Home from the hospital.

EDITED TO ADD: You know you aren't in labor when you look as happy I we do in these pictures taken from my day in the hospital. In the morning on Friday, when the nurse checked on me, Kyle said "She's still smiling". He thought this was a good thing. The nurse however did not, she said it meant things weren't progressing and I was not really in labor. Which we already knew, but it was funny and I wanted to share the pics. I know I did not look like this when I was REALLY having contractions!

But no birth!

So it's been a long day and a half, but we are back home and Lowan has not been born yet. I thought my water broke yesterday morning and Kyle and I headed to the hospital at about 10:30 for a labor check.

Apparently I was not the only one confused about whether or not my water broke, as the hospital staff went back and forth yesterday if it had or not. The test was negative, but they thought it had as well. I just did not have the gush that some people have mentioned I could have expected. So they did an ultrasound to measure how much amniotic fluid was inside, it had gone from a measure of 16 a month a go to 7 yesterday. So at that point they figured even with negative tests, it must have broken. So I was admitted and they planned to induce with pitocin to speed things along because of the risk of infection after the bag of waters breaks.



I was moved to a labor and delivery room and began discussing options with the nurse and decided I'd like to wait on the pitocin to see if things started moving along on their own. My contractions, while weak, had progressed from 10 minutes apart when we arrived, to about 5-6 minutes apart once I was admitted (3 hours later). My midwife said that was fine and to re-evaluate me at 6pm and if no progress had been made, then to start induction. She went off call and the Dr. at my office was on call.



We discussed the difference of completing the break in my bag of waters versus taking pitocin with the nurse and so she called the Dr. to see what he wanted to do. At that point he said he was not sure my water had broken because that amount of change in amniotic fluid can happen. He said he thought we should do nothing all night and see if I made any progress over the next 12 hours and if I was not leaking and there were no changes, I could potentially go home. It would be between me and the midwife at that point.



She called in to check on me at 6am and still wanted to induce even though it still appeared that my water had not broken and my labor had slowed down quite a bit, I was only contracting once every 15 to 30 minutes and they were still very mild. Kyle and I talked about it and wanted to see if there was a more definitive way of finding out if my water had broken before we decided to proceed with induction. We really wanted to have as natural of a birth as possible. So once my midwife arrived, she did a different test and we had another ultrasound to check my amniotic fluid levels. At this point the new test still did not show amniotic fluid and the ultrasound showed the measurement up to 11 now. I guess these fluctuations are pretty normal.

So after a really long night of very little sleep and a lot of discomfort and no food (for me at least) we got released this morning at about 10:30. The first thing we did was go out to breakfast, I was starving. I think this is the first time I've gone 24 hours without eating solid food. Jello just doesn't cut it for very long!! Then we came home and took a nap.

I'm still having mild contractions that are pretty irregular and am at a solid 3 centimeters dilated, but still just 70% effaced. At this point, I'm happy to be home to let my labor progress on its own schedule to see if this baby wants to arrive in his own time. I still have a little less than a week until my due date and then another week until my midwife feels induction is necessary. So, while I would have liked to come home with a baby in my arms instead of still inside of me, I also feel very strongly about trying to have him in as natural a way as possible. I feel like my body just wasn't ready and while induction would have brought him along, I believe in the natural process of childbirth and would like to try my hardest to have the ideal birthing experience I can. After all, this may be the only child we have.

I've had pretty strong feelings about how I'd like to labor but they have kind of been made worse by my very recent watching of the movie The Business of Being Born which I'm pretty sure I first heard about over at Amy's blog. It was a really good movie (kind of distressing for a women who is 39 weeks pregnant) about the decline in the quality of natural childbirth in hospitals. So I really did not want to fall prey to the insistence of nurses and doctors that I had to be induced when it was not medically necessary. That was the thing my birthing class coach kept saying, just keep asking "Why is this medically necessary?" if you are uncomfortable with anything they want to do.

