The Baby is Coming!

Today was our final prenatal appointment and it was a very exciting one! The doctor checked to see if there was any progress. While she thought the baby had dropped even further, I still was not dilated at all. She wanted to revisit our options of doing a c-section if I didn't go into labor. So she asked if we wanted to wait it out another week or go ahead and schedule a c-section for this week. Because we have a feeling that I am not going to go into labor natually (I haven't even had a single contraction yet), we decided to forego waiting another week and go ahead with the c-section this week. We also felt that this would be the safest route for the baby since there was less risk of stress or a problem with the cord or any other type of emergency situation. The doctor asked us which day we wanted to do it. And she gave us the option of tomorrow. So we decided to do it! The surgery is scheduled for 9:30 tomorrow morning and we have to be at the hospital at 7:30.

I also had what is called a non-stress test performed because I told the doctor I was feeling less movement and have been occasionally concerned about it. I think the test was named as such so that the parents don't get alarmed... because I would think calling it a stress test would be more appropriate. Basically what happened is they put the fetal heart monitor on my belly and checked the baby's baseline heartrate. Then the nurse pulled out a metal bedpan and a spoon and asked me if the baby was head down. Since it is, she banged on the pan about 5 times right next to the bottom of my belly. The monitor started speeding up as the baby's heartrate increased and then the poor thing got the hiccups. I felt terrible! Obviously that scared the crap out of the baby. I guess I should have kept my mouth shut about it not being as active. The good news is the baby is doing fine and is not deaf!

I don't think it has fully sunk in that I will be having a baby tomorrow. We are so excited and can't wait to meet him or her. I can't imagine what that moment will be like. After the appointment we both rushed to work to get things taken care of since we will be out for a while. Everyone so far has been pretty shocked (and so have we) that all of a sudden we know that we are having a baby in less than 24 hours. Before our lives completely changed, we decided to have one last dinner just the two of us. It was an awesome evening to sit outside and eat. Now we just need to finish packing the hospital bags and do a little more cleaning around the house. And Brett is giving the dogs plenty of attention since they will surely be a little neglected in the upcoming days. He is drinking a couple of beers so he can get some sleep... I wish I could do the same. I'm sure I will be up all night with excitement.

Only about 12 more hours until we find out if we have a son or daughter! I can't wait! Too bad we still don't have names picked out...

38 Weeks Down, ??? To Go

The 38 week appointment was today. Nothing notable happening yet. I am still gaining weight :( and the doctor thinks that the baby has dropped some since the last time she checked 2 weeks ago. There was some more talk of c-section today. If labor has not started by a couple days after the due date, we will probably be scheduling a c-section. The doctor feels safer doing that than inducing and trying to force a vaginal delivery. We agree. So we should for sure have a baby by around May 26th but we are still hoping it comes earlier. We are so ready (I think)!

We also finally purchased the last item for the nursery - a glider. Speaking of the nursery, our little dog Baxter had a fun time in there this weekend. I convinced Brett to give him a little more freedom while we were out Saturday night. When we got home, there were baby toys everywhere. Apparently he had just been dying for an opportunity to raid the toybox and play with all the soft little toys. Only one was destroyed and it was an old stuffed animal that I have had since high school or college.

In other news Brett is almost done replacing the surface of the deck. He will probably finish that up while he is on paternity leave. And today is our anniversary. The weather is the same every year so far. Cold, windy, and rainy. Brett got us tickets to a Cirque du Soleil show called Alegria. We are going Wednesday night (assuming we are not in the hospital having a baby).

37 Week Appointment - Nothing Happening Yet

We had another appointment this morning. Nothing new yet. It will probably be a couple more weeks at least before the baby comes. We are trying to be as patient as possible but these last weeks are going very slowly so far!

B got a lot done this weekend. I pretty much just sat around and did laundry. I'm not much help right now when it comes to moving furniture, doing yardwork, or building a deck. He rented a carpet cleaner and got our carpet at least somewhat sanitary. All the baby items are washed and put away. Oh, and I got our hospital bags mostly packed.

We are ready when you are, baby.

36 Week Appointment

We had our last sonogram on Monday. The baby is around 6 lbs 3 oz. Measurements were a little small (measuring just a couple of days behind the due date) which is not concerning at this stage. However the weight was in the 60th percentile. So it seems we have a small but solid baby on the way. The doctor is guessing the baby will be around 8 pounds at birth. Nothing is happening yet but I will be having weekly check-ups from this point forward. The doctor told me that neither cervix was dilated which is interesting. She thinks there is a chance that both of them may dilate even though one of them does not serve a purpose in this pregnancy. It has to do with the hormones. The baby is still in a head-down position which is the correct position for birth. He/she has changed from facing my left side to facing my right side. Generally the best position for birth is to face my back so we'll see if the baby decides to cooperate when the time comes. Not much else is going on at the moment. We still need to pack our hospital bags, order a glider, and clean up a few things but it sounds like there is sufficient time to get that all done. Still no boy name but I guess we will decide that at the hospital if we need to.

Getting Closer...

35 weeks down, 5 to go. It is good to see that we are getting closer. In fact, we are supposed to pack our hospital bag and install the car seat this week. Yikes! We are ready though whenever this little thing wants to come out. We are far enough along that the baby should be healthy and I am getting more and more uncomfortable... I'm sure the same goes for the squished baby. :) Brett is even ready so that says a lot.

The baby should be about 6 pounds in the 36th week, and around 18 inches long. We have our (probably) last ultrasound in about a week so we will know how the baby is positioned and if he or she is still growing appropriately. After that, I will be going to the doctor weekly until the baby comes.

We took a breastfeeding class over the weekend. It was actually really good. The lady who taught it had a lot of experience and did a good job teaching. Now hopefully we can use what we learned and be successful. I guess we'll find out in the weeks to come.

