Just waiting on baby

The nursery is finished, car seat is installed, hospital bags are packed...c'mon Baby B!  At my appointment yesterday I found out that I'm making some good progress and Baby B's head is "really low".  Good to know all those braxton hicks contractions are doing what they're supposed to!  My doctor is on call this weekend and she said that hopefully she'd see me at the hospital!  I'm trying not to get too excited, but Matt and I are really ready to meet our child.  Plus, I'd love it if my actual doctor was the one who delivered Baby B.  So now I'm bouncing on my exercise ball, eating spicy food, and walking a lot in hopes that Baby B decides to make his/her appearance soon!

Here are some photos of our finished nursery, courtesy of my awesome husband and his photography habit :)  There is one more thing I want to hang on the wall that I need to order, but outside of that, it's ready for the baby!

The mobile I made, courtesy of something I found on Pint.erest

Don't worry, the bumpers will come off before Baby B. actually sleeps in the crib :) 

A friend did the painting for us based on the fabric from the crib bumpers - which helped us pick the colors for the room

Yay for books!

You can't see it well unless you're up close, but each of those pictures has a Bible verse printed underneath.  I got them from this seller on Etsy.  I'm planning on ordering a button initial monogram from here to hang above the dresser in that little nook.

 Hopefully Baby B. decides to come soon!  We are so excited and ready to meet him/her!

Maternity Pictures

A friend of ours is a photographer, and when he was running a special in November to benefit his family's international adoption of two children Matt and I decided this was perfect timing to book him to take some photos of us.  Micah (of micahbellphotography) did a great job!  Here are a handful of our favorites.

It's nice to have some good pictures of us that are more recent than our wedding 3.5 years ago.  We really wanted pictures of us just kind of hanging out with each other, enjoying being together.  We're excited to have these.  Thanks Micah!

Merry Christmas!

There is something about being 9 months pregnant at Christmas this year that has me really thinking about Mary and how she must have felt.  I know how excited Matt and I are to meet our child soon, and all the anticipation and uncertainties that come along with that.  I can't imagine how Mary (and Joseph) must have felt knowing that the child they were going to meet wasn't just any baby, but was the Son of God, the Savior.  They must have been so excited to meet Him, but I wonder at all if they were nervous about having been entrusted to carry and raise Jesus.  I think about the immense faith they must have had, trusting God that He would provide for them and take care of everything.  And to be chosen by God to be the earthly parents of Jesus?  Wow. 

There's a song that I heard a year or two ago around Christmas that has become one of the songs I love listening to this time of year.  It's called "Labor of Love" and it's about Jesus's birth and what that must have been like for Mary and Joseph, all alone in a stable in an unfamiliar town.  How hard that must have been, not only for Mary with no one else to help her, but for Joseph, who I'm guessing had probably never seen/been around someone giving birth, not to mention having to watch the woman he loved in so much pain.  Here's a link to the song on YouT.ube if you want to hear it:

Matt and I are having a quiet Christmas this year, and I'm actually really looking forward to the rest of today and the next couple of weeks.  My dad and stepmom came up last Sunday, and my mom and stepdad came up Friday and left yesterday.  Matt and I have plans to just hang around the house, watch movies, relax, and open our gifts to one another today.  And we are hoping to spend the next week or two going on dates and just enjoying our time with one another.  Things around the house are pretty much ready for Baby B, with the exception of putting the swing together (which will happen when the Christmas tree comes down tomorrow) and getting our car seat inspected (happening Wednesday).  We are still a bit in awe that within the next couple weeks or so we will get to meet our child.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

37 weeks...aka full term!

It's hard to believe that Baby B's due date is a mere three weeks from yesterday!  The nursery is set up, the car seat is in the car, the hospital bag is mostly packed...we're having a baby, folks!  I have 4 more days left of the semester at school, during which I need to finish up assessments, start and complete 26 report cards, and get stuff together for my sub.  Lots to do, but it'll get done and then hopefully Baby B makes his or her appearance before second semester starts back up on January 9th.

According to my doctor, Baby B has officially dropped.  I can definitely tell that he or she is sitting lower.  Baby B is head down and as of this past Monday I'm dilated to not quite 2cm.  Not much, but hey, progress is progress, right?

How far along? 37w1d

How big is baby? Baby B should weigh around 6 pounds and is roughly 19 inches long

Total weight gain? As of my appointment last week, I'd gained a total of 28 pounds.

Stretch marks? none!

Sleep? Still waking up about every hour and a half, but sleeping fairly hard once I'm actually asleep.

Best moment this week: Hanging out with the kids I've been watching for over 7 years yesterday and seeing their faces when they got to feel Baby B's hiccups.  So fun!

Weekly wisdom: Not sure I really have any this week :)

Milestones: Full term!

