Decision made...

I have decided to stand by my original decision not to have the elective c-section. That’s what I’m calling it because there is no medical reason for it. I don’t by that the baby is too “big” bullshit! From what I’ve read and heard those ultrasounds are wrong all the time. John and I have talked about the whole c-section thing all weekend and I am not going to let my doctor try to bully or force a c-section on me especially BEFORE my due date. Especially, since she has no medical reason for it. As I said before if there was a true medical reason for it and that either myself or the baby was in danger I would do it but there isn’t. The ultrasound that we had a couple of weeks ago said he was measuring around 8 lbs. 1 oz. and he still had 16 days until his due date which is August 4th. The doctor wanted to schedule me for a c-section tomorrow or Wednesday without even letting me go until Friday. Like I mentioned before she got a lil pissy when I asked her to give us until at least Monday. I honestly think (I’m not 100% positive though) that she is going on vacation and just wants to do it before she goes. Even if he is a “big” baby, I want to at least try to go into labor on my own. All weekend long I've been drinking my red rasberry leaf tea and taking my evening of primrose oil. I also started using my new Birthing ball. So hopefully it will help and Aiden will start working his way down.

Thirteenth doctor’s appointment…

Well, this morning we went to the doctors for our weekly checkup and I am not very happy about it. We sat there waiting for the doctor forever, so John was getting stressed about it because he had to get back to work. I kept telling him that he could go back to work that I didn’t mind. He didn’t though, he stayed with me the whole time. I was so happy that he did! The doctor came in and listened to Aiden’s heartbeat and it was excellent, nice and strong. Then she did my internal and things are not looking good. I am still only 1cm dilated after being at 1cm for about 4 weeks, not much going on with my cervix, and he is still sitting really high. She’s worried that he’s too big and he isn’t going to drop down and I won’t be able to deliver him. Then she wanted to talk about me getting a c-section early next week because they are worried that he is going to be too big to deliver and doesn’t think I should go through labor only to end up with a c-section. We are not happy about this, especially not me. When John tried to ask about it she was very adamant about scheduling me for a c-section next week, even before my due date. I have a few problems with this. I want to deliver Aiden with natural childbirth, the good old fashion way. Obviously if there was a true medical reason for me having a c-section, I would say go ahead and do it. There are too many “ifs” in her reasoning. The ultrasounds are not always correct when they use them to determine the size of a baby. I’ve heard of a lot of people getting c-sections because they are going to have a “big” baby and then end up only having a 7 or 8 pound baby. I would be furious if this happened to me!!!!! I asked her to let me wait until at least my due date to see if I could deliver him on my own and she seemed annoyed about it. Then John and I said well what if we waited until August 6th to give me a couple of more days and she was like why would you wait when you can have him next week??? So finally we told her we would think about it over the weekend and she wants us to call her Monday to schedule a c-section. She doesn’t even want to try to induce me, just do a c-section. I don’t know what to do. I told John that I think I am just not going to call her on Monday. This weekend I am going to start drinking the red raspberry leaf tea and the black cohosh root tea (thank you Joyce!!!), take evening of primrose oil, walk, and do everything else I can think of to try to get myself to progress some. This was not the news I wanted to hear today. All day I’ve been depressed and upset just thinking about it :(

39 Weeks...

Your baby will continue to put on an additional half pound this week and probably weighs in at about 7 pounds. He or she is around 21.5 inches in length and most of the lanugo has fallen off in preparation for birth. The umbilical cord that has carried nutrients from the placenta to your baby is now 20 inches long and is half an inch thick.







*The lanugo has mostly disappeared, but you'll probably find a bit on his shoulders, arms and legs and in those protected little bodily creases. It will vanish completely on its own in time.
*His lungs are maturing and surfactant production is increasing
and fully prepared to take on the outside world!
*Your baby doesn't have much room to move and certainly mom agrees! Did you imagine 8 months ago that this wee one would be able to hook a toe in your ribs while elbowing your bladder? He certainly has grown!
*His body continues laying on the fat stores that will help regulate his body temperature after birth. In addition to normal fat, he is accumulating a special "brown" fat in the nape of his neck, between his shoulders and around organs. Brown fat cells are important for thermogenesis (generating heat) during his first weeks.
*Your infant's weight is around 7.25 pounds (3288gm) and length is 19.9 inches (50.7cm).