There are just a few things that should probably be done before the big day. Most important is probably having a list of potential boy names. We are still struggling with that. We also need to do some final cleaning and laundering of the baby's room, clothes, and diapers. And we are planning to order a glider in the next couple of days.

32 Week Appointment

We are now in the 33rd week which means only 7 weeks until the baby is due! At 33 weeks, most babies are between 4.5 and 5 pounds. We had an appointment this morning. First was the sonogram and then we met with the doctor. Everything is looking normal in terms of growth so that is excellent. During the sonogram the baby appeared to be touching his/her feet and maybe playing with them. We were also surprised to find out that the baby has managed to change position and is now head-down which is the correct position! That means that I may not be having a c-section after all. I will have another sonogram in 4 weeks so we will be able to tell at that time if the baby is still head-down. Brett and I were happy to hear everything is progressing so normally. It is a little more difficult though not knowing what is going to happen. With a c-section, we knew that we would probably just go in when we were scheduled and have a baby fairly quickly (although the following weeks would be extra difficult). Now we are more in the dark in terms of when this is going to happen and how it will all play out. But the end result should be the same and that's all that really matters!

Showers

We have been showered (and that is an understatement) with gifts and support over the past few days. Friday at work my co-workers surprised me with a shower. It was complete with a delicious and cute cake, punch, and gifts. Then on Saturday I had a shower at my aunt Janel's home in Overland Park. My mom's sister Shelly made most of the arrangements with the help of other family members. Family from my side and Brett's were there along with bunches of friends.

My Mom (Grandma Debbie) and I

 The amount of gifts we received was overwhelming. One of my favorite things was that this was a shower where everyone brought a book (in place of a card) and most people wrote a little message in the book for us and the baby. Shockingly, we did not get any duplicates of books and a lot of them were very popular childrens books. I can't wait to start reading them to the baby!

Another highlight was a poem that my Grandma Rita wrote on the inside of her book. This is her first great-grandchild and the shower also happened to be on her birthday. Here is what she wrote:

Although we do not know yet what this little angel is to be,

Whether it be a he or a she.

We do know this little one will have a great mom and dad.

The most special parents any child could have had.

This being my first Great Grandchild, whether a girl or boy,

It will certainly bring me great moments of joy.

If in time we see this little child riding on a scooter,

Who knows it may well be another little "Pooter."

Thanks to the showers and all the gifts, the nursery is well on its way now. We got a lot accomplished this weekend. The bed and night stand are set up and most things are put away. We still need to buy a dresser and a glider but then the room should be almost complete (except for the baby!). Brett is also going to order the carseat/stroller this week. He has a highly rated and safe one all picked out.

Empty Nursery

I know this does not look like progress but after a full weekend of work, I can assure you that it is! We I finally got the "nursery" cleared out this past weekend and it is now ready to start accumulating baby things. Here are a couple of shots of our empty nursery. Not to be empty for long though... the shower is on Saturday and we are going to get furniture and whatever else we need in the upcoming weeks. We are obviously not quite set up so hopefully Vegas Baby doesn't surprise us too soon!

30 Week Appointment

We had another appointment today. This one was just a quick check-up with the doctor. We did not have an ultrasound but the doctor did measure my belly and listen to the baby's heartbeat. Everything was measuring fine. She commented that my belly was lopsided and that she didn't think the baby had changed position since my last ultrasound. She could tell that it was mostly sitting on the right. I agreed that I didn't think the position had changed - I am still feeling movements in the same places as during the last scan. So the baby is still lying sideways instead of head down.

The doctor is skeptical that the baby will change position to head down so I will more than likely be having a c-section. We will wait until my 36-week appointment and ultrasound to schedule the c-section in case the baby does change position. The delivery will be scheduled sometime during my last week of pregnancy (so probably between May 17 and 21). Nine weeks to go!

30 Weeks - Shower Invitations, Hiccups

Only 10 weeks to go! That seems kind of crazy. Are we really ready for our lives to change? Well, they are going to whether we are ready or not.

Not a lot to update on at the moment but I did want to show off my baby shower invitations. They are soooo cute! My very talented aunt Sandy designed and made them. Check out her website here. Thanks Sandy!!!

There is a small insert that looks like a book which requests guests to bring a book rather than a card and write a small inscription or sign inside the cover of the book. I think this is a super cute idea and I am excited to see what books we get. I was a total book worm when I was younger (and still would be if I had the time). The invitation itself is designed to be a bookmark. So creative!

Shower Invitation

In other news, the baby now has regular bouts of the hiccups. I notice them at least twice, sometimes three times each day. I have also recently found out that he or she does get startled by loud noises. The Big XII basketball tournament has been going on this week. We went to a couple of games the other night and the little tyke would stir around when the crowd would get noisy. The same thing happened last night when the Jayhawks went ahead and we happened to be in probably the most crowded KU bar in Missouri.

We had our second (and final) birthing class this morning. It was somewhat informative and the videos we had to watch today were much less graphic than the previous class. We had to bring pillows and a blanket to class so we thought that it would be the typical breathing exercises you see on TV. Not the case - at the end of class we just did a really weird relaxation exercise. It was definitely not our thing. We were supposed to imagine we were in the uterus and our breaths were bright lights. Then we were lying on a beach having contractions. It was quite amusing and needless to say, I got nothing out of that (nor do I think I will be using that technique during contractions).

We have a check-up with the doctor on Monday but no ultrasound so it will probably be pretty quick and routine. Other than that... I am just working through busy season and we have been watching a lot of basketball. Neither of these things is helping get the nursery ready. Oh well, I guess we should be enjoying this free time while we have it, right?