Week 36!

Well here we are, our last week before Baby W is considered full term! We are 29 days away from our estimated due date of March 25th! This pregnancy has been a pretty easy one thankfully (knock on wood!) and I've really enjoyed every minute of it - About 2 days ago or so though it started to kick in, as Baby W is running out of room I find his foot lodged into my rib cage on a pretty regular basis. He is starting to pack on about an ounce a day of weight and is close to 6 pounds now roughly according to the standard growth pace at 36 weeks. With that comes extra pelvic pressure, bladder pressure, and severe lower back pain. Yup, at 36 weeks I can officially say I am pretty uncomfortable on a regular basis. At this point doing anything has become a chore of great magnitude. At our last doctor appointment they did the oh so fun Strep B test and then the doctor checked for dilation of my cervix. He was disappointed to find that I had only dilated to 1cm and he was wanting that dilation to be a 2 or 3cm. So I was put on orders to be more active and do more walking and activities... a far cry from the week before and being told to rest more and get that blood pressure down, but considering my blood pressure when back down to 128/85 they seem less concerned with my blood pressure.

Last night was rough, I had my first real stint of nausea occur, of course it was when we were out for dinner and I didn't even get to my entree before I had to excuse myself to the bathroom to go throw my brains up! Then we went home and I rested, my stomach looked like a scene from alien as Baby W was stretching his feet out against my stomach wall making it protrude in all sorts of crazy ways. I swear my kid is already preparing to be a MMA fighter and had me wincing in pain quite a bit. I wouldn't change it for the world though. It is so crazy to to physically see him moving around and boy let me tell you he is super active on a constant basis. It has started making work and minor tasks more and more difficult though. But I see the light at the end of the tunnel and I am super thankful to have such a supportive and helpful husband through all of this because I couldn't do it without him!

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How far along are you? 36 weeks today!

Total weight gain? 32.5 lb..
Maternity Clothes? I bought a couple more larger Buckle tops but no additions to the maternity purchases.
Stretch Marks? Seems to not be increasing any. Whew.
Sleep: I wake up about 2 times a night, getting to sleep is starting to be difficult just because of the discomfort.
Best Moment Last Week? We got our crib in this weekend
Movement: Constant.
Food Craving: Same.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope.
Labor signs? I am 1cm Dilated. Wah wah.
Symptoms? A lot more movement and lots of lower pressure starting.
Belly button in or out? flat.
Wedding Ring on or off? On, however I am about to start wearing it around my neck because I don't want to risk it getting stuck!
Most common emotion? Anxious for March!
Looking forward to? Next doctor appointment on Wednesday. Here is hoping I am dilated further!!!

Baby W is the size of a honeydew!

The dreaded "I" word

I knew the discussion would come up eventually. Despite my resistance and persistence I knew. My doctor had made it quite clear he didn't like pregnancies getting past the 41 week mark. But at 36 weeks I thought we still had time before this discussion was had.

Induction.

My doctor was called away for an emergency c-section so I got to visit with his assistant who fills in when he is off delivering babies and whatnot. The conversation started with a question, which was encouraging.

How do you feel about talking about medical induction?

I quickly shot it down, saying I don't talk about it because I don't believe in it especially at this point and in a pregnancy that has had no complications. But of course I get the spill, they feel better scheduling a induction date now so come my due date coming and going I will have a spot secure to make sure I don't make it to 41 weeks. I was hesitant to say the least, but these were my doctor's policies and I didn't see winning the argument. So I stressed how important it was that it be pretty much the 41st week before I would be okay with it. They seemed to understand and encouraged more physical activity and such in hopes that labor could be induced naturally.

About an hour later I got a call with my induction date. March 25th. For those who have been keeping up, when is my due date? March 25th. Yup my wishes were completely ignored and if this kid hasn't decided to make an appearance before his due date doctors want to stick an IV in me and force him out.

At first I was super frustrated with this decision as was Mr. W. But after a little but of time to come to terms I am determined to look at the brighter sides of things. In no less then 26 days I will be holding my son regardless. I am scared about the thought of using pitocin and how much more painful the contractions will be. I am going to ask for membrane sweeps starting on week 38. A membrane sweep is done during a routine internal examination, usually when they are checking for dilation. The doctor sweeps his finger around the cervix (the neck of the womb) separating the membranes from the amniotic sac surrounding your baby from the cervix which causes prostaglandin hormones to be released which can kick start labor. Not all women approve of this invasive procedure but I feel faced with either a medically induced labor with pitocin or a membrane sweep I would prefer the latter, I feel like I have a better shot of withstanding labor and not being as tempted to allow an epidural if I go into labor via the sweep rather then with pitocin.