Another weekly update…

Over the weekend we did a bunch of stuff around the house but Monday I was paying for it as I didn’t feel well at all! So John and I woke up early and ran a few errands that we needed to take care of. It was so freakin hot outside. When we got home, I stripped down to my scibbies and just laid in bed with a cold compress on my head. I fell asleep for almost two hours. I think that was the most sleep I’ve had in weeks!!!!! I keep waking up all night long, it sucks. I get up like every 45 minutes to an hour, every hour. I understand your body getting you ready for night time feedings once the baby gets here and stuff but every 45 minutes??? I feel like I no sooner fall asleep and I’m awake again. So I’m a really tired girlie. I just can’t wait until Aiden gets. I’m scared shitless about the whole going into labor, birthing, and then whether or not I’ll be a good enough mommy to my lil boy but at the same time I can’t wait until he gets here. Other than that, this week we haven’t done much around the house after working hours, I’m just too tired by the time I get home. Tonight after work I plan on doing a few things in the bedroom, so hopefully I’ll actually follow through with it and I won’t be too tired. My feet and legs are killing me today. It’s like 91 degrees outside today but it feels like 96. Hey, that’s what it says on the internet forecast! Haha. Tomorrow morning we go to the doctors for our weekly checkup, so hopefully I will have progressed some. I honestly don’t think I have though. We will see though.

We only have 8 days until Aiden's due date is here!!!!

Our breastfeeding class...

This morning we went to the hospital for our breasting class. It was much better than John and I had thought it was going to be. We thought the birthing class was pretty much a waste and everything they went over was all common sense stuff or something you could read in a book. The breastfeeding class however was very informative, the instructor had a great personality and she was funny! At first we thought she was nuts and it was going to be a long class but we were wrong. The class was supposed to be from 10am-1pm but we ended up not leaving the hospital until 2:30! Suzi (the instructor) said she was not going to leave until all questions were answered and she didn’t. She went over everything I could think of and then some. We talked about why breastfeeding is so important, positions to hold the baby, pumps, bottles, bras, everything. So John and I both gave it a thumbs up. She even gave us her home telephone number for in case we have any problems or questions so we can call her. I thought that was pretty cool of her to do. The downside was that we were supposed to bring a baby doll to practice with but no one ever told us that. I even checked the paperwork that they sent me in the mail this morning before we left. Other than that it was an excellent class. I was really happy with it and so was John. Oh, she even gave John brownie points for going, getting involved in the discussion, and asking the right questions. Haha. See he’s going to be a good daddy...

38 Weeks...

Your baby weighs about 6.5 to 7 pounds and is approximately 21 inches in length. You have been full term for a week now, so you might want to start addressing those birth announcement envelopes while you still have your hands free. Your long wait will be over any time now.







*If he is the "average baby," he weights 6.8 pounds (3083gm)and is 19.6 inches (49.8cm) long.
*Have you noticed she hiccups a lot? Because there is no air around him, those breathing exercises cause amniotic fluid to get into his windpipe. The result? Hiccups!
*Your child's intestines are accumulating lots of meconium. Meconium takes on the role of being your baby's first bowel movement -- removing the waste that has accumulated.
*He may have a full head of hair now -- an inch or more long! Don't be surprised if it's an unexpected color. Some blond couples have dark haired babies; some dark haired couples have red-haired babies; some couples have babies with only peach fuzz! It may just persuade you to take a closer look at your family tree!
*Circumference of head and abdomen are about the same size for your baby. No wonder it's so hard to get a t-shirt over a newborn's head!

Twelfth doctor’s appointment…

Today we went to the doctor’s for our weekly checkup. We got to see Dr. D so I was happy about that. We had a nice little talk with her about the whole going into labor thing. She took the baby’s heart rate and it was good. I don’t think she told us what it was but it was good. She checked me and I’m still only 1 cm dilated. So nothing much is going on down there. He might actually hold out until his due date. I was hoping that he would be a little early but who knows. I guess he could still come a little early. The bottom line is when he’s ready to come out... that’s when he will come out! She said I’m still doing good on my weight, my blood pressure is good, and the swelling that I have had in my feet, ankles, and calves is just because of the heat and probably water retention. It isn’t anything to worry about, I guess it’s just normal stuff. So everything is going well, baby and I are both doing well, so life is good...

16 more days to go...

