Still......

....pregnant

I have an appointment today. I may refuse to leave the office without a baby.

38 Weeks and Counting.....

No baby yet. I am beyond ready! 

I have been feeling great this whole pregnancy....until this week. All of the sudden, I am so uncomfortable! I actually went into labor and delivery last night because my back hurt so bad all day, I was afraid I was having contractions and just not noticing. Nothing I would have gone in for had this not been the 4th baby and already being dilated to 4 cm. I am just afraid that once labor actually starts, it isn't going to stop. My body knows what to do and it may not give us much time. 

I had contractions off and on all day. I had contractions on the way down to the hospital. When I got there and got all hooked up, nothing....everything stopped. We were SOOOO hoping that I had dilated more and they would just keep me. No such luck. I am not dilated anymore and my cervix hasn't changed since Thursday. I guess that is a good thing so I don't have to worry so much....but we were really hoping to meet our baby boy! 

There is an end in sight.....if he does not make his arrival before Monday, I will be induced that day. 

Even with an end in sight, I am in so much PAIN! My back hurts so bad....I just want to cry when I walk it hurts so bad. I have never experienced pain like this before with the other pregnancies. I think maybe he is laying on something just right and reminding me he is there. I guess that is what I get for having such a healthy, carefree pregnancy! Thanks for the reminder, Buddy!

Baby Boy Coming Soon

I had a doctor appointment today. All is well. I am 37 weeks....

That means Baby Boy is coming soon. I am already dialated to 3 cm and 75% effaced. I asked the doctor if she thought the baby was big (this was before she looked up the ultrasound results). She felt around and said "yes, he is everywhere" She is guessing he weighs 8 lbs right now. So..... at least two weeks to go, 1/2 a pound a week...hmmm....big boy! Then she looked up the ultrasound results (that has him measured at 8 lbs. 11 oz.) and she just shook her head. All she really said is "you make big babies." 

She asked if we had our bags packed. I told her I had two more weeks until I could be induced, so no I did not have anything packed...she said I should pack some bags. She wasn't so sure I would make it that long. My schedule really doesn't allow for a baby until the end of April....Hope he is listening! Just in case, I will throw some stuff together. I washed his outfit tonight. I hope it isn't too small for him. It looks awfully tiny! 

Relax....

I think Eli is more ready to be a big brother everyday. He loves to talk to "Baby Brother" (which he is pretty sure is my belly button). Here he is talking to him while I was trying to relax and put my feet up. He has seen and felt my belly move, especially when he talks to it...he thinks it is hilarious!



Not sure why I thought I would actually be able to sit and relax....Here is Eli saying "Whoa, I'm falling. Catch me" His expressions were priceless!

Big Boy

At my appointment last week I was measuring big so I was scheduled to have an ultrasound today. Since Evan was 9 lbs 14 oz., they keep a pretty close eye on things. The ultrasound confirmed that this baby is big....he is already weighing 4 lbs. 6 oz! My book says he should be close to 3 lbs....I realize that weights can vary at this stage, so I am hoping that he is a bit smaller than that! The ultrasound tech said that his arms were pretty "beefy" too! I think his hands look huge! He was being pretty stubborn and was keeping his hands pretty close to his head. He would give us a peek at his handsome face, but not for too long! Here are some pics from today....

Ultrasound comparision...

Here is Eli's 4D ultrasound....

And here is Baby's....

We can definitely see some similarities. The three boys look so different....it is so fun to think about what the next handsome boy will look like!

Baby Brother...

Here are some pictures from our 20 week ultrasound today. We found out that we have another baby boy! We are excited and not too shocked. Of course, we would have loved to have a baby girl, but we have been blessed with four wonderful boys. He weighed 15 oz. today.

16 week appointment

I had my 16 week appointment yesterday....holy cow, 16 weeks. The most exciting part is that our ultrasound is scheduled for Dec. 14th. I am getting anxious to see this little peanut.

The nurse found the heartbeat right away. It was loud and strong at 160 beats/minute. It is always a relief to hear! Last time at 12 weeks they had quite a time finding it so it was reassuring to hear it right away and not have to lay there scared something was wrong.

Everything seems to be right on track. The bummer of the appointment was that my blood pressure was up a bit (138/88). Given my history, they are watching this closely. With Eli I ended up on blood pressure medication and the dr. indicated that she "saw that in my future". I am in the middle of a 24 hour urine sample. Now, that is a fun time, let me tell you. The gave me a great big orange jug to collect it in and keep in the fridge. Knowing that it is not very convenient to do while working at the middle school, I made a trip home at lunch to make my first deposit! The whole situation is annoying, but I guess it is better to be safe than have bigger issues. I had the school nurse take my blood pressure today and it was 118/78. I know I was having a pretty hectic day yesterday so hopefully that is why it was elevated.

My instructions were to "take it easy when I can". That statement is kind of comical....I am a middle school counselor, I have three small boys and my husband is a wrestling coach which doesn't allow for him to be home before 7 pm during the week. But, yeah, I'll try.