And the other experience that I kept having was they give you options that really sound like something you have to do. Like when they said, "we are starting pitocin because you need it" it doesn't really feel like I have a choice. But we got a fantastic nurse who made sure to talk to us a little more about benefits and negatives with choices instead of insisting what we needed to do.

So I'm still trying to keep an open mind because I don't want to me so rigid that I'm upset if things don't go the way I plan. I can't control everything, but I'm glad I controlled this situation the best I could.

So here's to laboring on my own!!

Getting Closer.

I had another appointment today and am now almost 3 centimeters dilated. My midwife did not mention effacement, so I am assuming I am at or near 100%. She was willing to bet I would not make it another week, but she was pretty confident last week also. I am having contractions right now, but they are weak and inconsistent which has been pretty standard over the last week. I mostly feel crampy, I don't know how that translates into actual labor. So it's just a waiting game right now and we'll see.

Not Yet.

We're still waiting. Things have been busy. I felt sick most of Thursday, all day yesterday and off and on today. I feel faint a lot of the time. I have barely there contractions all the time. But nothing real so far. No real labor to speak of. It's not so bad because I keep telling myself I'll be 4 centimeters and 100% effaced at my appointment on Wed. and then labor can really kick in. I'm just getting the beginning work done with ease before the hard labor begins.

So I'll post again soon, maybe after the baby arrives or maybe before. We'll see how I feel.

Not long now.

I had a Dr. Appt yesterday and am currently 2cm dilated and 70% effaced. I had quite a few contractions and even thought they were moving along rather nicely. They went from painless to mild discomfort. They even seemed to be getting closer but not very regular. The contractions eased up as I relaxed a little more and went back to painless and sporadic. I felt a little flu-ish this morning, which is also a good sign of progression.

My midwife is pretty optimistic as well. She said I needed to make my next appointment (for next Wed) but might not make it till then and maybe she'd see me this weekend to have a baby. I'm excited, but don't want to get too hopeful. After all it is possible that I stay this way for awhile.

So who knows, maybe a baby will be here within the next few days.

Big Ol' Belly

Here I am at 37 weeks. I am getting more and more uncomfortable. I can no longer lay on my left side because it hurts all the time. My back hurts less, but my front hurts more. I have been getting more stretch marks, even a few on my lower back... what is that all about? But I am so close I can't even believe it!!



I had a Dr. appt today and it was uneventful as usual. She was really good about answering all the questions I had after taking a marathon birthing class over this past weekend. The thing she stressed the most... don't be a control freak about birthing. She told me to not go to the hospital with a long list of things I don't want done or don't want to happen, just in case they do. It's good advice, about the same thing Tara told me. Go with the flow! So that is what I am trying to do.

I've been trying not to complain too much, but Tara is getting sick of me. She said every time she calls me I am in a grumpy mood and groaning a lot. I still feel pretty good for the most part and will definitely miss being pregnant once the baby comes. But I am so excited for the little guy!

Still no crafting, but I've been slowly working at getting the baby's room ready. It is so close. I just need to get the dresser/changing table thing from my parents house and into my house. It is some old piece of furniture that is kind of like a cabinet, but it will be our dresser changing table.

Maybe soon I'll have something crafty to post.

Can you feel the love??

I sure can.

Everyone has been nothing short of extremely generous!! I can't believe how lucky we have been with this pregnancy. RheLynn sent me the cutest baby gift... a stuffed horse and rabbit plus two little blanket/burp cloths.



So cute, the little stuffed animals are so sweet and I can't wait until the baby shows an interest.



Then there has been the unbelievable amount of things people have been so generous to hand down to us. I finally spent a little time sorting by size. This laundry basket is full (OVERFLOWING!!) of everything that has been given to us from others that is sized up to 3 months. I don't think our little man will have to wear the same thing twice. I only hope there is someone I can pass it onto when he outgrows everything. There is so much cute stuff.



And here are the few new pieces. I am so happy to be clothing our baby in nearly all hand me downs. I think these clothes are not worn long enough before little ones outgrow them. And it makes me happy to be avoiding the unnecessary purchases when there is already so much out there.