I feel crappy today. This heat is just killing me and making me miserable! On Tuesday it was like 100 degrees and yesterday it was like 98 degrees, I think today is just about as hot. Being nine months pregnant and having to go out and about in this heat is terrible! I haven’t been sleeping at all lately, so I’m exhausted. I’m just so uncomfortable and feel huge! I only have 16 days to go until my due date, so I guess I should be happy about that.

We got some stuff done around the house this week. Aiden’s crib is all made and set up, we did a little more organizing, and I started to pack my bag for the hospital. I also did some of Aiden’s laundry, not a lot just a few outfits for when he first gets here. We’re going to wait and see how big he actually is before washing too many clothes for him. We washed his bath towels, receiving blankets, and that kind of stuff. We also went to Babies R Us over the weekend and got some more stuff that we needed for when he gets here.

I’m trying to think of what else has been going on. I guess not much. The heat really kicks the crap out of me. I can’t wait to stop working. I could stop now but I feel bad and don’t want to become lazy. Tomorrow morning I have a doctor’s appointment for my weekly checkup. I’m so happy that one of the doctor’s that I like had a cancellation so I switched my appointment to see her instead of the one I saw last week. So I guess we’ll see how things are going and if I’ve progressed at all. This Saturday we have the breastfeeding class over at the hospital. So I hope that goes well. I guess that’s about it for now or at least all I can think of. Things are going well, I just can’t wait until my lil man gets here :-)

Oh, I also posted a few new pictures here if you want to take a look...

Another ultrasound…

Today we went to the hospital to have another ultrasound done. I’m sure that is the last one we will have before you get here. So we got to see you again :-) You were moving around like crazy once again. The ultrasound tech commented a couple of times on how active you are. Like I didn’t already know that one. Haha. She said that your heart rate was 146 which is good. You’re already facing head down, which means that you are in position already to come out whenever you’re ready to. After doing all of your measurements she said from what she can tell you weigh about 8 pounds, 1 ounce. I know that is only a guess and a lot of times the weight is wrong, that they really can't tell how much a baby weighs from an ultrasound. So I guess we’ll just have to wait until you get here to find out for sure. She said my amniotic fluid levels were good and that I look like I‘m measuring about a week ahead. So it was an excellent ultrasound! You’re growing as you should be and doing awesome. Oh, she also asked if I’ve been having contractions because a few times during the ultrasound my stomach would get really hard. So now I guess it is just a matter of you showing up when you feel like you’re ready too. They gave us a picture of you today so I'll scan it and post it.

There are only 17 more days until your due date. Unless you want to show up early for dinner. It's up to you. Everyone is anxiously waiting for your arrival, especially me and daddy!
xoxo

Eleventh doctor’s appointment…

Well, there isn’t much of an update to write today about the doctor’s appointment. I finally had to see the third doctor that is in the practice I go to and let’s just say that she confirmed my first impression of her from a few years ago and I can’t stand her. She has the personality of a catfish (it sucks!), gives nothing but a text book answer (it would be just as easy for me to read it right out of a book myself), and did absolutely nothing aside from listen to Aiden’s heart beat and tell me to keep my eye out for contractions to come 3-5 minutes apart for at least an hour and that is my cue to call them or if my water breaks. I could rant and rave about this forever but I’ll just leave it at that. I was so pissed and annoyed when I left it was unreal. Oh, and guess who I have to see again next week for my checkup??? Yeap, her again! They had no other openings at all the entire week. The only good thing about today’s checkup was that Aiden’s doing great and his heartbeat was 140, so that was good. I guess that’s all that really matters but I’m just pissed that this doctor sucks so bad and I have to see her again next week! We also have to go and have another ultrasound done on Tuesday afternoon to see what his weight and size is. So we’ll see if he’s still measuring big or if we just caught him right after a growth spurt last time. He is moving around like crazy! I want to video tape the crazy things he does when he’s pushing on my belly. It looks like there is an alien in there. It’s crazy I tell you. Only 21 more days until Aiden’s due date and John and I can’t wait!!!

37 Weeks...

Your baby is now considered full term even though the 40-week mark is still 3 weeks away. He or she is probably about 6.5 pounds and measures approximately 21 inches in length, and has developed enough coordination so that he or she can grasp an object with his or her fingers.