35/35 and an update

So today marks a fun milestone - 35 weeks down, 35 days to go!  Hopefully we have at least a few more weeks.  The doctor on Thursday seemed to think so.  After staying home from work Wednesday and Thursday, I went to my appointment Thursday afternoon slightly nervous about what we would find out.  I knew the contractions had slowed down, though, which is good.  Matt went with me, which was great since he hadn't actually met my doctor yet, just some others in the practice.  He really liked her, which is good, since I love her :)  Anyway, she talked with me about how I'd been feeling, how the contractions had been, etc.  She checked and I'm still only dilated 1cm.  She told me that if I was comfortable, I could go back to work and see how it went.  She told me to just make sure I'm listening to my body and if I hit a point where I'm having a lot of contractions or need to rest or take a day or part of a day off work, to do that.  My doc said that some women have more contractions than others, but that it was good that mine had slowed down and it didn't look like I was going to go into labor at any moment.  So I went back to work Friday and did alright.  I took it as easy as I could, but I do teach five year olds :)  But I only had a couple of contractions all day, so I'm hoping that Baby B stays put for at least a few more weeks.  I only have 14 school days until we're finished with the semester, so I'd really like to make it until then.  I'm also really relieved that things look okay and I haven't dilated any further.  I also got a call from my doctor's nurse Friday saying that the labs from the hospital Tuesday night showed just a slight bit of bacteria in my urine, which could be nothing or could be just enough to cause my contractions.  They called in an antibiotic that I started this morning and take for seven days just in case that's what's causing the contractions, because they would rather treat it than let it go. 

Matt and I took some maternity photos this morning with a friend of ours who is a professional photographer.  I think we got some awesome pictures and I can't wait to see them!  As an added bonus, he and his wife are in the process of adopting two beautiful children from Africa and all the money from our session is going straight into their adoption fund.

It's been a while since I've done a survey and posted a photo, so here you go :)

How far along? 35 weeks
How big is baby? Around 19 inches long and just over 5 pounds - definitely running out of room, that's for sure!
Total weight gain? 26 pounds.  Not too bad!  And most of that is belly :)
Stretch marks? Nope
Sleep? So-so.  Just waking up a lot to use the bathroom.
Best moment this week? knowing that Baby B is okay
Weekly wisdom: Don't feel silly or like a paranoid first-time mom for calling the doctor during the day or the on-call doctor.  That's what they're there for.  (I was worried I'd call the doctor on call and then the contractions would turn out to be nothing or would stop.  I'm so glad that I called.)
Milestones: Baby B's kidneys are fully developed

labor and delivery visit, take 2

Matt and I made our second trip to labor and delivery on Tuesday night.  The first time we went was the night of November 12.  My mom, Matt, and I were on our way to dinner after my shower before my mom left to drive back home when a deer ran out in front of the car.  It was dark so I didn't see the deer until it was literally right on the side of the road.  I hit the brakes, but we still hit the deer.  (It got up and ran off, so I'm hoping it was okay).  Our car is currently in the shop getting fixed to the tune of $2600 (thank goodness for insurance).  The doctor on call wanted me to come in for monitoring just to make sure everything was okay.  Matt and I spent almost 4 hours in a triage room with me hooked up to the contraction monitor and fetal heart rate monitor.  Everything was fine, just a precaution.

However, Tuesday night was not so fun.  Monday night I started having more braxton hicks contractions than normal.  I'd been told to call if I was having 5 or more an hour, but they never hit that point.  I spent all of Monday evening on the couch drinking water and the contractions subsided after a while.  However, they picked back up Tuesday morning at work.  I had 6 in an hour, so called my doctor during my prep.  The nurse told me to put my feet up/lay down, drink lots of water, and if they didn't let up then I needed to call them back and go home from work.  I spent my prep sitting down with my feet up and the contractions let up.  I stayed at work but sat down as much as possible (this is the last week I have a student teacher).  I only had 4 or 5 contractions the whole rest of the day at school.  The nurse called back around 2:00 to check and see how things were going (I LOVE my doctor's office, by the way.).  She told me to spend the night with my feet up drinking lots of water.  So I came home and that's what I did.  Except then the contractions picked back up again and I had 7 in 45 minutes.  I called the on-call number and my doctor told me to come in to labor and delivery.  So Matt and I drove to the hospital, much more nervous than the last time we were there.

The nurse hooked me up to the monitors again.  Baby B.'s heart rate looked good and he/she was moving around like crazy.  Baby B got the hiccups while I was hooked up, which was kind of funny to hear over the monitor :)  I was having contractions, but there was no pattern to them.  The doctor had the nurse run a fetal fibronectin test, which looks for a protein that your body makes before going into labor.  The good news is, that test came back negative.  However, I'm already dilated to 1cm.  While you can be dilated for a while before actually going into labor, the doctor wasn't super thrilled that I'm dilated this early.  We spent about 2.5 hours at the hospital, and when they checked me again I hadn't dilated any further, which was good.  They gave me a shot of terbu.taline to help stop the contractions.  That stuff stings!  Matt and I got sent home, but I'm on bedrest.  I didn't work yesterday and am not working today.  I have my 34 week appointment this afternoon, and the doctor is planning on checking for any more dilation.  Hopefully I'm still just at 1cm.  I've been having some contractions yesterday and today, but not a lot, nothing painful, and nothing regular.

Here's what we're praying for:
-that I wouldn't dilate any further for a while.
-that Baby B would stay put for another few weeks
-that the contractions would continue to let up/slow down
-that I'm cleared to go back to work (I don't want to use up my maternity leave before Baby B actually gets here; I'm planning to take 12 weeks off, but if I end up having to miss the rest of the semester then I'll only be able to take off about 8-8.5 weeks of second semester before I have to go back to avoid losing my benefits)

In exciting yet semi-terrifying news, my doctor did tell me that if I started to go into labor after the end of next week she wouldn't do anything to stop it.  Yikes!  While I know that we're having this baby relatively soon, there's a big difference between "in 5 or 6 weeks" and "next week!"  I suppose I should finish packing the hospital bag soon :)  But we are really wanting Baby B to stay put until I'm 37 or 38 weeks at least.  I'll keep everyone posted after my appointment this afternoon.