So there you have it... Looks like we are just days away from holding Baby W in our arms and starting this new chapter of our life. I can't begin to express the many emotions running through me. I am scared to death, but excited at the same time to enter this thing called Mommyhood.

Because 2 is better then 1.

I've had a couple requests for wedding pictures on my blog. It was just a month after our Jamaica wedding that we found out we were expecting little Baby W and many people don't realize that was our second wedding. By second wedding we don't mean we divorced or separated and then married again. We decided after already making arrangements for our destination wedding to marry before hand at the JoP for our family and friends who couldn't make the trip with us to Jamaica.

So to make sure we still had a special day we decided to marry on our 4 year dating anniversary which we celebrated each year on Halloween, so we originally married on Oct 31, 2011 at the Justice of the Peace but we went in to it saying it was just paperwork, and although it was special we don't consider that our actual wedding date which confuses a lot of people. We scheduled and planned everything for the JOP wedding in a one month time frame. FYI finding a white dress in October is a hellish task. We kept our spur of the moment wedding under wraps except to our family and a couple of close friends who we wanted to attend, no one else found out until after we had swapped our vows. It was one of the happiest days for both of us, but as when we were finally alone that evening we repeated to ourselves that it was just our paperwork since legally we had to marry in our county anyways because they wouldn't except a Jamaican marriage license.

October 31, 2011

If you ask either Mr. W or me when our wedding anniversary is we will both say June 7th, it was on June 7, 2012 that we wed in front of 4 witnesses, Andy & Shannon Bell and Dominque & Julia Kasindi (both newlyweds on their honeymoons) in Montego Bay, Jamaica under a gazebo overlooking the ocean. Getting ready that day was casual and relaxed. I wore minimal makeup (humidity was so thick it would melt right off in a matter of minutes anyways) and Shannon did my hair for me. I walked down the "aisle" to steel drums playing Pachelbel's Canon in D, Mr. W may or may not have shed some tears when I walked around the corner. :) Honestly we both agree this was our wedding, especially afterwards we could agree that the October trip to the Justice of the Peace was merely paperwork. Jamaica was a trip of a lifetime and we are both so thankful we had the opportunity to go. It was utterly amazing and unforgettable  We got to cut our wedding cake, have a first dance to Robin Thick's 'Angels' and got to sit overlooking the ocean and enjoy champagne and cake before going and taking pictures.

June 7, 2012

My Husband's Reaction to Baby W

I recall the day well, the day the pregnancy test decided to leave the "Not" out of the result window. I wanted to record Mr. W's reaction. Anyone that knows my husband knows he is extroverted to boot and can be larger then life so I was expecting a humdinger of a reaction. I carefully started recording without making it obvious when I surprised him with a gift that had 4 unisex newborn onesies and 3 pregnancy tests that all showed "Pregnant." I should have known when I walked in and heard him all congested and cranky that this was not the day for this kind of surprise, however I couldn't hold it in me for another second. Anyways here is his reaction, poor guy was feeling under the weather so I can't be too upset with him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8vaUG0xWHA

Week 35 & A case of the Mondays

Week 35 is upon us, meaning we are just 14 days away from being considered full term, and 34 days away from our estimated due date. Its so crazy to think that in a months time I could very well be holding my son! What, what!?

My doctors appointment last week told us that my blood pressure has spiked a bit and it is something we need to keep an eye on. I am suppose to take it easy even more so and not do so much walking or using lots of energy and rest more. I already rest a ridiculous amount so the thought of laying around doing nothing even more so then I am now!? Ugh. However I am fortunate enough that they didn't demand bed rest of anything so I should be thanking my lucky stars.

We went with my father in law this weekend and picked out our crib and crib mattress... we should be receiving it this week. Still contemplating about rather or not we will set it up right away or not. We didn't go all crazy, nothing fancy. Just a simple understated white crib. Perfect to go with our bright bold colors. It was good to check those off of our To Do List, which FYI is not nearly as daunting as I had originally thought it would be. I made out my list last Friday because I felt so overwhelmed by what I thought we had left to do. But in all honesty once I got it down on paper it wasn't nearly as long as I had anticipated it to be. It all fit on a single page for instance.

