which means plenty of kicks that make me gasp they're so strong but I'll definitely take this over the "ribs of fire" from a few weeks ago when he was floating around up there more. My pelvis on the other hand screams at me if I get up to quickly or try to push things on the ground with my feet. I also think I've mastered the waddle this week which is just comical if you ask me.
My heartburn is getting a bit more regular but thankfully not unbearable and I am still stretch mark free! I'm starting to get to the exhaustion stage similar to that of first trimester and often have to lay down for at least a little while each afternoon. Hopefully this doesn't get too much worse over the coming weeks because as of now I'm still doing okay balancing med school and growing a human and both take a lot of work! I've noticed my appetite go down some which I can only attribute to the fact that there's less and less space in there as the days go by. I get hungry but then super full not too much later which means I have to be conscious about spacing out my meals.
The best part of this week was by far getting to peak in on our little man during my last ultrasound before he decides to meet the world. Everything checked out just perfectly in terms of measurements, he's still sitting around the 65-70th percentile mark but has quite long limbs already. He's estimated to weigh 6lbs 4oz which just blows my mind because that's totally a "regular baby size" already. There's totally a little human in my belly! We did have a little worry about his heart rate during the ultrasound which was thankfully cleared up quickly. The tech measured it around 120, which compared to the usual 140 it's been at for the last few weeks shocked us a little bit. We mentioned it to our doctor when she was checking it again which prompted her to have me lay on my side to get a better measurement followed by hooking me up to the monitors for our first Non-stress Test. Twenty minutes later we were reassured that he was perfect as can be, that his heart rate was just fine and according to the nurse "he's the best baby on the monitor all day". Thank goodness!
I'm looking forward to packing my hospital bag and getting the car seat bases installed in our cars this coming week. We also have maternity pictures on the horizon and I've been pinning ideas and mentally planning outfits amidst studying EKGs. And of course, I'm most excited that we're in the final month countdown to meeting our son! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that he'll be a little early, say 38 weeks instead of the full 40 but regardless, we're so close! We got 3D pictures during our ultrasound and I can't wait to smooch on those chubby cheeks and sweet little lips. Swoon!
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