*This week, the average size is about 6.3 pounds (2859gm) now and 19.1 inches (48.6cm) length.
*He is official full term now but can still benefit from extra days in the womb.
*Your baby continues to practice breathing movements. Isn't it amazing how he can breathe "under water"?
*Grasp is firm now. It won't be long until you'll feel that strong little fist confidently grasping your finger (or tightly clenching your hair)!
*A few weeks ago, your baby would move his eyes toward light. Now he turns towards light outside the uterus.
*As the uterine wall stretches and thins allowing more light to permeate, he develops definite daily activity cycles. You will want to be sure to establish good patterns yourself at this time, thus encouraging them in your child. Ever heard of a baby getting his days/nights mixed up? Now's the time to try to avoid that!

Stressed & Exhausted...

It has been another crazy and stressful week in my world and it isn’t even 1/2 way over with. I seriously need a break. My sister Sandy has been sick since Saturday night running a really high fever, puking, and all that nasty stuff. Well 2 antibiotics later and her fever going up to 105.5 she ended up going to the emergency room Monday night. They ended up being there all night and finally around 5:30 this morning they decided to admit her to a room. She apparently has bad kidney stones or at least that is what they thought, but now they aren’t sure. They had to hook her up to an IV and pump her full of fluids and antibiotics to try to make her feel at least a little bit better. So last night in addition to me being up so often during the night due to pregnancy and having to pee I was also up worrying about her and taking and making phone calls about how she was doing. Poor John, I don’t think he’s had a good night sleep in forever! I keep him up with tossing and turning and hoping in and out of bed to go to the bathroom, then last night with the phone calls added to it. I didn’t even think to go into another room to sleep. Anyway, they are trying to figure out what is the matter with her and said they will probably keep her for like 3 or 4 days. I’ve been running around doing a bunch of real estate stuff for her as she has a settlement on Friday that I’m hoping she will be back for. Tonight I have to go and show some houses for her. Fun, fun, fun. Thank goodness I know the couple that wants to see the houses, so I don’t have to impress them much. Haha. I was going to try to take off work again on Friday to get stuff done and just take a mental health day but I don’t think I’ll be able to now with her being so sick and everything. We’ll see what happens though and how long the hospital decides to keep her. Other than that bitching and moaning, things are going good. The baby loves to move around and kick the shit out of me. He's a total wiggle worm!!!! He's getting big, my belly feels huge, and my boobs are gigantic! It’s so crazy to me that in less than a month he’ll be here...

36 Weeks...

Your baby has added another half pound and now weighs about 6 pounds, measures around 20.7 inches in length, and is almost ready to check out of "Hotel Mom." Your baby has moved downward towards your vagina; hopefully headfirst. However, at this stage it is very common for babies to be feet first, or breech. It is not until labor begins that you can know for sure if your doctor will need to manually turn the baby (ECV), or if you will have to consider a cesarean delivery.







*Your baby is almost ready and most likely, so are you! The only organ still to mature is the lungs. While certainly you are both growing anxious to meet, remember that each day (up to 42 weeks), that your little one stays within your womb will multiply his chances to breathe on his own.
*If he hasn't already, this week your baby may drop into the birth canal. While breathing for mom becomes easier, walking may be the exact opposite! If he's not your first baby, this "lightening" may not occur until right before labor.
*Fat is dimpling your baby's elbows and knees, and forming creases in the neck and wrists.
*His skin is growing smooth and, shall we say it, "baby" soft.
*His gums are very rigid. It won't be many months before you'll see his teeth.
*He has a fully developed pair of kidneys and his liver has begun processing some waste products.
*Your child's average size is now 18.66 inches (47.4cm) and 5.78 pounds (2622 g).
*Between now and birth he will gain about an ounce a day!

Tenth doctor’s appointment…

Today we went back to the doctor’s for our two week check up. Everything is going well. Aiden’s heartbeat was perfect. They did an internal exam and the test for the Group B strep (GBS). She said that my cervix is starting to soften a little, but not a lot and that I’m about a finger dilated. We had some questions to ask her, one of them being about the terrible cramps or pains that I’ve been getting. She said most likely they are Braxton-Hicks contractions. We asked her about the white shadow around my belly button and apparently now I may have gotten a little hernia, I guess from the pressure or something. I think that’s about it that I can think of right now. Now we start going for our weekly checkups, so we’ll be going back next Friday. It’s getting close, only like 4 weeks to go or 29 days, however you want to look at...