This is the crib but in natural wood, the picture of it in white was too difficult to see.

In other news have I mentioned how stocked we are on 0 - 3 month clothes? Seriously... this kid is going to have 4 different outfits a day for 3 months without repeating. It's crazy! And trying to choose a take home outfit for him has become my most recent challenge, I think I have it down to 3, however with a month to go that could easily grow and change. Yay for indecisiveness!!

It's only 7AM on Monday morning and I can already tell you it's going to be one of those days. As the weeks progress I am more and more ready to let my body have some time off before the baby get's here but unfortunately I don't think that is going to be much of an option in the coming weeks other then weekends. I think the next 2 - 5 weekends are going to entail me locking myself up in my room sleeping watching Netflix and not doing much of anything and enjoying my last days of solidarity... something I feel like I am going to miss and not get much of after d-day.

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How far along are you? 35 weeks!

Total weight gain? Still at 31 lbs.
Maternity Clothes? Still wearing the same things as always.
Stretch Marks? Not any more thankfully. Lathering on lotion like it's going out of style!
Sleep: Actually other then waking up once to go to the bathroom I am sleeping pretty sound this last week.
Best Moment Last Week? Buying the crib. Made it that more real.
Movement: Constant.
Food Craving: Same.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope.
Labor signs? Nada.
Symptoms? Rib discomfort continues. Have some high blood pressure. And exhaustion... major exhaustion.
Belly button in or out? It's not in, but it's not out either. I would say it's flat.
Wedding Ring on or off? On.
Most common emotion? Tired
Looking forward to? Our crib actually arriving.

34.

This child has a fascination with my right rib cage. Seriously, he loves it up in there it's perfect to kick his legs out and stretch all up in there. Glad he is comfortable because slowly but surely I am getting uncomfortable. However if this is the worse that pregnancy has to dish at me I am more then welcoming, it could have been so much worse. I could have had severe morning sickness, swelling, and I could have blown up all over. Granted I still have anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks to "blow up" and the swelling could start at any time really. But as of week 34 I have to say I have been blessed with a pretty easy pregnancy.

My baby shower was last Saturday and it was great, it was super hero themed just like the eventual nursery will be. My hostesses did an amazing job! I can't wait to put some pictures up. The food, decorations, the guests, the games, everything really was perfect. Mr. W got to be there for it which honestly calmed my nerves and I was so thankful he was there to partake. I was completely overwhelmed with the generosity of all that came. I have diapers overload now! I hope to upload pictures to this blog post on my lunch today.

How far along are you? 34 weeks!

Total weight gain? 31lb..
Maternity Clothes? Not anymore, I did buy some amazing regular tops at Buckle which are so much better then maternity tops!!
Stretch Marks? No further progress there thank God!
Sleep: Baby W likes to dance in the middle of the night which wakes me up from time to time
Best Moment Last Week? We got to see Baby W again and my baby shower!
Movement: Constant.
Food Craving: Same.
Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope.
Labor signs? Just good ol' practice contractions
Symptoms? Rib discomfort since Baby W is running out of room.
Belly button in or out? Still in.
Wedding Ring on or off? On.
Most common emotion? Tired
Looking forward to? Going crib shopping!

Serendipity.

If you had told me the 9 years ago or so that the seasonal cashier at Best Buy would eventually become my husband and that we would be expecting a baby I would have laughed pretty hysterically. Mr. W was such an extrovert and I am painfully aware of just how much of a introvert I have a tendency to be. My first impression of him wasn't favorable in the least.... I specifically remember a 7AM meeting at Best Buy and this tall lanky guy was clapping and speaking in a volume about 2 times higher then it needed to be trying to pump everyone up for the meeting. I'm not a morning person, so I just grimaced at him as I leaned against a display in my department and yawning. He was way too alert for it being so early in the morning. I remember making that remark to my then "fiance"/boyfriend or whatever he really was to me. Not that Mr. W thought all that much of me at the time, only really remembering me always frantically walking around, I was less then memorable.

Fast forward.

Here we are... happily married and a month away from becoming parents! I can't tell you how happy I am these days, how thankful I am that the stars aligned and somehow we ended up running into each other again, starting hanging out in the same circle, finding him on MySpace and the flirting starting, dating, getting married, having our son.... If that isn't a divine intervention in life I really don't know what is. I love our story, the serendipitous of it all. I know this is a bit of a random post but I was thinking of it late last night when I couldn't sleep because little jerk baby here felt it necessary to nestle his foot into my rib cage.