I did feel the need to buy one outfit (I think it is the only item of clothing I've personally bought so far) that the baby will come home in from the hospital. I thought he should have his own new special bought by Mommy outfit. It is the stripped jumper. So cute!!

Good Food

A little while ago Tara posted about comfort foods. Something she felt inspired to do by Amy over at My Merry Way. I felt compelled to do the same but never felt up to it.

Until now...

I am kind of weird about food. I think I may have even talked of this before. If I really like something the first time I have it, that is the way I think it should always be. Then I don't really like too many alterations. There are foods made be specific people in my life and I don't want the recipe repeated by anyone else.

My mom make lasagna that can't be beat. I try all the time, it is never the same. Part of the special- ness of her lasagna is the sauce. It doesn't really happen anymore, but when all three of us kids were living at home and older (like high school age) she would make sauce and each family member would wander through the kitchen and taste the sauce. Everyone had an opinion and added more of something to the pot. More oregano, more basil, more garlic (usually my vote), maybe some hot sauce, or a little salt. After the sauce had simmered for awhile, the entire family had been involved, usually more than once. This is probably why my mom doesn't have a recipe to give, and I can't recreate the sauce. I also loved to eat the shredded cheese that lay on the cutting board waiting for the layering. But this drove my mom crazy... because as anyone who has grated mozzarella knows, it is not the easiest, being a soft cheese. So I try to avoid pissing off the chef and would take slices and then dip them in the hot sauce bubbling away on the stove. I even had a friend who liked to make lasagna sandwiches, which are so good also. She was big on pasta sandwiches (spaghetti, lasagna, penne, whatever she had between two slices of garlic bread). So I often describe this as my favorite food.



But while living in Alaska... something new. Something GREAT. Something really so basic and not so special but that I love so much, I make Tara make it for me (I could do this one myself, but for some reason, it needs to be done by Tara) every time I'm up there. Cornflake Chicken. She found the recipe in a Weight Watchers cookbook. I don't think we use any of the low fat items it calls for and we use all the full fat versions (like mayonnaise). It is such a basic recipe, but I love the juicy chicken and the crunchy cornflakes. She usually makes a tasty veggie to go with. And it is a recipe that her whole family enjoys. Which can be particularly hard with her picky husband and step-son.

I am getting hungry!! Oh, so is my dog, here she comes to try to get me to feed her. Well, I've probably bored enough with only two of my favorite dishes. What of Moner's macaroni and cheese, or Kyle's fried rice, or dessert, or breakfast. Alright, off to eat something.

For being a food lover, I have to say, I had a hard time spelling a lot food words. Spell check left me with big yellow slashes all over this post.

(Above is a picture completely unrelated to food. Kokanee LOVES to sit on our lap. So much so that getting on the floor for any reason usually entails her right up in our faces. Here she is getting brushed by Kyle and loving the attention.)

As the belly grows...

Here I am from last Tuesday. About 35 weeks.


I can't believe how big I feel. I have been having terrible back pain lately that has made life hard. I'm sure it is pregnancy related, but I get this kind of back pain at other times as well. It is just harder with the big ol' belly hanging out there in front of me. Kyle and I were just talking about how we really should get prepared for the trip to the hospital and I was talking about when I should start my maternity leave (in two or three weeks?? - I could technically start this week) and he said it was too soon for him and to slow down. It's coming whether we are ready or not!! That's not to say that we aren't also excited, but terrified is up there as well.

I scheduled my Christmas massage for this Friday morning. And then we have a super intensive baby class weekend. Friday evening, all day Saturday, most of Sunday and again on Monday evening. WOW!! I would have preferred the six week class, but when I scheduled it, we did not know that Kyle would not be traveling for work. Oh well, I just hope it is informative.

Still not much crafting going on. I am jealous of RheLynn and her 365 days of crafts. Sounds like fun. I just don't have the motivation to do much else than lay around.

All right, I must go get ready for work.