Real Life Emoticons.

So I notice today, sitting here on my lunch, that for the last 2 days my emotions are on overdrive and I am not enjoying it. I feel like I am on a roller coaster and I want off! With 45 days until our due date I think I am just starting to really get nervous about everything. What is everything you ask?

• My shower is tomorrow and deep down I am so scared that no one will show up, and with these emotions flying off the handle I can see myself just being completely irrationally devastated by a small turn out.
• I feel completely unprepared for Baby W's arrival. To a degree I am unprepared, but not horribly. There is still enough time to get things done, it just doesn't feel like it and I am getting overwhelmed with the thought of everything left to do. I tried making a To Do list which inevitably set me more into a panic.
• I LOVE being pregnant. Sincerely. Other then these recent whirlwind emotions, this pregnancy has been easy and a real learning experience. That being said... I'm ready to fit back into my old clothes that are all hanging in my closet all nice and small. Dressing around this big tummy and slowly running out of options while refusing to buy more clothes that I will only be wearing for another month has me slightly frustrated. I don't feel all that attractive these days as the couple of stretch marks have appeared and my belly and booty are in a competition of who can grow fastest. I have the dilemma of my husband working at my favorite clothing store and walking in and seeing racks and racks of clothes I want to buy but can't is beyond frustrating.
• I am stressing about my maternity leave, or lack there of. I am scrounging the time I can together and planning on working at home for a time.... but still I feel uneasy about it.
• The discomfort is setting in. As Baby W has started to drop I find myself less and less comfortable. It isn't anything that can't be handled perfectly fine, it's more just irritating more then anything. Sitting at a desk for 8+ hours a day Monday through Friday is becoming more and more difficult. I find any reason to get up and stretch since my son finds it appropriate to put his feet in my rib cage whenever I am sitting at my desk.
• I'm going to be a parent. 
• Labor and delivery. Enough said.

I just feel like I am just one big bottled up ball of anxiety right now. It really wouldn't take much of anything to make me just start crying uncontrollably for no real reason at all. I know it's coming... God willing I will be at home by myself when it occurs. 

I don't know. I think I will just blame my hormones for my current disposition and hope that it passes as quickly as it started.

33 weeks & a bag of chips!

Today is a cause for celebration! Our ultrasound this morning shoes that little Mr. I Do What I Want is finally no longer breech. He is head down and already starting to drop slowly but surely. But of course even with such great news he had to make it clear that he was in charge and wouldn't quit moving during the entire appointment. I just watched as my stomach moved and moved and moved. Getting a profile or face capture was damn near impossible. However they got images of what they wanted to see and I am happy to report that everything looks great. He is measuring one day early from his due date so we are right on schedule. They were amazed at how much he was moving at this point and with the limited room he has, and I just laughed because he is like this everyday through out the day. If anything he is getting more active with each passing day.

It is amazing to see how much he has changed throughout the ultrasounds and even still baking away it's clear that he has a personality developing. I'm getting so anxious to meet him, although I will miss this time of feeling him growing inside of me. I have several friends and acquaintances that announced their pregnancies shortly before me and they are all having their babies or due any minute and it makes me excited that in a month I could very well be able to deliver our healthy baby boy.

My baby shower is this weekend and I am really looking forward to it. We are doing it at the house so there is no concern about anyone having to load all the gifts or anything plus I think I will be the most comfortable at home. And then in a few weeks it is time for Just Between Friends, and this time we know what we are having and will have a better idea of what we need so I am looking forward to that too!

How far along are you? 33 weeks & 2 days

Total weight gain? 31lb.

Maternity Clothes? Nothing more then what I've bought.

Stretch Marks? I'm nursing the 2 I have with tons of cocoa butter. I think my tummy will be spared but I am not too optimistic about that of my thighs.

Sleep: Up one a night to walk around for a minute and use the bathroom. Other then that sleeping like a baby!

Best Moment Last Week? Just feeling the increased movement.

Movement: He moves SO much these days.

Food Craving: Same.

Anything making you queasy or sick? Nope.

Labor signs? Having braxton hicks.

Symptoms? My right ribs are feeling pretty uncomfortable everyday starting around noon.

Belly button in or out? Believe it or not it's still in!

Wedding Ring on or off? On.

Most common emotion? Excited!!!

Looking forward to? My baby shower!